Mexal Posted July 15, 2014 Author Share Posted July 15, 2014 Kroos can play deep too though, he's not just all about passing. Kroos is at his worst when he's playing deep. He's much better as an AM. Is Khedira really a midfield destroyer? In what sense? He seems much more of a box to box man to me. He's not, but he has the size and willingness to be one. Definitely a B2B type of CM though at this point. ETA: That's what I get for never hitting send on the first reply. Now I double it up...errr Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Skythe1 Posted July 15, 2014 Share Posted July 15, 2014 I think Lovren will be a great signing for Liverpool if it goes through. The spine of Southampton's team last year was fantastic, and Liverpool seem to be after it! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
polishgenius Posted July 15, 2014 Share Posted July 15, 2014 Is Khedira really a midfield destroyer? In what sense? He seems much more of a box to box man to me. 'box-to-box man' and 'destroyer' aren't mutually incompatible. Yeah, he plays all over the pitch and yeah, he can pass and dribble a bit and give impetus to his own side's attacks, but his primary brief is to stop the opposition playing, not to run attacks himself. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Raja Posted July 15, 2014 Share Posted July 15, 2014 I'm not saying they are, which is why I asked 'in what sense' hoping that he had seen more of Khedira than I had and also to ascertain what he meant. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
polishgenius Posted July 15, 2014 Share Posted July 15, 2014 Fair enough.Yeah, he gets all about the midfield, he won't sit and shield the defence like a Makelele or Matic type. Imagine a better Darren Fletcher or a worse Roy Keane. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
john Posted July 15, 2014 Share Posted July 15, 2014 Rather a big window you're providing there. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
polishgenius Posted July 15, 2014 Share Posted July 15, 2014 Fletcher's quality (or, well, he was quality when he was at his best). Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Iskaral Pust Posted July 15, 2014 Share Posted July 15, 2014 Conventional sense says it will be but I don't think Liverpool is done and I think their defense will be better next season should they make the signings they need. Their midfield is already good and while they don't have Suarez anymore, Sturridge did a great job in his absence last year. I do think their depth, especially up front and in the back, will need to be a lot stronger now that they have CL to contend with. Who is after Sturridge? Liverpool are definitely the most at risk of dropping from the top 4 but they finished the season with much better momentum than Arsenal. A lot will depend on how they carry that over without Suarez. There are 10 other starting players who know how to go out and blitz the opposition with a high press and fast transitions, plus Lallana, Lambert, Markovic and hopefully another top striker trying to prove themselves. Playing in the CL could exhaust them or it could inspire them. At the same time, none of Arsenal, ManU, Spurs or Everton are guaranteed to be strong contenders. Everton were very good and very consistent but could be short of goals, and Sylvain Distin will be 37 later this year. Spurs could gel really well under Pochettino but it's not guaranteed to start smoothly and they might also lack goals again. ManU should be stronger with a confident coach but their defense is in transition, RVP looks tired, Rooney could sulk and a new midfield will be a gamble, plus lots of bruiesd egos ahead. Arsenal look the most likely to be strong contenders behind Chelsea and City but only if they finally figure out how to sustain their form for more than 2-3 months. It will be tough for Liverpool, but not hopeless. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jeor Posted July 15, 2014 Share Posted July 15, 2014 At the same time, none of Arsenal, ManU, Spurs or Everton are guaranteed to be strong contenders. Everton were very good and very consistent but could be short of goals, and Sylvain Distin will be 37 later this year. Spurs could gel really well under Pochettino but it's not guaranteed to start smoothly and they might also lack goals again. ManU should be stronger with a confident coach but their defense is in transition, RVP looks tired, Rooney could sulk and a new midfield will be a gamble, plus lots of bruiesd egos ahead. Arsenal look the most likely to be strong contenders behind Chelsea and City but only if they finally figure out how to sustain their form for more than 2-3 months. It will be tough for Liverpool, but not hopeless. I feel that City, Chelsea and Arsenal are probably the better bets for finishing in the CL spots simply because they are the teams that have changed the least and lost the fewest key players (see Spurs last season for the dangers of this). Each of those three teams is basically the same roster from last year, with one or two upgrades, Sanchez for Arsenal, Costa for Chelsea, Fernando/Sagna for City. Obviously City and Chelsea were significantly better than Arsenal last season, so I think they're the main candidates for the title, I'm not lumping us in there with them. But in terms of keeping the same roster and having a strong, proven manager they are similar. United have a new manager and a number of roster additions; Liverpool have lost Suarez and quite a few lineup changes; Spurs don't have (yet) the change in players but they have a new manager, and it remains to be seen whether Pocchetino is a big-club manager. Everton I would say are further off from CL than the rest, although I tend to think Spurs are closer to Everton than the top. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
