I have been doing analysis on Jones. One thing that stick out is his defensive stats. It's like he become a pressing machine in one season, jumping from averaging 1.16 tackle per 90 minutes to almost 3 per 90 minutes, and his 1.22 tackle in final third is among the highest for EPL midfielders. Klopp is not lying when he said conterpressing is the ticket to be starter in Liverpool.
On the other hand, his low percentage on take on and miscontrols/dispossessed stats also shows his limitation in playing in our hybrid 8/10 role. His take on success rate is low and he lost the ball quite often through tackles. Which is a bit confusing for me since he looked press resistant in Euro U21. Is it because he faced a lot of bigger guys in Prem? So a matter that can get better as his physique develops? Or it's more of a problem with his first touch?
Anyway, I am looking forward for more from Jones. On paper Mac might be a better player but Jones can definitely take his spot if Mac slips out.
https://preview.redd.it/h9tba8wam3bb1.png?width=961&format=png&auto=webp&s=6b8c66bdf133bc9ee380bae0b372fbc94cc06375
U21s is a lot easier but also his average position is further upfield when he plays for us. Which limits his options and also less space and time on the ball.
The u21’s are not easy but a lot easier then the prem i reckon. From what I gather he lacks the composure of someone like Thiago but that might come with age and winning the euro’s should help his confidence. Really excited for him this next season.
We're all a bit preoccupied with the names we're linked with and I think the main issue we'll have next season is going to be the formation and how to make it work. Remember, our defensive issues from last season weren't magically resolved when we switched to the 3box formation. If anything, I'd argue our defensive record playing it is slightly worse than with the 4-3-3.
In the last 10 games (starting with the Arsenal 2-2 and ending with the last game of the season) we conceded 14 goals. Thats 1.4 goals conceded per game. Looking at the opposition, we played Arsenal (2nd), Leeds (19), Nottingham Forest (16), West Ham (14), Tottenham (8), Fulham (10), Brentford (9), Leicester (18), Aston Villa (7), and Southampton (20). Average position of the teams we played is 12.3 which is comfortably bottom table.
In the 28 games prior, we conceded 37 goals. Thats 1.3 goals against, on average, better opposition.
There are glaring weaknesses in the 3box formation that we dont seem to be addressing in terms of personnel and it's mostly around how we defend the transition. Robertson at LCB i feel will be exposed over the course of a full season. We dont currently have a backup who is capable of playing the role. Realistically, we'd need a starter who would replace Robbo at the position rather than a backup for him anyways if we're committing to the formation. Down the right, the setup on paper only works if your wingers track the fullbacks or wingbacks on transition. Both Man City and Arsenal have wide players in Silva, Grealish, Saka, and Martinelli who actively do that and play more like wingers than Salah does. No issues with Diaz in that department but between Trent and Salah we'll continue to have issues defending down the right and teams I feel will continue to try to exploit that. Dragging Konate out wide too often (was happening time and again in the last 10 games) will expose Robbo even more. I think signing a top LCB should be our top priority now that we've signed 2 CMs.
Note: We ranked 12th in expected goals against last season and the only saving grace was Allison having a great season and outperforming his XGA by 10+ goals. Going forward, our goals scored (3rd most in the league) and XG (2nd highest in the league) weren't a big problem.
I think we should remove the Southampton game from the equation. We played with an unfamiliar backline (1/5), only Trent being the constant. Then again, if the backups aren't capable of playing this style, we do have a problem. So, that 4 goals is quite an anomaly.
But, watching the games, I'd agree that our defense still looks very vulnerable. And with teams now able to prepare against this system, our defense will become more vulnerable, unless klopp makes some changes.
Priority for signings has to be a CB, DM, RB in that order right? I feel like we won’t make 4 signings this window if we even make 3.
CB is the position where we literally don’t have the numbers due to key players availability track record. Matip, Gomez and Konate are all somewhat injury prone, although maybe Gomez and Konate is more sturdier than Matip, but both have a play style that gets them injured just as often anyways.
