Stoke City vs.. Liverpool Post Match Review

I knew it’s not going to be easy not because I could foresee that Stoke will put up a fight.  I knew it going because I know if we manage a win, it will put us too far ahead on the table, which it never happens with Liverpool, right?

This is really frustrating watching them perform the way they performed!  In order to bring home the Premiership Title, Liverpool MUST win these kinds of games against weaker teams.  Rafa knew that we still need to visit Old Trafford later this season, and our next game is against Everton, which means anything could happen!

What it means is that as I watch Chelsea vs.. Man U. tomorrow, I have to rule for a draw, if not Chelsea to win. 

Reina – 5 – I’m sorry, I know you got a clean sheet, but that stupid pass that you made almost game me a heart-attack.

Hyypia – 7 – I think he did okay today. 

Skrtel – 7 – Welcome back!  And yes, you also did well.  Your partnership with Hyypia seemed to work well today.

Aurelio – 6 – A very quiet day and I think he’s under instruction not to push forward. 

Carragher – 6 – I don’t like seeing Carra playing as Right Back.  His crossing sucks, and he lacks pace.  And looking at how often Stoke came down their Left side, I don’t think I’m the only one who sees Carra that way.

Mascherano – 5 – I’ve heard/read that Maradona is on-site watching the game.  I wonder if Maradona will reconsider Mascherano’s qualities and skills after watching him play today.

Lucas – 4 – His passing was miserable today! 

Kuyt – 5 – We know his finishing sucks.  By the time Rafa moved him to Right Wing, I think he only had less than half a tank of gas left.

Gerrard – 6 – He didn’t show up in the First Half.  He only started playing after Torres was brought on.

Riera – 5 – He did a few good runs from the Left early-on.   But he disappeared in the Second Half, and subsequently being substituted. 

Benayoun – 5 – Always one dribble too many.  He was given quite some time on the ball and he failed to deliver.

Torres – 6 – Got about 30 minutes of play and that Header-pass to Gerrard was magnificent! (Almost gave him a ‘7’)

Babel – 6 – With only 10 minutes or so of playing time, I shouldn’t even be rating him.  But I do think that his Dribbling and Pace are both better than Benayoun.  He was/would-have-been my pick to start the match on the right.

In conclusion, WE MISSED ALONSO!  I don’t know how Rafa could entertain the thought was selling Alonso early this season.  His range of passing was clearly missed today!  And if we do end-up losing the Title, today’s match, in my opinion, is the final nail to the coffin. 

This is Anfield, or Is This Anfield?

Another Draw… at home!?  Come on!  What is going on here?  Granted that this is Hull, and this Hull team is not a typical promoted side, but still!  We should have had enough warning of what Hull is capable of, going into this game!

If, and only if, we won our past couple home games, we would have been sitting comfortably on top of the table, rather than biting my nails while watching Chelsea hosting West Ham, praying that Chelsea’s players to continued miss their target.  By the way, nice shot, Bellamy!  Thank you very much!

(No, I didn’t get to watch this game as it was not shown on TV here in the U.S.  So not post-match review this time.) 

Champions League 08-09 Round of 16 Potential Opponents

Now that Match Day 6 of the Group Stage is finally over, let’s look at the potential opponents that Liverpool may face before the actually drawing takes place in about a week’s time.

Since Liverpool finished at the top of Group D, it means that they will be drawn against the Runner’s-up of the remaining Groups, except that they cannot be drawn against teams from the Premiership.  So, let’s look at Number 2’s of each Group…

Group A – Chelsea

Group B – Inter Milan

Group C – Sporting Lisbon

Group D – That’s Liverpool’s Group

Group E – Villareal

Group F – Lyon

Group G – Arsenal

Group H – Real Madrid

It’s pretty obvious to me that the teams that we want to avoid are Inter and Real Madrid. 

