Topic: Walk Round Anfield Table. Liverpool 4-1 Chelsea.

[Hinesy]

Well what a difference 120 makes.
5:15pm last Saturday, the world of football punditry says Kenny should start with Bellamy, Suarez and leave Andy Carroll on the bench.
7.15pm Why didn't Kenny play Carroll from the start etc etc


Andy gets a song tonight, there's only one Andy Carroll. Thank fuck there is. At that price anyway.
But all this chat about whether Luis and Andy Carroll can play together is bollocks. They demonstrated clearly they can. And he showed how good he can be perhaps...s

If only says Souness on the tv, and I'd agree. If only is the catch phrase that hangs over supporters to their death, and we suffered from it all season. Tonight, the joy of beating the plastic johnny come latelys is tempered by the frustration why couldn't, didn't we play like that before.


Anyway, there was good and bad and unusual. Why Kenny has finally decided to try Henderson in the middle where he's eminently more comfortable, I care not, it seems to work and its better and I like him there. Downing isn't shit, he's a good player but someone in our side had to hit the woodwork and it was his turn tonight. He is frustratingly poor at times but I think we don't have anything like him at his best (nor thankfully many like him at his worst ha ah thank ewe...).


Pepe's save was wonderful and clawed from mid air and he had every right to celebrate fiercely afterwards.

Its not the end of term report but it is the end of playing at Anfield this year. Get the curse lifters out in force and sort it out before the 1st August when the 46th qualifying round for the Europa League Cup starts.

Do you know what, its like Janus, the two faced god.
One way: we got silverware, reached another final, got back into Europe and played some free flowing football.
T'other way: fucking woodwork and apathy.

Trot on merrily.


PS Luis' daughter won't trouble the beauty pages in the near future but she was very cute waving at her dad's command to all and sundry on the walk round.

[Frank.]

The performance everyone said had been coming all season finally came today. Andy Carroll was absolutely unbelievable and what everyone thought he would be when we signed him. I think he's been quite good since the turn of the year but especially since the Newcastle game he's been pretty damn good.

Suarez' first goal was brilliant he knew exactly what he was doing the whole time and think he aimed to put it in off Essien rather than play it back to someone else. Henderson took his second goal extremely well with a composed finish. The third was a nicely worked set piece, I said to brother during the time between the foul and the penalty we might hit the post. Shelvey's was a very nice finish too. I didn't like the look on Kenny's face during the lap honour though..

[the 92A]

Loved it last night. For me the performance was the icing on the cake, what pleased me was the crowd, now I know we got off to a good start and the football boosts the crowd but last night there was something different, lets face it you weren't turning up gloryhunting last night. I got in and struggled to recognise anyone, loads of season tickets had been passed on, around us and it felt different. You could feel we weren't as jittery as normal, waiting for failure ready to groan, when The Chelsea started to sing from their cliched Anfield hymnbook, it wasn't ignored they were put firmly in their place. Doesn't half make a difference to the atmosphere this was a crowd who were there to support.

Football wise 442 with Carroll and Luis, the two that can't gell together, except Carroll looks a different player, not only in terms af him marauding around the pitch like one of them Sea Odyssey Giants but from his link up play, dare I mention it but he looked like a Toshack or for the youngsters, an on form Crouch last night, controlling the ball and bringing other players into the game. Luis is a genius one of them players who does it wrong but gets it right, he has no right to score that goal, every coach would tell you not to try and dribble through that many players but in Luis's case they'd all be wrong. His balance is sublime, how he alters it slightlyand throws international defenders askew is unbelievable. Maxi Rodruigez hardly put a foot wrong for me he was the man of the match, his intelligence with his interplay with Suarez was worldclass last night.
Carragher did a good job on Torres and Agger was moved to left wing with Enrique dropped. Shelvey and Henderson were in the middle and both played well, although for me that's where you need your class and were we've gone wrong this season. For us, it may have been a rubber duck, or whatever it's called, but it wasn't for Chelsea, lose this and they miss out on the Champions Leauge unless they win it and there team was changed but it was hardly their reserve team. But you couldn't help but think, I'd have gladly swopped results with last Saturday.

It was good to See Johnnie Barnes and Robbie Fowler back at Anfield for the half time charity pens, George even threw on a bit of The Clash, it might of been a game of no importance but I haven't enjoyed a game as muchas this for ages, lets see what next season brings.

[Veinticinco de Mayo]

I will come back with something more reasoned later, especially as Albie is spot on about the atmosphere.  What a blessed relief.  But for now... what the fuck has happened to Andy Carroll?

A player who a month ago was being routinely dumped on his ample yet sorry arse by journeymen centre halves now looks like he would win a 50-50 with a chieftain tank.  He roasted Terry and Ivanovic last night.  Destroyed them.  I think if Geoff Shreeve's had popped up at half-time with "Did you get booked in the first half? Yeah, well did you know that means you can't play in the second?" then I think Branislav would have hugged him.

He has certainly upset the summer transfer applecart in the last few games.

And having cursed the woodwork all season I want to offer a silent prayer of thanks to the Kop crossbar for keeping Torres' brilliant shot out.

[No666]

You could feel we weren't as jittery as normal

I enjoyed The 92A's post today in the Auld Arse thread, which was a kind of happy postscript to an earlier post on the same subject in there.
The British signings all did well last night, imo, which begs questions about nervousness and attitude and the tantalising question of why we wither in certain, apparently contradictory, situations. If we're losing Maxi and Kuyt this summer, there really is a cliched case to be made for a Gary Mac grey beard in midfield, someone else who has dealt with pressure, be it finals or should-win games against lesser opposition.
Apart from that, how good is it to see Terry's Engerland career being nudged towards the grave thanks to us?

[lachesis]

...what pleased me was the crowd, now I know we got off to a good start and the football boosts the crowd but last night there was something different, lets face it you weren't turning up gloryhunting last night. I got in and struggled to recognise anyone, loads of season tickets had been passed on, around us and it felt different. You could feel we weren't as jittery as normal, waiting for failure ready to groan, when The Chelsea started to sing from their cliched Anfield hymnbook, it wasn't ignored they were put firmly in their place. Doesn't half make a difference to the atmosphere this was a crowd who were there to support.

Yeah I'd go along with this. It was like when we'd come to Anfield after a poor away showing in Europe when we first got back in. There were no great expectations or agendas that needed to be fulfilled. Everyone just went the match to have a good time and watch Liverpool play. There were empty seats scattered here and there but there was more genuine support as a result if that makes sense. The YNWA alone at the end had a ghostly aura and transcended the lip service that is paid to it just before kickoff in most league outings. On the flip side where does this leave us? The injection of new blood and people who don't go as often and the atmosphere was more relaxed/friendly even. There were even a few shouts for Downing as he stepped up for the penalty, which continued despite him missing it. It was nice in other words and a world away from the usual tense, dour affairs.

As for the game itself, was relaxed and never really felt as though we were in danger. Some things of note.

Henderson is a different player in the middle. We need to stop playing him on the right even when Lucas returns. It's clear he is a central player. He may have been able to offer a team like Sunderland something on the right side but by and large his best contributions have been in the centre for this club. Took his goal with great aplomb yesterday.

