Topic: Rafa: Xabi Needs To Step It Up

[Liverbird 2010]

Main thing in this article for me is that Kuyt will be playing on Sunday.

Yep, I think its out of order to critise Xabi he has been injured best part of the season, and I can name 5 players that have been poor all season.

Kuyt, Voronin, Kewell, Aurelio, Riise.

[Neil D]

Can anyone tell me the last game xabi played well? or got two assists?

He was very good against Chelsea in the League Cup. Before that, his MOTM showing against Derby prior to his injury.

[Neil D]

Yep, I think its out of order to critise Xabi he has been injured best part of the season,

He's hardly criticising him - he's explaining why he's not playing and saying what he has to do to win his place back in the team. We've all seen in his last three or four games that Xabi has been well off the pace and struggling to influence games like we know he can.

[Johnnyboy1973]

He was very good against Chelsea in the League Cup. Before that, his MOTM showing against Derby prior to his injury.

Hmm. Who was missing that day?

[Fordy]

Well if Rafa stopped messing about with the team every match then maybe Alonso could find some form.

How Rafa can even state that people have been unfair on Kuyt is beyond me. Kuyt has been piss poor this season.

I have stated on here on number of times that I feel Alonso will be sold in the summer if Rafa stays and Rafa's comments wont help the situation.

Sorry but Kuyt, Kewell,  Aurelio and Riise need to step up their game more than Alonso at this minute.

If anyone needs to step things up its Rafa

[vicgill]

Look at it this way. A journo asks Rafa why Xabi isn't playing. So, he says Xabi is just back from injury and is not back to his best yet. It's also hard for him to get a game right now because the other CMs are playing well.

That's not a criticism of Xabi. It's just an explanation which makes sense to me.

Journos will always spin whatever answer they get. Why are you over reacting?

Is right

[Emo Phillips]

Hasn't he only just recovered from injury?

Of course he's not 100% yet, whats the problem?

It does seem that Rafa is talking more about fitness and sharpness.

Xabi has always been Rafa's go-to man, on and off the pitch.

But Rafa continuously being so defensive over Dirk Kuyt's horrendous display really makes you wonder.

Xabi is struggling for fitness, Kuyt for confidence. So you handle them differently.

Also, Xabi is still a great player in the fans' eyes, while Kuyt is the new whipping boy, and any manager worth his salt will defend those players who are in that position.

[-HH-]

Yep, I think its out of order to critise Xabi he has been injured best part of the season, and I can name 5 players that have been poor all season.

Kuyt, Voronin, Kewell, Aurelio, Riise.

No point kicking someone when they're down. Xabi has had some great games this season (Derby in particular, and Arsenal before he came off injured) but he's been poor since he came back from injury and that wasn't that recently anymore.

I think he's the perfect candidate for a kick up the backside. He knows Rafa rates him, his form has dipped and he's maybe going through the motions a bit, this should hopefully stir him back to life.

[Reeves]

Long term I want Crouch to stay but become 3rd choice behind another top class player, probably with Dirky and Voronin moving on. He is a very good option off the bench and decent cover at any level. He is also a handful in Europe and feared by a lot of sides.

Agreed but I "want" Dirk and Voronin to move on.

[Emo Phillips]

Well if Rafa stopped messing about with the team every match then maybe Alonso could find some form.

What, you mean play Gerrard and Mascherano in the middle every game? Hmm, how will that help Xabi?

Oh, you mean drop Masch? Hmm, so Rafa should drop the man who's been our best player in recent weeks? That'll really stop fans moaning, won't it?

Ah, so you mean move Gerrard to the right? Now I'd go along with this - except everyone would say "Rafa, stop fucking with your team, play your players in their best position, yada yada yada".

Meanwhile, you have people saying Lucas should get lots more playing time. Ever wonder how a manager can win?

[Neil D]

Hmm. Who was missing that day?

The same man who was missing for the best part of 90 minutes on Saturday.

[Liverbird 2010]

The same man who was missing for the best part of 90 minutes on Saturday.

See the kipper on him in the post match interview ? Gob was liked a smacked arse.

[liverbird_soph]

Can anyone tell me the last game xabi played well? or got two assists?

Last good game that sticks out in my mind is Derby at home.

[Fordy]

What, you mean play Gerrard and Mascherano in the middle every game? Hmm, how will that help Xabi?

Oh, you mean drop Masch? Hmm, so Rafa should drop the man who's been our best player in recent weeks? That'll really stop fans moaning, won't it?

Ah, so you mean move Gerrard to the right? Now I'd go along with this - except everyone would say "Rafa, stop fucking with your team, play your players in their best position, yada yada yada".

Meanwhile, you have people saying Lucas should get lots more playing time. Ever wonder how a manager can win?

No I mean just play your best team week in, week out. Then all the players know where they stand.

All this in the team one minute out the next does no one any favours. No wonder players lack confidence or cant find form.

[xavidub]

. Ever wonder how a manager can win?

