CHELSKI 1 LIVERPOOL 0

Unlucky day at the office but once again Rafa must shoulder some of the blame, his obsession with having to play the off-form Alonso meant having to play Gerrard in the only out-field position that he cannot play, left midfield.
Why did Rafa talk up the long awaited arrival of Gonzalez so much if we are never going to play him, Gerrard in the centre of the action against 10 man chelski could have been the difference between losing and winning and as much as Rafa has improved Liverpool fc and his summer signings have been the most impressive of the top 4 clubs, his policy of rotation at all costs has surely cost us premiership points already.
4 points from a possible 16 is a shocking start to the season but maybe its the perfect wake up call to Rafa.... please play our best 11 and for gods the season is only 4 games old and we have been resting players since game 2 so lets have a little faith in our players to be able to play 2 games in a row without a rest.
Rafa Benitez has brought us triumphs since he arrived that not even the most hardened Liverpool Football Club fans could have foreseen, so we must allow him to do his job even as now it might baffle and annoy the fuck out of us but we have to also question some of these strange team selections of his but as always......In Rafa We Trust

INTO THE LIONS DEN!

Liverpool Fc go into sundays game against chelski as the underdogs, and our results so far this season underline that fact, but i wonder what happens when we put out our strongest starting 11 for the first time as im sure Rafa will do...i hope.
The team i would like to see start is as follows

Reina

Finnan... Carragher... Agger... Aurelio

Pennant.. Gerrard.. Sissoko.. Gonzalez

Bellamy... Kuyt

But im sure Rafa will also play Alonso in midfield and just 1 striker up front, probably Kuyt and maybe Warnock instead of Aurelio.
I have a good feeling about this game as i think Rafa has been thinking about this single game for the last 2 weeks as he has rested players and totally turned Liverpool Football Club`s focus on winning this one single game.
Yes it is that important, if we can get a good result and performance against chelski in their own back yard it will knock that champions feeling of invincibility out of them, and after that who knows what can happen for the rest of the season.
I loved `John the weeper Terry`s´ comments today....TITLE RACE DOWN TO US AND UNITED BY MONDAY.
My god the man is an ass and i hope Rafa hangs a copy of that Terry comment in the dressing room before the game, he might just have done us a great favour by motivating our troops.
Prediction........Liverpool to win 2-1, Kuyt and Gerrard to score...dont care who gets their consolation goal.

WAS RAFA AT FAULT?

Liverpool played some shocking stuff today, the defence was all over the place for the goals and midfield looked lost while Everton picked up the majority of the loose balls.
Up front Crouch and Fowler looked ok but just never got the supply.
My biggest disappointment today was Rafa Benitez starting 11. Ok Everton are a mediocre team but this is the merseyside derby that means this is their game of the season and will give their all to win, Bellamy and Kuyt are the strikers that are going to put the ball in the back of the net more times this season than our other strikers so we have to start with at least 1 of them.
In midfield Alonso should be rested because he is not playing well so far this season for some reason and we cannot afford to keep playing him to sort himself out if we keep dropping points and it will allow us to use Pennant on the right with Gerrard and Momo in the middle. Garcia should only be used in Europe and coming off the bench, i believe Kuyt, Fowler up front a Gonzalez,Momo,Gerrard and Pennant midfield today would have made the difference, the defence today was a shambles and i think its time for Rafa to make the decision on Sami, maybe the legs are just that bit too slow now that his intelligence and experience cant compensate.
We have to play our best 11 in as many prem games that we can, the premiership has to be our priority and today was 3 points thrown away.
We have 4 points from 3 games.....Rafa no more messing about, pick our best starting 11 and show what we can do!

NEW STADIUM FOR LIVERPOOL FOOTBALL CLUB

This has dragged on for so long that i wont believe it till we actually play our first game in the stadium, this has been the one big failure of the Liverpool board.
We should have been already playing in our new stadium for the last couple of seasons, the amount of ticket revenue we have lost out on is shocking, while the mancs up the road have been adding capacity for years and leaving us way behind in money terms.
I just hope that building starts as soon as possible and that the board completely understand that if Liverpool Fc are to remain one of the top clubs in world football that we need this stadium as soon as possible no more excuses or delays.

STRIKER DILEMMA?

Liverpool Fc have a problem that we have been waiting years to have, who do we play up front today in the merseyside derby.
Kuyt and Crouch both scored midweek in the internationals but Bellamy is very hard to leave out while Fowler has been training to reach his peak fitness for the past 2 weeks and must be chomping at the bit to get a game.
While i think Kuyt and Crouch should get the nod for todays game, Rafa may surprise us all again with his selection.....this is the new look Liverpool Football club and what a great problem to have!

LIVERPOOL FC, WHAT HAVE WE DONE?

