Blackpool 2-1 Liverpool: In game and Post Match Despair

I think the setup was right it's just some of the players aren't up to scratch. I can't remember the last time Skrtel had a good game, Kuyt has progressively got worse, Johnson can't to seem to play wing unless he is RB and forgets how to defend. Johnson needs to go, we need a new LB and CB, Ngog is utter garbage so obviously we need another forward to partner nando, I think it was obvious we need out an out wingers as well. Sounds like a huge overhaul, but over time we can look at filling these positions.

Gerrard doesn't inspire. Just shut up

If players can't get inspiration from Steven Gerrard, then they should start looking for another club, but it wont be in the EPL.
But what I would say, is that Gerrard has been the main man for such a long time now that I fear that when he is out of the side, none of the others know what their job actually is.

Gerrard is all over the park, doing it for everyone else so when he's not there, a huge hole is left unfilled and the likes of Lucas, Mereiles, Rodriguez and Kuyt haven't a clue let alone Torres!

You sure can. Said it before I will say it again Rafa's biggest flop.

I agree with JD here Kenny needs to realise that long gone are the days of relying on our defense to shut out the opposition we will simply have to outscore them. I am in such a depressed state that all day at work I have been watching great victories and highlights over the last few seasons  all under Rafa. Was watching a 10 minute highlight of the FA Cup final came across an interesting stat the defence that started that day equaled club record of 34 clean sheets in a season it consisted of Finnan, Carragher Hyypia and Riise. Those were the good days some feat considering most of the season Momo Hamman and Alonso protected the defense, oh and we also marked zonally.

Back on topic really deflated with the result the way that I saw it Kenny gave the likes of Poulsen and Jovanovic one last opportunity to prove they are good enough. Our midfield was too static and some of the distribution in particular by Meireles was comical.

Johnson...Rafa's biggest flop. Well, you said it.

It's not the comment about Johnson alone, but the phrase 'biggest flop'. How many flops are there that were 'Legend' Benitez signings.

Let's face it, we are still suffering from the back end of the Benitez era.

If Kenny can't get the best out of these players, then maybe people will start to realise that Hodgson wasn't the necessarily the catalyst for what is starting to turn into a very worrying position in the table.

Johnson...Rafa's biggest flop. Well, you said it.

It's not the comment about Johnson alone, but the phrase 'biggest flop'. How many flops are there that were 'Legend' Benitez signings.

Let's face it, we are still suffering from the back end of the Benitez era.

If Kenny can't get the best out of these players, then maybe people will start to realise that Hodgson wasn't the necessarily the catalyst for what is starting to turn into a very worrying position in the table.

No, the catalyst was Hicks and Gillette. Surely you are not actually gonna blame Benitez? Because the amount of F***ing times i and others have had to shoot down that notion with the cold hard facts really is getting tiresome.

I am bewildered by Kenny's comment that he couldn't fault the commitment of the players. I don't remember seeing much of that.

He needs to start pointing the finger and soon.

Maybe this is where the time out of the game shows. During his last tenure at the club, he had players who knew the importance of pulling on that shirt, but that, bar the few, has all gone.

A little surprised also that there has been no talk of funds for new players. Sure, the new owners will be reluctant to put money up if Dalglish is only there 'til May, but it is evident that we need new blood and new blood that WILL come in and perform straight away.

Time for Comolli to start earning his wage.

Post-match criticism, without intros:


 1. We started the game with a weird group of players:

a. Johnson on the left; he didn't look comfortable through the game and was merely a shadow of himself.
Solution: Agger at LB, Soto/Wilson at CB, Glen at RM is a better formation.

b. The Midfield partnership of Poulsen, Lucas & Mereiles was disastrous; they looked like strangers and fell prey to  Blackpool's relatively strong midfield.
Solution: "Reduce the stupidity" rule (stupidity = poulsen). We could've played 4-4-2 then we wouldn't play Poulsen. Or playing Kuyt in the hole in a 4-5-1 formation with Babel on the wing, Lucas and Raul will take CDM roles.

 2. Performance:

I believe the players showed determination to get a result. The performance was poor because some players just don't deserve to play in a Liverpool shirt. To mention a few: Poulsen (heads the list as always ), Jovanovic (if you don't know when to pass and you don't know when to shoot then why the F**k are you playing?!), Shelvey (after few years maybe but now never, if he is above Pacheco in the youth picking order then we are in real trouble). I do agree that Kuyt was out of sorts but this happens to all players at times. Kelly showed exactly why he should usurp the RB position from Glen.

 3. Manager's Intervention: Substitutions.

Substitutions are meant to help you correct mistakes, switch from offensive to defensive and vice versa, and get players with fresh blood to replace those who are a bit tired. Let's take a look at them:

a. 76m: Kuyt out, Shelvey in: Kuyt played better than Jova of course and we all know he can play the whole game becuase his stamina is really high. At the time when everybody was waiting for Poulsen to be taken out and N'gog or Babel to come in and add strength to our attack, Shelvey was a shock sub. Not to mention that a losing team should never wait till the 76th minute to make a substitution.

b. 85m: Poulsen out, N'gog in: very late to make any effect to the game. It was sad to see Maxi and Babel left on the bench when we most needed them.

