Game Thread: v Arsenal (h)

[Rorschach08]

Just got back, fantastic atmosphere. Came out the ground absolutely deflated though.

 

On a side note, somebody pointed out a few faces off one of the other forums, my god there a bunch of scruffy cunts.

[Dan Vito Corleone]

Hate to start off talking about the referee but I don't have a choice. Martin Atkinson is a gutless, clueless, moronic, parasitical coward. He went racing 20 yards to send Cole off for that tackle, and the red card was in his hand after 2 yards. I could see this myself as I sit parallel to where the foul took place. He gave himself no time to think about it. It wasn't a great challenge, but Joe Cole isn't a dirty player. It was clumsy, granted, but not malicious in any way. I hope we appeal, but I suspect we'd be wasting our time. I personally think Wilshire is a lucky boy to have stayed on - but again, he's not a dirty player.

 

Atkinson has previous with this sort of thing, and at Anfield at that. He missed an absolutely shocking tackle by Pienaar on Mascherano in the Merseyside derby in March. He then went on to send Soto off and leave Fellaini on the field when it should arguably have been the other way round, though I would have accepted two reds. Fellaini got his, as his ankle broke, but it was a poor decision from a poor official.

 

Later on in that game, he gave a token red card to Pienaar. It was a joke of a decision. Exactly the same happened today and I bet Arsenal are FUMING. It was a pathetic decision but I would expect nothing else. I don't want to see that cretin anywhere near Anfield again. He isn't fit to referee at this level. Absolute cunt.

 

As for the game, I was very proud of Liverpool today. We weren't great in the first half, but we defended excellently. I'm not a big fan of Skrtel but he was excellent today. Arsenal had a lot of the ball with no end product. We harried them very well. First half was a bit lax when we had the ball though I thought.

 

We started the second half brilliantly, and NGog was a nuisance all game, very pleased with him. For all the critics he has, he scores goals. He got amongst the Arsenal defence today. All credit to him. If that's to be Mascherano's last game for us then it will go down as one of the memorable ones as he was immense. Anyone who thinks we can do better than him has been sat in the sun for far too long at some point. Top, top footballer. Unrivalled at what he does.

 

The goal was a sickener, I thought we deserved to hang on for the win as we'd defended so well, and it's a bitter pill to swallow, especially as I thought it was our throw in for the goal as well. It also came at a time when we were effectively down to 9 men as Agger didn't know where he was or what he was doing, he also went down 20 seconds after we made our third and final change. Galling goal to give away.

 

However, there's a lot to be positive about there. It just feels like a loss.

[Guest davelfc]

Ngog, well I've called him and still do but his goal today was very good. Reminded me a little of the goal Torres scored against the mancs when he had ferdinand holding him. Of course NGog didn't have that distraction but all the same he should be applauded for it.

 

Still think he has zero predatory instinct, again he stopped thinking he might be offside when there was no flag or whistle. He needs to carry on and he might have scored or gained a corner.

 

The ref was shit, he always is for us and he had a huge impact on the game, not only for the sending off that I couldn't see from my seat but for buying all of the arsenal play acting. They should be ashamed of themselves after that, an utter disgrace.

 

Their fans, classless cunts, two seasons ago 11 and a half minutes. Last season just under 9 minutes. This season 3 minutes and 54 seconds. What am I referring to? Well their chant of 'where's your famous atmosphere' like those cunts know what an atmosphere is. Russ Abbott knows more about an atmosphere than they do.

 

Thought we showed a lot of character today when we went down to 10, the longer the game went on though the more they were likely to benefit from the advantage. At half time I thought we couldn't win, so to leave with a point was one more than I thought we would get. That we were leading for most of the second half was the pisser though as we came so close to winning.

 

Anyone see Morten Gamst Pedersen outside the Albert before the game? Weird.

 

Anyway, far too early to be judging the team or the manager. We're up and running and Torres got a little run about. Shame we've lost Cole but he will be back against the mancs.

[El Rojo]

The likelihood is that Cole will now miss three league games at a time when he should be embedding himself into our first XI.

 

Maybe a good opportunity for Aquilani, because he really needs to impress when given a chance this season.

 

Jovanovic will give us a full blooded presence and work ethic on the left that Kewell, Gonzalez, Riera and Babel were all incapable/unwilling to provide, so that's a big positive for me.

 

And though it feels like a defeat, it's still a better start to the season than last year and a better result than the same fixture in last December.

[That fella]

Fuck off hodgson.

[Coro]

 

Still think he has zero predatory instinct, again he stopped thinking he might be offside when there was no flag or whistle. He needs to carry on and he might have scored or gained a corner.

 

 

That's just down to a lack of experience.

 

His instincts see him getting in the right areas and on the end of things.

 

He's shown good promise.

 

Loved the way Torres was encouraging him from the sidelines in the 2nd half.

[That fella]

fuck off lawrenson you stupid cunt.

