Liverpool Banter Archive April 16 2012

 

Use our rumours form to send us liverpool transfer rumours.

16 Apr 2012 23:35:32
I heard a rumour from My friend that we are interested in a guy called Roberto soldado.


 

 

16 Apr 2012 23:34:11
Our league position doesn't matter.
What a perfect time to play all our youngsters?
Sterling, Suso, Coates et al !
I would like to see Maxi in the team more often, although not a youngster.


Apparently each league postion ius worth £1 million more than the place below it... so i does kind of matter, would like to see the 'kids' play tho.


 

 

16 Apr 2012 23:29:18
Hi eds & reds,

I heard today that Sepp Blatter is edging closer to supporting goal line technology and it may be introduced in time for next season premiership, I might be pessimistic here, but I think, Messers Platini and Blatter would only support its quick implementation if it resulted in the World cup final been decided. We have seen how quick a TMO can make a decision in rugby, there is no reason not to introduce it.

Secondly ; Diving - I think any player caught taking a dive should get an automatic red / retrospective 3 match ban, regardless if its one of our own or an opponents player, simply its wrong. If you choose to appeal it and loose, make it a 6 match ban.

Finally, I think refs should be made post matcgh interviews, they are professional, they get paid for it, why shouldnt they be publicly scrutinised post match, have it too soft.

Rebel_Red {Ed002's Note - I don't see Blatter as the problem.}


 

 

16 Apr 2012 23:29:15
Interesting to hear Comolli's had an influence on Liverpool's team selections Ed001, I don't suppose he's also responsible for Jordan Henderson playing on the right so much? He looks a talent in the centre, but not much of a wide man at all (imo). Cheers!

DP


 

 

16 Apr 2012 22:59:53
Evening eds and fellow reds, i think fa cup against chelsea is a win win situtation for us if they beat barca over two legs roman will wont his best players rested for final . and if they lose that and the arsenal game in between the two legs you would expect them to be deflated. any thoughts cheers psv {Ed001's Note - the worry is that they get through against Barca and then all their players play out of their skin to try and get in the team for that game too!}


Good thing Barca will take them apart then isn't it...


 

 

16 Apr 2012 22:52:04
Andy Carroll:

Andy Carroll has also had many of the same problems that Torres has had since his £35 million move from Newcastle to Liverpool, so we will compare his statistics from his time at Newcastle during the 2010/2011 season and since he joined Liverpool.

The findings of Andy Carroll's statistics are surprising as his attacking statistics do not differ greatly from the 2010/2011 season at Newcastle to his time at Liverpool.

Although Carroll has scored 6 less Premier league goals for Liverpool than he did for Newcastle and taken 249 minutes longer to score each goal his other attacking statistics do not differ that much for the two sides.

Carroll's shooting accuracy is only down 1.06% since he joined Liverpool and has only taken an extra 4 minutes per shot and an extra 13 minutes per shot on target. Although these statistics are lower for Liverpool there is not really a significant difference that supports the fact that he is struggling at Liverpool.

His chance conversion rate is significantly lower though as he has only converted 8.06% of his chances at Liverpool compared to taking 18% of his chances at Newcastle, which is a significant difference of 9.94%.

Carroll's passing statistics also don't alter much between his two clubs as he has only made 41 more passes and 55 more accurate passes for Liverpool than he did for Newcastle. This is not a significant difference seeing though he has played 332 more minutes for Liverpool in this comparison.

His pass completion has also improved 4.49% while he makes an accurate pass every 4 minutes for both of his clubs.

There is also not much difference in the defensive side of the game, although his statistics have dropped a little since his move. He has won 5% less of his aerial 50-50's which is a slightly worrying statistic since he is known for his power in the air and won 0.73% less of his ground 50-50's which is not a significant figure at all.

The only part of his defensive game that has improved is his tackle success rate as he has an 81.25% success rate which is a whopping 19.71% better than when he was at Newcastle which is a very significant difference.

The results of Carroll's comparison does show one main thing, that not much can be said to why Carroll has struggled for goals since his move apart from he is just not converting his chances and it may just be down to luck. Although, he is just not winning as many headers for Liverpool as he did for Newcastle which might one reason Carroll may be seen as struggling as this was such an important part of his game at St. James Park.

The results of these two comparisons show two very different things for Torres and Carroll. Torres all round attacking game is a lot weaker since his move to Chelsea apart from the defensive side of the game which he has improved. He is also passing a lot more often than he is shooting maybe because his shooting accuracy and chance conversion percentages are so low.

This is completely different to Carroll's game as it has not changed that much apart from the fact that he is just not taking his chances or winning as many headers.

Torres is trying to do something about this though as he has worked very hard on the defensive side of the game as he is winning more ground 50-50's and has improved his tackle success rate. This is slightly different to Carroll though as some of his defensive statistics have dropped, especially his aerial 50-50 win % as he has won 5% less while he has been at Liverpool, which is a worrying stat considering this is one of the main parts of his game.

Therefore, if both players want to get back to their best there are several things that they will need to improve to do so.
Conclusions

Fernando Torres needs to shoot more often and stop trying to lay the ball off when he would be better off shooting because although he is creating more chances for his teammates he was bought in to score goals. He also needs to work on all aspects of his attacking game on the training pitch especially getting the ball on target as his shooting accuracy is down to 37.78% which is incredibly poor for a striker.

Andy Carroll however needs to focus on improving what made him such a fan favourite at Newcastle. To do this Carroll needs to get back to winning more aerial challenges as he is winning 5% less at Liverpool than he was at Newcastle and as this is one of the most important parts of his game it is crucial that he gets this right (Editors Note: 5% difference is marginal and we don't think it will make too much of a difference).

Apart from winning fewer headers not much else can be said for Carroll's statistics as they are very similar for both clubs. The only main differences are how long it takes Carroll to score a goal and his chance conversion rates. There is not much he can do about this apart from work as hard as he can on the training ground to get it right as his shooting accuracy is only down 1.06%.

To conclude, Andy Carroll can go back to being the physical presence in the air that he was at Newcastle and win a higher percentage of aerial challenges then this may go some way to help them regain the form that they showed at their previous clubs.


In summary, put more balls on his head and he will score more.

Rebel_Red


'His chance conversion rate is significantly lower though as he has only converted 8.06% of his chances at Liverpool compared to taking 18% of his chances at Newcastle, which is a significant difference of 9.94%.' or looked at another way I make that a difference of over 200% mate - i.e. he is less than half as effective for us as he was at NUFC .Goals = chances x conversion rate. Worrying that we can't at least give him more opportunities to help with his loss of form / confidence / luck. Noting hating on him btw.


What an utterly utterly boring and pointless post!


Statistics and percentages do nothing for me. Just put the ball in the net, people.

cozinoz


Forget stats; just watch him play, even though he's improved of late, he's not the ideal centre forward in the modern game?
Maybe back in the 70s, but not today.
kidmillions


In summary, watch the player, not his stats


Sorry can't agree.
Torres (in his day) was a far more complete player than AC will ever be.
AC is one dimensional, slow and ponderous, whereas Torres (when he first joined LFC) was the exact opposite.

Sadly though, I don't believe AC will ever get any better.


 

 

16 Apr 2012 21:49:30
SP, your inference was that because polls are mainly voted on by the younger generation they may be flawed because they ignore players from " the old days" therefore your suggestion is that they could be wrong. I'm only pointing out that sometimes what's here in front of us now could be the best there's ever been.
As for you saying that my film choice is pants I'm very disappointed. I thought a man of your intelligence would see the quality of the acting in my favourite film. Still, you name Citizen Kane so maybe that's your bag? A film raved about by critics and yet actually as dull as ditch water, the sort of film always hailed by film snobs.
Blimey, we're getting a bit highbrow now aren't we!

Chris in Tamworth


My favourite film is Sin City, Chris mate. How weird am I? Lol

Blair Mayne YNWA JFT96 {Ed001's Note - I assumed you were a Mary Poppins man Blair, mind Sin City is no better!}


Citizen Kane's crap.
KiwiRed


Has there ever been a better film than my favourite " The Big Lebowski "
kidmillions


Yes there has, "Babyface". ;-)

Lucas Lovechild


 

 

16 Apr 2012 21:46:27
Just want to say my only disappointment on saturday was downing shaking his head whilst being subbed, and mouthing 'He does n't know what he's doing' clealry to all the camera's. Well first of all kenny showed he was right, secondly its a team game so Downing was n't showing much respect to players coming on, and lastly, all he did was make a few runs in second half only. He never tackled and never tracked back. Sorry but it would of been like a man less with him still on pitch. Start showing consistent performances in every match and not few runs in a game and i'll understand. Til then shape up you overpriced, under performing winger.
Rant over.

Taffytel


Did Downing really do that ?
The Real KB {Ed001's Note - who knows, even lip reading experts will argue about what is said, it is not an exact science.}


Well I didnt see that personally. People were saying after the Newcastle match that Carroll mouthed you dont know what your doing to kenny. But that clearly wasnt true. Its most likely just a story, but hey maybe he did mouth it. He's starting to perform a bit though. Him and Carroll are starting to play well and its quite exciting!
KiwiRed


No facts! A rant based on nothing. Downing didn't say anything of the sort.
kidmillions


 

 

16 Apr 2012 22:20:31
Anyone else think we're now just destined to go on and win the FA cup final after some (not all remember) of the chelsea fans started jeering and booing during the minute silence?

JFT96
Pete


Yeah thats it mate, its your destiny. Behave yourself its football not Star Wars, you wont be able to cope with Drogba or Mata

SHED END


Try to sell out your tickets for the final eh BELL END ?
The Real KB


Suppose Mata must be good as does not even have to score in the goal


We wont be able to handle mata and drogba? what about the two times we have WON at stamford bridge this season...


I believe young Jedi Skrtl will be more than a match for Darth Drogba. As for that Spaniard who defected to the Blue side.....miss the target he will.

yoda


 

 

16 Apr 2012 22:20:05
Hi Ed's, Great site im always checking the celtic and pool pages!!
Just wondering if you know who the pool are looking at as possible signings this summer or is it too early to say?!?!?!
Thanks! {Ed003's Note - M Phillips,A Baptiste and M gilks }


ED? thats not true. {Ed001's Note - bless him, he's a Blackpool fan, we are watching Matty Phillips though.}


What's Matty Phillips doing? Spinning plates?

