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Saturday Apr 13: After all their chest thumping last week when they beat Arsenal (who are shite away from home and had one win in their last nine on their travels), Everton lost at Fulham today. Ryan Babel made the first and scored the second, and they couldn’t get near him all day. I might shit a lung here. Imagine the fume in the away end as his bright red head was bearing down on their goal. Great stuff. Klopp says it might be a while before we see Ox back in the team and regrets that he got a bit carried away and said he’d be back soon when Ox first returned to training. He saw Ox in training, looking boss, and completely went against all the advice the medical staff had given him and went and got everyone’s hopes up! He’s like a big kid sometimes isn’t he? Just so excitable. In other news, there are reports that Rafa Camacho has turned down a new contract and will be sold for £10m. Wolves are among several clubs showing an interest. He probably should turn down a new deal as he won’t make it here. Demba Ba says he didn’t feel sorry for Gerrard after the slip. So fucking what? You think Stevie would want your sympathy? As if he’d even fucking care what you think. Gerrard is a legend of the game, Demba Ba was a journeyman famous for one lucky goal. Fuck Demba Ba, the prick. Finally today, Paul Merson says Hudson-Odoi is the big threat to us tomorrow, and not Eden Hazard. “They will know all about Hazard and if he plays they will make sure he doesn’t get the ball. But they haven’t faced Hudson-Odoi before. They won’t know him as well and they will try and play him one v one. Good luck with that”. I know he’s thick but even he can’t believe that? He has to be saying it just to be 'edgy' or to get attention. It’s like me saying that the best analysis of tomorrow’s game will come from Merson or Danny Murphy and not Carra or Neville. Hazard terrifies me. He could beat us single handedly if he's on it, as sometimes he's quite literally unstoppable. If Hudson-Odoi plays he won’t even get a kick as he’ll be up against Robbo. Sunday Apr 14: L 2 Chelsea 0. Massive win, especially as we had to play directly after City had won at Palace. The lads just aren’t letting any of that shit effect them so far. They just go out and do their thing irrespective of what City have done. Chelsea weren’t great and we were fairly comfortable winners, but we had to wait until after half time to take the lead. It’d be nice if we could score in the first ten minutes of every game like City do. Ok, today they had to wait until 15 minutes, which must have seemed like an eternity to them. We were great in that second half though. As soon as the whistle blew to kick things off, we were all over them and wouldn’t let them get out of their own half. No-one can live with us when we play like that. The boys were like a swarm of angry wasps. Look at the first goal. We scored that through intensity. The second goal was different, that was just sheer quality from Mo. What a fucking strike. The noise after that went in was spine tingling. We deserve this title and we’d have been crowned Champions already if there wasn’t one team ignoring all the fucking rules that the rest of us are playing by. Sarri did us a favour by starting Hazard as a number nine, but when he switched to the left all hell broke loose and he could easily have dragged Chelsea back into it. As for Hudson-Odoi, yeah he didn’t get a kick. The u23s also had a big win today. 6-0 at Leicester. Could easily have been double that as they were sensational. Camacho scored three (should have had six), Brewster got one (should have had three), Jones got one (should have had two) and Woodburn slotted a pen. Brewster is looking sharp since he came back, he might even make the bench before the season is out. Ox had another run out and Gomez played an hour or so at right back. Camacho’s future looks even more uncertain tonight though as he took to Instagram afterwards to have a moan. "I do not know whose idea it is, but I will prove that they are mistaken about my football. I'm not a right defender, I'm an attacker who scores goals. This is my DNA. Happy to score three goals and help the team in today’s win vs Leicester." Bye then. Monday Apr 15: RIP. Justice for the 96. Tuesday Apr 16: Wow, it’s been a rough stretch for Peter Beardsley. He lost his job and now he’s been made homeless by that fire last night. Thankfully he wasn’t on bell ringing duty when the Cathedral caught fire. Another thing to go up in flames was Man United’s Champions League campaign. What a fucking embarrassing showing that was from them in Camp Nou. Obviously it’s hard to legislate for Messi doing Messi things, but it wasn’t just that. They gave him possession for the first and then De Gea threw in the second. A Coutinho special rubbed salt in the wounds and I switched over to the Ajax game after that. Good decision too, as what a great second half that was. Made up Juve are out as the last thing I’d have wanted was to meet them in the final. Ajax going through was a good thing all round, because watching Juve toil away told me they wouldn’t stand a chance against either Spurs or City. Ajax just might though. There’s a fearlessness and freedom about how they play. I’d love to meet them in Madrid as that would be a proper final that. We’ve got to get past Porto and then Barca first of course. Oh yeah, before I forget. I saw Emre Can hack someone down and then yell at the ref and get booked, and I thought “I’m glad you don’t play for us anymore”. And I liked Big Sexy when he was here, it’s just that I see Fabinho play and it’s like… fucking hell, what an upgrade. Not quite Van Dijk over Sakho, but not too far off. Meanwhile, Guardiola says he wants to see if City’s fans “want to reach a semifinal”. He spoke about how every time he’s played an away game in the knockouts, the atmosphere has been incredible. Someone asked if he wants the atmosphere to be like when they played us at the Etihad last year, and he replied “better”. So, what we can draw from this is he knows City’s fans are shite too. Here’s the thing though, it was like that before he went there so he can’t complain. You can have all the money in the world but you can’t buy good support. Speaking of our fans though, we’ve been told we can’t chant “Chelsea rent boys” anymore. That’s fair enough really as times have changed. Get rid of it, and while we’re at it can we also get rid of the ‘you ain’t got no history’ song as well? It was relevant and funny ten years ago, but not so much now. Wednesday Apr 17: Porto 1 L 4. Great job from the lads. Didn’t play anywhere near their best and still cruised through because they held firm when they needed to, took the sting out of Porto and then finished them when the game opened up and they had space to play. The front three all looked great and Hendo looked like Superman when he came on. But enough of us, as let’s be honest here, it was the events at the Etihad that occupied most people’s thoughts afterwards. Not just because City lost, but because it was so damn fucking hilarious! Some thoughts: City’s fans are incredibly shit. The reaction when they thought they’d won it deep into stoppage time was utterly pathetic. Yeah, some were going mad like you’d expect, but loads didn’t look arsed at all. They’re the least passionate supporters in the country, but it’s weird because they didn’t used to be. Some of those players are genuinely special and could play anywhere. But they’re playing for City. In front of those fans. It must take the shine off their success a bit, especially when they see what we have. That’s why there are people at City (mostly in the press office, but also the manager’s office) who are completely obsessed with us. They want what we have, but they don’t understand that it can’t be bought or manufactured. Doesn’t stop them from trying though. There were reports today that they were putting crowd noise through the speakers. I don’t know if it was bullshit or not, but the fact that virtually nobody even questioned it says it all. Then there’s the pantomime they go through when the players get off the coach. Not seen it? Well enjoy…. As for VAR, leaving aside the fact it was City and therefore one of the greatest things to ever happen, this is exactly why I don’t like it. City thought they’d won it, and the players, manager and (some) fans went mental, as you would do. There wasn’t even a hint of offside at the time and none of the Spurs players were appealing. Then, what seemed like an age later, the announcement is made that there’s a review, and then after another short delay the goal is disallowed. I’m torn here because the decision was correct, and without VAR a massive injustice would have been done. And yet on the other hand, it doesn’t sit right with me because football is all about that spontaneous moment of unbridled joy when the ball hits the net. City had that, and then had it taken away. Worse than that though would be if players and fans begin to feel like they can’t let themselves celebrate until they know for sure it’s going to be given. I’ll always remember West Brom players not celebrating a goal at Anfield because they didn’t know if it would be ruled out or not. When it was given, the celebrations were just completely half arsed as the moment has gone. It’s a tough one and I don’t even know what to think anymore. I don’t like the idea of an injustice being carried out, but I also feel like football without that spontaneous moment of unbridled wild celebration just isn’t the same. This is how it’s going to be though and I guess I’ll just have to get used to it. I have to admit that tonight VAR proved it’s worth (in both games). Thursday Apr 18: Mané got the crucial first goal again last night and he seems to have made a habit of that this season. That’s probably why Carra caused a bit of a stir on MNF the other night when he claimed Sadio is the best wide player we’ve had since Digger and if he had to choose between him and Mo, he’s taking Mané. I don’t agree but it’s not such an outlandish claim given the huge impact he’s had on this season. My eyes tell me that Mané has had a better season than Salah, but the numbers say differently. This leads me to think that I’m judging Salah in the prism of what he did last season, whereas Sadio has upped his game from last year which further distorts my view on it. This time last year I felt as though Mané was very much number three on the totem pole. Salah was atop of it, Bobby was just behind him and then Mané was another few notches down. Now? Based on this season? I don’t think there is a gap anymore. Sadio is right up there on top of the pole with the other two. Meanwhile, Camacho has backtracked from his previous Instagram post, with another Instagram post saying: “Jurgen Klopp is my father in football. Boss Jurgen bet on me and chose me to be part of his team. Boss Jurgen will be a part of my life forever, because it was he who pitched me into the most competitive league in the world. Boss Jurgen will be unforgettable for me and my family. I believe in boss Jurgen, and I know he believes me, too. The boss knows better than anyone, that if he gives me an orientation on behalf of the team, I will give 200% for the boss, the team and the club. My gratitude for Klopp will be eternal.” Too little too late I reckon. Klopp was asked about him last night by a Portuguese reporter and he couldn’t have been any more non-committal about it. If we can get £10m for him, take it and run. Friday Apr 19: Solksjaer says some of United’s players need a reality check. Funny really. When he first got there he was acting like their best mate. Rashford, Martial and Lukaku all thrived and he even managed to get a tune out of Pogba for a little while. Then he got the job permanently and they’ve all turned to shit and the team keeps losing. Didn’t take long for him to go down the Mourinho route did it? He’ll be calling Pogba a twat and Luke Shaw a little fat fuck before you know it. Meanwhile, conflicting reports in the Spanish press today. One outlet has Madrid allocating €250m for the signing of Mané, while another claims Salah has had a bust up with Klopp and told him he wants to leave, with Madrid his preferred destination. They’re the absolute fucking worst aren’t they? Mo’s agent took to Twitter to rip into them, “talking through your AS again I see”, which was good to see. Unnecessary, as you’d have to be a fucking idiot to believe that story, but it was still good to see. See Barca are charging our fans over 100 quid a ticket. Of course, just like United did, we’re doing the same to their fans and using the extra cash to subsidise our fans who are travelling over. The average price Barca fans pay for home games is €17, and they’ve even admitted that they screw the away fans to make up the shortfall. Fucking pricks. More than a club indeed. Staying with Barcelona, and Mourinho has told us how to stop Messi. Did he ever manage to do it? Maybe he did, I don’t remember. Anyway, he says you need to ‘create a cage’ as that’s what he did. I do remember that, because he also had his players take it in turns to use a cattle prod on him while he was in that cage. It was brutal. To be honest though, I’m all in on that philosophy. Get the lads to take it in turns to boot him. And do the same to Suarez too for that matter. Messi won't react but it might slow him down a bit. Suarez though. Different story. Provoke him to the point he gets so frustrated that he sinks his choppers into Big Virg. Fuck me, I’m so up for this one. Can’t wait. Finally, Mo is on the cover of TIME magazine and has been named as one of the most influential people on the planet. Great to see, well deserved. Cracking fella and a great role model. While it’s quite surreal seeing one of our players on the cover of a publication like that, it still can’t touch that time when ‘atk’ off the forum was on the front of the Wall Street Journal at the height of the Gillett & Hicks shitstorm. That might be the most surreal thing I’ve ever seen. Mad times they were. That was the week that was….

