2008/09 - The Good & The Bad

The Bad

1. No trophies. 2 dismal defeats especially in both domestic cups to poor sides.
2. Buying Robbie Keane.
3. Injuries to Torres all season long.
4. Plans to build a stadium we deserve - shelved once again.
5. Too many home draws.
6. Some shocking home performances from the Anfield crowd - far far too many tickets going to non-fans, travel agents, touts.  The club need to abolish paper tickets and allow people to scan themselves in with their own, unique fancard or whatever.


The Good

1. Managing to get more than half our money back on Robbie Keane.
2. Rick Parry's off
3. Rafa Benitez - 5 more years
4. Steven Gerrard - ditto
5. Hopefully the summer deadline on the ridiculous loan the owners put on the club may see us shut of them.
6. Dalglish possibly coming back to the club.
7. Gerrard footballer of the season.

Your lists please...?

GOOD: beat Manure, TWICE! Chlesea, TWICE!

A good point is throughout the whole season we have been accumulating our highest amount of points since the last time we won the league.

Some cracking performances including thumping 4 past Madrid and United!

Also proving we don't just rely on Torres and Gerrard to win matches, 2nd with them only starting 12 games together!


Something Bad that can be included is Gerrard being injured whenever Torres came back. Also this is very nearly the end of Sami Hyypia's playing career at Liverpool

The Bad

• The manner in which we got knocked out of the F.A Cup.
• All of those draws in games we should have won.
• Robbie Keane.
• It was sad news that Hyypia was leaving at the end of the season.
• Unfortunate injuries to key players.

The Good

• Xabi Alonso - Phenomenal this season and shown exactly why we shouldn't sell him.
• Steven Gerrard - Simply brilliant, again.
• Performances against the top 4. In the table for this we are way ahead on 14 points which is a great improvement.
• Beating United at Anfield and humilating them on their own turf.
• Fantastic comebacks showing great character, e.g. Man City, Portsmouth.
• Giving a genuine challenge for the title.
• Not knowing when to give up, but then again I suppose that's always been a characteristic of Liverpool.
• Agger, Gerrard, Benitez signing new contracts.
• The great belief that we are now capable of special things, we have now have a superb squad.

To your list JD add:-

Good- the improved form particuarly of Xabi and Benny. The probable return of King Kenny to the Anfield staff.
Bad- the behaviour of Itandje at the memorial service.

Good Topic JD 

But it should be called the Good, the Bad and the Ugly. 


The Good

1. Being top of the League for some many weeks this season

2. Steven Gerrard being named Football Writers Player of the Year

3. Rafa signing on for another 5 years

4. Stevie committing himself to Liverpool for the rest of his career

5. The wonderful support for the 20th Anniversary of Hillsborough

6. Doing the double over manure and chelski

*7. Being involved in the race for the Premiership for so long this season (Its what we all dream of)



The Bad

1. Not having Torres and Gerrard fit for a large part of the season

2. Too many draws at home this season 

3. Ending the season trophyless

4. The backroom squabbles

5. Some of the Refereeing decisions have been pretty bad this season



The Ugly

1. manure equaling our League record

2. The disgusting antics of Pretty boy and dogbreath

3. Having to put up with chewing of fergiescum's face

4. Having the media suck up to manure

5. Fergie thinking he's bigger than anyone and everyone has to play by his rules, 

6. The FA for not having the balls to stand up to fergie


* added extra

As above.

Also off the top of my head.

The Bad

1. Getting Chelsea again in the knock out stages of the European Cup. Not down to the fact that we went out to them. More so the fact that it's getting terribly boring now.
2. Injuries to Steven Gerrard and Martin Skrtel.
3. The horrible drawn out contract negotiations of our manager and speculation that came with it.
4. The boos at Anfield.
5. Babel not pushing on and improving on the season before.

The Good

1. Emiliano Insua
2. Taking big points off our closet league rivals - something we really had to prove to ourselves that we could do this season.
3. A title challenge until there is two games left to play.
4. Grit, determination and belief amongst good and bad periods of football from the reds.
5. Agger signing a contract extension.
6. The march to Anfield before we played the scum at home. Solid!

