Match Review - Player Ratings + The Most Pointless Rumour Ever!
Thursday, 20 August 09, 06:39 AM · Comments (9)
Good morning Kopenders.
Yesterday was a great day, even with the media’s attempts at giving every Liverpool fan a heart
attack, with their vicious rumour that Rafa had quit. Yes indeed, the weather was hot and we kicked off our 37 game season with a bang. Could it have been any better? Yup… Burnley made Manure look
like a bunch of snotty nosed little kids, so it’s no wonder I’m in such high spirits today.
If the game against Spurs was the illness, then surely the win against Stoke was the remedy. The
team played with passion and even the young stars showed their worth in an impressive display. If the team can play like that week in - week out, then the next 36 games will be very exciting
indeed. - Its interesting to know, that not since 1995, has a team lost their opening game and won the league.
Let’s take a look at the player ratings shall we:
| Reina:
Didn’t have much to do, but made a fantastic save to thwart Stokes attempts at getting back into the game – 8/10
| Johnson:
It was all about Glen last night as he marked his Anfield debut with an acrobatic finish and a great assist. He was unlucky to have only scored one. Man of the Match –
10/10
| Ayala: What a premiership bow to make. Looked
solid and was very tenacious at the back, although he didn’t look comfortable when he was in possession of the ball. – 8/10
| Carra:
Helped out the youngster a lot. I loved his 80’s looking disco head band... – 8/10
| Insua:
This guy is strong as an ox, was winning his fair share of challenges and made rampaging runs down the flank. Unlucky not to score. -
8/10
| Lucas:
Had a great game. He contributed well throughout the game with crunching challenges and good vision. One of our better players. – 9/10
| Masch:
That’s more like it. He still isn’t at his best, but played very well none the less. - 8/10
| Benayoun: In my opinion the second best player on the field last night. He may not have scored but his contribution was immense. Had it not been for Glen,
then Yossi would have been popping that post match champ’s – 10/10
| Kuyt: Dirk
missed an opportunity earlier in the game, but in true Dirk fashion, he continued to work hard until he got that goal. - 8/10
| Gerrard:
Played very well. Was all over the pitch and chipped in with 2 assists. – 9/10
| Torres:
Was quiet by Fernando’s standards, but had a good game regardless. He tested the keeper on a few occasions and scored the opening goal. – Finished the game looking like Sloth from the
Goonies. – 8/10
Regardless of the ratings, this was not the perfect display by all means. Had we been more clinical then the score line
would have reached double figures.
Daniel Ayala played very well; he seemed to get to every single Delap long throw. By no standards is that an easy thing to do, especially as those
missiles of his have taken so many victims in the past... Yet you could tell that it was the Spaniards first game, at one point Carra passed it to him, and rather than push forward with the ball like a senior
player would, he looked back at Reina as if to ask what to do. In a way it’s good to see. Ayala didn’t want to bite off more than he could chew, so instead played short simple passes. The confidence will come with
time.
Here’s what Rafa had to say about Johnson, Lucas, Ayala and the head injuries that seem to be attacking our
players:
| I think we were
looking for a player with quality going forward. He [Johnson] created a lot of chances, was a threat and also scored a goal. Our idea was to improve and have more quality in the wide areas and
he showed that tonight. |
| Lucas is a player with
experience but he's still young. I think you could see today, including the experts on TV, that he's a very good player. Hopefully now they won't see him as a target because he's a very good
lad, a good professional and a very good player. |
| Ayala is young and it
was more or less his first official game. He was a little bit nervous but in the end he was very good. He has to work, have more games and experience. |
And when asked about the head injury Torres sustained, Rafa joked:
| We are at the top of
the table now with 23 stitches. Carra, Torres and Skrtel. I haven't seen how many Torres has but I can guarantee you it's 10 or more. |
- Glen Johnson is proving to be worth every penny. But I’m going to be wrong and strong and stick with my original opinion of his price
tag.
Here are the goals for those of you who missed them:
Lastly today will be a look into today’s rumour - Note the singular. The Times online have written the most pointless article on the planet. They report, and I quote:
“Liverpool are ready to make an offer for Rafael van der Vaart, the Real Madrid midfield player. However, given that the Holland playmaker would cost about £10 million and Benítez has nearly exhausted his budget, there is little chance of a deal”
Ok, so what’s the f_cking point in even publishing this article? Surely they have an advertisement for starbucks or something that could have filled this waste of space column? Bleh. It is true though. Money at the club is tight, so although I’m optimistic about another signing, I won’t be holding my breath as it’s highly unlikely.
