Liverpool FC Forum

Posted: **Wed Dec 17, 2008 8:11 pm**

Thats an extremly good post mick . the only thing i would say is different for us this year is those two results against the mancs and chelsea

Posted: **Wed Dec 17, 2008 8:17 pm**

My views on rafa are close to Stu's but I feel it way to earlyer to get on his back and getting rid of him right at this moment won't improve our chances of winning the title.

Imo If we let him see out this season and see what happens , We have a better Idea what type of manager he is.

If he does throw the title away with more negitive tactics then we all who feel rafa isn't the right guy will have a real reason to say Rafa out !

Posted: **Wed Dec 17, 2008 8:22 pm**

I think in the topic starter whn Stu advocated changing the manager, he was being controversial, confrontational, provocative etc but I wouldn't take him too seriously, that wasn't the point of the post nor the thread. Whatever Stu thinks, if you asked him in percentage terms whether we WILL actually get rid of the manager whilst being top of the league, then he and anybody sensible would know the chances of it happening are considerably less than 1% if we are talking football reasons only.

Posted: **Wed Dec 17, 2008 8:24 pm**

Oh im not sure - i think stu actually does want the manager changed tbh .

Posted: **Wed Dec 17, 2008 8:25 pm**

GYBS wrote:Oh im not sure - i think stu actually does want the manager changed tbh .

So Stu is the 1% I like that haha the 1% man.

Posted: **Wed Dec 17, 2008 8:37 pm**

bigmick wrote: Just about the only area of the league whch is stronger I think is down the bottom. There are no Swindons this time around, even WBA can play a bit.

Once again though I make the point, if the Arsenal team, Mourinho's Chelsea or the better Man Utd teams were in it this time around, it'd be all over bar the shouting by now.

Yeah bigmick, down the bottom is stronger area, and that´s exactly the reason why there is no any team that won 15 games of 17. Even West Ham was able to escape alive from anfield and bridge.

Posted: **Wed Dec 17, 2008 8:42 pm**

Alex G. wrote:
bigmick wrote: Just about the only area of the league whch is stronger I think is down the bottom. There are no Swindons this time around, even WBA can play a bit.

Once again though I make the point, if the Arsenal team, Mourinho's Chelsea or the better Man Utd teams were in it this time around, it'd be all over bar the shouting by now.

Yeah bigmick, down the bottom is stronger area, and that´s exactly the reason why there is no any team that won 15 games of 17. Even West Ham was able to escape alive from anfield and bridge.

See I don't think it's "exactly the reason that no team has won 15 from 17", simply because however bad the likes of Swindon were, you still only played them once in the first half of the season.

The reason why no team has won 15 from 17 or whatever it is, is because there are no truly outstanding teams.

Posted: **Wed Dec 17, 2008 8:48 pm**

and no truely awful teams and no guarenteed 3 points at the moment

Posted: **Wed Dec 17, 2008 8:58 pm**

bigmick wrote:
Alex G. wrote:
bigmick wrote: Just about the only area of the league whch is stronger I think is down the bottom. There are no Swindons this time around, even WBA can play a bit.

Once again though I make the point, if the Arsenal team, Mourinho's Chelsea or the better Man Utd teams were in it this time around, it'd be all over bar the shouting by now.

Yeah bigmick, down the bottom is stronger area, and that´s exactly the reason why there is no any team that won 15 games of 17. Even West Ham was able to escape alive from anfield and bridge.

See I don't think it's "exactly the reason that no team has won 15 from 17", simply because however bad the likes of Swindon were, you still only played them once in the first half of the season.

The reason why no team has won 15 from 17 or whatever it is, is because there are no truly outstanding teams.

IMO, it´s not about if there are truly outstanding teams but how competitive and strong is the league right now.
From my point of view, the EPL of this year is the most competitive ever.
As you said before, even WBA can play a bit. And it makes harder for any team keep a wins row.

Posted: **Wed Dec 17, 2008 9:01 pm**

With the lesser clubs taking points off the big four, are we not in a STONGER position cus we are top of a much harder and more competitive league ?

Or is the glass half empty ?

Posted: **Wed Dec 17, 2008 9:02 pm**

Thats certainly a good way of lookign at it .

Posted: **Wed Dec 17, 2008 9:04 pm**

I agree Mick, which is why I think this may be our best chance for a long time to win the league, and why I am so worried that if we don't take as many points as possible while we have the chance,we may regret it later when one of the other teams really starts to hit form.

Hopefully we will hit our purple patch first and build up a nice little cushion, but I think rather than the mancs trip to the Far East being a big handicap for them, I think it may just kick them into top gear. I just hope I am wrong.

Posted: **Wed Dec 17, 2008 9:29 pm**

The proof of this is the most competitive EPL ever is that Chelsea is not top of the league even having smashed Tottenham Hotspur's 48-year-old record of 10 straight away victories.

Posted: **Wed Dec 17, 2008 9:36 pm**

Leonmc0708 wrote:With the lesser clubs taking points off the big four, are we not in a STONGER position cus we are top of a much harder and more competitive league ?

Or is the glass half empty ?

It's really not about how much liquid in the glass, it's about how strong the league is relative to some previous years (and once again I'll say it, it doesn't matter to us, nor reflect on our achievement of being top in any way).

I think Leeds won a relatively weak Premiership, as did arguably Blackburn. To win it though in front of Arsenals invincible team, or Chelsea's Mourinho back to back winners you would have had to have been a better team than we currently are this season I think. Equally, I think Hull would have struggled to get into the top six at almost half way through the season in most of the previous ten years.

All the teams beating each other is not really a sign of quality. All the teams in the Championship beat each other every season, and it doesn't mean their quality. What it means is the margins between the individual teams is small, as is the case in the Premiership this season. Now if the margin between the teams in the top four and the bottom four is smaller than it has been in previous seasons, then it means the top four aren't as good.

Now I know people will counter that with saying "yes, but how about the theory that the bottom four are actually better, and therefore the league is stronger" and the whole debate goes back to square one. Which is why I'll choose to leave it where it is. If people think this Liverpool team, without Torres and therefore without a recognised striker worthy of the name from what we've seen so far, is the equal of all the other teams which have led the Premiership at Christmas, we'll just have to agree to differ.

For my part, I couldn't personally give a feck as long as we get more points than everybody else.

Posted: **Wed Dec 17, 2008 9:42 pm**

I think its fair to say we arent anywhere near as good as previous teams that have led the league before in certain years .

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