Xabi's dip in form is having a big affect on us

[Bootle Buck]

Xabi hasn't had a good game since the Luton game. He even seems to be struggling with his short passes. Granted the pitches we are playing on are mainly s**** but a player of his quality should still stand above the rest. When Xabi is on his best form our whole team plays better. Gerrard provides the energy and drive but Xabi certainly controls our tempo and the game. We need him back at his best.

[baja the hut]

thought he had a great game yesterday....but agreed that he is the guy who pulls the strings in our middle...

[Guest AdamS]

thought he had a great game yesterday....but agreed that he is the guy who pulls the strings in our middle...

Agree with all that.

[anny road]

he is suffering slightly but yesterday he worked hin b****x off and he couldnt be expected to play properly on that dog s*** of a pitch

 

he stood at one point looking at the surface shaking his head

[Paul B]

I watched the match on norwegian canal +, the commentator said that several players still suffered from problems with their sleep after the trip to Japan. According to him, Alonso still had to take sleeping pills... Haven't seen this mentioned anywhere else...

 

 

He's a divvy. The trip to Saturn, sorry, Japan, was months ago. Pathetic argument and no wonder you've seen it mentioned nowhere else. People presumably want to keep their jobs.

[anny road]

i think one thing people have not mentioned with Xabi is that he wont be used to playing such a compressed season as this...

 

In Spain they usually play until June and dont take there cups seriously...Plus sociedad would not be in Europe

 

Last season he had a few months off with the ankle break

[Guest Les Howard]

Dip in form? playing on the quagmire pitches that we have of late, it'd be difficult to spray horse s**** around - never mind pin point passes.

 

I think Xabi's performances have been ok of late - not great but ok. I also think that even when he's not at the top of his game - his committment and willingness to tackle and battle have improved vastly from last season.

[Paul B]

i think one thing people have not mentioned with Xabi is that he wont be used to playing such a compressed season as this...

 

Last season he had a few months off with the ankle break

 

You've got me with that one, as our Liam pointed out on the way back yesterday.

[eth]

He's a divvy. The trip to Saturn, sorry, Japan, was months ago. Pathetic argument and no wonder you've seen it mentioned nowhere else. People presumably want to keep their jobs.

People react to that sort of thing in different ways.

Edited February 12, 2006 by eth

[iceman-23]

 

I watched the match on norwegian canal +, the commentator said that several players still suffered from problems with their sleep after the trip to Japan. According to him, Alonso still had to take sleeping pills... Haven't seen this mentioned anywhere else...

 

I saw this in one of the guardians web articles. It was an article related to the tiredness shown by the players after a long season...

[anny road]

You've got me with that one, as our Liam pointed out on the way back yesterday.

 

 

good lad your Liam.....Apart from he cant get his lazy a*** out of bed

[liverbird04]

think other teams are constructing ways to take him and his passing out of the game hence his influence looks less. still think he's been doing pretty well though at times he's been forcing the issue with some of his passes.

 

 

yep said it a few times ,other teams target xabi now ,just as we try and work out how to play and shut down other teams we can forget they do the exact same to us .Martin jol mentioned it specifically ,take xabi out and that leaves you with sissoko who isn't exactly mr creative or a passing master like xabi ,thats why getting someone of real quality on the right is so important so we can get gerrard back where in the middle ,take alonso out and get gerrard ,more scary prospect ,and you can play sissoko in a 3 when needed .Just a thougth anyway .

[Koogan]

think other teams are constructing ways to take him and his passing out of the game hence his influence looks less.

 

Agree. He was clearly our most fouled player vs. Wigan.

[boohog]

We should try moving him round a bit because he is getting man marked and needs time on the ball. Gerrard and Xabi should interchange during the game, as Xabi should be well capable of putting crosses in. Given that we always play Mom/Didi in the middle with Xabi, it would mean Gerrard would be able to take the attacking central role for a portion of the game.

 

Personally I don't think with Xabi and a holding mid in the centre we have enough drive forwards as a team.

[IgPig]

Thought he was very good last night. I guess because players found more space, the passing was back and was mostly 100% accurate.

[David Hodgson]

His best game in quite a while. Typical that it ended with an injury

 

When Xabi plays well, the whole team plays well

 

Yep, he was back to his best last night.

[boohog]

His best game in quite a while. Typical that it ended with an injury

 

When Xabi plays well, the whole team plays well

 

Xabi plays well when he is not under pressure. Arsenal had noone to do that job so he could pick and choose his passes. When he is marked by the opposition he really struggles though and his passing becomes wayward.

 

The problem is at the moment we aren't taking advantage of teams man marking Xabi because Stevie is on the wing. If he was playing in the centre he could take advantage of the space freed up by the players gangbanging Xabi. Unfortunately this is neither Momo or Didi's forte, so in essence in those kinds of games we have ended up with a passer who can't pass, a defensive midfielder not doing anything to push the attack, and our best attacking mid on the wing.