Topic: FA Cup 5th Round: Chelsea 2 v Liverpool 0 ‘12 Willian ‘63

[Fordy]

The overreaction on Fab is mind boggling to be honest. Don’t think anyone thinks his form is good at the moment. It feels like every time we lose a game a scapegoat has to be found. When you are coming back from a ligament injury it can take longer to find your rhythm. If there were set recovery times for players then football would be a lot easier. I fail to see what dropping him will do, as he needs to improve his sharpness. He can only do that by playing. There needs to be a little more support for these players.

Fabinho is an important player for us but he has been awful, dreadful since his comeback and I don't understand why he's trying to play a 6 & an 8, he needs to stay as a 6.

For me I would be dropping him on Saturday and midweek then after these games bring him back into it.

Milner or chirvella should start on Saturday with Gini and Ox. Two massive games coming up and we can't be carrying players at this moment.

[thegoodfella]

I will not over react but the midfield is definitely a concern, especially with Henderson getting injured. They seem to get overrun whenever the opposition applies pressure in numbers.

[LallanaInPyjamas]

Fabinho is an important player for us but he has been awful, dreadful since his comeback and I don't understand why he's trying to play a 6 & an 8, he needs to stay as a 6.

Our 6 is generally instructed to press vertically, with the 8's pressing laterally. This is either a red herring or a fault which lies with Klopp's tactics, not Fabinho.

[nico 8]

What`s with teams being able to grapple our players at corners and go right through the back of our forwards with impunity?

I`m not sure Liverpool have been found out, but other teams are sure pushing the boundaries as to what they can get away with. Weak refs, especially away from home are not being kind to us.

Agree with this. Ref against Atletico needs to be strong and brandish cards where deserved. 

[AndyMuller]

Please just play anyone else instead of Lallana for the rest of the season.

[ScottScott]

Please just play anyone else instead of Lallana for the rest of the season.

Why? He's looked like one of the only players even arsed in the last 2 games

[Thepooloflife]

Please just play anyone else instead of Lallana for the rest of the season.

I personally thought Lallana did alright last night......better than Fabinho & Jones anyway.

[AndyMuller]

Why? He's looked like one of the only players even arsed in the last 2 games

He was running around like a mad man giving away stupid fouls most the time.

[Timbo's Goals]

What`s with teams being able to grapple our players at corners and go right through the back of our forwards with impunity?

I`m not sure Liverpool have been found out, but other teams are sure pushing the boundaries as to what they can get away with. Weak refs, especially away from home are not being kind to us.

Absolutely Killie lad. We obviously favour our own players when we see these sort of challenges but in the last two games the officiating has turned a blind eye to lots of blatant fouling. I mean just take the last one of the night when Azpilicueta blatantly obstructed Mane and the ref chose to respond to Azpilecuetas playacting rather than what actually happened. The odd situation like that can be overlooked but it was the culmination of around half a dozen assaults on Mane alone for which the ref deemed no foul. c*nt.

[Funky_Gibbons]

He was running around like a mad man giving away stupid fouls most the time.

Looks at stats, Lallana gave away two fouls, same as four other players (suppose you don't want Mane to play anymore either?) and won three tackles, more than any other player.

 

[Timbo's Goals]

Please just play anyone else instead of Lallana for the rest of the season.

.

Lallana put in a decent shift last night just as he did as sub against Watford. So why the downer on him?

[Elzar]

I thought Lallana wasn't offering anywhere near enough protection for Williams down the right. Chelsea kept overloading that side meaning Gomez had to come out a few times causing the whole defence to shift. Usually the right sided midfielder would come and double up when the winger wasn't (Mane had clearly been told to move more central).

Probably expected that his positioning isn't brilliant as it's not a common role to him, but the problem is he doesn't have the pace to get back when needed.

[You think you'd learn by now]

I thought Lallana wasn't offering anywhere near enough protection for Williams down the right. Chelsea kept overloading that side meaning Gomez had to come out a few times causing the whole defence to shift. Usually the right sided midfielder would come and double up when the winger wasn't (Mane had clearly been told to move more central).

