Liverpool Thread

Liverpool boss Gerard Houllier has asked Tomas Rosicky's agent to keep him informed the Borussia Dortmund midfielder's situation.
Houllier could move for Rosicky in January after the Czech Republic star refused to take a pay-cut ordered by cash-strapped BVB last month.

Rosicky, who shares the same agent as Liverpool pair Vladimir Smicer and Milan Baros, said: "Nobody here is happy at the proposals and the atmosphere is not very good at the moment.

"The club says if the players do not agree to the demands they'll have to sell. I expect my name features on that agenda."
 
President Massimo Moratti hopes that Michael Owen can restore his popularity with the fans following Hernan Crespo’s departure.


The Inter supporters reacted angrily to the sale of Crespo to Chelsea for £16.5m and are not particularly impressed with replacement Julio Cruz.


Star striker Christian Vieri has also protested at the fact these Scudetto contenders were selling important players.


It’s now reported that President Moratti hopes to win back support by making a massive buy for next summer.


He has always been a fan of British football and already brought Paul Ince and Robbie Keane to the San Siro.


Owen had previously been linked with Lazio under Sergio Cragnotti’s reign, but their financial problems make that move improbable.


Liverpool’s current worries could push them into accepting a big cash bid next season if they fail to qualify for the Champions’ League again.


There are claims in the Italian press that two agents representing the San Siro side were spotted in Liverpool this week to discuss the deal.


Inter already own half of Parma hitman Adriano’s contract and it’s believed they could raise the cash for Owen by selling the increasingly unhappy Vieri
Click to expand...




:shock:
 
Selling Owen would destroy Liverpool for quite a bit of time... I certainly hope it doesn't come to that.
 
Alright, own up. Come on. How many people out there thought that if we didn't beat Everton on Saturday Gerard Houllier wouldn't have a job to go this otherwise fine September morning? Not many of you, eh? Bloody liars! Not many people gave him much hope of clinging onto his job in the event of being beaten by the Bluenosed gypsies at the weekend. And yet here we are, at the beginning of a new week, and the man is still there, safely tucked up in his dugout, mopping the sweat from his brow and thinking: "Thank Christ for that!" While the rest of us wonder a) how the hell he managed to pull it off, b) how much longer he can carry on, and c) which prospect of getting Jobseekers' Allowance put him off most of all.

There was nothing special about the result, about beating Everton in a Merseyside derby. Nothing special at all. As we know, local derbies are notoriously unpredictable affairs. They could go either way. A team at the top of the league can be playing against its local rivals who are two divisions below them, and the form book goes out of the window. So, was Gerard Houdini's escape act borne out tactical prowess, the kind of nous that scrapes good managers out of such tricky situations? Or was it sheer and unadulterated fluke? The way I see it, whatever was the cause of the result, all it has done is buy him a few more weeks to try and start turning things around.

It's the same old story: we lose a few games, draw a couple, lose a few more, and suddenly Houllier's position is in jeopardy; we manage one win...and all is forgotten. Reading the papers, the newsgroups and other views about the current situation with regards Houllier's position, it would appear that the piss-poor start to the new campaign never happened. The defeat against Chelsea, the two shitty goalless draws against inferior opposition...none of it happened. And why? Because we managed to beat a very, very poor Everton side on Saturday. As far as I'm concerned, the 3-0 win changes nothing. It doesn't change the fact that, for the first three games, Houllier was playing some of his top professionals out of position. You could argue that, as he changed Kewell et al to their normal, anticipated positions for Saturday, he has realised the errors of his ways. I don't think so. Houllier's track record suggests that, come the next game, or perhaps the one after that, he will once again be tinkering about with the workings of the squad. Carragher will be on the wing, Smicer will be in the centre of the defence, Diouf will be up front and Emile Heskey will be deep-lying midfield kind of half-sweeper right back who plays on the left up front.

You know it will happen.

You see, this is the big problem with Gerard Houllier. The man simply cannot leave things alone. He has to fiddle about with things. He reminds me of one of those Sunday afternoon amateur car mechanics. You know...with a Ford Capri up the drive that is perfectly roadworthy, yet which has never moved an inch because every time he looks at it he decides to piss-ball about with something else under the bonnet.

"Why are you tinkering about with the car when there's nothing wrong with it?"

"Just thought I'd rip the carb out, swap it with the starter motor, put the track rod ends where the windscreen wipers are and see what happens."

No need to see what happens. It won't bloody go anywhere, because you're always sticking your head under the bonnet and twatting about with it.

