The OFFICIAL Liverpool Supporters thread

[bingobus]

I can't remember the last time Reina made a misjudgement.

Joining serial also rans Liverpool?

Maybe he just wanted to win Champions League medals...got close last year. Slur Alex would love to get so close again.

[EC Unique]

Quote from Minder:

Have we not been down this road a few weeks ago arguing about who would get on a "bst of XI"....? Its pointless.

Of course it is.  What fool would put Spains sub keeper ahead of VDS.  Ill give Reina his dues though, he can save a penalty.. but the man is the closest Liverpool have had to a calamity James replica!

I suppose he is a clown, the award he had received the last two years for the most clean sheets in the EPL season is obviously a mistake or is it down to the good defence in from of him? Couldn;t be that either, sure Carra is a liability, Hyypia has been finished since Henchoz left ang Agger is a rookie learning his trade, Riise is paid too much and can't defend. That only leaves Finnan who by the looks of it should have been awarded World player of the year as he is single handly responsible for Liverpools impressive total of clean sheets last two seasons. 

Let me get this straight, are you saying that if you were picking a team today and both keepers were available, you would pick Reina before VDS?

Reina is the best keeper amongst the top 4 at present.

Van der Sar was flapping all over the place in the game against Liverpool nearly costing united 2 goals. Cech was the best of the lot until this season but he's made a number of blunders recently. Maybe still not recovered fully from his injuries? I can't remember the last time Reina made a misjudgement. I think it was early last season against Everton.

Reina does not play for a top four team... His team is in 5th

[gawa316]

Good quote from Guillem Balague this week:

Since Jose Mourinho left Chelsea the press in England have pointed their weapons towards Benitez and Liverpool, and they won't stop until they see him out of a job
Guillem on Benitez

The way the press react to rotation, tactics etc is ridiculous. There is never a mention of old whiskey nose when rooney is left out.

[nrico2006]

Van der Sar was flapping all over the place in the game against Liverpool nearly costing united 2 goals. Cech was the best of the lot until this season but he's made a number of blunders recently. Maybe still not recovered fully from his injuries? I can't remember the last time Reina made a misjudgement. I think it was early last season against Everton.

VDS is as good as there is.  Great shot stopper, commanding and the most comfortable with the ball at his feet.  Reina frequently comes for crosses and balls into the box and flaps like a shot crow.  He is terrible when dealing with balls into the box.  He is a good shot stopper, and his strong point is that he is possibly the best at saving penalties. 

Regarding 'Slur Alex' and his ambition to get to a champions league final - I'm sure if United were out of contention for the league from Jan/Feb every year and most other competitions then it wouldn't take a rocket scientist to work out that United would have a great chance of getting to the CL Final if all they had to focus on was that one competition.  But the top sides like Chelsea and United are challenging on more fronts than one which can take its toll.

[Chrisowc]

Good quote from Guillem Balague this week:

Since Jose Mourinho left Chelsea the press in England have pointed their weapons towards Benitez and Liverpool, and they won't stop until they see him out of a job
Guillem on Benitez

The way the press react to rotation, tactics etc is ridiculous. There is never a mention of old whiskey nose when rooney is left out.

Was considering posting words to the effect in the last couple of days.

Heaven forbid substituting 'Stevie G' in the Merseyside derby.  Nevermind the kid he brings on in his place would have scored the winner if it wasn't for Phil Neville staking a claim for Paul Robinson's England shirt.

Sure that isn't a story.  Much rather they sh*t stir and report on the 'split' between manager and captain.  Merely a prelude to the soap opera that is manager v owners that we are subjected to daily by HM gutter press.

[stevo-08]

Reina frequently comes for crosses and balls into the box and flaps like a shot crow.  He is terrible when dealing with balls into the box.  

totally untrue. can you back that up with some recent examples please?? admittedly, he wasnt good under crosses when he first arrived, but he has been in exceptional form for the last 2 seasons and I'd have him ahead of VDS at the mo. I actually think Kuszczak could take the no.1 spot at utd next season.

[J70]

Van der Sar was flapping all over the place in the game against Liverpool nearly costing united 2 goals. Cech was the best of the lot until this season but he's made a number of blunders recently. Maybe still not recovered fully from his injuries? I can't remember the last time Reina made a misjudgement. I think it was early last season against Everton.

VDS is as good as there is.  Great shot stopper, commanding and the most comfortable with the ball at his feet.  Reina frequently comes for crosses and balls into the box and flaps like a shot crow.  He is terrible when dealing with balls into the box.  He is a good shot stopper, and his strong point is that he is possibly the best at saving penalties. 

Regarding 'Slur Alex' and his ambition to get to a champions league final - I'm sure if United were out of contention for the league from Jan/Feb every year and most other competitions then it wouldn't take a rocket scientist to work out that United would have a great chance of getting to the CL Final if all they had to focus on was that one competition.  But the top sides like Chelsea and United are challenging on more fronts than one which can take its toll.

I don't particularly want to get involved in this infantile "my daddy's bigger than your's" crap, but how many times has Reina screwed up on crosses or balls to his feet? Is it more than any other keeper?

I certainly have no complaints about him. If all the rest of the team were anywhere near as accomplished and consistent as Reina is, Liverpool would have few problems.

[Heshs Umpire]

Reina frequently comes for crosses and balls into the box and flaps like a shot crow.  He is terrible when dealing with balls into the box.  

totally untrue. can you back that up with some recent examples please?? admittedly, he wasnt good under crosses when he first arrived, but he has been in exceptional form for the last 2 seasons and I'd have him ahead of VDS at the mo. I actually think Kuszczak could take the no.1 spot at utd next season.

