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.

My 2007 World's Best XI

I'm pretty bored, so I thought I'd throw my irrelevant two cents into the mix. Here's who I think were the world's best XI in 2007. Feel free to flog me, I know nothing, of course.

GK - Petr Čech
Casillas, Reina, and Buffon are all incredible, but some of the saves Čech makes are just plain silly. Rarely does a side score against him without a phenomenal effort.

LB - Gianluca Zambrotta
Heinze, Thuram, and Lahm are all tremendous as well, but Zambrotta is probably the most consistent.

CB - John Terry
CB - Fabio Cannavaro
Just too many good ones, and really, it comes down to personal preference. Carra would no doubt be in the squad. I don't really want to get into it, but these are the two I would trust most if I were managing the world's best XI.

RB - Steve Finnan
Yeah, I know I'll get plenty of flack for this one, but Finney was the second best overall defensive player in the Premiership last season according to Actim and his qualities are undeniable. Even at 31, he's arguably the best right wing-back in the world. Dani Alves and even Arbeloa deserve recognition as well.

LM/LW - Lionel Messi
This isn't even debatable. Not even Ronaldinho takes his spot.

CM/DM - Javier Mascherano
Simply the best defensive midfielder in the world. Dietmar Hamann is going to be hard to leave out of the squad though.

CM - Steven Gerrard
If I have to defend this pick, you're a victim of the anti-English press or your own inability to know world-class when you see it.

RM/RW - Kaká
You can pretty much start him anywhere at midfield or forward with this side. With Gerrard and Mascherano there to provide cover, he, like Messi, are just additional forwards.

FW - Fernando Torres
FW - Didier Drogba
As with CB, there's just so much quality at that spot that it comes down to personal preference.

Squad (23 total):
Pepe Reina
Jamie Carragher
Cristiano Ronaldo
David Villa
Philipp Lahm
Andrea Pirlo
Patrice Evra
Franck Ribéry
Carles Puyol
Ronaldinho
Dani Alves
Deco

I think I'm pretty fair in my assessment overall. Like I said, I think the Finnan pick is a bit controversial, as even a lot of Liverpool fans don't seem to realize his consistency and contributions though he's clearly a tremendous player. Alves is not as good as Finney defensive-wise, but he is superior in the pace and attacking aspects.

I really hate putting Pirlo on just the squad. He's probably my favorite Italian player and for someone who loathes the Italian game, he'll always be one of my favorite players of all-time. Gattuso is nothing compared to Mascherano, and I'm not having a go with that, I'm just preaching the truth.

I don't feel as if I have to defend putting Carra on the squad, but I will. First of all, go ask the Milan and Chelsea players how good he is, they'll tell ya. Second, he's also pretty versatile having played fullback for Liverpool in his earlier years, and he can even play defensive midfield, as he has with England.

I'm pretty confident that this side could go undefeated and win any league at the moment and the Champions League and domestic cup as well. There's just very little fault. They may not be as defensive-minded as even I would like, but a clean sheet against a side of this caliber would be an unbelievable effort.

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.

Today's Banter: Calm down Mr. Babel, Arbeloa relishes Ronaldo, Sir Alex wanted Torres, & more

Apparently Ryan Babel is not fond of the 'super sub' label. Sensitive, are we? Well, Mr. Babel, you shouldn't confuse 'super sub' with 'one who is not good enough to start', that clearly does not apply. Unfortunately there are other players who have more experience that play the same positions as you. Your abilities are duly noted and in due time, you will be a starter, I have little doubt of that. Don't let meaningless words hinder your progress, the biggest obstacle for a young athlete is his ego. Why do I get the feeling that something was manipulated in translation here? Anyhow, the author of the linked article mixed deceptive math and words to make the Dutchman sound like the God of all subs. It was a nice touch.

Álvaro Arbeloa is ready to cage Cristiano as he did Messi in his Liverpool debut at Camp Nou. The 24-year-old fullback is expected to start on the right as Finnan looks out with a knock. To the Spaniard, what position makes no difference, as long as he plays. I'll be curious to see who we play on the left. I have my ideas and will post them in due time, but whomever gets the call will need to step up and contain the Portuguese winger.

You can spot an envious Man United fan a mile away. They are the ones who write things like 'Ferguson didn't want Torres' or 'Man U rejected El Niño'. Well, their leader has spoken and he says different. Sir Alex Ferguson states that he attempted to bring Torres to Man U on multiple occasions, but believes he failed due to the language barrier, an aspect Rafa had the advantage. Though I think that had something to do with it, the mystique of the club, where the fans are not products of the fear of losing, was more important. Torres is already revered and idolized on a level that not even Cristiano Ronaldo can match. It's almost as if he's the adopted son of most supporters with the uncanny ability to channel that positive energy into amazing results on the pitch. A factory like Man U just can't compete with that.

