Liverpool FC Forum

[stmichael]

I think you'll all admit that it's been a season with more ups and downs than the average Liverpool fan could ever remember. Looking back now, exactly one year ago, 99% of supporters were disillusioned and down in the dumps after we "magnificently" scraped into 4th despite playing some of the dullest football I'd witnessed for years. Who would have thought that one year on, we would be the undisputed kings of Europe?

So I suppose that it's fitting that we should look back on the last 9 months and honour the good, the bad and the ugly.

....................................................................................

1) Who has been the best player at Liverpool this season?

2) Who has been the most improved player at Liverpool this season?

3) Who has been the best signing made by Liverpool this season?

4) Who has been the worst signing made by Liverpool this season?

5) Who seriously under-achieved this season?

6) What was the best team performance of the season?

7) What was the worst team performance of the season?

8) What was the best goal scored by a Liverpool player this season?

9) What are your expectations for next season?

10) How would you rate Benitez's performance in his first season?


MY CHOICES

1) This season it has to be Carragher. Absolutely immense.

2) Finnan, followed closely by Traore and Biscan

3) Xabi Alonso, just ahead of Garcia.

4) Pellegrino

5) Kewell (yawn) and Baros.

6) Could have said Milan, just because of the nature of the game, but for me it would have been either Arsenal at home or Leverkusen away.

7) Southampton away. The most inept football display I've ever seen by a Liverpool side.

8) Steven Gerrard vs Middlesbrough

9) To produce what we have produced in Europe in the Premiership. Getting back into the top 4 is a must. Breaking into the top 3 would represent huge progress.

10) Top Class. Amazing tactician. Knows our strengths & weaknesses & limitations, but yet seems to get more than anyone expects out of the boys. Accepts blame rather than deflecting it onto others. Is very humble when complimented. Extremely ambitious. Knows our history and respects it as well as supporters. Is someone who would rather do there talking on the pitch than in the media. Will learn from domestic mistakes.

[woof woof !]

1, Carragher
2, Finnan
3, Alonso
4, Pellegrino,Josemi,Nunez (take yer pick)
5, Baros
6,First leg against Juventus.(The final was obviously the better result but for much of the game our performance was poor)
7,Tempted to go for the game against Burnley but considering what was at stake the points lost against Southampton was one of the worst performances ever by LFC.
8,Garcia's wonder strike against Juventus.
9,Solid performances in the premiership with at least a comfortable top 3 finish.
10,Excellent but winning the Champions League has probably protected him from more severe criticism over our performance in the permiership .

[LFC #1]

1) Who has been the best player at Liverpool this season?

Carragher, no question. Epitomises the spirit of this club, an absolute legend.

2) Who has been the most improved player at Liverpool this season?

Finnan

3) Who has been the best signing made by Liverpool this season?

Xabi Alonso, closely follwed by Luis.

4) Who has been the worst signing made by Liverpool this season?

I expected more of Pellegrino tbh, but he was free. Based on fee paid probably Josemi.

5) Who seriously under-achieved this season?

Gerrard, constant speculation has effected his performances, but expect him to be back to his brilliant best next season.

H Kewell, awful.

6) What was the best team performance of the season?

Arsenal in the league, played them off the pitch. Closley followed by Monaco, Everton, Juve and Olympiakos at Anfield.

7) What was the worst team performance of the season?

Southampton away. Awful. Palace and Brum away weren't great either.

8) What was the best goal scored by a Liverpool player this season?

tough to pick. either Garcia or Gerrard's strikes against Olympiakos and Middlesbrough.

9) What are your expectations for next season?

Top 3 finish. Decent run in Europe (UEFA or CL). A cup final would be nice also.

10) How would you rate Benitez's performance in his first season?

Europe - absolutley fantastic, nobody, and I mean nobody could've done what he have done this season.

Domestic - erratic, still learning, but he knows this, and with a lot less injuries next season and a few new players coming in, should see a top 3 finish. Realistically we should finsih ahead of Manure IMO, Arsenal and chelsea will be more difficlut to catch, but we will get there.

[Cool Hand Luke]

1) Carragher by a country mile.

2) Carragher, but Finnan runs a close second, not to mention Troare, Biscan and Pongolle.

3) Alonso, sheer quality and worth every penny.

4) I don't think anyone has been that bad, Pellegrino was free and only bought in as a temporary back up.

5) By his standards, Steven Gerrard, was poor after January apart from a few games.

6) Juventus away, it wasn’t really back to the walls and last ditch tackles, it was a real organised and hard working team performance, limiting them to 2 attempt.

