JeanMichelFerriacrosstheMersey

Haha!

Sorry yes, it was Dom (fucking hell, I'm having a nightmare here). No worries - and seriously, thanks for the pod, Dave. Been a joy, even/especially during the tough times.

Shit, I forgot about Browny - my massive apologies. Has had another storming season, and frankly not on the podcast enough. In that sense, the Jari Litmanen of the group. Enjoyed him calling Luis Diaz "a pussy" in the post-Everton pod, not because I necessarily agree but more because it was wonderfully savage. Well done fella - and seriously, big sorry for leaving you out of the original list.

It's quiet at work and, as such, I've been reflecting on the season a fair bit today, what with it coming to an end very soon. That also got me thinking about TLW podcast. I've listened to each and every episode since the season began and it's become a big part of my match-watching experience. As such, I wanted to pay tribute to the main contributors with individual summaries/tributes. They're done with affection. Honest! Dave - The gaffer. 100% appearance record. Comes in strong each and every time and has the stamina to keep that going to the end of all episodes. A source of defiant optimism, especially in regards to Darwin, but even he hasn't been able to keep that going during the past few, disappointing weeks, which has actually been a bit heartbreaking to hear. On a lighter note - I love the arrogance regarding his 'playing career' as well as the regular, funny digs at Evertonians. Chris - Midweek host and does a superb job of that. A voice of reason, especially during the podcast's long and (sorry Dave) tedious chats about referees. Not scared to go against the grain, seen in his criticism of Jurgen's decision to announce his retirement when he did - I share his frustration/anger over that and have nodded almost violently as he has expressed that. I also loved his rants about Ibiza Jorg in pre-season. Paul - The fuck off-master general. Loves a rant but also speaks loads and loads of sense. Called the unlikelihood of Liverpool winning the title early and, sadly, has been proven right. I love his battles with Dave when Usher goes full-on arrogant so-and-so as well as his vocal tick of telling listeners what he and Jules chatted about on the way back to the car. Jules - Not sure I've heard a more downbeat man in my life and I love him for that given I too am a grumpy, pessimistic sod. Loves a simile to the extent that I genuinely think his brain is wired differently to most human beings. In that regard, see also his constant references to that quote from Dirty Dancing. A complex man whose cat has arguably provided the highlight of the TLW season. John G - No notes. Always great, all the time. John B - A newcomer to the podcast and, as such, was rightly given his run out in the Europa League. You simply can't rush becoming a first-team TLW-er. Absolutely loves a stat, as well as saying "Andy", and can be blamed for ruining our title hopes with his 'all our players are going to be fit for the rest of the season' shout in February (or whenever it was). Cheers JB. In all seriousness - decent first season. See you in August, son. Stu - Comes off the bench when required and always delivers, so basically TLW's Divock Origi and, really, there is no greater compliment than that. Always speaks with great thought and insight, and is not afraid to have a strong, contrary opinion, especially in regards to a certain Egyptian winger. Regular top work from a top operator. Dan - Unlike last season he has not delivered an insane impression of a classic movie character, but he has delivered an an insane pronunciation of a former Manchester City midfielder, and I for one am hugely grateful for that (Ilkay Gun-do-gan may not feel the same). Generally strong performer who absolutely loves a wrestling-reference, which is totally fine by me. *Think* that's everyone. In all seriousness - thanks to the lads for some great podcasting during the past nine months. I'm looking forward to the final two post-match episodes of the season and whatever else may follow before the pod properly gets going again in August. Up the TLW Reds.

As said, Chris - my lack of love for Mo is odd because, as you say, he's a brilliant athlete and almost certainly a brilliant person, too. And, in general, I have no issue with footballers being arrogant - they absolutely need to be, especially at the top level. But there's always been something about Mo that's kept me at arms length to him from an affection-POV, and it feels related to what happened on Saturday and how annoyed I still am about it. Probably says more about me than Mo, tbh. I'm also very much the most arrogant person in my house, which is saying something given my inability to not spill crumbs down the side of the sofa when I'm having my dinner in front of the telly.

