Alberto Aquilani

[Guest PurpleNose]

Not sure that Babel is good enough for our reserves though.

[WaltonRed]

Cavalieri should be the reserves number one.

 

Its common sense.

[Iantn]

Second clean sheet of the season.

 

WOO!

 

The other ONLY other clean sheet this season was against Leeds United, and to be fair to them their "goal" should have been allowed anyway.

 

 

Fuck me, we are SERIOUSLY shit.

 

What about the Mancs at home?

[Carra_is_legend]

Not sure that Babel is good enough for our reserves though.

 

That is a good point to be fair.

 

Would we really want to drop Amoo, Eccleston or Pachecho to accomodate Babel?

 

NO.

[Hermes]

What about the Mancs at home?

 

And Debrecen at home. That's 4 clean sheets not 2. You see, we are twice as good as TomR thinks we are.

[Liverpool lad]

Stoke and Burnley as well Hermes

[Hermes]

Stoke and Burnley as well Hermes

 

Yeah, 3 times as good. We're getting better with each post in this thread.

 

Keep posting people.

[Tom R]

Fair enough. I was just going off the top of my head and I was wrong.

 

Turns out we're actually amazing.

[RedKnight]

I'd love it, love it, if we went out and battered teams. It would be brilliant going into the derby full of confidence on the back of a massive win.

 

But I honestly think we'd have been fucked had we gone into it having drawn or lost. Especially if we went out knowing that Fiorentina had messed up.

 

If we'd had the policy of digging in for the last five minutes in the Lyon games, holding on to what we had at all costs, we'd not have been out of the Champions League yet.

 

I hate talking like this, because I despise boring football, but I think we've more chance of hanging onto 1-0 wins the form we're in than we have of killing teams off 3-0.

 

Just avoid the fouls.

 

It was out of our hands, we should have gone out there, battered them and made Fiorentina worry about us. But no, when has Rafa made any team worry about what we'll do, he's far interested in playing 'compact'.

 

The fact that you think that performance and result is acceptable speaks volumes. Scraping a 1-0 against the groups whipping boys is a job well done, please.

[Royal Family]

so far it seems that he cant handle the physical nature of the English training

 

 

Yes, but we weren't playing an english team tonight.

 

I think it's more about having him on the bench for "window dressing" - Rafa's put his reputation on the line and won't admit he's not fit. How it helps the player being dragged all the way to Hungary is, however, anyone's guess.

[Iantn]

Fair enough. I was just going off the top of my head and I was wrong.

 

Turns out we're actually amazing.

 

No turns out after-match posting ain't the best thing for reason.

 

We aren't great at the back but tonights clean sheet is something to build on.

[Mathewbet1]

Thought he did some world class bench warming tonight, and the way he ran onto the pitch for the final 60 seconds, the guy oozes class and quality. Cant wait for his next 30 second salvo v the shite this w/e.

[Brownie]

Some people have backed themselves into a corner so much that they now simply refuse to see ANYTHING wrong in decisons made by Rafa.

 

To give Aquilani just 90 seconds or whatever it was when he DESPERATELY NEEDS games to get fit, is just a fucking shocking decision. There was nothing clever about it at all, it was just fucking stupid.

 

If Rafa feels he isn't ready, then he should be playing for the reserves and not be on the bench. I get the feeling that Rafa is only willing to bring him on if we're comfortably winning a game. Well guess what, we are struggling to win any games by any margins so that aint gonna happen any time soon!

 

Rafa is becoming even more of a shitbag, in my view and I genuinely didn't think that was possible.

 

Debrecen are an absolutely awful team; whipping boys if there were any, but no, we're happy to just scrape a win against them and keep our defensive midfield on the pitch to grind it out.

 

Fuck off.

[Dani Pacheco]

Reading RAWK is depressing, they still won't dare question Benitez or lay any blame for this mess on him. Most deluded forum on the internet.

[Iantn]

To give Aquilani just 90 seconds or whatever it was when he DESPERATELY NEEDS games to get fit, is just a fucking shocking decision. There was nothing clever about it at all, it was just fucking stupid.

 

Winning the game tonight was more important than the fitness of Aquilani.

 

 

If Rafa feels he isn't ready, then he should be playing for the reserves and not be on the bench. I get the feeling that Rafa is only willing to bring him on if we're comfortably winning a game. Well guess what, we are struggling to win any games by any margins so that aint gonna happen any time soon!

