A win tomorrow would be the worse possible thing

Here we are again at about the same point we were last year. All that's left is the Champions League and quite frankly, I hope that dream ends tomorrow... but it probably won't. Losing to Barnsley was nothing more than a confidence boost to all those poor betting addicts who think the Reds have no chance against the big, bad Internazionale. Go ahead, make your wager, it's a done deal. Bet the house, the kid's college money, and then make sure to have a rafter to set the noose. The show must go on.

Rafa made one glaring mistake in the Barnsley match and whether he did it intentionally or not, matters little. Babel, who was clearly our catalyst on attack, should have been left on the field until the final whistle. He appeared to be the only player with a clue about how to bring the ball up. My apologies to Xabi, of course, who once again displayed his brilliant passing abilities, but appears too timid to play too far forward, especially with the less-disciplined Lucas at his side.

I could beat a dead white elephant, but what's the point? Crouch is useless. He has no pace and even less creativity. Against a side that made Dirk Kuyt look like an Olympic class sprinter, Crouch was a witless turtle playing against apparently genius Championship-level hares. Not that Kuyt deserves any praise himself, he as well deserves no place on our club.

Where was Jermaine Pennant? When we finally got our act together in the league last season it was because of JP becoming the main ball-carrier and creator on attack. Yossi is not a true winger and having him out there supposedly playing that position only creates congestion and frustration. Having him out there with Crouch and Kuyt is borderline insane, stupid, or criminal, you can decide that which best fits your feelings.

Don't get me wrong, winning tomorrow would be great, except it would only see Rafa staying on longer and the American owners sticking around as well. Two things I could do without. Of course, the 'Golden Child' will be back and hopefully will stay fit for the entire contest and Masche will be back at Stevie-G's side.

As a supporter I have little reason to be optimistic about our club. A whole lot of change will have to happen this offseason for me to think otherwise. New owners, new manager, Crouch and Kuyt sold, Hyypia retired, Kewell apparently gone since he's no longer getting much playing time, and the infusion of some of the youngsters like Paul Anderson would be nice. What we be even more nicer would know Hicks' and Gillet's true agenda.

Today's Banter: Snake oil salesmen, drowning fish, or spin doctors?

Being American, Tom Hicks and George Gillett have received the best education in the world when it comes to advantageous utilization of media and the English press are always more than happy to oblige. The latest issues that appear to have their press relations firm(s) working overtime are the revising of the stadium plans due to rising costs and how that could affect the amount of money available in the upcoming January transfer window. At least the rift with Rafa has been laid to rest.

As I have mentioned prior, the very basis of the aforementioned 'tiff' was money. Does that mean now that since plans for the stadium have been 'scaled-back', there will be funds available in January? Some media are reporting that the board will be unwilling to approve neither a transaction to buy nor sell by Rafa, while others are declaring that he will have to sell first. Rick Parry says this is all rubbish and when the king puppet speaks, all the children should listen closely.

Personally, I don't know nor do I care. Don't get me wrong, I'd love to see certain players sent on their merry way while a few diamonds in the rough are plucked and polished, but I could do without all the extracurricular melodrama. It may serve more of a purpose than just to confuse and frustrate the average supporter though. Machiavellian measures are always useful in denying the opposition information that may give them an edge. Think Ryan Giggs.

When the new owners took over they promised us the world and have delivered shit-all. Torres, Babel, Benayoun, Lucas, and Itandje have come at the price of Luis Garcia, Craig Bellamy, Mark Gonzalez, Djibril Cissé, and roughly £20m, or about what we've come to expect to spend in summer's past. It appears as if the improvement of our squad has had more to do with Rafa's cunning then lack of vowed 'big money' funds.

Honestly, I have no problem with supporting a 'small' club. It makes me appear a whole lot more intelligent and means all the more when cups are won. The problem is, I don't like to be taken for a ride, but in this day and age, that's just appears how business is done. I could definitely do without the coloring book antics of the official site and teenagers in Ireland manipulating headlines to lure clickers though.

