While previous English Premier League campaigns have signed off on the final day with a bang - most notably last year’s spine-tingling last-gasp title-winning goal from Sergio Aguero - this year somewhat ended with a whimper as a number of drawn out farewells came to a close.
Remarkably, the managers at three of the Premier League's top seven teams walked away from their respective clubs on Sunday, and that's with Roberto Mancini having already departed runners up Manchester City after their FA Cup final loss to relegated Wigan. The contrasts between the departures of Sir Alex Ferguson, David Moyes and Rafa Benitez, however, were stark.
Ferguson, the former Manchester United manager, was awarded a guard of honour before his side's memorable 5-5 draw at West Brom and acknowledged all four sides of the Hawthorns ground at the final whistle, while Moyes, his successor in the Old Trafford hot seat, was given a similarly respectful send-off by Everton fans. On the other hand, Benitez slunk away following Chelsea's 2-1 win over Everton at Stamford Bridge.
The Spaniard, after seven turbulent months in charge, did not want to risk a final embarrassing backlash from the Chelsea supporters he has found it almost impossible to win over this season as the players paraded the Europa League trophy.
Indeed, Benitez did not even receive a thank you from long-time Chelsea servants John Terry, Frank Lampard or Paulo Ferreira, who is retiring, during on-pitch speeches after the final whistle in contrast, as one English tabloid put it, to the "£200,000 watch Chelsea’s players gave Guus Hiddink at the end of his spell at Stamford Bridge". Had Benitez have ventured further than the safety of his technical area, the former Liverpool manager might have felt a slight thawing of the vociferous abuse he has tended to have been subjected to since replacing Roberto di Matteo.
There were even sightings of banners thanking Benitez and wishing him luck for the future. But Chelsea fans still seemed united that Rafa was not the manager they wished to take the club forward in next season’s title push - most likely under current Real Madrid and former Blues boss Jose Mourinho.
Benitez, who averaged two points per Premier League game since taking charge of the club as well as qualifying for the Uefa Champions League in third place and winning the Europa League, wants to remain coaching in England for family reasons.
However, his Liverpool Football Club connections - rather than his family connections to the city - seem to have ruled him out of replacing Moyes at Everton.
"I don’t think it will be easy for them to approach me and not easy for me to go there," the 53-year-old said. "I think I have to be consistent with my ideas. “I have a lot of respect for Everton but it would be difficult."
On the pitch, the procession of departures has likewise ended, with Paul Scholes, Jamie Carragher, Michael Owen, Paulo Ferreira and, of course, David Beckham, all calling time on careers that added together have accumulated a mind-boggling assortment of silverware. Of those, only 33-year-old Owen's slipping away from football will perhaps be mourned as talent unfulfilled.
For a generation of football fans around the world, Owen will unfairly be labelled as an injury-prone benchwarmer, when during his stint at Liverpool after breaking into the team ahead of the 1998 World Cup, the striker was one of the most natural finishers around.
Scholes' final retirement also offers some pangs of regret in that he decided to stop making himself available for England aged 29, primarily - and astonishingly looking back at England over the past decade - because he was deemed surplus to requirements in a central role.
Carragher, a player never shy to speak his mind during his 737-appearance playing career for Liverpool, will like Owen become a media pundit in the interim; however, the 35-year-old will surely be a manager of wonderful poise when the time is right. "He’s been an absolutely colossal player and at 35 he's still fit and strong," said Reds manager Brendan Rodgers. "It’s with great sadness that he has to move on but we now have to."
Tags
English Soccer Premiership football
Tampilkan postingan dengan label Liverpool. Tampilkan semua postingan
Tampilkan postingan dengan label Liverpool. Tampilkan semua postingan
Jumat, 24 Mei 2013
Minggu, 11 November 2012
Chelsea 1 - 1 Liverpool
11 November 2012
Ref Howard Webb
This game came after a week in which teams from the east caused problems for these two English sides.
Worryingly for Blues fans, Shakhtar Donetsk outplayed Chelsea for long stretches even though Victor Moses gave the European Champions a last minute winner; Shakhtar's Willian was the best player on show and surely must be on the radar to be included in Brazil's national team for 2014.
Away at Anji Makhachkala, Liverpool looked bereft of attacking ideas in a 3-7-0 formation, the lack of a forward up on the Anji offside line allowing for no outlet ball, especially in the absence of a player with real aerial power – the loan of Andy Carroll to West Ham United, particularly when Liverpool are in a rebuilding phase, looks increasingly like a poor decision.
We know Brendan Rogers likes his players to be relaxed before kick off, and the smiling Raheem Sterling seems to be following orders in the pre-match warm up. Will Joe Cole, on the bench for Liverpool, come on to torment his previous employers? Likewise, how will Torres do against Liverpool? He was poor against the Ukrainians midweek with Chelsea moves breaking down on his receiving the ball.
The whole stadium stands in silence for Remembrance Day, Chelsea Pensioners included.
Liverpool once more are playing with three at the back, against Chelsea's 4-2-3-1.
3' Agger, despite being one of the back three, finds himself in the Chelsea penalty area. Total football from the get-go.
When the Liverpool back three are switching the ball between themselves, it is Joe Allen and/or Gerrard checking back to allow for the vertical pass. Torres, coming back beyond the halfway line to get the ball, looks the most exciting player in these early stages, flicking the ball over a defender's head, and a half moon round another before surging toward goal. This is reminiscent of his attacks from deep for Atletico Madrid; he looks a much better player doing this than as a stationary figure up against a centre half.
18' Carragher pushes the mobile Torres in the back, but Ivanovic's free kick is blasted over.
19' Goal. Torres wins a corner, Terry makes a near-post run, and, unmarked, plants his header in the postage stamp position. 1 – 0. Poor defending.
26' Torres shoots after Hazard unsurprisingly outmuscles Allen in midfield.
28' Gerrard continues to make forward runs, but the Chelsea defensive mids are tracking well.
30' A third of the game gone and Liverpool have their second shot.
31' Is it Suarez' first touch of the ball? It's a good one though: a nice ball played into space.
Most of the work being done by Liverpool is down the left flank with Jose Enrique very busy as the wingback.
34' Suarez is pushed by Ramires and collides with John Terry, who us back from his four-match suspension for racially abusing QPR's Anton Ferdinand. Terry, in his 558th game for the Blues, is stretchered off with suspected knee ligament damage. Things are not going well for the former England captain as there have been rumours about a January departure from Stamford Bridge, with Valencia as a possible destination. 40' Sahin takes a corner that is so low that not only does it not beat the first defender in the air, it is half volleyed away by Oscar.
43' An interesting moment where Cech's kicked pass to Cahill, whose body position is only a quarter of a turn wrong, leads to an overly hurried clearance and a Liverpool surge forward. From such apparently minor things do matches turn.
48' The three-man defence is exposed for the first time in open play as Carragher is inexplicably attracted to a ball down the left which should have been dealt with by Agger. Brendan Rogers pre-match assertion that the Liverpool team is comfortable in a 3-5-2 is put to the test. Apart from one small slip, Wisdom looks solid on the left.
At half time Chelsea can take heart from the fact that they have restricted Liverpool to exactly zero chances. It's only a single goal lead though.
57' Great save by Jones from Torres' header. Torres has been Chelsea's most effective player. Given he is the lone striker, one of the hardest working, too.
66' Gerrard's petulance gives Chelsea a free kick, but Mata's ball is in inch too high for Torres.
71' Suddenly Suarez surges forward, Wisdom bombs up the right. Corner. Suso – on for the ineffectual Sahin – takes. Carragher's near-post flick and there is Suarez unmarked to head into the empty net. And if Suarez hadn't finished it, Agger, also unmarked, would have. Schoolboy defending.
81' Torres is taken off; Sturridge on.
85' Suarez shoots from the sideline near the halfway line, but Cech gets back to save.
86' Ivanovic heads just over from Mata's corner.
87' Suarez is played in by the hardworking Jose Enrique, but Cech comes out of his area to clear with his legs.
89' Good feet by Hazard on the left, he then shoots wide in the second phase.
93' A sweeping Liverpool move leads to man of the match Jose Enrique shooting at the near post, but it is saved by Peter Cech.
An improved Liverpool have done the Manchester clubs a favour. Chelsea may need to dip into the market in January for shooting power. Both teams have to work on defending set pieces.
1 – 1.
Peter Rodd
Tags
Liverpool Chelsea
Jumat, 05 Oktober 2012
Liverpool 2 – 3 Udinese Calcio
Liverpool 2 - 3 Udinese Calcio 4 October 2012
Before Udinese's trip to the Emirates in 2011, the team took a stroll around Marylebone and Regents Park. The north-east Italian team's coaches obviously wanted a relaxed squad going into the big game. Arsenal won one nil, but Di Natale caused them all sorts of problems and Gunners' goalkeeper Szczesny had to be on his game to keep them at bay; the loss of Sanchez to Barcelona didn't faze the Italians as much as was anticipated.
I imagine the Liverpool coaching staff will have studied that match closely, for this was the first meeting ever between the two sides.
The teams lined up with Liverpool in a 4-3-3 and Udinese with 3-5-2. Which would dominate?
Downing is put out on the right flank; Shelvey is given yet another start, making one believe that Brendan Rodgers is putting faith in him as a permanent fixture in midfield; and Borini is also on again, perhaps so he can listen in on the Italians' banter. Assaidi, the Moroccan, whose first year this is with the Reds is out on the left.
It is he who looks lively early on, but he shows the defenders too much of the ball on more than a couple of occasions. Nevertheless, this is an indication that Rodgers is throwing his young players (19 year-old Robinson is on at right back too) in at the deep end, or giving them their chance to shine. Take your pick. In any case there's no Suarez and no Gerrard in the starting line up.
Early on it's difficult to tell who is on top. Shelvey shoots from distance, Udinese's Serbian keeper Zeljko Brkic makes a save, Udinese counterattack very quickly and Di Natale takes a shot. The Italians are not here for a draw by the look of it. Liverpool take the lead due to Shelvey's long pass out to the right to Downing who walls it over the the back stick where the unmarked Shelvey heads downwards inside the far post. Nice goal. 1 – 0.
The lead seems a little undeserved as the teams seem fairly even. Then Di Natale, from the right hits the ball with the outside of his right foot and the ball curves just over the angle of the bar and the far post. End-to-end with Downing's shot blocked, but then it would be.
