Our season largely turned with the injuries to Chilwell and James before Christmas. TT has made some odd decisions this season and it feels like we've only worked out how to play with Lukaku in the last couple of weeks. 

The squad needs a refresh and we need to crack the sloppy finishing. Everyone is guilty of that.

8 minutes ago, dkw said:

We aim to put their 2 wing backs under pressure from our wingers doubled with our full backs, neither Robertson or Arnold can defend for toffee, make them have to defend or move their mids to cover, give us space and time to work in.

Sometimes the best way to defend a teams strength is to attack that very same strength. We set up and played to their strengths which was idiotic, we could and should have been 3 down in 20 minuted.

A lot of teams have tried 4 at the back against Liverpool and been destroyed by their front three.

 

They've won every competition they've been in (or are in the final) and are on course for 90+ points in the prem (which wins the league 99% of the time). There really isn't a magic forumla to beating them. They're one of the best sides in Prem history 

1 minute ago, axman2526 said:

I was happy with the linenup he picked. 

Unfortunately we wasted the chances that came are way and did not take advantage of them losing Salah and VVD during the game.

I wonder though if you decide to play for pen, brave or stupid given our record with them, why take off Lukaku? He may not be doing much else but he has a good pen record.

With kai n timo injury the team kinda pick itself. 

 

40 minutes ago, Nibs said:

No Way, Where are our game changers? Liverpool had Mane, Salah, Diaz, Jota, Firninho (was Orgi even on the bench?)

Our bench - RLC, Azpi, Barkley, Kante, Werner, Ziyech. Where are the goal scorers in that lot FFS.

None of whom actually changed the game or scored a goal ... :-)

7 minutes ago, axman2526 said:

I was happy with the linenup he picked. 

Unfortunately we wasted the chances that came are way and did not take advantage of them losing Salah and VVD during the game.

I wonder though if you decide to play for pen, brave or stupid given our record with them, why take off Lukaku? He may not be doing much else but he has a good pen record.

For me, Lukaku is the epitome of the problems at our club. A mediocre footballer bought in for massive amounts of money on huge wages despite building a career out of being the biggest bottler you will ever come across. He belongs at Tottenham, not Chelsea.

Edited May 14, 20224 yr by Scott Harris

10 minutes ago, Drogba1 said:

I think a lot of it is that our transfer policy in the 6 years since Emenalo left has been dreadful and has been papered over due to the success of our academy prospects. 

Watched the game with a Liverpool fan. We were comparing the guys they bring in Jota, Diaz with the choices Chelsea have made over the years. He thinks the American focus on performance stats is something that leads Liverpool's signings and thought US owners might require more of that at Chelsea 

4 minutes ago, Sexyfootball said:

None of whom actually changed the game or scored a goal ... :-)

We did well defensively but who woudn't take any of them over the likes of Lukaku, Werner, Pulici, Ziyech.......................

Turns out Werner had an injury as well, that's why he didn't come on.

We was unlucky with injuries today and unfortunate in a penalty shoot out.

I'm more hurt by the fact we've lost to Liverpool like this twice, and we now have to look forward to the media calling Liverpool possibly the greatest team ever.

7 minutes ago, Scott Harris said:

For me, Lukaku is the epitome of the problems at our club. A mediocre footballer bought in for massive amounts of money on huge wages despite building a career out of being the biggest bottler you will ever come across. He belongs at Tottenham, not Chelsea.

Agree completely. Again though if you are playing for pens you leave him on this time though.

16 minutes ago, Scott Harris said:

Guardiola does it all of the time, sometimes it works, other times it goes very wrong for him.

Klopp in his first few seasons at Liverpool made a lot of weird decisions and took 4 years to get them competing again.

and both those managers have squads that there managers have bought 90% of the players for. 

Its clear to me we have a manager that can tactically compete with the best in europe, lets give him players that he actually wants. 

Dont turn on on him when things arent so rosy when he is losing players due to sanctions, and he has a squad of players built by the last 5 previous managers. 

How many finals did klopp lose on the spin when he took over liverpool? Must have been at least 2 or 3. 

