Sorry, it was a typo error. I corrected it.
1 Like
Yes. Absolutely.
However. They are only so handsomely paid because it is the highest challenge in world football.
They need to understand the significance of a drop off in form because they are quite feeling up to it on any particular given day ( glances at origi)
It’s a very Suttle but distinct point I’m trying to make, they are just humans, yes, but they are about 1200 people out of probably more than 2 billion wannabe applicants and possible 100,000 rivals for thier immediate job.
It’s one thing to talk about mental toughness in a positive light, or talk about more serious mental conditions like depression and fatigue
I’m not a fan of using it for a match day squad though.
Injuries, lack of quality, lack of prep time I can understand.
Once your picked to play for Liverpool FC…you bring it…
Everyone has an off day, this squad has now let this drag too far IF, IF, it is mental fatigue.
IF it actually is, time to blood new players.
We are LFC, one thing we do do well, is understand when a player is giving everything he has got.
I’m not disagreeing with you regarding money curing all mental issues, I’m just adding that nuance… the odd off day? Ok. This current run of form? I really really hope it’s not caused by mental fatigue.
1 Like
Well that’s kind of the point, isn’t it? For a whole catalog of reasons, “everything they’ve got” adds up to a whole lot less right now than it has over the last few seasons. Fatigue is likely part of that.
I’m sure every single day every (or at least nearly every) player pushes through more pain, discomfort, frustration, doubt, complacency, etc. than we give them credit. I don’t think it’s about application or courage or simply pushing themselves harder – we’ve already seen this squad do that. “Mentality monsters”, right? If that was the bare minimum we expected of them, they would never have earned that moniker.
But being motivated by playing for the premier football club in the world and a big paycheck can only push you to a certain limit. It can’t make your decision-making quicker and better. It can’t make your muscles respond faster.
The pressure-cooker environment of playing for Liverpool Football Club is a double-edged sword: it can fuel players beyond the limits of what they thought was possible for themselves; but it can also take its toll. Look at how everyone was talking about City last season. Tactical issues, yeah, injuries, yeah, changes to the playing squad, yeah, but… “they just couldn’t keep it up”.
In a “normal” season I’m sure the club has plenty of techniques to minimize the effects – sure, in this way their profession and their affluence do provide benefits. But again, there are limits to what the individual and the group can take before you start losing those narrow %ages of performance. The difference between getting that goal you need early to take the pressure off and change the state of the game vs. falling behind to another jammy goal, ffs.
It seems like we’re stuck in a feedback loop/“perfect storm” right now of injuries (and injuries, and injuries, and…), too many games, bad luck, no time to train, a pandemic, everything. There’s no one answer to what’s “wrong” with the group right now. I think people (not necessarily you) tend to feel like fatigue is thrown out there as a blanket excuse to garner some sympathy and avoid harder questions. I think it’s just one part of a really complicated puzzle.
7 Likes
There is a wealth of scientific evidence that concludes mental fatigue in athletes is a thing.
Goes hand in hand with physical exhaustion. You literally cannot be in peak physical condition indefinitely. There is a reason endurance athletes all build their training programmes around different training blocks, and design said programmes so that they peak for the big race, Kona, the TdF etc…
We were up for a looooooooong time…have no doubt we are in some way currently witnessing a reaction to that up period.
7 Likes
The most striking statistic is that we’ve played 2/3 of our games missing 6 or more players. That’s just mental.
And the margins are so fucking razor thin in the PL, drop off just a couple of percent in any one of dozens of metrics and you are fucked.
2 Likes
Fatigue is just a general “life” thing.
There is a reason that a lot of lawyers who start out pulling 12 hour days 6 days week burn out by 40.
Yes footballers have all the support in the world but underneath the physical advantages the mind is just the same as us faults and all.
A perfect example is Robin Williams, an utter genius of a man who made the world around him a better place, had all the money in the world but was crippled by anxiety and depression.
3 Likes
If you play, or manage at base Sunday league level you pray all week that your star striker doesn’t go on the beer the night before the match, or that your leader centre half recovers from the tight hamstring in training.
Its as much psychological as anything. The team becomes despondent, a pessimistic view develops. “We cannot win without him”.
I am sure Klopp keeps his players focussed, Hendo is out the man coming in is seen as big enough to cover, Salah is out, its up to you today Bobby…belief grows in the power of the group.
In a normal situation…
Our injuries are beyond normal. When a corner seems turned another slap awaits. Fabinho, Matip, Mane and Allison in addition to the gigantic loss of VVD…not to mention the rest. The whole notion of replacing like with like becomes void.
The group are bound to be mentally exhausted with this.
And, the biggest single factor…its hard to be Champions. The season after is notoriously difficult, even in the best of times.
1 Like
Jürgen seems to be building up towards City with a few controversial statements according to Pep. Looks to come across as sour grapes in my opinion.
Source: @Goal on Twitter
2 Likes
…and end up spending all their time posting on a football forum.
Amiright @Kopstar
2 Likes
Too much time of late, certainly!
3 Likes
I hope Klopp takes some time and reflects on our terrible few weeks. There’s so much he could have done. It’s like rather than trying, he is just hoping.
Why do he keep playing Firmino??? Agreed that Origi is lame, but why the insistence on using Firmino? Why keep playing Robertson, apparently this was the first time he was subbed. Couldn’t Milner/Tsimikas give him some break? Couldn’t Milner/Neco take few games off TAA when he is clearly struggling?
I know the squad is decimated by injuries. But did he use what he had?
1 Like
Tell you what if he honestly thinks he played well we’ve got much bigger problems…
4 Likes
Seriously Jurgen, you don’t need to sugarcoat things for us. Just sort out the mess and make something out of this wretched season.
2 Likes
Just a notion but does anybody think Jurgen might call it quits in the summer? I have a feeling he might, I hope not, but I think he’s running on empty and with no fans to feed off he just might decide to take a break.
1 Like
I’ve posted elsewhere that I think that Jürgen has finally realised it isn’t an even playing field in this league and it is taking its toll on him.
Wouldn’t be at all surprised if he called it quits at the end of the season.
2 Likes
No, your kidding, I don’t see that happen he is not a quitter.
BTW, good match from Oliver, both penalty’s where penalty’s IMHO. Wish we had a ref like him every match
1 Like
Exactly what I didn’t want our coaching staff to think to be completely honest. Is just going to be rinse and repeat. I don’t have any doubt in the man or the team. My current view about performances isn’t a kneejerk to slag them all off as they’ve dug deep and given us what we’ve wanted for many seasons now but there simply has to be a rollicking and clearing out of the cobwebs coming.
2 Likes
Please don’t say Jurgen is going to leave us this summer 
. I hope he will fulfil his contract to May 2024. We will all be so sad and sorry when he goes. Who knows who we will get as the next manager. That person will have very big shoes to fill.
I think Jurgen needs to freshen up the team and ad a few new players in the summer and get rid of those like Origi etc. Wasn’t this Fergie’s strategy?
3 Likes
I don’t think there’s any chance The Boss goes this summer. One of the things he talked about last January right after we signed Taki was that potential transfer targets were specifically asking how long he planned to stay at Liverpool. He reiterated that while he won’t have a Wenger or Fergie length of stay, he will be here at least to see his deal through.
That said, the optics would look really bad if he were indeed to leave now. Barring an illness to someone close to him or a catastrophic event away from the game, it would look really bad if he walked away now. The savage media in the footballing world would be unforgiving. I just can’t envision him leaving now, for any footballing reasons.
6 Likes