Is the league still winnable? Can we surpass CIty? A look at the remaining schedules.

It has officially become a two horse race.  Sure, Spurs, Chelsea, and even the Gunners could go on a run, but in the end, it will take a significant collapse by City and LFC to allow those clubs back in the hunt for the PL title.  Probably not going to happen.  City is on pace to bank 104 points, while LFC is on track for 99, neither will probably end up with those totals, but it is most likely safe to say they will end up one and two.  The greatest factor is, barring injuries, the remaining schedule.

I cannot stand when people try to claim that strength of schedule is not a factor in the PL.  Yes, every team plays one another twice, once at home and once on the road, but when these matches are played is very important as well.  It is better to play tougher opponents earlier in the schedule or after rest periods, especially away.  Almost any opponent on the road is going to be tough as it is.

So far this season, City has played seven out of fifteen matches on the road.  Liverpool have only played eight, but it is still one more match that they are more likely to get 3 points.  City has played Arsenal, Tottenham, and LFC away, earning an impressive 7 points, with the only non-win being at Anfield.  They were lucky to play the Gunners on the opening round, now I doubt they would have gotten away with a similar 2-0 result since Arsenal has improved significantly. That is also a factor, some clubs get better as the season progressives and Arsenal, Everton, Brighton, Newcastle, and West Ham have all showed improvement since the beginning.  This also means that City have yet to play at Chelsea and United, which I'm hoping the latter is actually a contest.  I don't think I have ever cheered United on, it will be painful, but I have to do so if I hope for the league title.  Liverpool have played at Spurs, Chelsea, and at Gunners, earning 5 points.  They had the misfortune of playing an improved Gunners side in week 11 and honestly, they were lucky to come away with a point.

Neither LFC nor City have played any significant opponents at home other than themselves at Anfield, so those fixtures are probably must wins for the Reds if they have any aspirations to win the league.  City have yet to host Liverpool, which has to be considered the most important fixture left.  A win would be monumental, but a draw is probably the best to hope for.  They play on January 3rd.

If we look at remaining fixtures, who has the tougher schedule? The hardest fixtures left for Liverpool are home to United (12/16), at City (1/3), at United (2/23), at Everton (2/3), home to Spurs (4/6), and home to Chelsea (4/13).  City has at Chelsea (12/8), home to LFC (1/3), home to Arsenal (2/2), home to Chelsea (2/9),  at Everton (2/23), at United (3/16), and home to Spurs (4/20).   That leaves Liverpool with one less 'hardest' fixture and a potential six point swing, though that is optimistic.

Between the two sides, City really only have the only bad result with a draw at Wolves, so lets look at the potential 'upsets'.  Liverpool very well could lose or concede points at Bournemouth in two days (they are sixth in the league after all), at West Ham (2/2),at Wolves (12/21), and at Newcastle (5/4).  I highly doubt points will be lost at Newcastle, but karma (Rafa) may come into play.  City have  home to Everton (12/15), at Newcastle (1/29),  and at Bournemouth (3/2).  Liverpool have it a little rougher with these mid-table/trending fixtures, but we are really only talking maybe a two-point margin.

Finally, the other onerous factor is schedule congestion with regards to opponent strength. City has to play at Chelsea, Leicester, and Southampton, and home to Everton, CP, Liverpool in a 35 day period between 1/8 and 2/3.  They play their toughest matches first (at Chelsea) and last (home to Liverpool), with only one 'challenging' in between (at Everton).  Meanwhile, LFC have to play away to Bournemouth, Wolverhampton, and City, and at home to United, Newcastle, and Arsenal.  Liverpool clearly have a tougher schedule during this period.

There is also Champions League, FA Cup, and League Cup fixtures to consider, but based on just the PL schedule, Liverpool have a slight advantage though it will take a at least one significant upset on City's part and a perfect LFC run to win the league.  I don't want to say anything is impossible though.

Newcastle 1, Liverpool 0: Rodgers should be on thin ice

It's getting old.  We are not good enough to challenge for even a Champions league spot and that's becoming more apparent by the match.  Bad buy after bad buy has made a mockery of what we had last year and it has nothing to do with what we lost, but more with what Rodgers has failed to bring in.