Gerard Houllier should realise - and he really should - that what he has at Anfield are all the right spare parts for a machine that could run brilliantly, given the right mechanic to do the job. It doesn't need an AA man with a degree in the complexities of the internal combustion engine; all it needs is someone to take a look at it, realise that it's running alright, and leave the bloody thing alone. Like that old saying: "If it ain't broke, don't fix it." People might argue that things need fixing at Liverpool Football Club, that things are broken. But you know what? I don't think they are. The squad is good. The players are talented - when played in their true positions - and the fans will always get behind the team no matter what. If Houllier wants to go out and buy a player like Harry Kewell, then that's fine. But at least he should have the sense to realise what his best position is. Very few players can adapt themselves to play in more than one position, and do so with any great potency. Harry Kewell, good player that he is, is not one of them. He is not a central midfielder, nor is he a wide-right player. He is a decent striker and a threat to any opposing team, when played in his right position.

But we beat Everton, always a pleasing thing. And where does it leave us now? Well, you could look at it on paper and say that one defeat in four games isn't bad - two draws and a win. But it's only one win in four. That's the down-side. All these cretins who have been saying we're too far behind The Scum and The Arse already...well, they want blowing up. It's all bollocks until December anyway. If Portsmouth are still in the top half come the New Year, I'll personally crawl over broken glass to Fratton Park and wipe Harry Redknapp's arse. It's not going to happen. The first few games of the new season mean bugger all. Come to think of it, the first couple of months of the new season mean bugger all. Look at last year - top of the League by - what was it? - five points, unbeaten...then what happened. The biggest drop since Mike Smith gave up flying his chopper. Last week The Scum were seven points ahead of us; this week the gap is only four. Big deal.

But the thing is...the thing is that we all know that the Drunken Tramp will pick his best team week in, week out. He will pick his best players and, what's far more important, he will play them in their best positions. Because, and it pains me to say this about the red-faced Scottish turd, he knows what he's doing. The same goes for Arsene Wenger. Would Ferguson play Van Horseface on the left wing, or in midfield? Would Wenger stick Ljungberg up front or Patrick Vieira on the flank? No, they wouldn't. But Houllier...hmmm...his idea of tinkering shoves Harry Kewell and Vladimir Smicer in the middle of the park, Heskey out wide and Danny Murphy on the bench. I don't rate Smicer, never have. But according to some reports he was our best player in pre-season friendlies. So what does Houllier do? He misses the start of the season and Houllier plays him against Villa in a central midfield role. Smicer plays shite and gets dropped for the game against Spurs. I don't know what the man expects sometimes, I really don't.

"Alright, Mr Houllier, I want you to rewire my house for me."

"But I'm a football manager. I can't rewire your house. I'm not an electrician."

"Tough. And if you do it wrong, you're sacked."

And when he does get another chance, make him plumb in a new shithouse.

If Gerard Houllier had everybody fit and ready to play, he should have a team capable of really challenging for the League Title. In Kirkland and Dudek we have two excellent goalkeepers. The defence should pick itself. Carragher has always done a great job, wherever he's played at the back. If Steve Finnan is given a chance and he proves good enough for the job, fair enough. In Hyypia and Henchoz I still reckon we've got one of the best defensive partnerships in the country. Riise should be on the left every game. With a midfield of Gerrard, Hamann, Murphy and Kewell wide on the left, I see no problem. Up front...Owen and Heskey. Heskey has only proven himself to be so crap because he is always being played out of position. Play Heskey where he likes to play best of all, and there's not a striker to touch him in the country. Get him running at defenders, and he scares the [censored] out of 'em. You could argue with a couple of the places, but as far as I'm concerned, that would be our best starting eleven every week. No Diouf, no Cheyrou, no Smicer, no Vignal, no Diao, no Biscan and no bloody Djimi Traore!

Alright, Houllier hasn't had the chance to pick that side every week, but I'm willing to bet that if he did, we'd be in the running for the major honours come next May. But he won't. He won't do it. I don't know why he refuses to stick with a settled side, persists in playing players out of position, and I don't think I ever will. Like the man with his Ford Capri up the drive, he will continue to fiddle about, poking here and prodding there, tinkering, trying this and trying that. But the bloody thing won't go properly until he has all the right bits in all the right places. As long as Gerard Houllier, the amateur mechanic, thinks he's up to the job, it will never be seen tear-arsing along in the fast lane of the Premiership. The best we can hope for is to see it stuck up the drive, going nowhere, rusting away like some relic of a bygone age.

Which is, I suppose, what we are in danger of becoming.
Click to expand...

Excellent article IMO.......

PS:by Paul Graham courtesy of Koptalk
 
Except the bits that involve Hamann and Murphy in midfield. That would just make us as defensive as with Houllier. We need a more attacking midfield.
Something like:

Kewell Gerrard Le Tallec/ Hamann (Murphy is just a fat, average Stevie G) Diouf
 
Hey, it looks like GH has finally found Igor Biscan's prefered position because he was brilliant in the Merseyside derby. What do you guys think?
 
It has taken him a few seasons but it does appear that he can do a job for the team when required. However we are judging him on his most recent performance, he might be crap again next time he plays :D
 
CWright said:
It has taken him a few seasons but it does appear that he can do a job for the team when required. However we are judging him on his most recent performance, he might be crap again next time he plays :D
Click to expand...

