Liverpool 1, Man U 2: Five things learnt

1. Ander Herrera is rubbish.  How much did they pay for him? The only thing he did well is foul and was lucky not to get a yellow.  I thought he was some sort of pass master? Yeah...

2. Rooney still has no class.  He is the epitome of what United fans consider a 'scouser'.  To even act as if that was a legitimate goal is pathetic.  Then to rant and rave about the ball being played on by Ibe when he got 'hurt'.  Recovered pretty quickly from that, didn't he?  And lastly, the foul on Sterling... It's a friendly, a meaningless match, which brings me to my next point...

3.  United needed and wanted this match more than Liverpool.  When Rodgers took out Gerrard, he pretty much said, 'Who cares?'  We want to win real cups and trophies, not pseudo-Mickey Mouse titles.  United acted like their whole season depended on this match, well, considering they won't play outside of England until next summer, I guess it did.

4. Liverpool collapsed too easily, this can't happen in matches that actually count.  After the first goal, they looked like a bunch of 12-year-olds thrown on the pitch together yesterday.  It's as if they forgot all their training and how to work together.  As for the goals, what was Mignolet thinking on the first one?  He committed way too much to his right and left more of the goal exposed.  It was clear Rooney wasn't going to get a powerful shot in.  The second and third goals were deflections, so not much he can do there.  United were lucky with both of them.

5. One pass does not make a match, Glen Johnson.  An absolute horrid performance from the right back, despite setting Sterling for the penalty.  He turned over the ball nearly every other time.

5b. We need another striker, stat.  Lambert can not play up front by himself and he's looking more and more like a bad signing, but I'll hold back judgement until the season starts.  Sturridge would have made a big difference as United could not contain the pace of Sterling and Ibe as it was...

5c.  Speaking of those two, they made mince meat of the United defenders, who got a lot of favors from the ref, but the bottom line is the ball has to go in the back of the net or the performance is wasted.  Jordan Henderson probably made the dribble of the match though, nutmegging and overpowering Luke Shaw to get free in the box, too bad his cross found Sterling on the other side of the box.

5d. Ashley Young is slow.  When Kolo Toure out-paces you to the ball, you need to go play in Italy.

Let Man United waste their dosh on Cavani

Is Edinson Cavani the most overrated player in the world? If not, he's up there.  He can't pass, he can't shoot, he can't dribble, and he does not create goals.  What is the big deal?

His stats from last season do nothing to justify his £50m+ estimation:

npgp90	gcp90	ccp90	ap90	ccv
0.55	0.71	0.9	0.08	8.7
pass%	bp%	sacc%	shot%	TTI90
85.5	62.3	36.5	16.7	9.5
gsp90	gap90	gop90	tgop	gopd90
2.12	0.63	1.49	1.61	-0.12

His pass success rate of 85.5% is excellent, at being misleading.  I'm not sure If I have ever seen a back pass percentage above 60, even Iago Aspas had 58.1% last season.  He does have a low turnover rate, but he wasn't exactly the primary ball carrier for PSG, they do have a few other well-known footballers on their squad.  In fact, he only averaged 28 pass attempts and 3.8 shots per 90 minutes last season, for perspective, Ibrahimovic averaged 50 and 5.2 respectively.

Further proof that his passing rate from last season was an anomaly:

year	age	club	comp	app(sub)	pcom	patt	pass%
2012-13	26	Napoli	Serie A	33(1)	544	598	77.9
2011-12	25	Napoli	Serie A	32(3)	551	758	72.7
2010-11	24	Napoli	Serie A	32(3)	495	678	73
2009-10	23	Palermo	Serie A	31(3)	523	682	76.7
				totals	2113	2716	77.8

His previous four year average is nearly 8 points lower.  All those expensive teammates make him look like a Pirlo, when he's really just a Kevin Nolan.  Oddly enough, his 8.7 ccv is his lowest in five years, while his career high was 18.8, his first season in Napoli.  His five year average though is only 11.

Cavani is far from worth £50m, he's probably not even worth £15m. I hope Van Gaal buys him though, it will just add to the horrible deals they made this summer.