I can't believe this has been missed, and it's without doubt good;

That press conference when Rafa laid into United and said what every other manager is too scared to say in case they upset Fergie. Fact.

I can't believe this has been missed, and it's without doubt good;

That press conference when Rafa laid into United and said what every other manager is too scared to say in case they upset Fergie. Fact.

Couldn't agree with you more 7KK7 but..............


Personally I felt that it was the wrong time to say it 

Although I completely stand by what Rafa said, and I'm pleased he stood up to Fergie, as a lot wouldn't for fear of repercussions, I just wish Rafa had of waited, as after it happened it was around the time when we hit our bad patch of draws 

Couldn't agree with you more 7KK7 but..............

Personally I felt that it was the wrong time to say it 

Although I completely stand by what Rafa said, and I'm pleased he stood up to Fergie, as a lot wouldn't for fear of repercussions, I just wish Rafa had of waited, as after it happened it was around the time when we hit our bad patch of draws 

Yet another season lost to the Mancs !! As much as it galls me to say it the Premiership table doesnt lie and they have shafted us yet again !!
All due respect to Rafa he came close this season and he has rattled Sir Alex Slurgusons cage and it bodes well for the 2009/2010 season.
We (LFC) lost our way with all the poor results at home before Christmas and it cost us dear.
Rafa must be given time and he has proved he is up too the task to challege and win the Premiership title and its not a question of IF but WHEN !! 

Well, for me, the way the twenty year anniversary of the Hillsborough disaster was marked was an exceptional thing. The emotion that surrounded such a momentous anniversary, and the dignity of the club, fans and players (forgetting one) should get a mention here in this thread. Not only was Anfield packed to the rafters for the service, but the city, as a whole, rose and said to the world:

'We will not forget. We will not stop fighting for JUSTICE.'

Although I knew it would be a sad day, I also knew that it would make me immensely proud to be a fan of this wonderful club and family.

And the lads have done us proud this season. They've fought and fought, and while everything hasn't always gone their way, they've kept fighting, right up until almost the last game of the season.

So congratulations to the team and the management, and congratulations to the fans for helping make this great club what it is and what it will continue to be.

The good points
   
 1. Rafa signs contract
 2. Agger signs new contract
 3.Stevie wins player of the year
 4.Yossi proves his worth
 5.Xabi's brilliant form this season
 6.Getting rid of Robbie Keane
 7.The way the hillsborough memorial was carried out
 8. Finishing second ( fingers crossed ) improved on last year
 9.Belief shown by our players that they can win against the odds
10.Beating manure at old toilet
 The bad points
 1. Buying Robbie Keane
 2. Losing the title race
 3. Injuries to key players ..Nando,Stevie,
 4. Missing out on a champions league final
 5. Backroom backstabbing and undermining Rafa
 6. Too many squad players not good enough

 6. Too many squad players not good enough

I agree with all your points except this one fella. The fact that we are where we are in the league without Nando and Gerrard for large parts is a very good sign that the squad players are good enough or else we would have lost a lot more than 2 games.

Yes Dossena, for example, isn't what you'd call a great signing and a vital key player but he has still pulled his weight this season, struggled at the start but the turn of the year he has been a lot better and even scored a couple of good goals.

The Good

- The up turn form of Xabi Alonso
- Scoring the most goals in the league
- Ending Chelsea's home record
- Finally proving we're good enough to beat England's finest
- Another 20+ goal season for Gerrard
- The bollocks off the field, finally stopped becoming an every day occurrence
- Contracts signed for manager, coaching staff and key members of the playing staff
- Another youth cup final to look forward to just to underline the future of this club
- Wins at Goodison Park, Old Trafford and Stamford Bridge
- Sammy Lee returning to his club
- The promotion of youngsters such as Insua, El Zhar, Spearing, Darby, Kelly
- An immaculate service of the 20th Anniversary of the Hillsborough disaster in which we remembered our 96 lost souls and continued the fight for justice
- An outstanding match in aid of Marina Dalglish's Appeal between the LFC Legend and an All Star side
- Tim Lovejoy missing an open goal in front of the Kop
- Steven Gerrard being the only non-United player to be nominated for PFA Player of the Year and winning the Writers and Fans player of the year as well as coming second in the rigged PFA Awards
- The best disciplinary in the Premiership

