Topic: Expectations for 2014/15 Season

[PhaseOfPlay]

Yet to see any "expect" who thinks we are going to finish higher than 5th, not a single one, Wow. Stand up with Rodney Dangerfield, no respect, starring LFC.

Look at Phil M's thread with the RAWK Scribes. Plenty of top four finishes in that, I think. I certainly have us in the top four in my expectations.

[Spanish Al]

I'd take fourth place and the FA Cup right now. We need to stay in the CL and that should be our number one priority this season. Yes we were oh so fucking close last year (still fucking hurts bad we missed out) and some people would expect the title charge again. I think if Suarez stayed I'd be expecting us to push on and claim the league but with him gone and a fair few new faces in, securing CL football again and getting back in amongst the trophies would be fantastic. Decent run in the CL would be nice too!

[cowtownred]

I think we're going to win the League if we can get a decent striker in.  Remy would have been perfect.

See nothing to be scared of in the other challengers, our team has matured and been strengthened significantly.

Our manager thinks we are ahead of his thought schedule..... last year he thought we should challenge for top 4.... we nearly won it.  Going by that, we must be in with a great shout now, and I believe we are.

[sinnermichael]

Yet to see any "expert" who thinks we are going to finish higher than 5th, not a single one, Wow. Stand up with Rodney Dangerfield, no respect, starring LFC.

Generic Premiership prediction from so called media pundits : Liverpool will struggle to cope with the demands of Champions League football and the Premier League. And United will waltz into the top 4 just because they have no Europe and a manager who invented football.

[Stussy]

We are being written off left right and centre. I think this is a good thing.

[killer-heels]

Yet to see any "expert" who thinks we are going to finish higher than 5th, not a single one, Wow. Stand up with Rodney Dangerfield, no respect, starring LFC.

Why the hell should anyone care what anyone else thinks? Its just a prediction and its hardly going to have any sort of influence.

Personally, expectation is top 4 and a few good cup runs but my prediction is 2nd again. I think Chelsea may have too much for the league but I think City will drop off a bit, especially with their importance on the CL.

[robgomm]

That fourth goal against Dortmund the other day, that's stuff you can't stop. One touch heaven.

[KeithK83]

Lets have the title, latter stages of CL and a good run in the cups. Its gonna be a tough year no doubt, the reason i feel so confident is the noises from the camp, hunger, positivity, still stinging from coming so close last year and a desire to rectify that. All the new signings are players with in one way or another a point to prove. That goes for Sturridge too, but only cos he will inevitable be compared to Suarez. Sterlings development has been phenomenal but i reckon this is gonna be a major statement year for him. Rodgers at the helm is key. I believe this is the year where any small lingering doubts about him are emphatically put to bed. so yeah I cant bloody wait! might be disappointed, but I think we are in a very good position.

[gjr1]

Think we'll finish 2nd again behind City.

CL is hard to call until we see the draw. I'd fancy us against anyone but a tricky group is a tricky group!

[wampa1]

I have a good feeling about us in the Champions League.  Think we'll surprise many in much the same way we surprised many in the league last season.

My expectation?  3rd in the league and an excellent Champions League campaign.

[Mighty_Red]

Yet to see any "expert" who thinks we are going to finish higher than 5th, not a single one, Wow. Stand up with Rodney Dangerfield, no respect, starring LFC.

Pretty disgusting really and everyone is falling over themselves to suck up to Van Gaal in the same way they did to Moyes. I think it suits us down to the ground in the end - there'll be less pressure on us as we're are still progressing as a side, and without Suarez our development has been knocked back a bit. It would be foolhardy to think that we will win the title at this point. Let's just concentrate on accumulating points and kick on when the time is right.

[S]

Is there a thread where we can all predict the league standings for the coming season? Think I remember something similar being done last year.

[Adam_LFC]

We do well as the underdogs so I barely care about people writing us off.

Personally, group qualification in the Champions League, a cup final and top four finish would be something I expect.