Paul Scholes: clandestine Liverpool fan

The Ginger Prince appears obsessed with the Reds these days, sounding off on our players whenever he can.  I would say he's a wind-up muppet, but he's not, most of the time he actually talks sense.

He most recently chimed in on the Luis Suarez transfer saga, questioning whether 'El Conejo Loco' and Messi will be able to play together. “If Luis Suarez does sign for Barcelona from Liverpool, will Lionel Messi ‘accept’ him? Suarez is a centre forward and he won’t want to play out wide. I can’t see Suarez and Messi linking well together,” Scholes wrote on his Paddy Power blog.

He's not afraid to criticize his former club either.  On the Shaw transfer, he wrote, 'For a left-back to be worth £34m shows how silly the game has gone. For that money I want a centre-forward who’s going to score 30 goals a season.'  Preaching to the choir, my frienemy.

Before the World Cup, he praised 'the Liverpool way' of playing football and challenged the English to emulate it in Brazil.  On the subject he wrote, 'It would be refreshing for England to adopt Liverpool’s attacking mentality in Brazil. Really go for it. That means certainly four, and possibly five, Liverpool players in the England starting XI against Italy on June 14' and 'I’d love to see Roy be brave enough to play like Liverpool (or Man United teams of the past).'  Glad to see he realizes the glory years of his former club are in the past.

When it comes to Gerrard, he's had nothing but love, stating in the same post, 'Gerrard (a good leader who will have quickly moved on from that slip) has adjusted his game superbly, very much like I did' and 'That’s the big difference between Steven (Gerrard) and Lampard, for example. I’m not sure Lampard has the ability to control a game. He’s always someone who’s up trying to score goals.'  You know now he's expecting a nice Christmas present for the Gerrard household.

The best part is he gets a joke in here and there, for instance, 'Defensively Liverpool were poor – conceding 50 goals – but they can be contenders again next year IF they can get two world-class centre halves and a left-back. I’m talking about players of the standard of Jaap Stam and Rio Ferdinand.' Rio Ferdinand, world class!?!? Oh the wit.

It's too bad Scholesy wasted his career on the dark side.  He should have went to Italy or Spain, where he's actually more appreciated and wouldn't have played in the shadows of bigger personalities.  No matter what, I've never desired him to play for Liverpool and he has never been better than Gerrard.

DeAndre Yedlin? You must be Yanking my chain.

There are reports that Rodgers may be interested in 20-year-old American International and Seattle Sounders right back, DeAndre Yedlin.  The only interesting thing about Yedlin is that he is of 'Native American, African American, and Latvian descent' (thanks Wikipedia). Look, he plays for the Sounders in the MLS and he's far from setting the place ablaze.  If that were the case, I'd say bring him over.  Here are his stats from the previous and current MLS seasons:

	2013	2014
age	19	20
app(subs)	32(1)	11
mins	2712	959
goals	2	0
assist	2	0
chances	20	12
npgp90	0.07	0
gcp90	0.13	0
ccp90	0.66	1.1
ap90	0.07	0
ccv	10.6	0
pass%	74.6	80.3
bp%	32.9	28.8
sacc%	35.7	0
shot%	14.3	0
tp90	2.5	2.5
tack %	65.7	53.3
intp90	3.6	2.7
clrp90	3.2	3.3
dribpp90	0.83	0.9
bsp90	0.43	0.6
adwp90	1.7	0.7
adwon%	57.5	70
TTI90	12.1	10.7

At first glance, these stats look impressive, but they aren't.  If he posted these numbers in the Prem, Man U would buy him for £30m, but in the MLS, he doesn't even break the top 20 in any category.  Seattle has also allowed 23 goals so far this season, that's tied for 9th, so he isn't contributing to a stifling defense.  

The only positive that I can see is his progression, his passing has improved from last season, all the while lowering his back pass rate, and he is turning over the ball less.  Still no reason to get excited and put in a bid.