7) Bolton, Birmingham, Middlesbrough, Crystal Palace, Southampton (there are other as well).

8) Garcia against Juventus, or Gerrard against Middlesbrough

9) Use the Champions League win as a serious launch pad to gain ground on the top three, a points total of 75 or more. Get to the knockout stages of the Champions League (I think we will be in it).

10) 5/6 in the Premiership, thought he should have done better even considering the injuries, transitional season, etc. 10/10 in Europe. Handling of media and transfers 9/10. Just needed to adapt to the Premiership quicker, it doesn’t take a whole year to realise the league is physical and passionate.

[Woollyback]

Best player - Carra, no doubt

Most improved - Finnan

Best signing - Benitez (or Alonso of the players)

Worst Signing - Pellegrino

Underachiever - Kewell, don't care about all the "but i'm injured" excuses

Best team performance - Has to be the 2nd half on Wednesday night, but for a full 90minute performance I'd say Juve at Anfield

Worst Team Performance - Burnley in the cup or Manure at old trafford in the league

Best goal - Mellor vs Arsenal

Next Season - at least 2 top class signings and a comfortable top 4 finish, maybe even 3rd with a bit of luck

Benitez - found his feet well in his first season in England although still has room for improvement even by his own admission. He's had his fingers burnt by disrespecting the FA cup, but all can be forgiven for his stewardship throught the CL campaign. Did as well as he could have in the prem under the circumstances - late departure of our best striker, followed by an injury crisis. Very happy indeed with him overall. Onwards and upwards senor Benitez

[stapo1000]

1-Carragher
2-Finnan
3-Xabi Alonso
4-Pellegrino
5-Harry Kewell
6-Arsenal at home
7-Birmingham away
8-Xabi Alonso vs. Arsenal
9-To come at least 4th and at most 10 points from the top of the league. To get to the last 16 in thee champions league should we be given a wild card entry by uefa. To reach any final.
10-To win the champions league in his first season for liverpool was incredible especially given the team rafa inherited from houllier. Our league form was disappointing but it'll improve as he adapts to the premier league. Getting to the cc final was also a good achievement given that he was using a second string team.

[A.B.]

1. Best Player: Jamie Carragher

2. Most Improved Player: Stephen Finnan

3. Best Signing: Xabi Alonso

4. Worst Signing: Josemi

5. Underchiever: Milan Baros

6. Best Team Performance: v Milan

7. Worst Team Performance: v Southampton

8. Best Goal Scored: Luis Garcia v Juventus

9. Next Season Expectations: Top Three Finish

10. Rating for Benitez: 8.5 / 10

[ken_job]

1. Best. carra, where would we be without him.

2. Most Improved. Smicer, was that really him against Milan ? ?

3. Best Signing. Rafa

4. Worst Signing. Nunez, wouldnt get a game with hull.

5. Underachiever. Kewell, CL Final was last chance saloon for that boy, cya later harry

6. Best Performance. Milan, doesnt get better than that.

7. Worst Performance. Palace away, a potential turning point in the league, they new what they had to do...and were awful

8. Best Goal. Luis Garcia V's Chelski.

9. Next Season. Top 3 and consistency away from home. FA cup final

10. Benitez. 8/10, amazing considering the injuries but needs to build from here. good luck to him as well, i hope he's the man to do it.

[A.B.]

2. Most Improved. Smicer, was that really him against Milan ?

Wtf? He played well but on the course of the season the most improved player has been Finnan.

[looprevil]

Best player - Carra

Most improved - Finnan

Best signing - Cisse, for the future.

Worst Signing - Pellegrino

Underachiever - Smicer or Kewell

Best team performance - West Brom in league Juve in CL

Worst Team Performance - Crystal Palace

Best goal - Gerrard olympiakos

Next Season - We should finish top 4, I'd like to see us get into at least semi finals of FAcup and CL if we are back in.

Benitez - Very impressed.  Easily one of the best if not best in europe.  I think with a year under his belt and a chance to do some signings this summer with some extra cash he'll put a real stamp on the team.  It's only going to get better

[ken_job]

A.B.

re: "most improved. smicer"

it was a joke man, hence the "was that really him" comment. finnan had a great season and came on especially strong towards the end. he should be one of the few current players assured of his place in the team nxt season

[Galactico]

1. Best Player: Jamie Carragher/ hamann.... i absolutely believe he's imperative....STAY.

2. Most Improved Player: Stephen Finnan

3. Best Signing: Xabi Alonso

4. Worst Signing: Pellegrino

5. Underchiever: H. Kewell

6. Best Team Performance: Chelsea at stamford bridge semis

7. Worst Team Performance: soton

8. Best Goal Scored: Luis Garcia v Juventus

9. Next Season Expectations: We get top 3, united struggle!!!!!!!!!!!

10. Rating for Benitez: Brilliant, legend for life, but we need to become more consistent and imposing in the prem for seasons to come

