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Lucas: Can he do it?

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doctor_mac

doctor_mac

My cowboy name is Garland Justice
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I thought this deserves its own thread. So what is the consensus? I note lots of people tipped him as 'the most improved player' in the predictions thread. Why do you believe it? I watched the Newcastle 5-1 game during the week, and in that game Lucas was simply excellent- metronomic passing in midfield, and supporting the attack well- and probably one of the passes of the season to set up SG. But then there were games like Everton in the cup, where he was repeatedly pushed off the ball like the feeblest of feebs. Are we finally going to see Lucas blossom into a top midfielder? Might we look on the £6mRafa paid for him as an incredible bargain at the end of this season? With Croqualiani's injury record, our title chances may rest on the Brazilian's narrow shoulders.


[quote author=Paddy link=topic=35002.msg920980#msg920980 date=1249735278]
THE departure of Xabi Alonso may be tough to take but for one man the Spaniard’s exit represents the ideal opportunity to finally prove he’s good enough to make the grade at Anfield.

Lucas has struggled to endear himself to supporters since he arrived from Gremio two years ago.

Limited first-team chances and indifferent form meant many wrote him off as a £6m mistake.

He was booed by his own fans at Anfield last season and a dismissal in the FA Cup defeat at Goodison left him at rock bottom.

But Rafa Benitez never lost faith in the 22-year-old and after finishing last season strongly, Lucas has carried on where he left off.

Liverpool have hardly set the world alight during their pre-season travels.

In half their six matches they’ve failed to find the net and only Singapore and Norwegian whipping boys FC Lyn have been defeated.

However, a feature of their build up has been Lucas’ consistent and commanding midfield performances.

Benitez may have lined up £20m man Alberto Aquilani as Alonso’s replacement but the Italian is some way off full fitness.

The manager need someone to star alongside Javier Mascherano when the Premier League campaign starts at Spurs next Sunday and Lucas is up for the challenge.

“I am always ready and now Xabi is gone I hope there will be more opportunities for me,†he said.

“I am just working hard in training to try to earn a position in the team.

“I’ve played a lot of minutes in pre-season and that has given me more confidence.

“I’m feeling better and hopefully it will be a good season for me.

“I want to play every week but I know Liverpool have a strong squad.

“I just have to wait and respect whatever decisions Rafa makes.â€

Lucas admits the loss of Alonso to Real Madrid after five years at Anfield has affected the squad but he insists the Reds can still mount a title challenge without the classy midfielder.

“Everyone was really sad to see Xabi go because he had been here a long time,†Lucas said.

“Last season he was one of the club’s best players but he has a plan for himself and his career. We have to respect that.

“We will continue to support him because he is a friend of ours. I hope he does well at Real and I’m sure he hopes we continue to do well here.

“We will miss him of course but I think we can cope without him.

“We didn’t play all the games last season with Xabi.

“He’s a really good player but we also have a lot of other quality players here.â€

Lucas, who has scored four goals in 71 appearances for the Reds, believes he has reaped the rewards of his first full pre-season.

When he joined the Reds in 2007 he didn’t arrive until late July because of Gremio’s Copa Libertadores commitments.

And last summer he missed the start of the Premier League campaign due to the Olympic Games in Beijing.

He returned to Anfield with a bronze medal but looked jaded and struggled to impress.

Now he is refreshed and ready to showcase the kind of talent which in 2006 earned him the Bola de Ouro (Golden Ball), which is given to the best player in the Brazilian league.

Lucas was the youngest player to ever receive the award and it was an honour previously won by the likes of Zico, Romario, Kaka and Tevez.

“I have really enjoyed pre-season,†he said.

“It’s the first full one I’ve had since I signed for Liverpool and it has been great for me.

“Now I am feeling much more confident and fitter. I think I am a better player than I was last season.

“I’m looking to impress and we must see what happens.â€

Lucas will probably get the chance at Anfield this afternoon to show supporters just how far he has come when the Reds play Atletico Madrid.


COME ON LUCAS! I always like his interviews. Speaks well.
[/quote]

Let the great Lucas debate begin.
 
I hope so, as everyone does. I feel he will improve this season but will have his usual up's and down's.
I just hope he has bulked up and isn't afraid to throw in a few shoulders himself. It was laughable at some points last season how pathetically weak he looked. Then again he did have some accomplished performances albeit against some piss poor midfield line ups, and less physical ones.
Lucas's biggest test will be in a game away at Wigan or something like that. Were the other teams plan is to play physical, we shall see has he improved.

