Red Owners must back Benitez

[Sir X]

Red Owners Must Back Benitez Written by Gerry on December 28th, 2007 ▪ 16 comments so far
Our 2-1 Boxing day victory at Derby, turned out to be a real struggle for us against the Premiership’s bottom club and to be honest, I found the whole thing to be a bit depressing. Of course, we can always choose to bury our heads in the sand and fall back on the old “if you can win playing badly” cliché, but the truth is that in some of our recent performances there have been very clear signs that we are just not good enough in certain area’s and our squad is badly in need of strengthening. (click here)
Yet another brilliant goal by King Fernando gave us a perfect start to the game and we really should have cruised home from there but instead of this we struggled to take control of the game, and the more we struggled, the more confident Derby became. Their equaliser goal in the second half was a bad one from a defensive point of view but they deserved it.
When Gerrard struck the underside of their crossbar in the 85th minute, I thought it was going to be one of those days and we were about to throw away another two points but then our skipper once again saved our asse’s with a 90th minute winner, when he was on hand in the six yard box to steer home a rebound from a Torres shot.
Torres and Gerrard are a pair of diamonds and are the two players that have played by far the biggest part in keeping our hopes alive in the Premiership, but beyond those two its difficult to find anyone that provides us with some inspiration. I hear a lot of people ask why we often fall into the routine of humping a lot of long balls forward, as we did far too often against Derby, and in my view the reason for this is simply because we have far too few players with the imagination and quality to do anything else.
There’s no doubt that Rafa has improved us year on year since he’s been here and I still believe that with our best eleven on the pitch we can match up to anybody, but in terms of winning the Premiership over the course of a season we can’t just keep relying on Gerrard and Torres to provide us with the quality. You can only get away with that for so long, but there are always going to be occasions over the course of a season where one or both of them will either be off-form or injured, and it is at those times that we need other players to kick in and play their part.
We all like to believe that we have a side good enough to win the Premiership this season but the truth is that without Gerrard and Torres, we might well have lost against the bottom side in the league. Some may argue that it was just a bad day at the office, but isn’t it strange that over the course of a season, we always seem to have more “bad days at the office” then our rivals.
There are always going to be some games in the season where a few of your players are a bit below par, but in my view our main rivals are better equipped to deal with such days then we are, because they have more quality throughout their ranks to call upon, then we have. As we’ve seen in the past, in one-off occasions such as cup games, we are more then capable of matching up to our rivals, but over the course of a season you need a strong squad to compete for the Premiership and I just think we still have too many ordinary players in ours, and badly need to strengthen in all areas.
In defence: Carra is still very much the leader of our back-line but he has missed Agger playing alongside him this season and I think it has effected his game. We hear Agger is close to returning to the side and this is excellent news because we badly need him. Hyypia has come in to replace him and while I have nothing but respect for Big Sami and the many years of excellent service he has given us, but his legs have gone and trying to compensate for his lack of pace sometimes destabilises our whole defence. It crazy that a big club such as ours should be so badly effected by one injury and I think it will be madness if we don’t bring in at least one centre back in the January window.
At full-back, I also think we are very short on quality. Finnan is usually our Mr Dependable but he’s not getting any younger. I also like Arbeloa because, while he may not be of the highest quality, he is an honest player and certainly gives it everything he has when he’s on the pitch, and his versatility will always make him an important member of our squad. But on the down side I don’t think Riise is good enough and I also have doubts about Aurelio. I think we badly need to add at least two preferably attacking full-backs to the squad as soon as possible.
