Positives

[mark1975]

So having shaken ourselves down after the whole transfer saga with Chelsea, it seems we've had a lot of things otherwise go our way.

Szobo and Macca have been excellent, they both look like great signings from the off, Szobo has needed zero adjustment, he's slotted right in and looks like he's been playing in the midfield for years. Let's hope for more of the same from Endo, once he gets acclimatised.

As much as we've criticised our lack of forethought in the transfer market over the last few seasons, the forward line looks dynamic and rich with options and goals, thanks to the purchases over the last couple of seasons with Gapko and Nunez, both of whom I feel have a lot more to come. Bobby struggled for his first couple of years and I suspect Gapko will similarly take time to get a grip with his role in the side, like Bobby he's a bit of a purple patch player, who will probably go on a run at some point when we most need it. Right now though we look like we have goals in us, regardless. Nunez, well what can you say. On Sunday he suddenly looked like the unplayable forward he has the make-up to be.

We've suffered two sendings off in two games and won both. In the last season or two we'd normally have buckled, but there was a togetherness and unity that we probably lacked last season, despite the departure of old heads like Milner and Henderson. Gomez and Trent took responsibility in a game where they previously would have been exposed and let their heads drop. OK, Trent hasn't had the best of starts to the season, but something changed after the sending off on Sunday and he rolled his sleeves up and was disciplined and more decisive. Hopefully that's the springboard for him to put things right.

In spite of the things that have gone against Klopp and the club, he looks happy, he looks positive and up for a fight, and that's translating to the team. Alisson's comments post match were incredibly honest and positive - we're not worrying about the transfer market, don't put words in our mouths, etc. Captain material right there.

There's a long way to go and I tend to agree with Carragher that we're a couple of players short, hopefully that's rectified in the coming days, but we have plenty to be positive about, we've also got Badger, Elliott, Thiago and Jones waiting in the wings, and the young lad at centre back looks a bit of a find too. Onwards and upwards.

 

[Hansern]

Good post, agreed. I thought Trent improved a lot after his mistake and the sending off. I'm expecting a great performance from his this weekend when he leads the team as captain against Villa.

 

[Modo]

Good summary, Mark.
Early days obviously, but good signs. It's really unfortunate that our first match was against Chelsea away, any other mid-level to bottom team and we'd have 9 points now.
I'll be over the moon if we manage to get another top class signing, but I just can't see us doing it now.
We've got a full squad on paper. You could argue that it isn't balanced in that our second DM Bajcetic is quite young and inexperienced, some don't even see him as a DM.
The only other players we're missing is an inverted RW to cover for Salah and a proper RB.
Then again, we've got two young players, the wee Scot and the Irish kid, so we're back to the squad lacking balance again in terms of age and experience.
It's a conundrum imo.
The best solutions would have been to buy a world class DM, but we settled for 30 year old Endo.

 

[moron]

Great post @mark1975 - the main positives for me are that we managed to somehow win 2 games with 10 men, especially that last one. I was so happy for Nunez, and we really have to find a way to use his talents, that boy has all the attributes but I think we all know that the type of player he is conflicts with what Klopp is use to in terms of the Gakpo false 9. I fear that Nunez will get frustrated, and it worries me because he has those qualities that could potentially put him on the radar of Real Madrid and/or Barca in the coming years. Believe me he will jump ship if an offer came in for him from any of those two clubs, and the way RM play - they could definitely use him for their system where they let the opposition have the ball.

Was very happy for Gomez like you - the amount of abuse he has taken especially last season was way over the top, and that kid that came on - I wonder if Klopp thinks he is ready to be put in if needed like he might be against Vila this coming Sunday.

I actually think we are 3 signings short, we need a Gravenberch to maybe give Mac10/Szobo a rest as I see him more of a 8 than a 6 type player, and also I really think we need a combative 6 with pace. Nothing wrong with Endo, but those early minutes against Newcastle worry me, but the difficulty at this moment with the whole team is that we really don't have a great idea of how it will progress given these games:

1) First game - no DM - Mac10 has to play that role, and Gakpo being used as more of an 8
2) Second game - same as (1) but Endo having to come on with adjustments due to a 10 man team.
3) Endo starts as the DM, everyone in their designated proper role, but again we seem to have little control, until we go compact after VVD sending off. But the 10 man midfield means we have to adjust again and not see out how the full team would have handled Newcastle over the 90 mins.

Right now - I cannot see how we do against a team like Aston Vila with 11 men and what will be a possible makeshift defence. They will offer a different challenge in terms of a coach who has got the better of Klopp on a number of occasions, plus a more robust midfield, and a lethal finisher in Watkins. It's still all up in the air for me, and thank God the game is at home and not away.

