Liverpool 2017-18: Salah Days are Here

SoxFanInCali

has the rich, deep voice of a god
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I'm still getting used to there being no service at Anfield on the anniversary.

Players come and go, but it's great to see so many that have left the club showing respect.





 

Dummy Hoy

Angry Pissbum
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Well, it's a club with a very strong connection/identification with the fans. And when so much of the modern fan identification is (tragically) with the Hillsborough Disaster and the subsequent criminal aftermath, it's not surprising that the players feel that strongly as well.

I'm sure those are just a few of the many tributes that players put out yesterday.
 

SoxFanInCali

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Rumored kit for next year:


The same sources claim the away kit will be...purple. To save everyone's retinas and keep hope alive that it's not real, I won't post it here.

In addition, the Reds are coming to America again this summer. They will be participating in the International Champions Cup, with the following dates and opponents announced. I'll admit, a trip to the Big House sounds tempting.

7/22: vs. Borussia Dortmund - Bank of America Stadium, Charlotte, North Carolina
7/25: vs. Manchester City - MetLife Stadium, East Rutherford, New Jersey
7/28: vs. Manchester United - Michigan Stadium, Ann Arbor, Michigan

Looking at the Sox schedule, they could possibly try to squeeze in a game at Fenway the day after the All-Star game on July 18th, but that's just a guess.
 

67YAZ

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Here's Wijnaldum wearing a decent looking white jersey. Hopefully this is the away kit.

 

koufax32

He'll cry if he wants to...
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Ugh, collars...

Ugh, shadow checkerboard type pattern...

Ugh, purple...


Winning the league next year would help get over these.
 

67YAZ

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Long, wide ranging interview with Klopp.

https://www.theguardian.com/football/2018/apr/23/jurgen-klopp-liverpool-champions-league-roma-mo-salah-brexit

On Meeting Salah: It was a fantastic talk. He’s open, smiling all the time. He has crazy curls but he’s a really nice boy. He also looked much more mature than it says on his passport. Twenty-four? I was: ‘Wow, really?’ We talked for three hours about everything from his family to my family and at the end we had a deal to work together. I like to remind players from time to time of that agreement. It’s working really well with Mo.”
 

67YAZ

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Just got an alert from the LFC app that Ox out for the season and the World Cup with a ligament injury.
Really bummed for Ox. He's developed so much under Klopp, could have played a key role for England this summer. Articles I'm reading say there's no full diagnosis yet, so no timetables. Hoping that he's ready for next season and this isn't a full 12+ month recovery.
 

Cuzittt

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Crazy that Pool is down to 3 midfielders though. Can, Lalana and Ox all down within the past 6 weeks.

Not sure how Pool will handle this down the stretch. TAA and/or Robertson moving into midfield with Clyne/Gomez/Moreno moving into defense? Ben Woodburn? Kane, Camacho, or Curtis Jones from the Academy.

Will be interesting to see what Klopp does against Stoke.
 

PedroSpecialK

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IMO have to go with a side of all reserves against Stoke just to preserve the 11 for the second leg. Something like:

Mignolet
Clyne - Gomez - Klavan - Moreno
TAA - Woodburn - Wijnaldum
Ings - Solanke - Mané

8 points up on Chelsea, Chelsea can get up to 12 points the rest of the way - leaves a worse-case of needing 4 points from

Stoke
Chelsea
Brighton
 

SoxFanInCali

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California. Duh.
Echo.JPG

Like all good Liverpool fans, Echo and the Bunnymen are clearing their schedules for the Champions League Final.
 

PedroSpecialK

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Karius, TAA, Lovren, VVD, Robertson, Henderson, Wijnaldum, Mane, Firmino, Salah, Solanke

Bench: Mignolet, Klavan, Moreno, Clyne, Lallana, Woodburn, Ings

4-2-4. Can’t say Klopp isn’t going for the 3 points.
 

67YAZ

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I wonder if Gerrard is sorry he left. He would have started at the base of the midfield today.
 

Mighty Joe Young

The North remembers
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Yep .. sad to see him go. News today is he's back in training and could be fit for the CL Final. I can't see him starting but would make an excellent fall back in case anything happens to Milner/Henderson/Wijnaldum.

On the other hand, I'm pretty confident whomever Klopp brings in will probably be a better player - so Can's departure is more of a bottom line blow.

It's looking more and more like Nabil Fekir is coming .. so that's good.
 

Mighty Joe Young

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Would Sami Khedira be a suitable replacement? How much would he have left?
Nah .. Klopp likes the young up-and-comers

Looked like Pool were interested in Jorginho who would be excellent. But he's going to be very expensive as both Manchester clubs are interested as well.