That's fair enough Paul. Personally, I'm still fuming with Mo. That's almost certainly in part due to the oddly cold way I've felt about him ever since he joined us in 2017 - never loved him as much as I loved Sadio or Bobby and not 100% sure why. Think it may be because I detected the arrogance we saw on Saturday in him much earlier on. Saying that, I will be forever thankful for all the incredible moments, individually and collectively, he's given us during the past seven years, and in that regards it's indeed sad how things have turned out for Mo season. He may come back fitter, stronger, sharper next season but I doubt it - looks distinctly like a player in decline to me and, for that reason, I'd defo cash in on him in the summer if the right offer came along. Whether or not it does, and he decides to go the back of it, remains to be seen. As said - my sense is he'll still be with us next season. And yes, the entire season is now one of huge disappointment, regret and sadness. It definitely started with that cup defeat at Old Trafford and, for me, took a distinct and decisive turn for the worse after the 2-2 there in the league a few weeks later. That broke the players, and almost certainly, the manager too. Gutted.

I make that 7,255 'Fuck' and 'Fuck offs' by Paul in this episode. A new TLW podcast record? In all seriousness - Salah can indeed fuck off. As Paul said, the touchline row with Klopp was bad enough but also, just about, understandable. The same cannot be said about his "fire" comment in the mixed zone. That was calculated and cowardly and, without a suitable apology, something that should spell the end of Mo's time at the club. He's a legend, but to behave like that towards an even greater legend - or indeed anyone who is in charge of him at the time - is unacceptable, especially given the piss-poor displays he has delivered in recent weeks, a time when we needed our main man - and biggest earner - to step up. Instead he's gone into hiding, walked when he should've sprinted, and on Saturday showed a level of petulance that says a lot about his character, namely that he can be incredibly selfish and disloyal and go into full self-preservation mode when the chips are down. Well, if that's the case, you can well and truly do one to Saudi, Mo. As the boys outlined, however, that could prove easier said than done. I too think he'll be here next season, which could prove a big headache for Slot - a big ego in serious, sharp decline. I'm getting massive Cristiano Ronaldo vibes ... Speaking of the soon-to-be-announced new manager - like Stu, there's a part of me that is excited about a change in the dugout and how it changes the way we play. I adore Klopp and his years as our manager have been the best of my many decades following the Reds, but I've reached a point where I'm done seeing the team blow up under him, whether that be through multiple injuries, exhaustion or system failure. They're all interlinked factors and the fundamental issue with Klopp's style of football is that when it goes well it goes really, really well but when it goes badly it goes really, really badly, as we've seen this season. If feels like we're at a stage where Jurgen's heavy metal football is simply no longer possible, certainly not with the squad we have currently, and we need more control in games - to ease the stress on the players and make us more secure defensively. It won't be as thrilling as what we saw between 2017-2020 but that doesn't mean it can't be as successful in its own way. Given Slot plays a similar style to Klopp, that may well not be what we get with him, so a case again, it seems, of buckle up and enjoy the ride. (*Puffs out cheeks and goes for a lie down*)

That’s fair enough, Dave. I for one would never call a radio station calling for a player to be sold, even a crap one, let alone a club legend. As you say - it’s distasteful.

Finally listened to this and nominating it for TLW podcast episode of the season. The boys perfectly captured the frustration, fury and outright hurt of Wednesday’s loss, as well as perfectly capturing the confusion we all feel about this squad now and the future of the club as a whole. And a big reason for all of that is the return of Browny. He’s always great on the pod. Welcome back chief. Onto the team itself - 100% they’ve bottled it under the pressure of having to do it for Klopp. I wrote on here a little while back that I was in the away end at Old Trafford for the 2-2 there earlier this month and was struck by how devastated the players looked at the final whistle. They recognised it was a huge opportunity lost, and while in other seasons they probably would’ve got over that quickly, in this season they couldn’t, leading to an already pressurised situation become even more pressurised, which in turn led to a breakdown in performances, seen vs Atalanta, Palace and Everton. The stress of a title race is hard enough, especially for a largely inexperienced group of players, but when you add into that the stress of having to deliver the perfect send-off for a legends manager, well … no wonder they’ve cracked. Saying that, the crazy number of injuries we’ve had to cope with this season hasn’t helped either. Overall, we’re physically and mental wrecked. It’s been a collective collapse but as said on the pod, and by many other Reds I’ve spoken to since Wednesday, it’s the strikers who have let us down the most, and so yes, we need to talk about Darwin again. These are the teams he has scored against this season: Newcastle, LASK, West Ham, Toulouse, Forest, Bournemouth, Burnley, Norwich, Brentford, Sparta, Sheff Utd. No goals against the Mancs, City, Arsenal or Everton, despite playing a decent number of minutes against them all - for our main No 9 and most expensive player in our history that is simply not good enough. I love him, we all do, but after THAT miss on Wednesday and the manner in which he’s let us down in the big games and the big moments I’ve now reached a point where I too think he’ll never reach the level required for a club with our ambitions. We thought we had the new Gabriel Batistuta; turns out we have the new Emile Heskey - a good Liverpool striker but simply not good enough. Onto Salah - yep, he’s done, and sorry lads on the pod but I’m not having this ‘don’t treat him like a commodity’ thing. He’s a footballer, they come and they go, and ultimately the most important thing is what’s best for the club, and for me that means cashing in on Mo this summer before his value totally drops of a cliff. Don’t get me wrong, I love what he’s done for Liverpool; he’s a club legend, but he’s also been paid very well for his services and will himself recognise that, as well as the fact that his time is up. Also, if we had been shit the past few years and, say, Real Madrid came calling, do you think Mo would’ve stuck around through loyalty to us? No, he would’ve left, as so many others have done. It’s how football works - love and respect the players but don’t treat them like they’re family members, because they’re not. I’ll stop rambling now. But before I do - the manager. The best of the many decades I’ve been following Liverpool and I’ll forever be grateful for what he’s given us, but like Chris previously said on the pod, everything changed for the worse the moment he made his announcement that he was leaving and it’s clear he’s well and truly checked out. That’s a huge shame and it’s incredibly sad how his reign is ending. Let’s just try and see him off as best we can - win the last four games and shower him with thunderous applause at the end of one vs Wolves. It’s the least he deserves.

