Watched the game last night and was very pleased with what I saw. Lets get the bad out of the way first though.
Profligacy. We still got it. Wasted a lot of good chances and possession in around the box. We coughed up possession easily, but not as a result of crappiness in the middle or backline, but because we were wasteful in the last third.
Scariness. Ho boy, the high jinks at the back with the ball are more than a little nerve-wracking. Playing around opposition strikers in our own box... I could feel the hair on my head standing up at one point. Buck needs to stop watching them Barca videos.
Opposition. Weren't very good, which makes it hard judge how good a performance it was. For example, in the hurly burly of the premiership will that high back line and attempts to play out of defence come undone more regularly
Sourness. Some sour points for a few of the players. Shelvey I feel was trying too hard, lucky not to be carded earlier and his driving runs to nowhere seemed to be borne of a desire to be the new Gerrard. He was much more effective when he played it simple. Downing, much more involved and penetrative, but them final balls still feel pointless to me. Adam. Came on, played a sumptuous ball out the left off his outside boot, floated like a bee as his opposite number sprinted past him with the ball, stung like a butterfly as he blundered into the back of his opponent later on, giving away a cheap free for no reason. Some things never change.
But these are real nitpicks in what, overall, was an extremely positive game. Why? Well firstly Buck picked the exact side I would have picked (bar maybe Shelvey for Henderson, but much of a muchness) had I been manager. And he set them up to play exactly how I would have wanted, so he must be right, right?
Jesting aside, the 433 really suited those players. Enrique and Johnson, let loose up the wing and removed of the need to defend in depth, are excellent attacking options and looked much happier in that role. Agger is made to play a highline (no coincidence that after that game Buck was fulsome in his praise and desire to keep Agger. Seeing him in action is an education) and Skrtel is just happy to have the Dane beside him to clean everything up. So, a happy settled backline, but ably assisted by an active midfield. Lucas was a joy to behold, at one point sprinting at a player. Player passed the ball on, Lucas kept sprinting and ran ball, player and himself off the pitch. Marvellous. Shelvey was a bit skittish and unsure, but provided a useful function, linking to Lucas and Gerrard. Gerrard though. How much more effective and happy is he to be given free reign without the drudgery of tracking back at his age. It was like 2008/9 all over again as Rodgers had him reprise his attacking role. Best I have seen him play in months.
The real damage was done up front. Suarezdependence. That's the only way to describe the team now. He is so frighteningly effective, so creative and busy, it fills me with fear to imagine the side without him. But in this game he was ably assisted by Borini, who looks a fantastic foil for him. He finds space, he works hard, he's clever in his movement and some of the interplay between Suarez, gerrard and Borini was superb. Beside them Downing still looks a bit meat and two veg, albeit more inclined to have a go and more effective further forward and downt he channels.
So, overall, very encouraging and best of all the balance looked excellent and the players looked really comfortable. I get the impression that if we dominate sides this year we could hump the shit out of them. The flipside though is I wonder how vulnerable they will look against a stronger, faster, more technically skilled side?
But lets put them concerns aside and just finish on a few minor observations;
- I can see exactly how Allen will fit into that side, but where does that leave Adam, Henderson, Spearing and Shelvey. Or Sterling, Pacheco and Suso for that matter. Thank god for Euro football to give more chances to the younger/fringe players eh?
- How hilarious were those ESPN morons? "Here's Spearing, it'll be interesting to see who comes out ahead in his battle for places this year, Spearing or Lucas" followed by dead silence of the 'are you shitting me?' variety by his co-commentator
- how bad was that linesman?