Blues going to take the peasant league title then Europe...u mad?
deletedabout 10 years
1. Manchester United's defenders are all horrific, and this is coming from a United fan. Being the best of a bad bunch isn't saying much. Plus, I think Jones is better than Smalling when he's played centrally.
2. We will never sell someone to Liverpool. And we have a CB shortage as it is, so it's just not going to happen, period.
3. Sturridge is a decent striker when alongside someone fantastic (a la Suarez). I'm still unconvinced in his ability to lead a line by himself, and he's certainly not up there with Diego Costa, Falcao, Van Persie (when he's fit), Aguero and Dzeko as the best in the league.
4. He didn't so much transform Sturridge as play him through the center, which is something he'd never been given a chance to do at City or Chelsea. Henderson got significantly worse before his improvement in the last year. And Suarez was already a class act at Ajax (excluding the discipline) and his progression was only natural.
Allen is still a weak-link in the Liverpool midfield, too, frankly. Coutinho I'll give you, he's made him into a fantastic player, but he was young and pliable with a lot of potential already.
5. Liverpool need a world class CB with experience. There are a grand total of zero of those available. United already found that out this summer. And if United and Liverpool go head-to-head in the CB-hunt, United will win with their financial resources. I don't see Hummels leaving BVB halfway through a season, nor Pique leaving Barca. Varane remains a possibility if he gets unhappy at lack of playing time but he's missing that experience anyway. Both Liverpool and United will have to wait until next summer to get a world class CB. DM's are a different story. The Strootman-United move has been in the works for a long time but if Roma knock City out of the CL as seems plausible currently then that won't happen til summer either.
4. Sturridge was a prodigy that looked set for a mid table team whilst at Chelsea and Rodgers have revitalised his confidence and made him into one of the best strikers in the league. I also disagree when you say that Henderson was better at Sunderland; imo now he's one of the most complete midfielders in the league. He can tackle, he can pass and he can score goals. When 'King' Kenny was in charge and brought him in, he was a diamond in the rough. The quality was there, but the confidence wasn't. Rodgers instilled that confidence in him and now look at him, he's flying. Allen was poor when he first joined, but now he's probably the most underrated player in the Liverpool team. Fantastic player and consummate professional.
5. I actually think Huddlestone has declined as a player since moving to Hull, which is a shame because he was a cracking player and a cracking lad. Liverpool are stocked in that position anyway with Allen, Can and Lucas, so Huddlestone isn't really needed. Hummels, good defender, but he'd never move to Liverpool. Smalling is the best they can get at this moment.
1. Good managers get the best out of good players. Chris Smalling has all the attributes needed to become a top class defender. He's strong, tall, calm and had a commendable attitude. If he moved to Liverpool, after a season or so, he would be recognized as one of the best defenders in the league, and his calming influence would have a positive effect on his center back partner.
2. Quality costs money. When you go to Poundworld and buy something like a paper shredder for example, you know that the handles will be flimsy, the paper will get stuck often and opening the lid with any sort of force would probably result in breaking the machine. Buying a different shredder for more money at a more renowned store would guarantee you a better quality product.
3. Name 5 strikers in the Premier League better than Sturridge. I can think of three: Radamel Falcao, Diego Costa and Sergio Aguero. Also what you said about how little he contributed to the team is nonsense. There's a reason why Suarez, Sturridge and Sterling was the most feared attacking lineup in the league last season.
deletedabout 10 years
1. No manager can make Chris Smalling 'one of the best in the league.'
2. He's a United player, so that pretty much doubles his price-tag if selling to Liverpool, making him a complete waste of money, not that he would go anyway.
3. Sturridge is by no means one of the 'best and feared' strikers in the league. He's an okay English striker that gets a lot of media time because he's English. How much of an edge do you think Sturridge gave Liverpool last season? Because I can tell you now, his ability really didn't provide them very much.
4. As much as I don't want to discredit Rodgers, he didn't 'transform' Sturridge on any level. Henderson has gotten arguably worse since his days at Sunderland. Suarez? Are you kidding me? Do you honestly think Rodgers was responsible for Suarez' performances for the last 2 seasons?
As for Allen, he was a constant presence in midfield for Swansea, even when he was young and playing under Martinez. Rodgers just continued to give him play time at both clubs (not to mention that his first season for Liverpool under Rodgers was a complete disaster). Can't really comment on Coutinho, however.
5. I actually think Tom Huddlestone and Mats Hummels are what Liverpool need right now.
deletedabout 10 years
Oh my god.... I was going to post exactly these quotes too. Hahaha.
Smalling is a good defender that needs regular playing time to fulfill his potential. During the Moyes era, he was arguably their best center back and during the Ferguson era he was a calm, composed figure that was confident with the ball, similar to Johnny Stones and Callum Chambers. Under Brendan Rodgers, he can become one of the best center backs in the league. Berate him all you want, he transformed Sturridge into one of the best and feared strikers in the league, turned Henderson from donkey to England International and has gotten the best out of players such as Coutinho, Suarez and Allen. Smalling would be the perfect purchase for Liverpool in January.
It's amazing how many more CL games I get to watch this year...
deletedabout 10 years
Personally, I'm looking forward to watching Real Madrid crush you in back to back games and leave you needing to beat both Basel and Ludogorets just to get through.
And going off current form, that's not looking that plausible!
deletedabout 10 years
Idk Steve, Chris Smalling could really improve your defence.
A statement which says a lot more about Liverpool's defence than Chris Smalling.
He'll come good, I think he can form a good partnership with Sturridge up front. It's the defense I'm worried about with Liverpool. Skrtel is reckless, 'Dominant Dejan' is a joke of a defender, Sahko is average and has a terrible attitude, Flanagan gets beat too easily and Manquillo strays forward too often. The only Liverpool defenders I rate are Glen Johnson and that Moreno lad, but they are fullbacks. Liverpool should look into getting Curtis Davies or Chris Smalling in January or both. Both would improve the defense significantly, even more so if the rumours about Victor Valdes are true.
deletedabout 10 years
/ ball comes to feet 45 yards away from goal / do a sweet turn away from a non-existent defender / promptly launch a shot that sails 30 rows up the seats