What about his World Cup showing?  What about it? He made 3 good passes, but was mediocre at best in his 115 minutes of pitch time.  Here's what Squawka thought about his performance in Brazil:

What about his potential? He'll turn 21 in four days and yes, his development is coming around nicely, but he's not 16 and has shown zero desire to leave the safe haven of MLS.  In fact, he was born and raised in Seattle.

Rodgers can not be serious about signing Yedlin. Andre Wisdom and Martin Kelly would both run circles around this kid. Going for players that are products of the World Cup hype machine rarely pan out, Yedlin would be lucky to just to train with our first team.

United buy Ander & Luke Shaw for £60m+, way to go NUMPTIES!

Wow, I haven't seen a bad bit of business like this in a long time.  Especially not in a single day. Ander Herrera will be 25-years-old by the time Premier League season starts and he's never been called up to play for his country.  Is this the kind of player Man U has stooped too?  Don't get me wrong, he's a good player, but he's no where near worth £30m. Let's see how he stacks up against our midfield:

	Herrera	Sterling	Gerrard	Can	Coutinho	Hendo
age	25*	19	34	20	22	24
app (sub)	31(2)	24(9)	33(1)	24(5)	28(5)	35
mins	2548	2220	2895	2190	2323	3129
goals	5	9	13	3	5	4
assists	5	5	13	3	7	7
chances	53	51	67	16	64	62
npg90	0.18	0.36	0.09	0.12	0.19	0.12
gcp90	0.35	0.57	0.81	0.25	0.47	0.32
ccp90	1.9	2.1	2.1	0.7	2.5	1.8
pass %	80.6	81.7	85.9	77.9	80.6	87.1
bp %	40.6	46.8	30.6	39.6	36.7	41.2
sacc %	27.9	48.9	51.7	31.4	28.7	32.7
shot %	7.4	20	27.1	12	7	8.2
TTI90	15.3	12.1	10.9	13.2	11	9.5

His numbers are most comparable to Coutinho and Henderson. Our Brazilian produces more chances and turns over the ball much less.  Need I remind anyone that we got him for £8.8m? Three times less, three years younger, and more productive.

Henderson is the far superior passer, turns over the ball much less, and is nearly a year younger.  Dalglish was ridiculed for paying around £16m for Henderson, but compared to what Man U gave Atletico Bilbao for Ander, he looks like a genius.

I've had my say about Luke Shaw. If he turns out to be as productive as Kolarov, his price is somewhat justfied, but he's got a lot of work to get there and he's got to stay healthy to do so.  Southampton must be laughing all the way to the bank, £20m was probably too much.

The thing that pisses me off more than anything is that buys like these severrely skew the market value of players.  Brendan Rodgers has made some really bad buys (Borini & Aspas come to mind), but Coutinho and Sturridge help us forget.  I have a feeling Can, who we got for £10.5m, will end up being a great add as well. 

Man U seems to lack the ability to make deals via leverage and just splashes the cash to avoid negotiation.  If a player wants to leave a club and his valuation is surpassed, it's hard for the retaining club to deny such a transaction.  Luke Shaw is not worth £30m, but unfortunately Ricardo Rodriguez is now probably worth £50m because of deals like these.

Glen Johnson vs Kyle Walker

A recent comment stirred my interest.  I'm actually a big fan of Kyle Walker, but I'm not sure if he's more effective than Glen Johnson.  Let's take a look at the stats.

	G. Johnson	K. Walker
apps (sub)	29	26
tackles/pm	2.2	2
interceptions/pm	1.7	2.2
offsides won pm	0.1	0.3
clearances pm	2.4	2.6
dribbled past pm	0.8	1
blocked shots pm	0.3	0.2
aerial duels won pm	1.4	1.8
own goals	1	0
goals	0	1
assists	2	2
chances created	28	31
shots pm	0.7	0.7
passing %	84.1	82.2
passes pm	50.2	53.7
back pass %	45.6	34.9
crosses pm	0.2	0.7
cross %	9.8	20.2
long balls pm (total)	2 (57)	3.8 (100)
long ball %	54.3	60.2
key passes pm (total)	1 (28)	1.2 (31)
successful dribbles pm (total)	1.6 (46)	0.8 (22)
fouls drawn pm (total)	1.3	1.2
dispossessed pm (total)	1.2	1.3
turnovers pm (total)	1.1	0.6
TTI	11.9	12.7

Well, I was wrong.  Walker is more effective and the overall better right back.  He is just as turnover prone as Johnson, but he at least makes it up more on the defensive end.  The stats that stand out most for me are his 34.9 back pass percentage, 20.2 successful cross percentage, and especially his 60.2 long ball success percentage with 100 attempts.  The latter is just ridiculous when you consider he only played in 26 matches.

