Aston Villa (A) - Tue 10th May (8:00pm)

[El Rojo]

4 minutes ago, an tha said:

I have no doubt we are hated...especially by fans.....because we have a history with most clubs and a rivalry - the cheats simply don't.

 

But i stand by what i say about the styles thing being a big part of the 'difference'....

 

Way we play means unless we are having a really good day when we blow teams away, teams will often be up for it and feel they have a squeak....

 

We engage them in a frentic game, played at 100 mph with loads of 50/50 challenges that get crowd up for it and players in turn up for it.

 

The high line and close offsiede calls and balls to chase over top roared on by crowd, the fast tempo of game creating mistakes/near things etc.

 

Yes, we are very good and because we are we win loads of games, due to our quality, but teams often think they might get something in games, fans do too and roar their teams on v us more.

 

Contrast all that to Man City who often bore teams and fans to death with endless possession often after an early goal which deflates everything and then hardly giving up any corners or shots etc before eventually pulling away.

 

Good post. The fact that we've such a storied history and huge fanbase definitely plays a big part in how other teams and groups of supporters relish playing us. It's always going to be more of an occasion than playing Manchester City. They're a massive, hollow, joyless void. 

[m0e]

7 minutes ago, an tha said:

Let's hope Klopp does not call it a 'little' or 'minor' injury...

He said its a massive blow

[ManéMan]

7 minutes ago, an tha said:

Let's hope Klopp does not call it a 'little' or 'minor' injury...

He said he doesn't know how bad it is but it's a really bad blow...

[an tha]

1 minute ago, m0e said:

He said its a massive blow

That is fab fit for saturday then!!

[an tha]

paul joyce
@_pauljoyce
Jurgen Klopp says Fabinho is "quite positive but I am not sure what I can make of that."

[gkmacca]

5 minutes ago, DaveT said:

I actually thought the linesmen were worse tonight. 

Well, VAR has pretty much made linesmen redundant, hasn't it? They're told not to flag, so apart from fussing over corners they're just standing about.

[Arniepie]

1 minute ago, aRdja said:

Apart from that?

It may be something to do with having one of the most expensive teams ever assembled, as opposed to teams not trying to beat them?

[Aventus]

1 minute ago, m0e said:

He said its a massive blow

RIP Fabinho, ur wiv da angles now

[Bjornebye]

Just now, El Rojo said:

Good post. The fact that we've such a storied history and huge fanbase definitely plays a big part in how other teams and groups of supporters relish playing us. It's always going to be more of an occasion than playing Manchester City. They're a massive, hollow, joyless void. 

Yep. We (along with Utd) have always been a cup final at home for all other teams, the way City are they don't have that extra hatred/envy and probably expect to lose before they finish their pint and go to their seat. City aren't a 'big scalp'. The whole of football knows how they've got where they are. It was the same with Chelsea. Arsenal were always the bigger London club. 

[an tha]

1 minute ago, El Rojo said:

Good post. The fact that we've such a storied history and huge fanbase definitely plays a big part in how other teams and groups of supporters relish playing us. It's always going to be more of an occasion than playing Manchester City. They're a massive, hollow, joyless void. 

They really are.

 

Our huge fanbase and it being spread all over is a massive part of it too....fans of clubs all over the country work with, drink with etc liverpool fans and that drives a lot of the hatred.....

[Anubis]

1 minute ago, gkmacca said:

Well, VAR has pretty much made linesmen redundant, hasn't it? They're told not to flag, so apart from fussing over corners they're just standing about.

The linesman should have let Watkins go but flagged once Ali had saved his shot, so the only conclusion you can draw is that he missed a really obvious offside.

[AngryOfTuebrook]

11 minutes ago, gkmacca said:

I've heard of teams already on the beach but not refs. Jon Moss may as well not have turned up. No bookings, in spite of Villa hacking players down, Fab fouling, Digne being a massive ARSE all game. Hopeless refereeing.

I thought his rubbishness was even-handed, so I suppose that's something.

[an tha]

Klopp:

 

On Fabinho: "I think he will [be OK, for the FA Cup final] but I do not know. We have to have a further assessment."

[Preston Red]

1 minute ago, an tha said:

Klopp:

 

On Fabinho: "I think he will [be OK, for the FA Cup final] but I do not know. We have to have a further assessment."