Cuchulainn's Hounds


 

 

16 Apr 2012 22:06:47
Great win for Wigan! Again! Great to see them getting the rewards for sticking by Martinez. Didn't they lose 8 games on the run earlier in the season even though they were playing good football but just not scoring goals? Take Note all fickle Fans!
kidmillions


 

 

16 Apr 2012 21:15:19
eds how many players do you exspect to leave
also how many do u exspect to come in and what positions? {Ed003's Note - impossible to answer although a right winger seems a priority }


 

 

16 Apr 2012 21:52:26
I know you will say i have MOTD fever but what about Moses he looks great and never stops running and is so direct and he has proved that he step up against the better teams, he has taken Arsenal apart :)


Thanks

DMW


He's at the right Club in Wigan to improve his game.
kidmillions


I was going to say the same. A lot rave about Hoilett but Moses is far superior. Great stamina, skill and dribbling ability. A good passer but his finishing is poor and needs work. Wigan don't sell players on the cheap, so would cost 10 mil plus.

Papa G


Motd fever lad
Cp


Don't forget Monsieur Raheem Sterling boys. Better than both the above.
The Real KB


 

 

16 Apr 2012 21:44:21
HA Arsenal- Come on, remember the nights where we would win and take the piss out of teams that lost. Let's start on those Arsenal fans.


I cant wait til we pull you apart in the Final, we're gonna finish you off

SHED END


Arsenal are five places above you.

CnM


@SHED END

ha!!

Stone YNWA.


Could care less about Arsenal, or any other team.

All that matters is winning our final on May 5th.


 

 

16 Apr 2012 21:36:33
Team for final:

----------Reina
----Kelly-Skrtel-Agger
Johnson -----------Enrique
---------Gerrard----------
----Bellamy------Maxi-----
------Carroll-Suarez------

Red Otter


Not bad would be
......Skyrtel...Coates..Agger
and Kuyt instead of Carroll.. for me to give us the possibility of goals from everywhere.
kidmillions


Downing is a must start for me, is really coming on. I genuinely think Bellamy and Kuyt are more effective as substitutes and game changers in the last 30 minutes. Their stamina is crucial against tired legs late on, plus reliable penalty takers.
Suarez needs to be a nuisance all game and shouldn't be sacrificed.
I would like Maxi to start as well.
I doubt Kelly will start unless Johnson cant. Not fair, he is only young, and if he made an error that costs us the cup, it would damage his confidence drastically and his growth from then on, same goes for Coates. We need experience to win this final
Like the lad, but Spearing showed naivety on the big stage, tried the big pass too often and lost possession too much as a result. He isn't ready, neither is Hendo, wouldn't risk his inexperience.
Skrtel goes without saying, Carroll could be useful late on.
Mr controversy


 

 

16 Apr 2012 21:31:18
Eds, there was a post earlier regarding Camolli leaving and the rumoured issues around this. I replied to the post but the post has now gone, I assume taken down, can you confirm this please. ( it seemed to back up a suggestion made by Macca last week)
Cheers

Andy the red {Ed001's Note - yes, gone, for legal reasons.}


I've tried searching the whole world wide web for this info but can't find diddly squat.
Any clues ed?
Ultra red {Ed001's Note - sorry, we really can't say or give any clues what ever we might like to do!}


Have you heard similar to what was said then ed?
JK {Ed001's Note - as I can't say no I haven't, I will have to decline to answer that ;o)}


Joshua. {Ed001's Note - I really couldn't do that mate, I would suggest maybe posting something like a Twitter name he could follow and you could do it there. But it would be best if we don't have any actual involvement through the site itself.}


I think he's gone because he's a t**t personally. And no one can say anything because otherwise everyone else would realise and then he'd be out of a job forever. Am i close ed ;)
KiwiRed {Ed001's Note - that is a very poetic way to describe it, works for me!}


Why thankyou. I have been praised for my diplomatic approach to certain subjects. But poetic? Never. I'll take that as a feather in my cap.
KiwiRed


Hi ED, I made the original post, thought I was careful not to to get you in trouble, just a rumour, but understand your position...

Richards {Ed001's Note - no worries mate, not your fault.}


 

 

16 Apr 2012 21:29:31
Plenty of talk about strikers, wingers and midfielders but am I the only one who thinks we still need another CB?


No Agger can't really be relied on, plus we'll have more games next season with Europa. Jan Vertongen for me, as he can play well in midfield if needs be.

Papa G


Yes you are


YES . .


Why? we have plenty of cover
skrtel and agger first choice
carra and coates covering
plus wilson coming back on loan and kelly can also play CB if absolutely necessary

another cb would either hinder upcoming coates or wilson, or not play and waste yet more wage bill

mr controversy


 

 

16 Apr 2012 20:45:02
Its good to see that Chelsea have released a statement condemning the minority of numpties on Sunday. Pity a certain Fernando Torres couldnt do the same and apologise for not wearing a black armband.

Evered


 

 

16 Apr 2012 20:03:23
well, gotta say im very impressed with my new sky 3d channel ! just getting set to watch me first 3d game, if its good your all welcome to come and watch the fa cup final in 3d at my gaff !! including all the eds !!

scouse simon


I'll bring the wine gums


I'll bring the potty
Cp


 

 

16 Apr 2012 20:02:32
Guys, any idea when the Warrior kits will be announced/released? I'm not expecting a drastic change, but it is mildly exciting. Looking at their Lacrosse and Hockey gear, I hope it is't anything too flashy!

McAlien


A mock-up of the expected kit, verified by some who had seen/been told about it, was posted on web a while ago. It is not trashy at all.


I read online that it was going to be released on 1st June, but who knows?

Cuchulainn's Hounds


 

 

16 Apr 2012 19:52:28
As much as I love Jay Spearing's commitment and desire, I do believe that we need another commanding force in CDM. Lucas, Spearing, and....Victor Wanyama. A regular starter for Celtic, and still only 20 years old. He is going to be in high demand this summer, and I hope we will go for him. He is quicker and more mobile than his brother, McDonald Mariga.
6'2", 20 YO, Regular Celtic Starter.

What do you guys think? Eds?
Do we need another CDM given that Lucas may take a while to get back into his groove?

McAlien. {Ed001's Note - we do need another, not convinced he is the right man though.}


Ive always been fond of Gary medal tough as anything any interest Ed?

Square tomato {Ed001's Note - he would be my choice as well, he offers something completely different from anyone else in our squad. I know we have looked at Sevilla a fair bit, it kickstarted the Navas rumours a while back, but I don't know who we were watching.}


Oh really? that's positive I doubt it was for so maybe we was watching medal after all!

Square tomato {Ed001's Note - I love watching Medel, he is like a throwback to the old days. But we don't often get the players I like.}


Ye hes excellent to watch like a little firework! I was going to say we never get players you like haha..... hey if we don't get Medal I hope we don't get Javi Martinez he's nowhere near good enough ey Ed? ;)

Square tomato
{Ed001's Note - and that Llorente fella too!}


Gonalons isn't bad either. If you havent seen him, go and watch him, great defensive midfielder playing in Ligue 1. Wouldnt mind him but I shall try to watch some Medel now then, see what he's like. My word what a job it must be to be a football scout! Oh how fun that would be........
KiwiRed


I'll take a look kiwired have a look at medal you will love him.

Square tomato


Square tomato we should become the new chief scouts for Liverpool. We would fully be able to identify some top talent for a reasonable price.
KiwiRed


Ye. I doubt kiwired! I would love to be a scout.

Square tomato


 

 

16 Apr 2012 18:31:11
Daniel Rogers. {Ed002's Note - We have no interest in gossip and cannot post anything libelous Dan.}


Ok cool! just wanted to know.

Daniel Rogers.


 

 

16 Apr 2012 19:13:26
I was trying to think what our team for the FA Cup Final would be and I just have no clue kenny changes the team every week and its not really rotation is it. Maybe that's why we are so inconsistent, 40 odd weeks into the season and our manager doesn't know who his best team is...

Going for the replies here, what does everyone think our best team is?

The Liverbird


Team for the final: Reina, Kelly, skrtel, agger, Johnson, Bellamy, Gerrard, spearing, downing, Suarez, Carroll - give Chelsea something to think about rather than us picking a team to stifle them


I don't think anyone knows what the best team is because the team is as you say always changing you can't judge what you think is best if it's constantly different.one thing is definate Agger and skertl are obvious for sure.

Square tomato


Based on No Injuries

Reina
Kelly Skrtl Agger Enrique
Lucas


Providing we have a full team


Reina
Kelly Skrtel Agger Enrique

Lucas

Downing Gerrard Maxi

Suarez

Carroll


Enrique^^^
taran


Reina,Johnson,Skrtel,Agger,Enrique,Gerrard,Henderson,Downing,Bellamy,Suares,Carroll.


Reina
Johnson Skrtel Coates Enrique
Spearing Agger
Gerrard Suarez Downing
Carroll


Johnson, Skrtel, Coates, Enrique, Sterling, Gerrard, Lucas, Downing, Suarez, Carrol...B


 

 

16 Apr 2012 18:58:11
Ed, I believe we need a winger who's going to get to the byline and whip balls in, there's not that many out there but who do you like who does that sort of job? I like the look of Dries Mertens

DJS


Pedro is the answer.

McAlien


Raheem Sterling me thinks !! B


Lets just transform raheem sterling into a class player. less money involed


 

 

16 Apr 2012 18:59:27
Not a rumour more of a vent of frustration.. First off lets get real, Xabi isn't coming back anytime soon, what I wanna know is why have we not replaced Xabi adequatly ? We've wasted a serious amount of money since he left in bringing in ( £16million ?? ) Jordan Henderson ( who I've never seen have a good game for us) and Charlie Adam ( who is slower than my Nan and doesn't have the talent of Xabi's right toe !)

I don't know to this day why we don't put a serious offer in for Ever Banega ? He is young, world class, gets the passing going for Valencia and is exactly what we need..

EDS - Can you confirm if we are or ever have looked at Banega ?
Also, is KK hellbent on buying overpriced British ''talent'' like last summer ??

YNWA RJ {Ed002's Note - He is not available at this time.}


Well instead of having a hissy fit and slating our own player why don't you type Ever Banega into Google and see if you can find a reason why the club won't be buying him at this time. And i'm sure if any club does buy the player they'll send a driver for him

Now Charlie Adam wasn't playing well because he had no confidence which won't have been helped by fans not giving him a chance, and as for Henderson if you've never seen him have a good game you cant have been watching many lately because he was arguable man of the match against Blackburn, or do you just look at the goal scorers. Now obviously neither of these two are as good as Xabi but then again not many are.

always a red


No way henderson our best player d other nite , he was bypassed about 10 times by the outside left (ive never seen him do well tackling) , he had 2 runs forward n supported well when a very poor blackburn were pressing for a leveller, henderson should never start for us((hes like casper the ghost) , that shelvey is a far better player, he was playing super b4 doni seen red, he started at villa n played super aswell, dalglish plays henderson because he is justifying 16million spent and that is to the detremeant of our team, hence the poor lge form
too many passengers boughtg last summer with the exeption of enrique,
5gold stars


I agree , i am frustrated as well.....very very frustrated. whether xabi is comign or not is another matter but we have to get someone who can play Xabi's role and there many talented players there and we only need to find one ... ..............finding one means a good player and not merely a player like what we have bought henderson, adam or downing............i dont know what these players have that prompted KK to buy them.......yes in deed we have waster serious amount of money ..........buy talented players and dont just buy players with eyes closed........frustrated but happy we get into the final though


 

 

16 Apr 2012 18:49:11
In the latest ˜Secret Footballer˜ column in The Guardian, the unnamed Premier League player made some very interesting claims about which statistics are valued by Liverpool's former director-of-football Damien Comolli:

Can the fans agree that the boardroom has set down a style of play for the football club this summer and regardless of games won this season the team has tried to play that style of football.