How is Kyle Walker not in the England side for the WC?  Apparently Phil Jones is second choice and that's just laughable.  Might as well put a cardboard cut-out of a donkey out there, it will do the same as 'El Terminator'.

12 points from Man U & Chelsea

It's a bit baffling to think we've taken the double from the two top squads in the league, but it may be a bit more confounding to realize that we've managed only six pts in six matches against four of the eight bottom sides (Tottenham, Hull, Stoke, and Middlesborough). In the end, those results are probably going to be what keeps us from the title.

Though not impossible, it is very much improbable, and as Benitez states, we must win our final nine contests to have any sort of chance. Taking a gander at our remaining schedule, closing out the campaign with twenty-seven points is a doable feat. The toughest matches left being versus Arsenal and Villa, but both of those are at Anfield. Away to West Ham and a visit from those pesky Spurs aren't going to be easy either, but then again, no match is nor should be approached as so, something United's defenders should have probably taken into account before today's contest.

The most impressive feat about today's match? That unless soccerbase.com is incorrect or my eyes have failed me*, Man U has never allowed 4 goals in a Premiership match at Old Trafford. NEVER. In fact, you have to go back to December 30, 1978, when the Mancs lost to West Brom, 5-3, in the old first division, to find a result of four or more allowed in the league. 30 years ago. Quite impressive.

Well, six days until we find out our next Champions League opponent and eight until we face Villa at home. Until then, cheers.

*EDIT - I stand corrected (or maybe I should look into wearing glasses). They allowed 4 goals against QPR at Old Trafford on January 1st, 1992. Still though, that was a first division match, so they truly never have allowed 4 at home in the Prem.

And the man in black steals the show...

How appropriate on the most holy of holiest days. Respect for the FA? Laughable to say the least. No one had money on Man U today, the payback wasn't worth it. Logic, reasoning, and rationality rarely applies to those who are pathological about illogical, unreasonable, and irrational desires.

Maybe the collapse of the world economy will be a good thing. Maybe then those who can afford to bet millions with a better chance of making a profit will invest in the 'heavy favorites'. After all, it is probably a more stable investment than anything other than gold at the moment.

I would have liked to see Kewell or Pennant get some time on the pitch, but then again, I would have also liked to see the match called fairly. A momentary lapse of reason? I'm having a laugh. God bless the ghost of Tom Joad and Merry Easter to all.

A yellow for speaking to a ref? You're having a laugh.

Just the fact that he already had a weak yellow and appeared quite restrained in his conversion with 'Sir Bennett' negates any legitimacy to the call. If that's the case, Rooney should have been suspended from the league for life by now.

The show must go on with all the revisionist rule writing one can fathom. Get creative, fellars.

Are Man U fans worried?

I'm not sure what warranted this, but I would think that Red Devils supporters would be more concerned with Arsenal than poor, little Liverpool. I hope this doesn't lead to a Chelsea-like treatment. Blues fans seem to write and talk more about us than they do their own side, it would be quite sad to see the mighty Man U crowd go the same route.

And by the way, there's a reason why Man U have won so many Premiership titles and other than a few spurts during the Busby years, were non-competitive in the Old First Division. It's called the Michael Jordan effect, used by the league, in this case, the revamped top flight English football league, and the media that reap the most benefits from it's success, which would be Sky. Creating excitement by having one side constantly and consistently dominate is a great way to draw 'fans' of the insecure nature, they will then have something to feel confident about. Most Man U supporters aren't fans of football, they're sad losers who haven't a chance in life, so they needed to grasp to anything that represents otherwise, ethics aside.

