A stat for all the Momo critics

I have to admit that I was kind of shocked when I read so many reviews of the Blackburn match that slagged off on Momo's performance. What match were they watching? I'm beginning to think that it matters little what the 22-year-old Malian International does, his haters are solid in their mindset that he's no good.

The main argument against Sissoko is that he's a good defensive midfielder, but it doesn't matter because once he makes a tackle and wins possession, he throws it away, basically nullifying his effort. I'm the first to admit when Momo has a bad match, but Saturday wasn't one of them.

The proof is in the pudding and Sissoko had a passing completion percentage of 91%. He complete 41 of 45 attempts and was second on the team with 5 tackles as well. The only players who had better passing percentages were Jamie Carragher (45 for 45), Steve Finnan (37 for 37), and Peter Crouch (3 for 3), all of which had a 100% completion rate, and Yossi Benayoun (24 of 25), who had a 96%.

Momo is young and still has lots to learn. He even admitted recently that has to improve form. Basically all I'm saying is, if it makes you feel better by putting down an impressionable young man, even when he performs at a satisfactory level, then you're the kind of 'fan' we don't need. Keep your irrational views to yourself, because they aren't supported by what occurs on the pitch whatsoever.

Liverpool 0, Blackburn 0: highlights

You can download the highlights from here(short) or here(long). Cheers.

Liverpool 0, Blackburn 0: player grades

Before I get to my grades, let me say a couple of things. First off, until you accept that we just aren't good enough to win the League this year, the easier to take results like today's. We are at least a dynamic class striker and probably a solid, consistent centre back away from challenging Manchester United, Chelsea, and Arsenal for the title.

Second, I do these grades as a reflection of a players contribution to the team and their effort to solidify the whole and be a sufficient cog in the machine. Rarely does one player's performance win a match, about as close as I've seen anyone do that was Steven Gerrard's efforts in the 2006 FA Cup final against West Ham. Anyhow, moving on...

Pepe Reina C+
Finally got a clean sheet after going the whole month of October without one. The usual solid performance.

Riise C-
A strange effort from the Norwegian. He didn't participate much on attack than usual, but didn't really make any mistakes otherwise.

Carragher C+
Solid as usual. The yellow card was rubbish.

Hyypia C+
Seemed like the Hyypia of old at times. Staying back was a good idea.

Finnan C+
Typical Finney, did his job on defense and contributed to the attack.

Babel C-
Would have liked him to play in front of Kuyt instead of on the left. His effort might have been affected by lack of rest, but for the most part he was ineffective and held on to the ball too long at times.

Mascherano B-
I expect more from him, but he was pretty much my Man of the Match and controlled the middle of the field throughout.

Sissoko C+
One of the better games I've seen him play this season. Was patient and composed on the ball and made some solid tackles.

Gerrard C+
A goal would have accentuated his effort tremendously, but he was playing 'out of position' most the match and occasionally looked beat.

Kuyt D
Dirk is not a true 'out-and-out' striker, so I might be being a little harsh on him. At the same time, when he was gifted the opportunity to show what I feel is his best element, his passing and vision, he failed miserably to do so and basically made me look like a donkey. Not sure what happened to the cheeky, creative Kuyt from earlier in the season, but we need him back and fast.

Benayoun C-
I don't want to use the analogy of a 'headless chicken' here but Benayoun seemed utterly useless out there. Like Babel, he tended to hold on the ball too long with defenders closing in, and wasn't so much as detrimental to our attack as he was simply daft overall. Probably his worse performance of the year.

Crouch C+
Well, well, well, Crouch finally utilized his strengths and put in a solid showing. More of using his height to manipulate the ball is what we have him for. Enjoy the praise while you can Crouchy, we play again on Tuesday.

Kewell C+
This was only a taste of what King Harry can offer. It's no coincidence that once he got on the field and when the attack started going through him we became more of a threat to score. With him and Gerrard on the pitch, we're going to run opposition's batty.

Well, there you have it. Had Kewell played the entire match, I'm quite comfortable in saying that we would have probably scored and he would have probably been the Man of the Match. Javi takes the accolade though for being the central figure of our side and the wrecking ball that we have him for. Cheers.

Liverpool 0, Blackburn 0: A Positive Result

Anyone who thinks this is a disastrous result, well, you either don't see the forest for the trees or you're trying to make a mountain out of a mole hill. I would not be shocked to read a few match reviews from journalists with an anti-Rafa or anti-Liverpool agenda taking up the latter reason. Blackburn is a solid squad. They sit higher up on the table than us for a reason and it's not because they've played an easier schedule, because they haven't. In fact, I'd say their's has actually been harder.