In midfield: I think the options we have for the centre of our midfield is probably the strongest of any team but it is our lack of width that continues to be our Achilles heel. Riise or Aurelio sometimes play on our left wing, but neither of them are good enough for this position. Kewell at his best would certainly be good enough but you just cannot rely on his fitness. Babel is a promising young player but the lad is definitely a striker. Benayoun is a player I like, he has a bit of quality on the ball but he is a bit lightweight at times. Things are so bad for us on the wings sometimes, that there are times when I even miss Peanut!
It’s not that I think he is a particularly great winger but just because he is the only natural wide-man that we have. We have been crying out for at least one top quality winger for years now and until we sign one, we will continue to struggle to break down the sort of teams that park the team bus in front of the goal when they play us.
In attack: All of the talk as we enter the January transfer window, seems to be about defensive cover along with the odd mention of a winger, and while this is certainly needed, I believe we also badly need a quality striker. Torres has proved to be a brilliant signing for us but we must pray that he doesn’t pick up any serious injuries in the weeks ahead, because we just do not have anyone who can come close to replacing him in our side.
Our other strikers, Kuyt, Crouch and Voronin will always put in plenty of effort on the pitch but in terms of quality and finishing, Torres is just on another planet from them. If Torres were not available for us, then Crouch would be our most potent goal threat and he will always chip in with a certain amount of goals but I just don’t think Kuyt and Voronin are good enough and will never be regular goalscorers for us. If we had to rely on those two, we would just have to create chance after chance and hope that eventually one of them would somehow bundle one of them in.
I take no pleasure in criticising a player such as Kuyt who works so tirelessly for the team, but at the end of the day he is there to score goals and if he can’t do that regularly, we’ve got to bring in someone who can. It maddens me when I hear of the likes of Anelka and Berbatov being linked to the likes of the mancs and the chavs when it really should be us that is making efforts to sign them. One of those two would not only be an ideal partner for Torres but would also score a decent amount of goals and be an ideal replacement if he wasn’t available. (click here)
These are the kind of signings I think we need to bring in to strengthen the squad and make us a genuine title threat rather then hopeful threat we are at the moment. This is not the fault of the manager because if he had his way we would be much further along in this department then we are now. Remember, he has tried to bring in the likes of Alves, Simao, Heinze and Kaladze etc in the past, and with the exception of Heinze, it was a lack of finance by the club that prevented him from doing so and forced him to gamble on cut-price alternatives, some of which have worked and some haven’t.
Can you imagine what kind of team we would have now, if Rafa had been able to bring in these players? This is one of the reasons why I continue to support the boss, because had he been given the proper financial backing in the first place, we might well have already won the Premiership by now. So as we are about to enter the January transfer window he must be given the backing to bring in at least some of these players.
We are still in with a shout of a Premiership title this season and two or three signings really could make a huge difference to us. Our American owners have received an awful lot of negative press recently but this January transfer window gives them an opportunity to win back a bit of favour among our supporters.
As I see it they have two choices, either they back the boss or they get the hell out of our club and allow us to bring in some new owners that will. Either way, I think the action or in-action of Butch and Sundance during this transfer window should really tell us all we need to know about their true intentions for the club.