Why we didn't play Maxi more this season is beyond me. Even if he disappeared in some games he can always produce something that contributes to a goal. Enjoyed the ovation he got and his wave. Everyone seemed to know it was his swansong.

Shelvey had an excellent game. What I liked is that he demonstrated a presence that we have missed all season. Whenever loose balls fell he was there, if it wasn't him it was Henderson. The positional awareness really stood out for me last night. It stopped the quick counters that have been our Achilles heel often this season. And with players like Ramires, Sturridge and Malouda Chelsea did have pace to threaten us in this regard. Unfortunately for them, they needed to be in possession to play the counter attacking pass. Thought this was done with unrelenting efficiency the whole game and Shelvey got the goal he deserved.

Downing was tidy and it was a shame he couldn't get his goal. Is he a long term solution - possibly not, but I feel we have to take a decision as a fanbase this season. Everyone has underperformed and everyone needs to have the same support or lack of applied. Players have made shocking appearances and management have made baffling decisions. It's time to plant your flag and not be picky. We either back everyone and wipe the slate clean or we replace what hasn't been good enough. For consistency I'm willing to gve Downing another season as with everyone else. It may come back and bite me in the arse but this season has given us little to make a strong decision on regarding players or management, despite individual leanings/opinions. I have doubts about aspects of the club at the moment but they are weighted on a small amount of time and what i would be loathe to call more than 'loose footing'.

I pointed out in another thread the detriment chopping and changing systems and personnel has had this second half of the season. We reverted back to 442 this game and played well. Results wise our best games have been setting up as 442 or 451. I think now, for better or worse, we are effectively a 442 team. This doesn't bother me in the slightest but it opens up big questions as to where people fit now or even next season.

Also the trend of the team performing better as a unit without Gerrard reared its head again yesterday. Gerrard is/was a class player - but I'm starting to think are we accomodating him to the detriment of the team. It may be a difficult decision to make, but is Gerrard part of this project? And if he isn't or won't be around when it starts to bear fruits is it worth persisting with making room for him or do we totally focus on the team we are trying to build.

With players heading off the only problem I forsee is where do the goals come from that we have lacked this season? Which then opens up the question of investment which leads onto an uglier question of do you trust by and large the same team and scouting department to being in new recruits this summer that have a positive immediate impact? I think I'm just going to forget this season completely and see what happens over the summer.

Andy Carroll has also finally landed on Merseyside.

[Gnurglan]

Thought we played well. Liked that we chased the ball a bit higher up. Every time they played it back to their keeper, we won the ball as a result. It was good to see, but it was also frustrating. We could/should have played like that more often. It worked against Chelsea away earlier this season (similar goal to Shelvey's yesterday) and more recently we saw Gerrard steal the ball for Suarez' first goal vs Norwich. Yesterday it was Shelvey's goal that was a direct result. That's us at our best and we have just refused to do it enough times.

When we talk about scoring more goals, we tend to blame the posts, but IMO we haven't given ourselves the best platform to score. It's more than our finishing. The way we press is one of those things. Press high and we get the rewards - easy goals. We gain something from for example Suarez' hard work. Sit back and we won't get those goals. Suarez' work is just wasted. So why have we placed ourselves in the back seat all season?

Carroll, Maxi and Suarez played very well together. Carroll deserves some extra praise. He hasn't been very good earlier this season, but in the last few games he's looked a really good player. And I'm happy we've learnt that we don't need to hoof it for him. Play the ball with a bit of variation and he has a lot more to offer. It's the same as it was with Crouch. He wasn't just a tall guy to launch it long for, he was the one to bring others into play. Something he did so well and something we have seen from Carroll too.

Shelvey took his goal well. Overall he gave a good display. Like what I see from him.

Naturally we hit the woodwork and we missed a penalty, but we also scored four.

There are still a number of things that we need to address, but it would be nice with another win so we can go into the summer with some optimism.

[lionel_messias]

I can't write a very long post but here is an idea that has been bouncing around in my head based on this match.


442 is much maligned. Nowadays when you think about that formation, images of Roy Hodgson, Steve McClaren and Graham Taylor pop into your head - rightly or wrongly.
Now I know that the formation should suit your players etc but I think there is a kind of snobbery against 442 ever since the tactical sophistication the coaches like Rafa brought to the Premier league.


What does this mean for us? I believe we haven't played much 442 this season for a couple of reasons:

• The loss of Lucas has weakened our midfield (fatally some would say) and so Kenny could not fully trust two midfielders to do the job
• The Andy Carroll factor (tm) - recently much improved - the feeling must have been that we can only play Suarez upfront and use an extra midfielder to get the fast, flowing football that Kenny wants us to play, that and the unreliability of Andy, earlier in the season that is.

The Chelsea performance last night (with Gerrard conveniently out of the picture) showed that we can play 442 and play the kind of football we want to play. The problem is we need to be able to cope with and without Lucas, and away from home we will need a physically stronger player than Henderson and/or Shelvey.


Sadly the reality for us is that both Newcastle and Spurs show us what can be achieved with the right players and without spending £100 million either. Suarez playing off Carroll can be a major plus for us. And going by last nights formation, and based on who with think is leaving I suggest Kenny looks to do this next season:


                                                                                                 THE BEASTMASTER
                                                                                 SUAREZ                 


 NEW LEFT WING                                NEW TIOTE-STYLE MIDFIELDER               LUCAS                           GERRARD (rotations; Downing, Sterling)




Don't know what firepower we will have in the transfer market this summer but I would concentrate our cash there, as well as signing a young striker who will kind of replace Dirk Kuyt in the squad system.


Not meaning to go Football manager at all here: my main point is the days of us having a lone striker might be over for Liverpool, at least for now?

[vicgill]

Loved it last night. For me the performance was the icing on the cake, what pleased me was the crowd, now I know we got off to a good start and the football boosts the crowd but last night there was something different, lets face it you weren't turning up gloryhunting last night. I got in and struggled to recognise anyone, loads of season tickets had been passed on, around us and it felt different. You could feel we weren't as jittery as normal, waiting for failure ready to groan, when The Chelsea started to sing from their cliched Anfield hymnbook, it wasn't ignored they were put firmly in their place. Doesn't half make a difference to the atmosphere this was a crowd who were there to support.



I loved the whole post Albie mate but the first paragraph is what I would like to comment on. Thanks to Canal+ I was able to watch the game live and I said to the Mrs. "There's something different about the crowd" and I am sure that filtered through to the players, our newer recruits played really well, it seemed as though every one of them were relaxed and out to enjoy themselves and of course the nutmegging of Englands brave John Terry, 3 times, each time I punched the air and jumped up and down.

[DanA]

Andy & Suarez were breathtaking as our attack. How many times between them was Terry nutmegged?

Still feel the midfield is too far away but they did a good job of getting the ball in to our strikers. Was very happy with Maxi but not so much with Downing. Yes he missed a penalty but some of his movement and play was terrible. That ball lofted over the keeper by Andy after Suarez knocked down, where was Downing running? Thought he also killed a few of our attacks on the counter too.

Good to see the midfield pairing get a goal each, haven't been seen to many of them and I always like to see an Agger goal.

