We’re very excited to bring one lucky This Is Anfield reader the opportunity to win a life size wall sticker artwork of Kenny Dalglish, courtesy of The Beautiful Game and signed by the King himself!
The Beautiful Game work with the very best illustrators and designers to create unique sets of designs that are exclusively available as wall stickers.
They have a superb range of Liverpool wall stickers available, from Daniel Sturridge’s dance to the wise words of Bill Shankly.
This wonderful illustration was designed by Peter O’Toole and measures 1300mm x 600mm. It is available to purchase here, but there is only one copy signed by Kenny Dalglish himself in the world – and we’ve got it to give away in our latest competition.
Dalglish signed the wall sticker on a recent visit to The Beautiful Game’s offices in Cheshire.
To be in with a chance of winning, all you have to do is answer the simple question below and use the form to submit your answer and details.
The closing date for this competition is Friday, 19th October 2013.
Be sure to check out The Beautiful Game’s “>range of Liverpool and football wall stickers – they look fantastic in any home or office, and will make great Christmas presents too!
We’re very excited to bring one lucky This Is Anfield reader the opportunity to win a life size wall sticker artwork of Kenny Dalglish, courtesy of The Beautiful Game and signed by the King himself!
The Beautiful Game work with the very best illustrators and designers to create unique sets of designs that are exclusively available as wall stickers.
They have a superb range of Liverpool wall stickers available, from Daniel Sturridge’s dance to the wise words of Bill Shankly.
This wonderful illustration was designed by Peter O’Toole and measures 1300mm x 600mm. It is available to purchase here, but there is only one copy signed by Kenny Dalglish himself in the world – and we’ve got it to give away in our latest competition.
Dalglish signed the wall sticker on a recent visit to The Beautiful Game’s offices in Cheshire.
To be in with a chance of winning, all you have to do is answer the simple question below and use the form to submit your answer and details.
The closing date for this competition is Friday, 19th October 2013.
Be sure to check out The Beautiful Game’s “>range of Liverpool and football wall stickers – they look fantastic in any home or office, and will make great Christmas presents too!
Hillsborough campaigners have been recognised for their 24 year fight for Justice with a Pride of Britain award.
Hillsborough Family Support Group chairwoman Margaret Aspinall, pictured above alongside fellow campaigner and mum Jenni Hicks, accepted the award on behalf of the families in the show which aired on ITV on Tuesday night.
She was presented with the award from former Liverpool players Kenny Dalglish, John Barnes and Jamie Carragher, alongside comedian John Bishop.
Aspinall was also awarded the Campaigning Mum of the Year by Tesco earlier this year, thoroughly deserved.
In yet more evidence of the biggest cover-up in British history, it was this week revealed that police footage from the disaster in 1989 could have been edited.
The Independent Police Complaints Commission are continuing their appeal for witnesses and those who originally gave evidence.
The new inquest will begin in Warrington next spring.
Hillsborough campaigners have been recognised for their 24 year fight for Justice with a Pride of Britain award.
Hillsborough Family Support Group chairwoman Margaret Aspinall, pictured above alongside fellow campaigner and mum Jenni Hicks, accepted the award on behalf of the families in the show which aired on ITV on Tuesday night.
She was presented with the award from former Liverpool players Kenny Dalglish, John Barnes and Jamie Carragher, alongside comedian John Bishop.
Aspinall was also awarded the Campaigning Mum of the Year by Tesco earlier this year, thoroughly deserved.
In yet more evidence of the biggest cover-up in British history, it was this week revealed that police footage from the disaster in 1989 could have been edited.
The Independent Police Complaints Commission are continuing their appeal for witnesses and those who originally gave evidence.
The new inquest will begin in Warrington next spring.
Aaron White looks back at the life of Jimmy McInnes, former Liverpool defender and later club secretary.
