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Lambert’s hollow boast won’t help Stoke

By Russell Hughes

STOKE ON TRENT, ENGLAND - NOVEMBER 29: Liverpool player Sadio Mane in action during the Premier League match between Stoke City and Liverpool at Bet365 Stadium on November 29, 2017 in Stoke on Trent, England. (Photo by Stu Forster/Getty Images)
STOKE ON TRENT, ENGLAND - NOVEMBER 29: Liverpool player Sadio Mane in action during the Premier League match between Stoke City and Liverpool at Bet365 Stadium on November 29, 2017 in Stoke on Trent, England. (Photo by Stu Forster/Getty Images) /
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Liverpool take on Stoke City on Saturday in the Barclays Premier League and their manager Paul Lambert’s hollow boast won’t help them.

Lambert has won three and drawn two of his five trips to Anfield as a manager and the Stoke Sentinel reported that he feels at home on Merseyside.

And while the former Aston Villa manager might feel compelled to employ a smoke and mirrors tactic ahead of Saturday, those words won’t help him on the pitch.

The Potters are in desperate trouble. Whatever words Lambert has used so far hasn’t helped and they just can’t win games.

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Scattered through their form table are plenty of draws. There are enough draws to feed the 5,000! But crucially, few wins. You can’t afford to only take one point from fixtures against rivals like Southampton, Brighton, West Ham and Burnley.

They are stuck in 29 points, four from safety, and now they have to play a rampaging Liverpool. And even though manager Jurgen Klopp is likely to rest a few players ahead of the Champions League semi-final second leg, there should still be too much quality in the side for them to handle.

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One player who hardly ever gets a break is Mohamed Salah, and alone he can inflict more damage on a defence then they can handle. But even if Salah is given an afternoon off, there is enough firepower to stretch a defence who have conceded 65 times already.

This also isn’t the same Liverpool that Lambert has managed against in the past. There is a tremendous confidence flowing through the side. There is a leader at the back, Virgil van Dijk, and he’s one of the world’s best.

There is industry, heart and spirit running through this team. Injuries to key men like Emre Can and Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain won’t stop them because spirit is strong within them. And they have Klopp.

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So don’t let those hollow boasts get to you. They’re made by a manager fighting for his side’s top flight future and he’s getting desperate.

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