Topic: PL: Vila 3 vs 3 Liv Mart og 2’ Tielemans 12’ Gakpo 26’ Quansah 48’ Duran 85’ 88’

[Agent99]

Slot's job is to try and get the most out of the group of players at his disposal. To do that the likelihood is that he would have to out Coach Klopp. That is extremely unlikely.

We have had a golden period under Klopp. We haven't experienced the reality that 99% of coaches fail and get sacked, for a long time. Expecting Slot to be an improvement on Klopp is crazy, expecting Slot to improve us is crazy.

Al you said before that we end up with a triple pivot when Trent inverts which is obviously affecting our shape so do you think Slot will continue to let this happen? Disclaimer - I am not criticising Jurgen which I know is sacrilege.

[coolbyrne]

Play the kids in our last game, then sub on whoever's on the bench that are from our core Klopp team in the last 5 minutes. Play the future and show the gift Klopp is leaving behind while still acknowledging the best years of his tenure. There will be tears, but I want to see smiles, too, especially from Klopp. Let's go out with some joy. The players have one game left to show what it's all meant. Let's do it.

[CHOPPER]

4 subs when cruising, genuinely no need for that and it unsettled us big time and we lost our rhythm.

Our season in someways, in a nut shell, that game.

[Stockholm Syndrome]

I've posted my thoughts after the game, on player futures ahead of a crucial summer and (likely) transitional season (again) due to a managerial change. Tonight was an abject performance at the end of a very disappointing season in which we're losing one of thr best bosses we've ever had, with cheating and corruption being the only things that have stopped him winning.the lot multiple times.

And if you could be bothered to check my post history, youll mostly see a long time lurker that has been on these boards for around 20 years - I'm no fucking WUM, attack my views by all means, but you can get to fuck with that shite

A trophy and CL spot, with perhaps over 80 points, after a summer rebuilding our midfield, is a very disappointing season.

Fuck me I think that's a pretty silly comment

[Samie]

Slot said he would be watching the game tonight. Would love to know what if anything he wrote on tonight's game.

[jillcwhomever]

I said a couple of weeks ago that our injured players all came back 2 or 3wks too late, they all looked to be coming back and then we had another batch.

Would've taken 3rd at the start of the season.

I never expected anything other than third which is why I am pretty calm. I do wonder if we miss a James Miller type of player, as this squad is younger nowm

[stockdam]

The thing is, there was no pressure. Villa had given up, the crowd had given up. You just need to see it out. Was the same at Old Trafford in the cup, they'd given up, but you know with us we'll always give teams a way back and give them encouragement.

It’s like the old Rope a dope trick.

They pretend they are beaten and we start to mess around then bam-bam two goals go in.

When we are two goals up and on top then the other team should not get a sniff of the ball. Instead we keep playing open football and with one mistake we let them into the match and the momentum swings. Tonight we went from being well on top to being close to losing.

[HeartAndSoul]

Play the kids in our last game, then sub on whoever's on the bench that are from our core Klopp team in the last 5 minutes. Play the future and show the gift Klopp is leaving behind while still acknowledging the best years of his tenure. There will be tears, but I want to see smiles, too, especially from Klopp. Let's go out with some joy. The players have one game left to show what it's all meant. Let's do it.

Find it so strange the likes of Clark and Danns were contributing massively during the period where the first team players were injured and they didnt  look out of place. I’d even go as far as saying they done better than those first team players. Hopefully we see them again in the last game as it’s been weird how they’ve been frozen out for out of form players.

[Enders]

A trophy and CL spot, with perhaps over 80 points, after a summer rebuilding our midfield, is a very disappointing season.

Fuck me I think that's a pretty silly comment

To be fair, I actially meant to say its a very disappointing end to the season, I'm sure we can agree on that

[Lisan Al Gaib]

Slot said he would be watching the game tonight. Would love to know what if anything he wrote on tonight's game.

I know. "Its pointless, I'm not better than Jurgen Klopp and I can't improve this team. Will just go there for three years of lols"

[Eeyore]

And we're back to square 1.

