THE post match reaction thread....

[pezzzer]

Well, he is entitled to his own opinion and I respect everyone's opinions. I just hate it when people don't respect my opinions. Yes, you can disagree with my views, but if I accept your views, you should accept mine. Simple as.

He's just another poster who exaggerates all the time to prove his point with "is season over yet" etc bollocks.

Plus, I hate it when people throw me in to the same basket with those who claim Rafa needs to be sacked, we need to sell half of our squad etc. I NEVER SAID THAT and I never will!

But if I don't agree with RCDNW brigade, then I guess I'm a spoiled brat. Talking about democracy dude

[Slurm]

To get a team to perform to the max you don't switch 6 players from one match to the next after 4 games. You get the team to perform as convincingly as possible and then you switch maybe 2 max 3 players. Fringe players that is!

We might have 22 international players but is that the same as 22 equally good players? Of course it's not. There should be a backbone og at least 5 players that you build around. 6/7 away. If you think that you can just **** about and change whomever/whatever position you got another thing coming than no. 19.

You gotta have ****e coming out of every orifice if you can't see that Rotation Rafa has to take a lot of the blame.

The team that played against Birmingham was the 'strongest' Rafa could've played (bar Torres). It's not Rafa's fault they failed to do diddly squat.

It seems that no matter what happens now, if we lose or draw the first thing people are going to come out with is this rotation is to blame bollocks.

Hindsight is always wonderful.

[Dhav]

Is correct. Singing songs me da can just about remember isnt going to create an atmosphere. They need to get some new material that doesnt particulary have 14 verses. We have more than half the squad without a song or chant to their name. Get some new songs for the new team with simple enough words so every ****er can join in and then you'll get a better atmosphere.



This is true. Yesterday we couldnt string 2 passes together. Everyone was in the postions they had been told by Rafa etc and if the ball was delivered correctly (which should be the easy part) then we wouldve been ok. But no, it was Rafa's fault Mascherano can tackle eveyone yet cant pass the ball in a straight line for 10 yards.





With the exception of the freak 7-0 cup game, Birmingham always do the same against us and we always have a torrid time against them. I cant remember the last time we beat them at Anfield. They've won and got draws in the recent past. I knew yesterday wasnt going to be the hammering many had predicted. I thought we'd sneak it 1-0 and even then it'd be something special or a set peice.

Torres didnt play. So what. I know everyone on here to a man would be moaning if Torres gets burnt out. You'll all be on moaning and saying Rafa shouldve given whoever a chance and rested Torres. Well if you cant rest Torres at home to Birmingham then when can you rest him? Youre living on the past if you think he can play 60 odd games a season.

Fact is yesterday, the players were as much to blame than the manager. Gerrard did **** all, Mascherano couldnt pass, Babel played like he only learnt how to kick a ball that morning and the same could be said for all of them. Rafa cant kick the ball for them, he picks the team and you'd like to think that we had the quality to win yesterday and if you look at the team, we did have but for reasons only known to the players on the pitch, we didnt.

All very true. Mascherano was probably our best player and yet he gave the ball away countless times, and that just about sums up the kind of performance it was. Kuyt and Voronin were not in the game at all, but they had **** all service. With the exception of Torres, it was probably as strong a team as Rafa could put out - you can't argue he didnt play our best player (Gerrard) as with the Portsmouth game, unfortunately Gerrard had a very quiet game and so did the rest of them.

Question we need to ask ourselves is why they were so flat? Certainly that spark, desire, determination or whatever you want to call it which was there in abundance against Villa was sorely absent yesterday, and when the team needed encouragement from the fans it was sorely missing.

[AFII]

Torres would have a week without a game so it wouldn't burn him out if he had played the whole game yesterday.

If you want to beat teams like Birmingham with the whole team behind the ball then you need creative players and not big strong players because then you would play to their strenght.

Torres is our most creative striker by a mile, he should have played from the start. It's better to take him off 2-0 up instead of taking a gamble and place him on the bench.

Torres is our only class striker. If we don't play him then we will struggle just as the results so far this season have showed.

[Dhav]

Torres would have a week without a game so it wouldn't burn him out if he had played the whole game yesterday.

If you want to beat teams like Birmingham with the whole team behind the ball then you need creative players and not big strong players because then you would play to their strenght.

Torres is our most creative striker by a mile, he should have played from the start. It's better to take him off 2-0 up instead of taking a gamble and place him on the bench.

Torres is our only class striker. If we don't play him then we will struggle just as the results so far this season have showed.

I don't necessarily agree with everything you say here, but I certainly feel the above in bold is a valid point. We've seen Rafa do this in the past with Gerrard and Carra.

It would be nice if he started doing it with Torres in the league games and perhaps keep him on the bench for the European matches and bring him on last 20 mins in the CL group games if required. But that would mean prioritising the league above Europe, which up until now Rafa has constantly refused to do, and has refused to do this season as well despite comments from him to the contrary.

It is no coincidence IMO that the only moderately successful league campaign we've had under Rafa is the year we got eliminated from Europe relatively early.