He could start by:

Playing Torres every LEAGUE game

Never playing Voronin again

Never playing Kewell again

Never play Aurelio or Riise as LMs again

Never play Lucas as LM again

Make substitutions early enough in the game to make a difference

Play a striker who scores in consecutive games

Play more than one striker at home to bottom-of-the-table sides

Ask Striker to stay in the box and demand that midfielders get forward to support him and give him service

Coach players to run into space even when they HAVEN'T got the ball

Practice Free-kicks, Corners and Throw-ins

Emphasise the value of KEEPING possession

So there is quite a lot a Manager can do really.

[Circa1892]

I hate the fact that stuff like this is done in public. Its lousy man management and its not the Liverpool Way. It just feeds into the whole 'problems at Liverpool' stories

In fairness, when Ged did it to Stevie after the Basle game a few years ago it was probably the best thing that ever happened to him. Gave him just the kick up the arse he needed.

[xavidub]

In fairness, when Ged did it to Stevie after the Basle game a few years ago it was probably the best thing that ever happened to him. Gave him just the kick up the arse he needed.

True but again, GED was known for being very close to his players so he could do that, just as my close friends can criticise me and I will take it constructively. If someone that I am not close to criticises me I may not react so positively.

[lookieman]

No I mean just play your best team week in, week out. Then all the players know where they stand.

All this in the team one minute out the next does no one any favours. No wonder players lack confidence or cant find form.

But mate, what is our best team week in week out?? What works on one team might not on the next. On that note, I'd say Rafa has played his best team ( Kuyt aside) week in week out, a team that is set to capitalise on whatever weaknesses of the team we are playing on a particular week. I'm pretty sure your definition of a best team is based on form but when we have so many players off form, does chopping and changing help? Won't that be rotating players for its own sake?

[suede lady]

doubt it. xabi is a mature player, he can take criticism with out throwing his toys out of the pram.

[Rafas legends]

Its not only xabi who needs to step up there is quite a few that havent been playing as well as they should this season i.e kuyt,voronin,kewell,riise etc....

agreed

[Neil D]

True but again, GED was known for being very close to his players so he could do that, just as my close friends can criticise me and I will take it constructively. If someone that I am not close to criticises me I may not react so positively.

Rafa is closer to Xabi than any player.

[xavidub]

Rafa is closer to Xabi than any player.

I hope you are right.

[Walshy®]

The people moaning about Kuyt not playing well, is because he isn't that great. He is a good striker low on confidence but he isn't the best thing ever.

Alonso on the other hand can produce magic but isn't doing it for whatever reason.  He started very slow last year and again this year.  He played well for about 4-5 games and then has dropped off the radar again due to injury.

I think we should cash in on him IF he doesn't return to form soonish. Lucas will be a much better player than Xabi and we will have Lucas/Masch/Gerrard for the middle.

We have carried Xabi for a while now. If he cannot return to form, then I personally would let him go.

[Jedimills]

We really are in no position to question how he man manages his players.  None of us know Xabi and or what he is like and what he is likely to react too.

He is simply putting the ball in his court, making it known that he wants more and expects more.  This is not airing linen in public but making a statement with the intention of provoking a reaction.  Xabi was very poor against West Ham and I think that he needs to up his game.  He is trying to get back 100% fit but we do not see him at training, maybe he has not been putting it in, maybe this, maybe that.  Let's stop questioning Rafa and get behind him.

[LFCScouser]

Should of been saying this last season Rafa.

Sell him at the end of the season to someone like Valencia.

[Dr Cornwallis]

What's this?  Rafa is turning over a new leaf and actually managing his under-performing players?
This is the type of messge that needed to be sent to Xabi 2 years ago.
He's a luxury player, and right now we cannot afford luxuries. 

[Dr Cornwallis]

LFC scouser, you got a picture of Di Rossi as your avatar?
You will be pleased/unaffected to know that i played a game of football against him a few months back, and also gave him a dig in the back at a corner, which his bodyguard did not approve of.
Good lad though.

[MNAA]

Wish

(1) Rafa would keep Torres & Crouch partnership until Kuyt sort himself out (if he ever ...)
(2) Rafa quit worrying about the need for us to adjust/tweak ourselves according to our opponents

Neither will happen though ...

But what do I know ... except continue to wish and hope ....

[MortyMan11]

The other players you mention, who needs to step it up, they are all being critizised in the media, but Xabi never is.

I think Rafa is doing this because he really wants Xabi to play good the rest of the season, he REALLY needs him to play good, and that means better than what he's playing now.

So he takes it in the media because that way Xabi really has to step it up. I REALLY don't think Xabi's on his way out, that would be very strange! He still is, and I think Rafa agrees on this, one of the most important players we have. His passing is the best in the Prem, no doubt, and that is very important for us.

My opinion is that this is a way of getting Xabi faster back to his great form, and that will help the team alot!

[vintage74]

nothing xabi did'nt already know with the way javier is playing, and by the look of things staying with us also.

