Any Liverpool fan can tell you. Liverpool are the pass masters of great escapes. Liverpool versus AC Milan, Istanbul 2005, Champions League final. Liverpool were 3-0 down at half time and looked like being sent packing with their tails between their legs.
The FA Cup Final 2006, Liverpool versus West Ham. 3-2 down with minutes remaining on the clock, then Steven Gerrard scored THAT goal from fully 40 yards out, to send the game into extra time, then penalties, and which Liverpool went on to win.
Today, the club faces a challenge about which even its most talismanic players can do nothing. No Stevie screamer, or Torres wonder goal, or Kuyt super strike can affect what is happening in the board room.
Instead, the duty of getting the club out of the mess it is currently in has fallen to two men and countless fans worldwide. Those two men are Martin Broughton and Christian Purslow. Both men are believed to be business purists. Broughton has said he does not want to sell the club to the wrong party, and stoutly maintains that his loyalty to Chelsea as a lifelong season ticket holder has no bearing at all on that decision.
Purslow meanwhile, has over 30 years business experience on his CV, namely buying and selling distressed companies. He however, is a Liverpool fan and insists that he looks forward to the day when Liverpool's considerable commercial revenue can be pumped back into the club instead of servicing ever increasing debts.
Despite looking so good, Purslow and Broughton have yet to deliver on the promise of "finding the right buyer, one that has Liverpool's interests at heart", as what many fans look upon as doomsday, draws near. October the 8th. This is when RBS will step in and take control of the club, forcing Hicks and Gillett out.
The question being asked here is: should Hicks fail to refinance and ultimately lose possession of the club to RBS, the bank who financed the buyout originally, what will happen to LFC? Will the club be sold to any old buyer displaying the credentials of "having enough money to buy the debt"? Or will Broughton and Purslow be allowed to continue their job of seeing Liverpool into the hands of responsible custodians, and not just a pair of cowboys out to turn a profit?
Fan pressure is being applied to any financial institution even remotely associated with LFC, in a bid to prevent the American owners pulling off a great escape of their own, and retaining control of the Anfield club.
With Liverpool maintaining that they have ample financial facilities to meet monetary requirements over the next season, and with Gillett and Hicks looking to be on their way out of the door, maybe the combination of those two men, and Liverpool's legendary 12th man, is a winning one.
With any luck, Liverpool will pull off a Great Escape of their own, come Doomsday.
Showing posts with label Liverpool. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Liverpool. Show all posts
Monday, 27 September 2010
Thursday, 23 September 2010
Rallying Call for all Liverpool Fans -The Identity of LFC
In the midst of the media frenzy surrounding Liverpool's recent form and freakish bad luck, the press sharks are circling, waiting hungrily for Liverpool to drop more points, notepads in hands, licking the tips of their pencils with a predatory look in their eyes.
And yet there is a note of hope. A reminder to all those would-be journalists of what Liverpool was, is and still will be. A reminder that Liverpool is still the single most successful football club in the Premiership. Manchester Utd may well be drawing level with them on League titles, but Liverpool are still the number one English force in Europe.
They are still without doubt, the club that every other club seeks to model itself upon. A poeple's club. A bastion of days of glory that still echo through fortress Anfield, reflected in the voices and faces of it's ever-loyal fans.
The corporate greed of Americans will never stifle what Liverpool stands for. Nor will the slapdash paparazzi or the cash-driven scum that are known as the modern media. For Liverpool stands in the care of its custodians. And the custodians of the club are not the owners. The custodians of the club are not its board of directors. The true custodians of Liverpool Football Club are its fans.
They stand tall and ever proud, savagely defiant in the face of the tyrannical American greed machine that is stubbornly doing its best to bleed it dry. However, Liverpool is the peoples club, gifted to them by the greatest footballing figure ever known, and the media hyenas that are gleefully baying for the clubs downfall would do well to remember what is possible when the Anfield faithful sense a threat to their beloved club.
The media would do well to remember what happened to certain newspaper when disgusting allegations were printed for all to read. Liverpool fans will not sit idly by while the loathsome red top rags try to make an example of a club that made English football what it is today.