Then Johnson finds himself in a position similar to Di Natale's a minute before: out on the right; but the Liverpool man hits the ball instead with the inside of his right foot, thus giving himself little to no chance of scoring. And there's the difference: Di Natale - top scorer in Serie A in 2009-10 with 29 goals – is easily the best player on show, and he is surrounded with generally competent teammates .. though of course Shelvey's run should have been tracked by at least one of Udinese's five midfielders.
Pinzi is driving the Italians forward from midfield. Suddenly Liverpool have a good couple of minutes of uninterrupted possession - so this is the new Swansea after all! Until we are reminded that Swanselona's possession play happened largely in the first two thirds of the pitch. Anyway, at least the dangerous Italiani can't score without a ball.
What will Francesco Guidolin tell his players before they duck their heads under the "This is Anfield" sign to emerge from the tunnel for the second time?
Whatever the manager said, the words must have been magic ones as only 30 seconds from the restart a mirror image of the Shelvey goal happens with Di Natale's great strike under pressure flying past Reina. 1 - 1.
The game trundles along for a while. Rodgers has decided that he now wants to win the match, so he puts on Gerrard and Suarez for the increasingly anonymous Assaidi and the constantly anonymous Henderson. The Liverpool energy gauge shoots up to a high level - into the red you might say. The Brazilian Willians is brought on to stiffen up the Italian midfield, and immediately an inswinging free kick is met by Reds' centre back Coates who deftly places the ball inside the far post. Own goal. 1 - 2.
Two minutes later Di Natale, in the box, back to goal, plays keepy uppy, then takes a preparation touch and passes into the path of Pasquale whose driven low shot inside the far post gives Reina no chance. Great goal. 1 - 3.
Three minutes after that Suarez cracks in a great free kick over a tall jumping wall. 2 – 3. Really is end-to-end. What an exciting match!
Suarez almost equalizes, Gerrard shoots against a defender's back, Brkic saves from Suarez, Allen doesn't get called for a penalty, Sterling who's on for the lumbering Borini, fires just over the bar. Result: 2 - 3
There is some talk about why Gerrard wasn't playing from the beginning – or Suarez come to that. Famous last words and all, but it doesn't look like Liverpool will win the BPL this time, so here's a big chunk of silverware in the form of the Europa League that you might think would be worth winning .. but you don't play your best players.
Hmm. I notice Udinese played their best player from the start. Rodgers must be weening the babies – that's it. But hang on a minute, Liverpool and England right back Glen Johnson was playing from the start; the problem is he made poor decisions when in promising positions. Case in point - in the 27th minute he finds himself behind the Udinese defence, but panics and wastefully gives away the ball. So what does experience count for? Pros and cons, but Brendan Rodgers must be given all the time he needs to craft his team.
Next up for Liverpool: Anzhi.
Peter Rodd
Tags
Europa League World Soccerfootball
Before Udinese's trip to the Emirates in 2011, the team took a stroll around Marylebone and Regents Park. The north-east Italian team's coaches obviously wanted a relaxed squad going into the big game. Arsenal won one nil, but Di Natale caused them all sorts of problems and Gunners' goalkeeper Szczesny had to be on his game to keep them at bay; the loss of Sanchez to Barcelona didn't faze the Italians as much as was anticipated.
I imagine the Liverpool coaching staff will have studied that match closely, for this was the first meeting ever between the two sides.
The teams lined up with Liverpool in a 4-3-3 and Udinese with 3-5-2. Which would dominate?
Downing is put out on the right flank; Shelvey is given yet another start, making one believe that Brendan Rodgers is putting faith in him as a permanent fixture in midfield; and Borini is also on again, perhaps so he can listen in on the Italians' banter. Assaidi, the Moroccan, whose first year this is with the Reds is out on the left.
It is he who looks lively early on, but he shows the defenders too much of the ball on more than a couple of occasions. Nevertheless, this is an indication that Rodgers is throwing his young players (19 year-old Robinson is on at right back too) in at the deep end, or giving them their chance to shine. Take your pick. In any case there's no Suarez and no Gerrard in the starting line up.
Early on it's difficult to tell who is on top. Shelvey shoots from distance, Udinese's Serbian keeper Zeljko Brkic makes a save, Udinese counterattack very quickly and Di Natale takes a shot. The Italians are not here for a draw by the look of it. Liverpool take the lead due to Shelvey's long pass out to the right to Downing who walls it over the the back stick where the unmarked Shelvey heads downwards inside the far post. Nice goal. 1 – 0.
The lead seems a little undeserved as the teams seem fairly even. Then Di Natale, from the right hits the ball with the outside of his right foot and the ball curves just over the angle of the bar and the far post. End-to-end with Downing's shot blocked, but then it would be.
Then Johnson finds himself in a position similar to Di Natale's a minute before: out on the right; but the Liverpool man hits the ball instead with the inside of his right foot, thus giving himself little to no chance of scoring. And there's the difference: Di Natale - top scorer in Serie A in 2009-10 with 29 goals – is easily the best player on show, and he is surrounded with generally competent teammates .. though of course Shelvey's run should have been tracked by at least one of Udinese's five midfielders.
Pinzi is driving the Italians forward from midfield. Suddenly Liverpool have a good couple of minutes of uninterrupted possession - so this is the new Swansea after all! Until we are reminded that Swanselona's possession play happened largely in the first two thirds of the pitch. Anyway, at least the dangerous Italiani can't score without a ball.
What will Francesco Guidolin tell his players before they duck their heads under the "This is Anfield" sign to emerge from the tunnel for the second time?
Whatever the manager said, the words must have been magic ones as only 30 seconds from the restart a mirror image of the Shelvey goal happens with Di Natale's great strike under pressure flying past Reina. 1 - 1.
The game trundles along for a while. Rodgers has decided that he now wants to win the match, so he puts on Gerrard and Suarez for the increasingly anonymous Assaidi and the constantly anonymous Henderson. The Liverpool energy gauge shoots up to a high level - into the red you might say. The Brazilian Willians is brought on to stiffen up the Italian midfield, and immediately an inswinging free kick is met by Reds' centre back Coates who deftly places the ball inside the far post. Own goal. 1 - 2.
Two minutes later Di Natale, in the box, back to goal, plays keepy uppy, then takes a preparation touch and passes into the path of Pasquale whose driven low shot inside the far post gives Reina no chance. Great goal. 1 - 3.
Three minutes after that Suarez cracks in a great free kick over a tall jumping wall. 2 – 3. Really is end-to-end. What an exciting match!
Suarez almost equalizes, Gerrard shoots against a defender's back, Brkic saves from Suarez, Allen doesn't get called for a penalty, Sterling who's on for the lumbering Borini, fires just over the bar. Result: 2 - 3
There is some talk about why Gerrard wasn't playing from the beginning – or Suarez come to that. Famous last words and all, but it doesn't look like Liverpool will win the BPL this time, so here's a big chunk of silverware in the form of the Europa League that you might think would be worth winning .. but you don't play your best players.
Hmm. I notice Udinese played their best player from the start. Rodgers must be weening the babies – that's it. But hang on a minute, Liverpool and England right back Glen Johnson was playing from the start; the problem is he made poor decisions when in promising positions. Case in point - in the 27th minute he finds himself behind the Udinese defence, but panics and wastefully gives away the ball. So what does experience count for? Pros and cons, but Brendan Rodgers must be given all the time he needs to craft his team.
Next up for Liverpool: Anzhi.
Peter Rodd
Tags
Europa League World Soccerfootball
Senin, 24 September 2012
Man Utd v Liverpool Enemies in Love Fest
Liverpool v Manchester United 22 September 2012
Given the attention given to off-field concerns: the Hillsborough verdict that exonerated the Liverpool fans from engineering their own deaths, Fergie's urging the fans to be respectful of each other, and the question of whether players should shake hands with racists, we might expect this game to be a little different from usual.
Ferdinand helped 96 inflated balloons (representing, of course, the victims at Sheffield) escape from plastic bags, the balloon industry informing us that 100% latex balloons are biodegradable and are not harmful to animals or sea creatures.
New Liverpool supremo Brendan Rogers is looking for his first league win. Will tactics and style-of-play form a big part in such an emotionally-charged game? Or will it be a Steven Gerrard inspired up-and-at-'em with Scholes picking up a card?
In the first 20 minutes: corner count: Liverpool 3 Man U 0; Liverpool have dominated possession and territory; most of Liverpool's attacks have been down the right flank though their traditional go-to guy seventeen-year-old Sterling; United cannot retain possession, but then England's best player is not on the pitch.
Then on 38 minutes, Shelvey and Evans both leave their feet going for a loose ball. Result: ref Mark Halsey issues a red for Shelvey, no card for Evans. This is interesting as we know from the documentary 'Being: Liverpool' that Rogers specifically told Shelvey to "stay on your feet". The odds on a United win shorten instantaneously.
Even on ten men, though, Liverpool continue to have the more meaningful possession. The Fergie hairdryer will be out at halftime.
The first half ends 0 – 0. Shots: Liverpool 8 Man Utd 3. The best players: Liverpool: Gerrard and Sterling; Manchester United: Ferdinand and Rafael.
At last Scholes is on. So is Jesús Joaquín Fernández Sáez de la Torre (who had made his first full 90-minute debut in the Europa League match against Young Boys a couple of days ago 20 Sept 2012, but who was signed by Rafael Benitez - remember him?) for the ineffectual Borini.
Gerrard scores immediately after half-time. 1 – 0. Not marked closely enough, and his chest and volley is perfect.
Da Silva, from an assist by Kagawa, equalizes with a delightful curling shot that goes in off the inside of the far post. 1 – 1.
Scholes does pick up his yellow for fouling Sterling. Nevertheless, his presence means United now have a midfield.
Back come Liverpool with shots from Suarez and Jesús Joaquín Fernández Sáez de la Torre.
Rogers has decided to play for a draw. He takes off the lively Sterling, and brings on the unlively Henderson.
Jesús Joaquín Fernández Sáez de la Torre a.k.a. Suso is combining well with Suarez. Valencia, who has been quiet so far, decides to take matters into his own feet by intercepting a square ball in midfield, surging into the United box and then going down under a challenge by Johnson. Penalty: Van Persie hits is hand-height to Reina's left, the Spaniard almost keeping it out.
Kagawa is off, replaced by Chicharito, resulting in no fireworks.
Liverpool huffed and puffed, and Rogers - aware perhaps that his hold on the job is looking increasingly tenuous given that this is the team's worst start in more than a hundred years – complained that Liverpool should have had a penalty themselves. Before the knives are drawn though, we must recognize that the problems at Liverpool are inherited.
