Liverpool FC Forum

[Ciggy]

Serious question guys, who should start upfront on wednesday?
I dont care who scores but we need goals we need the whole team to have a go and score.
I would certainly start with Crouch their defenders wont have faced anything like him, I think one of their defenders kept tapping him on the head in the England game last week 
We need to start this game like the Juventus one, go all out and attack from the off the longer the game goes on if we havent scored nerves will set in.

We need to get even before half time.
The roof needs raising like never before, its OUR trophey go and get it for the 6th time lads you can do it, we know you can. 

[alilo]

it's a big game for liverpool
hope they will win

[Erica]

it's a big game for liverpool
hope they will win

In my opinion this is the most important match of the season so far. I hope they don't score. If this happens, I am sure we will go through.

[bigmick]

Personally I'd start with Crouch and Cisse uptop with Fowler off the bench. I'd play Luis Garcia wide-right. That said, I would think it is an absolute cast-iron certainty that Rafa will start with Crouch and Morientes. If he does, I've got a feeling the Spaniard will score at last, with a shot from outside the box.
I think we will win with something to spare. If we don't and it gets a bit tight then Fowler will come off the bench to get the winner.

[drummerphil]

Personally I'd start with Crouch and Cisse uptop with Fowler off the bench. I'd play Luis Garcia wide-right. That said, I would think it is an absolute cast-iron certainty that Rafa will start with Crouch and Morientes. If he does, I've got a feeling the Spaniard will score at last, with a shot from outside the box.
I think we will win with something to spare. If we don't and it gets a bit tight then Fowler will come off the bench to get the winner.

your more optimistic than me Mick with that strike force,i cant help thinking Nando will only play his usual limited game.BTW I had to laugh when it was reported yesterday that when Chelsea arrived in Barcelona yesterday the coach had stones thrown at it,and the special one got spat on.........
Considering he used to work there it proves how  people cant stand him.....

[ynwa]

Every year we seam to a team about 4-0 5-0 well i think the benfica game is going to be the game. We need to start sing as early as we can like the chelsea game. T he 12 man will bring liverpool home. Cant wait to see the banner. I love european nights at anfield

[stmichael]

it's difficult to know how to approach the game in a way because if we go gun ho and concede then we'll really be up against it. however like ciggy said, it's worth the risk because if we play to a high tempo from the beginning like juventus last year they won't be able to cope with it.

garcia seems to always score important goals, especially in europe, so i'd be tempted to play him on the right. all the talk is of the strikers but i've got a feeling that gerrard is going to be the matchwinner again.

[dawson99]

heres a load of stats and info about the game from bbc sports:

Head-to-Head


Liverpool and Benfica have met on seven previous occasions in European competition with Liverpool winning five times and Benfica twice.
Liverpool have won all three matches against Benfica played in England, 4-1, 1-0 and 3-1.
Both Benfica's victories came in matches played in Portugal and both were won 1-0, the last being the first leg of this tie.
Liverpool have hosted Portuguese clubs on six occasions, winning five and drawing once. The sole draw was against Boavista (1-1) in a Champions League group phase match in September 2001.
Benfica have lost seven of their eight matches in England, their only victory coming in November 1991 at Arsenal (1-3).
Liverpool reached the final of the Champions Cup in each of the three seasons in which they played Benfica.
Benfica have been eliminated from European competition by an English club on six occasions.
Manchester United (1965/66 and 1967/68), Derby County (1972/73), and Liverpool (1977/78, 1983/84 and 1984/85) were the victorious English clubs.
However, Benfica knocked Tottenham Hotspur (1961/62) and Arsenal (1991/92) out of European competition and their victory against Manchester United in their last Champions League match put the English club out.
Liverpool have only been put out of Europe by a Portuguese club on one occasion. Vitoria Setubal eliminated them from the 1969/70 Fairs Cup.
European history


Liverpool have won the Champions Cup/Champions League five times with the most recent coming in May when they won their first Champions League on penalties from AC Milan.
Their previous successes came in 1977, 1978, 1981 and 1984.
They have also won three Uefa Cups and three Uefa Super Cups.
This season is Liverpool's fourth in the Champions League and their 33rd in European competition.
Benfica won the Champions Cup two years in a row in 1961 and 1962, beating Barcelona and Real Madrid respectively. However, since then they have played in six European finals (five in the Champions Cup) and lost them all.
Benfica have 44 seasons of experience in European competition. However, this is only their third Champions League campaign.
In 1994/95 Benfica were eliminated by AC Milan in the quarter-finals. In 1998/99 they were eliminated in the Group stage, finishing second in Group F to Kaiserslautern.
Current European form


Liverpool are unbeaten in the Champions League since Valencia won at Anfield in October 2002 (0-1). The streak is now nine games without a home defeat.
Liverpool are yet to concede a goal at Anfield in this season's Champions League and have not conceded a home goal for four Champions League matches in total.
However, Liverpool have not won any of their last three matches in the Champions League and have failed to score in all three.
Benfica have never won away in the Champions League in their 10 matches outside Lisbon.
Player and disciplinary info


