Positives from Villa game

[andyinswinton]

That was an absolute pearler. Beckham would've been proud of that strike.

Beckham would have hit the wall.

[Red Chilli]

Beckham would have hit the wall.

I dislike Beckham intensely, but there is no doubt about it he has been the best freekick exponent in the last 10 years.

[alunevans]

That was an absolute pearler. Beckham would've been proud of that strike.

my thoughts exactly. if he started taking free kicks of that quality frequently, on top of everything else he is capable of, well bloody hell!

[carrsim]

we played at about 60% and still created several very good chances.

alonso for me did a lot of grunt work so stevie could get forward. looks like that axis could well be back (for the guy who said he was quiet i don't think he gave the ball away once and considering that villa had no attacks through the middle i'd say he did a good job shielding carra and agger)

stevie looked quite sharp and that goal will hopefully be the first of 20 this season for the main man (and what a goal. pass it into the top corner with curl from 25 yards. genuine world class)

torres looks to be a hell of a player with plenty of intelligence for his age. great movement, good strength, deceptively fast, decent shot on him. looked well up for it and gutted to come off.

babel looked raw, quick and frankly awesome. made somethign happen every time he got the ball. the kind of player that will scare the **** out of teams. and ****ing hell he's got big legs!

back 4 looked ok and seemed to clear the cobwebs a bit- villa had one shot on target i think- the peno.

decent passing and moving at times. at pace and across the entire pitch. ALL the genuine good football came from us- and at times we looked as good as anybody. with a bit more fitness and the new lads bedding in i hope we'll get to play like that for longer in games.

plenty of top quality players not even in the 16

rafa looks cool as ****

but the biggest one has to be the way we won. get a bit of that istanbul/olympiakos/fa cup final never say die attitude back into the team's mentatlity

to have drawn that one would have been very frustrating. and i hate it when carra looks gutted about something. cause i know he feels it like we do

[Red Chilli]

rafa looks cool as ****

Disagree with that. I think his goatee makes him look like a fat ******. Sorry, but it's true.

Lose the goatee Rafa

[MrMichael]

Good post mate.

I thought, for an opening day away fixture, it was a good performance. We created chances and completely dominated the game for long spells in each half. The movement of the front pair is excellent, and with concerted support from midfield we'll have genuine teeth this year. Overall, a perfectly satisfactory day

[Elrond]

I thought you really couldn't ask too much more of the team today. From Stevie's driving run in the first minute, i knew the team would be up for this one and that they came to win.

The back 4 were a little rusty but that is to be expected. I thought Arbeloa was excellent and wouldn't surprise me if he kept Riise (who I thought was a little weak on the left today, didn't exploit an inexperienced LB in Gardiner enough) out of the team when either Harry or Babel (who was also fantastic today, he's got real promise this lad) take over LM from him.

Gerrard and Alonso midfield pairing was fantastic, Xabi ran the show in the middle in both attack and defence. Numerous tackles and interceptions and his vision with the ball as well as his link up with Stevie is outstanding. What can you say about the captain, absolutely brilliant. Drove the team from the first minute to the last. Sublime goal to top that off. Goal of the month contender.

Pennant started brightly but got worse as the match went on, early days yet, i think he can be good for us if he improves his delivery into the box. Was surprised Benayoun and Kewell didn't play on the wings, i think they will be awesome and provide balance to the team. Kewell to play as the winger, going past players and crossing with accuracy and Benayoun to roam free in behind Torres and Kuyt playing the killer ball.

Torres and Kuyt were fantastic upfront and i have no doubt this will be the preferred partnership this season. Their understanding is awesome for their first competitive match together. Kuyt worked extremely hard, kept the ball well, was in the box alot more and linked the midfield and attack superbly. Torres showed that he is not going to take very long to adapt to the league. A deceptively strong player and his acceleration was a sight to see. I also love how we finally have a striker who can create something out of nothing. One time in the box he had three defenders around him and using quick feet, left them for dead, before shooting wide.

All in all, a great start to the league season, now let's go and qualify for the Champions League and BRING ON CHELSEA next week !!

Go you Reds !!

[MrMichael]

I thought you really couldn't ask too much more of the team today. From Stevie's driving run in the first minute, i knew the team would be up for this one and that they came to win.

The back 4 were a little rusty but that is to be expected. I thought Arbeloa was excellent and wouldn't surprise me if he kept Riise (who I thought was a little weak on the left today, didn't exploit an inexperienced LB in Gardiner enough) out of the team when either Harry or Babel (who was also fantastic today, he's got real promise this lad) take over LM from him.

Gerrard and Alonso midfield pairing was fantastic, Xabi ran the show in the middle in both attack and defence. Numerous tackles and interceptions and his vision with the ball as well as his link up with Stevie is outstanding. What can you say about the captain, absolutely brilliant. Drove the team from the first minute to the last. Sublime goal to top that off. Goal of the month contender.

Pennant started brightly but got worse as the match went on, early days yet, i think he can be good for us if he improves his delivery into the box. Was surprised Benayoun and Kewell didn't play on the wings, i think they will be awesome and provide balance to the team. Kewell to play as the winger, going past players and crossing with accuracy and Benayoun to roam free in behind Torres and Kuyt playing the killer ball.

Torres and Kuyt were fantastic upfront and i have no doubt this will be the preferred partnership this season. Their understanding is awesome for their first competitive match together. Kuyt worked extremely hard, kept the ball well, was in the box alot more and linked the midfield and attack superbly. Torres showed that he is not going to take very long to adapt to the league. A deceptively strong player and his acceleration was a sight to see. I also love how we finally have a striker who can create something out of nothing. One time in the box he had three defenders around him and using quick feet, left them for dead, before shooting wide.

All in all, a great start to the league season, now let's go and qualify for the Champions League and BRING ON CHELSEA next week !!

Go you Reds !!

Great post, I'd agree with all of that.

[friedk]

That was one of the greatest free kicks I've ever seen.

Babel is a very very very exciting prospect for this season and beyond.

Kuyt and Torres will be devastating in a few months.

If a sign of a good squad is the players who don't make the bench, we have a top class squad.

Scoring late goals wins the league.

When we move the ball around we are a joy to watch.

I disagree completely about Xabi, considering his role was as DM I thought he did exactly what was expected from him.

[Red_Al_77]

I can't actually remember SG scoring directly from a free kick before yesterday. It's always been a little pass sideways etc. From the deadball position...well I'd argue that was his first.

[vocey]

Was surprised Benayoun and Kewell didn't play on the wings, !!

According to the local radio (radio City) Kewell is once again injured, and will be out for 3 to 4 weeks.

[kemm1]

Very good early season performance, I'm happy that we looked rusty on a ocassion so we don't have to worry about peaking early.

What impressed me most about Gerrard was his mdfield positioning and he timed his runs. A few seasons ago he would just run non-stop, but now he's picking and choosing his spots, a lot more disciplined that's key to playing centre mid.

Pleasantly surprised by Torres, I was fully expecting him to be crap for at least six months (while getting kicked all over the pitch and refs not calling a foul) and start showing his world class potential next year.
Torres and Babel is filling me with supreme confidence.

[Attilladahun]

I can't actually remember SG scoring directly from a free kick before yesterday. It's always been a little pass sideways etc. From the deadball position...well I'd argue that was his first.

Everton at home 2 years ago -Kop End

[reddragon]

the biggest positive was rafa actually tried and went for the away win. we looked a millions miles better than last seasons opening performance

we need to be on the march early and now we are! bring on the chavs then everyone'll sit up and take notice

[Red_Al_77]

Everton at home 2 years ago -Kop End

The brain cells are dying rapidly