Liverpool Banter Archive February 11 2015

11 Feb 2015 20:45:55
The rumours regarding Rodgers flying to Italy on scouting. Are we interested in someone from Parma? They were interested in Balotelli a couple of weeks ago so maybe cash and a player in return for Mario? Lodi perhaps, for an Alonso type role?

{Ed002's Note - Where is the fantasy football page?}

11 Feb 2015 21:09:24
Well he's either gone to Italy or he hasn't. If he's gone the only senior game tonight is Parma-Chievo and there was plenty of speculation a couple of weeks ago, including from the Parma chairman that they wanted Mario and we all know he'll be gone come the end of the season. We have a pressing need for a player of Lodi's style as a squad player - especially of Allen is moved on as well. There's naff all else we need from either of those teams.

11 Feb 2015 21:12:18
/cont. There is the young Chievo goalie, but our goalie problems are at senior level (although Migs has improved considerably of late)

11 Feb 2015 22:02:27
I'm sure he could of got a flight out early today, rather than rush off just to spend the night in a hotel.
Honestly couldn't care less where he's gone myself.

11 Feb 2015 22:05:29
Nope,,, you've all got it completely wrong.
Brendan and Ian Arye are sharing a romantic valentines pizza as we speak sailing a Gondola Boat down the canals of Venice, celebrating Marios winning goal against the Spuds

12 Feb 2015 00:54:42
If the owners r in liverpool this week and they r not in the country much why would the manager not be having meetings with them on issues that need discussed face to face r maybe I'm reading too much into it and they allready had such meetings.

Nail on the head Tommy.

12 Feb 2015 08:02:05
He might of just gone to watch beskitas who lost last night ,were did it say he was looking at a player?

Good point Tommy, but as you guess they probably had these meetings before. Maybe successful enough to go on a scouting mission?

My guess for him going. it's to top up his tan

Not a bad shut, Omega.

11 Feb 2015 17:51:11
Soooo I noticed everyone was sooooo quick to blame Rogers for making the wrong subs v Everton but nobody says he got all 3 subs right last night well done Rogers ! ! !

11 Feb 2015 18:33:53
Well said. A lot of people will only pick him on things he does wrong.

He's still a young manager and we have to give him time to learn.

Great result!

keep the faith

Probably because doing his job pseudo-correctly is expected? Maybe we can give him a trophy for making reasonable subs for once along with one for Balotelli for not missing a tap in.

He messed up big time against Everton, but credit where it is due, he made the right call this time. I hope for the next game he drops Gerrard and pushes Can up, then puts Lovren at CB.

11 Feb 2015 20:26:30
he;s still dead in the water come May. He promised the owners a good run in the Champions League and a top four finish. He's blown one and the other iis only 50-50. They will replace him.

Rodgers gives himself enough praise as it is - he doesn't need any more from us.

Best posts on this thread! Well done, Livpres and Lenin! BR is paid to win games and he is doing hi job and nothing ore. As they say, "You don`t get points for doing your job".

That' because what I and a few others wanted on here was to start Lovren and push Can in mid and not start SG.
You want me to congratulate him for making a sub, that should have been the 1st team in the 1st place IMO?

He swapped a knackered Sturridge for another striker (thankfully unable to start Raheem upfront due to injury)and put on another like for like in Lallana for markovic. These were hardly masterstroke moves for me, the tactics didn't change nor formation.

The entire game was based around.Mignolet, kick out to Ibe. Ibe win ball vs mason, use pace, run at danny Rose, create space for markovic and Studge. Rinse lather repeat.

I'll give him and his team props for identifying Rose and Mason as weak links and targeting them SURE. but the subs.I wouldn't really call that a masterclass in altering strategy

12 Feb 2015 06:58:27
I wasn't to impressed with his subs v Everton at the time, but haven't we learned since that all 3 of Lucas, coutinho and sterling came off injured. His hand was forced that day

12 Feb 2015 07:39:10
Red Lenin and redohio, its sad for you that your wish will not come true.
Rodgers will still be our manager next year.

