Liverpool v Blackpool match thread

missingtime

"It's a very bad start to the season. It's a start we could not envisage. It's been a strange season so far but we are very unhappy we have only got six points from seven games." Roy

@17.19 - http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport2/hi/football/9055632.stm

tok9

Xavi6 wrote: »

So what does that make 18th?

All you can do is laugh really.


I think I'm looking more forward to the international break than I ever have

missingtime

tok9 wrote: »

All you can do is laugh really.


I think I'm looking more forward to the international break than I ever have

The silver lining on torres injury is hopefully he wont play

3hn2givr7mx1sc

Mr Alan wrote: »

how many times did you call for Rafa to be sacked?

you didn't care who replaced him, you just wanted him gone.

now he is, and we're ****ed. he was the one thing keeping the club together and thats quite obvious now.

some people like yourself are now trying to make out the main reason for the mess is the squad he was left, its ****ing comical, you actually couldnt make it up. there is genuinely a chance we can be relegated with the following players left by our previous manager, mascherano(bad attitude), gerrard(bad form), carragher(well past it), johnson(completely overrated in all aspects), kuyt(glorified Park Ji Sung), aquilani(crock), benayoun(Hodgson at fault), torres(amazing player, but doesn't seem to care and also a crock), reina(great player) etc etc. its ****ing comical.

.

nullzero

missingtime wrote: »

The silver lining on torres injury is hopefully he wont play

Surely that's a candidate for the worst silver lining ever?

3hn2givr7mx1sc

nullzero wrote: »

Surely that's a candidate for the worst silver lining ever?

I'm guessing he meant for Spain whch would actually be a silver lining, imo, because Torres seems to always injure himself on international duty.

Mr Alan

Baz what you're saying is fair enough, and its what rival fans do etc, but surely even the most biased & bitter of rivals should be able to admit to go from those players, to being genuine canditates for relegation is quite remarkable?

missingtime

nullzero wrote: »

Surely that's a candidate for the worst silver lining ever?

I meant in the international games.

Deep down I'm an optimist at heart. But i do fear that the light at the end of the tunnel might be a train.

argosy2006

two seasons in a row we have wrote off before oct:mad:

nullzero

missingtime wrote: »

I meant in the international games.

Deep down I'm an optimist at heart. But i do fear that the light at the end of the tunnel might be a train.

I knew what you meant, I just don't see that being a big relief to many Pool fans at the moment.

Villain

Mr Alan wrote: »

Baz what you're saying is fair enough, and its what rival fans do etc, but surely even the most biased & bitter of rivals should be able to admit to go from those players, to being genuine canditates for relegation is quite remarkable?

Did you miss my question?


Do you still think Johnson is a good defender??

3hn2givr7mx1sc

Mr Alan wrote: »

Baz what you're saying is fair enough, and its what rival fans do etc, but surely even the most biased & bitter of rivals should be able to admit to go from those players, to being genuine canditates for relegation is quite remarkable?

I'm not one of the most biased or bitter.:P
No way should they be in the relegation zone or even the bottom half, Roy has been a failure so far. If he was to play:
---Meireles--Lucas---
Kuyt---Gerrard---Babel

---

Torres

---

regularly, in theory Liverpool should win most games, Meireles is class, I'm quite disappointed United didn't get him, even moreso than I was when Liverpool signed Torres, but the players aren't playing to their names, which I suppose some of the blame could fall on Hodgson, but the players are getting of fairly lightly in te grand scheme of things, imo.

orourkeda

THFC wrote: »

4-0 with Torres to score at least 3

Predictions like these are the reason I haven't enjoyed a result as much as this in years.

ShamoBuc

A big relief for me at the moment is the length of time it will take before I see the pool play again, I am actually glad it is a high pressure game like the derby - a win there might just kick start the seaon, don't want to think what a loss would do to tbh.

