Chris Bascombe has a "scoop".... or not!

[swishtz]

Well you can get the Sunday papers from 8pm onwards so it should be out perhaps there's nothing at all in there ?

[DomL]

Its allright having opinions on your boss but trying to cause trouble in the work place and trying to make life difficult for new signings but making decissions etc is not on.

They should let Rafa do as he sees fit untill the end of the season and then make their feelings known and if Rafa was to go it wouldnt be such a problem.

Many fans can see we are a work in progress, why cant Carra and Gerrard, and no matter what manager would be braught in and wouldnt win the title so would Carra and Gerrard would want them sacked.

Its ****ign annoying all of this.

[MascheredUp]

Maybe Bascombes match report was the shocker.

[DomL]

If it was it still has caused strife and its pathetic as he didnt have to.

****ing ****y way of have a dig as well.

[Fowler_God]

Well if Bascombes 'scoop' does turn out to be his match report then he is a complete and utter ****.
As stated earlier he seemed to already have a template set out for his match report, i.e. Rafa bashing and just filled in the blanks with what happened during the game, using carefully picked incidents to exaggerate his point

Chris will have lost alot of credibility with people who have previously supported him (me included). He is selling himself out to try and make a name for himself as far as im concerned

[akjs123]

This is such a wonderful thread. Someone has speculated that Carra and Gerrard might have talked to Bascombe and people are arguing if they should be sold or not.
Take note posters who like to speculate.

[Lee]

Waited up to see the back pages on SSN... ****in' bugger all. Can't be much of a scoop

[Fowler_God]

His match report is rather tedious.

By CHRIS BASCOMBE at Anfield

WE'VE seen the manager revolting at Anfield.

The fans have been marching more than a Salvation Army band.

But as Liverpool struggle to secure the minimum acceptable requirement of Champions League qualification, are the senior players next to join the protests?

The Reds may have received a much-needed boost in their top-four quest against lowly Sunderland but the warning signs remain.

In the case of Steven Gerrard and Jamie Carragher, boardroom politics are secondary to the fear the clock is ticking in their bid to complete their medal collection with the title that matters most.

Even in victory, there is an inescapable feeling they are losing faith in their manager's increasingly deluded belief he will deliver it.

And the 2,000 fans who stayed behind on the Kop echoed their heroes' sentiments.

Who would blame them? They were promised an end to being surrounded by dross when Gerard Houllier was shown the exit door.

Fast forward into the fourth year of Rafa Benitez's reign, and they are choking on the history which is repeating on them.

Carragher recently quit England and ignored the advances of Fabio Capello because he accepted he was behind world class centre-back rivals Rio Ferdinand and John Terry.

Although he played a key role in this win, one can scarcely imagine his despair last night to find himself being re-accommodated at full-back at Anfield to make way for...Martin Skrtel.

The £6.5million signing's debut against Havant and Waterlooville a week ago was a late entry for a BAFTA comedy award.

But he somehow forced Benitez to shift one of the two most reliable players he has into a position he now loathes.

The Spaniard will no doubt call it a masterstroke as Carragher's dazzling run and cross on 57 minutes helped Peter Crouch lift a dire game.

But as keeper Pepe Reina ran the length of the pitch to applaud the Scouse stalwart, Carragher's reaction said it all.

He shrugged it off with his head bowed, no doubt inwardly squirming at the prospect he had inadvertently helped justify Benitez's decision.

Alienating one of your only trusted lieutenants is the equivalent of negotiating the terms of your surrender.

Benitez is not just playing with fire — he is in danger of being charged with pathological arson.

That is why it is not a good idea to take a deep breath when walking around Anfield these days.

Regardless of how Sunderland were eventually shoved aside in a vastly improved second half, there is an ashen stench in the air of a club in decay.

Such are the fans' concerns that demos against the American owners Tom Hicks and George Gillett were ordered to be delayed until full-time against the Black Cats in order to ensure no distractions or excuses for the poor, pampered millionaires.

For 45 minutes, at least, such charity was pointless. On the surface, this was a good time to meet a Sunderland side fighting relegation.

But even this could be no guarantee of Liverpool's first league win of 2008.

The opening exchanges summed up Benitez's recent problems. Plentiful possession was matched by a chronic lack of creativity.

For 38 minutes, Craig Gordon might as well have taken a seat with his away fans.

That is how long it took for the Sunderland keeper to be called into action and that was an easy save after Jermaine Pennant's trickery fed Fernando Torres, who headed tamely.

At least Gerrard has been spared the indignity of being shoved from one position to another this season.

His dynamism from the middle will have earned a knowing nod of approval from visiting boss Roy Keane.

Elsewhere sideways and backward passing — often inaccurate — was the norm as Sunderland achieved the impossible given their away form.

They looked good.

With the Kop's agitation growing, Liverpool began the second half with Steve Finnan replacing Fabio Aurelio.

They had a right-back at left-back, a centre-half at right-back and a central midfielder on the left wing.

As for the strikers, they were dropping so deep they should have been wearing snorkels — showing little signs of a cure to their recent allergic reaction to shooting.

Benitez had called on Crouch to justify calls for his inclusion.

So little has Crouch been seen at Anfield in the league recently, he is in danger of being given the nickname Gillett.

He has followed a rogues' gallery of Liverpool strikers who looked good when they arrived but deteriorate the more — or in his case the less — they play.

However, his goal ratio is impressive and after heading the hosts ahead, he could have completed a six minute hat-trick.

A scissor-kick was kept out by Gordon's legs and a header needed to be cleared off the line by Phil Bardsley.

Liverpool knew they still had to kill off their opponents to avoid the late backlashes inflicted by Aston Villa and Wigan here recently.

But Keano's men had shown little attacking intent.

