Topic: Naby Keita Watch

[Ratboy3G]

How on earth that was not a pen? Has football rule changed?

Atkinson had a narrative and wasn't going to budge, I've never seen a ref waste time before. Ridiculous

[JackWard33]

Are you sure? Because he had 0 key passes. 0 Throughballs. 2 successful dribbles out of 4 attempted. 0 shots. 0 successful tackles out of 3 attempted.

I'm not sure what he did other than that dribble (that he took a needless extra touch for and definitely should have had a penalty for!) that warranted him being kept on.

Well given we had zero chances in the second half who did have a key pass???! Thought he looked far more likely to produce one than shaqiri or Wijnaldam as I said
When you say ‘other than the dribble’ - it should have won us the game
Personally I didn’t get taking him off when we needed a goal but there you go - each his own 

[Schmohawk]

Definitely agree that we should have kept Keita on (Firmino as well btw) but that's easy to say now. Shaqiri, unfortunately, was a total passenger. Even though Henderson was one of our best players, we missed him in midfield tonight. A midfield of Gini, Keita and Shaqiri is too light weight.

[PhaseOfPlay]

Well given we had zero chances in the second half who did have a key pass???! Thought he looked far more likely to produce one than shaqiri or Wijnaldam as I said
When you say ‘other than the dribble’ - it should have won us the game
Personally I didn’t get taking him off when we needed a goal but there you go - each his own

We had 6 shots, 5 of which were unblocked, 1 of which was on target. So we had chances. Although they all came after Keita went off.

[RyanBabel19]

Thought he had a decent game

Instead of just giving away possession and leaving us open to the counter he found people in space and was constantly finding space himself for the return pass. The decision for the penalty is baffling to be honest but the worst thing is that it's not suprising.

[Raid]

Looked to me like he went up a gear in the minutes he realised he was about to be hooked.

Just want him to get back to basics. Looked a serious fucking player in his first couple of appearances

[SE20]

Dunno what he needs to do to come good. Is it the system and his role in it he's not getting? Is it the physicality and speed compared to the BuLi? Is it mental? There's clearly a top player in there somewhere.

And yes he should have had a pen, but honestly he should have gotten a shot away before Pereira made the challenge.

[Caligula?]

I'm not going to lie, I expected a bit more out of him than the occasional dribble going forward and just being 'decent' for the vast amount of hype and money. We're coming into February now.

[JackWard33]

We had 6 shots, 5 of which were unblocked, 1 of which was on target. So we had chances. Although they all came after Keita went off.

Not sure any of them were chances were they?
Keita created the best and basically only clear chance of the second half which he was deprived of taking

It was a bad attacking performance all round - as I said I saw Keita as one of the most likely we had to make something happen (partly because he's the only one who did) - you didn't ... fair enough

[LallanaInPyjamas]

Not sure any of them were chances were they?
Keita created the best and basically only clear chance of the second half which he was deprived of taking

It was a bad attacking performance all round - as I said I saw Keita as one of the most likely we had to make something happen (partly because he's the only one who did) - you didn't ... fair enough

If he had a left foot he could still have got a shot away before Pereira fouls him.

[PhaseOfPlay]

Not sure any of them were chances were they?
Keita created the best and basically only clear chance of the second half which he was deprived of taking

It was a bad attacking performance all round - as I said I saw Keita as one of the most likely we had to make something happen (partly because he's the only one who did) - you didn't ... fair enough

If they were shots, they were chances, though. 3 of them were in the box. 1 required a save. It was a bad attacking performance for sure, but I'm not seeing where Keita was a difference-maker that should have stayed on the field. He really wasn't doing anything to add to our attack this game. He was tidy, didn't give the ball away, but so was Gini. We effectively played with two #6s today when we probably didn't need to.

[AnnieRoad93]

Really hope he comes good, but I’m not going to lie to myself and say he had a good game. He was poor again, hence why he was hooked. He looks a bit lost at times, but the one time he did drive forward he should of had a pen which I guess is a step in the right direction

[FlashGordon]

Totally mystified me.
The only midfielder (including shaqiri) who looked capable of finding the front 3

I think it'll be lost in all the bluster and hullabaloo of dropped points, but he's quietly shown tonight he has the balls to play for us. I love Wijnaldum but if it's two in midfield next season against the shite it's him and Fabinho for me. Wijnaldum comes in for the 3 man midfield against the big boys but there's levels to this stuff and Fabinho and Keita have both shown they're at a higher level to all our other (strong) options.

