Liverpool FC Team Talk, Gossip, Rumours 2024/25

I was reading somewhere that it looked like Pep had them targeting Fab and Robertson. Not letting them play their game.

With regard to Gini, I agree with you that he wasn’t always on top of his game. But I think some of the reasons for the rose tinted glasses is from looking at our constantly injured midfield early this season and Gini just didn’t seem to get injured.

The frustrating thing i found with yesterday is i was excited to see how the midfield of Hendo, Thiago and Fab would get on. Its our strongest midfield IMO and I really thought they would get a lot of joy against city but they were completely overran - it didn't help Fab had probably his worst game for us yesterday.

We really were second best for most of the game so we're lucky to get the point i suppose and as others have said who knows what may happen in the coming weeks.

That's been a bit generous, City completely outplayed us for vast periods of that game and no one here could argue if they had put 3/4 past us in the first half alone. You make it sound like they just nicked 2 goals due to luck and timing! They could have had 6 and looked extremely dangerous every time they has possession in our half. A draw was a great result for us on reflection.

City were fantastic, I'm not downplaying that but like you've pointed out they aren't clinical they couldn't put it to bed. Goals are what win a game and atleast one of there's was fairly fortunate. I'm really pointing out, the couple times we did put a few passes together we scored, we can take alot from that for Saturday, be a bit more brave and direct.

It’s a pity there hasn’t been much word of Jota since yesterday. Once again, and in the biggest of games, he’s in the right place at the right time and delivers with all the pressure on, as he pretty much always does.

If someone whose never watched him asked me about him, I couldn’t even really describe him as a player, he doesn’t look like he does anything at a world class level on the ball, but he just has that knack for scoring goals. Even the last great pure striker (traditional centre forward, like, not goal machine wingers which we’ve become accustomed to) we had in Sturridge relied a lot more on talent and pace (until he lost it) to score his goals, but you could see Jota scoring the same type of goals at 35 as he is now.

That’s not to say he isn’t talented or quick, but he’s a real throwback to what strikers used to be and it goes to show that the art of positioning and timing can still be as dangerous as ever. I’ve seen one or two in here compare him to Fowler and I think that’s spot on, he’s just a slightly poorer finisher but maybe a more skilful player on the ball than God was. And he does half his work from the left wing too, despite the fact that he’s so clearly a centre forward by nature, he can still be dangerous from the wing in a much different way than Mane or Salah would be.

We’re going to see Jota start every big game from now on I feel, it was obvious he’d get the start against City after being rested against Benfica so it goes to show how highly thought of he really is by the management. I’ve never been so impressed by a Liverpool forward who looks so unimpressive to the eye, if that makes sense. There’s almost no style to the lad at all, but he’s so ruthlessly effective and clinical.

Looking at the fixtures apart from weekend April 23rd Liverpool will be playing first each time. Man City have yet to find a date for Wolves (a) so as it stands Liverpool will go a game ahead when they play Villa on May 10th. Plus one team will find an away game to squeeze in between the cup final and that final Sunday

We always play out , even when City did their own pressing, its just what we do, and what they do at the other end. I never thought we'd be so high there though, I expected us to out smart them, drop deep, keep ball, and hit them time and time again with our ability to break faster than anyone else in the league. Was it brave or reckless to play so high in such circumstances.

Matip was the one less brave than anyone else, he seemed to be forever 4 foot deeper than VVD, and the one always playing them onside. We usually keep a straight line, but Matip could not bring himself to trust in the process in such circumstance, he always wanted a yard head start, rather than trusting in the system.

If Matip got out for the second, it would have been off. Had the ref not allowed a rolling ball freekick to be taking 10 ft from where the offense took place whle talking to two Liverpool players it would have been no goal.

Mane fought for the ball before that free kick was taken, he lost the battle, but he then should have stood in front of the ball, was so silly to just walk away.

