Did we make the improvements neccesary this summer

[Bootle Buck]

After the CL Final last May the general consensus was that we needed a striker capable of taking chances and a creative midfielder who could help us break down stubborn defences. Did we make the right aquisitions to improve in those areas. Torres undoubted is an amazing talent and from what I have seen from the big man I think he will add tremendously to our team. He's not a fox in the box type player but can change a game with his pace and power. Do we still need a poacher who can put in those rebounds and knock-ins that can also win games.

 

As for the creative midfielder we still seem to lack any cutting edge unless Gerrard is at his best. Are Benayoun, Babel or Pennant capable of turning a game like a Ronaldo, Rooney, Tevez or a Fabregas. It's only been a handful of games so these lads deserve a chance top prove themselves, lets hope they can continue to get better.

 

What does anyone else think?

[Cam]

Neither Pennant and certainly not Benayoun are fit to lace Garcia's boots. babel may be one day.

[anny road]

we have played what.....10 competitve games this season?

 

think it is far too early to judge anything

[chrisbonnie]

no offence lads, but 4 games ago, the mood on here was the league was as good as won

 

we still havent lost since then, yet you`d swear we`re on the verge of relegation

 

im as annoyed as anyone, especially regarding saturdays persistance with not playing torres, but im not going to start crying just yet, im still convinced our best team, will beat just about any other team on the planet, its just getting that threw to Rafa

[Benzo-13]

I'll wait til May on this one.

[Magic8Ball]

No we didn't!

In Torres we got a striker we need ( however we need an adequate replacement for him when he's resting)

In Babel we may long term have a great strike partner for Torres or alternative, but currently hes not ready, not even on the wing

 

We are still lacking decent wingers, a fox in the box striker and alternatives for Carra and Agger.

Note how much we are missing Agger, our only ball playing CH !

 

 

Rafa still needs to sign 3-4 top class players. However I think he got near to the best of what was available this summer

[New York Red]

Well, the thread is all about hunches insn't it? All threads are to some degree or the other.

 

My hunch is that Pennant or Benny are not quite good enough. They are bit players, and very good ones at that. I think one of them should go and someone far batter signed in their place.

 

I still would like Hwa-keen some day. He could do that job for us.

Edited September 24, 2007 by New York Red

[Knox_Harrington]

we have played what.....10 competitve games this season?

 

think it is far too early to judge anything

Agree. There's still question marks over every side in this league.

[New York Red]

Agree. There's still question marks over every side in this league.

 

Which is an excellent point. Nobody is without fault (although I have to say the Arsenal look pretty damn good). I'm not convinced that Man Utd will do well this year. Placcy and Scholes won't do as well and I think their defense isn't all that hot. I can see Chelsea being in a shambles and Spurs definitely are. Man City won't hang in there.

[Molby]

at the time, I didn't think we had had a good enough summer of transfers to win the league

 

and I still don't

 

what I think might happen is that we get within about 6 points of it and we sign two world beaters for next season- meanwhile the likes of Agger, Babbel and Mascherano will have progressed further and we could storm our way to the title next year

[Earl Hafler]

at the time, I didn't think we had had a good enough summer of transfers to win the league

 

and I still don't

 

what I think might happen is that we get within about 6 points of it and we sign two world beaters for next season- meanwhile the likes of Agger, Babbel and Mascherano will have progressed further and we could storm our way to the title next year

 

Are they going to rotate ?

[Greenoak]

For me a BIG NO

 

We got the striker but failed in all other areas

 

Why did we buy Babel. Does Rafa think he is a winger? If he does he needs to get down to spec savers. If Not why is he playing him there?

 

We bought lots of stocking fillers but only one real present in Torres. Without him on the field we are lost. Kupt has no idea where he is on the field. One thing for sure no one is in the box.

 

I think Rafa has the players all baffelled and with no Pako to explain all we look hopeless. He did not buy wingers or a back up CB. Clearly he wanted Heize but for what position.

 

Crouch cant get a game.

 

We have a mess of a squad, very little balance, and that was not rectified.

[Chewie]

Well, the thread is all about hunches insn't it? All threads are to some degree or the other.

 

My hunch is that Pennant or Benny are not quite good enough. They are bit players, and very good ones at that. I think one of them should go and someone far batter signed in their place.

 

I still would like Hwa-keen some day. He could do that job for us.