Im not going to turn on individuals, whether thats mount, pulisic, tuchel or whoever, because we gave it a real good go, and considering tbe hype around this liverpool sude, theres been nothing between us in 4 games this season. 

1 minute ago, 2211 said:

Turns out Werner had an injury as well, that's why he didn't come on.

We was unlucky with injuries today and unfortunate in a penalty shoot out.

I'm more hurt by the fact we've lost to Liverpool like this twice, and we now have to look forward to the media calling Liverpool possibly the greatest team ever.

Then don't name him on the bench and bring a few youth players you can name there on case things like this happen.

Don't know someone on the bench you cannot actually use.

1 minute ago, 2211 said:

Turns out Werner had an injury as well, that's why he didn't come on.

We was unlucky with injuries today and unfortunate in a penalty shoot out.

Jees - what a season for injuries ... ! Half our forwards unavailable today then ... 

1 minute ago, axman2526 said:

Agree completely. Again though if you are playing for pens you leave him on this time though.

I was done with Lukaku the instant he half-arsed challenged Van Dijk to a ball, minutes (seconds even) before he came off. Maybe he was too tired due to being so out of physical form he can't play 3 matches in a row, maybe TT was as tired as me watching his soft challenges against Pool defenders. Maybe we wouldn't even get to penalties had Lukaku stayed in but we'll never know.

Tuchel has really gone down in my estimation, keeping pulisic on as long as he did,he should have brought werner on in extra time when Liverpool were tired,and the subs what was he thinking.

3 minutes ago, axman2526 said:

Then don't name him on the bench and bring a few youth players you can name there on case things like this happen.

Don't know someone on the bench you cannot actually use.

A youth team striker would definitely been more alert to Mounts clever flick in extra time than RLC was. 

 

So turns out he brought RLC on for 15 minutes, then subbed him of for Barkely because he's better at penalties. That's just indefensibly stupid.

Timo injured in the warm up?

@just

You've actually gone and done it you madman

I genuinely wonder what Bohely makes of our manager. Will his job be under threat?

1 minute ago, dkw said:

So turns out he brought RLC on for 15 minutes, then subbed him of for Barkely because he's better at penalties. That's just indefensibly stupid.

Waste of a sub. Lukaku and Pulisic are good at pens. If the aim is pens leave them on. Wait till minute 119 then bring Ross and Hakim on for Trev and Kante.

3 minutes ago, dkw said:

So turns out he brought RLC on for 15 minutes, then subbed him of for Barkely because he's better at penalties. That's just indefensibly stupid.

Yeah barkleys pen was sh*t.....

Werner injured aswell before he gets criticised for that one. 

 

8 minutes ago, dkw said:

So turns out he brought RLC on for 15 minutes, then subbed him of for Barkely because he's better at penalties. That's just indefensibly stupid.

Yeah it's just never nice to see a player come off having only been subbed on. But I gotta say I thought RLC looked like he didn't know what planet he was on at times.

3 minutes ago, Amputechture said:

Yeah it's just never nice to see a player come off having only been subbed on. But I gotta say I thought RLC looked like he didn't know what planet he was on at times.

That first touch on the ball where he slipped set the tone for what would come next. It was a sad sight and quite possibly the final straw on his career with us, unless TT does get replaced by Boehly. 

1 hour ago, Nibs said:

Maybe when you have a better squad that we currently have. And you don't count the Club World Cup?!! 

Oops, we actually won two trophies, super cup too. We won the champions league last season with this squad, beating man city three times in a row. Can’t be that bad of a squad

4 minutes ago, Brigadeiro Mk II said:

That first touch on the ball where he slipped set the tone for what would come next. It was a sad sight and quite possibly the final straw on his career with us, unless TT does get replaced by Boehly. 

Personally I don't mind keeping him around for depth. He can be alright at times. Just shouldn't be depending on him in clutch moments. He was a disaster today though. Has to be said.

29 minutes ago, axman2526 said:

I genuinely wonder what Bohely makes of our manager. Will his job be under threat?

I Don't care if it is.