A state of intent in the transfer market

28 December 2010

By KP

With rumours rife that Roy Hodgson is showing interest in David Bentley should we not be aiming to buy players to help return us back to the top echelon?   Bringing in players like Charles N’Zogbia and Ashley Young rather than a busted flush like Bentley with no pace would show the intention of the club going forward.

Imagine the positive vibes if we could buy both players alongside a top or experienced striker, surely a club of our stature with intent to get back into the big time has to acquire top players.  We’ve had far too many questionable signings over the last 10 years and with the jury still out over Poulson, Konchesky and the re-signing of Aurelio, it's time we began to strike the right note in the transfer market and as such it is imperative that Roy Hodgson and Damien Comolli hit the ground running in the next two transfer windows.

KP

28 December 2010

Who’s our greatest ever player – the argument rumbles on

22 December 2011

By dedlfc

Who’s our greatest ever player – the argument rumbles on
The constant argument/discussion amongst Liverpool fans internally have been about who is the greatest LFC player of all-time. The older generation will always talk about Billy “Liddellpool” Liddell who carried our team throughout the 1940s and 50s with  the American reared Albert Stubbins.  Ian St John, Roger Hunt, Kevin Keegan – in more recent times the prolific Ian Rush, the mercurial John Barnes, Michael Owen (He could never be in my top ten after joining the enemy Man Utd) and Robbie “God” Fowler.

Fernando Torres is slowly achieving cult status as LFC’s current striker

Steven Gerrard out of the current players is King Kenny’s greatest threat to his throne but to me Gerrard is currently like Billy Liddell where he is carrying the side through its difficult times and won’t be fully appreciated until his career has concluded.

With a delicate touch and the ultimate football brain, King Kenny is regarded by the majority of Liverpudlians as the club's greatest ever player.

The one that got away
Bill Shankly throughout his Liverpool management made very few mistakes, yet when a fair-haired, 15 year- old schoolboy arrived in August 1966 for a trial, he let the player who, in the future, was to turn Liverpool into a double-winning team slip through his hands.

A few years later Bill Shankly saw the young Kenny play again and was furious with other members of his management team for not spotting such an exceptional talent when in fact it was him who had missed out !!

Kenny signs
When he joined in August 1977 for a then British record of £440,000, it was hard to see how Bob Paisley's side could top their first European Cup triumph of the previous season. But, with the highly influential Dalglish in the team, the next 13 years brought untold riches.

Dalglish was brought in to replace Kop idol Kevin Keegan, who'd moved to Hamburg earlier that summer, though any fears he couldn't fill those illustrious boots were quickly laid to rest.

Great start to his LFC career
The Glasgow-born forward found the net seven minutes into his league debut against Middlesbrough at Ayresome Park, and followed that with a goal on his first appearance in front of the Kop as Newcastle were beaten 2-0.

Dalglish slipped seamlessly into Paisley's all-conquering red machine and the new King of the Kop crowned his first season by topping the club's goalscoring charts. The most memorable of his 31 strikes came in the 1978 European Cup final against FC Bruges at Wembley, a delicate dink over the keeper that clinched a 1-0 victory.

The move south increased his profile dramatically, though Dalglish was never one to seek the limelight and remained typically modest despite his new found superstar status.

Selfless team player wins awards
In 1979, his talent was recognised by the football writers of England, who voted the canny Scotsman their Footballer of the Year. The award was just desserts for a player whose every touch made Kopites purr with delight.

A selfless team player who brought others into play, Dalglish was an on-the-field visionary who could spot openings that few, if any, of his contemporaries could see.

David Johnson was the first grateful recipient of this in the late Seventies but it was the King's strike partnership with Ian Rush that was to fire the Reds to greater glory during the Eighties.
The club may have had a new chief goalscorer, but Dalglish remained the man pulling all the strings. If assists were recorded back then, he'd have been the first name on everyone's Fantasy Football teamsheet.