Unreal.
So he gets criticism from people on here for not having an impact on the game.
Then makes the two subs who created and scored the 3rd goal and people give it the old "he's paid to do that anyway". ha ha ha
It's almost as if there are reds fans out there who want the team to fail so that their view of Rodgers can be vindicated.
Yes he did do what he gets paid to do. But he still deserves praise for doing it in the same way as the players.
Ibe is getting rave reviews. Who picked Ibe to play?
Who recalled Ibe from loan?
Who got you the tryout with the jets?
You did Shaft.
Seriously though if you are anti Rodgers then your argument becomes a lot more plausible if you give him credit when it's due.
Otherwise you sound like a jilted lover talking about their ex.

Jonny he's paid to get us the premier league title.


How's that working out

That's not easy to do Bobatron.
I think if he stays and we get top 4 that we will be very close next year to winning it.
I know it's not what all of us would have wanted but that is because Rodger's raised expectations by performing so well last season.
If we get top 4 (if) then he will have finished 7th, 2nd and 4th(for example).
I see no point in sacking a manager who does that.
If we do not get top 4 this year then whilst I personally would not agree with sacking him, I would understand if he was sacked.

Bringing on £61M of subs is hardly rocket science. Brendan can have praise for the team playing well, but he also gets responsibility for the dreadful first half which is largely why we're now say 7th instead of higher up the table. He gets the good and the bad, not just the good, and it's the bad that could well cost him his job since it's put us where we are fighting to get back into the mix.

Fair point RDL.
But it is recoverable.
Better to start bad and finish strong than the other way around.

It is certainly recoverable, jonnybarnes. We may well end up in 4th, we may end up in 7th. We might end up winning Europa, or bombing out against Besiktas.

My personal opinion is that more likely than not we win nothing and finish out of top 4 which will cost Rodgers his job, but there is certainly a fair chance I am completely wrong.

Pirate, it is not sad at all. I am talking reality and unlike you, I`m not a contender for the "BR`s no. 1 Fan" trophy for 2015. However, what is sad actually, is you who willfully, continue to ignore the fact that BR made promises that based on current facts, will not keep in order to make yoursel look and sound positive whereas, it only makes you look and sound disingenuous. The Ed`s have mentioned this reapeatedly. And mind you, 4th place was not one of those promises. Hence on the face of it, he will be sacked if he fails and even IMO, 4th place might not save him because he was given 100m to challenge for the title and not to get 4th. "If you spend 100m, you should b challenging for the title". BR said that. If he is the manager next year, so be it and i won`t mind it PROVIDED he focuses on coaching (which he is good at) and stop the other nonsense he does. IMO, he won`t be and I will be fine with it because he would have earned the sack due to his blunders, wastefulness, and mismanagement. THAT IS THE REALITY!

Jonny, we had a bad start for sure BUT we should never have been in that position with the money we had at our disposal and the system that is workin now and should have been deployed from the word go. That is what frustrates me the most. At this point if we get 4th, it might not be enuff to save his job BUT I may be proven wrong

It should be enough in my opinion.
And to expect the team to just seamlessly adapt to the loss of Suarez, the injury to Sturridge and the introduction of about 9 players is naive.
It was Naive of Rodgers to promise the league title as well, I agree with that.
But we had just lost the league on goal difference.
What was he going to say. 4th place will do us this year!!!
Naivety is the word I would use to describe the club as a whole at the moment.
We have a Naive board/owners, a naive manager, and naive players due to their age.
But I think we can all see that there are certain things we are getting right at every level.
The board are getting things right finally (not a dig at FSG just the last 20 years) with sponsorship and the stadium expansion bringing in more revenue.
The manager is getting it right with a plethora of young players and a new system which is working.
And the players are learning at an astonishing rate given their age and experience.
So to me it looks very good at every level of the club at the moment.
We are growing together and yet some people think we should sack the manager and start again.
I would rather wait and see what is produced from the fruits of our labour at every level.
I don't want FSG to leave because they have been honest and truthful about their intentions.
I don't want Rodgers to leave because, despite his faults he has us playing the best football I have seen in 20 years with young players!
And I don't want to see the large majority of players we have leave either.
There will be change this summer with about 11 players going but the core of our side has so much potential we should allow Rodgers the opportunity to maximise it.

Put it this way. I bet every United fan was happy to give Fergie a bit more time.
And he did not get a sniff of the league title for about 5 yrs.
Our manager nearly won the bloody thing in his second season and yet we want him out???
Fickle?
And very short sighted in my opinion.