I don't always have respect for Ferguson. For the manager of a club which has received the Michael Jordan treatment from the refs for years, he doesn't take it very graciously when the tables are turned. What goes around, comes around, in life and sport equally, how you endure the lows shows true character. I will credit the Scot with one thing though, he's keen to truth, whether he brings it into the limelight or not is his own discretion, honor aside. Standing up for Rafa in the Spaniard's recent quarrel with the owners is more than just taking the side of another manager. It was taking the side of truth and common sense. As the nine-time Premier League winning manager said, "You ask yourself where that comes from and there’s obviously some undercurrent of a dispute somewhere along the line, but with Rafa’s record, it’s strange." Strange, indeed.

Today's Banter: Injury updates, Guðjohnsen wants 'revenge', & Man U build-up

It looks as if Xabi Alonso may be available on Sunday, while Steve Finnan looks a scratch. The midfield maestro has been deemed fit by Rafa, but it's unclear whether he'll feature or not. I'm thinking two things here, first, Benitez may just be setting a ploy, as Man U will definitely be more worried about Xabi than Mascherano, due to the former's awesome passing abilities. The other thing is that he may actually be fit, which is fine by me, but will he play? I would hope so, with Mascherano pairing and Gerrard on the right, but if he's not fully fit, he shouldn't.

Finnan, on the other hand, is not a very big concern. We have Arbeloa and with the return of Aurelio on the left, the Spaniard only has to cover the right. If the Irishman is definitely out, I expect Fabio to start on the left with Riise in front of him, giving us at least some sort of wing-back option in the Brazilian. Agger, by the way, is definitely a no-go.

Eiður Guðjohnsen apparently wants 'payback' for his side being booted by Liverpool last year in the Champions League. Fair game, though I don't really care who we get on December 21st when the drawing is held, but I think Guðjohnsen should be careful what he wishes for. Call me crazy, but I think we'll draw AC Milan and Barça will get Arsenal, rematches of the last two finals. The funny thing is, if we do draw the Spanish side, I doubt the former Chelsea forward/attacking midfielder will make more than a cameo in either tie.

The tension for Sunday's showdown with Man U is already bringing about words from the neighbors to the east. Sir Alex Ferguson believes form will be thrown out the window, though I'm not sure what the hell he's talking about. Both sides are in great form and though they barely boast a better record overall, we have scored considerably more goals. Is he claiming his side is in better form? If so, good, let them be cocky.

As for the players, Guadaloupian striker Louis Saha brings up last year's fiasco and how it 'kick-started' the Mancs run to the title. Ah, yes, the match where Carragher wasn't allowed to defend and Man U players were allowed to grab jerseys, but Liverpool were not. Can't wait to see who the ref will be, if it's Mike Riley I might not even bother to watch. Surprisingly, Wayne Rooney talks some sense, talking about the Marseilles match and our recent form: "They did very well and got an excellent result... They are scoring a lot of goals but probably the best thing we can do is concentrate on our job rather than worry about them." If Roons thought that was doing very well (against the 'French'), well, hopefully he hasn't seen nothing yet.

Today's Banter: Carra praises Hyypiä & Reina, Bayern wants Benitez, Javi responds, & more

With all the time he's got on his hands these days, Jamie Carragher has decided to give somewhat of a state-of-the-club address with particular praise for his centre back partner and Pepe Reina. Carra makes a good point that taking eight points from a run of Goodison, Arsenal, Ewood, and Fulham at Anfield is a decent string of results. He then goes on to point out how Hyypiä has raised his level of play recently, something that hasn't gone unnoticed, but also adds that it seems when the Finn plays well, the whole team appears to follow suit. That's something I haven't really recognized, but come to think of it, he may be right. Finally, the man from Bootle calls Pepe Reina one of the three best keepers in the world along with Petr Čech and Gianluigi Buffon, as well as the best he's ever played with. Good call, Carra, way to schmooze your teammates so close to Christmas and all.

Apparently Bayern Munich wants Rafa to replace Ottmar Hitzfeld at the end of the season. I won't even address such rubbish, Bayern is no where near the club they once were just six or seven years ago and Rafa is investing too much time and energy to be lured away by what's frankly a lesser club.

Moving on, one of our transfer targets, Javi Martínez of Athletic Bilbao, appears to be open to a move to the Premiership, but wants to do what's best for his club and himself. Sounds to me as if he's going to go elsewhere, he wants his current club to make a substantial financial gain for doing so. I've got to wonder that if he's not a true winger or can even be effective on the flank, do we really need another central midfielder? I think not, unless Rafa has something up his sleeve like selling Momo, but I doubt it.

