English Football Thread 2012/2013

[Haarithan]

True. I've seen Sterling play in the NextGen Series, and he's definitely one cracking talent. Haven't seen much of Suso, but heard he came through a magnificent display against Everton "reserves" at Goodison (just have a look at their playing XI for that game - 8 first team players!). Pacheco has had an impressive last two seasons, and so has Conor Coady.

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Some interesting facts following our win yesterday:

- This was Liverpool's first Premier League win of the season with Gerrard starting.

- Gerrard yesterday scored in his 400th Premier League appearance. He also scored in his 400th club appearance for Liverpool (v Arsenal in 2007).

- Gerrard taking into account yesterday's game alone has more Premier League goals than Torres has had the whole season.

 

[ste_mc_efc]

True. I've seen Sterling play in the NextGen Series, and he's definitely one cracking talent. Haven't seen much of Suso, but heard he came through a magnificent display against Everton "reserves" at Goodison (just have a look at their playing XI for that game - 8 first team players!). Pacheco has had an impressive last two seasons, and so has Conor Coady too.

they are all on the way back from injury/lacking match practise.

there might have been a lot of senior players, but look at how many minutes they had played between them in the 3 first team matches or so before the reserve game

and if you look at it properly, counting mcaleny's sub appearance 10 players had played for the first team and 9 of the starting XI had not 8

 

[lancashire666]

- This was the first ever hat-trick in a Merseyside Derby.

That is amazing!

All the great goalscorers at both clubs over the years you would of expected at least 1 from the likes of Rush, Dalglish, Cottee, Dixie Dean, Fowler... anyone!

 

[barmyarmy]

I thought they said on the radio that Rush had scored one.

 

[Haarithan]

@Ste: Yeah whatever. Anyway, what was Moyes thinking yesterday when he rested half his playing XI to focus on an FA Cup 'home' tie against Sunderland? Piss poor management.

 

[barmyarmy]

He was thinking we're going to finish above you anyway and we'll be the ones laughing when we're in the semifinal draw and you're not.

 

[Haarithan]

Apologies there - apparently I was over excited when Stevie got his hat trick goal and hence heard it wrong. barmy was right.

Hat-tricks: The first derby hat-trick was scored by Everton's Alex "Sandy" Young who got 4 in the 1904 5?1 win at Goodison. Other Evertonians to manage hat-ticks include Parker in 1914 and Dixie Dean twice, in 1928 and 1931, the last Everton player to net a treble. Liverpool hat-tricks have come from Chambers (1922), Forshaw (1925), Barton (1933), and Howe (4 goals in 1935). Almost 50 years passed before the next derby hat-trick, scored by Ian Rush, who got 4 in a 5?0 win at Goodison in 1982. Curiously, of all the league hat-tricks, only the first (Young's) and so far the last (Rush's) were managed at Goodison: all the others were at Anfield. 30 years after Rush in 2012, Steven Gerrard scored his first hat-trick against Everton at Anfield in a 3-0 win.

 

[JBlues08]

Henderson and Carroll cannot be judged on this season alone because they are still young and have much time to improve. However, Kenny can be judged because he has thrust them into the first XI. I think we would look a lot more favorably on them if they were subs like they should be at this stage of their career at a big club. The money spent on them looks worse because they have to start and so people expect more from them because they were bought as current starters, not future starters as they should have been.

I think it's time Liverpool started placing more faith in their reserves. There are some good players coming through and I don't understand why they aren't getting any exposure. The likes of Sterling and Suso should get the odd game or be sent out on loan. Also, I hope we don't lose Pacheco at the end of this season.

Liverpool's standards must have sunk really low if anyone thinks Henderson and Carroll are the kind of players Liverpool need to be challenging at the very top again. They may still be young and have a plenty of time to improve but do you really see that 'world class' player in them in the future for a club like Liverpool?

Henderson is like a fish out of water whenever he plays and Carroll is just like a clone of Peter Crouch. And it gets worse when you have Downing coming out and say things like this;

Downing hits back at critics | Liverpool News, Fixtures, Results, Transfers | Sky Sports

"Some people look at it and say, 'They are all internationals or they paid this fee for that player they should just come in and do a job'," he told the Daily Star.

"In reality it doesn't happen like that. There are many examples from the past of a lot of foreign players coming in and struggling at first.

"Then all of a sudden, they have set the world alight and become top players. A few of the players have been getting used to Anfield, the lads around them and to Liverpool itself."

Liverpool claimed the Carling Cup last month with a dramatic penalty shoot-out win over Cardfiff. They are still in the FA Cup and have an outside chance of finishing in the top-four.

If they achieve these targets, the former Middlesbrough starlet will view the campaign as a success.

He added: "If we get to another final and manage to finish in the top four it will have been a very good season for the club considering the additions we had in the summer."

 

[puddleduck]

@Ste: Yeah whatever. Anyway, what was Moyes thinking yesterday when he rested half his playing XI to focus on an FA Cup 'home' tie against Sunderland? Piss poor management.

Haha, Liverpool fans not liking the fact that Everton gave them the cold shoulder last night? Effectively said, "Err, we really don't care about a game at Anfield, we have more important things to worry about."

Which is correct. Moyes must be one of few managers who can right off a derby game because of a game he's deemed, correctly, more important.

 

[Manly]

I thought they said on the radio that Rush had scored one.

He got four didn't he?


Lawrenson with t'other.

 

[Haarithan]

Ends 1-1 at Badison. So much for resting half your squad for the derby eh, Moyes? Thoroughly backing Sunderland to qualify for the semis now.

 

[puddleduck]

Since O'Neil took over Sunderland have been a far more inform team than Liverpool.

 

[shravi]

Since O'Neil took over Sunderland have been a far more inform team than Liverpool.

Well, that's no secret now is it? I think most teams have been in better form than Liverpool in the new year.

 

[puddleduck]

No, but Harry's strange bitterness amused me

 

[Themer]

I feel physically sick at the moment.