For all those Suarez apologists, take note of Barcelona's record since he's been eligible.  They have lost both matches if you don't understand what I'm getting at.  Also take note of what I've said, posted, and proven, that Suarez contributed just one measly meaningful assist last season and not a single goal he scored ended up being significant.  Don't believe me? Prove me wrong, I researched that to the death and know it's the truth.

We should have bought the players that Southampton bought instead of the ones we bought from them.  I've stated that before though.  Lallana and Lambert are Championship level players and they've proven it over and over again this season.  We should have bought Tadic, Pelle, and Mane, but no, instead we bought a disco dancer and an old man.  Great job, Rodgers, also, way to go on Balotelli, who's nothing more than a lazy, self-serving loser who will never understand how to be greater than himself.

Today's loss just further exemplified why Liverpool will never return to days of old.  Say goodbye to Sterling because he's gone after this season.  Why would he stick around and be criticized for being a 19-year-old who can't carry a club?  He sees how fans ridicule Markovic and the Serbian is only a year older.  It's not his fault we wasted millions on Adam Lallana and Rickie Lambert instead of inventive, pace-endowed players.  I would leave too and would try to get Coutinho to follow.

Our Premier League season is over, might as well accept that.  It will be a miracle if we finish in the top five and with Champions League looking bleak as well, we might as well hope in pray for the League or FA Cup.  Love those 'accepting we're second-rate' celebrations.

As for the match today, well, we were horrid.  Very few positives came from it.  Even Gerrard had an off-day and I have a hard time saying anyone played 'well'.  The only positive that I can draw from it was that they needed an error and a little luck to get the goal and win, but that's becoming commonplace lately.  We can play great defence for 89 minutes and 59 seconds, but that one second does us in.

I've said it once and I'll scream it from the rafters, we are a mid-table side as long as Joe Allen is a major contributor.  That pretty much says it all.

Liverpool 0, Hull City 0: Five things learnt

1. Joe Allen isn't championship material.
Well, he would be great in the Championship, but Liverpool will never win anything starting him.  He's good for a mid-table club, but if we are going to be serious contenders, we need players who can take us to that level.  I like Joe Allen and think he's about as good as he can be, but it still isn't good enough.  Seriously, would he be anything but a reserve at Chelsea or Man City?

2. We can play defense.
Hull is not a top five side, but they are far from the relegation discussion.  They are capable of scoring goals, but today, even with Ben Harfa starting they were hardly a threat.  I just hope this positive, one of the few we can take from the match, is a trend for the future.  Still, I think Skrtel and Lovren went too far forward at times and that will hurt us against better clubs.

3. Balotelli is useless as the lone striker/forward.
The game tilted completely in Liverpool's favor once Lambert came on.  Prior to that, Sterling and Balo tried to team up, but it just wasn't working as Sterling wants to stay on the flanks and it appears to confuse the Italian.  Lambert may be the perfect companion for Balo as his passing ability gives Super Mario chance after chance.  The problem is the 32-year-old lacks the ability to be effective more than 30 minutes on the pitch so using him as a 60 minute sub is our best bet, unfortunately that means an hour of watching Balotelli play defence.

4. Coutinho is a highly effective second half sub.
He was gangbusters when he came on today and was the major catalyst in giving us a chance to win.  If only Balotelli would have converted that last second goal...

5. Manquillo is better than Glen Johnson.
If you didn't know that by now, then give it up.  Johnson turns over the ball consistently and can't play defence while Manquillo is a positive force on both sides of the ball.  At least when the Spaniard makes mistakes we can cough it up to youth, Glen Johnson is just rubbish.  Sell him in the transfer window, Rodgers... if anyone will take him.

Five Things Learnt: Lallana is a sorcerer, not a magician

1. Lallana has apparently put a spell on most LFC fans. I have never been more shocked and ashamed by my fellow Reds supporters than today.  Adam Lallana voted as Man of the Match? Why? Someone please give me a rational, logical explanation with examples and statistics.  Gerrard, Henderson, Sterling, Lovren, Moreno, Manquillo, and Skrtel were all more deserving.  Markovic is six years his senior and has never played 'English' football, though he wasn't much worse than the Prince of St. Albans.  Seriously, is it the Anglo-Saxon halo that is blinding you?