Certainly not getting dragged into this "my English team is better than yours" crap but Kuszczak? Are you serious. I'm a very part time United fan and I reckon the lad Foster will be first choice next season. Kuszczak is rubbish.

[GalwayBayBoy]

Benítez begs for more time as owners discuss the future


Daniel Taylor
Wednesday January 9, 2008
The Guardian


Rafael Benítez has made an impassioned plea to Liverpool's American owners to allow him to continue as manager, despite their reservations about the team's progress. George Gillett and Tom Hicks were having talks last night with the chief executive Rick Parry amid growing speculation that Benítez does not figure in their plans beyond the end of the season, but the man who brought the European Cup back to Anfield insists he wants to stay.


"I don't know how many times I have to say this before certain people believe me," said an exasperated Benítez. "But I will say it again because it is really important that everyone understands this - I love the club, I love the fans, I love the city and I am very, very happy here. I do not see my future at Real Madrid or Inter Milan or anywhere else. I see my future at Liverpool and this is where I want to stay."
Benítez could hardly have been more unequivocal as he waited to hear the outcome of Parry's discussions with Gillett and Hicks in the United States. The official line from Anfield was that Benítez's future was not on the agenda, but the Spaniard is entitled to be worried given his precarious relationship with the Americans and reports that Jürgen Klinsmann is to be sounded out about replacing him.

It has not helped Benítez that an off-the-record conversation with a number of Sunday newspaper journalists led to reports at the weekend that he feared he could be sacked. "I was shocked when I was told about the stories in the Sunday papers," he said. "To see my name linked with other clubs in such a manner really disappoints me. And the fact that the newspapers said that the stories had come from 'a source close to me' is what disappoints me most.

"All I can say is, no such quotes came from me and I know my friends well enough to know that they did not come from them. So I can only assume that the conversation I had with the journalists from the Sunday newspapers meant something different to them than me."

Benítez has completed the £6.5m signing of the centre-back Martin Skrtel from Zenit St Petersburg and turned down an inquiry from Fulham for Sami Hyypia, "The squad is the best it has been since I first came here and we have many young players who are going to get only better," he said, "so I have no wish to be at any other club. I want to be here this summer and many other summers after that."

[GalwayBayBoy]

Premier League - Euroscout: Martin Skrtel

Eurosport - Wed, 09 Jan 15:21:00 2008

With Liverpool about to finalise the signing of Slovakian Martin Skrtel from Zenit St Petersburg for £6.5 million, we bring you a Euroscout of the centre-half that could become Rafael Benitez's very own Nemanja Vidic.

Rafa failed last season with a bid to sign Gabriel Heinze from rivals Manchester United, but is now set to plug the gap left by injured duo Daniel Agger and Sami Hyypia with the most expensive defender in the club's history.

"The last two weeks I have been in constant contact with my agent Karol Csonto," he told Plus. "I hope everything will turn out well in the end, the dream will come true, and I will become a player for a famous club. I cannot wait to put pen to paper.

"I have realised that in all likelihood a new era of my life is beginning. I have been pondering what will be waiting for me there and how I will get used to the conditions."

But is he worth it?

Skrtel, 23, is widely considered the number one stopper in Slovakia. The keystone of the national team's backline is very strong in the air, possesses good positional sense, has great technique on the ball and most of all is lightning-quick.

He has been praised by many at Zenit for maintaining good form over a long period of time, avoiding costly dips - which resulted in the club winning the Russian title in 2007, their best finish in a domestic season since the USSR league victory in 1984.

Another quality that marks him as a Vidic clone is his penchant for hard tackles, added to a generally whole-hearted style of play, which should see him slot straight into the Premier League's rough-and-tumble weekly shenanigans.

There is an occasional question mark against his defending from set-pieces, something that Benitez - or his replacement in the summer, if you believe the papers - may look to iron out.

Still, for a young player he certainly looks the part. Zenit coach Dick Advocaat has long tipped the international to grow into one of the top defenders in Europe, just as Serbian Vidic is now considered as indispensable to Manchester United's back four as the likes of Rio Ferdinand.

Skrtel has played for both Zenit and Slovakia since 2005, earning 15 caps for his country and scoring one goal against Cyprus in their unsuccessful attempt to qualify for Euro 2008.

Liverpool have a genuine goal-threat in Fernando Torres; but if they are to seriously challenge for the Premier League title in the coming years, perhaps an investment in a solid defender such as Skrtel will make the difference.

[J70]

Let's give the lad a chance before we build him up! We've all seen numerous players fail to adapt to English football - there is no guarantee that he'll be as important to Liverpool as Vidic is to United.

[corn02]

Anyone who says that they would have Van Der Sar ahead of Reina is obviously on the  wind up but there is no doubt about it overall United have a far superior squad even if the first eleven would be split fairly even. I'll add to that by saying if you tookinto account the first 11 along with the three subs you would have alot bigger United dominance.

Norf Tyrone I have read article after article about Blackburn, Everton, Sheffield United e.t.c, e.t.c fielding a weakened team. The romance is dead my friend. It pains me too but it is fact. Dave Kitson summed it up well.

[GalwayBayBoy]

Let's give the lad a chance before we build him up! We've all seen numerous players fail to adapt to English football - there is no guarantee that he'll be as important to Liverpool as Vidic is to United.

Blame Eurosport.

[stevo-08]

Let's give the lad a chance before we build him up! We've all seen numerous players fail to adapt to English football - there is no guarantee that he'll be as important to Liverpool as Vidic is to United.

Anyone remember how poor the slovakians looked in both games against us??? So I certainly wont be building him up as the next vidic, but at that money, you'd expect a certain quality.

[Minder]

Klinsmann to become new Bayern Munich coach on July 1st 2008.