11 Feb 2015 16:18:00
Just want to send out my best wishes to Sebastian Leto who is in intensive care after he injured his head in a gym accident.

11 Feb 2015 13:32:47
Bascombe in the DT saying Rodgers left on a scouting mission to Italy last night, ed001/002 do you know if this is true and any further details?

Also ed001 i had a scroll but couldn't find it- did you do a match review for the game? If not do you have time to?

cheers everyone

{Ed002's Note - I have no idea where Rodgers is. Sorry.}

11 Feb 2015 14:11:13
Rodgers is at grid reference 087539.23453.953 according to World Ordinance Survey maps. Facing along axis N*47, looking downwards

11 Feb 2015 14:12:20
Is Basiktas not playing today?

11 Feb 2015 16:21:29
Ed1 does not watch spurs game because we win whenever he doesn't watch. So I doubt he could possibly do a match review

{Ed001's Note - sadly you are right. I never watch it after either, just in case it breaks the luck!}

11 Feb 2015 11:30:46
Like others here I think among the other good things yesterday was that we won without Sterling. No disrespect to the lad, who carried us alone more or less on his shoulders all season and should get the credit for that, I think like others here, that us doing well without him can hopefully bring a bit more sense to him and his agents re signing this contract (btw if he is offered 40-50K a week more than he is doing now, he loses quite a lot of money every week he doesn't sign, no? - assuming the club wouldn't give up to his demands and pay him more)

But also game wise - when we played Sterling as a lone striker, most of our attacks were hopeful balls looking for him and he almost always tried to make something from the centre even if croded. Yesterday our game was more versatile and it was really refreshing to see the last goal yesterday - accurate cross from the right and someone waiting in the box for a tap in for a change.

I really hope Lallana will play more. Sterling, Markovich, Ibe, Coutinue are all great players to watch but once they get the ball they almost always go on defenders even if its 3 or 4 or 5 defenders and they lose the ball a lot because of this. Lallana is happy to run defenders but also to pass the ball and he is better finisher IMO.

Very last point - talking about passing- did anyone else noticed that two end to end passes from Sakho to Ibe across the whole pitch with the ball literally land on his foot? I have seen this before only from Gerrad. Despite his slip on the 1st goal and living dangerously at times yesterday I think Sakho is a great asset.

He needs to be given the wage that he deserves as one of our best players. If only so that we hold onto him an extra few years while his price rockets. Look at Utd let pogba go because he wanted too much yet if they'd gave it him they wouldn't be looking at paying £50m+ to bring him back or at the very least could be the ones selling him for the big money. Give him what he wants then sell him for mega bucks if he's not happy in a few years.

WOW WOW WOW WOW WOW WOW WOW WOW WOW WOW!!
Raheem Sterling has carried us on his shoulders?!?!?!?!?

I mean come on I'm all for credit where it's due, but this is a ridiculous statement

Pogba left united because of his attitude and the fact he never got a game, not because of wages.

Stupid comments like this are the reason we have this issue with sterling right now. My arse has he carried our season, rodgers has relied on him too much and played him too much and made the media and sterling believe he is essential to the team when he isnt. He has been over played and overhyped this season and this is the result, he feels we cannot survive without him so he can ask for 100k a week.
We can easily survive without sterling, if he wants to go and balls up his whole career at a big club where he won't get a game at 20 years old he can, our squad can deal with it just fine.

Cheers Woolback, you saved me typing that up! Completely agree.

Sterling has scored half of our goals this season in a season where we've scored so few the second highest scorer is the penalty taker. Like it or not minus his goals and assists we'd be in a relegation battle by now with Everton. And by want more I was referring to playing time and money abit like Suso. he is an important player for us perhaps our 3/4th best? Sturridge, can, coutinho/sterling/hendo/Lucas are all pretty similarly important. We will be okay if he leaves of course but I'd pefer to keep him happy till he's worth 40/50m +

Not one of harrys, Sterling has only scored 5 in the league, whereas we've scored 36. If you're on about all competetions, he's scored 9 out of the 53 we've scored. Hardly 'half of our goals'. He has won us 8 points with his goals and assists, which would move us to 10th (not in a relegation battle). Don't get me wrong, he is an important player, but he hasn't been carrying us all season.

