November 03, 2004

Depor v Liverpool: So, since the last Liverpool post was busy, i thought I'd put up a link to the Guardian's coverage of today's CL game between Liverpool and Deportivo La Coruna. Predictions, comments and rants welcome.

Of course you can also follow United v Sparta at the Guardian, and follow more serious play by plays at Soccernet and the BBC.

posted by sauril to soccer at 11:31 AM - 27 comments

Both games start at 12:30 ET

posted by sauril at 11:32 AM on November 03, 2004

0-0. My expectations are very low. If we can tighten up the defence, we can at least get a sodding point. (We might have to play Riise back in place of Josemi, at least to begin with.) If the strikers get their acts in gear (I'm looking at you, Kewell), we may actually have a game. If Alonso and Garcia have another blinder, it could be a bloody awesome game.

posted by worldcup2002 at 12:23 PM on November 03, 2004

Put Carragher (if you have to) in for Josemi on the right or Finnan...Put Henchoz back in the center! Kewell up front with Baros.. We'll be just fine... As far as America goes, we're fucked.

posted by StarFucker at 01:04 PM on November 03, 2004

BBC Radio 5 Live have just said they expect Kewell to feature but not Garcia. KO is 7.45GMT for both games btw.

posted by squealy at 01:13 PM on November 03, 2004

you mean 2:45 ET, not 12:30 ET..

posted by blarp at 01:23 PM on November 03, 2004

Alonso injured, Garcia plays in his place. I'm off to the boozer. If they're showing the Man U game I'll be back, maybe.

posted by squealy at 01:40 PM on November 03, 2004

Wish i was off to the boozer...

posted by StarFucker at 02:32 PM on November 03, 2004

whoops, yeah. 12:30 here. So Biscan is in. Alonso on the bench. Kewell up with Baros.

posted by sauril at 02:32 PM on November 03, 2004

I know my team...

posted by StarFucker at 02:53 PM on November 03, 2004

Well, that's it. 1-0 Liverpool. Looks like they'll make it through. One win in the next two games needed.

posted by sauril at 03:54 PM on November 03, 2004

Own goal is all we could manage? Yet RVN can manage four all on his own? Jebus! But an away win is an away win and I'll take it.

posted by billsaysthis at 04:16 PM on November 03, 2004

Look, I said 0-0, and I would've been spot on except for that lucky goal. With our main playmaker (Alonso) out, what did we expect? And look, the goal, came from Biscan and Riise's work. Defensive midfielder and attacking midfielder/defender. What a sterling strikeforce we have (I think Riise's our top scorer in the last three matches.) Yaah. We'd better buy somebody quick.

posted by worldcup2002 at 04:32 PM on November 03, 2004

Maybe we should buy Van Nistelhorse. Four goals, my friends, four goals.

posted by worldcup2002 at 04:36 PM on November 03, 2004

Van Nistelhorse!!! >hspace=0

posted by StarFucker at 05:07 PM on November 03, 2004

*Artist's impression. The real Horse-faced cheat would have tripped over that ">" and be claiming a penalty.

posted by Mr Bismarck at 04:12 AM on November 04, 2004

I thought he looked like he was tripping over it. Could we all stop bitching about winning 1-0 please? Way things have been going, let's just thank our lucky stars no one lost a leg.

posted by JJ at 06:53 AM on November 04, 2004

I think winning 1-0 away to Deportivo La coruna is a pretty solid result. Especially with 50m lbs of talent on the sideline. By all reports I've read, if the cross wasn't own-goaled, it would have been a tap in for Baros.

posted by sauril at 10:23 AM on November 04, 2004

hear hear!

posted by JJ at 10:33 AM on November 04, 2004

Baros is awesome...

posted by StarFucker at 10:35 AM on November 04, 2004

Especially compared to how he looked playing for Houllier.

posted by Mr Bismarck at 10:51 AM on November 04, 2004

Well i knew he would be good... There was a strange fucking talent sucking void that sucked the talent out of anyone that came to Liverpool while Houllier was there... Seems the team is starting to gel and players are playing with confidence. I hope Kewell does the same, his transformation is taking longer than everyone else.

posted by StarFucker at 11:15 AM on November 04, 2004

>There was a strange fucking talent sucking void that sucked the talent out of anyone that came to Liverpool while Houllier was there...< Yep. people were talking about how good BISCAN was yesterday fer crying out loud. And Traore's turned into a pretty good player too.

posted by sauril at 11:40 AM on November 04, 2004

Wow, I didn't know there were so many Liverpool fans. I feel a lot of love today.

posted by worldcup2002 at 12:40 PM on November 04, 2004

I'm a sorta-fan. I'm Canadian, but my dad's English. I remember watching Ian Rush when I was a kid, when Liverpool used to win everything. Then when I got back into watching English soccer, I ofter hung around with my friend who's a Newcastle fan. So I sorta-cheered for them. Now I live with a girl who's a rabid Liverpool fan, so we watch their games, and for some reason, I'm cheering for them. Weird evolution, I know. And yes, I know that I'm being wishy washy, but cheering for the Shrimpers really isn't easy.

posted by sauril at 12:46 PM on November 04, 2004

Ian Rush! Yes! And Dalglish, Souness, etc etc etc. btw, it looks like Benitez called the Deportivo win "the best Liverpool performance I have overseen." Wow. Maybe I should've watched that match. Would've liked to see the Biscuit turn into a cracker too.

posted by worldcup2002 at 01:14 PM on November 04, 2004

Since when does one have to be English to support Liverpool? I'm not and I do. Liverpool's first team consisted entirely of Scots - and the only Englishman on their 1986 FA Cup winning team was on the bench and didn't get to play (Steve McMahon). There's an interesting piece on the Guardian website: According to the official Liverpool FC website: "It was virtually unheard of at the time for a city to have more than one professional football team, and people naturally wondered where on earth Liverpool's players would come from. John McKenna, the club's first manager, provided the answer: Scotland. All eleven players of the Liverpool team that played its first-ever competitive match, against Higher Walton on September 3 1892, were Scottish." More recently, Liverpool famously fielded a non-English XI for the 1986 FA Cup final against Everton: Grobbelaar, Lawrenson, Beglin, Nicol, Whelan, Hansen, Dalglish, Johnston, Rush, Mølby and MacDonald came from behind to win 3-1.

posted by JJ at 03:18 AM on November 05, 2004

Nice JJ...great stats there.

posted by StarFucker at 09:00 AM on November 05, 2004

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