yes they were.in fact the fa also didnt allow for any of our league games to be rescheduled mind you on that.so no other choice we had withdraw from the fa cup that year.

me noob. sorry.

yeah, i remember last time Man Utd opt to drop out of the FA cup since they had World Club Cup competition where they lost to Vasco di Gama at the hands of Romario and Edmundo (the animal). if i remember correctly.

exactly what i feel right now and our fight this season havent even finish yet pls beat Spurs oh Birminghim,draw oso can

This post has been edited by kabuto rider kick: May 17 2011, 09:52 PM

u seriously believe we are going to use johnson as a LB permanently?

no gerrard and no kuyt?

gerrard now prone injury and i still think he's not up to his normal standard this season.

to be honest, i rather give chance to youngster or new talent on midfield(spearing/lucas/meireles...probably adam).

on left back still hv option either johnson or robinson. flanagan looks promising so far.

really hope we can get marin and young. if we want to use carroll 100%, we need to play wide.

now to get big players, it all depends whether they willing to play with Liverpool in Europa or choose other UCL teams.

i dont think Elia wud be interested with Liverpool. the way i see it, he more prefer play in UCL.

if aquilani is back plus Liverpool sign Adam or PArker, Gerrard will be used sparingly to ensure his freshness and injury free. depends on game, Gerrard might not be as explosive as he was before but he is still Liverpool captain and he would be inspirational for his teammates. so it is important for KD to know how to play him that will make him last longer just like what SAF did with Giggs and Scholes. unless Gerrard have 3 lungs and 2 heart like Park Ji sung and Cafu.

with Adam or Parker and Aquilani, rest assure, Liverpool are not short of inspiration and creative spark. just hope KD manage to capture either Adam or PArker. Maybe Gerrard could play weekend games and leave the midweek games for his rotation partner.

Gerrard is getting old, he;s sure to be prone to injuries.

Thats why we need young blood (ie. spearing and all)...

injury prone..
but hes still my favourite though.. maybe just for backup..

dont misjudge me, i still consider gerrard as the best player and respect him with his career with liverpool.

but this season, i prefer to see meireles lucas and spearing play together. we can see the result in the past with maxi hatrick, meireles, kuyt and suarez scroring.

we not stuck with the two man or one man team anymore. a lot of players can score now.

next season i rather prefer him to play as a subs or when we really need experience player. we can see how manu play giggs or scholes on certain match.

Well,i stand by my words it is a pathetic competition.
Europa does not carry much reputation anymore since they changed its name from UEFA cup.
The travelling kop have to fork out their savings to travel to some third rate stadium to watch the games.
many of them admitted it is depressing and rather not go to the games.
Us fans here dun have to worry,we can switch off if the game is boring.
Imagine if people were not to travel to the games for away support.
This will reflect badly on the supporters rite.
30 odd games is a distraction.(i m not sure)
Lastly we can concentrate on the league because our squad is not good enough to juggle between competitions
unless we bring in 6-7 players.

Don't shoot me for saying this. I do want our club to win the last match but i won't be jumping for joy if spurs lost or draw their last game and we get into europa. It's kinda of a mixed feeling for me. On one hand, it would always be nice to get into europa but if we don't, we can concentrate on the league instead without europa and concentrate on getting back in ucl or maybe even winning the league . It's because of the thursdays fixtures of europa that plays in my mind as well. It's kinda interfering with the preparations and i don't like sunday games.

Exactly i dislike sunday games.Its usually late at 11.00 or 12.00 and i cant afford to be sleeping late.
Personal convenience aside,like u said it interfere's with game preparations.Prefer if we can fully concentrate on league opponent.
As for the youngsters argument,there is always the fa cup and carling cup.
If we really wanna win the league or at least make the top 4,then we should focus fully.
Arsenal tried to go for 4,they ended up losing all.
I know its unbecoming of a fan to want us to not higher in the table,but the quest for no.19 is becoming more desperate(forgive the choice of words)

PS: Gerrard's wife is pregnant with their third child.So i guess we know now how steven spent his free time while injured

This post has been edited by Rotuham: May 18 2011, 02:06 AM

Yup someone's already answered. Don't remember every detail involving other clubs. Still, is there a rule against fielding a reserve side or a youth team? I'm asking because teams do so in the league cup. You don't have to register players for local competitions from what I recall. I reckon withdrawing was in protest for being forced to participate more than anything else.

Once again, let's put things in perspective. Are we strong enough to win the league next season, blind optimism aside? We're on a good run but unless we can consistently beat teams like Wolves and West Brom, we'll only be flattering ourselves to think so. I do however expect us to put up a challenge. Given this, what's wrong with earning some 'side income'. You're looking at the competition from a fan's perspective but what about a business one? Winners of Europa stand to win about $6-7$ million pounds. If we finish where we are in the Premiership now, we're looking at netting around $12 million pounds. Nothing wrong with playing in a "pathetic competition" to have an additional 50%. Also, if it's such a lousy competition, how come we can't win it? If we can't beat the likes of Braga, what hope do we have in the Premiership or even Champions League? It is Europe's 2nd tier competition but like it or not, it is also the level we're at now.

