Liverpool FC Forum

[REDTILLDEAD]

We spent over £70million on transfers this season - which team spent more ?

Where ?

Torres     £26.5m
Benayoun £5 m
Babel       £11.5m
Insua       £1.3
Skrtel       £6.5m
Mascherano £18m
Leto          £1.8

Total £70.6million - add in Dominguez and Itandje to cover your quibbling about how much Torres cost and I think that just about covers it mate 

Yes and here lies the problem........we have spent (or rather rafa has) over  £70 million on players (some only average at that?) and we end up finishing 4th, without any trophies....and everton with little or no money and a smaller squad than ours finish 5th? one place behind us........that for me sums up rafa beneitz.......thats what he should be judged on.....if he is given another season and more money who is to say he wont do exactly the same as this season, and use the money to buy more avarage overpaid players?......if you have the money then spend big on top quality.......not on under preforming below average, and overated players......i think we need a change of direction....someone with a different approach to buying players...thank you and goodbye rafa.

get real soft lad.

This is the season our managers have been backed to pay top whack for players.

torres, Babel and Mascherano are top top quality.

Listen "num nuts"......i am talking about rafa buying "average players" here......not talking about the few (and they are few)players of quality that he has bought...its the average that he likes to spend money on that worries me....and as for being given more money to buy next season.......well we all know rafa would rather buy at netto, than M+S...how fukking many times does it take to sink in to some of you guys eh?.

[Leonmc0708]

We spent over £70million on transfers this season - which team spent more ?

Where ?

Torres     £26.5m
Benayoun £5 m
Babel       £11.5m
Insua       £1.3
Skrtel       £6.5m
Mascherano £18m
Leto          £1.8

Total £70.6million - add in Dominguez and Itandje to cover your quibbling about how much Torres cost and I think that just about covers it mate 

Yes and here lies the problem........we have spent (or rather rafa has) over  £70 million on players (some only average at that?) and we end up finishing 4th, without any trophies....and everton with little or no money and a smaller squad than ours finish 5th? one place behind us........that for me sums up rafa beneitz.......thats what he should be judged on.....if he is given another season and more money who is to say he wont do exactly the same as this season, and use the money to buy more avarage overpaid players?......if you have the money then spend big on top quality.......not on under preforming below average, and overated players......i think we need a change of direction....someone with a different approach to buying players...thank you and goodbye rafa.

get real soft lad.

This is the season our managers have been backed to pay top whack for players.

torres, Babel and Mascherano are top top quality.

Listen "num nuts"......i am talking about rafa buying "average players" here......not talking about the few (and they are few)players of quality that he has bought...its the average that he likes to spend money on that worries me....and as for being given more money to buy next season.......well we all know rafa would rather buy at netto, than M+S...how fukking many times does it take to sink in to some of you guys eh?.

you pay peanuts you wend up with Monkeys.

You spend average amounts on players you get average players.

This close season - backed - proven to be astute.

[dawson99]

this season rafa is finally getting it. hes buying class. and i know every season we say next season will be different... but next season WILL be different. we've learnt so much, from rotating to best formations to what calibre of player to buy

[hello_red]

Well last close season was his first season with real cash to spend (Liverpools 1st ever IMO) and he bought Torres, Babel and in Jan Mascha if given cash he will buy quality.

[REDTILLDEAD]

We spent over £70million on transfers this season - which team spent more ?

Where ?

Torres     £26.5m
Benayoun £5 m
Babel       £11.5m
Insua       £1.3
Skrtel       £6.5m
Mascherano £18m
Leto          £1.8

Total £70.6million - add in Dominguez and Itandje to cover your quibbling about how much Torres cost and I think that just about covers it mate 

Yes and here lies the problem........we have spent (or rather rafa has) over  £70 million on players (some only average at that?) and we end up finishing 4th, without any trophies....and everton with little or no money and a smaller squad than ours finish 5th? one place behind us........that for me sums up rafa beneitz.......thats what he should be judged on.....if he is given another season and more money who is to say he wont do exactly the same as this season, and use the money to buy more avarage overpaid players?......if you have the money then spend big on top quality.......not on under preforming below average, and overated players......i think we need a change of direction....someone with a different approach to buying players...thank you and goodbye rafa.

get real soft lad.

This is the season our managers have been backed to pay top whack for players.

torres, Babel and Mascherano are top top quality.