Rafa has sold Kromkamp, which was expected at some stage because he did not improve the team, but to sell him without bringing in cover at the same time could cost us dearly.
Lucas Neill would have been a great bit of business as Finnan is 31 now and more likely to pick up injuries.
But it is a worry that we have no direct cover for right back now. I know Rafa says Carragher or Paletta can cover if something should happen to Finnan but i would not like to see Carragher moved from centre while Paletta is still clearly learning his trade as seen by his mistakes in the pre-season.
Other last day transfers were crazy, mainly the West Ham saga, 2 great players but the Hammers are clearly been used as a feeder club now, by who nobody knows yet but i dont expect to see Tevez or Mascherano to be there next season, but they will probably get the cream of south American talent to put in the shop window in the future for one season...good luck to them as long as roman chelski is not involved.
The best bit of business from the top 4 was undoubtedly done by Arsenal Julio Baptista is going to be a asset, Gallas is a class defender and wenger seems to have worked his magic again by recruiting 18-year-old starlet Denilson from Sao Paulo.

Liverpool Football Club have still strenghtened more over the summer than our rivals but Arsenal got a little closer with their last day signings, but as always...IN RAFA WE TRUST.

Roy Keane `The Manager´

Roy has taken the step forward and decided to become a manager, after apologizing to everyone he has ever met except Mick McCarthy he is ready to pull Sunderland out of their terrible start to the season.Cant wait to see the action, want a ring side seat for this one. He will make Fergies famous hairdryer bouts of anger seem like a gentle summer breeze.
I know he says he is calmer now and as he says ready to put an arm around a player in support if he needs it, but i wonder will that gentle hug turn into a headlock as the seasons pressure grows.
With Keane there is no in between he will be a great success or a complete flop, wonder what odds they are giving for the police charging him with assaulting one or all of his players, now suddenly The Championship has come to life

LIVERPOOL FC 2 WEST HAM 1

Great game and great comeback, going 1 down with a freak of a goal and not the best goalkeeping by Reina was not the best start, and once again the main culprit was Aurelio, he was totally lost in defence. But enough about the negatives 3 points is 3 points and the fightback was Liverpool Football club was quality.
Agger`s goal was great but being scored by a centre back it was amazing, ok it swerved and turned direction a lot, heading towards 3 of the 4 anfield stands on its way home. But the second goal had team class written all over it, and Crouch showing how good he is with the ball at his feet was a pleasure to watch.
But the thing i will always remember about today was from 52 minutes onwards, thats when Kuyt came on, and being on the pitch 10 seconds took an audacious shot from away out to make his future intentions known, he did not score today but in my 23 years of passionatly following this club i find it hard to remember being more impressed by a player on his debut. He has everything, a eye for goal, not afraid to go back to defence or tackle, but the most impressive thing about him is his hunger, remember this was his debut and he was screaming at his teamates to give him the ball and only a great save from Carrol denied him his dream debut after Kuyt had already played in Bellamy to score only for it to be ruled offside in a 50/50 decision.
Mark my words now, Liverpool Fc have signed a truly world class striker who is suited so well to the ruggedness of the premiership. He has the potential to become one of the truly great Liverpool Football Club legends and go a long way in helping to bring the glory days back to Anfield........................Yes i believe he is that good!

DIRK KUYT, LIVERPOOL FC LEGEND OR FLOP?

According to The Guardian Newspaper the world has a lot to thank Holland for, they say they invented or found the following: Self-milking cows, the microscope, New York, photosynthesis, spermatozoa,
But surprisenly they mention nothing about our new Dutch hitman Dirk Kuyt, that is a mistake because he could be their best export since they started to convince people that wooden clogs were comfortable on the feet.........does anyone actually wear them or are they all hung as souvenirs.
Believe me this guy is going to be a star, we all know about his great goal scoring record, if seen on a diagram against the other top strikers it really shows how good he actually is and playing with a top team like Liverpool Fc it should increase his chances.
People might say that his goals were scored in a weaker league and that the premiership is a very different proposition and the toughest league in the world. All true but Kuyt is no softie and i think he would happily knock John Terry`s teeth through his urinary track and out the other side.
The futures bright the futures orange!

NOT OFF TO THAT FLYING START.......

What the hell was that today, i was shocked when i seen Rafa`s starting 11 Aurelio on left midfield Bolo in central midfield forcing Gerrard out on the right, but i thought he was going with the same plan as last sunday and maybe introduce fresh legs in the second half but the injuries to Riise and Carragher put paid to that plan.
But taking off Fowler to put Pennant on in the last few minutes was madness, we needed a goal so why take a striker off for a midfielder if he thought they were over-running our midfield then Zendon should have been replaced with another midfielder........we looked less dangerous when Fowler came off so it was a mistake by Rafa
This was Sheffield utd we were playing, why did we buy these players in the summer that give us width and pace if we are just going to go back to the old negative formula of a left back playing in midfield and stevie wasting his attacking talents on the right wing........as always.... in Rafa we trust..........but he better start showing more balls and have confidence in our attacking style of football.

