Champions League Return Leg

kaimera

That'll do pool, that'll do

Damn you Rafa tho. Bellamy should have stayed on instead of Kyut.

Zebra3

Anyone watching the Valencia-Inter game?

Huge post-match brawl with players, subs and officials on the pitch!

Valencia sub keeper punched one of the Inter players who chased him round the pitch like it was the bull running in Pamplona and then some of the Inter players tried to smash the door down into the Valencia dressing room to get at him!

NotWormBoy

Zebra3 wrote:

Anyone watching the Valencia-Inter game?

Huge post-match brawl with players, subs and officials on the pitch!

Valencia sub keeper punched one of the Inter players who chased him round the pitch like it was the bull running in Pamplona and then some of the Inter players tried to smash the door down into the Valencia dressing room to get at him!

Are you ****ting me?

Shred

Jaysus, I was touching cloth for the last 10-15 minutes of the Pool game. Liverpool weren't good in the second half but the RTE boys were going over the top as usual, you'd swear Liverpool were playing Accrington Stanley:rolleyes: Into the quarters we go:)

Call Me Jimmy

quarryman wrote:

Hamilton calling Sissoko sudoko. Classic.

Jesus H. Christ. I don't believe it

mike65

Was anyone else getting thier head done-in by Ray Houghton? Some of his carping about Gerrard not shooting at exactly the right angle when he did well just to get the shot off at all, was plain annoying.

Mike.

Zebra3

NotWormBoy wrote:

Are you ****ting me?

No, it's on SS2 now!!!

Shred

mike65 wrote:

Was anyone else getting thier head done-in by Ray Houghton? Some of his carping about Gerrard not shooting at exactly the right angle when he did well just to get the shot off at all, was plain annoying.

Mike.

Aye he was and when Marquez (accidentally in fairness) stood on Gerrarrd's right foot for the foul towards the end, Liverpool "we're very lucky":rolleyes:

Dcully

Some of his carping about Gerrard not shooting at exactly the right angle when he did well just to get the shot off at all, was plain annoying.

Not as annoying as the 3 muppets on RTE giving analysis lol.

mike65

I hav'nt bothered to watch as I knew what they'd say.

Mike.

super_furry

Liverpool absolutely bossed the first half, played Barcelona off the pitch and then understandably (to a certain extent) retreated in the second half and invited Barcelona on far too much. The nerves kicked in and they couldn't hold onto the ball, but thankfully they got the result their play deserved over two legs.

It was similar in some ways to the United game on Sunday, and Liverpool really have to start taking their chances.

Fanny Cradock

mike65 wrote:

Was anyone else getting thier head done-in by Ray Houghton? Some of his carping about Gerrard not shooting at exactly the right angle when he did well just to get the shot off at all, was plain annoying.

Mike.

That dour Scotsman has made a living out of moaning.It's never a good save or tackle, it's a poorly placed shot or selfish play.

Tusky

My summary of the game :

Absolutely perfect first half from Liverpool, don't know how they didnt score. Bossed Barcelona off the pitch, hit the bar twice, ball was cleared off the line 3 times. They also had many more shots on goal than Barca. Liverpool continued in the same form in the second half but about halfway through the half you could see they were (understandibly) tiring. They dropped deeper and their retention of the ball was dire.

What I found most shocking was the RTE pundits, they are the most depressing bunch of fellos I have ever seen on tv. Don't get me wrong, they come out with some intelligent comments but you would swear it was the end of the world by the way they talk about teams. OF COURSE Liverpool looked nervous towards the end of the second half, they were playing against Barce for a place in the quater finals. Any team in Europe would have adopted a defensive mentality. I couldnt believe how negative the pundits were. Liverpool are never going to match Barcelona for skill or flare and it would be silly to try. They really tore into Liverpool about playing in a negative way. The only reason I would fault them was that they gave the ball away time & time again.

[edit] forgot to mention, I honestly dont understand why Rafa took Bellamy off.

Villain

Jesus Valencia game went mad at the end, tunnell bust was rough.

BaZmO*

Fanny Cradock wrote:

That dour Scotsman has made a living out of moaning.It's never a good save or tackle, it's a poorly placed shot or selfish play.

He does my head in. All he ever says is that the player should've of done the total opposite of he done. A player shoots and doesn't score: he should of squared it. A player squares it and nothing comes of it: he should of shot. etc., etc.

