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How did this fucking skulduggery slip through employment law? Just because I don't smoke why does that mean I'm not allowed to 'nip out' for the odd five minutes roughly every hour and congregate near the back door with assorted other ne'er-do-wells? Could be something to do with the fact higher management has been infiltrated with the smelly bastards, sometimes even at director level, and they're often there too 'having a drag'. It's like some fucking menthol Illuminati. I bet it helps with promotion prospects too, and speeding up I.T requests.

Could someone explain it to me please? It's clearly going to be a factor in our transfer business this summer, but I'm not totally clear about what it is. Something to do with four players developed by the club and four developed in the country where they're playing, isn't it? However, am I right in saying nationality is not relevant?

I was out for a few drinks with Christian, of TLW fame, tonight and we were chatting about Rafa, his position and why it seemed under threat. After a few minutes, I just exploded into a ten minute impassioned rant about the whole lunacy of this situation. I realised there was something I needed to get off my chest and I needed to do it right now. Maybe I feel more comfortable saying this from a position of strength following the results we've had in the last two games, but there is no way, no way on this earth, that we should be thinking of replacing Rafa Benitez as manager of our Football Club. It is absolute, unadulterated lunacy. I'm sick of the unwarranted abuse he's taking and I'm sick of the shortsighted horseshit I'm hearing from the mouths of a lot of our own supporters that would make even our fiercest tabloid critics and TV pundits cringe. I don't know what people expect from the man, but to be within four points of United at this stage of the season and to be the most feared team left in the European Cup hat is a scenario we'd have all take at the start of the season. People talk about the dropped points, the mentality, the inability to kill teams off, but that can be put down to one thing and one thing alone. The absence for one third of this season of the Gerrard and Torres dynamic. With those two fully fit and raring to go all season we'd be clear at the top now, there is no doubt in my mind about that. Number nineteen would be beckoning as we speak. As it stands we're still in with a shot, but it's unlikely. We're not lucky enough to be gifted with the resources that allow us to have 5+ £20m midfielders or three £30m strikers like Manchester United have. Or leaving the likes of Deco and Essien on the bench. Or Having the choice between Anelka and Drogba. Granted, Rafa could have performed better in the transfer market this summer, but with our budget, absolutely everything is a gamble, everything is scrutinised to the nth degree, because for us to compete with United and Chelsea these signings just absolutely have to work out. Some have. Some haven't. The result is that we're almost there, but not quite. United can easily write of £36m with Hagreaves and Nani, can afford for Berbatov to have been no more of a success than Keane was at Liverpool. We can't. Sure we can all point to faults this season. His shabby treatment of Alonso, maybe Keane also (although I couldn't give a monkeys about him), his negative 'don't lose' approach in games and team selections that have not paid off. I agree with most of these criticisms. Yes he's stubborn. Yes he frustrates us a lot of the time. I agree that with a little more of a positive attitude we'd have been better off in terms of points, but by the same token, how many points has he won us with team selections we've thought unorthodox? Newcastle away, anyone? He is not perfect by any means. He's not without fault, but he is unquestionably the best man for this job at this moment in time and he has my love and confidence when it comes to the crunch. The last two games are evidence of that. Some people say "we're not moving forward, it's the same problems knocking us back, failing to win against the shit teams" (Someone I consider a very close friend of mine said that to me this weekend) But we have improved. Look at our record against the other three top sides this year. Unbeaten with 13 points from a possible 15. When was the last time we did that? So we HAVE improved and that's why we're closer to the top. I agree our problems have been against weaker opposition at home, but I put that down to the absence and lack of fitness of the best striker in the entire world and the lack of world class cover we're able to provide for him. People will say that if we'd been more positive etc... etc... and maybe they're right. But that's just not Rafa's way. While castigating him for that, people fail to compliment him for how organised we are, how well structured, how good we are at defending leads, how good we are at outsmarting the opposition, how good we are at grounding out results, coming back from behind (something else we've improved on immeasurably this year. Twice against United!), how good we are when we don't have the ball. How we do, in one way or another, "control the game" against everyone we play. He's not perfect. He has his faults, but he is by far the best man for this job. People speak of Rafa's politicking, his use of the fans' affection, his manipulation of the media, but let us not forget that the man is swimming in an ocean of sharks here, taking a strain that no manager in our history (other than Kenny post-Hillsbrough) has ever had to deal with. If there's one man that should come out of this ridiculous mess with his position in tact it's Rafa Benitez. For him to even have us challenging with all that's gone on around him in the last two years is a miracle. The fact that we're still in the hunt for the title? Unbelievable. And who can blame him for trying to align himself one way or the other? People speak of him as a fraud or a liar. Please? There may be an element of self-preservation at the heart of his actions, but Rafa Benitez is a football man who cares more than anything else about winning games for Liverpool Football Club. With regards to the Academy, it is a real shame that no young players are following Gerrard and Carragher into the first team. I think it's felt in Liverpool maybe more than anywhere, because of the immense local pride felt in the team, the "me and you vs the world" ethos that remains so prevalent. But at the end of the day. The plight of a local youngster or internal wranglings over who signed who means absolutely nothing to me if the first team are doing well, which in the main this season we have been (closer than we have been to the top in 7 or 8 years at this stage, flying in europe without our best player for most of the season ). It took me moving away from Liverpool to realise this. To realise that I was too close to the situation and couldn't see the woods for the trees. When I was 19-20 and watching the Liverpool under-19s, I was writing articles campaigning for the likes of Mark Peers and Neil Prince to be given a shot in the first team. Players like Richie Partridge, John Welsh, David Raven, David Mannix, Darren Potter were being grossly mistreated according to me 5 years ago, but I was letting my heart rule my head far too much. Who even bothers to mention these lads now. I couldn't even tell you where most of them are playing. Despite my protestations, they just weren't good enough and the only one I stand by is Mellor. If it wasn't for his injuries he could have had 60. 70. 80 goals for us by now. My point is, in this day and age, the first team is first, second, third and fourth. Look at United, Chelsea and Arsenal and how many top quality lads they've brought through their youth system since the turn of the century. Castigating Rafa for this is to do the same to Ferguson and Wenger the two most successful managers in the modern era. Are they "Cunts" to their fans too for not giving local youngsters more of a chance? No. But no, our fans, fans who have labeled him a genius at times, who savoured Istanbul as their most cherished memory, who have sung his name with all the gusto they could muster from their lungs are now turning their backs on him and slinging as much mud as they can possibly gather at this man. And for what? Because we've dropped points at home? Because we're not miles clear at the top of the league when up against two sides that vastly outrank us in terms of resources, as well as being without the best striker in the world for most of the season? Give me a fucking break. I'm ashamed of the treatment he gets and I'm sick to my back teeth of listening to it. Anyway, this is the most I've written about football in a long, long time, but felt it needed to be said. I love Rafa and I do believe he can bring us the title one day, if it's just not to be this year. And I firmly believe that a sixth European Cup is on its way here come the end of May. Viva Rafa.