I think the League is probably over. If we do it from here, I truly believe we'll have won every game, and West Ham or Wolves will have somehow gotten a scabby draw against City somehow. That's the only scenario where I can see us doing it.

But it's amazing we've made it the race it is.

Thank Christ for Klopp. The Premier League would've been more of a procession than any other league in Europe without him.

for the love of god diogo....pass that fckin ball .... .

You really need to stop making stuff up. Watch the video, there's no sign that the ball was moving when the free kick was taken, the City player actually put his hand on the ball to make sure it was stopped and then took the free kick. Yes it was possibly 10ft away from the foul but those 10 ft were further AWAY from our goal and there's no evidence whatsoever that the ref was "talking" to the two Liverpool players, he was just listening to them moaning about the free kick, big big difference.

You're clutching at straw's and need to get over it. City reacted quickly, we didn't and were rightly punished, end of.

All teams take indirect free kicks and throw in's from locations that aren't exactly where the foul was made or the ball crossed the side line, there's a long history of ref's allowing some latitude to the team with the free / throw in. Can you imagine the uproar if the game was stopped every time an indirect free kick or throw in was taken anywhere but at the spot where the offence occurred, particularly where the team with the free kick / throw in took it 10 feet closer to their own goal than where the offence occurred or that free kicks couldn't be taken until the players moaning about the free being given had stopped their moaning?

At least you're no longer arguing the ref also let them take the free without blowing his whistle first 🤐

Any actual video evidence that the ball was rolling when the free kick was taken?

Perhaps there's a reason Klopp and the players didn't lose the head or that any of the pundits / commentators on Sky or BBC didn't spot it and make a big issue of it during their post match analysis? Could it possibly be that the ball wasn't actually moving????

99 times out of a 100 the ref will call back a quick free kick that is close to the box if he is has not seen the kick being taken. We can't see from the video but it looks before the camera cut away he was not watching the ball.

The ball was not moving, the olayer that took ot put hos hand down and stopped it so it was still

Also they always seem to let you away, with moving the vall of its further back that u go

Going by that pic it looks like he is looking at and speaking to Henderson and not looking at the ball, but it is hard to see

Maybe. Maybe.

If you look at the video the pic is from you'll see he doesn't speak to either Hendo or Fab and that whilst he isn't looking directly at the ball it is well within his range of vision, hence he was content to allow the quick free kick to the fouled team rather than blow up for the free kick to be re taken because either the ball was moving (which there's no evidence of) or he didn't see the free kick being taken.

Good refereeing as far as I'm concerned albeit it was against us.

If the ref had been talking to Hendo / Fab or the ball was moving when the free kick was taken the players (that were paying attention instead of moaning), Klopp and the coaching staff would be going mental and the pundits who are always looking for an angle to create talking points / contraversy would have been hopping up and down over it but none of them were, because it didn't happen!!

From the picture, Henderson, Thiago, Fabinho, Mane, Jota and Matip all not looking at the ball.

The only person switched on is KDB arms out calling for it while TAA is standing with his hands on his hips in front of him.

I agree with most of what you post, but I don't think we need to forget this City side is very good. They make you play badly with their pressing and their general play. It is how under Rafa pundits used to lament how we would win but the other team was not at their best. The reason was we didn't allow them to play their best.

It's the same with City. They don't allow you to be at your best unless your game plan is a counter attacking style. They may not have renowned defensive midfielders in the first choice 11 right now, but it doesn't mean that Rodri and Silva isn't good at pressing and stopping you from playing. I mean players like Fernandino a few years ago or Fabinho now or Kante. Players that dominate defensively that you marvel at.

Another thing for me that makes this so impressive, it is very hard to plan against. On Saturday we may face City with Silva in the front 3 and another player holding. The less time the opposition has to plan for what you offer the better it is for you. It is what makes our options up front so impressive. We can have 4 of 5 different combinations and if the opposition hasn't seen it or thought about it then it may create chaos that we can benefit from.