Everyone would say you make your own luck in this game. The harder the team works the more lucky the team becomes. But the stats show that liverpool have been working very hard to improve on the pitch. They had been doing everything right on the pitch as stats go. Yet the results have not come for them since january. The stats since January seem to support Damien Comolli strategy for the type of football to be played at the football club.

What has gone wrong. Big key to our way of playing comes down to Luis Suarez. His 12 game ban has had an effect.

Squad depth. Flanagan doesn't seem to be up to the defensive challenge. Spearing, shelvey

Individual mistakes: skertel, falagan, spearing. in some games upfront: crossing quality and strikers ability to header in that ball. January transfer window: all teams need a little boost in the arm that a new face can bring. it didn't happen


 

 

16 Apr 2012 18:03:53
Thanks Red Ollie. WelshBoyDave


 

 

16 Apr 2012 17:26:37
Evening ed and fellow reds . a couple of points , great result on saturday well played boys . like to thank bluenoses for there respect to our fans and families over the weekend .and a question to the eds answer at an earliar question about no one safe at liverpool cause the owners are ruthless streak .you answered that they will do best for our club , Q. Do you believe that they will DO BEST FOR OUR CLUB OR BEST FOR THEM. cheers eds psv {Ed002's Note - It is in their best interests to do the best they can for the club.}


They've been with the Red Sox for 10 years and I haven't seen the ruthless streak. Where does this come from?

John CT


They sacked a few managers(some legends)


They didn't renew Grady Little's contract in 2004. They sacked Terry Francona after 8 years. By the way, which one was the legend?

JB


 

 

16 Apr 2012 17:15:44
Hi Eds. If it was a choice simply between David Dein or Txiki Begiristain for DoF, if both were available who would you choose? I'd go for Dein personally for a number of reasons. Second question (if you have time!). Would either (or anyone else) really make that much difference regarding player purchases, if KK has the final say on all transfers? I'm guessing that (provided integrity is a given) that the transfer prices and wages aren't going to depend that much on who the DoF is 'cause they have to ultimately pay whatever the market rate is. I appreciate your time. JimK {Ed001's Note - I don't see how Dein would be of any benefit to the club as a DoF, he is not really a football man as such. I would much rather have a man who played a huge part in the revival of Barca. It will make a huge difference, the DoF decides which players the manager gets to choose between.}


I think the Spanish Dof would be a great choice, considering the success we have had with Borrell and Seguro.I also think that Kenny should choose the type of player he wants rather than the player he wants.


I agree we should go for Tixi as him with the 2 we have now could do an amazing job, just look at how well they have done since joining we now have a very good youth set up at all levels, and now it is just a matter of time before we start blooding the youngsters.

BigD


Also with having the former Barca DoF as our new one, and with already having Segura and Borrell at the club.
Who knows in a year or so this maybe a good bargaining position in attaining Guadiola as first team coach.

Just a thought.

Jonesred


 

 

16 Apr 2012 17:09:00
A quasi-hypothetical question: How much do you think we could get for Stevie?
He's only got a few injury plagued years left, and the better ones are behind him. It seems he makes the other English lads nervous to play freely. It's added pressure they don't need. Sooner or later we're going to face the same problem that Chelsea are seeing with Lamps. The changing of the guard is always tough, but sometimes best just to tear off the bandaid, especially if there's worthy cash in it.
Secondly, if there were interest, where would it be from? Italy, Spain, USA, Indonesia?
Thanks!


I think Gerrard should play on the right. He's always been more effective there, it's physically less demanding of his body in comparison to centre.


I think Gerrard should play on the right. He's always been more effective there, it's physically less demanding of his body in comparison to centre.


Completely hypothetical question? He signed a contract extension and will be an ambassador for the club. How much we'd get for him, I don't really care, sometimes it's a case of knowing the price of everything and the value of nothing.


50 -60

Tom Red


Physically less demanding !
What a joke, he is payed 200.000 a week
he can play anywer and run about all day.
Less demanding jesus try working in a factory!


Just because he gets paid a lot doesn't mean its not physically demanding.


Gerrard's on around 130k a week, not 200k.
Indian Buzzer


 

 

16 Apr 2012 17:04:08
I think the Rasmus Elm deal sounds like a real possiblity and would jump at the chance to join us. Just guess work but realistic signings would be

Rasmus Elm-£8m
Gaston Ramirez-£12m
Roberto Soldado-£20m


 

 

16 Apr 2012 16:55:21
Hey guys. I have asked around and I can't seem to find answer,so hopefully you guys can help. With Bales goals,and Adebayor being taken out,why was Cech not booked? I'm not saying there's a conspiracy going on,it'll be a genuine rule somewhere. What I don't understand is the ref is happy to play an advantage if an outfield player is fouled,if that play results in a goal and the foul was deemed worthy the ref goes back to the player who committed the foul and gives him a yellow card. Fair enough,it seems a goal being scored is enough of a reason not to book the keeper,but my question is why be prepared to come back to an outfield player but not a keeper. Thanks. WelshBoyDave


The reason goalkeepers get sent off when they bring a striker down like that is because they are "denying a clear goalscoring opportunity". As the ball rolled straight to Bale for a tap-in, the goalscoring opportunity was not denied by Cech's foul.

Red Ollie


Yes but the last man was the opposition and therefore should have seen red


Red ollie the question was why was he not booked for the challenge what would of seen cech sent off if bale wasn't there to score, which still remains unanswered


 

 

16 Apr 2012 16:35:25
I think liverpool should sign Mario Gomez in the summer. Sores lots of goals and is only 25.


In your dreams


And why would he come to us from Bayern?

Red Ollie


Its funny because last summer or the january before, i'm sure there was agood chance of him joining. But we waited around for ages and in the end bought Carroll (if i remember rightly) -_-

E.H LFC


Its funny because last summer or the january before, i'm sure there was agood chance of him joining. But we waited around for ages and in the end bought Carroll (if i remember rightly) -_-

E.H LFC


 

 

16 Apr 2012 16:34:44
Hey Eds any idea when Lucas will be back?
Invernesian {Ed001's Note - he is due back in June. But it is possible he will fit for the last couple of games.}


Thank you
Invernesian


IMO I don't think we should risk him this season (unless he is fit for the FA Cup final), I would rather he continue his steady rehabilitation to ensure he is fully fit for next season. We've seen with Guiseppe Rossi who I think had a similar injury is again out for 6 months, we cannot afford that to happen with Lucas!

RedSG


Regarding Lucas; he will not play again this season. Even if he is cleared to train, he needs at least 2 additional months in the gym to regain the strength his left leg lost due to atrophy. ACL tears are very tricky and can recur if a player is rushed back.

I tore my ACL too and had my surgery a week before Lucas did. My rehab lasts until mid-june, after which I will have a hop-test to determine whether I can play.

Mentally it is a challenge coming back from such an injury. This is because subconsciously, your brain will overcompensate for the weaker leg by relying too much on the stronger one, putting it at risk. Also, one tends to be more reluctant to go into 50/50 challenges...this isn't a problem for attackers, but for a CDM player such as Lucas, this is key.

TL; DR: Lucas will not play again this season. How do I know? I had ACL reconstruction a week before he did, and was written off for 7 months at least.

McAlien {Ed001's Note - you are not a professional athlete in top condition though mate and everyone heals at different rates. If it was Agger, you would be talking 8-9 months out at least, because he is a very slow healer.}


Ed001, what makes you think I'm not 'professional athlete in top condition'? ;)

It is true that people heal at different rates, but as I mentioned earlier, it's about regaining the quad and calf muscles to prevent re-injury. Also, ligament grafts can be tricky. I am as optimistic as you are though.

P.S., I got injured after trying some Henry-esque move while being challeged...by a girl! So yeah, nowhere near pro status haha

Cheers,
McAlien {Ed001's Note - fingers crossed you recover fine too mate.}


 

 

16 Apr 2012 16:26:29
Does anyone read, think its ourkop? How big a person is that Kanwar guy! Utterly clueless and only cares about his opinion.

Howcouldheplay


 

 

16 Apr 2012 16:15:55
Hi everyone,

So Mr. Cryuff distancing away from the job, but I still believe FSG can convince him. How ever as I told before Txiki Begiristain is still more likely.

Very Happy to see us getting to the final, but wining is all that matters now. We must give everything till the end of season and see where we are at the end.

Eds,
So Muniain doesn't look likely with respect to you, but I want Liverpool to try and get Ola John [FC Twente] or John Lukoki [Ajax] if not Muniain, rather than Matt Philips.

What is your knowledge about these two youngsters [Ola or Lukoki]? Which clubs are interested in them are they likely to join Liverpool if we went for them?

Armando {Ed001's Note - not a lot mate, heard of them but not heard anything else.}


 

 

16 Apr 2012 16:10:17
They should put Brad Jones on the bench at Wembley not Doni after a half decent display in the semi and a lot of humility in the face of knowing Reina will be in for the final, a top bloke is Mr Jones, I applaud him for stepping in and doing a damn fine job!
YNWA JFT96 The Guv 81-9


Well said


 

 

16 Apr 2012 16:02:17
nice to here both muamba and francis both discharged from hospital
mrbrown


 

 

16 Apr 2012 15:50:39
From what I've been reading about Drenthe, its pretty much looking like his Everton days are over. The rumour is that he was dropped and fined over the weekend because he's Expressed to Moyes that he wants to sign for us instead. Im not one to believe what the tabloids say but it just makes sense for his omission from the entire squad on saturday.

Tommo


 

 

16 Apr 2012 15:25:38
hi there Ed's have you heard of any possible transfer targets thus far? Or is it too early ..
Thanks {Ed001's Note - it is too early to narrow it down yet, until offers go in, we have watched hundreds of players over the course of the season.}


 

 

16 Apr 2012 15:05:32
Tottenham or Chelsea? Each would have been a challenge. But Chelsea since Di Matteo will be the greater challenge.
The manager makes the difference.
Please keep Carragher on the bench.


