comment by Metro.⚽️ (U6770)
posted 23 seconds ago
comment by Prankster - Unbeaten and Unbearable Super World European Champions (U6283)
posted 1 hour, 49 minutes ago
don't get me started on people looking at their phones and not where they are going, not to mention walking slowly
----------------------------------------------------------------------

Would it be racist to say that Chinese people are the worst for this ?
----------------------------------------------------------------------
Yes.

they just spit everywhere

https://metro.co.uk/2020/02/09/police-officer-filmed-smashing-boy-head-baton-12209337/

Wtf

what happened to our womens team? didnt they win it not long ago?

back to back 13/14 longer ago than i recalled. still bottom now days :/

just made it 2-2 vs Arsenal

https://www.manchestereveningnews.co.uk/sport/football/football-news/man-city-liverpool-guardiola-klopp-17736066

What a ridiculous newspaper.

They are just running scared and shocked at how they have been comprehensively swatted aside this season and made to look bang average

It's somewhat true and vice versa for Pep changing his style for Klopp.

comment by Firmino's Brightest Tooth (U1217)
posted 12 minutes ago
https://www.manchestereveningnews.co.uk/sport/football/football-news/man-city-liverpool-guardiola-klopp-17736066

What a ridiculous newspaper.
----------------------------------------------------------------------
Possibly the most bitter opening to a newspaper article known to man!

Comment deleted by Site Moderator

Comment deleted by Site Moderator

Comment deleted by Site Moderator

comment by ttliv87 (U11882)
posted 12 minutes ago
comment by Firmino's Brightest Tooth (U1217)
posted 1 hour ago
https://www.manchestereveningnews.co.uk/sport/football/football-news/man-city-liverpool-guardiola-klopp-17736066

What a ridiculous newspaper.
----------------------------------------------------------------------
Literally reads like a Boris article.
----------------------------------------------------------------------
“The narrative of this season’s title race has already been written – grand old Liverpool, steeped in history and tradition, conquering the dirty oil money of shallow, plastic Manchester City“

Well he’s spot on with the first paragraph!

comment by The Duality of Van (Dijk) (U21747)
posted 18 hours, 34 minutes ago
comment by Irishred (U2539)

----------------------------------------------------------------------
4 words

Happy wife happy life
----------------------------------------------------------------------

I will always remember this
----------------------------------------------------------------------
Woah! Moderation in all things. Anything can turn out to be a disaster, even too much happiness.

comment by ttliv87 (U11882)
posted 18 minutes ago
comment by Firmino's Brightest Tooth (U1217)
posted 1 hour ago
https://www.manchestereveningnews.co.uk/sport/football/football-news/man-city-liverpool-guardiola-klopp-17736066

What a ridiculous newspaper.
----------------------------------------------------------------------
Literally reads like a Boris article.
----------------------------------------------------------------------
Was gonna ask which of the City fans on here the writer is.

There was a great piece last night by James Pearce in the Athletic completely destroying the "Liverpool are lucky, LiVARpool, no injuries" nonsense. Well worth a read.

comment by KLS (U1695)
posted 10 minutes ago
comment by ttliv87 (U11882)
posted 12 minutes ago
comment by Firmino's Brightest Tooth (U1217)
posted 1 hour ago
https://www.manchestereveningnews.co.uk/sport/football/football-news/man-city-liverpool-guardiola-klopp-17736066

What a ridiculous newspaper.
----------------------------------------------------------------------
Literally reads like a Boris article.
----------------------------------------------------------------------
“The narrative of this season’s title race has already been written – grand old Liverpool, steeped in history and tradition, conquering the dirty oil money of shallow, plastic Manchester City“

Well he’s spot on with the first paragraph!
----------------------------------------------------------------------
What the article doesn’t highlight is that most of those transfers were financed by selling our most valuable player at the time. City just don’t need to do that. I don’t care what anyone says, net spend is a huge factor in assessing a team’s spending.

comment by Neo (U9135)
posted 18 minutes ago
There was a great piece last night by James Pearce in the Athletic completely destroying the "Liverpool are lucky, LiVARpool, no injuries" nonsense. Well worth a read.
----------------------------------------------------------------------
Fred, copy & paste please.

comment by Michael Edwards FC {Proud owner of the 5 000 000th comment} Super European Champions of the World (U2720)
posted 27 minutes ago
comment by Neo (U9135)
posted 18 minutes ago
There was a great piece last night by James Pearce in the Athletic completely destroying the "Liverpool are lucky, LiVARpool, no injuries" nonsense. Well worth a read.
----------------------------------------------------------------------
Fred, copy & paste please.
----------------------------------------------------------------------
Fred?

comment by Idontlikemondays (U6377)
posted about an hour ago
We can virtually guarantee a top 4 finish tomorrow with a win,Tottenham will only be able to finish level on points if they win all their games and we lose all of ours and even then there`d need to be a 37 goal swing

After just 26 games too,crazy
----------------------------------------------------------------------
Tricky game, they played well vs us at Anfield, Pukki movement caused us problems. They beat City there and will see it as a shot to nothing to kick start an unlikely survival bid.