The Bad

- The summer signings
- The every other takeover talk ahead of a Champions League game
- The home draws
- The home crowd by and large
- Going out of every cup competition far too early
- Intandje's inexcusable behavior at the Hillsborough Remembrance Service
- The Olympics
- Injuries to pretty much everyone of our key players throughout the season
- Sami Hyppia leaving at the end of the season
- The referee falling (pun intended) for Drogba's antics in the Champions League
- The amount of time it took Benitez to get the contract he wished for
- The Gareth Barry saga from the summer, which is still ongoing
- The reserves

The Good:

* Losing Only 2 Games
* Players having their best season
* Our best season in the PL
* Top 3 Record, Double over Mancs/Chelsea
* Establishing ourselves on the title challenge this season
* Steven Gerrard
* Pushing United 'till the end
* Ending Chelsea's 86 home game record
* Eight Comebacks and counting iirc?
* Humiliating Real Madrid 4-0
* Benitez signing contract

The Bad:

* Trophyless
* FA Cup defeat
* Silly Home Draws
* Shambles with the Owners
* Fernando Torres and Steven Gerrard injuries
* Robbie Keane
* Everton Defeat
* Federico Macheda
*

The good

- Managing to be top of the league so many time
- Rafa getting a new contract
- Parry leaving
- Keane being sold in Jan and not loosing too much money
- New contracts for Gerrard and Agger to name a few
- The 96 tribute
- Lucas getting some supporters :')
- Scoring so many great goals
- Being the most entertaining side to watch this year
- Xabi freakn Alonso!
- Gerrard winning player of the year
- Not getting all the money that comes with winning the league... This means the yanks should be out at last.
- Having the pleasure to watch the best striker in the worl play at least some games

The Bad

- Loosing the league
- Signing 'Keano'
- The lack of support for some players
- Booing at anfield
- Rafa haters
- Lack of funds
- No new stadium development
- The owners not having gravestones yet
- Seeing the best team loose the league
- FA cup defeat
- No real quality signing, Reira was decent however
- That French pillock of a goalkeeper at Anfield
- Coming so damn close yet so far.

Some good points there Mag.  Good point on Hicks and Gillett.  Who wants to see them pair of cu*ts associated with us winning the league?

Good
+ The amount of points gained (especially wins) from losing positions
+ The amount of time spent at the top of the league
+ Being the most entertaining side to watch in every competition
+ The amount of goals scored
+ The attitude of most fans, believing we could still win the league right up until full time in the mancs game v arsenal yesterday
+ Seeing Lucas get some support that he finally deserves
+ Stevie winning the player of the season award
+ Xabi Alonso, need i say more
+ More first team games for Insua
+ Fabio's fantastic free kicks
+ Torres remaining the world's best striker even through all his injuries and lack of games
+ Rafa, Stevie and Kuyt all signing new deals
+ Dirk Kuyt 
+ Doubling Man U and Chelsea
+ Absolutely thumping Real Madrid
+ Stevie scoring 4 goals in the next 2 games to win the golden boot 
+ The possibility of Dogbreath and the whinging c**t leaving in the summer to make the league a better place

Bad
- Robbie Keane
- Trophy-less season
- The mancs getting gifted everything
- Howard Webb and most other shithouse referees
- Going out of the FA cup to everton the way we did
- Just missing out after the CL 2nd leg fightback against chelsea
- The boro game
- All the sh*t about Rafa being closed to leaving right before the Madrid 1st leg
- February ( I think it was that month, the one where we dropped so many points especially to home draws)
- The constant stream of sh*te coming out of fergie's mouth before every game
- Awful atmosphere at home games which contributed to the loss of points at home.
- The sad news of big sami departing in the summer

Bad
1. Not winning the league despite being the better team, IMO.
2. Fans giving up in February
3. Robbie Keane disappointing.
4. Sami Hyypia leaving at the end of the season
5. Trophyless again.
6. Silly home draws that cost us at the end of the day.
7. Not very supportive fans and players.
8. Xabi Alonso's uncertain future.
9. The January month where we drew with Stoke City, Everton, Wigan.
10. Stoke City doing the "double" over us.

