Liverpool FC Forum

by **dutchman** » Sat Aug 09, 2008 1:47 am

Scottbot wrote:Was made up with the support Xabi got tonight. It sounded like the Kop were singing his name all night long.

Best Fans in the world showing their quality once again

Was made up with the support Xabi got tonight. It sounded like the Kop were singing his name all night long.

Best Fans in the world showing their quality once again

Was at the game Scottbot and I can tell you that Xabi got a lot of love from the Kop tonight, he must be made up with that. (There were a few "You can stick your Gareth Barry up your ars*" chants thrown in as well which was quite funny). I am a long time fan of Xabi Alonso and was really pleased to see the support he got tonight and even more pleased to see him playing so well and getting somewhere back to his best - that has got to bode well for the season ahead.

by **Ciggy** » Sat Aug 09, 2008 2:27 am

RAWKS in meldown over the stick GazBaz up yer @rse chants :laugh:

by **Penguins** » Sat Aug 09, 2008 2:34 am

Well, for good or bad, once a player has had a good season for us and he becomes irreplacable right away.

Happened with Alonso, Sissoko, Kuyt etc.

Then if the player goes backwards and performes much more poorly in the seasons after, it won't matter.

He has become untouchable by then.

And then when the stats say the player doesn't score, doesn't get assists all these lovely excuses for these players.

My favourite is this one:
"Even if they don' score or make assists it's all that hidden work passing that enables Torres to score"

It seems any kind of excuse is good enough for the players who stole the fans hearts the 1st season no matter how backwards their developments goes afterwards.

I prefer calling a spade a spade and it has nothing to do with disloyalty just because you state an obvious fact when a player hasn't performed what is required for a long time= NOT GOOD ENOUGH.

Alono, since we are talking about him is all well and good when playing in the CL or in pre season games when the tempo is low and he gets all the time in the world.

once the Pl season starts and games vs Sunderland, Middlesbrough, Stoke etc once again Alonso will be found out, when he will get no time on the ball and hounded all the way back to his own penalty area.

If Alonso stays this season is his last chance for me to prove he can cope in this league. No more excuses and more production.

Just a class player whose biggest drawback his hurting him severly as he should be plying his trade in another league where his obvious lack of pace won't be as devastating.

I know the truth hurt, and I know the brigade will come hard to defend the saint who has only been of form for some years now.....

by **account deleted by request** » Sat Aug 09, 2008 4:57 am

I agree with most of that Penguins (Happy feet, I loved that one

). My other concern about Alonso is that he has played well while Masch is away, can he play as well WITH Mascherano?

by **Owzat** » Sat Aug 09, 2008 7:36 am

I feel, no matter whether Alonso is in good form or bad, that he won't ever chip in with enough goals. I like him, I'd rather him than *coughs*. But I think there is almost an England cricket team "comfort zone" feel to some of the players, you get a certain level of performance but you know some of them could up their game to another level. We all know that on paper we shouldn't be losing to the mancs virtually every time, we know that we're better than some of the teams we lose to, or draw with, and should definitely not. It's as if they feel that playing for Liverpool in some way means the opposition shouldn't be cheeky and dare to play football or score goals. There's no way the quality of our players is that much lower than the mancs, it's about time we showed that our CBs are among the best around, Torres is the best striker and the midfield truly is as good as any

by **Toffeehater** » Sat Aug 09, 2008 7:39 am

Walkalone wrote:
Toffeehater wrote:
Sabre wrote:But walkalone, the club has said little about Alonso. Most of the Alonso stories are motivated by the press. Xabi's dad told me not to believe everything I read when the Juventus story was going on and time has given him the reason.

The press say a lot of things, days before I went on a miniholidays, you were considering as a fact he'd be a Fenerbahce player, I come back from the holidays and still no news and the player making the preseason.

In Italy they were saying the same things before this, they even were claiming the player was going to have a medical the next day.