I think you underestimate our supporters. No one is forced to travel. You reckon the trip to Istanbul was any less painful? Michael Shields is still locked up in some Bulgarian prison. On the way to Turkey, many supporters stopped over in Hungary, not exactly known for it's hospitality. I didn't see our fans celebrate any less when we beat Alaves. We have one of the best away supports of any team in Europe and I don't think it's because our supporters feel that we're playing in a useless competition. I don't speak on behalf of anyone, but I watched 90% of our European games this season and those I missed, it was because of work, not because I didn't want to watch. Do I know for a fact our supporters don't feel the way you describe? I don't but from frequenting forums like RAWK, I've not seen any evidence of this.

Lastly, why do you feel our squad isn't good enough? Hodgson played a number of reserves in Europe this season and with the emergence of players like Robinson, Flanagan, Spearing and highly rated players like Pacheco, Suso and Coady in the wings coupled with the imminent return of players like Agger and Kelly, we have a pretty decent squad. Also, we won 5 cups in 2001 playing more games than anyone else. When we won the Champions League in 2005, we did so with the contribution of players like Biscan, Traore, Smicer, Pongolle and Mellor, none of which are regular starters.

Since you didn't answer my question earlier, can I then assume that you do agree with the monicker, "The Mickey Mouse" treble? We didn't just win 1 "pathetic competition" that year, we won 2 including the "Worth Nothing" or Worthington Cup. Sorry but I just don't see how you can continue to undermine our achievements and assume that they mean little to all Liverpool fans because it meant something to me. I don't support the club because they play in prestigous tournaments, I do so because watching 11 proud men in red with liverbirds on their chests run out onto the pitch, even if it is water logged and muddy, backed by the verocious support of the ever present 12th man, fighting for pride, makes me happy.

This post has been edited by Duke Red: May 18 2011, 01:46 PM

Liverpool play better without Gerrard and that guy we sold to the blue

I would just like to add that if Reina thinks the Europa League is worth fighting for, then it is a-ok for me.

You're too quick too judge mate.. We wouldn't have won that game against chelsea if it wasn't for gerrrard.

as a player you would want to win everything that there is to win. ask any player, even if we win the league cup this year, who wouldnt welcome it?

if indeed no one sees the europa league as any significant, then perhaps you can take it as competitive matches to keep some players fit and playing. i see no harm

anyway i did read this mroning that the europa league is peanuts compared to the CL. the travelling, the schedule (with participants palying wednesday nights, hence dragging league games into monday like we did this season), the peanut reward, may in the end, be more of a hassle. there are some valid points when saying that without any europa distraction, we can keep our focus on the league.

of course, not being in europe might put off some players that we want to sign. but with our new regime, we might not be looking at well established/known players that demand european football. what was suarez thinking when he joined us? certainly he did not say he will only join a club that is competing in europe.

so i guess i'll just take anything that comes. europa will be a bonus for us this season, considering what a turbulent season it has been

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Added on May 18, 2011, 2:39 pmabout gerrard, he should be in the team sheet when fit. i dont see why suddenly any of you would think he is injury prone and shouldnt be automatic again next season. he and carra are the real spine of the club, and with youngsters kelly, flanagan, spearing, robinson and a few others coming in, there is no better teachers, motivators and brothers on the pitch than our very own sons.

so to me there is no question about gerrard, unless he is unfit, or terrribly off form (need rest). after all, why do we keep saying that form is temporary and class is permanent and yet we are now starting to suggest gerrard to be used sparingly? to me its totally BS

This post has been edited by Petre: May 18 2011, 02:39 PM

this is why i really respect you even though u're a rival fan.

these days, we often being influence by the brand name even in football. Although europa league is consider as 2nd tier european competition but it still a prestigious competition. like duke said, by entering even a mickey mouse competition, the club will make a profit especially during home games due to ticket sales and merchandise sales. that alone will contribute a profit for your club in this case, Liverpool. not only that, TV rights, and etc. i know some of MAn Utd fans, sometimes said, "we don't have to watch Man Utd games in league cup, boring, youngsters playing only, sampah cup....bla bla bla" but to me, that is when i get to see future generations of Man Utd playing as i'm unable to watch their reserves game plus youngsters, reserves, they are still MAn Utd. but that down to each fan preference.

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Added on May 18, 2011, 2:45 pmwhich is why, in order to make sure Gerrard stay fit, KD must find a way to play him sparingly. not only it will benefit Gerrard, but also give chance for youngsters to shine.

This post has been edited by kamkamparadise: May 18 2011, 02:45 PM

Well, not writing the chances off, but its kind of FM-ish riteeE?
This is real football.. Not football manager simulations haaha..

Where is our Dirk Kuyt - The durable rechargeable battery..
Where is our captain - The midfield maestro with vision and long shot ability..
I mean, these two are our main first team players...
Heck you stripped them off from first eleven oh noo..
Plus, even if we signed M.Marin (dont know how the deal goes), he is still a very fresh into BPL..Time needed to adapt..
And, a big NO for Lucas to be holding midfield.. He is ball distributor, a commanding central midfield...

europe league aint consider 2nd tier euro competition la.. it is a 2nd tier competition.
at the moment in every aspect its nowhere near CL but then its the same case if u compare
making it to europe league or not.
suprise to see some people dont mind qualify for europe league or not. making it to europe league
will always top than not playing in europe at all. like being said there is so much it can offer to the club.
PL will always be the priority but that doesnt meant need to abandon others.

who is this some man utd fans u mentioned.. shame on them. i myself rarely watch cup competition coz its on weekdays but never consider its sampah cup