Liverpool Football Club 08/09

Saturday, 18 October 2008
Barclays Premier League
Liverpool v Wigan, 15:00


Wednesday, 22 October 2008
UEFA Champions League
Atletico Madrid v Liverpool, D, 19:45

Sunday, 26 October 2008
Barclays Premier League
Chelsea v Liverpool, 13:30


Wednesday, 29 October 2008
Barclays Premier League
Liverpool v Portsmouth, 20:00


Saturday, 01 November 2008
Barclays Premier League
Tottenham v Liverpool, 17:30


Tuesday, 04 November 2008
UEFA Champions League
Liverpool v Atletico Madrid, D, 19:45


Saturday, 08 November 2008
Barclays Premier League
Liverpool v West Brom, 17:30


Tuesday, 11 November 2008
Carling Cup
Tottenham v Liverpool, R4, 19:45

Saturday, 15 November 2008
Barclays Premier League
Bolton v Liverpool, 12:45


Saturday, 22 November 2008
Barclays Premier League
Liverpool v Fulham, 15:00

Wednesday, 26 November 2008
UEFA Champions League
Liverpool v Marseille, D, 19:45

OK next 11 games that will take us upto the congested Christmas fixture list... and depending on how we deliver the next 11 games will be very important in terms of positioning ourselves going into the notoriously wacky Christmas period and turn of the year.

21 EPL points up for grabs, with arguably 18 points quite realistically obtainable (going by bookies odds only the Chelsea game we would not start as favourites for the 3 points) - However the Chelsea game will hold the most significance as a 6 pointer for the title race, to be honest i'd be happy with a draw away at Stamford Bridge.

3 Champs League games will determine where we finish in the group... and A.Madrid will provide us a real test in Europe as to whether we will be really competitive this year in the competition.

With a Carling Cup game, we can probably expect to take a look at some of the fringe players and see how far the confidence and quality of our playing squad extends too.

So... a nice blend of cup and league games for Rafa to get his rotation head around, the sort of league games we have give us a great opportunity to maintain our unbeaten streak, and stay well positioned at the top of the table running into December.

ECL will be fun with Nando going back home, and Garcia coming back for a fleeting visit

Missed the game today, but can't wait to catch MOTD later! These types of games give you the air of anticipation that the only excuse not to really challenge in the league this year will be due to management mistakes, and players not maintaining the levels of performance they are proving week in week out they are capable of.

Awesome game, made my day.

I'm not 110% sure of my facts but I do believe this is our best ever start to a Premiership season. This time last year we went on a naughty run of form which was blamed on rotation, zonal marking and the loss of Agger. I haven't heard anything on Skrtel's injury so I'll assume he'll be fine for Wigan. 3 points in this game is a must and as draw at Chelsea will be a good result considering no one ever wins there. Not sure how their injuries are looking but I'd guess most Chelsea fans would settle from a draw in that game too. If we can get a win against Atletico away it more of less guarantees qualification since the strength of the group dictates that the other sides will drop points so Rafa can rotate heavily herein. You can only take 1 game at a time, but the trip to White Harte Lane stands out for me as it would be sods law if Spurs sort themselves out just in time to piss us off.

Glenn Hysén wrote:I'm not 110% sure of my facts but I do believe this is our best ever start to a Premiership season. This time last year we went on a naughty run of form which was blamed on rotation, zonal marking and the loss of Agger. I haven't heard anything on Skrtel's injury so I'll assume he'll be fine for Wigan. 3 points in this game is a must and as draw at Chelsea will be a good result considering no one ever wins there. Not sure how their injuries are looking but I'd guess most Chelsea fans would settle from a draw in that game too. If we can get a win against Atletico away it more of less guarantees qualification since the strength of the group dictates that the other sides will drop points so Rafa can rotate heavily herein. You can only take 1 game at a time, but the trip to White Harte Lane stands out for me as it would be sods law if Spurs sort themselves out just in time to piss us off.