The rift between Rafa and Hicks/Gillett has brought out the best in our side

Most that has been written and said concerning the recent run of events between Rafa Benitez and our American owners has been negative, but the effect on the side has been anything but. It has brought the club even closer together. Players, who in the past have voiced their displeasure with Rafa's rotation policies, are putting such notions behind them and concentrating on being the best footballers they can be. Look no further than Peter Crouch's recent performances and John Arne Riise's return to favorable form versus Bolton as evidence to this revelation. Exorcising the demons has appeared to allow those two to once again be part of a positive flowing side.

The quarrel has also allowed us fans to once again display our unparalleled passion for the club. Not only does it boost the confidence of our manager and players, but imagine what other footballers from around the world think when they see thousands of fans marching in support of their manager or hear the songs of Rafa's army ringing throughout Anfield? It justifies a world class player like Fernando Torres leaving the only club and country he has ever known to play for us and makes the recruiting process Rafa has to go through to lure more class footballers to our side much easier. It simply tells the world that if you want to play for a club that will cherish you for giving your all when donning the kit, look no further than Liverpool Football Club.

Another positive is the distraction it forces on our opponents. Though an opposing manager would never admit it, it's also almost impossible to ignore with the onslaught of press coverage the tussle received. Anything to get the opposition to not think about tactics and strategy going into matches has to be a good thing, especially when you consider that it has just the opposite effect on our side. It makes our boys want the next match to come quicker, so they can forget all the extracurricular bullocks lurking about.

Finally, though it may be rubbish as this point, it obligated Rafa and the boys to approach each match individually, as if it were their last, and prevent overlooking the task at hand. That was most notably crucial for the Porto match since really nothing less than a win was required. Hopefully we can continue this approach, taking each battle one at a time and overwhelming our opponents is only gonna help us win the war and fill the trophy case.

It's often said that everything happens for a reason and the episode between our manager and our owners appears to be no different. Though it may have caused a temporary breach in the relationship between the two parties, it appears at this point to be on the mend, so everyone can move on to more important matters like winning matches. Our club now appears recharged with an emotional drive, every match seems an epic in itself, and a newfound self-belief that we can beat anyone has manifested. Though the soul of Liverpool was far from dead, it now burns with a passion augmented by knowing that truer words than 'You'll Never Walk Alone' have scarcely ever been spoken.

Today's Banter: Crouch not for sale, Hicks not selling, Agger not fit... yet, & more

Greetings, hope everyone is doing well. I'm neither sick nor incarcerated so life can't be that bad. Anyhow, I guess Rafa and Crouch have kissed and made up since it appears that the England International won't be going anywhere come January. If he continues to play like he did against Porto, even I wouldn't mind having him around. There was speculation earlier this season of him being unhappy about playing time and basically acting bigger than his boots, but apparently egos and differences have been put to rest and for the most part everyone is content. Which brings me to my next point.

In this past month, there's been a visible change in our side. Though there's always plenty of room for improvement as a squad, there appears to be a metamorphosis in attitude. Peter Crouch not whining about playing time being just one of the signs. The thing is, between the Blackburn match and the Fulham tie, our boys began to approach matches with a new found outlook. Instead of going in thinking that they will win because we're the better side, they started believing they would win despite the circumstances. I firmly believe it was the record-setting performance against Beşiktaş that assured them that they are a class bunch capable of beating anyone. Funny how revenge that would make Montezuma blush does that. Then, despite coming up empty most the Fulham match, we didn't give up and continued to push and attack until we finally broke the camel's back. I just thought I'd share that observation.

Apparently Hicks isn't interested in selling his shares in the club. In fact, he's angry that such speculation has come about. I find it a bit humorous that any grown man would get angry over such a thing, not that the press didn't just make up that angle to lure readers. Whether he's interested in selling his shares or not, I don't know, but with how unstable financial markets are these days, anything is possible.

The metatarsal injury Daniel Agger sustained two-and-a-half months back, still isn't fully healed, or at least it doesn't feel right to the soon-to-be 23-year-old. He could return next week though versus Reading thanks to special protective boots. Killer boots, man!