And since I'm using this post as therapy, that Chelsea-Villa match was horrible. Laughable decision after comical call, the ref made a mockery of the sport. When are we going to get a fifth official, video replay, and open mics on the officials? Oh for the integrity of the game.

Liverpool 0, Man U 1: Stat of the match

I could have gone with a whole plethora of stats to prove Liverpool were just unlucky on the day. Possession-wise they held a 57.4% to 42.6% advantage and also claimed a 51.8% to 48.2% territorial edge. An alarming stat that proves Manchester United were scared to play against us is the only player that spent more than 50% of the match in Liverpool's half was Cristiano Ronaldo at 54%. Or maybe it's just a sign that LFC were the better side on the day?

The most telling figure of all is this:


That is a percentile-based heat map of United's player activity. In other words, they spent 42.45% of the match in their third of the pitch. Just for a frame of reference, in their loss at Bolton, they were in their defensive zone just 23.68% of the time. Bolton were just lucky, right?

One of these players is world class...

...and it's not the one taking a dive.

Liverpool 0, Man U 1: The 'double standard' press strikes again

It is no surprise how the press and pundits are playing up yesterday's match. To admit that one side had intentions of playing football, while the other decided on trench warfare, putting ten men behind the ball, would have been honest yet unacceptable. To admit that one side was actually attempting to play 'the beautiful game', while the other had aspirations of turning it into a wrestling match, apparently isn't part of the company line. Then again, selling papers has never been about writing the truth. As Mae West once said, "Virtue has its own reward, but has no sale at the box office."

If the roles had been reversed yesterday and Liverpool had played like United, win or not, they would have been thrown into the gauntlet. They would have been chastised for their drab and uncreative approach, sacrificed for their cowardly ways, and written off as a side that is afraid to play proper football. Since it was the other way around though, Man U are commended for their excellent defending. As Mark Twain put it, "Get your facts first, then you can distort them as you please."

It is neither surprising nor shocking that this perspective is being force-fed as the acceptable conclusion. The press and the pundits know how their bread is buttered. Ultimately, English football becomes the victim and it's a shame the culprits can't see the damage they're inflicting. It is no wonder that the game has to go abroad for new fans, as the local ones, tired of the sensationalism and deceit, are turning away in droves. To quote Benjamin Franklin, "Trickery and treachery are the practices of fools that have not the wits enought to be honest."

That was far from good nor entertaining football yesterday, but at least Liverpool tried to make it so. It's surprising that a side as expensive and talented as Man U would go for such a game plan or possibly the only true class side on the pitch yesterday was wearing red. Rafa obviously didn't receive the memo that 'shit on a stick' would be acceptable on the day or maybe since he now has the horses to win any race, he mistakenly thought football would be allowed to be played. Another mistake by the press that they've yet to use against our gaffer. I'm sure it's only a matter of time though.

Liverpool 0, Man U 1: Misfortune strikes again

It's unclear how disappointing this loss is, I guess time will only tell, but few positives can be taken from it. I was already confident in the ability of Mascherano at shutting down an opponent and he had little problem with one of the supposed best players in the world in Cristiano Ronaldo. The impressive skills and pace of Ryan Babel isn't a revelation either. Basically everything else was discouraging, but even so, I still thought we were slightly the better side and had fortune smiled upon us instead of them, we would have been the ones celebrating at the final whistle.

On Friday, I wrote a post called 'A rant about Rafa, Trojan Horse formations, and guerrilla warfare tactics', where I stated at least twice that the tactics used against Marseilles wouldn't work against Man U. Apparently Rafa did not share this opinion, but I firmly believe that is why we lost. Rafa opted for a predominantly attacking side with obvious defensive capabilities, but our strategy seemed similar to the blitzkrieg approach successfully used against lesser opponents rather than more cautious means. It looks as if Liverpool were going to try and beat Man United at what they do best and essentially we did, but unfortunately, Sir Alex Ferguson opted for a different approach.