I'm happy with Chelsea. We have a decent track record against them in recent years and raise our game when we play them. We have a dreadful record against Spurs in recent years.


We haven't beaten Spurs in an age and they're our bogey team. We've beaten Chelsea in all of our last four including 3 at Stamford Bridge which is supposedly a tough place to go. Trust me Chelsea are the team we should all want.

Martin


I would agree, I;d rather see chelsea. They are probably better than spurs, but the match ups look much better in this fixture than us vs spurs.


Plus the added motivation of letting T***** know who is the bigger club!

San


 

 

16 Apr 2012 14:49:14
Would you rather...

1) Play Carroll and Suarez in a 4-4-2 for the rest of the season. ( I hate this formation as we LET other teams have loads of possesion but we do seem to be able to score easier )

2) Play Maxi and Suarez as an attacking force with bellamy and downing on each wing like a 4-2-3-1

3) Play 4-3-3 with Carroll , Suarez and Bellamy

4) Stick gerrard behing suarez up top and allow Shelvey/Henderson to play cm with spearing.


353- p r/
ms / d a/ s c/

gj/ j e/
j s / spearing/ j h /
sg/ l s/ c b/
...................lfc


Thats a great question mate. I really don't know which I prefer as I haven't got the tactical nous to figure out what would work best. This shows that Kenny has options as his disposal though. Lets hope he chooses correctly for the remaining games!

Curtiss


No 2. is the best formation we play when all fit.

Reina
Johnson Skrtel Agger Enrique
Henderson Lucas
Suarez Gerrard Downing
Carroll

BigD


I think you need to run these question as 2 semi's and then a final run off: can't see how agree / disagree can be used for 4 possibilities. Eds? I would prefer Hendo AND Shelvey if you want 4) with Spearing for cover on the bench


I prefer the first option, but it is an interesting question.

Red Owl


No goal keeper then?


Reina
Johnson-Skrtel-Agger-Enrique
Henderson-Gerrard
Kuyt-Suarez-Bellamy
Carroll

Red Ollie


I always thought kenny was supposed to favour a 4-2-3-1 formation, but he doesn't seem to play it very often. I have to say I prefer Red Ollie's line up. But, at the risk of getting slated, I'd swap Gerrard for Shelvey. Maybe not in the final, but in a few league matches. Firstly, I really have liked the look of Sheley since he came back from Blackpool - he actually reminds me somewhat of a young SG, and secondly Gerrard has been sub par recently, like it or not. Still, would have him play in the final though - he seems to find that special something when it's really needed! Nick.


Reina
Kelly Skrtel Agger Johnson
Henderson Gerrard Downing
Suarez Carroll Maxi


I think its worrying that a few games before the end of the season we're still discussing what our best formation is, never mind who the best players to fill the roles are! JimK


 

 

16 Apr 2012 14:45:19
In light of the events surrounding yesterdays 'moment's' silence I thought I would just share my experience of the minute's silence prior to our semi-final on saturday. We were in the friary pub in lancaster and there was an equal mix of reds and evertonians and the minutes silence was respected impeccably. I have never heard a pub so quiet! So just a quick congratulations to everyone in the pub demonstrating that a little respect really isn't that hard to achieve. JFT96

Cheers
Greggers


 

 

16 Apr 2012 14:01:26
Just checked the CFC site on here. Deserted since around 08.00 this morning save for a LFC poem about Hillsborough. They have to come on here to say anything. Also noticed Saturday attendance higher than Sunday despite travel issues. Did you see the Spurs end go vacant towards the end?

There are no fans like LFC fans (or EFC for that matter)!


I think lfc management need to get on the ball and sit down with the F.A. to get somthing sorted out for the future to protect your special day of saddness and rememberance.there are 3 options,1.the fa wakes up and stops blowing smoke up each others ass,s and realises that there famous cup isnt more important than the european cup and will have to be scheduled accordingly taking into account the hillsbourough memorial day.2.liverpool fc play on that date while also having a memorial service with ex lfc players in attendance.3.if the F.A. a-s holes dont do the right and sensible thing then liverpool fc should tell the F.A. that if they make it through to that stage of the competition they will refuse to play if it directly hinders another clubs chances of progressing in another competition.
the hillsbough memorial day is a sad and sombre occassion and my heart goes out to all the families affected but to preserve the dignity of that day respect will also have to be given to other football clubs,twisting their arms up their back isnt the answer for anyone and statments like "there are no fans like lfc fans" is a cheap shot which will inflame other fans and make the chances of the terrible moronic behavior yesturday more likely to happen again.cheap point scoring will only make things worse


So what you are saying is that LFC are at fault for not wanting to play the game on the memorial day,which you believe made the Chelsea team Play a semi before your game with Barcelona.You can't defend the moranic fan, mate,and yes we have a lot silly fans too.The FA should of asked the teams to wear armbands and done away with the minutes silence.96 fans lost their lives watching the FA Cup semi final,so to me the FA cup does mean something.I wonder by your use of words, that you will blame the FA if that inferior team Barcelona Knock you out of that greater competition.
Micheal Mouse


Everton end emptied pretty sharpish on Saturday as well

Red Ollie


I am certainly NOT chelsea fan and i find it unbelievable after reading my post you accuse me of defending the minority chelsea moronic fans.the fact remains after all the effort chelsea have put in over the season chelsea have been put in a very disadvantaged position through no fault of there own.there is no excuse for their fans behaviour,but that is the very reason why their fans behaved as they did.this is defo going to happen again and other fans regretable will react as the chelsea fans have.would it not be wiser for the sake of the families involved in the tragedy,to try and prevent the likes of that horrible situation yesturday rather than f--k youse!like it or lump it! attitude.and to suggest wearing black armbands with no minutes silence as a way of quetening them is somthing you would hear about happening in a totalitarian tin pot dictatorship.as some of your posters today have mentioned,its a liverpool thing and you cant expect other supporters to feel the same.i made a few suggestions there may be better ideas,if the F.A twist clubs arms up their backs on behalf of liverpool fc which is effectivly what they are doing,that will breed resentment amongst other fans.as ive said i am not a chelski fan.but there is no way they should have been playing on sunday evening 3 days before a champions league semi and yes its cl before fa cup 7 days a week for me mate.just speak to the fa for your sake and everyone elses sake to prevent the likes of yesturday happening again.unless you want to annoy other supporters and clubs mate,well then thats a completly different story altogether.


If it wasn't for the fact that semi's need to be played at Wembley to pay the debt, both games could have been played on the Saturday, 1 at wembley the other at the Millenium.

Big Bill


 

 

16 Apr 2012 13:58:16
IN
Gaston Ramirez
Hector Herrera
Rasmus Elm
Luuk De Jong

OUT
Maxi Rodriguez
Dirk Kuyt
Alberto Aquilani
Joe Cole
Alexander Doni


Who the hell are they?! (minus de Jong)


 

 

16 Apr 2012 13:40:31
Hi guys i took a sabbatical from this site but i thought id make my return and share my thoughts on the unreal scenes at wembley yesterday. Firstly the minority of chelski fans are an absolute joke. The sort of idiots who read the s*n and get collected on a special bus every morning. Despite this you can fall into the trap of tarring them all with the same brush.
In my view the FA should take a close look at this and weed out all the plebs found responsible. I think the saying goes what goes around come around and by god it will hit them like a brick wall. In my opinion it is the equal of racism and is absolutely deplorable. 96 innocent people killed and yet some retards find it acceptable to mock their downfall.
A great result saturday and cannot wait to give them a good kicking in the final.

Thanks for reading guys and good to be back

YNWA JFT96

LFC94


Yes Chelsea is a club with a rich historical tradition of having a liberal and progressive culture. Chelsea fans have been a bulwark during the 80s against racism and far right extremism. I applaud the majority of Chelsea fans who stood firm against Thatcherism and carried the banner for multi culturalism when it was less than popular in the wider football world.

Chelsea are a wonderful example and great club.

Sorry I think I mentioned the wrong club!


Read Steve Parker's comment about this a little below this posting. Good point about why it isn't really that important for us to expect other fans to grieve with us. As for the FA weeding out fans - Christ! They can't even find an official who can judge if a ball has crossed a line! {Ed001's Note - if you are going to big up your own posts, at least sign it SP!}


Yeah m8 i agree altho now a think it would be better for us just to respect those 96 angels in our own games.and not expect our rivals to do the same,i personally think the scum fans would of been no better if they had mention the 96, hence the reason they only mentioned morosini.
the reality is there are still alot of sick people in crowds at matches and its the familys of the lost feel the pain more wen these idoits go on this way.
we are lfc and we stand alone and us yes us alone will get justice for the 96 and will remember them because we are lfc.
just a quick shout out to memphis fc in liverpool under12s team 60 lads 11yrs old took to the field on sunday morning for a minutes silence and not a word u could here a pin drop.its nice tht the next generation are also in support and will never forget the 96. YNWA JFT96
mrbrown {Ed001's Note - you call them scum and then expect them to respect you. Until you start treating them with respect, you have no right to expect respect in return.}


Great post Steve Parker!
SP
:)


Busted!

Ash


Nice one Ed!


That does my head in Ed mate, people doing that. On another note, that Blair Mayne fairly knows his sh!t. And writes some very interesting stuff.

B***r M***e YNWA JFT96 {Ed001's Note - this is clearly not Blair Mayne, even he knows that he knows nothing! ;o)}


Busted SP


Absolutely brilliant.... ha


Ed1 hahaahah


Fair enough ed001 but i dont want respect of the mancs in football terms,on personal terms i have family tht live there
mrbrown {Ed001's Note - without respect you have hatred, with respect you have rivalry.}


Great stuff Ed lol

Blair Mayne YNWA JFT96


You really are a piece of work steve parker..you now want autonomy on grieving for the 96. how about the everton fans who,s family friends and relations were part of the tragedy?..not to mention all decent football fans who visit anfield from all over the country to pay their respects. as the everton editor i really take umbrage with your self righteous comments, so in future please keep your opinions to yourself...idiot...yours ED025.. {Ed001's Note - this is the guy who thinks it is time for Liverpool to stop boycotting the S*n! You can't really expect better.}


....and no one minds the original posters slagging off disabled people..Nice. JimK


Just had to reply to JFT96 POST. Firstly Iam not a Chelsea fan I am a Toon fan .Can I just say congratulations to Liverpool for makeing the F.Acup final ,I thought you and Everton played a great entertaining game.You did us a big favor too regards Europe so cheers. Right back to my point ,re JFT96 POST.You state that the Chelsea fans were Idiots and retards who get on a special bus in the mornings! and their actions are equal to racism !. As someone who is the mum and carer of a lad with special needs who gets on a SPECIAL BUS each day I find your remarks extremely offensive .Chelsea fans behaved with no class or respect yesterday but so have you today.Their actions were in no way racist just insulting and to suggest otherwise is foolish and denegates real racism . I and many other fans Iam sure hope you get justice for the families of the 96 ,but please remember to think about who YOU may be insulting befor you write a post . By the way I was on your site to post Congratulations. K


Can I also just say all the use of the word "retard" as an insult is deplorable. please don't use that kind of language, people who do are ignorant and have no idea of disabilities, I majored in studying disabilities so your language is just plan offensive, even if you don't mean it to be it is.


