Leeds United - v - Liverpool ***Matchday Thread***

[ozleeds]

Now for my take on the game which I will get hammered even though I predicted it on the first page lol.
Selection once again was a disgrace. It is obvious they looked classes above us lead by a manager that has plans a b c d f g.Made them play our way as the speed they played was equal or better than what we can produce. The forward line looked like scoring at will.
Phillips was outstanding clearly classes above the rest of the squad. The Spaniard was superb man of the match till his injury but unfortunately, it's all too common, and feel for the lad as he is a classy defender.
Firpo, I thought more than held his own against the best player they have apart from been too slow to get back when we lose the ball. The rest were poor and they have been like that from the start of the friendlies.

[Rev72]

A far superior team oz and deep down we all feared the hammering we eventually got.

I'm just grateful it was only 3-0 it could have easily been 5/6/7.

Just spare a thought for poor old billy...Belfast has gone round to chew his ass

[fredlufc74]

Our passing is truely shocking, the midfield, what midfield? They don't even seem to be on the same pitch as the other team. We seem to be trying to play long balls more this season but give the ball away far to much even with short passing. Feel sorry for young Pascal, it was good to see VVD console him with what happened. Not seen a replay but everyone I watched the game with "who support other teans) were as baffled as I was with the red.

players need to start being dropped and let some youth in, I'm not going to slate individuals but some have been shocking in the last few games.

[Billyni]

Keep dreaming Andrew

[hopelesslyoptimistic]

Watched extended highlights last night after the main event - Phillips was great but Rodrigo is a player we can’t carry against the top teams when we don’t have the ball - time and again he seemed to be in the wrong place and not bursting to get back goal side.

You could see it was disturbing Dallas’s rhythm too.

We also at times looked a bit slow and lethargic - for the first two goals we have enough players back but didn’t react.

Still not sure how Mane was not active and thus offfside for their first and not convinced Sallah wouldn’t have been offside if looked at more closely. That said we were lucky it wasn’t at least 4-0 at HT.

[Rev72]

Great minds think alike hopey as I watched the highlights this morning and pretty much agree with your summing up but Junior Firpo looked way out of his depth and that concerns me.

Klopp definitely influenced the Ref with the Red card decision feckin german kuntz.

Newcastle on Friday is a must not lose game.

[Monaco_Totty]

Maybe it's too easy to judge from the outside but most in the stadium expected a performance.We instead got 'battlers' at times outplayed in my opinion.

Again outside of the stadium folks will this & that & if what & maybe but that's football and that's what you'll get with this season's Bielsa side who for me have very capable players but not quite performing with fluidity instead stuttering through the 90 mins.

Dallas & Rodrigo are capable players but not in the roles asked presently. Fabinho emerged as the game’s outstanding individual and he prompted Liverpool swiftly to control by pressing brilliantly and sidelining Phillips in the second half.He also orchestrated a move with one cross for Salah to net which was ruled out - such a cross that we failed to deliver all game.

I 'firmly believe' that Raph should be our 10 and given the freedom to do what he wants.As an intelligent maverick player he can create situations left right & centre.

Our wing-work is predictable on both flanks & needs more inside work options around the box as crosses put in are dire.Rodrigo has become a luxury in his role presently & Roberts although practical gives no natural individuality instinct options to his game presently.That needs sorting.

Hope in training that both James & Harrison can prove secure starting 11 selection but suspect it'll be another 3 weeks before that magical team balance surfaces.

Down but not Out - Terrific team Liverpool,as a unit,as a game plan and as individuals.Our known flaws were laid down before them to often in truth.Presently, man to man we are not coming out on top as a team unit and it shows over 90 mins.

I know personally one can make mistakes and fall but one can also get back to his feet. Life is full of unexpected events but it's how you react to them - so next up its those Geordies in another belter of hostile atmosphere where you either sink or swim.

Looking forward to the game as I'll be over for it & looking forward to my annual medical results evaluation day this week at the Tony Adams Sporting Chance Re-hab Clinic in Leeds.
So bring it all on !

[hopelesslyoptimistic]

Agree on getting Raph more involved and 10 may suit him - also agree we sometimes look predictable - I sometimes wonder if the players get pre programmed moves in training as sometimes we seem to carry on when the pass isn’t on.

Really need a schemer in the middle of the park to buddy up with Kalvin and run the game (please come back Pablo).

Were a lot of high points from the game and easy to forget that Liverpool are probably in the top 10 sides in world football. Phillips, Bamford, Rapha and Llorente till he went off all looked good. I also thought Firpo did okay as Harrison didn’t have his best game and he was being overloaded and having to deal witn Sallah and TAA.

Must beat the barcodes.

I like how they pull through home grown talent too a model to follow - Thought Alexander Arnold and Barnes were two of their best players.

[norfolk white]

Still bitterly disappointed at how our season has started, yesterday it hit home that we don't have a cat in hells chance of ever again competing with the top 4, when scum can pay 475, 000 a week for ronaldo, and the scousers are about to do the same for salah, what hope do we have? The top 6 should indeed have gone to their super duper league on planet greed, and left the premiership a more contested, fairer league, like the championship, which at the moment looks a better place to be, even though I craved for what we have now. I feel bielsa has took us as far as he can, even he can't make Roberts and Cooper Premier league players, the 3 previous seasons should be looked at as a wonderful free flowing football extravaganza and hope/pray we survive this season, which I fear will be bielsas last.

[hopelesslyoptimistic]

Hey Norfolk

Yes we are a long way off but I don’t think the gap is unbridgeable - just takes several years of gradual improvements and being able to increase revenue.

Key for us will be an upgraded stadium - they seem to think 55k won’t be big enough but with a stadium of 60 to 65k we will be massively increasing revenue as a fair bit of the increased revenue will be corporate or premium hospitality seating.

The other element is having rich owners willing to fund or underwrite investment - suspect if Radz can deliver a new stadium and Europe he will either sell up or hugely reduce his stake.

The one thing I don’t think we will
ever overcome is the preferential treatment of Man U and to a lesser degree Liverpool in the media.

We definitely seem to be following the Leicester model a little by investing heavily in young players. In a couple of years we could potentially have 3 or 4 first team regulars from the u23 and maybe one or two more.

Roberts is definitely making progress thought he did okay in difficult circumstances and is becoming more consistent. He won’t reach his peak for another 5 or 6 years.

Yesterday also showed that Cooper will limit progress to the next level much as he has done for us and not sure where Ayling’s ceiling is but not much higher than Cooper’s.

Hope Shackleton gets to play against Newcastle and would like to see Gelhardt get time too.

I would play

Meslier

Shack. Ayling/Koch Cooper Firpo

Phillips

Dallas Klich

Rapha James

Paddy