[Sir X]

Unlike owners, Mascherano must stay Written by Aaron Cutler on December 27th, 2007 ▪ 4 Comments

</B>Diego Mardonna likens countryman Javier Mascherano to a monster. Rich, coming from a guy dogged by drug-abuse, obesity and a general taste for destruction. Nevertheless, the comparison is understandable.
Since arriving at Anfield last January, the Argentine midfielder has provided the bedrock for a progressing outfit. His presence in the midfield covers that unfashionable void left by Dietmar Hamann.
Of course, there is the tackling. Tenacious, unceremonious and occasionally brutal, ‘Masch’ tears into opponents at will. Yet underpinning such ferocity is an actual art-form. This is proven when reviewing a challenge from Mohammed Sissoko. Like his teammate, the appetite is infallible, yet the technique is uncontrolled, clumsy and often calamitous.
Macherano possesses the crucial skill which defines midfield anchormen from world-class holding players - an eye for a pass. Football’s very own darling, Robbie Savage, boasts the battering-ram facet but, though he’d probably disagree, cannot deliver that vital, match-winning assist from the middle of the park. It is this quality which separates the likes of Mascherano, Makelele and Xavi from their peers.
The 23-year-old has also immersed himself into Liverpool culture. He goes about his business in a professional manner, never complaining when dropped, ignoring the showbiz pitfalls and appreciating the lifeline that has been LFC.
Clearly, positives of plenty come to the fore. But, unwittingly, Merseyside’s Monster has found himself at the centre of an ugly showdown. Yes, our two Americans, who else? threaten the longevity of his, and Rafael Benitez’ Anfield tenures.
When sitting down to write this article, my first in some time, I have struggled to hold back, such is my vehemence. Like most of our passionate supporters, I struggle to comprehend the workings of these two clowns - Messers Hicks and Gillett.
We should have known from the outset that their intentions were false. Come on, anyone calling the great Liverpool Football Club a franchise knows nothing about tradition. Our club is different to any other. We are the most successful yes, but it runs so much deeper than that. The connection between player and fan is special. We have lived through the ‘wind and the rain’ and revelled in the ‘golden sky’ - together. We know our football and we know when we are being conned.
A student of politics, I have come to understand the concept of spin. Cleverly disguised lines are forwarded in order to trick or simply stave-off critics. This can work to a point of no return.
Lets cast our minds back. When the Yanks took control we were promised that stadium work would begin in one month. Four weeks later, the New Anfield was as much a reality as my dating Kylie.
Due to the wave of optimism sweeping through the corridors of Melwood, this ‘miscalculation’ was ignored.
Then we were promised that June/July would see the laying of foundations - the beginning of a new 60,000 seater ground we could be proud of. Erm? Unless I find myself in one almighty comma, that appears to have passed us by too.
Admittedly, signings have come. Torres for £20million was fantastic, as was Babel for £11million. But hang on; let us remember what has been recouped.
Craig Bellamy for £7million, Djibril Cisse for £6million. Then there was Mark Gonzalez’ departure, Gabriel Palletta (Thank the Lord!), Jerzy Dudek (whose wages would have been sizable), Robbie Fowler, Luis Garcia, Bolo Zenden…
The list goes on. Meaning? Well, not that great a sum has been spent on new acquisitions.
Without doubt however, the worst aspect of their ill-fated reign has been the treatment of Benitez. These guys do not understand ’soccer’ in the slightest. If Rafa, as some quarters keep suggesting, is to be axed, where do we go? Other than appointing Jose Mourinho or Fabio Capello it is a step down. The latter of course, is now unavailable.
But do not fear, a master plan is in place Kopites. That’s right - Jurgen Klinsmann! Do not get me wrong, the German was a great player but let’s be serious - I’d rather have Graeme Souness back. In management, he guided a Germany side to the semi-finals of their own World Cup. Big deal. I won the European Cup on Championship manager once!
Liverpool is becoming a farce. We once prided ourselves on privacy - in-house dealings which maintained a credible image. Now, every corner of the footballing world has been subjected to the proverbial washing of dirty linen.
But the US tycoons are not solely to blame. One individual deserves special mention. Rick Parry. The Chief Executive’s nose is currently browner than my family’s Chocolate Log. He cares for number one and nobody else. If contributing to Rafa’s fall saves his own skin, he’ll do it. It is blunder after blunder with Mr. Parry and he should grow some overdue backbone.
Think back reds … who was it that almost forced Steven Gerrard to exit? Who was it that succeeded in exiling Robbie Fowler? Who was it that ruined the best takeover deal imaginable with DIC? Who was it that failed to speak-out and add an air of reassurance to fans last month? Who was it that turned down the opportunity of global revenue from featuring in the ‘Goal ‘Movies? Who was it that presented the inaugural Premiership trophy to Manchester United?
The list goes on.
Parry, along with his two Stateside chums needs to go. That way we would keep Mascherano yes, but more importantly our manager, our respectability, our long-term security and our dreams of Anfield II.
This piece was not meant to be a rant but I find it impossible to write much else at the moment. The club I love is being ruined by these imbeciles and it angers me to immeasurable lengths.
Returning to the actual subject, the Mascherano deal defines the uneasiness surrounding L4 right now. Manchester United would fund such a transfer (£17million) because they are winners. We on the other hand waver because we play second fiddle. We have done for the past 18 years and will continue to do so unless a much needed change of attitude arises.
This player highlights all the attributes needed for a title-winning side. Losing him would send out the wrong message. But then again … 2007 has been a year for that.