Surprisingly, the Mancs practically played a form of football reminiscent to how our side has played in previous seasons, a physical, defensive approach relying on cunning and quick-strike tactics to score goals. It was quite similar to the modus operandi we used in the second leg of the Champions League semifinal versus Chelsea last year. I wouldn't go as far as to say that Ferguson outwitted Rafa though, he was just luckier on the day. His side won, despite being inferior throughout, and in essence, that's all that matters.

The lack of risk in the line-up Rafa selected probably disappointed me most. I realize that he knows his players better than anyone else, but to me, if a player is on the bench, that says they are physically and mentally able to start as well. I would have rather seen Aurelio at left back, Riise at left mid, Lucas pair with Mascherano in the middle, and Gerrard in a supporting striker role. Kewell and Kuyt would have been the odd men out with Benayoun staying on the right.

Such a line-up in theory would have lead to less congestion in the forward zone, since Man U was jamming that area with as many players possible. We actually handled Ferguson's bottleneck and roadblock measures better than we have in the past, but one less player going forward would have been one less obstacle to overcome. Hindsight is 20-20, but the inability or stubbornness of Rafa to make adjustments is dismaying. I have a hard time believing he didn't understand Man United's obvious game plan early on.

Another aspect of failure was full use of pitch on attack, which would have stretched the defense even further. In the first half, the right side remained mostly desolate and the extreme flank was scarcely used the duration of the match. This is where a fit Jermaine Pennant comes in handy. Had Kewell been more diligent at utilizing the left, congestion would have been less of an issue, but he was either rarely able to do so or try and with Yossi in free-range mode, instead of fighting Man U over control of their side of the pitch, we basically fell into their trap.

The officiating also appeared to be helping out United by allowing them to be overtly aggressive in key areas and at key moments, though we were not allowed such comforts. Look, I understand a few mistakes throughout the match, but come on, early on Man U committed fouls against us almost every possession, but the ref always seemed to be looking the other way. Our opposition showed the lack of class we've come to expect, but to go without penalty is unacceptable. Though the histrionics of Ronaldo weren't rewarded, a blatant handball in the box by Tevez was ignored. Not to mention Rooney taking a kick at Arbeloa after getting the ball taken from him. If he's not punished for that, for which he should have received a straight red to begin with, well, then we know which side the FA favors.

Individually, most our efforts were forgettable, save the previously mentioned Babel and Mascherano. Nearly everyone had their moments, but for the most part were relatively poor. I'll get to my player ratings either later today or tomorrow, but if I had to pick a Man of the Match, I'd have to go with Mascherano. Though he was far from perfect and I've seen him play much better, you can tell he truly wears that badge on his chest with obstreperous passion and a never-say-die attitude. By the end of the match he was all over the place, at the top of the box trying to get a desperate equalizer and then scampering back to help defend. If we don't sign him on a permanent, we have the most thick-headed management on the planet.

Ultimately we lost because we played poor defense for ten seconds and despite having practically an open net on two different occasions, it just wasn't in the books. Not to mention a couple of free kicks at the top of the box and Babel barely missing an outstanding strike. Either way, Man U did not deserve this victory whatsoever, and I find it funny that I've yet to read about their drab and uncreative approach. If that had been us, the press and pundits would have sacrificed us.

Liverpool vs Man U: Same as Marseilles

Here's the line-up:
Reina
Riise
Carra
Hyypiä
Arbeloa
Kewell
Gerrard
Mascherano
Benayoun
Kuyt
Torres

Bench:
Itandje
Aurelio
Babel
Crouch
Lucas

A bit surprised about this one, I thought we'd go for a more defensive side. Still liking the draw though. Cheers.

Liverpool vs Man U: Which Rafanauts will heed the call?

The Mancs are coming.

If the Premiership title is the Golden Fleece and Gerrard our Jason, is this match merely a stall on the Island of Lemnos or is it the chance to free King Phineas, cursed by Helios for denying the sun? In any case, failure is not an option, though a draw most likely awaits. With the aid of Athena, will Rafargus be able to construct a side to weather the torrential Manchesteranean sea?

