I've just found this post on a thread on Liverpool fc.tv website. Hope no-one minds me cross posting, it was written by Bilsland a moderator and I think it articulates what I think well.
http://forums.liverpoolfc.tv/showthread.php?t=225977&page=3I put this in a similar thread in the other forum and it will do for in here too as my two pennath....
Whoever said that when Lucas plays with better players around him, ie in the Brazillian team, had it right.
Why he gets blamed for the entire team's performances when he is having to play with wingers who don't know how to find space and run with the ball or a striker who is hemmed in by 3 defenders or a defence that is incapable of anticipation or speed is way beyond me.
Even Gerrard, arguable the best player this Club has ever had, is struggling to put passes together for our striker or defence splitting passes because of either a lack of movement in the team or because his form is being affected by the same malaise as the rest of the team.
In a game recently Lucas had the ball in midfield and was looking to make the forward pass and there was just no-one available, no-one willing to get into space or make the type of run to anticipate his pass. So what is the man to do, make the safest pass he can to retain possession and for that he gets lambasted . Gerrard makes passes that go astray in almost every game. Meireles, Maxi, Kuyt, Johnson, etc etc all do too.
When mascher played How many goals did he score? was he castigated for the lack? yes he broke up play but how often did he get red carded or we lose his services because he had racked up too many yellow cards.
In Lucas we have a player who is willing(and able ) to get a decent tackle in without getting sent off, Johnson can't tackle, Konchesky hit and miss, Agger not always effective, Babel likes his own personal space!
So what is this " he's not good enough for LFC"...He plays for us and he puts in a shift every time he goes out onto the pitch. There are far too many other players who dont. What is going on in here is scape-goating, and it has from day 1 when he came into the side because of injuries and when he stayed because when Alonso and Mascher WANTED to leave we did not have the funds to replace them and he hasn't let us down.
In the big games he has delivered MOTM performances, he doesn't hide and if phillip Neville hadn't made the save of his live in that derby when Lucas was brought on after the dismissal of our Captain following another rash tackle Lucas would have been a hero and the fans perception of him would have been completely different.
People will always have their favourite players, those who can do no wrong. but we are in dire straits at the moment and the last thing we need are the fans being so vitriolic in their condemnation of a player who deserves so much more support than he has ever got from a section of fans who really should know better. For someone who was 4th choice CM when he came here he's doing more than a good job and when I look at his team-mates I wish I could say the same for them.
ps...we don't need a different CM, we need proper wingers