Anonymous is on the money! IMO, everyone needs to calm down and stop with all the suppositions because nobody really knows what`s going on. The media is having a field day already and although it leads to great debate, we should allow the situation to run its course. Contract negotiations take time and the good thing is that based on media reports, Raheem wants to stay here and LFC wanna keep him so at least, there is agreement there. However what we don`t need, is a manager and captain mouthing off to the media about what Raheem should do and not do hence, pressuring the boy which may cause unnecessary rifts. Hazard hasn`t signed a 200k a week contract yet and Mou simply said, "he hasn`t signed yet because he is looking for a shiny pen to give Hazard for the signature". Now that`s how you answer a question, by simply NOT answering it. Both BR and SG could learn a thing or two from Mou on that issue. They should both keep their gobs shut, allow the situation to run its course and quit "messing w/ someone else`s money" as we say in American sports circles. However, Raheem and his agent need to understand that he is only worth what LFC are willing to pay him (whatever the amount) hence, he and his agent should tread carefully because we are not short of options in his position and we will cash in if need be.

N BTW, I don`t know who our most important player is but it is defo NOT Raheem. BR has over-relied on him wrongly (IMO) and it has now become a can of worms and a useless distraction that even Raheem prolly never asked for. All in all, everything will be fine and if he leaves to RM or Bayern (where he will warm the stands rather than the bench, LOL) then let`s get good money for him and promote Ibe, Wilson and Ojo from the academy BUT I would prefer keeping him more than anything

12 Feb 2015 04:22:27
Just stop and think for a second before posting, just take 2 minutes to google

Sterling has scored 5 prem goals this season, liverpool have scored 36 in total in prem. He's scored 9 in total we've scored 53 in total

There has to be a happy medium somewhere.

The first consideration should always be "do you want to play for us" and then it should be about money after that.
I think Sterling does want to play for us in the future so hopefully we can agree on a figure that fits in with the idea of reducing the wage bill and gives Raheem a pay increase at the same time.
Does that make any sense at all??
What can't be in dispute is that we have too many players at the moment.
By getting rid of those deemed to be surplus to requirements that should enable us some scope to increase the wages of those players who are worth keeping long term.
I think Raheem falls right into that category.

Agree w/ you there, Barnes. Raheem wants to be here and we want to keep him so the desire is there. But IMO, Raheem can tell his agent to stop messing about and get the deal done because afterall, the agent works for him and not vice versa BUT it is not that cut and dry. IMO, all will be fine and he will sign the contract and if RS wants to play hardball and doesn`t sign, sell him and get the best deal we can. Players 10 times better left us and we got better. Why? because NO MAN is bigger than LFC, not even Gerrard.

11 Feb 2015 10:32:25
Was so made up with last nights result, spurs are flying at the minute & showed real character to peg us back twice at anfield. Harry kane looks the real deal at the minute works his socks off & has that tendancy to be in the right place at right time, spurs will be there or there abouts come end if the season i reckon. Well enough about spurs into the mighty lfc, for the life of me i can't see why this 3421 formation works, yes i know it gives us more in the middle of the park & allows our creator(coutinho) dictate most games but i can't see how we haven't been exposed in wide areas as of yet, hats off to the staff & players tho because it does work, we have a hunger about us again to try win every ball, a pace about us that no team in the barclays prem can deal with at the minute, plus we just got studge back. Onwards & upwards till end of the season now! Top 4 is still an achievable goal, & to quote the sponsor on lasts nights kit. 'SEEING IS BELIEVING' i think we should all start belieing.
JFT96YNWA

11 Feb 2015 10:55:09
Two very hard workers in Moreno and Markovic, and fantastic cover from Lucas. Our upturn in form has really come from three people. Can looking controlled and composed at the back, Coutinho pulling the strings in the middle, but Lucas has been the one that has really impressed me since coming back in. He marshals the troops well, and works so hard.

Yeah i think lucas inclusion has been a massive help, i think last night proved that he is invaluable in this formation. We looked easy on the eye last night but spurs looked very dangerous going forward also. Hopefully lucas be back sooner rather than later & we be able to keep the free flowing attacking football going forward with the defensive stability lucas gives us

11 Feb 2015 09:41:57
Coutinho, Ibe, Sturridge, Markovic, Lallana, Sterling.
These players are our future.
The future looks good.

