Livi v The Rangers - The Low Block Machine Rolls On

[G51]

Teams playing Rangers are going to notice that the wingers are staying high and wide now, instead of coming into the half spaces. They’re also playing a 6/8/10 combo in midfield, instead of Gerrards double pivot/flat three. 

Minor changes, but effective. A lot more dangerous in transitions, but the trade off is you need more athletic CB’s as you’re easier to counter on. Possibly why Bassey has looked great in both games and Goldson… less so.

[DMCs]

Just now, G51 said:

Teams playing Rangers are going to notice that the wingers are staying high and wide now, instead of coming into the half spaces. They’re also playing a 6/8/10 combo in midfield, instead of Gerrards double pivot/flat three. 

Minor changes, but effective. A lot more dangerous in transitions, but the trade off is you need more athletic CB’s as you’re easier to counter on. Possibly why Bassey has looked great in both games and Goldson… less so.

We are creating a fair number of decent chances now but we still aren't very clinical. We're a goalscorer and a dominant defender away from being the team we need to be. Doubt that will be sorted before the summer though!

[Orbix]

Think it was around the 75th minute where Goldson just blindly passed a ball over the top back inside towards Bassey? but had failed to read the Livi players run. Just fucking lazy.

[G51]

1 minute ago, DMCs said:

We are creating a fair number of decent chances now but we still aren't very clinical. We're a goalscorer and a dominant defender away from being the team we need to be. Doubt that will be sorted before the summer though!

We looked better when we had two goalscorers on the pitch instead of one. 

Morelos, Sakala, Defoe and Roofe are our regular scorers. We need two on the park at all times.

Hagi and Aribo are 10’s in this system. They can’t play wide, they don’t have the pace or crossing ability for it. If we’re playing both, we’re chasing a game or doing something wrong.

As for the defender, we’re not going to be the same dominant defensive team we were last year. That seems to be pretty clear. Our best bet is athleticism at the back IMO to pressurise counter attacks. Bassey might become a first choice CB.

 

[DMCs]

7 minutes ago, G51 said:

We looked better when we had two goalscorers on the pitch instead of one. 

Morelos, Sakala, Defoe and Roofe are our regular scorers. We need two on the park at all times.

Hagi and Aribo are 10’s in this system. They can’t play wide, they don’t have the pace or crossing ability for it. If we’re playing both, we’re chasing a game or doing something wrong.

As for the defender, we’re not going to be the same dominant defensive team we were last year. That seems to be pretty clear. Our best bet is athleticism at the back IMO to pressurise counter attacks. Bassey might become a first choice CB.

 

I'd want a bargain basement Salah. A left footed goalscorer that plays off the right. Kent - Aribo - New Player behind a striker should be our ideal starting attack.

Edited November 28, 2021 by DMCs

[ATLIS]

I'm really surprised we didn't shut up shop again today, although given we haven't scored against Rangers in 9 using that system maybe I should've seen it coming. End of the day it's a game we don't expect to take points from and the goal difference isn't destroyed. 

Aberdeen midweek is far more important for us. 

If Celtic fans want an answer as to why we didn't play a low block against Rangers but did against Celtic then just look at recent results against both sides. Rangers are a far better side than Celtic are right now, they're able to break teams down whilst Celtic pass sideways a lot of the time. Main point of interest for it is the wingers, Jota against us was nowhere near as direct as Kent was today for example. 

Happy to see Kabia back after a 3 month lay off, think his last game was against Rangers where he took a bad knock on the first game of the season. Don't think we played terribly and if we stuck that chance away at 2-1 to make it 2-2 then there's every chance we could've snuck away with a draw or a win. Late goal for Rangers when we're trying to push back into it kills it for us, Stryjek maybe could've done better with it but was a good jump from Sakala. 

Highlight of the day was some boy getting lifted by the police for running onto the pitch at FT to try get a selfie with Arfield. Failed miserably and gets hauled off, hilarious.