As 20,000 reds once proudly chanted: "You got your education from the Kop".
It is absolutely unacceptable that anyone should drag Liverpools name through the mud like some two-bit Burlesque whore, after all of its past glories, triumphs, and indeed its contribution to both the past and to the modern game. Liverpool is a proud, noble institution that deserves more respect, more humble recognition of what it stands for. It will not be tolerated.
Liverpool is far from finished. And this is far from over.
And yet there is a note of hope. A reminder to all those would-be journalists of what Liverpool was, is and still will be. A reminder that Liverpool is still the single most successful football club in the Premiership. Manchester Utd may well be drawing level with them on League titles, but Liverpool are still the number one English force in Europe.
They are still without doubt, the club that every other club seeks to model itself upon. A poeple's club. A bastion of days of glory that still echo through fortress Anfield, reflected in the voices and faces of it's ever-loyal fans.
The corporate greed of Americans will never stifle what Liverpool stands for. Nor will the slapdash paparazzi or the cash-driven scum that are known as the modern media. For Liverpool stands in the care of its custodians. And the custodians of the club are not the owners. The custodians of the club are not its board of directors. The true custodians of Liverpool Football Club are its fans.
They stand tall and ever proud, savagely defiant in the face of the tyrannical American greed machine that is stubbornly doing its best to bleed it dry. However, Liverpool is the peoples club, gifted to them by the greatest footballing figure ever known, and the media hyenas that are gleefully baying for the clubs downfall would do well to remember what is possible when the Anfield faithful sense a threat to their beloved club.
The media would do well to remember what happened to certain newspaper when disgusting allegations were printed for all to read. Liverpool fans will not sit idly by while the loathsome red top rags try to make an example of a club that made English football what it is today.
As 20,000 reds once proudly chanted: "You got your education from the Kop".
It is absolutely unacceptable that anyone should drag Liverpools name through the mud like some two-bit Burlesque whore, after all of its past glories, triumphs, and indeed its contribution to both the past and to the modern game. Liverpool is a proud, noble institution that deserves more respect, more humble recognition of what it stands for. It will not be tolerated.
Liverpool is far from finished. And this is far from over.
Liverpool Early Exit Highlights a Need For Change
Northampton fans will be singing and dancing all over the city for the next decade it seems, after shockingly dumping Liverpool FC out of the Carling Cup in the third round. It's a game that will live in the memories of the Cobblers for a long, long time to come, and will most certainly be a story told to grandchildren in front of a roaring fire.
However, footballing life goes on and Liverpool must now go about the task of reshaping and restructuring a new look squad, that so far hasn't really gelled, save for the game against Steua Bucharest, in which Liverpool hammered four in.
One big win against a Europa side however, simply isn't enough for the cup-hungry Anfield faithful. Already there are mutters of dissent over Rafael Benitez's departure and the appointment of his successor, Roy Hodgson.
Several comments were observed around Liverpool Forums during the Northampton game to the tune of: "hodgson won't last ten minutes" and "Should have given the job to King Kenny". Given Liverpool's poor start this season, such sentiment is almost understandable, however it is perhaps a little early to be judging a man who isn't used to dining at the top tables in Europe.
One thing is clear though, a change is needed, and a drastic one at that. Simply sitting 10 men behind a ball and playing cagey counter attacking football will no longer work in the top flight, as clubs spend more and more on outrageously overpriced players. The premiership has changed drastically over the last 5 years, with more mid-table teams than ever jostling for a place in Europe.
Money won't always be the deciding factor. Eventually, every club in the Premiership will have a foreign investor, and the likes of Chelsea and Man City will be averagely wealthy in the grand scheme of things.
In an exclusive interview with LFC TV, the club'f official TV channel, Christian Purslow confirmed that once Liverpool were eventually bought out, they would in fact be the most profitable club in the Premiership. He also said that current profits were being used to service debts loaded onto the club by it's American owners, and that he worked every single day towards one goal: ploughing those profits back into the pitch, the players and the facilities.