Love that he wasn't happy with being taken off, a few months ago he would've looked meekly to the bench but now he knows he belongs.

[JackWard33]

If they were shots, they were chances, though. 3 of them were in the box. 1 required a save. It was a bad attacking performance for sure, but I'm not seeing where Keita was a difference-maker that should have stayed on the field. He really wasn't doing anything to add to our attack this game. He was tidy, didn't give the ball away, but so was Gini. We effectively played with two #6s today when we probably didn't need to.

We had 0.5Xg in the entire game including our goal so no there weren't chances in the 2nd half .... apart from the Keita clear pen of course...
Don't think anyone was the difference maker tonight I agree; but he came the closest.
Anyway it was a horrible attacking performance and Shaqiri starting games has become an issue but that's for another thread

[Keith Lard]

If they were shots, they were chances, though. 3 of them were in the box. 1 required a save. It was a bad attacking performance for sure, but I'm not seeing where Keita was a difference-maker that should have stayed on the field. He really wasn't doing anything to add to our attack this game. He was tidy, didn't give the ball away, but so was Gini. We effectively played with two #6s today when we probably didn't need to.

I would agree with you, but in the last 10-15 mins before he went off he really stepped it up, don’t you think. He was finally starting to make some decisive runs and penetrating passes. After all, his driving run 5 mins before being taken off should have been rewarded with a pen. Replacing him with Lallana was not the right call, but hindsight is of course 20/20

[johnj147]

average .. for all the hype about him .. been disappointed to be honest

[LallanaInPyjamas]

I think it'll be lost in all the bluster and hullabaloo of dropped points, but he's quietly shown tonight he has the balls to play for us. I love Wijnaldum but if it's two in midfield next season against the shite it's him and Fabinho for me. Wijnaldum comes in for the 3 man midfield against the big boys but there's levels to this stuff and Fabinho and Keita have both shown they're at a higher level to all our other (strong) options.

Love that he wasn't happy with being taken off, a few months ago he would've looked meekly to the bench but now he knows he belongs.

This is some take after one good moment in 65 minutes.

I think we all know by now that Wijnaldum is a fine deputy, but not the sheriff. That was no sheriff's performance from Keita though. Fabinho looked like a sheriff when he came on to me. That's the central midfielder I'd be building around.

[RyanBabel19]

I'm not going to lie, I expected a bit more out of him than the occasional dribble going forward and just being 'decent' for the vast amount of hype and money. We're coming into February now.

Unfortunately not everyone settles in the first season. Still plenty of games left to play but if he isn't at the level previously expected by the end of the season it isn't the end of the world

[Big Dirk]

Bang average again tonight....he came with the reputation of being a midfield enforcer yet keeps pulling out of tackles...Lallana gets slaughtered for similar.

[RobbieRedman]

I thought he was ok tonight actually all things considered, Shaq & Salah were far more quiet.

[MPowerYNWA]

Kieta looks lost at times and can be a liability with giving away silly free kicks and losing the ball in dangerous areas - I hope he improves but doesn’t look good as a fit with us so far.

I’m not sure what his standout skill is - he doesn’t seem to be a brilliant tackler, doesn’t have a brilliant pass, doesn’t seem to have a better engine than any of our other midfielders, doesn’t seem to have a brilliant footballing brain to spot passes / make intelligent runs - seems ok when he dribbles.

All players take time to settle and hope he will too - but not sure what his key standout is...

[El Lobo]

Bang average again tonight....he came with the reputation of being a midfield enforcer yet keeps pulling out of tackles...Lallana gets slaughtered for similar.

He came with a big reputation but I’m not sure I’ve ever once seen him described as an enforcer?

[FlashGordon]

This is some take after one good moment in 65 minutes.