[AB1872]

1 hour ago, AB1872 said:

Wrong thread. This is the Livi v Champions thread where Livi have been schooled for 45 minutes and scored a goal totally against the run of play

Rangers Will run out comfortable 4-1 winners

Ok just the comfortable 3-1 but denied a stonewall penalty and Livi should have been down to 10 men but unlike the diddies Rangers don’t rely on ‘honest’ SFA officials mistakes. 
 

Almost complete domination from start to finish. Livi keeper had great game and did well keeping the score respectable.

Important win considering our closest challengers got three points yesterday 

[Robin.Hood]

39 minutes ago, Cptn Hooch said:

41 minutes ago, bennett said:

celtic fans on social media starting to ask questions about the effort that Livingston put in against Rangers compared to games against celtic.

The same paranoid delusions that the rainjurz fans display

Dearie me

[EdinburghLivi]

Think the first set of subs killed it for us. Anderson was a lot more useful than Shinnie when he came on. Also wasn't a fan of Pence playing on the right. 

Edited November 28, 2021 by EdinburghLivi

[bennett]

 

 

 

[KirkieRR]

The BBC Radio Scotland commentary for Ferranti v Sevco was like Radio Clyde, or Old Firm Radio if there is such a thing. Kenny Macintyre, who not only is a Sevcoheid but sounds like one, and Charlie Adam summarising and referring to Sevco as 'this football club'.

 

Re the protohominids pelting the Livi keeper with snowballs, I have no doubt it will be dealt with swiftly by the football authorities. As follows.

 

'Aye, well, we frown on that kind of thing so we are going to make an EXAMPLE of you by fining you a tiddly wee amount, a midgie-bite in comparison with the great supporating pustule of your overall debt, and, eh, see ye at the lodge on Tuesday, eh?'

[Cptn Hooch]

Ok just the comfortable 3-1 but denied a stonewall penalty and Livi should have been down to 10 men but unlike the diddies Rangers don’t rely on ‘honest’ SFA officials mistakes. 

What a nick to get yourself in

[ATLIS]

10 minutes ago, AB1872 said:

Ok just the comfortable 3-1 but denied a stonewall penalty and Livi should have been down to 10 men but unlike the diddies Rangers don’t rely on ‘honest’ SFA officials mistakes. 
 

Almost complete domination from start to finish. Livi keeper had great game and did well keeping the score respectable.

Important win considering our closest challengers got three points yesterday 

wtf have you been smoking?  

[Clockwork]

celtic fans on social media starting to ask questions about the effort that Livingston put in against Rangers compared to games against celtic.

To be fair, the same accusations will probably go the other way if the Dons fall apart at Parkhead this afternoon.

[Orbix]

Either he thinks the handball shout that wasn’t from Hagi was, or the Patterson trip? on the edge of the box late in the second half but I never saw a replay and think he caught himself on the turf at any rate.

[stressball]

50 minutes ago, bennett said:

A good 3 points at a tricky ground, we started off well and looked shocked when Livi scored.  

The pitch looks like it needs a coat of paint, hardly any green left on it. 

 

I think we were all shocked they scored…

[G51]

16 minutes ago, ATLIS said:

I'm really surprised we didn't shut up shop again today, although given we haven't scored against Rangers in 9 using that system maybe I should've seen it coming. End of the day it's a game we don't expect to take points from and the goal difference isn't destroyed. 

Aberdeen midweek is far more important for us. 

If Celtic fans want an answer as to why we didn't play a low block against Rangers but did against Celtic then just look at recent results against both sides. Rangers are a far better side than Celtic are right now, they're able to break teams down whilst Celtic pass sideways a lot of the time. Main point of interest for it is the wingers, Jota against us was nowhere near as direct as Kent was today for example. 

Happy to see Kabia back after a 3 month lay off, think his last game was against Rangers where he took a bad knock on the first game of the season. Don't think we played terribly and if we stuck that chance away at 2-1 to make it 2-2 then there's every chance we could've snuck away with a draw or a win. Late goal for Rangers when we're trying to push back into it kills it for us, Stryjek maybe could've done better with it but was a good jump from Sakala. 