I was flicking through and I just caught the end of it. What the fuck's happened to it? Its been dumbed down beyond belief, people wearing hoodies, all sitting on stools in a crazy looking broom cupboard style studio. Its supposed to be stuffy, its supposed to be mostly boring and its supposed to remind you that you've got school in the morning. This country.

I posted this, this morning, on YNWA. In the absence of transfer news in the last week, its a bit of encouragement about one of the lads we have already got in the bag. The quotes are from supporters of his club Gremio, who have watched him play week in, week out. I've spent an hour or two this morning searching the internet, to find out more about Lucas, and reading the existing threads on this and other LFC sites. I have to say, it looks like I've greatly underestimated him and I think a lot of others have too. Folks will probably have seen the compilation which is half way down this page. Probably also know that he is currently the holder of the Bola de Ouro (Brazils player of the year), in very distinguished company. What I've found surprising is how knowledgable Brazils fans are across their forums about European football (including LFC) and just how highly Lucas is rated by all of them and by folks in other countries around the world. It seems its only in this country he is somewhat anonymous. Gremio have been forced to sell him to balance their finances and it looks like we paid what they asked, without haggling, to get him quick before anyone else came in. They also seem to understand the intracasies of different formations and don't see him as a DM in the way we seem to. They have more names for different positions in CM and AM than we do. These quotes are typical of their responses and feelings about him : As to myself, I prefer the "new Falcao" and not the "Brazilian Gerrard" Most Europeans that talked to me about Lucas had the impression that he is a defensive midfielder, and did not understand the function of second volante, until i gave them some examples. i do not want to repeat myself as we discussed it in the transfers and rumors thread and everything was said there, I recommend to Canalla and European members interested to understand about Lucas, to read it there I do not agree with you, Leone, about Lucas being more defensive. he is very talented and inteligent and also gives everything of himself so he can do many things , but the thing he does best, in my humble opinion is his projection asisting the attack, and he is always better when he has a real volante de contencion behind him. At the same time he is seen as being closer to Vieira than Gerrard. It is a fact that most of you do not appreciate him, think that Xavi Alonso is better , ect. So what shoud i say? And as to the red colour, it is the color of International, the city rival, the most hated colour in Gremio, nothing to do with you Furthermore, the Liverpool site did not even mentioned the deal. for you it is nothing, just a "prospect". For us he is everything. He is the best player of gremio, the captain of the young NT, a hero and an idol in RS and all Brasil, so what do you want? no growing up on my side will ease the frustration that we, his fans, feel I will be only too happy if you prove me wrong and he wil flourish in Liverpool, believe me . I want the best for him. If we have to lose him for money, so at least I want him to be happy and succeed, he deserves it as a person and a football player. Such persons does not grow on trees. they are rare , and should be nourished hes got tackling like mascherano,sissoko hes got passing like fabregas,guti (short defence cutting passes) not long he shoots like gerrard he dribles like kaka and lastly hes got energy like essien Falcao, Cerezo, are not Defensive Middlefield in the sense of the word. They are what was called here "medio-volantes" and not "cabeça-de-areas", Those players are responsable for organizing the middlefield, not covering the defense like DMs should do. However, people put all in the same pack this style of player and the DMs, because in europe, either you are a dm or a playmaker. They are just limited about football, what to do Anyways, Lucas is not a DM in the Mauro Silva, Gilberto Silva, etc. sense, and I think he is not Gerrard like (perhaps spirit/leadership) player either. Overall, I'm really excited about what I've found out. The prospect of Masch, Lucas and Gerrard playing together is mouth watering. It will also provide the competition for Xabi and Momo, IF they stay. really can't see both of them being here next term. In summary he is widely regarded as being closest to Falcao as far as a Brazilian player and Vieira non-Brazilian, not a Defensive Midfielder. He is held in massive regard by all Brazilians.

I've just been shown this and thought it might be of interest to a few on here. Carragher on £85k a week? Get in there son! The 50 highest salaries of football players 2008/2009: Football Finance