Leaderboard

That was a looooooong time coming. Not just a win at Anfield, but a win of THAT type. You know, the type we used to pull out of the bag all the time back in the ‘mentality monsters’ days. I don’t remember the last time we did anything like this but it felt good. Very satisfying, especially given the way this game went. We fell behind, got slapped in the face by VAR yet again, responded superbly, equalised but then seemed to lose our way until a last, late flurry that brought us the winner. If we manage to sneak into the top four come the end of the season this is definitely the game we’ll look back on as being pivotal, because had we not bagged that late winner I think it would have been all over for us. Psychologically, failing to win yet another game at Anfield would have been too much to come back from. The performance itself did nothing to suggest we have what it takes to break into the top four but that can change. The main thing is picking up points while you wait for the performances to pick up, and we did that. I don’t feel especially encouraged or happy about where we are but it was such a relief to win this game. It was a great feeling when Trent lashed in that winner, especially as it was obvious that there was no way they could disallow this one. I actually celebrated it, which is rare these days. Still no first half goal for us though. It’s just getting really fucking weird now isn’t it? We never score in the first half anymore. And when we do, it doesn’t count, but I’ll get to that shortly. As expected, Sadio was benched and Bobby came back in. Milner was also recalled, which again, I think we all expected too. We started ok but typically we weren’t sharp in the final third. We were completely dominant though. At one point the graphic came up that we’d had 10 attempts on goal but the only one I could even remember was a sitter that Mo missed. What were all the other ones? There was a Jota header from a corner as well, that was pretty close, but I can’t remember anything else. I never really had the feeling we were going to score even though Carragher kept talking about how we looked so more dangerous than we have been in other home games. I didn’t feel that way, mainly because their keeper wasn’t having to do anything. That miss from Mo was bad though. Mings made a mess of it and although the keeper was out quickly it looked like Mo could have skipped around him and finished with his right foot. Instead he took it early with his left, but that was an almost impossible finish with the outside of his boot and it was always going to go wide. We were well on top though and Villa didn’t look dangerous at all. There was a Konsa header from a corner that went straight at Alisson, but they really weren’t offering much. And then they scored. Out of nothing. Kabak got in front of Watkins to make a challenge but the ball went to a Villa player and now Watkins was goal side. The ball was played to him and although Kabak got back at him, the striker got his shot away and Alisson somehow let it go under him. Shite that again, but at least he’s ditched the tash now. We’ve been in this situation a lot over the last few months and we’ve rarely been able to respond. This time it looked as though we’d hit back fairly quickly when Bobby finished from close range jut before half time. I didn’t celebrate but there wasn’t anything specific that I’d seen that made me think it might be disallowed. It’s just a general thing now. I’ve almost become attuned to not celebrating, just in case. And as soon as I saw the first replay I knew it was getting disallowed. I’m not saying it was or wasn’t offside, but it was close enough that there was no way those lines were going to be drawn in our favour. Whenever it’s that tight and there’s enough wiggle room for them, it’s going to come down against us. It always does. The only hope was that the replay would show that Cash got a touch on the ball before it reached Jota. He made a play at it and it probably brushed him, but the replay was inconclusive, so then out came the lines and we all knew what would follow. I don’t know how long it took from the moment the ball hit the net to them ruling it out, but it felt like three or four minutes. It’s just a fucking joke really. They’re just always so fucking desperate to disallow goals. Especially ours. I’m not even saying they got this wrong because there was no visible proof as to whether Cash played the ball (I hate that shit rule anyway) so you can’t give that, and Jota’s arm may have been a fraction ahead of the last defender’s knee. Then again, it might not have been. I’m not even blaming the officials too much for this. They’re the swelling when you have the mumps, or the scabs when you have chickenpox. The rule makers are a bigger problem than the rule enforcers. I just think the whole process is fucking killing the game and making it virtually unwatchable. If you’ve got to forensically examine it like that then it’s close enough that the attacking team should always get the benefit. That’s how it should be, but instead we’ve got these busy little traffic warden cunts looking for reasons to disallow goals and ruin everyone’s enjoyment of the sport. I hate it now. There’s no real pleasure in football anymore because VAR has sucked it all out. If VAR isn’t scrapped at the end of the season I honestly don’t know how much longer I’m going to keep watching. Something I hadn’t even thought of until I read it on the forum (credit to Niallers), but there hasn’t been one incident when the lines overlapped to show that