Before kick-off at Anfield on May 4th, 1965, Gerry Byrne and Gordon Milne circled the Anfield pitch carrying the FA Cup. It had been won three days before at Wembley as Bill Shankly’s Reds beat Don Revie’s Leeds United 2-1 in extra time. Shanks had sent the injured duo out that night at Anfield to please the demanding crowd which had packed into the stands but also to show the players of Inter Milan that they had an army to defeat in the European Cup semi-final. That game had been the latest in a list of high profile games for Liverpool Football Club since Bill Shankly first walked through the doors of Anfield as manager. His impact had been emphatic and the club could not have dreamt of such a quick change in fortune.
Promotion out of the second division in 1962 was followed by an appearance in the FA Cup semi-final in 1963. In 1964 Shankly’s Reds won the first division title and a year later the FA Cup was lifted for the first time in the club‘s history. As the players left the Anfield pitch that night following the European Cup semi-final against Inter Milan, it had been only five and a half years since Bill Shankly had been appointed as manager. His guidance had propelled Liverpool from the obscurity of the second division into the English footballing elite and of course with the success, came the adulation. Support for the club was at fever pitch and attendances soared. The build-up to the 1965 FA Cup final brought thousands of letters, phone calls and visits to Anfield from people hoping and pleading for tickets, hoping and pleading for a piece of the dream, for a piece of Liverpool Football Club.
It is true that by 1965, Bill Shankly had already achieved a great deal with Liverpool but he had by no means achieved it alone. Bob Paisley, Joe Fagan and Reuben Bennett among others helped shape the team for success on the pitch but behind the doors at Anfield, in an office with a desk and a telephone – a constantly ringing telephone – Jimmy McInnes sat as the club secretary.
Jimmy McInnes was testimony to Liverpool’s family structure. An ex-player, he was signed from Scottish first division side Third Lanark in 1938 at the age of 26. He played 51 times at left-half under the then manager George Kay, scoring on his debut in a 3-1 win against Brentford. A match report of the game stated:
“The new Scottish left-back, McInnes, was not a sensation, but in his quiet play was coolness, method, and very sound positioning.”
His last official appearance for Liverpool came on May 6th, 1939, as the following season witnessed the outbreak of the Second World War and the suspension of league football after only three games. Liverpool finished 11th in his only full season at the club as a player.
After the war and his official retirement from playing in 1946, Jimmy McInnes became part of the club’s administrative staff and witnessed Liverpool win the first division title in the first full post-war league programme in 1947. He was appointed to the position of club secretary in August 1955 following Liverpool‘s relegation to the second division in 1954. He continued to serve as club secretary throughout Liverpool’s stay in the second division and was introduced to Bill Shankly at Anfield in December 1959. Two and a half seasons later Liverpool Football Club won the second division title and gained promotion to the first division. Jimmy McInnes was still club secretary.
By the time the Italian champions rolled into town in May 1965, Jimmy McInnes had been club secretary for ten years, seven of which hand been spent in the English second division. The contrast between the role of a club secretary in the second division and that of one in the first division would have been stark. Few, if any, sell-out or all-ticket events, lower attendances and less demand from the public would have meant something of a rather more straight forward daily routine for a club secretary in the second division as it was then. But Bill Shankly’s appointment to manager inadvertently changed the role Jimmy McInnes played at Anfield.
The demands placed on him would have increased greatly upon Liverpool‘s promotion. His role as club secretary amid the success would have brought an array of different challenges and the expectations on him may well have been underestimated by those around him.
The 1965 cup final followed by the European Cup home tie with Inter Milan brought a ticketing frenzy upon Anfield and directly, upon Jimmy McInnes. He had witnessed ticketing chaos before in 1950 when Liverpool had reached the FA Cup final but he had not been club secretary then and had not been responsible for the vast array of arrangements.
Liverpool’s rapid rise in such a short period had seen his workload build up and become back-logged, reportedly by months.
Such was the intensity of his duties that he frequently resorted to spending nights in his office at Anfield, sleeping on a camp bed after twelve hour working days. Jimmy McInnes was struggling to cope with the excessive demands of his position.