Going into tomorrow's match with Bolton, Rafa gave former Liverpool coach Sammy Lee some credit for Bolton's current run of form. As I mentioned in my kids watch yesterday, the Wanderers are unbeaten in their last five matches including a win over Man United. I'm not sure how much recognition their former manager deserves though, not playing Kevin Nolan wasn't exactly the brightest of ideas. He did break in Danny Guthrie into the starting side though, so I guess he's entitled to some credit for that. By the way, Bolton will not have either Nolan, due to suspension, or Guthrie, due to on-loan regulations, when we face them tomorrow.

Finally, Rafa has come out and said that Torres needs to improve his current form. I know that may shock some supporters who believe the striker was our best player in the Porto match, but let me assure you, if he was our best player, we would have lost. Two flashes of brilliance don't make a great match and I've seen Fernando play far better than that. If he was top that match, he would have probably scored four. Be back soon with my 'What will Rafa do?' for Bolton. Godspeed. Yes, that's my new favorite word.

Today's Banter: Hicks wants out?, The Sheik preparing another bid?, Stadium re-financed?, & more?

Normally I wouldn't give a rag like the Daily Mirror the time of day, but this time, common sense prevails. The less-than-astute paper is reporting that Tom Hicks wants out of the club and Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum is once again interested in making a bid. First things first, why do I think that there's any chance of truth in this article? Well, if we look at the sports ownership history of Mr. Hicks in the United States, it's pretty clear he doesn't like to spend a lot of money on players.

Early on in his tenure as the owner of the Texas Rangers, Hicks signed Alex Rodriguez to a 10-year-deal for a record $252m. $25.2m-a-year was a ridiculous amount, not only by 2001 standards when the contract was signed, but even in today's player market. The move was ridiculed throughout the American press and despite Rodriguez putting up phenomenal numbers, the Rangers finished in last place the three proceeding seasons. This lead to Rodriguez being traded to the Yankees along with the Rangers agreeing to pay $67m of the remaining $179m on his contract. In other words, they got burnt... bad.

Ever since then, Hicks has avoided paying obscene or inflated sums for players, opting to let ones too expensive to re-sign leave and passing up others on the free agent market. This cuts his operating costs considerably and if you're not going to be a competitive side anyhow, what's the point in losing money as well? There isn't, but that kind of philosophy just won't cut it at Liverpool and I think Mr. Hicks is finally realizing it. Though the die-hard fans will be there no matter what, the compulsive glory-hunters are where the money is at and big name signings draw the crowds.

One thing I found interesting when doing some research on Hicks was when he built a new stadium for his Dallas hockey team, he received part of a $10m 'bonus' from the government for doing so. I wonder if him investing in our side had anything to do with the fact that we were ripe and ready for new grounds. Maybe he thought he could get a few quid on the side with a similar deal in Livepool? Wouldn't surprise me from someone who counts George W. Bush as a personal friend.

An aspect of that article that I find a bit hard to believe is the claim that Hicks values the club at £1b just 9 months after purchasing it for £219m. Even with the new loans coming through, that's still twice as much as their worth. A half a billion pound just to take on a half a billion pound in debt? He's having a laugh. Of course, he's probably ballooning the sum to avoid being low-balled, but that might be overdoing it a bit. By the way, the Telegraph is also reporting that Hicks is looking to sell his shares in the club. Well, I've been up all night and have to get some sleep. Be back later with more. Cheers.

A petition to back Rafa Benitez as manager

Please sign this petition if you support Rafa Benitez, want his services as manager retained and his transfer policies implemented. It's imperative that Gillett and Hicks understand that this isn't their club, it's ours as well.

petition link:
http://www.petitiononline.com/amg83ds/petition.html

Cheers,
Brian

£4m?! You're having a laugh! Is it time for Gerrard to get involved?

According to this article in the Liverpool Daily Post, the current rift between Rafa and our owners is over £4m. That's the price quoted by AC Milan for their centre back, Kahka Kaladze, a player who would have instantly provided coverage at not only at that position, but at left back as well. In hindsight, I'm not sure if it would've mattered if you consider that the more Hyppiä has played, the better he's become, but I'm also not sure how long the aging Finn can keep it up.