"You really are a piece of work steve parker..you now want autonomy on grieving for the 96. how about the everton fans who,s family friends and relations were part of the tragedy?..not to mention all decent football fans who visit anfield from all over the country to pay their respects. as the everton editor i really take umbrage with your self righteous comments, so in future please keep your opinions to yourself...idiot...yours ED025.. {Ed001's Note - this is the guy who thinks it is time for Liverpool to stop boycotting the S*n! You can't really expect better.}"

Not sitting back with this sort of stuff flying about without substance:

1. This is NOT the guy who wants Liverpool to stop boycotting the newspaper you are too shy in mentioning. Quote me the line where I said that - I said people had the right in Liverpool to make up their own minds. Facts not fiction.
2. I am a Scouser and a Liverpool fan for more than 49 years. I also believe that asking other fans to respect the 96 is asking for something they may not want to do. That was the point - so explain to me what forces you to take umbrage. Your phrase "autonomy for the grieving" makes little sense either in a grammatical or factual way.
SP {Ed001's Note - quote you? Do you really think I can be bothered to look for a line from one of your ramblings? You clearly stated that it was time to move on, I can clearly remember telling you that it was not your place to tell anyone when it was time to move on and that it is up to the families to make that decision. Please don't try to weasel out of it, you did say it and you ended up leaving the site for a while because of the stick you took over it.}


{Ed001's Note - quote you? Do you really think I can be bothered to look for a line from one of your ramblings?

If you can't be bothered then it suggests you either can't find the purported line or you're simply lying. I think you're lying and I challenge you to reprint any line where I suggested that.
SP {Ed001's Note - it suggests no such thing. What it suggests is I don't enjoy reading your conceited and pathetic rambles as much as you get off on talking about them. I have far better things to do with my time than search for a line in one of your mind numbing essays. Making false accusations, coming from a guy who has previously been blocked for pathetic abuse of us editors and posting under numerous different names pretending to be other people, doesn't really hold much water. I would suggest you apologise for lying about others, but you will no doubt just post more abuse and then pretend it must be the same IP because you are in an internet cafe and someone else must just happen to be posting from there using the same IP (which incidentally doesn't happen anyway as they get individual IP addresses). Why don't you just go back to posting your tedious rambling posts and trying to big them up to everyone in your nameless replies on other posts?}


Is Steve Parker really Alan Davies? Just another guy who needs to voice / write an opinion on something which he obviously knows F#ck all about. Well dealt with Ed.
Ultra Ref


Jesus Ed001! And I thought I was the only one you despise!

Ash {Ed001's Note - I have nothing against you personally. Arguing with you is totally different from disliking you.}


Live you too Ed. Its all fun and games! I'm sure there'll be more arguing further down the line!

Ash {Ed001's Note - be no fun if we all agreed, which is why I end up having to play devil's advocate at times.}


I like you ed001. So does he normally post under SP because i've always seen him post as Steve Parker? Weird...
KiwiRed {Ed001's Note - he signs off as both. And thank you!}


You are most welcome. I like your rebuttals and how you manage to shoot fools down. Have you ever thought of becoming a lawyer?
KiwiRed


 

 

16 Apr 2012 13:38:49
If alonso did become available I would think he'd jump ag the chance to play for liverpool again!


I think Alonso could return in the future. However he is likely to be in the twilight of his career if he did

LFC94


Maybe a bellamy style signing in a couple of seasons? Wud do the likes of suso a world of good to learn from him.
Indian Buzzer


Even in his hey day he can take a pen, free kick and cross the ball better than Charlie boy

MJ


 

 

16 Apr 2012 13:32:17
ed i noticed the last 2 days none of my posts have been posted can you enlighten me pls i will leave my email address
mrbrown {Ed001's Note - I have defo posted a couple of things you sent in myself, so you must have just missed them.}


Ok cheers ed001


 

 

16 Apr 2012 13:10:46
Is royston drenthe, joining liverpool?


I sincerely hope not. I would gladly give up an arm to ensure we dont sign him

LFC94


I work with an everton season ticket holder and he told me, theres no chance he will come to us because he likes he party lifestyle to much always turning up for training smelling of beer


 

 

16 Apr 2012 13:10:44
ED please help I keep hearing this "money ball" concept and I have no idea what it is could you please explain - McMenemy {Ed001's Note - there is no such thing in football at all. It is falsely used to describe using statistical analysis of the game to decide tactics and player recruitment. Fat Scam has used them for years to work out where to place players in dead ball situations.}


 

 

16 Apr 2012 13:08:16
Blue nose here.please go and beat Chelsea .
Jft96
jab


 

 

16 Apr 2012 13:03:34
Just watched post match interviews from our FA semi win on youtube. Brad Jones is a top drawer lad. For him to say he knows Pepe is the top man and that he's happy that Pepe gets to play in another final is a huge sign of the man's respect and humility. I am a proud LFC fan and proud Aussie.

LIVERPRES


Absolutely agree, Brad Jones is a hero

LFC94


 

 

16 Apr 2012 12:41:09
blue24/7 wherever you are mate don't be a stranger, after all banter is banter and you cracked it over the last few weeks, you got some of us reds really at it,and there is still the pl position to play for, so c/mon dont slack now ;~)

Upperparlycarly


 

 

16 Apr 2012 12:31:39
Hi Ed,

Was there a minutes silence in remembrance for Hillsborough at Old Trafford yesterday, I thought they only did a minutes silence for the Italian footballer who died on Saturday?
{Ed001's Note - there was a decision made to not do the minute's silence at Old Trafford due to the fear of the same kind of idiots ruining it as did so at Wembley. It is probably for the best, the upset caused to the families when it is ruined far outweighs anything they would gain from it being observed.}


There are too many silences and expressions of sympathy at football matches for people to become really involved with them. It feels like there is something to be remembered each week. I think it needs to be done and yet with so many of them perhaps they have just lost their meaning? It's a little bit the dragging of small kids out on to the field before the match: apart from Germany where the players take an interest in the kids and make them turn round and wave at the fans, here it's a 'pain in the ass' for players (or so it comes across thus) and worthless.
As for remembering the 96 - maybe we should be remembering them and not expecting anyone else to do so? It may be that our expectations of other fans supporting a silence or memorial are not achievable? I don't believe in this 'football family' stuff so I don't think other fans will be that concerned with our memorials. Better we make out own silent thoughts count rather than ask the 'football world' to walk with us.
SP


Are you forgetting that the minutes silence was also for Piermario Morosini who died only hours earlier?
Minutes silence should be respected by all at all times. There can never be any excuse not to

Chris in Tamworth


 

 

16 Apr 2012 12:26:43
Predictions for the final lads, cant see anything other than a 3 or 4 -1 to us, its an achievement in itself for you lot to get to the Final, dont be too disheartened when you lose, keep your heads up and pat eachother on the backs, another season treading water in the Prem, a couple of nice days out, win win for you lot

SHED END


Haven't we beaten you four times in a row over the last two seasons, including three at the bridge itself?


Completely baffled by this post as Liverpool have won most of their recent meetings and have a history of knocking Chelsea out of competitions, obviously quite a dillusional fan.

Anfield Andy


Are you sure your first name is shed? Or should it be bell?

Either way, jog on sonny. We'll do our talking after the 5th.

The Robin


Lol shed end you loser, Chelsea are going to batter you off the park within the first half.

5-0 Chelsea is gonna be the score, they beat Tottenham who are MUCH better than liverpool.

I love how Liverpool fans moan and groan all season at the state of their position in the league. Yet they win the mickey mouse cup and get to fa cup final and automatically think theyre gonna batter a Chelsea team newly restored with confidence.

Get real. Your gonna finish the season in the bottom half of the table, with only the mickey mouse cup to smile at. You'll become what we call a "cup team" who may get the odd good run in a cup but no longer challenge for the top 4.

Your a dire, dire team that is so hypocritical its unreal. You call Ashley Young for diving, yet you have Andy Carroll who dives when there is no contact, Stevie G who is reknown for diving. And the dirty scumbag that is Luis Suarez who dives as he trips over his OWN feet.


Title #20 for MUFC, Mickey Mouse cup for you ;), FA Cup for Chelski.

MUFC_TIL_I_DIE


I'll just copy & paste this wee post! Just in case I need it for future reference!

The Irish Rover


Hey MUFC_TILL_I_DIE!

How can we take your tirade seriously when you don't have the intelligence to realise that Shed End is a Chav!

Tsk Tsk.......remember your first dime bar? DIME bar??

The Robin

Task


You do tht irish and wen all 3 of his predictions are wrong then we lfc will have the last laugh ynwa jft96
mrbrown


MUFC, pipe down you mug im a Chelsea fan, we dont want any allies in the likes of you,

Sorry Anfield Andy, i forgot you have a history, maybe you should remind people more, havent heard the 5 times in a few days.

Robin, we'll see mate, make sure you trim your moustache so i can hear you moaning at the ref loud and clear

SHED END


MUFC TILL I DIE just about sums up Man U supporters.......Can't even see that Shed (or Bell) is a Chelsea supporter!

Class example of how to make yourself look completely stupid


MUFC won't post on here for a while so embarrassed for him/her or it


Lads, let's not bother making a fight out of this, we can do our talking after the 5th. As for MUFC Till I die, really not worth you talking mate, calling us hypocritical is hypocritical in it's own right...

maka


Liverpool and Chelsea games are usually close so I don't see a blowout in the scoreline as SHED END and MANC_TIL_HE_DIES suggest. Hopefully both teams put a good show on and Torres doesn't score the winner - just would leave a bad taste. Wouldn't be surprised to see it go to Pens - hope not, because our track record this season is woeful from the spot.

LIVERPRES


 

 

16 Apr 2012 12:15:39
Before saturday Everton-Its our time.After game-We were inexperienced.More excuses for the bitter backlog they pocess


 

 

16 Apr 2012 11:56:49
Why do I get the feeling we are going to beat Chelsea in the final?


Because we have a 2-0 record against them this season going into the game


Because Liverpool fans are diluded

SHED END


Because since Kenny took over last year we are yet to lose to the plastics


Learn to spell SHED.
KJS


'diluded'

Another example of Chelsea and their uneducated fan base.