The weekend's action kicked off on Friday night with that Ayoze Perez los… wait, I prmosied I wouldn’t call him a loser any more after he scored against City. I’ll start again. The weekend's action kicked off on Friday night with Ayoze Perez scoring the only goal of the game as Newcastle secured their safety with an unexpected win at Leicester. Although Leicester should have had a penalty they didn’t really do enough to deserve anything as Brendan got well and truly Rafa’d. Newcastle have looked half decent at times since the turn of the year and I’m already having visions of them camping in their own box against us and taking points off us with a corner that goes in off Paul Dummett’s left arse cheek. *shudders* Rondon has been in good form since the turn of the year and has suddenly become some kind of dead ball wizard. He’s had some belting free-kicks in recent weeks, so we’ll need to be wary of that. I’d also be happier if the 'worm with eyebrows' broke his duck before we play them too. He still hasn’t scored since his big money move in January and Mike Ashley will be buzzing as it means he can tell Rafa there's no more cash to spend because he wasted it on that turd. Speaking of turds, it’s not been a great week for the Mancs. They were (by Ole’s own admission) outplayed at home by West Ham and needed two penalties from Pogba to fluke the win. Of course Pogba posed and preened after both pens as though he’d actually done something befitting of a player who gets the hype he does. He’s never, ever, done anything befitting of the hype he gets. And yes, I’m aware he won a World Cup. The point stands. In typical fashion, Pobga went missing a few days later when United completely made a show of themselves in Camp Nou. They’re just shite, and it baffles me how some Reds are thinking there’s a chance they’ll take points off City. They won’t. Not because they won’t try, but because they’re shite. They’ll be lucky to hold City to three goals, although I do reckon they’ve got it in them to possibly score a couple (Rashford, Martial and Lukaku are all dangerous and Pogba is... well Pogba is quite good at pens) so they might at least make it interesting. I’ve got more faith in Burnley taking points from City than these losers though. They rode their luck during that winning run they had and some people were taken in by it, including the United board who gave the Goblin the job permanently. Since that happened they’ve lost virtually every game. Great isn't it? Last week I was taking the piss about that “Ole’s at the wheel” chant, but it’s even more ridiculous than I realised. I didn’t know the lyrics last week, only that they had a song with that line in and I was sick of hearing it. Turns out another line from it goes “We’ve got Sanchez, Paul Pogba and Fred” and - get this - it’s not a complaint, it’s a boast. I can’t even… I mean… fucking hell. Can they not hear themselves? They’re basically singing “we’ve got bunions, bad breath and piles”. Nothing to brag about lads. Still, I expect they’ll be replacing that song soon enough, just like they took down the “chosen one” Moyes banner when the truth hit them like a massive sledge hammer. Any week now they’ll be breaking out the ‘green and gold’ scarfs again and targeting the Glazers. “Green and gold, until we’re sold… or until we're good again”. Dicks. Not much has happened in terms of the title or the top four race, so the biggest situational change this week has come at the bottom, where suddenly Brighton look in deep shit. They got battered at home by Bournemouth and then lost to Cardiff in midweek. Cardiff were dead and buried but the ineptitude of Brighton has opened the door for them. Hopefully we can slam it back in their faces this weekend, but we could have done with a Brighton win there really. That Bournemouth result was a real shocker. If you lose by five at home to Eddie Howe’s side you probably deserve to go down really. That Dan Gosling jabroni opened the scoring after a lovely reverse pass from the impressive Callum Wilson. My boy Ryan Fraser then doubled their lead after another Wilson assist and Brighton's take became impossible when Knockaert had a moment of madness and launched himself at Adam Smith, earning himself a red card. Brooks made it 3-0, Wilson added a fourth and Stanislas made it 5-0. Bournemouth actually look pretty good when they have Brooks, Fraser and Wilson all on the pitch at the same time. They just haven't been able to keep them all fit. Brighton were utterly hideous though, mistakes all over the place and a complete lack of any fighting spirit. I don’t think they’ll get another point so it’s all going to come down to what Cardiff do. They were really unlucky to lose at Burnley and once again had a legitimate beef with the officials. Wood put Burnley ahead and then there was a dust up between Taylor and Barnes that ended with them going head to head like rutting stags. Then Barnes kissed him on the nose. Twice! Proper needling bastard him, I love it. Can’t wait to see him and Wood getting stuck into City in a few weeks. Refs are defo out to get Warnock now though. Mike Dean gave Cardiff a penalty and then changed his mind. Could have gone either way but you’d be livid if that went against you like that. They had another good pen shout waved away too when Gunnarsson was tripped, before Wood eventually killed them off once and for all. Cardiff deserved something from the game though and they’ve got far more fight in them than Brighton seem to have. In terms of talent Cardiff probably should be rivalling Huddersfield for rock bottom, but they’ve fought and scrapped all season and have significantly over achieved to still even have a chance at survival. Southampton are virtually safe now though after beating Wolves. Not a shock, as Nuno Holy Spirit’s side do much better against the top sides than the bottom ones and they were probably still on a huge downer following their agonising FA Cup semi final loss to Watford. Let's hope they're done for the season now and give us an easy ride on the final day. Redmond’s close range finish set the Saints on their way but Boli headed in from a corner to draw Wolves level. Redmond restored Southampton’s lead after being played in by Ings. Sims then wasted two great chances before substitute Long made it 3-1. Crazy. He hadn’t scored for nine years and then he slots in successive games. Football eh? Bloody hell. Southampton’s players tried to do one of those European celebrations at the end when the players all join hands in front of the home end and throw their arms up in the air. Needs a lot more work, as honestly it was the campest thing I’ve ever seen. It doesn’t help when half of them are squirming with embarrassment and not really throwing themselves into it. It was proper awkward, I doubt we’ll see them attempt it again. Talking of awkward, what about them Blues eh? After they beat Arsenal last week there was some classic blueshite bravado doing the rounds. They were getting all chesty, it was like last summer all over again, when Kopite heads were falling off because the balance of power was shifting. Marco’s finally got the players playing how he wants and the rest of us better look out next season apparently. Heard it all before, and it never gets old. A week later they were losing to already relegated Fulham, who hadn't won a game since January. They’ll never learn, will they? This was bad even by Everton standards. The best part of it is that Ryan Babel assisted the opener for Cairney and then scored the second himself (fantastic goal too), which was like pouring a whole salt cellar on a big fuck off cut. Don’t ever change, Everton. Mourinho was in the stands watching which no doubt had some Blues thinking Moshiri’s millions had tempted him. His stock has fallen, but not by THAT much. Andre Gomes got away with an awful cowardly stamp on Mitrovic (who screamed like he’d been hit in the chest with a spear), but the FA did him afterwards on video evidence, prompting a shitload of ‘whataboutery’ from angry Blues on Twitter, wondering why Salah wasn’t given the same treatment for an alleged dive against Chelsea. They’re more obsessed with us than Man City are, which is some achievement. The Blues put out a statement that Gomes “accepts his three game suspension”. I bet he does, he’s probably fucking made up as it means he only has to play one more game for these losers before he can get the hell out of there. Meanwhile, Spurs are well and truly back on track now after their recent wobbles. They followed up their 1-0 win over City in Europe by smashing Huddersfield at home a few days later. No biggie, as Huddersfield are crap, but Spurs had a lot of players missing and this could have gone badly for them. Wanyama gave them the lead with his customary one goal a season. Thankfully this time it wasn’t against us. It wasn’t a worldy either this time, but it was a very nice finish. Good feet for a big man and all that. Andros Moura (or should that be Lucas Townsend?) then banged in a hat-trick. He was lively against us the other week and with him and Son in the side they really don’t need Kane. Their record without the slobbering goon is pretty good, and I was honestly not surprised they knocked City out. Of course I wasn’t expecting it to go down the way it did (quite possibly the maddest game ever seen in this country), but honestly, Spurs going through was kind of what I expected because Pep always shits the bed in the knockouts. Personally I think it’s great, but not everyone agrees, which is baffling to me. As Reds we’re overthinking things massively at the moment though. Every little thing is being analysed and put through our internal “what’s best for the Reds” scanner. So much so that there are people out there who didn’t fully enjoy what happened to City because they’re worried that them going out will result in a backlash that sees them win all of their remaining league games. Apparently, Spurs have less chance of getting something on Saturday because they went through at City’s expense. Even if I believed that (which I don’t, and I’ll explain why shortly), this was still one of the funniest things ever to happen on a football field. I mean come on, if you can’t enjoy this then you must be dead inside. As for how it will