By TTT subscriber Lee Mooney. Before we get started… I was recently asked by someone, I’ll not say who, to give some time to thinking about KPI frameworks that could be used to support various player-centric decisions. For example: how much should a player be paid based on their performance? are there undervalued players out there that could [...]
By Mihail Vladimirov. After last week’s debacle against Reading, Martin Jol refreshed the team with a couple of changes. Hughes replaced Senderos at the back, with Richardson stepping in to replace Riise at left back. After his impressive cameo, Kacaniklic was handed a start here, with Emanuelson benched. Karagounis was fit, so he continued in [...]
By Mihail Vladimirov. Neither manager made big changes either in terms of formation or personnel, based on their previous games. Liverpool were unchanged from the last game at Newcastle. For the visitors, Moyes made only one change, welcoming back Gibson to play alongside Osman in midfield. With Fellaini pushed forward, Jelavic had to make way [...]
By Lee Mooney. I’ve been invited to Tableau Software’s ‘2013 European Customer Conference’, as a writer for TTT, to talk about life as a ‘fanalyst’ and to show how I’ve been able to make an impact on UK football analysis, albeit a small one so far, using publicly available data and technology. The audience will be journalists and [...]
By Mihail Vladimirov. Pardew surprised with his selection of players and also their positioning. Tiote came back into the side alongside Perch in midfield. Gouffran was replaced by Sissoko down the right flank, with Cabaye replacing Sissoko closer to Cisse. Hence the shape was more like a 4-2-1-3 than the recently used 4-2-3-1. The back [...]
By Mihail Vladimirov. Rodgers largely kept the XI that fared so well against Reading last week. But he did a make a crucial personnel change and subsequent tweaks in the players’ positioning. Sturridge made way for Downing on the right flank, Henderson (now central) and Coutinho (now left) swapped places. For Chelsea, Benitez lined up [...]
By Krishen Bhautoo. In March 2011, Graeme Riley wrote a piece “European Hangover? LFC’s Record After Euro Games”. After the recent “Symposium #12 Next Year’s Europa Anyone?”, I thought that it could be something worth revisiting. If you haven’t read the piece by Graeme, he looks at the results that Liverpool have achieved when playing [...]
By Mihail Vladimirov. Neither manager opted for a surprising selection in terms of personnel, yet both managers surprised with their choice of starting formation. Both teams used a shape unfamiliar to them in recent games. Adkins used 4-4-2, with Pogrebnyak and Hunt up front. The latter was told to play deeper and often drop on [...]
In which Dave Cronin takes an in-depth look at our finishing at Reading. Did Reading’s Alex McCarthy produce an uncharacteristic world class performance against Liverpool or did our finishing flatter him? To try to answer that question I’ve painstakingly gone through our main goal-scoring chances from the selection in this compilation: http://www.dailymotion.com/video/xyzjgh_liverpool-fc-missed-chances-vs-reading_sport. Excuse the amateur analysis [...]
By Mihail Vladimirov. Rodgers continued with an unchanged side but tweaked his formation slightly. Last week against Aston Villa it was 4-1-2-3. Now, with Henderson as the most advanced midfielder, the shape was more of a 4-2-1-3. For the visitors, Reid was omitted due to a problem with his thigh – Tomkins came into the [...]
By Mihail Vladimirov. For the home team, Lambert had to make one change to the XI which won the last two games. In defence Clark had an arm injury so in came Bennett to play left back, with Baker moving alongside Vlaar. Interestingly though, Aston Villa’s formation was tweaked from 4-1-2-3 to more of a [...]
Written by Mihail Vladimirov. Both teams lined-up largely as expected (with identical 4-2-3-1 formations), except a few niggles for Liverpool prevented them keeping an unchanged XI. The Saints made only one change from their last game at Norwich, Clyne returned to right back, Yoshida moved central and Jose Fonte was on the bench. Pochettino continued [...]