it was level. That in itself shows that these close calls are completely at the discretion of the VAR because there has not been a single ‘level’ since they introduced this shit, even though there has to have been incidents when the players are indeed dead level. So given that some of them will have been level but were not called as such, we know beyond any doubt that they are moving the line one way or another to avoid a scenario where it’s ‘level’. So how do they decide which way to move it? If there is a default ruling where they have to allow (or disallow) the goal then why haven’t we been told? It fucking stinks this doesn’t it? What’s the point of football if you can’t celebrate goals? There is no point. None whatsoever. May as well not bother watching it live anymore and just watch the highlights later. The big thing with football was always being in the moment. The euphoria of a goal. It doesn’t exist now. The one saving grace was that it happened just before half time and not just after. We had 15 minutes to get over it and channel the anger from it, and we did just that. The response was great. We started the second half looking really lively. There was a purpose about our play and we were moving the ball much quicker. The equaliser came from a flowing move and even though it was a little fortunate in how the ball eventually fell to Salah (Robbo shooting from an unlikely angle and the keeper parrying it straight at him) it was a deserved goal and credit to Mo for getting in there. You’d have thought that would have given us a real lift and we could have taken advantage of it and put Villa to the sword, but if anything it had the opposite effect. The urgency we’d shown to get level seemed to just ebb away and Villa were quite comfortable. That’s as concerning as it is disappointing. Maybe that’s one of those effects of no fans? Anfield would have been rocking after the equaliser and Villa would have known there was a storm coming. Without fans momentum just isn’t as big a factor though. Goals don’t really change games that much now. Klopp sent on Thiago for Gini and then Sadio for Firmino. I didn’t like that second change because Bobby was doing alright and I’d have preferred Milner to have gone off instead. We needed a winner so why not go with the four forwards? What did my head in even more was Shaq being given two fucking minutes at the end (plus stoppage time). At least give him five or ten minutes. Sending him on after 88 minutes seemed absolutely fucking pointless, yet it actually worked as he was involved in the winner. As the clocked ticked into stoppage time I’d pretty much given up, especially given the lack of urgency on show. Thiago, Fabinho and Alisson knocking it around in their own half as time was running out really wound me up. Then it happened. Trent had sort of ambled forward into space and collected the ball in the centre. The ball ended up out wide with Robbo and his cross was just too high for Mané. Shaq and Thiago worked something between themselves and Thiago met Shaq’s return cross with a powerful volley that looked sure to go in. I was on my feet for that, but no, fuck off, it’s too close to the keeper who made a good save. Oh well, that’s that then. More points thrown away at home. But no, it ended up at Trent’s feet on the left edge of the box. He shifted it to his right peg and bent one into the corner. Get the fuck in! Villa had been time wasting for most of the second half but now all of a sudden they were in a hurry. They threw men forward and put plenty of crosses in the box, but Big Nat’s head was on the end of most of them. We held out comfortably and should have made it 3-1 when Shaq slid a ball through for Mané to get himself a much needed goal. The keeper stood up well and won the battle, but the finish was just weak as fuck though and really showed just where Sadio’s confidence level is at right now. He’s normally great in those situations. It didn’t matter as it was the last kick of the game but that could have been a real morale booster for him ahead of the Madrid game. Instead he goes into it with his confidence on the floor. I probably wouldn’t start him but I think Klopp will and I reckon it’ll be Jota who makes way. Maybe all four will start though. I have zero expectation for that game but if we were to score first then you never know. I just can’t see us keeping a clean sheet, especially with Alisson in this kind of form. We’ll see though. Star man isn’t easy but I’m going for Phillips who was rock solid all afternoon. I can’t remember him putting a foot wrong and it was a good response to a difficult night in Madrid. Robbo was better than he has been of late and Fabinho was good too, but the big fella deserves it. Team: Alisson; Alexander-Arnold, Phillips, Kabak (Shaqiri), Robertson; Fabinho, Wijnaldum (Thiago), Milner; Salah, Firmino (Mané), Jota:

