Liverpool are not in a dire situation and I'm not here to scream out "I told you so" when I said Klopp would not be the German savior to make Liverpool as dominant as Barcelona. There is some really good stuff in the team and some good players here. But if the aim is truly top four and to be in the Champions League, they are about two players short from achieving this. Without proper recruitment, they won't reach the target.
In their match against West Ham, it was a case of shooting practice. The Hammers defended really well, not giving up any space, which meant Liverpool couldn't thread any balls through. So they had to resort to shooting. Unfortunately, this may be the one thing Klopp forgot to train his boys on, as their aim was awful. Balls were flying all over the place while Adrian was chomping on noodles in goal.
Despite them losing, they still played some good football in the second half when Coutinho sort of came into the game. I'm not going to beat up on the Brazilian, but I don't think he can take the brunt of the creative work for a full season. He has a few games where he's amazing, but in the long haul he does not give you that consistency. Hence why he is better served as an attacking midfielder but not the playmaker.
That leads me to the kind of business Klopp must do this month. Defensively, they are okay. Not amazing, but good enough. He's wisened up to start Sakho as he is the strongest defender but Skrtel and Lovren are suspect. But the midfield and attackis where they need the most help. Back in the day of Gerrard and Alonso, they could control games and get themselves back in matches that they were behind, just by the strenght of those two. Lucas and Allen are not of that ilk, and Klopp needs a strong midfield presence who can allow them to keep the ball for longer and dominate games.
Benteke is a good striker. I won't throw him under the bus and call him the worst thing since a Michael Bay beach commercials cloaked as "films". He just needs another supporting striker he can work with. Sturridge isn't interested in being a professional footballer and I don't see Origi being the kind of forward man to work well with Benteke. They need like a Dybala type of player, who work well in tight spaces, and knows the kind of runs to make between defenders. This will make Liverpool create more chances and be more inventive when they go forward.
As is, I don't think Liverpool can be in the top four. But don't quote me on that. Anything can happen this season as has been proven. But teams like West Ham, Spurs and United have the players or/and performances to get them in that top four category. As good a coach Klopp is, every manager needs their kind of players to play their own kind of way. It's about a philosophy that a coach has, and he recuits players that fit into that very definite philosophy.
But if come May this year, Liverpool are celebrating getting into the Champions League, I guess I'm the idiot that got it wrong...
I doubt it...
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HH
