The Liverpool Offside - Liverpool 0, Stoke City 0: A Stokeian TriumphZeppeline, Trinken, & Pink Badeshortshttps://cdn.vox-cdn.com/community_logos/51345/ltos-fav.png2012-10-07T17:37:13+01:00http://liverpooloffside.sbnation.com/rss/stream/32292332012-10-07T17:37:13+01:002012-10-07T17:37:13+01:00Liverpool 0, Stoke City 0: A Stokeian Triumph
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<figcaption>Clive Brunskill - Getty Images</figcaption>
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<p>Stoke once again prove to be too much for Liverpool to overcome, with a dismal 0-0 draw played out at Anfield this afternoon and little coming off as the hosts go winless in their first four home matches of the season. </p> <p>For the first time this season, Brendan Rodgers called on an unchanged eleven, and with their performance last time out--dominating possession, scoring a bucket of goals, looking every bit the type of squad that could flourish under the manager--few could argue with the decision. Suso and <span>Raheem Sterling</span> flanked <span>Luis Suarez</span> up front, Steven Gerrard was the more advanced of the three-man midfield as Nuri Sahin and <span>Joe Allen</span> sat deeper, and <span>Andre Wisdom</span> stayed on the right, with <span>Glen Johnson</span> on the other side of <a class="sbn-auto-link" href="http://www.sbnation.com/soccer/fifa/players/110183/daniel-agger">Daniel Agger</a> and <a class="sbn-auto-link" href="http://www.sbnation.com/soccer/fifa/players/110728/martin-skrtel">Martin Skrtel</a> in the middle. </p>
<p>It was evident early that they wouldn't have anywhere near the amount of joy they did at Carrow Road, however, as Stoke quickly got to their brutish, physical style of play. Liverpool were disrupted and disjointed as they tried to piece things together, but without the lift of an early goal (or even the fluidity on offer last weekend), it was a predictably ugly early going, with Robert Huth's stamp on the chest of Luis Suarez going unnoticed and unpunished.</p>
<p>Sadly that never really changed, even as Liverpool had a few half-chances that ultimately failed to test Asmir Begovic. Suarez was active and energetic but blunted at every turn, and with Lee Mason hesitant to blow the whistle or book any of the Stoke back line, there was little for the hosts in the way of attack. For their part the visitors were happy to soak up pressure and break quickly, and on a handful of occasions they were close to taking advantage of errant passes as Liverpool nervously played it across the front of their own goal.</p>
<p><span>Steven Gerrard's</span> swerving strike from distance was the best chance of the opening half, followed shortly by a near-miss by Daniel Agger after Suso scooped one over the defense into space. As is so often the case against Stoke, huffing and puffing only goes so far, and for most of the opening half Liverpool could barely muster much of either.</p>
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<p>Thankfully the second half started a bit better, even if it didn't ultimately glean any more positive results. Within ten minutes Liverpool had another terrific chance, this time with Gerrard playing a perfectly-weighted diagonal ball for the onrushing Glen Johnson, who cut inside his marker, control with one-touch, and drove a half-volley well over Begovic's goal.</p>
<p>Suarez topped Johnson's chance minutes later, with a long run and dribble through the Stoke defense leading to a left-footed strike that was inches wide of the post. It was a lovely, mazy run, and one that would have flown in last weekend. No such luck today, and as it would turn out, it was one of the last real chances on goal that Liverpool would have.</p>
<p>Strikes off the goalpost and a return for <span>Joe Cole</span> would follow; Raheem Sterling, Martin Skrtel, and Suarez would all hit the post on the near side before the match was up. Sterling couldn't drag a bouncing cross back across goal, Skrtel tried to scoop it from the byline, and Suarez went for straight power, reminiscent of his goal against <a class="sbn-auto-link" href="https://rokerreport.sbnation.com/">Sunderland</a> two seasons ago that beat <span>Simon Mignolet</span> from an impossible angle. Nothing doing today, though, and a late Cole volley that flew into the depths of the Kop proved to be <a class="sbn-auto-link" href="https://liverpooloffside.sbnation.com/">Liverpool's</a> last chance.</p>
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<p>Today wasn't entirely unlike any other match with <a class="sbn-auto-link" href="http://www.sbnation.com/soccer/epl/teams/stoke-city">Stoke City</a> over the past few years, and while we can talk about changes in the squad and managers and styles and etc., we can't get past the fact that once again Liverpool were stymied by a team that has little interest in playing football. And as much as we all hate Stoke--and we really, really hate Stoke--they did their job today, and if Liverpool were the side tasked with playing the football, you'd have to say they were average at best.</p>
<p>Steven Gerrard was one of the worst culprits today, as he's so often been in the early going of Brendan Rodgers' managerial tenure at Liverpool. He gave away possession far too often, particularly in the final third, and didn't make any adjustments as the match wore on. With Nuri Sahin looking off the pace a bit, the home side had to rely on the consistency of Joe Allen, which doesn't really mean much with the result not coming. </p>