Not a bad way to finish the season at Anfield. Nothing has changed though for me. It's been obvious what we need since about November, while Andy has stepped up still nothing much changes.

[DanA]

Just regarding formation. For me the goals scored had nothing to do with formation and everything to do with intent.

- Suarez's came from nothing but a willingness to take players on.
- Shelvey's from a keeper error and aggressive pressing
- Agger from a setpeice

Henderson's the only exception and you could argue we were fortunate Terry slipped.

We played well, bossed the game and I couldn't be happier but IMO the performance came down to great individual efforts rather than getting the formation and team play right (attacking wise). Defence was rock solid and has been all season.

[Carlos: Very Kickable]

Wow. How different did the team look last night?

Dont know how much was due to the crowd or how much was due to Big Andy parking his tanks on their lawn and running them completely ragged - its a chicken and egg question but its the kind of performance we have needed for a long while.

Kenny - made absolutely the right choices in terms of tactics and personnel. I was disappointed to see carra picked when I saw the line up but not surprised as it was our last home game of the season. In the event i was wrong - he had a good game and obviously relished keeping Torres in his box. As a team we seemed to carry on where we'd left off at wembley.


Defence

Pepe - shame about the goal but he couldnt have done much once the contact with the ball was made, was glad to see his obvious delight in making the point blank save. Johnson - another fantastic, under-rated performance from him. He has the ability to deliver early, pacy, vertical phase crosses that Andy could feed off for next season. Even without slipping the defender those are the kind of balls he will win most time against most top level defenders and I really felt last night the team are learning how to play around him.  Carra / Skrtel / Agger - see above. Also the latter two did well to maraud up the pitch and sowed some confusion in Chelsea minds. They particularly struggled to adapt with those two pushing forward.

Attack

Downing - played well but still within himself. Unlucky with his shots and particularly unlucky with the penalty for which he had a decent plan to send the keeper the wrong way. He seemed to be inspired and take his confidence from the others playing well around him. Maxi - outstanding performance, quietly intelligent and always ready to go for the jugular. Wish we could transplant his brain into Downings head.

Henderson and Shelvey - improving with every game, becoming more aggressive, better first touches, ball retention, pressure play and crucially breaking forward much more. Made such a difference having men threatening their 18 yard line and we seemed to constantly have options.

Suarez / Carroll. Absolutely BULLIED Chelsea in a way you dont often see. It was almost cruel to watch though deliciously enjoyable. And we are talking international defenders who are used to playing against Drogba, Torres and Lukaku day in day out. Not only that but taking it in turns to nutmeg John Terry. It was like watching a kid pulling the wings off a butterfly. Not a SINGLE fuck was given and the most enjoyable thing i've seen this season. Those two are forming a partnership  - Carrolls knockdowns will provide a LOT of ammunition for Suarez to run onto and having two players who need double markng exponentially opens up spaces and possibilities. They have both had a lot of stick this season and their point was very firmly proven. Would love to see how many WUMS would be happy to play that GIF of the horse falling over a beachball in front of Andy now. I watched that performance in HD and I was terrified!

Well in lads. They just couldnt live with our cold aggression. We were nasty and we scared the shit out of them.

EDIT: it also showed up Di Matteo who has been exceptionally lucky so far as a manager though he seems a nice enough guy. Seeing him sitting there with his hapless dazed half smile as we tore into them again and again made me feel a bit sorry for him. He looked pathetic.

[Vulmea]

We either back everyone and wipe the slate clean or we replace what hasn't been good enough.

Why would we back everyone and wipe the slate clean. The whole point is to learn what we've done wrong and fix it isn't it?

Different players will have performed differently for different reasons - some because of inexperience, other because of confidence and still others because they are no good enough.
Two of those we should be able to address, one we cant.

I was worried about last night - kept thinking back to 71 and how our fans proved themselves in defeat - I'm disapointed to hear it took new faces to do it though- maybe they just looked different cos they were smiling.............

[Fat Scouser]

Footy's great sometimes.

[Andy @ Allerton!]

Wasn't expecting that much to be honest. But was really looking forward to the game. Last chance this season to meet up with my mates (Many who I have seen down in that there London over two finals and a Semi-final versus Everton). Some good away games and plenty of excellent home games - some where we came away with the points and some where it just wasn't to be.

I also knew we'd likely be seeing the last appearances of some of the lads and maybe one or two youngsters.

The crowd although not a sell out was enthusiastic and louder than pretty much every game this season (barring the obvious ones) and there seemed a real desire from the team to take the game to Chelsea and beat them at football. Without Gerrard we again looked more of a team with the younger lads making their own decisions and runs and using their own ideas. The older ones too also seemed to be happy that it was down to them and there wasn't someone there demanding the ball and that they were left to do their own thing.

Some cracking performances and Andy Carroll has looked like a new signing ever since the Newcastle away game. The realisation that the bridges between him and Newcastle have been well and truly burned seem to have made him realise that he's got a great chance at his new club and his commitment, determination, work rate and endevour has been excellent since. He won pretty much everything in the air and looks again like a player that could run through brick walls and have 10 pints of Newcastle Brown ale afterwards

At the back was great seeing Carra marshall the defence and Reina made some important saves. Agger was immense and contributed all over the pitch. Johnson was really good too. Skrtel was - well Skrtel - challenging for everything and winning pretty much everything. Excellent stuff.

Midfield was great. Dynamic. Flowing. None of the stop-start thing now that they could all do stuff rather than looking to use just one man. Maxi didn't get into the game as much as you'd have liked, but certainly put himself about and was involved in some nice moves. Henderson was brilliant. Again now he had that freedom to be his own man and make his own decisions, he ran from one end of the pitch to the other. His finish was excellent and he worked long and hard for everything. Shelvey as well had a terrific game and his strike was a thing of beauty. Made up for the lad. Downing struggled again but tried hard. The penalty.. well. What can you say? It was weird watching him taking it - it was like you'd been given a penno and your arthritic 95 year old grandad was brought on to tap into into the empty net so he could celebrate with some sherry and a bag of wherthers. No one was surprised when he missed. Not much else you can say.

Suarez was excellent at times and his running, workrate and understanding with Carroll is certainly getting to be a talking point. Again because their support was coming from all over and everyone was involved as a team - they had more space and time because the movement of the ball took it from wide to wide to forward to back. As it should be.


The young lad came on and what! a first touch that could have been! Dirky got a few minutes at the end and if he is off, it's a shame he got so little time.



Overall nice sticking it to Chelsea so emphatically and we've upheld that 'scoring 4 goals' record. Last game for me this season as I can't make Swansea. But we've had our ups and downs and ins and outs and many of them have made us into a more experienced team and the club and the players have found out a hell of a lot about themselves. The atmopshere in the ground needs sorting and our away fans have been tremendous all year round - so a massive show of respect to them.



One more game to go and a few decisions to be made in the summer but for me a very good season. Two cup finals. A semi and some fantastic displays from players that are very clearly going to get very much better when their experience comes to shine through.


MOM: Carroll. Could have given it to a few - but for me he was immense.

[jimmyjr86]

Other people will post better write up's/thoughts on the game but just wanted to say we all needed that last night. Kenny, the players and the supporters. We all reacted as one. No FA cup hangover, no problem. Bring on Swansea then bring on August.