impact on the title race, I get the concerns some of you have but I don’t share them and here’s why. Let’s say that Aguero had not been given offside and that goal had been allowed to stand. City would be on cloud nine, feeling indestructible and about to face Ajax in the CL semis. Spurs on the other hand, would be broken. They’d be devastated and in no state to go and play another game at the same stadium against the same opponent a few days later. Before this game I wanted City to go out in the most psychologically damaging way possible. Ideally I wanted them to win the game but lose the tie after conceding an away goal in the dying seconds of extra time, as that would have left them with tired legs as well as broken hearts. That didn’t happen but this was maybe even better. Even my twisted mind hadn’t thought up a potential ending like this. They actually thought they’d won it and had a good 45 seconds of celebrations before they realised something might be up. That’s actually way better than if they’d just conceded a late goal to lose. How do you get over something like that in just a few days? Spurs will go there relaxed, confident and gloating. The odds on them getting a result have increased I’d say. City having two games less to play isn’t ideal, but if they are dropping points it’s almost certainly going to happen in the next three games anyway, so the semi finals wouldn’t have impacted on that at all. They got through a potentially tricky game at Selhurst Park without any real problems on Sunday. Palace were dire but it's hard to criticise them too much when they've taken more points off City this season than we have. For me, what happened on Wednesday night was the best outcome for our title hopes and it also removes the possibility that we’d have to play City in the Champions League final. I’d have made that a 50/50 shot for us, but it wouldn’t have been an enjoyable experience so I’m just glad the cunts are out. Fuck them, the financial doping scumbags. I may even need to rethink my VAR hatred after this. Finally, Arsenal managed a rare away win on Monday night at Watford. I watched most of it and Watford were very unlucky. My Boy Troy was sent off early on so they played virtually the whole game with ten men, yet they still outplayed Arsenal. They trailed even before Deeney saw red after Foster took too long to clear and Aubameyeng was able to block the clearance into the net. Dean Saunders said the next day “This is going to sound stupid, but that’s the goal of the season for me. I enjoyed it more than Salah’s against Chelsea”. Deano lad, you should start every sentence with the preface of “this is going to sound stupid but…” It was good play by Aubamayeng but it was dreadful from both Janmaat (who spurned an easy clearance down the line and cut back inside and played a weak backpass to his keeper) and Foster (poor touch and lack of awareness of who was closing him down and how quick he is). Goal of the season? Fucking hell. Anyway, back to the Deeney sending off. He barely touched the lad, he just brushed past him and caught him the faintest of blows with his forearm. Torreira sold it beautifully though and made it look like he’d been clobbered with an elbow. A linesman, 40 yards away, drew the refs attention to it and Deeney’s night was over. I thought the Watford fans were a bit mean to Torreira though as he only did what every single Uruguayan on the planet would do. It’s like the scorpion and the frog. Why did you do it? “I can’t help it, I’m Uruguayan”. I mean, as if he’s not going to collapse in a heap in that situation. May as well ask the poor lad to stop breathing. As much as I thought it was a poor decision by the linesman (I don’t blame the ref, he can only act on what he’s been told) I don’t think ol’ Time Travelling Troy can have too many complaints about it given that he’s made it clear what his plan is when he faces Arsenal. He told us all live on TV a year or so back when he said “Arsenal lack cojones. Let me whack the first one and see who wants it”. The lino was probably waiting for it. Much like Torreira though, Deeney shouldn’t really be judged for his actions either, as it’s beyond his control. He’s from the 80s, that’s how the game was played back then. At least he won’t miss the cup final. If it’s going badly, here’s hoping he clocks Kompany is his big bulb head, or tries to strangle the bald fraud with his stupid cardie. Better yet, let’s hope he scores the winner and City end up with just the League Cup. Pricks.

If there is one Liverpool player who would love to get one over Barcelona more than most it is James Milner.Part of the Man City squad who were eliminated by Barcelona from the Champions League in back to back seasons (2013/4/2014/5), Milner does not want to make it a hat-trick of defeats.While the Spanish giants are many people's favourites to win the competition, the versatile veteran believes the Reds can pose them plenty of searching questions of their own.The Liverpool Echo reported Milner as saying:"I've played against Barcelona a couple of times before in the knockout stages and not had the greatest success."They are a strong team and it is a tough place to go, but I don’t think they will have played too many teams like us.“It will be difficult. They are a team full of great individual talent and a great side too.“The Nou Camp is a fantastic stadium and a fantastic place to play with a great atmosphere. "It will be very tough and we will have to be at our best."But over the last couple of seasons, with the teams that we have beaten in the Champions League, we should go there with confidence, no matter how tough it is going to be.” The win over Porto on Wednesday evening saw the Reds progress to the final four of Europe's elite club competition for the second consecutive season.It is the first time they have achieved such a feat since Rafa Benitez's tenure (2006/7-07-08).Milner believes it is a sign of all-around improvement by Jurgen Klopp's men."It’s great. Doing it back-to-back shows that we are improving as a team and getting to where we want to be.“It’s not easy. The teams in the semi-finals are completely different to last year but it’s a great a place to be and mission accomplished.”Milner said he expected a real challenge from Porto in the second leg, but the pleasing thing is that it showed a resilience that has been a real trademark of this squad this season."The pressure they put us under from the start, we knew it would be tough but we just ground it out. We defended, we got the chance and once we took it, that helped in terms of the tie."We showed different sides to ourselves, defending and showing what we can do depending how the game is. "You are not going to play well in every single game. It says a lot about the character within the team."In the second half we got some great goals – a great ball from Trent Alexander-Arnold for the second. We are scoring different types of goals as well, from set-plays."Virgil (van Dijk) is getting a few now. He was getting a fair bit of stick earlier in the season for not getting enough, now he can’t stop scoring.Milner is a perfect man to have on board at this time of the season as he has lived through the pressure of a title race.He knows that his former club will quickly put the disappointment of their heartbreaking Champions League exit behind them and focus on the league which includes getting revenge over Tottenham in the early kick-off on Saturday.While for Liverpool it is about keeping their mind on the job at hand."City are Premier League champions for a reason and I am sure they will react like champions.“They will go again, but Spurs will have their backs up and will want to go again after getting such a great result to get through. "They are two top teams and it will be an exciting game for the neutral."We will keep one eye on it but all we can do is influence our games. There are big games coming all over the place, the first thing we have to do is recover for Cardiff."There are a lot of tough games coming up and it won’t be easy. We are used to a game every three days and when the pressure is on towards the end of the season, it maybe takes a bit more out of you."But the team has been fantastic in terms of how we have dealt with it all. We have got a big game of our own at the weekend that we have to get a result in.”

For many Liverpool fans, a special place in their heart is reserved for Rafa Benitez. The Spaniard brought with him a tremendous managerial pedigree when he arrived on English soil from Valencia in 2004. While Liverpool had made important headway under Gerard Houllier, Benitez elevated the squad to a new level, famously winning the Champions League in his first season.It was not only his tactical nous along with the quality of player he was able to sign which won him plaudits, it was his ability to connect with the supporters which is so important in modern football.So it is for that reason that when the current Newcastle manager gives his nod of approval to the current man in the Anfield hot seat, you have to give a whole lot of value to his comments.The Liverpool Echo (via Marca) reported Benitez as saying:" Klopp is doing a great job at Anfield. "They are in that position because they deserve it."Last weekend I watched the game against Chelsea and they play with an intensity and an impressive level.“They are a clear contender to win both titles and have the potential to do it." Benitez was a master of getting the right result in Europe over two legs, be it against the almighty Barcelona and Real Madrid or Juventus and Inter Milan.Since his acrimonious departure at the end of the 2009/10 season, the Reds fell off the radar in terms of top flight European football for quite a few seasons.It has been a methodical build with the German in charge, culminating in back to back Champion League semi final appearances.While last year's path to the final was captivating and thrilling, the ability to get to the final four while also having a title challenge on their plate adds that extra bit of merit to the achievement.Rafa's priorities are quite rightly with his Newcastle side at this time, however you get a real sense that his trademark grin will appear if the Reds manage to lift some silverware at the end of this season.