But the sad thing is - I can't wait for the next game, I kind of enjoy the unpredictable nature of our team, with the refs adding a bit of spice by putting us down to 10 men. I worry now if we don't control these games we will see yet another sending off.

 

[My_Blood_Bleeds_Red]

So having shaken ourselves down after the whole transfer saga with Chelsea, it seems we've had a lot of things otherwise go our way.

Szobo and Macca have been excellent, they both look like great signings from the off, Szobo has needed zero adjustment, he's slotted right in and looks like he's been playing in the midfield for years. Let's hope for more of the same from Endo, once he gets acclimatised.

As much as we've criticised our lack of forethought in the transfer market over the last few seasons, the forward line looks dynamic and rich with options and goals, thanks to the purchases over the last couple of seasons with Gapko and Nunez, both of whom I feel have a lot more to come. Bobby struggled for his first couple of years and I suspect Gapko will similarly take time to get a grip with his role in the side, like Bobby he's a bit of a purple patch player, who will probably go on a run at some point when we most need it. Right now though we look like we have goals in us, regardless. Nunez, well what can you say. On Sunday he suddenly looked like the unplayable forward he has the make-up to be.

We've suffered two sendings off in two games and won both. In the last season or two we'd normally have buckled, but there was a togetherness and unity that we probably lacked last season, despite the departure of old heads like Milner and Henderson. Gomez and Trent took responsibility in a game where they previously would have been exposed and let their heads drop. OK, Trent hasn't had the best of starts to the season, but something changed after the sending off on Sunday and he rolled his sleeves up and was disciplined and more decisive. Hopefully that's the springboard for him to put things right.

In spite of the things that have gone against Klopp and the club, he looks happy, he looks positive and up for a fight, and that's translating to the team. Alisson's comments post match were incredibly honest and positive - we're not worrying about the transfer market, don't put words in our mouths, etc. Captain material right there.

There's a long way to go and I tend to agree with Carragher that we're a couple of players short, hopefully that's rectified in the coming days, but we have plenty to be positive about, we've also got Badger, Elliott, Thiago and Jones waiting in the wings, and the young lad at centre back looks a bit of a find too. Onwards and upwards.

Wow. What happened to the old grumpy Mark ?

This has encouraged me.

Good post. Finally some positive vibes on here.

You listening Hal ?

 

[tomasjj]

We have already moved to the acceptance phase, even before the window is shut.
Tells us quite a bit about what we have come to expect based on the last windows.

 

[mark1975]

I mean, obviously we've had two sendings off, one which was overturned and one which was at least slightly harsh, particularly in the context of other decisions which were questionable throughout the game, so it hasn't all "gone our way", but maybe that's been a blessing and it might provide the incentive to not sleepwalk into games, as we did for most of last season and at least for a third of the Newcastle game.

 

[mark1975]

We have already moved to the acceptance phase, even before the window is shut.
Tells us quite a bit about what we have come to expect based on the last windows.

Not really accepting it. As I said, I agree with Carragher that we're a few players short. It's not all doom and gloom though.

 

[LeTallecWiz]

So having shaken ourselves down after the whole transfer saga with Chelsea, it seems we've had a lot of things otherwise go our way.

Szobo and Macca have been excellent, they both look like great signings from the off, Szobo has needed zero adjustment, he's slotted right in and looks like he's been playing in the midfield for years. Let's hope for more of the same from Endo, once he gets acclimatised.

As much as we've criticised our lack of forethought in the transfer market over the last few seasons, the forward line looks dynamic and rich with options and goals, thanks to the purchases over the last couple of seasons with Gapko and Nunez, both of whom I feel have a lot more to come. Bobby struggled for his first couple of years and I suspect Gapko will similarly take time to get a grip with his role in the side, like Bobby he's a bit of a purple patch player, who will probably go on a run at some point when we most need it. Right now though we look like we have goals in us, regardless. Nunez, well what can you say. On Sunday he suddenly looked like the unplayable forward he has the make-up to be.

We've suffered two sendings off in two games and won both. In the last season or two we'd normally have buckled, but there was a togetherness and unity that we probably lacked last season, despite the departure of old heads like Milner and Henderson. Gomez and Trent took responsibility in a game where they previously would have been exposed and let their heads drop. OK, Trent hasn't had the best of starts to the season, but something changed after the sending off on Sunday and he rolled his sleeves up and was disciplined and more decisive. Hopefully that's the springboard for him to put things right.

In spite of the things that have gone against Klopp and the club, he looks happy, he looks positive and up for a fight, and that's translating to the team. Alisson's comments post match were incredibly honest and positive - we're not worrying about the transfer market, don't put words in our mouths, etc. Captain material right there.