[Skidder.]

I thought we played like a team that wanted to win the F.A Cup.

Excellent result nonetheless. 

[Adeemo]

But for now... what the fuck has happened to Andy Carroll?

A player who a month ago was being routinely dumped on his ample yet sorry arse by journeymen centre halves now looks like he would win a 50-50 with a chieftain tank.

That's the player we signed, he was doing that almost every week and scoring goals as well. Please let this not be a flash in the pan because that was a monstrous performance he put in last night.

Very impressed with the pairing of Henderson and Shelvey, there seems to be a definite understanding there that bodes very well for the future. Anyone else think Hendo gave the keeper the old double bluff as to which side he was going to finish off his chance? A lot of players give the keeper the eyes, as Odemwingie did to Reina a couple of weeks ago and then hook it into the near post. I'm pretty sure Jordan deliberately did that and then opened his body up and put it in the far post anyway.

Another performance like that from the Redmen to see off Swansea and I feel we can go into the summer feeling a lot more confident than a couple of days ago, because last night we saw the raw potential in a fair few young Liverpool players and maybe, just maybe, they'll have learned an awful lot of vital lessons all in the space of one fucking weird season.

[Yorkykopite]

I was thinking the same thing as Gnurglan. Why haven't we been pressing so high up the pitch as we  did last night (and v Norwich). As a result Chelsea resorted to more long ball against us than I can remember for a long while.  It was easy for our defence as a result.

I was also thinking the same as Albie. Maxi was probably man of the match. He's just such a clever player. He lacks pace and body presence and at certain times these deficiencies are pitilessly exposed for all to see. It's a shame for him that his gifts are subtler than his shortcomings and that's partly why he never gets the plaudits he deserves. Having said that he was given a brilliant ovation as he left the field and the Kop lived up to its reputation as an educated football audience. One skill that he excels at - and I hope other younger players like Shelvey and Hendo will emulate - is his capacity to cut across the pursuit line of an opponent. You don't need burning pace to escape from a marker if you can turn on the ball and then cut him off with a run across his preferred line. Maxi does this time and again. When combined with his ability to change the angle a second time by passing sharply with the outside of his boot it doesn't half capsize defences.

And who times runs into the box better than Maxi 'McDermott' Rodriquez? I'm pretty sure it was him at the far post when Luis Suarez coaxed Essien into chasing one into his own net. There's an affinity between the two South Americans of course. Maxi must have thought "There's Luis with his back to the goal by the corner flag with two opponents bearing down on him. CHANCE!"

Good luck lad. You'll always be welcome back at Anfield.

What a pleasure to see Shelvey's performance too - though what a pity he couldn't have pressed his claim a week earlier in the horror show v the other small team in West London. He's going to be a good player, this lad.  He has awareness of what's happening round him (the little dink over his head to Agger, I think, in the first half), and he's two footed when it comes to controlling the ball and dribbling with it. That's the first 5 yards sorted out. He can also use different parts of his foot to pass and that speeds him up too. Not all our midfielders have that. On several occasions last night it was Shelvey who emerged from a midfield ruck with the ball and the time to plan his next move.

I know Chelsea were without Lampard and Mikel but it was still a considerable achievement for Shelvey and the excellent Henderson to win the centre of the pitch so smartly.

I accused Carroll of being more Alan Waddle than John Toshack the other week. Turns out he may be neither. On the back of the last two performances should we be looking at our own version of Didier Drogba? John Terry was almost nutmegged to death last night - f*ckin' rice pudding - but he actually looked scared of Andy Carroll. I don't blame him. For what it's worth I reckon Carroll has just played himself into the Euros.

Finally, well done Pepe. Next time I want to see you kick down the whole goal frame. And the last sentence is a sentence I love saying. "The magnificent Glen Johnson".

[Sangria]

Very impressed with the pairing of Henderson and Shelvey, there seems to be a definite understanding there that bodes very well for the future. Anyone else think Hendo gave the keeper the old double bluff as to which side he was going to finish off his chance? A lot of players give the keeper the eyes, as Odemwingie did to Reina a couple of weeks ago and then hook it into the near post. I'm pretty sure Jordan deliberately did that and then opened his body up and put it in the far post anyway.

I think he hit it before the keeper thought he'd hit it. Near post or far post, he had the beating of Turnbull as long as he hit it far enough away, because Turnbull hadn't really got his weight down.

[Yorkykopite]

I think he hit it before the keeper thought he'd hit it. Near post or far post, he had the beating of Cech as long as he hit it far enough away, because Cech hadn't really got his weight down.

Turnbull was fooled. But you reckon Cech was too, uh? Perhaps so.

[The G in Gerrard]

On the back of the last two performances should we be looking at our own version of Didier Drogba? John Terry was almost nutmegged to death last night - f*ckin' rice pudding - but he actually looked scared of Andy Carroll.

Martin Tyler asked this same question last night, could he emulate or surpass Drogba *without the diving*, Kenny should tell Andy at start of next season he's got the next dozen games and not bench him.

[Sangria]

Turnbull was fooled. But you reckon Cech was too, uh? Perhaps so.

Fuck my mistakes.

[B0151?]

Good to see Henderson finally being allowed to play in what is his obviously more natural position. I don't see why we have constantly been trying to force someone to play in a defensive role when they aren't suited to it. Henderson isn't the best technically defensively but he can run for days and he keeps possession. Okay, we might suffer defensively as a result but if we play as attacking and with as much desire, whilst also keeping possession that might not have mattered. I think it's also a good point to say that he was let off the shackle a little bit, no Gerrard in front of him.  Shelvey and him shared the respective responsibilities of a central midfield two excellently, I recall an occasion where Henderson had driven forward in support of him but then floated back off to make sure we weren't too exposed. Shelvey and Henderson both put in a very mature performance. They compliment each-other perfectly, one is an arrogant, powerful player willing to try something and take the game by the scruff of the neck, and the other an athletic, tidy ball-keeper. Put Lucas behind them and we've got one of the most dynamic centre midfields in the Prem.

Carragher was excellent, rolled back the years and fully vindicated Kenny's decision to shift Agger to left back (who was also really good). I know people say we shouldn't let this victory against a weakened Chelsea team paper over the cracks but the fact is that, like Kenny said, we've played as well as that on numerous occasions this season. Just we got 4 goals tonight, and the luck. We really earned that luck as well. We were fighting from the front, Suarez and Carroll showing great chemistry, quality and the desire to chase down everything, pressure everything, even when winning 4-1. Really did lead from the line them two. Everyone played well. Best moment of the match for me though, just ahead of Carroll sprinting after a ball going out for a goal-kick to put it out for a throw, was Pepe's vent of emotions after he made that save. Anyone saying we should sell him I just can't understand, the big man is quality and loves this club. His below-Pepe performances this season haven't been down to him not caring, that's for sure.

Say what you want about the King, the players could have easily slumped to defeat in culmination of a disappointing season, but Kenny didn't allow that to happen. People were saying this game doesn't matter, try telling that to Carroll, or Shelvey who got his first Premier League goal. (Or Chelsea who'll be joining us in the Europa League next season...) It mattered like every game should do; if a game doesn't matter to the players that's when we should be really worried.