2. Balotelli is a match away from being rubbished. Or at least he should be.  Super Mario was all but and it's becoming more apparent with each match that he either doesn't want/understand/care to play our style of football. He stands around doing nothing, thinks he'll be able to perform magic once he gets the ball, and then looks like a donkey when he does.  I think he forgot how much faster and more physical the EPL is compared to Serie A.  He'll be longing to return to Italy soon enough.

3. Henderson's passing is becoming unparalleled. Some of his passes in the first half I have only seen the likes of from one Steven George Gerrard.  Brilliant stuff.  I am not a huge Hendo fan, but if he continues to move the ball around like he did today, it's only a matter of time.  Not to mention he has all-round skills with an engine that never quits.  The only issue I have with him is that he gets too excited and still let's his age show by turning the ball over, taking a bad shot, making a bad tackle, etc.

4, We can play defence. We held Everton to just a goal and it was a lucky one at that. Coming in the Blues had scored at least two goals in every previous EPL match.  Lovren and Skrtel appeared to get along and neither went forward too often, but even when they did, they would dump the ball then get back.  Everton actually had more possession and a free-flowing ball moment until they got close to the 18-yard area, then they got shut down.

5. Gerrard still has it. Though I'd still give Man of the Match to Hendo for his all-round performance, Stevie-G silenced his critics with an outstanding show.  The free kick was just the icing on the cake as his passing was world class, not to mention he added three successful tackles and three clearances to his tally.  He's far from done.

Liverpool 1, Everton 1: The Toffees have won the league!

Liverpool took a step in the right direction today, whether it was baby steps or a Neil Armstrong leap, we'll have to wait and see, but at least some of our issues of late look to have been addressed.  First, we played much better defense.  We shut down Everton nearly every opportunity that arose, especially when they tried to infiltrate the box.  It was more or less written in stone that the Blues would have to score from outside the area and of course, they did.  It doesn't take away from a valiant effort of defending, holding Everton to a single luck goal is an admirable achievement considering they've scored at least two goals in every other Prem match they've played.

It is also quite evident Rodgers gave his boys full permission to fire away though he should have taken that privilege from Balotelli after the half.  We took 24 shots, 10 from Balotelli alone, though only 8 were on-target.  A different story than Middlesbrough on Tuesday when we only took 11 shots in regulation.  Being a constant threat from anywhere around the goal opened lanes, allowing us easier access for runs and passes into the box.

As for individual performances, Jordan Henderson made some world class passes in the first half reminiscent of his captain.  He also created four chances, had five tackles, three interceptions, and completed 91% of his passes.  Sterling was outstanding as well, creating six chances and successful on five take-ons.  Gerrard put on a clinic in passing, completing 91%, going 3 for 4 on crosses and 7 for 8 on long balls, not to mention that class free kick goal.  Moreno, Lovren, Skrtel, Manquillo, and Coutinho all played well as well.

The not-so-good starts with Lallana.  How can anyone call that a great performance? He did little else other than dribble the ball and tackle out-of-bounds, take the Anglo-Saxon halo off his head and he'd been booed off the pitch for being a 26-year-old Championship quality player.  He is paid to create goals and he had nothing to do with it today.  Markovic was woeful as well, but first, he's 20-years-old, this is his first season playing Engliish football, and go back and look at the service he got, very few players in the world could have done anything with some of those passes.  I'm also not so sure he's comfortable in his role in the side, he's a winger, where he played a lot of the match, but it looked like Rodgers wanted him to play a more central, 'hole' position, which he looked uncomfortable and out-of-place when he did.

Finally, we get to Mr. Balotelli.  What a crock match from him.  When Sturridge comes back, we won't see a better Balotelli, we probably will hardly see him at all.  At least not for a while.  Benching him, making him a super sub and forcing him to play his way back into the side is probably best for all.  Make him learn his role the hard way.  A couple of those things he needs to learn is making runs and creating space.  When he's being marked, he seems to always just stand in the middle of the box, instead of moving about to allow other players to make runs or shoot.  Also, he needs to work on his timing, Markovic made the only decent run all day.  We could do with less of the antics as well.

This match reminded me of a few years ago when we would dominate matches, but were unable to score much and our opponents would get a wonder goal to win or draw.  The Champions league Marseille match when Valbuena scored that amazing curlier from outside of the box for the win comes to mind.  There were definite improvements all-round today and we are on the right track, but we can't let a luck goal knock us off our rail and distract us from our objectives.  We go to Basel on Wednesday and if he's not back by then, Sturridge should be ready for West Brom next Saturday.

