The un-Tinkerman!
Dec 15, 2024
We were royally entertained with the Liverpool- Fulham game yesterday and all credit to the hosts who played well with 10 men for much of the contest and probably deserved a point. However, I wanted to show you my notes for that game as they highlight what I an trying to do in the newsletter which is not just discuss the game(s) on the day they take place, but situation overall and with the future in mind and for Liverpool, that is their defence not being as strong as the goals against column suggests and the lack of rotation from Arne Slot. Fulham already led before the dismissal and incredibly, Slot selected 10 of the 11 who started that relatively meaningless CL game in Girona in midweek to play again yesterday!
Liverpool- Fulham
Liverpool have played 17 EPL games at Anfield in 2024, they have won 14, conceded in 12, including in 9 of those wins. In the four clean sheets in which their opponent kept 11 players on the pitch ( one had a man sent off very early) they have given up 10 BC's (2.5 per game)and rode their luck defensively at times in those and they are nowhere near as good at the back as their goals against column suggests. There is a blip coming IMO. Arne Slot makes big demands on his players given how he wants to play and that he doesn't like to rotate his squad much. They looked a bit weary at Girona in midweek, where they did not need to win and yet 7 outfield players played in that and the previous league game. Things could hardly have gone any better for them this season, but Reds supporters are pretty knowledgeable and comments like this are becoming increasingly commonplace .......
It's not sustainable because the players are exhausted. They've been playing at a level above every team in Europe for 3 months. Getting angry at the team or individuals for being fatigued is not going to help. He needs to start resting players because the warning signs are there. He's about to walk into the same trap as Klopp, chasing a quadruple and ending up with a team that's running on fumes by April.
Exhaustion is not just physical, it's mental. The intense focus of that period where we played City, Madrid, Leverkusen, Arsenal, Chelsea, Villa and Brighton in 6 weeks is draining. The signs are already there, accumulation of injuries, sloppy performances, uncharacteristic mistakes. We can keep playing the same guys every week and watch what happens.
Ibrahima Konate is out now too and for at least a month, he has been their stand out defender and Liverpool have conceded 17 goals in the last 8 league games he has missed (4 wins).
Fulham have scored in 13 of 16 away league starts this year and four goals in their last two trips to Anfield. I would not totally rule out the big upset away win.
1.75 units Fulham +1 ball @ 2.86 asian line.
Good luck!
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