Quite the breakdown on this 1hr 48 min podcast about Liverpool's 3-1 victory over Fulham: 7 minutes on the actual game Another 7 minutes chatting about Rafa and Brendan Rodgers 1 hr 34 minutes on arguing about refs Up the Reds.

Cheers pal.

Excuse me while I wipe a tear from my eye having listened to the last bit of this episode in which the lads reflected on Klopp's European era. Beautiful sentiments from Chris and the perfect summation from Dave - It's been the most fun he, and many of us, have had watching Liverpool, ever. Shame John B had to ruin it all by banging on about the Nazis ;) In all seriousness, I was fortunate enough to be at most of the big European games under Klopp, home and away, and it's almost impossible to describe how special they were - Dortmund, City, Roma, Barcelona, Spurs in Madrid and even Kyiv; occasions that will live with me forever and which we should all be grateful for. Fans of practically every other club would kill for just one of those nights; we had loads, and the glorious memories will last long after the increasing pain of this season has passed. If, like the lads, I had to pick my favourite European goal under Klopp, it would probably be Divock's in Madrid. I was right behind the goal where he smashed the ball past Hugo Lloris and will never forget the feeling of knowing that we had definitely won a sixth European Cup. That I was surrounded by mates and celebrated with each and every one of them only added to the magic. The following morning it was back home via Alicante and I'm pretty sure I didn't stop smiling for the entire journey - and for the rest of that summer. Thank you Jurgen. It's been one hell of a ride. X

Cheers gaffer.