Finally, we have a delusional and ill-informed Man U fan trying to compare their debt issues to ours. Sorry, but as usual, a Man U failed to do the actual work and tried to pass half-assed biased opinion for fact. The Red Devils (not Reds, mind you) have a current debt of at least £660m, stemming from the Glazers refinancing in July of 2006, so it could actually be more than that, especially if you consider the amount they spent on players this past summer and that the Glazers will probably do their best to keep the fans and media in the dark about financial matters at the club due the negative light it tends to shed. Liverpool's debt currently sits at around £300m, but the owners are will have to refinance soon to fund the building of the new stadium. At most it will increase to around £520m, which is still well less than the Mancs. I realize that misery loves company, but I refuse to be dragged into the hell of ignorance that epitomizes the typical Man U 'fan'. Cheers.

Transfer target: Ezequiel Garay

Ezequiel Marcelo Garay is a Argentine centre/right back currently playing for Racing Santander. The 21-year-old signed with the La Liga club from Newell's Old Boys two years ago and has made quite an impact. Adept with his head on set pieces and solid on penalty kicks, Garay has amassed 9 goals in 38 league matches for the Spanish side. He has received multiple call-ups to the Argentina National team, but has had to reject all but one due to injury. He was also a regular for his country's youth side that won the 2005 U20 World Cup in the Netherlands. Manchester United are among the other clubs in pursuit of his services and his valuation is set at £10m. I think he'd be quite the pairing with Agger. Here's some videos of his work.

A header goal for Newell's Old Boys from a free kick. It begins about 40 seconds in:


Another sensational header goal, this time for Racing:


A six-minute interview which includes a bit about the anchovies of Santander:

It's time for a reality check

We probably won't win any cups nor trophies this season. There, I've said it. Soak it in and accept it because most likely, it's the truth. If you're a Liverpool fan because you're seeking glory, don't let the door hit you on the way out. Go join the hordes of Man United and Chelsea zombies, because you're not welcome here.

Over the past couple of weeks, I have lowered my expectations of our club. Not because we have failed to set the world on fire, but because it's become quite evident that we just don't have the talent and depth to compete with the other big three at the moment. Sorry, that's just reality. We haven't spent near the amount of money as either Chelsea or the Mancs and Rafa has only been around for a fraction of the time Wenger has and certainly not long enough to establish any sort of youth development system.

Having absolutely no expectations has lifted a tremendous weight off of my chest and allowed me to laugh a little, mostly when things don't go our way. Sure, it's nice to win, but honestly, I have unconditional love for my club. If they win nothing, so be it, cups are only icing on the cake.

Anyone who thinks that just the addition of Fernando Torres was going to take us to the next level is sorely mistaken. Babel is a nice addition, but he's only 20 years old and is playing in a major league for the first time. His potential is aplenty and it shows at times, but it's going to take a few years for him to fully develop. Benayoun has been a solid addition as well, but he's not a world class player.

I look at it this way, Torres is exponentially better than Bellamy, Voronin is certainly better than Fowler, I would rate Benayoun on the same level as Luis Garcia except the Israeli is younger, and Babel already appears to have surpassed the efforts of Gonzo. Consider that we've also added an already praiseworthy player in Lucas and a solid prospect in Leto, and I'd be hard up to say we aren't clearly a better side than last year.

Of course, at this time last year we only had 14 points from 10 games, sat 11 points out from first, and had a goal difference of zero. The only reason there wasn't a mass hysteria anti-Rafa movement then was because we were on the top of our Champions League group on the 31st of October last year with ten points. The Premiership was easy to forget.

It's going to take at least £50-60m more worth of players for our side to be close to the level of a Man U or Chelsea. Another class striker and centre back will be crucial before we will even be able to consider ourselves as a league contenders. If all of our players stay healthy, we would have a slight shot this season, but that would require a tremendous amount of luck. Injuries happen and if we don't have class back-ups to plug into those spots, which we don't, points will be dropped.

So all I'm saying is calm down, breathe a little and learn to laugh at all the moronic pundits and press who criticize and ridicule Rafa's ways. They only do so because they're egos are bigging then their brains and they for some reason think they can do a better job. Trust me, they can't.

If Rafa sticks around for ten to fifteen years, we'll win our fair share of cups and trophies, but panicking and overreacting aren't going to get us anywhere. Let's enjoy the ride no matter how bumpy the road, we can always take solace in the fact that we aren't glory-hunting Man U nor Chelsea fans.

Today's Banter: Kewell nears return, Reserves draw at United, Stevie-G expected to captain England, & more

- Well, coming from the official site certainly makes it sound more... official. Though he may not be back in time for the derby, it looks like Harry Kewell could return sometime in mid-November. According to Rafa, he could start training with the first team as early as next week. I hope he comes back and stays healthy, surely one more episode of injury will be his last with us.