[Tonyh]

With the Moreno signing we will have a very well balanced squad with quality and depth all over the pitch except currently at striker. IF we can keep Dan fit and Ricky can score goals then the sky is the limit for this team. We looked great against Dortmund without Sakho, Moreno, Markovic and Lallana so usual injuries allowing it should be another great season.

[GreatEx]

Is there a thread where we can all predict the league standings for the coming season? Think I remember something similar being done last year.

http://www.redandwhitekop.com/forum/index.php?topic=315516.0

[PROPER crazyemlyn72]

Lisbon in May?

[Po The Panda]

Honestly think we will challenge again whether we win it or not comes down to fine margains. I think we will get 80 plus points again which should be enough to amount a title challenge.

I just feel we are suited to pick up alot of points against the lesser sides, blessed with extreme pace and good 1 vs 1 players.   Our home record will be fantastic again and very few sides will pick up points at Anfield. 

The key to winning the title is the results against the other 14 sides below the top 6, Ferguson did this time and time again.

[scouser14]

Now we have a proper back 4, Henderson fulfilling his attacking potential, the MASSIVE development of Coutinho and Sterling  and their ability to supply Sturridge - as well as add A LOT of goals to their game.... several top quality new lads (Lallana, Markovic, plus Jordan Ibe can be counted as 'new') all giving us a variety of attacking options our rivals don't have.... all tied together by Stevie pulling the strings............. I'm going for top spot!

[woof]

Many pundits have already written us off saying we're not going to even reach 4th. Yes, the likes of Arsenal, Chelsea, City and Manc have strengthened but so did we. We have lost a very top and special player in Suarez but I trust Rodgers to find the balance and make us win games. Not to trivialise the loss of Suarez but where was he when we were winning games with 1-0 margin at the start of last season? In big matches, we won because of team effort, not individual brilliance. Suarez was a scourge to the minnows, often destroying them with a barrage of goals and hattrick. Now we need to make sure we have a striker who can win those "easy" games.

[Toevebo]

I think we will see early on if we are to challenge this season. 7 or 9 points from the first three games and we truly are title contenders.

[rickardinho1]

I respect your opinion, but I'd like to make my counter-argument as I found your post to be extremely "glass-is-completely-empty": (my comments in red)

I've said it before and I got pilloried for it, but I'll say it again.

This is going to be a car crash of a season.

Even had we not sold Suarez, I expected us to suffer a severe hangover from last season. I wrote in May that most teams similar to us (teams that punched above their weight and unexpectedly challenged for a league title but ended up failing), generally suffered from a hangover the season after. Fucking hell, I'm nowhere near over not winning it last year. I don't have a clue how we can expect the players to be.

I just don't see, psychologically, how we can "go again". After such highs, can the players go through the mundane few weeks of the season without feeling a major difference? Take the opening game at Anfield vs Southampton. There'll be no welcoming parade. It's back to normality for everyone. Can they accept that without there being an impact?

I think you're making a mistake if you think last season was our "high". This team is quite clearly on an upward trajectory, and has been for some time now too. Taking results from January 2013 onwards we've been comfortably in the top 4 and I think only Arsenal might be ahead of us in total over that period.

We have a horrible start to the season, fixtures wise. 2 away trips to City and Spurs is the last thing this team needs so early on. If we have a bad start, I feel there will be a horrible sense of deflation within the fanbase and the squad- from the captain and everyone else. I feel they'll start feeling sorry for themselves over what happened in May, over losing Suarez and it will take a lot of time for us to recover.

Fair enough, fixtures aren't great. But judging by pre-season form and match-fitnesses of the respective sides I'd say its a great time for us to go to the Etihad. Many of their first choice players are yet to even feature (eg. Kompany), whereas we are clearly firing on all cylinders if the first 60 minutes against United and the Dortmund game are anything to go by. That horrible sense of deflation can quite easily become euphoria and confidence if things go well, just like the snowball effect from Mignolet's penalty save did.