Thanx 4 The Fish

Boards is not a gambling site. If anybody has a bet that they wish to make do it on betfair between ye and let that be it. There is to be no more discussing bets between one another or the status of said bets as this is not the place for it.

flahavaj

baz2009 wrote: »

I'm not one of the most biased or bitter.:P
No way should they be in the relegation zone or even the bottom half, Roy has been a failure so far. If he was to play:
---Meireles--Lucas---
Kuyt---Gerrard---Babel

---

Torres

---

regularly, in theory Liverpool should win most games, Meireles is class, I'm quite disappointed United didn't get him, even moreso than I was when Liverpool signed Torres, but the players aren't playing to their names, which I suppose some of the blame could fall on Hodgson, but the players are getting of fairly lightly in te grand scheme of things, imo.

For me Liverpool should be playing

---

Poulsen

---

---

Meireles----Gerrard

---

Kuyt

---

Cole

---

Torres

---

Poulsen sitting, Gerrard bombing forward and the midfield built around Meireles playing in the his best position as the link between the two. Coudn't be any worse than Meireles as some kind of half assed right winger anyway and Gerrard having to play deeper than he likes as a CM.

3hn2givr7mx1sc

flahavaj wrote: »

For me Liverpool should be playing

---

Poulsen

---

---

Meireles----Gerrard

---

Kuyt

---

Cole

---

Torres

---

Poulsen sitting, Gerrard bombing forward and the midfield built around Meireles playing in the his best position as the link between the two. Coudn't be any worse than Meireles as some kind of half assed right winger anyway and Gerrard having to play deeper than he likes as a CM.

Forgot about Cole, tbh, I think Babel is better than him on the wing, though and I think babel's a donkey.

That's too defensive a formation, imo and would leave Torres isolated. Lucas is playing a lot better than Poulsen atm, I think and I also think Lucas is a donkey, doesn't say much for them does it?:pac:

As long as he never plays Meireles on the wing again they should be fine. What the fúck was he thinking with that?

Mental Mickey

Mr Alan wrote: »

how many times did you call for Rafa to be sacked?

you didn't care who replaced him, you just wanted him gone.

now he is, and we're ****ed. he was the one thing keeping the club together and thats quite obvious now.

some people like yourself are now trying to make out the main reason for the mess is the squad he was left, its ****ing comical, you actually couldnt make it up.

there is genuinely a chance we can be relegated with the likes of mascherano, gerrard, carragher, johnson, kuyt, aquilani, benayoun, torres, reina were left when we sacked our previous La Liga & CL league winning manager. and we added the likes of Cole & Meireles etc etc. its ****ing comical.

That's not going to happen. Come on - that's a wee bit melodramatic.

flahavaj

baz2009 wrote: »

Forgot about Cole, tbh, I think Babel is better than him on the wing, though and I think babel's a donkey.

That's too defensive a formation, imo and would leave Torres isolated. Lucas is playing a lot better than Poulsen atm, I think and I also think Lucas is a donkey, doesn't say much for them does it?:pac:

As long as he never plays Meireles on the wing again they should be fine. What the fúck was he thinking with that?

Its not defensive at all really, thats probably the way I wrote it, in reality you'd have Gerrard playing behind the striker, in his best position and Meireles is very much a forward thinking player as well. Even if you don't like Cole on the wing you could switch Cole into behind Torres and play Gerard wide right with Kuyt playing left like he did so well for Holland in the Summer. Its a good flexible formation that should really have Liverpool challenging for the Top 4 IMO.

K-9

baz2009 wrote: »

.

Benny was pre Roy and post Rafa.

That squad was good enough to challenge for 4th last season, despite Rafa. Barring Mereiles, who he plays out of position, the rest of his signings are journeymen, including Cole.

3hn2givr7mx1sc

flahavaj wrote: »

Its not defensive at all really, thats probably the way I wrote it, in reality you'd have Gerrard playing behind the striker, in his best position and Meireles is very much a forward thinking player as well. Even if you don't like Cole on the wing you could switch Cole into behind Torres and play Gerard wide right with Kuyt playing left like he did so well for Holland in the Summer. Its a good flexible formation that should really have Liverpool challenging for the Top 4 IMO.

Just the way I was looking at it I'd say so, cause that's the formation I got to when trying to hold onto a lead in FM.:pac:
Yes, I do concede a lot of goals in FM.:P

I think the defence needs a bit of a shaking up before they could think about the top 4. None of the players bar Agger should be in a team challenging for CL places, imo. Except Reina, obviously, he's the most important player in that teamat the moment, imo.