Ultimately though, £4m is nothing, especially of a player with Kaladze's experience and quality. If the owners are going to quarrel over what essentially is peanuts, then Rafa has every right to go elsewhere. Think about that: £4m to basically put the problem of lack of centre back depth to rest. That's utterly ridiculous and inexcusable. If that's not a clear indication that Hicks and Gillett have no clue about football and/or bit off more than they could chew when they bought the club, I don't know what is.

I initially said I wouldn't be addressing this issue, but if there's any truth to this report, it's difficult to ignore. If Rafa's job is in jeopardy because our owners are misinformed in thinking we have the horses to win any race, than maybe it's time the most influential person at the club get involved. I know it's not his place, but Gerrard should at least offer some sort of mediation. I mean, according to most newspapers and blogs, he's an expert on how to solve England's lack of international competitiveness issue, so this should be a walk in the park for him. The squad as a whole should step up and show solidarity in backing Rafa, even if they disagree with his tactics and policies. He wants what's best for the side and has the silverware to prove he knows what he's doing.

The owners need to understand that they got the steal of the century when they bought our club and with just a bit more tweaking (by investing more money, of course), they could build something special. They basically bought a squad that has tons of potential, but just not there yet. Not handing over a mere £4m to augment the side even more, worries me to no end. I'm hoping a voice of reason comes out of somewhere to set everyone straight and I'm sure Gerrard could play that role, but if the meeting on December 16th doesn't go well, we can forget about even having a hope for silverware.

One tactic that the owners have implemented that has all the scent of a bureaucratic power play is stating that Rick Parry will be in charge of transfers. Naming a mediator whom is clearly on their side is a brilliant managerial move, but will only place the club deeper into disharmony and push Rafa further out the door. Ultimately Parry doesn't control the funds nor does he know what's best for our squad, Rafa does. This is where Gerrard needs to come forward and take the side of his manager. Stevie-G is the face and clear-cut breadwinner of the club, without his heroics, the mystique is lost. He is a local boy who against all odds has become a Champion of Europe, leading our club to amazing heights. If he gets involved and the owners still don't see it Rafa's way, well, then I guess we really will know where their true intentions lie and it's not for the better of the club.

Today's Banter: Hicks/Gillett show their true colors & more

What the hell is going on? I'm not really angry about the issue and I can't honestly say I'm surprised, but the recent action of our owners is just witless. Why would they come out with this statement? It makes no sense. Rafa hasn't voiced any complaints to the press concerning transfers, the closest he did was talk about wanting to sign Mascherano permanently and that wasn't even recently.

If that wasn't enough, Tom Hicks made more statements to the Liverpool Echo, which in my opinion is starting to make this sound like an anti-Rafa PR campaign. Here's what he had to say: "After the Champions League final in Athens, Rafa made certain demands of us and we responded to those demands in the summer... We brought in some good players and spent more money than has ever been spent before at this club. We now have some crucial games coming up in The Premier League and the Champions League and we want to see if we can win these games with the players we have. This was the message we gave to Rafa recently and I think during the international break he must have grown a bit frustrated about this. We told him to concentrate on the games coming up and nothing else and I guess he didn’t like that. George and I will be over in mid-December and that is the time to talk about other issues. It is really time for Rafa to quit talking about new players and to coach the players we have."

Let's take a closer look at these words, since Hicks appears to make some distorted allusions. First off, Liverpool "spent more money than has ever been spent before at this club." We only spent a net of £21-25m after you consider the amounts received from transfers. That's nothing compared to what Man U spent and nowhere near the boatloads Abramovich had to payout to make Chelsea competitive. Then he says, "This was the message we gave to Rafa recently and I think during the international break he must have grown a bit frustrated about this." Really? If he was frustrated, why are we hearing it from you? Rafa made no statements in this regard. To say such things is irresponsible and unprofessional. The owners clearly know nothing about football and furthermore, I actually think they believe we supporters aren't smart enough to assess our own club. If they aren't in it for the money, as they claimed when first purchasing the club, then they are the ones that need to shut up and start handing over the transfer money.