I won't deny it always seemed as if he was going to leave, little details like Alonso not appearing in the photos of next season shirt in liverpoolfc.tv site (he was a regular to appear in those adverts), Rafa's words, Barry incoming, were all indicators that Xabi was going but we never know the truth from outside. We don't know whether Rafa is unhappy with Alonso or just wants to ask him more, a kind of "you've been 4 years here, it's time you get more responsabilities in the team" message, which btw, I think it's a fair one.

I hope Xabi gets the message and gives 110% to complete an excellent season.

, spot on , been one of his biggest critics , but i have to say i have been impressed at how he has turned it around this euro's and in the pre season , hopefully this is the return of the xabi alonso that we all saw in his first two seasons

I think this will be a good wake up call for Xabi. Although I didn't think he needed one. May be it is a wake up call for rafa. So that he plays him all the time instead of....um.... what is word?...

Don't say it we might wake big mick up

by **Sabre** » Sat Aug 09, 2008 8:45 am

My favourite is this one:
"Even if they don' score or make assists it's all that hidden work passing that enables Torres to score"

It seems any kind of excuse is good enough for the players who stole the fans hearts the 1st season no matter how backwards their developments goes afterwards.

Erm, if we're gonna ask Mascherano goals besides his work, we'd rather sell him right now before we start getting tired of him, because he won't bring us many of those.

That hidden work, is not hidden, is well seen: Torres didn't score as many goals in Spain among other reasons because the work done behind him was not as good.

In a team like Liverpool, when you have Gerrard in the right, who like to enter the oppo box, Babel in the left, who also likes being near the goal, Torres up front, and Keane behind, tell me, someone will have to watch the back of all those people! otherwise it's impossible to get a good defensive record. All the team has to work defensively and we do well that, but some sacrifices are also needed.

I'll defend Mascherano's game even without goals, pretty much as I've defended Alonso's game as I consider them very good at what they do. And we'd better not start demanding goals to Mascherano, as he'll dissapoint us. It's fair though to ask Xabi more range efforts.

by **Fo Dne** » Sat Aug 09, 2008 8:50 am

Scottbot wrote:
chrissimpson81 wrote:Sorry don't know where to put this on this forum but i've been let down with lift to tomorrows game.I live in Eastleigh,Southampton and have a spare Kop ticket I will swap this for a lift there and back.Please help!
YNWA

Wish i'd read that a bit earlier mate, I live in Colden Common and would have been happy to oblige

Thats a bit like dangling an out of date lottery ticket infront of someone and saying "Look what you could have had...."

by **Scottbot** » Sat Aug 09, 2008 9:14 am

Fo Dne wrote:
Scottbot wrote:
chrissimpson81 wrote:Sorry don't know where to put this on this forum but i've been let down with lift to tomorrows game.I live in Eastleigh,Southampton and have a spare Kop ticket I will swap this for a lift there and back.Please help!
YNWA

Wish i'd read that a bit earlier mate, I live in Colden Common and would have been happy to oblige

Thats a bit like dangling an out of date lottery ticket infront of someone and saying "Look what you could have had...."

Button it Sh..i.tBall

by **Penguins** » Sat Aug 09, 2008 10:02 am

Sabre wrote:
My favourite is this one:
"Even if they don' score or make assists it's all that hidden work and passing that enables Torres to score"

It seems any kind of excuse is good enough for the players who stole the fans hearts the 1st season no matter how backwards their developments goes afterwards.

Erm, if we're gonna ask Mascherano goals besides his work, we'd rather sell him right now before we start getting tired of him, because he won't bring us many of those.

That hidden work, is not hidden, is well seen: Torres didn't score as many goals in Spain among other reasons because the work done behind him was not as good.

In a team like Liverpool, when you have Gerrard in the right, who like to enter the oppo box, Babel in the left, who also likes being near the goal, Torres up front, and Keane behind, tell me, someone will have to watch the back of all those people! otherwise it's impossible to get a good defensive record. All the team has to work defensively and we do well that, but some sacrifices are also needed.

