Much better than his first and far closer to the standard I'd expect.What you think of his second half at Anfield, great or not?
Pep picks him because he knows he has the ability to do something special and our lack of goals doesn't need to be any more of a problem.The issue is he rarely does that something special,and despite the impressive numbers in front of goal they should be so much better,along with his overall contribution.
Bernardo was in no way more out of form,he just wasnt given an opportunity to prove it.
I’m not his biggest fan, as it goes, but this is what you get from an in-form Sterling:Some valid points. I would say though that Bernardo is a much more technically competent player than Sterling, so allowing him to regain that form (or not), we knew what we could expect
I'd be interested to hear views on what does "in form" look like for Sterling
If I may offer a differing perspective, I think our new system might be exposing Sterling's weaknesses quite abit. Weird thing to talk about, considering he didn't play this match, but I was thinking about how our wingers are a little erratic this season (except Foden).
---Stones----Dias----Zinny----
------Cancelo---Rodri--------
-------KdB-------Gundogan----
---Mahrez----Gaby----Sterling---
For eg. this is how we usually set-up on the attack. Our wingers are pushed high and wide, as per usual. However, this season it's much more apparent we are playing without attacking/overlapping FBs, the trade-off for more midfield numbers and defensive stability.
I think the current system requires more technical demands from our wingers to beat a man on their own, because there's one less man to support them on the attack. Way I see it, for the wingers this season it's like "here's the ball, pass it back, put a cross in or you're on your own." To put it more simply, they are made to do more dribbling than off-the-ball running.
Sterling's technical ability has never been his strength. I believe he's at his best when there's players playing close to him and combining with him (Silva, Mendy, etc). Which is why I think players like Foden, who are technically gifted and can consistently beat their man, slot better into the current system, and I would say the proverbial 'eye test' would suggest that.
I'm sure I can explain better, but I'm not a particularly articulate person... I'm not making excuses for/having a go at Raz, but just hoping to get a more educated guess on his dip in form.
Glad someone else noticed the same things :)I've said similar a few times, the system is working well for the team in general but it's not doing any of our wingers any favours in terms of individual performances.
We certainly didn't look any better without him today.
If someone chooses to say a player is fantastic, when they clearly have huge deficiencies, but then thfindform again, I’m sure they’ll say I told you so. Quite frankly I hope that’s the case with Sterling as he’s really likeable and commendable as a person.So, those who turn out to be right about the players are just blind supporters, and those who are wrong about them are critically minded and seek the truth? Wow. What about the possibility that many of the critics are just clueless and that many of the 'blind supporters' defend the players because they are able to appreciate the players better? Has this possibility crossed your mind?
I appreciate the write-up, some good points, but I believe your central premise is flawed, when have we ever played with overlapping fullbacks under Pep? We have always overloaded the midfield with the fullbacks.If I may offer a differing perspective, I think our new system might be exposing Sterling's weaknesses quite abit. Weird thing to talk about, considering he didn't play this match, but I was thinking about how our wingers are a little erratic this season (except Foden).
---Stones----Dias----Zinny----
------Cancelo---Rodri--------
-------KdB-------Gundogan----
---Mahrez----Gaby----Sterling---
For eg. this is how we usually set-up on the attack. Our wingers are pushed high and wide, as per usual. However, this season it's much more apparent we are playing without attacking/overlapping FBs, the trade-off for more midfield numbers and defensive stability.
I think the current system requires more technical demands from our wingers to beat a man on their own, because there's one less man to support them on the attack. Way I see it, for the wingers this season it's like "here's the ball, pass it back, put a cross in or you're on your own." To put it more simply, they are made to do more dribbling than off-the-ball running.
Sterling's technical ability has never been his strength. I believe he's at his best when there's players playing close to him and combining with him (Silva, Mendy, etc). Which is why I think players like Foden, who are technically gifted and can consistently beat their man, slot better into the current system, and I would say the proverbial 'eye test' would suggest that.
I'm sure I can explain better, but I'm not a particularly articulate person... I'm not making excuses for/having a go at Raz, but just hoping to get a more educated guess on his dip in form.
If someone chooses to say a player is fantastic, when they clearly have huge deficiencies, but then thfindform again, I’m sure they’ll say I told you so. Quite frankly I hope that’s the case with Sterling as he’s really likeable and commendable as a person.
My issue was with posters that are wilfully ignorant of a players shortcomings and say everything is great when it’s plain to see that there are problems.
If you read my recent assessments of Sterling you’ll see that it HAS crossed my mind that Sterling has qualities that some posters wilfully ignore. A lot more posters are coming to recognise his movement and commitment, and appreciate that we’ll have to put up with a rash of fluffed opportunities in order to benefit from him dragging defenders out of position.
Especially considering the Torres inclusion doesn’t seem to have worked today (I say that having had to work rather than watch the match today - so my statement is based on what I’ve heard rather than seen).
I can’t however watch us play and believe that there aren’t players out there that could offer us what Raheem offers, along with better technique, composure and finishing ability. If a player was identified I’d expect our club to pull the trigger.