For the ones asking why no one's blaming other big money purchases mainly Lovren, Lallana, Markovic but focusing on Balotelli instead.

Answer is this - While they are big money transfers most fans would agree that they aren't of the top talent category. In fact most fans label them as midtable players whereas Balotelli is a labelled as a world class talent (not player but talent alone). He is getting flak because he is seen as someone not trying enough to fulfill his potential while the rest simply aren't seen as good enough to begin with (not for their lack of effort).

Pinning the blame on whoever's decision it is to purchase them is another story in which I do agree that bar Sturridge and Coutinho maybe Moreno/Manquillo in the future, BR's transfer record has been subpar.

Exactly my point. You can't blame the players for not performing up to the price we chose to pay for them. Blaming Balo for a lack of effort is another matter entirely.

If this is catastrophic I don't know how you are gonna describe the Downing, Adam and Carroll buys.

While I personally dislike the football played under Rafa I do think he has an eye for quality players only to not be backed by silly owners often having to settle for cheap alternatives. The likes of Dani Alves, Aguero and Jovetic were all targets that are realistically achievable at the time had he been backed like Rodgers is by FSG.

Not saying BR is doing a good job with Balo but what made you think the managers before BR took the best out of Balo? If they did what do you think made them give up on him one after another? He wasn't a success at Inter as he was still young. At City he was often playing second fiddle to Aguero and Dzeko mainly as a sub player most of the time. He scored more goals at Milan but statistics show that most of those goals come from set pieces (free kicks & penalties) and the rest mainly comes from long shots. His conversion rate is terrible because he takes way too many long shots.

Maybe you are right that BR shouldn't have bought him in the first place simply because he isn't the type of player that fits our high intensity style but are you really defending a professional for being lazy? Does is warrant him to not put in a shift just because he is THAT TYPE of player? Every manager/club has its style and the players are supposed to learn and adapt as they are paid handsomely to do so aren't they? Do you expect to go to Barca and play long balls instead of learning their ways of tiki-taka? I know Balo is not used to doing it and he might not even be good at it but what fans expect to see is him putting in effort instead of simply not trying. It is different matter if he tries and ends up not being good enough. Look at what happened to Mata and Kagawa for not adapting to Mourinho's and Van Gaal's philosophy respectively. It is only a matter of time the same happens if Balo doesn't try to learn and adapt to us.

Also, Balotelli has pace and although not as fast as Sterling or Struj but that shouldn't stop him from pressing should it? Suarez wasn't a particularly pacey player either and he was a nuisance to play against as he fights to win back every ball especially the wons he lost. Even Lambert put in way more effort in pressing when he started in place of Balotelli and the high intensity allowed our offense to operate so much better for the first time since the Spurs game.



Please do note that the ones criticizing Balo aren't pinning all failures this season on him. He is just ONE OF MANY problems we are having to endure this season. Lovren, Balo, Markovic and even Coutinho has been criticised thus far but Balo's criticism is louder than the rest simply because of his lack of effort in trying to play as a team.

Wouldn't you be frustrated if you were one of a few who runs tens of yards only for the ball to reach Balo's feet and it is blasted way off the goal? How would you feel if a teammate of yours gets a small bump on the back which isn't even a foul where he gets robbed of the ball and he then sits of the floor sulking for a couple minutes instead of getting back up to win the ball back?

I know our other new signings are performing poorly but it is not for their lack of effort. It is a different matter entirely from Balotelli's. Perhaps you could pin the blame on BR by saying he doesn't know any other tactic other than the high intensity high risk style we are accustomed to seeing last season but it is clear that is the style that suits the rest of our team and Balotelli is the odd one out here. Shouldn't we see more of an effort from him in trying to adapt to this style? We were never really good at dictating the tempo from midfield even from last season anyway. Many of our goals came from winning the ball back high up the pitch and breaking forward with pace.

Oh oh and for that myth that the rest of the team isn't providing him with enough service? "Optastats suggest Balotelli has missed four clear-cut chances this season. Nobody in the Premier League has wasted more." Once again reiterating that I think he is only being unlucky with those missed chances not bemoaning his lack of goals. I'm only criticizing him for not playing more as a team player.

