Regular readers of this site will know that I am one of Rafa Benitez's biggest critics, and over the years, I've written many detailed posts explaining why I believed he was the wrong manager for Liverpool FC. Contrary to popular belief, I have also always acknowledged the good things Benitez did for Liverpool, and although my overall view has not changed, I feel it's time to thank the Spaniard for three great signings he made in his final year at Anfield.
I am, of course, referring to the signings of Raheem Sterling, Jonjo Shelvey and Suso. These three superb youngsters have made the breakthrough into the Liverpool first team and I have no doubt that they will play a big part in club's future success.
Benitez wasted a lot of money on dross over the years, but he also signed some fantastic players along the way, and Suso, Shelvey and Sterling will ensure that the Spaniard's transfer legacy lives on.
I can't describe the excitement I felt when Suso came on for the second half against Man United on Sunday. Down to ten men in the biggest game of the season, and under massive pressure to get a win, Rodgers ignored more experienced (safer) options and threw an untested 18-year attacking player into the Anfield cauldron for his Premier League debut against the club's biggest rivals (!) It was big-budget Hollywood decision-making, and it doesn't get much better than that.
My excitement stemmed not just from seeing an excellent young attacking player making his debut, but from the realisation that we were seeing a positive and fundamental change in philosophy being enacted right before our eyes. It was the turning of the tide; a giant leap towards a more fearless and progressive approach at Liverpool.
Reds fans have not seen that kind of bravery and boldness from a manager in years. In the face of adversity there was no fear, no trepidation, and absolutely no playing it safe. What we got instead was the stuff football dreams are made of: balls-to-the-wall confidence, utter defiance of expectation, and calculated risks from a fearless, uncompromising manager.
Benitez displayed the same uncompromising boldness occasionally during his time at Liverpool, the most memorable time being when he replaced Steven Gerrard with Lucas in the Merseyside Derby during the 2006-7 season. At the time, I totally supported 'Rafa the Merciless', and to this day, I still believe it is his bravest decision as Liverpool manager.
The signings of Suso, Shelvey and Sterling are a testament to Benitez's excellent eye for a player, and for the first time since Michael Owen and Steven Gerrard broke through, we have top quality attacking youngsters coming through the youth set-up and genuinely making their mark at the top level. It's exciting, and it bodes extremely well for the future of Liverpool FC.
So, thank you Rafa Benitez for bringing those three players to Anfield. I am sure they will continue to do you and the club proud.
N.B. This does not mean that I take back all my previous criticism of Benitez. That still stands, but I always try to be fair, and it's important to recognise the good alongside the bad.
Jaimie Kanwar
I am, of course, referring to the signings of Raheem Sterling, Jonjo Shelvey and Suso. These three superb youngsters have made the breakthrough into the Liverpool first team and I have no doubt that they will play a big part in club's future success.
Benitez wasted a lot of money on dross over the years, but he also signed some fantastic players along the way, and Suso, Shelvey and Sterling will ensure that the Spaniard's transfer legacy lives on.
I can't describe the excitement I felt when Suso came on for the second half against Man United on Sunday. Down to ten men in the biggest game of the season, and under massive pressure to get a win, Rodgers ignored more experienced (safer) options and threw an untested 18-year attacking player into the Anfield cauldron for his Premier League debut against the club's biggest rivals (!) It was big-budget Hollywood decision-making, and it doesn't get much better than that.
My excitement stemmed not just from seeing an excellent young attacking player making his debut, but from the realisation that we were seeing a positive and fundamental change in philosophy being enacted right before our eyes. It was the turning of the tide; a giant leap towards a more fearless and progressive approach at Liverpool.
Reds fans have not seen that kind of bravery and boldness from a manager in years. In the face of adversity there was no fear, no trepidation, and absolutely no playing it safe. What we got instead was the stuff football dreams are made of: balls-to-the-wall confidence, utter defiance of expectation, and calculated risks from a fearless, uncompromising manager.
Benitez displayed the same uncompromising boldness occasionally during his time at Liverpool, the most memorable time being when he replaced Steven Gerrard with Lucas in the Merseyside Derby during the 2006-7 season. At the time, I totally supported 'Rafa the Merciless', and to this day, I still believe it is his bravest decision as Liverpool manager.
The signings of Suso, Shelvey and Sterling are a testament to Benitez's excellent eye for a player, and for the first time since Michael Owen and Steven Gerrard broke through, we have top quality attacking youngsters coming through the youth set-up and genuinely making their mark at the top level. It's exciting, and it bodes extremely well for the future of Liverpool FC.
So, thank you Rafa Benitez for bringing those three players to Anfield. I am sure they will continue to do you and the club proud.
N.B. This does not mean that I take back all my previous criticism of Benitez. That still stands, but I always try to be fair, and it's important to recognise the good alongside the bad.
