Liverpool Discussion posts 4

01 Mar 2026 07:42:25
Sorry but I can't accept an 'elite' management/ coaching team cannot make the necessary changes to improve our midfield. And that's why Slot and the 'team' need replacing. In addition to the lack of passion, personality or willingness to embrace risk.

The shape and positioning of the midfield is so fluid and erratic, we're a dream to play against.

Macca looks like he has lead weights in his boots so doesn't offer any insurance when the opposition breaks. He isn't physically dominant, so if he does win a 50/ 50 you're kinda surprised. Could be played in the Wirtz role until Flo is back, otherwise must be sacrificed for greater mobility eg: Curtis.

Grav is prone to glaring errors when we play out. Has a good engine but again isn't physically dominant in tackling or heading. Looks like he has a go because it's a requirement - not like he's born to do it. The only player we had who loved that stuff was Endo - and they never played him.

Dom is quality, probably gets in any team in the league. Pretty safe receiver of the out ball but could maybe improve on winning the ball back. However, with his pace and tenacity he makes up for it, and should be the deep lying playmaker - the main man, the anchor.

So Dom stays deeper to give some control with Curtis left, Grav on the right. That gives us shape, increased physicality and legs.

Macca to play the Wirtz role until he's back with 2 up top - Hugo plus 1 of Cody or Mo. Kerkez and Frimpong providing the width.

There, I solved it. Someone please send onto Arne.

01 Mar 2026 09:15:57
I stopped reading when you wrote "Curtis". I also had to check BBC scores to make sure we had won 5-2 and not lost 2-5.

01 Mar 2026 10:57:22
Shows what a good job Arne has done to win the league with them, doesn't it?

01 Mar 2026 11:16:24
The midfield has rarely functioned well this season - and for the last 2 games we've been without Wirtz - so you've got to adjust and play with the cards in your hand, Florian. Yes, they're essentially the same personnel as last season, but they're a year older, form dependent, playing with different players around them & in a different setup.

01 Mar 2026 12:59:27
Tbh if you can win a League with Gakpo then anything is possible.

01 Mar 2026 13:01:41
I can't see Arne changing too much at this point. Hopefully, we keep this momentum going, get the top 4 secured and see how we do in the FA Cup and Champions League. Wolves then Spurs should be another 6 points. We have Man Utd, Chelsea and Villa one after another, which will no doubt be decisive.

02 Mar 2026 01:02:20
"Yes, they're essentially the same personnel as last season, but they're a year older, form dependent, playing with different players around them & in a different setup."

"And waaaay more unfit," I'd add to that paragraph, as I think this has been one of our biggest issues this season.



If our players were as fit as they were last season, I think we'd have at least 6-10 more points by now and would feel much more confident with a top 5 finish.

28 Feb 2026 22:59:30
West Ham need to sell. Somerville is our man.

01 Mar 2026 15:33:45
I was impressed by his ability on the ball. Nice turn of pace and quick feet. He likes to take on his man, he's confident and capable, but seems to lack an end product. Could it be that he's just at the wrong club? Maybe. 10 GA for a team facing relegation isn't bad.

For the right price I wouldn't say no, but I believe the club will be looking for somebody with better stats. He'd be great off the bench against tired legs, but I don't see the club bringing in the likes of a Diomande and a backup when we have Rio there.

01 Mar 2026 23:47:10
He had a very good game. Between him and Gordon, no contest. Unless there is a diving board and a 12 foot pool below it.

02 Mar 2026 01:08:27
I think he's decent, but not a starter for me. He'd be more of a rotation player, and I don't think he'd be cheap enough for that purpose. Just a guess.

Similar with Fernandes and Diouf from West Ham, if they go down, decent players who wouldn't be bad as squad/rotation players, but they'd all be too expensive, probably.

02 Mar 2026 02:52:51
Not sure, Gregarious. Maybe they have relegation release clauses.

28 Feb 2026 09:20:53
After Villa's defeat a win today puts us in a decent position heading into the last 10 games. If I were to predict the top 5 i'd say City or Arsenal 1 and 2 us or Man United 3 or 4, Chelsea or Villa for 5th.

{Ed025's Note - Mystic Ernie....i actually agree mate.. :)

28 Feb 2026 10:12:44
Our games away to Villa, United, and home to Chelsea will be pivotal to our CL qualification. I think we'll need to win all three? But they all still have to play each other as well. Villa have lost form at a crucial time & I still think United are capable of losing a couple on the bounce.

28 Feb 2026 10:25:57
I said weeks ago that we'd finish above Villa. Folk said I was deluded, which I am! I still think we will, which should be good enough for CL qualification. However, we're winning the CL anyway, so it's immaterial!