Losing Suarez is an absolute nightmare for us. I strongly feel it will have hurt every single one of those players in the squad. A minority on here try to downplay Suarez's importance to us, but I'm sure the players know just how much he brought to the team. You do not lose a player like that and   move forwards or sideways (unless you're a team that is used to winning trophies on a yearly basis). Suarez's contribution was not just about goals and assists: it was about fight, sacrifice, dedication and leadership.

I mean, look at this Coutinho interview:

Coutinho was asked what he felt when he was excluded from the Brazil World Cup squad: “Anger. Not because I’m selfish, but because I could have offered something.

I’m going to use this anger and push myself to my limits. I saw how Luisito (Suárez) was a maniac in training. At this point, my body and mind feel like clay. I will mold it the way I envision, and I will use my fire to make them harder.”

I can't argue with any of that. Although I will say that this is an opportunity for others to step up, having learned from the man himself for the last 2 seasons it is now their turn to shine. And it appears that Coutinho is well on his way to doing that judging from his words above. We also won almost all of our games when Suarez was out - including at the end of the 2012-13 season. We are far from being as reliant on him as Spurs were with Bale for example. In fact, Suarez scored only 8 goals in our final 14 games last season when we scored a total of 45 goals, which is hardly indicative of a one-man team.

It's simple psychology. How much did a thumbs up from Luis push Raheem Sterling on? How much was Suarez's acceptance important for someone like Jordan Henderson? How much did Suarez's name on the team-sheet petrify opposing defenses, before a ball was even kicked?

Again, hard to argue against that. But I'm sure defenders will also be shitting their pants at the prospect of facing Sturridge, Sterling, and Coutinho too. And don't forget that they now also have to worry about those fresh legs coming off our bench that will hurt them even more.

Add that to a host of new players we need to bed in, Champions League football for the first time in 5 years (And the first time in Rodgers' career), and a horrific pre season where we lost key players to injuries, failed to bed in our 3 most expensive signings and missed out on our seemingly only 2 attacking replacements for Suarez (For different reasons), and it doesn't look good at all for us.

I refer you to Brendan's latest interview, in which he talks about how our new signings are all settling quickly because they fit the profile, and are tailor made for our system along with knowing beforehand exactly what their role is and what is expected of them.

Not convinced by our signings at all too. Lovren has had 5 good months in the last 3 seasons (he was basically chased out of Lyon and was poor in the 2nd half of last season). Lambert is passable as a 3rd striker, but is nowhere near suitable for our style of play. We're a Sturridge nigggle away from having him lead the line at the Etihad and White Hart Lane, which would be horrific. Markovic and Can are exciting talents, but we surely can't expect too much from them in their first season at such young ages. Lallana will have missed all of pre season, have had no friendly games to adapt to the team and will be thrust in with a big price tag on his head. Far from ideal.

I think its harsh to say Lovren only had 5 good months, but personally I couldn't give a toss even if that was true. What he's done at other clubs doesn't matter - what matters is what he will do for us. He looked amazing in the Dortmund win so I'm very optimistic he'll be a great addition. The injuries aren't great, but again, those players know their roles and have the skills to perform so any "bedding in" period should be quick - and has been for most of our signings, like Can for example, as well as Lovren and Manquillo who both looked great on their debuts.

This term, we'll have the season we all expected us to have last year. We'll challenge for 4th but end up missing out. I'm fine with that, but I suspect the narrative will be that it was a failure and the fact is, that would mean that we went backwards. A bad start, and there will be a huge cloud around Anfield that won't be lifted for a while.