<p>The inability to get goals falls on the shoulders of Luis Suarez yet again, but he didn't get any sort of direct support and was once again tasked with doing much of the work on his own. Suso and Raheem Sterling each had their moments, with the former far more positive, but neither did much of anything in front of goal. We know that Suarez can't be relied upon to do all the work--last weekend was a one-off, and days like today further indict the club's inability to add (or at minimum, not substract) support.</p>
<p>Calls highlighting the clean sheet don't carry much weight; the back line was serviceable, with Agger leading the charge, but it's not like Stoke did much threatening on the day. <a class="sbn-auto-link" href="http://www.sbnation.com/soccer/fifa/players/110223/peter-crouch">Peter Crouch</a> barely had any touches in the first half and didn't get much more in the second, and the only real chances for the guests came as a result of the aforementioned nervy passing by <a class="sbn-auto-link" href="http://www.sbnation.com/soccer/fifa/players/110848/pepe-reina">Pepe Reina</a> and others.</p>
<p>Matches against Stoke don't provide many lessons, so it's hard to take anything else away other than the fact that Liverpool still struggle to score goals against sides that are determined to keep them from doing so. Possession and passing are great and all, but winning ugly is something that Liverpool haven't done well lately, and that they need to improve is the only real takeaway from today.</p>
https://liverpooloffside.sbnation.com/2012/10/7/3468590/liverpool-0-stoke-city-0-a-stokeian-triumph-Ed-2012-10-07T10:00:09+01:002012-10-07T10:00:09+01:00Matchday: Liverpool v. Stoke City
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<figcaption>Alex Livesey - Getty Images</figcaption>
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<p>Liverpool host Stoke City as they look to get their first home win of the Premier League season.</p> <p> </p>
<p><b>Kickoff: </b>3:00PM BST/10:00AM EST</p>
<p><b>Ways to Watch:</b> Fox Soccer Plus in the US</p>
<p><b>Preview:</b> <a target="_blank" href="http://liverpool.theoffside.com/2012/10/6/3464964/match-preview-liverpool-v-stoke-city-10-07-12">Liverpool v. Stoke City</a></p>
<p><b>Comment:</b> <a href="http://www.sbnation.com/account/setup?community_id=373">Join the conversation on the Liverpool Offside</a></p>
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<p><b>Liverpool:</b></p>
<p style="text-align: center;">Reina Wisdom Skrtel Agger Johnson<br>Sahin Allen<br>Gerrard<br>Suso Suarez Sterling</p>
<p>Bench: Jones, Henderson, Cole, Assaidi, Coates, Borini, Carragher</p>
<p><b>Stoke City:</b></p>
<p style="text-align: center;">Begovic<br>Cameron Shawcross Huth Wilson<br>Whelan N'Zonzi<br>Walters Adam Kightly<br>Crouch</p>
<p>Bench: Sorensen, Upson, Etherington, Whitehead, Edu, Jones, Jerome</p>
https://liverpooloffside.sbnation.com/2012/10/7/3467148/matchday-liverpool-v-stoke-city-premier-league-team-sheets-Ed-2012-10-07T00:00:14+01:002012-10-07T00:00:14+01:00Pre-Stoke Overnight Open Thread: Five Questions
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<figcaption>Clive Brunskill - Getty Images</figcaption>
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<p>Five questions for the overnight hours as we await kickoff from Anfield.</p> <p><b>1) Does Fabio Borini come straight back into the eleven? If so, who drops out from the Norwich eleven?</b></p>
<p><b>2) Who starts in the fullback roles?</b></p>
<p><b>3) Which former Liverpool players start for Stoke?</b></p>
<p><b>4) What's Liverpool's most important matchup--individually or otherwise?</b></p>
<p><b>5) How many yellow cards does Lee Mason give?</b></p>
<p><b>Bonus: Who scores the first goal?</b></p>
https://liverpooloffside.sbnation.com/2012/10/7/3466224/pre-stoke-overnight-open-thread-five-questions-Ed-2012-10-06T19:45:15+01:002012-10-06T19:45:15+01:00Match Preview: Liverpool v. Stoke City, 10.07.12
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<figcaption>Michael Steele - Getty Images</figcaption>
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<p>Liverpool host Stoke City tomorrow at Anfield, hoping to get their first league win at home of the young season and push on from Thursday's loss to Udinese. </p> <p>As disappointing as Thursday's result was, there's still signs of progress from Liverpool, and getting back into the league campaign, there's going to need to be a continuation of that progress for the points to start coming. It's been up and down to this point, and the results in the last two--hitting Norwich for five, dominating before conceding three second-half goals to lose to Udinese--have continued that trend.</p>
<p>That there's still a healthy level of optimism and excitement despite their inconsistencies is encouraging, and I'd guess that regardless of the outcome tomorrow, we'll have reason to point towards signs of progress and Liverpool moving in a direction that appears to be positive. It's still early days for Brendan Rodgers, and while there'll always be a handful of folks that demand everything nownownow, the general sentiment seems to be that Rodgers' tenure to this point has been successful in a number of ways, even if the points haven't started adding up quite yet.</p>
