HeyBert
Well-Known Member
I’ve no complaints about the Napoli defeat , didn’t think we could do much more and held our own until the sending off , the two away games our applications been a joke though imo
Probably the toughest group we've ever had in the CL.?
- Thread starter rock lobster
- Start date
IbroxForever
Well-Known Member
I agree mate it's been terrible at times and I would replace him if I could. Just making the point we have one if the hardest groups in Europe we have ever had.
Laudrup1
Well-Known Member
And we stuck with Gerrard and reaped the rewards. Maybe a wee lesson there.
They were 100% the difference between us drawing 1-1 in games the years before and adding 15-20 goals / assists to make the difference in those matches.
Like I said though, his confidence only lifted last year when Gio came in so it very much suggests something that the manager is capable of doing. Again, not a reason to get rid of him.
Agreed.
The tactics of the manager weren't in question last year and nor were they when we beat PSV. He's not suddenly lost his mind in 4 weeks. We've suffered a bad defeat in Amsterdam and one at the Piggery. Everyone agrees we didn't do badly (and were actually unlucky it was 3) against Napoli. Liverpool wasn't great in terms of a performance but a "respectable" scored going by other results in Plzen / Amsterdam and Copenhagen this midweek.
Player selection will always be questioned after defeats but we've got a chronic injury situation just now and even the likes of Alfie who is back isn't fit and firing yet.
This "atmosphere" keeps getting mentioned when no one really had a clue about that. They players are maybe right to be questioning whether they can compete properly in the CL. Most teams outwith the top 8 can't ever do it.
I think issues with the squad sit far more with the person recruiting them than the manager. Gio's getting some stick about a few things which are indeed questionable.
It's not even close to the point where we should look at replacing him for me though. There's someone else failing far harded than he is in any metric.
tazzabear
Well-Known Member
What do these have to do with how tough our group is?
Do you agree that is an exceptionally tough group?
Tagsbear
Well-Known Member
We were one of the top spenders in Europe when we had Bayern/Valencia/PSV and had Walters ultra defensive tactics to thank for a good showing vs Lyon/Stuttgart/Barcelona. We also had squads with a lot of Champions league experience (some winners).
The gap between clubs from smaller leagues and the big leagues has never been bigger, this draw has not been kind to us at all in that regard, in fact it's been brutal and a rude awakening for us regarding the difference between Europa and the CL. We thought we were playing teams of champions League level at times in the Europa when in reality they were in the Europa League for a reason.
100% a tough group, but the context of the opening post is the fans are going after Gio for his performances in it. This is not the reason he is getting grief. Diabolical performances in the SPL against dross is the reason for the grief. No one in their right mind expects us to go out and run over these champions league teams. There is however levels of performance and effort that are unacceptable.
BigBadShep
Well-Known Member
Scary thing is it could of been a thousand times worse
ssblue
Well-Known Member
It could have been a bit worse. Not much though.Scary thing is it could of been a thousand times worse
tazzabear
Well-Known Member
We had a disgusting shocker against the scum.
Any other domestic result and performance this season is nothing we haven't seen under Gerrard, Smith, Advocaat, Smith before or Souness.
And, I'd bet, every one of our managers before those.
True to an extent but you would also expect the other team to have ran roughly the same then if we are all playing in the same half. My main frustration is we couldn’t keep hens out a close so why try to keep compact against one Of the best teams in Europe when a few weeks before against a similar team we showed what a controlled press could achieve. We gave up about 10 good chances and really on another night could have been 6 or 7-0.
Scary thing is it could of been a thousand times worse
How could it have been worse ?
Certainly the worst we have had. Anyone trying to make comparisons with previous groups are off their rocker. We were comparable spenders with a lot of the other Clubs in previous campaigns.
Look at the money our opponents have spent. Ajax have spent £100million this season alone. Napoli have spent more this season than we have in 20 years they have a player on loan that went for the same figure. Liverpool are spending our 20 year spend on one player.
Folk weren’t happy with Gio when he said we couldn’t compete financially with these Clubs at present. The way the CL is set up we might never be able to.
jft1840
Well-Known Member
Hope so.
ssblue
Well-Known Member
The group with Bayern, Barca and Inter would have been worse.
Not by much though.
Morpheus
Well-Known Member
As soon as the draw was made, myself and a couple of the bears in work were talking about it. The usual "yyyaass Ajax and Liverpool" with zero regard to Napoli. My exact words were "Napoli are the team i feat the most"
Napoli are bloody frightening in this group.
By far and away our hardest group in the CL, yet many years ago, our worst CL group stage campaign to date, we finished bottom with 2pts in a group consisting of Sevilla, Stuttgart and Unirea Urziceni.
Napoli are bloody frightening in this group.
By far and away our hardest group in the CL, yet many years ago, our worst CL group stage campaign to date, we finished bottom with 2pts in a group consisting of Sevilla, Stuttgart and Unirea Urziceni.
rock lobster
Well-Known Member
Napoli are a good side, and just seem to be getting better and better. There's a chance that even Liverpool won't qualify for the latter stages of the CL.
