Man Utd 2-1 Liverpool: In game and Post Match debrief

To me players should have been reminded that match official is Howard Webb.

awesome photoshop job.

The way some are carrying on you'd think we'd just lost at home to some second division side. We were beaten, away from home, against a side who has won the league the last three years and are probably odds on favourites to win it again this year.

As much as it's hard to admit, United are a good F***ing side. They have quality players all over the park and all can hurt you.

They didn't rip us apart time and time again, we had ourselves a couple of decent openings and matched them for most of the match. The biggest difference was they took their clear cut chances, we unfortunately didn't. Give Torres those chances again and he'll bury them, but today just wasn't his day - and he still managed to score that's how good he is.

It obviously helps as well when you've got the officials giving almost everything to the home side. I don't usually use bad officiating as an excuse but today Webb and his two assistants were a disgrace. How they are England's representatives at the World Cup is beyond me.

But no matter how poor the officials were, it doesn't excuse our attitude towards the game. First half, I think we were just so disappointed with the penalty decision, it just seemed to play on the lad's minds throughout the first 45. Second half though that should of been forgotten but we didn't show enough intent, often enough, to try and score even when we were getting beat.

We seemed content on a point and then a respectable scoreline. That's not the attitude I want to see but since we were only a goal behind, gung ho wasn't necessary until the last 5-10 minutes. Being a goal down, you only need one chance and you're back level if it's taken. Today though we just didn't take the chances when they arrived. It's upsetting but that's what happened.

Reina - didn't have a lot to do, that's how much they created.
Johnson - made Nani look like a decent winger, still has massive defensive frailities.
Carra - was my man of the match, thought he handled Rooney very well today so much so he had to start dropping deep.
Agger - like Carra thought he coped with Rooney very well.
Insua - got skinned quite a few times and is struggling to recapture the form he showed last year.
Kuyt - had a decent first half but didn't come out the dressing room in the second.
Lucas - started brightly then became invisible.
Masch - kept the ball nicely but didn't do anything of any note with it.
Maxi - thought he started well but again tailed off as the game wore on.
Gerrard - didn't grab the game by the scruff of the neck but when he did use the ball, we looked dangerous.
Torres - took his goal brilliantly, missed other chances he'd usually finish also did well to keep his temper after the restart.
Babel - ran around a bit but didn't do much with the ball.
Yossi - had a good chance with the header, difficult chance and didn't really touch the ball otherwise.
Aquilani - didn't get on the ball enough.

All in all we didn't show the intent I'd of liked but not many sides are gonna go to Old Trafford and stifle them as well as we did. They're a good side and better than most at home. With a bit more ambition or maybe even a bit more luck in terms of a nicer bobble on Torres' chances we may be celebrating all three points let alone one.

It just wasn't our day.

Yes it's hard to take any defeat against them but I'm not hurting half as much tonight as I was after the Wigan defeat which was a disgraceful performance. Today wasn't the worst performance we've had this season, it was just one of them where our first priority was not to lose which at Old Trafford is understandable to some extent.

We've had a good run against United of late, they were due a win against us. And in this fixture it looks like scoring first is more of a hindrance than anything.

We will return to winning ways next week against Sunderland and continue our pursuit of fourth. We won't dwell on this result because that's not with this club is about. We're a club about the next game, not the last. So brush ourselves off after this disappointment and ensure we don't suffer any more for the rest of the season.

All us Reds are feeling hurt right now but right now we don't need anybody crying. We need everybody fighting for our cause.

Brilliant, mate.

To me players should have been reminded that match official is Howard Webb.

1) Pretty sure they worked that out when they saw him and 2) Why would that change anything? He would have found a way to screw us over, as he has done.

We just dint turn up in the second half. Overall we played decent Footie.But the real problem was in the midfield. they were clueless yesterday.

Masch was Poor so was Lucas.Gerrard was Good in patches but completely gone missing at times.

Torres is the last person who we'd expect to bottle such chances, but that sums up our season. Gerrard and Kuyt had a good game. Babel looked brilliant in that short period he came on for.

Webb has cost us against Arsenal at home and away and today. Lets face it, he's sh*te. I have no idea whether its deliberate but he really is no good.Our centre midfielders aren't great at passing either. One can't and the other likes 2 yard sideways passes. Both get a nosebleed if they ever get near the opponents box, which is rare. Our wide men are the slowest players in the world. They wouldn't beat a one-legged man in a 50m sprint. Up front, Gerrard and Torres look fed up and as though they'd sooner be somewhere else.

Apart from that, the good news is the goal keeper is superb.