Benfica's Nuno Assis is provisionally suspended after testing positive for a banned substance in a Portuguese League match in December 2005. He will be banned for between six months and two years if found guilty.
Liverpool's Xabi Alonso, Jose Manuel Reina and Dietmar Hamann will be suspended for a possible quarter-final match if they are booked.
Benfica's Nuno Gomes and Beto will be suspended for a possible quarter-final match if yellow carded here.
Florent Sinama Pongolle scored the first goal of this season's Champions League, netting in the second minute (87 seconds to be precise) of Liverpool's 2-1 win at Real Betis.
Fernando Morientes is Liverpool's most experienced Champions League player having played 74 matches.
Morientes has also scored 27 CL goals, more than any other player in the Liverpool squad and good enough for joint eighth place in the all-time Champions League table.
Morientes has also won three Champions League titles already in 1998, 2000 and 2002.
Jamie Carragher is Liverpool's record holder for matches played in the Champions League with 40.
Carragher's team mates Sami Hyypia and John Arne Riise are one match behind on 39.
Luis Garcia is Liverpool's club record goal scorer in the Champions League with seven goals.
Jerzy Dudek (44) and Harry Kewell (24) are the record appearance makers in the Champions League for Poland and Australia respectively.
Reina, Hyypia and Carragher have played every minute of Liverpool's Champions League campaign.
Benfica's Nuno Gomes has netted five times in 12 CL matches.
Giorgios Karagounis is Benfica's most experienced player with 33 CL appearances.
Luisao and Nuno Gomes have played every minute of their club's seven Champions League matches this season.
Petit has started all seven of Benfica's Champions League matches and team mate Nelson has played in all seven.
Other miscellaneous facts


If Liverpool concede two goals, they will have let in 200 in European competition.
One goal conceded means that Liverpool will have recorded 100 goals against in Champions Cup/Champions League.
Liverpool are the first team to negotiate all three rounds of qualification and reach the Champions League knockout phase.
Liverpool trainer Rafael Benitez is the only one of the surviving trainers in this season's competition to have won a European trophy with two different clubs. He won the 2004 Uefa Cup with Valencia before last season's CL triumph.
Along with Chelsea's Jose Mourinho and 12 others, Benitez recorded successive European final victories.
Benfica's first phase group was the lowest scoring group in Champions League history with only 12 goals in the 12 matches.
Liverpool's group was the second lowest scoring ever with 17 goals in 12 matches.
Benfica coach Ronald Koeman won the 1992 Champions Cup as a player with Barcelona.
Liverpool drew 0-0 against Charlton Athletic over the weekend.
Benfica won 2-1 at Estrela Amadora this weekend, thanks to an injury-time winner by Italian striker Fabrizio Micoli. The other Benfica goal was scored by Frenchman Laurent Robert. The club remain in third place in their League, five points behind leaders FC Porto.

[Ola Mr Benitez]

I see Rafa playing his "european team"...

               Reina
Finnan Carra   Hypia   Risse
Garcia  Gerrard  Alonso  Kewell
        Crouch    Nando.


But I am hoping he will play Fowler instead of Nando..

[philchampionsl2005]

Looking at what are best starting XI i belive Rafa could go back to the formation that won us the champ league itself:

                        Reina

Finnan       Hyypia     Carragher      Riise

                Hamann     Alonso
Garcia             Gerrard           Kewell
                   
                      Crouch

subs: Dudek, morientes,cisse,fowler, warnock,

[stmichael]

it's vital that we get an early goal to settle the nerves a bit. the longer it stays 0-0 the more on edge everyone will get, both on the pitch and in the stands. benfica are going to put ten men behind the ball early on and play on the counter attack. however if we can score early i fancy us to go on and win the game comfortably.

[SL_Benfica]

Miccoli and Geovanni back, no one guesses what´s on Koeman´s mind. So many attacking possibilities that i cant even try to imagine a formation... but for sure Koeman knows what ta do. I´d go for a 4-3-3 in the begging of the match:

Moretto

Nelson - Luisão - Anderson - Léo

Petit - M. Fernandes - Beto

Geovanni - Miccoli - Simão

To hang on the 1st minutes liverpool pressure, and provide a poisoned couter-attack (3 small and very fast forwards for the back of liverpool defense). The changes will depend on the result of the first half, but we have great possibilities then: Nuno Gomes, L. Robert, Karagounis... Really dunno what is gonna happen, but one things for sure: we´ll score one goal

To the quarters!

[The_Rock]

This would be my team.

                        Reina
       Finnan    Carra    Hyppia    Riise
                       Hamann
        Cisse          Gerrard      Kewell
                         Garcia
                         Crouch

-I will play Hamann in there so that the offensive players can just concerntrate on attacking while hamann takes care of the defensive duties.....

- Garcia to play support striker to crouch (his best position)

- Cisse to continue on the right (hopefully he can continue his above average performance from saturday).


I have to say, i don't have a good feeling about this match...... (already having goosebumps)..... Hopefully rafa can pull something out of the bag to get us through the quarter-finals.

















Don't really have a good feeling about this match at all

[Lando_Griffin]

Honestly, I'd go:

                                   Reina
Finnan                  JC                Sami                   Riise

                                   Alonso
Gerrard                                                            Kewell
                                   
                                   Garcia

                        Crouch            Fowler.

Like it or not, this is our most attacking "sensible" line up, and Garcia is at his best just behind the strikers.

[Lando_Griffin]

Honestly, I've changed my mind about the team I posted earlier in this thread. I'd now go:

                                   Reina
Finnan                  JC                Sami                   Riise

                                   Alonso
Gerrard                                                            Kewell
                                   
                                   Garcia

                        Crouch            Fowler.

Like it or not, this is our most attacking "sensible" line up, and Garcia is at his best just behind the strikers.