Verdict: Sorry King Kenny, but you clearly could've done more. With the right subs we could've salvaged a draw at least.

There is a positive to take from this game / result. There is now less danger of the owners thinking they can get away with the squad we have just because of the Kenny factor. This will enforce what the fans already know that Kenny will definitely have a positive effect but can't work miracles without investment. Could be a perfectly timed result considering Henry's visit and the transfer window being open.

I'm not having a go at you....I was there tonight and I didn't need stats to show me where the team went wrong.....It was clear for all to see,stats don't show what the eyes see,Poor control,poor heading,poor positioning,lack of fight or passion or aggression,stats are too clinical,I wouldn't scout a player on stats.....yards covered just shows a willing runner...

Are you from the USA? I can only guess but I guess that would be more familiar in American football..YOu'll always get people singling out players for losing a match but thats rubbish as a unit they were all poor because that's all they've got.....Back to sats,I stick with my original reply to you,though I think I deleted it as I was going to rewrite it but it wasn't going to be much different...Anyway if on Sunday you can watch the match then compare statistics it would be interesting to see if you felt differently afterwards......

Kind Regards.

No RH.

Tonio Le Rouge is 40 minutes from me,
It aint the 'Pool and it aint Yankeeland either.

...and he has supported the club for many a moon.

Oh well.
One thing is certain and that is by playing the ball on the deck all night it exposed who can play and who cant so another positive at the expense of three points is that it was a good game to spot the crap.

Someone said...."Its not the squad".
Ill continue to say that most of the problem is.

Pepe Nando Lucas and Kelly.
Thats who were worth their wages tonight.


So for anyone who DOES want some stats here is the link......


http://www.liverweb.org.uk/benitez.asp


£229 million (Two Hundred and Twenty Nine Million Pounds) worth of players bought to what we have on the field tonight. (Save 4 crap players from the Owl)

Oh boo F***ing hoo. You're agenda against Benitez is just tiresome, euro. You're as sad as some of the journalists i see with your half-hearted attempts at trying to undermine him. Yes, he wasn't perfect. But he also had two of the biggest arseholes in the history of mankind as his bosses, whom almost destroyed this club.

Can everyone please stop going on about rafa ,he,s gone end of.tonights game just showed me what lfc lack,fight and a never say die attitude,well played blackpool you deserve everything you get.......oh and kenny, poulsen/johnson/kuyt are F***ing sh*te

Jesus F***ing Christ bringing up Benitez whenever we have a bad result really is getting old euro.

Raul and Dirk's distribution were terrible. Often a good build up broke down with one of them attempting a quick release. Man we missed Carra and Gerrard out there to organise the troops

i feel this was the biggest problem. defense wasn't great, granted, but we often brought the ball out well and had promising attacks but i couldn't believe some of the poor passing from kuyt and miereles. the last cross/kill pass was the missing ingredient. it was actually infuriating how wasteful these two in particular were.

anyway,. nobody said it would be easy an task for kenny. onwards and upwards.

Rafa got us to 2 Euro finals, a semi a quarter, and FA cup final, a Carling cup final  and a Uefa cup semi and our highest points tally in the league ever in six years. HIs only bad season was when the owners actively sought to disrupt him.
In just six years with Traore at right back. Rafa was a god for us. Mourinho has been at the richest team in the league for the past eight years. IN the CL with INter he bought LUcio, Motta, Eto, Sneider and Milito in one transfer window. He has spent so much it is unbelievable and his football relies on Ronaldo or Robben or Drogba or Eto or any other world footballer of the year nicking a goal after his defensive side has kept them out. One is given a free ride by the press and one is damned. GO figure

Oh boo f**king hoo. You're agenda against Benitez is just tiresome, euro. You're as sad as some of the journalists I see with your half-hearted attempts at trying to undermine him. Yes, he wasn't perfect. But he also had two of the biggest arseholes in the history of mankind as his bosses, whom almost destroyed this club.

Jesus f**king Christ bringing up Benitez whenever we have a bad result really is getting old euro.

My agenda was getting someone better than him in despite the Rafa Mafia.

This has NOW happened.

Cant see anyone now shouting for him.

Simples.

My agenda was getting someone better than him in despite the Rafa Mafia.

This has NOW happened.

Cant see anyone now shouting for him.

Simples.

Mate I would have Rafa back in a heartbeat. I think comolli has ruled this out.

Didnt see the game - but it confirms (if we needed further confirmation) that

a) Poulsen and Jovanovic need to be donated to the nearest charity shop
b) the switch from zonal marking to man-marking has confused our defence completely
c) we need some 'scrappers' like Souness , McMahon of old in our midfield
d) FSG need to give Kenny some transfer money

My agenda was getting someone better than him in despite the Rafa Mafia.

