the team that finish 2nd in 08/09 is the best for me. firing in all cylinders but inconsistent against lower team cost us. I remember how disappointed I am when we lost the title chase. we almost made it..

look where we are now.. sigh..

those are just excuses. why only gerrard must carry the team and shoulder all the responsibility? wearing the jersey and the badge on their chests are reasons for them to give their all. what about carra in the final? the groin tearing last minute tackle in extra time in istanbul? did anyone forget that? seriously the whole squad should be watching the replay of that game to let them know the real meaning of winning.

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Added on December 28, 2012, 4:01 pmindeed, manu can lose the title last year yet they are in good position to win in AGAIN this year. their difference and us

This post has been edited by Petre: Dec 28 2012, 04:02 PM

Exactly. Right now, as painful as it is to admit, Liverpool is just not spoken in the same breath as the likes of MU, M City and Chelsea.

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Added on December 28, 2012, 4:04 pmAgreed.

This post has been edited by keith.hmc: Dec 28 2012, 04:04 PM

Agreed with you. 08/09 team the best. Liverpool was so fast and quick to come out from the gates as soon as the whistle is blown that the opponent didnt even know what hit them. The number of early goals scored in the first quarter during Rafa's charge is incredible and it wore the opponent down from the start. Kept them trailing and running like a dangling carrot in front of the rabbit.

We tore a new one into likes of Madrid, Manchester United and won at Nou Camp, a feat which was considered impossible in those days.

And while we are arguing here, Rafa is tuning the montrous Chelsea into EPL title charge.

This post has been edited by carloz28: Dec 28 2012, 04:08 PM

Twas almost MancU won it with that eyetie kid suddenly firing them for the last few games....now nowhere to be seen.

Luck of the Devil?

yes, without a winning mentality, rafa could have quit football years ago because no one would hire him. of course, love for the game kept him. but love can only go so far.

and look at QPR. did redknapp complaint about the quality of the team? no. he questioned their attitudes

nope, they're not excuses. its true that every player must give their all as part of wearing the jersey. but i'm talking about the team mentality here. the heart and passion for the team. can u name me anyone in the current squad that is able to do what gerrard did with the team back then? among all, including the manager himself, gerrard and carragher are the ones who truly knows what being a red is all about because they have been there through it all. but sadly, there are no clear replacements for them. so its up to the manager to re-create everything back from scratch.

I think that might be the reason why Kenny promoting youth players and integrate then into the first team..

Yeah..Back then we had Traore and Biscan..Not exactly world class but i guess they have the heart.

Last time even if we are 2-0 down with 5 minutes to go, i will be glued to the TV because the team always managed to surprise at the end. Nowadays, if 2-0 down and even with 20 minutes to go, can go sleep..

Mental strength is a powerful weapon but belief alone isn't going to make be beat Usain Bolt in a sprint. What it will do is give me the will to try. Having said that didn't we just employ a psychologist a month ago? If anyone has been to motivational talks or camps, you would note it takes time to synch in. Evidentially it hasn't yet.

Istanbul was the stuff of legends, hence why the call it "the miracle of Istanbul". We went down at half-time and when you read the accounts of the players, what did all of them say? They credited the fans citing that they didnt want to let them down, since the fans didnt give up on them despite going down 3-0, without putting up a fight. We showed no indication that we were up for it in the first half. Thankfully fan power helped motivate the players, that and the decision to bring on Didi Hamann. Despite this great victory, we failed to show the same determination in the league, something that's conveniently forgotten.

There's optimism, pessimism and then there realism. We do harbour ambitions to return to the top, we always have but sheer will alone isn't going to get us there. It comes down to having a plan, and putting in the work to make it happen. Do we have a plan? Are we putting in the work? I think we are but you make up your own mind.

Did we go to Stoke expecting to lose? Well we started with what I thought was an attacking lineup. Did it work? Nope but we certainly didnt go to park the bus.

can you distinguish between mentality and ability? not everyone can be like gerrard, but what i see is, not everyone is giving their all... hence the discussion

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Added on December 28, 2012, 4:27 pmthat, was winning mentality on the manager's side. up to the players to do their part.

This post has been edited by Petre: Dec 28 2012, 04:27 PM

We've hired Dr Peters a month ago to help improve the player's mental strength.

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Added on December 28, 2012, 4:38 pmIt's been said that some of us have low expectations. I think we all believe that we will return to the summit some day or we won't still be fans would we? We wouldn't watch games if we knew we were going to lose. At the same time however we need to accept that it's going to be a long journey especially when new managers keep coming in.

No one is happy losing but when we do, it's important to pick up the pieces and learn from it. It's now half-time in the season. Lets hope that come January we've learnt from the first half of the season in the same way we learnt from our mistakes during the first half in Istanbul.