One evening shortly before the 1965 cup final, Bill Shankly entered Jimmy’s office. The diminutive Scotsman was sat at his desk, surrounded by sacks filled with letters, the incessant drone of the telephone filled the air and his camp bed lay in the corner. Shankly could see how drained he was. Bill Shankly knew Jimmy McInnes could not have done anymore than he had done for Liverpool Football Club. “Still the most popular man at Anfield”, Bill Shankly had said amid the ringing telephone. “No”, Jimmy McInnes replied. “Still the most unpopular man at Anfield”.
Bill Shankly mentions Jimmy in his autobiography stating:
“Jimmy McInnes was honest and quick-tempered. He could be rude to people but only to those who deserved it. He was gentlemanly to those he respected.”
There was no doubt Bill Shankly had grown fond of Jimmy McInnes during the time they had worked together. It can only be a testament to the character of Jimmy McInnes to have gained the respect of someone like Bill Shankly because Bill Shankly valued integrity, honesty and hard work.
On the day of the Inter Milan semi-final, Jimmy McInnes had been in his office tending to the arrangements for the following Wednesday’s away leg in Milan. By all accounts he had been in buoyant mood following Liverpool’s triumph at Wembley in the FA Cup only days before. The next day, May 5th, 1965, the day after Liverpool had beaten Inter Milan 3-1 in the European Cup semi-final first leg, the telephone rang in Bill Shankly’s house.
Jimmy McInnes was dead.
He had hung himself by the Archway turnstile beneath The Kop. He was just 53 years old and had been part of the Liverpool family for twenty seven years. He had worked and battled and strived for the cause of Liverpool Football Club right up until the very end.
The Liverpool supporters’ club secretary Arthur Mercer said at the time:
“He was a great guy to us. He must have been working under a terrific pressure during these last few months”.
A modern perspective would suggest it would be naïve to propose that he took his own life purely as a result of his mounting workload. Clearly there were issues in his life unknown to maybe even his closest loved ones. To offer any reasoning other than acute depression would be speculative at best. His wife, Joan, however, had said later that “He had been stressed and overworked for a long time”.
Jimmy McInnes gave his all to Liverpool Football Club, the city and its people, as a player and an administrator. It is this dedication with which he should be remembered.
On Sunday, September 1st, 2013, Manchester United visited Anfield in the Premier League. The game corresponded with the 100th anniversary of the birth of Bill Shankly. In honour, The Kop stood as one and displayed a mosaic of Shankly’s famous pose, his arms held aloft in triumph. Perhaps, just perhaps, beneath the feet of those Kopites, in the space below The Spion Kop, the ghost of Jimmy McInnes looked up and held his own arms aloft in triumph.
Bill Shankly made the people happy, but Jimmy McInnes was there beside him doing everything in his will to help him do so.
Aaron White looks back at the life of Jimmy McInnes, former Liverpool defender and later club secretary.
Before kick-off at Anfield on May 4th, 1965, Gerry Byrne and Gordon Milne circled the Anfield pitch carrying the FA Cup. It had been won three days before at Wembley as Bill Shankly’s Reds beat Don Revie’s Leeds United 2-1 in extra time. Shanks had sent the injured duo out that night at Anfield to please the demanding crowd which had packed into the stands but also to show the players of Inter Milan that they had an army to defeat in the European Cup semi-final. That game had been the latest in a list of high profile games for Liverpool Football Club since Bill Shankly first walked through the doors of Anfield as manager. His impact had been emphatic and the club could not have dreamt of such a quick change in fortune.