StickyMcGinty

i thought Gerrard was poor tonight to be honest, looked sloppy when he was out right, kept trying those unnessesary long balls aswell

Still cant believe why Rafa does the whole "hang on i'll take off Bellamy and stick on Pennant, yea thats a good idea!". the fact is bellamy is our most potent striker, and as soon as he came off we looked like conceding

Tusky

I think Kuyt has been absolutely dire over the last 6-8 games. When he originally signed I was delighted. He looked sharp, great work rate , mentality and a clinical eye for goal. Lately, he has been one of the most unclinical or sharp strikers around. He constantly loses the ball, his first touch is awful, he seems to run in slow motion and he has been anything but clinical.

Hope he proves me wrong. Don't understand why Bellamy keeps getting subbed instead of him.

Shred

I've had it with Pennant tbh, I was willing to give him a season but at this stage he's been very disappointing and he just doesn't seem to have the quality required for a team like Liverpool. He gives the ball away so easily and seems to have trouble staying on his feet (as was seen for Barca's goal). I thought Kuyt should have been taken off for Pennant meself rather than Bellers.

mike65

Agree on the subbing of Bellamy, Kuyt is still doing some good stuf esp the little one-twos to bring Gerrard into play but he really needs a goal or three.

Penant will be gone or on the bench more often next season I think.

Mike.

Kojak

Meant to to this earlier today, but couldn't get around to it:

Wednesday, 07 March 2007

AC Milan v Celtic--Home
Arsenal v PSV--Home
Bayern Munich v Real Madrid--Away
Man Utd v Lille--Home

A Dub in Glasgo

very disappointed with Barcelona tonight, they were poor. The commentary from the ITV pair was dreadful.

Funny looking at the shocking scenes from the Mestalla. Inter Milan should be shown the door from future CL competitions. The reserve goalkeeper from Valencia should be banned for a long time.

A Dub in Glasgo

dr.bollocko wrote:

Humm. valencia... Crowd trouble... Never!

Nothing to do with the crowd

Loco

A Dub in Glasgo wrote:

The reserve goalkeeper from Valencia should be banned for a long time.

that was some punch!

Crumbs

A Dub in Glasgo wrote:

The reserve goalkeeper from Valencia should be banned for a long time.

It wasn't the sub keeper, it was David Navarro, a defender. And he's a dirtbag when he's playing as well.

dr.bollocko wrote:

Humm. valencia... Crowd trouble... Never!

When was the last crowd trouble there?

MisterAnarchy

mike65 wrote:

Was anyone else getting thier head done-in by Ray Houghton? Some of his carping about Gerrard not shooting at exactly the right angle when he did well just to get the shot off at all, was plain annoying.

Mike.

Thought Houghton was far more objective than Hamilton who was obviously wearing his Liverpool jersey and scarf.
What a pain listening to him crowing about how great Liverpool were.

PHB

Jesus christ, the RTE staff are a joke. Like it's not like I'm pro-Liverpool, but for crying out loud, everything is so bloody negative.

Liverpool deserve to go through, unlucky not to win that match. What Barca were up to is beyond me. Why play ronnie in the middle? Why play eto left wing then sub him off when you need two goals. Little to none of that made sense.

Chelsea have the two big players of Ballack and Shev, and while they may not win the league, they are certainly great favorites for the CL.

Roma through great to see, Valencia through after some hilarity.

Guy:Incognito

nipplenuts wrote:

Agreed. Milan is a better option. In fact, all things being equal Milan to win the CL.

But I think it's Uefa's year (again) to give it to England.

Are you taking the piss? How did UEFA engineer an English win 2 years ago ? by giving Liverpool the top 2 Seria A teams , the German champions (iirc) and a strong group. As well as giving Chelsea Barcelona.


Utd got the easy route in 99 as well sur edidnt they? All crap teams like Bayern (3 times), Juve and Inter

Not to mention Arsenal practicaly being given a bye in every round last season by being paired with total muck like Real and Juve, then running a crap team like Barce close in the final.

Tusky

PHB wrote:

Jesus christ, the RTE staff are a joke. Like it's not like I'm pro-Liverpool, but for crying out loud, everything is so bloody negative.

Liverpool deserve to go through, unlucky not to win that match. What Barca were up to is beyond me. Why play ronnie in the middle? Why play eto left wing then sub him off when you need two goals. Little to none of that made sense.

Glad someone else noticed it, I couldnt believe the way they were going on. I rememer Dunphy last year talking about Barcelona saying they 'had no players' and were a 'nothing team'. Who exactly does he rate ? He certainly doesnt rate Liverpool, Man Utd Barca or Real.