How very clever of you to come on here and try to be clever then misspell the punchline. Yesterday the world of football mocked your fans for their total lack of respect and today i mock your ability to spell.
Just be realistic, it's a 50/50 game on the day which either team could win. Usually it's won with a bit of luck or moment of genius. That's 2 things you've already experienced in the semi final with Mata and Drogba's goals. As Lampard said these things even out over the course of the season. Maybe it's our turn.....

s.p


Because steve clark knows that team inside out lol


 

 

16 Apr 2012 11:48:13
Liverpool supporters traveling to Wembley for the FA Cup final on 5 May face more transport misery after it emerged only three trains will run between Merseyside and London on the day. Scheduled engineering work between Crewe and Warrington has prompted Virgin Trains to cancel the majority of its Lime Street to London Euston services on the day. All three of the services that are running leave before 0800 BST with the match due to kick-off at 1715.

Just a little heads up for the lucky one's who get to go, yet another headache for us but we will get there no matter what.

Danny


Alternative way to travel by train - go to Watford Junction via Wolverhampton and catch train to Wembley Central- 15 minute walk to ground from there.


Go to Watford yes, but catch the Metropolitan Line to Wembley Park, which is only a minutes walk.


 

 

16 Apr 2012 11:20:59
Dutch maestro Johan Cruyff has responded to recent speculation linking him with a role at Liverpool. "I see my name is being mentioned in connection with Liverpool," he told Dutch newspaper De Telegraff. "I don't know where that has come from, because I have not heard anything from them. There has been no contact whatsoever. If you just read speculation like this, without any substance to it, there is no point taking it seriously. It is just talk."

Danny


 

 

16 Apr 2012 11:15:04
Just like to say well done to Chelsea fc for coming out and condemning a proportion of there person fans for disrespecting the minuets silence. Hope they never have to endure a day when there loved ones don't return home from a football match.
ynwa the 96
Camo924


When we go to wembley , please show a bit of class by giving appreciation to our ex players , look at the way ajax fans sang ynwa for louis when he went back to say goodbye and the way athletico fans used to come to anfield with their club colours on and el nino flags.
lets show our true sportsmanship and they will know what they are missing.
it will show the world that we are fab supporters, and our ex players did give their all when they had the red shirt on. do not be bitter there are too many of that type of "fan" around .red mick tag


 

 

16 Apr 2012 11:14:25
Moring Eds
Would if you answer a question for me. Could Liverpool wear next seasons kit in the FA Cup final? A mate of mine says that representatives of Warrior will be coming across with Henry and Warner for the game and that this is the first time we see the kit.

Can they do this or do kits have to be registered with the FA and they can't be chnaged or altered through the season

thanks

RedDAn

l {Ed002's Note - Kits do have to be registered but it will depend on the contract with Adidas. It is more likely that the last home game will see the new kit.}


When is it going ot be shown ed? {Ed001's Note - it will depend on when they think it will have the most impact, probably during the build up to the cup final I would think.}


I work for the Soccer schools and We are receiving our kit for the "June 1st switch-over" as it was called. I cant see them wearing it myself to be honest.

Tommo


 

 

16 Apr 2012 10:45:20
Hi Eds and posters, do the rumours and reports of Txiki Begiristain being considered for the DoF role have any substance?

I read many moons ago that Man City wanted former Barca President Ferran Soriano to replace Garry Cook, and with the owners statements about Ian Ayre's "His charge is to raise revenue so that we can put the resources into strengthening our football club." Could it be possible that we could look to bring in both Soriano and Begiristain with Ayre reprising his former role?

It would certainly be exciting if such a thing could happen, and pave the way in a few years for the dream manager in Pep Guardiola to come in! (I emphasize dream!)

RedSG {Ed002's Note - Begiristain yes, Soriano no.}


 

 

16 Apr 2012 10:21:52
" Breathing in HD with John Henry"

To save anyone who finds anything longer than three lines boring and hard to follow - bye. This is just a Monday ramble through some views and ideas and none of them really going anywhere - so ..... no bitching as you won't be reading any further will you?

There are not that many posters who know much about football on this site. After all, how many suggested we recruit the great managers such as AVB, Owen Coyle and the wonderfully dour Bielsa? In 2009 one of the greatest films 'in the history of all time' was "American Pie"! "Citizen Kane," and "Schindler's List," even "Gone with the Wind" didn't get a look in, all films pushed aside by other greats such as "Superbad" and "Transformers."

Truth is, when it comes to these sorts of polls it's only the younger generations that vote, hence the lack of what we would call 'real' greats. Same with footballers and managers: the 'greatest players in the whole history of time for ever and ever' are Messi and Ronaldo or some other flavour of the year. Pele? Who he? Cruyff? Who he? Best? Irish bloke innit! To me it's the same with managers.

This isn't going anywhere save to say that fantasy has its limitations. As far as I know, until the owners make their final decision this month (my view) then KK will continue as manager until the new DoF arrives - and that seems more likely to be van Gaal as I mentioned last week than the great Johan. Throw in names as you see them on the web and hear them from others in the pub, but suspension of reality will have taken place by that stage. Owen Coyle? Christ! Imagine the LFC press conferences with him trying to control those teeth after losing to Wolves!

Saturday was a dull affair for the most part save for the last 20 minutes when we exploded across Wembley. Suarez and Carroll seemed to work for the first time in my eyes. SG was a little off the pace and I was surprised but relieved at Agger on the left - not sure he was that pleased. I have wondered for a few months if Carragher sweeping behind a tight Skrtel and Agger would work? Lucas is needed to settle the defensive part of the midfield down, even if Spearing and Henderson did sparkle at times. Oh and how impressive to have the elusive Tommy Steele and "M" (Dame Judes) as Everton fans! Roll out John Bishop (another flavour of the month) and where was Damien Lewis or Jason Isaacs?

The second semi-final was 'marred' according to some radio commentators by the jeers and chants during the minute's silence. It was a bit of fantasy to expect Spurs and Chelsea fans to behave like Mersyside did on Saturday. Reality bites. My own view is that there have been so many minutes of silence for so many games recently that it can be seen as commonplace and 'silence fatgue' has set in. Sad to think that is the case, but as with the above, some generations don't follow the rules others set or expect.

Finally football: I wonder if 12 months down the line we will come to realise that our LFC game has changed and that we play European football with an American business method driving the club forward? Sort of thing that will creep up on us and not be realised. I'm quite excited by the behind the scenes changes and looking forward to seeing this 'business model' based on Barca(?) come into operation.

Before I go - the BBC has still not come back to explain why we have golf on the radio but not snooker. I would also like to ask when the FA will finally get round to asking Martin Atkinson how (when he was in an almost perfect sightline of the goal line) he missed the 'non goal.' Answer: nothing to do with fans!

Not one to shy away from controversy ..... I keep reading through some of Paul Tomkins stuff and it isn't as scholarly as I expected. Having said that, it is wonderfully entertaining site and I like his views. What I find interesting is that he doesn't follow the LFC line completely.

Off to the library in between work to grab a copy of "Prague Fatale" by Philip Kerr and wonder if die Bayern will beat Madrid 3-1 in Munich next in the CL final? More to the point - do we need Drenthe when we got Downing?

Steve Parker


Who's got the short version please?


Sp,nice,its refreshing to read a well ballanced pragmatic view.unfortunatly your in the minority on this page,its useually full of bitterness,hatred and bile
well done steve


Nice post SP as it just wanders across some pionts. Like the bit about snooker on the radio. Thats true and why is golf special then? Can't understand the anonymous poster asking for the short version as SP says in the first few lines not to bother if your stupid!!


"It was a bit of fantasy to expect Spurs and Chelsea fans to behave like Mersyside did on Saturday"

By all accounts it appears it was just Chelsea fans responsible for the chants, and most other grounds observed the silence impeccably, so I don't think it was a bit of a fantasy.

Other than that an interesting read as always

RedSG


I agree with some of your gripe about younger generations (naturally of course) thinking that the players they have first hand experience of are 'the greatest of all time' rather than the greatest of their era, but I don't see that any of that is relevant to posters spouting guff about which manager they would like to see at LFC.


I'm 25 years old so if you were to ask me about the greatest players of all time my answer would simply be "Leo messi" as he has smashed every record around.. It has nothing to do with being younger... I speak to people in work and they say things like "you never seen maradona" but how much would the older generation really see of him? There was no coverage of Italian football like there is of Spanish and Italian today, you would see him at the world cup for 6 games a year.... The best players I have seen in my life is messi Zindane both ronaldo's, this does not mean I would put them as the greatest 4 ever, I have only seen pele and the other greats in documentaries and YouTube clips.

To say all younger people haven'tuch knowledge about who should be manager or players to buy by your logic is damn right dumb.


Not meant to follow on; I've stated so often that my ramblings are just that - meandering through the wastelands of my mind. Not official, not definitive, not to most tastes and not above criticism .... although to do so is futile as I've no interest in posters aying it's boring. What's the point of that? Read, comment or just ignore. It's a bit like the bore in the pub saying he doesn't like lager. And ...... ?
SP


"I'm 25 years old so if you were to ask me about the greatest players of all time my answer would simply be "Leo messi" as he has ...."

A reasonable point but the essence of my comment is not only what you state - and to which I agree - but the hype that promotes many 'great' players.
I saw Pele and George Best live and Pele was okay,while Best was magical and inventive (at times) and lazy at others.
The best example is the man I constantly bore you with - Cruyff. Being great is one thing as you play in a team with other good players, but Cruyff invented, created, devised, showed and displayed things we had rarely seen from any player before in the 70s. He produced drag backs and turns, flicks and feints that even now are being used and admired. In my mind it was that part of his game that elevated him far above the players I see now. Gerrard runs more powerfully than JC did; Rooney scores more often than JC did; Messi flicks and darts, scores and excites more than JC did, but Cruyff was the man who showed me that you could be European and not have a single name that ended in a vowel to be a magician.
I hate the 'greatest of all time' as time hasn't ended yet! When that book is written I will be staggered if Cruyff is not in that top five.
SP


I'm 44 Steve and I enjoy your posts and usually make you right but I do think Messi is the best I've ever seen, before him my favourite was Zidane. Not all things were better in the good old days.
My favourite film however does come from the good old days and that's In The Heat Of The Night. (followed by Ice Cold In Alex)

Chris in Tamworth


Chris - I seem to be responding to postings I have made today where people reading them are not reading into the words what I said. Here is a case in point; I simply said Cruyff was my top man. I also said polls on the greatest reflected current players. The two are not directly linked, but I have never said anything was better in the old days. P.S. Your choice of films is pants! :)
SP


 

 

16 Apr 2012 09:50:33
i do not want drenthe from everton hes a loud mouth and if murinho (spelling) cant keep him under control no way can kenny, he looses the ball too much and doesnt track back all he has is a powerful strike.
PLAY MAXI DONT SIGN DRENTHE !