Only eight more weekends and then this is over. Who knows, we might yet salvage something from this complete catastrophe of a season. A couple of weeks ago it had an 8th or 9th place vibe about it but as shite as we are, others are in the same boat. And that boat may as well be named the Titanic as everyone seems to be sinking fast. Everyone below third is shite. I still think Chelsea are probably the least shite, but losing 5-2 at home to West Brom probably flies in the face of that. Are they as untrustworthy as us? They might be. They hadn’t conceded for 12 hours but then shipped five to one of the lowest scoring teams in the league. That result was one nobody could have seen coming. Nobody except for Sam Allardyce that is. It went exactly how he drew it up on his tactics board apparently. At least that’s what he told Talksport on Monday morning. No-one blows their own trumpet quite like Allardyce. He actually said that they targeted Mendy because they’d studied him and he is prone to doing mad things. How much of a cunt do you have to be to publicly shame an opposition player like that? It’s not as if Mendy played any part in this defeat for Chelsea either. It defo wasn’t on him. Chelsea actually scored first when Pulisic reacted quickest after Alonso’s free-kick came back off the post, but Thiago Silva saw red soon after. Tuchel went mad at the time but honestly, how can they possibly have any complaints there? He lunged in and caught the lad after he’d got his shot away, and David Coote really had no choice but to give him a second booking. Chelsea were complaining but if he hadn’t produced a second yellow for that, West Brom would have been complaining and they’d have had a much bigger grievance than Chelsea had. The game then turned on its head. Partly because of the sending off, partly because of a freak injury situation. Ivanovic came on to replace an injured Baggie, and 12 minutes later he too had to go off injured. His replacement was Callum Robinson and he was the most influential player in the second half. Not really sure how a manager can say that was all part of his plan, but if anyone can, Fat Sam can. Before the Callum Robinson show began though we had big drama in first half stoppage time when Pereira scored twice in a couple of minutes. First he equalised with a cool finish from a long ball over the top. Mendy had started to come but knew he wasn’t getting there, and he ended up in no man’s land. Allardyce was pretty smug about that but that goal was on the centre backs, not the keeper. Still, anything to suit the ‘tactical genius’ narrative eh? Then, with Chelsea all over the place, he fired in a low shot to give West Brom a half time lead. He’s a good player that Pereira. I just don’t think he’s consistent. If he was he’d be playing for a better team than West Brom, but when he’s on he’s quality. Had Chelsea still had eleven men I’d have fancied them to turn it around, but losing Thiago Silva and then two goals in such a short space of time gave them a mountain to climb. And they couldn’t climb it. In fairness West Brom were sensational at times in the second half. The goals they scored were ridiculously good for what is basically an alehouse team. Robinson made it 3-1 with a gorgeous volley after a sweeping move. Most players would have lashed at it but he just guided it with his sidefoot right into the top corner. Fucking brilliant goal. All the FIFA virgins who were creaming themselves over that shitty rabona from Lamela the other week won’t have a clue how good this goal was, but it was glorious. Diagne then finished off another length of the field move full of dummies and back heels, and although Chelsea pulled one back through Mount and briefly threatened a comeback, Robinson wrapped it up with another lovely finish to cap off an amazing day. The funny thing is, every goal he’s ever scored in the top flight is against Chelsea. Five goals, all against Chelsea. Usually it’s us on the end of weird anomalies like that. Kevin Lisbie anyone? Dwight Gayle? Lots of talk afterwards about West Brom playing like Brazil. It’s the stock comment we all make whenever a team plays exciting football but I think that’s a comparison that needs retiring now as there’s absolutely nothing magical about Brazil anymore. They used to be the benchmark for flair, skill and dazzling football, but nowadays they’re no different to anyone else. There’s fuck all magical about a team that’s picking players from Everton. Final point on this game. Chelsea won the XG count, which shows just what a fucking crock of shite that is. Pisses me off that it’s somehow made it’s way into mainstream analysis of games now. Man City beat Leicester. Didn’t watch any of it and don’t care who scored, but I did hear that there was a five minute spell when Leicester had 0% possession, which is almost impossible to do. Reverse Rodgeball. Moving on. I knew Chris Wilder had been sacked but I had no idea who replaced him. Paul Heckinbottom. Never heard of the cunt, but apparently he was Leeds boss before Bielsa. They went head to head in the Yorkshire derby on Friday night and Bielsa came out on top. Harrison had a tap in to make it 1-0 following nice play by Raphinha. He almost doubled their lead soon after but the keeper made a good save. In the build up to that a Leeds player got fucking wiped right out by a two footed lunge from Baldock, who gave himself a concussion in the process. He tried to come back on but he was all over the place and they were forced to sub him. You have to wonder why 1) he wasn’t sent off for the two footed tackle and 2) how the Blades medical staff didn’t know he had a concussion. It was 1-1 in first half stoppage time when Osborn arrived at the back post and just about converted. It initially looked like a Leeds defender had blocked it on the line but goal-line technology intervened and gave the goal. It was actually miles over the line but the original angle was deceptive. Jagielka put through his own net to give Leeds the win. 7th own goal of his career, the Evertonian cunt. Southampton came from 2-0 down to beat Burnley on Sunday. Cracking game this one, astonishingly. Even more astonishing, Burnley actually got a penalty. Incredible scenes. The ref didn’t give it initially because it’s Burnley and