This is the machine, it does nothing, move along now!

Public relations is a fascinating game.  It is amazing, utterly baffling, the amount of money that has gone into something seemingly so meaningless, but that's it's intention.  Desperate moves washed in tubs of cash to remove the smell of desperation.  Of course a practice birthed in the genocidal precedence of 'Manifest Destiny', evolved by the incantations of a former painter turned dictator-mongol, and blatantly unveiled by the discounted sermons of a linguistic preacher with a disenfranchised choir is a ghost game shrouded by itself.  Seriously, there's a man behind that curtain whether you want to look or not and he's laughing all the way to the proverbial bank.

The newest rubbish campaign to deter the truth is 'blame Gerrard'.  He's 'too old', 'past it', 'worn out', 'not good anymore', or 'can't play that position'.  They haven't lost their minds, they are just securing their future.  'They' are those who make their living by playing you like a stringless fiddle.  'They' are those that say 'stats don't matter' which is comical considering 'they' use stats for virtually every thing they do.  Their actions are pre-calculated to produce the optimal result.  Their tactics have been researched and tested a million times for decades on end.

Just stop it.  I've yet to read a single article abhorring the violent display of tackling by West Ham.  Not a single line from the muppet brigade has been dedicated to Kouyate's potentially career-ending, unjustifiable late thrust at Moreno.  Do we need to mention 'studs up'?  I guess they'll have to re-write the unwritten rule book on that one.

It was 'grand' football.  A 'fantastic' display.  Sam Allardyce 'outwitted' Brendan Rodgers.  Yeah, don't get me started on that, the only thing Freddie Flintstone head out-did his counterpart on was thuggery and being a company man.  It would be an utter revelation had the focus of matches be on what actually occurs on the pitch instead of the concoctions of think tank bunnies.

Liverpool lost because they refused to be brute thugs, it's that simple.  Sorry they want to have class.  Apologies for wanting to put an attractive product on the field instead of a professional wrestling match.  That's where the EPL is heading if they continue to compromise, sport entertainment instead of sport.  What do they care though? As long as the mums and the dads buy their children that kit each year.

Liverpool to lose? Noble to score? Can Gerrard reach 10? What the markets say...

I was a bit worried when I saw the amount of bets placed on Liverpool to win, but upon further investigation I realized the line movement didn't justify my concern.  Still a 5/6 payoff isn't worth a go.

To win:
Liverpool	5/6	64.80%
West Ham	4/1	18.00%
Draw	16/5	17.20%

There are only six players total from both squads who have scored in this fixture.  Gerrard has scored 9 times in 21 matches versus the Hammers which equals the amount of all the other players combined.  The other five are Mark Noble (2), Glen Johnson (3), Carlton Cole (2), Guy Demel (1) and Mamadou Sakho (1).  Only two players have scored for both sides, Gerrard and Demel.  Noble at 25/1 as first goalscorer and 8/1 for anytime goalscorer is worth a small wager and if you're feeling particularly lucky, Guy Demel is 50/1 as first and 26/1 anytime.

First goalscorer:
Balotelli	5/1	46.00%
Sterling	15/2	14.00%
Valencia	17/2	12.00%
Noble	25/1	6.00%
Borini	15/2	4.00%
D. Sakho	9/1
Coutinho	8/1
Markovic	8/1
Gerrard	10/1
Cole	10/1
Lovren	25/1
Downing	25/1
Skrtel	25/1
Song	35/1
Moreno	35/1
Manquillo	40/1
G. Johnson	40/1
M. Sakho	40/1
Demel	50/1

Unlike last week, where Liverpool dominated the final score bets, the draw wagers are coming into play today.  The 'favorite' West Ham gambles are 2-1 and 1-0, both at 16/1.  If you think Liverpool will thump the Hammers at Upton, 4-0 is a hefty 28/1 pay back.

