Topic: The Attack

[spider-neil]

Looks like Balotelli is going to be 'plan b' for the remainder of time he is here, which is probably only a few more months.

[Popcorn]

I'm fine with Mario being a plan B as long as Ricky Lambert isn't part of the plan.. That was proper fucking grim that performance..

He just doesn't fit into anything we wanted to do.. It was a gamble that hasn't paid off so I hope that's the end of him as a starter for Liverpool regardless of the competition or the opposition.

I do think Mario's performance was a slight positive.. He looked like he wanted to be out there tonight..

[fowlermagic]

Lambert or ballotelli in a sole striker system.......not going to work in most cases and even tonight against League 2 it looked awful. Brendan cmon man would you start Borini alongside one of the big men otherwise just stick with pace leading the line.

[soxfan]

Looks like Balotelli is going to be 'plan b' for the remainder of time he is here, which is probably only a few more months.

He deserves a chance to play next to Sturridge. He's done that what, once? At the very least, we need to build his value up if Brendan doesn't see him as a longterm solution. Playing off Daniel with a couple of Sterling/Coutinho/Lallana/Markovic buzzing around and I think Mario will knock a few in.

[Newman96]

Thought Balotelli looked positive in his cameo, put some effort in and like someone said looked as if he wanted to be out there. Would of scored that flick too if it wasn't for a great save.

[ShayGuevara]

Balotelli will come good if given the chance with Sturridge. I'm quietly confident, although I worry he won't get a fair chance.

[Crosby Nick]

With Lallana out now, I predict Markovic steps in and does a great job.

Of course, I used the same logic to lose money at the casino. But who knows, I'm due to win. I CAN FEEL IT!! 

I was going to ask what people think we'll do with Lallana out (real shame by the way)? Keep Sterling up top with Coutinho and now Markovic in behind? Play Balotelli and drop Sterling back to Lallana's position? Play Gerrard there? Or mix things up again?!

[ShayGuevara]

I was going to ask what people think we'll do with Lallana out (real shame by the way)? Keep Sterling up top with Coutinho and now Markovic in behind? Play Balotelli and drop Sterling back to Lallana's position? Play Gerrard there? Or mix things up again?!

I think against sides with a high line Sterling has to be our most advanced forward, playing Balotelli off him could be an idea with Coutinho in the hole.

Can see this being used when Sturridge is back especially with Lallana now injured.

[SwordInYourGut]

I'm fine with Mario being a plan B as long as Ricky Lambert isn't part of the plan.. That was proper fucking grim that performance..

He just doesn't fit into anything we wanted to do.. It was a gamble that hasn't paid off so I hope that's the end of him as a starter for Liverpool regardless of the competition or the opposition.

I do think Mario's performance was a slight positive.. He looked like he wanted to be out there tonight..

Balotelli was a gamble that hasn't paid off. Lambert was a sentimental suicide mission that has ended the way everyone knew it would.

[b_joseph]

Thought Balotelli looked positive in his cameo, put some effort in and like someone said looked as if he wanted to be out there. Would of scored that flick too if it wasn't for a great save.

Same against Swansea and vs United. In fact, anyone questioning his attitude would do well to look at his last three appearances because he has applied himself well in all three. Could have had a couple goals as well.

[JackWard33]

Same against Swansea and vs United. In fact, anyone questioning his attitude would do well to look at his last three appearances because he has applied himself well in all three. Could have had a couple goals as well.

Doesn't fit the narrative though so don't hold your breath
Oh and he's actually been ridiculously unlucky not to score more during his time with us (he's a real outlier on the Expected goal charts)
As others have posted starting Lambert over him is pretty unjustifiable at this point

[Danan]

Balotelli was a gamble that hasn't paid off. Lambert was a sentimental suicide mission that has ended the way everyone knew it would.

Balotelli was a gamble that might still pay off. Lambert is an experienced 4th striking option that should be used against certain opposition, in certain situations. It is too early to give up on both of them.

[DanA]

Balotelli was a gamble that might still pay off. Lambert is an experienced 4th striking option that should be used against certain opposition, in certain situations. It is too early to give up on both of them.