Few small things about todays game, i said yesterday that i thought Aurelio was going to be a great player, i was shocked today when they scored, he was marking the player who scored and he totally lost him and then had an expression that said`defending is not my job´ its a worry. Also Kronkamp showed he is not up to the level, Finnan is twice the player he is.
Liverpool Tv gave their man of the match to Gerrard, i think they are wrong for me it was the old timer Sami Hyppia, he was massive in defence and played some great long passes and even had a few chances on goal hitting the post once........as i said before even with all these new young defenders Sami can never be written off, he always rises to the challenge.
Robbie slotted the pen home in great style and he looks as sharp as ever today it was only the supply that was missing.
It was a bad result but its better to get these now this early in the season so we learn from our mistakes and improve and move on to the next level, today some players were caught out today, they are simply not GOOD enough to play for Liverpool Football Club´s first 11, and i hope Rafa has more faith in a wide midfield with lots of attack and pace.
But this is a marathon not a sprint so its not time to worry........ yet!

LIVERPOOL FOOTBALL CLUB.....CHAMPIONS?

The day has arrived Liverpool Fc kick of the new season against Sheffield utd today, and in my opinion there has not been a better squad of players starting a season for us in nearly 20 years.
That is how highly i rate Rafa`s buys over the summer.
Last year we were a good team but Rafa signings has made us into potentially a great team, he has reinforced our defence with Paletta and Aurelio, by the way i think Aurelio is going to be a great player he loves to get forward.
Gonzalez on the left and Pennant on the right has at last given us width and pace, 2 ings we has been missing for years. Rafa was very busy today as we also may have signed Moroccan youngster Nabil El Zhar, one for the future but have heard great reports about him
Up front Bellamy also gives us pace but he is also a proven prem goal scorer and judging by last sunday also deadly at providing opportunities for other strikers.
But i think the most impressive signing was made yesterday Dirk Kuyt, his goals per game ratio is amazing 71 goals in 105 games.
He was idolised at Feyenoord and turned down bigger wages at the toon to join us, clearly he sees a team on the up.
There is no doubt we are a much better team than last year but chelski will be very hard to displace, even though we beat them last sunday they know how to win week in week out in the league. We improved in that department last year but we have to beat the big teams, chelski is a six pointer game to us and we have to approach it as a cup final, but we can be sure Rafa has pointed this out to our players.
Finally a prediction for the up-coming season..i cant see us finishing lower than second and as for top spot, it really is 50/50 i believe we are equal to chelski in every department, even way ahead in midfield but the team that gets off to a good winning run early in the season is going to have a big advantage, but that first Liverpool chelsea game is going to have a big say in the final outcome, i think it will be that tight at the end of the season, but i think we have the squad now to just edge it..............IN RAFA WE TRUST!

DIRK KUYT FINALLY JOINS LIVERPOOL FC

The transfer saga that has dragged on for 2 years finally finished today when Rafa got his man.

Liverpool have completed the signing of Dirk Kuyt from Feyenoord.
The Reds agreed a fee with Feyenoord for the striker on Thursday after weeks of talks with the Dutch club.
The 26-year-old has inked a four-year deal at Anfield after agreeing personal terms and passing a medical.
Liverpool beat a host of clubs including Newcastle to sign the Dutch international.
Anfield chief Rafa Benitez was delighted to make Kuyt his sixth signing of the summer and has tipped him to score goals in England.

He really does have an impressive goalscoring record 71 goals in 105 games for Feyenood, i know the dutch league is not the same quality as the prem but that is some goal tally. We have gone many years since we had a striker capable of scoring over 20 in a league season and Kuyt could be our man.......Rafa seems to see him as the final piece of the jigsaw.

Liverpool Fc.... Have the BBC got something against Rafa?

This is from the BBC, and it seems this reporter Saj Chowdhury knows very little about the clubs in the premiership or Liverpool Football Club in particular, these are his views on likely managers to get the boot this season and those who are safe. Full list can be found Here
But one comparison screams out madness, its marked out of 10 lower the number safer you are, i have picked these 3 to have a look at.

• ARSENE WENGER - Arsenal

  The chances of Wenger getting the boot are as likely as Jose Mourinho turning up to Chelsea's training ground in a dress and a Tina Turner wig. It is not going to happen.

  Verdict: Do the Gunners hand out knighthoods?

  Sack Rating: 1/10

• SIR ALEX FERGUSON - Manchester United

  Every year United fans debate whether Ferguson should stay or leave, but they never call for the 64-year-old to be turfed out - one look at his record will tell you why.

  Verdict: They say there is no man bigger than the club, but Sir Alex comes close.

