Personally, I'm disappointed we let a 3 goal lead slip but I'm still proud of what the team has achieved this season. Now some may lead you to believe that this means I don't see the need for improvements but I can assure you that's far from the truth. You can give someone a pat on the back and ask more of him.

Rafa is a perfectionist but in my opinion, he is guilty of micromanaging. Players are like chess pieces to him (quite literally since he doesn't really talk to them unless he is giving them instructions). Brendan is the opposite in that he allows players to express themselves. The truth always lies someone in the middle but if I had to pick one approach, I'd opt for the way we are currently playing. We play as though we fear no one and Anfield has once again become a fortress. Rafa would get it right against the big sides in Europe and then slip up at home against the likes of Reading and Hull.

We do indeed need to improve defensively but more importantly, we need to be smarter about when to attack and when to defend. You simply cannot sustain dominance over another team for the full 90. At some point, they are going to catch their breath and mount a counter offensive. It is during these times that we need to get men back and frustrate them to take the wind out of their sails. I think it's as simple as this. In the times we've given up goals, it's either down to a defensive error, or when the opposing team were enjoying a 15-20 minute spell of rejuvenation.

I find it odd that some are saying we aren't deserving of the title or we aren't championship material when we're still in second place. We aren't a perfect team but we're certainly title contenders. If we do win it, everyone will attribute it to the fact we've taken the game to teams the whole season.

LOL. True. I stand corrected.

Look on the bright side. We're in the Champions League and just last year, the forum was filled with doom and gloom. What a difference this year. Much less criticism of players and manager this season. More constructive posts. The way it should always be.

We are where we are this season because of the way we have played all season. If we were a more cautious side, it's arguable that we would have won 11 games out of 13 before the loss to Chelsea.

Here's a good piece by Paul Tomkins. Echoes what I've been saying all along about hindsight.

http://tomkinstimes.com/2014/05/we-are-wha...hat-we-are-not/

The notion that the team other than Suarez wasn't good enough is rubbish. We're still first and we qualified for the a Champions League. On that score, Chelsea and Arsenal must have rubbish squads. RVP was banging in the goals for Arsenal but they won jack so the rest of their squad was rubbish?

I can think of several players who have had standout season. Gerrard and Sturridge made the PFA Team of the Year. Henderson, Sterling and Coutinho enjoyed their best season in a red shirt. Sterling wasn't even a regular in the first team nor was he anywhere near the England national team. Now he's a favourite to start in Brazil. Both Henderson and Coutinho have 7 assists so far as does Sturridge. Is it purely down to coincidence that our winning streak ended after Henderson got suspended? Between the 3 I've just mentioned and Gerrard and Suarez, the group of them have accumulated a staggering 45 assists. It shows the team is playing better as a unit and not relying purely on individual brilliance to score goals.

So yes I do think some of the lads deserve a pat on the back especially those that fought back after being dropped or heavily criticised for poor form the season before. I think this is a knee jerk reaction to conceding 3 against Palace because heck, we're still top but yet we aren't good enough. What does that say of the teams below us?

This post has been edited by Duke Red: May 6 2014, 11:51 PM

Indeed. Now that Brendan has been offered a 4 year contract, let's hope he'll build on what he's got and we'll be challenging on all fronts next season.

I need to talk a little about expectations. These days they tend to fluctuate on a weekly basis amongst some. We went on a 13 game unbeaten run and of the 13 we won 11 games. Can anyone honestly say they expected to see such a run this season? As fans, I feel we have a responsibility of managing our own expectations. A top four challenge was the goal this season and we more than did that. We secured that goal with games to spare. When we ascended the ladder and climbed to the summit, expectations changed and suddenly we were expected to compete for the title which we are still doing! The defeats against Chelsea and Palace were blows to the chin but we've met and EXCEEDED all expectations placed on us at the start of the season so what's with the negativity? Sure, it will hurt to come so close and miss out on the title but there's no need to take it out on the team. Blame yourself for not giving the team the due recognition they deserved for surpassing your expectations.

Is it all because of Suarez? He's played a massive part no doubt but if you look at the assist numbers, the lads have created a lot of chances for him to tuck them away. Last season he was left mostly to do it on his own. This season he's had a lot of help so credit needs to be given were it's due.

This post has been edited by Duke Red: May 7 2014, 09:29 AM

Thing about our defence is it isn't down purely to the players. I think we can all admit that Skrtel has had a solid season over all and so has Sakho so it's a contradiction to say our defence has been crap all season despite conceding goals. Here are a couple of things we need to consider :-

1) When was the last time a team scored the most goals in the league but also conceded the least? I'm sure there are examples but I can't remember. The point I'm trying to make is one Paul Tomkins mentioned; that "we are who we are and not who we're not". Playing attacking football often means you'll be more prone to conceding than a team that parks the bus e.g. Chelsea. We have conceded 26 goals more than them but we've scored 30 more and we find ourselves 2 points ahead of them. The numbers reflect the difference between a more offensive team and a more defensive one. Makes sense doesn't it?

2) A lot of the goals we've conceded have come from defensive errors but at the same time, our centrebacks have largely had good games this season. What gives? Players are usually forced into making mistakes when they are under immense pressure or are left exposed. By pushing players forward we leave gaps at the back for opposition players to run at our defenders and not many centrebacks are comfortable with having forwards running at them. Skrtel and Sakho do well in physical battles but neither is particularly fleet footed. We therefore need to be smarter about when to push forwards in numbers i.e. when the momentum of the game is in our favour), and when to defend i.e. when the opponent catches a gust of wind in their sails. I don't think it's as much a case about having bad defenders than it is about being bad at defending.