Jaimie Kanwar
Great article. Although there was the bad and the ugly...there was also the good. Thank you Sir
ReplyDeleteGreat article JK. Let's hope you are right about those youngsters. I do hope though that Shelvey learns the lessons from his red card. It wasn't a red IMO, but after he dived in like that, he gave the ref an opportunity to send him off. Stevie G learned the hard way so hopefully Shelvey does too.
ReplyDeleteThanks, PRAF. Gerrard regularly made tackles like that in his early 20s so I'm not worried. Shelvey will adapt, just like Gerrard did, I'm sure. Agree that it shouldn't have been a Red; if Shelvey hadn't gone off, I'm sure we would've beaten Utd.
ReplyDeleteWell written piece. Can only agree with the content 100%. All three have a great chance if they develop and show the right attitude and listen to Rodgers. Strange really, we are in the bottom three but i truly believe in the Rodgers project. Had a feeling short term pain with be in the offing. Suso showed his class when he came on. Rarely wasted a pass. As Rodgers stated after the Young Boys game, once he adds goals to his game he'll be outstanding.
ReplyDeletecheers for the 3 points in that case rafa (da silva or benitez) 19!
ReplyDeleteHey FdotM - This game made me feel even more optimistic about Rodgers and the club's future. We absolutely battered United for much of the game, and we did it in style. Results will come. We're only 6 points behind Arsenal, and only 8 off 4th place. Not insurmountable by any means.
ReplyDeleteYou won the battle (with help from Halsey), but you haven't won the war.
ReplyDeleteHi Jamie, can you help write something about the decisions that went against us whenever we meet Man Utd. I have a feeling that we always have decisions against us and refs seems to favor Utd.
ReplyDeleteAgree, Steve. There is such a massive difference to what we're seeing now compared with last season. Under Dalglish, we had lots of chances in games but there was no discernible plan/approach/philosophy. With Rodgers, it's easy to see what he's trying to achieve, and the progress on the field is clear. Our position in the table is pretty irrelevant to be honest; any objective fan can see that it's a false position, whereas last season, we deserved to be where were.
ReplyDeleteThis year was always going to be a transition year and getting these young lads experience is only going to help us move forwards. There'll always be ignorant fans clamouring to bring back the "Cash Waster Kenny" but Rodgers' team is displaying enough to show they can improve. That said, I am worried about goals and the lack of. For all our good play in the first 2 thirds of the pitch, we need to show more in the last one.
ReplyDeleteReally? What's the point of moaning about it? We were hard done by, lets not dwell on it and move on.
ReplyDeleteI don't generally write about dodgy refereeing decisions (or alleged conspiracies against LFC) because I don't see the point. Focusing on refereeing mistakes is what everyone else and their dog writes about; I prefer to take a different approach. Plus, I don't believe that there's any conspiracy against LFC when it comes to Man Utd; it's just the way things go, and Liverpool get plenty of decisions their way in other games.
ReplyDeleteIt's a cliche, but bad decisions do balance out. That doesn't mean I don't think the decisions were wrong; they were, but focusing too much on such things take the conversation away from the real problems: inability to score goals regularly; consistently crap finishing; avoidable defensive mistakes etc. These are the things LFC can control, and if these things are fixed, then refereeing mistakes will become irrelevant.
we have scored 6 goals in our last 2 matches though to be fair, it's a consistent finisher we are missing, we were a class above utd at the weekend and I thought we matched city and arsenal, just a lack of concentration let us down. We are starting to play some mouth watering football, exciting times ahead, the future is promising. I'd also like to point out that we need to actually look at the teams we have played in our first few weeks of the season, hopefully wins will arrive as we apply ourselves to the lesser teams (no disrespect intended), the youngsters were awesome, Suso is the one that I want to see given much more playing time, from what I saw he is ready for top flight.
ReplyDeletebravo!
ReplyDeleteAssuming you are referring the war as the premier league title? safely say its out of your reach chap!
ReplyDeleteNah, I'm referring to the next 5-10 years.
ReplyDeleteYeah, and in next 3 games we can manage 9 pts!!
ReplyDeleteI've printed this article out and framed it above my fireplace!
ReplyDeleteSeriously though, I've never felt such confidence and optimism after such a bad run of results. You can see that we're improving with every game and it's possible to see how, with regularly fit players, our full squad and even just one decisive goalscorer, this set-up and system will be successful.
I was vastly more disappointed by the injuries yesterday than by the result. Granted, youthful aggression and inexperience probably cost us the game, but we really didn't deserve the extra kick in the balls of having two long-term injuries to 2 very vital defensive players. Someone up there hated us yesterday.
Shocked to hear you praise Rafa, Jamie. Shocked and pleased!!
