Not a big loss. Had one standout season but his lack of pace makes him vulnerable in BR's team. Always gives he a heart attack to see him pulling and grabbing players in the box.

http://www.insidefutbol.com/2013/06/11/nap...ituation/88717/?

You've neglected to take into consideration the fact that unlike Rafa and Houllier, BR tends to play a high defensive line. Important to note that our centrebacks usually take up wider positions with the defensive midfielder plugging the hole in the middle as both fullbacks move forward into the opposition half. This is why it's imperative our centrebacks have some pace. Carra ended the season well but if you remember, he struggled to adapt to this new system early in the season, making a number of errors e.g. being outpaced to loose balls, which led to him being benched. Skrtel likewise, struggled which eventually led to him being benched as well. It isn't coincidence. This is why I rate Martin Kelly so highly. He's strong in the air (something we need) and he's also really quick for a bloke his height. He will do well in the heart of defence under BR I feel.

Hyypia enjoyed his best form partnering Henchoz under Houllier, who liked playing very deep so much so that our wingers like Patrik Berger would adopt fullback positions whenever the opposition had the ball. He tended to play 11 men behind the ball.

Carra enjoyed his best form under Rafa who also played a deep defensive line, though not as deep as Houller. The centrebacks stayed close to the keeper as they would pass the ball about. Note that at one point, there were cheeky comments suggesting that Reina was our best playmaker. This stemmed from the fact that often, the centrebacks would eventually play the ball back to him to punt up the field.

Therefore my conclusion is that big lumbering defenders with no pace will not fare well in BR's system.

Look at Ilori who we are linked with :-

Another bloke we've been linked with is Toby Alderweireld :-

Kyriakos Papadopoulos :-

Not mere coincidence.

This post has been edited by Duke Red: Jun 11 2013, 12:49 PM

Now that the season is over, it's important to look into developments off the pitch. Here's a brief article on our financial situation and what FSG are intent on doing to improve it.

http://soccerlens.com/liverpool-financial-...r-power/109041/?

Ian Ayre on Financial Fairplay

Trying to decipher the bolded bits but I'm not doing a very good job at it. Not suggesting that our defenders need to keep pace with Usain Bolt but they should be mobile. Skrtel will and has struggled. Hyypia would have struggled as well but not because he is a bad player, rather, it's because he simply isn't blessed with pace. Mauricio Pellegrino would have too. If you look back to Martin Kelly's standout performance against the mancs, he literally matched Nani for pace.

Yes, I agree that mobility is important as players these days cover more ground and movement off the ball is crucial in creating chances.

I am stating the obvious but it really does depend on the opposition.

Fielding 3 centrebacks will benefit us against big teams like Stoke (though I'm not sure how they'll set up now since Pulis has been sacked) who pump the ball into our box at every given opportunity. With 3 centrebacks it's beneficial to have someone to play the role of a libero or sweeper, but there aren't defenders in the mold of Franco Baresi or Franz Beckenbauer in today's game. With the advent of the modern day offside rule, sweepers became less commonplace as it makes it difficult for a team to hold their defensive line to catch opposition players offside. I don't think any of our defenders are able to read the game well enough to play this role anyway.

Like you've quite correctly put though it does give our wingbacks more freedom to roam forward and both Johnson and Enrique are equally adept at this. It comes down also to the personnel we have at our disposal. We aren't blessed with options at either wingback positions. If injuries or suspensions should befall Johnson and Enrique, we don't have defenders who are equally comfortable attacking and defending.

This post has been edited by Duke Red: Jun 11 2013, 04:32 PM

There was a video of Carra and the team wishing Hollie good luck during American Idol.

We are extremely lightweight in the defensive midfield position. Other than Lucas we have no options and Allen had to play that role for a good number of weeks when Lucas was out with injury. With all the wingers/forwards/defenders we're being linked with, I'm a little concerned we aren't looking at bolstering that position.

Here is the video I mentioned earlier of Carra and LFC wishing Hollie luck on American Idol.

Wisdom captained the side and I heard Shelvey had a bad day at the office.