Victimpool FC - Klopp leaving, grown men crying

[nayimfromthehalfwayline]

Messi is different gravy, unreal, nothing left to say really.

For most of the game last night I was watching him and thinking he was ready for the glue factory.

He barely broke into a jog, just walked around the centre of the pitch. Perked up when he got the ball, but did little with it. Seemed to have lost his dribbling magic. And the whole performance of the team smacked of when an icon is past it and the team suffers as a result.

Been a while since Ive watched Barca so it came as something of a shock.

Then he scores two, to get to 600 goals, including a simply incredible free kick.

Im still not sure what I make of it!


Also I thought Vidal was brick.

This was a huge topic of discussion last night in the pub, the UK media are obsessed with labels, everyone has to be the best in the world for them and its ridiculous, you watch football on the continent and they are never as gushing as we are here on players. VVD labelled the best defender in the world, very very good player no doubt at all but the best in the world? VVD has had a season and half at Liverpool, he can't hold a light to the likes of Rio, Vidic, Terry or Stam etc, too much hype ting

Saw something on Facebook comparing VVD to Vidic. Vidic was better in every respect by an embarrassing margin.

Rio, Stam, Terry (over rated but still bloody good) as you say all good.

Think about these lot as well, Kompany, Carvalho at Chelsea was immense for a while, Woodgate, Bruce, Desailly, Adams, Blanc, Campbell (spit), Toure...

And lets not forget King Ledley, VVD has a long way to go before hes worthy even of cleaning his boots....

 

[Grays_1890]

Yeh could have gone on and on and on naming defenders who are street ahead.

When you watch Real and the fans/pundits call a player out who has a goal every other game you can see who sets their standards to the very very top.

In England we judge VVD on performances against the likes of Burnley/Southamptons of the world and get wrapped up on the "He cost a lot so must be class" where in Europe the view is "if you cost a lot that the least we expect"

 

[fernadez]

For most of the game last night I was watching him and thinking he was ready for the glue factory.

He barely broke into a jog, just walked around the centre of the pitch. Perked up when he got the ball, but did little with it. Seemed to have lost his dribbling magic. And the whole performance of the team smacked of when an icon is past it and the team suffers as a result.

Been a while since Ive watched Barca so it came as something of a shock.

Then he scores two, to get to 600 goals, including a simply incredible free kick.

Im still not sure what I make of it!


Also I thought Vidal was brick.




Saw something on Facebook comparing VVD to Vidic. Vidic was better in every respect by an embarrassing margin.

Rio, Stam, Terry (over rated but still bloody good) as you say all good.

Think about these lot as well, Kompany, Carvalho at Chelsea was immense for a while, Woodgate, Bruce, Desailly, Adams, Blanc, Campbell (spit), Toure...

And lets not forget King Ledley, VVD has a long way to go before hes worthy even of cleaning his boots....

Messi has played like that for a few seasons now. He just drifts through games and then wins them if the rest of the team is struggling. Playing that way will extend his career for a good while I'd imagine.

 

[scaramanga]

So did I!

Have to say, credit to them, I thought Liverpool played well. Certainly started very well.

Havent watched Barca for years, and they looked poor. Cant decide if thats because Liverpool made them look that way or they were just having a bad day.

Then the shut down Pools only real supply line, bish bash on the break and job done! Masterclass in that respect.

And Messi - have his legs absolutely gone now? I think Llorente was more mobile on Tuesday...

I think Barca are an intelligent team with a lot of responsibility placed on the players. Often when I see them play a team they don't regularly play, they start with their default tactics and "set" plays. If that doesn't work, they start to figure out the other side gradually and work out how to beat them.

I thought last night was a good example of that. You could see the evolution of their play as the match went on. By the end, they had the victims figured out.

 

[nayimfromthehalfwayline]

Messi has played like that for a few seasons now. He just drifts through games and then wins them if the rest of the team is struggling. Playing that way will extend his career for a good while I'd imagine.

Apparently he is only 31 (32 in June), looks absolutely shot to me.

 

[nayimfromthehalfwayline]

I think Barca are an intelligent team with a lot of responsibility placed on the players. Often when I see them play a team they don't regularly play, they start with their default tactics and "set" plays. If that doesn't work, they start to figure out the other side gradually and work out how to beat them.

I thought last night was a good example of that. You could see the evolution of their play as the match went on. By the end, they had the victims figured out.

Absolutely.

Coutinho was doing nothing, brought on another RB and cut out Liverpools only effective route, and then sat on it.

For a while it looked really weird, but as you say they seemed to just be taking the time to work it out. Then before you know it 3-0 and game over.

 

[Grays_1890]

The thing is with Messi playing like that its near impossible to track him, the defenders have to track runners so he gets left in space, abit like Berba used to play for us, its class and very very clever.

 

[nayimfromthehalfwayline]

The thing is with Messi playing like that its near impossible to track him, the defenders have to track runners so he gets left in space, abit like Berba used to play for us, its class and very very clever.

Certainly worked, in the end. Not sure how clever it was though.

Coutinho and Suarez really needed him a lot of the time and instead there was a big gap where he should be, because he was still having a stroll in the centre circle...

Does make him hard to pick up but honestly I thought he carried very little threat. As I say, even his dribbling ability seems to have deserted him.

Dont let him have a free kick anywhere within sight of goal and there wasnt much left to worry about.

And despite all that he scored two, honestly not sure what to make of it.

 

[Grays_1890]

honestly not sure what to make of it.

Its called class

 

[r-u-s-x]

Messi has played like that for a few seasons now. He just drifts through games and then wins them if the rest of the team is struggling. Playing that way will extend his career for a good while I'd imagine.

In the group stages the only player to run less was Ronaldo.

In general Barca seem like a team of great moments rather than a great team - its proving effective.