Correct score:
Liverpool	3-1	14/1	14.63%
Draw	0-0	14/1	12.20%
Liverpool	2-1	8/1	10.98%
Draw	1-1	15/2	9.76%
Draw	2-2	15/1	7.32%
Liverpool	1-0	9/1
West Ham	2-1	16/1
West Ham	1-0	16/1
Liverpool	4-0	28/1

As I mentioned above, Noble is a decent bet at anytime goalscorer.  The great English hope, 'Pretty Hair' Lallana, is getting a little love here as well with 3.23% of all wagers betting he'll net his first for the 'Pool.

Anytime scorer:
Balotelli	11/8	38.71%
Valencia	11/4	29.03%
Sterling	9/4	16.13%
Borini	9/4	3.23%
Lallana	31/10	3.23%
D. Sakho	10/3
Zarate	3/1
Cole	7/2
Henderson	5/1
Noble	8/1
Gerrard	10/3
G. Johnson	14/1
M. Sakho	14/1
Coutinho	7/2
Kouyoute	11/1
Demel	26/1

The last goalscorer bet is always an interesting one, you've got to think a late match striker sub would be the best wager, thus Lambert and Cole seem like decent shots.  The problem with Lambert is the return is only 5/1, while Cole is much better at 9/1.  Jordan Henderson at 16/1 seems possible as well.

Last goalscorer:
Lambert	5/1
Cole	9/1
Gerrard	10/1
Henderson	16/1

No one will likely score a hat-trick, but it's always fun for a small wager.

Score hat-trick:
Balotelli	28/1
Sterling	66/1
Gerrard	100/1

Man of the match betting has been interesting to say the least.  Moreno, for some reason, seems a popular pick and at 33/1, it's worth a meager go.  Song is also getting some action at 20/1, him winning would not surprise me either.  Sterling has been garnering the favorite for a few matches and that doesn't change here at 5/1.  Mark Noble is the dark horse and at 25/1, it's a nice reward for the risk.

Man of the match:
Moreno	33/1	38.10%
Song	20/1	19.05%
Sterling	5/1	14.29%
Valencia	12/1	14.29%
Lallana	12/1	4.76%
Balotelli	6/1
Gerrard	8/1
Noble	25/1

Other fun bets are an own goal scored (by either side) at 9/1 and the always volatile Balotelli to get a card 11/4.  Cheers and happy betting.

Has Rodgers solved the Big Sam 'conundrum'?

When Sam Allardyce was the boss at Bolton, he actually held his own against Liverpool.  In the 13 times his Wanderers met Liverpool, they were 4-3-6.  Considering his Newcastle, Blackburn, and West Ham sides are 0-2-7 against us, that's quite impressive.  What's even more noteworthy is that he was 3-1-2 at the Reebok.

His only win at Anfield was a classic match in the fourth round of the 2003-04 League Cup in December 2003.  Liverpool were the defending holders, winning it in March of the same year, 2-0 over Man United.  It was a back and forth battle with Bolton scoring first and Liverpool countering each time.  The free kick by Okocha to make it 2-1 and the stunning 20+ yard cracker from Vladimir Smicer to equalize are particularly special.  Unfortunately, Salif Diao decided it with a bad foul that awarded Bolton a penalty.  Here are the low quality highlights for your 'enjoyment':

In the last ten matches versus Big Sam, Liverpool have won eight.  In those eight matches, LFC have won by a combined 23 to 6.  Gerrard has scored 9 career goals against West Ham, including braces in three, the most famous being the FA Cup Final in 2006, but he also did the double last year, both being penalties.  Were they penalties though?

Their goal was just as questionable as the penalties, if not more so.

Rodgers and Allardyce advocate a similar style of football, but Liverpool, especially recently, have the better talent.  LFC also tend to have a rare goal-scorer as Kyrgiakos, Sakho, Joe Cole, Agger, and Jonjo Shelvey have all scored against Big Sam's clubs. With all the excitement following West Ham's 2-2 draw at Hull, their supporters might expect a promising performance at Upton against Liverpool, but a draw in my opinion would be just another sign to accept a mediocre campaign for LFC.

It's Sam Allardyce vs Brendan Rodgers and one has got the better talent

Liverpool is 9-3-6 at Upton Park in the Prem and have won 4 of the last 5, which is significant considering that prior to their current run, LFC were 20-17-20 all-time at the northwest London grounds.  Still at 24-17-21, they have not posted a winning record there, but have at least won more than they've lost. The last loss in February 2011 featured goals from Demba Ba, Scott Parker, and Glen Johnson, while the Hammers were then managed by Avram Grant.

