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Need arsenal to win (-1) for 4095 beans :wallbutt:

suprised theres no thread. i hate the mancs more so come on arsenal

. . . more than the league. Lets face it, he'll win both. Football: Painful memories drive Javier Mascherano for Liverpool | Football | The Guardian Painful memories drive Mascherano to keep on running Midfielder returns against PSV determined to end his Champions League misery Javier Mascherano looked as though he had bumped into Steve Bennett down a dark alley. Liverpool's tenacious Argentinian midfielder had just been compared to a bunny - to his face - for, it is safe to assume, the first time in his career. Though the menacing glare dissolved into a smile when Eric Gerets' tribute to Liverpool was explained in full - "They are like Duracell bunnies. They are an example to the rest of the world for the effort they put in," the Marseille coach said recently - the laughter stopped when Mascherano revealed what really powers his extraordinary output. Pain. For the £18m Argentina international it is not the glory of two Olympic gold medals that fuels his voracious appetite on a football field but the misery of potentially career-defining defeats; the 2006 World Cup quarter-final exit to Germany providing the greatest pain for his country and the Champions League inflicting two for his club. Losing to Milan in Athens in the 2007 final and last season's semi-final defeat at Stamford Bridge still weigh heavily on the mind of a 24-year-old for whom euphoria is fleeting but despair lingers. It is why, in contrast to most at Anfield, the Champions League remains the greatest motivation for Mascherano. "I know the Liverpool fans want to win the league because they've won the Champions League recently but the Champions League is a dream for me," said the midfielder, who made his competition debut against tonight's opponents, PSV, in a 3-0 away win in April 2007 and played in the Athens final just four months after escaping the personal torment of West Ham. "If you ask 200 players, 90% will say they want to win the Champions League. The World Cup is the most important competition for any footballer, but then comes the Champions League. I have spoken with many Argentina players and some of them have been in Europe for 10 years and haven't played in a semi-final of the Champions League, let alone a final. That's why it's my dream to win it. When you lose a game, there is more motivation than when you win. You keep the pain. When you win, maybe you will be happy for an hour, then you forget about it." Miserable memories from last season's semi-final at Chelsea remain fresh for Mascherano and will inspire his latest assault on the Champions League more than the sight of his close friend Carlos Tevez lifting the trophy with Manchester United in May. "We had a big chance to win at Stamford Bridge and it was quiet in the dressing room afterwards," he recalled. "We were really, really sad, but that is what drives me on. When you lose, the pain stays with you for many weeks, months or even years. That happened to me in the World Cup as well when Argentina lost to Germany on penalties. We were the better team and we deserved to win, but we couldn't do it." Mascherano is expected to return to the side from a calf injury tonight as Rafael Benítez seeks to secure qualification to the knockout stage as swiftly as possible and rest players at a later date in readiness for the Premier League. "If we manage the situation now we will be in a much better position for the rest of the season," said the Liverpool manager. And what of the Duracell comparison? With the exception of the killer rabbit that flies for the throat in Monty Python and the Holy Grail it is ludicrous to compare Mascherano to a bunny, as Bennett, the referee who dismissed the midfielder for dissent at Old Trafford last season, can testify. But no Liverpool player better fits Gerets' description than the man more suitably known as "Little Chief". "That is my job," responded Mascherano. "I know I don't have the quality of Steven Gerrard and Xabi Alonso so I just have to give 100%, do the easy things and do my best in every game. All the players want to play with the ball and maybe I'd like to have the quality of Gerrard, but I don't. So I need to do other things. The most important thing is the balance of the team and each player has to do his job."

If we look at their respective managerial careers since 2000: 2000-2001 Rafa took Tenerife up from a 2nd division in 2000-01 which bizarely included Atletico, Seville & Betis, the 3rd ,5th & 6th biggest teams in Spain. Tenerife spent 1 season in La Liga before returning to the 2nd division, the others have all since qualified for the CL & won Uefa Cups & Copa del Rey's between them. Arse were a long way 2nd in the League & QF in CL Very hard to compare. I do think the Tenerife achievement is massive when you look at who he went past. 2001-2004 This period is very easy to compare as they both won the title in 2002 & 2004. i) La Liga was of a higher standard than the PL in those years. This can be shown by the respective results in Europe in which they were ahead each year. (For the Sky fans they did much better in individual player of the year awards, both for Europe & globally, as well) ii) Valencia were 3rd or 4th in wage bill in Spain, a long way behind the big 2. Arse were 2nd to ManU (Chavs Mafia was arriving in 2003 so the landscape was about to change) iii) Arse are historically a realtively bigger club than Valencia. Rafa gave Val the best 3 years in their history. For Arse that would be Chapman's 3 titles which will only be surpassed when/if they finally win the CL. In addition, Rafa won the Uefa Cup- Wenger has never won a European trophy. Rafa clearly & significantly ahead. He won a harder league with a reltively more disadvantaged team & added a European trophy. 2004-2008 Both In PL Arse started massively ahead of Lfc (38 pts in prior season) They have consistently spent at least £15m/year more on wages, breaking thru the £100m barrier in the latest set of accounts (so his young players are NOT cheap) PL Both finished ahead twice. Arse avg position is 3.5th, ours is 3.75th. FA CUP Both won once CL. We are the top team in the premier compettiion in Rafa's time here. Arse have 1 losing finalist; we cancel that out with Athens, beat it with a losing semi-finalist & then smash it to death with Istanbul which is an experience Wenger would give anything for. 1 CL beats 1 place over 4 years & that is after Arse started miles ahead. Another clear win for Rafa Head-to-head They have met twice in the main event of the CL. In 2002-3 Rafa's Valencia knocked Arse out of the 2nd group phase by winning the last group match 2-1 at the Mestalla In 2007-8 we beat the Arse 2-0 Rafa in the tournamemnt that really matters. Rafa is a clear winner in the 2 periods with valid comparison, has a stunning lower level achievement in the 1st year & wins on the head-to-head when it really matters. Arse play better football than us but lots of teams played prettier football than Sir Bob's sides... he won 3 European Cups though. Wenger has done an excellent job revamping Arse & building the Emirates. However Rafa is the most successful manager in Europe this decade given his resources & we are very lucky to have him.