[gkmacca]

Lawro's on form on MOTD: Cole's tackle was 'definitely a straight red' (even though it was similar to about ten of Lawro's tackles per match) and 'the dreaded zonal marking is gone so there won't be any silly mistakes' (even though you used to play it at times, Lawro).

[rondeco]

I haven't read the thread but it might already be said but credit to Jamie Carragher for an excellent post match interview. Shreeves went looking for him to compare rafa and roy and he sidestepped it nicely. Spoke well without saying anything against anyone.

[Guest davelfc]

That's just down to a lack of experience.

 

His instincts see him getting in the right areas and on the end of things.

 

He's shown good promise.

 

Loved the way Torres was encouraging him from the sidelines in the 2nd half.

 

Personally I think really good strikers have a predatory instinct. I don't think it's experience and I don't think it's something you can learn. I certainly don't think NGog will ever be a great striker here.

 

But he's scoring and you can't argue with that, if he continues to do so I will be very happy.

[Section_31]

Lawro's on form on MOTD: Cole's tackle was 'definitely a straight red' (even though it was similar to about ten of Lawro's tackles per match) and 'the dreaded zonal marking is gone so there won't be any silly mistakes' (even though you used to play it at times, Lawro).

 

You know you're going to get the odd stupid comment from Lawro but by and large, this is the worst 'era' for punditry I can remember. Merson and Reknapp on Sky Sports, can't really get much worse than that. Redknapp doesn't even know who was and wasn't playing in matches when he's slagging off last year's team selections, and Merson is just a drink-sodden wreck.

[Red Phoenix]

First Liverpool match I've ever watched where hardly any emotion washed up in me at all because of the thick shit from Vampires that's going on off the field. Didn't even get excited until around the 87th minute. Thanks DM, thanks Tom, thanks George, thanks RBS.

 

Pepe : please, don't crucify yourself. You made a fuck up, you're one of the best keepers on the planet and we all love you. Roll on the next game, you're a fucking legend man and you and all of us know it.

 

And grats to N'gog who I've personally written off as not being ready for about another 2 years, hope you carry on proving me wrong!

 

Still really down about how little that match did for me because of the off the field problems, have never felt like that before when watching Liverpool FC. It's all so wrong.

[stringvest]

thought it was a dogged performance today, even before Cole went off we defended deep but we looked organised. Lack if sharpness evident. Cole couldn't get into the game, Ngog ran offside with depressing regularity and was lucky with the goal - though it was well struck, any decent goalie would have save that on the near post comfortably. Kuyt was woeful in possession today, almost cost us a few goals by repeatedly giving the ball away, and was bypassed with ease by the Arsenal left back and midfield. Jovanovic, one strong run notwithstanding, was anonymous, and Reina blundered into his own net in most uncharacteristic fashion.

 

That said, the defence look organised and relatively watertight, the central midfield area looked balanced, and Torres got a few minutes. Good to see Lucas getting a strong cheer too. We need to learn to love the ball a little bit more. Gerrard apart, we were both profligate and predictable in possession, and we were certainly outpassed for the whole game. Maxi on the right would be a massive improvement in that regard.

[Red Phoenix]

To be honest I thought we allowed Arse to walk all over us for big parts of the game, we sat back far too much and let them bring the game to us, hope we don't carry on playing like that. Yeah we got a point but Arse spent most of the game in our half with the ball, that can't continue. The time we spent attacking them was minimal. Am sure we'll get better though.

 

And yeah, as a bonus we looked good in defence, but that isn't going to get us into a CL spot. We have to attack teams as the overarching plan, or at least be balanced instead of defensive. And Stevie should be attacking not central mid, he's one of the most effective and ruthless attackers on the planet, he should be back alongside Nando.

Edited August 15, 2010 by Red Phoenix

[That fella]

stick ya fuckin negs up yer arse

[Red Phoenix]

stick ya fuckin negs up yer arse

 

Will rep you because I'm bored and pretty drunk.

[mypost]

To be honest I thought we allowed Arse to walk all over us for big parts of the game, we sat back far too much and let them bring the game to us, hope we don't carry on playing like that. Yeah we got a point but Arse spent most of the game in our half with the ball, that can't continue. The time we spent attacking them was minimal. Am sure we'll get better though.

 

And yeah, as a bonus we looked good in defence, but that isn't going to get us into a CL spot. We have to attack teams as the overarching plan, or at least be balanced instead of defensive. And Stevie should be attacking not central mid, he's one of the most effective and ruthless attackers on the planet, he should be back alongside Nando.

 

The difference between games this year and last year is noticeable already. Last year, we set out for 0-0 in games from ko. Today we didn't. We didn't attack much, due to a number of factors.

 

Personnel missing.

1 man upfront.

Red Cards.

9 players.

 

Arsenal, to their credit, came out and had a go. That won't be the case with the next 3 league visitors to our place. But we rarely looked in trouble, and restricted them to a couple of chances.

 

We still tried to go forward when we could, and we had chances, we scored a goal, defended very well and got a point. One point more than the same fixture last season. Could have been better certainly, but could have been much worse too.