This post has been edited by Cloud0890: Oct 24 2014, 02:34 AM

It's more than just workrate and closing down when I refer to effort. Effort is also in relation to desire. If you desire to be better you will work harder. The way Balo chooses to either pout on the floor or look on in frustration instead of attempting to win back the ball he lost right in front of him shows NO DESIRE whatsoever. It's certainly a mentality thing about him not ability. It is just as important to have someone willing to fight for the shirt as someone's ability.

I wouldn't regard Can as a flop just yet. He has barely played and does look promising at times. Let's not forget he cost us less than 10m which is pretty cheap by today's standards. Even if he can't make it big as a top player I'm sure he would serve us well as a utility player. Markovic has disappointed so far and he costs a lot but time is still on his side so I'm remaining optimistic on that one.

How's FM15 this year? FM14's game engine was a mess at least until the patch released after January. Didn't bother pre-ordering this year because they disappointed me so much last year.

Liverpool v Hull City

Liverpool have scored 10 goals in three Premier League home games against Hull City.

The Tigers have only won one of their 18 meetings with the Reds in all competitions (D4 L13), with that win coming on home soil last season.

Neither of Liverpool's scorers in this fixture last season (Agger, Suarez) remain at the club.

Steven Gerrard has three goals in two starts against Hull at Anfield.

Hull (along with Chelsea and Everton) are one of only three teams to score in every Premier League game this season.

Mario Balotelli has put more clear-cut chances off target than any other Premier League player this season (3).

After winning 11 Premier League games in a row between February and April, Liverpool have won just five of the subsequent 11 matches.

The Reds have kept just one clean sheet in their last 14 Premier League matches.

Liverpool have conceded exactly one goal in each of their last five Premier League games at Anfield.

Hull's last two away games have ended 2-2. Only two teams in Premier League history have recorded three successive 2-2 draws away from home (Man Utd in 1994 and Newcastle in 2003).

Liverpool have both taken (129) and scored (98 - level with Chelsea) the most penalties in Premier League history.

It is debatable whether Rodgers is good enough but I know I wouldn't want Rafa back here. He had ONE good season when there was way less competition in the league. A great cup game manager at best. He is now struggling at Napoli in a less competitive league despite being one of the biggest spenders there since he was appointed.

I'm sure fans of most clubs would love to have Klopp but he too is struggling big time at Dortmund. Let's not be so quick to judge BR as this is his first rough patch as our manager. He deserves our support at least until end of this season.

Exactly why I'm no big fan of his style. He is the reactive type rather than proactive and make the opponents worry about us instead. It has counted against him time and time again in the league as we struggle to score even against lesser oppositions because we were playing too cautiously which reinforces my belief that he is a very good cup manager and not one who will last the race for the league. Apart from Mourinho, there really isn't anyone else who can boast consistently winning numerous titles by playing reactive football. It is often the proactive offensive juggernaut teams who will win it all.

That said, Rafa is still the best we've had since the early 90s and massive respect for his achievements here.

Wow...

Coutinho dropped again...

Why is Balo starting again if he isn't given a strike partner upfront?

BR to buy Sakho and Valencia from West Ham in addition to Soton's Tadic and Pelle next summer!

Don't worry. We have Lovren to blame in case of a goalless draw.

Lol Mario...

Shoot the fking ball!

Let's blame Lallana and Lambert and Lovren. They should have created SUPER CLEAR chances for Balotelli. It's not Mario's fault he didn't score ain't it?

El Classico! Suarez starts! Looking forward to enjoying some real football.

He went down easily there. Could have had a penalty there but hey the ball was still under his feet and he is the furthest player forward. Guess what? Let's put my hands up to appeal instead of taking a swipe at goal.

Woooo Neymarrrrr!

Exactly why I questioned BR insistence on playing with one upfront. It's not like our wingers Sterling and Lallana creates a whole lot from the wings. Lambert's link up play in the final third is superb but no he is a flop as some fans are suggesting here.

Luis Suarez failed to impress in El Classico. Brendan Rodgers made him look good. Discuss.

/popcorn

Dortmund lost again and is now just outside the relegation zone. Any BR critic fancy a Jurgen Klopp?

Cannot disagree. Klopp's football is an absolute joy to watch. The way the destroyed Real Madrid and so nearly pushed them out of El Decima. He looks to have a fun personality too. But them Germans are more of head coaches not managers where they aren't fully in charge of the transfers. Wonder if he will work if given reign over the transfers.