Liverpool Vs Chavski post match thread

[-V-]

Atmosphere was amazing till Chelsea started pressuring. Then it died. Very dissapointed with the crowd

[Exiled_red]

A poor result and a poor performance, I guess it brought the players back down to earth with a bump. Hopefully we can just dust ourselves down and get on with winning the next game.

When the second leg comes around we still have a chance yes we have alot of work to do and it's not going to be easy, but nothing is impossible

[Joe King]

It's no Anfield in full volume, but they still get behind their team. I think their lack of passion in the past has to be attributed to the fact that they were playing first. Last year they were well up for it. Not Anfield, but not bad by their standards.

I sense next week will be like a party atmosphere for them and they will want to see goals from Chelsea. But I also think that the first goal for Liverpool could quieten them and make the Chelsea players think.

Liverpool and Anfield are special because of the reputation the club is built on. Everyone knows about our superb come backs. Get one back and everyone in that Stadium will start to think of that.

It's the same reason so many teams collapse against Man Utd. Reputation - something money can't buy.

Whilst I admire optimism, again something money can't buy, I personally feel realistically the cautious nature and the experience within this Chelsea side will restrict our possibilities of attack. In a way, they will approach this match as an away fixture because we have to win, they simply don't and would feel, especially at home, that they can get one on the counter and given the chances they had last night, they most certainly can carve us apart amazingly and not so surprisingly easily.

Whilst Chelsea stifled our attacking options up front by playing a tight triangle of Alex, Terry and Essien who weren't ten yards apart from each other, our wing options simply don't have the attacking expertise or guile to threaten a watertight Chelsea defence which for some part was quite open especially in the opening fifteen-twenty minutes.

Benitez has to consider a proper left and right winger in the summer, players with pace, dribbling ability and a final product be it a cross or shot. Whenever our midfielders had the ball, their full backs tucked in and their wide men worked ever so hard to keep it narrow knowing fully well thats how Liverpool operate. Last night, what got me even more frustrated was the full backs who were unwilling to cross despite being in high positions of the pitch, either they would square or back pass giving the responsibility to Alonso or Lucas. By doing so, the Chelsea defence can step up higher and the ball from the midfielders would be an outswinger however with the higher line, this would favour Petr Cech more than Fernando Torres. At least if wingers are going to be more inside rather than outside orthodox wingers, full backs must take the initiative of hitting the byline and putting a variety of quality balls in the box. If Arbeloa feels he isn't up to crossing, surely Kuyt must stay wide and help his full back with deliveries.

Thats why we won't score three at Stamford Bridge

[Shaggy]

The last line of his report was ****in disgrace.

A ****in sly dig if ever ther ewas one and it followed on from a similar 'Liverpool are running scared of United' story last time out.

Why was it a disgrace? He just reported a chant from the Chelsea fans that we all heard anyway.

And his last article was right - unless you're trying to tell me you're not bothered about United potentially equalling our record? 'Running scared' might not be the correct way of putting it but the tone of the article was spot-on, albeit glaringly obvious.

[DannyMan2006]

Whilst I admire optimism, again something money can't buy, I personally feel realistically the cautious nature and the experience within this Chelsea side will restrict our possibilities of attack. In a way, they will approach this match as an away fixture because we have to win, they simply don't and would feel, especially at home, that they can get one on the counter and given the chances they had last night, they most certainly can carve us apart amazingly and not so surprisingly easily.

Whilst Chelsea stifled our attacking options up front by playing a tight triangle of Alex, Terry and Essien who weren't ten yards apart from each other, our wing options simply don't have the attacking expertise or guile to threaten a watertight Chelsea defence which for some part was quite open especially in the opening fifteen-twenty minutes.

Benitez has to consider a proper left and right winger in the summer, players with pace, dribbling ability and a final product be it a cross or shot. Whenever our midfielders had the ball, their full backs tucked in and their wide men worked ever so hard to keep it narrow knowing fully well thats how Liverpool operate. Last night, what got me even more frustrated was the full backs who were unwilling to cross despite being in high positions of the pitch, either they would square or back pass giving the responsibility to Alonso or Lucas. By doing so, the Chelsea defence can step up higher and the ball from the midfielders would be an outswinger however with the higher line, this would favour Petr Cech more than Fernando Torres. At least if wingers are going to be more inside rather than outside orthodox wingers, full backs must take the initiative of hitting the byline and putting a variety of quality balls in the box. If Arbeloa feels he isn't up to crossing, surely Kuyt must stay wide and help his full back with deliveries.

Thats why we won't score three at Stamford Bridge

Don't get me wrong, I don't think we will go through. But football is full of suprises. We may always harp on about Istanbul but it shows anything is possible. We scored 3 in 45 minutes. The Mancs scored 2 in stoppage time for the trebble. Anything is possible with belief and desire.

