Gerard's tactics

[KevinGage]

Players are 100% fit (usually) before every game, and could play a lot more if they needed to.

You'd be amazed how many aren't.

Not because they've ate too many pies or sunk too many pints at the Dog & Duck the night before though. Players at any level of professional sport with money and jobs riding on their contribution will often be asked to play even when only 70/80 per cent fit.

See Rooney from last April onwards and even our own Dickie Dunne this season. Though in the latter case I could well imagine he's no stranger to pies and pints. It's probably his pre match routine, the big bloater.

Anytime you hear about a player passing a fitness test on the day of the game you can be pretty certain he isn't 100% fit.

[peter w]

And as I said before, there's a difference between what anyone else would call fit, and the extra edge that provides the difference between winning and losing at the top level in any sport. It's not about excuses, it's a fact. Otherwise the same eleven players would be in the team for 90 minutes every match.

And I could say just because you say so doesn't mean its true.

But the other factors to add in are motivation. If a player is less than 100% fit - and yes that does happen - motivation and adrenalin will make up for any shortfall. Also, a player doesn't need to be 100% fit to be able to contribute fully although it can affect his performance by the next game. What is most important, and how you measure their fitness levels is how quickly they recover. For the game last Sunday we are expected to believe that enough of the team went into the game less than 100% fit. For that to be so then they're either cheating the club, not doing the required fitness work up to now, or don't have the motivation to go out and do their job fully.

I fully take the point that being at the top of their profession means that if they aren't at the peak of their fitness can have an adverse effect on a performance. But that's over a period of time. Not after a 2 hour shift, and a good 3 day rest before the next game.

[dave.woodhall]

It isn't me that's saying it, it's Gerard Houllier.

[Dribbler]

What is 100% fit? I don't think in reality there is such a distinct mark, as though a player gets to a certain level and then the management tick a box and say "congratualtions, your a 100% fit."
The whole argument about them being professional athletes is also a slight misnomer, whatever a player's level of fitness you would ask them to go out and give it their all in a game, to push themselves to their maximum limit. If you push your body to the limit, wherever that limit might be, it's going to take it's toll on your body and you are going to need time to recover. Three days isn't necessarily that long to recover if you really push yourself hard, on occassion i've drank too much energy drink at the gym and gone crazy with intense two hour training sessions, i've still been aching 5 days later.

[VillaZogmariner]

What is 100% fit?

[peter w]

It isn't me that's saying it, it's Gerard Houllier.

And I fundamentally disagree with him. I'd have taken it more seriously if he had come out and said he played a horses for courses type team and didn't want to lose his first derby, or just the game in general, rather than risking it with what he thought may be an inferior team. (Don't say the inferior team bit though) as blaming match fitness is bollocks, especially as our rivals had played even longer.