  Sack Rating: 3/10

• RAFAEL BENITEZ - Liverpool

  Benitez has already achieved sainthood having guided Liverpool to their millionth (slight exaggeration) European Cup triumph.

  He is now looking for his side to achieve the almost impossible, by beating Chelsea to the title. The signing of Craig Bellamy may prove to be his best move yet.

  Verdict: Safe. But many will expect Benitez's men to challenge strongly for domestic and European honours.

  • Sack Rating: 4/10
  
  So this guy actually believes that our Rafa is more likely to get the boot rather than the idiot that just payed over 18 million for Carrick, in my view Benitez and Wenger are the 2 most astute managers in the prem, but i would go as far as to say his job is even safer than Wenger, you have to remember where we were a few years ago under Houlier and the way he has cleaned that mess up and is now put a team capable of challenging for the title.

LIVERPOOL FOOTBALL CLUB 2-1 CHELSEA

Liverpool have won the FA Community Shield for the 15th time in their history after Peter Crouch's goal gave them a 2-1 victory over Chelsea.
Andrei Shevchenko grabbed his first goal for The Blues to cancel out John Arne Riise's early opener for Liverpool, but it was Crouch who had the last word to give Rafa Benitez's men the first trophy of the new season.

What a game and what a masterstroke by Rafa in the mind games battle between these 2 clubs, before the game Rafa said he was not concerned about getting into a war of words with his counterpart Mourhino and old maureen responded to that with the claim that Rafa ´had a problem with him´.
This is a beautiful example how actions speak louder than words, by leaving out our main stars from the starting line-up Gerrard Alonso Hyypia and Bellamy, Rafa showed chelski no respect and that they are beatable even with a second string team. What must these chelski millionaires be thinking tonight as roman tucks them into bed.
But onto the game itself, we had so many good performances out there today Zolo was so much better in the middle today, Crouch was a pest up front and got the goal he deserved, Pennant was a menace, Finnan showed why Rafa has still not bought another right back, Speedy is getting better with every game, Aurelio really impressed when he came on and shows he really really likes to get forward and looks very dangerous when he does, Agger looks good enough to play there now but will get better, Riise showed how good we know he is and if maureen still wants him surely that pushes his price over the 20 mill mark, Bellamy Alonso Carragher and Gerrard
all done well, Bellamy`s cross was inch perfect and great to see him link up so well with Crouch, hopefully a good sign for the future.
But one man impressed me more today than the victory or in the fashion we achieved it, Momo Sissoko, in the first half when he was out there without his superstar teamates Gerrard and Alonso, and for the first time we seen the real Sissoko, against the best chelski midfield that romans millions could buy he ran and commanded that midfield. Lumpy lampard and Co simply had no answer for him as he played them off the pitch, Sissoko has to be regarded as one of Rafa`s best transfer deals..............the boy is simply magic.

LIVERPOOL FC 2-1 MACCABI HAIFA

Not the most impressive start to our season, but on the plus it was good to see our new signings scoring and Pennant playing well down the right. But the final scoreline papers over a lot of the cracks in Liverpools display.
Credit to Haifa they are a good team and we could not have met them at a worse time. Their country is at war and that surely added a bit of fire in their bellys last night, but Liverpool made such a poor start to the game and only Haifa`s goal shook us out of our coma but after Bellamy scored we seem to go back to sleep once again.
The introduction of Crouch and that direct attack finally put Haifa on the back foot and Gonzalez looked good when he was on, and i have to say he did very well to dig that ball out from under his feet to score. But we have a lot of work to do in the second leg, but this time i think we will be fitter and know more about them.
One small point, what the hell have Liverpool got against taking a shot at goal when we have a free kick in range we wasted so many with these little set ups last night, but when they finally let Pennant take a shot only a brilliant save from the keeper denied him.

Rafa`s starting 11 selection highlights what is going to be a dilemma for him in the upcoming season. Sissoko Alonso and Gerrard, how can he fit all 3 of these central midfielders into his formation, and he will want too because Sissoko is the ball winner while the other 2 are more attack minded but too good to be left out, he will play Pennant on the right and probably Gonzalez on the left. That leaves him with 2 options either playing 3 at the back or 1 up front.
I think he will opt for one up front with Gerrard playing off the striker for now but which striker?
Bellamy is more of a goal poacher than Crouch but with Pennant sending in so many crosses Crouch`s height will be a big advantage, and we looked far more threatening when he came on last night. In a perfect world 3 at the back would suit our squad much better but even though Rafa has brought in 2 class central defenders in Paletta and Agger who have huge potential, i fear at the moment thats what it is potential. Paletta looks class and tackles like a cruise missile but he has made schoolboy mistakes but he will learn from them under Rafa`s guidance.
Dont get me wrong its always good when your problem is having so many good players that you have to try and fit them into your team, my only concern is that with playing only one striker we may be going a bit negative with our formation.