Guy:Incognito

Tusky wrote:

Glad someone else noticed it, I couldnt believe the way they were going on. I rememer Dunphy last year talking about Barcelona saying they 'had no players' and were a 'nothing team'. Who exactly does he rate ? He certainly doesnt rate Liverpool, Man Utd Barca or Real.

Probably Lyon. After all ,it's going to be their year this year.

shatners basoon

Tusky wrote:

Who exactly does he rate ? He certainly doesnt rate Liverpool, Man Utd Barca or Real.

If its not a team full o' keane then they might as well be shíte!

I'm surprised Brady and Giles went the same way though, at least sometimes they have sense.

iregk

Well have to say well done to Liverpool last night lads. I thought Barca were dire but so were Liverpool. The game wasn't great apart from the last 20mins but that was more tension. I was disappointed with Liverpool I thought Barca are in tatters at the moment and they were there for a hammering. Should have been 3-0 after about 20mins and nothing would have pleased me more to see those cheating ******* getting a kicking.

I think Barca, this current one are finished. Expect big changes in the summer starting with Frank. Their best player I thought was Gudjohnson when he came on.

On another note, did anyone else find it absolutely hysterical watching the Inter Valencia fraca? It reminded me of Doogal they way your man came sneaking around, planted a dig and then legged it for his life! Funniest thing I've seen in years.

herbieflowers

On that performance I don't think Liverpool will go far. Gave the ball away persistently, didn't make the most of their chances...although Carragher and Finnan were superb. Liverpool were very good defensively, maybe not so much in the second half, probably a bit jaded after pressing so much in the first half.

They made it tense for themselves though when they really didn't need to, it really was a match they should have dictated but they're through adn that's all that matters!

RE*AC*TOR

On the RTE panel analysis - they have a point. Liverpool cannot keep the ball. Too many long balls. Perhaps too negative at times. We ran out of steam. We were never going to be able to keep the pace from the first half. Obviously our inability to actually put the ball in the net despite good chances is putting extra pressure on us.

Sure Dunphy was a bit over the top, but he wasn't pulling this stuff out of his ass.

HashSlinging

The pool done very well last night, I have to say though the attempts we're great, how many points did we score again in this game, (im on the phone to Mick O'Dwyer now as Wicklow are looking for a few new players). Seriously though I'm like everyone else and delighted at the thoughts of another game in the champions league. It was DE JA VU of Saturday, attacking football, they sit back like a SMALL team, someone slips up they get a fluke and their goal was a massive fluke, feel sorry for pennant, someone who i think has really came good for the team. He's getting some flack for that STFU.

Bellamy coming off, he missed a sitter! and got it completely and laughably wrong, its his job to find the net, better do it the proper way the next time then eh!? wheres your fkn* golf club now. Risse WTF is he on a load of points from him lastnight! I can understand how the likes of the fukin gob****e Dunphy, can get wound up and frustrated watching liverpool play, everyone wants to see them score, they just cant find the back of the net at all for some unknown reason..

SCULLY

Good second half performance by Cheslea. Very nervy in first half though - they couldn't string a pass together and they missed Terry a lot at the back but were much better after the break.
Cole had a great game.

Mr. Presentable

Stekelly wrote:

Are you taking the piss? How did UEFA engineer an English win 2 years ago ? by giving Liverpool the top 2 Seria A teams , the German champions (iirc) and a strong group. As well as giving Chelsea Barcelona.


Utd got the easy route in 99 as well sur edidnt they? All crap teams like Bayern (3 times), Juve and Inter

Not to mention Arsenal practicaly being given a bye in every round last season by being paired with total muck like Real and Juve, then running a crap team like Barce close in the final.

Ah, no, you're misunderstanding me. I'm not saying Uefa arrange for an English win every year, I'm saying they influence the results to benefit whoever they want to favour. Nobody could say Liverpool were the best team in the competition in 2005 - but they benefitted from some refereeing errors in key games that saw them through. Obviously they still had to do the business on the pitch. Man Utd in 1999 also saw the benefit of poor decisions - but again they had to play to get the win.

Don't think I'm singling out English wins. Real in 1998, Juventus in '96 are others that spring to mind. Football, like many other things in life, is mostly about politics, and a lot of decisions are made around a table.