Good
1. Majority of Fernando Torres' goals last season came against lesser teams. He's scored less goals this season but about half of them coming against Everton, Man City, Man United, Arsenal, Chelsea and Real Madrid.
2. Steven Gerrard winning FWA Player of the Year and PFA Fan's Player of the Year.
3. Rafa, Stevie, Dirk and Daniel singing new contracts. (hopefully with more to follow)
4. Being in the title race the whole season. At times we looked out of it but came back into it.
5. Fantastic performances(all those 10 fightbacks!)
6. Dirk Kuyt, Yossi Benayoun, Fabio Aurelio and Emilliano Insua impressing. Even Jay Spearing against Madrid, did pretty well.
7. Xabi Alonso(now I know what Stevie meant when he said Xabi is unplayable when he's on top of his game)
8. Wonderful 20th Anniversary for the Hillsborough tragedy.
9. Best Premier League season we've had at the moment and could break a club record if we reach 83 or 86 points.
10. Sammy Lee and possibly King Kenny returning to the club.

Special mention to Didier Drogba and Cristiano Ronaldo for being first class sissies.

Looks to have alot of positives that we can take from this season and bring it to next season.

Here's what I thought of this season :

The Bad

- Not wining any trophies
- Robbie Keane
- Too many silly draws that cost us the title
- 2 defeats to teams that we really should've beaten
- Champions league and FA Cup exit were very bitter
- Nando and Stevie's injuries
- Riera and babel too inconsistent
- Sami Hyppia leaving

The Good

- Doing the double over the scum and Che$ki where we broke a 4year record and beat the scums at OT 4-1
- Rafa signing a new contract and also Dani Agger , Stevie and Kuyt
- Sammy coming into the coaching staff 
- Putting up a good title fight with Stevie or Nando
- Inspirational last gap comebacks have been thrilling
- The amount of goals we scored in our last 12 matches
- The number of players who have improved dramatically this season ( Aurelio , Benayoun , Kuyt etc. )
- Youngsters coming up  ( Spearing , Insua , Darby )
- Stevie's scintillating form
- Xabi's consistency and masterclass passing
- Even though Nando missed a chunk of the season he still scored a lot and that too against the big teams
- Beating Real Madrid 4-0 and beating them at the Santiago Bernanbeau and I ham happy for Torres to score against his old rivals
- A very appropriate and fitting tribute for the 96 who died 20 years ago ( except for Intanje)
- Seeing Rooney rightfully getting a red card at Fulham and seeing Fulham beat the scums was another very entertaining part of this season
- Rafa taking a stand and telling the world about Fergie's antics ad how the fa is too sacred to face him

The Ugly

- The smiling faces of the manc tw*ts
- Fergies face chewing gum
- Cristiano Ronaldo's greasiness and diving antics
- Fergie buying the FA
- Drogba diving as if this the Olympics
- Even though we were the better team the cheating bas**rds from down the river won the prem
- Mancs getting away and being gifted everything

Lets hope that we can take the positives into next season and avoid the negatives ... but there isn't much we can do about the ugly though ! And lets hope that te next season we will regain our position of being the best team and England because right now we are headed in the right direction ! YNWA !

The Good:

- Rafa's new contract
- Steven's new contract
- Danny's new contract
- Dirk's nw contract
- Xabi's amazing season
- Steven, being hampered by a few injuries, having a stormer and winning the Player of the Year.
- Putting up a fight, the spirit and drive in the team right now almost makes up for no trophy this season.
- The tribute to the 96 and the memorial service
- Stephen Warnock's bed of flowers at the Blackburn game
- Double over Madrid, Scum and Chelsea having managed to put 4 past each of them away from home.
- Rafa's 'rant'
- Fernando's 5 finger salute
- Yossi and Dirk lifting when we needed someone to stand up in Fernando and Stevie's absence.
- Insua - the kid is going to be huge
- Lucas - he's turned a stone in his career i feel
- Those comebacks were amazing, albeit heart straining
- Sammy Lee was a brilliant signing
- We led the league for a sustained period of time - we didnt take advantage what a massive step it was. We will learn from that, i have no doubts.
- There are so many more but i'd take 4 pages to list them all.