WHAT WILL BE HIS PURPOSE IN THE JOB MATE?  To improve the team or not? It's a simple question,one which you answerd the long way round the first timer

If you are replacing one of the greatest managers to ever live then No. Your job is not to improve the team.

If a coach who has never coached in a top league is expected to improve on one of the greatest coaches ever then the world has gone mad. If  Ped was run over by a bus tomorrow would you expect the new manager to improve City?

Or would City hope there wasn't too much of a drop off?

[Stockholm Syndrome]

To be fair, I actially meant to say its a very disappointing end to the season, I'm sure we can agree on that

Ok yeah that's fairer, understood

[ItzdoctorZ]

Defence terrible again, and yet there are people that expect a title challenge next season.

[Sir Capon of Debaser]

4 subs when cruising, genuinely no need for that and it unsettled us big time and we lost our rhythm.

Our season in someways, in a nut shell, that game.

We where ok at first but don’t know why we started doing that Wenger Arsenal shit. We did it against utd and a few other teams. Exhibition shit that comes back to bite us on the arse. I dunno but it feels  like Szobo has a bad influence on us at times. Bit lackadaisical that spreads to rest of the team

[coolbyrne]

4 subs when cruising, genuinely no need for that and it unsettled us big time and we lost our rhythm.

Our season in someways, in a nut shell, that game.

I honestly more than half-expected that shout for a penalty for Villa at the end to be given. That's just the way our season has gone.

[Samie]

If you are replacing one of the greatest managers to ever live then No. Your job is not to improve the team.

If a coach who has never coached in a top league is expected to improve on one of the greatest coaches ever then the world has gone mad. If  Ped was run over by a bus tomorrow would you expect the new manager to improve City?

Or would City hope there wasn't too much of a drop off?

Al, I'm not talking about your expectations.    What's the job for? Is he coming here for 3 years to get a big pay packet see the sights of this godforsaken land? Or is he coming here to try and improve the team?  It's a couple of easy questions to answer.   

[Fordy]

Find it so strange the likes of Clark and Danns were contributing massively during the period where the first team players were injured and they didnt  look out of place. I’d even go as far as saying they done better than those first team players. Hopefully we see them again in the last game as it’s been weird how they’ve been frozen out for out of form players.

Clark is injured and out for the season. Danns has been injured also.

However, I do agree that as soon as the youth players were replaced by so senior pros it all went to pot of us a little bit.

[jillcwhomever]

Defence terrible again, and yet there are people that expect a title challenge next season.

Who expects that? I haven't seen anyone say that. As for the defense perhaps it would help if we didn't keep getting injuries every other game.

[ItzdoctorZ]

If you think Arne Slott is going to be an improvement on one of the greatest managers in history I’m afraid you’re in for a big disappointment.

The team are having a dip, it’s happening during before and after we have won titles and CL wins under Klopp. Besides the fact it’s a dead rubber anyway.

So Slot is already a flop before he's even managed one game?

[Son of Spion]

Bottle job?

We have 1 away win against the top 10, and that was the late steal at Newcastle after they battered us for 75.

We have been nowhere near good enough for this to be bottle job territory.

I think that's fair. The bottom line this season is that we're just not quite good enough. It's as simple as that. We haven't done enough against our fellow title challengers. We've also been playing catch-up in games for much of the season after gifting the opposition a goal and the initiative more times than I care to remember.

Our finishing has been wasteful to say the least, and we've been defensively frail too. Last gasp comebacks can only take you so far. We simply didn't have enough in the tank to beat a good Arsenal side and the 115* to the title. We'd have been closer if PGMOL mistakes had not been made but, overall, we are third in the table for a reason, and it's not because we "bottled" it.

Klopp leaving. Hangover from the previous season. Transitional year. Ridiculous amounts of injuries. Frail defence. Attack that needs 30 chances to register one goal. Constantly gifting our opponents the first goal. New players to bed in. Older players reaching the sunsets of their peak. PGMOL industrial scale incompetence. Uncertainty over who is coming in to manage us. None of this suggests a settled side that can be fully focused and firing on all cylinders. We've simply not had a fully fit side all season. Everything has been patchy.