It's not just one good moment though, he's always finding little pockets of space and always willing to turn on the ball and look forward. It was tough out there for us tonight, Leicester didn't offer an inch but if anyone was going to find it in a central position it was him. He was open countless times where his teammates didn't give him the ball because they're not used to a midfielder taking it on the half turn in a small space.

I did say he showed the balls quietly, it wasn't an unreal performance but I think it showed he's bubbling nicely.

[Gerry Attrick]

I think it'll be lost in all the bluster and hullabaloo of dropped points, but he's quietly shown tonight he has the balls to play for us. I love Wijnaldum but if it's two in midfield next season against the shite it's him and Fabinho for me. Wijnaldum comes in for the 3 man midfield against the big boys but there's levels to this stuff and Fabinho and Keita have both shown they're at a higher level to all our other (strong) options.

Love that he wasn't happy with being taken off, a few months ago he would've looked meekly to the bench but now he knows he belongs.

I was a massive Keita fan before he signed and still think he can be a top player at some point but I don't think you can say he's shown he's at a higher level to any of our midfielders.

[LallanaInPyjamas]

He came with a big reputation but I’m not sure I’ve ever once seen him described as an enforcer?

He generally made 2-3 tackles per game for Leipzig, he's not even averaging one per game for us and as others point out, more damningly regularly pulls out of them or just leaves a lazy leg in to foul players.

[Andy-oh-six]

How on earth that was not a pen? Has football rule changed?

It’s called the ‘Don’t give Liverpool another penalty because Salah went down a bit too easily’ rule!

It was a clear penalty all day long. Terrible decision.

[BrandoLFC]

If they were shots, they were chances, though. 3 of them were in the box. 1 required a save. It was a bad attacking performance for sure, but I'm not seeing where Keita was a difference-maker that should have stayed on the field. He really wasn't doing anything to add to our attack this game. He was tidy, didn't give the ball away, but so was Gini. We effectively played with two #6s today when we probably didn't need to.

If they were shots they were chances?  Really?  Sturridges shot was a chance?  In the Andros Townsend book of football maybe.  That’s ridiculous.

[PhaseOfPlay]

Unfortunately not everyone settles in the first season. Still plenty of games left to play but if he isn't at the level previously expected by the end of the season it isn't the end of the world

This is the thing - it's a quicker, more transitional and more physical league than he's ever played in. It'll take him time to adjust.

[Yorkykopite]

I was a bit surprised he was taken off. Perhaps he was tiring. He looks so supremely balanced on the ball and after an ordinary first half was starting to make things happen in the second. We saw some of those characteristic Leipzig moves he excelled in over there, where he follows his own short forward passes into the box, confident that he can take the sharp returns in crowded areas. The penalty shout followed one off these. It was fairly clear cut and the ref made a schoolboy error. He is, maybe, one of those refs who has never played footy and doesn't quite understand what happens when a standing foot is taken from beneath a player about to shoot.

Any road the bottom line is that Keita is coming good at the right time. There is a big part for him to play between February and May. I'm sincerely sorry for those fans among us who just don't see it. It must cut their enjoyment a fair bit.

[wemmick]

Glad to see him drive at the defense 2nd half. If only he had started the match that way.

[PhaseOfPlay]

If they were shots they were chances?  Really?  Sturridges shot was a chance?  In the Andros Townsend book of football maybe.  That’s ridiculous.

Is it? You'd know, right?

[thekitkatshuffler]

If they were shots they were chances?  Really?  Sturridges shot was a chance?  In the Andros Townsend book of football maybe.  That’s ridiculous.

Spot on.

[Peabee]

I was a bit surprised he was taken off. Perhaps he was tiring. He looks so supremely balanced on the ball and after an ordinary first half was starting to make things happen in the second. We saw some of those characteristic Leipzig moves he excelled in over there, where he follows his own short forward passes into the box, confident that he can take the sharp returns in crowded areas. The penalty shout followed one off these. It was fairly clear cut and the ref made a schoolboy error. He is, maybe, one of those refs who has never played footy and doesn't quite understand what happens when a standing foot is taken from beneath a player about to shoot.

Any road the bottom line is that Keita is coming good at the right time. There is a big part for him to play between February and May. I'm sincerely sorry for those fans among us who just don't see it. It must cut their enjoyment a fair bit.