Promotion out of the second division in 1962 was followed by an appearance in the FA Cup semi-final in 1963. In 1964 Shankly’s Reds won the first division title and a year later the FA Cup was lifted for the first time in the club‘s history. As the players left the Anfield pitch that night following the European Cup semi-final against Inter Milan, it had been only five and a half years since Bill Shankly had been appointed as manager. His guidance had propelled Liverpool from the obscurity of the second division into the English footballing elite and of course with the success, came the adulation. Support for the club was at fever pitch and attendances soared. The build-up to the 1965 FA Cup final brought thousands of letters, phone calls and visits to Anfield from people hoping and pleading for tickets, hoping and pleading for a piece of the dream, for a piece of Liverpool Football Club.
It is true that by 1965, Bill Shankly had already achieved a great deal with Liverpool but he had by no means achieved it alone. Bob Paisley, Joe Fagan and Reuben Bennett among others helped shape the team for success on the pitch but behind the doors at Anfield, in an office with a desk and a telephone – a constantly ringing telephone – Jimmy McInnes sat as the club secretary.
Jimmy McInnes was testimony to Liverpool’s family structure. An ex-player, he was signed from Scottish first division side Third Lanark in 1938 at the age of 26. He played 51 times at left-half under the then manager George Kay, scoring on his debut in a 3-1 win against Brentford. A match report of the game stated:
“The new Scottish left-back, McInnes, was not a sensation, but in his quiet play was coolness, method, and very sound positioning.”
His last official appearance for Liverpool came on May 6th, 1939, as the following season witnessed the outbreak of the Second World War and the suspension of league football after only three games. Liverpool finished 11th in his only full season at the club as a player.
After the war and his official retirement from playing in 1946, Jimmy McInnes became part of the club’s administrative staff and witnessed Liverpool win the first division title in the first full post-war league programme in 1947. He was appointed to the position of club secretary in August 1955 following Liverpool‘s relegation to the second division in 1954. He continued to serve as club secretary throughout Liverpool’s stay in the second division and was introduced to Bill Shankly at Anfield in December 1959. Two and a half seasons later Liverpool Football Club won the second division title and gained promotion to the first division. Jimmy McInnes was still club secretary.
By the time the Italian champions rolled into town in May 1965, Jimmy McInnes had been club secretary for ten years, seven of which hand been spent in the English second division. The contrast between the role of a club secretary in the second division and that of one in the first division would have been stark. Few, if any, sell-out or all-ticket events, lower attendances and less demand from the public would have meant something of a rather more straight forward daily routine for a club secretary in the second division as it was then. But Bill Shankly’s appointment to manager inadvertently changed the role Jimmy McInnes played at Anfield.
The demands placed on him would have increased greatly upon Liverpool‘s promotion. His role as club secretary amid the success would have brought an array of different challenges and the expectations on him may well have been underestimated by those around him.
The 1965 cup final followed by the European Cup home tie with Inter Milan brought a ticketing frenzy upon Anfield and directly, upon Jimmy McInnes. He had witnessed ticketing chaos before in 1950 when Liverpool had reached the FA Cup final but he had not been club secretary then and had not been responsible for the vast array of arrangements.
Liverpool’s rapid rise in such a short period had seen his workload build up and become back-logged, reportedly by months.
Such was the intensity of his duties that he frequently resorted to spending nights in his office at Anfield, sleeping on a camp bed after twelve hour working days. Jimmy McInnes was struggling to cope with the excessive demands of his position.
One evening shortly before the 1965 cup final, Bill Shankly entered Jimmy’s office. The diminutive Scotsman was sat at his desk, surrounded by sacks filled with letters, the incessant drone of the telephone filled the air and his camp bed lay in the corner. Shankly could see how drained he was. Bill Shankly knew Jimmy McInnes could not have done anymore than he had done for Liverpool Football Club. “Still the most popular man at Anfield”, Bill Shankly had said amid the ringing telephone. “No”, Jimmy McInnes replied. “Still the most unpopular man at Anfield”.
Bill Shankly mentions Jimmy in his autobiography stating:
“Jimmy McInnes was honest and quick-tempered. He could be rude to people but only to those who deserved it. He was gentlemanly to those he respected.”