This huge cloud idea is nonsense. Most LFC fans are pretty knowledgeable football fans and know that we're ahead of schedule in terms of the long-term vision, and even if we start slowly nobody will be panicking (apart from those panicking already because we haven't made a "marquee" signing yet )

I predict 6th. No doubt that many will call me a moaning and negative bastard but that's what I expect. Hopefully we'll get a cup run to set the pulses racing, but I foresee a season of transition for us.
Everyone's entitled to an opinion, and I respect yours, but I just don't see how we're going to get overtaken by BOTH United AND Spurs (presuming those are the two you would have replacing us in the top 5). They both have new managers so should go through at least some growing pains as their players adjust (just like our squad did when Brendan came in), along with the fact that they've got some pretty bang average players littered throughout their lineups.

The "lost" extra time we had on the training pitch due to being in Europe this season is being overhyped too imo. Most of the players in our squad are now familiar with the system and whats expected of them, so having a week to prepare won't be as crucial as it was last year when we were constantly tinkering with the formation to fit SAS in together by default. Admittedly squad rotation might take a bit of a toll though in how fluid the team is as a unit game-to-game, but we should still have enough quality in whatever BR puts out to see of the vast majority of sides we face.

And remember, we watch football because we are football fans and we enjoy it, so there's no need to be so gloomy! 

[downtown]

Lisbon in May?

Hope not.

Either Warsaw or Berlin would do me. The latter preferably.

[elpistolero7]

As long as we get a striker in, I'm quite convinced we'll make the CL again. I also think we'll make it to the knockouts of the CL unless we have a crazy group.

Anything else is a bonus really.

[Fiasco]

I think we'll comfortably make top 4. A title challenge is definitely possible too, I think a lot will depend on how well our defence gels early on and if it can settle down pretty quickly. We won't score over 100 goals this season so the importance of clean sheets and minimising goals conceded will be enhanced. A cup would be wonderful, I'd love to see Brendan take the lads to Wembley and see Stevie lead them out again. Champions League is going to be tough, the one thing I won't do though is doubt or write our chances off because we've got bit of a love affair with the competition.

We'll be fine, we'll play boss football and the players will do us proud. Of that I have no doubt.

[technicallyandtactically]

With Liverpool this year I think I have to separate my expectations from what I would be happy with. Normally they are one and the same but not so this time around.

I expect a title challenge, and a first knock-out round/ quarter final in the final in the champions league. Not because I feel like that's what SHOULD be expected, but because Liverpool over the last 18 months or so have been mouth-watering. Suarez has gone but our style of play will continue to evolve and the  huge wealth of young players in the squad
development of the will continue to develop

Everything in my head says top four would be fantastic and I would definitely be happy with with that. Saying that, I wouldn't take it at this point, not a chance in hell. I've fallen in love with Liverpool Football Club all over again under Brendan Rodgers and I can't help but believe. Believe that we'll just keep on progressing, start in top four form and finish like a steam train. Every six months we seem to take another step forward. Maybe this is our giant leap.

[Chig]

Absolutely loving the fact that no one expect us to be challenging again, not even many people expect us to get top 4. Just the way we love it, being the underdog in other's mind.

Realistically, top 3 and a cup final will be a good season for me regardless of the performance in CL this year. Many times we see teams struggle once they got into European competition. Our priority this year must maintain in doing well in the league. If we do get in a quality striker to pair up or back up for Danny boy, we would likely challenge for the title.

Big expectation for Sterling and Henderson this year and here is hoping that they will have an absolute cracking season ahead of them.

[redstevec]

Every season I go into with an optimism that we will challenge for the league - but this season I go into it with a confidence that we can win it. Although we didn't think it at the time, we will have learned from missing out last season.
We have added quality and depth to both the starting eleven and the match day squad. It's pretty clear that everyone would like us to get an additional, proven striker and I also think that we could improve on either the first choice or second choice goalkeeper - but that said step improvements elsewhere help to address these issues. More commanding presence in back 4 maybe helps Mignolet become more purposeful. Incremental goal threat from Sterling, Coutinho, Henderson, Lallana etc helps to cover for any gap in strike force.
The Tricky Reds are on the march - this is THE Season. Prepare to enjoy the journey, to marvel at the flair and to remain calm as we grind out necessary wins in close games.
Can't wait - it's going to be a blast

[Red_Potato]

By end of season:
Rihanna as CEO with Beyonce as chief scout. Snoop Dog running the medical dept.

http://www.dailystar.co.uk/sport/football/394041/Rihanna-BUY-Liverpool-Football-Club-Didier-Drogba

[underdog]

I'm amazed how many pundits have us struggling to make top 4 yet have Utd finishing 3rd. They look at the fact we have lost Suarez but not what we've gained, it seems incredibly short sited.