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It’s not supposed to look this easy.... 6-1 on aggregate in a CL quarter final after scoring four in the away leg. The mad thing is we didn’t even play anywhere near our best. "We know we didn't play well" said Milner, while Klopp also made some remark about how we can play better. When you're this good you don't always need to play at full throttle and clearly we had plenty left in the tank here. That bodes well for the weekend as unlike City we didn’t have to expend too much physical or emotional energy. It doesn't mean we'll definitely beat Cardiff, but it increases our chances and all in all this night couldn't have gone any better for us. We scored three in Munich and four in Porto. The away day struggles that plagued us in the group stages are well and truly a thing of the past now and those wide open spaces of Camp Nou should have our front three licking their collective chops. They’re looking sharp again now. Sadio has been fucking incredible since the turn of the year but Mo and Bobby are in the groove now as well. Porto must hate us mustn't they? They’ve actually given a decent account of themselves each time, yet over the course of four games they’ve lost 11-1. I reckon they’ve probably had as many chances as us during those games too. We’ve been clinical, they haven’t. It wasn’t like they were missing sitters in this game but they had some decent openings that they did nothing with. The opening twenty minutes was all Porto. They were bang up for it and played at a frantic pace. They were averaging a goal attempt every 90 seconds or so in that opening period. Shots were raining in from everywhere. Only one of them forced Alisson to extend himself though, and if I remember rightly it was offside anyway. We couldn’t keep the ball so it kept coming back at us. Corona was really lively and we struggled to deal with him in the opening stages. Robbo and Trent probably had difficulty concentrating as they may have been too busy laughing at the absolute state of the fucking lipstick mark neck tattoo he had. What a twat. Good player though. Marega was making a nuisance of himself too but he wasn’t as much of a danger as he had been in the first leg. I thought Virgil started the game quite shakily and it was Matip that was holding down the fort in the early exchanges, but as soon as Virgil settled down Porto’s threat receded. It helped that we scored too, which took the air out of the stadium. It was a weird goal as no-one seemed to think it was going to stand. My first thought when Mané put the ball in the net was that there was going to be a flag, and there was. My next thought was that I wanted a replay as I expected it was a lot closer than it initially looked. Sadio is as quick over a couple of yards as anybody I’ve ever seen (on a par with Owen) so although he looked miles off, he probably wasn’t. The replay didn’t come though, which was a bit weird. Instead, the camera remained on the ref. I clearly saw him saying “it’s a goal” so I jumped up and celebrated. Then he carried on yapping into his headset. What the fuck’s going on here then? I sat back down, waiting. And about 30 seconds later I see Mo’s arms go up in the air and the ref signalled for a goal. I didn’t bother jumping up this time, the moment had gone. And that’s my biggest gripe against VAR, and yet I’m torn because without it that goal wouldn’t have stood (and we'd have been denied that side splittingly funny ending at the Etihad). Sadio's goal meant it was game over because Porto were never scoring four. Hell, given how shite they’d been in front of goal I wasn’t expecting them to even get one. All of the intensity had gone out of their play now and I knew we’d get the opportunity to hit them on the break. I was hoping to see Origi get himself a goal in the second half but he was hooked at half time for Bobby, who was absolutely fucking sensational when he came on. Poor Divock though. He got a start based on being boss in training, but he had very little chance to do anything as we were on the back foot for most of the first half. He tried to be positive when he had the ball and a few times he knocked it down the line and tried to use his pace, but they stopped him easily enough. He also got laid out by an outrageous WWE style shoulder block by the notoriously snide Pepe. I’m rooting for Big Div and really want him to do well, but you could see the massive difference in our play when Bobby came on. Hopefully Divock doesn’t let his head go down after this though as he’s still got a significant part to play in this run in. We’re going to need him as we can’t just keep wheeling out the same front three twice a week. Keep your chin up lad, you can still be a hero. Bobby though. Fucking hell. The impact he made was massive. Whether he’d have had the same kind of influence had he started is open to debate, as like I said, Porto had us under the cosh and that only really changed after we scored. What we do know is that Firmino came on and completely ran the game. The second goal started because he won the ball in the left back position, didn’t panic despite being pressured, and managed to switch the play to where the space was. Wijnaldum collected and fed the overlapping Trent, and he produced a slide rule Gerrard pass that took out the last defender and reached Salah without him needing to even break stride. Casillas came flying out and made up Mo’s mind by leaving a big space for him to roll the ball into. Mane was square for a tap in, but Mo is always taking that himself and rightly so. Now Porto needed five. They did at least get one back. Disappointing from our point of view to concede from a corner like that, but sometimes when the ball is right and you have a big man that has timed his run well, it’s virtually impossible to stop. The lad who scored had a cracking game. You can see why Madrid have snapped him up as he looks like a big talent. Strong, quick and skilful. Like a Portuguese Joe Gomez. Speaking of Joe, he was back in action having replaced Trent immediately after the second goal. Hendo was brought on as well to give Robbo a bit of a rest. Tell you what, the skipper was fucking sensational from the second he stepped onto the field. Like a Mackem Kevin De Bruyne. His first involvement was a perfect through ball to send Mané clear. Sadio’s first touch was incredible and he did everything right to race through and go around the keeper, but he just couldn’t wrap his foot around the ball as he moved at full speed and it sailed wide of the open goal. It looked like a sitter but I reckon that was much more difficult than many seem to think. Gomez looked good. Strong in his defensive work and positive in his forward running. He was involved in the third goal when he made a challenge and got the ball to Hendo who carried the ball forward, waited for Gomez to make an overlap and distract the defender, and then curled a ball right into the area that Firmino had pointed to. Bobby buried the header, meaning all three forwards had scored. I know I’m probably reflecting on this through rose tinted glasses, but it felt like that happened every other week last season. I remember writing how it would upset me if one of them didn’t score. It doesn’t seem to have happened anything like as often this year, so I enjoyed this immensely. I love it when all three of them score in the same game, not least because it means we’ve scored three and have almost certainly won the game. There was time for Big Virg to get in the act too, heading in emphatically after Mané had flicked on a Milner corner at the near post. Loved that one, we should see it more often as Sadio wins so many front post headers from corners that if the delivery is right we could be scoring these type of goals regularly. We could have scored more but four was just fine. What could easily have been a really difficult game ended up in a stroll because of the resilience of the lads to defend and resist the early pressure, and then the quality to strike when the opportunity arose. The perfect old school away performance really. This team has matured massively over the last 12 months, but they’ll need all of that calmness and professionalism in the next month or so as every game is fucking massive. Reaching the semi final stage two years in a row is a fine accomplishment. Of last season’s final four we’re the only ones to get there again this time, which says a lot. We’ve actually had more trouble getting out of the groups than we have had negotiating the knockout stages, because knockout football suits us. We’ve never lost a knockout tie under Klopp but we might be about to face the biggest threat to that record in the next round. Maybe City last year was a tougher game, but this is certainly more glamorous because this is a proper club we're up against. Fellow European royalty. Real Madrid have the most European Cups but a tie with Barcelona has that extra little bit of magic about it for me. They’re just a little bit sexier and therefore it’s more exciting playing them than anybody else. They’re also clearly beatable. Messi is on another planet but the rest of them don’t scare me. We know as well as anyone how good Suarez and Coutinho are, but we regularly face players of their level domestically (Aguero, De Bruyne, Silva, Hazard). There is no-one like Messi though. There never has been. This is a new and unique test for us. It’s a fucking massive test for Barcelona too though. They don’t face anyone like us in Spain and they haven’t faced anyone like us in Europe either, because there is no-one like us. They will HATE the intensity and speed we play at. They won't get a second's peace on the ball and we can make life very uncomfortable for them. The second leg is at Anfield, which in the past is something that I would have seen as being a massive advantage. We’re so dangerous on the break away from home though that I don’t think it actually makes any difference to us where the second leg is. It probably makes more of a difference to Barca, as no doubt they’d want to be at Camp Nou for the second leg. For two years I’ve watched them play and always found myself thinking “we’d fucking destroy these”. Now we’ll get to see if I’m right. I can't wait, this is what it's all about, the games where legends are made. Star man is Sadio, just ahead of Fabinho the destroyer. Firmino and Henderson were both phenomenal in the time they were on the pitch but Mané played the full game and looked full of confidence and swagger. Team: Alisson; Alexander-Arnold (Gomez), Matip, Van Dijk, Robertson (Henderson); Fabinho, Milner, Wijnaldum; Salah, Origi (Firmino), Mané:

Liverpool can look forward to a mouth-watering semi final Champions League tie against Barcelona after overcoming Porto 4-1 on Wednesday night and 6-1 on aggregate.The home team came out with all guns blazing with a clear plan to put the Reds on the back foot, looking to shoot at Alisson's goal wherever possible, and with their vocal crowd in full voice it seemed we could be in for quite a second leg.But while the Liverpool team of old may well have crumbled under the pressure, this team is made of strong stuff, and were able to weather the early storm.When Sadio Mane put the ball in the net after 26 minutes after some VAR intervention, there was always going to be one winner.The second half was certainly a less frenetic affair with the visitors well and truly in control.Jurgen Klopp even saw a opportunity to give Joe Gomez a run-out, the first time he has seen minutes since he sustained his untimely injury against Burnley in early December.The other members of the front three added their names to the scoresheet in the second half, with Mane, Mo Salah and Roberto Firmino now sitting alongside Ian Rush with 14 Champions League goals for the Reds.The fourth goal was a header by the leader of the defence in Virgil Van Dijk.The Dutchman was naturally asked after the game about the fixture on the horizon against the Catalan giants, and specifically how are they going to combat arguably the best player in World Football in Lionel Messi.Metro (via Viasport Futbol) reported Van Dijk as saying:‘I don’t know, we’ll see. It’s going to be a great match-up for all of us. ‘ "Obviously we’re very happy to be in the semi-final again and that’s the only thing I can say. Van Dijk said how the Reds defence combat a key attacking threat is through a complete team effort.‘It’s about doing it all together, it’s never 1 vs 1, it’s never just me against a particular striker. "It’s always us against everyone and I think that’s the only way we can defend well."And it’s going to be very hard and I think he’s the best player in the world but we’ll see."Jurgen Klopp is also looking forward to facing one of Europe's elite teams at such an important time of the competition, especially as it will the first time he has come face to face with Barcelona in a competitive fixture.But first things first Sky Sports reported the manager as saying his thoughts are firmly focused on Cardiff this Sunday."We are in the semi-finals and on Sunday we play Cardiff, that is in my mind and will be in my mind 100 per cent when I wake up tomorrow, not how we play against Barcelona."We have time for that. I am looking forward to it and it's brilliant, but not tonight."We have to get ourselves ready for another intense football game. "Cardiff are back in the race after the result yesterday (a 2-0 win over Brighton) so they will fight for it and I don't think it will be less intense than tonight. That's the next job to do."The fact there is a proper game between Liverpool and Barcelona is really good news. I am really proud of the boys, it is brilliant what they did. I am really happy."There is sure to be endless questions asked of both Klopp and the members of the squad in the next week or so.However as they have done all season, you will back them to keep a intense focus at the job at hand.And for the next two fixtures, that remains the title race in the Premier League.

