Ponz

Our first eleven is on a par, if not better, than Arsenal's. And I don't see Ronaldinho joining ANY English club so it's a stupid example to use.

It's not hypocritical to be in favour of this but criticise Chelsea. This Dubai group are INVESTING in the club...they expect to receive A RETURN on their investment. Chelsea is effectively run like a charity. Roman will continue to pump millions into the club regardless of whether or not it makes a profit.

You should go and ask him when Everton's "Two Nights in August" Champions League DVD will be released...:whistle:

:D :D :D :yes:

Kuyt is quality. End of.

Hahaha. So he's gone from suggesting Momo is the worst player in LFC history to "a central duo of Momo Sissoko and Xabi Alonso has its merits". If this guy were just a wind-up merchant, the article would be funny. It's the fact that he takes this garbage seriously that disturbs me. MEMO to Paul M: If the manager you bash has won a Champions League, two La Ligas, a UEFA Cup and FA Cup in the last 5 years...maybe, just maybe...he knows something YOU DON'T.

So Rafa told him to constantly fall over, deliver corners/crosses that don't beat the first man and lose possession? Jesus Fucking Christ. :wallbutt:

That's the European Cup RAFA won, dufus.

I'll take a 0-0. Confidence is something you gradually restore. It doesn't come back suddenly. We needed to stop the away rot and we did so. Chelsea and Man U both have poor records at this ground so it's not the worst result. Our wastefulness from corners is shocking, though.

None of the above...though I do think integration of new players is one of the reasons. The main problem is that key players (Carra, Sami, Stevie G, Xabi & Pepe) have been underperforming.

You could sort of sympathise with the guy if he had been taking a moral stand or saying something that needed to be said. But he has pissed his job away for what? Ignorant, knee-jerk remarks about the best manager we've had in ages. Good riddance.

He's a class act and a very good manager, undoubtedly. His sides do tend to play quite negatively but that may change when he gets the chance to manage a really top side.

*YAWN* :whatever:

Brilliant half of football. Kuyt is fucking quality. Best striker we've had in ages.

This shameless cunt of a board member needs to be fired ASAP. ACT NOW MOORES!

I wouldn't equate the lower points totals to a "greater margin for error". They merely show that the "also rans" in the Spanish league are of a superior quality to their English counterparts...hence the fact that Real, Barca etc. cannot steam-roller them as easily as Chelsea, United etc. to do the PL midtable sides. However, I do agree with you about Rafa adopting too restrictive a mind-set for some away games. He looked to have rectified that last season but it's worrying we seem to be slipping into old patterns again.

It is ludicrous to compare Crouch to these world class players. I like Crouchie and think he contributes alot to the team but his "prolific" goal scoring form at the moment shouldn't mask his limitations as a player. The bulk of his recent goals have come against piss poor international sides. IMO, he lacks the skill and subtlety to really be effective against a top side like United.

This rotation argument is just a convenient bugbear for lazy media pundits who can't be bothered to properly analyze our poor form. We constantly hear about this 97 game streak but no one was complaining about rotation when we were on the 13 game unbeaten run earlier in the year. The stat I would love to know... How often in Chelsea's last 97 games has Mourinho picked an unchanged side? I'd be amazed if its more than a handful.

All very well...but Arsenal won't win the league. ;)

Regardless of the criticisms, it's obvious Lawton has alot of respect for Rafa.

What the fuck is wrong with the producer? Everytime the ball goes in the final third he switches to this ridiculous camera angle.

On the occasions Sven played Gerrard out wide, it was to accomodate Lampard and Beckham...two consistent underperformers in the England team. Rafa is playing him out wide to accomodate Alonso and Sissoko...who have generally been superb as a central midfield combination.

Awesome. Thoroughly deserved. :yes:

I think he's quality. He kept 35 clean sheets last year FFS. Yes, alot of that had to do with the quality of the back 4 but he hardly put a foot wrong. I know the blip he is having will inevitably invite Dudek comparisons but that is really just paranoia. Reina commands the box alot better, is physically stronger and has more self-belief than Jerzy. And the defensive blunders in front of him lately haven't helped. I'm confident he will come out of this a stronger keeper. As has been pointed out, he has a several years to go before reaching peak. It's ludicrous lumping Pepe in with the likes of James, Westerveld etc. on the basis of a one month dip in form. Have some belief in the guy FFS. He will come good.

The final may have been a "one off" but Rafa also led us past both Chelsea and Juventus over two legs to reach that final. The champions of Italy and England at the time. And we were the better side in both of those ties. Who was the person who gave the half-time team talk? Who was the person who put Hamann on, thus negating the devastating impact of Kaka and allowing Gerrard to roam forward? Who was the person who opted to play Gerrard at right-back in extra-time...thus preventing Milan from exploiting the width of the pitch. Do you consider all these tactical moves irrelevant? Again...what about the matches in the lead-up to the final? The fact that we outplayed and out-manouvred both Chelsea and United to get there?