As we are now I see us finishing 3rd, with a striker in around the same quality as DS then I honestly see us fighting for the title.

As much money as City and Chelsea spend it's tough to improve on a team with 20 world class players, all you're doing is replacing last year's flavour of the month with this year's. We should be a massively improved squad, with a much better defence and options off the bench.

I know rivals and pundits would love to think our powers have gone and packed theirs bags for sunny Spain but they really are deluding themselves, we already look to have Sterling and Coutinio playing at a higher level than last season, along with a new defence and more options in mid field.

[Raul!]

Champions.

[Caston]

I've said it before and I got pilloried for it, but I'll say it again.

This is going to be a car crash of a season.

Even had we not sold Suarez, I expected us to suffer a severe hangover from last season. I wrote in May that most teams similar to us (teams that punched above their weight and unexpectedly challenged for a league title but ended up failing), generally suffered from a hangover the season after. Fucking hell, I'm nowhere near over not winning it last year. I don't have a clue how we can expect the players to be.

I just don't see, psychologically, how we can "go again". After such highs, can the players go through the mundane few weeks of the season without feeling a major difference? Take the opening game at Anfield vs Southampton. There'll be no welcoming parade. It's back to normality for everyone. Can they accept that without there being an impact?

We have a horrible start to the season, fixtures wise. 2 away trips to City and Spurs is the last thing this team needs so early on. If we have a bad start, I feel there will be a horrible sense of deflation within the fanbase and the squad- from the captain and everyone else. I feel they'll start feeling sorry for themselves over what happened in May, over losing Suarez and it will take a lot of time for us to recover.

Losing Suarez is an absolute nightmare for us. I strongly feel it will have hurt every single one of those players in the squad. A minority on here try to downplay Suarez's importance to us, but I'm sure the players know just how much he brought to the team. You do not lose a player like that and   move forwards or sideways (unless you're a team that is used to winning trophies on a yearly basis). Suarez's contribution was not just about goals and assists: it was about fight, sacrifice, dedication and leadership.

I mean, look at this Coutinho interview:

Coutinho was asked what he felt when he was excluded from the Brazil World Cup squad: “Anger. Not because I’m selfish, but because I could have offered something.

I’m going to use this anger and push myself to my limits. I saw how Luisito (Suárez) was a maniac in training. At this point, my body and mind feel like clay. I will mold it the way I envision, and I will use my fire to make them harder.”

It's simple psychology. How much did a thumbs up from Luis push Raheem Sterling on? How much was Suarez's acceptance important for someone like Jordan Henderson? How much did Suarez's name on the team-sheet petrify opposing defenses, before a ball was even kicked?

Add that to a host of new players we need to bed in, Champions League football for the first time in 5 years (And the first time in Rodgers' career), and a horrific pre season where we lost key players to injuries, failed to bed in our 3 most expensive signings and missed out on our seemingly only 2 attacking replacements for Suarez (For different reasons), and it doesn't look good at all for us.

Not convinced by our signings at all too. Lovren has had 5 good months in the last 3 seasons (he was basically chased out of Lyon and was poor in the 2nd half of last season). Lambert is passable as a 3rd striker, but is nowhere near suitable for our style of play. We're a Sturridge nigggle away from having him lead the line at the Etihad and White Hart Lane, which would be horrific. Markovic and Can are exciting talents, but we surely can't expect too much from them in their first season at such young ages. Lallana will have missed all of pre season, have had no friendly games to adapt to the team and will be thrust in with a big price tag on his head. Far from ideal.