Jamie Carragher has lavished Sadio Mane with high praise, comparing him with a Reds legend of the past and saying he is more irreplaceable in terms of Liverpool's title prospects than Mo Salah.Carragher was speaking on Sky Sports' Monday night Football and left no one under any illusion to how highly he rates the Senegal international. The Liverpool Echo reported Carragher as saying;"I think sometimes he goes under the radar. "You talk about Salah and the goalkeeper (Allison) and the impact these players have had, he's (Mane) the best wide player Liverpool have had in 30 years. You have to go back to John Barnes since Liverpool have had a player like Mane. "That is big because John Barnes is in my top five or six players to have ever played for Liverpool."His fellow pundit Gary Neville then asked the legendary Liverpool defender that if he had to choose one of Salah or Mane to miss the key games of the title run-in, which one would it be.Once again Carra did not hesitate."Salah. They have the same amount of goals. I'm a massive fan of Mane."Mane is the one that got Liverpool back. "He was Jurgen Klopp's first big signing. He's been there from the very start." Carragher knows first hand about the pressure of a title run-in, having lived through it in 2008/9.In that season, just like this current campaign, the Reds proved a very tough team to beat losing just two games. The current side have lost just once and have some pretty good football betting odds to win the title this season.However, in 2009 it was the inability to break down well organised defences which led to costly draws that was the main issue, and they eventually finished four points behind Man United.Carragher said that Mane was just the type of player which would have proved the difference during that season."We didn't have a wide player in 2009. "If you look at the teams that win the title, the wide players stand out massively. If we'd had Mane in 2009, I think we would have won the league."Carragher is also a big believer of setting the tone in matches. It's all very well getting a double when your team is already 3-0 up, but which player is going to do the hard yards in putting your team on the path of victory.Carragher said Mane has been the main man in that regard."Going through Liverpool's last eleven games and in the first four, Mane got the first goal." "There are only two other Liverpool players who have scored the first goal in those eleven matches (Roberto Firmino vs Burnley and Tottenham and Naby Keita against Southhampton)."That's how vital Mane is."While the overall impact of Salah over the past two seasons is indisputable, without Mane's goals over the past two months, City would be home and hosed in the title race.Once an unsung hero, Sadio is now getting the recognition he truly deserves.

Well that went well. Makes you wonder what we were worried about really, doesn't it? Pressure? What pressure? These players are incredible. The composure and mental strength we're seeing from them is something to behold. Whether they go on to win it or not, this is a truly great Liverpool side we're watching right now. If they carry on like this and win their four remaining games, it may or may not be enough to win the title but it will definitely be the highest points tally the club has ever amassed. There are no open top bus parades for that but it would still be a phenomenal achievement. Winning this game was a significant step as you know everyone (especially City) was looking on expecting this to be the game when it all went wrong for us. It was uncanny really, us playing Chelsea on the same weekend City were at Palace. Just like in 2014. Except it wasn't just like in 2014 because we won. If we win the title then this will be a significant victory, but even if we don't it still goes some way towards setting the record straight. It doesn't make up the heartbreak of the Gerrard slip, but it's a significant barrier that has been overcome. Next time we play Chelsea this late in the season with a title on the line, hopefully Sky Sports news will have the Salah thunderbolt on a loop instead of Demba fucking Ba. Ok, probably not, but it at least changes the narrative somewhat and banishes a few ghosts. The win was well deserved. The clean sheet was somewhat fortunate as we could easily have conceded, but ultimately this was a test that the lads - and the fans - came through with flying colours. There was no edginess or nervous tension in the stands, although scoring early in the second half obviously helps with that. The first half atmosphere was good too though. We weren’t creating too much and given the high stakes some tension would have been understandable, but there was no sense of panic and I thought the crowd were great from start to finish. What happened in 2014 will have been in the back (and in some cases the front) of all of our minds, but Klopp had done his best to dismiss that in the build up and it was clear that to him and the players it was a complete non-factor. When you think about it, why would it be? The one player who might have been thinking of it was Hendo, who was sat in the stands that day unable to do anything about it as he was suspended (thanks to Victor fucking Moses and his hospital pass. Twat). Given the way the skipper has been playing of late and the desire and determination he has, I was convinced he’d put in a big performance. He did. They all did. Trent was in the stadium that day too. He was a ball boy. He knew what that result did to the psyche of the fans as he’s one himself. Now, as a player, he was in a position to help slay that demon. He’s still only a kid himself, but what a performance he put in. I genuinely don’t think most people realise just how good he is you know. He’s incredible. He’ll be one of the best players in the world one day, regardless of what position he ends up in. So gifted. For the rest of the lads though 2014 had no relevance. It’s the fans who were scarred by it, not these players or this manager, and it showed by the calmness and maturity in their performance. The first half was fine, not a great deal wrong with it at all and certainly there were no nerves in evidence. Sometimes it just takes a while to break teams down and you need to be patient, which I thought we were. Chelsea set up to play defensively and hit us on the break, so it wasn’t easy for us. We created a few chances, not too many clear cut ones but some of the approach play was good and I thought we looked quite sharp. We weren’t helped by the wind though. It was especially noticeable any time a quick switch of play to Robbo or Sadio was attempted. A few times that ball was on but it hung up in the air and allowed Azpilicueta to recover his position. Balls over the top were difficult too, but for Chelsea it was easier in the first half and a few times they were able to get the ball into space for Willian to chase. Trent dealt with him very well though, and with Fabinho patrolling in front of the two centre halves Hazard was hardly able to get on the ball. One early tackle that won the ball and left Hazard in a heap needing treatment really got the crowd going. Great that, and good refereeing from Michael Oliver too who was in position and saw that the ball was won cleanly. I don’t know whether Hazard was genuinely hurt or not, but I suspect he was fine as it was clear from early on that Chelsea wanted to break up the play and waste time whenever possible. Azpilicueta actually had the cheek to go and complain to Oliver about that challenge and wanted a yellow card for Fabinho. He was trying to confront the official but was struggling to get past big Virg who was having none of it. Love that. It’s funny how sometimes you can completely misjudge a player. I’ve always seen Azpilicueta as a Steve Finnan type. Quiet, unassuming, good pro who just does his job. Watching him in this game it hit me just how wrong I was. He’s a proper little twat him. I guess if you spend as long at Chelsea as he has that it’s almost inevitable. He was lucky not to be sent off in this game. Oliver was quite lenient on the whole, but I don’t mind that as long as it’s consistent, which he was. He had a good game and is comfortably the least shit of a massively shit current crop of officials. He did miss a penalty when Salah was kicked on the shin by Luiz. Yes, he went down easily, but it's still a foul. And spare me the 'Salah diving again' nonsense. I've lost count of the amount of times he's stayed on his feet after being fouled, only to be given fuck all for it. If you don't go down you don't get a penalty, so where's the incentive to stay up? It's not in the spirit of the game some will say. That's true, but then financial doping is not in the spirit of the game either but nobody seems to want to bring that up, do they? Luiz didn't get the ball and he kicked Salah on the shin. Probably should have been a pen but I'd agree that it wasn't a stonewaller like the two that Naby hasn't been given this season. In fairness it was a difficult one for Oliver to see and I'm not being too critical of him for it. I do wonder what VAR would have made of this one though, as it isn't a clear one either way. Anyway, in between all the stoppages and time wasting, we were dominating the game without really creating too much. The best opening fell to Salah, who didn’t connect properly with a volley that went straight at the keeper. Mané had a chance too, firing just wide after positive play from Mo cutting in from the right. Hendo then saw a shot deflected behind off Luiz after a lovely cushioned header by Mo had set him up. At the other end Chelsea had two chances. Willian broke away and made room for a shot which he surprisingly put wide, while Hazard showed brilliant footwork to make space for himself in the box but his left foot strike from a tight angle was never going to trouble Alisson. They were warning signs though. As much as we were on top, Chelsea have that quality up top with Hazard (and to a lesser extent Willian) to hurt anyone. The much hyped Hudson-Odoi was completely anonymous though. Considering what was at stake I wasn't too anxious at half time. Of course I was a little concerned, but I was still confident we'd get the job done. We were playing alright but it just needed a slight raise in the tempo, and that’s exactly what we got after the break. You could tell as soon as the second half kicked off that the lads had the bit between their teeth. They had Chelsea penned back and wouldn’t let them out. Our intensity was too much for them and Sarri’s approach made things even more difficult for Chelsea. He just won’t compromise on his style at all will he? They kept trying to pass it out from the back and they kept being forced into errors because