That will do me for today I think.
Till tomorrow. Walk on, with hope in your heart.
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| Comments (9)
9 Comments · Add yours
Certainly looked a lot better and more focused against Stoke. Stevie Gerard's little flick on the touchline was sublime. Rafa walk out rumours are such a load of rubbish. Man Utd losing to Burnley was a great result for us.
It was a true touch of class.
Lol @ Johnson's athletic goal. He could have nodded it in I reckon. But wouldn't have look 'arf as good.
god damn it i wish we were buying van der vaart and i agree with you on the johnson price thing ramos is the only defender i'd pay more than 10 million for and i'd but him for 60 because he's that good and kiko what's his face has nothing on insua and ayala
Look it's like this;
Alberto Aquilani and others on the mend, we just signed Sotiris Kyrgiakos which is a huge plus, we are well on the way. We even have more money the rafa leads us alll to believe. The only reason he is saying he is broke is to keep his last summer transfer targets price down. You wait and see. we will have one more signing before the summer window closes. When we start getting the injured players back things are going to move and quickly. I wish people would think about the depth we are going to have in the midfield, and defense when everyone is healthy. This leads me to believe we will get another striker. I am not deluded enough to think we are getting Villa, Silva, or any other high priced striker. But that is not to say we couldn't pick up someone who has no place on a team they are with.
Even Ruud Van Nistlerooy would be welcome, and would piss off SAF. Reason being he would be more of a threat, and score more the washed up Micheal Owen. Kuyt is on pace to score more then Owen, just wait and see. VDV would even be welcome as he can play as a striker. Things are going to fall into place. . . . .let the Dago and the Vouyer enjoy being at the top of the table, it will all end in tears for them.
Like Jack I believe Rafa has more money and one high profile signing up his sleeve before the transfer window shuts. Experience shows he waits till the curtain is about to drop before striking. Is it to be VDV? I don't believe so, although it would be fabulous to get him - I would have thought that would have been negotiated when the Alonso saga was being thrashed out? Again, as Rafa knows the Spanish market best I suspect it will be either an attacking midfielder or at long last a more viable and much needed support for El Nino. Who? Your guess is as good as mine.
I was amazed at the negativity of so many of the so called Kopite faithful after last Sunday's loss at Tottenham. It happens and better to have that out of the way and look forward to better things to come - as they surely will. Remember our finish to last season? And it was NOT all down to the 'Alonso' factor. It was belief amongst the fan population that drove the Team forward with belief as well!
YNWA!
So many people are already saying that Tottenham was just an aberration and that this is the real Liverpool. I'm sorry, but both are the real Liverpool. We're better on the whole than what we showed at WhiteHL, but we're still a bit off of champions wouldn't you say? Seasons are all up and down, and yes it is surprising how many people were irate after the Tot match, how many doomsdayers there were, but it is also, though not surprising, ridiculous to think that all our problems are better because we walloped Stoke. Spurs are a much better side, and will threaten for a 4-6th place finish, so they are totally different matches. Stoke will never be accused of being a pacy side, which is where a lot of our problems came from before, so we are yet to see how Rafa resolves them.
I admit I took the opening loss harder than I should have, but I think people are seeing the sunshine from this win equally too bright. What we should have learned from it all is that it's too early to tell anything, so let's sober up and be optimistic but realistic. Liverpool CAN win the league, but frankly we aren't the favorites and I wouldn't place a large sum of cash on it.
@Longfong: I agree that to look into the Stoke win with the thought that the 19th title is already in the bag is as ridiculous as seeing the Tottenham loss as being no hopers. However, have we learned from last year where we came so close? I believe the answer is yes. 'Stoke will never be accused of being a pacy side..' But were they so last year? No, ,if anything, they are indeed slightly pacier now. We got two draws against them last year: this year we are a point better off with one game left to play. Tottenham? They are a much better team than last year - and we lost to them by the same scoreline (albeit playing worse!!) Did we learn? We could have struggled and possibly come out with a 1-0: we comprehensively beat them 4-0. So, yes, we learned and moved on. Rafa is a great believer in perfection and he never forgets a lesson learned. He analyses and then he resolves.
Will we win the league? We stand an equal chance as any other but the squad depth is a concern. However, again, being the eternal and possibly the infernal optimist I believe there is one last trick up Rafa's sleeve to be played before September 1st. One hopes..