ReplyDeleteSuso is our next no 9, Sterling the next Barnes, Allen is the next Alonso and Shelvey the next Gerrard. I also have high hopes for the likes of Coates and Kelly. All we need is the next Souness/Mascherano and the next Reina/Clemence. That is not to forget players like Yesil and Morgan. United started like that, with youngsters such as Giggs, Scholes and Beckham. We will get back up there with our own youngsters
ReplyDeleteAgreed Jamie - at last after years and years of us hoping beyond hope that we would unearth another carra, owen or ste and now finally we can say we have! I was also getting a bit carried away when Suso came on as I genuinely think he'll be as big a star as you can get in football over the next few years. I still can't belive Sterling and Suso play for us! Regardless of the short term pain we're all feeling at the moment - if we can keep these players together we are going to become an unbeatable force pretty soon. We're only 5 games in and already that is apparent to me...Oh and as a side - how class are our fans. Wouldn't be a supporter of any other club, come win, lose or draw. YNWA
ReplyDeleteWe will thank Rafa for many years to come. The only shame is that he wasn't allowed to finish the job. As it is I think BR will do a good job. We battered them yesterday and and we played excellent. If it wasn't for referee we would have won the game. I still think that we need a quality striker and if we had one yesterday the game would have been over in the first half. YNWA.
ReplyDeleteI am really gutted with yesterday's result. It was our big day and we lost the game in very disgusting manner. The way things went just make me feel injustice. It is really hard to accept those bad decision by referee. Week in, week out, we have to take those bad decisions every week. It makes me wonder what exactly is going on. Our players gave their everything even after a man down and still could not get a single decision in their favour. Referee punished us at every sniff of opportunity just like the first game of the season. We not only lost all 3 points, we got a player banned by red card and have 3 players injured who put in extra shift for compensating for 11th player.
ReplyDeleteI don't want to blame referee and look at the situation with different perspective but what else can be done if such performance can't win you game ? Can anyone else tell me ?
liverpools best games were against man city and utd, but norwich away might be harder for players to get fired up for ! and i am not looking forward to the derby we havnt lost 1 since hodgson and kenny was unbeaten but kenny has gone brendan is in,the club are worst placed than last year and more swansea players to come in jan, if they don't sack him like hodgson and king kenny! and turn to rafa or pep(no chance)
ReplyDeleteOh really? So when was the last time LFC got a major decision their way? I can't remember....
ReplyDeleteThat's the kind of mentality we need to get away from. Yes, results matter, but if you've seen all the games and that doesn't make a difference for you, I just think you're looking at it in a very strange light. The performances indicate that the results will change and that the mentality has changed, which is the best thing you could've hoped for after the last two seasons.
ReplyDeleteI much rather have the season start be shaky and see improvement than scrape through the matches and loose every other game in the final stretch.
Dropping the manager after a game like yesterdays, because of the results this early in the season, would be a terrible move.
Sterling and Suso are a great credit to QPR and Cadiz. Good signings by Rafa and his scouting team. Always thought Shelvey was going to make a move to PL club again after Charlton as he was quite a well known young talent in the lower divisions, him and Powell. A pity we couldn't keep Ince, he would have been handy to have in this current style. Its always a tough one for a manager when it comes to balancing short term and long term signings. Trophies and players that remain from your reign are two of arguably the biggest things you can leave as a legacy, as a manager. So in that regard, well done Rafa.
ReplyDeleteIt appears you are expecting such massive help from the referee week in week out. You will need it to stay in the top four.
ReplyDeleteyou guys said that 5-10 years ago, and 'this is our season' during pre season! MUFC on top of the perch! and will continue to prosper there.
ReplyDeleteAs much as I agree with everyone about our youngsters and after watching yesterday's game even I thought there is an improvement, I have to say that we can't just ignore our position in the table. At the end of the day it is about being at the top of that table and not playing pretty football and being in the relegation zone. Having said that I appreciate it is still early doors and it's a new way of playing and it will take time.
ReplyDeleteMy point is the scum didn't turn up to the game and still won. I know the ref won the game for them but at the same time we have to realise how the man u players made the most of the situation.
Compare our defence to theirs. I am not talking about mistakes, I am talking about what happens in yesterday's game. Our back 4 were the good guys, they couldn't even bring down Valencia on the half way line with a little trip (professional foul). They were just too honest in that game. I applaud them for not being cheats, but its about winning. In contrast the man u back 4 are probably the biggest cheats in history. Our kids (sterling, shelvey and suso) had them worried and had the beating of them, but this dirty back 4 won them the match. Evra was probably not guilty of this in yesterday's game (but then he is under a spot light at anfield) and he knows it. The other 3 are classless and pure scum. Firstly Evans went in dirty on shelvey and then lay there like he was the victim, then rio told the ref to send shelvey off. Rio is the most annoying player I have ever watched (always crying), but he won his team th game through his cheating ways. The other little p?1ck ain't even worth writing about.