However rich a club is though, it needs a special person at the helm to make a difference, or indeed a very patient one who doesn't mind occasionally being used as a scapegoat. Avram Grant was a victim of such at Chelsea having lasted only a season before being sacked for failing to achieve the results desired by it's billionaire owner.
And so we swing back to Liverpool. If Liverpool are sold and are suddenly as cash rich as any other top flight club, will Roy be the man to take them forward? Or will he also face the axe (a 'la Rafa or Grant) for one bad season?
Or is Roy capable, or more more to the point, confident enough to ring the changes at Anfield and actually take some risks?
Monday, 20 September 2010
Get Behind The Reds Now!
Over at http://www.empireofthekop.com, a storm is brewing. A letter, drafted by the site owners aims to keep Tom Hicks from refinancing his debt to RBS by using an outisde institution called Blackstone Associates.
They would like all red fans with access to email to send a copy of the letter to show that we will no longer sit down and take it. By putting pressure on Blackstone and letting them know what we are capable of (The Sun Boycott for example), we hope to prevent Hicks from taking full control of Liverpool again.
Click the link above and get in on the action now!
Lets do it!
UPDATE 20/09/10
Do not send any more emails. See this post instead.
They would like all red fans with access to email to send a copy of the letter to show that we will no longer sit down and take it. By putting pressure on Blackstone and letting them know what we are capable of (The Sun Boycott for example), we hope to prevent Hicks from taking full control of Liverpool again.
Click the link above and get in on the action now!
Lets do it!
UPDATE 20/09/10
Do not send any more emails. See this post instead.
Sunday, 19 September 2010
Manchester Utd 3 - 2 Liverpool
Manchester Utd's Dimitar Berbatov finally showed signs of justifying his 30m price tag after 3 seasons, by scoring a hat trick to sink the reds at Old Trafford. Liverpool looked out of sorts in the first half, struggling to find any rythm, and failing to create many clear cut chances.
Late into the first half (41 minutes), Dimitar Berbatov managed to beat Pepe Reina while holding off Torres, heading it past the Spanish goalkeeper to make it 1-0 to the hosts. The rest of the first half played out fairly uneventfully, with the stats showing that Liverpool enjoyed more possession.
In the second half Liverpool seemed to up their game but Berbatov struck again in the 58th minute withan overhead kick that bounced off the crossbar and into Pepe Reinas goal. Some pundits have been touting this as brilliance and genius and such, however, it seemed more luck than judgement.
In the 62nd minute Evans brought down Torres in the box, and Liverpool were awarded a penalty, with Howard Webb failing to send off the offending player. Gerrard duly converted and the game was on.
In the 69th minute, John O'Shea was spared major blushes as he dragged down Torres just outside the box, who was clearly through on goal. The person who should be blushing is Howard Webb, for blatantly handing Manchester Utd the game on a plate. To think that a referee who was in charge of the World Cup finals didn't have the bottle to flash red is out of this world.
Gerrard stepped up again, and Darren Fletcher bottled it as Gerrards chest height drive came towards him. The ball sailed effortlessly past Van Der Saar and into the inside of his left post. 2-2.
Late in the second half, ALex Ferguson could be seen clearly to be berating the linesman, giving him verbal abuse over what was clearly a no-brainer decision for Howard Webb. And yet, Ferguson will walk away unscathed, his influence over the FA once more standing him in good stead. Disgusting.
Then there seemed to be a lull, as Liverpool seemed to accept that Webb was clearly biased against them, or so it seemed. In the 83rd minute Berbatov sealed the result with his hat trick, beating Jamie Carragher in the air to nod past Pepe Reina's outstretched right hand.
All in all, Manchester Utd had a very lucky break, with John O'Shea failing to walk for a stonewall red card offence. Alex Ferguson was once again bullying the linesmen, and Wayne Rooney decided to try and waste time holding the ball up near the Liverpool corner flag towards the end, which seemed to be a sign of desperation, and a display of nerves.
This was a typical Mancunian display of "do what we have to, even cheat, to get the win". Very disappointing in the world of modern day football. Liverpool deserved more help from a disillusioned referee today, and were very unlucky not to walk away with a point. Still, the Anfield return awaits, and with any luck the referee for that day will be wearing his glasses.