A double Footballer of the Year in 1983, he was without doubt the finest British-born player of his generation and was rightly spoken about in the same breath as Maradona, Zico, Platini and Rummenigge.

With the ball at his feet, he was a pure genius - a contention backed up by footage of just about every one of his 172 Liverpool goals. There's the aforementioned European Cup winner, his sublime curlers at Highbury, Portman Road and Goodison, a mazy dribble through the Man United defence at Maine Road, his stretching volley in the League Cup final versus West Ham and title clinchers against Tottenham and Chelsea.
Everyone has their own particular favourite but the one common denominator in all the above was the famous Kenny celebration: a quick turn with arms aloft and a beaming smile that would have lit up even the murkiest Mersey sky.

The Kop hero-worshipped him like no other. Dalglish was the first name they sang and many a bed sheet was converted into a homemade banner paying homage.


Playmaker extraordinaire takes over manager role from Fagan
In the aftermath of the Heysel Stadium disaster, Joe Fagan realised that he couldn’t go on and the LFC board decided to make their playmaker a surprising but popular appointment as player/manager.

Fears his new role would result in more time on the touchline and less on the pitch were initially unfounded. It was on his return to the side during the 1985-86 run-in that Liverpool embarked on a winning streak that would see them clinch a coveted league and FA Cup double. How fitting it was at Stamford Bridge when Dalglish 'the player' scored the goal that secured the title.

Just total class
There are few players in football who have the total class to see 4 moves ahead and be able to see the whole picture on the pitch but we had one from 1977 – 1990.

His telepathic partnership with Ian Rush will always be the best LFC strike partnership in my eyes and long after this life Kenny Dalglish’s name will be synonymously linked with our team Liverpool football club.

dedlfc



22 December 2011

Liverpool v Utrecht

 

Gerrard's drive missed as squad members fail to take up Hodgson's invitation

15 December 2010

Inertia and lethargy seem to be the order of the day.  Liverpool seemed unable to get out of first gear against a Utrecht side that were poor to say the least and were not helped by Hodgson’s strange decision to play one of the very few creative forces at his disposal, Joe Cole, on the left where he was unable to dictate play.  Ryan Babel was left to plough a loan furrow up front, with very little support from Jovanovic and Eccleston.  Poulson was very disappointing, giving away possession on many occasions and not managing to impose himself on the game and it was asking a lot of the very inexperience Shelvey to dominate midfield.

It’s easy to blame the disjointed performance on the young elements in the side, but even with Eccleston, Wilson, Kelly and Shelvey starting  Liverpool paraded eight full internationals.  The worrying factor is that Hodgson still hasn’t eked out style of play which differs from Benitez where creativity is stifled inside a compact unit. If one takes a look at the Reserves earlier this season, it was built on pace and creativity with Eccleston, Amoo and Ince as the attacking force with Suso allowed to dictate the play with a supporting cast of two defensively minded midfielders in behind.

Jovanovic provided one of very few worthwhile attempts on goal in the fourteenth minute when he jinked past two defenders unleashing a ferocious long range drive which was tipped on to the bar by Utrecht goalkeeper Vorm. Only Babel shooting a cross goal and Cole having a shot blocked with goal at his mercy, providing the only serious attempts in the rest of the game which ended scoreless.

Joe Cole looks a shadow of the player he was at Chelsea and the real shame is that arguably the most talented English player of the last decade looks as though yet again he is playing under a manager who doesn’t know how to utilize his undoubted skill.  Cole looks as though he has lost a yard off the mark and where he is used to beat opposing defenders with a mesmeric drop of the shoulders he now seems to be going sideways or backwards and the effect is more dramatic with Hodgson playing him on the flanks with defensive responsibilities, almost as if cloning him into a Dirk Kuyt type of role.

