Inter Milan & The Knockout Stages
After that ridiculous Champions League last 16 draw, Inter Milan were finally confirmed as Liverpool’s next opponents. The tie is a tantalising match up between two European heavyweights, and one which Jürgen Klopp’s men should eagerly await.
Last season, the Serie A saw Antonio Conte’s team finally capture the Italian League title, after Juventus monopolised the Scudetto for nine long years. The make up of that Inter side was both controlled and ultra organised, with Conte implementing his plan over …
Reds rumoured to be interested in Inter Milan centre-half
Liverpool are reported to be interested in Inter Milan centre-back Alessandro Bastoni as The Reds prepare to build on their current squad.
Jürgen Klopp and co have had to cope for most of the season without their three top centre-backs - Virgil van Dijk, Joe Gomez, and Joël Matip. Van Dijk and Gomez both suffered long-term injuries while Matip's season was stop-start until he eventually succumbed to a season-ending injury in late January.
Liverpool recruited Ozan Kabak on a six-month …
Return of the Shaq - and why it's good news for Liverpool
It's been a long time since we saw any meaningful contribution from Xherdan Shaqiri in a Liverpool shirt.
In truth, it probably came in that memorable Champions League semi-final win over Barcelona at Anfield, when his beautiful curling cross was met by a thumping Gini Wijnaldum header to bring Liverpool level in the tie.
The Alpine Messi has been hampered by a niggling injury to one of those enormous calves of his and has barely featured this season for Klopp's …
5 Defenders to Fix Liverpool's Defence - #5 Milan Skriniar
Everyone knows the rhetoric. Jürgen Klopp may be resolute in his public support for his four centre-halves, but the summer pursuit of Virgil van Dijk speaks volumes about the need for a commanding, composed centre-half to fix Liverpool’s shaky defensive problems. Come January, those problems will likely be addressed with the pursuit of a centre-half – given how often Liverpool’s manager is having to face scrutiny in the press regarding his side’s frail rear guard. Or perhaps he'll wait until …
Lucas Leaver?
Earlier today, I wrote for the Latest News section about the divisive figure that is Alberto Moreno but the Spaniard is a mere amateur at dangerously dividing the fan base in comparison with the focus of this evening's scribbles - Lucas Leiva. The affable Brazilian will always have his fans because he is patently a fellow of tremendous character and has done the club redoubtable service over a decade.
However, there have been many fans who simply never took to the …
Inter's Ranocchia to Shore Up the Liverpool Defence?
With the injury crisis the club are currently involved in it's not a surprise that many media outlets all over the world linking any player with functional legs with the club. Liverpool are currently without all four of their senior centre-backs for the trip to Exeter and links to different centre-backs are appearing daily.
One such rumour has seen Inter Milan centre-back Andrea Ranocchia linked with a 10 million Euro move to Anfield within the next week. Reports suggest a …
The lowdown on Liverpool Target Marko Grujic
Rumours surfaced early last week that Liverpool were in talks with Red Star Belgrade over the signing of their talented midfielder Marko Grujic. I'm going to go out on a limb here and saying not many people watch the Serbian League so to most this player is a bit of an unknown. There's something refreshing about being linked to a player the masses haven't already formed an opinion on. It causes a buzz on social media as people clamber for …
The Case for the Liverpool Defence Part 2: ‘Midfield and Beyond’
In Part I, I looked at the individual members of the back ‘5’ (including the GK), and the most likely rotational or still to return individuals, each with their own pluses and minuses. In Part II, I want to look at the midfield options and striker responsibilities relative to defence, the overall strategy and tactics employed (the two are not the same) and how the gears of overall defence do – and often don’t – mesh.
Liverpool essentially have six …
You Will Not Be Allowed To Win | Liverpool's 1st European Campaign
Part Two: ‘You will not be allowed to win…’ - The first part of the series available here: Part 1
In Liverpool’s first season in European competition, they had surprised a lot of people. English pundits and reporters who didn’t think they were up to it, foreign reporters and pundits who had never heard of them and experienced European clubs who thought they knew better. They had made a lot of friends along the way with the quality of their …