The silly pundits they have on Sky and setanta were wheeling out the same tired nonsense when we were two down today so it was rather sweet to hear them put in their place by the end of the match

The good thing about this team is that there is so much more potential in it which will hopefully be unlocked over the course of the season. Whether rafa can do that or not is another matter

Anyway Riera was awesome today and our MOTM with alonso a close second.

Skrtel's injury could go either way but it seemed pretty serious. He was down for ages with oxegen then stretchered off and considering he is a hard bastard it must have been bad

I wholly agree we must take one game at a time, injuries, form, results and opposition are just a few reasons why this has to be the case. However there also has to be an overview, to establish realistic targets..... also i feel this run in is particularly significant as it gives us the real opportunity to kick on in the league and realistically pick up the best part of 20 points, and build further consistancy and breath that winning mentality week in week out with the group of players we have. It will also be the first time this season Rafa will have to compliment consistantly in the league (as he has been doing) but also deliver in two cup competitions along the way, which will undoubtably involve rotation, and it is how and who.... which will impact results before and after key Champions League games for example.

Great chance for the players and management to send a real signal of intent out to our rivals before Christmas. I think the last time we were near top of the league coming into the new year was with Houllier in 2001? or around that time - we all know what followed then...

I'd like to see how many of the next 21 points look as promising for Arsenal, Chelsea and United.... an opportunity to perhaps create some space between us and at least 1 or 2 of the potential title contenders me finks..

Riera is absolutely superb!

great footwork and lovely skills. MOTM for me too.

Thanks Luis, was looking forward to them pics.

Your kits are really nice.

That third one is my new desktop pic, class that one.

I enjoyed the highlights

Even more so I enjoyed Rafa's post match interview where he reiterated his plans to take one game at a time. Say what you want about the goalless draw with Stoke, at least he picked his strongest team. It shows he is concentrating on winning every game rather than putting out "a side that can win" and rotating.

If we do get an injury we do have real quality in reserve. A full strength team again today saw the likes of Agger, Keane, Dossena, Babel, Benayoun left out. Worry about injuries when they happen because they will happen whether or not we rotate. I'm sure the squad is in a comfortable enough position to rotate in the cups/Europe and while the first team is winning in the league keep it regular.

Highlights were just awesome weren't they Glenny

The first goal was sensational Just awesome football very like how his Valenica played us off the park both home and away those years ago.

Riera was awesome today and I totally agree, MOTM yesterday.

Rafa is being so anti-Rafa in a lot of ways when it comes to league and I(we) love it. I'm glad it looks like more or less he has learned from previous mistakes.

One game at a time should be the message to all Liverpool supporters.

Oh and Lulu, I'm stealing your 3rd pic for my avatar

Ade Alves wrote:
Riera was awesome today and I totally agree, MOTM yesterday.

Outrageous that they had him play twice in such a short space of time though.

Football Genius wrote:Saturday, 18 October 2008
Barclays Premier League
Liverpool v Wigan, 15:00


Wednesday, 22 October 2008
UEFA Champions League
Atletico Madrid v Liverpool, D, 19:45

Sunday, 26 October 2008
Barclays Premier League
Chelsea v Liverpool, 13:30


Wednesday, 29 October 2008
Barclays Premier League
Liverpool v Portsmouth, 20:00

Saturday, 01 November 2008
Barclays Premier League
Tottenham v Liverpool, 17:30


Tuesday, 04 November 2008
UEFA Champions League
Liverpool v Atletico Madrid, D, 19:45


Saturday, 08 November 2008
Barclays Premier League
Liverpool v West Brom, 17:30


Tuesday, 11 November 2008
Carling Cup
Tottenham v Liverpool, R4, 19:45

Saturday, 15 November 2008
Barclays Premier League
Bolton v Liverpool, 12:45

Saturday, 22 November 2008
Barclays Premier League
Liverpool v Fulham, 15:00

Wednesday, 26 November 2008
UEFA Champions League
Liverpool v Marseille, D, 19:45

Out of those fixtures I agree, 18 points is a realistic target to set. Chelsea at Stamford is obviously going to be the tough one. I'd happily take a draw.