The play stepped up a notch in patches with the creativity and sharpness of Pacheco, coming on to replace the strong running Eccleston with his more direct approached added to his natural guile.  But even his invention could not turn the tide of ineptitude and once again Hodgson was not able to make decisions to change the flow of a game. Dirk Kuyt’s introduction felt more like a chance for him to play against his countryman and for the Utrecht fans to pay homage to him rather than a chance for him to change the game.

Torres was pulled from the starting line-up after the medical team advised Hodgson that the risk was too great to take in what after all was a meaningless game, although Torres body language suggested he was far less than impressed.  Wilson had a very solid game, with Aurelio and Kelly providing the occasional pieces of cutting edge going forward, with Pacheco reminding us of his qualities in his cameo and gave us a reminder of the genius we would all like Joe Cole to return to when at full throttle.

One suspects that none of the starting eleven will start against a Fulham team still using Hodgson’s tried and tested formulae.  He could be fast running out of excuses if Liverpool does not gain the upper hand in match we expect to win and against team struggling to score since the long-term injury to Bobby Zamora.

Newcastle United v Liverpool

Newcastle United v Liverpool

11 December 2010

Fernando Torres back at the expense of Ryan Babel and fresh from the birth of he and wife Olalla’s new-born baby boy, was the only change from Monday night’s victory over Aston Villa.  After being arguably Liverpool’s best player in the last two games Babel was unlucky not to have continued his run in the side particularly after having scored against Aston Villa and providing the front-line with an injection of searing pace and unpredictability.

Newcastle, seemingly a club in the midst of tearing itself apart, had their  Mersey power source Kevin Nolan and Joey Barton back together to instil the missing experience and raison d’être. Liverpool dominated the opening proceedings in terms of possession, but, as was the problem throughout the match, the lack of intensity allowed a Newcastle team which must have felt some trepidation after the sacking of Chris Houghton to more than hold its own.

Newcastle took an early 15^th minute lead, from a Barton free-kick nodded down by Carroll into the path of the on-rushing Nolan to prod home past a clearly frustrated Reina.  Worryingly, this was clearly a pre-meditated move, with Barton signalling his intent to hit the ball across in the vicinity of Carroll to run on too, yet Skrtel was unable to stop Carroll and Nolan strode past Konchesky.

Liverpool still managed three attempts on goal, one of which, a deflected shot from Meireles was cleared off the line from Enrique and another a glorious chance which should have seen Liverpool go in on level terms, was headed wide by Kyrgiakos with the goal at his mercy.

Raul Meireles was the one Liverpool player who stood above the mediocrity. He was sharp in the tackle and his passing on the move was light years above anything else on the pitch.  He continues to progress, especially, since his move into centre-midfield and his fitness levels increasing by the match.

Liverpool, obviously fired-up by the manager Hodgson came out in the second-half with a faster tempo.  It was no surprise then to see Kuyt equalise, albeit, from a huge slice of luck, with a shot deflecting of Taylor after bouncing into Kuyt’s path after striking Campbell on the back.  Liverpool were now in the ascendency, with Torres put clean through from a glorious pass from an early taken free-kick by Konchesky, shooting straight at Krul.  Minutes later, Ngog failed to connect with a header in front of goal.

Nile Ranger replacing the injured Ameobi, injected urgency and belief into Newcastle and caused consternation in the Liverpool backline, almost scoring from his own work when pressurising Skrtel into a mistake and knocking the ball wide while at full stretch.

A long punt from Krul destabilised the centre of the Liverpool defence and allowed Barton to steal through unchecked, to flick the ball past Reina with 10 minutes to go.  Newcastle were not finished yet, collecting the ball 25 yards out with the Liverpool defence and midfield standing-off as if allowing him a free shot on goal, Carroll took the opportunity to unleash a daisy-cutter of a shot which nestled in the corner of  Reina’s net and moved Newcastle ahead of Liverpool into eighth place in the table.