This term, we'll have the season we all expected us to have last year. We'll challenge for 4th but end up missing out. I'm fine with that, but I suspect the narrative will be that it was a failure and the fact is, that would mean that we went backwards. A bad start, and there will be a huge cloud around Anfield that won't be lifted for a while.

I predict 6th. No doubt that many will call me a moaning and negative bastard but that's what I expect. Hopefully we'll get a cup run to set the pulses racing, but I foresee a season of transition for us.

What a depressing post

[jamie_c]

If by some miracle Sturridge becomes bionic and is available for every game then we could win the title.

It’s so frustrating through as I think we’re about to mirror what Arsenal did in the league last season, it was clear last year they had a very good squad but were so short up front, they missed their top target (Suarez) and were too badly run to get anyone else in.

Looks like we’re going to do the same, miss out on Sanchez and with the clock ticking only crap options are looking likely.

A battle for 4th (with Utd) is most likely, hopefully we’re still good enough to pip them.

[Raul!]

Realistically, we will have our fair share of thrashings of the lower teams and have strong showings against our top 4 rivals, leading to the strong possibility of being there or thereabouts.   There is no reason to believe that we will lose against our top rivals and no reason to believe that we will do worse against lesser opposition.  Goals will come from a variety of different sources and we have strengthened in defence.   As others have pointed out, injuries to Sturridge are the main concern and therefore we need another good striker to come in and out of the XI. Sanchez would have been ideal, Remy not too bad and I'm fairly certain we will find someone to perform that role.  It would be insane not to do so with all the cash we have.

[latortuga]

I've said it before and I got pilloried for it, but I'll say it again.

This is going to be a car crash of a season.

Even had we not sold Suarez, I expected us to suffer a severe hangover from last season. I wrote in May that most teams similar to us (teams that punched above their weight and unexpectedly challenged for a league title but ended up failing), generally suffered from a hangover the season after. Fucking hell, I'm nowhere near over not winning it last year. I don't have a clue how we can expect the players to be.

I just don't see, psychologically, how we can "go again". After such highs, can the players go through the mundane few weeks of the season without feeling a major difference? Take the opening game at Anfield vs Southampton. There'll be no welcoming parade. It's back to normality for everyone. Can they accept that without there being an impact?

We have a horrible start to the season, fixtures wise. 2 away trips to City and Spurs is the last thing this team needs so early on. If we have a bad start, I feel there will be a horrible sense of deflation within the fanbase and the squad- from the captain and everyone else. I feel they'll start feeling sorry for themselves over what happened in May, over losing Suarez and it will take a lot of time for us to recover.

Losing Suarez is an absolute nightmare for us. I strongly feel it will have hurt every single one of those players in the squad. A minority on here try to downplay Suarez's importance to us, but I'm sure the players know just how much he brought to the team. You do not lose a player like that and   move forwards or sideways (unless you're a team that is used to winning trophies on a yearly basis). Suarez's contribution was not just about goals and assists: it was about fight, sacrifice, dedication and leadership.

I mean, look at this Coutinho interview:

Coutinho was asked what he felt when he was excluded from the Brazil World Cup squad: “Anger. Not because I’m selfish, but because I could have offered something.

I’m going to use this anger and push myself to my limits. I saw how Luisito (Suárez) was a maniac in training. At this point, my body and mind feel like clay. I will mold it the way I envision, and I will use my fire to make them harder.”

It's simple psychology. How much did a thumbs up from Luis push Raheem Sterling on? How much was Suarez's acceptance important for someone like Jordan Henderson? How much did Suarez's name on the team-sheet petrify opposing defenses, before a ball was even kicked?

Add that to a host of new players we need to bed in, Champions League football for the first time in 5 years (And the first time in Rodgers' career), and a horrific pre season where we lost key players to injuries, failed to bed in our 3 most expensive signings and missed out on our seemingly only 2 attacking replacements for Suarez (For different reasons), and it doesn't look good at all for us.