Late into the first half (41 minutes), Dimitar Berbatov managed to beat Pepe Reina while holding off Torres, heading it past the Spanish goalkeeper to make it 1-0 to the hosts. The rest of the first half played out fairly uneventfully, with the stats showing that Liverpool enjoyed more possession.
In the second half Liverpool seemed to up their game but Berbatov struck again in the 58th minute withan overhead kick that bounced off the crossbar and into Pepe Reinas goal. Some pundits have been touting this as brilliance and genius and such, however, it seemed more luck than judgement.
In the 62nd minute Evans brought down Torres in the box, and Liverpool were awarded a penalty, with Howard Webb failing to send off the offending player. Gerrard duly converted and the game was on.
In the 69th minute, John O'Shea was spared major blushes as he dragged down Torres just outside the box, who was clearly through on goal. The person who should be blushing is Howard Webb, for blatantly handing Manchester Utd the game on a plate. To think that a referee who was in charge of the World Cup finals didn't have the bottle to flash red is out of this world.
Gerrard stepped up again, and Darren Fletcher bottled it as Gerrards chest height drive came towards him. The ball sailed effortlessly past Van Der Saar and into the inside of his left post. 2-2.
Late in the second half, ALex Ferguson could be seen clearly to be berating the linesman, giving him verbal abuse over what was clearly a no-brainer decision for Howard Webb. And yet, Ferguson will walk away unscathed, his influence over the FA once more standing him in good stead. Disgusting.
Then there seemed to be a lull, as Liverpool seemed to accept that Webb was clearly biased against them, or so it seemed. In the 83rd minute Berbatov sealed the result with his hat trick, beating Jamie Carragher in the air to nod past Pepe Reina's outstretched right hand.
All in all, Manchester Utd had a very lucky break, with John O'Shea failing to walk for a stonewall red card offence. Alex Ferguson was once again bullying the linesmen, and Wayne Rooney decided to try and waste time holding the ball up near the Liverpool corner flag towards the end, which seemed to be a sign of desperation, and a display of nerves.
This was a typical Mancunian display of "do what we have to, even cheat, to get the win". Very disappointing in the world of modern day football. Liverpool deserved more help from a disillusioned referee today, and were very unlucky not to walk away with a point. Still, the Anfield return awaits, and with any luck the referee for that day will be wearing his glasses.
Saturday, 18 September 2010
Joe Cole - Misfit or Big Hit?
As Joe Cole starts to find his feet, questions are being asked around the hallowed halls of Anfield. The first of such questions concerns the sending-off during Cole's first game for Liverpool, against Arsenal. While fans may bemoan the fact that Liverpool were then starved of a natural outlet on the left for the remaining 50 minutes, Joe Cole must also be congratulated.
When the replay is examined, it can be seen that Cole hardly makes any contact, while at the same time, constantly watching the ball. The ball leaves play, and only then does Cole turn to face the player he is supposed to have "brought down", Laurent Koscielny. For an older generation of fans, this shows what Cole is all about. Professionalism, pride, and bags full of passion.
He was unfairly villified by the press after this event, and deserves no less than an outright apology from Laurent Koscielny as well as the referee that day. While Liverpool FC accepted the red card quietly, there were mutterings among hardcore red fans that the referee was blind, and that Koscielny would never have 'survived' in the older game.
Cole is an example of those days in modern day form, and long may he continue to demonstrate the skill he is renowned for as well as the passion and belief that has already endeared him to the fans. Questions answered? Without doubt.
Joe Cole - What Gerrard Deserves
Liverpool Playmaker Joe Cole has said he believes Steven Gerrard deserves the Premiership title.
"He's a tremendous player", he said. "I've known Steven since I was 17 or 18 and I obviously trained and played with him for England for 10 years so I know what he's all about".
Cole also said he would really like to help Gerrard make his Premiership dream a reality.
"But when you see him in a Liverpool shirt he's even better. A player like him deserves to win the championship," said Cole.
"I know that's what he wants over the next four to five years at the club.