<p>Tomorrow will be an excellent test for the new manager, who'll set his side up to play against one of the Premier League's most frustrating teams. <span>Tony Pulis</span> doesn't so much care if Stoke win games or draw them, only that they suffocate the play in the most annoying style possible. There's talent and ability in the squad that pops up from time to time, but they set out to batter the opposition physically and let the rest sort itself out. Results to this point are about what you'd expect--draws in four of their six matches, a narrow loss at Stamford Bridge, and, last weekend, a 2-0 win against struggling Swansea.</p>
<p>It's possible that Pulis could call on four former Liverpool players tomorrow, with <a class="sbn-auto-link" href="http://www.sbnation.com/soccer/fifa/players/110223/peter-crouch">Peter Crouch</a>, Jermaine Pennant, <span>Charlie Adam</span>, and <span>Michael Owen</span> all available for selection. Crouch seems the easy pick, as he's started all six of their Premier League matches along with Jonathan Walters, and goalkeeper <span>Asmir Begovic</span>, midfielders <span>Michael Kightly</span>, and <span>Glenn Whelan</span>, and defenders <span>Robert Huth</span>, <span>Ryan Shawcross</span>, and Marc Wilson have featured in every match as well. Adam's started three since arriving, and Owen has come off the bench twice after signing at the beginning of September.</p>
<p>For Liverpool: </p>
<p> </p>
<div style="text-align: center;">Reina</div>
<div style="text-align: center;">Wisdom Skrtel Agger Johnson</div>
<div style="text-align: center;">Allen Sahin</div>
<div style="text-align: center;">Gerrard</div>
<div style="text-align: center;">Suso Suarez Sterling</div>
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<p><span>Jonjo Shelvey</span> will be serving the last of his three-match ban, and <span>Martin Kelly</span> and Lucas remain the only longer-term injuries. No word about <span>Jose Enrique</span> or <span>Jon Flanagan</span>, so we'll assume that Rodgers will have a full squad to pick from aside from the names mentioned.</p>
<p>We know that the recently re-signed <a class="sbn-auto-link" href="http://www.sbnation.com/soccer/fifa/players/110183/daniel-agger">Daniel Agger</a> will pair with <a class="sbn-auto-link" href="http://www.sbnation.com/soccer/fifa/players/110728/martin-skrtel">Martin Skrtel</a> in central defense, but there's a lack of clarity about who'll feature where in the fullback roles. There's myriad options--<span>Andre Wisdom</span> could again start on the right with <span>Glen Johnson</span> on the left, which I'd prefer, but we could see Johnson right and one of Jose Enrique or <span>Jack Robinson</span>, who was impressive against Udinese, on the left. Wisdom and Johnson seem to be the safest bet, though, and the latter looked more uncomfortable when stationed right on Thursday.</p>
<p>Midfield's clearer, as <span>Joe Allen</span>, Nuri Sahin, and <span>Steven Gerrard</span> should all get starts. Henderson's early substitution midweek could indicate a larger role tomorrow, but that seems overly hopeful. Gerrard will again be the focus, as he's struggled more than either of Allen or Sahin to this point. We all know what he's capable of, and now it's mostly a matter of the player finding ways to show that on a regular basis under the new manager.</p>
<p>Nobody involved at the start on Thursday made a convincing case that they should be back in the strongest eleven; <span>Oussama Assaidi</span> was decent but less impressive than he was against West Brom, <span>Fabio Borini</span> showed good movement but couldn't get a goal, and <span>Stewart Downing</span> was strong early but Downinged badly in the second half. That leaves <span>Luis Suarez</span> to lead the line, again flanked by two of the club's more impressive teenagers in <span>Raheem Sterling</span> and Suso.</p>
<p>I hate when Liverpool play Stoke. It's typically an ugly, low-scoring match in which I spend most of the time cringing at the thought of an overly-physical tackle seriously injuring a Liverpool player. The goal of a match certainly isn't to make it as aesthetically pleasing as possible, but Stoke take their style to the extreme and care little about the consequences. A win with the injury list staying as it was before the match is the best possible outcome, and then we can all move on from what's sure to be one of the more frustrating opponents <a class="sbn-auto-link" href="https://liverpooloffside.sbnation.com/">Liverpool's</a> going to have this season.</p>
<p>Kickoff tomorrow is set for 3:00PM BST/10:00AM EST, and you'll be able to watch it live in the US on Fox Soccer Plus. There's no listing for UK viewers, but there'll be options available if you do a bit of searching. You know the drill from here--matchday thread will be up early tomorrow, with team sheets included about an hour or so ahead of the start time. We'll be <a href="http://twitter.com/lfcoffside" target="_blank">over on Twitter</a> and lurking in the comments section, so be sure to catch up with us in either place. </p>
<p>Hope you've all had a nice start to the weekend, and we'll see you around tomorrow. </p>
https://liverpooloffside.sbnation.com/2012/10/6/3464964/match-preview-liverpool-v-stoke-city-10-07-12-Ed-