United, even without Vidic, looked OK at the back, and the forward line has enough goals in it. But when Scholes is not playing there seems to be little drive or movement in midfield. Could Rooney play there? Will the January transfer window open United's coffers?
In truth, neither of these two teams looked anything special, but Liverpool will feel a little aggrieved at the result.
1-2.
Peter Rodd
Tags
Liverpool Manchester United
Given the attention given to off-field concerns: the Hillsborough verdict that exonerated the Liverpool fans from engineering their own deaths, Fergie's urging the fans to be respectful of each other, and the question of whether players should shake hands with racists, we might expect this game to be a little different from usual.
Ferdinand helped 96 inflated balloons (representing, of course, the victims at Sheffield) escape from plastic bags, the balloon industry informing us that 100% latex balloons are biodegradable and are not harmful to animals or sea creatures.
New Liverpool supremo Brendan Rogers is looking for his first league win. Will tactics and style-of-play form a big part in such an emotionally-charged game? Or will it be a Steven Gerrard inspired up-and-at-'em with Scholes picking up a card?
In the first 20 minutes: corner count: Liverpool 3 Man U 0; Liverpool have dominated possession and territory; most of Liverpool's attacks have been down the right flank though their traditional go-to guy seventeen-year-old Sterling; United cannot retain possession, but then England's best player is not on the pitch.
Then on 38 minutes, Shelvey and Evans both leave their feet going for a loose ball. Result: ref Mark Halsey issues a red for Shelvey, no card for Evans. This is interesting as we know from the documentary 'Being: Liverpool' that Rogers specifically told Shelvey to "stay on your feet". The odds on a United win shorten instantaneously.
Even on ten men, though, Liverpool continue to have the more meaningful possession. The Fergie hairdryer will be out at halftime.
The first half ends 0 – 0. Shots: Liverpool 8 Man Utd 3. The best players: Liverpool: Gerrard and Sterling; Manchester United: Ferdinand and Rafael.
At last Scholes is on. So is Jesús Joaquín Fernández Sáez de la Torre (who had made his first full 90-minute debut in the Europa League match against Young Boys a couple of days ago 20 Sept 2012, but who was signed by Rafael Benitez - remember him?) for the ineffectual Borini.
Gerrard scores immediately after half-time. 1 – 0. Not marked closely enough, and his chest and volley is perfect.
Da Silva, from an assist by Kagawa, equalizes with a delightful curling shot that goes in off the inside of the far post. 1 – 1.
Scholes does pick up his yellow for fouling Sterling. Nevertheless, his presence means United now have a midfield.
Back come Liverpool with shots from Suarez and Jesús Joaquín Fernández Sáez de la Torre.
Rogers has decided to play for a draw. He takes off the lively Sterling, and brings on the unlively Henderson.
Jesús Joaquín Fernández Sáez de la Torre a.k.a. Suso is combining well with Suarez. Valencia, who has been quiet so far, decides to take matters into his own feet by intercepting a square ball in midfield, surging into the United box and then going down under a challenge by Johnson. Penalty: Van Persie hits is hand-height to Reina's left, the Spaniard almost keeping it out.
Kagawa is off, replaced by Chicharito, resulting in no fireworks.
Liverpool huffed and puffed, and Rogers - aware perhaps that his hold on the job is looking increasingly tenuous given that this is the team's worst start in more than a hundred years – complained that Liverpool should have had a penalty themselves. Before the knives are drawn though, we must recognize that the problems at Liverpool are inherited.
United, even without Vidic, looked OK at the back, and the forward line has enough goals in it. But when Scholes is not playing there seems to be little drive or movement in midfield. Could Rooney play there? Will the January transfer window open United's coffers?
In truth, neither of these two teams looked anything special, but Liverpool will feel a little aggrieved at the result.
1-2.
Peter Rodd
Tags
Liverpool Manchester United
Minggu, 12 Februari 2012
When I see you Suarez, I go off my head
Some say that you never know the true value of a moment until it becomes a memory. When Luis Suarez refused to shake the hand of Patrice Evra at Old Trafford yesterday however, you sensed the significance of the moment would shape the longevity of the memory. Relations between England's two most most successful clubs - who have not exchanged a player since 1964 - continue to sour, both on and off the pitch.
Pre-match handshakes at Premier League matches are a recently invented 'tradition'. They were introduced to suit the requirements of international television broadcasters, allowing them time for an advertisement break. The Premier League need to stop globalising and start prioritising.
A cancelation of the ritual for the QPR-Chelsea FA Cup tie due to the race row involving England captain John Terry and Anton Ferdinand, and the drama that followed at the Theatre of Dreams, support the case to have it discontinued. Liverpool supporters would have welcomed this move even before yesterday's league meeting, as it interferes with the traditional timing of the pre-match You'll Never Walk Alone rendition at Anfield.
The latest twist of the Suarez-Evra racism saga has been magnified by an unhelpful modern ritual imposed by television executives - yet press conferences aside, the media's role in this instance was largely circumstantial.
The French fullback offered the Uruguayan a lowered hand, with no initial eye contact. It was a disrespectful gesture of respect. It was a gesture nonetheless. The former Ajax frontman could have done the same, many argue he should have done - but he chose instead to publicly declare his dissatisfaction at the outcome of the racism case that saw him hit with an eight-match ban. The Liverpool corner deemed contextual semantics to be significant in 'that conversation', yet these were largely ignored by the three-man panel, and Suarez feels aggrieved.
Following the convenient adjournment of John Terry's case until after the European championships, this week saw Fabio Capello's principled resignation as England manager. The FA's temporary replacement Stuart Pearce soon had to face the embarrassment of defending himself, as videos of him racially abusing Paul Ince during a Manchester United v Nottingham Forest match in 1994 gained repeated air time. Let's ignore his brother's role in the BNP (“the country is full up”, Dennis Pearce declared before standing in the 2009 European elections), Pearce should be judged on his own actions, and the FA on theirs.
'Racism' currently dominates British football's sanitising political correctness campaign. However, English footballing authorities overlooked the relevant linguistic nuances that divide Spanish and French, but the less complicated case involving Ince and Pearce (who were raised 25 miles apart) received a different response.
The PFA's overpaid longstanding chairman Gordon Taylor pointed out that Pearse apologised for being racist. Suarez however continues to protest his innocence, so refuses to apologise, or shake on it.
In a post-match interview an aggravated Alex Ferguson branded Suarez a "disgrace", claiming he should never play for Liverpool again. The Scot implements a confused criteria, for apparently refusing a handshake is worse than kicking a fan in the head. After serving his ban for the infamous Crystal Palace incident in 1995, Eric Cantona continued to play for Manchester United until his retirement in 1997.
Ferguson's Liverpool counterpart Kenny Dalglish continues to be vilified for his support of Suarez and his defence of his club. The fourteen title winning, three-time European champion has coped with triumphs and tragedies throughout his career. Yesterday, an angry Dalglish stood up for his club and his player and Suarez stood up for his principles, whatever you think of them.
British broadsheets are likely to respond by focusing on Manchester United's 'dignity' and Liverpool's apparent lack of it, and misrepresent a Scouse understanding of the notion in the process - as yet another example of the distinction between England and the rebellious enclave that clings to the Mersey. One unbalanced headline reads 'Outraged by everything and ashamed of nothing', as a reference to Dalgish's handling of the post-match press conference. English tabloids will play up the tunnel bust up and Evra's celebration. Someone will point out the scoreline.
Evra had every right to celebrate the win that saw Manchester United go top of the league in the way he did. He didn't run up to the Liverpool fans as Gary Neville did following United's last minute winner in this fixture in 2006. Evra's team won the game and as captain he will consider himself entitled to a bout of triumphalism, particularly in the circumstances.
As GMP officers were confiscating Red Issue fanzines from Man United supporters due to the LFC Ku Klux Klan cut-out masks printed on the back (on the suspect grounds that they were "potentially offensive"), home fans in the ground sung of their hatred of "Scouse bastards", before Liverpool-born Wayne Rooney scored the two decisive goals early in the second half.
This is definitive racism, and Liverpool fans responded in kind.
Suarez' inevitable goal scoring contribution proved merely consolatory, yet the travelling support sang "when I see you Suarez, I go off my head" in recognition and adoration of the Uruguayan, interspersed with songs about their more famous number seven.
Just when Ferguson and Evra began to get paranoid about the reference, the away fans continued to offer their position on the player who divides British footballing opinion: "He scores a goal and the Kop goes wild and I just can't seem to get enough, Suarez."
© Dr Joel Rookwood & Soccerphile.com
Tags
Liverpool
Suarez
Evra
Pre-match handshakes at Premier League matches are a recently invented 'tradition'. They were introduced to suit the requirements of international television broadcasters, allowing them time for an advertisement break. The Premier League need to stop globalising and start prioritising.
A cancelation of the ritual for the QPR-Chelsea FA Cup tie due to the race row involving England captain John Terry and Anton Ferdinand, and the drama that followed at the Theatre of Dreams, support the case to have it discontinued. Liverpool supporters would have welcomed this move even before yesterday's league meeting, as it interferes with the traditional timing of the pre-match You'll Never Walk Alone rendition at Anfield.
The latest twist of the Suarez-Evra racism saga has been magnified by an unhelpful modern ritual imposed by television executives - yet press conferences aside, the media's role in this instance was largely circumstantial.
The French fullback offered the Uruguayan a lowered hand, with no initial eye contact. It was a disrespectful gesture of respect. It was a gesture nonetheless. The former Ajax frontman could have done the same, many argue he should have done - but he chose instead to publicly declare his dissatisfaction at the outcome of the racism case that saw him hit with an eight-match ban. The Liverpool corner deemed contextual semantics to be significant in 'that conversation', yet these were largely ignored by the three-man panel, and Suarez feels aggrieved.
Following the convenient adjournment of John Terry's case until after the European championships, this week saw Fabio Capello's principled resignation as England manager. The FA's temporary replacement Stuart Pearce soon had to face the embarrassment of defending himself, as videos of him racially abusing Paul Ince during a Manchester United v Nottingham Forest match in 1994 gained repeated air time. Let's ignore his brother's role in the BNP (“the country is full up”, Dennis Pearce declared before standing in the 2009 European elections), Pearce should be judged on his own actions, and the FA on theirs.
'Racism' currently dominates British football's sanitising political correctness campaign. However, English footballing authorities overlooked the relevant linguistic nuances that divide Spanish and French, but the less complicated case involving Ince and Pearce (who were raised 25 miles apart) received a different response.