 

 

16 Apr 2012 09:45:10
There is something bodering me that i will like to share with my fellow mates.I have come to notice that our players mind were made up for the cup competitions this season thus the poor performances in the league.What do you guys think.


Kenny played our best 11 in the Cups mate but not in the league. That's the reason why I think we've done so well in the Cups. But not so good in league.

Blair Mayne YNWA JFT96


 

 

16 Apr 2012 09:27:14
hi eds
just wanna comment on the poem writtin in maccas rumour page . i think its a fantastic piece of work,
very dave kirby like. brilliant,
fagan81


 

 

16 Apr 2012 09:03:27
Moneyballl.....

No idea what it is. No care to know what it is.

Buy a player for these few reasons:

1; He wants to play for the shirt.

2; He isn't best friends with the treatment table.

3; He's a good player.

Apologies if this sounds a tad "outdated" or I've missed something out.

But hey, what do I know?!

Tristan


I think it is completely unrealistic to only want players that 'play for the shirt'. I just want professionals with integrity that pay for their massive salaries! They are just employees like anyone else, the only difference is we are fans and not just customers, so maybe have unrealistic desires to see genuine passion for the shirt.


 

 

16 Apr 2012 08:51:15
Is 'deluded' the 'in' football word?

Am I being deluded in suggesting that?

Two more shiney ones in the cabinet this year boys 'n' girls!!

DaveyBootle (a deluded red)


Not deluded but jumping the gun a tad mate.

cozinoz


 

 

16 Apr 2012 08:46:44
Hey ed, in regards to the next DOF, are they going to have the same sort of responsibilities as Comolli had, or is the position likely to be altered somewhat from what Comolli done?

DownUnderRed. {Ed001's Note - there is likely to be a very similar set up, it is more about finding the right man for the position, rather than altering the position to suit a man.}


 

 

16 Apr 2012 08:25:41
Several Dutch based media and some wild rumour going about that Drenthe was left out Everton, because the club found out that he was trying to negotiate a move to Liverpool.


I would not want him he ain't exactly set everton alight has he and i think £80,000 a week wage will be spent better else where..

BigD


 

 

16 Apr 2012 06:03:49
Something I read over the last few days in relation to Comolli was a quote of his saying his statistical approach to signing players leans heavily towards those who are rarely injured. Perhaps this explains our refusal to sign any players with real pace recently - faster players usually get injured more

Red Ollie


 

 

16 Apr 2012 03:15:23
Ed how many games is pepe reina suspended for? {Ed002's Note - Three.}


Ed How many more? {Ed001's Note - http://www.thefa.com/thefa/disciplinary/suspensionlists you can check out suspensions for yourself this way.}


 

 

16 Apr 2012 03:11:52
if charlie adam comes out of injury lets give him a year more. the only problem that i find from him is that he gets carried away too easily and looses his focus. compare him wid henderson, henderson might be the future but charlie adam is playin better then him for sure. so lets give him another year,i really find charlie adam a great player after all that has happened, he just needs time.


redh0t


Allright Charlie, you can go home to Rangers reserves now.


Adam form dipped badly after Lucas was injured.When Lucas returns you will see a better Charlie Adam.He needs to operate in a roaming position,not a holding midfielder.

Baz F


R u joking? Adam is is nowhere near good enough for us. We need a technically better playmaker with pace and better tackling. Someone like strootman, or hernanes.
Indian Buzzer


Someone not playing for teams about to be relegated.


 

 

16 Apr 2012 02:44:53
Would people agree that Rafa is no where near the manager he was in 2005. He wouldn't be able to do it again at Liverpool.

The game has moved on so much since he has been out of football. Its like wanting Kenny to come in and expecting the 80's.


Please explain to me how the game has moved on since...?? Dont mention the money part
JayB


Have a better chance with Rafa back than Kenny, who still thinks its the 80's. Bookies have kenny and mcleish as least favourites for manager of the year, easy to see why really.


Have a better chance with Rafa back than Kenny, who still thinks its the 80's. Bookies have kenny and mcleish as least favourites for manager of the year, easy to see why really....
that explains nothing!?!?
JayB


 

 

16 Apr 2012 01:04:56
Ed's,can anyone confirm who did and didnt wear the black armbands in the chelsea spurs game? I didnt see the game but people are saying torres or terry or lampard didnt wear them but that the rest did? if this is true i wouldnt be hugely suprised by terry,and prob lampard but if the rest wore them and torres chose not to then he's an even lower grade of a human being than i thought after leaving us and saying we were a small club,thats stomach turning to think a player once loved by us fans would do such a thing even after leaving the club.I actually really hope it aint true. {Ed001's Note - I didn't notice who was or wasn't wearing an armband, but the subs, which Torres was one of, only put armbands on when they come on. It could simply have been an oversight.}


I was more concerned and upset by the failure of some of the fans to respect the silence.

Red Owl


I would assume Torres as an oversight, he would not do that deliberately... he just would not.


 

 

15 Apr 2012 23:44:52
Looks like Luis is staying,

"Yes, yes I will continue at Liverpool
," he said. "It is obvious I will continue. I have four years left on my contract and I am very happy and content to be here and I hope good things continue."
Asked about the fall-out from his eight-match ban, SuĂĄrez said: "I am over that. Obviously the important thing was the support from all the people and there is no need to talk about that as it is already in the past.
"Obviously one has to be used to all this. A lot of things happen in football. It's difficult and it's complicated but you have to deal with it."
Suårez's family were at Wembley to see his equalising goal against Everton
.
"My joy was for my wife and my daughter and my sister and niece who came from Uruguay and my father-in-law who came from Barcelona," SuĂĄrez said.
"They made a huge effort to be here so my joy was for all the sacrifices they make for me not to mention of course the sacrifices by all the people from Liverpool and all the support they've given us despite not having good moments in recent times."


Love that guy - YNWA Luis


 

 

15 Apr 2012 23:32:29
RE:Moneyball Statistics and Damien Comolli the true manager of liverpool football club.

http://tomkinstimes.com had a great follow up article from the guardian article on moneyball statistics. Now if I'm buying players as DM because of the way they play. Then I would want them to play the way I want them to play the team to get the results from the players I recruited to do that job.

So would that mean that Damien Comolli ran this season in football. He choose the starting 11 players.

The whole idea would be to buy the fewest players that could get the right results.

1 Carrol. Gets Headers in on goal very well
2 Luis Suarez. Great final third ball interception, doesn't get injured, makes important Assists.
3. Downing. Makes alot of Crosses
4. Adams. Makes alot of passes, Cross in to key areas.
5. Henderson. Final third ball interception.
6. Gerrard. His stats show he can cross the ball from the right.
7. LBK Enrique. Good crosses, final balls that lead to goals.
8. cbk. Agger if its not broke dont fix it.
9. cbk. Skrtel. strong cbk
10 RBK. G Johnson now the stats say rbk has under-performed this season for the amount money they pay him. Although a year earlier he would of been one of our best players alot with other CBK's
11. Renia

So maybe Kenny made some changes with the lineup a little. Playing Gerrard in the Center of the pitch, put a spanner in the works.

Final Third inceptions, seem to be lower than they should be. So the team is not pressing the play like they did last season. higher pressing would increase final third inceptions. We would be like barca, man utd.


Because you can't buy players on stats or on philosophy of playing, if you don't then play that way.

The Bill Bean (brad Pitt Vs Fat Dude (hoffman) who was the manager in the baseball club. In the end the manager has to bend over and let the football direct do as he wants to the team.

2 cooks ruined the both.

So would the fans agree that Kenny Dalglish. That the attacking good play last season was more his style of play.

Does this now make Dalglish a ticking time bomb for the owners of the football club because while im under-management at the club. I'll keep my mouth shut and talk to the media like good little boy.

soon as KK gets sacked he would retire from football and move into media role again. in the end the truth will come out. Tell the fans the truth about moneyball being played at the football club. That you can't blame a manager who really gave up the style of play to Damien Comoilli.


(Statistics correct up to and including matches played on 8th April 2011. Stats sourced from EPLIndex.)

In the latest ˜Secret Footballer˜ column in The Guardian, the unnamed Premier League player made some very interesting claims about which statistics are valued by Liverpool's former director-of-football Damien Comolli:

At Liverpool Comolli has relied more heavily on the so-called Moneyball philosophy (which, irritatingly, has also infiltrated my club), which argues, among other things, that a team that wins more than 40 headers, or crosses the ball more than 30 times or makes 12 regains in the final third, will nearly always win.

I found this information fascinating, as it is (to my knowledge at least) the first set of hard numbers regarding Moneyball and its potential influence upon recruitment and tactics that have made it out from behind closed doors and into the wider world. (Moneyball seems to be the term given to statistical analysis of any kind these days, whether or not it fits into what the actual Moneyball baseball philosophy was. For this piece, I will refer to it as such, simply because the Secret Footballer uses it.)

If it has infiltrated the Secret Footballer's club then it's reasonable to assume that he knows what he's talking about, even if he doesn't appear to be a fan himself.

Whilst the data for number of headers won is sadly not available to me, I have been able to compile figures both for crossing and final third regains (which I will refer to as FTRs) to attempt to establish if the Secret Footballer speaks the truth about the match-winning numbers, and also to try to ascertain how much influence Comolli had at Anfield.

Having read the above theory that the target for FTRs is twelve per match, I was disappointed to see that Liverpool have yet to achieve that at all this season (the 0-0 draw at Anfield with Tottenham Hotspur saw this season's best performance on this metric, with nine). The Reds' average of 3.31 per match also seemed hugely underwhelming.

Until I looked up the figures for the rest of the Premier League that is; whilst a long way short of the supposed figure of twelve required to potentially win a game, it turns out that Liverpool have the highest number of FTRs per match in the division.

The Secret Footballer may perhaps have his figures for this particular metric wrong, or perhaps twelve FTRs is a much harder target to achieve per match than thirty crosses or forty headers, but it certainly appears to be a statistic of interest to Comolli as the Reds are currently the best team at it.

Unfortunately the figures are only available for this season, so there are only twenty sets of data for the following graph, but the correlation between points-per-game and FTRs-per-game does appear to justify Comolli's stance:

As with quite a few things this season (woodwork hits and clear-cut-chance scoring to name but two), Liverpool are a statistical outlier here who have earned fewer points than they have probably deserved. Whilst acknowledging that the data available here is limited, it is apparent that fifteen of the twenty teams in the division are fairly closely correlated using these numbers. Therefore, if Liverpool can continue to be the best team in the Premier League at FTRs, then I am confident that results can take a turn for the better.