There's a long way to go and I tend to agree with Carragher that we're a couple of players short, hopefully that's rectified in the coming days, but we have plenty to be positive about, we've also got Badger, Elliott, Thiago and Jones waiting in the wings, and the young lad at centre back looks a bit of a find too. Onwards and upwards.

I'm loving what great grandalfatherhood is doing to you ... positive and optimistic...

 

[mark1975]

Has to be said too, that despite the unforeseen transfers of Henderson and Fabinho, it's probably for the best. The last thing we'd want is players barking orders at others while underperforming themselves, it just breeds divisiveness in the squad. Look at United with Keane, for instance. We'll miss them on occasions for their experience, but I think in the long run it'll work out well.

 

[tomasjj]

Not really accepting it. As I said, I agree with Carragher that we're a few players short. It's not all doom and gloom though.

Fair. My comment was not meant as a dig. Good post I think.

 

[mark1975]

Fair. My comment was not meant as a dig. Good post I think.

Yeah sorry mate, mine neither. Hopefully we bring in one or two players in the coming days.

 

[Fabio]

So far there's a lot to be positive about on the pitch, so completely agree on the front.

 

[darkstarexodus]

Woah, Woah. What's with the positivity? That's what I go to Twitter for, not here!

 

[Frogfish]

Good summary, Mark.
Early days obviously, but good signs. It's really unfortunate that our first match was against Chelsea away, any other mid-level to bottom team and we'd have 9 points now.
I'll be over the moon if we manage to get another top class signing, but I just can't see us doing it now.
We've got a full squad on paper. You could argue that it isn't balanced in that our second DM Bajcetic is quite young and inexperienced, some don't even see him as a DM.
The only other players we're missing is an inverted RW to cover for Salah and a proper RB.
Then again, we've got two young players, the wee Scot and the Irish kid, so we're back to the squad lacking balance again in terms of age and experience.
It's a conundrum imo.
The best solutions would have been to buy a world class DM, but we settled for 30 year old Endo.

Au contraire ... I think it was the perfect time to get a tough away match out of the way. It could be a lot tougher for say City when they go there and more of the Chelsea squad have settled in.

 

[mark1975]

Obviously I'll think we're fucking shit again when Villa beat us.

 

[Dirty Sanchez]

Great post.
I think there may be some subtle clues in the posts above from “Mark” (if that’s your name) that the real Mark is being held hostage in the basement.

 

[Red Astaire]

Top post that @mark1975 - Totally true and nice that your getting to the bones of the situation. I'll echo you positives regarding Klopp. He really does look up for it and genuinely seems to be enjoying it all. Me too (for once) It's been fun so far.

 

[rurikbird]

Good post, Mark. One thing I noticed this season is that we're discovering how to play with emotion again. The grind of last couple of seasons took a lot out of the squad; I think they were emotionally exhausted just as much as physically. Now we are in a situation when the club is being criticized from all quarters and many are publicly doubting our prospects; players certainly felt this as Alli’s comments confirmed post-match. The challenge of two 10-man games in a row brought players closer together; everyone had to put their issues aside and just graft for us to have a chance – and it certainly helped that the new players: Macca, Endo and Szoboszlai led the way and gave their all. And of course Nunez – the ultimate emotional player – provided us a big exclamation mark to finish it off.

I think we're kind of back to where we were in Klopp's first or second year; we don't have overwhelming quality in every position to allow us to dominate every game (that period of domination happened after adding Fabinho and to some extent Thiago), so players need to stick together, play with more discipline and compactness and finish the chances when presented and that's how we can be successful. I did not like how we started the game against Newcastle with 11 men, we seemed to be unsure if we're meant to dominate or to fight; but with 10 we snapped very naturally into that siege mentality – Klopp will need to translate this attitude to subsequent games, hopefully without the need for further dismissals.

 

[aquaman4]

We need to drop this inverted fullback in to midfield to add numbers thingy. We had numbers by having a false 9 and 2 inverted wingers tucked in and wing backs putting in dangerous crosses . Let's go back to our system as we have the midfielders who can now do the press We lost last year when Hendo and Fabinho lost their legs .
Why is everyone copying Guardiola what works for them is not automatically a recipe for success by others.

 

[Red Bird]

You really sat down and thought about this, Mark. Brilliant post, mate.

 

[tombrown]

We need to drop this inverted fullback in to midfield to add numbers thingy. We had numbers by having a false 9 and 2 inverted wingers tucked in and wing backs putting in dangerous crosses . Let's go back to our system as we have the midfielders who can now do the press We lost last year when Hendo and Fabinho lost their legs .
Why is everyone copying Guardiola what works for them is not automatically a recipe for success by others.

