Something that occurred to me after yesterday's game was that this team gets spooked by ANY change in game state - conceding a goal, missing a penalty, not getting a penalty, subs, and even scoring a goal!
I was shocked at how much more vulnerable we looked after scoring the equaliser yesterday. Just when you expected the momentum to tip in our favour, it actually went in the complete opposite direction. The xG graphic in your article shows this. Bournemouth battered us after it went 2-2.
The best teams play the same way regardless of the game state. We're far from that. What on earth is the fix? Why aren't they players confident in their game plan? The coach needs to be getting this message across, but this season he seems to be inducing panic himself. Maybe somebody needs to have a quiet word with him and remind him how he made it to this level and won the top prize.
You've reminded me of an article from earlier this month which looked at how bad Liverpool had been when 2-0 up, even though that should be a relatively comfortable lead:
My assumption is that the tragically disrupted pre-season has torpedoed their fitness, hence why they struggle to get much going late on (once past the early weeks of the season).
We've been spoiled to an extent by having Jurgen managing the team for so long and becoming accustomed to 100%, full on, heavy metal football.
Last year was more tempered, and it was glorious, but the 100% nature of the identity was there for most of the season.
I think it's fair to say that this team in now Slots and our identity has been lost/replaced. Slot can't bring himself to trust anyone outside the core 15 or 16 players he uses so it's no great surprise when those outside that core can't function within the framework because the don't get the opportunities bar rare occasions.
I find myself unwilling to watch much anymore, the central belief of both the team and the supporters that there's always the desire to win in the team has left.
Do we think Alexis Mac Allister has kompromat on Slot? I don't think I've ever known a manager be more committed to playing a player he doesn't need to play than Slot is with Mac Allister? I appreciate he was brilliant last year, but for whatever reason he has been miles off it pretty much all of this season.
A penny for Curtis Jones' thoughts as he sits on the bench yesterday wondering what exactly more he could have done for the last 4-6 weeks to have taken Mac Allister's place semi-permanently.
It seems as though Slot starts the season with very rigid ideas about the role each player in the squad will play and, absent injuries, that tends to be that. Which is cool when you're winning the league but makes you look a bit weird when you're producing bottom half form...
Mac Allister has started seven games more than Jones in all comps this season but has played fewer than 400 minutes more despite Jones missing an extra three matches through injury. I'd start Curtis more but their playing time has been broadly similar.
Right, their playing time has been broadly similar. I would not say their level has been broadly similar however.
And this is what I mean: Slot seems to be incredibly committed to playing Mac Allister into form but.... if it happened by Jan 24th I fear it just ain't gonna happen (this season)...
I should add: I am a really strong supporter of Slot. I think a lot of the fanbase is suffering from nostalgia for 'the good old days' and forgetting that Klopp's side's often struggled against low block teams (as has Pep's best sides over the years). So I am not on the #slotout wagon at all. But the extent to which he keeps picking Mac Allister and Gakpo when both of them look like they'd struggle to get into Everton's first XI right now is not helping his case I'd say....
From top to bottom the hierarchy needs to be ruthless, we know they won’t as each level has its own favourites. Stats aside the performances have been diabolical, we couldn’t have hand picked a better 15 games to play(as per your chart from the other day) and we come out of it with 5 yes 5 wins. Problem I see is where do we want to rectify this as we are now Man U ….lack leadership( everywhere), gutless, devoid of tactical acumen and psychological damaged ….over to you FSG
I don't think the club necessarily lacks leadership anywhere, it's the same people in the key positions as it was last season when they won the league, after all. A lot of fans don't like how Liverpool operate yet it has generally worked well in the last decade.
For good or bad, FSG don't seem to care what fans think either, they'll just keep on keeping on. I still doubt they'll make any changes before the summer, if at all.
Complacency breeds contempt. I don’t think we have any leaders on the pitch in the mould of a Souness or Henderson , who even when not playing well themselves still drove the team on
No, probably not. Virgil leads by example but that obviously fails when he has a bad night. I'd like to think Jones or Szoboszlai could bring a bit of that.... not enough though.