Due to last season's data being unavailable, I am unfortunately unable to consider if the players that were bought last summer fared well at FTRs previously. However, a look at this season's figures illustrates that the new boys (and especially Jordan Henderson) are outperforming a few of the old guard at Anfield:

While Shelvey has performed well at this during his limited pitch time, the real star here is Luis SuĂĄrez; his figure of twenty-three FTRs is the highest of any player in the Premier League this season, and indeed only five other players in the division have more than fifteen. If these statistics are as important as they appear, then SuĂĄrez is absolutely essential to how Liverpool should play.

Obviously we have no way of knowing how much influence Comolli had in Liverpool's impressive record surrounding FTRs, though the figures do at least back up the Secret Footballer's claims about him. But about crosses? Here's a look at how many crosses the Reds have attempted per league game in the last four years:

It's clear that Liverpool have been crossing more during this campaign (which was the first full season that Comolli had at the club, don't forget) than in the previous three years, and it's very interesting to note that the average figure per game has been 30.3, putting the Reds in line with the magic number provided by the Secret Footballer in his column. From the previous four seasons of Premier League football, only the Manchester United team of 2009/10 crossed the ball more than this year's Liverpool side, and only 0.1 times more per game at that.

To break last season's figures down further, Roy Hodgson's team averaged 22.8 crosses per game, as opposed to the 20.5 attempted by Kenny Dalglish's 2010/11 side. Whilst we don't know who exactly is responsible for the various changes in tactics and personnel since last season, for a manager to have seen an almost 50% increase in the number of crosses per game is clear numerical evidence of a radical switch in how his team plays.

This supposed Moneyball theory states that by making more than thirty crosses in a game a team will more than likely win, but has that been the case for the Reds this season? Interestingly, not one opposing team has broken the thirty cross barrier against Liverpool during this campaign. Here are the league matches from this season where the Reds have attempted over thirty crosses:

Whilst Liverpool might be adhering to this Moneyball statistical theory relating to crossing, it doesn't appear to have done them too much good; only two wins from fifteen matches “ and none from the nine games with the highest number of crosses “ and a disappointing overall points-per-game tally of 0.93, which is relegation form in anyone's language.

Conversely, the Reds have taken 1.71 points-per-game from their league matches when they have crossed the ball thirty times or less; as that points figure has been enough to secure fourth place in three of the last five seasons, it's clearly a lot closer to where Liverpool want to be, and so suggests that this particular Moneyball strategy may not be entirely the right way to go. Could this large difference in points-per-game have played a part in the dismissal of Damien Comolli?

That said, of the thirteen games listed above that Liverpool failed to win, there are quite a few that they should have won on the balance of play, so perhaps there's life in this crossing theory yet. I have plotted a graph of the crossing data against the points-per-game for every team in the last four Premier League seasons, and it does show a degree of positive correlation:

If we make the not-too-radical assumption that Manchester United will win the Premier League this season, then we can say that the champions from the last four seasons (and also the Liverpool side of 2008/09, the best performing runners-up on a points-per-game basis in history) have all crossed the ball at least 26.3 times per game, compared to a league average of 23.1. Perhaps there is something in this particular Moneyball crossing theory after all?

Suggesting cause-and-effect on this would be unwise though, as merely crossing the ball will obviously not win games on its own (the quality of the cross being clearly relevant too, as is the amount of players in the box to receive any pass from out wide). Or do the best teams cross the ball more often simply because they have so much more possession and territorial advantage that even if they infrequently cross by their standards, the overall numbers will still be high? Whether in reality it's a valid way to play or not, the figures back up the Secret Footballer claims.

A look at who has crossed the ball most frequently this season for Liverpool can perhaps explain why certain players have been favoured in Kenny's team selections:

Pure speculation on my part here, but if Comolli and Dalglish decided that frequent crossing was the way to go, and the stats suggest that the possibility that they did, then the above figures could go a long way to explaining why the likes of Downing and Henderson have seen more time on the pitch than Kuyt and Maxi for instance.

Similarly, if we look at the figures for 2010/11, both for a selection of the Liverpool players from that season, as well as the players that were brought in last summer, it's hard not to think that crossing frequency played a part in the recruitment process:

It's also worth noting that Downing, Henderson and Adam were all the most frequent crossers at their respective clubs last season. Whilst it has long been assumed that chance creation was the primary reason behind the purchases Liverpool made last summer, these figures certainly suggest that how the chances were created was relevant too. If that is the case however, shouldn't the fact that Downing and Henderson have been crossing less frequently than last season be a cause for concern? Or is it down to the fact that they are now just one crossing option, whereas at their previous clubs they were the main crosser, including set-pieces and corners?

Having now crunched the numbers myself, I may not know who the Secret Footballer is, but I'm certain he knows his stuff regarding a specific Moneyball theory, and its possible influence upon Liverpool FC, too.

Regarding the apparent switch in tactics from last season to this, my personal theory is that the stats Comolli provided showed that playing as we have in this campaign would be more successful, so he convinced FSG and Dalglish that this was the way to go. As the tactics have in fact proved less successful than last season, Comolli was sacked whilst Dalglish remains.

That's not to say that I think Comolli has picked the tactics and the players entirely on his own with Dalglish as a figurehead; far from it. But I do think that he could easily have made a convincing argument to a board with a history of using statistics to their benefit, and that Dalglish could have bought in to it too.

The acid test for my theory will obviously be how Liverpool play in the future; if the Reds revert to the type of football that lead them to be the third best team in the division during Dalglish's tenure last season, and with similar results, then the decision to dump Comolli will be justified. It's a big ˜if' at this point though.


Your analysis of the players if hurrendous mate


What utter nonsense
People need to know that no player purchase or system have ever been based on moneyball at Liverpool
Stop talking about moneyball if you don't understand


It is not asmuch nonsense as it sounds. When the Americans took over they mentioned about statistical based analysis of players, which is why they earmarked Downing as one of our signings.
Whilst I was doing my Sports Development Degree I did a lot of work on statistical analysis of athletes and so on, and I can tell you that it is considered massively important by top clubs, I did some work with a top Rugby League club in their pre-season, so it is safe to assume that some of the top football clubs will be trying to implement similar ideas.
Look at Comolli's time at Arsenal and Tottenham, his signings were the same there as here, 1 or 2 successes out of 5 singings, and it may be down to his statistical analysis of players.
I would always say that the best way to scout players is to watch them the good old fashioned way, with back up of certain statistics.

Anfield Andy


It's not the posters analysis of the players it was from an article in the Guardian i think

KoPeNdFaN


Makes Steve Parker's posting look like a one line sentence!


Eds-can we limit posts to say 250 words- how many people have time to read drivel like that {Ed001's Note - then scroll past it instead of wasting my time reading your petty whines.}


So Kenny was allowed to pick and choose the tactics last season, but not this one even though Comolli was there the whole time? Nahh not buying that at all. {Ed001's Note - different situation from coming in to rescue a club this season. This season was about following a long term strategy for the future. All the coaches at Barca (including Pep Guardiola) are there to teach the players how to play the club's chosen style and tactics. They do not set those tactics, just implement them.}


I think their is something in this stats game, If i was given a chance to spend 288million. Then i would want to stack that deck in my favor after all im a business man looking to make a quick buck on a distressed asset.

Numbers must come into it as a measure of success.


 

 

15 Apr 2012 23:22:08
Ben {Ed001's Note - you have no idea what you are talking about, take your nasty little insults and petty bickering elsewhere.}


 

 

15 Apr 2012 23:59:32
I was only 10 years old when it happened but I vividly remember the BBC news covering the Hillsborough disaster shortly after the event happened like it was yesterday. Just not really sure what to say here regarding the 23rd anniversary today but I simply wanted to mention that hopefully the families of those who were affected will soon find the justice that they rightfully deserve. For the 96 who lost their lives in extremely tragic circumstances that day in 1989, you'll never be forgotten. It's still difficult to watch now as it was back then. You'll Never Walk Alone. RIP JFT96.

Cuchulainn's Hounds.


 

 

15 Apr 2012 21:56:11
56 years old and a survivor from hillsborough. just got to say thank you and respect to both united and villa fans and the rest of the football fixtures. it was the right thing to do. death is beyond football rivallry.
to chelsea i say this, you reap what you sow and i sincerely hope that you don,t. you have made the final extra special now. bring all your plastic flags and your free scarves, also bring your best, sing your hillsborough songs and think. HISTORY. We have got it in abundance, and for what you did today, we will make history again. if i could tell you how i really feel it would not get printed but the day of reckoning is not far away. i realise that it was not 100% of the fans but we all get tarnished with the same brush don,t we?
retired but coming out of retirement
robbie


Robbie mate i totaly understand you , im 54 and a survivor to ,
the morons who did what they did have there history and you and i know what it is, they thought they were hard boys back in the day , there not football supporters there idiots .
I,m retired to mate ,if your meaning is the same as mine, no going to print it here, just sing : you are my road end my only road end:
Ignore and rise above there ignorance mate and god bless you.

martin p


Me too mate 53 this year and happily retired,yesterday changed all this.Were not the north side,were not the middle were the south side Anfield Rd.
The barmy anny rd army.

Derek


 

 

15 Apr 2012 21:47:10
Hi Ed - Is there anything we (the football world) can do collectively to get the FA to investigate the despicable behaviour of those Chelsea fans? I find it deplorable that these disrespectful, mindless and inhuman morons can get away with it and the club should be punished too. If racist remarks and chants are punished then so should these. I feel so strongly about it I am in the middle of writing to the FA and urge all like minded to do the same.
The Goatherder
JFT96 {Ed001's Note - complaining is about all we can do.}


Sadly the behaviour of a few always 'taints' the many.
This unfortunately is the norm in football.
Accept this and move on, thugs and hooligans will always be there, such is manner of society, and not everyone shares your views.
Its disgusting behaviour, but don't expect it to change.


 

 

15 Apr 2012 21:40:23
Eds any intrest in Patrick Herrmann?

Thanks alot

{Ed001's Note - none that I know of, though I would be surprised if Dortmund and Bayern weren't watching him.}


 

 

15 Apr 2012 21:22:12
Ed how do you rate the Borussia Mönchengladbach Coach, Hes done amazing with Hertha as well, the were 16th last year and now there in champs league place, why aren't big clubs linked with him??

Dano
{Ed001's Note - I don't know mate, haven't seen a lot of the Bundesliga recently.}


 

 

 
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