Liverpool FC Forum

by **hawkmoon269** » Sun May 01, 2005 12:20 pm

Rafa looked fit to be tied! I hope he kicked a few football boots about!!!

He's not the quiet calm man I thought he was...

I think it was John Dryden who said .... "Beware the fury of a patient man"

Come on Rafa, kick some butt!!

by **7_Kewell** » Sun May 01, 2005 12:36 pm

this is good, Rafa is setting a new standard and it's obvious there are players who are just not up to it....anyone Remember Houllier telling us that a draw to boro was a 'good' result? Come on Rafa, stick your foot in, you have to smash some eggs to make the cake

by **65-1114725958** » Sun May 01, 2005 12:36 pm

I think Rafa has to take some of the flack if we end up with nothing but a uefa cup spot this season.

He's made some bad team tactics/ selections. for example playing Potter/ warncock last week and not playing Garcia and Alonso. palace were fighting to stay up and you knew it was going to be a tough game.

That cost us 3 points for definate.

Some of these players as we know, just are not good enough.

you have to bear in mind though, as Im sure you are all aware. If we did get knocked out of europe on tuesday, a very good season will turn into an auwful one instantly.

by **hawkmoon269** » Sun May 01, 2005 12:37 pm

7_Kewell wrote:this is good, Rafa is setting a new standard and it's obvious there are players who are just not up to it....anyone Remember Houllier telling us that a draw to boro was a 'good' result? Come on Rafa, stick your foot in, you have to smash some eggs to make the cake

I doubt Rafa will let players away with under-performing. The axe will come down heavily in the summer.

by **XSD** » Sun May 01, 2005 12:39 pm

I'm quite happy to let Rafa test the water and make mistakes in his first season, if he learns from every mistake he will become a great manager for us.

by **hawkmoon269** » Sun May 01, 2005 12:40 pm

XSD wrote:I'm quite happy to let Rafa test the water and make mistakes in his first season, if he learns from every mistake he will become a great manager for us.

I think it'll take hime 2 seasons to get the basis of the squad he wants.

by **7_Kewell** » Sun May 01, 2005 12:41 pm

Rafa has tested the whole squad this season and knows where our strengths and weaknesses lie....as we have all said before, there are 5-6 players who just don't perform week in week out, hence we can beat Juventus yet lose to Man City! big changes are coming, lets hope the money from the Champions league....maybe even winning it, would bring in more players like Alonso, especially in defence

by **hawkmoon269** » Sun May 01, 2005 12:45 pm

7_Kewell wrote:Rafa has tested the whole squad this season and knows where our strengths and weaknesses lie....as we have all said before, there are 5-6 players who just don't perform week in week out, hence we can beat Juventus yet lose to Man City! big changes are coming, lets hope the money from the Champions league....maybe even winning it, would bring in more players like Alonso, especially in defence

I think if we win the CL, even if we don't qualify for it next season, we can attract better players.

by **lakes10** » Sun May 01, 2005 1:13 pm

A.B. wrote:
again i feel RB picked the wrong team, todays game was just as much a of a must win as tuesdays

Bullshi1t and you know it, our team was good enough to beat Boro.

never, we lacked so much it was a joke

by **LFC #1** » Sun May 01, 2005 2:10 pm

lakes10 wrote:
A.B. wrote:
again i feel RB picked the wrong team, todays game was just as much a of a must win as tuesdays

Bullshi1t and you know it, our team was good enough to beat Boro.

never, we lacked so much it was a joke

he means the team pixked on paper was good enough to beat Boro, and I would have to agree it was a very strong lineup.

However the players didn't perform, so you can't blame Rafa for that although you may like to.

by **lfclfclfc** » Sun May 01, 2005 2:17 pm

7_Kewell wrote:Rafa has tested the whole squad this season and knows where our strengths and weaknesses lie....as we have all said before, there are 5-6 players who just don't perform week in week out, hence we can beat Juventus yet lose to Man City! big changes are coming, lets hope the money from the Champions league....maybe even winning it, would bring in more players like Alonso, especially in defence

Agree. We'll have to start from the back! Get a pair of safe hands in and dump pellegrino! He's clueless again against boro. slow, sloppy passes, unsure positioning and gosh, look at those long legs dishing out short strides, probably clock 15sec in 100m sprints. :help

some positives though... stevie looks more interested and rallies (strange coincidence chelsea looks more disinterested...), nunez is beginning to look the part of a decent winger, hamann back on...

by **siti_zaiton1982** » Sun May 01, 2005 5:57 pm

Red Macgregor wrote:Forget Istanbul, Tuesday will be the end of the Road this Season.
Give Rafa a complete set of videos of the Premiership season and send him off on holiday. Tell him to come back when he has learnt all about what is required for team selection in the prem and the FA Cup.

thats simply ridiculous !!