The tea leaves would seem to indicate Liverpool strengthening in mid field - an attacking mid (Fekir looks all but done) and a DM. The aforementioned Jorginho would have to be at the top of the list, but a few others have been mentioned as well. Mind you, I wouldn't be surprised if they stick with Henderson/Wijnaldum. Wijnaldum, in particular , has been outstanding.

A keeper (enticing rumour about Donnaruma ) , Allison or Oblak would seem to be too expensive given Karius's current form. The will sign someone for sure as no once can see Mignolet staying.

A new CB to replace Lovren is a bit of a pipe dream I think. Klopp really seems to rate him and I can't see Klopp spending big bucks on a marginal upgrade.

Then, of course there's the Osmane Dembele rumour. Seems a tad far fetched at this point.

A new midfield of Keita, Fekir and Jorginho would be a brilliant summer.
 

koufax32

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True, but leaving Lovren in a starting position would leaving a big Achilles Heel on the back line. I have supreme confidence in VVD but not enough to do another man’s job on top of his own.

There’s no way Jorginho comes here.
 

67YAZ

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Too much smoke around Jorginho to City. I'm guessing that his agent is eager to get this done before the World Cup changes the transfer landscape.

There's a (likely made up) rumor about Lascelles to Liverpool. That one would make a lot of sense - 24, EPL proven, moves well for CB, leadership qualities. Has 5 years to run on his contract, so it could be really pricey to recruit him & most likely depends on what happens with Benitez.

There's also Joe Gomez, who projects to be a CB longterm, but I think his fate is somewhat tied in with Alexander-Arnold. Another season at RB rotating with Clyne would seem to be a step backward for TAA. Will Klopp drop him into the midfield rotation this season? Or will he take full-time RB duty and push Clyne to the bench? All of this is to say, if TAA moves into the midfield, then Gomez could pick up a good amount of playing time as a rotation player at RB and CB.

There's also been a bunch of Butland rumors, but he had a down second half of season (as did the rest of his team, to be fair). Not sure the rumored £40m would actually net an improvement of Karius.
 

67YAZ

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Also, from Klopp's press conference today: “They are more experienced, that is a fact. If there is a market for experience they should sell it because then they would be even richer."
 

pedro1918

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You don't see this everyday. I opened up my Washington Post this morning to find a big article on Mo Salah and the people of Liverpool on the front page of the Sports section. Currently it is the main story on the Post's webpage. I love the story of Liverpool fans booing Salah when he knocked the ball away from his 4 year old daughter.

Then afterward, per tradition at English football grounds, the players made their way around the pitch with their wives and offspring, thanking fans. In one of those scenes sport can concoct, Salah’s 4-year-old daughter, Makka, began kicking around a ball, and the fans rewarded her every kick with a supportive, “Ayyy!” At one point, when her father had finished receiving yet another award, he walked back from the middle of the pitch, pretended to challenge her and kicked a ball away from her.

The fans booed him, whereupon he loosed a big grin, for they knew each other.
https://www.washingtonpost.com/sports/dcunited/in-the-season-of-mohamed-salah-the-city-of-liverpool-wraps-its-arms-around-a-muslim/2018/05/24/2ab6b8de-5ec1-11e8-b2b8-08a538d9dbd6_story.html?utm_term=.6ac8d37ca0dd
 
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swiftaw

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Sell both of the top two keepers, sign a new first choice with Ward as backup
 

CPT Neuron

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Karius just defined his career.....sadly, Benzema was offside on the build-up to the first blunder, but there is no excuse for the second of Bale's goals....too bad, he was putting things together and now, not so much.
 

67YAZ

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There’s no way Karius can come back and play at Liverpool, is there? That game was a career-limiting move. Those errors were unacceptable for a U12 keeper.
Klopp is decisive with his squad. If the team can’t trust Karius, then he’s gone. Klopp won’t belabor the point.

I think Ward is a fine back up option, not the least because he counts as homegrown.
 

Mighty Joe Young

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Decided to take a bit to properly digest that game. I was really, really impressed with how the team dealt with the adversity, losing your best player - really the only guy you couldn’t afford to lose (maby VVD) - and they still faught like tigers. The first Karius gaffe should have been a killer, but they still played well .. continued pressing and creating chances. The Bale wonder goal should have killed off the tie .. but they STILL fought back with Mane hitting the post. Even after gaffe#2 they still played hard. Incredibly impressed by their resilience.

Real didn’t win that game .. Karius (and really bad luck) lost it.

Karius just cost the club in excess of 100m pounds.
 
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