The big problem I see with Balotelli is that he will never press the ball well. That by my thinking is a fundamental part of the way we play and because of that I don't particularly want him to work out. That would mean abandoning our principals in terms of a pressing team.

[The G in Gerrard]

The big problem I see with Balotelli is that he will never press the ball well. That by my thinking is a fundamental part of the way we play and because of that I don't particularly want him to work out. That would mean abandoning our principals in terms of a pressing team.

Don't see that as a reason to discard him. Hopefully he gets a chance again as he can't do any worse than Lambert yesterday.

[penga]

Looked promising in that Man utd game as a sub since we changed to 3-4-3 so a bit of a mystery as to why he has fallen so far out of favour and hasn't got much of a look in after we finally started creating more chances.

[plura]

Looked promising in that Man utd game as a sub since we changed to 3-4-3 so a bit of a mystery as to why he has fallen so far out of favour and hasn't got much of a look in after we finally started creating more chances.

Yep, especially with Lambert who has nothing at all to impress lately.

[spider-neil]

I think Mario has the talent to be one of our pool of strikers. Nothing against Lambert but I don't think he had the pace to play any formation we play because we aren't going to simply run down the wing and cross it to him so what's the point? Lambert was a good idea for a 'plan B' but Mario can cover that option and is faster, stronger and younger.

[SerbianScouser]

I think Mario has the talent to be one of our pool of strikers. Nothing against Lambert but I don't think he had the pace to play any formation we play because we aren't going to simply run down the wing and cross it to him so what's the point?

Lambert could still be very useful in a scenario where we are chasing result against the team that parked the bus and he came on and played as a 3rd rather than a lone striker and we tried something a bit different with a few crosses in the box. In any other scenario I don`t see him doing the job for us.

[spider-neil]

Lambert could still be very useful in a scenario where we are chasing result against the team that parked the bus and he came on and played as a 3rd rather than a lone striker and we tried something a bit different with a few crosses in the box. In any other scenario I don`t see him doing the job for us.

Any new strikers will see Lambert pushed even further down the pecking order.

[stewy17]

Lambert could still be very useful in a scenario where we are chasing result against the team that parked the bus and he came on and played as a 3rd rather than a lone striker and we tried something a bit different with a few crosses in the box. In any other scenario I don`t see him doing the job for us.

I disagree quite strongly on this point, sorry.

Every time the lad is in the team it damages other players and completely changes the way we play making us look disjointed and frankly, garbage. The only way I think he changes games is that he weakens us. Evident again last night as we were toothless against a league 2 side and Ricky was totally ineffective against players who he should be giving footballing lessons to.

It pains me to say it as I was delighted when we signed him but with him in our side we look like a championship team and he looks like a championship player. The same could be said for Mario too but I think people are prepared to give him a bit more of a chance because he's a bit quicker. I'm not so sure.

We need three new strikers, Borini (whilst arguably matching the 'type' of striker we need) isn't good enough and Balotelli and Lambert are both mismatches for our style or play and also just simply haven't been good enough.

We all knew the other fella was irreplaceable but the way we went about it in the summer was criminal.

[SerbianScouser]

Any new strikers will see Lambert pushed even further down the pecking order.

I just think Rodgers was right to seek out the profile of striker that Lambert was in the summer. It`s like when Rafa had Kuyt, Bellamy, Fowler, Crouch - 4 different strikers that allowed us to attack teams depending on what was needed on the day, whether it was pace or aerial prowess whatever, you need variety between your strikers for different challenges. I think that`s the right way to go about assembling your strike force.

But whether we are getting the best out of these players and using them properly it`s a different matter.

[Chakan]

Mario should definitely be ahead of Lambert. Lambert should be used when we need to change it up and the first option isn't working.

[SerbianScouser]

I think you misread my post entirely. I said I practically wanted to see Lambert for the last 20 mins in games we are trailing against parked buses as  a 3rd striker when we are throwing caution into the wind to get a result. Any other scenario is a no goer imo.

[fowlermagic]

Any new strikers will see Lambert pushed even further down the pecking order.