 

[Kandi1977]

So did I!

Have to say, credit to them, I thought Liverpool played well. Certainly started very well.

Havent watched Barca for years, and they looked poor. Cant decide if thats because Liverpool made them look that way or they were just having a bad day.

Then the shut down Pools only real supply line, bish bash on the break and job done! Masterclass in that respect.

And Messi - have his legs absolutely gone now? I think Llorente was more mobile on Tuesday...

Have you ever seen Messi play before? That's what he does. He just casually walks around, and then kills you. Hasn't changed one bit.

 

[nayimfromthehalfwayline]

As I said, been a long time since I watched them play.

But last night was nothing like he was back then.

Back then he was a busy little player buzzing around a fluid and effective front 3 with a midfield that kept playing them into space.

Last night he barely hit a jog. Cant say when I watched them before comparisons to a past it Llorente sprang to mind.

 

[Kandi1977]

As I said, been a long time since I watched them play.

But last night was nothing like he was back then.

Back then he was a busy little player buzzing around a fluid and effective front 3 with a midfield that kept playing them into space.

Last night he barely hit a jog. Cant say when I watched them before comparisons to a past it Llorente sprang to mind.

Your memory is playing tricks on you. Messi has played like that for years. He's always been the player who covers the least amount of ground.

 

[nayimfromthehalfwayline]

Its really not.

Not saying I expected him to be a marathon man, but he put in decidedly less effort than I used to see from him.

 

[SubZero]

Last night he barely hit a jog. Cant say when I watched them before comparisons to a past it Llorente sprang to mind.

Can't say that I agree with you there. His acceleration from standstill/dribble to full pelt is no pubic hair short of insane, which he utilized several times yesterday. But yes, he runs in bursts. I can't remember him ever being a typical runner or chaser, as should no playmaker be, he spends his energy "wisely". A better example of someone with reduced effort would be present Christiano IMO. Then again, I'm no Messi nor Christiano expert.

Edit: as discussed in another topic, when you have Barcelona's (or our former) passing game, the need for running is greatly reduced.

 

[SpurMeUp]

Can't say that I agree with you there. His acceleration from standstill/dribble to full pelt is no pubic hair short of insane, which he utilized several times yesterday. But yes, he runs in bursts. I can't remember him ever being a typical runner or chaser, as should no playmaker be, he spends his energy "wisely". A better example of someone with reduced effort would be present Christiano IMO. Then again, I'm no Messi nor Christiano expert.

Edit: as discussed in another topic, when you have Barcelona's (or our former) passing game, the need for running is greatly reduced.

It's not clear, Bara keep it very close to their chest, but it is 'normal' for people with his condition to have top ups of HGH a banned performance enhaning drug. Bara will neither confirm or deny this. Being able to inject yourself with peformance enhancing drugs will help prolong a career you'd think, and definitly help with that power from a standing start that he is famous for.

 

[SubZero]

It's not clear, Bara keep it very close to their chest, but it is 'normal' for people with his condition to have top ups of HGH a banned performance enhaning drug. Bara will neither confirm or deny this. Being able to inject yourself with peformance enhancing drugs will help prolong a career you'd think, and definitly help with that power from a standing start that he is famous for.

I thought that was in the open, at least in his youth career, because of his diminutive stature. Going back, Johan Cruyff was treated with hormones because he was a "slow grower", albeit diff'rent times and all. But if Messi uses HGH to this day, I wouldn't think that it was up to Barca to decide whether to withold this information or not. I mean, the great Diego (not the sock, mind) couldn't escape being banned for drug use, and that wasn't even what I would call a perfomance enhancing drug, at least not in football

 

[nayimfromthehalfwayline]

Can't say that I agree with you there. His acceleration from standstill/dribble to full pelt is no pubic hair short of insane, which he utilized several times yesterday. But yes, he runs in bursts. I can't remember him ever being a typical runner or chaser, as should no playmaker be, he spends his energy "wisely". A better example of someone with reduced effort would be present Christiano IMO. Then again, I'm no Messi nor Christiano expert.

Edit: as discussed in another topic, when you have Barcelona's (or our former) passing game, the need for running is greatly reduced.

His acceleration didnt look insane to me, at all. Looked to me, as I said, he was about as mobile as Llorente.

Not saying he was ever a high tempo/energy player, but he was definitely more than a step off the pace last night imo.

I had to check his age, had it in my head he was 35 like Ronaldo.

All about opinions, obviously, but to me he looked a shadow of his former self physically imo

 

[Jurgen the German]

One guy doing that is bad enough, the rest standing laughing and filming it are a disgrace.
The press will trot out the small number let's us down line, it may have been a small number who did the deed but the rest are complicit.

That’s English football fans on tour for you. Leicester behaved like clams when they played in Madrid. Even when our teams play at home they behave like clams. Noticed there was trouble before and after our game on Tuesday.

What is it with English people when they get a bit of sun they have to start drinking, fighting and taking their shirts off?! Such chavvy behaviour. Anyone who takes their shirt off in public is a pikey I’m sorry.

Saw videos of England fans pouring beer over tourists In Amsterdam last time England played Holland. I bet the people of Amsterdam can’t wait till our mob descend upon their city.

 

[SubZero]

His acceleration didnt look insane to me, at all. Looked to me, as I said, he was about as mobile as Llorente.

Not saying he was ever a high tempo/energy player, but he was definitely more than a step off the pace last night imo.

I had to check his age, had it in my head he was 35 like Ronaldo.

All about opinions, obviously, but to me he looked a shadow of his former self physically imo

I'd be happy if only Llorente had half the acceleration and mobility of Messi..! But yes, he's passed 30 so a certain decline is to be expected, I think. But still enough to ridicule the Liverpool defence several times, at least I was impressed.