There was no doubt Bill Shankly had grown fond of Jimmy McInnes during the time they had worked together. It can only be a testament to the character of Jimmy McInnes to have gained the respect of someone like Bill Shankly because Bill Shankly valued integrity, honesty and hard work.
On the day of the Inter Milan semi-final, Jimmy McInnes had been in his office tending to the arrangements for the following Wednesday’s away leg in Milan. By all accounts he had been in buoyant mood following Liverpool’s triumph at Wembley in the FA Cup only days before. The next day, May 5th, 1965, the day after Liverpool had beaten Inter Milan 3-1 in the European Cup semi-final first leg, the telephone rang in Bill Shankly’s house.
Jimmy McInnes was dead.
He had hung himself by the Archway turnstile beneath The Kop. He was just 53 years old and had been part of the Liverpool family for twenty seven years. He had worked and battled and strived for the cause of Liverpool Football Club right up until the very end.
The Liverpool supporters’ club secretary Arthur Mercer said at the time:
“He was a great guy to us. He must have been working under a terrific pressure during these last few months”.
A modern perspective would suggest it would be naïve to propose that he took his own life purely as a result of his mounting workload. Clearly there were issues in his life unknown to maybe even his closest loved ones. To offer any reasoning other than acute depression would be speculative at best. His wife, Joan, however, had said later that “He had been stressed and overworked for a long time”.
Jimmy McInnes gave his all to Liverpool Football Club, the city and its people, as a player and an administrator. It is this dedication with which he should be remembered.
On Sunday, September 1st, 2013, Manchester United visited Anfield in the Premier League. The game corresponded with the 100th anniversary of the birth of Bill Shankly. In honour, The Kop stood as one and displayed a mosaic of Shankly’s famous pose, his arms held aloft in triumph. Perhaps, just perhaps, beneath the feet of those Kopites, in the space below The Spion Kop, the ghost of Jimmy McInnes looked up and held his own arms aloft in triumph.
Bill Shankly made the people happy, but Jimmy McInnes was there beside him doing everything in his will to help him do so.
Liverpool chairman Tom Werner has spoken out about the summer’s Luis Suarez transfer saga, and says the club are committed to keeping the Uruguayan at Anfield.
Suarez was embroiled in a long-running battle over the summer months in which he declared he wanted to leave Anfield. However, he was denied an exit and has since returned to his world class best following the end of a suspension.
In an interview with the Mirror’s Oliver Holt, Werner gave credit to Reds boss Brendan Rodgers for reiterating to Suarez Liverpool’s need for him to stay.
He said, “There was interest in him from other clubs throughout the summer but it was important for us to try to keep him.
“He is one of the great players of the world and we felt that we would be a stronger club with him than without him.
“That does not mean I don’t respect his intense desire to play in the Champions League. But it would be a very happy day next May if and when we get to the Champions League by finishing in the top four and he is part of it.
“It is our intention to keep him for a while.
“Our intention is to build a winning club and he is integral to that. The past is the past and I have great affection for him personally.
“I give Brendan Rodgers an enormous amount of credit for making sure Luis knew how needed he was at Liverpool.
“Brendan made it plain to him how much he was going to be embraced by the fans, and the supporters have been terrific.”
In an interview with many positive points, including Werner discussing openly the Financial Fair Play rules which are slowly beginning to be enforced in world football, the American spoke of his confidence in Rodgers.
“I think Brendan has made remarkable progress,” Werner added. “He’s a great strategist and has shown strong leadership. When we hired him, we were confident we were getting one of the brightest managerial talents in the game and he is proving his worth.
“He’s dedicated to improving the club as a whole and shares our vision of developing a club that is built for sustained success.
“He has shown a willingness to use young players and at the same time, demonstrated the ability to get the best out of our established stars.
“Brendan is respected by the players. They feel he is a good strategist and a good leader and his philosophy has been embraced by everyone.
“We are all moving in the same direction and Brendan is very much the leader.
