Premier League 2020/21

[Benjamin]

I really can’t use the excuse of us being amazing the past few seasons when in the end we’re still playing the same number of games as City, Utd, etc. It’s not much of an excuse, we’ve just been wasteful up front and we can’t say that’s down to tiredness. TAA is marvellous up front but not that good at the back. Fabinho just can’t play 90 minutes at CB, and I have no idea why Klopp just didn’t play Kabak and Phillips and drop Gini. The guy is absolutely lost a lot of times. Firmino and Jota do not play well together. It’s just terrible. They kept kicking balls up the field and we are still pressing incredibly high for some reason at minute 90? 

Plus our sudden disappearance of a counterattack is embarrassing. Last season in injury time we defended a million chances from Utd and scored a second goal. Here we are just fucking lost. Couldn’t even sniff the ball until we deflected it goalwards. 

[Rich]

56 minutes ago, Hobo said:

With the injuries, playing during a pandemic with no crowds, plus the inevitable drop off that comes after having done 2 full seasons of getting massive points totals.  It's just a perfect storm of things going wrong.

It's noticebale that Robertson, Mane, Gini, they're quite clearly all shattered.

The bolded bit doesn't work when you have every other club on an even playing field.

[Matt]

It's different for them, they're a special club.

 

I can only assume Newcastle put out some nasty t shirts that hurt their feelings as well

[Hobo]

I mean, the drop off was going to happen. Man City dropped off last season in comparison to the previous two seasons. Liverpool have dropped off this season. On top of having loads of injuries. You can't win a champions league and 90+ point seasons back to back and not see a downturn at some point. They're human beings after all.

It's been a pretty extreme drop off but the number of injuries is a factor here as well.

Just now, Rich said:

The bolded bit doesn't work when you have every other club on an even playing field.

I'd wager it does have an effect on every club in different ways and to different degrees on a game by game basis. I don't think you could totally rule it out as a contributing factor in some form.
 

Just now, Matt said:

It's different for them, they're a special club.

That's not what I was saying. See above.

[Adam]

Liverpool have not suffered any more or less from having no fans in the stadium than Everton, than Man Utd, than Newcastle, than Doncaster or Plymouth or Gainsborough or Vauxhall bloody Motors. It has affected every team and player and cannot at all be put down as a factor why Liverpool have gone backwards this season, because every team they've fallen behind in the table has the same issue.

[Baddar]

Some teams have been able to welcome fans for at least a few games this season, too, Liverpool being one of them.

[Kyle]

Maybe, just maybe, and this is a long shot, but maybe Liverpool are just shite.

[Twist]

15 minutes ago, Adam said:

Liverpool have not suffered any more or less from having no fans in the stadium than Everton, than Man Utd, than Newcastle, than Doncaster or Plymouth or Gainsborough or Vauxhall bloody Motors. It has affected every team and player and cannot at all be put down as a factor why Liverpool have gone backwards this season, because every team they've fallen behind in the table has the same issue.

Of course it can.

It is more than reasonable to suggest that this collection of players thrives on the atmosphere and pressures of playing in front of fans. Where other squads, perhaps West Ham, have benefited from not having that pressure on them.

You can’t just outright disqualify it as a factor although quantifying who has been impacted, positive or negative, and to what extent would be difficult.

 

 

Edited April 24, 2021 by Twist

[Tigerstyle]

There are teams who have shit fans in a shit stadium shitting on their shit team week in week out (West Ham) who have thrived on not having them there.

It definitely effects teams in a different way, Liverpool have had an incredible downturn after Christmas, they were top of the league until then, something has effected this group of players more so than others, whatever it is, a rest this summer may help.

Oh.

[Benjamin]

I just find it a laughable excuse for us. Yes, having your home stadium full of fans is a big support for you that can boost your team. That simply means that we didn’t adjust like other teams did, because they also did not have that support system at their home games. We were doing fine before Christmas, after that is when everything went to shit. I find just that our lack of ability to be as good this season is a much more plausible reason than the fans, the injuries, or the “we are very tired and every other team is fit”. If anything, every team has adjusted to our playing style and we haven’t answered back. When teams like Leeds and Newcastle don’t adjust to neutralise us, we are just so desperate to try and get it in the back of the net that we’re just rushing every shot.

Maybe we can win the first ever UEFA Conference League. That’ll be cool as we complain about too many games again. 

[Matt]

They were supposedly put off by a few hundred Leeds and Liverpool fans chanting "six greedy bastards, you know what you are".... Tell me again how they thrive under atmosphere and pressure.

[Szumi]

I've gone from Leeds being a fun neutral side to watch to being perfectly okay with watching them get relegated next season because of how insufferable you are.

[Rich]

22 minutes ago, Twist said:

Of course it can.

It is more than reasonable to suggest that this collection of players thrives on the atmosphere and pressures of playing in front of fans. Where other squads, perhaps West Ham, have benefited from not having that pressure on them.

You can’t just outright disqualify it as a factor although quantifying who has been impacted, positive or negative, and to what extent would be difficult.

 

 

Liverpool won a trophy last season under such circumstances, to use it as an explanation or excuse now looks daft.

[Colly]

Imagine if Liverpool are actually shit in front of fans and it only gets worse next season.

[Kyle]

3 minutes ago, Colly said:

Imagine if Liverpool are actually shit in front of fans and it only gets worse next season.

I'll chuck a fiver on Liverpool to win the league next year, that tends to jinx things.

[Twist]

5 minutes ago, Rich said:

Liverpool won a trophy last season under such circumstances, to use it as an explanation or excuse now looks daft.

There were three quarters of the season gone by the time fans weren’t allowed in and they were already a long way towards the title.

They only had 4 games not in front of fans at Anfield in the Premier League to see out the season.

you can’t discount the impact on that sample size from last season.

[Matt]

13 minutes ago, Szumi - A Polack said:

I've gone from Leeds being a fun neutral side to watch to being perfectly okay with watching them get relegated next season because of how insufferable you are.

Oh no, I'll never be able to sleep.

[Colly]

That's an absolutely shocking decision to send him off there. If Chilwell challenges for the ball it doesn't happen, he only catches him (while standing, with a follow through) because he pulls out. Referees don't even understand how the game works any more.

[9 to 5]

This match is shit.

[Baddar]

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