Edit: how did I forget to mention Glen? If he hadn't had been out injured for a while, he'd be my red of the season. Enough said.

[Redd Foxx]

my main point is the days of us having a lone striker might be over for Liverpool, at least for now?

Interesting post, and I do agree that "4-4-2" has become sort of a dirty word in the modern game.  At the same time, I can't agree with your overall thesis that 4-4-2 is the way forward for Liverpool.

The problem lies in the fact that while we dominated Chelsea last night, overran them in every possible way, neither Suarez or Carroll actually scored (although the own goal was obviously all Luis' doing).  This has been a huge area of concern all season - neither of our main front men were natural goal-scorers. 

For Suarez, he tries to do too much sometimes, and by the time he has slalomed 4 players en route to a scoring opportunity, he doesn't have the balance or time to set himself for a killer strike at goal.  Has he been unlucky with woodwork?  Sure, but I just don't see him having a 30+ goal season in the league like the classic goal scorers (see Van Persie this year).  Yes, he did it in Holland, but that really is not comparable.

For Carroll, his form of late has been a sight to behold.  Physically dominating defenders, winning anything and everything in the air, and scoring a couple of timely goals in big moments.  But again, I don't think we could ever count on Andy to score 25 goals or more in a campaign, especially considering some of our best attacking moves will come from him winning a knock down to an onrushing player 35 yards from the goal.

So with that said, I envision an attack where Andy is the spearhead in a 4-3-3 with Luis and one yet to be added dynamic attacking presence in support.  Until recently, I feared that Andy would not fit into such a role due to his lack of movement and inability for quick reactions.  But honestly, he has shown all of this and more in the past few weeks, and I think he finally "gets it".  The types of attacking chances with this system are two-fold.  First, Andy could use his aerial dominance to create the aforementioned knock-down opportunities for the supporting players to rush forward like so:

                                                 Carroll
                                              /               \
                                     Suarez                Mr. X

Also, Luis and "Mr. X" can be both be players capable of beating a man and squaring for Andy to head in or piledrive with his left foot - the space being opened up with defenders being stretched by Luis and Mr. X's dribbling threat out wide:

                       Suarez                                Mr. X
                                  \                             /
                                            Carroll

Supported by a first choice midfield 3 of Gerrard, Lucas and Henderson - I really think this system is the way forward.  Bonus point - since this system doesn't require out-and-out "wingers", our failure to buy or develop a quality wide player for as long as I can remember doesn't handcuff our ability to create a cohesive attacking force.

[shelovesyou]

Cant add to the already excellent posts made here too much but it was special to see how the crowd got behind Andy when he chased that lost ball into the Kop end.
He's become a beast, well he always was one, but somethings come on in the lads head the last few games and its a wonder to see.
He had Terry, who lets be fair for all his faults is a fantastic defender, in his pocket, he ruled the roost and was very impressive.

[DonkeyWan]

The difference for me last night was in the middle of the park where the ball was repeatedly won and recycled. Carroll and Suarez did well, movement-wise, but the winning of the match was in the middle where a combative Henderson and Shelvey provided a platform for victory. Meanwhile, a very het up backline attacked Torres as much as the ball, providing not outlet for Chelsea. Therein, however, lies the problem. Our midfield (which Dalglish targeted for a lot of spending in the summer) don't normally get on top that easily in a game and the reason the team has has so many poor results all season stems from that. When we have Lucas and a hard-working midfield we look effective, the strikers get decent service, we play better the results are better (if a little underwhelming due to question marks over creativity and incisive play).

However, over the entirety of the season we have been demonstrably pedestrian in  the middle of the park, with Adam, Spearing, Gerrard and Henderson all looking flawed. Last night Shelvey and Henderson (who, it must be said excelled together as a pairing against Norwich) looked a good combination, but against an unfit Essien and an out of position Malouda. I would like to see how they perform against a tougher midfield, but I honestly don't think tonight made as much difference as some are suggesting.

When Liverpool struggle in the middle, they go long and direct. Its not terribly effective. The outlet from the wings should really offer some respite from that (see United, who spent a packet, always on wingers) which makes the poor form of the players in those positions all the more galling (last night again Downing was underwhelming. On the opposite side we play best with Maxi, but all year long its been a litany of misfiring wingers (Downing, Kuyt, Henderson, Bellamy, even Suarez was tried as part of a three). The only other option is to drop one of the strikers and plant another midfielder in the middle. This has been effective when Kuyt and Bellamy have been used, but these are short term solutions, since both those are gone in the summer.

In effect last night showed how the top two can perform given better service. With quality midfield possession, they can hurt teams. Getting that quality is the problem. Nothing I have seen to date suggests that the midfielders we have are good enough for a title challenge, or even a tilt at the CL. Remember, we had Mascherano, Gerrard and Alonso as part of a three, its a little unbelievable to expect players not in that bracket to perform to their level as part of a two. Whats required to make Suarez and Carroll as effective in every game is a better quality of midfield player... instead we will be shifting on Maxi, Kuyt and Aquilani and persevering with Adam, Henderson and Downing. I don't think all the passion, commitment and effort in the world will make up that shortfall.

Don't get me wrong, I loved last night, it was great. Great result, great performance and great nutmegs on a truly dislikable player. But I don't think it fundamentally changes things, the problems are still there for all to see.

[SalisburyRed]

Earlier on in the season it was fairly common to hear or read "sooner or later, we'll give someone a good hammering". I'm sure none of us thought that we would have to wait until the penultimate league game of the season to see us stick four past an opposition goalkeeper. I said before the game that even if we were to win the game, it would still be disappointing because there would be such a sense of what might have been. Ultimately, it wasn't quite as bad as that. While there was inevitably a frustration that this wasn't the type of performance we'd seen more often this season, last night's game had a real feel-good element to it. I wasn't at the game, but the crowd definitely seemed up for it, which was a welcome relief. I remember when we played Chelsea at home in 2009/10, our final Anfield appearance of that season, and the atmosphere was the strangest I've ever experienced. Thankfully, there was no sense of resignation about last night (although it probably helped that there was no danger of handing Man Utd the title by winning this time).

When I saw the line-up an hour before the game, I wasn't too keen on that team selection. Obviously I was happy to see Carroll's inclusion, and after his cup final performance there was no way he was going to start on the bench, but the presence of Carragher at the back (and the effect his selection had of pushing Agger out left) and Downing on the wing made me feel a little uneasy. They were both fine, however, even though I remain unconvinced of the merit of playing our number 23 at the expense of Kelly or Coates. Downing's penalty miss had a certain air of inevitability about it, such has been the sorry state of his season, but his performance actually wasn't too bad, the dipping shot that clipped the crossbar probably the highlight. Elsewhere on the pitch, there were plenty of positives. Shelvey and Henderson were excellent in midfield, using the ball well, not giving it away, and showing the kind of direction and dynamism that we've so often missed. It's clear that this position is where Henderson plays his best football, and I hope he appears there on a more regular basis net season. Maxi, meanwhile, was his usual efficient self. I'll be very sad to see him go. I've said it before and I'll say it again: he may go missing in games sometimes, often in the second half, but he's one of the most intelligent footballers in our squad right now. I'll miss his song too. It felt like goodbye to Dirk Kuyt too. It's fair to say that, rightly or wrongly, he's struggled to have the same impact this season, but if he does go we'll have many fond memories by which to remember him. I know he divides opinion amongst supporters, but we've all got a lot to thank him for.