Anyway I guess all this only applies to this game and I am proud of our players for being honest and there is an improvement. Suso needs to start ahead of borini.
for the second time of all of your articles which i have read that i agrees with u ! good one ...
ReplyDeleteYes, credit where credit is due. I'd even welcome back Rafa, if he'd be put in a position to find more gems like the ones you've mentioned and would never undermine the manager. He has really signed some great kids, though it also has to be remembered that he thought that Mark Gonzalez was the best Chilean player.
ReplyDeleteI think this season(at least half) we will see an improvement in the performance as BR slowly tries to implement his style and we might just have to compromise with the results for a while. I think we has just hit the rock bottom with 2 points in 5 games and surprisingly we look impressive even with the given results. We can only get better and better with young players coming in and couple of smart signings in January and few more next summer. I think performance in later half of the season will decide whether we can challenge for CL next season. I am very very hopeful. BR looks like THE man. He is extremely composed and very good with media unlike Kenny. He also benched Sahin and I was very impressed with his bravery. Kenny wanted to justify his signings but BR doesn't care about the name or price tag, he wants performance. Great to see Suso and Sterling flourishing under BR. Great days ahead. Almost fell off the couch yesterday watching Stevie G scoring. Love to see him back in the scoresheet, hopefully more to come. YNWA
ReplyDeleteManure 19. you got steam rolled by Liverpool. Even playing with 10 against 12. go figure.
ReplyDeleteI don't believe it's a conspiracy but refs decisions are not going our way.
ReplyDeleteRemember the mancs are cheats and try to win at all costs. They cheat, lie, try to get players sent off, and harass refs. But our players Suarez (and Torres when he was with us) apart like to just shut up and get on with the game. I applaud the honesty and mentality but it won't win you games or help decisions going for you. Our players do too much of the nice guy approach.
We seem to have lost the winning mentality. We are too focused on passing and keeping the ball. Maybe it will take time. But the defenders are making little mistakes and being punished. If Agger or Johnson bring down Valencia at the half way line then it is a different game.
Maybe shelvey should have stayed on the floor and acted like he had been shot ( a bit like evans), instead of getting up and trying to defend himself. And maybe a few of our players could have then run in and shown the imaginary red to Evans. I love Gerrard but he is always toooooo nice with refs as a captain, and he can't act like the likes of rio and giggs. Our other players need to chip in and surround refs like the mancs do. I remember how alonso, carragher and mascherano and co used to surround refs and get us decisions. It's sad but true.
Once again borini looked lost and we need to start suso. But not sure where the goals will come from.
I have been quite critical of our new style (as much as I wish we play like Barcelona and get success through it) but yesterday's game gave me hope for the first time. I felt like our kids are quality and we will improve. The americans need to get the cheque book out and spend, to help BR.
Having said that if we keep losing games then there has to be change.
Luis Suarez vs Jack Rodwell comes to mind. But the dubious decisions that come our way rarely stick out in memory. Like Jamie I'm encouraged by the performance, direction and boldness of decisions by Brendan Rodgers. Hate to say it though, if we had got in Dempsey we would have been flying by now. Shame.
ReplyDeleteSuso looked good and needs to start ahead of borini for me. He is as likely to score as borini but the kid is more inventive and confident on the ball.
ReplyDeleteManure has been getting "massive help" for years from refs. 4 dubious penaltys in 4 games from dubious refs. Absolutely ridiculous.
ReplyDeleteThere must be an independent commission set up to investigate dubious refs. Their income? do they bet on Race horses? It is time for refs to declare assets and income. But that is a big ask from Fergies Association.
Corruption must be stamped out in the game or the PL will lose all credibility worldwide.
Agreed. The losing isn't our biggest problem at the moment. It's the loser mentality shown by some supposed 'fans' of ours. Wish we can cull them and get on with converting promising tactics and performances into results.
ReplyDeleteTotally disagree JK. It's not a conspiracy, it is about getting tips on Race Horses and money.
ReplyDeleteWork In Progress (WIP). The futures so bright you got to wear shades.
ReplyDeleteIn Buck Rodgers I believe and he will bring our beloved club into the 25th century with outstanding attacking football.
Rafa appreciation from JK....Something new! The only thing that worries me is that if we dont get into CL in this or the next season, top clubs may come hunting for these three youngsters...and its easy to play into their minds...
ReplyDeleteFor a 20-year old Liverpool player pointing his finger and telling off SAF, I have to say Shelvey has just become a hero, at least in my eyes. This boy got guts, passion, skills, all rolled into one, he will be a BIG player for us in years to come.
ReplyDeleteI completely agree with you JAIMIE we have some very exciting players on our hands thanks to RAFA BENITEZ. I think the most important thing is to not stunt their growth continue to be brave and give them games and i think they will flourish and LIVERPOOL will reap the benefits of having youngsters with a lot of games under their belt.
ReplyDeleteBRENDAN RODGERS has to be given credit despite what previous managers think because the easiest thing to do when you're under pressure is to look at your experienced players!