Emre Can?

You forgot can. he will be amazing if he continues like this

None or Henderson, moreno, can, sakho, lovren, and the mentioned players are 25 yet, hopefully they all improve more!

I did not forget Can.
Is Can a forward player??
I was talking about forward players.

11 Feb 2015 09:40:36
Seeing lots of posts about Sterling not being very good compared to Ibe.
Ibe has great potential but so too does Sterling.
Fair enough if you think Sterling is overrated but why can't we just have both of them in our team??
These lads should be our future.

Ibe Sturridge Sterling and coutinho The list goes on and on future is pretty good

Sterling is greedy and forgets who gave him his chance to shine, he is no angel and this contract saga shows what type of person he really is, to me he is not worth 100 grand a week, break down his play and you would see this, he is not going to get better he might score more goals that's about it, i would sell him as soon as, we have better players coming through, plus he is greedy and holding the club to ransom

People need to lay off Sterling, just because he hasn't signed a new contract yet he is the worst in the world. Yes Ibe looks good Sterling is a class act also. They are both Liverpool players and we should be buzzing because of this. Not slating or comparing one against the other. JonnyBarnes I agree with you

11 Feb 2015 11:20:12
mbrock99 - What makes you think he is holding the club to ransom? How sure are you about the figure? Based on what? Reports from the same press who reported that Lavezzi and 100 other players would come in the january window? I think ed001 have said that there is nothing unusual about the lenght of contract negotiation regarding Sterling (correct me if i am wrong). I don't understand the obsession about whether it is 60,70,80 or 130 grand a week. No matter what it is it'll be totally out of perspective but that's football. Try not to take it so personally. I respect if you oppose against it, so do i - but it is something not solved by refusing to give Sterling a new contract. I guess you think you are protecting the club by refusing the idea of paying him the amount you mentioned - but nurturing him further and selling him for a Gareth Bale kind of fee in the future, getting good games from him while he is here - is a lot more appealing to me. And who knows, if the club is getting better at the same pace as him - maybe he will end up staying for his full career. I for one will enjoy him as long as he is here no matter what he is getting on a weekly basis. My advice to you would be: try not to think to much about the numbers - it is totally insane already and won't get better soon. Just focus and the pitch and what happens there.

Break his game down you say? Well for a player in his age, playing out of position, on top on his own, i am hugely impressed with what he is doing. Point out another player at Sterlings age who is doing better than him playing out of position. You won't find it in the world. It would be difficult enough even if you compared him with someone who have the luxury of playing in his natural position. We should make a bet - to see if Sterling haven't got any better in 3 or 4 years. It wouldn't feel much of a gamble for me. He is a player who is working hard, doing his absolute best in a new and difficult position, who is getting asked to be the main man for club and country at the age of 20. He is still a kid ffs. Can't believe some people in here. What do you expect from him?

Lavije. Emre Can is playing out of his position and playing out of his skin.
He is currently rated as the 2nd best U21 CB in europe.
And he is not even a CB!!
Nice to know that we have both of them.
Not bad for 8 million.
It's all Brendan's fault. That transfer committee is pants:)

Lavije,

i get what your saying but we gave him his chance and he has played well, he is playing out of position but so are others in the team johnybarnes said about emre can, look at couthinio he signed his contract without any problems i'm made up with that but with sterling he knows real madrid are looking at him so he has not signed his contract making it easier for real madrid to sign him would you not agree with that, don't get me wrong he is playing well but so are others who imo are playing better like markovic and emare can, the fact FC signed his 5 year contract without the circus then it shows sterling is holding the club to ransom by not signing a very good contract, i respect what you say but the club is bigger than any player and if he does not want to sign it then hey get rid, as you say there's nothing wrong in the length of it but the amounts, i got the figure from a post on here i think it was ems, he may be wrong but couthino signed without fuss,

We will have the answer soon enough mbrock99.
If he does not sign by the summer then we know he's off.