It certainly was a tale of two-halves though. While the first half had the look of an automated donut-making machine with efforts producing sprinkled-covered fat-filled zeroes and creme puffs, the second was more reminiscent of blitzkrieg. Our boys stormed the Blackburn side relentlessly and were wholly unlucky not to come away the victorious side. Brad Friedel, a former Red no less, deserves particular credit for not only making some stellar saves, but also for his composure and ability to always be in the right place at the right time.

It has to be considered encouraging that so many chances were created with our passing and movement. A goal would have certainly been the optimum sign of our improvement on attack, but Friedel just wasn't having it. To put it plainly, we dominated the second half and were unlucky not to take all three points back to Anfield.

At times it appeared the game of football had completely disappeared from this match. The diving and theatrical antics were pathetic, especially Roque Santa Cruz, who was rewarded for his shenanigans by Carra receiving a yellow card. Though I bet he'd exchange it for a penalty when later the ball clearly hits Carragher's arm in the box. The referee giveth and the referee taketh away. Cry me a river, Blackburn fans.

Overall, progress was made and as the the clock wound down, we seemed to play better as a side. The one thing I would like to bring to the forefront which I feel hurt my confidence in our side was the negative aura we seemed to project. Arguing with the ref and even with one another is not going to help our cause. We need to concentrate our energy into producing a positive effect to better our chances of winning matches.

Next up is Beşiktaş J.K. on Tuesday. Hopefully we can carry the momentum of the second half of this match and get the much needed three points to save our dire Champions League hopes. I'll be posting player grades shortly. Cheers.

Liverpool 0, Blackburn 0: halftime thoughts

A kid in the stands trying to solve a rubik's cube is probably a fair representation of how this match has gone. It has been a rather odd and drab affair, though I'm pretty confident in saying it's more the fault of Blackburn's then our own. The Rovers appear to be sitting back as we slowly push the ball forward, at least we're not attempting the long pass every other time we gain possession.

Blackburn seem to be waiting for us to either make a mistake or for fatigue to set in. In their defense, it seems to be working. David Bentley broke free and nearly cost us a goal when we committed our defense too far forward, something for once we have actually been cautious about. Luckily the young England International's shot hit the outer part of the sidebar.

Our meticulous, rather poor man's attempt of total football is somewhat of an encouraging sign. To me it shows that we are capable of having patience on the ball and changing our approach to a match when required. Sometimes though we are making too many passes and we appear to be once again bashful of taking shots from outside of the box. Do we need to start playing Nabil El Zhar more often? If that's what it takes. It's especially disheartening when Stevie-G sends it to the flank instead of taking advantage of the opportunity of cracking the net.

Another alarming aspect of our performance appears to be a lack of communication on defense and an absence of synchronization on attack. We just aren't in sync at our opponent's end and on a couple of occasions Blackburn had unmarked players in the box even though we outnumbered them. The latter is inexcusable while the former is just going to take time for a chemistry to develop.

It's still nil-nil and though Blackburn has been luckless, rattling the bar twice, we have had our opportunities as well. I suspect both sides will get at least one goal, with the first to do so making a mistake and changing their approach to the match. Hopefully, we'll score first and continue to attack, but that's just wishful thinking.

(Quick note: Individually Mascherano has been our best player with Sissoko giving a solid effort as well. Both Benayoun and Babel need to learn to pass the ball before two defenders zero in on them. Kuyt seems hopeless at times, which is harrowing, though Hyypia appears to have found his legs. Would love to see what Kewell can do in the second, maybe subbing him for Gerrard with about twenty minutes left would be optimal. Our Captain needs his rest and King Harry needs to be properly re-introduced to the Premiership.)

Today's Banter: Kewell may have to wait?, Chelsea drawn in Carling Cup, Ashley Young would welcome Crouch, & more

Well, this is disappointing news. Apparently Harry Kewell is not in-line to start today at Blackburn and may not even play nonetheless. Rafa has said that he will be extra cautious in integrating the Aussie into the first-team. This may be a ploy by Benitez, but I doubt it. To be honest, King Harry looked oddly spent within minutes of taking the field against Cardiff on Wednesday. I was hoping he'd start today, but now it looks as if our home tie with Beşiktaş is a more realistic opportunity for him.

