the keyword was comedy Glad you took it the right way. Again Rodgers can do no wrong.... . Constructive criticism is wrong! There is no reason on earth for not taking Gerrard off before the first goal was scored, Gerrard went on the pitch in the second half looking worst than the first, FACT. But, eh.... if you wish to run the line Rodgers is in Gerrard pocket, that's fine by me, as I'm sure its case with Carra (already seen innuendo's to that too) with not playing Coates. Yet, I'm the one with an agenda.
Gerrad will be dropped as well as carra in the future but at the moment Rodgers is just settling in. Rafa still gets slated for taking Gerrard off, hell he probably still gets slated for taking Torres of when it wasn't needed. Rodgers will no doubt accept that it was a poor result but we aren't going to go unbeaten the whole season, yes this was a poor result but Gerrard is our captain he should be standing up, and Rodgers didn't want to take Gerrard off fearing a backlash in a game that just wasn't to be. But hey you defend Gerrard and slate Rodgers keep slating him, hey why not get rid of him and bring back Hodgson let's give him a second chance.
Where in this thread have I defended Gerrard? I'm the only one who called for him to be benched. please show where I'm defending Gerrard?
The problem is, if he takes Gerrard off it's a big deal - particularly in his first game. You're creating a big news story, and then the media have got a Gerrard V Rodgers angle to run with, especially if Gerrard pulls a face when walking off. Look how he reacted to Torres getting subbed off by Rafa towards the end of his time here. It was used as a big stick to beat Rafa with, with the media, and fans, suggesting Rafa had lost the players and lost Gerrard. Rodgers would be making a rod for his own back on day one by substituting Gerrard even if it was tactically the right thing to do. The way he played he should have been dragged off while we still had 11 men because he was dreadful, but it was never going to happen. Unfortunately decisions aren't always taken on merit - there's politics involved as well. It's the easiest thing for us to sit here and say what he should have done, but we don't have to manage a dressing room and deal with all the internal politics of a big football club.
I now what you're saying..... but that his job, that's what he signed up for.... that's why he's getting paid the BIG bucks, hindsight is a wonderful thing, but this isn't Hindsight.... it what his job entails. >Spotting poor performances< more importantly is acting on what you see. That's the difference between good management & poor Management, not leaving because his scared of the repercussions.... This is the best time to do things just like that (sub Gerrard). Leaving it later in the season when you results are against you will make it even harder.
But when was he meant to sub Gerrard? When Agger was red carded? Nope When Lucas was subbed after the 60'ish minutes he was probably penciled in for? Nope When Cole was injured? The circumstances during the game meant he couldn't really sub Gerrard anyway.
TBH, Gerrard second half performance continued to be poor before Agger red, it was then Rodgers could of/should of Subbed Gerrard. As i already stated here, further up the thread.
I would have been glad to see him go off at half time after the way he'd played, and the fact he was in one of his moods. But Rodgers really isn't in a position where he can haul Steven Gerrard off at half time in his first game in charge. I'd just as soon as have seen him made way instead of Downing for that first sub, but having said that i'd rather have moved Gerrard to centre back than brought Carragher on. Lucas coming off Rodgers felt needed to be done to look after the lad, and then soon after Cole, inevitably, had to come off injured. All in all, that second half was one mad clusterf*ck, but that's what happens when managers don't feel in a position to make decisions on merit.
I know, read it again... you're confusing the sentence, Rodger could taken Gerrard off before the goal, when he returned in the second half his performance was just as bad has the first half if not progressively worse. It was then the action of subbing could been acted on, even before Agger Red. There no reason for Rodgers not acting sooner.... we know from experience when Gerrard is have a bad game, it going to be in the whole game, he seems not to care about the lower team games.
Not necessarily. That Olympiakos game that people hark back to Gerrard was really abysmal. He looked like he'd given up when we were 1-0 down. Then we got it to 2-1 and he scored a worldie to put us through. So even when he's shite he can still produce out of nothing. Although it has been quite a while since he scored a goal like that. Even in Istanbul he had a really poor first half and look how he performed after that. You can see why a manager would want to keep him on when you need someone to do something.
hahaha... Just brought back memories of Andy Gray, same the Gerrard of today isn't the same Gerrard from 6/7yrs ago
Its funny because Gerrard has been surrounded by mediocre shit pretty much his whole career at LFC but according to this forum its all his fault , No he's not the player he was 6 yrs ago but we DO NOT have anything at this club that can replace him , he was Englands best player at the euros and on his day is still unplayable, yes he had a bad game against WBA but I wouldnt be writing him off like some on here , its the first game of the season ,
He hasn't. He's had midfield partners like Gary Mac, Hamman, Alonso, Mascherano and Lucas. They don't look shit to me. He's massively inconsistent, even at the best of times. That's down to him.
Replace what exactly? The player he was 6 years ago? No we don't. But we barely won a league game last season when Gerrard played (and he played half the games) so he can't be that irreplaceable. Playing in central midfield for a team who conceded more possession and chances over their 4 games than just about every other team there. He put some good balls in from the right - his play in the midfield was poor. England couldn't keep the ball. Pirlo - older than Gerrard - gave a masterclass against England. Gerrard couldn't get near the ball against Italy. The difference between the teams was Pirlo dominated the game. There's a big difference between a more tiki-taka style of play and Roy Hodgson's kick-and-rush 4-4-2 anyway. His day is now once or twice a season judging by the last few. I'm not writing him off as a player, i'm writing him off as a midfield player in Brendan Rodgers' system. It might work in some home games, but you go away from home and he can't keep the ball ticking over and he doesn't press and track back well enough when he does give it away. 19 times he give the ball away on Saturday - for a system that is based on keeping possession that's pathetic.
TBH, Gerrard still as 2/3yrs left in him, but needs to play further up-field (one of the front three) so he doesn't get burnt out, using him sparingly will get the best out him & reduce injuries, he's still good in the attacking mode, being one of are BEST players, of late he shown he can link well Suarez, last season he didn't play in the first half of season, due a bad groin injury which requires a second op, but since then is fitness as been good, its consistence at times that lets himself down.
err when we had Alonso Mascherano Gerrard we were for a very short spell one of the best teams in Europe , they left Gerrard stayed and he is the one who is left to pick up the pieces
you need to look at other players in the team and what your expectations are of the whole squad , Agger and Skrtel made two absolutely horrendous errors against WBA, but for 45 min we were well on top and our strikers should have put us in front so in the bigger picture they were terrible and were at fault but you just want to crucify Gerrard
Pick up the pieces? Where has Gerrard done that? How many good games has he had over the last 2/3 seasons? Besides, that wasn't my point. It's disingenuous to say Gerrard has had to play with shit over his career. There's always an excuse for Gerrard, whether it's him being unfit, playing out of position or playing in a poor team, he is never accountable for his own performances for some on here. Instead they shroud him with myth and constantly tell themselves he's the best midfielder around despite being unable to consistently play 5 yard passes or stay in position. It's not unfair to say that Gerrard has always been inconsistent, even at his best he'd fade away fro long stretches. Back then though his pace, power and drive compensated for it, without that he offers next to nothing save for the occasional great game.
