Liverpool Thread - Premier League Champions* 2019/20 (Part 2)

BBC and the Mail both reporting that Firmino has signed up........ score some goals son, plenty please!

A pleasant surprise! Welcome aboard

Boom, official as, bro!

https://www.liverpoolfc.com/news/latest-news/187533...

Meh.

Rodgers will play him  on the right of a back three and move Can to goal.

that wee exchange cracked me up

congrats on firmino, i reckon he's the sh*t

will Firmino need to harden up to play EPL?

Nathaniel Clyne looks like the next to join with 12.5m chucked at Southampton. Ayre still in South America chasing Bacca as well. 

Clyne for 12.5 mil??? Wow that is good business.

You guys are cleaning up this transfer window...

a 30 year midfielder on a free , a replacement right back , an 18 year old whose balls havent dropped , a back up keeper and a Brazilian who's an unklnown quantity in the EPL? Hardly cleaning up from where Jr and I sit. Sorry but I've seen Rodgers squander too much money in the past to be excited by anything he does. Having said that , I do hope Firmino is the biz but jury's out yet.

One question- who's going to score the bloody goals???

Will have to see who comes in with the Sterling money. Cash spent on Firmino was planned spending and not related to expected Sterling windfall. Still nothing from FSG or BR regarding his position which for me is strange. 

Firmino can play CAM/CF/WING/ST - similar to Suarez (but not implying he's at that level, just style of play). 

guess it depends on your state of mind!

my state of mind is just a neutral looking at your signings.

I don't care about the 18yo and the keeper, but for me, Milner, Clyne and Firmino for less than 35 mil in fees is daylight robbery. Clyne and Milner in particular are amazing value, you guys certainly weren't the favourites to sign them as little as 2 months ago. ManU have been chasing Clyne with big bucks,and Milner had other offers but chose you guys to get more starts. I also expected Firmino to go to a Champs League club somewhere in Europe. 

Our squad was woefully under strength last season and although there is no CL to speak of, there is Europa and whether or not anyone rates this competition, I'd like to see us do well. This relies on 2 - 3 players per position (not for each position, but players like Firmino who can play in 3 or 4 spots).

We'd have quite a starting line up - maybe not title challenging but something quite exciting anyway.

I'd have put Markovic in there but I can see him going on loan. Also add Ibe into the first team as a regular 

Mingolet

Flanno/Clyne     Sakho      Skrtel       Moreno

  Can/Lucas

Henderson                         Milner

Coutinho/Firmino/Lallana (2 of the 3 at CAM)

Studge/Ings

or

Mingolet

Flanno/Clyne      Sakho      Skrtel      Moreno

             Can/Lucas

Henderson          

              Coutinho/Lallana 

Firmino                                                 Milner

Studge/Ings

I'm pretty much certain that Milner will be starting and probably playing in the middle. He wouldn't have signed otherwise. I still like the idea of him, Hendo & Can as a 3, with 3 attacking players in front (similar to your first formation leighbo). Certainly quite a few options which is promising, but will require a bit of experimenting......

Can and Lucas are very different sorts of players ; I don't see then competing . I really do rate Can but he isn't a "defensive " midfielder as such. But Rodgers doesn't seem to want that sort of a player anyway. I'd love it if we had a Mascherano-type player there but don't see Rodgers employing such a system.

No "Welsh Xavi"??

Couldn't be arsed retyping. More like this jazz, but most likely with no sterling and an injured sturridge. 

Clyne for Flannigan

Firmino for Sterling

not a bad side at all

young too

bench will look stronger than last season

you guys will be an interesting watch

Whispers that Joe Allen has been offered up for sale....without sounding too stink. I hope so

Without sounding too stink....... how about a raffle?!

Teachers pet surely not

I'm not so sure that BR has much say at the moment. He's been very quiet since the meeting with FSG which makes me think he's been told that he's the first team manager and that's it or he can choose to ship out - i.e. He won't have a say in signings and selling. 

Joe Allen is a Premiership level player, but not for a team that wants to be challenging and playing CL. He'll head back to Swans or end up somewhere like Newcastle or maybe even West Ham where Liverpool transfer failures go to die. 

It does seem that BR has had his wings clipped.....could be a good thing.

I see Bacca has agreed terms with AC Milan...I hope we dont go in for Benteke but that rumour seems to have some legs.

I don't think Benteke would be a bad signing. People say he's too much like Balo - slow and lazy but he's got size, can actually score and would make a decent focal point with Coutinho and Firmino running off of him. He's not $32m though...wait for the $20m + Borini counter offer....

I had a dream.

Pako as no2. We lose to Stoke heavily opening game, Rodgers gets the arse and Pako moves up.

But, WTF , Sean who? as no 2. England U 19 coach. Really? Looks at his management history then tell me he's really for a prem team allegedly going for CL status. What a joke.

I don't give a shark who the no 2's are of Chelsea, City or Manure. I'll hazard a guess that many of those club's respective supporters don't care either.Why? Because they have Mourinho, Pellegrini and Van Gaal respectively. We have Rodgers. End of. 

You don't hire an assistant because of your current managers shortcomings, you hire an assistant to complement his style of play and managing. Other than caretaker periods, how many assistants end up taking over the reigns for any length of time when the existing manager gets the boot?

You give Rodgers someone to help him, not to be casting a shadow over his tenure. 

The whole revamp of the scouting department and management team as well as big spending in the transfer market yet again has been to give Rodgers one more chance I would suggest. Also, Rodgers has not been in the press all summer so has obviously been given some message by the owners.

Oh I agree with that. My point is that I have no faith in Rodgers , nor in the decision to appoint O'Driscoll as his no 2. Experienced talented managers may not need the help (  Mourinho et al) or are savvy enough to realise where their weakness are ( reference Rodgers refusal to consider a defense coach when it was just a bit obvious we were defensively shark last year). 

Rodgers needs a shadow looking down on him, otherwise we're in for a very long season with the same mistakes made . Just IMO of course. He should  have gone at the end of the year when there were a couple of reasonable alternatives available. 

From a lot of reading about him, it would seem that he has the talent, the approach and the skills but lacks the "ego or self-promotion" that Prem clubs look for. Many previous players and peers mention that they are very surprised that it has taken this long for him to be in the Prem - and also mention that he loves to coach creative, possession football. Sounds alright to me.

So does Declan Edge , doesn't mean I'd want him anywhere Mellwood.

LeighboNZ, one of us will be wrong. I really hope its me. We'll see , I guess.

I hope it's me. I'd rather see the team succeed under any coach than see them fail because I wanted someone gone.

Good opinion piece on S O'D 

Read me!

Read that last night, hard to know based on one article but sounded pretty exciting. A big focus on communication and decision making. probably quite relevant with Stevie G leaving. People can no longer look to him.

Where's our damn striker?!?

Benteke is just around the corner.....Not sure he will answer your question though

Do you need a striker? Balotelli going nowhere... Sturridge, Balotelli and Ings to cover one spot seems sufficient? Unless you go with 2 up top?

Would've thought Firmino, Coutinho and Lallana behind the lone striker (assuming Sterling is gone)?

Signing a popular English striker that ends up on your bench in 3..2...1

A bit like Welbeck.