of it. It’s asking for trouble playing like that against us, and that Jorginho lad has clearly never watched us play because he seemed to think he had all day in possession. Every time he got it I expected us to nick it from him, and we usually did. He's not cut out for the Premier League him, he's a huge flop. Even the normally accomplished David Luiz was struggling to find team-mates and knocked the ball out for throw ins a few times. Sarri-ball is not going to work against us and he’d have been better off sticking Giroud up front and letting Hazard play off him. I’m glad he didn’t. I’m also glad he did us a big favour by starting Hazard through the middle. I was made up when I saw that. It was a massive relief. Very few players genuinely scare me but Hazard tops that list by a mile. Aguero always worries me too, as does Son. It's mostly Hazard though, as not only is he a great player but he always seems to save his best performances for us. He doesn’t like playing through the middle though and it genuinely seems like a stupid thing to do as he sees less of the ball in that position and has less room to operate in. It also meant he was up against two centre halves as well as Fabinho, which favours us massively. We controlled him quite easily, but the instant he was moved out wide everything changed and he started to run amok. By that point we were already 2-0 up, but if he’d taken one of the two great chances that came his way it would have been an unbearable last 15 minutes or so. It was a wild second half really. We were so good at times and they couldn’t live with it. We just wanted it more. We were pressing them, snapping into challenges, not giving them a second’s peace. The opener was the perfect example of it. Salah attempted a one two with Bobby, but the return pass didn’t reach him and was cut out by Emerson. Mo didn’t give it up though and challenged the full back, who wasn’t strong enough and just fell over. Hendo reacted quickest to seize on the loose ball and then clipped a perfect ball to the back stick where Mané had an easy header. Anfield went mad, but no-one lost it more than Hendo who was just so fired up that he ran off and celebrated on his own while his team-mates ran to congratulate Mané. I love that. With some players that could be seen as a bit of a self centred act, but it’s Hendo and you know it’s just because of how much it means to him. He wants it as much as any one of us does, he’s fucking desperate to do it and I love him for it. I can think of few things that would be sweeter than the sight of him lifting the Premier League trophy. While it was industry, endeavour and will to win that made that first goal, I don’t know what you’d put the second one down to. Karma perhaps? It wasn’t your typical Salah goal that’s for sure. Usually he goes for placement rather than brute force, but this was just fucking stunning. From my seat I had a great view of it and the moment that ball left his boot I was celebrating. It was only ever going in one place, you could tell even before it hit the net. The only thing missing was a nutmeg on Steve Staunton. That strike was pure Fowler. The great man himself was there looking on and made the same comparison afterwards, although he reckoned his was more difficult because he had to beat a defender! He’s probably right, but this goal was more memorable because of the occasion. And because it was Mo, against Chelsea. With a title on the line. The reaction of Margaret Aspinall hugging Kenny was something else too. No other club has this kind of thing. It’s part of why so many of them seem to hate us so much. I know that sounds a little corny, but it's true. Who else in England has anything like that? Who else can create an atmosphere like this, with the flags, banners, noise? No-one, that's who. And after what happened with some of their away following in Prague this week, there’s a poetic irony that Chelsea were beaten by goals from two muslim lads. They chanted about him being a bomber and he proved them right by unleashing a rocket that blew up right in their faces. Those racist dickheads in Prague were responsible for this, as not only was it a scummy thing to be chanting, it was also poking fate with a big stick. Karma can be a beautiful thing sometimes. The decent Chelsea fans know where the blame lies for this one. And there are decent Chelsea fans. Plenty of them. It’s easy to forget that because of the sheer volume of helmets that follow them. I don’t know what shocked me more - Mo’s wonder strike or the impeccably observed minute’s silence for the 96. I’m loathe to praise anyone for doing something that should be a given, but having been utterly convinced that there’d be some knobheads in the away end disrupting it, it’s only fair to say I was wrong. I’m relieved for all the decent Chelsea fans that they didn’t have to suffer the embarrassment of a few dickheads shaming them all again. In fact, the worst incident of fan behaviour was one of ours throwing a smoke bomb into the away end. Just no fucking need. We’re winning the game, that’s punishment enough for them. Why do something that’s going to make us look like the dickheads? At 2-0 the game went a bit crazy. We had the bit between our teeth and knew Chelsea were on the ropes. One more goal would finish them completely and it looked like we’d get it. The stadium was bouncing (all four sides of the ground were on their feet belting out Allez Allez Allez) and we all got a little carried away and almost paid the price. Sarri had sneaked Higuain on while we were all partying and Hazard now suddenly had the freedom to do his thing. For five minutes or so we were all over the place and they got in behind us three times. Hazard hit the post when he seemed certain to score and he put another one straight at Alisson. Higuain waddled in behind us too at one point, but thankfully he’s a fraud and was unable to punish us. We just needed to calm things down as this was all going a bit ‘last season’. For the most part this season we’ve been more pragmatic and sensible when leading, and we’ve not done anything stupid. We were 2-0 up and didn’t need to play at 100mph trying to score more. The first Hazard chance should have been the signal to shut things down for a bit and keep the ball, but it took the introduction of Wijnaldum to do that. Keita was the obvious one to make way, not because of how he’d played but because he was beginning to tire and we needed the calming presence of Gini out there. Naby was good though. He’s looking much more comfortable now and it speaks volumes that he was selected to start the game. A few weeks ago that seemed unthinkable. The midfield is functioning well at the moment though. Fabinho bossed this game and Henderson was terrific again. He had to go off with a knock that he picked up when making a crucial tackle to stop a Chelsea break. The reception he got as he left the field was rapturous. I’ve said it before, but the way Henderson is viewed by the crowd does not tie in with how he’s talked about on social media. I’m not saying he never gets any stick at the game, but it’s not proportionate with the warped view I often see of him on Twitter. He even had his name sung a couple of times in this one. Two different songs too. Made up for him. Milner came on and with him and Gini settling things down, the rest of the game passed with very little incident. Once we saw out that mad 5-10 minute spell after it went 2-0 I never felt there was any way we’d concede. Not least because Chelsea were still trying to pass it out from the keeper and putting themselves in trouble. If I’d been a Chelsea fan I’d have been fucking fuming at the last ten minutes of this game. Where was their urgency? It was bizarre. It looked like they gave up, but then this is a side that conceded six at Man City so their temperament is clearly in question. They probably knew when Hazard missed those two chances that they were done. We were much better than them all over the park. Trent was brilliant, some of his passing was sublime and he also pulled off a Cruyff turn that will have had Adam Lallana sagely nodding in approval in the stands (and probably pulling a neck muscle in the process). Big Joel was terrific too. His only blemish was trying to play offside and letting Hazard in for the chance that Alisson saved. Other than that, he was outstanding again. Big Virg was Big Virg, Fabinho was monstrous, Robbo was solid, I’ve already spoke about Keita and Hendo, and the front three were all brilliant. I gave all of the forward line 9 out of 10 in my ratings for ESPN. Sadio was razor sharp and tormented Azpilicueta throughout. The experienced full back was booked in the first half and then got away with a forearm block in the second that should have seen him given a second yellow. Sadio has been fucking boss since the turn of the year. Mo looked really sharp and dangerous throughout too. The goal was great, but what I also liked was his willingness to look for team-mates when he was running into the box. Sometimes he gets too pre-occupied with trying to score himself, but this was the Salah from last season. Great to see. Loved how much ‘umph’ there was in his celebrations too. The pick of the forwards was Firmino though. I’m not giving him the star man, that honour has to go to Salah because of the incredible goal, but Bobby was immense. The second half especially. He was good in the first half too but at times he held onto the ball a little too long. After the break though he was phenomenal. The touch, the intelligence, the running. The fucking running. He didn’t stop, he was perpetual motion. The only thing missing was a goal. It was close to being the perfect number nine performance. He’s been a bit up and down this season but like Salah he seems to have come into form at just the right time. The crowd are responding to it and Anfield has been electric these last few weeks. I’m not sure I can ever remember the place being louder than when Mo’s shot hit the net. It really was something else. I doubt anything will ever top the atmosphere of that ’05 semi against them, but in terms of a one off reaction to a goal, this is right up there with anything I’ve experienced. We’ve had so many of those moments this season that we will look back on as being “defining” if we do go on to win it, and this goal is certainly one of them. The Spurs own goal is obviously another, as is the Hendo celebration at Southampton. There’s loads actually, although Divock’s derby winner currently tops the list. We have to win it though for those moments to live forever. Otherwise it will be like Lovren’s Dortmund winner. Does anyone really think about that anymore? Funnily enough, Klopp actually referenced it afterwards when he