My point is that, you need to find replacements for Diaz/Mane/Salah a.k.a inverted wingers. Our attacks are too slow and predictable without such players.
And then, you need world-class full-backs to support them. Frimpong, Kerkez and Bradley are not good enough.
Could have bought Kvaratskhelia or Gordon back in 2024 but failed.
Not wanting to detrack Floâs thread Iâll just say.
Wirtz can and has played as an inverted forward and is good at it. Left, right or centre (NÂș10).
I wouldnât consider any of the players you mentioned as inverted wingers. Salah is an inside forward with special gifts however he essentially looks to score. ManĂ© was winger, inside forward and inverted winger when he wanted another special player. Diaz ran around like a crazed man, no idea what he was, didnât fall into any of my boxes, not as talented as the other 2 but a good player to have if you wanted chaos.
However the real issue is none were particularly fast for wingers, tricky, talented ⊠yes. If you want to play fast you make the ball do the work with good firm accurate and varied passing. This is Floâs domain. ManĂ© was good as well, never knew what he was going to do.
One of the things that has been incorrectly conflated ever since Euro players started coming to the prem in numbers in the 90s is that pace of the game is the same thing as a playerâs physical pace. Today we are playing at far slower pace than we did even last season under the supposedly more measured Slot approach. There appears to have creeped into the conventional wisdom that to solve that we need âfast wide playersâ that this side supposedly now lacks, even though Mo is no slower than he was last season and Cody is physically quicker than Diaz he just doesnt play with the same intensity. Likewise, Kirkez and Frimpong are certainly quicker than Robbo and Trent.
Zero goals and only 2 assists in last 13 games is just truly shocking.
cant be arsed looking,
but i bet Salahâs, Gapkoâs, and Ekitikeâs stats arenât much better,
everyoneâs been pretty crap this season,
edit. just found out that our seasoned pro Mo Salah has 6 assists all season.
Gakpo 8 goals 6 assists in 3175 minutes
Hugo 17 goals 6 assists in 3041 minutes
Mo 12 goals 9 assists in 3001 minutes
Wirtz 6 goals 10 assists in 3283 minutes
2 of those 4 regularly get slagged to pieces.
Thats what really pisses me off the most the amount of times Wirtz drifts through a game with no grief like the others get.
They get slagged to pieces because their general play besides all the wankathon over goals and assists, are terrible, and unlike Hugo and Flo, have been around for years. Hugo and Flo are 22/23 with levels to go and time to reach them, fans realise this. Gakpo should be in the prime of his career and he plays like a giraffe.
Wirtz has disappointed in more games than he has played well.
Went to uni in AberdeenâŠ
Another piece of the puzzle falls into place.
The reason he doesnât get the same grief as the others is because most fans realise that his circumstances are different to Salah and Gakpoâs. And thatâs if you think that he has been as bad as they have, which he hasnât by any stretch of the imagination.
Wirtz is a team player and his whole game is linking play and getting the ball to players in dangerous positions.
His game isnât about him.
For him to perform he needs mobile players with great movement and good technical skills. He links very well with Mo, Ekitike, Jones and Szob plays lots of give and goes and gets us on the ball in and around their penalty box.
Our issue is getting good possession to him with players running off him, he would have been a revelation in a Klopp team, where we were committed to getting numbers forward in attacting situation with pace.
Under Arne, we just build up too slow, donât play vertical passes to him and when we do his passing option is mostly sideways or backwards.
Fit like, loon?
Not equally, thatâs for sure. Itâs not even possible.
On Wirtz against Everton, yeah⊠another a bit meh performance. Again, some nice passes, but for a central single #10 on the day, not visible enough.
yes it is possible,
you just need to watch us playâŠ
Strange to say this season, but excited to see these players perform when we have a coherent plan.
heres an interesting topic;
im not suggesting this guy gets in our all time first 11, long way to go for that conversation, butâŠbutâŠ
since ive been watching us (late 80s) and more particularily, since Australia has had decent coverage (late 90s) i dont think there is an LFC team that he doesnt get into.
he gets into the houllier treble team. He would have been amazing in Rafas 2005 and 2009 team (probably playing off the left in that 09 team) the Rodgers team that nearly won the league to me he makes⊠Klopp would have found a way for him to get in, maybe that workhorse engine of Henderson Gini and Fabinho could ask the question, but i still think he finds a way into that team⊠and anything since.
so im not saying hes had an alltime great season, or hes ready to stand up there with the likes of GerradâŠbut any team in any era ive seenâŠi think he makesâŠ
you guys?
We talk about potential here, which is higher than what he showed so far this season.
If we go by the first, then we can name more players and it becomes endless. Can be fun, but also very wild.
If we go by the second, in my opinion, no he doesnât make Kloppâs team. What he showed so far wouldnât be enough to make that team. Even Rodgersâ is questionable for me, because that side (or that season) had all itâs best performers in his position(s). Would most (if not all) managers have him and try to get him there? Of course.
I do understand the angle that we didnât see a lot of players or transfers of this type at Liverpool in last decades.
But now he has to prove it on the pitch in the next few years.