KP

11 December 2011

Liverpool v Aston Villa

Liverpool v Aston Villa

Monday 6 December 2010

The loss of Fernando Torres to labour duties with the impending birth of his second child, presented Ryan Babel with the opportunity to further enhance his position and as a potential understudy and strike partner.

With Reina, Kyriagkos and Babel the only starters remaining from the Europa League game against Steaua, the team had more of a workmanlike, but balanced look, with the defensive pillars of Kyriagkos and Skertel, supported either side by Johnson and Konchesky and the favoured midfield quartet, outside of Gerarrd of Kuyt, Maxi, Lucas and Meireles, with Ngog upfront with Babel.

Liverpool were immediately on the front foot with the midfield axis of Lucas and Meireles not just breaking up play, but becoming the heartbeat of the team.  Meireles is becoming increasingly  influential, his one touch and short passing enable him to control the tempo of the game, in a different manner from Xabi Alonso because he is more fleet of foot which enables to link the defence as well as the attack.  Lucas seems to have finally adapted to the physical nature of English football and it is a tribute to his strong mental strength that he has produced some of the best performances of his Liverpool career this season.  With Meireles seemingly a fixture in the centre, the imminent return of Gerrard will pose some interesting questions.

Lucas driving run forward and pass caused consternation in the Villains defence, with pressure from first Babel and then Kuyt forcing a corner.  From the resulting deep corner, swung over from Meireles, Skertel powered a header toward goal, where Ngog reacting in the way only a predator would, nodded home on the 14th minute mark.  Carrying the momentum forward Liverpool doubled their lead 2 minutes later, when Lucas played a delightful ball over the ex-Kopite Warnock, which Babel dispatched with aplomb.  His body language hints at a more steely disposition than previously gauged.

There were many positives which Liverpool extolled in this game, but none more pleasing than Ngog contributions. Not just because he scored a trademark penalty box goal, but moreover, he showed a willingness to lift his head-up and seek out colleagues.  He has been prone to run with his head down, which is obviously not conducive to adding to the assists column, let alone playing in a dual striking role. 

The third goal which he set up, after 55 minutes, was a perfect example where after a driving run down the left channel to latch on to a ball from Maxi, he surveyed two options, the first, the easier, was to roll the ball across for his well marked strike partner, the second, which led to the goal, was a perfectly waited pass between two defenders and back in to the path of Maxi Rodriguez, who showed great composure and technique in opening out his body, to side foot his shot in the top corner of the net.

Apart from a close range shot from Agbonlahor, brilliantly blocked by Reina, Villa were fairly impotent, in attack, so much so that Liverpool rarely had to get out of second gear. Villa quickly introduced Delfouneso after the break for Clark and Carew for Agbonlahor with 25 minutes to go, but after the third goal the death knell had been sounded.

Hodgson has to be commended  for playing an expansive and fluent front-line in the absence of Torres and Gerrard and it maybe that 4-4-2 is more suitable than 4-5-1 with the players he has at his disposal. Reina kept his 100th clean sheet for the club in record time, ahead of such giants as Clemence and Grobelaar which is a confidence booster for the club, especially after such a bad start.

If the momentum at home can be transferred to the away games, starting at Newcastle on Saturday, who is to say that with those above still dropping points that a top five finish is not beyond the realms of possibility, especially as the club do not play any of the top four until early February.

KP

6 December 2010

Steaua Bucharest v Liverpool

Steaua Bucharest v Liverpool

3 December 2010

With 10 changes from the 2-1 defeat against Tottenham, Liverpool went into the match against Steaua Bucharest only needing a draw to secure qualification to the next stage.

Early qualification meant fridge players could look ahead to more game time against Utrecht with the manager, less likely to risk Gerrard, Torres and Meireless et al, with the frequency of games over the Christmas period, just over the horizon. With these games in mind, the strength in depth of the first team squad is sure to be tested and with Babel, Jovanović and Pacheco in the starting line-up for the first time since the Northampton debacle, the players in question, and others like the recently capped Wilson were keenly aware that strong performances could elevate them through the ranks, particularly with Carragher and Agger out with long-term injuries.

