Rousseau

Boo! There's always something I forget. You have a point regarding Arfield: he has been good recently and doesn't deserve to be dropped. In that case Jack will take the more central position, I think. It's actually more attacking that way.

There is no doubt it has been a frustrating few weeks, to say the least. A couple of defeats to Hearts and Kilmarnock, and more worryingly in my opinion, a series of pathetic performances have littered our fixture list. Any potential title challenge we had within our grasp has been wrenched from it -- perhaps irrevocably? As is right, the manager has been at the forefront of some robust criticism. There have been some over-the-top, knee-jerk reactions (such as, 'Gerrard should go!'), but there are valid questions to be asked. The main criticism is his reluctance to use the bench. We are well past the hour mark before he makes his first change, even when it is clear the game is not going the way it should well before. Gerrard is almost damned if he does, damned if he doesn't here, though -- Were we not complaining about constant changes to the first XI last season, and now we're complaining about him being too obstinate? It doesn't matter what he does, as long as the end result is the right one: there were a couple of glorious European performances that were based on not changing things. I'm not so sure we have the quality on the bench to change things. The only player I think that has been unlucky, with regards to minutes on the pitch, is Stewart. Stewart is not blessed with pace, but he is a clever, technical player capable of unlocking stubborn defences. He is also not shy to shoot from distance. He is a natural forward, than has that instinct to get into the box. I'm not so sure the players on the bench should be getting more game time. Polster has not done anything wrong, but he is a replacement for Tavernier, so won't play often, and shouldn't; Docherty doesn't quite suit the system, and is now on loan; Jones has been injured; Ojo has been disappointing; and Edmundson has Goldson, Helander and Katic ahead of him, so he's not going to play much. Add to that they are different types of players from the ideal first XI players. In the attacking positions, Gerrard wants players that can take the ball in tight situations, between the lines. Jones and Ojo are not able to do that. It is clear we need more attacking options off the bench, more suited to our system. I'm not so sure the criticism around our formation is valid either, or at least not entirely so. The 4-3-2-1 was working very well, and then since the break we've struggled to create chances and score goals. Gerrard is not even being obstinate here, for he has tried to change that with a recent shift to the 4-2-3-1, which adds another attacker to the mix. (I would question the make-up of the two sitting players: I don't think this role suits Arfield.) We are still struggling. For me, the problem is not personnel or system, but the lack of movement from the first XI. If we look at the blueprint Gerrard is trying to emulate, or take inspiration from, Klopp's Liverpool, we can see several instances of this lack of movement. Mane and Salah are constantly running into the channel, in-behind; our guys are standing there waiting for the ball. Liverpool also have Robertson and Alexander-Arnold running on the overlap too, or coming into the channel to make space for the wingers out wide; our Full-backs are quite static, waiting for the ball -- although Barisic is better than Tavernier in that respect. Even Henderson and Wijnaldum break forward; our Centre-midfielders seldom break forward. If you watch Robertson, Mane and Wijnaldum, the left side of their team, they are constantly rotating position. Robertson will lay it off to Mane out wide, and drive into the channel, and Wijnaldum will drop off to take Robertson's LB slot. Sometimes Mane will cut inside, while Wijnaldum will drive out wide, or into the channel to create space. Sometimes Robertson is out wide, with Mane coming back to cover Left-back. There is constant rotation. As well as creating space and moving players about, their positioning keeps passing options open. Our first XI is good, in my opinion, but we need to work on movement on and off the ball; rotations, making space for each other, third man runs, running in-behind to stretch the defenders, etc. I think it's an almost old-fashioned way of playing to say 'go out and express yourself' -- it is too vague and you need to be a good player for that, and we don't quite have that calibre of player. Our players need to be given more detailed instructions, like a Guardiola or Bielsa: if X has the ball, Y moves here, Z moves there, etc. To make that next step, I don't think wholesale changes are needed. Taking on Livingston on Saturday, we need to see better attacking movements. We could switch to a front two--which is an easy change to make--but, it means dropping Kent or Hagi for Kamberi, and going to a 4-4-2 (diamond)/4-1-2-1-2, with Hagi or Kent as a lone #10. However, if we continue with the same impotent attacking movements, nothing much will change. I would revert to the 4-3-2-1 that has stood us in good stead for a while. It is a more defensively stable formation, and packs in most creativity. I think Kent has been off form, so I would replace him with Stewart to play in one of the #10 roles. He has a natural instinct to get into the box, which can benefit us. I would also like to see Aribo play deeper, with a license to drive forward. He suits the deeper role: he is good at winning the ball back, has good close control, and can beat a man with his power and pace. (Kamara is better in a sitting role, because as with Jack and Davis, he can't really break the lines by beating a man.) I think we have the components of a good side. If we can show a little more courage, aggression and creativity in the final third we can get back on track. It is important to get back to winning ways, so any win will do: whether that is 1-0 or 5-4. If we can pump some confidence and energy back into our attacking players, we'll see a much improved side. Results will follow.