Usually dont play as well after breaks, takes a while to get back going albeit after international ones so hopefully not been as disrupted. Should have close to full squad to pick from? had plenty of time together to prep for this so no excuses really, need to get the job done. Hopefully we can put a game to bed and be out of sight early on for once.

comment by Terminator1 (U1863)
posted about a minute ago
comment by Michael Edwards FC {Proud owner of the 5 000 000th comment} Super European Champions of the World (U2720)
posted 27 minutes ago
comment by Neo (U9135)
posted 18 minutes ago
There was a great piece last night by James Pearce in the Athletic completely destroying the "Liverpool are lucky, LiVARpool, no injuries" nonsense. Well worth a read.
----------------------------------------------------------------------
Fred, copy & paste please.
----------------------------------------------------------------------
Fred?
----------------------------------------------------------------------
Fred subscribes to that publication

“Lucky Liverpool.”

It’s a phrase that’s been frequently muttered by pundits as well as rival supporters, players and managers over the course of this remarkable season. Grudging respect in some quarters for their record-breaking run of results in the most one-sided top-flight campaign in history has been accompanied by the caveat that good fortune has repeatedly shone on Jurgen Klopp’s team.

You’ve heard all the talk. Liverpool have been lucky with injuries whereas Manchester City have been severely hampered by the loss of key personnel such as Aymeric Laporte and Leroy Sane.

And what about all those controversial VAR decisions going the way of Klopp’s side? And don’t get them started on all those spawny late winners that have secured victories by the narrowest of margins.

A narrative has been created in some quarters that the stars have aligned for Liverpool this season, that a first top-flight crown for 30 years has simply fallen into their lap.

It is complete and utter nonsense.

Reflecting on the 22-point chasm that currently separates his back-to-back champions from the runaway leaders, City midfielder Bernardo Silva told TV broadcasters last week: “It’s not just luck. Liverpool have a lot of merit. But with the little details, everything went their way.

“I think little details make a huge difference and if you look at us this season, all the little details never went our way. If you look at the injuries we’ve had and the VAR decisions that never went our way, we’ve not been as lucky as in the past seasons. We always concede in the last minute, Liverpool always score in the last minutes, and these little details in football make the difference.”

After Klopp’s men held on to win at Tottenham Hotspur last month, Jose Mourinho branded Liverpool “so good, so strong and on top of that, they are lucky… they could perfectly concede a goal, they could perfectly finish the game with 10 because the VAR at that time, they were having a tea…”

Before Christmas, pundit Jermaine Jenas talked about Liverpool “having some huge slices of luck with VAR decisions going their way and last-minute winners” before adding, “Yes, it takes that to win a league, but can it continue?”

Robert Pires recently backed Klopp’s men to emulate his Arsenal Invincibles from 2003-04 by going the entire campaign unbeaten. The former winger saying, “Yes, because they have everything going for them: the team, the results, the luck, the coach.”

The argument that Liverpool have been fortunate on the injury front this season simply doesn’t stand up to scrutiny. It just gets overlooked because they have been able to cope so impressively without key personnel.

Rewind to August, when the opening night’s win over Norwich City was soured by the sight of Alisson limping off with a torn calf muscle. There were fears that a title challenge would be derailed in his absence.

Liverpool were without the best goalkeeper in world football for 10 weeks but they didn’t drop a single point while he was sidelined. Why? Because they had recruited wisely and Adrian, a free agent after being released by West Ham United, flourished after being thrown in at the deep end during that Norwich game.

It’s a telling stat that the XI who started the Champions League final against Tottenham last June have not lined up together since.

When Alisson made his comeback at Old Trafford in October, Mohamed Salah was out with an ankle injury. Joel Matip, who aggravated a knee problem that day, hasn’t graced the Premier League since that 1-1 draw with Manchester United. The Cameroon international has started just seven league games in 2019-20.

The reason why there was so little focus on Matip’s absence is that he wasn’t missed. Dejan Lovren filled the void before his own injury issues led to Joe Gomez being handed the extended, and ongoing, run at centre-back he craved.

Gomez has excelled since early December alongside Virgil van Dijk. That’s not luck: it’s down to planning, coaching and man-management. Klopp, who ensured he had sufficient high-quality back-up whereas City failed to replace Vincent Kompany, revived the England international’s confidence and got the best out of him at a time when he was down to just two fit centre-backs.

Fabinho is an integral part of the Liverpool team. The Brazilian midfielder is nicknamed the “lighthouse” by assistant boss Pep Lijnders in recognition of his influence on those around him. Yet in mid-November, Klopp lost him for eight weeks after he damaged ankle ligaments against Napoli in the Champions League.

Rivals finally sensed a chink in Liverpool’s armour but Jordan Henderson dropped into the holding role and momentum was maintained in style. Now released to play further forward, the club captain is in the form of his life and deservedly being touted for the PFA Player of the Year award.