In week 5 matches on the road in the Prem, Liverpool is 1-3-5.  Their only win was at Ewood in 2003, a match that featured a brace by Michael Owen and Lucas Neill breaking Jamie Carragher's leg.  Blackburn would later be managed by current West Ham manager Sam Allardyce and Neill would shun Liverpool in January 2007 for West Ham in a transfer fiasco, claiming 'footballing reasons' as an excuse.

West Ham are a ridiculously mediocre 6-1-6 at home in week 5 since the conception of the Prem, though that includes a 1-0 win in the Championship against Burnley in 2004-05.  In 2009-10 they lost to Liverpool, 3-2, their only week 5 meeting at home versus the Merseyside club, which also featured a brace from Fernando Torres.  They also played LFC at Anfield in week 5 of the 1994-95 season, which ended in a 0-0 draw despite Tony Coffee being sent off 9 minutes into the second half.

Now to the absolutely absurd, the previous season 2nd place club is 13-4-5 at the previous season 13th place finisher during week 5.  Liverpool is 1-0-1 with a loss at Fulham in 2002-03 and a win at Bolton in 2009-10, both results were 3-2.  West Ham has only featured in this match once, a 1994-95 2-0 win at home versus Blackburn.

I posted more about this match-up already.  Feel free to draw your own conclusion.

Flamini still king, Lovren holds on, & Senderos' assaults are invaluable to Villa: EPL player rankings

Most efficient EPL players on attack:

S. Nasri	0.855
Y. Toure	0.835
Cesc Fàbregas	0.819
M. Flamini	0.818
D. Fletcher	0.813
E. Capoue	0.800
F. Coloccini	0.791
Juan Mata	0.790
T. Blackett	0.786
Schneiderlin	0.782

Players must have player 60 mins per teams total matches played (240 mins).

Gerrard is the highest ranked Liverpool player at 14th.  Sakho is 6th in all players who have played 180 or more minutes so far this season.

Most efficient EPL players on defence:

S. Dann	0.926
M. Demichelis	0.914
P. Jagielka	0.911
John Terry	0.910
F. Coloccini	0.907
P. Mertesacker	0.906
Curtis Davies	0.906
J. O'Shea	0.905
M. Flamini	0.904
D. Lovren	0.895

Lt Dann at the top, that's surprising.  Lovren hangs on to a top ten spot, barely.

Most efficient EPL players overall:

M. Flamini	0.861
F. Coloccini	0.849
E. Capoue	0.842
T. Blackett	0.839
J. O'Shea	0.839
Y. Toure	0.835
S. Nasri	0.834
D. Fletcher	0.827
Fernando	0.824
M. Schneiderlin	0.820
G. Barry	0.816

Coloccini cuts Flamini's lead in half, but if the centre back ever takes the overall lead, I'll be shocked.  Lovren shot up to 19th to become Liverpool's highest rated player and Gerrard went up 8 spots to 25th overall.

Most valuable players to their club per efficiency rating:

J. O'Shea	0.214
S. N'Zonzi	0.198
Ron Vlaar	0.192
F. Coloccini	0.191
J. Olsson	0.187
Andy King	0.186
Dean Marney	0.180
D. Hammond	0.173
P. Senderos	0.169
David Jones	0.160

Senderos' assaulted his way into the top ten for Aston Villa.  Lovren is the 35th most valuable player, which is not a bad thing when you look at the clubs of all the listed players above.

Liverpool 2, PFC Ludogorets Razgrad 1: The same old rubbish

Like clockwork, the problems plaguing our side once again reared their ugly heads.  We couldn't score despite plenty of intrusions into our opponent's third and got caught out of position at the back.  We were lucky not to lose and the only way to justify a win is to say we deserved it, but even that is laying it on a bit thick.  Sure, we dominated the match, played a reckless style that was enjoyable to watch, but should have scored loads of goals and not allowed any by a clearly inferior side.

Sterling has to take his shots, forget about trying to help Balotelli break the duck or trying to share the wealth with his captain, he has to shoot it.  Has he lost his confidence? If so, his play on the ball doesn't show it, he should just thump away without a concious like Suarez did last year.  I'd rather he take it on a decent look than lay off and let the defence collapse around whomever receives it.  It became infectious as even Gerrard passed on a decent look at the top of the box where he has, in the very least, challenged the keeper many times throughout his career.