Not convinced by our signings at all too. Lovren has had 5 good months in the last 3 seasons (he was basically chased out of Lyon and was poor in the 2nd half of last season). Lambert is passable as a 3rd striker, but is nowhere near suitable for our style of play. We're a Sturridge nigggle away from having him lead the line at the Etihad and White Hart Lane, which would be horrific. Markovic and Can are exciting talents, but we surely can't expect too much from them in their first season at such young ages. Lallana will have missed all of pre season, have had no friendly games to adapt to the team and will be thrust in with a big price tag on his head. Far from ideal.


This term, we'll have the season we all expected us to have last year. We'll challenge for 4th but end up missing out. I'm fine with that, but I suspect the narrative will be that it was a failure and the fact is, that would mean that we went backwards. A bad start, and there will be a huge cloud around Anfield that won't be lifted for a while.

I predict 6th. No doubt that many will call me a moaning and negative bastard but that's what I expect. Hopefully we'll get a cup run to set the pulses racing, but I foresee a season of transition for us.

It's interesting that you look back at teams that have gone close and find that failure usually follows.  I trust you researched that in your own way so I'll go with that.  For me, I just think of the way United lost to Man City on that last day and the hunger the players returned with the next season.  They were so hungry to win and atone for that bitter disappointment that every time you wanted them to falter or expected them to slip up they just seemed to push themselves harder and finder that bit extra.  Personally I think there's been good signs already in preseason that suggest this is how our players are approaching the new season.  Of course only time will tell.

On a lighter note, if Spurs can lose Bale, possibly a player they relied on more heavily than we did Suarez and change managers mid season and still end up with 69 points, than even if we have a pretty ordinary season we should be able to get well above that total and top 4.

[jwill2127]

sterling available all season, top 4.

[Gettin better all da time]

Early form will be critical. A big win against Southampton and something from City and Spurs, and i think we'll have momentum to steam roll on. I can see us winning the league. However, losing to City and Spuds with a mediocre win against Saints would take the wind out of our sails (despite the fact that if we did that we'd have the same 3 points from the corresponding fixtures for last season).

In many ways these games couldn't have happened at a better time as we have a full week between each to prepare (which will be increasingly difficult with the CL) and I've got a feeling City will start slowly and Spurs will still be getting to speed with new manager and looking to buy.

For me, if we have:
- 6 points or more after the first 3 games, I think we'll have the swagger like we had in the second half of the season and carry on. We'll be there or thereabouts.
- Between 3 and 6 points - we'll have done better than last season in the corresponding fixtures. However, will be accused of missing S and with the CL demands we may struggle to get our act together quickly. Top 4 would be difficult but possible.
- Less than 3, then we're competing with Man U and Spurs.

[Lippy The Lion]

Game preview threads on a Weds for a Sunday game, too much to ask?

 

[cowtownred]

Champions.

I like your style.

We will be there or thereabouts.

[Jookie]

I've said it before and I got pilloried for it, but I'll say it again.

This is going to be a car crash of a season.

Even had we not sold Suarez, I expected us to suffer a severe hangover from last season. I wrote in May that most teams similar to us (teams that punched above their weight and unexpectedly challenged for a league title but ended up failing), generally suffered from a hangover the season after. Fucking hell, I'm nowhere near over not winning it last year. I don't have a clue how we can expect the players to be.

I just don't see, psychologically, how we can "go again". After such highs, can the players go through the mundane few weeks of the season without feeling a major difference? Take the opening game at Anfield vs Southampton. There'll be no welcoming parade. It's back to normality for everyone. Can they accept that without there being an impact?

We have a horrible start to the season, fixtures wise. 2 away trips to City and Spurs is the last thing this team needs so early on. If we have a bad start, I feel there will be a horrible sense of deflation within the fanbase and the squad- from the captain and everyone else. I feel they'll start feeling sorry for themselves over what happened in May, over losing Suarez and it will take a lot of time for us to recover.