My pick would be Lyon, followed by Sporting Lisbon.  I think our track record against a French team is decent.  (Can someone confirm that for me?)

What do you think?  Which team do you rather see Liverpool play against?

How Much of Winning a Premiership Title Relies on Luck?

I started watching Manchester United vs. Sunderland at the beginning of the second half.  No Team on earth would like to play Manchester United at Old Trafford, right after the resignation of their Manager (Roy Keane.)  Therefore, I was expecting Manchester to beat Sunderland by a wide margin.  By the 70th minute or so, I was beginning to wonder if this is one of those game that played out just like how Liverpool drew West Ham and Fulham at Anfield.  Manchester United was pouring everyone forward during the last 15 minutes or so, and credit to the Sunderland defense, they defended very well.  On a very few occasion when Sunderland tried a (if-you-want-to-call-that) Counter-Attack, I was hoping that maybe Ferdinand would make a mistake that would lead to a rare win for Sunderland.  (But would it be fair to Roy?  Of course!) 

As I was about to celebrate another draw by Manchester United, at Old Trafford, Carrick had the ball way outside of the box.  He's no Stevie G, which means that he can shoot all he wants.  But the ball deflected off of a Sunderland defender, hit the post, bounced off the post, and fell onto Vidic's foot, and he scored.  The only thing that I was grateful, was that it wasn't Liverpool that conceded this goal.  My next thought?  Why are they (Manchester United) is always so lucky?  I know I still couldn't let go of the 2 recent Liverpool draws at Anfield.  But why?  Why couldn't Liverpool be this lucky when they played Fulham and West Ham?  The more scary thought is... could this be the turning point for Manchester United? 

Because if you look at the table, Manchester United is now not that far off from the top.  If we give them a win for that extra game on hand (come on, it's against Fulham!), they would be only 4 points away from Liverpool.  Not to mention that Chelsea is still breathing down our neck!  And one thing I have to admit that I quite agree with all the Liverpool critics, is that, this Liverpool squad has no experience in being chased.  For the past 10 years or so, we are so accustomed to chasing the League leader that hardly anyone on the team know what it is like to fight-to-stay-on-top of the table!  And if you couple with the expectation, it's even harder!  The fake-Jose-Mourinho sum it up very well... on why the pressure and expectation is there, in this case, for Rafa!

Blackburn 1-3 Liverpool

 

The game wasn't broadcast here in the US.  However, I did get to watch the highlight on TV.  The fact that we didn't open the scoring until late into the second half, tells me that I wouldn't be enjoying the game had I been watching it live.  How right I was!  After watching the Man U game, I hopped onto the Internet to read all about the post match reviews and most critics are saying that Liverpool was not playing convincingly.  Staying on top of the table is no easy task.   Keep it up!  (Here's a blog review of the game from The Offside - Liverpool)

Next up, visiting PSV, follow by a home game against Hull. 

 

(Picture:  BBC Sports)

Don't Blow It!

Good job, the Gunners!  Thank you for beating the crap out of Chelsea at the Bridge.  Now, Rafa, Stevie G, and Team, please blow this opportunity to top the table... again!  Had you been able to beat Fulham last week, we would be well clear on top of the table... especially if you win tomorrow!  Please, please, please... give us a win tomorrow!

Jose accuses the Voyeur of spying!

A New Captain in the Liverpool Squad

Congratulations to Mascherano for being named the captain of the Argentina team.  According to Soccernet.com, Manager Diego Maradona spent some time to talk Mascherano into taking the armband.

“I've convinced him… I explained to him what I thought about him and told him what I thought he could give the team."

As much as I feel happy for Mascherano, I do have to say that taking the armband could only means that he’s now even more important to the Argentina National Team.  With that, it means more travelling between South America and Anfield for friendlies and such. 

I don’t know if I want that. 

14 - 8 = ?

"I've had 14 bookings this season - 8 of which were my fault, but 7 of which were disputable" - Paul Gascoigne