Atleti away will be a tough one. I can imagine Pongolle will be really up for this as will King Luis of course but more so Pongolle espically in regards to proving something to Rafa I believe. Kun wil be the main thread though. The lad oozes class and will give Carra and Agger I assume some problems. I'll be at the game in Madrid, should be a cracker whatever the result. Torres going back home I hope he gets a good reaction, I'm sure he will when he shows up and when he scores

Hope Rafa plays the kids(Pacheco and Nemeth) and some of the reserves plus the odd established player againist Spurs in the Carling Cup. Remember outplaying them for the majority of our game in Rafa's first season in the same competition with our kids and Dudek and Henchoz that day.

Saw this I was deleting my some of my emails and came across one I forgot to post here. Anyway here it is..

Watched the Wolf play for Hertha against Irish side Saint Patricks Athletic on Tuesday in the UEFA. He was complete and utter shite. The centre halfs made him look ordinary and at one stage he was clean through, nobody around him, only the keeper to beat and from 8 yards out he blazed it over the bar. He has yet to score for Hertha and looked like an angry and unconfident man on Tuesday. He was also definitely a good few pounds overweight.

I'd say he'd love to be in the city he dislikes so much at this point in time.

Voromania spreading then, eh? Like fucking Foot and Mouth Diease more likely. I can't believe Voromania hasn't rampaged through Berlin, leaving a trail of disaster in it's wake.

I'm sure partnering Voronin has been one of Torres' career highlights. Torres is a Voromaniac.

To think he was favoured over Crouch at times last season...
*shudders*

The St.Pats fans were apparently singing at him "Your nothing but a fat Paris Hilton"

some HQ pictures.

Muthein maar torres pe

Soooo - I missed all the football at the weekend. I presume Liverpool put in another dour 0-0 performance, as we all know that Torres can't score away from home?

Damn it torres please next time reduce the size of any pics you post

Was talking to my lecturer tis morning, a Liverpool supporter. Both of us drooling over Torres..

Anyway it is scary isn't it. Nando has played well as he really, not to the level he consistently performed to last season. Injuries have played a part no doubt but when he eventually hits top gear..

Just happen to come across this

Got this from another forum:

Torres: "Many congratulations, and thank you for making football such a spectacular game”

After sharing the excitement like one of so many fans with the great Champions league final, I would like to send my congratulations to Liverpool Football Club for winning their fifth European Cup, and specially to all those Spanish professionals that have contributed to this great victory. Both to the coaching staff: Rafa Benítez, Paco Herrera, José Manuel Ochotorena, Paco Ayestarán; and also to the players: Luis García, for taking the red and white colours so high, to Xabi Alonso, whom I hope to see soon in the National Team, to Antonio Núñez, a friend in the great family of Bahía, to Josemi and Morientes. To all of you CONGRATULATIONS, and thank you for making football such spectacular game".

http://www.fernando9torres.com/inicio.php?new_leng=uk

He speaks so well..

http://www.liverpoolfc.tv/news/drilldown/N161605081007-1024.htm

Dagger Read to Take His Chance

Torres top premiership goalscorer this season?

Can see him bagging 25 - 30 goals this term... hes on what 5 already? next handful of premiership games look promising on paper, could easier take that to 10+ before December kicks in.

But he is 0 and 5 away from Anfield.

Needs to improve his home goal scoring form IMO

Seriously though if he stays fit I think he'll easily hit the 25 goal mark.

I said a few days ago but its kind of scaray, the lad hasn't even hit top form yet, far from it.

And hes been out and has taken longer to get match fit.

Kuyt and Keanes confidence will be pretty high also (from scoring) - they could help provide (create more space) even more goals for him...

Its exciting to think at his age, he can only improve... There isn't a striker in the premiership i'd rather have over him, which is a great sign for us... you need the best players to win leagues.

Fanzine Fanzone - Times Online - WBLG: A Serious Challenge Or Another False Dawn?

October 07, 2008

A Serious Challenge Or Another False Dawn?