Beyond that, after the first goal, eighty-two minutes into the match and seen coming from a mile away, Rodgers should have pulled everyone back instead of allowing his players to be greedy.  I know it's not his style, but it should have been 4-0 at that point, take what you can get and park the bus.  Our defence become porous and Ludogorets produced counter after counter with ease. Once Sakho and Lovren got 'adventurous' the probable became inevitable.  Also, Mignolet didn't help with his decision to come out of net so early.  Then, of course, we are saved by a dubious penalty, which probably did more bad than good.  No matter what, we must learn to score without Sturridge, whom along with Gerrard, saved us many a time last season.

As for individual performances, Lallana is now 0-2 on chances to impress. Big surprise, I thought he was going to show me I was wrong about him being a wasted £26m? Yeah, not gonna happen, if he pulls his club out of this scoring rut, I may lay off of him, but he won't. We'll be laughing about him being the second worst acquisition in LFC history soon enough.  I also thought Southampton was going to be relegated? Again, ridiculous.

Balotelli was probably the man of the match, but Moreno needs special mention for his assist, five chances created, 37/41 passing (90.2%), and 3 tackles for good measure.  Also, Manquillo was a beast on defence, leading the side with 8 tackles, 3 interceptions, and 3 clearances.  In the end, it's a much needed three points for our Champions League cause.  Next we have West Ham at Upton, which means Sam Allardyce trying to measure up against Rodgers and Liverpool's superior talent.  I will be shocked if Big Sam takes a stifling defensive approach, but if he does, it won't be the first time he's surprised me.  Hopefully we'll find an answer to our scoring issues early on and then pour it on.

Liverpool 0, Aston Villains 1: 'Character'? Senderos should be suspended

In continuing some of the worst football seen in the Premiership in years, Aston Villa pulled off a criminal win against Liverpool on Saturday.  The farcical display was highlighted by four, yes, four off-the-ball assaults by Phillip Senderos on Mario Balotelli.  Somehow all four officials missed them all.  Oh yes, there are FOUR officials, not just one or two or three, but four.  Once again the Prem cheapens it's product with a laughable display of officiating and then blatantly ignores the 'ignoring'.  Yes, the refs saw all four fouls, if that was Sakho on Rooney, the Frenchman would have been sent off immediately after the first assault and then probably fined and suspended.  Save the lies, misdirections, and double-speak for the idiots who will fork over any amount of money to feel like a winner because their lives are so pathetically indulged in vicarious behavior and will never analyze anything beyond where they defecate.  If the Premier League truly cared about racism, they certainly failed to show it at Anfield on Saturday.  If the Premier League truly cared about putting an honest product on the pitch, they would never allow contentious acts of 'character' be displayed one time, yet alone four.  Welcome to the hyperreality, you just got a front row seat.

With my diatribe out of the way, Liverpool did not deserve to win either, but they certainly should not have lost.  They dominated nearly every aspect of the match except thuggery.  Lo and behold had the home side acted in the manner that the Brum bruisers did, cards would have been in abundance.  The fact that LFC received more cards than the visitors is laughable in itself.  Amazingly the Claret and Blue got called for more fouls though, a whole one that is, and 19 total fouls in the entire match?  Maybe the refs didn't see anything in the match, maybe they were just too busy thinking about their summer homes.

As for individual performances, outside of the amazing diplay of 'character' by Phillip Senderos, who probably thinks by 'character', he means a cartoon character.  Maybe he thought he was Elmer Fudd and Balotelli was Bugs Bunny. Who knows, who cares.  Getting on with it, Adam Lallana has a long way to go to justify his £26m transfer fee, 80% passing is just not going to get it done.  It was technically his first match so he gets a pass, this time.  The bottom line is, we had an 89% pass success rate, we moved the ball down the pitch with ease, but once we got in the opponent's third, we failed to find space, failed to make space, and failed to take advantage of the few true shot opportunities afforded to us by the 'negative' football being displayed by Villa.