And I am aware decisions go awry in every game and for every team, but the key ones don't. Look at your own EPL, and decisions in recent Man U and Spurs games

PHB

Wait a minute, let's just take this as an example,

And I am aware decisions go awry in every game and for every team, but the key ones don't. Look at your own EPL, and decisions in recent Man U and Spurs games

Do you honastly believe that was a conspiracy by the FA?

but they benefitted from some refereeing errors in key games that saw them through

I assume you're talking about the Chelsea game? Wouldn't they have wanted either English team to go through?

iregk

Well I said all through last years comp that UEFA want Barca to win and the certainly helped them out as much as possible.

Mr. Presentable

PHB wrote:

Do you honastly believe that was a conspiracy by the FA?

No, and I don't see reference to one in my post so I don't know where you plucked that one from

Nalz

Inter were never value at 12/1 regardless of their serie A form.

RE*AC*TOR wrote:

Sure Dunphy was a bit over the top, but he wasn't pulling this stuff out of his ass.

It was way over the top. Same shíte with Ronaldo of Manchester United. Some truth in it but its getting old and its way over the top. To top it all he called Deco a great player, wtf

Liverpool could have won 4-1 in the Nou camp, and had 4 glorious chances in the first half against a poor Barca side. Granted the second half performance was very poor, but they well deserved to go through and I'd go as far as to say they were better team on the night from the first half performance alone. Rafa Benitez is slightly negative at times gotta say and Liverpool are prone to the odd long ball and direct play... but remarks were a bit much.

Liverpool can go far in this competition. No doubt. They could get a British side in the 1/4s and easily win. From a Man Utd fan I'm delighted to see them through, and I hope all the British sides go through and make the quarters really interesting

gucci

herbieflowers wrote:

They made it tense for themselves though when they really didn't need to, it really was a match they should have dictated but they're through adn that's all that matters!

dunno why i let them annoy me last night, i usually can filter out theyre bulls**t and bias but before the game they backed liverpool, said that they needed to play high tempo, not sit back and crowd out the good players in the barca team. liverpool went out played exactly that way......evidentlly ran out of steam in the latter but the panel BLASTED the team and benitez after in a far over the top fashion!! The "width of a post" kept liverpool in the champions league apparently...starange how the exact same set of posts kept it from being 2-0 liverpool at halftime but obviously they forgot about that.:mad:

Nalz

gucci wrote:

starange how the exact same set of posts kept it from being 2-0 liverpool at halftime but obviously they forgot about that.:mad:

Exactly. Harsh and way over the top. Still better than BBC, UTV and Sky though. Ray Houghton is useless at commentating. What is it with brilliant former Irish soccer players not being able to commentate on a match??

PHB

You see, I don't think it's any better than Sky to be honest.
Sky are bland, but they at least respect good players. Yes sometimes they talk up the games, way way beyond what they actually are, but at least the like football. They are extremely positive and like to talk up the English game. That said, the team that came 3rd in the PL last year beat the team that came 1st in La Liga this year, so maybe they have a point.
RTE hate the English press so much, and how they portray the PL, that they will go to the other extreme just to make their point, which makes them equally stupid.

Both are equally ****, just one is more annoying that the other.
The only commentary that really is top top quality is the Sky commentary on La Liga.

bucks73

Trilla wrote:

To top it all he called Deco a great player, wtf

Didnt hear him saying that but thats the biggest load of ****e hes ever come out with. How can he call Gerrard or Alonso a sham and then call this diving cheating muppet a great player?

The one very true thing he did say though was that no team with Pennant in it will ever win the league or champions league. That guy is coca cola championship material. Another Huckerby.

herbieflowers

Trilla wrote:

Exactly. Harsh and way over the top. Still better than BBC, UTV and Sky though. Ray Houghton is useless at commentating. What is it with brilliant former Irish soccer players not being able to commentate on a match??

Houghton on Sissoko's "sitter": "It's an open goal, all he has to do is hit the target and it' in"

stating the obvious...!

redspider

Liverpool 0-1 Barcelona (Agg: 2-2, Liv 4-3 on away goals)

Well, Liverpool got through, and deservedly so it has to be said. I thought Benitez got our game plan and formation spot on, although at times there was too much of 'letting them have it'. I was pleasantly surprised to see Liverpool come so close to a couple of goals early on and in the first half. Riise had intent, and Liverpool did everything but score in that goalmouth triple-chance.

I thought Barca's line-up was not as strong as it could be. Ronaldinho did okay in the centre but Etoo out left is not where he plays his best. Think of a Cisse in a winger position. Barcelona were stretched and couldnt find a way through. They had a lot of possession but most of it was in their own half and they created little danger. A few half chances but Liverpool's offside traps were working well.