• TEAM RATINGS
  
• 25 Jose Reina Had not a great deal to do handled crosses well, could not do much about goal
  
• 3 Steve Finnan Went about his work well, linked up well with Pennant
  
• 23 Jamie Carragher Both central defenders looked bit shaky but Jamie looked more solid as game wet on, some great blocks at end
  
• 4 Sami Hyypia His great positional intelligence was not enough to make up for his lack of pace last night, but write this defender off at your own peril he seems to thrive on pressure when his place in the team is being challenged
  
• 6 John Riise surprisingly left for dust last night on a few occasions, nowadays more comfortable as a midfielder
  
• 8 Steven Gerrard Defiantly still not match fit, but at last we seen a position he cannot play, looked very lost trying to play on the left wing
  
• 22 Mohamed Sissoko Seems Momo is ready for new season great claw like tackles his parried shot gave the first goal and some lovely mazy little runs.......class act
  
• 14 Xabi Alonso Very quiet first half but then Alonso did what Alonso does, one defence splitting pass to set speedy up for the winner
  
• 32 Boudewijn Zenden I think he will be used as cover for our central midfielders did not look good on the left wing last night
  
• 16 Jermaine Pennant Probably the best player in a red shirt last night was a constant threat down the right good free kick, only minus is he really has to improve the quality of his crosses
  
• 17 Craig Bellamy Looked out of position for a lot of the crosses and needs to play more games with his teammates to be able to read there game more, but loved the way he nudged Gerrard out of the way to finish the goal ............shows real hunger
• 10 Luis García Done ok when he came on and had a 50-50 shout for a pen turned down
  
• 11 Mark Gonzalez Only on for couple of minutes but done well to dig ball out from under feet to score, and the boy is fast, think he is going to be a big plus for us this season, and scoring already will help him settle
• 5 Peter Crouch For me it was his introduction that changed the game for us, it put Haifa on the back foot with our more direct style attack, a nightmare for any defender, i just hope Rafa can find a system that allows him to play alongside Bellamy Fowler or whoever we buy
  

ROONEY THE NUTTER , WILL HE EVER LEARN?

WAYNE ROONEY could miss Manchester United's opening three games of the season after being sent off in disgrace again last night. Rooney, whose World Cup ended with his red card in England's quarter-final defeat to Portugal, caught Porto defender Pepe Ferreira with his arm as he jumped for a 41st-minute header. The 20-year-old, who at first refused to leave the field, pleaded his innocence. "I thought the referee was going to give a free-kick for a foul on me, because of the defender backing in," he said. "I can't believe he sent me off for that."

And sir alex defended his little lunatic by saying: He believes Wayne Rooney is being singled out for special treatment following his pre-season red card against FC Porto.

Sir alex of course he is being singled out because he is the single biggest idiot playing professional football in the world today (Lumpy Lampard included), most players with a reputation like Rooneys would try and be a little bit careful after his disastrous world cup adventures but this boy simply does not have the brain cells to relies that.
The most stupid things about Rooneys indiscretions are that most of them are done while not trying to win the ball but in off the ball action, the sarcastic hand clapping to the ref last year that also earned him a red card sums it all up, its not that he does not understand the rules its just that he does not have the intelligence or the will to control that temper.
I think Wayne Rooney for all the talent he has, will be more remembered for his hot head and red cards rather than his football abilities when his career is all done and dusted.

MAINZ 5 LIVERPOOL FOOTBALL CLUB 0

Liverpool completed their pre-season preparations by crashing to a 5-0 defeat against FSV Mainz in Germany.
With next week's Champions League qualifier in mind, boss Rafa Benitez started with a strong-looking side but a five-goal second-half blast from the hosts ensured a spectacular defeat.

Normally i would not care about the result of this game after all its just a friendly and our players are more concerned at the moment about building up there fitness, but for gods sake this is a shocking result we had a lot of players back against a second rate german team. I would expect better from the Liverpool fc reserve team, how low is the teams confidence right now, less than 1 week away from our champion league qualifying game agaist Haifa.
However after our performances and results in our first 2 preseason games maybe this thrashing is a blessing in disguise. Surely this has to set the alarm bells ringing in the players minds ahead of next weeks game and it may even get the players to start grinding out results early in the season, a period that has cost us dearly in seasons gone by.........but only if the players relies that friendly game or not this is not good enough for Liverpool Football Club.

Liverpool not a threat - Mourinho

The nutter maureen is at it again, he will never of course admit how much he really is worried by Liverpool football club, but his latest rant makes even less sense than normal.

Chelsea boss Jose Mourinho says Arsenal and Manchester United will provide greater competition for his defending Premiership champions than Liverpool.
"I still believe United and Arsenal will be the biggest threat. They will be the better teams. "I say that because of the quality of their football, the way they play, the improvements in their squads."
Mourinho is impressed by the summer purchases of both Arsenal and United.