To sum up things we have no spark,cohesion, bit of brilliance that was needed to win this match

18 M on a RB who can't defend, might as well swap Kuyt with Johnson
11M on a ST who plays as LW or RW, who took 3 years to actually work his socks off and still not playing due to Kuytification
8M player who moans to the press and Let go (possibly on an undisclosed fee)
20M player on a highly promising passer of the ball in Aquilani and benched after 1 awesome game (after 3/4 season)

What the F**k is happening? Can't Rafa at least got the positions right, these are all players he bought, and if he's gonna use them in another position just buy the F***ing correct player.

You don't need to be a tactical genious to know that player plays best in their natural position.

I don't understand why didn't Mascherano do the tackling as he used to, and chosed to pull Valencia. And the other defender (was it Agger?) seems watched the action without doing anything, ie challenge or getting close for the ball.

The penalty could have been avoided. The freekick that supercallifrasticamagica lly turned into a penalty could have been avoided.

Mr bigvYNWA... correction done. 

The freekick that supercallifrasticamagica lly turned into a penalty could have been avoided.

Fixed it

I'm as gutted as everyone else after that result, but as it's already been mentioned, we have had an excellent run of results against United recently, and I felt we were unlucky to come out of this one with nothing.

What can I say about Webb? I'm not inclined to blame defeats on officials or luck, but he was terrible in the key decisions. The penalty was clearly outside the box, and you could literally see him shitting in his pants when Fletcher looked like he was going to chin a couple of our lads - never seen a ref so quick to drag a player away! Obviously was scared to death he'd have to show him red.

That aside, we could, and probably should, have scored an equaliser at least. We matched them for the most part of the match, despite the obvious tiredness throughout our team.

There were a couple of disappointing performances from our lads, it's clear that Insua is a weak link and being targeted by other teams - the number of times Rooney was swinging the ball out wide on that side, it was part of their plan to exploit his inexperience.

Just need to knuckle down now and grind out the rest of the season. Agree with JD, it kind of feels like the Europa League is a big distraction, and I have trouble seeing us finishing high in the league if we go all the way, but who knows.

What's sad is that whilst I'm just in a hurry for this disappointing season to be over, the off the field antics we have lined up this summer aren't exactly a mouth-watering prospect either.

Martin Samuel from daily mail wrote on the site: " Benitez needs to provide a platform for Gerrard to perform, he is not getting to express himself "., and all that sort of stuff.

I'm as gutted as everyone else after that result, but as it's already been mentioned, we have had an excellent run of results against United recently, and I felt we were unlucky to come out of this one with nothing.

What can I say about Webb? I'm not inclined to blame defeats on officials or luck, but he was terrible in the key decisions. The penalty was clearly outside the box, and you could literally see him shitting in his pants when Fletcher looked like he was going to chin a couple of our lads - never seen a ref so quick to drag a player away! Obviously was scared to death he'd have to show him red.

That aside, we could, and probably should, have scored an equaliser at least. We matched them for the most part of the match, despite the obvious tiredness throughout our team.

There were a couple of disappointing performances from our lads, it's clear that Insua is a weak link and being targeted by other teams - the number of times Rooney was swinging the ball out wide on that side, it was part of their plan to exploit his inexperience.

Just need to knuckle down now and grind out the rest of the season. Agree with JD, it kind of feels like the Europa League is a big distraction, and I have trouble seeing us finishing high in the league if we go all the way, but who knows.

What's sad is that whilst I'm just in a hurry for this disappointing season to be over, the off the field antics we have lined up this summer aren't exactly a mouth-watering prospect either.

I agree with every word you say,I suppose we can count ourselves lucky this season in that we have played sh*te but are not struggling down at the bottom of the league. If and when we do hit top form the likes of the Manures had better watch out.

Martin Samuel from daily mail wrote on the site: " Benitez needs to provide a platform for Gerrard to perform, he is not getting to express himself "., and all that sort of stuff.

I hate people. Gerrard has turned into the player he is because Rafa provided him with a platform to perform, now he's on that very same platform doing very little.

Martin Samuel from daily mail wrote on the site: " Benitez needs to provide a platform for Gerrard to perform, he is not getting to express himself "., and all that sort of stuff.

This is typical lazy analisis from some tw*t who know nothing about the game, trying to look smart.

I have no idea who Martin Samuel is by the way, its just the way it seems.

As much as this defeat is a huge kick in the balls and makes me feel sick this isnt the match that will define our season. This was Man Utd away! As much as we would have loved to have pumped them our current form compared to theres considering they are at home meant it was a huge ask to get a win or even a draw.

This match wont hurt our 4th place chances, the countless other defeats and draws to lesser opposition will!!!!

We didnt play well after the penalty but still managed a couple of decent chances late on, we have to push on and look at the next game as we def cannot afford any more defeats.