Rafa may have made a few mistakes in the transfer market, but look at the quality signings he did make, on their day, some of the best players in the world played for us, Reina (albeit he's not playing great now, but at one time was best keeper in the league), Alonso (yeah Rafa messed up this one in the end, but still brought him to the club, Torres (was the best striker in the world up until his final season for Liverpool), Mascherano. Even the likes of Kuyt, Arbeloa, Garcia and Rodriguez were very effective on their day. And now even the youngsters Benitez signed are looking good, I think the man deserves a lot of credit. I am a big Benitez fan, apart from the whole Alonso/Barry thing, but everyone makes mistakes. I would love to have seen Benitez come back as manager, but I like Brendan Rogers, and think if he had been given the finances that Dalglish was given last year, we would have a real chance of making the top 4. As it stands, not even a chance of top 6.
ReplyDeleteRegardless of the manager, the opening games were always going to be brutal, however we have shown a lot of character. Also, Arsenal had a dreadful start to last season and then came good, no reason that we can't with a bit of luck. By the way, RvP should have been sent off for his challenge on Suso
ReplyDeleteWhy can't we ignore the position? Last season, Arsenal made a bad start to the season, including an 8-2 loss to Man Utd and yet still made top 4.
ReplyDeleteThe next Reina? You mean Reina? He had a great game, could do absolutely nothing about the first goal and almost saved the penalty and the reaction he showed does not show a player who lacks commitment. What a lot of people fail to realise is that last season, only two sides had a better defense than us and that was the two Manchester sides. Reina was poor by his standards, but he was still good, once we get back Reina to being at his standards, then that can only be good for us.
ReplyDeleteTo be fair, Mark Gonzalez had the potential to be and was unlucky with injuries.
ReplyDeleteReina is getting back to his best, Rafa didn't mess up Alonso, when Rafa tried to sell him, Alonso had had a couple of mediocre seasons, he then had his best season and wanted to leave, Rafa did well by selling him for so much. You, like many people take the Alonso/Barry saga out of context. We most certainly do have a chance of making the top 6, realistically, top 4 isn't a chance this season, but that's not saying we can't get there next season or the season after. Have faith and give the team back their 12th man
ReplyDeletetrue what you say we ave to be bolder more positive but we should stop listening to the ex-players hansen saying we need a simpler approach. thats crazy talk i really hope it starts to turn for us but the refs are killing us. also hope fsg dont do anything rash. kelly's out but wisdom should come in not enrique also coates should be in for aggar. the kids in defense have done really well.
ReplyDeleteReckless, Blames everyone else, No respect even for experienced BETTER players in his own team , totally overrated,
ReplyDeletedo you think he will learn from this game? not to continue to try and mow down opponents with both feet especially after he loses the ball (which actually is quite often)...i have my doubts
If shelvey was as talented as some one like Tony Adams who was young and use to do his job well which therefore allowed him to have a go at older team mates and even captain AFC as a teenager...people accepted this But shelvey berates team mates for his poor choices ever since he joined the club and doesn't back it up
occasionally he will score a thumper
Yes Rafa would have brought in these players, because of their potential, as it would have been outlined to him by THE SCOUTS THAT SPOTTED THEM. However I will give RAFA CREDIT FOR THE PART HE PLAYED IN THEIR ARRIVAL. And also a BIG THANK YOU for the backroom staff who have nurtured and developed them since their arrival some years ago.
ReplyDeleteOn yesterdays game, I hope those who have been calling for Gerrards head, AND FORECAST HIS IMMEDIATE DEMISE, have learned to never dismiss a class act like Stevie Gerrard.
How much would Joe Allen be valued at now, especially by SAF, what would he pay to have Allen in his team. We were a great team for the best part of 50 minutes yesterday, Brens game plan is not too short of fruition, if only FSG will give him some money to build on what is IMO a new dawn in our clubs history.
I can live with losing some games if the performance in the first 55 minutes is an indication of the direction we are heading. As they say, we are on a journey, and I for one look forward to reaching our destination.
For me, a fairly respectable league position, and winning the Europa Cup, would be awesome for this season.
"YNWA"
you are a scum LFC remain the best so shup the fuck up
ReplyDeletebut is 90% + of the games we play againt them, why is that? whens it going to change? why should our games against the scum depend on what sort of ref we get that day. to be topped off them mocking the dead at the end, they should have gone home with there tails between there legs, as fickle as they are
ReplyDeletetotally disagree, ive never felt liverpool so disliked in all my life as we are now, mainly down to media and the fa.
ReplyDeletewe have been poor since raffa left, no excuses there all still wearing the shirt.
put it this way jk i feel if manure had the decisions against them that we have the last few seasons there would of been uproar and refs would be slaughtered 10 times worse.
we have also been missing luck it hasnt been there for so long :0(
great young players, could of been bought in last season.