This has NOW happened.

Cant see anyone now shouting for him.

Simples.

Well now that there is someone in, why the F**k bring it up then? Oh, because you think you're so F***ing smart and just like to stir sh*t, i have seen it - you deliberately just love to stir the pot.

Get over yourself. Its because of fans like you that we had Hodgson in the first place, because enough of you gave the wider public perception that Benitez was sh*t. Now Kenny, the saint he is, gets to come in and pick up the pieces of whats left of the H&G era.

Lack of spending is why we have results like this one (to get it back on topic) and don't say that Benitez spent 229mil or whatever stupid amount you put up. You, i believe, are a smart enough guy to know what grosse and net spend are. Work it out, and also see the amount of times Benitez was told to forget about a player like Dani Alves or Florent Malouda and find someone cheaper instead.

Sorry about that everyone. Just hate that even after the extensive threads on the subject, some people STILL pander to the Sky Sports spin on things.

Well now that there is someone in, why the f**k bring it up then? Oh, because you think you're so f**king smart and just like to stir sh*t, I have seen it - you deliberately just love to stir the pot.

Get over yourself. Its because of fans like you that we had Hodgson in the first place, because enough of you gave the wider public perception that Benitez was sh*t. Now Kenny, the saint he is, gets to come in and pick up the pieces of whats left of the H&G era.

Lack of spending is why we have results like this one (to get it back on topic) and don't say that Benitez spent 229mil or whatever stupid amount you put up. You, I believe, are a smart enough guy to know what grosse and net spend are. Work it out, and also see the amount of times Benitez was told to forget about a player like Dani Alves or Florent Malouda and find someone cheaper instead.

Sorry about that everyone. Just hate that even after the extensive threads on the subject, some people STILL pander to the Sky Sports spin on things.

Point in one. I don't get why Liverpool fans should feel the need to trot out the Sky Sports cliches at any available opportunity - is it some sort of inferiority complex because the Mancs have been the most successful under the Sky era, and we somehow need to do what Sky says in order for us to become more like the Mancs? Because if so, then let it be known that LFC was in existence long before the existence of Sky Sports was even a possibility; before TV was invented. So whatever a bunch of media whores have to say about my club does not bother me. So Blackpool beat LFC under Kenny Dalglish - am I supposed to run to my telly in tears going "Oh Sky Sports please forgive me, you were right all along!"? Manchester F***ing United lost to Burnley last season under the most awesome, famous, incredible, dynamic, knighted manager in the history of football - I didn't see anyone lining up to take shots at United. So F**k off with that Sky propaganda bullshit and support LFC which is what we are here to do.

I don't feel much better after a night's sleep.

There were a few positives -
We pressed harder and much higher up the pitch
The players seemed to want the ball more
Kelly has to be our first choice RB.
Torres' goal was great.

Sadly, that is where it ends, I don't want to dwell on the negatives that everyone could plainly see.  However... getting rid of the dead-weight may be impossible, who will give Maxi, Poulsen, Konchesky, Jovanovic such good, long-term contracts? No-one

I can't understand, why we still have this veteran football player (Poulsen). He didn't mark, his passes were all wrong and generally he never got in the game.

I don't feel much better after a night's sleep.

There were a few positives -
We pressed harder and much higher up the pitch
The players seemed to want the ball more
Kelly has to be our first choice RB.
Torres' goal was great.

Sadly, that is where it ends, I don't want to dwell on the negatives that everyone could plainly see.  However... getting rid of the dead-weight may be impossible, who will give Maxi, Poulsen, Konchesky, Jovanovic such good, long-term contracts? No-one

I think Kenny is still at the experimentation stage. He will get his preferred starting 11 right within 2 or 3 games and we will see a definite upturn in results and performances. Even the most cynical fans would have to agree that yesterday's and Sunday's performances were much better than any away from home under Woy. Fact is, 6 months of the wrong type of football has impacted on the players and it will take them a while to shake off the figurative cobwebs, and we are already seeing signs of that, like Torres' goal as you said. Of course, in my opinion, players who were bought to suit that horrid brand of football like Konchesky and Poulsen shouldnt be anywhere near our first team except in emergencies. But that's just my opinion and no doubt Kenny knows more than I do, football wise.

It pains me to say it but Kenny got his selection all wrong last nite, I just hope it was to see how bad the likes of Poulson , Jovanovic etc really are, looking at the squad we need to spend at least 30m just to stay up .

It pains me to say it but Kenny got his selection all wrong last nite, I just hope it was to see how bad the likes of Poulson , Jovanovic etc really are, looking at the squad we need to spend at least 30m just to stay up .

If his selection was to see how the likes of Poulsen, Jovanovic etc really are how can the selection be wrong ?
If you don't experiment you don't find out whats wrong or right !