The PFA's overpaid longstanding chairman Gordon Taylor pointed out that Pearse apologised for being racist. Suarez however continues to protest his innocence, so refuses to apologise, or shake on it.
In a post-match interview an aggravated Alex Ferguson branded Suarez a "disgrace", claiming he should never play for Liverpool again. The Scot implements a confused criteria, for apparently refusing a handshake is worse than kicking a fan in the head. After serving his ban for the infamous Crystal Palace incident in 1995, Eric Cantona continued to play for Manchester United until his retirement in 1997.
Ferguson's Liverpool counterpart Kenny Dalglish continues to be vilified for his support of Suarez and his defence of his club. The fourteen title winning, three-time European champion has coped with triumphs and tragedies throughout his career. Yesterday, an angry Dalglish stood up for his club and his player and Suarez stood up for his principles, whatever you think of them.
British broadsheets are likely to respond by focusing on Manchester United's 'dignity' and Liverpool's apparent lack of it, and misrepresent a Scouse understanding of the notion in the process - as yet another example of the distinction between England and the rebellious enclave that clings to the Mersey. One unbalanced headline reads 'Outraged by everything and ashamed of nothing', as a reference to Dalgish's handling of the post-match press conference. English tabloids will play up the tunnel bust up and Evra's celebration. Someone will point out the scoreline.
Evra had every right to celebrate the win that saw Manchester United go top of the league in the way he did. He didn't run up to the Liverpool fans as Gary Neville did following United's last minute winner in this fixture in 2006. Evra's team won the game and as captain he will consider himself entitled to a bout of triumphalism, particularly in the circumstances.
As GMP officers were confiscating Red Issue fanzines from Man United supporters due to the LFC Ku Klux Klan cut-out masks printed on the back (on the suspect grounds that they were "potentially offensive"), home fans in the ground sung of their hatred of "Scouse bastards", before Liverpool-born Wayne Rooney scored the two decisive goals early in the second half.
This is definitive racism, and Liverpool fans responded in kind.
Suarez' inevitable goal scoring contribution proved merely consolatory, yet the travelling support sang "when I see you Suarez, I go off my head" in recognition and adoration of the Uruguayan, interspersed with songs about their more famous number seven.
Just when Ferguson and Evra began to get paranoid about the reference, the away fans continued to offer their position on the player who divides British footballing opinion: "He scores a goal and the Kop goes wild and I just can't seem to get enough, Suarez."
© Dr Joel Rookwood & Soccerphile.com
Tags
Liverpool
Suarez
Evra
Minggu, 29 Januari 2012
We're not Racist - Twists of the Scouse-Manc debate
"We're not Racist" - Twists of the Scouse-Manc debate
Anyone tiring of the Suarez racism saga? Me too, but I'm breaking radio silence to offer a few thoughts, just as Suarez serves the final week of his ban and in light of yesterday's fiercely fought battle between Liverpool and Manchester United - the second epic Soucse-Manc cup battle at Anfield this week.
You might not agree with some of this - but remember, this is an issue of opinions and loyalties...
I don't understand football as a non-participating spectator sport. But the comments offered in today's press are not about armchair fans, so I'm discounting them. I doubt a decent appreciation of the rivalry between Liverpool and United is possible until you've walked out of the away end of either ground and got the train home - and not as a one off.
The meaning of match-going fandom is intertwined with rivalry, identity and place. It's an issue of localism and tribalism. 'Language' is often employed to deny outsiders access (including fellow 'fans').
I'll let readers figure out your respective stance in that context. If you define identity as semantics only and not syntax, you miss the point. In other words, as an example, part of what it is to be a Liverpudlian is to not be an Evertonian, definitively. That has both negative AND positive consequences.
In a chant that's been building for weeks, yesterday Liverpool fans en masse sang "We're not racist, we only hate Mancs." This is a way of saying that although a minority despise Evra for being black (the now infamous non-Scouse monkey poser for example), a majority despise Evra for being representative of Mancs.
The latest saga (it used to be darts in the eye and tear gas on the team bus when I was a kid) is really a collective demonstration of that philosophy. It's tongue in cheek - we know what racism is. When one of your own puts an axe through a lad's head because he's black (Anthony Walker in 2005), and with our legacy of being the former world slaving capital, and the Toxteth riots in 1981 - and then with the popular demonisation of Scousers over the last four decades - our consciousness is heightened.
Like most of the footballing world, many fans seem to have a very narrow implied definition of race, so how are you supposed to offer valid opinions on racism? (Reading that report (or just claiming to have done) is no qualification).
Race is a subjective categorisation of human beings used in the past by imperial powers to justify subjugation of 'native' peoples and now used by the PC left (to criticise anyone who raises concerns about immigration for example). Political correctness is a disease of disproportion and distraction, and it seems many have been infected. Time to climb off the bandwagon.
Making derogatory comments about Scousers or Mancs is essentially the same as making derogatory comments about blacks and is therefore 'racism'. Through that song Liverpool fans were all being 'racist' today, but of course no one really comments on that - because racism is actually a function and expression of any football rivalry you have heard of anywhere in the world. It's not confined to skin colour.
The point many miss is that Evra is a grass. In some respects it's not about what was said between him and Suarez, or the 'right' to complain and seek 'justice'. It's about being a snitch.
Few Mancs worth their salt will respect Evra for complaining, but they will love him for contributing to Liverpool's horrific season (punctuated by some excellent results). Of course, Scousers and Mancs understand our similarities. That's why I can speak for them, and they for us in this respect. If we were talking about Glen Johnson and Wayne Rooney instead (deliberately selected examples), reactions would be similar.
Oh, and in case you think I'm a racism sympathiser, I'm not. I've travelled the world and have been battered and bruised for my skin colour, accent, race, footballing allegiances and more besides. I just loathe political correctness - and for me, the real issue concerning rivalry and hatred in contemporary 'British' fandom is the manipulation of disasters. This was my Facebook status yesterday morning: "A celebration of another club's tragedy pollutes the respectful remembrance of your own. Rise above it Scousers. Unify your standards."
© Dr. Joel Rookwood
Tags
Liverpool
Suarez
Evra
Anyone tiring of the Suarez racism saga? Me too, but I'm breaking radio silence to offer a few thoughts, just as Suarez serves the final week of his ban and in light of yesterday's fiercely fought battle between Liverpool and Manchester United - the second epic Soucse-Manc cup battle at Anfield this week.
You might not agree with some of this - but remember, this is an issue of opinions and loyalties...
I don't understand football as a non-participating spectator sport. But the comments offered in today's press are not about armchair fans, so I'm discounting them. I doubt a decent appreciation of the rivalry between Liverpool and United is possible until you've walked out of the away end of either ground and got the train home - and not as a one off.
The meaning of match-going fandom is intertwined with rivalry, identity and place. It's an issue of localism and tribalism. 'Language' is often employed to deny outsiders access (including fellow 'fans').
I'll let readers figure out your respective stance in that context. If you define identity as semantics only and not syntax, you miss the point. In other words, as an example, part of what it is to be a Liverpudlian is to not be an Evertonian, definitively. That has both negative AND positive consequences.
In a chant that's been building for weeks, yesterday Liverpool fans en masse sang "We're not racist, we only hate Mancs." This is a way of saying that although a minority despise Evra for being black (the now infamous non-Scouse monkey poser for example), a majority despise Evra for being representative of Mancs.
The latest saga (it used to be darts in the eye and tear gas on the team bus when I was a kid) is really a collective demonstration of that philosophy. It's tongue in cheek - we know what racism is. When one of your own puts an axe through a lad's head because he's black (Anthony Walker in 2005), and with our legacy of being the former world slaving capital, and the Toxteth riots in 1981 - and then with the popular demonisation of Scousers over the last four decades - our consciousness is heightened.
Like most of the footballing world, many fans seem to have a very narrow implied definition of race, so how are you supposed to offer valid opinions on racism? (Reading that report (or just claiming to have done) is no qualification).
Race is a subjective categorisation of human beings used in the past by imperial powers to justify subjugation of 'native' peoples and now used by the PC left (to criticise anyone who raises concerns about immigration for example). Political correctness is a disease of disproportion and distraction, and it seems many have been infected. Time to climb off the bandwagon.
Making derogatory comments about Scousers or Mancs is essentially the same as making derogatory comments about blacks and is therefore 'racism'. Through that song Liverpool fans were all being 'racist' today, but of course no one really comments on that - because racism is actually a function and expression of any football rivalry you have heard of anywhere in the world. It's not confined to skin colour.
The point many miss is that Evra is a grass. In some respects it's not about what was said between him and Suarez, or the 'right' to complain and seek 'justice'. It's about being a snitch.
Few Mancs worth their salt will respect Evra for complaining, but they will love him for contributing to Liverpool's horrific season (punctuated by some excellent results). Of course, Scousers and Mancs understand our similarities. That's why I can speak for them, and they for us in this respect. If we were talking about Glen Johnson and Wayne Rooney instead (deliberately selected examples), reactions would be similar.
Oh, and in case you think I'm a racism sympathiser, I'm not. I've travelled the world and have been battered and bruised for my skin colour, accent, race, footballing allegiances and more besides. I just loathe political correctness - and for me, the real issue concerning rivalry and hatred in contemporary 'British' fandom is the manipulation of disasters. This was my Facebook status yesterday morning: "A celebration of another club's tragedy pollutes the respectful remembrance of your own. Rise above it Scousers. Unify your standards."
© Dr. Joel Rookwood
Tags
Liverpool
Suarez
Evra
Selasa, 03 Januari 2012
Man City v Liverpool Free Bet Offer
Roberto Mancini and Kenny Dalglish go head-to-head on Tuesday as Man City entertain Liverpool and we've got a fantastic free bet offer to add to the excitement.
Place a pre-match bet on the Man City v Liverpool game and we will give you a free In-Play bet to the same stake on the big match.
To qualify for your free In-Play bet, simply place a bet before kick-off, then once the game starts place another bet on any In-Play market. If your FIRST In-Play bet loses we will refund this stake, up to the same value as your largest pre-match bet (max £50*).
As always, there'll be plenty to choose from with over 60 In-Play markets available throughout the game including Next Goal, Match Goals, Total Corners, Half-Time Result, Full-Time Result and much more.
With an extensive range of pre-match and In-Play markets and a fantastic free bet offer, bet365 is the number one place for all your Soccer betting.
