Let's hope this is the first of many defeats in May for them.
The problem I have is we've beaten them on the last four occasions that we've met, it feels like fate will have everything swing their way come Saturday to balance it all out.
That is totally going to be my exscuse if we lose come Saturday ^^^
I'm not sleepy, I might go watch our double November win over them. I seriously hope it isn't their turn for a double May win over us in revenge... especially with Torres finding some form recently...
Suppose it's gonna be a different proposition this time around in comparison to November. Di Matteo's got them playing well & this is one of the last two chances that their 'old guard' will have to win a trophy. I'm not massively confident tbh because we have a very poor midfield and it seems Carragher will be starting.
I'm not massively confident tbh because we have a very poor midfield and it seems Carragher will be starting.
Let's just hope we pull through somehow.
If Kenny starts Carragher over Agger or Skrtel or tries to shift one of those two to accomodate Carragher like he did in the semi final, he has to be losing his mind surely? I mean we might not have even had a cup final to look forward to because of Carragher!
I'm not totally unconfident but I am uncomfortable.
I really hope we do edge it. I fear the reaction if we don't.
If Kenny starts Carragher over Agger or Skrtel or tries to shift one of those two to accomodate Carragher like he did in the semi final, he has to be losing his mind surely? I mean we might not have even had a cup final to look forward to because of Carragher!
I'm not totally unconfident but I am uncomfortable.
I really hope we do edge it. I fear the reaction if we don't.
Seems to be some sort of nostalgia or desire to give him a send off on a high for some reason. Probably to convince him to stay on, either as a coach or a player but on lesser wages, in turn he gets to try and win something, as a reward for his long service too.
Fiortentina sack their coach due to him striking his own subbed player during the game (because the player sarcastically applauded the coach for subbing him).
15th in the league with 2 to play. Mathmatically I think they are more or less safe. Unless the coach firing makes them implode.
Should really aim to get a couple of their players imo
Jovetic would be ****ing class, and a lot more realistic than Cavani etc.
Little hype about him now, compared to a few years ago when Rafa wanted him. Team are struggling, probably need the money and can't match his ambition.
You'd imagine he will want to leave.
He plays in a number of attacking positions, so that would be good for us. I can't imagine him costing a fortune?
Only problem is that he signed a new contract last year, which extended his contract to 2016
35mil of the 50mil relates to the HKS stadium design - basically money that was already owed but hadn't been paid by the cowboyws. Just means it's now been accounted for.
Then the termination of Purslow and Hodgson + staff. Tfbh, I'd happily pay the circa 10mil to get them the **** away from the club.
Ayre explains that if you ignore the exceptional items, we would've been around breaking even. Throw in the fact that our interest payments are now only 3mil compared to £18mil and that these accounts don't take into account the Warrior deal which adds like another 15mil?
We're more than fine, just that fixing the crap that the cowboys left behind was always going to be long and expensive. Won't make any difference to the investment the club will put in going forwards imo.
35mil of the 50mil relates to the HKS stadium design - basically money that was already owed but hadn't been paid by the cowboyws. Just means it's now been accounted for.
Then the termination of Purslow and Hodgson + staff. Tfbh, I'd happily pay the circa 10mil to get them the **** away from the club.
Ayre explains that if you ignore the exceptional items, we would've been around breaking even. Throw in the fact that our interest payments are now only 3mil compared to £18mil and that these accounts don't take into account the Warrior deal which adds like another 15mil?
We're more than fine, just that fixing the crap that the cowboys left behind was always going to be long and expensive. Won't make any difference to the investment the club will put in going forwards imo.
Yeh jumped the gun a bit there, only read a little when I posted it
Liverpool's record at Anfield under Kenny Dalglish sees a 'bastion of invincibility' looking anything but secure
When, during the 1960s, Bill Shankly was managing Liverpool the straight-talking Scotsman talked of "building Liverpool into a bastion of invincibility". Times, though, have changed in L4.
If the league this season was purely judged on home matches Liverpool would be 12th, a point behind Stoke City, as the Merseysiders have suffered their worst form at home in decades.
It wasn't supposed to be this way. Following the departure of Rafael Benítez and the arrival of Roy Hodgson the club endured defeats at home by the likes of Northampton Town and Wolves. Though, when the club's greatest ever player, Kenny Dalglish, returned to the club Kopites united as one as they hailed the return of 'the King'. Their saviour.
However, 16 months on the figures provide painful reading for those on the red half of Merseyside.
Under Dalglish Liverpool have won just 28 per cent of their home league games while drawing half of them.
On Tuesday night Fulham won at Anfield for the first time in their top-flight history, leaving Liverpool a home win behind relegation-threatened Queens Park Rangers and Blackburn Rovers.
They are on course for their worst Anfield sequence since 1948-49. Dalglish's misfiring strikers need to score five against Chelsea to beat their worst goalscoring record on the own turf since 1903.