Prufrock

Lol at Gerrard bombing anywhere. Guys 30. Coming down from his peak years. He needs to change his game like Giggs did at United when his pace started to go. Torres can't get fit but a fantastic player.

If Liverpool make the most of the resources available to them then a mid table finish is possible. The big question for me is why is Aquilani sent out on loan when you need him so badly in midfield?????

monkey9

Roy Hodgson today reflected on Liverpool's 2-1 defeat at the hands of Blackpool and admitted: "I'm the one responsible because I'm the team manager."


The Reds boss was hugely disappointed with his side's first-half showing against the Tangerines and accepted he would come under criticism for a third league defeat in seven matches.

Hodgson told his post-match press conference: "It's a bad result and a very bad day. There's nothing more I can say. I can tell by the mood in here (press room), that you understand how bad it is for us.

"We were very anxious to get back on track, to get the three points and lift ourselves up the table. No words or anything I can say can change that situation or make it better.

"It's pointless to try and be positive and say the second half was better and we could have got an equaliser because we lost the game - a game we did not want to lose."

He added: "The fans are entitled to take out their frustrations, lots of things have happened to frustrate them and I'm the one responsible because I'm the team manager. When the team does badly criticism will fall my way and I have to accept it."

The Reds made a sluggish start to the proceedings and went in trailing to goals from Charlie Adam (penalty) and Luke Varney.

Sotirios Kyrgiakos did pull one back for Liverpool as they produced an improved second-half showing, leaving the boss to lament their slow start.

"I suppose I'm in a situation where I'd rather not think about the game," he admitted. "I suppose in the first half we were correctly punished for a lacklustre play. We had the ball as much as them, but we didn't do anywhere near enough to satisfy my demands, the club's demands or the players' demands on themselves.

"We conceded two goals from counter attack when we were high up the field and lost the ball on the edge of the area. We found ourselves 2-0 down against a team that played well in the first-half.

"In the second half we came out and did our best to turn it around but we only managed to get the one goal.

"I don't know whether the early injury blow of losing Fernando Torres had a psychological effect, but I don't think so. We knew they were an offensive team but if we dealt with their balls forward there would be chances for us to get them turned around and that's what happened in the second period."

Asked about the Reds' current position in the bottom three, he said: "My concerns are about making us play to our full potential. We are only doing it in periods and not from the first to the 90th minute.

"I don't think it's because the players have not got the right attitude at the start of the game - I don't believe that. But at the start of games we are not at the level of intensity that we are in the second half of matches. We shouldn't need to go behind before we get the type of reaction we had."

The boss was also quizzed about his thoughts on his first few months at the helm.

He said: "It's been strange. The early part wasn't that bad - we had some good results in Europe.

"We also had a stroke of luck in the league games, but that has deserted us in the last few weeks. I suppose everything I think is conditioned by the last few weeks. We went out of the Carling Cup to Northampton, we failed to win a home game last week and, even worse, we have lost a home game this week against a team that has just been promoted.

"At the moment it looks bleak. It's very difficult for me to put a brave or bright face upon it. There is a lot of work to do and things we need to sort out.

"I can only take heart from the fact that the spirit of the team is still there. I don't think I could have asked any more of them in the second half than they gave the club and the fans. The fans did well to get behind us and I'm sure we all would have loved an extra 15 minutes, but we didn't get it."

Mister men

Hodgson deserves to be sacked for this comment alone. "I can only take heart from the fact that the spirit of the team is still there. I don't think I could have asked any more of them in the second half than they gave the club and the fans. The fans did well to get behind us and I'm sure we all would have loved an extra 15 minutes, but we didn't get it"

Seriously wtf.

K-9

monkey9 wrote: »

"We also had a stroke of luck in the league games, but that has deserted us in the last few weeks.

Basically, we are lucky not to be bottom.

flahavaj

"It is one of the dreams I've had for years," he said, after seeing his side applauded from the field by the home support.