[redblood]

Is correct. Singing songs me da can just about remember isnt going to create an atmosphere. They need to get some new material that doesnt particulary have 14 verses. We have more than half the squad without a song or chant to their name. Get some new songs for the new team with simple enough words so every ****er can join in and then you'll get a better atmosphere.



This is true. Yesterday we couldnt string 2 passes together. Everyone was in the postions they had been told by Rafa etc and if the ball was delivered correctly (which should be the easy part) then we wouldve been ok. But no, it was Rafa's fault Mascherano can tackle eveyone yet cant pass the ball in a straight line for 10 yards.





With the exception of the freak 7-0 cup game, Birmingham always do the same against us and we always have a torrid time against them. I cant remember the last time we beat them at Anfield. They've won and got draws in the recent past. I knew yesterday wasnt going to be the hammering many had predicted. I thought we'd sneak it 1-0 and even then it'd be something special or a set peice.

Torres didnt play. So what. I know everyone on here to a man would be moaning if Torres gets burnt out. You'll all be on moaning and saying Rafa shouldve given whoever a chance and rested Torres. Well if you cant rest Torres at home to Birmingham then when can you rest him? Youre living on the past if you think he can play 60 odd games a season.

Fact is yesterday, the players were as much to blame than the manager. Gerrard did **** all, Mascherano couldnt pass, Babel played like he only learnt how to kick a ball that morning and the same could be said for all of them. Rafa cant kick the ball for them, he picks the team and you'd like to think that we had the quality to win yesterday and if you look at the team, we did have but for reasons only known to the players on the pitch, we didnt.

Chris I have to agree with a lot of what you've said there except for one thing the songs we sing can be learned and should be part of the process of going to Anfield.

It's one of the reasons I go the Albert before the games is to hear as many of our songs as possible and hear them sung in their entirety.

The problem is to many just don't bother to sing at games, that are not either european games or big EPL games.

I have often been the only one for 20 rows or so joining in and all it takes is 2 or 3 others around you to join with you and the flow starts but way to many just don't sing.

I do agree however and it's something that's being bothering me about to many of our players not having chants.

As for the players on the pitch yesterday they should've been good enough to beat the Brummies.
Mascher's passing was poor, Stevie was hardly in the game, Babel is still adjusting but didn't do anything well, Sami hoofing long balls to no-one didn't help either.

I think we missed Finnan & Alonso more than Torres yesterday.

[enema of the state]

For those Pennant lovers,he got so much possesion in great positions and he just crossed the ball in the general direction of the box.He limped off when the chips were down and he is giving us zilch.FACT

jesus this is a crap thread full of juvenile overreaction but the above is a pretty fair piece of analysis at least.

well done birmingham - they played the right tactics for them and got the point they came for. they wont be the last and its up to us to be good enough to beat em.

how do you beat a defensive strategy like that? you get a goal by any of a wide variety of methods and then their strategy bursts like a party balloon.

the best way to do that is to execute the basic techniques of footy better than we did: like putting all our corners into the right area for starters - or all of the excellent crossing chances we worked.

the 11 we started with is way beyond good enough to beat that birmingham team. all the whingeing at the boss and the arguments about starting with torres are spurious: winning and losing is about whole TEAMS or SQUADS doing the jobs their handsomely paid for.

last week you saw the scum do just that. yesterday, lfc's team didnt.
until we do - evry time we play without fail - we wont be champions

[Lee]

Torres should play every game when fit, barring the League Cup and maybe FA Cup matches against lower league teams.

The lad's our record signing, our best striker by a mile, and generally oozes class and looks constantly dangerous. Kuyt, Voronin and Crouch whilst are good strikers, you can't even compare them to Torres.

He's 22/23 ffs, he should be able to cope playing 40-50 matches a season. He did it for Athetico, and Fowler did it for us and look how many goals he scored.

[redblood]

I don't necessarily agree with everything you say here, but I certainly feel the above in bold is a valid point. We've seen Rafa do this in the past with Gerrard and Carra.

It would be nice if he started doing it with Torres in the league games and perhaps keep him on the bench for the European matches and bring him on last 20 mins in the CL group games if required. But that would mean prioritising the league above Europe, which up until now Rafa has constantly refused to do, and has refused to do this season as well despite comments from him to the contrary.

It is no coincidence IMO that the only moderately successful league campaign we've had under Rafa is the year we got eliminated from Europe relatively early.

That had nothing to do with it because our winning run of games started in October that year and we were still in the CL at the time.

[lfcruleus]

Is correct. Singing songs me da can just about remember isnt going to create an atmosphere. They need to get some new material that doesnt particulary have 14 verses. We have more than half the squad without a song or chant to their name. Get some new songs for the new team with simple enough words so every ****er can join in and then you'll get a better atmosphere.



This is true. Yesterday we couldnt string 2 passes together. Everyone was in the postions they had been told by Rafa etc and if the ball was delivered correctly (which should be the easy part) then we wouldve been ok. But no, it was Rafa's fault Mascherano can tackle eveyone yet cant pass the ball in a straight line for 10 yards.





