[QUOTE=âfarmerinthecity, post: 1078194, member: 24â]And you accuse me of being rattled.
Ha![/QUOTE]
Iâm zen, mate. Iâm floating on a wave of zen-ness.
[SIZE=6]Raheem Sterling Reaping Rewards of Brendan Rodgersâ Role Revision at Liverpool[/SIZE]
[SIZE=3]By Jonathan Wilson, Guest Columnist Jan 22, 2015[/SIZE]
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[*]he was tired[/URL] and being left out of Englandâs game in Estonia, thereâs been the recent fuss about his [URL=âhttp://www1.skysports.com/football/news/11669/9639153/liverpool-raheem-sterling-enjoying-mid-season-break-in-caribbeanâ]holiday to Jamaica[/URL] and there have been major concerns as to whether he is playing [URL=âhttp://bleacherreport.com/articles/2301534-why-liverpool-must-resist-temptation-to-play-raheem-sterling-vs-bournemouthâ]too many games for a player of his age.
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Certainly, itâs not ideal for a player of 20 to have started 20 Premier League games already this season, as well as starting five Champions League and two League Cup matches and playing regularly for England.
But then there are games such as Tuesdayâs Capital One Cup tie against Chelseaâhis 36th appearance of the seasonâwhen the concerns melt away and there is nothing that can be done other than celebrate a majestic talent.
Itâs not a revelation that Chelseaâs back four can be vulnerable to a player running at them with pace, but that doesnât diminish the value of Sterlingâs strike, one of those rapturous goals that feels inevitable well before the shot is unleashed.
Jon Super/Associated Press
And thatâs one of the great advantages of Sterling playing as a false nine. He can drop deep, find space, turn and accelerate. And once heâs going, his acceleration is such that heâs very hard to stop.
Last season, Liverpool pioneered the new style of diamond midfield, in which the two centre-forwards split and pull wide to create room for the player at the tip of the diamond to surge into.
That created a dilemma for the opposing central defenders: did they stick with the centre-forwards and risk being pulled wide, or did they leave them to the full-backs and try to deal with the player coming from deep whoâif heâd got away from the holding midfielderâwould almost certainly already be moving at pace?
Sterling thrived in that central role last season, and West Ham Unitedhave used a similar system to turn Stewart Downing into a dangerous player this.
With Luis Suarez sold and Daniel Sturridge injured, though, Brendan Rodgers has had to find a different way of unleashing Sterling this season, particularly after Mario Balotelli proved such a disappointment.
Using him as the central striker in a 3-4-2-1 has a similar effect. The two creative midfielders occupy an unusual position and effectively force the opposition to employ two holding midfielders to cater for them, but if they do that, it should offer room for Sterling to drop into.
Jon Super/Associated Press
Although Liverpool lost their first game in the 3-4-2-1, away at Manchester United, they are unbeaten in nine matches in the formation since.
In part, thatâs because the formation offers opponents a problem they are not used to solving. In part, itâs because Jordan Henderson and Lazar Markovic have adapted so well as wing-backs, while the reintroduction of Lucas Leiva has added a measure of midfield solidity. But itâs also largely to do with Sterling being allowed to do what he does best.
He can also play as one of the two, as he did in the away game at Aston Villa, when Fabio Borini played as the central striker and Liverpool won 2-0.
Whatever the concerns about how many games Sterling is playing, it has to be beneficial to his development that having started out as a winger, he has also experienced playing behind a front man and as the most-advanced centre-forward.
There was once a tendency for English players to be one-dimensional and only able to play one position; Sterling is anything but that.
When Sturridge is fit again, of course, that creates an issue as to how best to use him and Sterling together, which might mean Sterling drops deeper.
For now, though, Rodgers is due credit for devising a system that gets the best out of his most effective forward.
Andy Carroll calls Brendan Rodgers a liar in The Times of England today:
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[QUOTE=âBandage, post: 1083559, member: 9â]Andy Carroll calls Brendan Rodgers a liar in The Times of England today:
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Saw that. Carroll was never going to fit into Brendanâs master plan. Comes across a bit two faced alright.
[QUOTE=âBandage, post: 1083559, member: 9â]Andy Carroll calls Brendan Rodgers a liar in The Times of England today:
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You enjoyed that didnât you, you little cunt.
Andy Carroll is a jokeshop
I really flip flop on Rodgers, pal. Sometimes I think heâs very progressive and gets his teams playing enterprising stuff. On other occasions he comes across as a bit of a weirdo, part David Brent, part-Alan Partridge bluffer. Whatâs the real. Rodgers, mate?
Alas, I feel the same as you, mate. Some of the garbage he talks after a bad result makes me want to smash the cunt. But when he gets it right we are a joy to watch.
I reckon Brent myself.
Sturridge is on the bench today 
[QUOTE=âChocolateMice, post: 1083653, member: 168â]Sturridge is on the bench today
[/QUOTE]
That was well flagged, was it not ?
I havenâtt really paying attention to football news this week mate. Letâs pray he doesnât break down.
Liverpool are unbeaten in their last 41 home games against West Ham
Outrageous miss from Marco
0-0 ht. Should be 1 up. Terrible miss right at the death there.
I sense another frustrating 0-0 is in the offing.
Yesas!!!
Yurts
Raheem and Philippe 
Yehoo. Weâre going to win the league.