So maureen is impressed with uniteds summer transfers, the mans obviously a genius.

Liverpool are different. They are very competitive, it's very difficult to beat them," he said. "If they score a goal before you score it's very difficult to change it because they defend really well with 11 players very, very compact.

So what maureen is saying here is manure and Arsenal will be more of a threat, because they are less competitive and easier to beat than Liverpool, as i said before the man is a bloody genius.

Man Utd agree £18.6m Carrick fee

Tottenham reveal Man Utd will pay up to £18.6m for Michael Carrick, who will have a medical on Monday.
Great news sir alex is being made to pay through that big red nose of his 18.6 million for a player who would have no chance of starting for Liverpool Football club, dont get me wrong i think he is a good footballer that will improve when he has better players around him but for that to happen he has picked the wrong club.
I would go as far as to say that if manure do not start a rapid buying campaign in the next 2 weeks his former club led by the so far impressive Martin Jol will clinch the final fourth champions league spot.

What is happening at old trafford have the Glazers run out of money or has alex made so many bad transfers lately that he is afraid to make another mistake. Crazy times while Arsenal and Liverpool have bought wisely over the summer old alex seems to be sitting on his hands waiting for Ronaldinho and co to come knocking at his door, not going to happpen my little red nosed friend.
My biggest worry is not manure, its what a good manager like Jol is going to do with that money they are going to be a much better team next season

LIVERPOOL FOOTBALL CLUB....LAST CHANCE SALOON

With the capture of Jermaine Pennant and Craig Bellamy this summer Rafa is really showing how much he is willing to risk to bring the league title back home. He has brought in players that no one else wanted to touch due to there bad reputations, but by doing this he has bought quality proven prem players on the cheap........but will it work.
A lot of people might think we have too many bad apples at the club all at once, but i truly believe that these 2 players know it is there last chance to make it on the big stage and i know Rafa has no scruples when it comes to getting rid of a player that is not doing his all for the club. Its a risk but on our budget thats what might just see us pip the chelski and arsenal.

Duff fee set Toon back just £5million

Damien Duff's transfer from Chelsea to Newcastle was completed for just £5million, a statement to the Stock Exchange has confirmed

Have to admit a great bit of buisness by Newcastle, but for sure at that price Liverpool Football Club would have been after him, because he can play on the right and would have freed up enough transfer cash for Rafa to chase Kuyt. It has to be the case that maureen did not want to sell to us, as i said before he is a lot more concerned by the Liverpool challenge than he is openly saying and i think he really has made a huge mistake in offloading Duff as he is a world class player who has something to offer any football team in the world...........silly silly maureen

Duff to join Newcastle on Monday

It is understood that the Anfield club matched Newcastle's £10m offer but Chelsea were reluctant to lose such a talented player to one of this season's potential title rivals. In addition, Duff was ultimately swayed by his close friend and international colleague Shay Given, United's long-serving goalkeeper, when determining where his future might lie.

I find this whole Duff thing very interesting we need a right sided winger he can play there but its not his natural position, but he is such a good player he would solve our problem on the right and really add that extra attacking spark to the team. So i have no doubht that Rafa really wanted him, but the funny thing about this transfer saga was it was all media and no whispers coming from anfield that we were looking to sign him.
It makes me think that the boot room knew that Chelsea would sell him to anyone but us, surly Duff would prefer to play champions league football next season and have a decent chance of a challenge on the league, it can only mean one thing.....................The Special One is far more worried by our progress than he has been letting on.

RAFA THE VULTURE

England's top clubs are preparing to join the race to sign players affected by the Italian match-fixing scandal.
And Liverpool manager Rafael Benitez said: "There are a lot of good players in these teams and they interest us."

Benitez is thought to be particularly keen on Juve striker David Trezeguet and winger Mauro Camoranesi.

"The players will be a better price now than they would have been three months ago," said the Liverpool boss.

"All the Juventus players are good, including Trezeguet. "He didn't play much in the World Cup but that is because France have so many good forwards."

We have to get in there and scavenge as many of these top players as we can, because if we dont sir alex up the road and mr wenger surly will. Ok we will still have to pay top wages but this levels the playing field slightly with chelski,the other English teams having the chance to sign some world class players in one close-season closes the gap slightly. And remember Rafas reputation around Europe is glowing, so we may see some players willing to spend a season or two trying to become better players under his tuition.