Something that occurred to me after yesterday's game was that this team gets spooked by ANY change in game state - conceding a goal, missing a penalty, not getting a penalty, subs, and even scoring a goal!
I was shocked at how much more vulnerable we looked after scoring the equaliser yesterday. Just when you expected the momentum to tip in our favour, it actually went in the complete opposite direction. The xG graphic in your article shows this. Bournemouth battered us after it went 2-2.
The best teams play the same way regardless of the game state. We're far from that. What on earth is the fix? Why aren't they players confident in their game plan? The coach needs to be getting this message across, but this season he seems to be inducing panic himself. Maybe somebody needs to have a quiet word with him and remind him how he made it to this level and won the top prize.
Up the reds!
You've reminded me of an article from earlier this month which looked at how bad Liverpool had been when 2-0 up, even though that should be a relatively comfortable lead:
https://www.andrewbeasleyfootball.com/p/liverpools-leading-problem
My assumption is that the tragically disrupted pre-season has torpedoed their fitness, hence why they struggle to get much going late on (once past the early weeks of the season).
This probably planted the seed in my mind!
We've been spoiled to an extent by having Jurgen managing the team for so long and becoming accustomed to 100%, full on, heavy metal football.
Last year was more tempered, and it was glorious, but the 100% nature of the identity was there for most of the season.
I think it's fair to say that this team in now Slots and our identity has been lost/replaced. Slot can't bring himself to trust anyone outside the core 15 or 16 players he uses so it's no great surprise when those outside that core can't function within the framework because the don't get the opportunities bar rare occasions.
I find myself unwilling to watch much anymore, the central belief of both the team and the supporters that there's always the desire to win in the team has left.
Do we think Alexis Mac Allister has kompromat on Slot? I don't think I've ever known a manager be more committed to playing a player he doesn't need to play than Slot is with Mac Allister? I appreciate he was brilliant last year, but for whatever reason he has been miles off it pretty much all of this season.
A penny for Curtis Jones' thoughts as he sits on the bench yesterday wondering what exactly more he could have done for the last 4-6 weeks to have taken Mac Allister's place semi-permanently.
It seems as though Slot starts the season with very rigid ideas about the role each player in the squad will play and, absent injuries, that tends to be that. Which is cool when you're winning the league but makes you look a bit weird when you're producing bottom half form...
Mac Allister has started seven games more than Jones in all comps this season but has played fewer than 400 minutes more despite Jones missing an extra three matches through injury. I'd start Curtis more but their playing time has been broadly similar.
Right, their playing time has been broadly similar. I would not say their level has been broadly similar however.
And this is what I mean: Slot seems to be incredibly committed to playing Mac Allister into form but.... if it happened by Jan 24th I fear it just ain't gonna happen (this season)...
I should add: I am a really strong supporter of Slot. I think a lot of the fanbase is suffering from nostalgia for 'the good old days' and forgetting that Klopp's side's often struggled against low block teams (as has Pep's best sides over the years). So I am not on the #slotout wagon at all. But the extent to which he keeps picking Mac Allister and Gakpo when both of them look like they'd struggle to get into Everton's first XI right now is not helping his case I'd say....
From top to bottom the hierarchy needs to be ruthless, we know they won’t as each level has its own favourites. Stats aside the performances have been diabolical, we couldn’t have hand picked a better 15 games to play(as per your chart from the other day) and we come out of it with 5 yes 5 wins. Problem I see is where do we want to rectify this as we are now Man U ….lack leadership( everywhere), gutless, devoid of tactical acumen and psychological damaged ….over to you FSG
I don't think the club necessarily lacks leadership anywhere, it's the same people in the key positions as it was last season when they won the league, after all. A lot of fans don't like how Liverpool operate yet it has generally worked well in the last decade.
For good or bad, FSG don't seem to care what fans think either, they'll just keep on keeping on. I still doubt they'll make any changes before the summer, if at all.
Complacency breeds contempt. I don’t think we have any leaders on the pitch in the mould of a Souness or Henderson , who even when not playing well themselves still drove the team on
No, probably not. Virgil leads by example but that obviously fails when he has a bad night. I'd like to think Jones or Szoboszlai could bring a bit of that.... not enough though.
“Where do we start to rectify”