Wish Mascher would just fuck off

[Gary Mac Legend]

"Mascherano is a Liverpool player, he has a two year contract and I expect him to honour that until the day comes when the club decides to accept an offer for his services."

 

Got to say I like Hodgson's hard man stance. Maybe the next step should be to make Mash train with the reserves until he is sold. I know it 'll never happen but i'd love to see the look on Masha's face the moaning cunt.

 

 

I'd love to have seen the look on his face when he was staring out of his window across the tower at Insua.

[Guest TK-421]

It's just the way he said it. He said it with authority, contrast that with his comments when Masch wouldn't answer his phone.

 

He went from being Mr Nice guy, to being 'So fucking what, you'll leave when we get enough money, if we don't get enough money you'll be here for two years'.

 

It still sounds like standard manager speak.

 

Sorry to piss on your chips but I'm on a massive post-Rafa downer and have no shame admitting it.

 

It will take time and good results for Roy to win me over but what he said about Mascherano and Torres today just sounded like standard manager speak and nothing to get excited about.

[Unrighteous]

Will Masch Be Missed? Not So Much...

Posted 27/07/10 11:29

 

It is as predictable as it is amusing. As soon as it looks almost certain that Javier Mascherano will leave Liverpool, Reds fans - like dumped 14-year-old girls - are racing to say that they never really liked him anyway. Apparently he's a liability, cannot pass, contributes nothing and Lucas Leiva can do exactly the same job for less money. Of course, they never, ever thought he was the best defensive midfielder in the world. Oh no.

 

This syndrome is not particular to Liverpool fans. The same Manchester United fans who sang "Fergie, Fergie, sign him up" were decrying Carlos Tevez as a rich man's Dirk Kuyt as soon as he joined Manchester City. Those Gunners who were heralding Emmanuel Adebayor as the equal of Didier Drogba were apparently happy to see his lazy arse head north towards Manchester.

 

But in the case of Mascherano, the statistics would appear to back those Liverpool fans happy to make a profit on the Argentine hatchet man. Over the last three years, Liverpool have won 54% of the Premier League games in which he has featured. Without him, their success rate rises to 65%. Predictably, Liverpool have scored significantly more goals per game (2.25 v 1.88 ) without a player who has netted just one league goal in Liverpool colours.

 

That Mascherano is not a match-winner is no surprise, but the real shock lies in the statistic that although Liverpool concede fewer goals with him screening the defence, they have lost 19% of the Premier League games in which he has played, as opposed to 4% without him. That suggests a significant number of 1-0 defeats in which Mascherano offered little or nothing going forward.

 

His supporters might point to the statistic that Mascherano completed more tackles in the Premier League than any other player last season, but the very fact that the second player on that list is the utterly-unheralded Wigan midfielder Mohamed Diame negates that claim. As does the fact that Mascherano had the worst disciplinary record of any player in the top flight. He certainly makes tackles, but he mistimes enough for it to be a problem.

 

This is not to say that revisionist Liverpool fans are right and Mascherano is overrated. Anyone with half a brain can watch Mascherano against European giants in the Champions League and see where his real value lies. But with Liverpool not in the Champions League, and Inter apparently willing to offer £25m for a player whose impact in the Premier League is statistically negative, it makes perfect sense to cash in now on a footballer clearly not happy on Merseyside.

 

That kind of money is massive for a spoiler whose real value is only apparent against the kind of quality opposition Liverpool will face fewer times next season. He can be adequately replaced for less than half the price. He may be sorely missed against Manchester United and Chelsea, but he will certainly not be missed against Wigan or Wolves. In those games, Scott Parker or an equivalently-talented and priced alternative would be at least as effective.

 

Mascherano's absence will be felt by those neutrals who appreciate a tough tackler as much as a tricky winger and I would still happily argue that he is one of the world's best exponents of that role. But with big money on the table that could buy three or four players, it's a no-brainer to let the match-spoiler go if the alternative is selling match-winners or match-savers like Fernando Torres, Steven Gerrard or Pepe Reina.

 

Sarah Winterburn, Football365.com

[standing_fan]

I'd love to have seen the look on his face when he was staring out of his window across the tower at Insua.

 

Standing there in his torn argentina pyjamas with El Gaucho printed on the back,playstation controller in hand, snot dribbling from left nostril and muttering "Que se jodan los coños"

[ScouseJim]

Hodgson reminds me of my grandad in that if I ever needed an arm putting round me as a kid he was always there to do it for me but if he told ya off it was well worse than ya dad telling ya off! He's a bad old fucker our Roy...

