[Gav]

Sunday

Spent the morning reading the reports of yesterday's game. Wild
overexaggeration, as always. I cannot for the life of me understand?
Decided not to read the match reports this morning. So many of those journalists are obviously Manchester United fans, I cannot for the life of me see any other reason for them continually overlooking the positives that we can take from our recent string of defeats. I can see my players growing as men, learning from each setback, and becoming stronger in the end, yet everyone else seems determined to focus on our league position, rather than on the progress we are obviously making.

Spent the afternoon working with Joe and the keepers. Obviously, for a man as busy as myself, keepers are low on the list of priorities, so it's a good thing I have someone as excellent as Joe to rely on. We worked with Jerzy, Patrice and Kirky, who's just returned from his broken finger, and it was good to have Joe highlight their weak areas for me.
With Jerzy he's most concerned about his shot-stopping, because his focus and catching are obviously so excellent. So I devised a cunning plan to make Jerzy spend the whole afternoon seeing how far he can kick the ball. I think once he understands the way a ball moves when you kick it really,REALLY far, his stopping will improve.
Patrice's display was flawless, the best of the day, so I'm pleased I have him as back up if either of my more expensive keepers gets injured before a carling cup match, or pre-season friendly.
Ended on a sour note though: as Kirky took his cap off at the end of the session, his wrist shattered in 14 places. He'll be Englands number one someday.


Monday

Arrived at Anfield to find Emile in my office, sniffing my chair. He can be a strange boy sometimes, but I have to remember what he can do on the training pitch, and that he's the best player in the world when he has a smile on his face. He gave me a big hello cuddle and left smiling, so I know he'll do well today.
Two odd things happened today ? firstly, I bumped into a man named Ritchie,who swears blind he plays for Liverpool, but I have never laid eyes on him in my entire life! I've told Rick to increase security, and had him thrown out.
The second thing was a call I received from Steve heighway, talking about something called the academy. He says there are lots of brilliant players there dying to play for Liverpool. I've sent Phil off on the Eurostar to find out where this place is ? you never know, they may have the next Platini for a knockdown price!

Training was not so good today ? the boys all seemed a little down about Saturday's defeat. I decided to give them another motivational speech,and they all left laughing. It's so nice that my boys can see the positives in defeat when I highlight them. Stephane was in hysterics, which is great, because he's been very sullen recently for some reason.

Tuesday

The injury crisis deepens! Igor broke a cheekbone today when he came to my office and walked into the doorframe. The trouble is that he is so focused on thinking about the game, that he often doesn't see what's right in front of him! This is the first time I've been worried all season though ? Igor is the rock on which this team is built, so losing him to injury is a terrible blow.
I gave Phil his surprise present today. He's complained recently that the boys don't seem to be listening to him, so I bought him a brand new megaphone. He was thrilled, and went off straightaway to talk to michael about his contract situation.
That contract is becoming a real problem. Everyone seems so focused on it,but I don't understand why. Michael's agent informs me that the current contract doesn't even run out til 2010, and I've made it clear I'll negotiate with all players 2 years before expiry. What's the big deal?
Training today was great, and john Arne achieved a new club record of 92 metres with a single kick! I've put him down on the teamsheet for Saturday already. We may be up against the champions, but they won't know what's hit them when john Arne and Emile take to the field!

Wednesday

Found something very disturbing today while using the shower in my office.
Someone had drilled through the wall and put a tiny camera in there to watch me bathing! I can't believe the depths the press will stoop to these days.
There was a whole library of tapes in there as well ? all labelled 'The Boss'. Sometimes I wonder if being such a respected public figure is worth all the press nonsense that comes with it.
Still, the day ended well ? I caught the Eurostar to Paris for the G14 meeting tomorrow. Not only will I be a speaker at the meeting, but rumour has it that Salif was last seen in this area a few weeks ago, offering sweeties to bus passengers. Hopefully I'll run into him. Might even have time to take in a match as well.
One odd thing though ? a I left Liverpool, I'd swear I saw Rick in a car with a man in a green tracksuit, heading for Anfield. I waved at him, but he closed the windows and sped off. Very strange.


Thursday

Had a wonderful time at the G14 meeting. Everyone seemed very friendly to me, and Alex and Arsene had a great laugh when they saw me. It's nice to be so popular. Seems to be something afoot at G14 though ? I overheard a couple of people talking about some club being mid-table, and not deserving to be there. I'd say this is a little unfair ? Barcelona have had a bad season, true, but they are still a massive club!
My speech was well received. Normally the speeches are a little dull, but everyone was more than happy to laugh at my little jokes. I gave a speech on the future of football, and everyone seemed very impressed with my theory that if we make boots heavier, the ball could be kicked further. I saw lots of people comparing notes here. It's so nice to be so well thought of by one's peers.
In the evening I managed to see a PSG game. They were playing Lille at home, and due to injury were fielding a very young midfielder who was the spitting image of a young Jean-Pierre Papin!! He didn't affect the game too much, and scored a very unlucky own goal, but I'm not going to overlook such
potential with all these other managers in the city! I called Rick and told him to put in a 12 million pound bid immediately. Rick seemed unsure, but I got David to make him agree to it. It's a good thing David trusts my judgment, or we may miss out on a future great.
The fans will be so excited!


Friday

Arrived back in Liverpool, and was a little disappointed to find only
Emile was there to meet me. Still, he gave me a lovely big hug and was even kind enough to check that my wallet hadn't fallen out of my back pocket! Such a thoughtful boy.
Had to make it a great day in training today, with such a big match tomorrow, so I organised the squad into two teams to play a full match against each other. Unfortunately, there was a great deal of arguing about which side Steven was going to play on, but we eventually decided that he should sit the session out. We still had one player too many, so the rest of the players voted to use Djimi as a goalpost. I've often though Djimi has the makings of a fine keeper, so seeing him standing by the goal made me resolve to try him out there next season. He has all the natural attributes
I'm looking for.
Received a call from Steve in Birmingham in the afternoon. He's
apparently prepared to pay 5 million for Emile, but I've told him he'll need to at least double that figure. He was very angry about this, and said he thought I was 'clueless'. I'm glad I didn't agree to his offer. I couldn't imagine what would happen to poor Emile playing for such a nasty man!
The boys seem extremely focused for the game tomorrow. I couldn't get a word out of them, but there was a murmur of appreciation when I told them the team for the game.
I've decided not only to give John Arne a try at Right back, but also to drop steven back as a replacement for Igor. I'm so lucky to have a group of players who are all able to play any position and still give exactly the same level of performance.
And with the opposition made so confused, little Michael should be able to nip in and grab us some goals.

Saturday

Well, another defeat, but not the hammering that some of the press were predicting, and as I said after match, no one can really expect football to be played in that wind. The fans were a little unhappy ? I got booed when I took Emile off, but their right back seemed determined to knock him down at every opportunity.
There are plenty of positives to take from the game, and apart from those two goals, I thought John Arne showed great potential as a rightback.
As it happens, both Newcastle and Charlton lost as well, so it was rather
a good day for us in the hunt for 4th place. I just know the fans will be happy when they think about that!

:)