(Can you tell I've been binge-watching Curb Your Enthusiasm recently?)

Damned if he does, damned if he doesn't, indeed. Were some not complaining about constant changes last season, and now we're complaining about him being obstinate? The only player I think has been unlucky, with regards to minutes on the pitch is Stewart. (Polster's a Tavernier replacement, so won't play often; Docherty doesn't quite suit the system, and hasn't shown enough; Jones has been injured; and Edmundson has Goldson, Helander and Katic ahead of him, so he's not going to play as much.) Add to that they are different types of players from the ideal first XI players. We need more attacking options off the bench. The 4-3-2-1 was working very well, and then since the break we've struggled to create chances and score goals. SG has tried to change that with the 4-2-3-1, adding another attacker to the mix. We're still struggling. For me, the problem is there is no movement. Mane and Salah are constantly running into the channel, in-behind; our guys are standing there waiting for the ball. Liverpool also have Robertson and TAA running on the overlap too, or coming into the channel to make space for the wingers out wide; our Full-backs are quite static, waiting for the ball -- although Barisic is better than Tavernier at that. Even Henderson and Wijnaldum break forward; our CMs don't break forward very much at all. (If you watch Robertson, Mane and Wijnaldum, they are constantly rotating position; each taking each others positions at some stage.) The first XI is good, IMO, but we need to work on movement on and off the ball; rotations, making space for each other, third man runs, running in-behind to stretch the defenders, etc. I think it's an old-fashioned way of playing to say 'go out and express yourself'; you need to be a good player for that, and we don't quite have that calibre of player. We should be giving them detailed instructions, like a Guardiola or Bielsa: if X has the ball, Y move here, Z moves there, etc. I don't think wholesale changes are needed. We just need to work on attacking movements.

Hard to admit, but true. I think if you compare our performance this season to theirs last season, then we're ahead, or very close to it.

... in central defence !!

I feel we lack runners off the ball. Our front line is far too static, so even if we do get Hagi, Aribo and/or Kent in good positions, in between the lines, there's no one to pass to, there's no movement. We need runners in the channel, overlapping full-backs, our Defensive-midfielders (and Centre-backs, to be fair) breaking the lines by carrying the ball past a player etc.

Rangers 2 - 1 Livingston FGS Kent

Ugh. No one got the Correct Result. BD, Devil and r_s gained 1 point for the Correct Number of Rangers Goals. Dado, Ian and Stevie gained 2 points for Arfield as FGS. No Correct Scores. Latest Standings:

What a joke. It hits the lads arm in the build up.

He's been pulled a little, but not enough to go down. Silly.

Morelos hits the bar with a lob over the 'keeper.

That Power is a nut case. We should be looking to play on his yellow.

What does that mean, though? Running about and getting stuck into a tackle now and again? That's not enough for us. The lineup has him playing Centre-midfield; perhaps a box-to-box role. I'd love to see him make the breakthrough with us, but I don't see which position he'd play.

Why do our youngsters always look so physically under-developed? Some of these young English lads that I see coming through are built like a Brick Shithouse. It's no reflection of talent or technique, but it is a big part of the game; and perhaps one of the things that keeps them from making the step up to the first team earlier.

I'll take a scrappy 0-1 win.

We were all rather critical of Defoe before he got injured; he wasn't quite as effective as he can be, and often quite anonymous. Morelos has similarly been out of sorts too, recently. I wonder if it's less to do with them, and more to do with the players behind them? Maybe they've just not been given the service they once did, which would tie in to our general lack of performance.

Kilmarnock 1 - 2 Rangers FGS Kent

So close? Would it not be later? Edit: Just checked: It is to be played on the 19th of February.

I, too, thought we were better in the first half. We got a bit of luck in the second to get the win.

Looks like the majority just missed out on a correct score because of that late strike. Everyone who entered gained 1 point for the Correct Result. Lenny, Mack and r_s gained another 1 point for the Correct Number of Rangers Goals. No one had Arfield as FGS. MacK gains 3 points for the Correct Score. Latest Standings:

1-4. F*ck. I had 1-3 in the GPL...

You can see the control we have now with Davis coming on to make a three-man midfield.

That'll do. 1-3.