It's not like we'll need much anyhow. If we sell Carson and Crouch, that's at least £20m to spend right there. That covers Mascherano's fee and puts a little toward a centre back, hopefully Ezequiel Garay. We could also use another forward, but it's not a dire need with Babel capable of playing up front. If Hicks and Gillett think they can get away with just spending £25m and then blame Rafa for not bringing success to our club, they're sorely mistaken. Give him the players he needs or sell the f**king club! It's not as if he's spending insane amounts. Give him Man U money and we'll win the league, I guarantee it, but until then, they are the ones that need to shut up. Okay, so I did get worked up a little over that after all, but I'm not going to take any bullshit from our owners.

It's looking more and more likely that Hicks and Gillett had no idea what they were getting into when they bought the club. This isn't the Texas Rangers, Montreal Canadiens, Dallas Stars, or NASCAR. Even though Rafa has done phenomenal with the minimal funds provided and is slowly building our youth and development programs, the financial practices of their American sports franchises just won't cut it in the Premiership. There's no chance of parity curbed by a salary cap or luxury tax and it's going to be at least five years until we'll see the fruits of Rafa's youth movement ripen, but there's no guarantee of that either. If we don't see an investment of at least £60m in the next two transfer windows, I wouldn't blame Rafa for walking, and if that happens, there'll be hell to pay.

Speaking of which, in the now famous press conference from earlier today where Rafa said, "I am focusing on coaching and training my team." Thirteen times (!!!) in all, as response to questions other than about the Newcastle match, he also said he would consider the England job if he received an offer. It gave me a bit of much needed comic relief, but in reality, he'll never be offered the position and if so, would never accept. Rafa running England would be a disaster and both parties probably know it. It's not as if he wouldn't be successful, because I'm pretty certain he would, but most of the matches they would win would be utterly tedious 1-0 and ultimately that would be bad for England and the sport itself. I'm sure Rafa was just sending a message to the owners that he could go elsewhere, but they should already know that. Valencia and most La Liga clubs for that matter would love to have Benitez as their boss.

In transfer news, Ryan Flynn has joined Hereford United on one-month loan. He joins fellow LFC teammate Robbie Threlfall at the Edgar Street. Flynn was part of both the 2006 and 2007 FA Youth Cup winning sides. He'll be with the Bulls until the 22nd of December. Cheers.

Today's Banter: Owners 'rift' rubbished, A return to England for Cissé?, Riise to stay, & Rush praises Rafa's tactics

Club Chief Executive Rick Parry has stated that the rift between Tom Hicks and George Gillett is totally fabricated. The 52-year-old revealed that he has recently spent time with both owners and drew no such conclusions of a breach in their partnership. Even if there was, I sincerely doubt the papers would know about it before something major occurred. Parry added that Gillett and Hicks are still on the same page concerning the future of the club and are working on a refinancing package to be completed in the next 30 days.

Former LFC striker Djibril Cissé may be on his way back to the Premiership. The 26-year-old French international has fallen out of favor with his current club, Marseille, and is looking to go elsewhere. It is no surprise that 'Money Bags' Shinawatra at Man City and Eggert 'Big Paper' Magnússon of West Ham are the two being linked to him. Cissé is married to an English woman and still owns a home in Cheshire.

John Arne Riise has rubbished claims that he'll be joining fellow Norwegian John Carew at Aston Villa in January. The recently turned 27-year-old seems very pragmatic about his current dip in form and is looking to improve. Riise has had glimpses of brilliance, but they've been far and few between. He was simply dazzling in the preseason, but at the very least, wholly inconsistent since. Maybe he can get some pointers from Hyypia about how to find his top self once again. I'd rather he stick around, but if he's going to continue to be a detriment, I can't see any reason to keep him aboard.

Finally, Ian Rush has praised Rafa for the tactics he employed in the Fulham match, especially bringing on Torres at just the right time. One of the things that he states in that article that I agree with is that he doesn't believe Rafa wanted to keep the same line-up as the Besitkas match. I really think Rafa did so as a message to his players that he doesn't always rotate on the basis of who's fresh or for tactical reasons. I think he wanted to let them know if they perform well, they'll get more playing chances, a notion some don't think Rafa believes in. Cheers.