"He's a fantastic player and if he plays well, the team plays well and it's up to me now to assist him and try and help the club move on."
Game: Manchester Utd vs Liverpool (Sunday 19th September) (Away)
One of the juiciest fixtures of the season is here. Liverpool travel to Old Trafford, hoping to leave with the bragging rights.
Last Season's Results
March 2009 - Manchester United 1 Liverpool 4
What a day this was as the reds went all out and destroyed the Devils 4-1. The scorers that day were:
Torres 28th minute
Gerrard (pen) 44th minute
Aurelio 77th minute
Dossena 90th minute
Highlights
It was universally agreed that this was the Stevie and Fernando show with all the action in the midfield up to the front controlled by the terrible two. The team just oozed confidence and control that day, owing to the inspirational Captain and the greatest striker alive, and actually reminded me a little of the brash, swaggering, swashbuckling Liverpool of old.
October 2009 - Liverpool 2 Manchester Utd 0
The Reds couldn't believe their luck as once again they ran out victors at home courtesy of goals from David N'Gog and Fernando Torres.
Highlights
Fast Forward to Now
So, reports around the web are suggesting that Fernando Torres and Wayne Rooney will be the two most dangerous men on the pitch tomorrow. Myself, I can't bring myself to agree with this, owing to the fact that Fernando Torres has a way higher goal-to game ratio than Wayne Rooney. This makes Torres the most dangerous man on the pitch. If he really pulls it together. Recently, Torres has looked less-than-sharp, a shadow of the gloriously gifted player the footballing world knows him to be. But Liverpool fans also need to keep David N'Gog in mind. The young Frenchman has now bagged 6 goals this season, and is really turning out to be a promising prospect.
Bleak Prospects
Can Liverpool really walk away with a win tomorrow? Reports around all the major newspapers suggest that this hinges on one player - Fernando Torres. This could be cited as unfair and completely blown out of proportion when you look at a certain Frenchman's contribution to the club so far this season. Torres just needs a little more time to get his sharpness back and after all Roy Hodgson's priority here is to keep him fit and injury free, a difficult task at the best of times when taking care of the best striker in world football.
Prediction here:
Manchester Utd 2 - 3 Liverpool
YNWA
Last Season's Results
March 2009 - Manchester United 1 Liverpool 4
What a day this was as the reds went all out and destroyed the Devils 4-1. The scorers that day were:
Torres 28th minute
Gerrard (pen) 44th minute
Aurelio 77th minute
Dossena 90th minute
Highlights
It was universally agreed that this was the Stevie and Fernando show with all the action in the midfield up to the front controlled by the terrible two. The team just oozed confidence and control that day, owing to the inspirational Captain and the greatest striker alive, and actually reminded me a little of the brash, swaggering, swashbuckling Liverpool of old.
October 2009 - Liverpool 2 Manchester Utd 0
The Reds couldn't believe their luck as once again they ran out victors at home courtesy of goals from David N'Gog and Fernando Torres.
Highlights
Fast Forward to Now
So, reports around the web are suggesting that Fernando Torres and Wayne Rooney will be the two most dangerous men on the pitch tomorrow. Myself, I can't bring myself to agree with this, owing to the fact that Fernando Torres has a way higher goal-to game ratio than Wayne Rooney. This makes Torres the most dangerous man on the pitch. If he really pulls it together. Recently, Torres has looked less-than-sharp, a shadow of the gloriously gifted player the footballing world knows him to be. But Liverpool fans also need to keep David N'Gog in mind. The young Frenchman has now bagged 6 goals this season, and is really turning out to be a promising prospect.
Bleak Prospects
Can Liverpool really walk away with a win tomorrow? Reports around all the major newspapers suggest that this hinges on one player - Fernando Torres. This could be cited as unfair and completely blown out of proportion when you look at a certain Frenchman's contribution to the club so far this season. Torres just needs a little more time to get his sharpness back and after all Roy Hodgson's priority here is to keep him fit and injury free, a difficult task at the best of times when taking care of the best striker in world football.
Prediction here:
Manchester Utd 2 - 3 Liverpool
YNWA
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