It’s not been a pleasant season for us Liverpool fans thus far. We lost our best player in the summer, our next best player has been injured, our new signings have struggled, we’re not scoring enough and our defence is leakier than ever. I could go on, but there’s a long list of things which are not right at the moment. Yet somehow, after a dismal return of 14 points from a possible 33, we are miraculously just 4 points off top 4, by virtue of our rivals struggling just as badly as ourselves. Our target for this season is to maintain Champions League football, and it’s certainly not out of reach. However, the way we’ve played so far there’s no chance, unless the performance level takes a dramatic turn for the better.
Source: liverpoolfc.com
The good news is, we head into next weekend’s away fixture at Selhurst Park with what looks like, for the first time this season, a fully fit squad, except for the recent knock to Balotelli which doesn’t seem too serious. It is, therefore, about time that Rodgers gets his act together and pieces together our strongest starting XI. After a turbulent few months of chopping and changing formation and personnel, we need to establish a first choice side in order to form the consistency, partnerships and understanding which contributed so much to our success of last season. It’s all been rather disjointed so far, and whilst injuries and fluctuating form of individuals hasn’t helped, there are some glaringly obvious decisions that Rodgers must take.
Personally, I think our best starting XI depends on whether you want a two-striker formation, or a single striker. Either could work well in different situations, but here are the 2 alternative lineups which I believe are the strongest moving forwards.
Option 1: (4-4-2 diamond)
Mignolet; Manquillo, Toure, Lovren, Moreno; Lucas, Emre Can, Henderson, Sterling, Balotelli, Sturridge
Option 2: (4-3-3)
Mignolet; Manquillo, Toure, Lovren, Moreno; Emre Can, Henderson, Coutinho; Lallana, Sturridge, Sterling
The first thing you’ll probably notice about both of these lineups I’ve chosen is that both omit Gerrard. Whilst some may be uncomfortable about the idea of dropping our captain, it’s something I believe has to be done in the team’s best interests. Aged 34, Gerrard simply lacks the mobility and defensive discipline to operate at the base of the diamond. He is too easily bypassed by fast, counter attacking sides which leaves our back line exposed. Neither do I think he is capable of playing a central attacking role, as it is essential for the player in that position to press the opposition- something far better suited to Sterling than Gerrard. That isn’t to say he no longer holds value to our team. He does, but it should be more of an impact sub role, for the last half an hour of games, either to see the game out or contribute in attack, or perhaps to start the odd home fixture against lower quality opposition, but not in our regular starting XI.
As you’ll also see, I have left out Skrtel and Johnson, two experienced mainstays of our side for a long time, but in my opinion they are both unreliable and not worthy of a starting spot. Manquillo has shown in each of his performances he is more solid defensively than Johnson, and can also contribute meaningfully in attack (ie, winning the penalty vs Ludogorets), rather than Johnson’s infuriating habit of losing the ball high up the pitch, out of position. Kolo Toure has also proven, especially against Real Madrid, that he still has something to offer, and is a more robust, better suited partner to Dejan Lovren in the centre of defence. Based on merit, Manquillo and Toure should start.
Some may be surprised to see I’ve left out Sakho in favour of Lovren. In truth, neither have convinced in a Liverpool shirt since their expensive transfers, but given Lovren’s impressive season for Southampton, I am prepared to give him more time alongside a regular partner to prove his quality. I think some of the criticism he has been given is overly harsh, and largely based on his £20m price tag. I feel he has been over exposed on multiple occasions by a lack of midfield cover, which also needs to be addressed. With Sakho returning from injury, the Frenchman can provide competition which hopefully will result in improved form for Lovren, and if not, Sakho could take the spot. Moreno on the left hand side of defence is a guaranteed starter for obvious reasons.
Having examined the back four, this is where the two systems vary. Firstly, the 4-4-2 diamond allows Sturridge and Balotelli to play up front. Whilst Balotelli has been disappointing, I feel he will offer more and benefit from playing alongside a skillful, dynamic partner such as Sturridge and it is worth giving the partnership a chance to flourish. Focusing on Sterling in a central role, this is where he was sensational in the latter half of last season, with his pace and creativity being maximised. He hasn’t played there so far this campaign, and it is worth allowing him an opportunity to regain some form in that position, which could also benefit Balotelli and Sturridge. Emre Can and Henderson are both athletic, box to box midfielders who are good at driving forward, but also tracking back and pressing to win back possession, which is much needed when our fullbacks push up as much as they do. I selected Lucas on the grounds that he provides more disciplined defensive cover than Gerrard. Lucas has performed diligently on every occasion he’s played this season, and will rarely leave his position unoccupied. He isn’t top class, but for the time being I think this is the best way to add some solidity to the side.
Source: liverpoolfc.com
With the 4-3-3 formation, we have Henderson and Emre Can sitting just behind Coutinho. The former two will do the running and keep the ball, whilst Coutinho always has that ability to unlock defences with a killer run of pass, which he is best placed to do in a central role. Up top, Sturridge can take his favored centre forward role, supported on either side by his compatriots Lallana and Sterling. Sterling has shown his connection with Sturridge before, and the pace of both players is a key asset and something we’ve sorely lacked. Lallana is a player who I believe has to start more often than he does. We paid £25m for him, and it was unacceptable for Rodgers to leave him as an unused sub in our last two league fixtures, both of which were losses. He has superb technical ability, a willingness to work hard, and coming inside from the left I feel he has a really valuable role in the side.
At this moment in time, I don’t feel that Markovic or Allen justify a place in our strongest XI, but that’s the advantage of having squad depth, as they are forced to push their way if they want to earn a place. There are still areas of weakness in our team, whichever lineup we play. We need a top class defensive midfielder for starters, and perhaps even another goalkeeper, centre back and striker. But these two systems are what I feel are most likely to succeed at present. The 4-3-3 is a faster, slicker side which is best suited to playing lower quality sides perhaps, whilst the 4-4-2 diamond is perhaps more suitable for tougher opponents when we need more control of the ball. Whether Rodgers goes with a similar idea to my own is another question- I think it’s highly unlikely he’ll drop Gerrard or Skrtel, but the manager has to work out persist with a consistent XI as soon as possible.
Red Regista
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