Liverpool FC Forum

by **Scottbot** » Thu Dec 01, 2005 5:44 pm

I must have watched that pass for Garcia's goal about 15 times on my eseason ticket today. I've even made my students watch it! Hopeful punt my :censored:

, it was absolutely top drawer. It's one of the goals of the season for me. Awesome...

by **banana** » Thu Dec 01, 2005 6:15 pm

Some people say Alonso will become world class. Become? He already is. Came back from a broken leg and dominated the midfield against Juventus. Won us the champions league throphy. Continuously distributing passes with surgical precicion week in week out. That is world class. He is a fantastic player both defensively and when going forward. All this because he has so much skill, so much desire and determination and a brilliant football brain.

Who cares about what the press say or how much coverage a player gets? Alonso is boring for the press because he is only a footballer with brains. He ain't no kid (rooney) running around spending big money on fancy cars, going to wild late night parties (kieron dyer) or raping ugly bitch@s(collymore).

by **66-1120597113** » Thu Dec 01, 2005 6:24 pm

Great player our Xavi!
A joy to watch and his eye for a pass is second to none!
Hope he stays his career with us.

by **ozzie1000** » Thu Dec 01, 2005 6:30 pm

i second that barryfast, the quality the man posesses is equal to any other central midfielder in the world, a step from la liga to the premiership isnt the easiest with all due respect to la liga but hes taken it with such ease and comfort, i hope he carries on playing the way he does as im sure it will bring the dood ol days back, mind you the team we have the moment seem to be gelling and are actually looking like a premierleague winning team.

good luck to xabi

by **Sissoko** » Thu Dec 01, 2005 6:39 pm

Agreed!, i think we have one of the best midfields in the premiership, with Garcia, Alonso, Gerrard and Riise. Absolute quality!

by **tel** » Fri Dec 02, 2005 6:30 am

stmichael wrote:Sorry but this has to be said. The guy oozes class and will become a Liverpool great. I mean when you think about the fee we paid for him, it seems to be an absolute snip when you consider that the guy's only 24 and is nowhere near his peak yet. The passes for the goals last night were top class, even if Brian Marwood described the ball for Garcia as "a hopeful punt". If that had been Rooney, everybody would have been lauding it for weeks to come.

It seems to me that he has excelled since Gerrard moved out of the centre. Moving Stevie G to the right has not only balanced the team up by providing width and an attacking outlet on the right but given Alonso and Hamann/Sissoko more confidence to go about their game the way we know they can. Hell Alonso's even our joint top scorer in the League this season. If he starts adding more goals to his game on a regular basis, God knows how good he can become.

Bet Manure and Madrid are gutted, especially as Alonso "chose" to come to us.

I am a 150% certain he knew exactly what he was doing with the pass to Garcia. I've replayed it from every angle possible. It was absolutely brilliant. Awareness, execution. Top Shelf

This is boy is just gold!!!

by **Erica** » Fri Dec 02, 2005 10:41 am

It is difficult to make a better pass than any of the two assists Alonso produced on Wednesday night. Utter class. I hope he keeps it going.

by **Garymac** » Fri Dec 02, 2005 1:15 pm

A HOPEFUL PUNT :angry:

is he taking the p!ss, it was without doubt the pass of the season, i thought punts went about 50 foot in the air, we all know how good Xabi is, and anyone who has seen him play knows he meant that pass, two assists of extreme quality, we did well without him but on his return he just adds not some much a touch, but a fist full of class.

Keep it up Xabi

by **metalhead** » Fri Dec 02, 2005 2:47 pm

i agree with u all a 100%, he is a class midfielder and was a good bargain when we bought him!

looks like he has two eyes in the back of his neck! i mean his passes are world class and how he spot garcia was intelligence from him! His mentality is amazing.

wonderful player! :buttrock

by **Sabre** » Fri Dec 02, 2005 4:52 pm

I think I already commented it, but the first goal was trained. They had their line of defence very advanced, and Luis Garcia's awareness and movement indicates IMHO that he was *expecting* that "hopeful punt".