In a match where Liverpool were for the most part under pressure, Ryan Babel showed a level of maturity, particularly in the first-half, which will have confounded his many critics and left many of his fans hoping for a long run in the side.  Playing upfront alone, he showed he was capable of holding the ball up and either waiting for the arrival of team mates or bringing others into play. In the 19^th minute he showed a superb piece of awareness, as he moved on to the ball in the wide right position, he intelligently brought the ball back from his more stronger right foot on to his left and waited until support arrived in the area, delivering a brilliantly measured cross on to the head of Jovanović who gloriously headed home.  It seemed only right that Liverpool’s two best attacking players on the night should provide the night’s bright spot.

Young Wilson stood up well to the prolonged waves of attack by Steaua by creating a centre-half barrier with Kyrgiakos ably supported by Kelly.  Pepe Reina, pulled of a string of good saves on the night, but an uncharacteristic loss of concentration allowed a soft header by Bonfim on the hour to squirm through his legs.  It was a deserved leveller as Stancu had missed a glorious chance just before half-time, screwing a shot wide with the goal at his mercy after the ball broke to him following a challenge by Kyriagkos.

Liverpool against the run of play almost sneaked a late winner with Kyriiagkos getting on the end of an Aurelio cross to see his powerful header come crashing back of the crossbar.


KP  3 December 2010

The Great Swindle

The Great Swindle, 21 November 2010

Thirty-nine pounds for a ticket at the Anfield Road end, sixty-six pounds for an open train ticket on Virgin Trains and probably twenty or so pounds for sustenance on the day, not bad by anybody’s standards.

But with a club like ours, its history and pageant, it’s not just fans who turn out to watch the matches, but football supporters and tourist just happy to visit the hallowed ground that is Anfield.  With that in mind why is the club not thinking more about the fans than lining its own pockets?

Before the West Ham match myself and a friend, tried to make preparations in case we missed the final train (the 19:48) from Lime Street Station back to London Euston.   During our previous visit to Anfield (the Blackburn game), we made some enquiries at the Holiday Inn (across the way from Lime Street Station) and were told that bookings on the weekend of a game could only be made for two nights!  Before yesterday’s match we saw prices of up to £400 for a hotel within a fifteen mile radius of the ground from our research on the internet!

This brings into question whether LFC, the council and the hotel owners are in cahoots.  During the West Ham match, part way through the second-half an announcement was made to West Ham fans reminding them that the final train was at 19:48.  Many Liverpool fans also come from London or have to go through London on the way home – as with the fan from Washington DC who we made acquaintance with and was attending his first match. He was going back home on Monday and had to get back to London that night. Thus the fact that the match started at 17:30 meant that it would end at 19:15 at the earliest, yesterday 19:20 approx.

We left after 85 minutes or so, knowing that we had to get a black cab to the station to stand any chance of getting the train, because neither the local bus service nor the bus service laid on by the club would get us to the station on time, especially taking into account the usual queues for buses after the game.  Thus, we, with countless others had to run as far away from the stadium as possible to stand a chance of hailing a cab.  Our new found friend from Washington DC remarked that there is no way fans in American sport would put up with this.  I wonder if our new American owners know that fans are being treated this way!

Why can’t the club work with the transport authorities and Virgin Trains to put on a later service around 20:48 which could get fans to London on time to get trains to elsewhere and before the London Underground closes without having to leave the match before the close? Conspiracy…? One hopes not!

It would be interesting to know if anyone else has experienced similar travel problems?

KP  21 November 2010

Liverpool v West Ham

Liverpool v West Ham; Saturday 20 November 2010

The crowd were in a pensive mood before the match. Would Hodgson instil some pace and width in the side with Gerrard now missing for a month and with Lucas serving a one game suspension would Meireles finally get a chance in his more accustomed position in the centre? We got one wish at least.

