With Sotirios Kyrgiakos performance against Blackburn Rovers on Sunday, I thought it might be a good time to raise the subject of Liverpool’s best centre back pairing. Since the arrival of Roy Hodgson in the summer, the Reds defence has been leaky to say the least, and we have conceded 14 goals in the Premier League already this season in just nine matches. Considering the defensive lapses, you would have thought Roy would have considered changing his favoured centre back pairing of Jamie Carragher and Martin Skrtel, but yet the two have invariably played together when everyone else is fit. Even more perplexing is the absence of Daniel Agger in the first team as I believe the Dane to have the best defensive attributes out of our four first team centre backs. Agger has been sidelined by injury but has been forced to play left back when he has been fit, and I hope this changes sometime in the near future. So what would be our best centre back pairing?
Soto & Agger – In my opinion this partnership, on both current form and ability, would be the best pairing to solve Roy’s current defensive woes. Kyrgiakos has had a very good start to the season and his commanding presence in the air gives the team an added dimension both at the back and in the opposition penalty area. We are both secure at the back from an aerial bombardment with Soto in the team as well as having our own threat in the opposition box at corners. To complement Kyrgiakos’s aerial ability we need him to be partnered with somebody who is good with the ball at feet. Agger not only has more pace than Carragher and Skrtel to help Soto out against pacey attackers, but he is also our best distributor of the ball at the back, carrying the ball into the midfield to either offload to a midfielder or to have a shot on goal himself.
Soto & Skrtel – This partnership, which played against Blackburn Rovers on Sunday, has one fundamental flaw; lack of pace. While Skrtel is no slouch, he is not lightning fast either and partnered with Kyrgiakos, they are really exposed if they are facing an opposition attack which has a great deal of pace. For me, either one or the other should be picked at centre back, and with his current form as it is, Soto should win the contest hands down.
Soto & Carragher – Both maybe assured and experienced defenders, but like the Skrtel/Kyrgiakos partnership, there is a fundamental lack of pace which will see the defence exposed.
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i fully agree, soto and agger would be our best defensive pairing
Yeah deffo the best partnership. Sotoaint gettingany younger though. Maybe we should go in for Mertersaker who’s almost out of contract, or Mexes who’s almost out of contract too.
Soto and Agger with Carra RB and Johnson RW!!!!
You Said it Gano…
Carra to stud now!
Agger and Skrtel for me, both are quick so we can play a higher line. Skrtel’s got that bit of fight in him and Agger is a real football player.
These two at the back would then help bring out the best in Johnson and Aurelio because they are more mobile.
Thats my back four.
This would be my team
Reina
Carra/Kelly, Soto/Skrtle, Agger, Konchesky
Johnson, Gerrard, Meirles/Cole, Kuyt/Jova/Babel
Torres, Pacheco/N’gog
Buy ashley young, fabio coentroa, fernando llorente n ibrahim afellay
Johnson on RW wud work
I agree with your line up and like that you’ve put Johnson on the RW his best position, are you available to manage LFC, i bet even you could do a better job as Woy……YNWA
we would get relagated if thats the team we played every week
I disagree but thats my opinion, we need width and to put Johnson on the Righ Wing would give thta free role and i can see him doing a Gareth Bale, he loves going forward, yes he cant defend but hed be an exciting player on the right.
we are weak down the left danny wilson is a good left back better than Konchesky anyway and ashley young at lw and a forward at 15m-20m
fernando llorente or luis suerez from ajax
i’d like to see a back 4 of Carra Soto Skrtel and Konchesky/Agger,with johnson on the right wing.This would give us a back 4 that a lot of strikers would fear.And we’d have Johnson to cover for Carra’s lack of pace!
we need 6 new defenders before we will ever win the league
SOTO – too slow and it will show but hes in good form but nowhere near good enough
AGGER – too injury prone and probably always will be but i would hang on for a couple of years and give him games
KONCHESKY – insua and aurelio are better and they arent good enough
AURELIO – hes ok has never been good enough but at least he is consistently ok
JOHNSON – play him at rwb with 3 cdfs or can only be played at right back with 2 holding midfielders because he cannot defend for toffee
INSUA _ showed some talent i think we should try and have him play for us again and hes still young
SKRTEL – i think could stay also
CARRAGHER – hes toast
ANY OTHER DEFENDER WE HAVE – crap crap crap
i would like to see us bring in realistically hangeland, shawcross, wayne bridge and micah richards no untried foreigners who may not adapt to the premiership
Agger is pure class and should be playing week in week out (injuries permitting of course).
I rate him enough to consider him as a defensive midfielder in place of Poulsen if not in the centre of defence. He needs to be played, Agger is clearly a part of our best 11. YNWA
too right he is, i just wish that plonker Woy thought the same……YNWA
not only do we need a good defence but we need to support for Fernando torres ( someone who can score consistantly)rather than having him alone in the box
Kyrgiakos on current form is looking good for my backing and his aerial threat is something we’ve been misssing since Sami left us.
Unfortunately, as a ball player his skills are lacking and he seems to be a “long ball” man to say the least.
I think when Agger is fit he should play with Kyrgiakos although it could be argued that the Skrtel, Kyrgiakos partnership should have a chance to prove itself. Personally, i’m getting a bit peaved with Carragher’s own goal scoring ability as well as the skill of constantly giving penalties away. He’s too slow and has to foul these days to stop a goal threat.
Even though Soto’s slow, he provides a goal threat (something Carragher or Skrtel don’t have) and at the back he doesn’t lose anything in the air.
In the last couple of games Soto’s been up there with our best players so give the guy a chance.
Carragher has been a fantastic player over the years but I really do feel that he’s become somewhat of a liability in the last 2 years at centre-back. However, I’m not writing the guy off completely because I’d rather he played at right back than the hapless Glen Johnson, who seems more worried about his hair than defending!. What a waste of 18 million!!! Give me Arbeloa anyday.
Dan Agger began his career as a striker. He is not a defender. He has never made a tackle in his time at Liverpool and he is not fast enough as a centre-back, he is terrible in the air defensively. His ability on the ball and his shooting ability needs to be utilized in midfield. He is not going to score a goal 90 yards from the opposition goal. He needs to be deployed on the left wing, as an example of how effective he could be there I would refer to the goal he created for Kuyt in the 3-2 home win against Wigan in 2008 when he waltzed past Lee Cattermole into the Wigan penalty box and cut the ball back to Kuyt from the end line. He would also be an option to head back towards the penalty spot a cross from the right wing that goes beyond the far post for the likes of gerrard or torres to shoot past the opposition goalie as agger is surprisingly good in the air in the opposition penalty box. Kelly should be introduced now at right-back instead of carra as we need more height in the defence. Soto and Skyrtel should be the centre-backs until January until we can get someone better than Skyrtel such as Gary Cahill. Put Johnson right wing as he is able to both cut in field on his left or go ouside on his right.
I would prefer either Soto/Agger or Agger/Skrtel…
either one of this is good..
I believe our back four should be Kelly , Soto , Agger , Aurelio , Johnson must move to right of Midfield , we have cover for the defence in Skrtl , Wilson & Konchesky