*prays*
 
I really like him Doc. At least he's recognised his flaws and tried to rectify them, and he's only young so there's a long way to go.

Lets remember aswell, he was an attacking midfielder in Brazil, here he's pushed deeper which will no doubt serve him well in the long run in getting used to the physical nature of the league. I just hope his passing, that has shown itself to be very good on occasion, can now come to the fore a bit more. He needs to be a bit bolder with his play at times instead of playing it so damn safe, like he's scared of making a mistake.
 
I remember how poor Fletcher looked for United when he first burst into their side and now United's midfield doesn't perform as well when he's missing. I'm not saying that Lucas will make it with 100% certainty but it wouldn't be that surprising to see a young player who looked really out of place at the beginning make his mark as he gains experience and plays more games.

Also, there is a tendency to forget after Xabi's excellent last season for us that there were many games when Xabi himself was harried and bullied out of matches too. So, if it can happen to Xabi, it can certainly happen to a young and inexperience midfielder like Lucas.

I can't say I have absolutely huge hopes for Lucas but I'm hoping still the same and haven't quite given up on him yet.
 
I really hope he makes it, i just fear his lack of prescence and propensity to be pushed off the ball - he also doesn't seem to have one outstanding ability in one area which makes up for general mediocrity or averageness in other departments.
 
I'd forgot about that Newcastle game, he was great in that game. Sadly there are too many games where I would want to forget his display.
 
Well, as it has it's own thread, allow me to transpose from the other thread................

Nice sentiments Paddy.
I would like to think everyone here wishes him well whenever he pulls on a red shirt, sadly that is not the case, it seems to me a number of people on here wish failure on him, (and a long line of other "failures", including Crouchy) just to massage their own ego's and show they were right all along.
I am not the greatest fan of Aurellio , or indeed Dirk, although I can see what the latter brings to the table, but I always hope they play well, and improve, and will give credit where it is due.
I really hope he proves a lot of us wrong.
New season - blank piece of paper for all the squad, as far as I am concerned.

regards
 
I really hope he steps up a gear and proves his doubters wrong. The lad has talent, no doubt about it. He says he has worked on his strength and fitness during the summer, and I have to say he impressed me against Lyn.

I think it says a lot about his character aswell, the way he handled the abuse he got at Anfield.
 
[quote author=Vlads Quiff link=topic=35133.msg921010#msg921010 date=1249738293]
Well, as it has it's own thread, allow me to transpose from the other thread................

Nice sentiments Paddy.
I would like to think everyone here wishes him well whenever he pulls on a red shirt, sadly that is not the case, it seems to me a number of people on here wish failure on him, (and a long line of other "failures", including Crouchy) just to massage their own ego's and show they were right all along.
I am not the greatest fan of Aurellio , or indeed Dirk, although I can see what the latter brings to the table, but I always hope they play well, and improve, and will give credit where it is due.
I really hope he proves a lot of us wrong.
New season - blank piece of paper for all the squad, as far as I am concerned.

regards
[/quote]

Good post and I think that should be applied to the young players especially. Not many players are born with the ability and character of a Gerrard or a Torres and can cut it at it a very young age. Some need time and experience to get into their stride.
 
I hope so.

Rafa might of made the occasional dodgy signing, but he's generally very quick to ship them out once they've failed to produce the goods. Hopefully we'll see why he's chosen to stick by Lucas this season.

They might not be fans favourites, but how the likes of Lucas and Babel go could be the difference between winning the league or coming 2nd again.
 
I do think the booing he's received is an absolute fucking disgrace. I also think that when we watch him we're waiting for him to fuck up, so his poor passes inspire howls, when respect for other players means we indulge their errors, and notice them less. I think I saw a stat that his pass completion percentage was better than any of our midfielders. Whilst it is probably true that more of his passes were safe than the others, it still shows that our memories of his performances are perhaps, somewhat skewed, usually because an image of him being pushed off a 50/50 is burned into our recollections.

If he can fight for the ball, and hold his own physically, I think he has got the attributes to at least be decent for us.
 
The more I think about it, I get less worried of the prospect of Lucas starting more games. I think he will deliver.
 
In lucas's first couple games in a red shirt I actually quite like the look of him. He seemed to do the simple things well, he could pass and seemed to have credible game intelligence.

As times went on, the more i saw of him made me realise that in the fundamental areas you need to be good at, in the centre of the park (tackling to a decent standard, showing presence, positioning) he totally lacked. He would constantly be bullied of the ball, he was wrongly positioned for headers/50/50's/. This seemed to be apparent in nearly every single game he played with us, and was infuriating to watch.