 

Oh and Masch ya moaning little twat, fuck off now.. don't let the door smack ya fat wife on the way out!

[Torvald Utne]

You guys are easily impressed. Is it not a standard response when asked about a player wanting to leave?

 

We'll soon see if it's standard for Roy if Torres decides to leave, I'm sure he won't be making the same comments then.

[Delmar]

Hodgson has to say this kind of stuff, it is simply bargaining with Inter. There will now be reports of Moratti saying that they're not interested, Mascherano's agent going on about the transfer, both managers praising the player, bla bla bla. Eventually Mascherano will go, and all this posturing did nothing good at all for anyone.

[King Gheedorah]

Will Masch Be Missed? Not So Much...

Posted 27/07/10 11:29

 

It is as predictable as it is amusing. As soon as it looks almost certain that Javier Mascherano will leave Liverpool, Reds fans - like dumped 14-year-old girls - are racing to say that they never really liked him anyway. Apparently he's a liability, cannot pass, contributes nothing and Lucas Leiva can do exactly the same job for less money. Of course, they never, ever thought he was the best defensive midfielder in the world. Oh no.

 

This syndrome is not particular to Liverpool fans. The same Manchester United fans who sang "Fergie, Fergie, sign him up" were decrying Carlos Tevez as a rich man's Dirk Kuyt as soon as he joined Manchester City. Those Gunners who were heralding Emmanuel Adebayor as the equal of Didier Drogba were apparently happy to see his lazy arse head north towards Manchester.

 

But in the case of Mascherano, the statistics would appear to back those Liverpool fans happy to make a profit on the Argentine hatchet man. Over the last three years, Liverpool have won 54% of the Premier League games in which he has featured. Without him, their success rate rises to 65%. Predictably, Liverpool have scored significantly more goals per game (2.25 v 1.88 ) without a player who has netted just one league goal in Liverpool colours.

 

That Mascherano is not a match-winner is no surprise, but the real shock lies in the statistic that although Liverpool concede fewer goals with him screening the defence, they have lost 19% of the Premier League games in which he has played, as opposed to 4% without him. That suggests a significant number of 1-0 defeats in which Mascherano offered little or nothing going forward.

 

His supporters might point to the statistic that Mascherano completed more tackles in the Premier League than any other player last season, but the very fact that the second player on that list is the utterly-unheralded Wigan midfielder Mohamed Diame negates that claim. As does the fact that Mascherano had the worst disciplinary record of any player in the top flight. He certainly makes tackles, but he mistimes enough for it to be a problem.

 

This is not to say that revisionist Liverpool fans are right and Mascherano is overrated. Anyone with half a brain can watch Mascherano against European giants in the Champions League and see where his real value lies. But with Liverpool not in the Champions League, and Inter apparently willing to offer £25m for a player whose impact in the Premier League is statistically negative, it makes perfect sense to cash in now on a footballer clearly not happy on Merseyside.

 

That kind of money is massive for a spoiler whose real value is only apparent against the kind of quality opposition Liverpool will face fewer times next season. He can be adequately replaced for less than half the price. He may be sorely missed against Manchester United and Chelsea, but he will certainly not be missed against Wigan or Wolves. In those games, Scott Parker or an equivalently-talented and priced alternative would be at least as effective.

 

Mascherano's absence will be felt by those neutrals who appreciate a tough tackler as much as a tricky winger and I would still happily argue that he is one of the world's best exponents of that role. But with big money on the table that could buy three or four players, it's a no-brainer to let the match-spoiler go if the alternative is selling match-winners or match-savers like Fernando Torres, Steven Gerrard or Pepe Reina.

 

Sarah Winterburn, Football365.com

 

[Anubis]

That Mascherano is not a match-winner is no surprise, but the real shock lies in the statistic that although Liverpool concede fewer goals with him screening the defence, they have lost 19% of the Premier League games in which he has played, as opposed to 4% without him. That suggests a significant number of 1-0 defeats in which Mascherano offered little or nothing going forward.

 

It also suggests a significant number of defeats in which Gerrard, Torres, Maxi, Kuyt and Babel offer little or nothing going forward. Statistics, eh?

[TrimmTrabb]

No doubt Masch has gone about things the wrong way this summer but sometimes I think we just have to accept a player wants to leave and as far as I'm concerned the effort Mascherano put in in games last season when noboby else gave a fuck says a lot more about his character than saying and doing the right things on the way out.

[Red Mist]

With very few exceptions, top Argie players have no loyalty to their clubs. We should no longer buy Argentines, they'll only want to leave us within a few seasons.