Under Benítez, the former manager derided by many for being too defensive, the club enjoyed their best results at home since Bob Paisley's 1978/79 side who won 90 per cent of their home games while losing none.
After leading the club to their fifth European Cup triumph in his debut season in 2005, Benítez's side won 79 per cent of home games in 2005/06, while in 2008/09 he lost none.
In Paco Lloret's biography of the manager the author discusses Benítez's fascination with 'the English average' of earning two points per game – Benítez's theory being if a team wins at home and draws away against the bigger clubs, while beating the smaller clubs home and away then they will be serious title challengers.
Even in Gérard Houllier's worst years at the club – 2002/03 and 2003/04 – the Frenchman ensured European qualification through the league both seasons. Indeed, Houllier's legacy to Benítez was the fact that he qualified Liverpool for the Champions League after finishing fourth in 2003/04 despite winning just 53 per cent of his home games.
It is Houllier, too, who went closest to taking Liverpool to their first Premier League title at the time when, in 2001/02, they finished second with 80 points after winning 63 per cent of their home games while losing just 11 per cent – the highest they had finished in the league table since Roy Evans's 1996/96 side.
With just one league game to play at Anfield this season – against Chelsea on May 8 – Dalglish will be desperate to avoid the embarrassment of leading the club to their worst goalscoring record at Anfield for 109 years though it would appear unlikely.
Key highlights in the accounts published today show:
Liverpool’s losses rose in the year in question - from £19.9m previously to £49.4m. Debt interest charges as a result of the FSG takeover have reduced from £18m to £3m annually £131m was spent in the period on new players including Luis Suarez, Andy Carroll, Jordan Henderson, Stewart Downing, and Charlie Adam. The net spend on players was £41m - as opposed to just under £17m the year previously. Wage costs went up by £10m during the year - reflecting an ageing squad and an issue since addressed, say the club, when ten players left Anfield during the summer (including Emiliano Insua, Christian Poulsen, Paul Konchesky, Philip Degen and Milan Jovanovic). A 25 per cent growth in commercial revenues - up from £62.1m to £77.4m Total club revenue in 2011 fell by just under a million pounds to £183.6m - reflecting the loss of Champions League football this season. Media revenues dropped from £79.6m to £65.3m - again reflecting the loss of Champions League football from TV sources Matchday revenues dropped £2m to £40.9m - again an impact of no Champions league games
So thats about a £17m loss due to no CL football over the past few seasons.
So thats about a £17m loss due to no CL football over the past few seasons.
You've double counted. Said 1mil loss in overall revenues due to no CL but that would be counted in the loss of match day or tv revenue.
So more like 16(.3)mil.
More impressive is that we've increased our commercial revenue by 25%. Not sure what that exactly encompasses or if it includes the Warrior deal (it shouldn't do).
Not sure if it's been officially announced anywhere yet, but Jamie Carragher will be one of the pundits for ITV during Euro 2012. Will be fun seeing everyone's baffled faces as they try and decipher what he's actually saying
Little hype about him now, compared to a few years ago when Rafa wanted him. Team are struggling, probably need the money and can't match his ambition.
You'd imagine he will want to leave.
He plays in a number of attacking positions, so that would be good for us. I can't imagine him costing a fortune?
Only problem is that he signed a new contract last year, which extended his contract to 2016
He'd probably cost less than Stewart Downing. Which is depressing.
The clubs scattergun approach to english players last summer was embrassing. Theres no value in the british market, so why shop there?
Also, I think Jelavic and Cisse have both debunked the 'no value in january' myth.
He'd probably cost less than Stewart Downing. Which is depressing.
The clubs scattergun approach to english players last summer was embrassing. Theres no value in the british market, so why shop there?
Also, I think Jelavic and Cisse have both debunked the 'no value in january' myth.
Probably right, although I didn't realise how long his contract was.
No clue why we bought so many English players. Squad of 25, 8 have to be homegrown - we could still get by with a squad of 17 players and then we already had a handful of English players - Carragher, Gerrard, Johnson, Jones.
Tbh there's no value at the top of the market in January since few clubs will have top stars who are in excess i.e. a 30mil Hazard in the summer would cost you 50mil in January. But you're right about the types of tagets which are available to us.
Can't believe how poor our scouting is. What is going on?
More than anything, we need to fire/hire new staff for our scouting team and our PR team.
Probably right, although I didn't realise how long his contract was.
No clue why we bought so many English players. Squad of 25, 8 have to be homegrown - we could still get by with a squad of 17 players and then we already had a handful of English players - Carragher, Gerrard, Johnson, Jones.
Tbh there's no value at the top of the market in January since few clubs will have top stars who are in excess i.e. a 30mil Hazard in the summer would cost you 50mil in January. But you're right about the types of tagets which are available to us.
Can't believe how poor our scouting is. What is going on?
More than anything, we need to fire/hire new staff for our scouting team and our PR team.
Downing just had a brilliant season and he'd been consistent for years. Therefore he was one of the best options available to us. Simple.