Until Pennant came on. The goal I would blame as follows: Arbeloa for playing them on. Finnan (yes, he did make a mistake, but was immense at other times in the match) got sucked into the centre too much, and Pennant, well for being Pennant. He is not a left back. When Gerrard was at left midfield it was a better set-up.

Rafa's subs were unusual to say the least. Kuyt looked more heavy legged than Bellamy, but to be fair to Kuyt he ran his socks off. Kuyt could have done better on a couple of occasions he got some chances. Bellamy too. I was surprised to see Riise taken off. Even though, Crouch very nearly scored and a 1-1 scoreline would have been the least that Liverpool deserved on the night.

So, well done.

I concur with what many posters have said about the players. Carra, well, what can be said about him - immense. If there was a top-10 tackles of the season competition, he would feature in half of them I have no doubt. Without him I would fear for Liverpool.

Finnan had a very strong game I thought, apart from the goal. Gerrard was good, although he didnt have his shooting boots on. A screamer from him would have been 'nice'. Riise was good. Kuyt worked well. Sissoko, a lot is being said about him since his return. Its the seasons long discussion about midfield. I think his passing is rustier than it was before his injury. He will never be an Alonso, but he will get slightly better. And he certainly performs a function in breaking up opposition play.

Of course, his being on the pitch upsets the central pairing of Alonso and Gerrard which most managers would die for. I think having Sissoko as a defending midfielder in front of the back 4 wouldnt be a good solution either as he would give away a lot of free-kicks in more dangerous positions.

Overall, a good night for Liverpool Football Club and its followers.


> Why are people still getting wound up over what Dunphy says? If an old drunk in the corner of some pub starts ranting, do you listen to him? Same thing!

Exactly. I think I've written the same thing here several times in the past.

Giles was the best of the analysts last night. Brady was in a bad mood, probably because he fancied Barca and had invested his 'mindset' in them because they had beaten Arsenal in last seasons final. Liverpool getting past them makes Arsenal's painful loss even worse.

Dunphy is dumb-fy .... good craic to listen to in the pub, but he himself fully admits that he is no expert and is nothing more than a mouth and a loud one at that. Before the CL win in 2005, he claimed that he would give up punditry, media even, if the 'shambolic Liverpool' would win it. They won it. He didnt give anything up. He has no "moral courage". "He is not a Great Analyst."

No wonder Apres Match get so much mileage from them, they are comical as they are even without parody.

---

As for Chelsea. They had a scare going one-down, they were rushing their attacks and creating little but eventually they over-powered Porto in the 2nd half. They deserved to go through, although Abramovich will be far from happy.

The 'fight' between Valencia and Inter was comical. The Inter players and officials got incensed because the sub goalie got in a good punch! What else do they expect in a fight. I think Uefa will punish Inter more than Valencia once they review the footage from all angles. It was hard to believe that these people were adults. Money cannot buy maturity, that's for sure.

The shock of the night was Lyon losing at home to Roma. French league football will remain the poorer cousin of Europe for another while.

Redspider

herbieflowers

ha dumb-fy

gucci

bucks73 wrote:

The one very true thing he did say though was that no team with Pennant in it will ever win the league or champions league. That guy is coca cola championship material. Another Huckerby.

i have to agree with you but i would have said somthing similar two years ago about djimmi traore.....he can walk around with a champs league medal on his keyring(if he so chooses!)

The Rooster

Dunphy lives in an imaginery world where the European Cup is always won by a super team with 11 brilliant players, with some very good subs if needed.

Maybe he's a closet Liverpool fan still living in the late 70s, early 80s

eirebhoy

patmac wrote:

This is always a good time to have a punt on outsiders to win CL, current odds:
Chelsea 7- 2 Arsenal 12 - 1 Roma 33 - 1
Man Utd 11 - 2 Valencia 12 - 1 PSV 50 - 1
Liverpool 8 - 1 Inter Milan 12 - 1 Porto 100 - 1
Lyon 8 - 1 Real Madrid 14 - 1 Celtic 100 - 1
Barcelona 10 - 1 Bayern München 25 - 1 Lille 250 - 1
AC Milan 12 - 1

Some good value Bayern 25/1, Milan 12/1 even Barca at 10/1 ain't bad.

Looks like Roma were the value bet there now. I didn't think they'd get by Lyon after the 0-0 but now I think they're the ultimate cup team. They're probabably the best counter attacking team in the world. They can sit back and soke up the pressure, Chivu and Mexes have a top partnership. Spalletti said he was happy with a draw in the first leg and I can see why. They could easily get the final.