[Joe_Singh]

Just because he's had a go at Xabi publicly doesn't mean he isn't saying nowt to the likes of Kuyt, Kewell and Voronin. Stop making assumptions.

I think Xabi will stay he is recovering from Injury and he is in a team which is low in confidence. He will turn it around soon.

[ZhaoYun]

He should have asked Kuyt to fucking step up instead of anyone else in the squad. I am starting to believe Rafa is a gay and has a love affair with Kuyt.

If what Kuyt is following orders given by Rafa, Rafa should fucking get the sacked, and bring along Kuyt.

[rafathegaffa]

Jaysus wept. If Xabi gets flogged, we'll be further starved of cohesive football. Our current tactic of "Run away from the man in possession" is breaking my heart.
The one senior player we have who likes possession, plays the intelligent pass and makes us tick - has been underperforming... hopefully this will act as a kick up the arse for him. He should have killed Luton away.

However, I do think it's time we accepted that with the personnel we have, we are far more suited to the Chelsea 4-3-3 formation than any attempt at 4-4-2.
Unfortunately the performances of Captain Sporadic in the middle of the park involve lengthy periods of inactivity, in order to make editing the highlights reel an easier task.
However, if we played Masch, Alonso & Stevie with Torres up top supported by Babel and Yossi (or gulp, Pennant), then we can see the best of Gerrard without sacrificing stability.

[Mark Walters]

"I like to use all the players I have in my squad"

And that is the problem right there. Form has nothing to do with it. Just an adherence to variety for the sake of variety.

Such an ill-informed opinion!

[Robinred]

What, you mean play Gerrard and Mascherano in the middle every game? Hmm, how will that help Xabi?

Oh, you mean drop Masch? Hmm, so Rafa should drop the man who's been our best player in recent weeks? That'll really stop fans moaning, won't it?

Ah, so you mean move Gerrard to the right? Now I'd go along with this - except everyone would say "Rafa, stop fucking with your team, play your players in their best position, yada yada yada".

Meanwhile, you have people saying Lucas should get lots more playing time. Ever wonder how a manager can win?

This is a very pertinent point.

But to play devil's advocate for a moment; how did we get to the (desperate) point in time where so many players' form is so crap, that the manager feels obliged to play so many of them out of position? (and I think Saturday was the first time we've seen this, as opposed to a 'surprise' selection in terms of form)

I can understand that the furore over Rafa's tenure has adversely affected the team - and certain individuals more than others.

And one can assume, I think justifiably, that any whiff of discord we are privy to on here is in the players' domain even earlier. One can understand young and inexperienced players being affected more than seasoned pros. But so many players - young and old - have seen their form plummet.

There's something deeply wrong in that dressing room is my guess. Could it be pro and anti - Rafa?

[Skillz]

Personally think this is an over reaction. I would like to see those comments in person. In other words, the context in which they were said because it isnt that bad and I expect Xabi to respond in kind. My only fear is that his head is already elsewhere, which would be disappointing to say the least.

We can't afford to lose players of his class unless we have something better lined up IMO.

[Skillz]

Should of been saying this last season Rafa.

Sell him at the end of the season to someone like Valencia.

  I see where you are going here

[common]

How Rofa is gaining confidence of Xavi Alonso, the lad who is comming back from serious injury:

1. Alonso is one of the best players in Luton's cup game, putting very promising display undoubtely
2. SG is benefiting from Xavi's style of play significantly
3. As a reward for that performance, Alonso is dropped to bench at home to Villa and not used at all
4. Alonso isn't in the squad for Havants game
5. Alosno is central midfielder away to West Ham when team's crisis are spiraling, in the worst possible lineup at that moment, with 4 players (Aurelio, Finnan, Kewell, Kuyt)  totally out of form and confidence
6. Alonso is punished - dropped from the squad vs Sunderland, Aurelio continues in the lineup with another shocking display, Finnan's playing 2half, Kuyt last few minutes
7. Alonso is publicly criticised by Rafa, although one of the most under-perform player Kuyt is praying by the manager in the same article

Yes, I've lost faith in Rofa. The reason isn't this shocking public statement he's comming with, the reason is everything above, it's about how our current manager has been giving a confidence to one of his man, to one of the best central midfielder in Premierleague, to his countryman Xavi Alonso.   

Do you expect this kind of abjection of Xavi by our current manager that I've mentioned in this article, or even this ridiculous statement by Rofa could help to step up Xavi's game?
My answer is no, Rafa is just preparing supporters and media that Alonso will be axed in the summer transfer window.
Simply as that.

[matthew45]

I hope you are right.

You, Sir, are clearly an expert. Not only do you know more about how to motivate one of Rafa's players and fellow countrymen than he does, but you know that Xabi is actually secretly Catalonian (hence the spelling Xavi) rather than the Basque that he himself claims.

I take my hat off to you. With knowledge such as this, I can't imagine for the moment why Sky Sports have Steve McClaren to comment on Spanish football rather than you.

[philyburkhill]

If Crouch gets dropped for that steaming pile of horse shit, then it'll show why some of our players look lost out ther.