[YNWA12]

I never really pay attention to any of our opening games. Especially with the World Cup, this was just like a pre-season game for many of them. The red card also made it impossible to see how we would have reacted 11 against 11 after that dreadful first half performance. In which we were just as disappointingly defensive as we were last season. Same story in the second half, but then at least it was justified to put 10 behind the ball.

 

That tackle from Cole was shite and worst of all completely unecessary. Reminded me of that brainless one from Joey Barton on Xabi a couple of seasons ago. Stevie could have been a bit more careful with his challenges as well. Could have had three yellow cards, but luckily only got one. Some nice passes and free-kicks though.

 

Thought nobody played really well. Jovanovic was like a left-sided version of Kuyt. Maybe Masch played ok, but he was probably just putting himself in the shop window. If he stays I hope he will not be as disappointed as he was last year when his transfer didn't go through.

 

Last season made me so tired of having to praise players like Kuyt, Carra, Masch and Lucas for their hard work and attitude and after this game I'm dreading the same. Can't we just start playing some good football again? And not just against small time opposition? I really hope (and believe) that, that are Hodgson's intentions and we will see the effects of his management in a couple of games time.

 

I've surprisingly seen a lot of praise for our performance today, but maybe my lack of enthousiasm just stems from the ownership situation which is tiring me out.

[Red Phoenix]

The difference between games this year and last year is noticeable already. Last year, we set out for 0-0 in games from ko. Today we didn't. We didn't attack much, due to a number of factors.

 

Personnel missing.

1 man upfront.

Red Cards.

9 players.

 

Arsenal, to their credit, came out and had a go. That won't be the case with the next 3 league visitors to our place. But we rarely looked in trouble, and restricted them to a couple of chances.

 

We still tried to go forward when we could, and we had chances, we scored a goal, defended very well and got a point. One point more than the same fixture last season. Could have been better certainly, but could have been much worse too.

 

Yeah am just not into defensive football, especially when we have Gerrard and Nando that can kill games by using a different style, and Cole to link that play up. (nando was a sub though so it's cool.) At the same time though if we play boring defensive footie until the end of the season and it gets us a CL spot, fair enough. The club has massive problems, we have to take what we can get.

[WaltonRed]

Thought we were boss you know.

 

Felt robbed at the end.

 

If the Sherman tank that is Yaya Toure is worth 28m then the Panzer that is El Jefe is worth much much more.

 

He was fucking unreal today. I'm going to miss the crazy bastard.

 

Credit to N'gog, great strike.

 

Chine up Pepe, its just one of them!

[mypost]

Yeah am just not into defensive football, especially when we have Gerrard and Nando that can kill games by using a different style, and Cole to link that play up. (nando was a sub though so it's cool.) At the same time though if we play boring defensive footie until the end of the season and it gets us a CL spot, fair enough.

 

Well unfortunately with that formation, defensive football will be the norm rather than the exception. The WC saw it in use everywhere, a brutal tournament, where the winners scored 8 goals as a result of using it. It's just a phase in the game at the moment. When you have both teams playing it, it makes for some really wretched games.

 

That said, Arsenal at home is a tough test for your opening game, and considering last season's entertainment, (or lack of it), I think we did fairly well. Very impressed with the set piece marking, didn't put a foot wrong there, and closed them down most of the day. Rosicky and the goal apart, I don't remember us being seriously troubled. We had to play a man down for half the game, and didn't lose our shape or the plot. Unlike last year, sensible like-for-like subs were made, just unfortunate that Agger got injured just after the last one.

 

Reina still hasn't kept a clean sheet against Arsenal, but in general today, a tough test, and we passed it without too much pride or confidence lost. So not bad.

 

For what it's worth, the Top Four table sees us top of something

 

Liverpool 1 1

Arsenal.. 1 1

Chelsea.. 0 0

cranks.... 0 0

 

:yes:

[Guest LFD]

I said before the season started that I'd be happy with 4 points from the first two games.

 

Having watching City this weekend, I think that is still very much possible.

[chauncey]

Thought we were boss you know.

 

Felt robbed at the end.

 

If the Sherman tank that is Yaya Toure is worth 28m then the Panzer that is El Jefe is worth much much more.

 

He was fucking unreal today. I'm going to miss the crazy bastard.

 

Credit to N'gog, great strike.

 

Chine up Pepe, its just one of them!

 

Look at his performance today, with all the shit surrounding his future: total pro. If we don't get top dollar for him then heads will roll.

[Manny]

I hate Koscielny. But that's partially because try as I might, I can't pronounce his name.

 

Pretty good performance, we never seem to start the season with a bang. Didn't think it was a red but as has been said, it was a daft thing to do. Feel sorry for Reina, bad mistake but he's proved time and again he gets over his errors so I'm not at all concerned.

 

If we were gunning for the title, we need to be winning games like this. But I think we'd all take top 4, given the circumstances, in which case 1-1 at home to Arsenal is an OK result.

[RedKnight]

Didn't even notice Aquilani was missing until after the match. Says it all about him, but I'd play him in Cole's absence.