compared it with Sadio’s goal, and my reaction was “oh yeah, I forgot about that”. Not winning the Europa League that year basically ruined that amazing moment against Dortmund. Losing last year’s final to Madrid didn’t wipe out all the great things that happened along the way to Kiev, but they don’t mean as much when you don’t get the trophy. It doesn’t take anything away from the achievements themselves, it just means they aren’t looked back on as fondly. For example, Gerrard’s winner against Olympiakos is an iconic moment in the club’s history. If Istanbul hadn’t happened though it would just be remembered as a great goal. Davie Fairclough against St Etienne too. This team has a chance to make history, but the unfortunate thing is that it’s not in their hands. That’s massively fucking unfair considering they are having the best season this club has ever had in terms of amassing points. None of our other great sides have had to contend with a Man City though. We can’t do anything about them breaching all of the financial fair play rules that the rest of us abide by, and we can’t do anything about so many of their opponents just curling up into a ball and begging “please don’t hurt us”. We can only control what we can control, and this team are controlling it admirably. Every test that’s put in front them they pass. This was a big one, make no mistake. It could so easily have gone wrong as all of the ingredients were there for it. City had won at Palace. Chelsea hadn’t lost at Anfield since 2012. We had the ghost of 2014 haunting us and then there was Hazard, who had just come into his best form of the season and seemed primed to unleash more punishment on us. Klopp and his players just don’t seem to be effected by any of that stuff though. They just take it one game at a time, don’t get too far ahead of themselves and play their football. There’s a steel, resolve and belief about them that we haven’t had in a long, long time. Five years ago we were within a whisker of winning the title but came a cropper against Chelsea at Anfield. This team has so much more about it than the 2014 vintage though (and I loved that team). The current group are just better in virtually every department (although there’s an argument to be had about which is the better forward line) and although I don’t want to say they’re luckier too (that's doing them a dis-service), let’s just say that - up to now at least - it doesn’t appear as though they’re cursed like Brendan’s team was. As if to emphasise the point, Robbo slipped over on halfway but nothing came of it. Klopp certainly saw the funny side of that, he was pissing himself on the touchline. It felt like that was a symbolic moment. For all the talk of Brendan's side bottling it and throwing the title away, what happened to Stevie and the team that day was desperately cruel and unlucky. Chelsea did absolutely nothing in that game in 2014 yet somehow won 2-0. A freakish slip and then a late counter attack, that was all they had. The big difference was that Rodgers' team panicked in the second half when they knew they needed to score. They didn’t do the things that they’d been doing all season and they lost their composure. Klopp’s team did the opposite, they played their natural game and got the job done. They were against a stronger opponent too. This Chelsea team were not camped in their own half and created three or four chances (two of them great ones) but didn’t score. Hazard hitting the post when it seemed certain to score seems quite fitting. In any other previous game between the sides he’d put that away. That he didn’t this time adds more fuel to the ever increasing fire that maybe this year it’s going to be different for us. It’s not that we’re getting loads of good luck, it’s more than we’re not being plagued by bad luck. Not yet anyway. There’s still four games left and plenty of time for that kick in the face that usually comes our way. If these lads don’t win the title though it’ll be a travesty. Some will argue that it’s the same for City. If they miss out they’ll also be the second placed team with the most points in history. The difference is that they’ve cheated the system to get where they are and therefore deserve fuck all. The Ben Johnson of football. Fuck them, the cheating cunts. This team deserves a title. In fact, after last year and the whole Ramos / Salah / Karius thing they deserve a European Cup too. If there’s any justice in this world they’ll get them both, but it's 30 years to the day since 96 Reds went to a game and didn’t come home. We're still waiting for someone to be held to account, so we of all people know that justice is not something you can ever rely on in this world. RIP and Justice for the 96. Team: Alisson; Alexander-Arnold, Matip, Van Dijk, Robertson; Fabinho; Henderson (Milner), Keita (Wijnaldum); Salah (Shaqiri), Firmino, Mané:

In a week where Mo Salah made the headlines entirely not of his own making, the Egyptian superstar gave the perfect response to the 'fans' of his former club in the best way he knows how, by letting his football do the talking as Liverpool defeated Chelsea 2-0 on Sunday evening.In a clash that had a whole lot of meaning for both clubs albeit for different reasons, it was always going to come down to which of the many stars on the pitch could rise to the occasion.After a first half stalemate where not a lot was given away by either side, it came down to three minutes early in the second half which could prove incredibly pivotal come May.Firstly, Sadio Mane was on the end of some good work by Jordan Henderson as he headed home from close range.But what was to come will be regarded as a special Anfield memory for a long, long time.After receiving the ball from Virgil Van Dijk, Salah unleashed a stunning, angled 25-yard strike which left Chelsea goalkeeper Kepa as an onlooker, and led to complete bedlam in the crowd.For the man himself, Salah said his instinct completely took over. The Official site reported Salah as saying:"I don't think, I just feel!""Normally I shoot [with the] inside of the foot but this one - because it's far [out] - I just hit it with power."I was a bit lucky that the ball hit the net like that."While many will view it as a certain candidate for goal of the season, the humble superstar says he rates it behind another one of his strikes for the Reds, that being his goal in the Merseyside Derby last season which won the Puskas award in 2018."I will always choose [the Everton] one," he added. "This is my favourite because it's my first derby."I think I used everything good - the strength, the technique and the skills."If we manage to win the title, Mo will look back on this strike as a very significant moment in his career.

It has been a moment that has played on the mind of many individuals associated with the club for the best part of five years, but Jurgen Klopp has said the victory over Chelsea on Sunday has put 'the slip' to bed once and for all.The manager was asked a series of questions at his pre-match press conference on Friday about the moment in 2014 against the same opposition which was so pivotal in deciding the title that season.But Klopp maintained it had never crossed his mind until the questions were to put to him.Add to the fact that the German was not even at the club at the time and this is a whole new group of players. So in reality, the issue was not really relatable to this present situation.However, when a none too dissimilar moment occurred in the last ten minutes of the game, unpleasant memories would have come flooding back.On this occasion, it was Andy Robertson who lost his footing in the middle part of the pitch, but thankfully unlike Steven Gerrard's misfortune in 2014, there was sufficient defensive cover, plus the fact that the Reds had a two goal buffer.The moment was not lost on Jurgen Klopp after the match with ESPN reporting the manager as saying:"At this point, we can finally close the slipping book -- Robbo slipped and nothing happened, so it's not a Liverpool thing," . "Done. All good"The match against the West London outfit was always going to be a stern test of their title credentials as the Blues were fighting for a top four position.The first 45 minutes was a tense affair and while the Reds controlled the tempo, they could not find a way to open the door to the Chelsea defence.It needed a piece of guile and some brilliance to make the difference.Cometh the moment, cometh the duo as Sadio Mane and Mo Salah struck within the space of three minutes to send a already heaving Anfield into absolute raptures.The playmaking renaissance of Jordan Henderson continued as he produced a pin-point cross onto the head of Mane who finished from close range, and then Salah displayed a piece of brilliance that only a very few players can produce with a screamer from 25 yards that left Kepa grasping at thin air in the Chelsea goal. Klopp said he was lost for words after the stunning strike."It blew me away."I was really happy. I saw it really well; maybe I saw it first the ball would go in. It was a really, really outstanding finish. And I don't want to minimise that but I loved the first goal exactly the same."It immediately reminded me of the 4-3 against Borussia Dortmund, only Hendo [Jordan Henderson] instead of Millie [James Milner] and Sadio instead of Dejan [Lovren], but a similar situation with this wonderful cross in that area and really good team play."The performance was really good, but to really make it happen you need the goals and we got them, all good."Klopp was also in awe of another tremendous Anfield atmosphere which was mixed with a touch of poignancy after the death of club legend Tommy Smith on Friday and the 30th Anniversary of the Hillsborough tragedy on Monday.It was a win against a team who had no fears of coming to Anfield, having not tasted defeat on the ground for seven years."I am so proud of what the boys did, and I loved, loved, loved the atmosphere -- it was outstanding what the people did. You could feel it, they are all on their toes, so let's try to do that seven more times and then we see what we get for it."Klopp said the focus of his team is not on title rival Man City and they will only focus on what they can control."The biggest challenge for us is always facing the world outside -- you [journalists] and other people -- because we don't think like that.“They [City] win [against Crystal Palace] and [did it] ask a question for us? If we think about them, yes, and if we don't think about them, no. We play our game.”What we want to do is collect as many points as possible, really -- 85 points, four games to play, that means [we can get] 97.“Good, let's try. Let's try that. If that's enough, perfect, and if not, we cannot change it."