they weren’t at Anfield, but after being told to take a look at it he eventually got it right and saw that Walker-Peters just scythed down Eric Pieters after he crossed the ball. How he didn’t see that to begin with though, fuck knows. Wood emphatically blasted in the pen to make it 1-0. He had earlier gone close with a toe poke from the edge of the box. I love that. You don’t see anywhere near enough toeys in the modern game but it’s a good way of catching out the keeper. Fraser Forster actually did well to react and turn it round the post. Vydra made it 2-0 with a route one goal. Hoof forward by Ben Mee, nice flick by Wood and a thumping finish by Vydra. Armstrong started the comeback and Ings equalised with a beautifully taken goal. Just superbly done. He celebrated too even though Burnley is his old team. I think that’s crept in since fans have been missing. Players don’t want to celebrate in front of the fans they used to play for but in empty stadiums all bets are off. Southampton absolutely blitzed Burnley after that and Nick Pope was in the kind of form we only usually see from him at Anfield. He was keeping the scores level almost by himself but eventually he was beaten by Redmond and the Saints picked up a rare win. They did need a really acrobatic save from Forster to deny Wood though. He moves pretty well for a big Frankenstein looking twat with bolts in his neck. Newcastle snatched a late draw at home to Spurs but they’re right in the thigh of that dogfight at the bottom. If Fulham could ever find a way to convert performances into results then Newcastle would be fucked. This was a big point for them though. They led with a first half goal from Linton. Nice to see big Joe getting a rare goal. Fourth goal in 62 games. Kane managed half that total in four minutes to turn it around and put Spurs ahead. They should have made the game safe in the second half but didn’t take their chances and got caught late by an equaliser by on loan Arsenal man Willock. A good day for Newcastle attackers called Joe. Sunderland are looking good for promotion so hopefully next season there’ll be a return of the North East derby game in the Championship. I want them to go down but I was happy for them to pick up that point on Sunday as it did us a favour. We made up two points on Spurs and Everton this week, and three on Chelsea and Leicester. But fucking West Ham are now somehow in a top four spot. If that’s still the case when the season ends then us, Spurs, Chelsea, Arsenal and even Everton would all be justified in sacking the manager and using “finished below David Moyes” as the justification for it. Fulham had such a great chance to pile the pressure on Newcastle but they blew it by losing to Villa, for home Grealish was still missing. Villa’s record without their star man is shite and this really should have been a game where Fulham made a statement. As usual, they played pretty well and deserved more than they got. There’s no way they’re the third worst team in this league, but if you can’t get results then this is what happens. Villa were awarded a penalty that was over-ruled after the ref checked on the screen. Good that. Can’t blame him for the initial decision as it looked like a pen, but the replays showed that Lemina got the ball and the right decision was made. For every one of these though there are ten shit ones. Mitrovic took advantage of a Mings mistake to open the scoring but Trezeguet equalised from a Mings cross and then made it 2-1 soon after. Watkins wrapped it up from close range with a couple of minutes left. Scott ‘Scotty’ Parker’s body language concerned me. He seems more concerned with looking like a Burtons poster on that touchline. He’s stood there, posing like a statue while his team are shipping stupid goals. Show a bit of that Dunkirk spirit, Squadron Leader Parker. Elsewhere, the Mancs just about beat Brighton and look to be on course to be the worst second placed team since… actually since Mourinho somehow got them 2nd a few years ago when they were at least as bad as they are now. Onto Monday now and Everton’s abysmal home form continued as they conceded a late equaliser to Palace. Their home record of late isn’t much better than ours, and we’ve lost six on the bounce. Rodriguez opened the scoring with his right foot. He’s been out for a long time but scoring with the foot he only uses for standing on? It's like he’s come back a new man. Or woman, if you believe that WhatsApp message that was doing the rounds last week! Batshuayi equalised very late on but it was no more than Palace deserved as they had their chances. If Everton weren’t Everton they’d be miles ahead of us by now but they can’t even beat us at being shit. What was with the weird Palace away kit? Never seen that one before. Navy with the red stripe down the centre. Palace Saint Germain. See what I did there? That’s worth two quid a month of anyone’s money, surely? Finally, as already mentioned West Ham won to go into the top four. They beat Wolves 3-2 with Lingard once again proving to be their talisman. He’s had a massive impact there hasn’t he? The prick. He ran half the length of the field to open the scoring and then he was heavily involved in the second, scored by Fornals, and the third, scored by Bowen. They did their best to blow it as goals from Dendoncker (after sensational play by Traore) and Fabio Silva made it interesting but the Hammers held on to leapfrog us, Spurs and Chelsea and go fourth. If anything sums up this completely fucked up, mental season, it’s Moyes slithering his way into the top four.