Liverpool FC Forum

Posted: **Thu Dec 01, 2005 12:00 am**

"A season on the brink"

Is a work of Guille Balague and a journalist of a local newspaper has written an article about it, with juicy views of the CL final by Aiestaran and Otxotorena (hey, this guy used to be of my neighbourhood).

I've searched in the search facility but didn't find anything, if you already know about this work, excuse me, but if you don't, I'll take the job of translating some of the extracts, as they are very interesting... please answer if interested.

Posted: **Thu Dec 01, 2005 12:10 am**

yes please mate!

Posted: **Thu Dec 01, 2005 12:40 am**

good man Sabre you are a quality poster

:bowdown

Posted: **Thu Dec 01, 2005 12:49 am**

Original article: IÑIGO GURRUTXAGA for www.diariovasco.com
Crappy translation: me.

LONDRES. DV."that game was broken from the very first minute», says the Beasain (local town near San Sebastian) man Pako Aiestaran and he removes his jacket to speak with passion about what happened in the 25th of May in the Ataturk stadium, in which Liverpool defeated Milan AC

The second man of Rafa Benitez - it's probably unfair to talk about hierarchies in this group of coaches that always talk in "we do" terms- says this during the introduction of a book that tells the story of that final and the impact Rafa and his guys have had in Anfield

It's "A season on the brink" a journalism work of great quality that has recently published Guillem Balague in english language, he's a commentator and journalist for British TV.

In the book, the protagonist discuss about if it was a mistake or not Benitez's approach to the game in the first half, when Liverpool went to the dressing room with 3-0 against, and with a bit of a shame in their hearts. It has been written that he was wrong because the second half was very different.

That game was broken in the first minute. Traore lost the ball, made a foul to kaka, and the touch of Pirlo was finished to goal by Maldini. "We did study thoroughly Milan, we wanted to play the counterattack game, but from that moment we had to attack" explains Aiestaran. Then Kewell was injured - an attack player

Liverpool was facing the best Milan of the season, explains the Gipuzkoan coach. The gameplay beetween lines of kaka was disarming the english team. And that's how the criticism arose, was a midfield with Alonso and Gerrard on front of the defence enough? didn't it turn out to be too fragile?

"Our central midfielders were not giving a proper answer, they were not doing their job. They were leaving too many spaces" says Ayestaran. "There are players that were driven easily by passion, because of their personality, and thus some games become disordered" that sounds like a diplomatic answer about the problems that they had with Steven Gerrard.

Gerrard is an outstanding footballer, but he wanted titles and his club, in which he was grown, hadn't offered those. At the beginning of that season he was close to sign for Chelsea. The team seemed anxious to satisfy his captain. Ant the prodigy of Anfield seemed as if he was tring to de everything by himself, in taking the corner and finishing it.

Aiestaran, keen admirer of Beckenbauer, admits that it's the english footballers of the team who transmit the passion of the crowd to the pitch, and those Spanish coaches were struggling along the season to show his game plan, by method and Analysis

In the Ataturk Stadium, after the half time 3-0, and what came after that, a legend has arisen about what might have said Benited in the dressing room. Some speak about a speech a la Winston Churchill, blood, sweat and tears, that changed the game upside down with the help of Hamman in the midfield

«Who knows well Rafa, cannot say such a thing», he claims. «He is an analitic person. We were conviced that we'd win Milan on that half. We explained what to do, but we explained that if we didn't score soon, we wouldn't win».

What happened was that Gerrard scored a goal, and that Liverpool scored another two very soon and hold Milan's raction, until fatigue appeared and Milan dominated insistingly on the extra time

In the last minute it happened another legendary moment. A ball to the second post was headed by Shevchenko. Dudek reflected it, but the ball went to the Ukranian, who volleyed the ball for a sure goal. But Dudek made a prodigius save. Juan Manuel Otxotorena says that it was not a matter of luck.

Otxotorena says that the training of a keeper tries to accomplish two main goals: a quick vision of the situation, and how to answer in order to control the attack player

That's achieved through repetition, through constant gameplay analysis and through automatic responses. "Jerzy Dudek, came from doing a good save and acted. If he dropped to the ground, he couldn't have reacted, but he took a quick decission and responded with his body and hands. Shevchenko had already seen the ball back in the net, and he forgot about the process"

-----------------------------------

Well, only the quotes in bold are actually of the Liverpool men. I don't know if the opinions of Gerrard are exclusively from the journalist or he says that after talking Aiestaran and Otxotorena (both from San Sebastian)

But I found that nice to read. I liked the Otxotorena's views, because I come from a land of goalkeepers (except casillas, many keepers of the Spanish Squad have been basques) I think that keeper training is very important and I agree that it was not a matter of luck that great save.

I'd love to hear about what you think about that view from Gerrard, to be honest, I don't think I could blame him of what happened in the first half. Do you?

Don't thank me because of this, for me is important to practice my english, and I cannot think a better way to do that than speaking about Liverpool.

Sabre

Posted: **Thu Dec 01, 2005 12:57 am**

it is available in Engerland.. we had a thread on it somewhere? Jmac got a signed copy.. I'm getting mine soon too.

Posted: **Thu Dec 01, 2005 9:05 am**

Your English is good already as it is, Sabre.

Thanks for the thread.

Posted: **Thu Dec 01, 2005 12:50 pm**

Yeah, I enjoyed it, read it from start to finish last Friday. Some interesting stuff in there about the Gerrard and Owen sagas, the entire build up to Istanbul, a little insight into Rafa's tactical brain and confirmation that we were going to sign Sissoko or Essien as a potential replacement for Gerrard. Interviews with tonnes of people in there as well, from Parry, Moores, Gerrard, Carragher, loads with Ayesteran - and Gattuso.

So when Everton claim they saw him (Sissoko) first might not be 100% accurate. :angry:

Posted: **Thu Dec 01, 2005 11:37 pm**

Nice one Sabre, I do enjoy your posts on here mate :buttrock

Posted: **Fri Dec 02, 2005 10:12 am**

It is a great article, Sabre. Thanks for the efforts you made to translate all that. It is good to meet people who spend time for the benefit and enjoyment of the others. I'm really impressed. Cheers.

Liverpool FC Forum

A season on the brink - Interesting views

A season on the brink - Interesting views