Bayern had lost the final to Man U in 1999 and Valencia went all the way to final 2000 and we drew both of them in the same group 99/00 group stages.
Plus PSV were Dutch champions 99 and 2000 with a side including van Bommel, van Nistelrooy, Fuchs and Rommedahl. A top side full of internationals. Our own Waterreus was with them at the time as well.
That group was absolutely horrific.
Shawlandsloyal
Well-Known Member
Not a chance those groups are harder
DutchVanDerLinde
Well-Known Member
Go on
Bigbluebear
Well-Known Member
Bayern had lost the final to Man U in 1999 and Valencia went all the way to final 2000 and we drew both of them in the same group 99/00 group stages.
Plus PSV were Dutch champions 99 and 2000 with a side including van Bommel, van Nistelrooy, Fuchs and Rommedahl. A top side full of internationals. Our own Waterreus was with them at the time as well.
That group was absolutely horrific.
But we were much closer in financial terms and we were closer in quality of player as well.
We had signed PSVs captain the previous summer for £5m and were trying to sign RVN. Imagine doing that now? Their winger Gakpo was being liked for a £50m plus move in the summer
Resident_hammy_bear
Well-Known Member
Ajax clearly aren't as great as they have been in recent seasons but Napoli are looking to be the best team from pot 3 and arguably even the best team outside of man city, Madrid etc, Liverpool are Liverpool regardless of their poor start to the season so I'd say it is probably the hardest group we have faced, 3rd is doable however if Ajax have problems and we find some sort of form from Europe last season
Alex Venters
Well-Known Member
Bayern/Valencia/PSV maybe.
However I think this is our hardest group and given we haven't played at this level in a decade, what's happening was always likely to happen.
Alex Venters
Well-Known Member
Quite how it's doable escapes me.
We're not beating Ajax and certainly not by 5 goals. Do you expect us to take something from Liverpool?
Shawlandsloyal
Well-Known Member
PSV isn't as hard as Ajax, Lyonshall isn't as hard as Napoli and Bayern are on a par with Liverpool. There you go
DutchVanDerLinde
Well-Known Member
Notice you've combined the two groups and omitted Valencia, who got to two successive CL finals. Napoli haven't done anything yet, if they can win a Serie A title and/or get to last 4 of the CL then maybe.
unbelievablewalter
Well-Known Member
Liverpool and Ajax both topped their CL groups last year with 6 wins out of 6 - and yet still Napoli comfortably look the best team in the group this year so far.
Napoli aren't some plucky underdog, they spent 70m in the summer and are sitting at the top of Serie A with no losses so far this season
Theresa May
Well-Known Member
Yes, but them's the breaks, as my successor once said.
Somemightsay
Well-Known Member
Liverpool are mid table and have dropped points to Brighton, Fulham, Crystal Palace and Everton in recent weeks. Ajax got smashed 6-1 at home to Napoli.
No one's saying we should be winning these matches, but we should at least be putting up a bit of a fight.
No one's saying we should be winning these matches, but we should at least be putting up a bit of a fight.
Bigger names from the past maybe ?
Although they haven’t started the season great I would have Liverpool ahead of Bayern. Liverpool also eliminated Inter last season.
Barca aren’t the team they were, Eintracht beat them last season to face us in the Europa League Final, and we matched them all the way.
Napoli are sitting top of Serie A just now, they finished third last season just behind Inter, but nearer 2nd than Juventus in 4th.
Ajax are Ajax you don’t know what you are getting with them, seem to be going through a transition and hit a slump straight after hammering us, then losing a last minute goal to lose at Anfield.
I don’t think that group is any easier or harder than ours to be fair.
That would be a group of 'last seasons champions'. Sometimes teams lose players/form etc. before the following seasons competitions, so a group of this seasons league leaders would, in theory, be harder, and even more so if it's teams from the top leagues like England, Spain, Italy, Germany and so on.
BSPECIAL
Well-Known Member
Our opponents are capable of beating any team in the CL.if we beat one of them it'll be a great result. A draw against Liverpool and a win against Ajax wil make me happy . It's by far the toughest we've had in the competition. Every point will be a welcome bonus.
Liverpool have lost one league game this season, at Old Trafford 2-1, beat Man City Haaland and all, 3-1 in the Community Shield, equaled the record EPL biggest win 9-0 over Bournemouth (who are incidentally only a point behind them)
They lost 2 league games the entire league campaign, both by 1 goal. Lost one game at Anfield in all competitions, 30 games last season, 1-0 to Inter but were already 2 up from the first leg.
We had a go at Napoli, gave as good as we got if not better till the sending off, that changed the game. Despite playing with ten men from 55 mins It was still only 1-0 till the 85th minute.
Ajax was awful, but one was an own goal from a shot going nowhere and similarly to Napoli’s 3rd their 4th a gift from a stupid midfield pass.
I meant the game against them showed what could be done not that Napoli are pinching above their weight.