But still, there is a reason Liverpool fans should be very happy about the win over Stoke. Last season we were oh so close to the title, yet failed because of the drawn matches, many of which the lads played against... let's say teams from the bottom of the table. This solid win gives us hope that the guys have stepped up where they slipped down a year ago.
great blog. fine analysis
Certainly looked a lot better and more focused against Stoke. Stevie Gerard's little flick on the touchline was sublime. Rafa walk out rumours are such a load of rubbish. Man Utd losing to Burnley was a great result for us.
It was a true touch of class.
Lol @ Johnson's athletic goal. He could have nodded it in I reckon. But wouldn't have look 'arf as good.
god damn it i wish we were buying van der vaart and i agree with you on the johnson price thing ramos is the only defender i'd pay more than 10 million for and i'd but him for 60 because he's that good and kiko what's his face has nothing on insua and ayala
Look it's like this;
Alberto Aquilani and others on the mend, we just signed Sotiris Kyrgiakos which is a huge plus, we are well on the way. We even have more money the rafa leads us alll to believe. The only reason he is saying he is broke is to keep his last summer transfer targets price down. You wait and see. we will have one more signing before the summer window closes. When we start getting the injured players back things are going to move and quickly. I wish people would think about the depth we are going to have in the midfield, and defense when everyone is healthy. This leads me to believe we will get another striker. I am not deluded enough to think we are getting Villa, Silva, or any other high priced striker. But that is not to say we couldn't pick up someone who has no place on a team they are with.
Even Ruud Van Nistlerooy would be welcome, and would piss off SAF. Reason being he would be more of a threat, and score more the washed up Micheal Owen. Kuyt is on pace to score more then Owen, just wait and see. VDV would even be welcome as he can play as a striker. Things are going to fall into place. . . . .let the Dago and the Vouyer enjoy being at the top of the table, it will all end in tears for them.
Like Jack I believe Rafa has more money and one high profile signing up his sleeve before the transfer window shuts. Experience shows he waits till the curtain is about to drop before striking. Is it to be VDV? I don't believe so, although it would be fabulous to get him - I would have thought that would have been negotiated when the Alonso saga was being thrashed out? Again, as Rafa knows the Spanish market best I suspect it will be either an attacking midfielder or at long last a more viable and much needed support for El Nino. Who? Your guess is as good as mine.
I was amazed at the negativity of so many of the so called Kopite faithful after last Sunday's loss at Tottenham. It happens and better to have that out of the way and look forward to better things to come - as they surely will. Remember our finish to last season? And it was NOT all down to the 'Alonso' factor. It was belief amongst the fan population that drove the Team forward with belief as well!
YNWA!
So many people are already saying that Tottenham was just an aberration and that this is the real Liverpool. I'm sorry, but both are the real Liverpool. We're better on the whole than what we showed at WhiteHL, but we're still a bit off of champions wouldn't you say? Seasons are all up and down, and yes it is surprising how many people were irate after the Tot match, how many doomsdayers there were, but it is also, though not surprising, ridiculous to think that all our problems are better because we walloped Stoke. Spurs are a much better side, and will threaten for a 4-6th place finish, so they are totally different matches. Stoke will never be accused of being a pacy side, which is where a lot of our problems came from before, so we are yet to see how Rafa resolves them.
I admit I took the opening loss harder than I should have, but I think people are seeing the sunshine from this win equally too bright. What we should have learned from it all is that it's too early to tell anything, so let's sober up and be optimistic but realistic. Liverpool CAN win the league, but frankly we aren't the favorites and I wouldn't place a large sum of cash on it.
@Longfong: I agree that to look into the Stoke win with the thought that the 19th title is already in the bag is as ridiculous as seeing the Tottenham loss as being no hopers. However, have we learned from last year where we came so close? I believe the answer is yes. 'Stoke will never be accused of being a pacy side..' But were they so last year? No, ,if anything, they are indeed slightly pacier now. We got two draws against them last year: this year we are a point better off with one game left to play. Tottenham? They are a much better team than last year - and we lost to them by the same scoreline (albeit playing worse!!) Did we learn? We could have struggled and possibly come out with a 1-0: we comprehensively beat them 4-0. So, yes, we learned and moved on. Rafa is a great believer in perfection and he never forgets a lesson learned. He analyses and then he resolves.
Will we win the league? We stand an equal chance as any other but the squad depth is a concern. However, again, being the eternal and possibly the infernal optimist I believe there is one last trick up Rafa's sleeve to be played before September 1st. One hopes..
But still, there is a reason Liverpool fans should be very happy about the win over Stoke. Last season we were oh so close to the title, yet failed because of the drawn matches, many of which the lads played against... let's say teams from the bottom of the table. This solid win gives us hope that the guys have stepped up where they slipped down a year ago.
great blog. fine analysis