I don't know much about rugby, but I think a punt implies to kick the ball the further and the stronger you can, no? certainly that ball had the exact power to split up that advanced defence and in order the keeper wouldn't reach the ball, so it hardly can't be a hopeful punt for anybody that understand a little bit about football. It must be envy or hate to us.

So first goal was a well trained play by Rafa IMHO. In the second one I can see more the brains of Alonso more than tactics, he faked a change to the other side, and then he looked, reckoned, and sent a perfect pass to Gerrard, who, btw, finished superbly.

I think this two plays illustrates perfectly why you need different strikers. In the first play a fairly quick striker (yes he finished it as a striker and was a striker movement) like Luis Garcia, or Cisse can make havoc to that kind of defence. In the second play we see how important is also to have a Crouch type striker to have some of the defences stick to him. When the defences are deep, Crouch like players are very handy.

by **Sabre** » Sat Jan 21, 2006 4:13 pm

I recover this old thread posted by StMichael, because I don't find the quotes I'm going to put relevant enough to deserve a new thread.

First quote, is of Valdano, former Real Madrid and Argentina midfielder, who the ones that are older here, might remember as a very interesting player.

He was the one that suggested to Real Madrid to sign up Alonso, but Florentino was overconfident and finally Liverpool got Xabi. Now he regrets it. They have done a 2 pages interview to Valdano. About Alonso he does not say much, but it's MARCA who from the 2 pages, highlights this "IT WAS A MISTAKE NOT TO SIGN UP ALONSO" in big sized characters. About Alonso he says

The game of a team, is dictated in the midfield. The midfielders are the ones who say how a team plays. And Alonso dictates it very well. I like the players like Xabi, because there are only a handfull of them around the world. It was a mistakes yes, not having signed up him

Coming from Valdano, this is very meaningful. Very. He rarely says he's wrong. And I warn you of one thing, mates. Marca is mentioning Alonso a lot. If he does a good WC their going to press in order he'll be the next super mega signing. I tell you to don't worry about it. Xabi Alonso is ambitious, and that's why he left Real Sociedad for a bigger club. But he's already in a bigger club, and he's a Real Sociedad hearted player, still talks about "we" when he's asked by the bástards of Madrid about his ex team. He won't need to leave Liverpool I tell ya. If he leaves Anfield one day, it will be just because Rick Parry decides it.

Another quote is from Alonso himself, that is asked about our Derbi and the Manchester game.

"I have no doubts it will be a round day for me. We'll beat Manchester and Real Sociedad will win 2-0, so I plan to celebrate both victories that day".

Class.

by **mighty mo** » Sat Jan 21, 2006 5:13 pm

florentino perez is a arrogant idiot to pass up on a player of alonso's class thank you rafa ,midfield players like that are rare,like xavi at barca and pirlo at milan players who distribute the ball and make a team tick and control the tempo of the game with ease,madrid's stupidity is our gain :buttrock

by **metalhead** » Sat Jan 21, 2006 9:39 pm

mighty mo wrote:florentino perez is a arrogant idiot to pass up on a player of alonso's class thank you rafa ,midfield players like that are rare,like xavi at barca and pirlo at milan players who distribute the ball and make a team tick and control the tempo of the game with ease,madrid's stupidity is our gain

Madrid were very close to getting him.. but they pulled the plug.. and we snatched him

the best thing that ever happened to us :laugh:

by **L-type** » Sat Jan 21, 2006 10:07 pm

metalhead wrote:the best thing that ever happened to us

Better than 18 league cups ?? and 5 champions league trophies (one thanks to XA)

by **Sabre** » Sat Jan 21, 2006 11:36 pm

Evidently not! just a way to speak I guess! There's no player , no ALonso, no Gerrard, no Dalglish, more important that LFC. Players come and go, LFC stays.

But it certainly was a great pleasure to snatch the player, it was times when Madrid had lot of money and was winning many bids to big clubs, The ones who took decission in Liverpool where wise, quick and efficient. And now they regret it.

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