The contest between red and blue around Ross Turnbull's goal was delightfully uneven. John Terry had a wretched game, particularly in the first half when he was routinely embarrassed; nutmegged by Suarez in the build-up to the first goal, victim to the conditions for Henderson's strike and hopelessly unable to prevent Carroll heading the ball to Agger for our third. Jokes were abounding last night about Bayern Munich appealing Terry's suspension so that he would be able to play in the Champions League final. You got the feeling that if that were actually a possibility, the Germans would consider it. Carroll was majestic in the air, Suarez was a delight when it was on the deck. The two of them showed last night that they can play together. There will undoubtedly be times next season when 4-4-2 is not the way to go, which will mean that either one of the two will start on the bench or Suarez will take up a wider role. But when the two can combine as they have recently, we might just be on to a winner.

Of course, some fans' glasses will always be half empty, and the main dissent last night seemed to be from those who claimed that we were only playing like this because the pressure was off. The pressure was off, to an extent, although such has been the team's record at Anfield this season, the players surely cannot have gone into the match with no mental obstacles. But if our success was largely down to having nothing to play for, that does at least suggest many of our problems are mental, not technical. I think we do need additions in the summer, and ideally we'll get rid of a handful of players as well, but the squad is not as bad as some have made out. The performance against Chelsea wasn't too dissimilar to many performances this year. The difference last night was that we took our chances and when they pulled a goal back we didn't let that set us back. We are, as some have said on numerous occasions, not that far away from things clicking into place.

[belfast-connection]

Of course, some fans' glasses will always be half empty, and the main dissent last night seemed to be from those who claimed that we were only playing like this because the pressure was off. The pressure was off, to an extent, although such has been the team's record at Anfield this season, the players surely cannot have gone into the match with no mental obstacles. But if our success was largely down to having nothing to play for, that does at least suggest many of our problems are mental, not technical. I think we do need additions in the summer, and ideally we'll get rid of a handful of players as well, but the squad is not as bad as some have made out. The performance against Chelsea wasn't too dissimilar to many performances this year. The difference last night was that we took our chances and when they pulled a goal back we didn't let that set us back. We are, as some have said on numerous occasions, not that far away from things clicking into place.

sorry to be the big chief piss-on-the-chips

but this is something that crossed my mind last night - the way we played harked back to the tail end of last season when the pressure was off   and we all thought that the sun had risen on a bright new dawn - only to come back this season and see all the old paralysing uncertainties taking hold again

i hope I'm wrong and the other thought that occured was that maybe Carroll's fight and passion was beginning to radiate and infect other members of the team but the other possibility is that the monkey on our back of 20 years without a title has a greater effect on our players than we think

if the history of club and the sense of needing to do right by it is a factor in adding pressure to the players then I do genuinely think that new signings should be coming from a footballing culture where that is not going to be as big a subconscious factor as it might be for players who grew up remembering how really really  dominant Liverpool really really were back in the day

[Gnurglan]

The difference for me last night was in the middle of the park where the ball was repeatedly won and recycled. Carroll and Suarez did well, movement-wise, but the winning of the match was in the middle where a combative Henderson and Shelvey provided a platform for victory.
...
Whats required to make Suarez and Carroll as effective in every game is a better quality of midfield player... instead we will be shifting on Maxi, Kuyt and Aquilani and persevering with Adam, Henderson and Downing. I don't think all the passion, commitment and effort in the world will make up that shortfall.

We played like a team. The high pressing won us the ball all the time. Made it a lot easier for our CMs. And it put us in better positions to attack. Just watched a few minutes and we won the ball or forced them to make mistakes a handful of times in as many minutes. Shelvey and Henderson did well, but IMO the key was the defensive work done by the attacking players.

Agree we need better midfielders though. Also agree we are trading down if your suggestion comes true. The concern is we have very simple decisions to make, but we will make sure we do things the hard way.

[Mr Dilkington]

I was thinking the same thing as Gnurglan. Why haven't we been pressing so high up the pitch as we  did last night (and v Norwich). As a result Chelsea resorted to more long ball against us than I can remember for a long while.  It was easy for our defence as a result.

I was also thinking the same as Albie. Maxi was probably man of the match. He's just such a clever player. He lacks pace and body presence and at certain times these deficiencies are pitilessly exposed for all to see. It's a shame for him that his gifts are subtler than his shortcomings and that's partly why he never gets the plaudits he deserves. Having said that he was given a brilliant ovation as he left the field and the Kop lived up to its reputation as an educated football audience. One skill that he excels at - and I hope other younger players like Shelvey and Hendo will emulate - is his capacity to cut across the pursuit line of an opponent. You don't need burning pace to escape from a marker if you can turn on the ball and then cut him off with a run across his preferred line. Maxi does this time and again. When combined with his ability to change the angle a second time by passing sharply with the outside of his boot it doesn't half capsize defences.

And who times runs into the box better than Maxi 'McDermott' Rodriquez? I'm pretty sure it was him at the far post when Luis Suarez coaxed Essien into chasing one into his own net. There's an affinity between the two South Americans of course. Maxi must have thought "There's Luis with his back to the goal by the corner flag with two opponents bearing down on him. CHANCE!"

Good luck lad. You'll always be welcome back at Anfield.

What a pleasure to see Shelvey's performance too - though what a pity he couldn't have pressed his claim a week earlier in the horror show v the other small team in West London. He's going to be a good player, this lad.  He has awareness of what's happening round him (the little dink over his head to Agger, I think, in the first half), and he's two footed when it comes to controlling the ball and dribbling with it. That's the first 5 yards sorted out. He can also use different parts of his foot to pass and that speeds him up too. Not all our midfielders have that. On several occasions last night it was Shelvey who emerged from a midfield ruck with the ball and the time to plan his next move.

I know Chelsea were without Lampard and Mikel but it was still a considerable achievement for Shelvey and the excellent Henderson to win the centre of the pitch so smartly.

I accused Carroll of being more Alan Waddle than John Toshack the other week. Turns out he may be neither. On the back of the last two performances should we be looking at our own version of Didier Drogba? John Terry was almost nutmegged to death last night - f*ckin' rice pudding - but he actually looked scared of Andy Carroll. I don't blame him. For what it's worth I reckon Carroll has just played himself into the Euros.

Finally, well done Pepe. Next time I want to see you kick down the whole goal frame. And the last sentence is a sentence I love saying. "The magnificent Glen Johnson".

A really good post. Typical!

There's a couple of things in there I found particularly interesting though. Your point regarding Shelvey's ability to pass the ball with different parts of his foot. I agree, and it's something I think his midfield partner from last night is lacking in. However I don't put it down to ability, I just don't think his confidence is all there when he's asked to play a ball at pace with anything but the inside of the boot.