I'll defend Mascherano's game even without goals, pretty much as I've defended Alonso's game as I consider them very good at what they do. And we'd better not start demanding goals to Mascherano, as he'll dissapoint us. It's fair though to ask Xabi more range efforts.

C'mon Sabre.

There isn't a single defensive duty that Alonso performs better than Masherano and for me that means I expect more
than the same output offensivly as Masherano.

Masherano has also more pace which means he doesn't get pushed back deep into our own end and doesn't get caught out of possession.

by **66-1112520797** » Sat Aug 09, 2008 10:22 am

Not the Mascha Alonso debate again.

Most people know whos the better DM out of the two.

On the notion Penguins is pointing out, that Alonso doesnt do enough offensively, well I agree he doesnt do enough, but he is well capable of chipping in with the goals. But that was one of the reasons I wanted us to signed Barry, even in the 4-2-3-1 formation and paired with Mascha in the 2 position. Barry would offer a goal threat more often than Alonso I feel, and tbf we do need a few more goals from the midfielders.

by **Sabre** » Sat Aug 09, 2008 10:50 am

Penguins, I don't think I've included any "better than" in my post. I never liked the "who's better" debate.

The point I was discussing was exactly the one I quoted from you

"Even if they don' score or make assists it's all that hidden work and passing that enables Torres to score"

And I think Mascherano, for instance, isn't a player who bases his game in last passes and goals -- correct me if I'm wrong. Even so, we ALL love his game, we ALL see what he does for us in the pitch, and we all think that all the pounds that were paid for him were worth the effort.

But I also think there's some truth in the post of the mate who says something in the lines that in the first season we make many players idealised, almost untouchable.

Gathering that idea and your quote about goals and assists contribution, I just hope we don't start asking goals to Mascherano, or assists, for that matter in the next seasons, as those won't be Mascherano's forte, unless I'm very much mistaken. That's not anything against his game, which has been outstanding, but a certainty that considering his role in the team, position, and attributes as a player, he won't have great goals and assist **numbers**. Yet he'll be a key to our team's solidness.

Whoever wants a "who's better" debate let him have it, but not with me.

by **66-1112520797** » Sat Aug 09, 2008 11:52 am

My favourite is this one:
"Even if they don' score or make assists it's all that hidden work passing that enables Torres to score"

It seems any kind of excuse is good enough for the players who stole the fans hearts the 1st season no matter how backwards their developments goes afterwards.

Must admit I got that one a lot from certain quarters on here when I scrutinised a specific players role in the team. Apparently they could see things that I couldnt, their eye was more trained than mine. And TBH alls I could see in Alonso play, was a drop in form.

If he can regain his form thats great, but like S@int asked, I'm wondering if he can work with Mascha as a central pairing, and be a little more adventures. As when they were paired together before they looked solid defensively, but there was feck all from them in the center going forward and IMO the team severely suffered because of this.

by **Bad Bob** » Sat Aug 09, 2008 12:03 pm

Bamaga man wrote:If he can regain his form thats great, but like S@int asked, I'm wondering if he can work with Mascha as a central pairing, and be a little more adventures. As when they were paired together before they looked solid defensively, but there was feck all from them in the center going forward and IMO the team severely suffered because of this.

Hold on, Alonso and Masch were the CM pairing for the vast majority of the time we played 4-2-3-1 during the run-in last season. As most seemed to agree, we played our best football of the season during that spell (10 wins, 2 draws and a loss in the league with a +17 goal differential, as well as a strong run in the CL). So, I'd hardly say the team 'severely suffered' from the Alonso-Masch pairing.

by **samurai3000** » Sat Aug 09, 2008 1:00 pm

im a huge fan of xabi alonso and i pray he stays.. he is world class and has shown how good he is.. he could form a good partnership with mascherano in midfield.. really don't want him to go..

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