The league and domestic cups

[Huyton_Red]

In the league and the domestic cups this have been a Sh'te season = FACT.

 

Battered at home by Arsenal early in both cups.

 

In the league we have 67 points with two games to go, we can get a maximim of 73 points,.9 worse than last years 82.

 

If Utd and Chelsea also win their remaining games they will finish

 

Utd 21 points ahead of us (they finished 1 point ahead of us last year)

Chelsea 16 points ahead of us (they finished 9 points ahead of us last year)

 

We have lost 9 league games, one in 4.

 

What happened there like ?

[Guest Snorky]

In the league and the domestic cups this have been a Sh'te season = FACT.

 

Battered at home by Arsenal early in both cups.

 

In the league we have 67 points with two games to go, we can get a maximim of 73 points,.9 worse than last years 82.

 

If Utd and Chelsea also win their remaining games they will finish

 

Utd 21 points ahead of us (they finished 1 point ahead of us last year)

Chelsea 16 points ahead of us (they finished 9 points ahead of us last year)

 

We have lost 9 league games, one in 4.

 

What happened there like ?

 

The league has been disappointing, we got beat 5 times in our first 6 away games. We need to improve against the top sides away from home, and also the smaller clubs located locally.

[Cobs]

defeats in cup games happens, you can't predict when or where

 

in the League, for me, we will continue to struggle until we play more attacking football away from home.

[Huyton_Red]

For me, and I am no expert here like and not fit to lace the great in charges mans boots

 

But I think we need to invest heavily in two proper wide men and a proper world class striker who will score, from nowhere, when our backs are up the wall like owen used to

 

If we dont get two proper, world class wingers then we then need to get gerrard back in the middle IMHO, driving forward and offering us a goal threat from the centre of midfield especially against the weaker teams

 

The midfield now does not offer enough going forward, its ok playing to sitting central midfielders if you have two proper, threatening wingers but for loads of games this season we have had poor wide play and to sitting central midfielders and it hasnt worked

[magneto]

We need a squad as big and with the same quality as Chelsea's and Man Utd's.

[DanielS]

We're too strong defensively. Everyone knows when they play us they'll get f*** all except for on the break and if they're extremely lucky / Reina has a Dudek moment. We don't have the forward players who can regularly breakdown a packed defence either. Sounds daft, but its true. Look at United. They give the impression that if you get at them you have a chance. So teams do have a go - even if its not in their manager's plans pre-game the players will commit themselves more than they should as a result of that feeling that there is something to be had if only you chance it. Just when opposition teams get those few extra men going forward Utd spring forward and counter against weakened defences.

Chelsea are in a similar position to us - teams don't expect a damn thing from them so defend deep. They just grind down the opposition though and they do have the forward players who can regularly breakdown the parked bus defences.

 

We also counter attack with all the pace of a three legged tortoise.

Edited April 30, 2007 by DanielS

[Nerik]

We cannot compare points tallies as it would be flawed. The main reason is that we have been playing in 2nd gear for quite some time noe i.e. since we knew we were out of the running for a top 2 place and since it was increasingly obvious that we'd be in the top 4 come end of season. We may get 73 points this season but if we were closer to the 2nd placed team we may have been playing at a level that would win us 6-9 more points rather than rest players like we did on Saturday.

 

All this does not mask the fact that we were out of the running for a top 2 spot pretty early on and that should be the main area of focus.

[The Hitman]

Carra said it.

We need better players.

End of.

[Ronnie Whelan]

Carra said it.

We need better players.

End of.

 

 

No doubt about that, we need two to three players to go straight into the first 11.

 

 

Last season there were several threads on how we can improve this season. The main thrust of the discussion was that we needed to take more points off the other top four teams. We have improved on that this season and with a little more luck could well have taken a lot more from those six games. Next season, i dont think there is any discussion needed as to where we need to improve. Our away form was very poor at the start of the season and patchy for the rest. This really needs to improve and to do that we need those key players, preferably out wide and up front. The squad players we have at the moment are sufficient for a push next season, its the first 11 we need to improve on.

[The Hitman]

Indeed,our squad players are at least as good as United's,if not Chelsea's.

The difference is that players like Rooney and Ronaldo can carry the below-par squad players at that lot,and even make them look good.At the moment,bar Gerrard,we don't have any forward players that can do that.

[fyds]

Point is, this summer a genuinely new era begins. We have no idea to what extent Rafa will have a free hand in the market, but if the right noises and plans for a rejigged stadium design are anything to go by, he won't be short of a few bob.

 

With the means we have had at our disposal in recent years compared to some of our rivals home and abroad, we have done exceptionally well on the whole. If, as seems the case we will henceforth be on a more even footing and competing for Rafa's fisrt choice buys and likely getting them, it's game on in a way it has not been for a decade.