 

He isn't making an attacking substitution while the game is in our favour but in the balance. The only one to realistically make is taking Gerrard off. I could only imagine the uproar if that was to happen ealier on.

 

 

Rafa is becoming even more of a shitbag, in my view and I genuinely didn't think that was possible.

 

Debrecen are an absolutely awful team; whipping boys if there were any, but no, we're happy to just scrape a win against them and keep our defensive midfield on the pitch to grind it out.

 

Aye, why didn't we win 4-3 there like Fiorentina.

[Jose M]

Reading RAWK is depressing, they still won't dare question Benitez or lay any blame for this mess on him. Most deluded forum on the internet.

 

Excrutiating isn't it?

 

One of the dickhead mods has even started a thread having a go at Gary Mc for having the temerity to be baffled by yet another baffling Benitez decision.

[Liverpool lad]

Excrutiating isn't it?

 

One of the dickhead mods has even started a thread having a go at Gary Mc for having the temerity to be baffled by yet another baffling Benitez decision.

 

Just seen that thread, people have quickly corrected him though

[Jose M]

I should think so given he said nothing wrong and was just reacting like a fan to the Aqualini stupidity. He praised us and Rafa throughout. God forbid anyone criticise the manager for making stupid decisions.

[Brownie]

Winning the game tonight was more important than the fitness of Aquilani.

 

 

 

 

He isn't making an attacking substitution while the game is in our favour but in the balance. The only one to realistically make is taking Gerrard off. I could only imagine the uproar if that was to happen ealier on.

 

 

 

 

Aye, why didn't we win 4-3 there like Fiorentina.

 

You really have no idea what you are talking about. It's actually quite scary.

 

Point A; Aquilani getting match fitness would have ultimately achieved more than tonight's win did - fact.

 

Point B; I know, hence why he's a shitbag.

 

Point C; Where did I mention anything about wanting us to win 4-3?

[BexBissel]

You really have no idea what you are talking about. It's actually quite scary.

 

Point A; Aquilani getting match fitness would have ultimately achieved more than tonight's win did - fact.

 

Point B; I know, hence why he's a shitbag.

 

Point C; Where did I mention anything about wanting us to win 4-3?

In hindsight.

[Iantn]

You really have no idea what you are talking about. It's actually quite scary.

 

Point A; Aquilani getting match fitness would have ultimately achieved more than tonight's win did - fact.

 

Point B; I know, hence why he's a shitbag.

 

Point C; Where did I mention anything about wanting us to win 4-3?

 

A - Lisandro lashes his injury time effort in the top corner to equalise, yet getting Aquilani match fit at 1-0 is more important an we concede.

 

Well done we are then in the competition that you are seemingly bemoaning that we are in.

 

B - Aye, he's a shitbag for not risking anything in a game we need to win that we are only one up in. Cautious perhaps, shitbag? Get a grip mate.

 

C - You mentioned about scrapping a win, I imagine that a 4-3 win would have scrapped it also.

[Brownie]

In hindsight.

 

Giving Aquilani a game could have given us an even bigger win!

[Brownie]

A - Lisandro lashes his injury time effort in the top corner to equalise, yet getting Aquilani match fit at 1-0 is more important an we concede.

 

Well done we are then in the competition that you are seemingly bemoaning that we are in.

 

B - Aye, he's a shitbag for not risking anything in a game we need to win that we are only one up in. Cautious perhaps, shitbag? Get a grip mate.

 

C - You mentioned about scrapping a win, I imagine that a 4-3 win would have scrapped it also.

 

Hang on, this is about the fourth time i've seen this suggested now, so i'll ask the question.

 

Why would we be more likely to NOT win a game with Aquilani playing? What are people basing this on?

 

Please enlighten me.

[RedKnight]

Cos he attacks innit.

[Iantn]

Hang on, this is about the fourth time i've seen this suggested now, so i'll ask the question.

 

Why would we be more likely to NOT win a game with Aquilani playing? What are people basing this on?

 

Please enlighten me.

 

Aren't you the one stating that Aquilani would change the defensive side of our central midfield therefore make us more likely to be open to the counter-attack, etc.

 

As I said, the decision not to bring him on was probably a cautious one given we had to win tonight. But a shitebag one is massively over the top.