Just listened to this with my lunch (cheese sarnie and a yoghurt in case anyone is interested) and to reiterate a point I made after the Arsenal pod back in February, I appreciate the podcast more after a defeat than a win, and I feel pretty certain I'm not the only one. As a Red, you've got so many bad thoughts/emotions swirling through your body and you want to know if others feel the same and how they're coping/rationalising the pain - in part you get that through talking with you mates and in part you get that from listening to three fellas you don't know try and make sense of it all between themselves, and that always helps - so please Dave and the lads, always do post-defeat pods even if, quite understandably, you're not in the mood to do so. Also, please always litter than with fuming rants about Pep Guardiola - well in Paul! Onto the team itself - I 100% agree that what we've seen in the past two games has been a collective mental breakdown, in part brought on by the natural stress of being in a title race but also in part brought by the pressure of knowing this is the last chance to be champions under Klopp. We've felt it as fans pretty much ever since the manager made his announcement that he was leaving and it's now got to the players, and the trigger for that was most definitely the 2-2 draw at Old Trafford last week. I was in the away end and it really struck me hard how gutted the players looked at the final whistle. Diaz collapsed onto the turf while others stood around looking like they'd just seen their dog been hit by a car - a mixture of shock and despair which immediately told me something had gone in their heads. They clearly recognised not beating United was a big opportunity blown and that carried into Thursday which, in turn, carried into Sunday. I'm simply not having anyone say these players don't care - if anything they care too much, and that's the problem; they've tensed up under the pressure of winning this title for Klopp which has led to anxiety and ultimately a total failure to do the basic fundamentals - pass, press, cross, shoot - correctly. Saying that, there's also their utterly infuriating knack of starting games slowing and conceding the first goal, which, really, has been a problem ever since the tail-end of the 2021-22 season and for which the manager and coaching staff have to take a large share of the blame. I'm sure they prepare the team for every game but for too long now there has been a failure in that preparation, whether that be in training, or how the players are told to rest and recuperate, or in the final message they get before going onto the pitch - who knows, but something has definitely not been right for too long now. Equally, I agree with those who say the players have to take responsibility for their own performances and make sure they're 'on it' from the start of all games. All in all what we've seen for the best part of two years now in regards to how we start games has not been good enough and it needs to change. In regards to the title - yes, we're still in this and there could well be more twist and turns but personally I think yesterday was it for us. As said by the lads on the pod; once you get behind Man City in a title race, and especially at this stage of the season, it's near impossible to catch them. We've seen how this movie ends twice and the trilogy is upon us, sadly. Simply no way, given the team's physical as well as mental shape, that we're winning our remaining six games, which is what we'd need to do to stand any chance of being champions. Like Dave, I see Fulham on Sunday as a massive banana skin, and even if we don't slip up then we will somewhere else. Praying to God it's not Goodison. All in all, this is such a sad state of affairs to find ourselves in. Like Chris said on the post-Atalanta pod - everything changed when Klopp made his announcement, and while the reasons for that were understandable, that doesn't stop me/others wishing he had not said anything and simply walked in the summer. That would have meant no sudden dropping of mood, no distracting chat about who replaces him (and subsequent, further despair when Alonso ruled himself out of the running) and no rising anxiety, in the stands and on the pitch, which led to Anfield being an utterly rotten place to be yesterday. My worst day there since the Gerrard-slip game almost exactly 10 years ago. I'm gutted and, like Paul, massively pissed off with seeing the cheats prosper again. They've stolen glory for us and they're fans barely give a fuck about any of it. It's disgusting and, well, sad.

Echo what a lot of people here have said - fair play lads for not only getting the pod out but perfectly summing up the frustration we all feel about that game yesterday. I was in the away end and basically spent all of the half-time break ranting at my mate about the missed chances and how we were definitely going to pay for it in the second half. Was desperate to be proved wrong. Sadly I wasn't. Spent the car journey home reflecting on Klopp's time as manager of the club and while it's undeniably been the best era I've experienced as a Red it's also been one that's provided me as a supporter with some almighty lows, from the two last-day title deciders, to Paris, to the Covid season ... it's been emotionally exhausting and now here is another period that is incredibly draining and feels like it's going to end in heartbreak. I so wish could make our minds up as a team and either be balls-out brilliant or totally mediocre - this so-close-yet-so-far thing is doing me over! In all seriousness, I love this manager and I love this team and as horrible as yesterday was, we are right in this title race. Arsenal have momentum and are playing really well but they also have the sharp end of the Champions League to navigate, something their squad has close to zero experience of, as well as tough run in. They WILL drop points. City almost certainly will, too, given they're simply not the team they were last season. But as Paul said on the pod - we need that big emotional moment to truly drive our title hopes; we all hoped it would come at Old Trafford, maybe it'll come at Goodison Park. This generation's Gary Mac moment. Fingers crossed.

The free-kick game was actually December 2000. I’ll stop going on about this now.

Another top episode of the pod - the new manager chat especially. Thought the point Jules made about modern managers not having a great body of work because so many are sacked so quickly these days, and therefore not being appealing candidates for jobs at big clubs like Liverpool, was really smart and really spot on. One totally separate thing to pick up on - the United-Liverpool game that was at 3pm on a Saturday and therefore not show on the telly was the Danny Murphy penalty game in April 2004, the third of the three games in which he won it for us at Old Trafford, after the free-kick game in December 2001 and the lob game in January 2002. I know because I was there - my first time seeing us play at OT and it turned out to be some Saturday afternoon. #happyfuckingdays

True, but Rodgers also came out with some belters, like talking about promising to dedicate his life to fighting for the club, and ultimately he wasn’t a success and we didn’t truly take to him because he didn’t win. It’s all about that in the end. We’ve just been really lucky with Klopp in that he’s given us that strong emotional connection with how he behaves and the principals he holds as well as also being a genius football manager. Christ I’m bummed about him leaving.