This isn't a bottle job. Under the circumstances it's maybe a par season. Before it started I hoped for a CL place and a cup. Anything else would have been a bonus. Regardless of anything, and despite everything, we're still the second best side in the country. Third if you have to include the cheats. So not bad considering.

Tonight at 1-3 I still felt we could lose the game. Now that's ridiculous. We weren't playing Real Madrid. But that's our fragility this season. Not taking chances, but giving up chances a plenty to our opponents. So if there's one thing I hope the new manager can achieve it's making us solid again defensively. Then, we can build from there. As it stands, scoring three away from home and still not coming back to Liverpool with a win is something that cannot continue. It's happened twice in the space of just weeks. And once to poor opposition too.

But anyway, it's no bottle job. We just aren't quite good enough this time around, and for multiple reasons too.

[Eeyore]

Al you said before that we end up with a triple pivot when Trent inverts which is obviously affecting our shape so do you think Slot will continue to let this happen? Disclaimer - I am not criticising Jurgen which I know is sacrilege.

It will be totally dependent on changing the makeup of the squad.

For me, we need to invest in a top-quality athletic 6 and get Macca higher up the pitch in an area in which he is using his passing ability without the chronic problems that occur when he gives the ball away.

If Slot is given the same squad then I really doubt he will be able to improve us. What we need is to improve the squad.

[ItzdoctorZ]

Xg gave us less than 2 and we scored 3. That shows how much bullshit xG is.

First goal was a big gift

[Yorkykopite]

Almost felt like Jurgen was sending out a message to the new guy with the substitutions. "We have control of the game. Watch what happens when  I send on the pussycats."

[disgraced cake]

Defence terrible again, and yet there are people that expect a title challenge next season.

Wouldn't say I'm expecting a title challenge next season but let's be honest, we've underwhelmed massively at times this season and ended up with a decent chance of winning it until about game 34 of the season. We'll still finish on a respectable points tally. That's including playing some really uninspired stuff throughout, often times looking hopeless in both penalty areas, and having a best winning streak of five matches (back in August/September).

First and foremost, make us harder to score against (I actually think he will, it's one way in which Klopp's decision making has let us down at times). Improve considerably in that regard and there's no reason why we can't compete at the very least, even if not beat City to a title.

[Enders]

Who expects that? I haven't seen anyone say that. As for the defense perhaps it would help if we didn't keep getting injuries every other game.

Maybe the change of manager and backroom staff will have an affect on this, as the number of injuries has always been a big problem during Jurgen's time with us

[Eeyore]

Al, I'm not talking about your expectations.    What's the job for? Is he coming here for 3 years to get a big pay packet see the sights of this godforsaken land? Or is he coming here to try and improve the team?  It's a couple of easy questions to answer.   

Managers come to a club and look to build a squad and improve the team. That isn't what Slot is being employed to do. He is being employed to coach the players to the best of his ability.

[RedKenWah]

I’m actually unsure of what to make of this game on the basis that it is an absolute dead rubber with no meaning. We secured 3rd, can’t go higher or lower and that I feel played a part in the way we approached this game.

I do think the team are goosed somewhat, which is to be expected and I think the sooner we get this season over with then the better. Absolutely important we give Jurgen a deserved send off but I feel that as a club to move forward we need to usher in this new era and new manager and just get on with getting to grips with how he wants us to play.

[stockdam]

We have won just 3 games in our last 9 in all comps and most of the matches have seen us playing poorly when the other team stepped up the pressure. At times we have looked great but we have been so easy to carve apart and when we concede one goal it often looks like the 2nd and maybe 3rd will follow.

Our defending in all areas of the pitch has been poor. We have been outmuscled and outrun.

I really hope that Slot has a view of how to make us more solid. We have the players to beat anyone but we have become so porous and concede far too many goals. If other teams improve then we’ll fall backwards so he really needs to turn us into a team that is difficult to score against.

[Eeyore]

Almost felt like Jurgen was sending out a message to the new guy with the substitutions. "We have control of the game. Watch what happens when  I send on the pussycats."

Strange post since it was one of the starters Macca who gave Villa a way back into the game.

[Ray K]

surely you give him 1 more game to fix it??