3 years out then.

[Trumo]

Not the best performance but Sadio did what Sadio does and we got the points. We really do need to be better at keeping the ball to wear the opposition out more, as in this game there were countless opportunities to take the sting out of Villa so they wouldn't be able to get near our box in the last 10-15. We can only hope these teams show the same sort of gumption when going up against City.

[coachpotato]

City will mallet these. They’re a poor team really.
We definitely aren’t quite clicking at the moment and are struggling to beat teams, like Villa, who we’d usually have few problems with.

That is likely to be due to the mental side as much as the physical side of things, and it isn’t obvious errors (although Keita’s miss was so bad it was untrue) but little things, like simple passes going astray, or trying to beat a player (and failing) in an area which means we’re immediately under pressure, or making a lazy attempt at a pass to someone in a good position to take a chance. It all accumulates and possibly reinforces the feeling that games are tougher than they could be, and I noticed the look on the faces of some of our players, Virgil and Hendo to name two, and how concerned and weary they looked. Not that they should be grinning from ear to ear, (ok, maybe when we score), but it looks like there’s little enjoyment out there currently and that’s sad. These boys should be able to enjoy what they are doing, but the pressure on them to succeed is immense, and they look relieved at the end of these games rather than happy.

All we can do is give them as much support as we can and accept their mistakes, I’m sure they never mean to make them and nobody is perfect.

I hope city demonstrate that before the season’s end.

 

 

 

 

 

[bizzle10]

5 minutes ago, an tha said:

Klopp:

 

On Fabinho: "I think he will [be OK, for the FA Cup final] but I do not know. We have to have a further assessment."

we need him for champions league final we can play Thiago,Hendo,Naby on sat

[Red Shift]

16 minutes ago, Ronnie Whelan said:

Agree with that. To be fair Stringy lad, Hendo rarely lets us down. You see him interviewed there and he is just such a great lad. Still if Fab is back for Madrid, it will be huge. World class and a candidate for one of the most influential pound for pound players in the whole league. Every now and then, he isn't great though like you said.

 

Anyhow, City will really miss Dias and maybe just maybe, with all their other defensive injuries, they could drop points. I actually feel very relaxed about it. Yes, we dropped points to Spurs, but apart from that, we couldn't have done more since the new year. Back then, I would have bitten hands off to be in our current position. Certainly, if we were in their position, I would be nervous going to Wolves and West Ham.

Thiago/Fabinho/Henderson for the Cup Final please. I think Hendo was supposed to rest tonight, or at least not come on so early. I really think that w/o Hendo, the Thiago/Fabinho midfield is unbalanced. Hendo provides the urgency.

[an tha]

5 minutes ago, Preston Red said:

3 years out then.

Minimum

[sir roger]

I keep hearing that we have scored about 700 goals this season, so why I do I have no fingernails and am dodging the doctor’s calls about my blood pressure.

[Red Shift]

1 minute ago, bizzle10 said:

we need him for champions league final we can play Thiago,Hendo,Naby on sat

Well, Naby surely couldn’t play a worse game than tonight.

[Trojan1892]

Naby the fraud, he’s robbing a living him.

 

 

[coachpotato]

I think Hendo provides the “gee up” to players that a Captain gives, regardless of his own form. A bit like Keane did at United.

[VladimirIlyich]

2 minutes ago, Red Shift said:

Well, Naby surely couldn’t play a worse game than tonight.

Yeah,I thought he was poor and it should have been him rather than Jones who was subbed. Hendo was superb,as was Matip. I have idea which game Carragher was watching to give Sadio MoM.

[gkmacca]

13 minutes ago, sir roger said:

I keep hearing that we have scored about 700 goals this season, so why I do I have no fingernails and am dodging the doctor’s calls about my blood pressure.

There's a horrible whiff of the barely-repressed hysteria in Rodgers' team post-Chelsea. There shouldn't be, because this is a very experienced team who've achieved so much, but there's a depressing flakiness creeping in, probably through fatigue. Trent is inexplicably blasting desperate-looking balls when there's half an hour or more left to play. Alisson is having several brain farts every game. And we're passing backwards into trouble rather than keeping the ball moving forward to feet. There's not much to do at this stage except urge them to keep their composure better.