Finally listened to this episode this morning (I’m away with the family for Easter so had to spend yesterday visiting boring castles and museums in a coastal town I barely give a toss about) - not sure I’ve nodded more while listening to the TLW pod, from Paul talking about what a privilege it’s been to follow Klopp’s Liverpool to Chris talking about how he’s “scared” to get excited about us winning the title to Dave talking about getting the title won and then worrying about what comes next - yes, yes, yes. How I feel about everything. On a(nother) good point Paul made about whoever replaces Klopp needing to emotionally connect with the fanbase - totally agree but, in disagreement with Paul, I’d suggest Houllier and Benitez didn’t actually do much to emotionally connect with the fans - there were no standout soundbites or fist bumps - they ultimately connected with us by winning, and in the end that was the difference between them and Hodgson and Rodgers. So, really, that’s all the new guy has to do - win. Saying that, like most Reds I’m really uninspired by the choices to replace Klopp now Alonso has ruled himself out of the running. If I had to pick someone, I’d probably go with De Zerbi - he’s done really well at Brighton, plays really good football and seems like a bit of a dude; I can definitely see his face on a Love Follow Conquer t-shirt.

The injury stuff was brilliant - and yes, well done John B!

Hi Dave. Don't get me wrong - I think Oliver taking paid gigs in the UEA is dodgy as fuck, and for sure more should be made of it across all sections of the media, as there should be on Man City's cheating - personally I'd love Sky Sports News to have a clock at the bottom of the screen counting how many minutes have passed since City were hit with the 115 charges as it's been fucking loads and nowt has happened in terms of them getting punished. The world should be constantly reminded of this. On the refs in general, I just think we collectively need to pick our battles in regards to what we criticise them over, otherwise it all becomes white noise and can be deemed a bit tin-hat, especially when the views of Richard Keys are being taken seriously. He's a Grade-A twat who should be ignored at all times, albeit I get your point that the stuff on Oliver has been doing the rounds for a while. As said - I've also become suspicious of him since he started taking Al Mubarek's money. Also fair enough on Walker and the 'Mike' stuff. My point was specifically on criticising the interview being conducted in the first place - it seemed fine when I saw it as it was an obvious promo for his academy which is a decent initiative. Anyway, all good. Love the pod. Keep it up, and definitely ignore narky knobheads like me. ;)

Hello. I've just listened to the podcast - another enjoyable episode. However, I have to pick up on a couple of things and, in the process, be somewhat negative. 1) The Kyle Walker interview on Sky Sports News - I agree that what he said was properly shit (no surprise there ...), but, in regards to the idea that it was wrong of SSN to carry it - it clearly came about because Walker was promoting his new football academy in Sheffield and, in return for some coverage of that, was willing to provide an interview. That is how many interviews come about with footballers, especially these days, and has no doubt been the case with Liverpool players down the years, during which they've no doubt said things that have pissed off rival fanbases. To claim SSN were being unprofessional in conducting the interview is really silly and something all Reds should be above. Speaking of which ... 2) I love the TLW pod but have increasingly become exhausted by the anti-referees chat that takes up a large chunk of practically every episode. Yes, the refs in this country are useless twats, but to keep banging on about that really is boring, especially when nothing productive is offered in regards to how the process of refereeing/operating VAR can be improved. Also, the constant reach for a conspiracy theory is something that, again, makes us look silly as a fanbase, and I felt a new low was reached in that regard on this episode with the Michael Oliver-being-angry-about-being-sent-to-the-monitor rumour - it came from Richard Keys FFS! 99 times out of 100, it would be ignored what that bellend has to say, but because it's about a ref it's believed ... come on. The exasperated caution in Chris's voice after Dave brought it up summed up own my feelings exactly. Sorry for being so negative but I really do feel strongly about the above two points and my desire for us as a fanbase in general to be above silly/hypocritical takes and wild/unbased conspiracy theories. Otherwise - keep up the good work lads. Up the Reds.

Just listened to the pod and was struck by the lads saying that they’d be surprised if any Reds had listened given it was on the back of a bad defeat. Don’t know about anyone else, but for me the pod becomes even more important when we have lost badly as it provides a way for me to better understand why we underperformed, as well as the chance to put our performance into perspective and/or find some reason to remain optimistic. A post-defeat pod can also provides a laugh or two when us Reds need it most. So chin up Dave and the team and most definitely keep delivering the pod after losses. That’s when I for one certainly need it most. Pistolero.