With Aggerus apparently unavailable, the anchors of the Rafargo have but two to labor, Hyppiälas and Carracles. With Finnaemon knocked as well, Arbelanta is the only viable option on the right, while on the left, I think Aurelycus gets the start. In recent history, Rafargus has called upon Riiseus to play left-mid in big matches, especially against adversaries with menacing right-wingers like Ronaldon, so I think he'll do so here as well.

Lining up aside the ginger warrior, I fully expect Mascheranion to pair Jason. He has apparently recovered from the knock received in the victory at Marseilles and was back in full training on Thursday. On the right, Benayophon is really our only, but best, option. If he marks as well as he did in France, whomever the Mancs put on the left will be rendered useless and hopefully run ragged in retaliation.

Up front, the great Torreses will certainly start, but whom shall be paired with him is a mystery. Crouchion is too much of a defensive liability and turns over the ball way too often. Giving a side like the Manchestereanans the ball on the counter is like giving a dragon oil, you're going to get burnt. Voroninus I can see, but I think Kuytalus is the best choice. We won't get pace from any other forwards to begin with, except for maybe Babeleus, but he's not ready to start in a big match like this, so Kuytalus' defensive attributes should come in handy. The other option is Kewellius, but he's so much better on the wing.

My final call:
Reinaus
Aurelycus
Hyypiälas
Carracles
Arbelanta
Riiseus
Mascheranion
Jason (Gerrardius)
Benayophon
Kuytalus
Torreses (the Great)

Bench:
Itandjemus
Babeleus
Kewellius
Lucas
Crouchion

As I mentioned prior, I believe this will be a draw, but hopefully at least one of excitement. May the Gods shine upon us.

SHOCKING NEWS!!! Another Man U player can't play for England!!!

Are you shocked?!?!?!? I'm blown away!!!!

It's practically predicted on every other page of Nostradamus' Prophecies. Word on the street is that Michael Carrick stubbed his toe and was walking around on crutches with a cast on his foot until someone told him he wasn't selected to play in the upcoming matches for England. He was back training in less than an hour.

Anyhow, kudos to Fergie for his ingenuity. If you don't know what I'm referring to, Owen Hargreaves has declared himself unfit for England. He claims that he only has enough cartilage left in his knees to play for Man U. Well, at least it's a legitimate reason.

Another story coming out of Old Trafford is that Wes Brown cut himself shaving and won't be able to go if Russia beats Israel on Saturday. More on that story as it develops. Now back to the 'real' news of Gerrard's xenophobia.

Why only the ignorant bash Rafa's rotation ways

I'm so tired of all the muppets blaming Rafa's line-up tinkering for any and everything that goes wrong with our side. Do I always agree with who he plays? No. Do I always agree with what formation he uses? Definitely not. Do I always agree with who he subs? No, just see the previous post for proof, but as with the line-ups, I don't have access to the players, I don't know how fit they are, and I don't get to talk with them or observe them before the match to see how they might be mentally.

Rafa does what he does for several reasons. Sometimes, especially in Champions League play, he plays certain players in certain places for tactical reasons. The first example that comes to mind was Arbeloa at Camp Nou last year. He started Arbeloa on the left, which most found quite strange, but he did so, so the Spaniard could contain Messi, which he did quite well I might add.

For the most part, entering matches we are the superior side at nearly every position. Birmingham on Saturday is a good example of that. Would it have mattered had Torres started in one of the spots up front instead of Kuyt and Voronin? Maybe, but he could have also had his leg broken and been lost for the season, so speculating on just the positive is futile.

I still think Torres should have been brought in for Kuyt instead of Babel, but I don't know what the situation was, so that's all I can really say about that. The fact that Rafa didn't recognize Kuyt's poor form is kind of disheartening though. Maybe he was hoping he would improve, but I'm getting off the subject here.

The most important reason he rotates is to keep players fresh. If you need any proof that it works, just take a gander over his career. Managers like Jose Mourinho and Sir Alex Ferguson need more than just a few great players to win trophies, Benitez has not. He didn't need ridiculously overpriced players to win the two Spanish Championships and a UEFA Cup that he did with Valencia nor did he needed a star-studded side when he won the Champions League and the FA Cup as he has with Liverpool.