13 Feb 2015 00:04:13
jonny and mbrock - we will indeed see soon enough. Emre Can is playing very well and out of position. You are right about that. He is nearly a year older though and i don't think you can compare the two. I am sure in a year we will see another Sterling too. My point is - we should all relax and see how it turns out. You may well end up being right mbrock - but until it is certain i will not give it to much though and just enjoy what i see on the pitch and his generally good performances. There is nothing to suggest that he isn't commited if you just watch him play football. He may have a poor game but he tries. And i really belive people should give him a break. I know the figure EMS talked about, i know the figures from the press, the speculation. But for me it is nothing but speculation with no sources, no evidence. Sterling is english and the press is obsessed with him. I have no idea how long negotiations with Coutinho took - maybe it took exactly the same time as with Sterling and it just wasn't reported? We don't know

11 Feb 2015 09:00:52
Great result, big credit to Migs who is really showing some form and I'm delighted for the guy. Hopefully we can get Love into the back 3 and see more of Can in midfield as he is an excellent footballer with a great engine and really strong too.
I'm also delighted for Balo, we've given him so much stick on here whether rightly or wrongly and maybe, just maybe that goal and the fact that everyone one of his team mates ran to congratulate him might kickstart the guys season onwards and upwards.
My only concern is around Coutinho, he looks to be limping a lot and I think looks a little worn out. I'd love to see him get a break and stick Lallana in there. Couts is also very young and has played a lot of football and I think a rest would do him the world of good.
Well done lads, great 3 points and a thoroughly engrossing game

11 Feb 2015 08:37:09
The issue with Sterling not signing yet has got me thinking. If everyone was on form, who is our real match winner? For me, it's Coutinho. I tend to think Sterling is over rated. Don't get me wrong, I'm so glad we have him and he is a real talent. But is he really that amazing that we're panicking that he may look elsewhere? I think he owes us, but if he goes elsewhere chasing fame and fortune and we get a good price, then I won't lose any sleep. What we do with that money worries me more.

Right now there are quite a few with the right kind of talent, but I'd go for Sturridge and Coutinho as most consistent.

Can, Llalana, Ibe and perhaps Markovic all have the potential to be on their day or in the future. Gerard used to have it in spades but only showing glimpses nowadays unfortunately.

I think that if he is bang in form, well rested and in an attacking midfield role, Gerrard is our best match winner. Sadly his good days are getting rarer by the week and Rodgers doesn't know how to rotate him properly.

I don't think people should be panicking.
These things take time.

11 Feb 2015 09:23:50
You hit the nail on your final comment here, which is why it is so important to keep him. Our signings have been a bit up and down over the years. That being said, Moreno, Markovic, Can, and Lallana are all impressing at the moment. The aberration has been Lovren, as Balotelli is definitely going to score 40 goals between now and the end of the season. Sterling has only just turned 20, but because he has been in the team for a while it is easy to forget that he is still developing his game. Was Ronaldo as good at the same age? That isn't to say that he will be as good, but we have to remember that this lad could be a top 5 player in the World in 5 years time.

Lfc-londoner

how much would he want in 5 years time if he is turning down a 100 grand, he is over rated and won't get any better he will score goals but not that many more, he already thinks he is bigger than the club, i say sell him and he is no ronaldo

11 Feb 2015 11:04:16
mbrock 99

Why are we getting on top of the lad? What do you want us to do, cash in for £30 million and buy 2 players that need time to settle? We also know nothing of the actual contract negotiations, so no point speculating about it. As I say, he won't turn out to be as good as Ronaldo, but do we want to be a club that sells their best talents?

I was about to say the same thing zimbo. they're both young and inconsistent, but i'd say Sterling is the most inconsistent of the two.

11 Feb 2015 07:37:40
Does anyone know where to find Gerrard's pass completion rates etc?

Squawka are the most accessible. Opta tend to be more detailed though.

{Ed001's Note - there is also whoscored.com.}

Squawka is a terrible site for stats but as said is accessible.

Opta is by far the most accurate and detailed.

11 Feb 2015 07:32:51
What a game.
Not the best technically, but I put that down to the pressing both teams insist on.
I was fuming with the offside goal and the officials throughout the game were poor in my view.
But credit where it is due the team kept going which is another good sign.
That is the first time we have beaten a top side this season in the league.
Ibe, Moreno, Can.Mignolet were stand out players.
I am pleased for Mario as well.
All in all a great game and great result.
If we are to finish top 4 then maybe this game could be looked back on as a turning point.
who knows?