Highlight of the day was some boy getting lifted by the police for running onto the pitch at FT to try get a selfie with Arfield. Failed miserably and gets hauled off, hilarious.

So the thing about why you set up different v Rangers than you do v Celtic is that the threat is different. 

Rangers primary threat is (or certainly was when Gerrard was here) Tavernier and Barisic. So you push two wingers high to occupy them and give them something to think about when they want to go forward, as well as a natural man marker. Couple that with a striker through the middle and you don't have the numbers to play a low block, because you've only seven other outfielders. 

Celtic's primary threat is their forward line when they get space/in transition. Their movement is excellent and they create natural overloads. So the best way to deny that space is to sit in the low block. You'd rather see Juranovic or Ralston with the ball than Jota or Kyogo.

[ATLIS]

2 minutes ago, G51 said:

So the thing about why you set up different v Rangers than you do v Celtic is that the threat is different. 

Rangers primary threat is (or certainly was when Gerrard was here) Tavernier and Barisic. So you push two wingers high to occupy them and give them something to think about when they want to go forward, as well as a natural man marker. Couple that with a striker through the middle and you don't have the numbers to play a low block, because you've only seven other outfielders. 

Celtic's primary threat is their forward line when they get space/in transition. Their movement is excellent and they create natural overloads. So the best way to deny that space is to sit in the low block. You'd rather see Juranovic or Ralston with the ball than Jota or Kyogo.

We gave Jota a lot of time on the ball in our win against them, he just couldn't do anything when we doubled up on him. I felt Barasic was quiet today but Tavernier was given too much time on the ball. Usually with our 5 at the back the wide centre backs go out to meet the winger and the wing backs occupy Juranovic/Ralston etc. The big difference mainly is the one twos that Rangers are able to play at pace to break that defensive structure. 

I haven't saw Celtic doing much with overloads against us, the get stuck up the wing and resort to passing it across the line 25-30 yards from goal. With pressing you're able to easily break down their passing sequences, Rangers seem to be able to unlock that far easier. Against Celtic we had them getting frustrated and their CBs start hitting it from 30 yards, Rangers didn't do that once today but tended to transition through play at a far higher tempo than Celtic tend to do.

[Scott Steiner]

Great win for the teddy bears!

[LIVIFOREVER]

4 hours ago, Lofarl said:

They usually book one for “balance”. And he whined to the press last week

Yeah should've been 3 more, Kent, Goldson and Tavernier all getting away with bookings. Goldson pull on Anderson, spinning him around, didn't even get us a free kick, and Kent got a talking too twice, when they were straight yellow cards the other way around. Tavernier with a blatant block to stop us breaking on them, gets no card, you saw him looking back as he was making sure he blocked our player.

Morelos got away with a hand ball too, clearly moving his arm forward to control the ball onto his feet, what a torn faced wee arse he is too. 

The snowballs and flares are typical behaviour from Sevco fans, but nothing will be done, even their own fans in the East stand were getting pissed off with them at HT, stopping the game from restarting.

Cheap first goal from our defensive pov, getting caught cold with a ball over the top, and gave Kent far too much space on the wing cutting in to start the move for their 2nd, but very clinical finishes. Got ourselves back in it though with Anderson's goal, and Forrest almost got the equaliser but for McGregor making a great save, still felt we could get something after going in at HT 2-1 down.

Shinnie coming on for Anderson changed all that though, despite him having a good game playing up front against Celtic,  and scoring the goal that beat them, he just isn't a striker, Martindale needs to stop playing him as one. Dear knows what happened at their corner for the 3rd, looked a free header, and killed the game off.

Comfortable win in the end, but getting our goal and almost equalising at least kept it alive and gave us hope of getting something, till the 3rd went in.

Edited November 28, 2021 by LIVIFOREVER