“We’re pleased with the progress we’re seeing on the pitch but our goal is to create sustainable, long-term success at Liverpool and to consistently compete for silverware, so we’re not getting carried away with a few good months.
“The club is definitely moving in the right direction under Brendan and as owners we’re very optimistic and excited about the future.”
Read the full interview in today’s Mirror and online here.
Liverpool chairman Tom Werner has spoken out about the summer’s Luis Suarez transfer saga, and says the club are committed to keeping the Uruguayan at Anfield.
Suarez was embroiled in a long-running battle over the summer months in which he declared he wanted to leave Anfield. However, he was denied an exit and has since returned to his world class best following the end of a suspension.
In an interview with the Mirror’s Oliver Holt, Werner gave credit to Reds boss Brendan Rodgers for reiterating to Suarez Liverpool’s need for him to stay.
He said, “There was interest in him from other clubs throughout the summer but it was important for us to try to keep him.
“He is one of the great players of the world and we felt that we would be a stronger club with him than without him.
“That does not mean I don’t respect his intense desire to play in the Champions League. But it would be a very happy day next May if and when we get to the Champions League by finishing in the top four and he is part of it.
“It is our intention to keep him for a while.
“Our intention is to build a winning club and he is integral to that. The past is the past and I have great affection for him personally.
“I give Brendan Rodgers an enormous amount of credit for making sure Luis knew how needed he was at Liverpool.
“Brendan made it plain to him how much he was going to be embraced by the fans, and the supporters have been terrific.”
In an interview with many positive points, including Werner discussing openly the Financial Fair Play rules which are slowly beginning to be enforced in world football, the American spoke of his confidence in Rodgers.
“I think Brendan has made remarkable progress,” Werner added. “He’s a great strategist and has shown strong leadership. When we hired him, we were confident we were getting one of the brightest managerial talents in the game and he is proving his worth.
“He’s dedicated to improving the club as a whole and shares our vision of developing a club that is built for sustained success.
“He has shown a willingness to use young players and at the same time, demonstrated the ability to get the best out of our established stars.
“Brendan is respected by the players. They feel he is a good strategist and a good leader and his philosophy has been embraced by everyone.
“We are all moving in the same direction and Brendan is very much the leader.
“We’re pleased with the progress we’re seeing on the pitch but our goal is to create sustainable, long-term success at Liverpool and to consistently compete for silverware, so we’re not getting carried away with a few good months.
“The club is definitely moving in the right direction under Brendan and as owners we’re very optimistic and excited about the future.”
Read the full interview in today’s Mirror and online here.
Adam Griffies discusses the midfield balance and how a change in shape could lead to Brendan Rodgers‘ desire to control games better becoming reality.
So far this season, Brendan Rodgers has deployed a couple of different systems as the Northern Irishman yearns for his side to recapture the control and tactical discipline they displayed for periods of 2012/13. Thus far though, Rodgers’ ideological style has remained elusive.
Most recently, of course, the Reds have lined up in a 3-4-1-2 formation: an inventive setup, but is it here to stay?
In the three games it’s been used, Liverpool have scored six goals and conceded three: not a bad record. But in my opinion – and seemingly Brendan Rodgers’ – performances have been disjointed and sporadic. The primary reason for this is the spatial disparity between our two central midfielders and the ‘number 10’; this gap results in a lack of fluidity in our play and often forces a midfielder or defender to look for a long, hopeful pass.
Rodgers echoed this point on Saturday after the Crystal Palace match:
“We need to be better with the ball – we put the ball at risk too much. That’s part of the system and with the players that we’ve lost; we have five players out injured and some of those are key players for us.”
The manager then, significantly, spoke about our recent change of shape:
“It has meant a shift in the structure. Sometimes 3-5-2 is set up more for the counter-attack. Overall, we need to make improvements with the ball – it’s very important for us.”