About bet365
bet365 is one of the world’s largest online gambling groups with over six million customers worldwide. bet365 offers a Sports Betting experience that’s unrivalled. The Group employs over 1,700 people and is the UK’s seventh largest private company.
In the 2010 eGaming Review Awards, bet365 was named Operator of the Year and Casino Operator of the Year, as well as receiving the Best Website Performance award. The company came top in eGaming Review’s Annual Power 50.
bet365 were named Affiliate Programme of the Year in the iGaming Business Affiliate Awards 2011. bet365’s Affiliates Operations Manager received the Best Affiliate Manager award.
Tags
Liverpool football betting
Place a pre-match bet on the Man City v Liverpool game and we will give you a free In-Play bet to the same stake on the big match.
To qualify for your free In-Play bet, simply place a bet before kick-off, then once the game starts place another bet on any In-Play market. If your FIRST In-Play bet loses we will refund this stake, up to the same value as your largest pre-match bet (max £50*).
As always, there'll be plenty to choose from with over 60 In-Play markets available throughout the game including Next Goal, Match Goals, Total Corners, Half-Time Result, Full-Time Result and much more.
With an extensive range of pre-match and In-Play markets and a fantastic free bet offer, bet365 is the number one place for all your Soccer betting.
About bet365
bet365 is one of the world’s largest online gambling groups with over six million customers worldwide. bet365 offers a Sports Betting experience that’s unrivalled. The Group employs over 1,700 people and is the UK’s seventh largest private company.
In the 2010 eGaming Review Awards, bet365 was named Operator of the Year and Casino Operator of the Year, as well as receiving the Best Website Performance award. The company came top in eGaming Review’s Annual Power 50.
bet365 were named Affiliate Programme of the Year in the iGaming Business Affiliate Awards 2011. bet365’s Affiliates Operations Manager received the Best Affiliate Manager award.
Tags
Liverpool football betting
Senin, 17 Oktober 2011
Hillsborough truth in sight at last
The end to an arduous 22-year campaign for truth surrounding the Hillsborough disaster could at last be in sight as the UK government has confirmed it will release all contemporary documents relating to the day in question.
After a 139,000-strong online petition and a moving parliamentary debate led Home Secretary Theresa May to announce up to 300,000 files will be released.
The relatives of the 96 Liverpool fans who died at the 1989 FA Cup semi-final have maintained a relentless campaign for government minutes to be publicised, to prove once and for all that Reds fans were innocent and that South Yorkshire police alone were to blame for the tragedy and lied to cover the fact up.
While the famous Taylor Report, which paved the way for the all-seater stadia of the Premier League we have today, exonerated the supporters and confirmed the police were responsible for the crowd control which turned fatal, the South Yorkshire force's role in spreading misinformation has never been confirmed officially.
What seems clear is that the policeman in charge of opening the gates that April day, David Duckenfield, tried to cover his back by putting out stories to the FA, government and press of drunken and rowdy Liverpool fans barging their way into the Leppings Lane end and crushing their colleagues to death.
This dishonest spin was taken up and amplified by a Rupert Murdoch tabloid and a Conservative government already hostile to football and its fan culture - at the time the impish Sports Minister Colin Moynihan was running an ill-conceived campaign to make English supporters carry I.D. cards to gain entry to stadia.
Margaret Thatcher's bullish press officer Bernard Ingham told the cabinet "tanked-up" fans were to blame, while oafish local Tory MP Irvine Patnick, despite not having been at the match, gleefully supplied the ammo for the Sun's notorious headline 'The Truth', which claimed Reds fans had stolen from, sexually assaulted and urinated upon their fellow supporters as they lay dying. Sun editor Kelvin Mackenzie remains unapologetic for the nadir of British journalism, telling an after-dinner crowd in 2006:
"I wasn't sorry then and I'm not sorry now because we told the truth."
Clearing the final hurdle in the campaign for truth has probably arrived on the back of this summer's phone-hacking scandal, when a nexus of collusion between the Murdoch press, the police and politicians was laid bare for the public to punish.
Those affected by the disaster, from the victims' relatives to the millions who had passed through English turnstiles to stand in caged pens and who empathised fully with th
e tragic events as they unfolded, may soon be able to relax in the knowledge the whole truth of the darkest day in English soccer has been established.
Football history has recorded Hillsborough not only as a human tragedy but as the death knell for the fortress-like stadia of cages and barbed wire and gritty supporter culture which was the norm throughout the 1970s and '80s. Hooliganism, which seemed out of control at times in the 1980s, lost its sheen after Hillsborough, as the seriousness of fans losing their lives was brought home to one and all in England.
In the aftermath of the disaster, the removal of perimeter fencing for the Liverpool v Everton FA Cup Final heralded the spectator-friendly stadia we know today, and along with England's heroics at Italia '90, beckoned new private investment in th
e game which would become the behemoth of today's FA Premier League.
Tragically, it took a human disaster for morons to realise violence was stupid, and for the authorities to realise that crowds and revenues would grow if they treated their paying customers with respect.
The 96 dead, whose names were read out in parliament today, ranged in age from 10 to 67 and included the cousin of current Liverpool FC captain Steven Gerrard.
(c) Sean O'Conor & Soccerphile
Tags
World Cup Pens
World Cup Posters
Euro 2012 football
After a 139,000-strong online petition and a moving parliamentary debate led Home Secretary Theresa May to announce up to 300,000 files will be released.
The relatives of the 96 Liverpool fans who died at the 1989 FA Cup semi-final have maintained a relentless campaign for government minutes to be publicised, to prove once and for all that Reds fans were innocent and that South Yorkshire police alone were to blame for the tragedy and lied to cover the fact up.
While the famous Taylor Report, which paved the way for the all-seater stadia of the Premier League we have today, exonerated the supporters and confirmed the police were responsible for the crowd control which turned fatal, the South Yorkshire force's role in spreading misinformation has never been confirmed officially.
What seems clear is that the policeman in charge of opening the gates that April day, David Duckenfield, tried to cover his back by putting out stories to the FA, government and press of drunken and rowdy Liverpool fans barging their way into the Leppings Lane end and crushing their colleagues to death.
This dishonest spin was taken up and amplified by a Rupert Murdoch tabloid and a Conservative government already hostile to football and its fan culture - at the time the impish Sports Minister Colin Moynihan was running an ill-conceived campaign to make English supporters carry I.D. cards to gain entry to stadia.
Margaret Thatcher's bullish press officer Bernard Ingham told the cabinet "tanked-up" fans were to blame, while oafish local Tory MP Irvine Patnick, despite not having been at the match, gleefully supplied the ammo for the Sun's notorious headline 'The Truth', which claimed Reds fans had stolen from, sexually assaulted and urinated upon their fellow supporters as they lay dying. Sun editor Kelvin Mackenzie remains unapologetic for the nadir of British journalism, telling an after-dinner crowd in 2006:
"I wasn't sorry then and I'm not sorry now because we told the truth."
Clearing the final hurdle in the campaign for truth has probably arrived on the back of this summer's phone-hacking scandal, when a nexus of collusion between the Murdoch press, the police and politicians was laid bare for the public to punish.
Those affected by the disaster, from the victims' relatives to the millions who had passed through English turnstiles to stand in caged pens and who empathised fully with th
e tragic events as they unfolded, may soon be able to relax in the knowledge the whole truth of the darkest day in English soccer has been established.Football history has recorded Hillsborough not only as a human tragedy but as the death knell for the fortress-like stadia of cages and barbed wire and gritty supporter culture which was the norm throughout the 1970s and '80s. Hooliganism, which seemed out of control at times in the 1980s, lost its sheen after Hillsborough, as the seriousness of fans losing their lives was brought home to one and all in England.
In the aftermath of the disaster, the removal of perimeter fencing for the Liverpool v Everton FA Cup Final heralded the spectator-friendly stadia we know today, and along with England's heroics at Italia '90, beckoned new private investment in th
e game which would become the behemoth of today's FA Premier League.Tragically, it took a human disaster for morons to realise violence was stupid, and for the authorities to realise that crowds and revenues would grow if they treated their paying customers with respect.
The 96 dead, whose names were read out in parliament today, ranged in age from 10 to 67 and included the cousin of current Liverpool FC captain Steven Gerrard.
(c) Sean O'Conor & Soccerphile
Tags
World Cup Pens
World Cup Posters
Euro 2012 football
Jumat, 29 Juli 2011
Entering Hong Kong: Asia trophy 2011
Landing at Hong Kong airport this week, I expected to be greeted by adverts for the next generation of electronics, or maybe banks, or cars. The sight of Stuart Downing in an Aston Villa kit on a bilboard was a little surprising.
As another recent addition to Dalglish's Liverpool squad, Downing was an unfortunate selection by advertisers of the Barclays Asia Trophy. The 2011 version of the biannual four-team event involves his former club 1982 European champions Aston Villa, local up-and-coming champions Kitchee, 'superclub' Chelsea, and (as proof of the pull of the 'EPL', as well as some of it's more prestigious members) Blackburn Rovers.
Although as Rovers fans would be quick to highlight, the Lancashire club have at least won the Barclays Premier League, something Liverpool are yet to achieve (at the time of writing) and Aston Villa could only dream of.
Despite the popularity of the English game, I was able to go directly from airport to hostel to stadium and purchase a £20 ticket. Meeting up with friends local and Liverpudlian, we endured two games at the Hong Kong stadium that typified preseason football.
Aston Villa and Blackburn did their best to maintain a goaless scoreline, before Daren Bent claimed the game's only goal. Playing for the right to play the victors and avoid their conquest in Saturday's final / play off, Kitchee then played host to Chelsea.
Villa-Boas' men strolled to a four-goal victory, with double Didier Drogba strikes sanwiched between goals from Lampard and Sturridge. Substitute Fernando Torres received a warm reception by the majority of the crowd, but failed to find the net.
Aston Villa and Chelsea are likely to face a more useful test of their credentials and fitness on Saturday's tournament decider.
© Dr Joel Rookwood & Soccerphile
Tags
World Cup Pens
World Cup Posters
Hong Kong football
As another recent addition to Dalglish's Liverpool squad, Downing was an unfortunate selection by advertisers of the Barclays Asia Trophy. The 2011 version of the biannual four-team event involves his former club 1982 European champions Aston Villa, local up-and-coming champions Kitchee, 'superclub' Chelsea, and (as proof of the pull of the 'EPL', as well as some of it's more prestigious members) Blackburn Rovers.
Although as Rovers fans would be quick to highlight, the Lancashire club have at least won the Barclays Premier League, something Liverpool are yet to achieve (at the time of writing) and Aston Villa could only dream of.