ReplyDeleteand there oare more gifted young players at liverpool.
what have we got to lose with owners failing to back rodgers
JK I'm a regular reader of your posts though I don't make comment on your articles. You praise the 3 youngsters Rafa signed but regularly you besmirch Rafa. IMHO Rafa has been the best LFC manager since KK took the reigns the 1st time around. The point to my comment is it took whiskey nose 5 years to build his dynasty maybe if we had given Rafa a little more time and assisted him with player dealings a little more then just maybe we would have been looking at our 2nd coming! JFT96 YNWA!
ReplyDeleteI'd sooner have read a Thank You Rafa for giving us all those years of top drawer games and Champions League football
ReplyDeleteI said it is still early doors hence appreciating that we could turn it around. And if that happens then fantastic.
ReplyDeleteBut we will need to win games and more importantly start scoring for that to happen.
LFC is a sleeping giant...do not disturb
ReplyDeletecan someone tell me what borini offers that carroll could not?
ReplyDeletecarroll twice the player and we need him back, hes young and was getting back to his best!!
All i can say is Liverpool got what they wish for, that is attacking football. So we have to take risks. A lot of fans called Rafa's style was boring but you know we wont be leaking so many goals. The 433 style is of course will cost the club more because we need more world class wingers and strikers while with the defensive style we spend less by having quality in defense (Mascherano and friends) and bought Torres. This team however has pretty good back four and non defensive midfielder to protect them, so expect them to leak more goals unless Leiva comes back early. My point is teams that play gung-ho style such as Barcelona, Real and others spent millions to set up their offensive line up including back ups. On the other hand teams that don't have the money can't afford to pay CR for 60 million or Falcao for 80 million so we really need to think whether Liverpool can afford to setup such quality offensive players. What Arsenal did was to get this offensive players young to buy them cheaper but then again how much did Walcot costs Arsenal. Who knows maybe Rafa knew that he had to change our academy in order to have similar style of football such as Barcelona and maybe in few years time we have the players to play such style.
ReplyDeleteThe signs are there, we knocked 5 past Young Boys, that means we can score goals, we have been unlucky, but if we continue to create the chances that we are, the goals will soon follow, which means the wins will also soon follow.
ReplyDeleteI am one of the people who called Gerrard out for not being good enough. Yes he rose to the occasion and credit where credit is due, but he always does against Man Utd and Everton, it's the other games where he also needs to step up. FSG aren't going to give him bagloads of money like they did with Dalglish because of two main reasons, we didn't earn the money last season from our finishing position and the other reason is that we got burnt by Dalglish and Comolli. If we keep splashing out, when FFP comes in, we will be in a worse off position, the owners are looking to that future, and I for one agree with their view. Look at it from an intelligent business point of view for once and not from a naive point of view of spend spend spend. Do you really want LFC to be back in debt? And by the way, adding phrases with the caps lock on doesn't make the post any more intelligent. You can get your point across without looking like your shouting.
ReplyDeleteRafa isn't the best LFC manager since KK, he is the best LFC manager since JF. JF gets very little recognition and yet he is our second most successful manager behind BP.
ReplyDeleteCarroll does not fit out system and offers no versatility, Borini does. Borini makes a lot of very intelligent runs, if you actually watch the games, you will see what Borini brings to the table, which is a lot. He was injured yesterday, which is why we saw Suso come on, but against Young Boys, his introduction is what turned the game in our favour.
ReplyDeleteYou do realise that under Rafa, we played a modified 4-3-3 in the 4-2-3-1 that we played. We are playing a new system and our players need the time to get used to it tactically. Sterling has the makings of a World Class winger, and Assaidi when he gets his match fitness back up, will be another key player for us. As for no defensive midfielder, Joe Allen is pretty damned good in the tackle and can break up play. We are hardly playing gung-ho style as you say, we are playing under a different philosophy that worked brilliantly for Swansea with no disrespect, lesser players. And Falcao for 80 million? 80 million what? Rupea? Cause it sure as hell isn't pounds or euros. You are talking about Arsenal getting offensive players young. Sterling, Suso, Shelvey, all these players are under 20, then you have Borini who is 21, we have bought offensive players young.
ReplyDeleteAgree completely. I didn't agree with Halsey's decisions but none of them were easy ones. All the big decisions were complicated by several factors.
ReplyDeleteI heartily applaud this.
ReplyDeleteI like Suso but he is a number 10, not a 9.
ReplyDeleteI'm glad to see that Rodgers has been given time to turn things round, as I thought he would be, by the majority of the fans. I can understand the view of the disgruntled ones but I'm glad that no-one is getting to antsy yet.