In the 2005 Champions League run he got huge performances from players who he rotated quite liberally including Anthony Le Tallec, Florent Sinama-Pongolle, Dietmar Hamann, and Vladimir Smicer. Those players played well because they were fresh and those of us who have played the game know that in most cases, especially in youth, the least you play the better you seem to perform when the opportunity arises.

With Rafa's rotating, past November we have had the best record and garnered the most points in the league the previous two seasons. Having rested, fresh players against tired sides is what has allowed us to be successful in those latter months. Unlike the last two years though, we have had a much better start to the season. So let Arsenal, Man U, and any other club that are perceived to be challenging for the title this year run their horses into the ground. When the wee hours of the season are upon us, I bet you that it's Rafa's ways that help us to the Premiership title.

Bernd Schuster already worried about drawing Liverpool in CL play

I didn't really expect anyone to be paying us any attention in the Champions League at least until after the Group Stage, but apparently we're causing Real Madrid's Bernd Schuster a little anxiety, which is surprising seeing how well his squad has started this season. In this article, the former German International has this to say about our side:

"Liverpool is not so attractive in it's game; it is an ugly team to play, hard and difficult. It is not necessary to remind people how tough they made it for Barcelona last season."

Though most newspapers are trying to play this up as Schuster talking a little smack, it looks as if they're just trying to sell papers. I think all he's saying is that we are great defensively and unpredictable on attack as much can be lost or added in translation.

The thing that baffles me is how he says that Man U has the best attack and Chelsea have the best defense. Has he watched either of these sides play this season? I have no doubts that a fully fit Man U squad with Rooney, Giggs, Ronaldo, and Scholes firing on all cylinders are certainly a formidable attack, but Rooney's injured, Giggs and Scholes look a year older, and I guess we'll have to wait and see what post-suspension Ronaldo looks like. Nani and Tevez have been competent, but also look like two new players struggling to build chemistry with their new teammates.

As for Chelsea's defense, they are certainly capable of being an impenetrable fortress, but allowing two goals against Birmingham at Stamford Bridge and the two goals they allowed against Aston Villa this past weekend make them far from impressive nor in top form. I honestly think they should have never gotten rid of Diarra, but apparently that was unavoidable, and Alex has been far less impressive than he was at PSV last year.

Ultimately, if we can stay fit and maintain our current form, then sure, Schuster does have something to worry about, but to come out now and voice his concerns just doesn't make much sense.

Fergie loves the 'Pool

In an odd turn of the screw, Manchester United boss and overall managing legend, none other than Sir Alex Ferguson, has praised Liverpool Football Club as the greatest club in the history of the world, ever. And if you believe that, I've got some beautifully refurbished country meadows in New Jersey I'd like to sell you.

No, I think about right now Rafa Benitez and LFC are more likely on Sir Alex's shit list than on his Christmas Card list. His latest comments about the Anfield club includes calling them 'opportunists' in regards to the Heinze controversy and then to add a few logs to the fire he says that he just grew tired of pursuing Torres and pretty much just let us have him. Thanks, Sénor Alec, your generosity is unrivaled.

I won't even address the latter comment since it's obviously just the case of one heartbroken girl veiling her wound after being rejecting by a boy for a girl she deems inferior. As for the 'opportunists' label, if that's not a case of the pot calling the kettle black, I don't know what is. This coming from a man who basically stole Giggs from Man City. At least Fergie admits he'd do the same if the tables were turned and he had the opportunity to sign Steven Gerrard in a similar manner.

Still, it's not like Man U has ever given a rat's ass about anyone else in their pursuit to better themselves. It's pure rubbish for Ferguson to even try to imply that he and his suitors have an ounce of concern for the clubs he plucks his players from. At least Liverpool make an effort to help out smaller clubs like Wrexham, Crewe Alexander, and MTK Hungária FC because they realize their importance in the overall scope of football.

And what's this crap about 'like the rest of them'. Is Sir Alex shitting gold these days? It's not like Man U has much of a history before 1993, before Cantona, before Roy Keane. You're not the cream of the football crop, you're the shit that won't flush.