Much was expected of Naby Keita and Xherdan Shaqiri but injuries have limited them to just four league starts between them all season. James Milner has just regained fitness after six weeks out.

Some have short memories. At the start of 2020, Klopp was down to 13 fit senior players having played Henderson at centre-back en route to winning the Club World Cup in Qatar.

But what about VAR?, you say.

The perception is that Liverpool have benefited greatly from the introduction of the technology and the muddled manner in which it has been used.

Seven goals have been overturned by VAR in Liverpool’s 25 league matches. The only goal given to Klopp’s men that wasn’t awarded on the field was Sadio Mane’s winner against Wolverhampton Wanderers at Anfield in late December. Replays showed the ball clearly bounced off Adam Lallana’s shoulder into Mane’s path rather than off his arm.

Liverpool have had three goals disallowed by VAR — the same number as teams playing against them.

Mane was denied both away to Manchester United (handball) and at home to Watford (offside), while Roberto Firmino’s celebrations were curtailed at home to Manchester United (a foul by Van Dijk on David de Gea). Chelsea’s Mason Mount (offside), Crystal Palace’s James Tomkins (a push by Jordan Ayew on Lovren) and Wolves’ Pedro Neto (offside) have been thwarted by VAR decisions against Liverpool.

Yes, a number of other tight calls have gone their way but there have been just as many which have left Klopp feeling perplexed, not least the foul on Divock Origi by Victor Lindelof which went unpunished in the build-up to Manchester United opening the scoring at Old Trafford — the only time Liverpool have dropped any points in the last 11 months.

Lewis Dunk’s free kick for Brighton & Hove Albion which set up a nervy finale at Anfield in late November shouldn’t have been allowed to stand as opposition players weren’t stood at least a yard away from the defending wall. Then there was the VAR ruling that Firmino’s armpit was offside when he scored away to Aston Villa in November and the clear shove by Southampton’s Shane Long on the same player which was ignored at Anfield earlier this month.

Talking of penalties, Liverpool have been awarded five in the Premier League this season. Manchester City have had six. Manchester United lead the way with nine.

As for the focus on narrow margins and last-gasp winners, 13 of Liverpool’s 24 league victories so far this season have been achieved by more than one goal.

In terms of late drama, there was James Milner’s stoppage-time penalty to beat Leicester City in October and Lallana’s equaliser at Old Trafford. The trip to Villa Park saw Liverpool rally from 1-0 down with three minutes to go to seal all three points as Andy Robertson struck before Mane took centre stage. That result was a body blow for Guardiola as it preserved Liverpool’s six-point cushion at that time.

Luck? No. It comes down to mentality and the environment Klopp has created. Even Guardiola admitted that when emotions were running high after he learned about Mane’s late show that day.

“If it’s one time, two times [then it’s] ‘We were lucky, we were lucky’ but it happened in the last two seasons many, many times — they have a special character to do that,“ he told reporters.

Those words were lost after he branded Mane “a diver”, something he later retracted.

Guardiola also revealed that he had explained to his kids that good fortune wasn’t at the heart of Liverpool’s late shows.

“My son and my daughter, when they win in the last minutes, they ask me how lucky they are. I say, ‘It’s not lucky,’” he revealed. “What Liverpool have done last season and this season many times is because they have this incredible quality and this incredible talent to fight until the end.”

Firmino has since bagged late winners away to Crystal Palace and Wolves. One came from a corner, the other from a carefully-worked throw-in routine.

Klopp has made Liverpool the set-piece kings of the Premier League with the help of the expert analysis and planning of assistants Lijnders and Peter Krawietz, who pinpoint weaknesses to exploit. Some sniggered when it emerged that Klopp had employed a throw-in coach in Thomas Gronnemark but his impact is clear for all to see.

Marginal gains are at the heart of what Klopp has built. Fitness also comes into it. Liverpool are relentless. They outwork teams and it’s hardly surprising that opponents crack when limbs are weary.

Of course, there’s been an element of fortuity in some games. They were indebted to a blunder from Dean Henderson for Georginio Wijnaldum’s winner at Sheffield United. Giovani Lo Celso missed a sitter to salvage a point for Tottenham in the capital. Wolves’ Diogo Jota did likewise at Molineux.

“In life and football, without luck, you don’t have a chance,” Klopp told reporters recently when he was reflecting on a defensive record which has seen his side concede just one goal in their last 10 league games.

Liverpool haven’t needed much of it, though. Their breathtaking consistency speaks for itself. They have taken 100 points out of the last 102 on offer. They are just seven games short of Arsenal’s all-time record of 49 league games unbeaten.

For those whose loyalties lie away from Anfield, the Premier League table makes for uncomfortable viewing. It’s a source of embarrassment that in mid-February, we already have a procession rather than a title race.

As a result, some would rather come up with lame excuses rather than pay full credit to what Klopp, sporting director Michael Edwards and owners Fenway Sports Group have created.

Lucky Liverpool? Give me a break.

That's your one, now stop being cheap and pay for a subscription

You get 3 free articles a month just from downloading the app.