ReplyDeleteYes Rafa was playing 4231 if Im not mistaken. Anyway My point is during Rafa's time he couldnt play so offensive due to lack of funds to buy world class strike force so he sack all the academy staffs and replace and recruit new staffs and new players, All I'm saying is to play expansive football you need to have expansive players unless you inherited great players (Barcelona). Another point is Rafa's Valencia team is an offensive style team and did thrashed Liverpool in Euros however when he came to Liverpool we cant play such high line and offensive game. Although I was encouraged by the way we play last weekend I'm wooried that Brendan is one dimensional and can only play a certain style which can be dangerous just say if Suarez gets injured than there is no one to score and with such high line we will be leaking goals
ReplyDeleteJaimie,
ReplyDeleteWell said although I can really add much I have to say that a number of things stood out for me Possession and ball retention was outstanding for such a young side.
Let be clear here, the average age of the players is dramatically younger and more dynamic.
Ferguson knows that Liverpool squad is going to get better and they are outplaying his midfield players already.
To put this in perspective, against Man City, Man United, Sunderland our young midfield players of Shelvey,Allen,Sahin, have dominated them.
Bare in mind this is without Lucas whose yet to return.
You then have Sterling and Suso who along with Suarez will definitely create opportunities as will Borini when he settles.
For me though I can see the next Captain of Liverpool is already there.
Jon Jo Shelvey's attitude and FIGHT is exactly what we need from a Captain.
The fact he's prepared to call out Ferguson's tactics so early on, without fear of the consequences shows, me that he will take no prisoners.
He's cockney boy with BALLS,and you can see that he can handle himself on and off the pitch.
If you watch Shelvey arguing with Ferdinand whose not from a very rough area in London himself , you can see Ferdinand shocked at Shelvey's reaction to intimidation.
Providing Shelvey with Rogers guidance can harness that and control it he'll make superb captain.
Also if you watch Sterling during the whole sending off he doesn't get invloved, he doesn't argue he watches and is looking how to play as soon as the ref is done.
As Rafa used to say it's about the mentality.
With players like Wisdom coming through as well the future is really bright in defence.
I like Robinson on the left I suggest you watch him closely he is extremely calm and assured.
I'm no sure about Flannagan or Kelly though Flannagan is just too aggressive in the tackle and doesn't offer enough guile going forwards.
Where as Kelly is a good defender but is predictable going forward, that having been said they can both improve.
The striking position is a problem and think we will have to buy at least two strikers one in Jan and another next Summer.
Morgan is not ready.
The one area of the Pitch which is ALARMING is the KEEPER.
We may have to consider that Reina is not the force he once was and if I were Rogers I would be looking to replace Reina or provide a serious alternative, as he's either too comfortable or losing his form.
To sum up Shelvey,Allen,Sterling,Suarez,Sahin,Suso, would get into ANY of Arsenal,Man City,Chelsea,Manu young squads RIGHT NOW.
You have claimed previously to not like Rafa but your articles in praise of him contradict that. Still think you are a manure fan posing as a lfc supporter. Your "article" on valencia's penalty proves it.
ReplyDeleteI agree that Carroll doesn't fit the system that Rogers wants to play, but we have no plan B at the moment. How many times so far this season, and last, did we fire the ball across the 6 yard box and there's no one there to tap it in? Suarez is a great player, but likes to come and collect the ball and run at players, which is brilliant, but we just need a Van Nistelrooy-esque (I hate to use an ex man u player as an example, but he was so good in and around the 6 yard box) player to tap it in. Borini I think will come good, just needs a bit of time, and a goal soon would do his confidence a world of good.
ReplyDeleteIts a great thing to be so positive but are we forgetting something here? Kelly out for the rest of the season, Agger could be out for 6 to 10 weeks, and Borini we dont know how long yet, its not good news with an already depleated squad, I agree its great seeing the youngsters stepping up, Sterling, Suso, Hopefully Ngoo, but our problem with the lack of a goalscorer hasn`t gone away, and until this major piece of the Jigsaw as been solved, im not totally convinced. We need a fox in the box striker brought in in January firstly, then a decent left back. Imo Llorente or Huntelaar, will score goals for fun. So if we can ride it out until then, and not lose too many points, we could be within the top 6 at the seasons end.
ReplyDelete100% agree with you about Shelvey, I definitely think we already have the long term replacement for Gerrard. He's already proven he can score goals, create goals, he's strong in the tackle, not afraid of mixing it with the big names. He's young still and will learn from Gerrard, he's not far off, just needs a bit more consistency and to mature.
ReplyDeleteI firmly believe that 1, preferably 2 strikers are needed in january, but until then, I think Rogers should give Samed Yesil a chance, he's no younger than the other youngsters getting a chance at the moment, and if anyone saw his performances, and more importantly, his goals, in the recent U19 internationals, you would see that he is a good finisher with a cool head in the area, surely worth giving him an opportunity?
