Brendan Rodgers will stick with formation, says Phil Thompson
Wednesday 8 April 2015 13:58, UK
Phil Thompson does not believe a radical formation change is necessary for Brendan Rodgers to get Liverpool's season back on track.
After a 14-game unbeaten run in the Premier League, Liverpool have now lost two on the bounce against top-four rivals Manchester United and Arsenal respectively, with Champions League qualification now appearing out of reach.
The back-to-back defeats have prompted calls for a change from the 3-4-2-1 formation that is no longer proving successful, but Sky Sports pundit Thommo says Rodgers merely needs to react better when Liverpool are being overrun.
Thommo told Sky Sports: "The system is OK, but certain teams have sussed it out, and Brendan needs to be brave enough to switch to 4-4-1-1 – or whatever he thinks is best at that moment – to stop these games getting away from them.
"I think he'll go with the same formation against Blackburn and I'm backing them to win 2-0 at 6/1 with Sky Bet."
“My biggest concern is that – after 15-20 minutes, if it’s not working – it needs to be changed.
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“As we seen in the Manchester United and Arsenal games, if you wait to half-time to change a system that is being exploited, then you’re liable to fall behind before the break.
“By not reacting, the opposition gains confidence and, if they’re good enough, they’ll score. It happened at Swansea too, although Liverpool rode their luck and ended up winning that game.
“By reacting with a change early on, you put the onus back on the opposition. When you change, they have to come up with something new too.”
Alberto Moreno was scrutinised for his performance on the left side of Liverpool’s four-man midfield in the 4-1 defeat at the Emirates and the Spaniard is fighting for his place as the side visit Blackburn for an FA Cup quarter-final replay on Wednesday.
Thommo believes Rodgers will stick with his 3-4-2-1 formation at Ewood Park, but admits a switch to a flat-back four would get the best out of Moreno, who was signed as a left-back for £12m from Sevilla last summer.
He said: “I think he’ll go with the same system against Blackburn and try to get it working again, but switching to a back four would allow someone like Moreno to take up his natural position.
“In the current formation, he’s always looking over his shoulder and back towards his own goal.
“He’s much more comfortable when he’s further back, closer to his goal and facing that huge space in front of him to run at.
“It’s the same on the other side, it’s not really working out for anyone who’s playing right-wing back and it’s proving a troublesome position for Liverpool.
“I would imagine [Dejan] Lovren will come in to bolster up the team, but Blackburn have got a lot of injuries as well. Liverpool should have enough to win, whatever set-up he goes with.”