Saturday Apr 6: Another week another City goal inside the opening ten minutes. At least this time it wasn’t in the league. Brighton did alright and kept the score at 1-0. They might have done even better if the ref (and VAR) had sent that tit Kyle Walker off for a headbutt. Not only is he shite, he’s fucking thick. I’m glad he didn’t get sent off because he’s our best chance of them dropping points, so I don’t want him suspended. I guarantee he’ll do something shit and braindead between now and the end of the season. The only question is whether they score enough goals for it to not matter. Hopefully not. Maybe Wilf will tear him a new one next weekend? Two goals for Harry Wilson today. He hasn’t done much of late and Derby have been struggling, so it’s nice to see him back among the goals. His mate Ben Woodburn scored today too, a penalty in the u23s 3-2 win over Chelsea. Curtis Jones got a late winner as the lads came from 2-0 down to win it late. Chelsea had a young lad playing right back who looked fucking dynamite. Tariq Lamptey, he plays for England at youth level and he looks brilliant. Defo worth keeping an eye on him and maybe snapping him up when he gets fed up of never getting a chance. Staying at youth level, our u18s still have an outside shot at the title after they won 2-1 at home to Wolves. Bobby Duncan scored again, goal number 29 of the season (he has 21 assists too), and the other was a belter by Jake Cain. Like Molby’s goal against Norwich back in the day, only a bit closer in and from the opposite side of the bench. Lovely hit though. Sunday Apr 7: My Boy Troy is in the FA Cup Final. Good for him, he deserves it as he’s done it the hard way. Everything he’s got he’s had to scrap for, and this will mean the world to him because he’s an 80s throwback and the FA Cup actually meant something back then. The interview he gave afterwards was great, it genuinely brought a lump to my throat. He doesn’t take himself too seriously and there’s a self deprecating charm about Deeney. I’d love to see him lifting the FA Cup, and not just because it would mean he’s beaten City. Ok, it’s mostly because it would mean he’d beaten City, but I’d be genuinely happy for him too. The downside to Watford winning is that Wolves are not in the final. Not that I care about Wolves or have any preference for them over Watford, but if Wolves had gotten there they’d have rested everyone when they come to Anfield on the last day. Now they’ll be full strength and we know they’re dangerous against the better sides. Not ideal. Monday Apr 8: Hazard warmed up for the weekend by destroying West Ham with one of the best individual performances of the season. Can’t wait until he fucks off, although knowing our luck we’ll get Real Madrid next year and he’ll knock us out single handedly. To be fair, I can live with that if he goes easy on us this Sunday. Some talk today that Origi may be in line for a new contract. I was told last week that the club expect him to still be here next season, which surprised me a little. I’ve flip-flopped on Origi so many times. He’s boss, he’s shit, he’s alright, he’s shit, he’s not bad, he’s shit, he’s decent… Where I am right now is that I wouldn’t be against him staying, and I’m really rooting for him because I love the attitude he’s shown this season. He was completely out in the cold but trained his arse off and waited for an opportunity, and whenever he’s had that opportunity he’s given everything he had to try and make the most of it. I think back to Wolves in the cup. Not a great game from him, but his attitude was fucking great and put some others (notably Sturridge) to shame. He plays like a lad who is determined to make the most of every second he gets on the pitch and I appreciate that. If we don’t plan on signing another top forward this summer though I worry for us a little next year. The plan seems to be to keep Origi and bring Brewster through, which seems risky to me. They absolutely love Brewster. I just hope the faith they have in him is justified. Tuesday Apr 9: L 2 Porto 0 Good result, so so performance. I liked the first half, although we were a little bit too open at times and I think that probably influenced how the second half went, as Jurgen is more pragmatic these days and no doubt wanted to avoid a repeat of Roma bagging a couple of away goals. Hendo and Naby were really god and there was a nice balance to the midfield. I’d be tempted to go with them again on Sunday but I reckon Gini will get the nod. He’s usually boss in the big games so that’s fair enough. Tell you what was fucking weird tonight though. Sturridge getting on for the last ten. Why? What’s the point? It basically puts us down to ten men and I’d love to know what he’s done to deserve that when poor little Shaq can’t get on. Shaq almost got ten seconds at the end but the ref blew the whistle before he got the chance to come on. All very odd. In the other game tonight, Spurs deservedly beat City in an incident packed game. Aguero missed a pen, Kane and Alli both went off injured and Fernandinho showed that it’s not just PL refs that he’s got incriminating photos of by once again getting away with fucking murder. Good for Spurs, I hope they can see it through now (even if it means less games for City) but I expect they’ll go out in the most heartbreaking manner possible, because they’re Spurs. It was funny seeing some Spurs fans on social media now talking about how they want us to win the league. Bet they weren’t saying that before tonight. I get it though. Familiarity breeds contempt and by the time they’ve played that third game against City I suspect most Spurs fans will be wanting us to do it because they’ll despise City after that. Wednesday Apr 3: That United / Barca game was funny, not least because of the coverage from BT. I sat and watched most of it but couldn’t reconcile the commentary with what I was actually seeing on the pitch. I saw Barca win the game without getting out of second gear. They were sloppy, barely threatened at all and did not play well by any stretch of the imagination. But they were in total command of the game and never, at any stage, ever, looked like conceding. Yet the BT commentary was all about how well United were doing, how poor Barca looked and how Scott McTominay was playing like some kind of Bryan Robson / Roy Keane hybrid. It was utterly fucking mental. Normally I’d suggest that the commentators were blinded by their desire to see United do well, but one of them was McManaman so that’s not the case. It was so weird that I began to question my own judgement. Was I misreading it so badly? No, because everyone else other than the BT commentators seemed to see it the same way. I mean fucking hell, they even completely brushed off Smalling’s assault on Messi that left poor little Leo with a bloody nose and a shiner. That was a clear red card and they dismissed it as nothing. Suarez was in full on wind up mode though. He was mocked and jeered when the goal had initially been ruled out for offside, but when VAR over-ruled it he was giving it loads to the fans behind the goal. Brought a tear to my eye it did. All the Suarez trademark scamp behaviour was on show. The highlights were: The old kick the ball at an opponents hand and then repeatedly slap the palm of his right hand against his left wrist while screaming ‘handball’. The late in the game collapse to the floor holding the back of his head after an aerial duel even though replays show there was no contact. As always, that was followed by the grimace and constant rubbing the back of the head, then examining the hands for blood. God I miss him. He best not pull any of that shit when we play them in the semis though, or I shall be most cross. Yeah yeah, I know, neither of us are in the semis yet and there’s a chance we could still go out, but there’s absolutely no way United are turning this around. They used up ten years worth of luck against PSG. They do have the players to hurt Barca win the break, but Messi and Suarez will tear them apart. I just hope Phil Jones plays in the second leg, just to add to the comedy value of it all. What’s that now, five defeats in six? Ole’s at the wheel…. Thursday Apr 4: Chelsea were away in Europe tonight which means there was always going to be some sort of video circulating to embarrass them. Every club has it’s dickheads, but Chelsea have far more than most. They’re like Diet Millwall. The video of those lowlifes, pissed in a bar and singing about Mo says more about this country as a whole than it does Chelsea in my opinion. The country is full of cunts like them, and they don’t all follow Chelsea. Some of them are in fucking parliament. It’s not just a Chelsea problem, it’s more of an English problem. It takes a special breed of pond life to dislike Salah, who is widely regarded as a genuinely lovely fella. He’s a former Chelsea player too, which makes this even more cunty because it isn’t even like he left them under a cloud. Mo is a muslim playing for the scousers though. Two things the far right in this country despise most. While these pricks don’t represent all Chelsea fans, it’s a safe bet that Mo will be booed by the away end on Sunday, and if that happens it will be explained away as him being a former Chelsea player. So presumably Kevin De Bruyne gets the same level of animosity then? Meanwhile, there’s talk today of a record breaking kit deal and that it won’t be with New Balance. While our last couple of home kits have actually been really nice, I can’t say I’m a fan of NB in general, especially their trainers which all scream out “Hi-Tech Silver Shadow” to me. Nike are the front runners at this point but I’d happily take a few quid less from Adidas, if only because they could then release the old retro shirts and have them look authentic, rather than what we have now, which is the same shirt but without the three stripes and Adidas logo. I’d quite like the 85/86 home and away shirts with the Adidas logo on. In fact, they should just make that the new home and away shirts. Tell Nike to do one, let’s keep it old school. Friday Apr 12: How sad was it seeing Sean Cox at that benefit game? Utterly heartbreaking, it’s a fucking scandal what happened to that poor fella and his family. It’s great to see how football has rallied around him and hopefully all this makes it a bit easier for his family, but it’s still just incredibly sad. More sad news then came when we learned that Tommy Smith passed away today. I know he splits opinion and Tommy Smith the person rightly isn’t held in the same regard as Tommy Smith the player. His treatment of Howard Gayle was abhorrent, and there are countless other examples of him being a thoroughly unpleasant individual at times (an disgusting interview in the late 80s was a particular low point). The Tommy Smith of that time had some pretty vile views, but maybe he moved with the times and realised the error of his ways? I’d like to think he looked back on some of the things he said and the views he had and was ashamed by them, and I doubt he felt the same way in his later years that he did in the 80s, but I don’t know if he did or not. I’m just a little bit uneasy about judging a person’s character by views they held in the 70s and 80s, especially on the night that he died and his family are grieving. I saw one prominent journalist bringing all that up within minutes of the announcement and taking issue with people calling him a ‘legend’. Frankly that’s bollocks. Football is littered with ‘legends’ who were not nice people. Smith was no Kenny Dalglish, but then few are. He is unquestionably a football legend though, massive sweaty, puss filled warts and all. Just like George Best, Paul Gascoigne, Ryan Giggs, Bryan Robson, John Terry etc It put LFC in a somewhat awkward spot though, just one day after they put out that statement condemning all racism. Now they’re having to pay tribute to a club legend who has said some pretty horrendous things about black people. Were they supposed to ignore Tommy’s passing, or were they meant to reference his racism in their tribute to him? It's a no win situation but by not doing so they were giving an open goal to anyone who wants to point out the hypocrisy of it all. In terms of what he gave to LFC, few can match Smith. He made an immense contribution to the success of our club. That doesn’t mean his racist views were any less reprehensible, but equally it shouldn’t prevent people from mourning his passing and acknowledging the heroic things he did on the field. If you think “fuck him, he was a racist prick” and you don’t care that he’s dead, that’s perfectly fine. What isn’t fine is telling others they’re wrong for not feeling the same way. I guess it all comes down to whether you can separate Smith the man from Smith the footballer. It’s worth remembering that the fella had all manner of health issues in later life as a result of playing games after taking pain killing injections. He quite literally gave his body for LFC and he wasn’t ever suitably compensated for that. For years he was living on invalidity benefit until some blue grassed him up and got it stopped after he took a half time penalty at Wembley. So many bums have left this club as millionaires over the past 20 years, so it never sat well with me that dedicated servants like Smith had to sell his medals just so he had some cash to leave to his family. So yeah, RIP Tommy. On a lighter note, I saw an interview today with the fella who does all the teeth whitening for the stars. He did Jurgen, as well as Coutinho and Bobby. He said that when Bobby came in, he looked at the chart with the colours, picked out the whitest one (number one on the chart) and then said he wanted “Maximo! Beyond one”. They had to create a new colour just for him, the fucking loon. That was the week that was….