Pleasingly, for me, this point suggests the current system is not in Rodgers’ long-term plans, and its recent use has been consequential of pragmatism in light of injuries to the likes of Glen Johnson, Joe Allen and Philippe Coutinho.
The final point I’d like to make regarding this formation, and indeed any which employs three centre-backs, is the space vacated defensively down either wing: at the sides of the central defenders and behind the wing-backs. It is a transparent deficiency which can easily be pinpointed and exploited by the opposition.
So I’ve made it clear that the 3-4-1-2 is not for me. What’s my solution, then?
First and foremost, I want to underline what I think is the cornerstone of any successful system: central numbers and domination. By ‘central’, I mean vertically, not horizontally.
For example, a flat 4-4-2 is less populated centrally than a 4-3-3 – despite seemingly operating with one more midfielder. This is because the former structure, in reality, has just two central midfielders (with wingers staying wide), compared to a middle trio in the 4-3-3. Subsequently, the 4-3-3 allows more controlled, fluent and precise play in midfield, as the players are stationed closer to each other.
Whilst trying to gain an advantage tactically with a formation, Brendan Rodgers will not want to compromise his players’ natural ability and individuality. The key is to find a balance; deploying players in their most effective positions, within a logical system.
That is where the narrow diamond comes in. Fundamentally a distorted 4-4-2 structure, the narrow diamond provides tactical control whilst also suiting Liverpool’s squad, particularly in attacking areas. A fluent four down the spine of central midfield allows exact, technical passing and numerical supremacy in this area, resulting almost certainly in a much needed improvement in ball retention. Also, perhaps most significantly, the system accommodates Philippe Coutinho (‘in the hole’), Luis Suarez and Daniel Sturridge centrally, where they are all, in my view, at their most menacing.
The narrow diamond shape I’d like to see Brendan Rodgers employ.
“Where’s the width?” I can almost hear you sceptically whispering to yourself as you read this. It would, of course, be provided by our naturally attacking and marauding full-backs: Glen Johnson and Jose Enrique or Aly Cissokho. What’s the point of possessing such offensive players in these positions if we’re going to deploy wide men further forward, basically doing their job for them? Exactly, there isn’t.
My theory is by allowing your attacking full-backs to tend to wide areas of the pitch, you can then take advantage of the lack of necessity to deploy a wide player in midfield/attack, to station an extra body infield and dominate centrally. In other words, why get two players (a full-back and a winger) to provide width: a duty that one player is capable of doing.
There is, admittedly, one slight snag in reverting to this system and back to a four in defence: Rodgers would be forced to select just two from an array of at least four impressive centre-backs in his squad. As snags go, though, this is relatively mild and I would be surprised if something like this affected a decision from the manager.
To condense what I have said, the Reds, in my opinion, have to improve in general play; finding a system which balances tactical control and suits the players’ attributes is vital. The narrow diamond is the answer, as far as I am concerned.
Let’s be clear though, Liverpool will continue to win games even if they don’t develop, purely because of the individual brilliance of Daniel Sturridge, Luis Suarez and Philippe Coutinho in attack. Fundamentally, then, the level of your desire for us to improve comes down to personal preference: do you care how we win or, solely, if we win? If it is the latter, reading this piece was probably a waste of time. For me and, as he indicated on Saturday, Brendan Rodgers, the manner of our performance is important.
Adam Griffies discusses the midfield balance and how a change in shape could lead to Brendan Rodgers‘ desire to control games better becoming reality.
So far this season, Brendan Rodgers has deployed a couple of different systems as the Northern Irishman yearns for his side to recapture the control and tactical discipline they displayed for periods of 2012/13. Thus far though, Rodgers’ ideological style has remained elusive.
Most recently, of course, the Reds have lined up in a 3-4-1-2 formation: an inventive setup, but is it here to stay?
In the three games it’s been used, Liverpool have scored six goals and conceded three: not a bad record. But in my opinion – and seemingly Brendan Rodgers’ – performances have been disjointed and sporadic. The primary reason for this is the spatial disparity between our two central midfielders and the ‘number 10’; this gap results in a lack of fluidity in our play and often forces a midfielder or defender to look for a long, hopeful pass.