Sir Alcho in spite of all the gusto will not be a happy man considering the quality of their performance and the man of the match award going to the referee for his tireless contribution to his sides victory.
If it does go to the wire the mancs do not have the quality to fight off the likes of chelski and on a level playing field haven't a hope in hell of winning the Prem or anything else.

As much as this defeat is a huge kick in the balls and makes me feel sick this isnt the match that will define our season. This was Man Utd away! As much as we would have loved to have pumped them our current form compared to theres considering they are at home meant it was a huge ask to get a win or even a draw.

This match wont hurt our 4th place chances, the countless other defeats and draws to lesser opposition will!!!!

We didnt play well after the penalty but still managed a couple of decent chances late on, we have to push on and look at the next game as we def cannot afford any more defeats.

Wasn't it a huge ask back in October too? Yet we still pulled a performance from somewhere during a dreadful run of form. I went out to the stands thinking we were gonna get tonked coz of how badly we'd been playing, when we won I was much happier.

But just seen the highlights now, masch was fouling him outside the box and Valencia decided to go down the minute he hit the box.



I just take pride that the only way Utd can beat us now is by cheating and bribing referees. Nice.

Media up to their old tricks, reckon they're trying to get Rafa in trouble with the FA.

Read this headline and then the content.

BBC Sport - Football - Rafael Benitez feels Valencia dived for Man Utd penalty

"The way he fell down is strange. When you see the replay it is suspicious how he went to the ground," said Benitez.

"Asked whether he thought Valencia had dived, he added: "From the replay I think so."





He didn't say that at all!!  

35 pages! bloody eck. Well i haven't got the time to read everybodys comments unfortauntely but heres my take on the game, dont no if its already been said etc.

I thought, overall, liverpool played ok. We had a game plan and it was there to see, basically 11 men behind the ball for 90mins. Yes it was negative i suppose but you have to remember the form both teams have been in this season, they have been far better than us, and playing away from home doesnt help either. I thought the whole team played as a unit and it worked pretty well for the majority of the game.

I didn't think there was much in the teams to be honest, united had some attempts but there were no clear cut chances apart from the penalty and apart from their second goal, which has to be said it was a gorgeous cross, and one extremely difficult to defend.

The penalty. Ok it should have been a free kick i suppose but mascherano should have walked too, therefore IMO they cancel each other out. If masc had walked and they had a free kick instead then i still believe they would have gone on and won, but more comfortably.
I dont no if masc has had any stick for pulling valencia back but to me (although ive not seen the replay) insua looked like he was in no mans land and his positioning was all wrong. I remember thinking WTF is he doing.

The second goal. A moment of class by both fletcher and park but i think carragher and pepe could have and should have done better. Carragher was prepared to let the ball pass him as long as he marked Rooney out the game. He didn't no what was behind him and he gambled on it, bad mistake. I also think pepe could have come out and collected that. The ball was whipped in to our 6 yard box so IMO theres no excuses for a keeper not to come out and clear or catch the ball.

Overall it was disappointing to see liverpool create so little, but like i said, we had a game plan and it was working quite well. I think we all would have taken a point at the start of the game and its almost what we came away with.

35 pages! bloody eck. Well I haven't got the time to read everybodys comments unfortauntely but heres my take on the game, dont no if its already been said etc.

There goes my opening line fazza ya b*ll*cks. I picked a fine week to stop drinking.

Contrary to popular believe I haven't got too many complaints after that match... apart from...

Howard Webb. That was a free kick ya c*nt or a booking for Valencia. How many times did Torres get bodychecked out there and get nothing. How many times did Webb get in Liverpool players faces. How did Flether not get sent off for for scissor swiping the legs off Kuyt.

Now that the blame the ref bit is done...

I would have like Babel and Aquilani to start but seeing as Kuyt set up Torres and it was always going to be a dirty game from the mancs I would only say that I would liked to have seen the changes made earlier. Would love to have seen the head on Nev after 30 mins against Babel and the game was screaming out for Aquilani at the start of the second half.

It would be easy to blame Insua for the second goal but in fairness he got isolated 2 on 1 and got suckered by Nevilles run..

But for a few key moments in that game we could have won that match yesterday. Frustrating game to watch I do feel United were there for the taking and that earlier changes could have won us it despite the presence of Webb. Worst part is that 4th is out of our hands now and we are heavily dependent on three teams dropping points.

F.ucking hate loosing to these k.unts.

All aboard the SS...

