KopTalk.com Forums Football Liverpool FC Forum Can vs Allen/Lucas

Allen will always try hard but he is just not strong enough and gets out muscled almost every time, last season the team get put under pressure and concede goals because of it.

Lucas simply can't keep up with the pace anymore

Can is exactly the opposite, many times in pre-season he stopped opposition momentum with his strength, he should be a part to the solution to our defensive problems along with Lovren.

I notice Can is going forward less than in his early pre-season games, it's becoming clear he will be responsible for assisting Gerrard, and now Hendo can go forward more often.

Allen and Lucas can still be useful squad players, but if Lucas goes to Napoli, I wouldn't be too upset. He's looked good in pre-season though in fairness.

Him and lalla will be our signings of the season.. and Lovern - and maybe Markovic too (don't know enough about him yet)

In all seriousness though, I have high hopes for Can and think he'll prove to be our most important signing - whether or not we get that "marquee striker"

That simply isn't true! Allen very rarely loses the ball, that's one of his strengths, I can't think of many times when he been 'out-muscled'. Allen's strengths are holding the ball and keeping it safe, whether he passes it backwards, sideways of forward. He also has very good positional sense and unlike Lucas, who has very average positional sense, he stops opposition from being able to just wander through our midfield.

+1. I couldn't quite believe it myself when I read it. Keeping the ball is Allen's greatest strength, and he's excellent at shielding and intercepting the ball. At times, he's terrier like. I think athletically, Can is a notch above, but Allen is a good player.

Sell Lucas to rafa ie 6/7m

Allen plus cash for boney

Nobody does player plus cash deals.

Allen has been missing passes a lot last year and he is not a defensive midfield player, he is more of a link player from defence to offense. Playing alongside Gerrard was a weakness for the team as SG is not fit enough to play DM all the time. Leiva offers very little. So, Can has to bring more defensive qualities than all the 3 of them (SG,LL,JA), otherwise we will continue to concede more than expected.

I reckon Joe can do a job for us. Not so much in the final third. I like the fact that he is not scared to hold and shield the ball and look for attacking passing options instead of immediately passing it back to the player who passed it to him, or passing it backwards, or running around like Forest Gump. (not naming names).
he is not a midfield dynamo or a team general, but he is useful and can be a part of a winning team, but not a match-winner.

Sorry i meant to say not so much in the "defensive third".