28 Feb 2026 11:41:41
Fair play for your optimism, Rome!

28 Feb 2026 11:59:29
1. Arsenal. 2. City. 3. Utd. 4. Liverpool. 5. ChelseaThat's what I reckon.

28 Feb 2026 12:00:35
Thanks, Bristol. I'm sat here with 2 pencils up my nose, so I'm not to be taken seriously!

28 Feb 2026 13:05:05
I know a lot of people hate xG, but for me it is a good indicator of where a team realistically should be in the table. Villa's results in the first half of the season were massively outperforming their xG.

For me, we are now seeing Villa's true level, and I think they will be lucky to finish higher than 6th as it stands. If we get 5 CL spots, as seems likely, I think they will be filled by the "big 5".

27 Feb 2026 13:28:28
I have a question around the racial incident with Vinicius and Prestianni

My question is not about what was said, but more about the possible outcome for Prestianni

So last season, 3 Valencia FC supporters were found guilty of racially abusing Vinicius, and were handed some jail time and a stadium ban.

Now here we are, and a player has been accused of the same crime, yet everyone is talking about a few games ban as a punishment.

That's all very strange to me.

Why isn't anyone mentioning that Prestianni should also face some jail time if he is found guilty?

Why are the 2 punishments different for the same crime?

27 Feb 2026 14:11:19
Jail time for a racist comment?

27 Feb 2026 14:39:24
8 months according to online reports.

27 Feb 2026 14:39:59
I can't comment on that without reading the full law and how it's applied, but apparently that was the first time anyone was convicted under that law, so I'd imagine there to be a much higher bar than what happened between Prestianni and Vini.

27 Feb 2026 18:32:29
It's also two different countries. Spanish law doesn't apply in Portugal, that would be insane.

27 Feb 2026 18:34:28
My two P worth on this topic. I'm a tad cynical here and there. The player admits to homophobia while denying racism. The LGBTQ+ community, as a general rule, make up 2% of the population. Israel has a higher %. The non-white population is generally far, far, far higher than 2% globally.

So my point - by coughing up to homophobia, I suggest a less harmful global brand issue than admitting he's a racist. I'm purely speculating, but it makes sense to me, at least.

28 Feb 2026 03:55:03
The first incident was in Spain, and I'm pretty sure that was the first case of racist slurs resulting in jail time, so currently it would take something extraordinarily significant to see the same sentence handed out to professional players. Not to mention the fact that this incident happened in Portugal, so, obviously, the laws and how they're enforced are different.

Kew17, 100%. He knew he couldn't get away with claiming he was just coughing into his shirt. Claiming homophobic comments was simply damage control, no doubt about it.

28 Feb 2026 16:54:26
The evidence in both cases will be entirely different. He covered his mouth. It would be impossible to "prove beyond reasonable doubt" that he is guilty. The burden of proof in sport, with sporting decisions, is very different from a court of law. Nothing will happen in terms of criminal proceedings. That doesn't mean he won't get a sporting suspension.

27 Feb 2026 11:58:59
So that's Liverpool out then

And a smooth pathway for Arsenal to reach this cup final.

27 Feb 2026 12:29:52
Yep, wouldn't even bother sending a team over.

27 Feb 2026 12:42:37
Might as well just quit football.

27 Feb 2026 13:23:38
We are going to beat A******* in the final.

28 Feb 2026 03:59:11
Arsenal will lose to Barca.

26 Feb 2026 20:18:17
Another press conference more excuses. Just get on with the job you're paid to do instead of moaning.

27 Feb 2026 07:09:33
A wild suggestion, I know, but if they're winding you up so much, maybe give them a miss moving forward?

27 Feb 2026 10:54:27
Can't listen to him either, mate. Takes the fans for mugs - just makes things up and outright lies.

27 Feb 2026 15:39:28
There is a reason why a lot of managers hate pressers, and why journalists don't go. They have to ask/answer questions, which are mostly nonsense. If they upset you, there is a simple solution.

26 Feb 2026 14:17:31
Just wondered what most people preference is with regards to CL draw. Madrid or gala

Think i would prefer gala unless llorente is injured than would do Madrid.

26 Feb 2026 15:27:35
Madrid, for me, is easily doable over 2 legs.

26 Feb 2026 16:03:10
We should be beating either of them quite comfortably over 2 legs. I don't know if it was just the TV coverage, but when we played Gala at their place earlier this season, it felt like another level of crowd intimidation compared to any other European ground.

I've witnessed hostile atmospheres, but they seemed to keep up that intense level of hostility for 90 mins! For that reason, I'd maybe lean towards Madrid.

26 Feb 2026 16:06:19
Galatasaray for me. Turkish teams drop off in second half of the season, whereas a Diego Simeone team in the knockouts would be a trickier prospect than the one we played earlier this season.

26 Feb 2026 19:55:00
100% Gala for me. I've no doubt we would beat them comfortably over 2 legs, especially 2nd leg at Anfield. Wouldn't fancy Atletico at all, not what they were, and I wouldn't be too confident of beating them.