It really is going to make it a very interesting summer of transfers

Bellamy finds net on Liverpool bow

The FA Cup winners travelled to Wales to face Wrexham, and Bellamy enjoyed the return to his home country by scoring the second in a 2-0 win.
Liverpool had Salif Diao and Florent Sinama-Pongolle on show but a host of youngsters were given a run-out with Anfield's World Cup players still on holiday
In my previous posts i have been less than sympathetic to our new crazy little Welsh man, but i hope he proves me wrong and so far the signs are good. Its always good to open your scoring account early with your new club and Bellamy has done that, but also he seems to realize that this is his last chance to make it at a big club, for him its now or never.
I had totally forgotten about Salif Dioa remember him Houliers new Patrick Viera, now it seems we cant give him away thanks for that mr Houlier.
Florent Sinamo-Pongolle could be a very interesting player to watch this year, if we fail to get a new right winger this summer could he do the job for us and if we do get one can he provide competition there.

RAFA BENITEZ is confident he will wrap up a deal to bring Brazilian star Daniel Alves to Liverpool.

Sources in Seville have been saying this week that the proposed transfer of the right-sided player is off because Liverpool will not stump up the £12million asking price.

But Anfield chief Benitez says the Spanish club's stance is merely a negotiating tactic and is adamant that his friendship with the Seville president will see the deal go through.

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The Liverpool manager has told friends that "however long it takes I will get him."

But Benitez is losing his fight to land Feyenoord striker Dirk Kuyt because he is struggling to raise the £10million required to bring him to Merseyside.

Instead Benitez has indicated that he will wait for the fall-out from Italy's match-fixing scandal to see if he can snap up a bargain.

Benitez is interested in Juve's David Trezeguet, Mauro Camoranesi and Gianluca Zambrotta, as well as AC Milan striker Alberto Gilardino.

So what are we doing wrong, money seems to very very tight dont know why, we won champions league last year and have not gone mad spending since.

But at the end of last season our 2 top priorities were at least one right sided midfielder and a world class striker, ok we have Bellamy but we need 1 more striker..........in Rafa i believe but we have strenghtened every position except these.

Cant wait to see Gonzalez play if he is half the player Rafa says he is, its going to be a great and entertaining season.

GONZALEZ EXCITES RAFA

Liverpool boss Rafa Benitez is titillated by the prospect of fielding new signing Mark Gonzalez in The Premiership.

The Reds finally landed their man this summer when the Home Office granted the Merseysiders permission to bring in the Chilean winger, having been refused a work permit 12 months ago.

The plan is unfolding slowly Gonzalez seems to be first choice on left of midfield, Zendon a back up for central mifielder, Paletta in defence with Aurelio as left back and crazy Bellamy up front, sounds great but it leaves out Gerrards favourite link up player and probably one of the best left sided players in the world Risse, and we still dont have our right winger or world class striker.

We have been very badly let down by the transfer deadline in Rafas other dealings lets hope so lets hope we get all our summer transfers sorted soon.

Zenden set for key Reds role

Rafa Benitez has hinted that Boudewijn Zenden will have a key role to play at Liverpool this season.
Who believes that with the amount of left sided players we have.
I like the south american players we have added this last week but surly Gonzalez Kewell and now Riise are our preferred left midfielders,
Me thinks this is just lip service from Sir Rafa

FAILURE AGAIN

I am not english so my views are not clouded by patriotism so i know that the ability of the players sent to Germany did not reach there full potential with there quarter-final knockout. When will the english fa learn that when things are going wrong they have to have the balls to change things, this is from Terry Butcher and his words are spot on

Sven-Goran Eriksson has left his job as England coach after five-and-a-half years in charge - and we are no further forward than when he was appointed.

He has reached three quarter-finals in two World Cups and a European Championship, and that is nowhere near the standard we should be achieving with the so-called "Golden Generation" of players coming through.Why should we be proud of the fact that we have one star on our shirt representing the fact that we reached one World Cup final 40 years ago?

Other countries have two or three stars to signify their World Cup achievements and both Germany and France have the power to add another in Germany.

It is embarrassing. We have only ever been in one final and two semi-finals.

How can we justify calling ourselves a world football power when we are not?

We have become all Billy Big Time and become too big for our boots, and yet we have got nothing to shout about because we have done nothing. This is what annoys me.

We have no right to be as confident or arrogant about our football as we are. It has been not been anywhere near good enough.

And sadly, Eriksson has not taken us on to the next level.

This is very true and something i hope every English fan relises, England has to start all over again pick out there strong points and build the future around that, at the moment its Gerrard and Rooney, but as the Fa has already decided that Mclaren is the new man, expect more of the same after all this man has learned all he knows about international football from Sven so as i see it there is still no light at the end of the tunnel

WILL HARRY KEWELL START AT ANFIELD NEXT SEASON

Harry Kewell great player with an uncanny knack of getting injured before or during Liverpool Fc or Australia´s biggest game`s. Now i am not for a second saying he does this on purpose but it is a reality that it happens to him a lot, something in his head or whatever but not many bookies will take a bet on him finishing a final,
So with Mark Gonzalez arriving Riise and Zendon here already how much will he play next season, enough to justify not selling him?