"When the fans were singing You'll Never Walk Alone - it's my dad's favourite song but he's no longer with me - I was singing myself and it was a bit emotional.

"This is not far off the home of football - these supporters have seen some of the best football over the years and in my era as a player there was no better team in the world.

"The boys made me so proud and for that set of supporters to clap us off that is all I wanted - that was what my dream was last night.

"This is a fantastic moment for Blackpool."

Holloway is some hero.

3hn2givr7mx1sc

Delighted for the man. Pure legend.

3hn2givr7mx1sc

Just watching this on MOTD2. Blackpool seemed to be completely on top. What was Johnson thinking with that tackle?

Berti Vogts

Sorry, I haven't read 33 pages but surely there's some way of blaming Lucas "worst player ever" Leiva for the result today even though he wasn't playing? As annoyed as I am now, I will be even more annoyed if Poulson somehow retains his place for the next match.

JerryHandbag

baz2009 wrote: »

Just watching this on MOTD2. Blackpool seemed to be completely on top. What was Johnson thinking with that tackle?

Watching the same....Kyrgiakos could have scored a hattrick of headers. Some save at the death by Gilks.

3hn2givr7mx1sc

Possibilities wrote: »

Sorry, I haven't read 33 pages but surely there's some way of blaming Lucas "worst player ever" Leiva for the result today even though he wasn't playing?

No, there wasn't. Don't be silly. Why would he be blamed if he wasn't playing?
Silly man.

Berti Vogts

baz2009 wrote: »

No, there wasn't. Don't be silly. Why would he be blamed if he wasn't playing?
Silly man.

I thought it was obvious I was kidding.

Nuri Sahin

Great save from the Blackpool keeper at the end from The Greek at the end. Some power behind it. Kuyt, Cole and N'Gog all had very good chances as well. But anything other than a Blackpool win today would have been undeserved for us. CBA'ed talking about our players(incl their performance today), the manager, owners and debts anymore.

As I and many Reds said earlier, fair play to Blackpool and Holloway. He gets every single player playing for the jersey and tries to play proper football. A lot to admire.

Daemos

The biggest shock of this result? The fact that it isn't a shock

LuckyLloyd

Mental Mickey wrote: »

Rafa had lost the plot and the dressing room. We'll wait n see if Roy loses the dressing room??

lol, the players were playing a lot harder last season.

Mister men

Mental Mickey wrote: »

Rafa had lost the plot and the dressing room. We'll wait n see if Roy loses the dressing room??

Lol i love this forum. Posters can make totally random quotes like it's fact.

everdead.ie

JerryHandbag wrote: »

Watching the same....Kyrgiakos could have scored a hattrick of headers. Some save at the death by Gilks.

Very good work by him, Kyrgiakos to start upfront in a couple of weeks?

syngindub

2 wins on the trot for liverpool could see them in the top 4.
Apart from chelsea, everyone is dropping points left right and centre so relax

The Muppet

SlickRic wrote: »

i thought you'd turn up.

i'm not even sure what's supposed to be funny about saying Liverpool, on paper, have a better team than Fulham, or are a bigger club more importantly.

i'm pretty sure i've never ever called Glen Johnson a world class defender.

Never said you did, I was just asking how he was doing. I thinks I now know the answer. How come you didn't infract me for that post?

Xavi6 wrote: »

Glen Lolson

Worst defensive line ever

careful now, thats a touchy subject.

Handsome Bob

Daemos wrote: »

The biggest shock of this result? The fact that it isn't a shock

Ah no, I don't like seeing these comments. No matter how bad our form was going into that game I very much doubt anyone seriously expected disaster to strike against Blackpool at Anfield.

The Muppet

Mr Alan wrote: »

how many times did you call for Rafa to be sacked?

you didn't care who replaced him, you just wanted him gone.

now he is, and we're ****ed. he was the one thing keeping the club together and thats quite obvious now.

some people like yourself are now trying to make out the main reason for the mess is the squad he was left, its ****ing comical, you actually couldnt make it up.

there is genuinely a chance we can be relegated with the likes of mascherano, gerrard, carragher, johnson, kuyt, aquilani, benayoun, torres, reina were left when we sacked our previous La Liga & CL league winning manager. and we added the likes of Cole & Meireles etc etc. its ****ing comical.