 

I'm not sure...I think in the interests of objectivity we should shut down forum discussion until May, allowing football to be what it is truly about instead of all this subjective over-involvement of way-too-interested fans...if we adopt this approach we'll all see the benefits and no longer need be worried about expressing any opinion of any degree whatsoever...the morons who do will be relegated to silence saving those who clearly know more the time and effort of lambasting anyone who disagrees with them with the fail-safe put-down of 'kneejerker' or 'shut up FFS'...

 

see you all in May when one can properly reflect on such matters

 

chewie

 

[adayinthelife]

We have needed two top quality wingers for a good few years and nothing has changed...

[Guest Lennon]

I think we only needed a top goalscorer and we got him.

[Mike]

I think we only needed a top goalscorer and we got him.

 

best play the f***** then

[Guest Lennon]

Heh, heh, good point.

[alias75]

Torres has been a great signing and is certainly the type of striker we've been needed since Owen in his prime. Babel looks like he'll be a great player too but he isnt a winger. Think Yossi is a decent squad player, but dont see him holding down a regular first team place.

 

Agree with others that theres still the need for an out and out left winger and we havent got that, id be happy to get Quaresma even if it means losing Crouch to finance it. We need a winger thats very confident hugging the touchline and will attract 2 or more players to him, i havent seen a lot of him but what i saw of him in the CL game was enough for me, he looked a constant threat when he had the ball and was very comfortable in posession, he maybe didnt have the cutting edge that day but in a better team that would come.

 

Im also still not convinced Pennant is good enough to play regularly for us but wide left is the position i think we need strengthening the most at the moment. Id sell Crouch make Babel our 4th striker and wide left backup and sign Quaresma.

[Mike]

Im also still not convinced Pennant is good enough to play regularly for us but wide left is the position i think we need strengthening the most at the moment. Id sell Crouch make Babel our 4th striker and wide left backup and sign Quaresma.

 

although im not sure quaresma is what we want i agree with the rest.

[Guest Lennon]

Don't understand this Quaresma obsession. He's the epitome of a luxury player.

[Rimbeux]

We've got enough, at least as much as anyone else overall.

[Guest Kaizer]

Don't understand this Quaresma obsession. He's the epitome of a luxury player.

 

Thats where you are wrong, he score and set up goals and also works hard when needed, how can that be seen as a luxery.

 

An attacking player not scoring goals, that is a luxury player.

 

I dont think we have improved massively in the summer and I dont think Rafa got good enough backing in the transfer market, so we once again ended up buying some second choice players.

 

We were crying out for a top quality winger and we still are.

 

For me Torres is our only real improvement this summer, I also think Voronin is a better option than Kuyt but we still have not seen Torres and Voronin play much together to take advantage of this.

[Guest Anders Honoré]

we should have signed a top winger for the present instead of the future as Babel looks like. Other than that, yeah I think we made the necessary ones.

[Guest Lennon]

Thats where you are wrong, he score and set up goals and also works hard when needed, how can that be seen as a luxery.

 

An attacking player not scoring goals, that is a luxury player.

 

I dont think we have improved massively in the summer and I dont think Rafa got good enough backing in the transfer market, so we once again ended up buying some second choice players.

 

We were crying out for a top quality winger and we still are.

 

For me Torres is our only real improvement this summer, I also think Voronin is a better option than Kuyt but we still have not seen Torres and Voronin play much together to take advantage of this.

 

For all his amazing ability there was hardly a rush to sign him in the summer.

 

It's also far too early to be making snap judgements about what we're crying out for. It was only 3 games ago that the vast majority of Reds were already proclaiming us champions.

[Rimbeux]

For me a BIG NO

 

We got the striker but failed in all other areas

 

Why did we buy Babel. Does Rafa think he is a winger? If he does he needs to get down to spec savers. If Not why is he playing him there?

 

We bought lots of stocking fillers but only one real present in Torres. Without him on the field we are lost. Kupt has no idea where he is on the field. One thing for sure no one is in the box.

 

I think Rafa has the players all baffelled and with no Pako to explain all we look hopeless. He did not buy wingers or a back up CB. Clearly he wanted Heize but for what position.

 

Crouch cant get a game.

 

We have a mess of a squad, very little balance, and that was not rectified.

 

 

Behave, this bit is particularly barmy, how did you figure that?