And when Torres was sent clear by Crouch's flicked header in the 69th minute, Benitez finally had some respite.

Gerrard wrapped it up with a penalty late on after Nyron Nosworthy felled Jermaine Pennant.

There were signs the confidence was returning as the white flags which were scattered across the pitch for much of the game were now replaced by the more dominant image of the red ones on The Kop.

Despite this much-needed win, unfortunately for Rafa the zeal for change is not just centred on the boardroom

Just had another read of it. I didnt take this part in the 1st time. He is blatantly stirring the **** saying that. The 2000 stayed behind to protest about the owners and not Rafa

[CAD]

Maybe Bascombes match report was the shocker.

&

at Bascombe.

[Roboklopp]

This article by sell-out Bascombe makes everyone involved look liked a cunt.

[Jimthered]

This article by sell-out Bascombe makes everyone involved look liked a cunt. .

Quit beating around the bush and get to the point would ya ?

[swishtz]

http://notw.typepad.com/sport/2008/02/by-chris-bascom.html

[swishtz]

Rafa plans summer blood-letting
£40m KOP OUT FOR BENITEZ
By Chris Bascombe

RAFAEL BENITEZ'S plan to keep a grip on his Liverpool job involves a £40million summer bloodbath at Anfield.

As many as 10 players are earmarked for the cull, providing the Kop boss can convince new-owners-in-waiting DIC to give him another season to transform Liverpool's Premier League form.

Benitez's patience has finally run out with the enduring mediocrity of John Arne Riise, Peter Crouch, Harry Kewell and Andriy Voronin.

Most surprisingly, Benitez will allow Xabi Alonso to return to Spain after the midfielder fell out of favour with the boss.

Alonso signed a new long-term contract last summer and is valued at over £15m by Liverpool — but he's long attracted the interest of La Liga giants Barcelona and Real Madrid.

Visit

And the capture of Javier Mascherano on a permanent deal will keep Alonso below the Argentinian and skipper Steven Gerrard in the pecking order.

Alonso, Riise and Kewell were all left out of the Liverpool squad for Saturday's visit of Sunderland.

And although out-of-form Steve Finnan, who only recently signed a new contract, still has time to change Rafa's mind, long-serving legend Sami Hyypia is out of contract in June.

Striker Dirk Kuyt's position is under threat after a poor goal return since his £10m move from Feyenoord two years ago. Injury-prone Fabio Aurelio and calamity reserve keeper Charles Itandje are also in line for the axe.

Whether Benitez can convince his employers he's the man to lead yet another summer of rebuilding is a different matter altogether.

Chaos

Players such as Crouch were denied a January move because of the continued uncertainty surrounding the boss.

Matters off the pitch have been echoed by ongoing chaos on it — and while Benitez is inevitably making long-term plans, whether he'll be given the chance to see them through looks less certain.

A change of ownership AND manager remains more likely before the start of next season.

After admitting the plot to sack Benitez, revealed by the News of the World last November, co-owner Tom Hicks has now delivered a U-turn and promised he'll allow Benitez to see out the last two years of his contract.

However, few at Anfield believe the relationship between the Americans and Benitez is workable.

Prospective owners Dubai International Capital also recognise Benitez's popularity on The Kop and may give him a final chance — but that's not guaranteed.

Ally

The off-field political battle is crippling the club, with Hicks believing he's overcome the initial storm of protest against his leadership.

The Texan's chief ally at Anfield is commercial director Ian Ayre, who was appointed last summer with a view to eventually replacing chief executive Rick Parry.

Ayre has been briefing Hicks the fans have been won over by the recent £350m refinancing package — a claim which will be undermined by further demonstrations in the coming weeks.

The scale of the Anfield turmoil is unprecedented, but there remain hopes a DIC move will happen in ‘days rather than weeks'.

[Chris]

Was expecting something big after all the hype. Oh well.

[Slinky Skills]

I must admit after reading that article you have to agree with Chris Bascome and admit that practically everything he put down was true. There was a couple of things that I didn't like/agree with. Having a pop at Skrtel for his performance against H&W, that was out of order. The whole team were ****e last week, also I think that was a very clever move by Benitez to play Carragher, Hyppia and Skrtel together. He was a lot better tonight because he had two experienced defenders alongside him which enabled him to be a bit more composed and relaxed.

Anyway I'm going to go back to the article. I don't come from Liverpool myself so I can't comment on people saying that Bascome is a backstabber and that he doesn't love the club but you have to look at it from his point of view. He's in a tricky situation.

He's a journalist who has a job to do, and that is to do an open and honest report of the game and practically everything he's put in that article is spot on. We are complete dross at the moment. Things such as not having a shot for 38 minutes, backward and sideways passing. He was completly spot on in what he's saying, we're painful to watch.

At the end of the day he's a Liverpool fan just like us, it's probably cutting him up inside watching us play just as much as we're hurting and that's why he's being completly honest about it, and it's his job so he can't win! What about the neutrals who read the NOTW, they want to read about the match aswell not just Liverpool fans. I love LFC, they're my life, but I know that those of you who live in the City have a deep affection for the club and it hurts to read articles like that coming from one of your own but that's the way it is.

What do people want him to do, come and say "Liverpool were fantastic" and make up stories saying how good we are, it's not going to happen. If we were actually playing decent football then he wouldn't have to post articles like this in the first place.

I don't think he is having a pop at Rafa. I'm sure he wants him to suceed just like we all do, and neither do I think Carragher and Gerrard have gone to him to tell him that Rafa's lost the dressing room. Carragher and Gerrard have got a duty to Rafa as they're his main men. If they think he's lost the changing room then that's fair enough but I can't see them going behind Rafa's back like that.. There's no way they're that stupid I just can't see it.