Yous were ****ed before Rafa was gone , It was him finished 7th failing to qualify for europe costing the club millions in lost revenue. It was Rafa that bought defenders that couldn't, defend midfielders that can't string a pass together and made the club dependent on one admittedly world class striker when fit and on form , neither being the case at the moment.

Liverpools demise did not just start when Roy took over, the rot had set in years ago, you haven't won a trophy in years (2006 I think).

When Rafa Took over he won the CL with what was largely Geds Squad, yet Ged gets slated for the poor quality of his squad , I'd imagine Roy would rather have Geds players than the ones he inherited from Rafa.

niallo27

The Muppet wrote: »

Yous were ****ed before Rafa was gone , It was him finished 7th failing to qualify for europe costing the club millions in lost revenue. It was Rafa that bought defenders that couldn't, defend midfielders that can't string a pass together and made the club dependent on one admittedly world class striker when fit and on form , neither being the case at the moment.

Liverpools demise did not just start when Roy took over, the rot had set in years ago, you haven't won a trophy in years (2006 I think).

When Rafa Took over he won the CL with what was largely Geds Squad, yet Ged gets slated for the poor quality of his squad , I'd imagine Roy would rather have Geds players than the ones he inherited from Rafa.

Your right Rafa should have sacked after losing that European cup final against milan in 2007, well definitely after only finishing 2nd with the highest point total in 20 years, your right rafa team didnt win the golden glove awards 3 years out of 4 and third only to chelsea and utd for goals conceded in the past 5 years, i blame zonal marking.

It doesnt say much for Ged if it takes another man to win a European cup with his team

gleep

niallo27 wrote: »

Your right Rafa should have sacked after losing that European cup final against milan in 2007, well definitely after only finishing 2nd with the highest point total in 20 years, your right rafa team didnt win the golden glove awards 3 years out of 4 and third only to chelsea and utd for goals conceded in the past 5 years, i blame zonal marking.

It doesnt say much for Ged if it takes another man to win a European cup with his team

This mid-table squad we have is the squad Rafa built. FACT:rolleyes:
There's no getting away from that. He pegged everything on Gerrarad and Torres, there was no plan B. Or rather there was a plan B, but it was Babel, Ngog and El f**kn Zhar.
The man went and spent £17m on a feckin right back -(Johnson) (when it was blatantly obvious we needed a striker and creative midfielder) and when the defence was already rock solid. Is Johnson really worth 17 of Arbeloa?
Not to mention millions spent on Deggen, Dossena et all.
Then there's Aquilani, £20m squandered on him was it? Rafa had lost it in the 08/09 season. Ever since we've been on the decline and he's been found out. He was a fantastic manager, but he lost the plot at Anfield. He'll prove himself again at Inter, but the squad he left at Anfield is his squad. Simply not good enough and full of glaring holes.

event

SlickRic wrote: »

yup, Meireles is our new RW.

it basically came from aul' Roy's own lips during the week that it will probably be his position.

a joke.

havent read the whole thread, but just noticed this one post.

I see loads of liverpool fans are annoyed at playing players out of positions.

Were ye all up in arms when Rafa moved Kuyt out to RW. he was an out and out striker when he joined ye.

how did that work out in the end?

niallo27

gleep wrote: »

This mid-table squad we have is the squad Rafa built. FACT:rolleyes:
There's no getting away from that. He pegged everything on Gerrarad and Torres, there was no plan B. Or rather there was a plan B, but it was Babel, Ngog and El f**kn Zhar.
The man went and spent £17m on a feckin right back -(Johnson) (when it was blatantly obvious we needed a striker and creative midfielder) and when the defence was already rock solid. Is Johnson really worth 17 of Arbeloa?

Well isnt Rafa a ****en genius for getting a mid table squad into the cl 5 years out of 6, how many games did el zhar play, thats a poor example, johnson looked decent after a shakey start last year, the year we got 2nd torres only played 18 games and gerrard was in the 20s so he hardly pegged everything on them two.