Aaron Cutler

[Sir X]

Reds Mediawatch - Xmas Edition Written by Hakeem Stevens on December 24th, 2007 ▪ 3 Comments

</B>Second installment of our new column on TIA giving fans a weekly overview and critical analysis on the non-stop coverage of Liverpool FC in the media world.
What a rollercoaster ride it has been for Liverpool fans in the last 2 weeks… Unfortunately with more downs than ups results wise but a few positives have come out of recent activity surrounding the club namely the positive ‘clear the air’ talks involving Rafa and our American owners. Hopefully after the Man Utd game our dynamic duo from across the pond will see the need to strengthen our squad in Jan’s transfer window supporting Rafa’s requests especially with a centre back; possibly a winger and hopefully sealing Mascherano to permanent deal.
Predictably as usual the media (namely tabloid media) have been up to their usual mischief making and we have been swamped by a flood of speculative stories surrounding LFC virtually all of which have been dramatically dismissed by the club. Once again most of these are based in very little… if any fact. If you take on board some of what the media say about LFC it can be pretty depressing stuff week in week out, especially if like myself you have to analyse it! So after the last few results rather than depressing you all and at times stating the obvious I wanted to focus on highlighting some of the more positive media coverage surrounding the club & those outlets rather than solely focusing on some of the negative aspects.
But let’s get some of the negative out of the way first… Most of our negative coverage tends to be in the print media (dissecting that will take up a lot of my time in future columns no doubt). Also we seem to unfairly get it in the neck from some of the washed up ex-players who couldn’t make it in management yet now are masquerading as TV pundits who are suddenly oracles of the game spouting nonsense (yes I’m talking about Paul Merson in particular!). Their sensational comments are usually designed to get themselves attention, further TV appearances and there allegiances to their former clubs usually means that some of them can rarely if ever give an impartial point of view about some of there former rivals.
So talking about TV pundits and specifically some of the TV coverage on LFC I’ll start with ITV Champions League coverage of our Marseille game. Normally it’s of a very high standard but I was a little disappointed with ITV’s pre match coverage of the game. You would have thought they weren’t covering a British club and almost seemed to want us to lose. Likewise I was a little disappointed by some of the comments made by Andy Townsend (who I personally think is a good broadcaster both on TV & radio) both before and after the game, which were unbelievably harsh. The comment after the game that regardless of what happens rotation doesn’t work so he & some his media colleagues will not stop attacking him until Rafa stops rotating was unbelievable & a tad unprofessional! He may as well have said ‘me & my mates in the media are not gonna stop until we get our own way and run Rafa out of a job!’.
Bolo Zenden, Marseille and ITV
Equally as surprising was the interview given by a so-called former player of ours… Bolo (the clown) Zenden for whose respect dropped several notches in my eyes after his pre-match interview with ITV. It came across not just as sour grapes but also as behaviour not becoming of an ex-Red. He claimed that not only that Marseille were the favourites going into the game, that he knew our tactics would be negative & displayed how he thought we would play on a whiteboard! Also claimed that they would beat us convincingly while mischievously claiming that the players at Liverpool were disillusioned under Rafa and hated the rotation system. Not only were those disrespectful words rammed down his throat with a 4 nil thrashing on his home ground that could have been far more… You have to wonder whether Gerrard and the team saw the interview prior to kick off. I particularly loved the way Gerrard clattered him with a fair yet extremely strong challenge as well as his dramatic vanishing act at half time being hilariously subbed at 2 down after pretty much doing f**k all for most of the game! As for the gibberish spouted by Andy Townsend’s colleague Robbie Earle that didn’t surprise me at all.. How he is even on a station as big as ITV commenting on anything other than children’s programmes after his underwhelming playing career is beyond me! He isn’t much better as a pundit either… shocking!