Meireles moved to the centre to play alongside the much maligned Poulsen, with Kuyt and Rodriguez providing the width and Ngog the support for Torres.  Glen Johnson in his first game back since the very vocal and public criticism from Roy Hodgson slotted back into the right-back position with Skertel, Carragher and Konchesky making up the back-line in front of Reina.

Liverpool started the game in high tempo, with Meireles and Poulsen controlling the midfield and in the absence of West Ham’s midfield general Scott Parker, West Ham did not pose any significant problems in squeezing the midfield areas.  Glen Johnson, was involved in most of Liverpool’s best moves, being prominent, probing intelligently and it was he who scored the first goal, driving home a ball which broke to him in the area.  Poulsen had his best game since his arrival, constantly using the time given to him by the West Ham midfield to keep the game flowing and often stepping in with well time interceptions.

Dirk Kuyt, Liverpool’s trusty deputy penalty-taker was on hand to slot home the penalty after Gabbidon had handled.  This was followed by a gloriously taken glancing header by Maxi Rodriguez, after Paul Konchesky got down the line to deliver a superb whipped in cross to take Liverpool in the break three-nil up.

West Ham enjoyed far more possession in the second-half, partly because Liverpool sat back on their laurels and partly because Avram Grant may have given them the kind of half-time salvo which stoked them into putting some pride into their performance, not that they were a lot better quality wise.

Disappointingly, Hodgson didn’t try to stop the Liverpool malaise in the second-half as a bigger score was there for taking, especially as another two goals would have taken us above Stoke with West Ham not providing an attempt of any note on Reina’s goal.  With this in mind an earlier introduction of Ryan Babel may have been the order of the day.

Liverpool have delivered some pretty tepid performances this season, but they will have to go some to match that delivered by West Ham, who were by far the worst team to have visited Anfield this season.

But three points gained after disappointing performances against Wigan and Stoke, with crucial games against Spurs and Aston Villa approaching will at least instil confidence, especially in Poulsen, Meireles and Johnson (man of the match) and a Liverpool side showing that they can score goals without assists from the dynamic duo of Gerrard and Torres.

KP,  20 November 2010

Glen Johnson and beyond

Glen Johnson and beyond – 14 November 2010

The recent open criticism of Glen Johnson by manager Roy Hodgson has put the spotlight firmly on the England right-back. Whether it turns out to be a great piece of man management or more likely, it highlights the fact that a Liverpool manager is openly criticising one of his players in a way which Shankley, Paisley and Daglish would never have dreamt of is open to question.

Johnson’s game has always been based on his attacking prowess and it was certainly the reason why he struggled to breakthrough under the strict regime at Mourinho’s Chelsea. His game flourished at Portsmouth where he was often seen more on the right-side of midfield where he developed the devastating habit of cutting in from the right and shooting on goal.  He is equally adept when tried on the left, because unlike most modern day footballers he has the confidence to use his weaker foot.

After Steven Gerrard, Johnson has arguably the best delivery at the club and with the lack of wide-men giving him a run further up the pitch wouldn’t be a risky call.  A comparison with Gareth Bale is not wide of the mark. Bale’s defensive capabilities have been called into question at left-back, but freed of the responsibility with the solid Assou-Ekotto in behind Bale’s game has flourished to the point where we are now hearing of interest from the likes of Barcelona.

The problem here lies with Hodgson being one-dimensional in most aspects of his management.  He picks the same rigid formation home and away and seems to lack the flexibility to make use of the creative elements in his team such as Gerrard, Torres and Meireles who is playing out of position on the right.  Liverpool are in the position now where the club must make use of any creative talent it has at its disposal and it for this reason players like Johnson and Babel must be used to help Gerrard and Torres as a creative force.

The time surely has come for Hodgson to give Babel and Johnson their heads and play Meireles in the middle with Gerrard.

KP

14 November 2010