I thought that era was pretty much Milner simply because he didn’t miss. I remember Jürgen saying a few times that we only changed penalty-takers when the one taking them missed. So it would be Milner then whoever next in the pecking order, and then the next one and so on.
That was the period when we gave Mane, Firmino and Salah the chance. Mixed success, there was a save, a post, etc. It depends also who wants it, has the confidence and wants that extra homework. Salah obviously came out on top. Milner I think missed one or two but still remained. Thing is he was always going to start to play/start less so Salah eventually took over full time, also when Milner was on the pitch.
No Ballon D‘Or for Mo. That’s for sure now.
Surprise pre-contract signing? Smart cookie - I expect he could extend his career for another 10 years there.
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This guy is lovely. It’s a genuine privilege to have been able to follow his whole career at LFC. Before that, I also used to follow him when he was playing at FC Basel. He always was a gem as a player, but has also always stayed gentle and humble as a man.
That’s worth more than any gold in the world.
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I am very hesitant to put people like this on a pedestal because they will ALWAYS find a way to disappoint you. But as you say he really does appear to just be an all around good person who takes seriously that side of the platform he has as an athlete. But what is more remarkable is he combines that with the cold blooded ruthlessness that has made him so such a wonder on the pitch. Those traits are not supposed to belong in the same person.
Dont milkshake duck me now, Mo
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FFS @Limiescouse
Just in case…
. Unusual for sportsman at his elite level. Usually it takes an arrogance and selfishness to get there
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I’m not sure about that. I think it takes confidence, and it just often manifests as overconfidence towards the point of arrogance. I think it takes focus, that tends to mean prioritising one’s career and one’s self ahead of other things, but that’s not that different from being the elite in so many fields. Neither of those things preclude humility, which can actually help as we often see in Salah’s case where he just has that relentless drive to improve, aided by the confidence that he can improve. Nor do they preclude a genuine care for others.
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In the case if we had brought Brandt, I guess he would’ve probably played mainly off the left or, with time, also as a #10 in a possible structure change. Firmino as the false #9 and Mane off the right. Coutinho’s last half of the season he played half the time as our left attacker, half the time as our most offensive LCM #8.
The change when Mo arrived was Mane to the left. And I remember for a while, especially mid-season 17/18, Mane had a serious drop in form. Especially when it came to combining more on the opposite side of Salah (so had to play a bit deeper on his side, but still attack of course). Suddenly, he went from being our most (or only!) direct player in 16/17 to someone who’s strongest foot was more open towards the game, had to become more complete and not be as wild all the time. In that period of a few games, I remember he struggled to string two accurate passes together.
Mane’s evolution from that winter of 17/18 (still ended that season on 20 goals, which was really good, considering Firmino had his best and as it turned out oustanding goalscoring season and no need to mention Salah’s first) to one of our most solid, trusted and consistent players in possession was big. We also had a structure change to 4-4-1-1 for a while during that time, after that heavy defeat against Spurs at Wembley.
I can fully understand that a coach like Klopp had his skepticism if that attacking trio (+ Coutinho, maybe we still had hope we could keep him) would provide enough balance for the team. But as it turned out, we built and it evolved in one of the best and most cohesive attacks of their time.
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What a disgrace, he hasn’t got twice the number of big chances created as the next player.
Washed up crap. SELL.
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Yeah it’s all very well to post those numbers in a one team farmer’s league but could he do it against top level opponents week in and week out in France, Holland or Scotland? The jury is out!
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Can he do it on a rainy Tuesday in Stoke??
You make a compelling point. Not good enough for the Championship, not tested outside of our farmers league and getting on in years. Fella would be mad to not accept our new 12 month contract offer of a free kit (washed weekly) and half time oranges plus 10% off at the club shop. Come on Mo la you know it makes sense!
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And we let @Nikola break this???
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It’s on the beeb, so I think it is safe to say there is no chance of @Nikola cursing it at this point 
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