Aftyer Chelsea got a third last night the players seemed to throw in the towel and it was no suprise we did not threaten after that. But prior to taht we had chances. Kuyt could have made it 2-1 moments after their equaliser. Torres had a great chance in the second half to make it 2-1 or 2-2 (can't remember which) so we have shown we can score.

I agree totally with your part about the need for wingers. It would add a different dimension to our game. I've been pleased with Kuyt and Riera this year but we need different options.

[Tee]

Why was it a disgrace? He just reported a chant from the Chelsea fans that we all heard anyway.

And his last article was right - unless you're trying to tell me you're not bothered about United potentially equalling our record? 'Running scared' might not be the correct way of putting it but the tone of the article was spot-on, albeit glaringly obvious.

Well for me it was deliberately insulting parting shot, velied behind the fact it was chanted last night. This guy is trying to up the pressure, make no mistake about that. Fergie has rounded up his journos and to me anyway it is clear this guy has an agenda to try and disrupt us.

[Joe King]

Well for me it was deliberately insulting parting shot, velied behind the fact it was chanted last night. This guy is trying to up the pressure, make no mistake about that. Fergie has rounded up his journos and to me anyway it is clear this guy has an agenda to try and disrupt us.

It can only disrupt the team if they let it disrupt them. From my understanding, Benitez said nor he or the players read the papers - don't know whether thats true but players should know better than having a journalist trying to unsettle a title challenge.

[Tee]

It can only disrupt the team if they let it disrupt them. From my understanding, Benitez said nor he or the players read the papers - don't know whether thats true but players should know better than having a journalist trying to unsettle a title challenge.

Of course they read the papers.

The media can have a very big influence on matters you know, not just football related either.

[Skillz]

We scored 3 in 6 minutes. We are Liverpool and next week we might do something.

However we have a game of Football this Saturday, one we must win and we will.

[Redspin]

PSV
Spurs
Blackburn
Hull
Newcastle
Everton
Middlesborough

Goals at Spurs and Middlesbrough were both own goals from corners, so perhaps it's disingenuous to put them on the list. Neither the oppositions' attackers caused the goals nor was zonal marking to blame. Two Liverpool players simply cocked up and put the ball into their own goal

Also Hull's goal came from a cross that followed after the corner was cleared so that too shouldn't be on the list as it most definitely wasn't scored from a corner

[Redspin]

Agreed - we don't score enough from set pieces for my liking. Especially considering the quality of Gerrards delivery. Hyypia apart, we don't seem to have any players who dominate in the air.

As far as conceding too many. As I said before, its down to individual errors. Its not a problem with the system. The trouble is that when a man marking team concedes a goal its easy to figure out the player responsible and blame that player. Zonal marking has a stigma attached to it, but the fact is that if it was inherently inferior to man marking, the true scholars of the game - the coaches and managers - wouldn't employ it. They just wouldn't.

What annoys me the most, is that these so called experts, are happy to perpetuate this myth that zonal marking is to blame for every set piece we concede from, when they should be the ones explaining why coaches / managers persevere with a system that to the untrained eye looks flawed.

The best example of this idiotic ant-zonal marking stuff that Sky Sports is obsessed with was Newcastle away. We scored two goals from corner kicks and, if it wasn't for their goalie, could have had three more from corner kicks in the first half alone. Not a peep from the commentators about the flaws in the man-marking system at the corner kicks, but when Newcastle scored a header just before half-time they immediately rounded on zonal marking as being the cause. You couldn't make it up, you really couldn't

[Redspin]

He's wrong, but only because the great Anfield roar was not present last night. More than likely because their eyes are on something else - an end to 19 years of pain. Last night they were not the twelve man for Liverpool. If anything their quietness was too obvious and galvanised Chelsea, becoming a twelve man for the opposition.

As my United mates put it this morning - Anfailed.

It's a bit rich coming from Mancs after they were given a football lesson by a vastly superior Porto the night before. They should be more worried about their own problems as their meltdown continues

[Mattshark]

Goals at Spurs and Middlesbrough were both own goals from corners, so perhaps it's disingenuous to put them on the list. Neither the oppositions' attackers caused the goals nor was zonal marking to blame. Two Liverpool players simply cocked up and put the ball into their own goal

Also Hull's goal came from a cross that followed after the corner was cleared so that too shouldn't be on the list as it most definitely wasn't scored from a corner

Also Blackburn was from a short corner so slightly different too.

[Shanks]

Goals at Spurs and Middlesbrough were both own goals from corners, so perhaps it's disingenuous to put them on the list. Neither the oppositions' attackers caused the goals nor was zonal marking to blame. Two Liverpool players simply cocked up and put the ball into their own goal

Also Hull's goal came from a cross that followed after the corner was cleared so that too shouldn't be on the list as it most definitely wasn't scored from a corner

Nice quote.