[Anny Road]

and they all look the same.

[Torvald Utne]

damn foreigners

[Squabblefest]

Will Masch Be Missed? Not So Much...

Posted 27/07/10 11:29

 

Blah, blah, blah..

 

Sarah Winterburn, Football365.com

 

Number One : It's not Liverpool fans acting like dumped fourteen year old girls. It's everyone. It's how people work.

A childish fundamental attribution error in her second sentence isn't exactly a great start is it?

 

Number Two : Basing an opinion on an entirely subjective interpretation of OPTA stats doesn't really do anyone any favours does it?

 

Number Three : Worst disciplinary record in the prem? Including the amount of yellow cards that led to nothing? His sending off against Man U at Anfield that again led to nothing?

In what way does that make him a liability?

 

Number Four : Because Dieme of Wigan doesn't get noticed by the tabloids that makes his contribution to the cause unimportant? His tackles somehow don't count?

How on God's earth does that work?

 

Number Five : Mascherano will only be missed against teams who play Champions League football? Because we don't need to make tackles against Wigan away, Sunderland away, Fulham away, Pompey away?

Last season would perhaps suggest differently.

 

Number Six : 'His absence will be felt by those neutrals who appreciate a tough tackling midfielder as much as a tricky winger.' What? So Robbie Savage is gonna miss him when he co-commentates for 5live?

We feel your fucking pain.

 

Number Seven : Crouching over your PC at a screen full of stats will only ever give you half the story. I'd question wether she's a Liverpool fan. I'd also say that almost all of us on here saw more Liverpool games actually at the game than she did. If you've got the temerity to tell people what they're supposed to be thinking do you not have to, at least, earn the right to tell them? Or am I missing something?

 

 

Don't get me wrong, I want him gone.

 

To belittle your club at the end of every season just because you're too fucking spoilt and unappreciative to be able to see exactly how much it's done for you, means that no matter how good you are, (and make no mistake, the boy is good and is held in high regard by a majority of fans), it still means that a lot of those same fans will be glad to see the back of you.

 

We appreciated his tackling and his peformances, we had no stomach for his badge kissing horseshit or his dignity-phobe brazen whoring through his fucking soul-less money grubbing agent.

 

That's where the difficulty lay, nowhere else.

Edited July 27, 2010 by Squabblefest
Edited out the article.

[Torvald Utne]

He could come out every season begging to go to Everton, I don't give a fuck as long as he produces on the pitch which he invariably does. Most footballers are wankers these days anyway. "I'm a boyhood Red" and all that shit does nothing for me.

[YNWA12]

The poor man's never going to live that tower thing down.

 

Please, let this transfer happen soon, I don't want another saga.

[WaltonRed]

Bye, dont let the door hit your ungrateful arse on the way out.

[RoboRiise]

Sky Sports mentioned that Inter might be offering Sulley Muntari in a part exchange deal for Mascherano. Thoughts?

 

 

He's a lunatic and he can get to fuck.

[WaltonRed]

He's a lunatic and he can get to fuck.

 

9 words which sum up the whole offer.

[Agent Smith]

As long as we have a replacement lined up, let him go. I'm sure Mascherano would give 100% if he stays, but if we continue to let him run down his contract we'll end up getting peanuts for him.

 

Off the top of my head, any of the following would be good enough.

 

Anthony Annan

Ramires

Ever Banega

Miguel Veloso

 

All are younger and would be cheaper. Whether the Mascherano money would be reinvested back into the team however is a whole other topic.

[RSM]

In one of those wonderful ironies football throws up, Javier Mascherano rose to prominence as a Liverpool midfielder in Barcelona - February 2007, to be precise.

 

Before you dust off your programmes and overload the Argentine’s Wikipedia page, I’m well aware Mascherano made his Liverpool debut against Sheffield United, three days after our win in the Camp Nou.

 

But Sheffield United at Anfield in a Saturday 12.45 kick off wasn’t on the minds of the 5,000 or so of us about an hour from kick off on a brisk Barcelona evening. As we stared down the red and blue Catalonian canyon, Javier Mascherano’s name was intermittently mentioned between exclamations of how high up we were and egregious analysis of how Deco, Messi and Ronaldinho would run riot.

 

The drama with the Football Association regarding Mascherano's eligibility had finished unbeknownst to many of us in Barcelona without the shining light of Sky Sports News, their garish yellow ticker and the constant re-defining of what constitutes breaking news.