[bigmick]

Best player-Carragher. By an absolute country mile.
Most improved player-Biscan. Given his performances in the past, holding his own in the Champions League was an astonishing turnaround.
Best signing-Garcia. "Remember Pires, Henri etc etc". Garcia has achieved more in his first season than any of them.
Worst signing-Morientes. I don't think he'll do it for us. Having said that, we should be able to recoup most of the money we laid out on him.
Underachiever-As above.
Best team performance-First half of league game at home v Chelsea. We absolutely battered them.
Worst team performance-Palace away.
Best goal-Alonso against Arsenal at Anfield. Well worked and a top finish. Goal of season contender in my view.
Next season-Dogfight for third with Manure. Fifth a distance behind. Premiership winning team to lose four or five games as the whole thing becomes more competitive.
Rating for Benitez-he's left a very average squad to work with. Most of them become injured and he has to go into some games without a recognised frontman besides Mellor. He loses his star striker for peanuts before the season begins and his star midfielder is distracted all year. He wins the Champions League, beating the Champions of England, Italy and European giants and Italian runners-up AC Milan on the way? erm.... this is a tough one. Whats it out of? 10? Erm... well I guess it'd be a 10 then.

[LFC #1]

I understand where you are coming from Mick with Morientes, but to say he is the worst signing is a little harsh IMO. I honestly think he can score 10 goals a season in the league and be involved in a lot more goals for the team. He isn't the sort of guy who is gonna bag 20 a season, but I think given time and a good run in the side he'll come good.

Where he'll be most important for me next season will be in Europe, he was immense in Monaco's run to the final, and is a CL winner with Real Madrid with a lot of experience.

[MilitiaRusher]

1) Who has been the best player at Liverpool this season?

The unsung hero, Carragher, for his consistency throughout the whole season. Well done. Got a groin strain during the Milan game and still fought on, unlike someone who needed to be subbed off in the first half.

2) Who has been the most improved player at Liverpool this season?

Igor Biscan or Djimi Traore. Though improved leaps and bounds this season, they would still unfortunatly remain as squad players and would never turn world class. Igor has seriously established himself as a trustworthy midfielder this season where as Traore has been a somewhat reliable left back, apart from Burnley and first half of Istanbul.

3) Who has been the best signing made by Liverpool this season?

Xabi Alonso for 10 mil. Absolutely world class. Best passer in the Premiership but must still improve on physical aspect when on the pitch. We will see the best out of him next year.

4) Who has been the worst signing made by Liverpool this season?

Josemi and Morientes. So far, both have not shown their worth but I'm more confident of Morientes doing it rather then Josemi. Josemi has shown that he is too slow paced to compete in the Premiership. Morientes would start to adapt next season, no doubt.

5) Who seriously under-achieved this season?

Harry Kewell (whole season), Milan Baros (second half of season), Morientes (second half of season), the whole team throughout all Premiership games.

6) What was the best team performance of the season?

Talking about team performances, it must be the home Premiership game against Arsenal or the home Premiership game against Chelsea (first half). On that day, we could just as well sweep pass any team.

7) What was the worst team performance of the season?

Many. Crystal Palace away, Birmingham home and away, Southampton away, Manchester United home and away, Boro away, Newcastle away, Blackburn home, Bolton away, Man City away, Everton away, Chelsea Premiership away, Arsenal away, Olympiacos away, Monaco away.

8) What was the best goal scored by a Liverpool player this season?

In terms of both significance and of spectacle, I'd say Gerrard (Olympiacos), Garcia (Juventus), or maybe even Smicer (AC Milan). They were breathtaking and was even crucial to wining the CL this season. In terms of the Premiership, it would be Garcia (Charlton), Gerrard (Middlesborough), and Mellor (Arsenal). However, the goal with the best buildup was probably Alonso (Arsenal). 

9) What are your expectations for next season?

Turn 3rd or above in the Premiership.
Win more away games.
Win more then 3 games in a row.
A striker which could score more consistently.
Launch a similar run in the Champions League (quarter finals or better).
Have acceptable runs in both FA Cup and Carling Cup (semi final or better for one of them).
Every player to give 110%.
No more transfer rumours for Stevie G.


10) How would you rate Benitez's performance in his first season?

Champions League: 9/10
Premiership: 5/10
Overall: 7.5/10