Another chance to gain an advantage in the race for fourth spot, and again, Rafa got it wrong. Yes, it wasn't a penalty, I know, but sometimes things don't go your way, you just have to get on with it. Why the f**k it took him 73 minutes to realise Dirk Kuyt was as effective as a chocolate fireguard is totally beyond comprehension. 75 minutes before we saw Babel? Again, why leave it so late? Maxi had taken a knock to the head, so get him off. Why he took Lucas off with only seven minutes to go? You can't expect a player to make an impact in seven minutes. Rafa waited too long to make changes, Lucas should have gone off after the Ji Sung Park goal, we needed to react to the goal by attacking from the restart, we didn't. Say what you like, the team was set out to stifle and frustrate, well it didn't f**king work. And if it isn't working you have to react, Rafa didn't.

United are a shadow of the side they were last season, and let's be honest, Carrick, Fletcher and Park hardly strike fear into any side, let alone Liverpool. They have a very average central midfield at best, and we played into their hands by fielding a defensively minded central midfield pairing. Insua is rapidly deteriorating, game by game, and Valencia is hardly a player you want a confidence shot full back lining up against, is it? Glen Johnson was shown up on quite a few occasions too, how I miss the solidity that Arbeloa offered us last season, his failure to get goal side of Park for the second goal just highlighted his lack of defensive positional awareness. The Park goal was scored in the 60th minute, it took Rafa 13-14 minutes to react to going a goal down with 30 minutes of game time remaining. If we'd been probing and testing their defence and passing with fluidity, I'd have understood, but we were not doing that.

And as for Lucas Leiva, can somebody please tell me what is so good about the lad? He is absolutely f**king sh*te, and I can't bear to see him stifling our passing game any longer. I lost count of the times he couldn't execute a simple side foot pass to a team mate over a distance of ten yards, in the second half I thought Agger was going to knock his head off due to his repeated returns of passes made by the centre back. How frustrating must it be when you play the ball forward to a team mate, to see it constantly passed backwards to you? No wonder Carra and the full backs are hoofing the ball over the central midfield area. Gerrard and Agger both gave him a bollocking during the game for lack of movement off the ball. He has been here long enough now, there is no room for excuses of development. How about we give him 'development' wages until he bucks up and turns into this Brazilian goal scoring attacking midfielder, and earns the right to claim full wages, performance related pay perhaps?

Our wingers, I thought Maxi had a good game in all honesty, but he is never going to be the type of winger who goes past his man and whips dangerous crosses in, is he? Dirk Kuyt? F***ing sh*te, we've seen the best of Dirk last season, what I see now is abysmal. The amount of moves that break down due to his poor first touch and sh*te decision making are inconceivable. A few times today he received the ball whilst running onto it with the chance to run round the outside and get to the byline and cross, and everytime, he took the ball, stopped, then looked around and was either dispossessed or passed it backwards. Are these the players we want to see in a Liverpool shirt. Let's take the sentiment away for a minute, discard his tremendous work ethic and the occasional goal, what's left? An empty shell.

People seem to be slating Gerrard, how much service did he receive today? Absolutely f**k all, as per usual when Lucas 'Crab' Leiva starts a game. The only opportunistic pass he received was the backheel from Torres that set up the goal. If Gerrard has to drop back to get the ball it means that he is receiving no service from the central midfield. If he drops back, then the link with Torres is broken. What's so frustrating is that we probably have the most lethal pairing in world football, yet Rafa refuses to pick the one player that can feed them. As much of a c**t as Andy Gray is, he got it right when he said that Ji Sung Park was the MOTM today, and that is embarassing. A player who is, in all honesty, picked for his merchandising value in South Korea more than his actual footballing ability.

United did not deserve the win today, a draw would have been a fair result, but we did not deserve to win either. We set out defensively against a fairly average United side and paid the price for our negativity. Insua should not have started, he needs a rest, Johnson was defensively exposed again. Kuyt was dire and offered us nothing on the flank, Masch was subdued after the early booking ( which wasn't a foul might I add). Lucas Leiva was absolutely shocking, yet Rafa still hasn't realised this. We had the man to unlock the door sat on the bench, yet Rafa didn't bring him on until the 73rd minute. A manager can set his stall out, and I respect Rafa a great deal, I really do, but he must also be reactive to external influences on the game. That Park goal should have signalled a reaction from Liverpool, sadly for us, it didn't.

We can't do anything to influence the results of the teams around us in the fight for fourth place, but we can do something to influence our own results. Rafa has to change things, it is not too late to hold his hands up and admit he's made mistakes, but his stubborness is one hard nut to crack. Aquilani is the answer to our hopes in the run in, let the shackles off Rafa, while we still have hope. IRWT.

Best post in the thread sums up my thoughts exactly.

Note: We have lost 10 games this season, in Houllier's last season we lost 8.

This team needs more inspiration, less persperation and more footballers not spoilers

Did anyone see that ugly b****d on the telly after shrek put the rebound away yesterday he looked like something out of texas f*****g chainsaw massecre .

Note: Use the modify button. Looks weird when you talk to yourself three times.