The Bad:
- Ronaldo and Drogba - i loathe them and their families
- Whiskeynosed c**t!
- Scum winning the league and equalling our record
- Losing to an inferior team in the league
- The Anfield boo boys
- those cu*ts who changed their opinion on Rafa once he started winning
- Hyypia going to Germany
- Robbie Keane
- O'Neill v Rafa
- The home draws
- The middle period of the season on a whole. Nothing went our way did it?
- Teams shitting themselves v Scum

I think everyone's response shows this season was more about the highs than the lows. A wonderful season to be a part of.

My effort. I decided to make mine strictly LFC, as there were plenty of other negative points I could have made about other sides but decided not to. Have tried to keep it general too, didn't want to talk about individual players etc:

The Good:

* The start to the season was fantastic, we made ourselves contenders from the off, topping the table.
* The amount of time spent on the top of the table - more than recent years.
* Grinding out the results in the months leading up to Xmas despite our poor form.
* Building on that effort, as our form turned and we played some very beautiful football on the run in.
* The quality proven by several of our "fringe" players, who put in the performances and goals when our "stars" were injured.
* The number of goals scored by a side that was constantly interrupted by injury.
* The extension of many key players contracts to assure the future of the club, and of course Rafa's contract.
* Our vastly improved results against the "big" clubs.
* The never say die spirit, where we battled and scrapped when we had to, the passion for the shirt shown by many of our lads.

The Bad

* Too many home draws that crippled our title chances.
* Summer signings that didn't improve our team.
* Constant injuries, leading to forced changes in what was more or less a settled side.
* Booing of our own players at Anfield - a disgrace.
* Early exits by our standards in the Cup competitions.
* Too many off the field antics between manager, CEO and owners.
* No silverware.

Some excellent points made in here already.

The Good

+ Our excellent form.
+ Our invigorated attacking style that has come to the surface of late.
+ Rafa and many key players committing their future to the club.
+ Some memorable wins against Chelsea, United and Real Madrid.
+ Cracking form from a number of players, including Xabi and Yossi.
+ Xabi staying.
+ Rick Parry going. Be nice to have a fresh face at the helm of things.
+ The Istanbul spirit that has been evident each time we've gone behind.

The Bad

- The drawn our Robbie Keane debacle.
- Xabi nearly going.
- Injury worries and Torres being knackered.
- Bit of a duff summer, transfer wise.
- Backstage worries.
- Cup exits.
- Trophyless. Unbelievably.

The Good
- The improved form of alot of our players (Xabi, Dirk, Yossi, Lucas etc)
- The 'never say die' attitude displayed by the team
- Putting up a fight for the title for the first time since 2002
- Rafa signing a new contract, as well as new contracts to most of our key players
- Record breaking points total
- Rick Parry leaving
- Our improved performances against the top teams
- Emiliano Insua's revelation

The Bad
- Nothing to show for all of our hard work
- Uninspired signings
- Weak cup exits
- Disgraceful home fans
- Too many draws
- Torres' niggling injuries

The GOODS.

Clean Sheets 21.

Record Points of 83 .

13 away league wins a Record.

The Double over Mankers and Chavs.

Rafa : New Contract.

Rafa : Giving it back to Rudolf . Fact.

Sammy Lee returns to his spiritual home.

Star Performances From All Especially Xabi.

Stevie G FWA Player of the Year  

Stevie G PFA Fans Player of the Year.

Being top of the league so many times .... what a feelgood.

Parry going.

Selling Keane.

NOT buying Barry.

Finishing off Chelseas backyard record.

Beating the Galacticos.


The BADS.

Handel and Gretel still here.

Buying Keane.

Not having a another world class striker.

The UGLY

Hicks and Gillett.

One other thing thats good is we know we can fully rely on Sammy Lee should Rafa pick up an injury or just gets kidney stones

Some good points there Mag.  Good point on Hicks and Gillett.  Who wants to see them pair of cu*ts associated with us winning the league?

Exactly.... It was Rafa's plan all along