I was actually thinking that it might just be their Kyiv moment.
2 Likes
Klopp’s and Enrique’s main principles aren’t quite the same. They both want to regain possession in that off the ball phase, that is true. But the rest is different.
Not long ago, Enrique got quite a bit of criticism during his Spain and early PSG time for his teams not being able to convert a lot of that possession into more goals.
I like him as a coach, but let’s not make him a new Klopp because of one aspect of one performance. I wonder sometimes do these people even watch football as much as they write about it. This was not PSG’s first quality performance under Enrique, this season or this season in the CL.
PSG are very good, they’re sometimes the victims of their owners and poorer competition in their league, all of which leads to a lot of neutral and opposition fans underrating them. Some of their sides in the last 13 years have been more or less balanced. I was not shocked with how well they played, it was more our performance that was an unpleasant surprise. But we won.
To a smaller %, I think more and more people can see that Slot will want to add more control to this side. Part of it will be down to internal work, part of it down to transfer dealings. Some weaker or least good pieces of that will be replaced, it’s just how football works, very simple. We’ll see though what happens with the 3 big contracts though.
Play that PSG v Liverpool game 10 times and most of these games would I think be much more competitive and we’d win more than them.
That’s not to say there isn’t real danger for the return leg, we have to improve on our Paris performance and cannot just rely on the crowd and wait for one counter attack to kill the tie.
Slot will actually want us to play like PSG going forward, on a consistent basis. It’s not that we’re not already a quality side, that Slot took over enough stability and quality. We’ve beaten some top sides already this season. But if you combine what you see on the pitch and what Slot says, no, this team is still not where he will want it to be.
2 Likes
This.
What I liked about Slot is that he can be “efficiently reactive” during matches (I once joked that he was a cross between Klopp and Rafa) - but I’m completely convinced that it’s not the way he wants his teams to play.
Granted, I’ve only seen clips of his Feyenoord side and they gave me the impression that he wants his side to dominate possession but not in Guardiola’s manner of boring the opposition to death (even though Slot cites him as influence).
I expect a few changes to playing personnel this summer to reflect Slot’s ambition. I feel dirty for praising that PSG side, they are as much of a cancer on football as Man City, but it’s a vibrant side that looks bigger than the sum of their parts.
1 Like
Thats just nonsense.
Just watched ‘Doubters to Believers’ ep3 with Harvey and his dad. His dad seems a bit of a dick but both huge fans. There’s no way he’s leaving Liverpool unless he’s pushed out the door!
3 Likes
I think they were both in Kyiv having paid for their own tickets?
What do you folks reckon about Gittens? I can’t remember if I asked previously but would he count as homegrown?
2 Likes
Yes. He would be homegrown. The rule is 3 years before the age of 21 to be spent in an English Club
Not sure Bellingham would , but Gittens would be homegrown
Thanks! Then it might make sense to go after that lad - maybe not this summer but he seems like a kid with great upside and worth following since Diaz is entering the final two years of his contract. I know that Sancho didn’t exactly set the world alight since returning to PL from Dortmund but I don’t think their situations can be compared for multiple reasons.
Dortmund won’t sell cheap.
Depends how much, they’re having a horrible season, at least domestically.
1 Like
He is for the Premier League due to his time at Reading and Man City as a kid. However the Champions League have different criteria and he wouldn’t be homegrown by those rules (as their criteria starts aged 15 and he left England when he was 16).
4 Likes
This is how he has pretty much always tried to get his sides to play.
The pressing intensity of Pep’s Barca was often under aprpeciated because of how patient they were with the ball. But part of the reason they were able to kill sides with possession was because of how effective they were at winning it back immediately.
That side of their play had started to drift in the period after Pep and Enrqiue restored it when he came in. But he also meaningfully quickened up their attack. This PSG side lacks the star power of that treble winning side, but they look very similar.
5 Likes
I like Enrique. He’s a very good manager. He has a really good PSG side there. However… I am not able to decouple that fact from another fact. The whole set up is sports washing for the Qataris. They have injected almost unlimited funds, and their top man (I forget his name now) has thrown his weight around the world of football in a rather sinister way.
Still, just looking at the side, it is young and full of talent. They have pace and power all over the park, and all of them are good footballers too. It’s the sort of thing a top football man would assemble with the significant advantages they enjoy at PSG.
Edit
Nasser Al-Khelaifi.
1 Like
That would be the season after Tito Vilanova left the club due to his cancer. Tito did a pretty good job with Barcelona too following on what Pep did.
There was then another manager appointed who was unquestionably a disaster before Enrique came in. Enrique made Barca much more direct. While his team still dominated the ball , there was little of those extensive build up plays. Instead every pass was made with a view to progress the ball up the pitch. Also helped that he had some very good players in there as well.
Eintracht Frankfurt are closely monitoring the situation of 20-year-old Turkey winger Arda Guler at Real Madrid . (Sky Sports Germany)
If Güler is leaving Real Madrid, we should be all over him. He’d be a huge upgrade as the most forward of the midfield trio, and can also play on the flanks if needed.
5 Likes
Very good talent, showed in moments that he’s already a good player.
Would also mean the end for Elliott most probably. Don’t see enough room for both.
1 Like
All due respect to Harvey, but surely he’d be an upgrade.
Not a priority position though.
1 Like
It would be a major surprise if he ended up at Frankfurt.
2 Likes
Would Harwood-Bellis be a good centre back option in the summer? @Sweeting, I remember you mentioning him but I’m not sure how highly you rate him.