In conclusion I'd say it's a case of "live by the sword, die by the sword". We should continue to take the game to teams. It's gotten us where we are today but we also need to realise that we cannot sustain our attacking play for 90 minutes and we need to choose the right times to retreat before going on the offensive again. New defenders aren't going to rectify our porous defence.

This post has been edited by Duke Red: May 7 2014, 11:32 AM

Yup winning the league will mean you're one of the best at something. Thing is it's hard to be the best at everything especially if you don't have the sort of money to purchase world class players in every position and have 11 other internationals on the bench.

Without going too far back, let's look at the most recent champions :-

2013-2012 : Man Utd ( Top scorers, 5th best defence)
2012-2011 : Man City ( Top scorers, best defence)
2011-2010 : Man Utd ( Top scorers, 3rd best defence)
2010-2009 : Chelsea (Top scorers, 2nd best defence)
2009-2008 : Man Utd (Joint second top scorers, Joint best defence)

What you've said is true.

The goals we've conceded though have largely been down to defensive errors. For us, it's probably more about finding a balance. Agger and Skrtel were boss one season and were found wanting the next when we played a higher line. We have shown in some games that we can defend as a team but we don't often do that because we're always looking to press high. This led to my 2nd of 2 points where we need to look at dropping deeper when the momentum of the game swings in favour of the opposition if only just momentarily.

We didn't play total football la. Jan Molby for example never left the centre circle

It was just a season ago that Jordan Henderson was crucified by fans who thought he was a big waste of greenbacks but this season he certainly has to be one of the most improved players in the league.

The Jordan Henderson factor.

http://anfieldindex.com/8552/henderson-siz...hout-stats.html

You guys better go early to Giza tonight. Carlsberg is having an event and they will be screening 3 matches. Should be packed.

Superb season. Well done to Brendan Rodgers are the lads. No one would have pegged us for title contenders after finishing 7th last season.

We'll need to bolster the squad for the Champions League next season. Being in Pot 3, we could be paired with the likes of Juventus and Real Madrid or Bayern Munich and PSG. Best case scenario we get Porto or Benfica and Zenit or Basle.

Some mancs are actually openly stating they're happy that City won it. This after calling them, "noisy neighbours" and claiming they bought the title when City pipped them to it. What hypocrites.

I actually don't care much about them because as far as I'm concerned, the only real rivals in the league amongst the "big four" are Liverpool and Man Utd. We have history, they don't plus Arsenal's barren run over trophies is longer than ours. As for Chelsea, Jose Mourinho spent over $100 million pounds to take them from 3rd place to 3rd place so...

This season the team has dazzled fans throughout the season playing some scintillating football. Against the odds, we find ourselves one place off the summit and back amongst Europe's elite. Whilst Brendan Rodgers has been working hard rectifying things on the pitch, FSG have been working hard off it and we're seeing results. Well done everyone.

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/sport/football/...ff-got-64m.html

Precisely. Them mancs try to hide their own disappointment by expressing happiness over the misery of others

Precisely. Bloke had a good pre-season but at 26 should be approaching the peak of his powers but judging from what must have been one of the worst corners I've seen in recent times against Chelsea, he's just not going to make the cut. He's also reiterated his desire to return to Spain to let's part ways amicably.

I do hope Glenn Johnson has a good World Cup because considering his age and defensive frailties, it makes sense for the club to unload him. A replacement may command a smaller salary. Lucas hasn't been able replicate his peak form since returning from injury. It could also be because our style of football requires all players to be at least decent passers of the ball and Lucas is more accustomed to recycling possession. If Rafa still wants to bring him to Napoli, it makes sense to him and the club to part ways. Surprised we're linked to Mascherano though because he's an average passer at best, has lost a yard of pace and has been playing centreback for awhile now.

I reckon we should break the bank for the likes of Arturo Vidal. In my opinion, we don't really need to commit ourselves to an out-and-out defensive midfielder. If you watch how the team players when Henderson and Allen are on the pitch at the same time, both players interchange positions frequently. When Henderson drops deep to help out defensively, Allen take up a more advanced positions and vice versa. The problem is whilst Allen is a tenacious player, he lacks the physical stature to win possession from opposition players. Unlike say Claude Makalele, he doesn't time his challenges as well to compensate for his lack of size and muscle. Vidal in contrast is an accomplished defensive midfield player who has since developed his offensive game and can operate on both halves of the field. An inclusion of a player like him will make us more solid defensively and sharper offensively at the same time. If we do also sign Lallana, we'll have a pretty solid midfield triangle with the Southampton man and the tip, supported by Vidal and Henderson.

This post has been edited by Duke Red: May 14 2014, 11:00 AM

Unless I'm mistaken, Rodgers has been given a war chest of $30 million nett and if we can recoup some funds from the sale of players, the figure goes up to $60 million. Competition for the player will be tough though with clubs like Man Utd willing to spend big to get back in the game. Their $27 million pound bid for Luke Shaw is proof of this. The Southampton left-back is only 18 and they are prepared to make him the highest paid teenager in domestic history with an offer said to be around $100,000 pounds per week over 5 years. Of course when you don't have Champions League football, you often need to spend a little more.

You may be right I don't know. Better if you are of course.

I think we need to be more realistic with what we can get for our players. Johnson and Reina may fetch between 7-10 mil given their age.

How long is Toure's contract? 5 is being optimistic. I reckon 3 tops.

It's all relative in the end. When Spurs signed Hugo Lloris for example, he was 25 and he was already established as France's no. 1 with his future still ahead of him. The fee was around $10 million with future benefits if he were to be sold to another club. Mignolet was a prized goalkeeper after being voted Player of the Season for Sunderland, producing several MOM performances and we signed him for $9 million. Reina isn't Spain's no. 1 and he's already 31, at the peak of his ability and thus, I reckon we'll be fortunate to receive an offer for $10 million.