Aussie Aussie Aussie! Oi oi oi!

A penalty to substitute Francesco Totti with the last kick of the game saw Italy end Australia's World Cup dream in controversial circumstances with a 1-0 win in Kaiserslautern this morning.

Totti's penalty came after Lucas Neill was judged to have brought down Fabio Grosso in the final minute of stoppage time.

The decision sparked outrage among Socceroos fans after TV replays appeared to show that Neill had been unlucky to have the penalty blown against him as Grosso seemed to fall over his legs.

The aussies were great value for money in this world cup and i really wanted them to go further, from the start there great comeback against japan set the scene for a great performance from the growing football nation, this i believe is just the start of the australian football story, i expect to see them a lot more regular at world cups from now on......world cup fever has taken a serious grip on that country and the people just dont wanna let go..........

Confident Eriksson says criticism is unwarranted and vows that the best is yet to come

Sven-Goran Eriksson has grown wearily accustomed to criticism of his team's performances and before leaving Stuttgart last night he found himself in the familiar position of having to fend off hostile questioning. England's head coach acknowledged that the victory over Ecuador had been another unsatisfactory performance but he also accused his detractors of having unreasonable expectations."If we expected to be controlling games for 90 minutes and creating 20 chances then we are in the wrong place," he said. "Today we were among the best 16 teams in the world. Next week it is the best eight. Of course there are going to be times in matches when we are going to suffer
My god this man is an absolute nutter, the only thing he has in his favour is he is lucky, England have so far played terrible football but because they came through the easier of the groups then met Equador,then have the fortune of meeting a Portugese side depleted through bans and injury.
They say its better to be born lucky than rich and Sven is the poster boy for that thought.

I PROVED MY CRITICS WRONG- BECKHAM

David Beckham said he answered his critics after scoring the winning goal against Ecuador to send England through to the World Cup quarter-finals.
"It was nice to silence a few people who have been critical. I can handle my criticism and I'll prove them wrong.
Ok nice goal but the man did absolutely nothing else in the game and he cannot be picked just to take free kicks, and to say he silenced his critics..DAVID its going to take a lot more than 1 goal against a second rate keeper to prove you still have what it takes for full international football .
Overall this was very bad english performance, but it is not the players fault. Sven sent out a team against Ecuador ,the mighty Ecuador with one up front. He could not muster enough courage to play 2 strikers what happens when England start playing the good teams, what formation replaces his 4-1-4-1 surly not his extra safe 5-5-0 formation....England cannot get rid of this clown soon enough, they really seemed more clueless than normal today, it is crazy the guy has been in the job this long and at this stage of a comp he is putting in carrick who had never started a competetive game for england before, it madness after all this time he still dos`nt know his best team or best formation.........this idiot gets paid 5 million squid a year, un- fuckin- believeable...

TIME TO GIVE BECKS THE BOOT

The time has come for Steven Gerrard to inspire England in the way he inspires Liverpool week in and week out. Give him the armband and let him lead England to glory.

If you apply some sound common sense there can be only one solution.

In the past, my main criticism of Beckham has been his lack of mobility both offensively and defensively. In stark contrast, Gerrard is always on the move and his fitness and pace are nearing their peak. He is a well-oiled, ruthless midfield machine.

He falls into a rare breed of players who can lift sides, carry and inspire them.

Beckham is merely in the team these days for his delivery at set-pieces. His contribution outside of that is negligible.

But Gerrard, who has scored two goals in three games prior to the Ecuador clash, can not only provide a similar service in the same position he excels in for Liverpool, but a whole lot more besides.

To leave Beckham out now and play with a four-man midfield of Joe Cole, Owen Hargreaves, Lampard and Gerrard would bring balance, pace, excitement and goals to a dysfunctional area of the team.

Beckham's presence is merely preventing the fulfilment of England's potential. ..............Terry Butcher from The Sunday Mirror

All this we have known for a years, but this world cup has really shown how big the gap is between these 2 players. If England have any real hope of winning this cup it will only be with Gerrard wearing the captains armband.....they would still be a longshot but surly with Gerrard as a driving force there chances would be so much better.......so the question is has Sven got the balls........................................NO

THE NUTTER HAS ARRIVED.....CRAIG BELLAMY

Blackburn Rovers striker Craig Bellamy has completed his move to Liverpool after conceding he could not reject the chance to join his boyhood heroes.
Maybe Rafa likes a challenge and this will surly challenge his man management talents, but if it works he is great value at 6 million and i believe Rafa would not have done the deal if he was not confident of controlling `THE CRAZY ONE´.
I hope this bargain buy allows us to still bring in one world class striker along with Alves but its all about the checkbook now.

PETER CROUCH CAN DO ANYTHING