Wednesday 10 December 2014

Match Report - Basel

This hurts, I believed in Rodgers, I really did, but his stubbornness and refusal to change along with unbelievably bad selections have cost us, this time our place in The Champions League but also have cost us in the league.  Last night before the game the talk was all about the selection we needed to win we had to score and he picked a team with nothing going forward only Sterling with any creativity, any pace, any threat.  Still no Borini so no chance of a change no chance of the two up we all know we need yet Rodgers has refused all season. What we are left with is a lumbering Lambert, who we all wanted to do well, but it turns out is an overweight, lower division striker with little or no threat. That Rodgers and the transfer committee can leave us in the position where with a couple of injuries we find ourselves having to play Skrtel as striker in our biggest game of the season. The same Skrtel who hasn't been able to control a header, pass the ball or win a tackle without fouling all season at the back is just unbelievable, questions must be asked. Why are we without a striker who can threaten? Why are we continuously playing a formation that simply doesn't work? Why are we playing a negative defensive team when we must score, must win? Why are we playing so many players out of position? Why have all our players, without exception taken a massive drop in form? Why are we paying huge amounts of money for players who simply are not up to the job? I could go on and on its simple frustration, we have fallen so far so quickly had nobody appears to be doing anything, I look at our bench and our manager and coaches are just sitting there staring straight ahead they look like they have no idea what to do.

The first half of the game was exactly what you would expect from the team we put out absolutely nothing from Liverpool with a string of poor passes allowing Basel to put on pressure and take control of the game and it was no surprise when the goal came.  The question that needs to be asked here is with so many defensive negative players on the field how are players getting a free strike at goal from the edge of the area - people not doing their jobs or simple inability to defend either way it has got to the stage now where players need to be shipped out if they can't or won't do it then get rid.  Today the back four was made up of four players who have proved again and again that they aren't up to the job yet still they are all picked to play for us in the biggest game of the year.

Rodgers did make changes at half time with Moreno and Markovic taking to the field replacing Enrique and Lambert decent changes I thought more pace a a bit more creativity, I was hoping for Coutinho but this would do.    Markovic was making an impact and it looked like we could be getting the performance we had been waiting for he was a threat, he was running at their defence then he was sent off, a terrible decision from the referee and terrible cheating by the Basel player.  Very unfortunate for Markovic but we must not hide behind a poor decision forcing us to play with ten men we were not unfortunate we made bad decisions and played poorly.

For the last twenty minutes we found the fight and passion we should have been playing with all game, all season, we played well and when Gerrard scored that stunning free kick I actually believed, We could just turn it around and create one of those great nights but despite a couple of penalty claims and a deflected effort from Henderson we were out.

When we look back we have had a poor Champions League campaign and don't deserve to be in the last sixteen but that doesn't effect the issues I have with the management and the performance levels of many of our players.  I support our team and the manager but if you are not up to the job things need to change.  Its embarrassing how far we have fallen, teams like Basel are laughing at us.  I'm not surprised that the support is in melt down, it is time for something to be done before its to late.

@lfclumo
  

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