With all eight teams remaining in the Carling Cup being top flight sides, it looks as if the competition will actually have a little meaning this year. Even more so for us or Chelsea as we have drawn one another for the quarterfinals. I have mixed feelings about this to tell you the truth. On the one hand, I'm glad we get to play the Blues as no matter the Cup, when it's do or die between us, the intensity is so thick you could cut it with a tree branch. On the other hand, do we really need another tough fixture? I guess Rafa could have sat Gerrard on Wednesday to lessen the chance of our advancement, but he didn't. I doubt now he's shooting himself or anything, but I'm betting he hoped we'd be playing West Ham instead.

Ashley Young wants Peter Crouch to become a Villain. So do I. You know what would piss me off? If Crouch went to Aston Villa and actually played up front like he should instead of trying to be a midfielder. Every time I see him out of position it reminds of that part in Zoolander when Mugatu goes on his rant about Derek Zoolander only having one pose. "Can't anyone see that he's a forward and not a midfielder?! He's playing out-of-position! He's a forward! Doesn't anybody else ever notice this?! I feel like I'm taking crazy pills!"

Finally, with all our metatarsal injuries this year, Rafa is calling on the boot companies to develop a more reasonable cleat with less studs. You know, I really don't understand why there isn't a more protective boot especially on the top side where most injuries occur when one player's cleat collides with the top of another's foot. Anyhow, also in that article is a mention of Itandje being injured. Not major, but a concern nonetheless. Cheers, I'll be back with line-up analysis about an hour before the match.

Liverpool at Blackburn: What will Rafa do?

Some may be surprised about Blackburn's form, but I'm not. I predicted it in the preseason. They have the necessary talent to challenge for a Champions League spot, but they're going to need a little bit of luck and most of their key players to stay healthy, that usually goes hand-in-hand though.

With that said, it's going to take a solid performance from our best available XI to go to Ewood and pull off the upset. That's right, I said 'upset'. If we had Torres, Xabi, and Agger, and a well-rested Gerrard and Carragher, I would think otherwise, but you're out of your mind if you think we're in better shape than the Rovers.

Since our keeper is a given, I guess I'll go ahead and start with the back-line. On the left I expect Riise to start, though he didn't play in the Cardiff match, I hope the wageslip controversy he's experiencing doesn't distract him. If it does, I'm sure Aurelio will be on the bench to take his place. In the middle, I have little doubt that Carra and Hyypia will get the call. I would say Arbeloa for Hyypia, but the Spaniard played the full match on Wednesday and Sami had the night off. Finally, a rested Finnan will start on the right.

In midfield, I fully expect Kewell to start on the left, but wouldn't be surprised if he didn't. If not expect Babel over there. The only question in regards to the central midfield is who will be paired with Mascherano. I suspect it'll be Gerrard, but it could be a recovered Sissoko or even Lucas. I would love to see the Brazilian here, but he did look spent at the end of the Cardiff match. Finally, on the right, I'm gonna guess Benayoun.

Up front we'll probably see Kuyt and Voronin, neither of which played in the Cardiff match. For the most part they've appeared to be futile when paired together, but let's just hope this time is different.

My final guess:
Reina
Riise
Carragher
Hyypia
Finnan
Kewell
Mascherano
Gerrard
Benayoun
Voronin
Kuyt

Bench:
Itandje
Aurelio
Arbeloa
Crouch
Babel

That seems to be a pretty formidable attack, if we can stay out of each other's way. I'll be surprised if we get all three points tomorrow and pleased if we get the draw. With all our injuries lately, we need to just weather the storm.

Should Sebastian Leto be sent out on loan?

After watching this highlight video of our Reserves side manhandling a Wigan Reserve side, I wonder if some of our kids are wasting their time against obviously subpar opponents.

Sebastian Leto, Nabil El Zhar, and Ray Putterill are all obviously more adept then their opponents in the 3-0 thrashing of a Wigan side that featured many Lactics first-teamers. I can understand keeping Leto around until Harry Kewell gets back to fighting form, but El Zhar and Putterill don't look to break into even a first team Cup side until at least next year. By the way, I didn't get to see the whole match, but Insua just looks bored the few seconds he makes the highlight reel.

I guess we need a Reserves side, but so far we look miles better than any of our competition. On Tuesday we thrashed Blackburn 3-1 and that was without Putterill or Leto as well as Lucas and Hobbs, two other players that frequently take the pitch for us as Reserves. Gary Ablett even called the win 'unconvincing'. A two goal win at Blackburn without four major players is unconvincing? We either played really horrid or Ablett has some unbelievable expectations.

Speaking of players on loan, I still can't find that Guthrie stunner for Blackburn yesterday. I'm beginning to wonder if there were even cameras there. Cheers.