It's been 18 long years since we last won the League Title. None of us need reminding of that fact, and none of us need anyone else to point out that we really need to put in a serious challenge this season, at the very least. It's our ball and chain.

A massive weight on our shoulders, and only a serious challenge this season can take that burden from around our necks. But can we actually sustain a challenge well into April and be in with a shout as we roll into May?

The League Title is the bread and butter, as Bill Shankly once said. The European Cup is the undoubted pinnacle of club football, the holy grail; but the League Title is the aim every season to cement your place as the best side in the land. It's been far too long since we've done that, and it hurts. There's no point hiding from the fact it hurts. Seeing a side like ourselves, dominant for two decades, slowly slip away into also rans, picking up only two domestic cups throughout the 90's while Man United galloped to league title after league title. We had the near misses of the 1997 season, where David James flapped at two crosses late on against Coventry, turning a 1-0 lead and table topping victory into a 2-1 defeat in the time it takes to say "Dion Dublin".

We were bottlers. The football played during the mid 90's was a joy to behold at times. The likes of McManaman, Fowler and Collymore tearing teams apart; yet we were always suspect at the back and a bag of nerves when the pressure cranked up a notch.

All promise and no end product. The FA Cup run of 1996 being a prime example and typical of that era; playing some brilliant stuff on the way to Wembley, yet freezing in the headlights of the Twin Towers and crumbling to a 1-0 defeat to the great enemy, dragging our feet back up the M1 in our tear sodden cream suits. The Spice Boys flattered to deceive once again.

Towards the end of that era, Gerard Houllier was enticed from France, tasked with taking the club in a different direction. We'd spent the entire decade clinging onto the bootroom philosophy, with Roy "too nice" Evans, the last remaining of the old guard, being asked to make way for the new revolutionary, continental Liverpool. We had to move with the modern day and play catch up.

The infamous "5 year plan" of Houllier was put into place, and we set about transforming the club from top to bottom. Training was no longer just a kick about and a laugh, it was serious. The new manager was serious, and some didn't like it. Read Robbie Fowler's autobiography for an insight. Players had to grow up fast and start to justify their inflated salaries, and justify the responsibility they had as representatives of Liverpool Football Club. Roy Evans let them get away with it, Gerard Houllier wouldn't. Some players adapted, some left, and the club began to move in a new direction.

Gerard Houllier may be remembered by some as a failure, mainly due to the way his tenure came to an end; and whilst his last two years in charge did result in a backwards step, he dragged this club into the modern era, and came a lot closer to bringing home the league title than a lot of people seem to think. As well as the historic treble of 2001, he took us to second place in the league and looking more likely than ever to bring home the bread and butter.

Finshing 5th, 4th, 3rd then 2nd in successive seasons in charge, the following season, if continuing that trend, was to be the one we reclaimed our title as Champions of England. Various circumstances and poor signings meant that never happened, and we plummeted at an alarming rate. So much so Houllier was relieved of his duties and the tangled up reigns were handed to Rafael Benitez in the summer of 2004. Yet another attempt required to overhaul the club and reinstate ourselves as the dominant force on these shores.

In his first season in charge, Benitez was left with a squad consisting of the like of Milan Baros, Igor Biscan and Vladimir Smicer performing key roles within the side. No disrespect to those players, but they are hardly world beaters. A squad consisting of Danny Murphy, Salif Diao, Anthony Le Tallec and Florent Sinama Pongolle et al. We were far from being in a position to challenge the likes of Chelsea, Man United and Arsenal for the title. Benitez was brought into to overhaul the financial super powers of Manchester United and Chelsea on a comparitively limited budget, just as he had done in Spain with Valencia, taking on and defeating the muscle of Real Madrid and Barcelona. Did people seriously expect him to deliver the title over night?

