Liverpool 2010/11 Season Thread

[saif]

Can we talk about Liverpool now?

Moves over the close season?

[hudson]

Sure, go 'ed, saif. Go for your life

Who you reckon we should sign this season?

[saif]

I think two of our players (not sure with Lucas) were significantly, and adversely, affected by the Olympics and it did not help the start to our season. It took a while for the old Masch to come back and the old Babel still hasn't returned!
What are we gonna do after the Confederations Cup (to me, this sounds like a racist name dreamt up by Southern Baptist Churches in the US!) cos there will be a lot of our players there.

On that basis, not sure that someone like Silva would be a great idea.
I am really not sure about *how* we should strengthen - I would not change a single player in our spine of first teamers - I genuinely believe that you cannot do much better.
That is: Reina, Carra, Agger/Skrtel, Masch, Xabi, Stevie, Nando.

I think all or flanks *could* be improved but we have some promising youngsters, and I would love to see some come through.

[abigsmurf]

You wouldn't want Tevez?

[hudson]

I agree on the flanks. Babel will proably go. Riera seemed to have gone a bit poo. He started so well. Dirk Kuyt. Do we move him? It's tough. I'd be scared to change the team too much. Tough situation. We do need some real quality and I agree, Silva could be the man for that. ****, that reminds me, did Atletico beat Valencia last night?? *goes off to check.

EDIT: They did. Atletico have just moved into fourth ahead of them.

Not getting in top four will no doubt mean the Valencia stars will leave...I hope.

[glazza]

hoolak, it is true, they were tripe for parts of the season, but less tripey than the opposition - and that is what counts.
There is no point in being superior to the opposition unless you make it count. There is not a single draw I can think of at Anfield this season, and that is how we lost it this season, where were we not comprehensively the better team? - not a single game. Point the games out for me if you can, but did we get the points? You have to be able to sense the problems in the opposition. Tail end of the season, as MU were stumbling, they rode out the problem and took advantage. When, against Villa, the ref put up the 5 mins, they sensed the dejection in the Villa players and made it count. So what if others don't think they didn't deserve that game - the MU players thought they did and played like that. Similarly, Spurs were totally dumbfounded and by the ref and then MU made them really pay for the ridiclous defending that followed - they did not have to play fantasy stuff to score five. Generally, the title does not come as a result of great play - the real difference is the 1-0. And eight of them in the middle of the season made all the difference.

The gap between the teams within (and throughout) the Premiership this season has been embarassing in all honesty. It feels like a hugely different tournament to the league as we knew it. To see the cchanges, compare the runners ups over the Premier League years to the runners ups in the older system.

I agree with you on everything you say there Saif,but bottom line is season after season the team that finishes 1st is THE BEST TEAM IN THE LEAGUE ..and that is a FACT!!

[Extra Terrestrial]

I agree with you on everything you say there Saif,but bottom line is season after season the team that finishes 1st is THE BEST TEAM IN THE LEAGUE ..and that is a FACT!!

Yeah.

Although, strictly speaking, I think Liverpool has been the most entertaining team this season, or at least during the last few months.



Regarding Hollak's comments, yes I think Babel will go.

He missed an absolute sitter on Sunday!

[SharkSkin-Man]

The spending claims are hilarious. United buy one or two expensive players, your lot spend the same buying 6 lesser players! Only way ve settle that is with some facts like the real figures. Anyone got the yearly player purchase figures to hand, say since Loofa took over? Last time I saw them, the figures were very interesting.

100% real figures are impossible to gauge, as lots of deals are either undisclosed or strangely structured these days.

But...because I'm a boring stats geek, I did sit down and look through all the transfers since 04/05 for both clubs and try and have a decent crack at working it out in February and I posted it in this thread.

Interestingly The Telegraph also had a go at working it out a little later on in March after Ferguson was trying to make out that Rafa had actually spent more.

I worked it out to be:
Benitez's net spend - ?74.95m
Ferguson's net spend - ?112.15m

The Telegraph worked it out to be:
Benitez's net spend - ?72.22m
Ferguson's net spend - ?112.2m

[Extra Terrestrial]

I would like to buy this:



How much are they asking for it?

?60!

Bugger me sideways.

It's nice though, eh?

[hudson]

It's the current kit minus the sponsor. Happens when we play in certain countries. Like France.

Badge should be just a simple white bird with LFC underneath.

[Extra Terrestrial]

It's the current kit minus the sponsor. Happens when we play in certain countries. Like France.

It's a shame as it is their best kit! Why it is £60 is beyond me though.

Badge should be just a simple white bird with LFC underneath.

Hoolak for the Liverpool shirt designer person thingummy!



Like this design mate?

[hudson]

It's that price for without the sponsor. I guess they don't make too many of them.

[Matt]

100% real figures are impossible to gauge, as lots of deals are either undisclosed or strangely structured these days.

But...because I'm a boring stats geek, I did sit down and look through all the transfers since 04/05 for both clubs and try and have a decent crack at working it out in February and I posted it in this thread.

Interestingly The Telegraph also had a go at working it out a little later on in March after Ferguson was trying to make out that Rafa had actually spent more.

I worked it out to be:
Benitez's net spend - ?74.95m
Ferguson's net spend - ?112.15m

The Telegraph worked it out to be:
Benitez's net spend - ?72.22m
Ferguson's net spend - ?112.2m

I'm genuinely surprised at the differences. How does it look since Loofa took over? Year on year would be good

Just to point out the obvious here - when Fergie took over, Liverpool were the bigger team. What Fergie has done is built up United in such a way, that the club earns a lot of money, which he gets to spend. So his success has allowed him to buy the players he wants. That's how things work - because of him, the club earns more, so he gets to spend more. It's really hard to say United are only a success because they spend big. Besides, there are clubs who can spend a lot more, and look how they do

[hudson]

Like this design mate?

Yeah. I think I like this best.



Not sure they'll chang back to the old school badge though. As the current badge features the eternal flames for the 96.

[saif]

Chain, United have always been a "bigger" club than Liverpool in my memory. Even while Liverpool were winning, the money men were Utd and they spent more than Liverpool. They have "monetized" the club very well and managed to do this at just the right time with Sky coming in - they were quick to pounce when the opportunity arose (and we had Souness...).
Rafa SHOULD have spent more than Fergie as he has changed the whole team since he came. Fergie's spend post Rafa does not include, for instance, record breaking signing £30m Rio Ferdinand or record breaking signing £28-30m Wayne Rooney. And there has been inflation since then. It also would not include earlier signings that would be very small nowadays. We can look back and say Roy Keane was "only" £3.75m, but that was a transfer record then and about 50% more than anyone else could afford.

Chain, who spends more than United? Tell me who you have bought and sold over the last 3 years and I can tell you the rough prices.
This season, £50m on 3 players.

glazza, the best team usually, not always, wins, that is not a fact. This season, over the season, MU did deserve it.

smurfy, Tevez is a great player - I'd take him. He may not score that many, he may not create that many (in a stats sense) but he contributes more than the Americanised stats-based approach to analysis can show. Football should never be analysed by pure stats as the game is not repeatable enough - you can only really judge penalty kicks like that.