:angry:

by **The_Rock** » Mon May 02, 2005 4:05 pm

Another one.....

Looks like whole-sale changes next season.

http://www.sportinglife.com/footbal....=soccer

BENITEZ WARNING FOR KOP FLOPS

Liverpool's erratic element are playing for their Anfield careers as well as a place in the Champions League final this week.

That was the message from boss Rafael Benitez as he assessed the latest damage to the club's bid to wrest fourth place and a place in next season's elite European competition away from Everton.

Even with Everton losing at Fulham, Benitez knows that his side's draw with Middlesbrough means their Mersey neighbours need just four points from three games to make sure of that fourth place.

And that would constitute a failed season for Liverpool regardless of what might happen against Chelsea in their semi-final second leg on Tuesday, or even the Champions League final in Istanbul later this month.

Benitez could barely control his anger after seeing more points squandered against a defiant and organised Middlesbrough.

A run of just one win in their last five league games is plainly not the required form at this stage and Benitez could hardly have spelt it out any clearer that jobs, contracts and futures are now on the line by insisting: "I know I need to change a lot of things.

"This is the third time recently we have failed to take advantage of an Everton slip-up, we knew they were losing at half time. Maybe we need to change things for the future."

Benitez made five alterations to the side which played so well against Chelsea at Stamford Bridge in midweek, but he knows now that he does not have strength in depth or experience for such tinkering.

Boro, chasing seventh spot and UEFA Cup qualification, were excellent in the first half and led through Szilard Nemeth at the break, a goal that once again exposed Mauricio Pellegrino's shortcomings.

Even a sensational 30-yard Steven Gerrard strike could not motivate Liverpool sufficiently to make a victory charge.

Gerrard was just as downbeat as his boss, saying: "It was a nice strike, I enjoyed it, but it would have been nicer to have gone home with three points.

"So it doesn't mean as much as it would if we had won the game.

"Knowing that Everton were getting beaten it was a great chance to get closer. We controlled most of the game, but they defended well.

"Gareth Southgate was magnificent and even when we piled the pressure on them we never created many clear-cut chances."

Benitez was as angry as he had been in defeat at Crystal Palace a week previously, and he was going over old ground when discussing why Liverpool have now won only twice following 13 Champions League games this term.

He clearly aims to sign enough players this summer to handle such pressures.

Benitez said: "I am frustrated and disappointed. Maybe the efforts in Europe had taken their toll on us.

"The statistics show that we do not win many games after a European tie or an international break, we need to change things for the future.

"We were better after the break but the game was always stop-start, with injuries, yellow cards and substitutions. We managed to play well for 20 minutes."

He added: "It was a fantastic goal from Stevie, but we know he can score goals like that. We were able to put them under pressure after that but the game was stopped again and again and again.

"We have one more point and one less game, it is a more difficult situation but we will try right to the end.

"We will go to Arsenal next Sunday knowing we probably need to win, but it will depend on the results the previous day.

"We knew Everton were losing, and we tried until the end but the problem is always that the game is being stopped, it makes it difficult to maintain any momentum.

"We have three important games now, at least, and we need all our experience for these matches. We do not want the season to end on a wrong note."

Boro boss Steve McClaren saw his side make a strong statement about their own future, with UEFA Cup qualification within their grasp.

He said: "We are now in pole position for Europe, everybody in our dressing room really wants it and they are showing a great attitude and determination. It was a fantastic display by them all.

"People like Gareth Southgate and George Boateng came through fitness tests and wanted to play and we have now managed three very good results in a week, five points from three games and we are right in the hunt for Europe now.

"I believe the players deserve it, some of them have played lots of games now, virtually without a break and they are dead on their legs."

REF'S REPORT: Benitez was furious with Phil Dowd allowing Boro to stop the game's flow. There were eight second-half stoppages for bookings or substitutions, plus two lengthy breaks for injury, and the Spaniard was clearly berating Dowd at the end for allowing just three minutes overtime.

FUSSY FACTOR: Should have been more firm over continued fouls by players already booked.

by **Red Indian** » Mon May 02, 2005 4:09 pm

I might sound thick, but anyone know how i can get someone else's quote on my message (without retyping it) I tried a couple of things but they didn't work

by **dawson99** » Mon May 02, 2005 4:11 pm

Red Indian wrote:I might sound thick, but anyone know how i can get someone else's quote on my message (without retyping it) I tried a couple of things but they didn't work

click on quote where the box is, so where u wrote that i hit quote...get it?

and rafa has every right to be angry. the team is a real jekyl and hyde this year. bitterly dissapointing one week (losing to southampton!!!!!)

and then beatnig juventus...very bizarre

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