There was a moment last night when Henderson received the ball just outside the 18 yard box. Agger was already ahead of the play and all that was needed was a pass with the outside of the right boot into space, or a left footed pass. Instead Henderson tried to change his body position and play it with the inside of his foot, what happened was the ball ended up nearly 5 yards behind Agger and the Dane did well to keep it from going out for a Chelsea throw.

The good thing, as I already noted is that I don't think it's down to a lack of ability. I just don't think he wants to make a mistake. But it's a key part of what makes great midfielders great. Look at Gerrard's pass to Torres for his first ever Liverpool goal. The pass Gerrard played was the only type of pass that would have given Torres such a brilliant opportunity to make Ben Haim look like a berk (although poor Tal did a good job of that on his own).

Henderson has such a beautiful understanding of space, it's just a shame he doesn't have the balls that Shelvey does. For example, I would have bet my life that Henderson wouldn't have scored that goal Jonjo did yesterday (saying that it was a brilliant finish for his goal).

Shelvey was good again last night. I still wonder about whether he'll end up though, and I suppose it'll all depend on what formation the manager decides to play over the coming years. I know he played as a number 10 quite a lot for Charlton and also for us in Europe - most notably away to Napoli (still remember with great fondness the Italian commentators saying 'who is this bald trequartista for Liverpool, he is very interesting') I think that was when he was 18 years of age. 18. It was an incredibly hostile atmosphere and he was the one player in our team who looked like making something happen. It's rare that - for someone so young.

Watched the game after I got home from work, so managed to catch peoples comments about it just before I watched. Gotta say, Carroll's performance didn't really live up to all the praise it was getting on here. Now, I accept I'm firmly in the minority here, so maybe I need to re-watch it. Don't get me wrong, it was a good performance; but to me it fell quite a bit short of being a great performance. I'd still prefer him higher up the pitch, and I still think he takes too many touches of the ball when he should be knocking it off first time and getting his arse in the box. But it is better, no question.

Suarez's performance however, now that was great. He is just a menace. Defenders look like they are drained after 10 minutes. He is such a weapon. There's no other player in the World like him. I truly believe that.

[Sangria]

What a pleasure to see Shelvey's performance too - though what a pity he couldn't have pressed his claim a week earlier in the horror show v the other small team in West London. He's going to be a good player, this lad.  He has awareness of what's happening round him (the little dink over his head to Agger, I think, in the first half), and he's two footed when it comes to controlling the ball and dribbling with it. That's the first 5 yards sorted out. He can also use different parts of his foot to pass and that speeds him up too. Not all our midfielders have that. On several occasions last night it was Shelvey who emerged from a midfield ruck with the ball and the time to plan his next move.

I've just noticed your point about Shelvey passing with different parts of his foot. It's something he shares with Gerrard, and my theory is he's modelled his technique on Gerrard, as their body shape is also somewhat irregular. I'm not sure how to describe it, but whereas the epitome of a repeatable technique is Alonso's, whose passing technique I rave about as the best I've ever seen, Gerrard can sometimes look off-balance when he does his wonder passes, as though he doesn't have the patience to get his body into the classical position before sticking out his foot and propelling the ball to the target before the opening is lost. Juan Loco is a fan of this technique, and Shelvey seems to share it too.

[Yorkykopite]

Your point regarding Shelvey's ability to pass the ball with different parts of his foot. I agree, and it's something I think his midfield partner from last night is lacking in. However I don't put it down to ability, I just don't think his confidence is all there when he's asked to play a ball at pace with anything but the inside of the boot.

There was a moment last night when Henderson received the ball just outside the 18 yard box. Agger was already ahead of the play and all that was needed was a pass with the outside of the right boot into space, or a left footed pass. Instead Henderson tried to change his body position and play it with the inside of his foot, what happened was the ball ended up nearly 5 yards behind Agger and the Dane did well to keep it from going out for a Chelsea throw.

The good thing, as I already noted is that I don't think it's down to a lack of ability. I just don't think he wants to make a mistake. But it's a key part of what makes great midfielders great.

You're absolutely right Dilks. If it's the pass I'm thinking of - towards the end of the match - then I noticed it too. The absurd thing was that the use of the instep almost put it into the path of a Chelsea forward instead of making it safer. The outside of the boot - a la Shelvey and, of course, the ultimate master Gerrard - would not only have generated a curve taking the ball away from the Chelsea player but placed it nicely into the path of a forward-moving Agger, as you say. So why not try it? A wee lack of bottle, surely. I mean, my god, Henderson has technical gifts to burn.

These are small things but I maintain they have a massive effect. The Spearing turning circle is too wide for example. It reduces the amount of time the next Red has on the ball. The fact that he generally receives a square pass from the right by turning from 12 o'clock clockwise through 3 and 6 until he gets to 9, rather than going anti-clockwise straight to 9, slows us down again. Contrast Skrtel's first touch on the ball with Agger's when there's space in front of them. If it were a race - which it sort of should be - then Agger would be out of the blocks a full second before Skrtel. Again, time bought for a colleague further up the pitch.

This is the biggest improvement I'd like to see throughout the team next season. Even yesterday it was noticeable the number of times our best performers on the night - Suarez, Shelvey, Henderson - failed to take the ball cleanly in the last third when a sure touch would have created a genuine scoring chance.     

[Mohammad Shahrul]

If our midfield is really really good next season (like yesterday), is it possible for
us to play a high-line defensive mode..? I mean, we have a super talented players
like Johnson and Enrique who can easily be a winger in any team... Its Henderson
and Shelvey who scored yesterday, the midfielders, where our forwards were
stretching the opponent's defenders. This season I saw we even struggled playing
against Wigan, West Brom, Fulham and other shits... The high-line style
might makes us a pressing team, fully attacking style. Well, for sure no need to be
super-pass ala Barca but aa... pressing is a good thing, isnt it? Just my opinion...
 
p/s: Damn it what a good day to see John Terry being bullied by Carroll and Suarez.
Hahahah!! Yea, both our strikers didnt score but still, hahahah!!! Feels good isnt it?
To be honest, 4th next season already make me happy. Seriously. The title might be
us within 2-3 years.
 
 
 

[SalisburyRed]

Gotta say, Carroll's performance didn't really live up to all the praise it was getting on here. Now, I accept I'm firmly in the minority here, so maybe I need to re-watch it. Don't get me wrong, it was a good performance; but to me it fell quite a bit short of being a great performance. I'd still prefer him higher up the pitch, and I still think he takes too many touches of the ball when he should be knocking it off first time and getting his arse in the box. But it is better, no question.

Maybe it is a bit an overreaction with Carroll. The thing is though, because of the season he's had, it's just brilliant to see him finally put himself about like we know he can, partly because many Liverpool fans didn't really believe he had it in him and partly because the player himself at times looked pretty inflicted with self-doubt. Last night, no one was going to win the ball in the air against him. I know what you mean about him taking too many touches, but equally, he's pretty good at keeping the ball once he's chested it down, so it's not as much of an issue as it would be if he simply couldn't hold the ball up.

