[Mikus LFC]

I know what you mean Sean, Wolves are a tough team who are always full of beans (particularly at home) and you need to be on top of your game against them. And it will have been hard for many of our players to not have got caught up in some of the hype over recent days. I know Klopp and others will be good at keeping their feet on the ground, but we do need to start being more clinical. Missed too many good chances yesterday. Shaqiri fit yet? Could do with him being available as well as having him keep the pressure on the front 3. Good to have Fab back tho, some of our midfielders could do with a break.

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[Mikus LFC]

As the below tweet shows, Arsenal saving money some years ago didn’t really help due to the corresponding rocketing up of transfer fee inflation. And then when they did start spending money, they spent it badly:

In 2011 Gazidis said that “we deliberately kept some powder dry” re #AFC spending plans, which has made no sense, as transfer fees inflation has meant that prices have rocketed up, while the weaker Pound has further reduced the club’s spending power abroad. pic.twitter.com/oU6s02KJYi

— Swiss Ramble (@SwissRamble) July 1, 2019

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[Mikus LFC]

To be fair Mak, Keane did mention Klopp’s credentials in Germany and how Dortmund are a big club. My point in all this was that he was stressing how it took Klopp time to get things right, particularly in his first season at Liverpool. He then argued the same could be true for Solksjaer at Man Utd in his early days and that he needs time. But for me, as I mentioned above, Klopp got to two finals with a mediocre team in that first part season, so he was clearly having an immediate and significant impact. Whereas Solksjaer has been there for over 12 months now, and whilst you couldn’t expect him to be winning left, right and centre, you’d still expect to see signs of something coming together. But there’s not enough there for me to suggest that there is, and you’re still not quite sure which Man Utd are going to turn up, particularly vs the sides lower down the league. That’s not to say he’s been a complete disaster, but the 3-3 game vs Sheff Utd has summed them up this season. They can turn it on here and there, but that’s obviously not good enough for a club of their stature.

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[Mikus LFC]

Mak, Keane said that because Klopp also struggled in his first season at Liverpool, Solksjaer deserved more time too. I said that Carra should have responded by reminding Keane that Klopp got to two finals in his first season – which was a positive about Klopp because he was clearly having an immediate impact on the club. Nine, I personally think that would have been a relevant point in the discussion – unless Solksjaer gets to some cup finals this season or wins something, what positive signs are there that he’s making a significant impact at the club and so deserves more time?

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[Mikus LFC]

Indeed Nine, though Carra should have fired back after Keane brought up Klopp’s first season, that Klopp still got to two finals in that season, so there were clear signs of a galvanising effect even with a poor set of players. Can Solksjaer demonstrate the same sort of thing? Not for me.

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[Mikus LFC]

Mak, I guess it’s just after recent near misses over the years. Yes, deep down it obviously looks pretty secure. If we were going for our 3rd consecutive title, I’d very much have the cigar out.

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[Mikus LFC]

I’m naturally cautious on these things. I’ll celebrate if/when it’s mathematically assured, no sooner.

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[Mikus LFC]

Good to see Fab back, will give chance to start resting some others like Henderson & Wijnaldum, who have been busting a gut for a while now.

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[Mikus LFC]

Big win, just need to be a bit more clinical.

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[Mikus LFC]

Origi will pop on in a minute I suspect.

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[Mikus LFC]

Some unforgivable misses today by us.

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[Mikus LFC]

Goalkeepers are protected…even more so in the world of VAR.

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[Mikus LFC]

Just a reminder Man Utd have not lost against teams above them this season.

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[Mikus LFC]

Ed, do you think Bruce, Pearson or Moyes could have won the title with City as Pellegrini did? I might be generalising here, but is part of this not that British managers tend to do better at clubs lower down because they tend to have more British players and there’s more of a connection and they can develop a better togetherness? Whilst the likes of Pellegrini and Benitez are perhaps more tactically polished?

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[Mikus LFC]

Torres, almost a different player at Liverpool & Chelsea. Suarez perhaps a better allrounder, but at Liverpool, I think Torres was one of the best out and out no.9s I’ve ever seen. Rapid and devastating.

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[Mikus LFC]

A good point Nine, and let’s not forget Mané played through a lot of last summer, so has played pretty much non stop for well over a year now. The demand is getting ridiculous on players. I thought Klopp gave a great response when asked about resting players in cup games when he said first and foremost he respects the players and will obviously protect them as best he can when trying to cope with the demands. You can’t comeback from such a response, particularly when mental health is being made increasingly aware of to people.

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[Mikus LFC]

It says something that Liverpool have had to play flawlessly to leapfrog City. They are still not a team you want to give any sniff to. They are too dangerous to do so, as they demonstrated at the weekend and as their “goals for” stats show. Indeed their “goals for” is the main reason why they are so dangerous. They generally score many in each game, which kills the game quickly. Whereas Liverpool have developed somewhat of a brick wall in terms of their strong mentality to see games out. City are still the bolder side in my opinion, but have lost a bit of their edge because of their defence and also, because it’s difficult to maintain motivation levels after dominating for so long. Staying at the top is always the toughest challenge, not so much getting there. I think Liverpool need to maintain their large lead over them at least for another few months for psychological reasons. Then, and only then, can we can start to talk about the probable winners.

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[Mikus LFC]

I suspect Utd will opt for Poch for several reasons, but mainly because he is in tune with the way the game has evolved over recent years with organised and high pressing, along with a strong identity. As well as helping to develop players, and having experience in the premier league at a top club. Allegri is quite conservative, and Utd have been there with Mourinho and unsurprisingly failed in trying to get him to play in a bolder way with big names. Nagelsmann doesn’t have the experience even if he is highly rated. Also the Utd job would be a completely different and obviously much bigger job than the Leipzig one is. Be interesting to see how he does with a bigger budget, but like Ed, I still have reservations about him. He’s a very good manager, but for me, he just lacks a certain je ne sais quoi.

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[Mikus LFC]

*A slightly outdated table, but the basic point still stands.

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[Mikus LFC]

Bizarre, but unsurprising stat: Man Utd are unbeaten vs all the sides above them so far this season. Will that change on Sunday?

Not that I expect this to be the case at the end of the season, but I wonder what is the lowest any team (in any league) has finished while remaining unbeaten against the teams above it. Pretty remarkable set of results for United. pic.twitter.com/gTmM1rhGmu

— Omar Chaudhuri (@OmarChaudhuri) December 22, 2019

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