26 Feb 2026 19:55:18
Who's more likely to play the low block? There's your answer.

26 Feb 2026 13:11:44
If what Carra. says is true. Will the club expect to receive a significant fee for Salah considering his age and massive wages.

26 Feb 2026 13:55:45
It all depends on whether he chooses to go to Saudi or somewhere else. If he chooses Saudi, then we could see a decent fee (40-50m perhaps). However, if he wants to stay in Europe or head to the MLS, for example, we might have to negotiate an early release from his contract in order to save some wages rather than receive a fee.

I would hope the club does what it usually does well, and lets a legend leave the club on their terms. The antics in Dec/Jan, when we were hawking Mo to Saudi behind his back, were not the Liverpool way.

26 Feb 2026 14:00:51
Is it any different than when a player's team is hawking him around every club, like Salah's team did, FlyPelicanFly? The club will do what's best for the club, just as a player will do what's best for the player. Not much loyalty anymore with the money involved.

26 Feb 2026 14:32:46
I would say it is different in this case, yes. How you treat your legends lasts.

26 Feb 2026 16:33:19
I would expect a reasonable fee rather than a significant fee. I certainly wouldn't expect it to cover the majority of the fee to sign Diomande as his replacement, for example. As FPF suggests, football finances are complicated (and I am not claiming to know anything about them - I don't), and all sorts of things would need to be considered by the club. Getting his wages off the books could prove to be a greater benefit than holding out for a few extra quid in his transfer fee.

Also, a one-off lump-sum payment could be more beneficial to the club's plans than a higher fee with payments spread across several years. At the end of the day, his value will be whatever somebody is willing to pay for him this summer, and I genuinely wouldn't want to hazard a guess at what that might be. Saudi really want him, but does he really want Saudi? I suspect the other clubs in Europe and around the world sense a bargain, so we will just have to wait and see.

26 Feb 2026 17:52:56
If and when he goes, a handshake and a thank you from him and the club would be perfect. Let's not sour any memories we have created along the way. A winning goal in a cup final would be nice too.

26 Feb 2026 11:42:13
People going on about diomande, I've said it before, how on earth can you spend that much money on a 19 year old who's done absolutely f**k all! It's nuts as far as I'm concerned! Yes if he's done it for a couple of years and he's 23/ 24 years old and established but come on!

26 Feb 2026 14:08:48
The recruitment game has changed since Chelsea have perturbed the market. You only need to look at the prices and ages of Estevao, J. Neves, Endrick, Jacquet, and Yoro over the last couple of years.

Higher prices, smaller and smaller sample sizes. You could argue that Real and Barca have been doing this by stealth for years. We are only noticing now as it is happening here.

26 Feb 2026 16:49:11
As science, technology and methodology advance, it becomes easier to spot real talent at younger ages. It's happening in a lot of sports - not just football. Combine that with the trend of rapidly rising transfer fees, and it is almost inevitable that the young players identified are going for big money.

With the current trend of transfer fees, and if Diomande lives up to his reputation (Red Bull consider him the greatest ever player to go through their system), just imagine his market value by the time he is 23/24!

26 Feb 2026 09:47:19
Did anyone read Paul Joyce's article, it was very interesting as he his a direct line to Edwards and FSG. He specifically note that standards have not been completely met under slot and it remains to be seen if the hierarchy are on the same page.

Thoughts, does slotty boy stay?

Carra seems to think he's a dead man walking, i am unsure.

26 Feb 2026 11:04:51
These owners have always been happy once top 4 is achieved.

26 Feb 2026 14:16:52
Correction, FM: These owners are happy as long as their asset is appreciating in value. They have just made "franchise" signings in Wirtz and Isak. They will want the team to be successful with those players in order to keep Liverpool FC the most watched/followed football brand it can be. That means challenging and winning things.

26 Feb 2026 16:44:45
That means making sure we're in the Champions League. We'll challenge this season as much as we have in recent seasons. We could easily pick up silverware this season.

26 Feb 2026 17:56:35
The only challenge this season has been to keep my eyes open watching them.

26 Feb 2026 18:05:23
That's not a problem, John. I doubt the owners watch 1 game from August to May. They're none the wiser. Come end of season, they just ask if they have the lovely CL mewla again.

26 Feb 2026 00:28:22
I think Allisons heir is at Roma
Miles Svilar looks like a great keeper

24 Feb 2026 21:55:34
Would we consider Kjetil Knutsen or too big a step up, must say you have to admire his loyalty to Bodo and how he has build them up. Heard he's turned a lot of opportunities down but whoever gets him next will have a fantastic manager on their hands.

25 Feb 2026 11:30:24.
We should find out if the former pilot is available. He was mentioned on TV last night in Inter v Bod. He instilled into the team not to think about the result, but to concentrate on how they play, how to keep their shape, to know their job on the pitch, and how they are playing for each other, and the results will come.

You could see all his psychology at its best in their games. They do not worry about who they play, but how they play. We could do with him at LFC.