Well there is that, we'll just need to see what he does in the next 10 games, if he plays of course. :mrgreen:
 
have to disagree with you mark,prefer murphy to diouf anytime.check this out,diouf is a "striker" right?then why the hell did murphy score more goals than him?and just remember he is our player of last season. hamann,ever realize how badly we defend when he's not playing?
i mean everytime he's out,we lose or go on a bad run man.IMO,without hamann and murphy,we suffer.both attacking and defending wise.i'm very sure had hamann been playing against chelsea,we wouldnt have conceeded the first goal(he would be tracking veron's run).i dont really mind diouf but he seems to afraid to "run in" and take a pop at goal himself.whenever he beats someone,he seems to run away from goal;not forgetting he can hardly take a decent shot.

about biscan,he only looked ok for the everton game so i'm gonna keep my judgement reserved.still think he's better off in midfield as he makes too many runs forwards playing as cb(he will get caught out one day).and he really had a nightmare game against FC Cologne(pre season) playin as cb so till too early to tell.
 
john arne riise was left sporting a black eye after a bust up with john carew resulting in the latter bein kicked out of the norway squad.
 
england22 said:
Italian champions Juventus are pondering a £7m swoop for Liverpool's attacking wing-back John Arne Riise, currently out of favour at Anfield.
Click to expand...



:shock:
Click to expand...
it is quite astonishing he doesnt play consistently for liverpool, i'd say he's one of the best attacking full backs in the country.
 
england22 said:
Italian champions Juventus are pondering a £7m swoop for Liverpool's attacking wing-back John Arne Riise, currently out of favour at Anfield.
Click to expand...

Just rumour mill. No way Carragher can hold left back slot forever. IMO the guys a centre back constantly played out of position, so whats new?

Maybe Riise's problem is being consantly out of position after his forward runs.

My theory is that GH constantly plays Carragher cuz hes afraid it might upset Owen if he were to bench him, seeing the two are good mates.
 
end of the internationals,back to the premiership.blackburn's next and im predicting "the players were tired after the midweek internationals" will be houllier's excuse.what ya guys reckon?
 
Awol said:
england22 said:
Italian champions Juventus are pondering a £7m swoop for Liverpool's attacking wing-back John Arne Riise, currently out of favour at Anfield.
Click to expand...

Just rumour mill. No way Carragher can hold left back slot forever. IMO the guys a centre back constantly played out of position, so whats new?

Maybe Riise's problem is being consantly out of position after his forward runs.

My theory is that GH constantly plays Carragher cuz hes afraid it might upset Owen if he were to bench him, seeing the two are good mates.
Click to expand...

yeah i think carragher is a CB, he doesnt offer enough going forward but is pretty solid.
 
David Blaine has given up his controversial stunt in London after he was told that 44 days doing nothing in a box is not going to break the record which is currently held by Liverpool's Emile Heskey and stands at 4 years
 
09/11/2003. Italian website Goalcity.com are reporting that Inter are intensely tracking Liverpool striker Michael Owen.

The England star would arrive in Milan after the EURO 2004 Championships in exchange for out of favour Uruguayan star Alvaro Recoba and a substantial amount of cash.

The report adds that the deal could already be sealed off this January, with Alvaro Recoba joining the Reds on loan this December.

Once Michael Owen completes the move in June, Recoba would then become full property of the Premiership giants
Click to expand...


this notion scares me .. but i also like it
 
Misfit said:
David Blaine has given up his controversial stunt in London after he was told that 44 days doing nothing in a box is not going to break the record which is currently held by Liverpool's Emile Heskey and stands at 4 years
Click to expand...

LOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOL

nice one!!!
 
looks like houllier had a last minute bid(just before transfer deadline)rejected by montpellier for their guinea striker mansare.Hallelujah!
 
Awol said:
why, Houllier, why?

*bangs head on wall repeatedly*
Click to expand...

lol

GH is the right man for the job its about time you plastic scousers appreciated what he's done for the club, look at the trophy haul, clubs in a similar position, everton, blackburn, especially newcastle and even to an extent chelsea, would be happy with the trophies lfc have nicked errr I mean won under GH.

Some people just never satisfied.....

Anyway carry on banging :)
 
a good 3-1 win over blackburn with kewell among the goals(might i add scoring from the LEFT!!).only worry,baros has a suspected broken leg.carragher is badly injured as well.
 
it is official now that baros has broken his ankle after bein challenged by babbel.he will be operated on soon.this is a shame as he looks really sharp this season especially after his brilliant goal aginst the dutch midweek.it's also pity why babbel didnt break heskey's ankle instead...
there was another intresting point in the game where riise(comin on for carragher)got into a puch up(thats two in a week)with former liverpool player,david thompson.souness and houllier got involved soon after which thompson was seen tellin houllier something.when asked by reporters what exactly thompson said to houllier,he responded"he asked me out for dinner sometime"...

PS:more to follow regarding carragher's injury.not looking good at the moment but then again riise gets to start in place of him.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top Bottom