Good post. Totally agree about BRs refreshing substitutions. Once he instils confidence in this new side we'll be ok
ReplyDeleteWell said Jamie, as much as i hate to see bad ref decisions go against us in big games against Utd i hate all this conspiracy crap as it does as you say gives us the whole 'victim mentallity'. Its never our fault but refs, or fergie or something else....
ReplyDeleteWe played really well and if we can just start scoring a few more goals we will climb the league at a suprising rate.
Keep the faith people we are moving in the right direction and that is all we can ask for
The weakness of Brendan Rodgers is he always keep quiet and not like to entertain any provokecation from outside clubs.R.Benitez very special because he is the specialist about technique and tactical.He always protect his players from any controversion come from Alex or others people.He is good takecare but unlucky the last owner never support him. During Rafa was caretaker of LFC nobody very brave to come to argue. He got special mind games too.B.Rodgers sometimes don't need to keep quiet untill Alex fuckerson and friend coming to bullied you.Becarefull about Red satan as alex fuckerson.
ReplyDeleteHODGSON BROUGHT SHELVEY BTW
ReplyDeleteJust where did I say spend spend spend, maybe you are getting mixed up with someone else, or maybe you are reading what you want to read, without it being written. But the way FSG announced on their own website Dempsey was a LFC player, then left BR to carry the can, when they failed to raise £6mill for Dempsey, despite all the outgoing players, salaries saved etc etc, then letting BR loan Carroll, and failing to get any replacement. OH btw, Borini £11mill, overpaid for him imo. And Shelvey was the game changer in Berne not Borini.
ReplyDeleteLet's hope they maintain this performance because it has been a norm over the years that we save our best performance for united and they go on and win the league. The league is not only about Manachester united. We need challenge for the league so we need to win against the smaller clubs. Let us not fool ourselves on one performance.
ReplyDeleteShelvey signed for Liverpool in May 2010, Benitez left Liverpool in June 2010.
ReplyDeleteSorry but wrong, it was Rafa!
ReplyDeleteTo be honest I think you have been harsh on Rafa in the past and probably unfairly so. This post is a more balanced approach. Yes we all know Rafa made errors but which manager doesnt? Didnt KK make errors? Infact he blew an entire budget of 100 million on dross, and if anything the feeling of that will be with the club for a long time to come.
ReplyDeleteRafa did buy dud's but he also made many marquee signings. Marquee signings have 2 effects. One they build confidence within the team and 2 they send a signal to the rest of the league that we mean business.
With what Hodgson and Kenny bought it didnt build any confidence and it didnt send positive intent to anyone. Further we shifted our goals from winning the league to top 4.
All the players that KK sold most were Rafa signings for which we received very good money. Even now the likes of Skirtel, Agger, Johnson, and too a lesser extent Reina represent the bulk of any value the club has. Downing has little re-sale value, and Carrol we would be lucky to get half what we paid for him - in essence 100 million blown - and this was the reason KK got sod all to strengthen the squad in january. I hope that FSG are tightening the screw on BR to see what he can do on a low budget and therefore increase the budget once there is trust there.
One thing that in my opinion BR definately did wrong is to buy Borini for 10 million when the missing link was always an out an out accomplished striker.
believe it or not i do actually watch the games!!!
ReplyDeleteborini was the wink link, failed to complete basic passing on numerous occasions!! its not his fault hes a good player with potential, but he should not be starting for liverpool. suso done his job with ease and great composure.
maybe you should actually try watching the propper game thats in front of you ;0)
hardly boring when raffas team rip united 4-1 away from home. sometimes boring but hey who in this league has ever looked like real or barca? the press gave us that crap stigma
ReplyDeletegood post well said
ReplyDeleteSo he's probably made it to the very top by now. Other injury prone players, too, managed to do that. Well, somehow he didn't. He was quick, but lacked something to make it to the very top. Still Rafa's sold him on a profit.
ReplyDeleteThanx Rafa, but i dont admire his inferior tactics... had Rafa been manager he wuld have already benched Raheem.... rather BRod gave him run of games, look how well the lad grow in confidence....and yeah Man of the match was Halsey (shame!) and above all JONJO has climbed up the ladder in my heart, i just love the guy they way he ditched Ferg'devil' lol JONJO is officially my Favrt in the red shirt... and SUSO being instilled and we have the world infront of us, Go Reds Go...YNWA
ReplyDeleteRafa was our manager when we beat both Real & Barca and both Milan sides and Juve etc, etc. We've had a string of fantastic footballers at Anfield but, for one reason or another, we've not been able to win the league since 1990. I just hope that FSG don't do a knee jerk reaction and fire BR if he fails to get us into the Champions League. The team is playing some fantastic football and, if we had a deadly striker like a Rush, Aldridge, Fowler, Owen, Torres or, dare I say it, Collymore, we'd be utterly hammering teams. I hope Adam Morgan or Yesil get some game time soon and start scoring some of the chances we are making. The league table will tell a different story then!
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