With the exception of the freak 7-0 cup game, Birmingham always do the same against us and we always have a torrid time against them. I cant remember the last time we beat them at Anfield. They've won and got draws in the recent past. I knew yesterday wasnt going to be the hammering many had predicted. I thought we'd sneak it 1-0 and even then it'd be something special or a set peice.

Torres didnt play. So what. I know everyone on here to a man would be moaning if Torres gets burnt out. You'll all be on moaning and saying Rafa shouldve given whoever a chance and rested Torres. Well if you cant rest Torres at home to Birmingham then when can you rest him? Youre living on the past if you think he can play 60 odd games a season.

Fact is yesterday, the players were as much to blame than the manager. Gerrard did **** all, Mascherano couldnt pass, Babel played like he only learnt how to kick a ball that morning and the same could be said for all of them. Rafa cant kick the ball for them, he picks the team and you'd like to think that we had the quality to win yesterday and if you look at the team, we did have but for reasons only known to the players on the pitch, we didnt.

Spot on, We badly miss Alonso, as Mascher must have won the ball 10 times yesterday and simply gave it back to them, Stevie looks kinda jaded, he is having one of those periods when he doesnt look arsed, i know thats not the case but he looks it, the week off will do him good. It aint the end of the world but i think we need a draw this afternoon at OT as that will help.
I really dont understand why FT didnt play from the start, i never criticise Rafa's decisions but with CC in the week should he not have been rested then? Voronin and Dirk made Liam Ridgewell look a good player yesterday as they didnt work him like Torres would have. Oh and Steve Bruce still has got a big fat head.

[Frank Leroux]

Torres should play every game when fit, barring the League Cup and maybe FA Cup matches against lower league teams.

The lad's our record signing, our best striker by a mile, and generally oozes class and looks constantly dangerous. Kuyt, Voronin and Crouch whilst are good strikers, you can't even compare them to Torres.

He's 22/23 ffs, he should be able to cope playing 40-50 matches a season. He did it for Athetico, and Fowler did it for us and look how many goals he scored.

Players should not need to be 'rested' 6 games into a season. Clearly Benitez is predicting a certain number of games will need to be played and therefore is spreading the playing time around the squad.

Surely the fundamental problem with this is that the CL might go tits-up for us, we mightn't get out of the group phase, we might lose the 1st knock-out round, in which case he has potentially hamstrung the teams chances in the PL for what might turn out to be a failed campaign in Europe.

When a team is winning tiredness rarely comes into the equation. And certainly, when a team is winning and has a momentum and belief built up (say over the first three months of a season?) it is much easier for squad players to integrate and perform.

Having said all that, the Birmingham game is the first this season where I've questioned whether Benitez has changed his view on the way to win the PL vs CL. I'd like to wait and see a few more games...

Frank.

[redblood]

Aren't we the ones paying their wages to entertain us?

If Liverpool want to slip us all a few notes to provide them some inspiration then I'm sure there will be singing to closing time...

I sincerely hope you don't go the match.

[bigfooty]

For those now starting to use the "it was the players" card this really does worry me because it is three questionable performances in a row during which nearly all our major players have seen action. And most of Rafa's buys too. That sort of statement is also usually the first sign that a club is in real problems because usually when the players are that flat it is down to the manager.

[Slinky Skills]

I know we had a good start to the season but I must admit I'm pretty worried by how we're playing at the moment. That's three shocking performances in a row, and that is just not good enough.

I'm starting to get pissed off with Benitez and his rotation policy, it's not working he needs to keep playing the same 11 for every match. On top of all this, I believe that Benitez has lost a lot if not all of the players respect and I find this quite worrying. Since Paco left we've been ****e. I just feel there is a lot of unrest in the background, you could see Steven Gerrards body language in yesterday's game and also in the Porto match, at the beginning of the Porto match when Steve Finnan was pissing around with the ball and Gerrard had to clear it, you would normally see him riling Finnan but he just didn't say anything to him, and that's not normal for him.

If we continue at this rate I think Rafa will get the sack and Stevie will do one to a better team. There's something not right at Liverpool F.C. at the moment, I can just sense it.

I hope they prove me wrong, but I can't see it happening. Sorry to be such a doomonger, but I'm just a bit upset.

[Harv]

RCDNW brigade as usual.

Fantastic effort the last three games from Rotation Rafa. Completely failed to build anykind of momentum on the 6-0 win. Instead he rotated the squad out of phase. 6 new players against Porto didn't help but it was obviously the Pompey rotation that started the debacle. For some odd reason Torres couldn't start the last two PL games.

Consistency and flow tends to be strangers when you play 22 players in the first 5 matches.

Blaming Rafa is the easy way out? :whatever:

Maybe because we had all our momentum stopped by the ****ing international break! Its played at a rediculous time too....players are just getting into the stride....and off they go on international duty to pick up niggling injuries.

It ****s us (and others) up every year.

I think people are going OTT on Rafa's rotation policy. Who has he rotated??

Torres. Thats it.

The other "rotations" were all due to knocks picked up on international duty...or in Stevies case because he has only just coem back from a nasty injury that can easily flare up if not treated properly.