[Cream147]

I don't mind that neither Suarez or Carroll didn't score, for me, this was how it was meant to be. Neither Suarez or Carroll are natural goalscorers, though I should hope that they can both contribute 10-15 league goals next year (Suarez perhaps more). However, what these two did last night was created the opportunities by which we could score, and that is what they specialise in doing. What they need is a midfield that can actually score goals. That is the problem. I don't believe that Lucas, Henderson, Shelvey, Downing, Gerrard, Spearing and Adam have managed 10 league goals between them, and that is worrying. We seem to be losing Kuyt and Maxi, two people who can pop up with goals, though not particularly many this season, particularly from Kuyt considering the number of games he has played. This is where I see the problem, and that is what I think our transfers should be looking to address. We should be getting about 25 goals from midfield.

[the_red_pill]

If our midfield is really really good next season (like yesterday), is it possible for
us to play a high-line defensive mode..? I mean, we have a super talented players
like Johnson and Enrique who can easily be a winger in any team... Its Henderson
and Shelvey who scored yesterday, the midfielders, where our forwards were
stretching the opponent's defenders. This season I saw we even struggled playing
against Wigan, West Brom, Fulham and other shits... The high-line style
might makes us a pressing team, fully attacking style. Well, for sure no need to be
super-pass ala Barca but aa... pressing is a good thing, isnt it? Just my opinion...
 
p/s: Damn it what a good day to see John Terry being bullied by Carroll and Suarez.
Hahahah!! Yea, both our strikers didnt score but still, hahahah!!! Feels good isnt it?
To be honest, 4th next season already make me happy. Seriously. The title might be
us within 2-3 years.

We had just as high a line on Saturday as last night though; and we pressed as high up as well. The difference I think- not to be a tosser, but my honest observation- is probably due to a few conspiring factors- Chelsea's changes, the lack of pressure and also the players' attitude in this one game. The way they played seemed more like they were trying to "make up" for Saturday. Others have mentioned the supporters around the pitch and I would certainly agree since they know what they're talking about.

The fact that we scored were probably down to another combination of Suarez and Carrol's terrorising of Chelsea's defense, particularly Terry as well as a bad night for the goalie- who looked like he was caught in the headlights. It's certainly the first I've seen of him.

The most promising for me was Andy's and Luis' increased ability to work together.

[L666KOP]

I'll have a go if y'all don't mind.
Watched on a shite stream because my LOF ran out last week and I wasn't renewing for 2 games 
Anyway,
I'm as guilty as others of giving Carroll a rough time of it lately, and I've been forced to swallow my knob after last nights performance, that was probably one of the best performances I've seen this year in a red shirt. John Terry and his sidekick looked terrified the whole game, in fact I can't remember JT ever giving up on aerial challenges and stepping a yard back hoping they won the 2nd ball, and if he does it, you know he's up against some fucking player.
Andy needs to produce to that level more often than not, and I posted on the 'post match' thread last night that if he replicates last nights performance for 30 of next seasons games we'll be in the top 4. I honestly believe that there's less than a handful of defenders in the world equipped to play him in the form he found in the last game and a half.
I just hope he was doing it for the right reasons.

And didn't our midfield do well, Jordan and Jonjo we excellent last night, and I'm sorry Jay, but you're not capable of reaching the standard they set, Jordan's pass completion must have been well into the 90% bracket 'cos I can't remember one going astray. I've thought long and hard about what I'm going to put next, and will probably be quoted and pulled for it, but Jordan reminds me so much of Paul Scholes, now I know they're big boots to fill, but if you watch him, he get's the ball and lays it off, then follows the ball to give the player he passed it to an option to pass it back if no other outlet is on, it's all about probing constantly, does the easy things really well, rarely miscues a pass and is learning when to keep it and when better to release it, I'm getting to like him an awful lot.

Jonjo, did an excellent job in the centre with Jordan, just a kid, been out on loan and we know he can tear up the championship, it's time to show whether he can lift his game and dominate midfields in the prem, and last njght he did. I thought the pair did really well, Jordans slick short passing, and Jonjos almost 'arrogant' swagger and biting tackles put the makeshift admittedely Chelsea midfield well and truly in it's place. Excellent composure and finish for his goal as well.

Maxi was, well Maxi really, he does what it says on the tin more often than not and we'll miss his game intelligence and knowing when to hit the back post, 'cos he's one of the best I've seen for that. Downing had a better game, but can't help feeling the PK should have been claimed by someone else, a better than usual first half culminated in a penalty miss, no suprise he failed to show in the second half, a genuinly fragile personality beforhand will not have been helped at all, and it showed.

Suarez was suarez, impudent at times, frustrating at times as well, the emotional rollercoaster I rode for 'his' goal was crackers, between "go on son" to "release it, fucking pass it" to " d'you know, I think he actually meant that " But I'm glad he wears red  Hopefully next season will be better again from him, it was only an 8 game ban, but we've 'lost him' for more than that. He'll also blossom as a provider as well if he sees the likes of Carroll improving, especially in front of goal. But Kennys outdated pairing of a big un and a little un certainly look like giving more than a few pause for thought.

Carragher did a sterling job of making it his personal mission that Torres was kept warm and dry in his back pocket.

Special mention to the crowd as well, seemed really up for it, especially warm towards Andy for the effort he put in.

Only downer on the evening was that Dirk didn't get more minutes, was hoping for half an hour in second half especially seeing as Downing retreated into his shell.
Woodwork took it's usual battering, and I can't help wondering what the reation would have been should Ivanovich's header evaded the post?

Michael Essien is a twat, Ivanovich is a shithouse, Luis' forearm smash (which we all know was deliberate) didn't connect nearly as well as Ivanovichs' kidney punch on the ?bolton player? Shelvey and Luis could both have justifiably been red carded, as could Ivanovich for the elbow on Carroll.
A video of Essien's 'tackle' on Andy should be sent to both the FA and the Police. It really was that bad.

[Yorkykopite]

Michael Essien is a twat, Ivanovich is a shithouse, Luis' forearm smash (which we all know was deliberate) didn't connect nearly as well as Ivanovichs' kidney punch on the ?bolton player? Shelvey and Luis could both have justifiably been red carded, as could Ivanovich for the elbow on Carroll.
A video of Essien's 'tackle' on Andy should be sent to both the FA and the Police. It really was that bad.

I thought Ivanovich's attempt to break Carroll's ribs was the worst offence. A clear red. The man had nothing else in mind but to hurt his opponent and stop him connecting with the ball.

Essien's was probably a red as well, but the foul was reckless rather than malicious. Indeed it's a sign of Carroll's enormous improvement that Essien's two-footed lunge ended on the back of Andy's calves rather than on the ball. It took Carroll's unexpected surge for the ball, with his left-leg leading, to turn Essien's stupid dive for the ball into a dive into the back of the man. 

[Vulmea]

Luis' forearm smash (which we all know was deliberate)

Maybe I'm naive but I think the lads just like an overenthusiastic kid in the playground - I dont think there was anything malicious in it - it can look bad in slow mo but I think sometimes he just sees 'ball' and everything else just leaves his head -  he would literally run through a brick wall for his team and damn the consequences -  the press however have already demonised him

Ivanovic can 'lose his head' for a second, ignore the ball and deliberately elbow somebody in the throat but with Suarez any contact even when going for the ball is because he's pure evil.