Its been 3 years since I last wrote on this blog and after reading older posts I really felt the need to apologise to a Kop hero....Lucas Leiva.
Back in 2009 when Rafa insisted on playing Mascherano, Alonso AND Lucas many(including me!) questioned Lucas inclusion. Why 3 'holding' midfielders...why Lucas!!!
While I knew Lucas was a class player I questioned his inclusion into an already steady midfield and was frustrated because we could obviously use an extra attacking player instead of another defensive one.
Barely a season later and I was made to eat my words and admitted it to every Liverpool fan I knew.
With Alonso moving on to Real Madrid and Masherano following soon after to Barcelona, Lucas was left to hold the midfield and boy did he step up. He soon established himself as the number one midfielder and our most productive player with the exception of the ever present Captain Stevie. He became a Kop hero...
No one was more excited to see Lucas come on as a sub on the recent American tour than me. Lucas was back to stabilise our fragile midfield that hurt so much under King Kenny when he got injured last season against Chelsea. Liverpool FC looked to step up a gear last season after Kenny was signed on as permanent manager but that progress was soon halted when Lucas got injured against Chelsea in the League Cup. With that our league form dipped, we just could'nt match other teams in midfield. Even the great Stevie G commented that Lucas was the form player when he got injured and it hurt the team. No one really stood out as an adequate replacement for Lucas in midfield and the team suffered. Yes we outplayed a lot of teams and suffered terrible luck in front of goal but for me the key to our miserable season was the loss of Lucas.
The Rogers Revolution started decently with some stella performances in the States and the inclusion of Lucas was a great sight once again. In the opening day of the season against West Brom we lost but we were never outplayed in that game, 3-0 was a flattering score line. Although Lucas was tiring in midfield I felt that his substitution was a major factor in us conceding 2 goals late on. It allowed West Brom to have a better share of the midfield. Lucas just covers so much ground and breaks ups much of the opposition plays.
We will once again lose the services of Lucas who was injured early on against Manchester City.... at least this time it wont be for the whole season. I'm really looking forward to enjoying your contribution on the field in his new Rogers system.
We need you to be back soon and stronger in our push for the Champions League places and hopefully we can shut a few doubters up and even challenge for that elusive League Title.
C'mon Lucas ....The Kop Hero from Sunny Brasil....
Wednesday, August 29, 2012
Monday, August 27, 2012
The Rogers Revolution
Is the Rogers Revolution really taking shape?
From the view of a Liverpool FC addict I can safely say it is....
Pushing on from last seasons ups and downs one can really see a change in the philosophy at Liverpool. Rodgers has a system in place that I think will work well with the players available to him, he's added Joe Allen who already looks like a polished midfielder, no disrepect to Swansea but Liverpool is more than just a club and we boast a midfield to match any in the Premier League. Allen has not only fitted in but has been our best performer since the league started, breaking down opposition play and also passing accuracy. Nuri Sahin has also been added and I can't wait to see him and how Rogers will shuffle the team around to accomodate him. He is exactly the type of player that we needed in the midfield. In my opinion he should be sitting just behind Suarez.
We were hard done by with two unfortunate mistakes against Man City, it was a case of 3 dropped points for Liverpool FC, who fought hard against the Champions. Raheem Sterling showed that he can play at this level, hes may runs and final ball into the box will no doubt be a good reason to bench Downing. He worked his socks off back tracking and im sure we're gonna be seeing more of this talented 17 year old.
One major concern for me is up front, while Borinin works hard the final product is still lacking, I trust Rogers judgment on him and having worked with him before knows his capabilities. With the future of Carroll still in doubt it remains to be seen if we will indeed add another striker.
Players like Spearing, Henderson, Adam, Downing, Carroll need to be moved on and suitable replacements need to be brought in, players that can fit in and play the 'Rogers' style must be brought in before the transfer window closes.
I'm really excited to see where Rogers can actually take the team once his philosophy is really understood on the field.
YNWA
From the view of a Liverpool FC addict I can safely say it is....
Pushing on from last seasons ups and downs one can really see a change in the philosophy at Liverpool. Rodgers has a system in place that I think will work well with the players available to him, he's added Joe Allen who already looks like a polished midfielder, no disrepect to Swansea but Liverpool is more than just a club and we boast a midfield to match any in the Premier League. Allen has not only fitted in but has been our best performer since the league started, breaking down opposition play and also passing accuracy. Nuri Sahin has also been added and I can't wait to see him and how Rogers will shuffle the team around to accomodate him. He is exactly the type of player that we needed in the midfield. In my opinion he should be sitting just behind Suarez.
We were hard done by with two unfortunate mistakes against Man City, it was a case of 3 dropped points for Liverpool FC, who fought hard against the Champions. Raheem Sterling showed that he can play at this level, hes may runs and final ball into the box will no doubt be a good reason to bench Downing. He worked his socks off back tracking and im sure we're gonna be seeing more of this talented 17 year old.
One major concern for me is up front, while Borinin works hard the final product is still lacking, I trust Rogers judgment on him and having worked with him before knows his capabilities. With the future of Carroll still in doubt it remains to be seen if we will indeed add another striker.
Players like Spearing, Henderson, Adam, Downing, Carroll need to be moved on and suitable replacements need to be brought in, players that can fit in and play the 'Rogers' style must be brought in before the transfer window closes.
I'm really excited to see where Rogers can actually take the team once his philosophy is really understood on the field.
YNWA
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