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Better To Twist Than Stick With Underperformers

Considering the wages they pay, Premier League clubs are right to demand consistent high standards from their players. It isn't always wise to show loyalty to underperformers...

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Comments 1 - 10 of (15)

Synergy says...

Well Pool will have a lot of money to buy defenders with, if the Suarez to Juve rumors turn out to be true. Skrtel doesn't fit Rogers system, so its not a surprise his confidence is low, which causes errors.

@HarryBoulton> Fans have been bad mouthing and blaming Carrick for years and will do so again next year if United aren't top of the league. Since Carrick doesn't run around and dive into tackles like Parker, few people understand what exactly he does as guarding space and pass angle is an alien concept to most fans.

Carrick has looked better this year as he has a mobile partner in midfield who passes and moves into space and hence always giving him a passing option, something he didn't have due to Scholes getting old and a lot less mobile, the last couple of years.

Looks like its going to be another year of United buying wingers. Zaha is coming and hopefully we finally get a good left winger. Valencia and possible Nani (contract issues) are done.

Posted 8:46am 25th March 2013

nicobellik (Manchester United) says...

A really poor article.. a shame, far from Matt's best work

Posted 3:17am 24th March 2013

gerard1979 says...

@editor why was the headline of this article changed? Was it due to the fact that it's content was so flawed?

Posted 10:15am 22nd March 2013

Scotty2Hotty22 says...

I agree that both Skrtel and Agger's form has dropped this season, leaving Liverpool to resort to the aging Jamie Carragher. Just as alarming is the stagnant development of the next two center backs in Liverpool's system: Sebastian Coates and Danny Wilson, the latter of which, having been loaned out several times, just does not seem to be good enough. Sure, it would be easy to attest Skrtel's drop in form to Rodgers' system that requires his center backs to be better distributors of the ball, but is that really applicable in how easily Jay Rodriguez got around him over the weekend, the lackluster performance against an Oldham team and the dreaded backpass assist to Carlos Tevez?! Let alone the fragility of Liverpool's defense in set pieces, particularly corners. The modern game of football, and even more so Brendan Rodgers' system, calls for defenders to be 'smarter' than just battering rams of old, and Liverpool's defense is desperately crying out for at least two reinforcements in that area if they are to improve on the inroads that have been made this season.

Posted 5:47pm 21st March 2013

gusman says...

gerard1979 - totally agree. pointless trying to dictate a hard and fast rule for these situation - at why would ferguson/rodgers bother with decisions made by other managers, regarding different players in different circumstances at different clubs? too many variables to draw direct comparisons, naive to think otherwise, absurd in fact. also the article doesnt address the factor of purchasing and integrating a superior replacement. surely that's a more relevant comparison - if not the only comparison - for a club/manager to consider, rather than comparing tenuous examples from elsewhere

Posted 1:16pm 21st March 2013

gerard1979 says...

Giggs has never regained his form from his peak years and is not a 1st team regular. Giggs got booed by Utd fans when they were going through a poor period while he is cheered now that they are winning again. Bit of a pointless article really there is no hard and fast rules when dealing with players who are out of form. Each player has to be judged individually.

Posted 9:47am 21st March 2013

wezmond (Manchester United) says...

The truth is, as much as we sit and make judgements on form at home, managers are closer to the players and know far more than we do about their mental and physical state, and their performance in training every week. I've lost count of the number of players that United fans (myself guiltily included on occasion) have written off, and there's a host (Fletcher, Evans, Giggs seven times, Evra, Rio to name but a few) in the squad that is about to win the league. Turns out yet again that Sir Alex Ferguson knows more about managing a football team than we do.

Posted 9:17am 21st March 2013

j-roc-a-fella (Liverpool) says...

The simple reality is skrtel does not fit Rodgers system. So if the system isnt going to change to suit skrtel, why would we keep him? You keep decent players for cover, but those cover players also need to be able to fit the system when they are required. Skrtel offers little/no value to the way Liverpool now plays under Rodgers. That is just the reality.

Posted 3:16am 21st March 2013

orieldude (Liverpool) says...

Agger has also declined this season, just not to the same extent as Skrtel. It seems pretty clear that the defensive coaching was superior when Steve Clarke was there. When players have proven their ability, yet are struggling to show it, you have to look at the coaching and the on field tactics. If Rodgers' system doesn't suit Skrtel then maybe he needs to move but it's not all Skrtel's fault

Posted 7:39pm 20th March 2013

msj456 (Liverpool) says...

Skrtel has been alarmingly poor but Brendan - unsurprisingly - also has plenty to do with it. Skrtel hates being pulled wide of the 18 yard line yet that's a fixture of Brendan's system and I find myself longing for Rafa's 'defensive' sitting midfielders rather than teams like Southampton scoring predictable third-man-runs against us. The second I saw Lucas was out and the man with the broken shoulder was playing I said 'third man run goal' and within 5 minutes it happened. It's like Brendan hasn't even been watching us when he's been here, let alone before.

Posted 4:44pm 20th March 2013

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