Despite the popularity of the English game, I was able to go directly from airport to hostel to stadium and purchase a £20 ticket. Meeting up with friends local and Liverpudlian, we endured two games at the Hong Kong stadium that typified preseason football.
Aston Villa and Blackburn did their best to maintain a goaless scoreline, before Daren Bent claimed the game's only goal. Playing for the right to play the victors and avoid their conquest in Saturday's final / play off, Kitchee then played host to Chelsea.
Villa-Boas' men strolled to a four-goal victory, with double Didier Drogba strikes sanwiched between goals from Lampard and Sturridge. Substitute Fernando Torres received a warm reception by the majority of the crowd, but failed to find the net.
Aston Villa and Chelsea are likely to face a more useful test of their credentials and fitness on Saturday's tournament decider.
© Dr Joel Rookwood & Soccerphile
Tags
World Cup Pens
World Cup Posters
Hong Kong football
Selasa, 19 April 2011
The Torres mystery
Tonight against Birmingham City at Stamford Bridge, Fernando Tor
res may score his first goal for Chelsea.
Sooner or later, the £50 million pound-man must break his duck and show his new employers what he is really made of. Yet thus far, his transfer has been a near-disaster. No goals in twelve games, Torres has failed to gel with his new teammates while his record-breaking arrival has seen Chelsea dumped out of Europe and fall away in the title race.
Torres clearly can cut the mustard, and was probably the world's best striker in 2008, but has not been the same player for the last season and a half. He was not firing on all cylinders in South Africa and looked listless for Liverpool in his final year there. A decline seems to have set in from the day Spain lost 0-2 to the USA in the 2009 Confederations Cup semi-final.
The Spaniard now seems to have lost his exquisite first touch and his shooting sights are askew. Not only has he yet to find the net despite benefiting from one of the best attacks around, he has not looked even close to scoring. His aim is cock-eyed while he is struggling, in the vernacular, to trap a bag of cement.
What is going on? Nobody really seems to know. Torres is hardly past it at age 27, won the World Cup last summer and has not yet forgotten scoring the winning goal in the Euro 2008 final. He is a happily-married man who is known for staying at home with his family instead of hitting the town. He is fabulously rich. So why can't Fernando suddenly play football?
Confidence is the old chestnut of an excuse for a lack of form or a run of good form. It is true, the more you win the more you believe in yourself and vice-versa, but Torres is not facing relegation. Once he scores one, many are claiming, the floodgates will open to a tide of goals.
But the C-word clearly has a big role to play in football. It must explain to a great extent the almost perennial discrepancy between home and away form for a start. And how many times do you hear a team accused of showing the other 'too much respect' or not 'believing in themselves enough'? I once interviewed the Japanese international goalkeeper Yoshikatsu Kawaguchi, and although English was not his strongest language, I was struck by how much he mentioned the word confidence - a part of the English footballing lexicon all right.
What is keeping Torres nervous? Is the problem the lack of a Spanish-speaking legion at Chelsea like there was at Liverpool, is it tension with a coach who might have been forced to sign and play him by his chairman (shades of Jose Mourinho and Andriy Shevchenko), is it famil
y issues or perhaps an inability to adapt to a new home, teammates, formation and playing system?
If Fernando has left his confidence in Liverpool, who can help him find it again in West London?
Clubs have been using psychologists for some years, although no-one seems to have analysed their efficacy in terms of results. It is normal for motivational speakers to address the squad and for trained specialists to encourage them to visualise success and fill their heads with positive thoughts. Psychology is still a controversial field in some scientific circles, although in its popular form it has spurred a giant self-help industry, tying in nicely with the American way of pioneering self-reliance. Although as a US international footballer once told me, "You can have all the confidence in the world but if you don't have that ability in the first place..."
In the past, managers were motivators alone, but with managers morphing into first-team coaches, clubs employ specialists in several fields. That same footballer told me what his club really needed was a stroke of luck, a break that would grant them a much-needed win to spur them on. Perhaps Fernando just needs to hear that first thwack of the onion bag and he will soon be his old self again.
He has barely half a dozen games left this campaign in which to find his shooting boots, so perhaps a summer free of tournaments and a nice long rest will do the trick. If next season he is still playing like a pub player instead of a £50m man, it really will be a case for a Mr. Sherlock Holmes.
(c) Sean O'Conor & Soccerphile
Tags
World Cup Pens
World Cup Posters
Euro 2012 football
res may score his first goal for Chelsea.Sooner or later, the £50 million pound-man must break his duck and show his new employers what he is really made of. Yet thus far, his transfer has been a near-disaster. No goals in twelve games, Torres has failed to gel with his new teammates while his record-breaking arrival has seen Chelsea dumped out of Europe and fall away in the title race.
Torres clearly can cut the mustard, and was probably the world's best striker in 2008, but has not been the same player for the last season and a half. He was not firing on all cylinders in South Africa and looked listless for Liverpool in his final year there. A decline seems to have set in from the day Spain lost 0-2 to the USA in the 2009 Confederations Cup semi-final.
The Spaniard now seems to have lost his exquisite first touch and his shooting sights are askew. Not only has he yet to find the net despite benefiting from one of the best attacks around, he has not looked even close to scoring. His aim is cock-eyed while he is struggling, in the vernacular, to trap a bag of cement.
What is going on? Nobody really seems to know. Torres is hardly past it at age 27, won the World Cup last summer and has not yet forgotten scoring the winning goal in the Euro 2008 final. He is a happily-married man who is known for staying at home with his family instead of hitting the town. He is fabulously rich. So why can't Fernando suddenly play football?
Confidence is the old chestnut of an excuse for a lack of form or a run of good form. It is true, the more you win the more you believe in yourself and vice-versa, but Torres is not facing relegation. Once he scores one, many are claiming, the floodgates will open to a tide of goals.
But the C-word clearly has a big role to play in football. It must explain to a great extent the almost perennial discrepancy between home and away form for a start. And how many times do you hear a team accused of showing the other 'too much respect' or not 'believing in themselves enough'? I once interviewed the Japanese international goalkeeper Yoshikatsu Kawaguchi, and although English was not his strongest language, I was struck by how much he mentioned the word confidence - a part of the English footballing lexicon all right.
What is keeping Torres nervous? Is the problem the lack of a Spanish-speaking legion at Chelsea like there was at Liverpool, is it tension with a coach who might have been forced to sign and play him by his chairman (shades of Jose Mourinho and Andriy Shevchenko), is it famil
y issues or perhaps an inability to adapt to a new home, teammates, formation and playing system?If Fernando has left his confidence in Liverpool, who can help him find it again in West London?
Clubs have been using psychologists for some years, although no-one seems to have analysed their efficacy in terms of results. It is normal for motivational speakers to address the squad and for trained specialists to encourage them to visualise success and fill their heads with positive thoughts. Psychology is still a controversial field in some scientific circles, although in its popular form it has spurred a giant self-help industry, tying in nicely with the American way of pioneering self-reliance. Although as a US international footballer once told me, "You can have all the confidence in the world but if you don't have that ability in the first place..."
In the past, managers were motivators alone, but with managers morphing into first-team coaches, clubs employ specialists in several fields. That same footballer told me what his club really needed was a stroke of luck, a break that would grant them a much-needed win to spur them on. Perhaps Fernando just needs to hear that first thwack of the onion bag and he will soon be his old self again.
He has barely half a dozen games left this campaign in which to find his shooting boots, so perhaps a summer free of tournaments and a nice long rest will do the trick. If next season he is still playing like a pub player instead of a £50m man, it really will be a case for a Mr. Sherlock Holmes.
(c) Sean O'Conor & Soccerphile
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Rabu, 02 Februari 2011
You’ll Never Walk Alone, he said
Dr Joel Rookwood
The 2003-04 season had ground to a halt on Merseyside, as Houllier’s Liverpool breathed its last monotonous, mediocre breath. Unaware that an inspired Spanish successor would lead the club to the European crown twelve months later, I headed south for the final weekend of the French/Spanish leagues: Bordeaux V Monaco preceded by Athletic Bilbao V Atletico Madrid.
Monaco were European Cup finalists four days later, but the memory of that weekend is dominated by the performance of one man: Fernando Torres. Unfazed by the prospect of playing away from home, the 20-year-old captain won the game on his own, scoring all three Atletico goals.
When Fernando Torres signed for Liverpool three years later, memories of that Basque evening basking in the brilliance of El Nino came flooding back. A substantial fee was justified by an even more substantial return. £24m Torres went on to score 65 goals in 102 games for Liverpool.
Output aside, the cultural assimilation of Liverpool’s number nine was a process that began even before his famous signature graced a Liverpool contract. Rumours began to circulate about the club’s motto appearing on his armband in his final days at Madrid. This is Torres’ autobiographical account: “It happened in San Sebastian when I was playing for Atletico Madrid against Real Sociedad. I was battling with a defender, and the captain’s armband I was wearing came loose and fell open. As it hung from my arm, you could see the message written on the inside, in English.”
The resultant song in celebration of an overnight Liverpool hero almost wrote itself: “His armband proved he was a red, Torres, Torres. ‘You’ll never walk alone’ it said, Torres, Torres. We bought the lad from sunny Spain, he gets the ball he scores again, Fernando Torres Liverpool’s number nine.”
This was a period in which local social movements to ‘Keep Flags Scouse’, ‘Reclaim the Kop’ and reignite the ‘Spirit of Shankly’ saw a few thousand regularly vocal attendees move to the centre of the Kop. Disagreements over conditions and behaviours and the resultant friction between stewards and Kopites in Block 306 led to a refusal to ‘remain seated’ and instead – ‘bounce’. Predictably the animated chorus was instilled in the midst of the Torres song. “We’re gonna bounce in a minute” became a warm up, a reminder, a threat, an inspiration.
Paul Du Noyer notes that: “With its back-alley poverty and idolatrous passion for football Liverpool has been compared to South America.” Yet at no other European club would such adulation have been bestowed. Torres’ commitment to Liverpool was reinforced by his goals and his accolades. He claimed: “The Kop is magical and generous; it transmits a kind of positive energy that fills you with confidence. It never lets you down. It never leaves you.” His allegiance and performances were honoured in flags, songs and bounces.
It must be said that Torres’ reign as King of the Kop was subject to unfortunate timing. Poisonous foreign ownership, restrictive transfer policies and mismanagement on and off the field frustrated the man who fired Spain to European and World titles during his tenure at Liverpool. Club honours continued to elude him however, as Liverpool’s domestic and continental challenge faltered.