Trent moving into midfield to provide additional creativity from central positions is a million miles from Stones moving into midfield to add an extra defensive wall in front of the CBs.

I'm not necessarily arguing with your desire to revert to the old system, but saying it is copying Guardiola is just not right, in my very limited and unintelligent view.

 

[Frogfish]

Good post, Mark. One thing I noticed this season is that we're discovering how to play with emotion again. The grind of last couple of seasons took a lot out of the squad; I think they were emotionally exhausted just as much as physically. Now we are in a situation when the club is being criticized from all quarters and many are publicly doubting our prospects; players certainly felt this as Alli said post-match. The challenge of two 10-man games in a row brought players closer together; everyone had to put their issues aside and just graft for us to have a chance – and it certainly helped that the new players: Macca, Endo and Szoboszlai led the way and gave their all. And of course Nunez – the ultimate emotional player – provided us a big exclamation mark to finish it off.

I think we're back to kind of where we were in Klopp's first or second year; we don't have overwhelming quality in every position to allow us to dominate every game (that period of domination happened after adding Fabinho and to some extent Thiago), so players need to stick together, play with more discipline and compactness and finish the chances when presented and that's how we can be successful. I did not like how we started the game against Newcastle with 11 men, we seemed to be unsure if we're meant to dominate or to fight; but with 10 we snapped very naturally into that siege mentality – Klopp will need to translate this attitude to subsequent games, hopefully without the need for further dismissals.

Not so sure about that. Even before the season started many of the BBCs 20-30 staffers had us finishing between 2nd and 4th. I read yesterday that even Sutton has tipped us as the ones to chase City to the line (but still finish 2nd).

 

[mom]

Nah. We’re going down with Everton

 

[Squiggles]

Man United look like shit and Everton are getting relegated.

Plus the strange combination of Mac Allister winning the World Cup and the birth of AI led this this absolute banger



We should enjoy these moments before we become batteries to the machines.

 

[Tinto]

We need to drop this inverted fullback in to midfield to add numbers thingy. We had numbers by having a false 9 and 2 inverted wingers tucked in and wing backs putting in dangerous crosses . Let's go back to our system as we have the midfielders who can now do the press We lost last year when Hendo and Fabinho lost their legs .
Why is everyone copying Guardiola what works for them is not automatically a recipe for success by others.

We don't really have the players for that system anymore

 

[My_Blood_Bleeds_Red]

Hey 6CM, things aren’t looking so shite after all eh ???

2 weeks ago you’d think the apocalypse has already taken place.

Now let’s show the brummies whose fortress they’ll be coming to this Sunday.

 

[rurikbird]

Hey 6CM, things aren’t looking so shite after all eh ???

2 weeks ago you’d think the apocalypse has already taken place.

Now let’s show the brummies whose fortress they’ll be coming to this Sunday.

I am still worried about this game and won’t relax until the final whistle confirms we won. Villa are the hardest test yet this season.

 

[Hansern]

Its a positive that Salah is gonna be part of this new Klopp team for this season. Cant wait to see how we develop in the coming months.

 

[mark1975]

We still need to reinforce at the back, and I'm guessing with the departure of Nat, we will. If we don't, well it's another season where one area of the team has arguably been neglected, unless Klopp thinks Quansah is ready and Endo can be our utility man, then we have to trust in the gaffer.

I'm guessing Endo has more or less replaced Millie - can play in a number of positions, looks like he has bags of energy and will be useful in some games from the start and in others off the bench to help tidy things up.

I think Klopp sees Macca as reasonably versatile too, the early tests in the number 6 role suggest that he might use him in a double pivot when needed, he's got the tenacity to do so, much like Gini and Lallana did in the early Klopp days of quickly turning defense into attack on the edge of our own box, we now have those type of players again who can turn on a sixpence and put us on the front foot, rather than Hendo and Fabinho turning like steam engines and getting caught in possession, it's refreshing again.

It's fair to say we lack a true "destroyer", but we have plenty of raw talent to shape into different roles, between Bajcetic, Gravenberch and Mac Allister. Macca is experienced enough and strikes me as a captain type already, as does Szobo. It's an exciting prospect to sit here and watch Klopp shape the options he now has into something formidable. Not just a blueprint of what we've done before, but something (hopefully) far more versatile and flexible tactically.

We've got so much wrong in this window, yet we seem to have come out of it well in the end, how much of it was born from speculation and how much of it is the truth, we'll probably never find out about, but we've bought and bought well, despite obvious regrets that we didn't get Bellingham. It's been pretty decent in the end.