Liverpool LIVE

[reddragon]

kin right attending the game live is a better assessment, you get to see composure, closing down, attacking space, denying space and you dont have to listen to that gobshiite andy gray

I often concentrate on one player for a large portion of a match - especially a new signing or up-and-coming youngster. You can tell pretty quickly if they've got the quality needed that way.

If you watched Pennant on the box last season you wouldn't have noticed how often he shat himself when given the ball.

[fatistuta]

I won't try to explain, but the difference between telly and being at the match is MASSIVE!

[bobbyfallon]

thats a good point there listening to andy (i love whiskey nose) gray can **** up a good sunday afternoon in the bar !!! what a ****in muppett he is

[jonesie]

I'm a season ticket holder and while I do think that being at the match gives you a better assessment of the players (strengths/weaknesses etc) I wouldn't completely ignore the views of non-match goers. Some of the biggest Reds I know don't get to go to games, I'm just one of the lucky ones.

[Jazzmaster]

I couldnt disagree more - in fact i think the tv can give a false impression of a player - particularly forwards who are being marked out if it, fouled off the ball etc. Furthermore only in being at the match does one get a sense of how tight the premiership actually is in terms of space and time on the ball.

[Craig_H]

kin right attending the game live is a better assessment, you get to see composure, closing down, attacking space, denying space and you dont have to listen to that gobshiite andy gray attending the match doesent mean that some gobshiite has a better handle of the game though

[Craig_H]

I am not trying to be argumentative, but I don't know how this can be true if you're sitting at the Kop end and the play is moving away from you how you can accurately judge space, etc etc. I have been to my fair share of matches here in the USA (save the slagging off, please) including Liverpool vs Roma a few years back and many Team USA matches, etc and I've had seats all over the ground and I never feel as though I am seeing more of the game (atmosphere aside) and especially not more of a single player than I do when watching on TV. I know how to watch the game, have played it, etc etc.

That said, I agree that the commentator are idiots, but I don't let them impact my assessment; I often just sit in wonder at what the hell they're on about when all visual evidence proves the contrary. I do see what you are saying about the individual battles, etc, but the overall shape of play (and the role of the individual player in that shape) seems lost to me. I guess I can continue to be confused. Nothing new there.

Maybe then the answer is that people have different opinions on this. I personally attend all the home games and about half the aways. I also record and watch back every game that's on TV, even if i've been there live.

I personally think being there live gives you a much greater appreciation.

If you think the TV is the better option, then that's your call. I think you're in the minority though, but each to their own.

[Craig_H]

Why can't I see that on TV?

Because the director controls what you're seeing, unlike at the game.

[rushscored4]

I've replied to debates like this before so I'll summarise as briefly as I can:

Those of us who are lucky enough to go to the matches probably also have the facility to record the game on TV and can 'analyse' every incident and camera angle afterwards at leisure whereas those sat at home don't have the opportunity to experience 'the whole picture' first hand.

I'm not doubting the armchair fan's advantage to view immediate replays and witness things live that we might miss in the stadium but I know where I'd rather be...

[Shaggy]

BrooklynRed makes some interesting points and I think some of them are valid.

Overall I'd agree with the likes of Revo, Billob, Phil Eel etc - you get a far greater appreciation of 'the bigger picture' at the game and you also get a greater appreciation of an individual player's performance - off the ball work, movement, desire etc etc.

Watching on TV has one clear advantage - incidents such as offsides (unless you're sitting at the game in line), penalty decisions. If you're in the Main Stand or Centenary (or corresponding stands), it's not so bad but sitting behind either goal you can often be clueless about certain things - especially if the play is going away from you.

For example...I remember coming away from a game last season and getting a phone call as we walked back to the car. "Was it a penalty?", I was asked. I hadn't a ****ing clue. I was in the Anny Road and the incident took place at the Kop end...amid a melee of players. Couldn't see a thing. All I knew was that we'd been given a penalty, and I'd have to wait until I saw it on TV before I could say whether it was a penalty or not.

BillobShaisley made an excellent point that goes some way to summing up - to scout a player properly, you'd have to be at the game rather than watching on TV.

To have a good understanding of which team controlled the game and who deserved to win etc....not much difference IMO.

[BrooklynRed]

Thanks all. Interesting points. Until I can get to Anfield myself and make the comparison, I will continue to watch and do my best, but I doubt if I make to Anfield I would be able to focus so specifically on a player... BUt I won't doubt you all until I experience it myself. Thanks for the replies.

[Revo]

Thanks all. Interesting points. Until I can get to Anfield myself and make the comparison, I will continue to watch and do my best, but I doubt if I make to Anfield I would be able to focus so specifically on a player... BUt I won't doubt you all until I experience it myself. Thanks for the replies.

if you ever go over and need tickets

[BrooklynRed]

if you ever go over and need tickets

[Craig_H]

if you ever go over and need tickets

[Kenneth]

I remember watching Vladimir Smicer for practically a whole match. It was than that I realised he was completely out of his ****ing depth. On tele, you only saw his efforts with the ball, which were hit and miss, but you noticed how he was out of position whenever the ball went out wide and always had a defender on top of him. One of the worst performances I've seen of Liverpool player. If I'd seen it on tv, I'd probably have given him a 6/10. Conversely, I regarded Shaggy as a bit of a show pony before seeing him in the flesh. Having seen him run like a mofo for an hour and a half like a Kenyan, it's his athleticism that I mainly remember.