Rodgers echoed this point on Saturday after the Crystal Palace match:
“We need to be better with the ball – we put the ball at risk too much. That’s part of the system and with the players that we’ve lost; we have five players out injured and some of those are key players for us.”
The manager then, significantly, spoke about our recent change of shape:
“It has meant a shift in the structure. Sometimes 3-5-2 is set up more for the counter-attack. Overall, we need to make improvements with the ball – it’s very important for us.”
Pleasingly, for me, this point suggests the current system is not in Rodgers’ long-term plans, and its recent use has been consequential of pragmatism in light of injuries to the likes of Glen Johnson, Joe Allen and Philippe Coutinho.
The final point I’d like to make regarding this formation, and indeed any which employs three centre-backs, is the space vacated defensively down either wing: at the sides of the central defenders and behind the wing-backs. It is a transparent deficiency which can easily be pinpointed and exploited by the opposition.
So I’ve made it clear that the 3-4-1-2 is not for me. What’s my solution, then?
First and foremost, I want to underline what I think is the cornerstone of any successful system: central numbers and domination. By ‘central’, I mean vertically, not horizontally.
For example, a flat 4-4-2 is less populated centrally than a 4-3-3 – despite seemingly operating with one more midfielder. This is because the former structure, in reality, has just two central midfielders (with wingers staying wide), compared to a middle trio in the 4-3-3. Subsequently, the 4-3-3 allows more controlled, fluent and precise play in midfield, as the players are stationed closer to each other.
Whilst trying to gain an advantage tactically with a formation, Brendan Rodgers will not want to compromise his players’ natural ability and individuality. The key is to find a balance; deploying players in their most effective positions, within a logical system.
That is where the narrow diamond comes in. Fundamentally a distorted 4-4-2 structure, the narrow diamond provides tactical control whilst also suiting Liverpool’s squad, particularly in attacking areas. A fluent four down the spine of central midfield allows exact, technical passing and numerical supremacy in this area, resulting almost certainly in a much needed improvement in ball retention. Also, perhaps most significantly, the system accommodates Philippe Coutinho (‘in the hole’), Luis Suarez and Daniel Sturridge centrally, where they are all, in my view, at their most menacing.
The narrow diamond shape I’d like to see Brendan Rodgers employ.
“Where’s the width?” I can almost hear you sceptically whispering to yourself as you read this. It would, of course, be provided by our naturally attacking and marauding full-backs: Glen Johnson and Jose Enrique or Aly Cissokho. What’s the point of possessing such offensive players in these positions if we’re going to deploy wide men further forward, basically doing their job for them? Exactly, there isn’t.
My theory is by allowing your attacking full-backs to tend to wide areas of the pitch, you can then take advantage of the lack of necessity to deploy a wide player in midfield/attack, to station an extra body infield and dominate centrally. In other words, why get two players (a full-back and a winger) to provide width: a duty that one player is capable of doing.
There is, admittedly, one slight snag in reverting to this system and back to a four in defence: Rodgers would be forced to select just two from an array of at least four impressive centre-backs in his squad. As snags go, though, this is relatively mild and I would be surprised if something like this affected a decision from the manager.
To condense what I have said, the Reds, in my opinion, have to improve in general play; finding a system which balances tactical control and suits the players’ attributes is vital. The narrow diamond is the answer, as far as I am concerned.
Let’s be clear though, Liverpool will continue to win games even if they don’t develop, purely because of the individual brilliance of Daniel Sturridge, Luis Suarez and Philippe Coutinho in attack. Fundamentally, then, the level of your desire for us to improve comes down to personal preference: do you care how we win or, solely, if we win? If it is the latter, reading this piece was probably a waste of time. For me and, as he indicated on Saturday, Brendan Rodgers, the manner of our performance is important.
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