Today's Banter: Masche ♥ LFC, Benayoun benched for 3 weeks, Sissoko frustrated, & Owners tussle?

Javier Mascherano is apparently loving Liverpool life and has no desire to go elsewhere. So much so that he has stated that if he doesn't sign with our club, he won't play for any other English side. That's good to hear, but I hope we do whatever we have to secure his services because I'd rather not face a side in Europe with him on it either.

Yossi Benayoun won't be the savior of England's Euro hopes if Israel happens to beat Russia next Saturday. The Israeli captain slightly tore his adductor muscle in yesterday's match. He is expected to miss at least three weeks. Hopefully that'll mean more playing time for Harry Kewell, well, if he can avoid injury playing for Australia next weekend.

Momo Sissoko has once again voiced his frustration about Rafa's rotation policy. I find it a bit odd that he isn't paired in the middle more often with Mascherano and Gerrard placed on the right myself. It's looking more and more likely that he'll be sold in the January transfer window, which in my opinion, would be a bad idea. I know he's slowly dropped out of favor with the fans, but he's still young and a huge talent. I would hate to see him develop elsewhere, especially if he leaves with a chip on his shoulder. Knowing how reckless he can be, that would be a bit scary if we ever had to face him.

Finally, there appears to be a rift between our owners. As reported by News of the World, the same rag that fabricated the Bellamy/Riise golf club incident, Hicks and Gillett don't see eye-to-eye about the stadium plans. If you want a laugh, you can read the article here. It sounds a bit childish towards the end when the it states the two parties are concerned about who the face of the club is. First, Steven Gerrard is the face of the club, so are they both jealous of him? Second, seriously? Two multi-millionaires really give a rat's ass which one is the face of the club? That doesn't make much sense, if I were that rich, anonymity would seem to be one of my priorities. Cheers.

Today's Banter: Jimmy Ryan gone, Torres, Xabi likely to be fit for Arsenal, New stadium costs rising, & more

- Jimmy Ryan will make his loan to Shrewsbury Town permanent in January. Good luck to the lad and hopefully he finds success with the League Two side. I know I criticized him in the past for not wanting to make it with a formidable club like our own, but honestly, if the kid just wants to play football than kudos to him.

- Xabi Alonso looks to be almost a sure thing to start on Sunday versus Arsenal while Torres is looking more and more likely to feature as well. I wonder if Harry Kewell might also be an option as he only played the first half for the Reserves yesterday? That might be rushing things though and with Kewell's track record, probably not the brightest of ideas.

- The new stadium, which is expected to be ready by 2011, was originally supposed to cost around £250m. Now Tom Hicks is saying around £400m is more like it. That's quite an increase in cost which is sure to come out of the supporters' pockets. The thing that most disturbs me about this article is Hicks saying, "There are far better investments I could make than buying a football team." Why do I feel like he's giving me the service?

- Should we feel sorry for Peter Crouch? David Prentice seems to think so. Unfortunately his article appears to lack a bit of logic, especially when it says things like 'They managed two more efforts after his introduction, and this time finally breached Besiktas’ goal' and when further speaking of that match, 'But Crouch looked predictably rusty and wasted the kind of chance he was gobbling up six months ago.' First insinuating that Crouch had something to do with the goal that Gerrard scored, which is far from reality, and then saying he was 'rusty' possibly due to lack of playing time, makes no sense. If Peter Crouch can't take advantage of the opportunities allowed him, then when will he? Predictably rusty? You've got to be kidding. He plays football nearly everyday in training, but apparently he's still 'predictably rusty'. Get off it. It's going to be a long, long time before I get the Marseilles match out of my head, when he was clearly not playing for us.

- Finally we have good ole David Moyes still moaning about Clattenburg's performance last Saturday and now how Liverpool and Benitez in particular reacted to being 'gifted' the three points. Get over it Moyes, maybe you should have played Tim Howard last year when Man United came to town. The Premiership is a corrupt league, except it or rot.