I pitied Torres, a forward of world renown, as seasons came and went without the addition of a striker or winger of any note. Talented but ill-fitting and unsettled players were rightly sold but wrongly replaced. With that in mind, many heartbroken Liverpudlians would have accepted Torres’ decision to move on to pastures new, under certain conditions.
The model for the legitimate leaving of Liverpool is represented by the departure of European champion Xavi Alonso. His lucrative arrival at Real Madrid in no way diminished his Anfield legacy. His consistently professional and respectful conduct and choice of subsequent employers mean that the related sentiments that echoed around Anfield are no less true today: “everyone wants to know – Alonso, Alonso, Alonso.” If El Nino had have chosen to leave for a non-English club in return for £50m, and said nice things about Liverpudlians in doing so, trophyless Torres would have been well remembered.
As anyone at Anfield would have admitted over the last three years, Torres deserves a stable club, an inspirational manager and a world class partner in crime. Yet after 1284 days at Liverpool, Torres chose the very day in which those elements were finally fused (infrastructural stability, legendary management and the signing of ‘the hand of the devil’ – Luis Suarez) to put in a transfer request.
In general terms I am an advocate of this process, as the transparency usually aids accountability. However, the circumstances surrounding Torres’ departure are difficult to support, unless of course you wear the blue of Chelsea, or Everton. I hear both sets of fans were singing about “Chelsea’s number nine” during the FA Cup tie at Goodison on Saturday. (I also hear Everton are delighted with their new Eastern European signing by the way. Ingrid will replace Maureen the cleaner who has reportedly received a shock promotion taking her to Asda).
When the request was made, Liverpool’s response was reflective of the ‘Liverpool Way’ of old. Dalglish was ultra impressive in his handling of potential Liverpool targets and departures. Whereas Spurs ‘gaffer’ ‘arry Redknapp seems happy to discuss any potential signing in the world to any journalist who will listen, the Liverpool equivalent chooses not to act like an ale house manager. Dalglish discourse is considered and humble, and it follows action rather than leads to it.
When King Kevin Keegan broke Liverpool hearts by quitting the European Champions in 1977, our response was to sign Dalglish, the greatest Liverpool player there will ever be. When Ian Rush was sold to Juventus in 1987, the replacements of John Barnes, John Aldridge, Peter Beardsley and Ray Houghton helped produce the 1988 team, one of the greatest Championship winning sides to have ever graced this city.
Keegan’s departure was inspired by a desire to play for a ‘bigger club’. Similarly, Fernando Torres’ opening words to Chelsea supporters was: “This is the target for every footballer, to try to play for one of the top clubs in the world. They [Chelsea] are one of the biggest teams in Europe and are always fighting for everything. It's my dream to win the Champions League and I'm sure I can, playing for Chelsea.” The implications about Liverpool are not difficult to interpret.
If this is his objective however, it seems strange to move to a city that is yet to produce a single European Cup. In the day Torres left to increase his chances of winning the coveted prize, Paul Konchesky signed on loan for two-time winners Nottingham Forest. (Their supporters should brace themselves for some legendary performances on the field from Konchesky, and some notable pleasantries off it from his mum).
Torres’ decision to join Chelsea is undeniably a choice to play for a club that represents everything Liverpool do not. Whether El Nino has made an inspired or insane decision, time will tell. Yet given his insight into Liverpool culture, he will know full well that his words and actions have served to sever all ties with Anfield, in a way no player ever has – Michael Owen included. Torres’ five fingered salute at Old Trafford is consigned to history. He now represents a club with a zero on their Champions League badge.
In his autobiography Jamie Carragher discusses the “recent epic battles” between Liverpool and Chelsea, perceived to be “a clash between football tradition and the arrogant rich: While we celebrate our working class roots, the Londoners love nothing more than to wave £20 notes at our visiting fans. Their players are granted the luxury of behaving like celebrities and superstars. Ours are expected to abide by a different set of values – the Shankly laws – and to show humility in a city where being flash is frowned upon.” Torres’ Chelsea will play host to Liverpool on Sunday. Their recent acquisition will surely see a further demonstration of the philosophical gulf that exists between the clubs.
But with the visitors having sold the injury prone albeit world class crank, it is worth remembering that Ryan Babel slipped out the Anfield exit this week – yet even the physically challenged rapping addict of social networking had the decency to tweet these departing words: “There is no other club than Liverpool with the anthem ‘YNWA’ – Beautiful. Wanna thank ALL of you fans but the ones in particular who believed in me and supported me all those years. It’s definitely a shame it didn't worked out for me and the club, but that’s how it is sometimes. I was blessed to work with one of the greatest football players and I learned a lot. I learn to love the LFC way, the city, the people and I made lots of friends in Liverpool.” Who ever thought a departing Babel would engender greater Scouse support than Torres?
It is also worth remembering that Liverpool will have two exciting attacking recruits to select from when we face Chelsea (fitness permitting). The purchase of Newcastle’s Andy Carroll joins Luis Suarez from Ajax in what could prove a very threatening Liverpool attack.
No man is bigger than a club like Liverpool. Torres was allowed to leave for Chelsea because he wanted to go there – but no position is more important than the manager, and at Liverpool – the future’s bright, the future’s Dalglish. In the meantime, I’m off to warm up the vocal chords for a good round of ‘Where’s your European Cups?’ I might leave the bouncing in the past though – where it and Torres belong.
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Joel Rookwood Liverpool
The 2003-04 season had ground to a halt on Merseyside, as Houllier’s Liverpool breathed its last monotonous, mediocre breath. Unaware that an inspired Spanish successor would lead the club to the European crown twelve months later, I headed south for the final weekend of the French/Spanish leagues: Bordeaux V Monaco preceded by Athletic Bilbao V Atletico Madrid.
Monaco were European Cup finalists four days later, but the memory of that weekend is dominated by the performance of one man: Fernando Torres. Unfazed by the prospect of playing away from home, the 20-year-old captain won the game on his own, scoring all three Atletico goals.
When Fernando Torres signed for Liverpool three years later, memories of that Basque evening basking in the brilliance of El Nino came flooding back. A substantial fee was justified by an even more substantial return. £24m Torres went on to score 65 goals in 102 games for Liverpool.
Output aside, the cultural assimilation of Liverpool’s number nine was a process that began even before his famous signature graced a Liverpool contract. Rumours began to circulate about the club’s motto appearing on his armband in his final days at Madrid. This is Torres’ autobiographical account: “It happened in San Sebastian when I was playing for Atletico Madrid against Real Sociedad. I was battling with a defender, and the captain’s armband I was wearing came loose and fell open. As it hung from my arm, you could see the message written on the inside, in English.”
The resultant song in celebration of an overnight Liverpool hero almost wrote itself: “His armband proved he was a red, Torres, Torres. ‘You’ll never walk alone’ it said, Torres, Torres. We bought the lad from sunny Spain, he gets the ball he scores again, Fernando Torres Liverpool’s number nine.”
This was a period in which local social movements to ‘Keep Flags Scouse’, ‘Reclaim the Kop’ and reignite the ‘Spirit of Shankly’ saw a few thousand regularly vocal attendees move to the centre of the Kop. Disagreements over conditions and behaviours and the resultant friction between stewards and Kopites in Block 306 led to a refusal to ‘remain seated’ and instead – ‘bounce’. Predictably the animated chorus was instilled in the midst of the Torres song. “We’re gonna bounce in a minute” became a warm up, a reminder, a threat, an inspiration.
Paul Du Noyer notes that: “With its back-alley poverty and idolatrous passion for football Liverpool has been compared to South America.” Yet at no other European club would such adulation have been bestowed. Torres’ commitment to Liverpool was reinforced by his goals and his accolades. He claimed: “The Kop is magical and generous; it transmits a kind of positive energy that fills you with confidence. It never lets you down. It never leaves you.” His allegiance and performances were honoured in flags, songs and bounces.
It must be said that Torres’ reign as King of the Kop was subject to unfortunate timing. Poisonous foreign ownership, restrictive transfer policies and mismanagement on and off the field frustrated the man who fired Spain to European and World titles during his tenure at Liverpool. Club honours continued to elude him however, as Liverpool’s domestic and continental challenge faltered.
I pitied Torres, a forward of world renown, as seasons came and went without the addition of a striker or winger of any note. Talented but ill-fitting and unsettled players were rightly sold but wrongly replaced. With that in mind, many heartbroken Liverpudlians would have accepted Torres’ decision to move on to pastures new, under certain conditions.
The model for the legitimate leaving of Liverpool is represented by the departure of European champion Xavi Alonso. His lucrative arrival at Real Madrid in no way diminished his Anfield legacy. His consistently professional and respectful conduct and choice of subsequent employers mean that the related sentiments that echoed around Anfield are no less true today: “everyone wants to know – Alonso, Alonso, Alonso.” If El Nino had have chosen to leave for a non-English club in return for £50m, and said nice things about Liverpudlians in doing so, trophyless Torres would have been well remembered.
As anyone at Anfield would have admitted over the last three years, Torres deserves a stable club, an inspirational manager and a world class partner in crime. Yet after 1284 days at Liverpool, Torres chose the very day in which those elements were finally fused (infrastructural stability, legendary management and the signing of ‘the hand of the devil’ – Luis Suarez) to put in a transfer request.
In general terms I am an advocate of this process, as the transparency usually aids accountability. However, the circumstances surrounding Torres’ departure are difficult to support, unless of course you wear the blue of Chelsea, or Everton. I hear both sets of fans were singing about “Chelsea’s number nine” during the FA Cup tie at Goodison on Saturday. (I also hear Everton are delighted with their new Eastern European signing by the way. Ingrid will replace Maureen the cleaner who has reportedly received a shock promotion taking her to Asda).
When the request was made, Liverpool’s response was reflective of the ‘Liverpool Way’ of old. Dalglish was ultra impressive in his handling of potential Liverpool targets and departures. Whereas Spurs ‘gaffer’ ‘arry Redknapp seems happy to discuss any potential signing in the world to any journalist who will listen, the Liverpool equivalent chooses not to act like an ale house manager. Dalglish discourse is considered and humble, and it follows action rather than leads to it.
When King Kevin Keegan broke Liverpool hearts by quitting the European Champions in 1977, our response was to sign Dalglish, the greatest Liverpool player there will ever be. When Ian Rush was sold to Juventus in 1987, the replacements of John Barnes, John Aldridge, Peter Beardsley and Ray Houghton helped produce the 1988 team, one of the greatest Championship winning sides to have ever graced this city.