- It sounds as if even the Man U Reserves get the calls. According to this report, Lucas Leiva was clearly tripped up in the box in our boys' 1-1 draw at Man U, yet was booked for diving. I didn't get to see the match, but it sounds as if we were unlucky not to win and were thoroughly dominating. Our inability to finish also seems to have had a trickle-down effect.

- With John Terry out due to injury, it looks as if Steven Gerrard will get the nod to captain England in their Wembley match with Estonia tomorrow. I guess that means he'll get to start over Lampard. Wow, two shocking revelations in one small segment. Hopefully Steve McClaren will stick with Gareth Barry as Stevie-G's central midfield partner as well.

- Steve Finnan, despite frequently sharing time with Arbeloa at right back, is the latest player to come out in support of Rafa's rotation policy. He believes in it, true fans don't bother questioning it, so who exactly is making a ruckus over it? People who have won more accolades then Rafa, of course.

- Fernando Torres has decided to stop diving. Not sure when he began. I can't once think of a time in a Liverpool kit when I can accuse him of the act. One thing I find amusing is that he says Steven Gerrard was one of the main catalysts in getting him to not even think about cheating in such a manner. I may love Liverpool and our Captain, but he's definitely done so for club and country in the past. So far this year though, he has yet to resort to such techniques.

- I posted a link to the Fernando Torres Story pt. 1 the other day, so here's part 2. Cheers.

Harry Kewell could return for derby

Well, the vagueness of this article has me rolling my eyes, but apparently the Aussie could be back for our October 20th date at Goodison Park. That would be quite a boost if it's the case.

There's also a chance that Xabi could return for that match as well. I don't think we need either player nor Agger to win at Everton and especially don't want Rafa to rush anyone, which he rarely does anyhow. It's always nice to have a full squad though, particularly when the three players set to return are of that class.

By the way, the Reserves play Man U away on Thursday. I'll be interested to see who's included in that squad. Certainly Leto and Lucas will make their returns to the side and it would be great to see Kewell get a running out, but I won't hold my breathe.

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.

Man U and Chelsea have worst fans

I remember back during and after the Champions League final, when UEFA's William Gaillard came out with a statement saying that Liverpool had the worst fans and that the European football policing organization had proof of that statement. Well, set aside that the reason they came out with such a statement was to cover up their half-assed security job and planning for the final and the fact that they severely rigged the match with a English-hating German ref, and you still have they fact that they have yet to release the study or document to the general public that backs that statement. Where is it, guys? Did you lose it? Are is it that it's just a load of crap to divert attention to real issues like your incompetence?

Well, skip ahead to this past weekend when I read this here. Turns out that Man U and Chelsea have in fact the worst fans in English football according to Jane's Police Review. Not some organization trying to cover their ass for their mistakes, but an independent third party who has no monetary interest what so ever in the results of the study. And what were the grounds of this study? Fans who were "most likely to attack officers or be racially or sexually abusive." It's no secret that Chelsea has had a violent and racist past, but I was a bit surprised to see Man U there.

So next time some two-bit Chelsea loser slags on you for being a Liverpool fan, just laugh because they truly are the scum of the Earth. Who wants to bet that you won't be hearing about this study on World Soccer Daily? Ha ha ha.

Today's Banter: Voronin backs Benitez, Steven Taylor in the works?, Rafa loves Rugby? & more

(Sorry for not posting but once yesterday and in advance for being so brief today, but really, there's not much going on and Euro-qualifying is on my mind. Cheers.)

- First up, Voronin has come out in defense of Rafa's rotation policy. Again, it's been proven that Rafa in fact rotates his line-ups just as often as Mourinho and Fergie, but who cares, right. I'm glad to see the Ukrainian striker has had a change in thought though, before joining the team he made some comments about being a starter and not a super sub. Now that he's actually here, he has seen the light despite being used as a super sub at times.

- Apparently Steven Taylor has alerted Rafa Benitez, a long-time admirer of the 21-year-old Newcastle centre back, that he may be interested in a switch to Liverpool as early as this upcoming January transfer window. If we can get a young talent like Taylor to pair for Agger in the future, that would be awesome. According to reports, Newcastle made an 'insulting' contract extension offer to the England U21 captain.

- Rafa Benitez was seen catching a rugby match at Knowsley Road. St. Helens boss Daniel Anderson also revealed that he and Rafa have met before and that he'd been to Liverpool's training facility, Melwood, to talk shop.

- Finally, if you want to catch up with Alan Kennedy and the Legends squad, here is a nice read. Cheers everyone and good luck to Stevie-G, Xabi, El Nino, Pepe Reina, Luis Garcia, John Arne Riise, Daniel Agger, Ryan Babel, Dirk Kuyt, Andriy Voronin, Sami Hyypia, Yossi (not really though, just stay fit), and anyone else I may have forgotten in their international ties. Hope you guys win (except Yossi) , but most of all stay fit.