Losing Suarez is an absolute nightmare for us. I strongly feel it will have hurt every single one of those players in the squad. A minority on here try to downplay Suarez's importance to us, but I'm sure the players know just how much he brought to the team. You do not lose a player like that and   move forwards or sideways (unless you're a team that is used to winning trophies on a yearly basis). Suarez's contribution was not just about goals and assists: it was about fight, sacrifice, dedication and leadership.

I mean, look at this Coutinho interview:

Coutinho was asked what he felt when he was excluded from the Brazil World Cup squad: “Anger. Not because I’m selfish, but because I could have offered something.

I’m going to use this anger and push myself to my limits. I saw how Luisito (Suárez) was a maniac in training. At this point, my body and mind feel like clay. I will mold it the way I envision, and I will use my fire to make them harder.”

It's simple psychology. How much did a thumbs up from Luis push Raheem Sterling on? How much was Suarez's acceptance important for someone like Jordan Henderson? How much did Suarez's name on the team-sheet petrify opposing defenses, before a ball was even kicked?

Add that to a host of new players we need to bed in, Champions League football for the first time in 5 years (And the first time in Rodgers' career), and a horrific pre season where we lost key players to injuries, failed to bed in our 3 most expensive signings and missed out on our seemingly only 2 attacking replacements for Suarez (For different reasons), and it doesn't look good at all for us.

Not convinced by our signings at all too. Lovren has had 5 good months in the last 3 seasons (he was basically chased out of Lyon and was poor in the 2nd half of last season). Lambert is passable as a 3rd striker, but is nowhere near suitable for our style of play. We're a Sturridge nigggle away from having him lead the line at the Etihad and White Hart Lane, which would be horrific. Markovic and Can are exciting talents, but we surely can't expect too much from them in their first season at such young ages. Lallana will have missed all of pre season, have had no friendly games to adapt to the team and will be thrust in with a big price tag on his head. Far from ideal.


This term, we'll have the season we all expected us to have last year. We'll challenge for 4th but end up missing out. I'm fine with that, but I suspect the narrative will be that it was a failure and the fact is, that would mean that we went backwards. A bad start, and there will be a huge cloud around Anfield that won't be lifted for a while.

I predict 6th. No doubt that many will call me a moaning and negative bastard but that's what I expect. Hopefully we'll get a cup run to set the pulses racing, but I foresee a season of transition for us.

Some good points there mate. There is definitely this type of feeling within part of the supporter base at the moment. 

Personally I don't agree with everything you have said. I actually think we will compete strongly for top 4, maybe even 3rd. I think somewhere between 3rd and 5th is realistic. Though given Suarez's departure, the changes this will mean tactically, and the influx of new players this season does seem like it will be a transitional one. It's a bit odd to say that after coming runners up but with the number of changes over the summer I'm sure we'll see some teething issues with integrating the new players and adjusting tactically to life without Luis.

What I do agree with is that our start is crucial. It could define the season. Coming on the back of the disappointment at the end of last season it seems imperative that we hit the ground running this season. Despite this I wouldn't back against us going to City and Spurs and getting something.

[Carra-ton]

I think we will go one of two ways. And, it all really depends on how Brendan addresses the team morale, and whether or not we get a quality forward to enhance Sturridge, Sterling and Coutinho. If we can go through the first month unbeaten, we will go from strength to strength and finish a respectable top 4, else it might very well be a car crash, before Brendan has a chance to rectify things.

I think Brendan knows, we are short of real quality up top, and while you can win many games with a leaking defence if you have stellar forwards, the reverse is not true. We will face frustrating games this season, and our overall position at the end might suffer, but as a group we will make progress.

I have no expectations for this season, I only look forward to see how Brendan does, and how the rest of our youthful attackers develop. The league title is a pipe dream, which will remain so.