I think he plays best when we're coasting, when there is no pressure from the opponent, all he does, and needs to do, is sit there and plays a couple shorter passes, and generally is good at keeping the game moving. The minute we're under the cosh, he struggles CLEARLY. That's my single biggest worry for him, in Spain he would be given the time and space, so maybe that would suit him more.

I'd be amazed if he shows something he hasn't shown us in his time already in a liverpool shirt, like I said, I really hope i'm proved wrong.
 
[quote author=Rafa4PM link=topic=35133.msg921029#msg921029 date=1249739530]
This is the only thread I've seen where in which Bren's input will not be missed (IMO).
[/quote]

Haha.
 
[quote author=doctor_mac link=topic=35133.msg921023#msg921023 date=1249739292]
I do think the booing he's received is an absolute fucking disgrace. I also think that when we watch him we're waiting for him to fuck up, so his poor passes inspire howls, when respect for other players means we indulge their errors, and notice them less. I think I saw a stat that his pass completion percentage was better than any of our midfielders. Whilst it is probably true that more of his passes were safe than the others, it still shows that our memories of his performances are perhaps, somewhat skewed, usually because an image of him being pushed off a 50/50 is burned into our recollections.

If he can fight for the ball, and hold his own physically, I think he has got the attributes to at least be decent for us.
[/quote]

Interesting thread. Do you still believe Spearing is better than Lucas?

When watching Lucas its more a hope of him never fucking up rather than expecting him to play well. If he competes well off the ball and moves it quickly when on it, moving the play through phases and bringing our better players into the game then he will be doing his job as far as im concerned. If he starts losing the majority of 50/50 challenges and choosing the wrong option with the ball then i'll quickly lose faith.

I hope he has a great season, we need him to.
 
He's a capable footballer, certainly not the passenger he's sometimes made out to be, but not far off.

I expect the sudden burst of Lucas optimism will deflate quickly once the seasons starts.
 
[quote author=Whitey85 link=topic=35133.msg921032#msg921032 date=1249739799]
[quote author=doctor_mac link=topic=35133.msg921023#msg921023 date=1249739292]
I do think the booing he's received is an absolute fucking disgrace. I also think that when we watch him we're waiting for him to fuck up, so his poor passes inspire howls, when respect for other players means we indulge their errors, and notice them less. I think I saw a stat that his pass completion percentage was better than any of our midfielders. Whilst it is probably true that more of his passes were safe than the others, it still shows that our memories of his performances are perhaps, somewhat skewed, usually because an image of him being pushed off a 50/50 is burned into our recollections.

If he can fight for the ball, and hold his own physically, I think he has got the attributes to at least be decent for us.
[/quote]

Interesting thread. Do you still believe Spearing is better than Lucas?

When watching Lucas its more a hope of him never fucking up rather than expecting him to play well. If he competes well off the ball and moves it quickly when on it, moving the play through phases and bringing our better players into the game then he will be doing his job as far as im concerned. If he starts losing the majority of 50/50 challenges and choosing the wrong option with the ball then i'll quickly lose faith.

I hope he has a great season, we need him to.
[/quote]

I do think Spearing is better, certainly than the Lucas we saw last year. From watching Spearing for the reserves I'd seen him really bossing games- regularly. Of course doing it at reserve level and Prem level are two different things, but I think his form warranted a chance. I'm hoping that Lucas Mk 2009/10 can prove me wrong.
 
bar blind faith and optimism there is nothing to suggest lucas will be any better this season than the previous two.

i wish we'd sold him. the premiership is far too dynamic for him.
 
While noone would suggest that Lucas is one of our better players he does get a bad press. He doesn't really DO much but he is not as much of a calamity as some we have had.

As has been said already he does at least seem to recognise his shortcomings and is happy to do something about them. We always have people kicking off about players' desire, or lack of it, to play for the club, yet this lad says the right things and is working hard. That attitude should be applauded and he deserves a chance.

He is part of our squad and it looks like he will have a big role to play this season. Let's not set players up to be scapegoats before we have even seen what they can do.
 
This is the first time I've really watched him in preseason, and I'm impressed. He looks fitter than anyone else in the team at the moment, and has definitely put on a bit of muscle and added more aggression and confidence to his game. If he can keep this up, I'm not worried about him.
 
yes he's put on weight but i've yet to see him put in a convincing tackle or creative pass.

i don't want to make him a scapegoat but come on this lad needs to have a complete transformation if he is going to step into alonso's role.
 
Tell you what, if Lucas does come good it'll be the biggest 'in your face' ever to 99.99999% of this site.
 
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