While United and Chelsea already had top quality squads in place, needing only to go out every summer and buy a few £20m-£30m players to top up the squad, we had to go about rebuilding with free transfers and the odd £10m signings like Dirk Kuyt and Xabi Alonso. Litter that with low budget signings like Antonio Nunez to act as a stop gap, and it's easy to see why we haven't yet challenged. The manager having to play the role of a Del Boy, wheeling and dealing in the lower end of the market to make ends meet. No money for Daniel Alves, so make do with Jermaine Pennant. Even this summer, having to sell Peter Crouch, John Arne Riise and Scott Carson to finance the deal for Robbie Keane. Having to sell before he buys meant it was always going to take time to build a squad capable of challenging for the League Title.

The media love to reel off the figures of "Benitez has spent over £200m", yet fail to consider the amount he has brought back into the club to be able to spend that money. They'll mention the £20m spent on Fernando Torres (often incorrectly reporting it as £26m), but fail to mention the £19m recouped on the sales of Cisse, Bellamy and Garica to make that deal happen. He hasn't actually spent that much money. When you look at what Chelsea had to spend to take them from a 4th place side to Champions, it's chicken feed.

The media love to mention "rotation", when the statistics show that Benitez has rotated no more than Wenger, Ferguson or Mourinho and Grant. The difference being that those other managers had established squads to rotate with, we never. It is only now we're being able to rotate quality with quality. Instead of bringing in a Pellegrino to replace a Hyypia, we're able to bring in an Agger to replace a Skrtel. We can bring in Ryan Babel to replace Albert Riera. People notice rotation less when quality is being replaced with quality.

Without that rotation of players, we'd never have witnessed Istanbul. We wouldn't have reached the final in Athens. Benitez knew he never had a squad capable of winning the league. He might have had a first 11 to have a good go, but would ultimately fail, and have nothing left to give in Europe or the FA Cup. Instead, he rotated the side to achieve the maximum possible with the players at his disposal. Resting key players in league games on the run in to Istanbul while trying to maintain that lucrative 4th spot. A position we failed to achieve that season, dropping to 5th behind Everton, but bringing home the holy grail more than overshadowed that slip. His whole philosophy thus far, to me, has been about ensuring that top 4 finish every season, while being as successful as possible in the cup competitions. As case of juggling the players at his disposal to achieve the best possible finish in all competitions. A European Cup, an FA Cup, a European Cup Final and another semi final pay testament to his juggling skills, all while maintaining that all important top 4 league position.

It can be argued we should have been pushing for the league title for the past two seasons, but at what cost? I don't believe we've had the players capable of winning the league, and think the manager has been of the same mindset. Last season we were closer than we had been for a long time, with the results in and around the Klinsmann saga really costing us. The chaos behind the scenes affecting the manager and the players. Pretty much sacrificing the away game at Reading to ensure we remained in the Champions League by beating Marseille a few days later. All over the pressure placed on the manager by the clowns that now own our club.

This year I get the feeling that Benitez has belief in his players. A belief that he finally feels confident enough in the squad at his disposal to have a real go at the league. He's still making small changes to the side, a player here or there, and seems to have a different attitude in Europe as well. Ensuring we qualify as soon as possible, presumably to be able to rest players in Europe and save them for league games by qualifying from the group as early as possible. Does he eventually have enough faith in the players he's assembled to have a firm assault on the league title?

We've had many false dawns over the past decade or so. How many final pieces of the jigsaw are we going to hear about? I'm not firmly of the mindset of sitting back and seeing what comes next. Not getting too excited, not getting to downbeat. Just sit back and see what each game brings. I'll start getting excited if we're within touching distance going into April, not before. Fingers have been burnt too many times now.

Last season we finished 11 points behind Man United. They beat us home and away. Reverse those results and we'd have finished a point ahead of them; meaning against the other 18 sides in the league, we actually had a better record than the actual champions. Are we really that far behind? That statistic says no. And having already beaten United at Anfield this season, who knows what lies around the corner.

Serious Challenge? Another false dawn? I've no idea, but intend to enjoy finding out.

Paul Jones

Ade Alves wrote: [url=http://Serious Challenge? Another false dawn? I've no idea, but intend to enjoy finding out.

A good article, but I am awaiting the inevitable 'scousers say it's their year' posts from the usual suspects.

Also, the page width

is driving me nuts.

Thank goodness, a new page.