Once in a while, especially early on in matches, we need to take ambitious chances to score spectacular goals and once we are a threat from scoring outside the box, it'll open up the pitch like magic.  Sterling, Coutinho, and Henderson are going to have to 'thump' it from distance and try to at least force a save from the opposition keeper.  Maybe Balotelli sneaks and puts away on the rebound, you never know.  It's nice to have players that want to help their teammates score, but one too many passes is becoming habitual among our players and getting us no where.  Sometimes being selfish is best for the team.

There is little logic to Saturday's result.  Aston Villa basically planned on the nil-nil draw and got a lucky result.  They had no intentions of trying to play an up-and-down match with a side that would have abused them for doing so.  Still, Liverpool is going to have to deal with this a lot this season, very few other than the top five or six clubs have the firepower to get into a free-for-all.  Coutinho, Sterling, Henderson, and Lallana are going to have to step up, take chances and quit going for the obvious pass all the time.  Failure to do so is going to result in a long season and Balotelli getting assaulted often.

Lazar to get off the Markovic? Liverpool to win 6-0? What the markets say...

Aston Villa to win at 11/1 seems like a decent gamble and 45.92% of all bettors agree.  Looks like a sucker bet to me and Liverpool at 1/3 isn't worth the return.  5/1 for a draw seems to high, expect Liverpool to win.

To win:
Aston Villa	11/1	45.92%
Liverpool	1/3	43.78%
Draw	5/1	10.30%

A lot of people seem to think Sterling will be the first to score and there's a nice pay off if they're right, but if I was a betting man, I'd go with Balotelli or even Gerrard.  Hopefully someone doesn't bet on Studge.

First goalscorer:
Sterling	6/1	39.02%
Balotelli	15/4	24.39%
Weimann	16/1	7.32%
Gerrard	8/1	4.88%
Coutinho	10/1	4.88%
Markovic	7/1
Lambert	7/2
Agbonlahor	14/1
Borini	6/1
Henderson	10/1
Sturridge	14/5

The market is giving Aston Villa much of a chance when it comes to the final tally.  The lowest odds for the visiting side to win is 1-0 and that's at 25/1.  Liverpool at 12/1 for 4-0 looks intriguing and a tiny wager on 6-0 at 50/1 wouldn't hurt.  Apparently most bettors think Villa will double their average goals per a match and score twice against Liverpool.  It's possible, just not very probable.  

Correct score:
Liverpool	4-2	40/1	13.89%
Liverpool	3-0	17/2	11.11%
Liverpool	3-1	11/1	8.33%
Liverpool	2-0	6/1
Liverpool	4-0	12/1
Liverpool	5-0	25/1
Liverpool	6-0	50/1

Bettors overwhelmingly think Balotelli will score at some point in the match and the 19/20 pay off shows it.  Even Markovic with a 21/10 return is not that great off odds.  Henderson at 4/1 or Lovren at 6/1 look like good wagers to me.

Anytime scorer:
Balotelli	19/20	71.43%
Lambert	6/5	9.52%
Bent	6/1	4.76%
Henderson	4/1
Lovren	6/1
Markovic	21/10

Balotelli to score 3 is awfully low at 20/1 and there's a great pay-off if either Markovic gets hot or free-kicks and penalties come into play for Gerrard.

Score hat-trick:
Balotelli	20/1
Markovic	80/1
Gerrard	50/1

Balotelli to score a brace is not that great of a payoff either, Markovic and Gerrard seem most likely again but the return is much less.  Henderson at 25/1 here seems like a decent wager.

Two or more goals:
Balotelli	9/2
Markovic	14/1
Gerrard	12/1

Bettors and bookmakers agree that Sterling will be Man of the Match, but since the pay-off isn't that great and there usually isn't much money bet on these kind of perks, it could happen.  Vlaar at 22/1 though, yeah, good luck.  The best bet is probably Balotelli at 6/1, but I like Henderson at 12/1 and Markovic as a long shot at 14/1 though the return isn't that great.

Man of the match:
Sterling	4/1	37.50%
Vlaar	22/1	25.00%
Balotelli	6/1
Gerrard	4/1
Henderson	12/1
Markovic	14/1

Finally, who do you think will most likely get shown a card?  Yeah, me too, and at 3/1 he isn't even the favorite.  Hutton and Lucas are, which isn't that surprising.

Shown a card:
Balotelli	3/1
Hutton	7/4
Lucas	7/4