Salah said he has to think of this season as his last, until they offer him a contract. He even said that again after a contract was offered, saying that as long as the contract isn’t agreed, he has to think of it as his last season here.
I don’t know what you see in this statement, but to me it does sound like putting pressure to get what he wants. So I do agree with @redalways that it does make a difference in his negotiating power, because if he says he’s staying and then the club pressures him for less and he goes, he looks like a fool and his reputation will be much more tarnished than the speculative reaction he is now getting.
(Btw the argumentum ad populum of your “Everyone knows” doesn’t make your claim of @redalways being unsophisticated about it any stronger.)
The difference is that his form is monstrous right now, he’s breaking every record, and he’s probably the best player in the world right now, so any toxicity similar to Trent’s would be beyond stupid. Doesn’t make the toxicity towards Trent any less stupid of course (but I know you agree with that, just saying).
I really don’t think it’s about about how well they are playing, I think it’s about a perception of who is driving the stalemate.
I think the perception with Mo and Virgil is that they want to sign and it’s the club that aren’t giving them what they want.
With Trent I think the refusal to say anything, the way Madrid are circling, and the rumour of a 300k contract on the table has led to the perception that it’s Trent that’s doing the holding out.
I think this has has been bubbling for a while, and all took was a shit performance for sections of the crowd to let rip on him.
Sorry but this doesn’t make sense, as in one paragraph you say he wants to see/judge what Arne is about then you say if he takes him off it would damage that friendship/respect.
Trent has always stated that he loves Liverpool FC, surely by not taking him off when he was having his worst game then that would be detrimental to the Teams chances and therefore Arne would lose Trent’s respect, because he didn’t make the right decision for the team.
If you love a team, then the Team’s performance and result comes 1st.
Or do you think that Trent thinks that he comes before the Team?
Bullshit. If Slot thinks he’s got it and the tactics work then he should play every single time. What will derail our title challenge is shitting the bed because a player hasn’t signed a contract and is getting booed. Toughen up!
Who cares? What a ridiculous justification for letting him go to Madrid half way through a PL (and CL) challenge
Perhaps. But that perception is also guided by what is reported in the media and what fans already think.
Van Dijk and Salah are a lot more consistent in performances, and in their positions they’re relatively well-shielded from criticism, especially thanks to past performances. They are crucially also 34 and 33 by the time they start with their next club, which limits their alternatives, if they harbour any aspirations for competing at the top level. Not many clubs out there will pay silly money to sign players at that age, and most of them are either in football backwaters or in the Premier League already. That narrows their options drastically.
Notice also how few rumours there are surrounding them, whereas Real Madrid has been persistently rumoured since the summer, not to mention also because they have a gaping hole at right-back. You think if Real Madrid had put in a bid for either of them, the narrative around them would be the same as it is right now?
Not to mention, neither of them are “the Scouser in the team” whose loyalty is taken for granted. Quite clearly from the posts on these forums alone, there’s an underlying expectation that he should accept a contract that disadvantages him because he’s a boyhood fan, and he should be happy that he has the privilege to play for and be vice-captain of his team, and that many would kill to have that privilege, etc.
Well, it was clear the first time you said your opinion, I understand how you see it. I just don’t agree with it, and I don’t think repeating it makes it more convincing.
I haven’t seen a single argument that makes it as certain as you make it to be. Possible, yes, sure, certain, not at all, and to dismiss other takes (that may well be possible too) as unsophisticated comes across as a bit cocky.
The crowd let rip on him because the crowd plays right into Madrid’s playbook and falls for its gimmicks, much like the refs were falling for their gimmicks in the CL final.
Had Madrid made a similar move for Van Dijk or Salah, with the current statements of all three players, the perception would have been the same, I believe.
Reverse point of view, had Madrid not made a move for Trent, with the current statements of all three players, no one would be riding Trent’s ass right now (he would also probably not have had a stinker the other day, but even if he did, the criticism would have been for his performance, and rightly so).
So that’s what the catalyst is, in my opinion: not what the players said, but what Madrid has tried to do. Unsettle player and fans. What’s disappointing is that it happens again and again, and neither players or fans (or LFC affiliated pundits) can call it out and learn from it and not fall for it.
Maybe it is because TAA has not given RM any indication he wants to go there, that they then decided to put in an offer, to remind him they want him…!
Horrible club… hope we reach the CL final and beat them again
Eh !
The pitch was fast and we were slow.
For me the major factor was we let them bully us (at Anfield). They wanted it more than us and they deserved to get the draw.
The only time I felt we had our heads screwed on is when the whole team protected Salah before he took the penalty. Great collective effort.
Just a couple of weeks ago there was a discussion on here (and on BBC website) about how Virg was playing better than ever, was the best CB in the world and a debate on whether he was the best ever in PL
Ok. Deep breath. Shall we try again without the needless aggression?
If Trent could cope with getting shit for poor performances, then fine. That all makes sense.
However, I don’t think he does cope well. I think it gets to him.
Some players respond to a poor performance and criticism by simplifying their game, concentrating on the basics and building their performance from there. Some players get in their own head, take the approach of trying increasingly riskier passes and start trying to influence the game more.
Trent is in the latter category. That’s why he ends up in midfield trying to force it, playing a succession of low probability passes to try and make something happen.
Man Utd are fucking shit and we should have beaten them comfortably. The main reason we lost was because Trent’s head went. There were some other ropey performances, from Jones, Robertson, and Konate (who I don’t think should have been playing - I don’t think he’s fit) but Trent was the biggest issue.
That can’t happen again. Trent has been playing a much more diligent, responsible game this season. His defending has been much better.
If Slot thinks he can sort that out over the next week, then great. Personally I just wouldn’t include him at Forest. I think it’s too much of a risk. But Slots a better manager than me, so I’m sure he’ll know what to do.
I can defintely see where you are coming from with this and its a fair opinion. Williams will not be afraid to have a go at him down that channel and will really be up for it after this game.
Trent and our midfield really need to be switched on.
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