 

Word and excitement spread around the Camp Nou quickly. Rumours he was in the squad that night were unfounded, but regardless of that, a star was already born. Ignore the 'West Ham reject' label he'd been given in the press, Mascherano was one of the most exciting signings our generation had experienced, sandwiched somewhere in between Jari Litmanen and Stan Collymore.

 

It's almost poetic that Momo Sissoko enjoyed his best game for the club that night. It could almost be regarded as a passing of the torch. Thinking about it, it's probably the best pass Sissoko ever made in a red shirt.

 

Sissoko was a fantastic destroyer, but he was just as adept at destroying his own side's attacks with wayward passing. Mascherano could do the destroying and the passing. The signing of Mascherano was a sign of improvement and progression, much like when Torres replaced Bellamy that summer.

 

Over three years later, and the name of Javier Mascherano is being whispered around Camp Nou once more; this time, as a possible signing for the Catalan club after 'El Jefecito' finally told Roy Hodgson he wants to leave Liverpool. Roy would have been spared the wait if he'd lived on Merseyside the past year - it's been the worst kept secret in the city.

 

The eulogies were written well before Hodgson's confirmation, sadly. Some of our fanbase have a tremendous ability to perpetuate myths to suit agendas. People taint Rafa Benitez's transfer dealings to make him look a failure. Similarly, people question the likes of Insua, Kuyt and Lucas, accentuating the negatives and disregarding the positives.

 

It's already in full swing with Mascherano now, too. His distribution was poor, apparently, and his heart was never in the club. £25 million is a decent deal as well, since we only need him for games against those in the top six.

 

Those three myths are only bettered by that of Jermaine Pennant being our best player in Athens. A few runs down the right-hand side do not compare to the all-action performance of Mascherano, who kept Kaka quiet throughout. All this only four months after joining the club. The final was lost the second he left the pitch; Kaka, finally free from the San Lorenzo shackles, strode through the midfield to set up Inzaghi and Milan's second.

 

The sale of Javier Mascherano will hit the side harder than many think. The marauding Glen Johnson will not have his gaps plugged as effectively as last season. There was no finer sight last season than watching Masch galloping to wipe out an opposition winger who was proceeding with trepidation in front the Centenary stand. To liken him to Jaws would be clichéd and misrepresentative - Jaws didn't reach its target sometimes.

 

He was not without his faults. His anger at Rafa after being rested for the home game against Hull City last season left a sour taste, as did his constant glances towards Barcelona and Inter Milan; glances which now seem to be paying dividends. His effort and ability will be missed, especially when we will only see a portion of his transfer fee.

 

Which begs the final question: who are the winners of all this besides his future employers? It certainly isn't Liverpool Football Club nor its supporters. It can't be Mascherano's wife either; whose homesickness will not abate by moving a mere few hundred miles closer to Argentina.

 

Unfortunately, the big winners look to be Tom Hicks, George Gillett and Christian Purslow. Mascherano's desire to leave the club will mask the fact they will sell a world class player for £25 million and replace him with somebody half the price. Big sales are needed. This won't get the coverage Torres or Gerrard will for the simple fact Mascherano was vocal about his desire to leave and it's a departure that's been expected for a long time. It's a let-off for the Anfield lepers.

 

Much like how Mascherano's arrival was a sign, his departure is similar. Excitement has turned into lamentation; it's regression, not progression, that fans expect.

 

The club was taken over a mere two weeks before that balmy night in Barcelona (no, not that one, Tyldsley), and three years later, the mood of the club's supporters couldn't be different.

 

If Sissoko passed the torch to Mascherano that night, then consider Mascherano wildly flinging a flame-thrower at his successor, who tries his best to avoid it. Let's hope the rest of the squad doesn't go up in flames with him.

 

----- Original Message -----

off rawk

[old skool tom]

sell the crying twat for 40 mil and buy

 

steven ireland

macarthy from wigan

scot parker

 

ps-i thought his wife wanted to go to a spanish speaking country? haha the shithouse

[Lopez Ufarte]

He can go. He's replaceable. £30m and that slovenian kid Khrin should do the trick. There's cheaper replacements who can actually do more than tackle and pass it simple. Steven Defour?

[Gary Mac Legend]

Got a horrible feeling about this, you just know half the money will disappear..... If Hodgson signs a journeyman like Poulsen or Silva, and no players on top, that will be the final straw.

[Guest TK-421]

sell the crying twat for 40 mil and buy

 

steven ireland

macarthy from wigan

scot parker

 

ps-i thought his wife wanted to go to a spanish speaking country? haha the shithouse

 

How can we afford to pay the wages of three players instead of one?