After the game some of the same ITV presenters & pundits suddenly changed their tune on the network’s Champions League Tuesday phone in show. At least Andy Townsend was consistent with his views all the way through but I particularly loved the first caller taking the crap excuse for a journo Neil Ashton from the Daily Mail to task over his comments that Liverpool once again beat a poor side so our excellent performance under pressure amounted to nothing. When the caller put that to him that when other top 4 teams also have thrashed poor sides this season there achievements are heralded by the media. Yet in comparison we never seem to get the same treatment! It’s safe to say Mr Ashton was a tad shook by the caller’s comments and had to concede and eat humble pie!
Sky Sports
Our good friends at Sky Sports and their sister channel Sky Sports News have once again drawn a picture of doom and gloom around Anfield. Their coverage after the Reading through to the Carling Cup match with Chelsea was predictable stuff. The editorial style of their Sky Sports News station is very tabloid like (almost like there scummy sister paper) & has gone down hill over the last few years. Production and content wise they are generally on point but there constant editorial focus on sporting events that are only broadcast on the Sky Sports network (even if its a dart competition or greyhound racing that no-one gives a toss about!) ruins the channel’s credibility when for example you barely acknowledge Joe Calazghe’s big fight due to it being on a rival station! Even at the time of writing this piece I saw Sky Sports News interviewing Rick Parry after the champs league draw asking him whether Rafa had a transfer embargo (5 days after he has already widely rubbished these reports) shows you what their editorial stance is as they look to sensationalise stories. As for Andy Gray’s comments on Sky Sports pre and post Man Utd… I’m not even going there this week… in with anger…. Out with love they say! There will be plenty of time for Gray bashing in 2008 I would hazard a guess!
On a more positive note I wanted to briefly touch on some of the more LFC-friendly media outlets. Now I’m not sure if any of you are the same but some of the anti-LFC garbage spouted on the TV & radio before the games gets a little jarring to say the least. To try and counter some of that negativity I always try and listen to the media outlets prior to the game that tends to be more positive in their coverage of the Reds.
In the last month when it has come to pre-match coverage of our games if I’m not lucky enough to grab a ticket to the match I’ll put the TV on split screen to LFC TV. I’ll watch the pre-game build up there then turn over to watch the game on whatever channel has the rights or listen to the commentary via the LFC website or on Radio City. On the subject of Radio City, John Aldridge does a good job on the station and talks a lot of sense in my opinion.
Liverpool FC TV
LFC TV in its 3 months on air has been a revelation since it launched. I have to admit I never thought in my wildest dreams I would ever see an LFC TV channel… but many of our dreams are now reality! Apart from the initial technical problems, which hampered the first couple of weeks, they have gone from strength to strength. From watching LFC TV almost religiously since its launch I think content as well as production wise they have really done an excellent job. Visually with the graphics etc the channel looks very sharp and I think the channel will definitely raise the bar in regards to club TV channels in 2008.
Some of the stand-out programming on the channel for me has to be the excellent John Barnes Show; the in-depth one to one interviews on “60 minutes with…”; interactive phone-in magazine programme “This Is Anfield”; LFC Now daily news bulletin as well as the detailed pre & post match coverage that features Reds legend Gary Gillespie amongst others chewing the fat over our latest displays on the field. This is just some of the quality programming that the station provides has been much needed after years of kicking the TV watching some of the ****************e that comes out Mr Gray’s mouth!
On another note I’m also enjoying the chance to look at some of the explosive future talent we have coming through the ranks at the club on the Academy shows as well as the live coverage of the Reserve games. It gives us as fans unprecedented access to our beloved club that we have never had before!
The only downside since the launch from my perspective was Pete McDowell leaving the station to go back to Radio City, as he was definitely the strongest presenter on LFC TV. I would love to see him back in TV soon as he potentially could have a bright future ahead of him in that career path. All in all the channel definitely gets the thumbs up from me and if your not a subscriber via Setanta or e-season ticket and call yourself an ardent fan… then in my humble view your definitely missing out!
Setanta Sports