That move into the box, which led to ‘that’ foul, was superb. Let’s hope he keeps making those passes and moves.

[FlashGordon]

I was a massive Keita fan before he signed and still think he can be a top player at some point but I don't think you can say he's shown he's at a higher level to any of our midfielders.

I think if people watch the game again you'll see he's picking up lovely little pockets of space and his teammates aren't willing to pass the ball to him, they're tight areas but ones he's comfortable getting out of. I only watched him about 20 times at Leipzig so I wasn't even one of his biggest fans at the time we signed but I saw something tonight that has me licking my lips.

Maybe I'll be proved wrong but I think he quietly went up a level, especially second half.

[BrandoLFC]

Is it? You'd know, right?

You know exactly what I’m saying but again let’s act otherwise. 

[PhaseOfPlay]

You know exactly what I’m saying but again let’s act otherwise.

Right.

[LallanaInPyjamas]

I was a bit surprised he was taken off. Perhaps he was tiring. He looks so supremely balanced on the ball and after an ordinary first half was starting to make things happen in the second. We saw some of those characteristic Leipzig moves he excelled in over there, where he follows his own short forward passes into the box, confident that he can take the sharp returns in crowded areas. The penalty shout followed one off these. It was fairly clear cut and the ref made a schoolboy error. He is, maybe, one of those refs who has never played footy and doesn't quite understand what happens when a standing foot is taken from beneath a player about to shoot.

Any road the bottom line is that Keita is coming good at the right time. There is a big part for him to play between February and May. I'm sincerely sorry for those fans among us who just don't see it. It must cut their enjoyment a fair bit.

Let's not play that game, Yorky. We can all see there's a player in there. We're not stupid. How much of a player is the question. I'm of the view that you and others are seeing things which simply aren't there yet, but at least you are discussing him on his own merits rather than throwing his better performing team-mates under the bus in order to defend him.

You see a supremely balanced footballer, whereas I see one who often falls over when he's shifted onto his left foot. You see a player taking the game to the opposition, whereas I see one who only did so once or twice in 65 minutes and spent the rest of the time passing sideways to his less talented, less creative midfield partner. I also see one who is extremely easy to play around for the opposition and it's no surprise Pereira had such joy in that zone.

[jillcwhomever]

Are you sure? Because he had 0 key passes. 0 Throughballs. 2 successful dribbles out of 4 attempted. 0 shots. 0 successful tackles out of 3 attempted.

I'm not sure what he did other than that dribble (that he took a needless extra touch for and definitely should have had a penalty for!) that warranted him being kept on.

The point is though had the referee done his job and given us the penalty that could have elevated his performance certainly confidence wise. Every new player needs something to ignite them and that could have been his. He looked much better especially earlier on in the game. I would like to see him there more often.

[FlashGordon]

Let's not play that game, Yorky. We can all see there's a player in there. We're not stupid. How much of a player is the question. I'm of the view that you and others are seeing things which simply aren't there yet, but at least you are discussing him on his own merits rather than throwing his better performing team-mates under the bus in order to defend him.

You see a supremely balanced footballer, whereas I see one who often falls over when he's shifted onto his left foot. You see a player taking the game to the opposition, whereas I see one who only did so once or twice in 65 minutes and spent the rest of the time passing sideways to his less talented, less creative midfield partner. I also see one who is extremely easy to play around for the opposition and it's no surprise Pereira had such joy in that zone.

Best foul of the night was when he took him out down the wing, a Lucas foul i'll call it. I think you're referring to me with the main body of the post and as I've said a few times now I don't think he was unbelievable I just saw enough to get excited about.

[PhaseOfPlay]

The point is though had the referee done his job and given us the penalty that could have elevated his performance certainly confidence wise. Every new player needs something to ignite them and that could have been his. He looked much better especially earlier on in the game. I would like to see him there more often.

He didn't have a bad game at all, but I'm questioning the idea that he should have been kept on the field. He didn't really do anything that said "the next goal is coming from him". We were impotent in midfield, and Keita and Shaqiri were a part of that. It was the right decision to take them both off, although I think Origi over Lallana would have been better (or Origi over Sturridge). But there was nothing wrong with taking Keita off.