How so as I don't see any new striker coming in without a departure first so if one comes in then surely Borini will go. Ballotelli will more than likely get another 6 months to see how it all works out but I feel once Origi comes in we may just let Ballotelli go if he does not settle by next May. Similar build, hardworking etc. At that point we could have

Sturridge / Sterling / Origi / Lambert as our striker choices and if Brendan wants to continue with his sole strikers formation then that should be sufficient cover. We could add another class act if he wants to change formation but personally I think Sterling could fill in where Suarez was thus having a formation like the below

...........Sturridge
..................Sterling
Coutinho....Lallana.....Markovic

With line up we may need a very solid holding player and a backline of 4 that would do Rafa proud.

[Carlito Roberto]

We need three new strikers, Borini (whilst arguably matching the 'type' of striker we need) isn't good enough and Balotelli and Lambert are both mismatches for our style or play and also just simply haven't been good enough.

We all knew the other fella was irreplaceable but the way we went about it in the summer was criminal.

Spot on.

Sturridge is potentially world class in my opinion. However if you take him out the equation on the grounds he's never fit, you'll do well to find a worse set of strikers anywhere in the league than Borini, Balotelli and Lambert.

[penga]

I reckon Lambert is actually pretty good off the bench, when he does come on when we are chasing the game he usually makes something happen, granted it hasn't amounted to a lot of end product so far. But you can see it when he plays for England as well, comes on last 10-15minutes and nabs himself a goal or assist. Our strikers are all having a poor run of form but also a poor run of luck, some of the shots taken or chances they have made just haven't found the net despite looking so likely at times.

[Geezer08]

I just think Rodgers was right to seek out the profile of striker that Lambert was in the summer. It`s like when Rafa had Kuyt, Bellamy, Fowler, Crouch - 4 different strikers that allowed us to attack teams depending on what was needed on the day, whether it was pace or aerial prowess whatever, you need variety between your strikers for different challenges. I think that`s the right way to go about assembling your strike force.

But whether we are getting the best out of these players and using them properly it`s a different matter.

But this situation is completely different as Lambert does not offer any of those skills what so ever. He is too static and for a target man, he is very ineffective in the air, and he is often found on the wings, where he for some reason always wanders to.

He is not an option for a team with the aspiration to participate in the title race and champions league, he is just not good enough.

[SerbianScouser]

But this situation is completely different as Lambert does not offer any of those skills what so ever. He is too static and for a target man, he is very ineffective in the air, and he is often found on the wings, where he for some reason always wanders to.

He is not an option for a team with the aspiration to participate in the title race and champions league, he is just not good enough.

I agree, like I said we were right to pursue that profile of a player but we either need to figure out how to make it work somehow or find another player of similar profile but with much more quality.

[fowlermagic]

Spot on.

Sturridge is potentially world class in my opinion. However if you take him out the equation on the grounds he's never fit, you'll do well to find a worse set of strikers anywhere in the league than Borini, Balotelli and Lambert.

Lol sorry I should not laugh but that is a bit of hogwash especially when you throw Sterling into the mix. The above lads are pretty decent strikers on their day in a system that suits them. Thing is if you ask Owen or Fowler in his hey day to be a target man you probably see a shadow of what they could be. Look the lads are pretty good strikers as they have held their own in various clubs / top leagues around the world but square pegs in round holes means anyone will struggle if used incorrectly.

[Carlito Roberto]

Lol sorry I should not laugh but that is a bit of hogwash especially when you throw Sterling into the mix. The above lads are pretty decent strikers on their day in a system that suits them. Thing is if you ask Owen or Fowler in his hey day to be a target man you probably see a shadow of what they could be. Look the lads are pretty good strikers as they have held their own in various clubs / top leagues around the world but square pegs in round holes means anyone will struggle if used incorrectly.

No arguments from me on Sterling, he's a fantastic player.

[Crosby Nick]

I reckon Lambert is actually pretty good off the bench, when he does come on when we are chasing the game he usually makes something happen, granted it hasn't amounted to a lot of end product so far. But you can see it when he plays for England as well, comes on last 10-15minutes and nabs himself a goal or assist. Our strikers are all having a poor run of form but also a poor run of luck, some of the shots taken or chances they have made just haven't found the net despite looking so likely at times.