redriver Posted July 16, 2014 Share Posted July 16, 2014 I'm relatively happy with LFC's attacking potential even absent Suarez.We've spent £60 million with Can the one overtly defense minded buy so far.We may have up to the same amount to spend still.I think the bulk of this ,or whatever it is, should be spent on the back line. On another note,it looks like Suso's staying.We're playing Brondby tonight (It's on BT Sports,if you have it).A chance to assess some of our buys and returning loanees. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MercenaryChef Posted July 16, 2014 Share Posted July 16, 2014 Oh Liverpool. You fans are delightful. You have lost a 30 goal scorer and still have the positivity to say that it is still all good. The proof is in the in the pudding. And to me the pudding tastes of an early champions league exit and struggling like mad to have a place in the top four Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mark Antony Posted July 16, 2014 Share Posted July 16, 2014 We'll see. Suarez is irreplaceble but its nice having the 2nd highest scorer in the league when you lose the first. We have already made improvements, hopefully more to come. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mexal Posted July 16, 2014 Author Share Posted July 16, 2014 Isk, Arsenal finished strong. They won their last 6 games I believe plus the FA Cup. Ozil and Ramsey coming back changed the side and with Sanchez, they should be a better team. But we will see. Sanchez isn't enough. We need Khedira or Schneiderlin as well. Regardless, thoroughly looking forward to this season. So much potential for interesting storylines. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jeor Posted July 16, 2014 Share Posted July 16, 2014 Oh Liverpool.You fans are delightful. You have lost a 30 goal scorer and still have the positivity to say that it is still all good. I'd say that the Liverpool situation is a bit more complicated. I agree it's not all good, but I think many fans are right in saying it's not all a disaster either. There are really just too many variables. Losing Suarez, adding the other players, adding in CL fixtures, renewed confidence from last season's run, etc. Liverpool could be good or they could be horrid, and of course most fans will pick the optimistic case. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jeor Posted July 16, 2014 Share Posted July 16, 2014 Isk, Arsenal finished strong. They won their last 6 games I believe plus the FA Cup. Ozil and Ramsey coming back changed the side and with Sanchez, they should be a better team. But we will see. Sanchez isn't enough. We need Khedira or Schneiderlin as well. Regardless, thoroughly looking forward to this season. So much potential for interesting storylines. Agreed. If anything, if you look at the entirety of last season, Arsenal have heaps of momentum. They won the FA Cup, genuinely led the table for a while which they haven't done for years, they have essentially the same team (minus Sagna) but have upgraded in some areas (Sanchez). That being said I tend to think of seasons as being a bit more separated and with the offseason and WC, I don't think there ought to be too much of a link drawn. The significance of "momentum" between seasons is probably not all that high. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Raja Posted July 16, 2014 Share Posted July 16, 2014 I suppose it will depend mostly on how Rodgers accommodates his new players into the team, that is probably going to be the hardest part. Also, Newcastle have apparently signed Emmanuel Riviere from Monaco. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Grand Moff Mithrandir Posted July 16, 2014 Share Posted July 16, 2014 I used the words the midfield destroyer to try and illustrate the dire situation madrid are in when it comes to DM's. He's the closest thing to a destroyer they have and it baffles me that they're willing to let him go. I don't think its ancelotti though, he's show that he's partial to B2B midfielders(seedorf,ramires & matuidi come to mind) I guess Perez is dreaming of bigger things.Also, reports suggesting that Milan have slashed Balo's price down to £14m. If this is true then maybe wenger may resurrect his interest.Not too sure how I'd feel about having him at LFC though. I feel like his and sturridge's relationship would be a rocky one. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Grand Moff Mithrandir Posted July 16, 2014 Share Posted July 16, 2014 Moreno's probably not going to happen for the same reason Chelsea decided not to bother with him either - he's busily telling everyone he wants to play for Real the moment he gets the chance to.Well, screw him then. Its good that BR is already pursuing Ben Davies but I feel like Ricardo Rodriguez would probably be the better option, from what I saw of him at the WC. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Raja Posted July 16, 2014 Share Posted July 16, 2014 Yeah no, don't want Balotelli. And I don't think Wenger was seriously interested in him at any point during the summer. I think we're done with our forward line for next season, maybe a cheap striker, but I doubt it. Edit: At the most I can see us retaining one of Sanogo/ Campbell, personally hope we keep Sanogo and send Campbell out on loan. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jeor Posted July 16, 2014 Share Posted July 16, 2014 Apparently we didn't close on Vela but did reportedly 12m from Sociedad for the buyback option, which is good business. With Giroud and Sanchez, plus Walcott, Sanogo and Campbell I think the strikers are set. Mind you, one of Sanchez or Walcott will play on the wing and Walcott won't start the season with us. I've seen the suggestion that Sanchez will initially play on the wing with Giroud as a lone striker, at least until Walcott gets back. I don't think Sanogo was terrible last season. He didn't score but was holding up the ball, provided a tall presence in the box and was involved in general play quite a bit. He's not going to be a starter but is worth keeping around as a bench or emergency option. Don't know Campbell well enough to see where he should go but from most reports he wants regular first-team football, which Arsenal is unlikely to provide him with Giroud and now Sanchez ahead in the pecking order. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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