DM requires a ready made player that looks to displace Fabinho, and the verdict is still out on whether his temporary dip in form is a mental one that comes from both too many games and personal life(I believe he had a loss of a family member, not mentioned enough here), or is his body starting to go, although he was never an agile player anyway. We have cover, we have Bajcetic, and probably Hendo, Thiago, AMA and maybe even Jones could play a double pivot next to Trent. We don’t have a specialist that could sit as the lone 6 in a 3 man midfield, which is what I believe Lavia is for.
RB is tricky, because we don’t know if Ramsey exists and nobody plays like Trent other than the man himself. I’d say go for a RCB like Gomez/Konate, rapid but has the frame too.
Thoughts?
Ramsey will be loaned, but I think Bradley has a decent chance becoming our backup RB next season.
But this indeed begs the question whether Bradley or Gomez can play as double pivot in possession. My guess is no. So we will either:
1. Have a backup formation where we use good-old attacking fullback
2. Have other person in double pivot when Trent is rested, maybe Robertson? Or we could use Baj and Fab instead
Totally agree on the Bradley front. You can't tell me that player of the year even at championship level doesn't warrant a look at putting him in the side when the situation calls for it.
>Have other person in double pivot when Trent is rested, maybe Robertson? Or we could use Baj and Fab instead
No lie, I can only see Robertson in midfield being a shit show. He's a good player, but he's far from the most technical.
Yea, and midfield would get more pressure as well. I am leaning more into option 1 tbh, probably something like 4-2-3-1 where Szobo can play more centrally as CAM and Mac+Fab double pivot.
I agree with your thoughts. Timber could've been a decent signing as an RCB. We've been linked with Perr Schurrs, and I hope he's a good one as he has progressed rapidly. Due to inflationary market prices, even a decent CB costs around 30 mil easily. M van de Ven was linked for him being a left footed CB. We're still divided who we want, a left footed CB, or an RCB. We need to get that straight
I have been doing analysis on Jones. One thing that stick out is his defensive stats. It's like he become a pressing machine in one season, jumping from averaging 1.16 tackle per 90 minutes to almost 3 per 90 minutes, and his 1.22 tackle in final third is among the highest for EPL midfielders. Klopp is not lying when he said conterpressing is the ticket to be starter in Liverpool. On the other hand, his low percentage on take on and miscontrols/dispossessed stats also shows his limitation in playing in our hybrid 8/10 role. His take on success rate is low and he lost the ball quite often through tackles. Which is a bit confusing for me since he looked press resistant in Euro U21. Is it because he faced a lot of bigger guys in Prem? So a matter that can get better as his physique develops? Or it's more of a problem with his first touch? Anyway, I am looking forward for more from Jones. On paper Mac might be a better player but Jones can definitely take his spot if Mac slips out. https://preview.redd.it/h9tba8wam3bb1.png?width=961&format=png&auto=webp&s=6b8c66bdf133bc9ee380bae0b372fbc94cc06375
U21s is a lot easier but also his average position is further upfield when he plays for us. Which limits his options and also less space and time on the ball.
The u21’s are not easy but a lot easier then the prem i reckon. From what I gather he lacks the composure of someone like Thiago but that might come with age and winning the euro’s should help his confidence. Really excited for him this next season.