11 Feb 2015 07:09:11
Another fantastic result last night. It was a great team effort and the fitness of both teams was truly incredible, but I thought we just pipped them. We seem to have that team ethic back with abundance and there were a few instances that really stood out for me, for instance Skrtel pushing Kane from Sakho on the floor, Henderson being protective again, the way ALL the players hugged Mario after his goal. These are just a few but the team definitely got each other's back. It was that good an effort even the ground was rocking for a change. I just hope we don't do the usual of raising our game for the big ones and lacking intensity for the lesser games. We have the momentum and need to keep it going. I don't think we will blow up in the latter stages of the season like last year, as we have a bigger squad but have only recently got back in our rhythm. As far and Ibe I also am impressed. What a skillful strong young player with bags of potential we have. The most pleasing thing for me was his positional sense. Both matches now he stuck to his position and the tracking back and tackling have been awesome. It is not often young players who are so good going forward hold the line. We seen with Coutinho and Sterling when first in the team that they neglected this side and left our defender exposed. He's really impressed me. On a different note I thought Gerrard struggled and looked very laboured. Not sure if his head is half way in America, his legs have truly gone or a bit of both but he cannot play if we want a high tempo game sorry. If he must play then cameo's of the bench when we are winning and opposition are chasing the game. He can then Ping the long ball or Hollywood pass over the top of their defence.

11 Feb 2015 05:38:48
Superb match of football yesterday and we are becoming a force again. We can beat any team with this momentum but the absence of Lucas has been felt in the midfield. Without him the defence will have much work to do in our future games. The performance of the younsters Ibe, Can and Moreno is very exciting and I think we will make top 4 this season.

Yes great win but long way to top 4 yet. Lucas in midfield can be useful although for me the main thing we have to improve is how clinical we are - despite the 3 goals, we were again unbelievably waisteful yesterday. We should have been 4 or 5 up before the end of the 1st half. We had a lot two on one or three on two with a final poor pass or shot costing us.

No other team will play as open against us in Enfield - not even ManU. That was suicide from Spurs I thought, even though maybe that is the only way they know and it made a very exciting game. You have to feel for them, I have a lot of sympahy for Spurs and every time they meet us we give a great performance. This season in particular you needed a lot bad luck to meet us twice, lose twice, concede 6 including yesterday one from poor goalkeeping (very unlike Lloris the 1st goal) and a goal from Baloteli?

I just hope the only impact of the 6 points we took from them will not be to allow Arsenal take their place in the top 4 with us staying out at the end of the season. And also that we don't meet Spurs in the EL - as eventually they will have to beat us, just based on statistics alone.

Spurs played the way that has been succesful for them this season. I wasnt surprised. We have enough forward players to damage any team in the PL. We just need to keep the defence tight.

11 Feb 2015 04:44:09
Excellent win against a very good side. Hats of to Brendan for having faith in Mario, I sure had lost mine. Well done reds! We March on

11 Feb 2015 01:22:46
Writes the word when ya need him haha, joking aside, great game and as good as spurs were we deserved the win for never giving up, no reason why we can't keep this up lads, to coin a phrase used in here numerous times last season #wegoagain haha

11 Feb 2015 01:33:43
Such is the way of the European chasing teams this year, that despite picking up 4 points agaisnt everton and Spurs, not too bad, but we've gained 1 point on Spurs and arsenal, likely none on United, and with saints against West Ham, probably none on one of the teams, unless West Ham win, which I doubt.
For a neutral fan, it must be exciting to watch, but for us, it's going to be a huge task to catch up to fourth.

Which is why we have to do all we can to beat these teams because by doing that, we can "personally" affect their standings in the PL w/o relying on other teams to do it for us.

11 Feb 2015 00:39:23
Only just got back and felt I had to post, if we have time to criticise we have time to praise, right?

I have had a big smile on my face all evening. What an exciting end-to-end game and what a result!

So many positives to take from the game, to name a few: Markovic's goal, Sturridge's return, Lovren's appearance, Mignolet's continued return of confidence, Balotelli's first goal, Ibe's all round play.

I'm sure Danny Rose will be having nightmares all week!

Anyway, great game, great performance, great support from the crowd and a HUGE 3 points in the battle for Europe.

Exciting game, good performance, lots of individual good performances, Emre Can!, Ballo just doing it, three points gained, three points lost to a team above us. Now to keep up the good work.