I'd give it Spearing til the end of the season

[Samie]

Managers come to a club and look to build a squad and improve the team. That isn't what Slot is being employed to do. He is being employed to coach the players to the best of his ability.

THANK YOU JAYSUS! That's all I wanted to hear from you mate. Have a good night you mad bastard. 

[Son of Spion]

Who expects that? I haven't seen anyone say that. As for the defense perhaps it would help if we didn't keep getting injuries every other game.

Injuries have been an absolute killer to our momentum. The entire season has been disjointed due to them.

I think we can challenge next season. We have done this season too, but over the full 38 games you get found out on your weaknesses. A number of factors have hampered us, but endless injuries to crucial players have really hurt. Imagine if we'd had a fully fit Jota for the last two months. Chances are we take the title to the last day and are in the FA Cup final too. Throw in a settled defence and I'd suggest that would be more or less nailed on.

[Eeyore]

We have won just 3 games in our last 9 in all comps and most of the matches have seen us playing poorly when the other team stepped up the pressure. At times we have looked great but we have been so easy to carve apart and when we concede one goal it often looks like the 2nd and maybe 3rd will follow.

Our defending in all areas of the pitch has been poor. We have been outmuscled and outrun.

I really hope that Slot has a view of how to make us more solid. We have the players to beat anyone but we have become so porous and concede far too many goals. If other teams improve then we’ll fall backwards so he really needs to turn us into a team that is difficult to score against.

The midfield is completely dysfunctional. It offers no protection to the defence and is completely incapable of retaining possession under any form of pressure. We start with Endo as a 6. He can't cope so Macca drops in. When that doesn't work Trent inverts. We are still porous and cannot cope with any form of pressing.

[Clint Eastwood]

Hard to read too much in to the game but I’m welcoming a change in system. We shouldn’t struggle to control games as much as we do.

[killer-heels]

The midfield is completely dysfunctional. It offers no protection to the defence and is completely incapable of retaining possession under any form of pressure. We start with Endo as a 6. He can't cope so Macca drops in. When that doesn't work Trent inverts. We are still porous and cannot cope with any form of pressing.

Klopp signed those players. He also has been working with this for 2 seasons now and we still are pretty poor off the ball and in transition.

[Avens]

Of course mate I agree and he’ll have full backing, just some on here looking over at greener grass are going to have a rude awakening I feel.

If Slott gets anywhere near top of the league with a month or so to go as Klopp done this year with all the shit and injuries then he’ll have pulled a miracle for me. I feel some underestimate, forget or have just got used to the utter genius and effect Klopp has on the squad.

Expectations should be lowered to allow Slott time he will need.

This sort of thing is becoming pretty pervasive in here and it's just nonsense. It's our fucking grass we're looking at - why shouldn't people be hopeful and positive about the future? Some posters, like you, seem to think that being hopeful about the new era is somehow being disrespectful towards Klopp. JK has decided to leave, we can wallow in self pity or we can celebrate everything he brought us and look forward to what comes next. There's nothing disrespectful or fickle about that. Disrespect is ironically calling our probable new manager "mighty Arne Slot".

[HeartAndSoul]

Almost felt like Jurgen was sending out a message to the new guy with the substitutions. "We have control of the game. Watch what happens when  I send on the pussycats."

The pussycats included 3 players that Klopp and Ljinders pushed for…

[Samie]

He does have a mighty shiny bald head mate.

[Eeyore]

Klopp signed those players. He also has been working with this for 2 seasons now and we still are pretty poor off the ball and in transition.

Look at the players Klopp tried to sign though.

He has been looking for a couple of physical midfield monsters for years.

[kasperoff]

When i mt was pointed out at HT that we're poor defensively,  some said it was a kneejerk reaction based on the scoreboard. The same people will probably overreact now.

Slot needs to fix our defence. That's it.

This is a dead rubber that's practically a preseason game for us.

It's more than that. There is no fluidity in our attack either. And all of a sudden the midfield looks powderpuff again like it did last season. We looked fantastic in the first half of the season, the squad looked solid and to have depth. Now there's question marks all over the place. It's a funny old game.