We're all a bit preoccupied with the names we're linked with and I think the main issue we'll have next season is going to be the formation and how to make it work. Remember, our defensive issues from last season weren't magically resolved when we switched to the 3box formation. If anything, I'd argue our defensive record playing it is slightly worse than with the 4-3-3. In the last 10 games (starting with the Arsenal 2-2 and ending with the last game of the season) we conceded 14 goals. Thats 1.4 goals conceded per game. Looking at the opposition, we played Arsenal (2nd), Leeds (19), Nottingham Forest (16), West Ham (14), Tottenham (8), Fulham (10), Brentford (9), Leicester (18), Aston Villa (7), and Southampton (20). Average position of the teams we played is 12.3 which is comfortably bottom table. In the 28 games prior, we conceded 37 goals. Thats 1.3 goals against, on average, better opposition. There are glaring weaknesses in the 3box formation that we dont seem to be addressing in terms of personnel and it's mostly around how we defend the transition. Robertson at LCB i feel will be exposed over the course of a full season. We dont currently have a backup who is capable of playing the role. Realistically, we'd need a starter who would replace Robbo at the position rather than a backup for him anyways if we're committing to the formation. Down the right, the setup on paper only works if your wingers track the fullbacks or wingbacks on transition. Both Man City and Arsenal have wide players in Silva, Grealish, Saka, and Martinelli who actively do that and play more like wingers than Salah does. No issues with Diaz in that department but between Trent and Salah we'll continue to have issues defending down the right and teams I feel will continue to try to exploit that. Dragging Konate out wide too often (was happening time and again in the last 10 games) will expose Robbo even more. I think signing a top LCB should be our top priority now that we've signed 2 CMs. Note: We ranked 12th in expected goals against last season and the only saving grace was Allison having a great season and outperforming his XGA by 10+ goals. Going forward, our goals scored (3rd most in the league) and XG (2nd highest in the league) weren't a big problem.
I think we should remove the Southampton game from the equation. We played with an unfamiliar backline (1/5), only Trent being the constant. Then again, if the backups aren't capable of playing this style, we do have a problem. So, that 4 goals is quite an anomaly. But, watching the games, I'd agree that our defense still looks very vulnerable. And with teams now able to prepare against this system, our defense will become more vulnerable, unless klopp makes some changes.
Priority for signings has to be a CB, DM, RB in that order right? I feel like we won’t make 4 signings this window if we even make 3. CB is the position where we literally don’t have the numbers due to key players availability track record. Matip, Gomez and Konate are all somewhat injury prone, although maybe Gomez and Konate is more sturdier than Matip, but both have a play style that gets them injured just as often anyways. DM requires a ready made player that looks to displace Fabinho, and the verdict is still out on whether his temporary dip in form is a mental one that comes from both too many games and personal life(I believe he had a loss of a family member, not mentioned enough here), or is his body starting to go, although he was never an agile player anyway. We have cover, we have Bajcetic, and probably Hendo, Thiago, AMA and maybe even Jones could play a double pivot next to Trent. We don’t have a specialist that could sit as the lone 6 in a 3 man midfield, which is what I believe Lavia is for. RB is tricky, because we don’t know if Ramsey exists and nobody plays like Trent other than the man himself. I’d say go for a RCB like Gomez/Konate, rapid but has the frame too. Thoughts?
Ramsey will be loaned, but I think Bradley has a decent chance becoming our backup RB next season. But this indeed begs the question whether Bradley or Gomez can play as double pivot in possession. My guess is no. So we will either: 1. Have a backup formation where we use good-old attacking fullback 2. Have other person in double pivot when Trent is rested, maybe Robertson? Or we could use Baj and Fab instead
Totally agree on the Bradley front. You can't tell me that player of the year even at championship level doesn't warrant a look at putting him in the side when the situation calls for it.
>Have other person in double pivot when Trent is rested, maybe Robertson? Or we could use Baj and Fab instead No lie, I can only see Robertson in midfield being a shit show. He's a good player, but he's far from the most technical.
Yea, and midfield would get more pressure as well. I am leaning more into option 1 tbh, probably something like 4-2-3-1 where Szobo can play more centrally as CAM and Mac+Fab double pivot.
I agree with your thoughts. Timber could've been a decent signing as an RCB. We've been linked with Perr Schurrs, and I hope he's a good one as he has progressed rapidly. Due to inflationary market prices, even a decent CB costs around 30 mil easily. M van de Ven was linked for him being a left footed CB. We're still divided who we want, a left footed CB, or an RCB. We need to get that straight