The opening day against Southampton I think we scored the winner not long after we came on. That was with him up alongside Sturridge. I think he's barely played in a pair since.

[ArthurDent]

Lambert is an experienced 4th striking option that should be used against certain opposition, in certain situations. It is too early to give up on both of them.

Yes. Lambert of last season scored a goal every 3 games against the same defences, theres no reason he couldn't have done the same here this season used sparingly, in 10 or so starts to give Sturridge / Balotelli rest - especially against the mid table sides he typically scored against like Hull, West Brom, Swansea, Stoke, etc.

I also don't get the widespread hatred of Borini, the lad is a very hard worker, the sort of player that teams need from the bench to give an option up front who will run all day or play on the wing. Very reminiscent of Kuyt for me and well worth a squad spot imo. Should probably have been used a lot more in away Champions League ties.

For me, those 2 aren't the problem, it's obvious that the problem is the lack of Sturridge and the completely ineffectual Balotelli. Maybe hard-working Borini alongside Balotelli would have been worth an extended try, who knows ?

[dramared]

I also don't get the widespread hatred of Borini, the lad is a very hard worker, the sort of player that teams need from the bench to give an option up front who will run all day or play on the wing. Very reminiscent of Kuyt for me and well worth a squad spot imo. Should probably have been used a lot more in away Champions League ties.

Because he has zero end product on too many occasions - Kuyt always chipped in even from right mid

[Loo Pan]

Kuyt would struggle to get a game in Brendan Rodgers' Liverpool team, we've moved on from that type of player (the technically limited grafter).

I do think Borini has been underused this season though, given our circumstances.

And the more I see Lambert, I do wonder why we felt the need to bring him in. I can't see him staying long.

[xerxes]

Lambert is toast. The Wimbledon game was made for him : rough and tumble old school English football, and he offered nothing. Didn't hold the ball up or win headers or take the attack to them at all. If he is no use in that Lind of game, when is he of use?

[Red-Soldier]

We had the chance to sign Bony for 19m in the summer, looks like he's signing for city now for 30m!!

We royally fudged up the striker signings in the summer, but we all know that already.

Lambert is pretty much deadwood

[WhingingMoaningUpstart]

Kuyt would struggle to get a game in Brendan Rodgers' Liverpool team, we've moved on from that type of player (the technically limited grafter).

I do think Borini has been underused this season though, given our circumstances.

And the more I see Lambert, I do wonder why we felt the need to bring him in. I can't see him staying long.

Dirk was hardworking alright, but calling the former Dutch captain and Footballer of the Year a 'technically limited grafter' is very harsh.

[dramared]

Kuyt would struggle to get a game in Brendan Rodgers' Liverpool team, we've moved on from that type of player (the technically limited grafter).

I do think Borini has been underused this season though, given our circumstances.

Kuyt made 285 and had 1 in 4 game goal ratio- a big chunk of that from right mid. Yes at times his first touch was poor but he protected the ball, could pass in tight areas and importantly contributed to end product - GOALS
From right mid you are expected to contribute less.

I respect Borini for his hard work but nothing ever comes from it - no assists, no goals. I can agree that maybe he hasnt played at times when he should but whenever he does nothing happens.

As for Lambert - i feel sorry for him - its a night mare - unless we lump it up high to him he is non existent. And we are reluctant to do that.

[RK7]

We had the chance to sign Bony for 19m in the summer, looks like he's signing for city now for 30m!!

We royally fudged up the striker signings in the summer, but we all know that already.

Lambert is pretty much deadwood

We have probably had 2 or 3 players come in and work out since Rodgers took over, still early days for some but the signs are not great.

[-Daws-]

We have probably had 2 or 3 players come in and work out since Rodgers took over, still early days for some but the signs are not great.

Sturridge, Coutinho, Lallana, Sakho, Moreno, Manquillo, and Markovic are all either proven or still young and looking pretty decent. I think it's too early for many of them to be labelled duds.

We have plenty of options going forwards. When we bring in two pacey reference points, in Origi and Sturridge, we will open the whole game up and our technicians, Coutinho, Lallana and Gerrard in particular, will all get a lot more time and space on the ball, and it will hopefully help the defence as that pace means we can push forward quicker once we clear our lines in transition.