Mascherano

Do you think he will be a starter this season?

YEs

midfield for liverpool

-------Alonso--------Mascherano-------------

---Gerrard-----------------------------left winger

Or do you think max ( Rafa) will put Sissoko in there?

sometimes rotation at liverpool even in big matches will mean we never really know what rafa considers his strongest XI

Certainly.

If he can form a good partnership in the middle with Xabi Alonso and let Gerrard have a free role on the right then Liverpool will be much better off this season. Masherano is a class act, in a way I can't believe that you would think he wouldn't be a starter.

I would play:

Gerrard is not playing on the right wing according to Rafa.

Thank god, hes been put back in the centre and has scored 3 in pre-season.



Gerrard and Masch in the centre with Pennant/Babel/Yossi/Pennant on the wings.

Football Genius wrote:Gerrard and Masch in the centre with Pennant/Babel/Yossi/Pennant on the wings.

You don't want to start with Alonso? I know his form was inconsistant last year but he is still a very clever player.

If Rafa plays Gerrard in the centre with Mascherano will that mean Madrid next year for Alonso?

Cesc wrote:

Football Genius wrote:Gerrard and Masch in the centre with Pennant/Babel/Yossi/Pennant on the wings.

You don't want to start with Alonso? I know his form was inconsistant last year but he is still a very clever player.

If Rafa plays Gerrard in the centre with Mascherano will that mean Madrid next year for Alonso?

it could be nice but it would only happen if we lost Diarra.even if Alonso loses his place this year i think he would wait another year before moving.

Gerrard and Alonso will undoubtably start together, but the potential partnership of Gerrard and Mascherano is in my opinion greater.

Of course. Or at least Liverpool should. Mascherano IMO is the best defensive midfielder in the world at present.

but then you have a box to box midfielder with Lucas.

maybe a 4-5-1?

===========Mascherano=====================
==========Gerrard=======Alonso==============
Winger===========================Winger

================Torres==================

But if you play that you can rotate Alonso and Lucas


Edit: Swap alonso for mash

Yes he will definately play.

Crouching Punty wrote:but then you have a box to box midfielder with Lucas.

maybe a 4-5-1?

===========Mascherano=====================
==========Gerrard=======Alonso==============
Winger===========================Winger

================Torres==================

But if you play that you can rotate Alonso and Lucas


Edit: Swap alonso for mash

Sir CT whats that?

Luis wrote:Yes he will definately play.

will he start? what about alonso

crouching torres is no lone striker

Mascherano-Gerrard should be Liverpool's midfield pairing. It's inconceivable for me that the world's best DM (IMO) can't get a starting spot, especially in a Benitez team.

Mexicanbecks wrote:

Luis wrote:Yes he will definately play.

will he start? what about alonso

Masch will start what ever the circumstance I think, Alonso will only play if Gerrard's on the right however, unless Benitez uses Gerrard as a SS (which I hope he doesn't)

kas wrote:Mascherano-Gerrard should be Liverpool's midfield pairing. It's inconceivable for me that the world's best DM (IMO) can't get a starting spot, especially in a Benitez team.

ridiculous thread TBH

alonso, mascha AND gerrard will all spend plenty of time on the bench this season

today's mach will give a good indication of what benitez thinks but mascha was actually the first name down on the team sheet in midfield at the end of last season so rafa is hardly going to have changed much since then

sissoko however will be restless by the time the season is over

hey pool fans, please clear something up for me....
is masca still on loan with you?
same as for tevez at utd or have you bought him?
if he is on loan what happens if another club bids for him?
all a bit confusing really...

ih8gerrard wrote:hey pool fans, please clear something up for me....
is masca still on loan with you?
same as for tevez at utd or have you bought him?
if he is on loan what happens if another club bids for him?
all a bit confusing really...

1. yes
2. same as tevez 3 yr loan deal
3. if a bid comes its up to west ham to decide

i think this is right

good skills. ty.

ih8gerrard wrote:hey pool fans, please clear something up for me....
is masca still on loan with you?
same as for tevez at utd or have you bought him?
if he is on loan what happens if another club bids for him?
all a bit confusing really...

Mascherano signed a 18 month loan in December, so he will have another 12 months left of the loan at Liverpool.

Liverpool will have first refusal to buy him once his loan period expires, the fee will be set by the MSI group. West Ham will probably receive a release fee as well like they got for Tevez.

Crouching Punty wrote:

ih8gerrard wrote:hey pool fans, please clear something up for me....
is masca still on loan with you?
same as for tevez at utd or have you bought him?
if he is on loan what happens if another club bids for him?
all a bit confusing really...

1. yes
2. same as tevez 3 yr loan deal
3. if a bid comes its up to west ham to decide

i think this is right

I think it's a 2 year loan with West Ham dissolving any affiliation with him, I think they just wanted him out. Reports are a £10m fee has been agreed with /jorabchin. Unconfirmed.

I'd always play a fit and in form Alonso ahead of mascherano. Don't get me wrong, mascher is probably world class, but i am not a fan of midfielders that contribute nothing offensively.

Oh i also don't get why most people seem to think teams have to play pure holding midfielders( ala makelele) in order to be succesful, that's pure bull to me!

Masherano is probably the best DM in the world. But Pool play so defensive anyway, that he perhaps isn't always a necessary player. At a more attacking side (Utd, Arsenal, Roma, Barca, Madrid) etc he'd be fantastic.


Though I think Agooner has a point. He does offer very little going forward but then again, it's not his job to. His role as a DM is to cover the defence which he does incredibly well, he's also technically refined and a good passer of the ball.

It depends what you want though - Maka, Mascherano, Albelda, Hargreaves etc what you call 'proper DM's'. However with box to box midfielders like Essien, De Rossi, Cambiasso, Gago etc you get a bit of both. Depends what works best in the system.