Listen "num nuts"......i am talking about rafa buying "average players" here......not talking about the few (and they are few)players of quality that he has bought...its the average that he likes to spend money on that worries me....and as for being given more money to buy next season.......well we all know rafa would rather buy at netto, than M+S...how fukking many times does it take to sink in to some of you guys eh?.

you pay peanuts you wend up with Monkeys.

You spend average amounts on players you get average players.

This close season - backed - proven to be astute.

Exactly my point!.....if rafa is still here next season then any money he has...and it should be substantial....needs to be spent on proven quality purchases, you only get what you pay for........forget cheap average buys, go for class...otherwise we will never close the gap on the top three.

[Dundalk]

From Liverpoolfc.tv

A proud Steven Gerrard today reflected on Liverpool's narrow failure to reach Moscow and admitted: "It just wasn't meant to be." 
Despite the 3-2 defeat on the night at Stamford Bridge, the Reds' skipper insists there were plenty of positives to take from the display - even though it will be Chelsea and not Liverpool who travel to take on Manchester United in this season's final.
 
"It just wasn't to be," he said. "Sometimes you just have to hold your hands up and admit it wasn't your night.
 
"We gave it absolutely everything and I was as proud to be captain of the team last night as I have ever been.
 
"Even after going behind we kept on fighting and looking to get back into the game and when we managed to do that it looked like we could even go on and win it.
 
"Like I said, it wasn't to be, but it wasn't for a lack of effort. You have to give Chelsea credit, they are a good side – you don't get through to European Cup finals unless you are.
 
"We've all got to look forward because it's never easy to lose a game like this. We were all desperate to win the European Cup again, especially for our fans, who were magnificent again last night.
 
"The backing they gave us was incredible and we're just gutted that we could not repay their support by getting through to the final.
 
"But there is no point in looking back or thinking of what might have been. We have to look forward because we have to go into next season looking to improve again.
 
"Hopefully, we will go into next season with a stronger squad because that could make a big difference, particularly when we're playing in games like last night's.
 
"And if we can bottle the disappointment we're feeling right now it could be a big motivation for us."

[Avi Cohen]

We were never going to win that game. It had nothing to do with tactics or performances. It was fate. Why? Well...

1. Chelski were due one. After two consecutive meetings and defeats in CL, the law of averages dictated that they were going to win.
2. Frank Lampard's mother dies. Frank Lampard as always going to score the winning goal.
3. Rafa's comments about Drgoba's diving. Cue Drogba scoring a brace.
4. You don't score an OG 4 minutes into injury time at the Kop end and win a tie. Doesn't happen. Written in the stars, lads.

I was watching the game with my girlfriend and was devastated when Essien scored. Then rapture when it was disallowed. My girlfriend pointed out, since I'm always giving out about Utd's blind luck, that that was the sort of thing that would happen to Utd. I had to concede - we had a bit of Utd's luck.
THEN!!!!
We give away a penalty a minute later. I turned to my girlfriend and said, See? Utd wouldn't have given away a penalty a minute later. They would have been awarded one.

Sick as a parrot today, but would rather lose to Chelsea that the scum in the final. Don't think we would have beaten them. It's like we have a mental block when it comes to the bas.tards.

Anyway, thanks for another decent run Liverpool. More of the same next season...

YNWA

[andy_g]

this shouldn't be turning into a 'what rafa has spent his money on' thread but i'll chip in anyway. we've all known that he's been after a number of targets of good quality, simao springs to mind, but the club hasn't backed him with the money when he's needed it. what he has tended to do when unable to get his primary target is to spend less money on a couple of players who will do a job for a season or two. last season we'd have been worse off if we hadn't bought bellamy and in this one too if we hadn't bought pennant, to pick out two examples. now that we may get some decent budgets over the summer we'll hopefully see him buying the class of player we'd all like to see. however, he seems to be a firm believer in a squad with options so i won't be surprised when we buy the odd non-superstar.

[account deleted by request]

I think Rafa has done pretty well in the transfer market. A few too many average players and a little too much turnover of players but overall a good record (apart from Summer 2006 when I think he slipped up with Pennant, Kuyt, Palletta.

