The Top of the League Thread

[Shanks]

Looking Good!











If VILLA have anything about them, they will fight like hell for that fourth spot.

[DannyMan2006]

Quotes and stuff............

Post Middlesborough - Mainstream media.

Only a fool would make rash predictions about Rafael Benítez's Liverpool, but what the hell. Saturday 4.22pm, the Riverside Stadium, was the time and place when Liverpool's title aspirations breathed their last and the thought of Manchester United *sitting alongside them on 18 championships could be ignored no longer. The lack of surprise was the least of their problems.

Damn right

"When we scored our second goal their heads dropped a bit," said the Middlesbrough defender David Wheater. "They are a top-four team with a lot of quality all around but we dealt with them well. You could almost say that when we scored our second goal it was the moment they lost the title. It's Manchester United all the way, most people know that. They will push them but they won't win it."

To no one's great surprise, the Liverpool manager refused to concede the title to Sir Alex Ferguson. His players' body language, and lifeless response when Tuncay sealed Middlesbrough's win with an assured *finish from Jérémie Aliadière's cut-back, did that for him.

Magnificent in Madrid and mugs in Middlesbrough, Rafael Benitez and his players surrendered their faint hopes of lifting the Barclays Premier League Trophy with defeat at the Riverside. Only Champions League success can prevent another year of unfulfilled promise, although Benitez could not quite admit his title hopes are over. Yet his forlorn looks and the weary body language spoke volumes

Maybe now they can see why Rafa would not concede the title.

In reality, such dreams came to an end with last week’s draw with Manchester City and the Reds’ latest nightmare at the Riverside simply confirmed what everyone already knew.

It might be hard to accept given the rivalry between the two clubs, but the truth is that Liverpool are not good enough to compete with Manchester United over the course of a league season and the superiority of the reigning champions will again be confirmed come May – and maybe even before then.

they are all of a sudden in the sights of fourth placed Aston Villa.

Now everyone at the club has to steel themselves for the unpalatable inevitability that Manchester United will soon join them on 18 league titles. Alex Ferguson may not have knocked Liverpool off their perch just yet but he is about to join them on it and there is now little anyone at Anfield can do to stop them.

Those last four are from our own Tony Barrett. The ramblings of a very sane man, who will always look for a positive if there is one. Just goes to show - Liverpool should never be written off. Does history teach us nothing?

[DannyMan2006]

Post Sunderland

David Ngog dispersed some of the gloom over Anfield - for the time being, at least - by launching Liverpool to an overdue win with his first goal in the Premier League.

There had been little to cheer about up to Ngog’s breakthrough, though, as the realisation that the title had eluded them once more led to leaden legs on the pitch
and a subdued atmosphere off it.

Post Man Utd

Liverpool revived their ambitions of claiming the Premier League title in remarkable fashion as they humiliated champions Manchester United at Old Trafford.

United remain firm favourites to claim the Premier League, with a four-point advantage and a game in hand, but if Liverpool needed any incentive to continue to carry the fight to United, the impressive manner of this performance will have provided it.

Now for Barrett:

UNITED suffered their first home league defeat of the season as Liverpool reignited the title race in stunning fashion at Old Trafford.

But having seemingly had the door slammed shut on their own dreams just two weeks ago, Liverpool have now pushed it slightly ajar and will be hoping others will now follow their example of how to go about dismantling the league leaders. But having proven they can beat anyone, anywhere and done so in such memorable fashion they’ve at least given themselves an outside chance of finishing top of the pile. For that to happen, United will have to stumble dramatically in the face of increased pressure but seeing as that is exactly what happened on Saturday perhaps no-one should rule it out.

Beginning to change his tune a bit now eh?

Post Aston Villa

To be fair to Barrett, he doesn't hide:

Title dreams which seemed to have been choked in the Middlesbrough smog less than a month ago are having new life breathed into them. And there is now a genuine belief that while Liverpool may not yet have taken over at the top they are performing well enough and have the kind of momentum to make a previously unimaginable eventuality a very real possibility.

But with confidence and belief currently as abundant as it has been at any other time during Benitez’s reign there is no reason why Liverpool should not aim for the very top

Other media:

The next champions of England? Right now it is hard to ignore Liverpool.

Liverpool have no such concerns. Far from cracking up, they are simply catching up - and fast.

Post Fulham

Liverpool moved top of the Premier League with a dramatic injury-time winner from Yossi Benayoun at Fulham.

A dramatic winner from Yossi Benayoun deep into added time took Liverpool two points clear of Manchester United at the top of the Premier League last night to pile the pressure on the champions.

Now his Spanish stubbornness can be fully focused on the field – on pressing Manchester United into a spectacular fall from Premier League grace

--------------------------

How quickly the press can change their views eh?

Just like us really,

[redpablo]

LOVING THIS. Would you like some salt and pepper with those words?

[EwarWoo]

To be fair but getting back in the race 3 rounds ago did seem like an impossible dream. Even those of us who are positive and dare to hope had almost entirely written it off.

Now it's very much a reality and only because results have gone 100% perfect. Couldn't have dreamt of better. We won 3, mancs lost 2 but still to play in this round of fixtures.

To expect that to actually happen would be insanity. Still slightly bemused that it did happen.

But loving it!!!!!!!

[G]

Great win, 4 more goals and pressure back on the scum

Best response to the midweek defeat

[JohnDoe]

Come on Cisse and/or Jones.

[Woobus]

Bump this back up

[Vermilion]

ohhhh yeahhhh.

[G]

Neville will prob play centre back today. VDS and Ronaldo on the bench

Come on sunderland

[JohnDoe]

Neville will prob play centre back today. VDS and Ronaldo on the bench

Come on sunderland

Nah, it's Evans and Vidic. Neville is RB, O'Shea LB.

[G]

Nah, it's Evans and Vidic. Neville is RB, O'Shea LB.

Yeah just seen that.Thought Evans was injured.Never mind he's **** too.

Top of the league

[Craig_H]

I really thought Sunderland were going to get something today. Absolutely gutted.

[Mattshark]

I really thought Sunderland were going to get something today. Absolutely gutted.

With some guile they could have, they just lumped it towards the edge of the box in good positions and gave it away.

[redpablo]

teams seem to freak out when faced with getting a point against them.