That squad was supposes to be good enough to challenge last year and at least get CL qualification, rafa was sacked because he didnt get it, but now we hear that the squad is ****e, its a mid table squad, I love the opposition fans are so bitter towards Rafa, they ****en hated him and i ****en loved it

PiE

LZ5by5 wrote: »

Ah no, I don't like seeing these comments. No matter how bad our form was going into that game I very much doubt anyone seriously expected disaster to strike against Blackpool at Anfield.

Honestly? After seeing Holloways comments about really going for it at Anfield, I and several others did seriously expect disaster.

Kess73

niallo27 wrote: »

Well isnt Rafa a ****en genius for getting a mid table squad into the cl 5 years out of 6, how many games did el zhar play, thats a poor example, johnson looked decent after a shakey start last year, the year we got 2nd torres only played 18 games and gerrard was in the 20s so he hardly pegged everything on them two.

That squad was supposes to be good enough to challenge last year and at least get CL qualification, rafa was sacked because he didnt get it, but now we hear that the squad is ****e, its a mid table squad, I love the opposition fans are so bitter towards Rafa, they ****en hated him and i ****en loved it

Gerrard played 31 out of 38 league games that season and played 13 more games in the cups. So he finished the 08/09 season as having played 44 games.


Torres played 24 games in the league that season, along with 14 games in the cups, bringing his total to 38 games for the 08/09 season.

niallo27

Kess73 wrote: »

Gerrard played 31 out of 38 league games that season and played 13 more games in the cups. So he finished the 08/09 season as having played 44 games.


Torres played 24 games in the league that season, along with 14 games in the cups, bringing his total to 38 games for the 08/09 season.

I was talking about the league as you well know, and games started, not 5 mins at the end, when he was getting back to fitness

gleep

niallo27 wrote: »

Well isnt Rafa a ****en genius for getting a mid table squad into the cl 5 years out of 6, how many games did el zhar play, thats a poor example, johnson looked decent after a shakey start last year, the year we got 2nd torres only played 18 games and gerrard was in the 20s so he hardly pegged everything on them two.

That squad was supposes to be good enough to challenge last year and at least get CL qualification, rafa was sacked because he didnt get it, but now we hear that the squad is ****e, its a mid table squad, I love the opposition fans are so bitter towards Rafa, they ****en hated him and i ****en loved it

OK let me pick this one apart for you.
I said the squad he left behind is mid-table. The squad he had previously obviously wasn't. But when you loose players and don't refresh the squad with the right players, it declines. This is why we are where we are.
El Zhar was commonly thrown on in the last 10 minutes when we needed a goal. He was never good enough to change a game like that. And what about Babel & Ngog? Mid table players I'd say.
I didn't say Johnson wasn't good, my point is he is never worth £17m. Not if you got 4 of him! It was top class striker money wasted on a decent(your words) right back.
Aah, the year we finished second. Torres and Gerrard only played so many games, if Rafa had played them when they were fit, instead of percevering with the flawed rotation, we would have won the league no sweat. Instead he put mid table players into a team looking to win the league.
And by the way, we are piss-poor to watch, have been since last season. Some people still have their heads up their arse about Rafa. He had a very good squad, and made huge transfer errors, now we are left with a below par squad.

Kess73

niallo27 wrote: »

I was talking about the league as you well know, and games started, not 5 mins at the end, when he was getting back to fitness

Yeah that's why I seperated the league games they played in from the cup games.

So 31 games in the league for Gerrard and 24 league games from Torres. Check their minutes played as well as games played and you will soon see that not many of their league game totals, especially in Gerrard's case, were made up of little five minute run outs.



It does not take away from the fact that the title challenge season was not based on those two players though.


Alonso was the best player at the club by some distance that season, showing exactly why he was the best CM that we have had in years, and also showing up how there was nobopdy at the club since he left that could come close to him in CM.

Masch, Pepe, Kuyt, and a number of others were excellent for most of the season, and Rafa was on form tactically for the majority of that season.

The title challenge was because of the team and manager as a unit, and not because of Torres and Gerrard. Anyone that thinks that the title challenge season was because Rafa "pegged" everything on Gerrard and Torres is just wrong. I will agree with you on that.