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Added on December 28, 2012, 4:42 pmSince we're quoting Shankly.

"If you can't support us when we draw or lose, don't support us when we win"

YNWA.

This post has been edited by Duke Red: Dec 28 2012, 04:42 PM

The slump and downfall of Liverpool FC isn't merely down to inadequate managers & players. It's decades of cumulative mismanagement & sluggishness from the very top of our club structure. Specifically the period of David Moores and G&H ownership.

FSG comes close of repeating our previous 3 owners footsteps. In fact, FSG got even worse by lavishing hundred over millions on players transfers, agent fees & players wages in their first season & a half. FSG's inexperience on the European football world causes them being taken on a ride and adopting such desperate measures. Thankfully though, they've come to their senses and taking the club forward in a more sensible approach this season. It's a reset for LFC if you ask me. Laying a good and solid foundation and structures for the club as a whole. Yes, it's slow and steady. Step by step. Hopefully it will turns out great for us in years to come.

Let's treat this as a 20km marathon instead of 100m or 200m race.

As for SAF's hairdryer treatment. It's decades old of him taking charge that eventually grants him greater power and status, he brought up the likes of Nevilles, Butt, Scholes & Beckham. Of course he yields better influence over his players. You don't come into a new company shouting and throwing orders to your subordinates for their ineffeciency without getting to know them better and offer some guidance and helps first. If not, It would causes massive havoc and counter-productive.

This post has been edited by Yluxion: Dec 28 2012, 05:23 PM

i think we've already strayed way before this.
the initial point was that we can afford a high profile manager, but none of them would want to come here.
not like we dont have the money.

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Added on December 28, 2012, 5:31 pmif u had followed, the media has said BR actually saved LFC money by not going thru an agent...
while he did save abit of money, it obviously doesnt compare to the 5m paid as compensation.

so fact is, LFC still had to fork out 5m...which is more than joe cole's salary in a yr.

i will assume BR is earning somewhere between what joe allen and king kenny earns...so between 2 - 4.5m...say for the sake of this...avg out to 3.2m.

3.2 x 3yrs = 9.6m + 5m compensation = round up to 15m / 3yrs = 5m / yr.
means we could attract a manager who asks for 5m / yr.
with the exception of mourinho, guardiola and hiddink...that 5m / yr will mean almost every manager on earth can be bought

This post has been edited by Everdying: Dec 28 2012, 05:40 PM

We did show strong mental at Britannia..Im proud of the effort from the team. They didnt just sit back and accept defeat.

The travelling Kop left early tho.

btw, rafa's CL dreams book in kinokuniya is at 30% discount with any other purchase until 1/1...so go buy like a rm5 mag also can.


This post has been edited by Everdying: Dec 28 2012, 05:43 PM

I've done some research. From what I can tell FSG had drawn up a list of managers they wanted, comprising of Guardiola, Capello, Martinez, Rodgers and AVB. The first person they approached was Martinez and he turned us down. Rodgers turned us down 3 times. Guardiola wanted to take a hiatus from football and I don't know if we ever approached Capello. I'm not a fan if his and I don't know if he would have seen eye to eye with FSG.

Rodgers was no mug though and we certainly didnt "settle" on him. He had previously been linked with Chelsea, Spurs and his appointment was endorsed by Jose Mourinho.

There was talk of us seeking either Cryuff or Van Gaal as technical directors but Cryuff dismissed any notions we had approached him and Van Gaal was as far as I can tell dropped because Rodgers wanted full control without having to work under supervision.

Not seen any evidence we had approached any big manager so unless you can dig up a source, I reckon we were both wrong and FSG had their mind set on the type of manager they wanted. It's reflected in their transfer policy as well. Young players with talent and a bright future.

http://www.guardian.co.uk/football/2012/ju...verpool-control

This post has been edited by Duke Red: Dec 28 2012, 05:55 PM

It's like any Hollywood reboot of a franchise, odds are people will still yearn for the original but given time, the reboot will well received. Of course, still dependent on it being done well. You might end up having a Michael Bay Transformers...

so guardiola is not a big manager?
his yearly earnings has been listed at anywhere from 6.3m to 10m...
Capello has also been stated that he earns about 6m / yr...

so i'm really not sure what path you're going on...but as stated its not like we cant AFFORD a good manager...but rather they wont want to come here.

again, in contrast king kenny was only getting 4.5m / yr.

Maybe you missed the part where I said I got it wrong.

If you insist you aren't, then aside from Guardiola who didn't take up any job, please provide evidence to show we approached any manager other than Martinez and Rodgers. You did after all say they didnt want to come. Who else didn't? There isn't even evidence to suggest we approached Guardiola, not that is old have made a difference.

This post has been edited by Duke Red: Dec 28 2012, 06:23 PM