By TTT Subscriber Krishen Bhautoo. Since the win at the weekend there has been some talk of finishing in the Champions League places. As Beez mentioned, we currently have an 8.6% chance of finishing 4th (taken from www.sportsclubstats.com). Looking at the site, we could have a 98.1% chance of finishing in the Champions League places if [...]
By Mihail Vladimirov. Rodgers made only one change from the last game against Wigan. Sturridge returned to fitness and replaced Allen, with the shape reverting to the usual 4-2-3-1. However, Reina was injured so Jones had start in a goal. For Tottenham, Lennon missed the game. It was always going to be interesting how Villa-Boas [...]
By TTT Subscriber Lee Mooney. Following some very specific feedback from ‘Kevin G Suarez’ and ‘Mike Taylor’ in the comments section of my last piece, not to mention several requests via Twitter, I thought it would be good to dig into the model again to look for: a centre-back (perhaps emphasising those with a ‘ball-winning’ [...]
By Daniel Rhodes. When it comes to total shots per game, Liverpool have racked up more than any other team in Europe. That equates to five more than Barcelona, every single match. Only Juventus, Real Madrid and Tottenham come close to the Reds. (Data correct up until the 1st March 2013.) At home this season, Liverpool [...]
By TTT Subscriber and professional Data Analyst Lee Mooney. This article was originally published on Monday for Subscribers only, with the intention to make it a free read next week. However, interest in the piece has been such that we’ve brought it forward to today. As with all TTT articles, the excellent debate below the [...]
By Mihail Vladimirov. Unsurprisingly, Martinez opted for exactly the same XI and 3-4-3 formation as in the last game against Reading, which they won 3-0. Sturridge’s injury forced Rodgers to make some changes, with Allen coming in to play as a third midfielder and Suarez reverting to the centre-forward position. Interestingly, with the same midfielders as against [...]
By Krishen Bhautoo. Since the recent Symposium #7 (Should We Keep Pepe), there have been musings regarding Reina’s future at the club. Some say that he is a world class ‘keeper (on his day) and replacing him will be no guarantee of an upgrade. On the other hand, others have mentioned that his form has [...]
By Paul Tomkins. Earlier in the week many of this site’s key contributors gave their verdicts here. What follows is my own in-depth judgement, although I will enlist their help again at a later point in this piece. I lay out why I think Liverpool have a “top six” squad and XI, but are still [...]
Written by Mihail Vladimirov. Rodgers made the surprising decision to replace the injured Sturridge with Shelvey. This meant Suarez occupingy the centre forward position with Shelvey as the attacking midfielder behind him. Everything else was the same as in the previous game against City. Liverpool continued with the lopsided 4-2-3-1. For West Brom, Clarke had [...]
By Paul Tomkins. Between 1991 and 2010, Liverpool averaged a new manager every five years. Of course, in the 32 years before that, the club’s managers on average lasted eight years, but we all know that the increased pressure and spotlight has changed the rules in the modern game. Even so, averaging one manager per [...]
By Mihail Vladimirov. Mancini continued to start with the 4-4-2 (with split forwards) formation. With the return of Nastasic to full fitness, City’s selection didn’t spring any surprises. Javi Garcia was moved into midfield to accommodate Nastasic at the back, Silva and Milner played on the flanks. The only real dilemma for Mancini was would [...]
Last week Luis Suarez said “you win games with young players and win championships with experienced players”. This is partly true; but a) Liverpool shouldn’t be even talking about championships at this stage (let’s walk before we run); and b) the best sides usually have a mix of young and old, which, to some degree, [...]
By Mihail Vladimirov. Both managers made some surprising decisions. For Liverpool, Rodgers selected Henderson on the left flank, in a very narrow role within what was a lopsided 4-2-3-1 shape. Because Reina’s clash with Kagawa in the previous match was more serious than first thought, the Spaniard had to undergo some nose surgery – so [...]