The point I was trying to make was this season Rafa has spent £70million and we are no closer to winning the league than last season (in real terms) even when Torres has proven to be everything we could wish for, Mascherano has looked as good as we all knew he was and Babel and Skrtel have done well.

Unless we have a bottomless purse (dic) going off this season even if we spend another £70million we arn't going to close the gap, not unless we have a radical rethink about the way we play and use our best players, and realise that effort doesn't make up for a lack of ability.

I would prefer for example to have two top strikers rather than 1 top striker and 3 average ones. If one of our strikers gets injured then, maybe a reserve has to step in for a couple of games, but at least you are not playing average players just to give them a game or keep them happy.

QUALITY NOT QUANTITY. Too many of our players have shown they arn't good enough to be in a title challenging team, yet get chance after chance to prove it. We have the core of a great side but we need to suppliment that core with quality players not with even more average squad players.

[Owzat]

The point I was trying to make was this season Rafa has spent £70million and we are no closer to winning the league than last season (in real terms) even when Torres has proven to be everything we could wish for, Mascherano has looked as good as we all knew he was and Babel and Skrtel have done well.

Unless we have a bottomless purse (dic) going off this season even if we spend another £70million we arn't going to close the gap, not unless we have a radical rethink about the way we play and use our best players, and realise that effort doesn't make up for a lack of ability.

If you summarise the four seasons under Rafa :-

League : 5th, 3rd, 3rd, 4th.
Average : 3rd/4th, if you discount first season then 3rd
Title challenges : zero

Champions League : Won, L16, Runners-Up, SFs
Summarised : we win it one in four, we reach the final every other year

Domestic Cups : Won FA Cup once, Runners-Up in Carling Cup once.
Summarised : much the same as Champions League, win one every four years and reach the final every other year.



So if we take that as Rafa's average, in four seasons he has finished highest third in the league and way behind the winners, wins the Champions League and a domestic cup every four years. Bar the fact that he won the biggest cup of them all, his record is not that different to Houllier. The points and stakes may be higher, but he's still no closer. Houllier can at least boast an away win against Chelsea, 2nd in the league and some good wins over the mancs not enduring regular defeats.

I checked the poll yesterday, only 1 in 8 people on here prefers the Champions League to Premiership, yet we're happy to win the Champions League and not be close to winning the Premiership by sticking by Rafa. I can't say he definitely won't win the league without sticking my neck out, but where is there any shred of evidence to suggest we will? The presence of a handful of top quality players and some kids who might or might not be in the Wenger-raised mould. We now play out the season and can't even push for 3rd anymore.

Good enough?

[heimdall]

The team played as well as they could but there is the problem, we aren't good enough and have been very very lucky in the champions league for a long time and yesterday it ran out.

All in all I'm not too dissapointed and I'm now looking forward to DIC finally buying the club and a whoel load of top signings coming in. I alos would not mind a new manager although I have been fairly happy with Rafa of late, stuff like taking off Torres is just mind boggling, even a 75% fit Torres is still a threat to any opposition.

Anyway onwards and upwards and you can't win them all although the league next season would be sweet     

[golz]

We'll do these cunts!

Come on, REDMEN!

I'm off to a mate's. But first I need to visit the bog!

YNWA!

We'll do these c unts ?
Nice turn of phrase you have there

Well just so you know

YOU ARE THE C UNTS THAT GOT DONE

CAREFREE YOU SCUM

[golz]

CAREFREEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE

[The Manhattan Project]

The important thing now is to focus on the third place playoff match with Barcelona.

I think we've got a good chance.

[god_bless_john_houlding]

still not come to terms with the defeat, but there were positives to take from it......oh wait there wasn't.

"tactical genius" got it completely spot off. his original tactics would of went out the window with the injury to Skrtel but to go 120 minutes and not bring Crouch on is the mentality of a fella who didn't know what he was doing. bringing torres off...why? because he was "having hamstring problems" well so what. what else did we have to play for this season? nothing because we were out of every other competition again. so let torres try and score (again) and fire us to moscow, instead accept defeat. defending was appauling at times. midfield was no existant going forward. and torres had two touches all night, one goal, one another that he should of burried.

disappointed isn't a strong enough word. they showed lack of passion and pride and willingness to play for this club. istanbul i saw gerrard gearing the players and supporters up, last night not one single player opened their mouth to gee the rest on. everybody is to blame. i can't think of one stand out man over the two legs.