Tag Archives: Rickie Lambert

Liverpool Need To Beat Chelsea Tonight To Kickstart New Era

Their achievement in the Premier League last year was enough to show that Brendan Rodgers’ side has potential to grow, but a win in the Capital One Cup would give his team a platform on which to build.

Rodgers has a lot to be credited with in his time at the Anfield club, not least the development of the likes of Raheem Sterling and Jordan Henderson. Daniel Sturridge and Jon Flanagan were also key players last season as the Reds pushed for the Premier League title, missing out only in the last three games of the season.

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Why Switching Lambert For Origi For Liverpool Would Be An Error

The summer is a time of renewed hope, the death of winter and the beginning of a new period of life.
It is in this climate that football is at its most beautiful, and summer footballers are born.
Summer footballers are unique, limited in the impact that they can have. While a player may usually peak over several seasons, the very nature of international tournaments means that the peak for a summer footballer happens rapidly.
Who can forget Andrei Arshavin’s star turn at Euro 2008, never to be repeated after his move to Arsenal.
A more contemporary example is Bryan Ruiz at this summer’s World Cup, a player who has now settled into mediocrity in the Championship. He starred on the world’s stage as Costa Rica made a surprise run to the knockout stages.

As a result, it’s something of a surprise to see Liverpool pushing so hard to complete Divock Origi’s move in this transfer window, in the hope that he can improve their season.

In fact, The Sun are today running a story that Origi will be signed if the Reds can move Rickie Lambert on.

This strikes me as a bit of a mistake, especially after Lambert’s fine goal against Aston Villa yesterday, which wrapped up an excellent 2-0 win for Brendan Rodgers’ side.

Origi, by comparison, has been struggling this season, not following up his form from Brazil well, like many before him. As Lille have faltered, so has the Belgian international, scoring only 3 goals in the 17 games that he has played in Ligue 1 this season. At the World Cup, he bagged one goal in only 246 minutes of football, which translates to about a goal every three full games, a far superior record.

The forward’s form has been so poor that he has only played from the start in one of Lille’s last four matches, and did not play at all in 50 percent of those games.

This is not the sort of player that a manager should recall from loan early in order to improve the outcome of a season, especially since it would be placing undue pressure onto such young shoulders.

Lambert has not been on top of his game since moving from Southampton, but his form has improved somewhat as the season has gone on. His long range strike yesterday was a classic example of the England international’s technical brilliance that belies a player of his side – slotted from distance into the bottom left corner, Brad Guzan was left with no chance of saving the shot.

Letting Lambert go at this point strikes me as a bad idea. He’s finally getting better, and fitting into Rodgers’ side when called upon. The 19 year old cannot be guaranteed to reach the heights that saw Liverpool lay out £10 million for him, and it would be better if he recaptured his form in the relatively less intense atmosphere of Ligue 1, rather than being relied upon in a potential Champions League push for Liverpool, one which could ruin his confidence.

All in all, the switch outlined in The Sun makes very little sense.

PL Rivals Eye Up £4.5m Liverpool Forward – reports

Crystal Palace are set to back new manager Alan Pardew in the transfer market by making a move for Liverpool striker Rickie Lambert, as reported by The Guardian.

Pardew moved to Palace from Newcastle United last week, and the former Charlton and West Ham boss has reportedly identified his side’s forward options as particularly weak.

The duo have worked together before, with Pardew bringing Lambert to Southampton while in charge there during 2009. He signed him from Bristol Rovers, beginning Lambert’s rise through the leagues.

Liverpool are not thought to be particularly keen to sell Lambert during January, and there are no guarantees that the England international will want to move – Liverpool are the team that he has supported all of his life.

However, he has made only 10 starts since the start of the season, and has scored only twice, against Palace in the Premier League and Ludogorets in the Champions League.

It remains to be seen whether Pardew will push for the transfer.