Probably expected that his positioning isn't brilliant as it's not a common role to him, but the problem is he doesn't have the pace to get back when needed.

I agree, defensively it was an issue. We had no control of the midfield. Which is kind of expected with what we went along with but given what Chelsea had, we needed to control that aspect.

[Red_Mist]

Got no problem with the team selection. Thought it was good enough. With the benefit of hindsight it might’ve just needed Allison between the sticks to make all the difference, but Adrian has done a job for us previously so hindsight can do one.

Yes I think the league is virtually won, but we don’t want or need it to be any harder than it should be. It’s priority number one. Get it done and dusted as soon as possible. Therefore no problem whatsoever with team selection (as long as we go full strength against Bournemouth).

[rob19:6 "And yeah doth the Lord liketh trucking."]

I'm finding the wild overreaction to everything at the moment quite bizarre.

Of course, there are issues to address, but the overreaction is madness.

[Ghost Town]

Gutted to be out of the cup, and don't mind admitting it. No excuses, no pretending it's shit, no pretending I don't care about winning it anyway. No pretending that this will somehow make things better or easier, because it won't. Gutted.

But seasons are long and hard and these things happen. These lows are part of the tapestry of football, the shadows that emphasize the light. The warp and the weft.

Time to get on and win whatever there is left to win

[vicar]

I don't think we played that badly. On another day Adrian saves that and we win by a couple of goals.
We were chasing the game, sometimes too much. That is certainly what led to their second.

There were some performances of great promise. Nico looked great, ok some of his crossing was off, but some good recovery tackles and movement with and without the ball. For such a young lad in a high pressure position with clear instructions to push up to play like that was excellent. Curtis, too on the ball didnt look out of place and some great touches and confidence on the ball.

Don't get the slagging off of Fabinho either. Not his best game but he was pretty much alone in the centre so it was always going to be difficult and was booked for a perfectly good challenge, which constrained what he could do when blue shite was bearing down on goal.

[You think you'd learn by now]

Don't get the slagging off of Fabinho either. Not his best game but he was pretty much alone in the centre so it was always going to be difficult and was booked for a perfectly good challenge, which constrained what he could do when blue shite was bearing down on goal.

Given that Klopp was agitated on the touch line several times with Fabinho for various reasons, it's not surprising why some of us would be as well. Now, nobody is blaming him, and he did have a much tougher job playing next to Lallana and Jones, but he had 0 tackles last night and won 0 headers. That's poor anyway you look at it.

[vicar]

Given that Klopp was agitated on the touch line several times with Fabinho for various reasons, it's not surprising why some of us would be as well. Now, nobody is blaming him, and he did have a much tougher job playing next to Lallana and Jones, but he had 0 tackles last night and won 0 headers. That's poor anyway you look at it.

I just think he had an impossible job.
Jones was playing much further forward and at times there were 2 or 3 Chelsea players running at him. Its easy to pass around in that situation and impossible to get a tackle in. Not saying he is played anywhere near like he can, but I think structurally he was hung out to dry last night. Maybe chelsea were tactially clever, but either way he was exposed.

[You think you'd learn by now]

I just think he had an impossible job.
Jones was playing much further forward and at times there were 2 or 3 Chelsea players running at him. Its easy to pass around in that situation and impossible to get a tackle in. Not saying he is played anywhere near like he can, but I think structurally he was hung out to dry last night. Maybe chelsea were tactially clever, but either way he was exposed.

He was also poor against Watford and wasn't particularly good against West Ham. So it's not just a one game occurrence in recent matches. Having those two next to him also has nothing to do with him making the wrong decisions on the ball and misplacing passes.

[Yorkykopite]

.

Lallana put in a decent shift last night just as he did as sub against Watford. So why the downer on him?

Let this be said.

One of the few bright spots from last night.

[the_red_pill]

Popping in to see if the mood has changed and I should have known better. I've not been bothered or moved by the FA Cup at all this season, but I understand the frustration some have. Would've felt the same I suppose- if I cared.

We're going to win the league!

Anything else is a bonus.
World champions, baby!

I shall see you next week.