Keegan’s departure was inspired by a desire to play for a ‘bigger club’. Similarly, Fernando Torres’ opening words to Chelsea supporters was: “This is the target for every footballer, to try to play for one of the top clubs in the world. They [Chelsea] are one of the biggest teams in Europe and are always fighting for everything. It's my dream to win the Champions League and I'm sure I can, playing for Chelsea.” The implications about Liverpool are not difficult to interpret.
If this is his objective however, it seems strange to move to a city that is yet to produce a single European Cup. In the day Torres left to increase his chances of winning the coveted prize, Paul Konchesky signed on loan for two-time winners Nottingham Forest. (Their supporters should brace themselves for some legendary performances on the field from Konchesky, and some notable pleasantries off it from his mum).
Torres’ decision to join Chelsea is undeniably a choice to play for a club that represents everything Liverpool do not. Whether El Nino has made an inspired or insane decision, time will tell. Yet given his insight into Liverpool culture, he will know full well that his words and actions have served to sever all ties with Anfield, in a way no player ever has – Michael Owen included. Torres’ five fingered salute at Old Trafford is consigned to history. He now represents a club with a zero on their Champions League badge.
In his autobiography Jamie Carragher discusses the “recent epic battles” between Liverpool and Chelsea, perceived to be “a clash between football tradition and the arrogant rich: While we celebrate our working class roots, the Londoners love nothing more than to wave £20 notes at our visiting fans. Their players are granted the luxury of behaving like celebrities and superstars. Ours are expected to abide by a different set of values – the Shankly laws – and to show humility in a city where being flash is frowned upon.” Torres’ Chelsea will play host to Liverpool on Sunday. Their recent acquisition will surely see a further demonstration of the philosophical gulf that exists between the clubs.
But with the visitors having sold the injury prone albeit world class crank, it is worth remembering that Ryan Babel slipped out the Anfield exit this week – yet even the physically challenged rapping addict of social networking had the decency to tweet these departing words: “There is no other club than Liverpool with the anthem ‘YNWA’ – Beautiful. Wanna thank ALL of you fans but the ones in particular who believed in me and supported me all those years. It’s definitely a shame it didn't worked out for me and the club, but that’s how it is sometimes. I was blessed to work with one of the greatest football players and I learned a lot. I learn to love the LFC way, the city, the people and I made lots of friends in Liverpool.” Who ever thought a departing Babel would engender greater Scouse support than Torres?
It is also worth remembering that Liverpool will have two exciting attacking recruits to select from when we face Chelsea (fitness permitting). The purchase of Newcastle’s Andy Carroll joins Luis Suarez from Ajax in what could prove a very threatening Liverpool attack.
No man is bigger than a club like Liverpool. Torres was allowed to leave for Chelsea because he wanted to go there – but no position is more important than the manager, and at Liverpool – the future’s bright, the future’s Dalglish. In the meantime, I’m off to warm up the vocal chords for a good round of ‘Where’s your European Cups?’ I might leave the bouncing in the past though – where it and Torres belong.
Tags
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Joel Rookwood Liverpool
Minggu, 09 Januari 2011
Kenny jumps back into the fire
FA Cup 3rd Rd: Manchester United 1:0 Liverpool
What a difference a minute makes.
Anfield hero Kenny Dalglish, returning as Liverpool's manager after a decade's sabbatical, was an unexpected picture of sunny composure before kick-off against Manchester United today, relaxed and joking about his upcoming assault on Mount Everest.
Was this smiling Scot the same Dalglish whose tense and dour façade confronted the cameras the last time he was in charge at Anfield? The same manager would often slip into thick Glaswegian to deliberately confuse the pesky interviewers, until the unresolved pain of Hillsborough meant he could bottle his inner turmoil up no longer.
His resignation in 1991 following a grueling 4-4 derby draw, came as a real
shock. We know top managers are under permanent pressure, particularly when relegation fears place them under what they themselves call 'deathwatch', but they do not tend to walk out citing stress when their teams are riding high.
King Kenny had unfinished business with the Reds, and mentally as well as physically had never left Liverpool, but it took 90 seconds, not minutes today in Manchester, to remind him that football folk are crazy. A controversial penalty, courtesy of a Dimitar Berbatov fall to earth, pushed Liverpool onto the back foot and plunged Dalglish back to 1991, the stress returning for the first time in years. Then Steven Gerrard was shown red for a flying lunge and a nightmare had descended upon Kenny's second coming.
Every cut to the visitors' bench showed a man possessed by the past, the initial radiance drained from a suddenly aged and haunted face, the warmth of a long-desired homecoming replaced by the unforgiving chill of the wind of defeat. There was to be no first-game fillip for Dalglish's new Liverpool, who enjoyed some promising spells but failed to threaten the Red Devils meaningfully.
Whatever may happen between now and the season's climax in May, rest assured Dalglish will go to bed a troubled man tonight, tossing and turning in his sleep after only one day in his dream job, recoiling at the taste of the poisoned chalice he leapt onto a plane in Dubai to drink from.
Why did Dalglish do it, throw himself into a more frightening and challenging lion's den than ever, when he had no money worries and could have enjoyed a quiet life as a scout and occasional pundit? Liverpool is in his DNA is the only explanation, and his blood runs Anfield red. One man's madness is a football man's logic.
Whether it was right to sack Roy Hodgson after only half a season and replace him w
ith a Liverpool legend who has not coached for ten years remains the unanswered question hanging over Liverpool's new owners, the Fenway Sports Group (FSG). Hodgson had spoken presciently of his fate for some time, caught in the conundrum of being unable to turn down the offer of such a glamorous job, but equally painfully aware the odds were stacked against him coming out alive from it. Liverpool still need new blood and big money, which so far FSG have failed to supply.
In selecting a former club hero, FSG look as clueless as any incoming owner desperate to assuage the fan base: Read Alan Sugar choosing Ossie Ardiles for Tottenham or Mike Ashley picking Kevin Keegan at Newcastle for a glimpse into the future of Dalglish and Liverpool.
They made the right noises about long-term planning, but in the end chose a short-term fix which has made a losing start. They would have done better to have noticed the top two managers in the Premier League, Alex Ferguson and Arsene Wenger, have also been there the longest because their owners kept faith in them. In their much-praised book, 'Why England Lose', Simon Kuper and Stefan Szyminski argue strongly that changing the manager makes little difference when the money a club pays its players remains the same.
Ignore the lazy talk about coaches like Hodgson losing the fans and/or the dressing room - fan popularity hinges on victories on the field, while players do not automatically warm to a coach who brings them success. Results define an employee's value more than anything else.
Maybe Kenny will go on to work wonders, but only if he is handed serious money for signings and above all time, the manager's greatest gift of all.
(c) Sean O'Conor & Soccerphile
Tags
World Cup Pens
World Cup Posters
Euro 2012 football
What a difference a minute makes.
Anfield hero Kenny Dalglish, returning as Liverpool's manager after a decade's sabbatical, was an unexpected picture of sunny composure before kick-off against Manchester United today, relaxed and joking about his upcoming assault on Mount Everest.
Was this smiling Scot the same Dalglish whose tense and dour façade confronted the cameras the last time he was in charge at Anfield? The same manager would often slip into thick Glaswegian to deliberately confuse the pesky interviewers, until the unresolved pain of Hillsborough meant he could bottle his inner turmoil up no longer.
His resignation in 1991 following a grueling 4-4 derby draw, came as a real
shock. We know top managers are under permanent pressure, particularly when relegation fears place them under what they themselves call 'deathwatch', but they do not tend to walk out citing stress when their teams are riding high.King Kenny had unfinished business with the Reds, and mentally as well as physically had never left Liverpool, but it took 90 seconds, not minutes today in Manchester, to remind him that football folk are crazy. A controversial penalty, courtesy of a Dimitar Berbatov fall to earth, pushed Liverpool onto the back foot and plunged Dalglish back to 1991, the stress returning for the first time in years. Then Steven Gerrard was shown red for a flying lunge and a nightmare had descended upon Kenny's second coming.
Every cut to the visitors' bench showed a man possessed by the past, the initial radiance drained from a suddenly aged and haunted face, the warmth of a long-desired homecoming replaced by the unforgiving chill of the wind of defeat. There was to be no first-game fillip for Dalglish's new Liverpool, who enjoyed some promising spells but failed to threaten the Red Devils meaningfully.
Whatever may happen between now and the season's climax in May, rest assured Dalglish will go to bed a troubled man tonight, tossing and turning in his sleep after only one day in his dream job, recoiling at the taste of the poisoned chalice he leapt onto a plane in Dubai to drink from.
Why did Dalglish do it, throw himself into a more frightening and challenging lion's den than ever, when he had no money worries and could have enjoyed a quiet life as a scout and occasional pundit? Liverpool is in his DNA is the only explanation, and his blood runs Anfield red. One man's madness is a football man's logic.
Whether it was right to sack Roy Hodgson after only half a season and replace him w
ith a Liverpool legend who has not coached for ten years remains the unanswered question hanging over Liverpool's new owners, the Fenway Sports Group (FSG). Hodgson had spoken presciently of his fate for some time, caught in the conundrum of being unable to turn down the offer of such a glamorous job, but equally painfully aware the odds were stacked against him coming out alive from it. Liverpool still need new blood and big money, which so far FSG have failed to supply.In selecting a former club hero, FSG look as clueless as any incoming owner desperate to assuage the fan base: Read Alan Sugar choosing Ossie Ardiles for Tottenham or Mike Ashley picking Kevin Keegan at Newcastle for a glimpse into the future of Dalglish and Liverpool.
They made the right noises about long-term planning, but in the end chose a short-term fix which has made a losing start. They would have done better to have noticed the top two managers in the Premier League, Alex Ferguson and Arsene Wenger, have also been there the longest because their owners kept faith in them. In their much-praised book, 'Why England Lose', Simon Kuper and Stefan Szyminski argue strongly that changing the manager makes little difference when the money a club pays its players remains the same.
Ignore the lazy talk about coaches like Hodgson losing the fans and/or the dressing room - fan popularity hinges on victories on the field, while players do not automatically warm to a coach who brings them success. Results define an employee's value more than anything else.
Maybe Kenny will go on to work wonders, but only if he is handed serious money for signings and above all time, the manager's greatest gift of all.
(c) Sean O'Conor & Soccerphile
Tags
World Cup Pens
World Cup Posters
Euro 2012 football
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