Finally talking of TV stations the eagerly awaited Setanta Sports News channel has finally launched at the end of November. At last after years of negative coverage on Sky Sports lapdog sister channel Sky Sports News they finally have some much needed competition! The angle for 24-hour rolling news outlet is it’s interactivity and the tagline is that puts the fans at the heart of the station. The channel has laid back approach in their presentation and have been on the whole largely been respectful in their coverage of the club and tend to weigh up their reports or comments from pundits or journalists with the views of the people via their “fan correspondents” to give a more balanced viewpoint which is definitely a refreshing take on things.
Football is definitely the focal point of this new venture and with ex-Red Nigel Spackman as well as King Kenny’s lovely daughter Kelly on the station’s line up of presenters & pundits it makes for positive viewing for Liverpool fans. The only down point about SSN from my perspective is Steve Claridge and some of his unsubstantiated comments/rants about LFC and Rafa during his weekend phone-in show on the station. Though to be fair even he had to take his hat off the other week when commenting on our performance in Marseille.
Some of the negative comments I have heard from some fans and media people is that station is a cheap knock-off version of Sky Sports News, which I think is a little harsh. Especially since the production company (ITN) launched the channel with just two months notice from its backers Setanta and Virgin Media. Also they are in a head to head battle with Sky Sports News for viewers which people forget has been on air for over ten years now and its gonna take them a while until there on a level playing field with Sky. To be fair since the launch of Setanta’s News service they have been punching above their weight and there has been day on day improvement content wise so obviously after 3 weeks there is still room for improvement. Maybe for some of the doubters similar to LFC TV… try and critique the channel after 3 months rather than 3 weeks but from my point of view in the way they have covered the club to date it’s definitely a case of so far, so good!
Signing off here this is my last column for 2007 so I’ll see you on the other side in 2008… Merry Crimbo to you and yours and best wishes for the New Year! Look out for some exclusive Q & A interviews with various execs and presenters from the world of TV; Radio and Press to give you a behind the scenes insight into some of the Media coverage not just on LFC but football & sports in general.
UPDATE: Prior to the time of writing and submitting this column there has been a much talked about article from Chris Bascombe in a well known Sunday tabloid newspaper. To touch on this briefly I’m a little concerned about the sensational stories coming out of that publication since the arrival of Mr Bascombe there. I don’t know him personally but like many others was a big fan of his work during his time @ Echo & Kop newspapers.
Now a few things come to mind… Firstly why are there never any facts to back up these articles other than hearsay and conjecture. I know it can be difficult at times to reveal sources but this is getting beyond a joke! From reading the article it could be no more than pub talk or internet forum rumours. Secondly since his arrival at the said publication there has been a flurry of sensational stories surrounding the club in this tabloid rag and I would love to know whether Mr Bascombe’s words are being tampered with by editorial staff prior to print. Finally if there is any proof please present it, Mr Bascombe is a die hard Liverpool fan and I call for him to now reveal your sources… time to put or shut up and bring the facts out into the open. If not stop dragging the clubs name through the dirt over rumour as whats done in the dark will come out in the light! I for one am getting a little tired of the non-stop media smear campaign around the club which is looking to destabilise possibly our best chance at title run in years. As open question to Mr Bascombe if you get a chance to read this I would like to know your motivation writing these articles if they proven not to be true? I felt sorry for you after the death threats and other hate that was thrown at you for taking this position… but looking at it now it’s seems as if you have taken a bag of silver from the devil and sold your morals down the river. I sincerely hope there is some fact behind this most recent story or your credibility that you have built up over the years will be shot down in flames just like the tale of the little boy that cried wolf too many times…
Hakeem Stevens

[Assasin]

Benitez must support his owners. He can't come to the media with those wild statement especially the fact that since he has been there there has been a whole lot of trade. He has bought at least half of the side he has all by himself.

All clubs no matter how big goes through a period when not much buying going on. Last year Manu only Bought Carrick and not much else, and Chelsea held the line against Josie.

Rafa himself bought a lot of mediorce players so a partially his fault too.