It will be tough as this game is sandwiched between the Champions League semi final, and Rafa will likely be playing the second string. But these guys need to prove their worth. Let's keep pressure and hope Fulham to do us a big favour.
My Team Prediction:
Dudek
Finnan
Carragher
Hyypia
Pellegrino
Nunez
Gerrard
Alonso
Warnock
Cisse
Morientes
Result 2-0
Saturday, April 30, 2005
Thursday, April 28, 2005
Match Report 050427 at Chelsea: The Art of Defense
0-0 and it is a good result. Thanks to the solid defense Dudek was never really tested. And if not for the excellent performance of Cech we may have won the game already.
Mourinho is already playing mind game but I doubt if any Liverpool fan really think we are already through. But with another great night at Anfield, why not?
It's a pity Xabi will miss the next game. But at least he can be sure he will be playing in the Final.
Player Rating:
Dudek: 7 Not a real save to be made.
Finnan: 7 Defend as a team.
Carragher: 8 Solid as he always is despite some early scares.
Hyypia: 7.5 Solid and when he was passed, there's other defenders to help.
Traore: 7 Explored by Chelsea but he hang on.
Alonso: 7.5 Played much better 2H but unfortunte to miss the next game.
Biscan: 7 A solid display although later on he's a bit dipped.
Garcia: 7 Played better in 2H.
Gerrard: 7 Runnnig all over the pitch despite some fans think he's not making enough tackles.
Riise: 7 Have one of our best chance but was superbly saved.
Baros: 7 Have a glorious header saved. He did quite well but him alone is not enough.
Substitutions:
Cisse: 7 A good shot but was slightly over.
Kewell/Smicer: Not enough time to impress.
Rafa: 8 A good tactic and we stopped Chelsea. However, 2nd Leg will be tough without Xabi, hope Hamann will be back and Cisse fit enough to start. We definitely need 2 strikers to win against Cheslea.
Chelsea: 7 Despite what their manager said I think they are nervous and will regret not to have scored.
Man of the match: Carragher. Shankly would be happy about his performance.
Mourinho is already playing mind game but I doubt if any Liverpool fan really think we are already through. But with another great night at Anfield, why not?
It's a pity Xabi will miss the next game. But at least he can be sure he will be playing in the Final.
Player Rating:
Dudek: 7 Not a real save to be made.
Finnan: 7 Defend as a team.
Carragher: 8 Solid as he always is despite some early scares.
Hyypia: 7.5 Solid and when he was passed, there's other defenders to help.
Traore: 7 Explored by Chelsea but he hang on.
Alonso: 7.5 Played much better 2H but unfortunte to miss the next game.
Biscan: 7 A solid display although later on he's a bit dipped.
Garcia: 7 Played better in 2H.
Gerrard: 7 Runnnig all over the pitch despite some fans think he's not making enough tackles.
Riise: 7 Have one of our best chance but was superbly saved.
Baros: 7 Have a glorious header saved. He did quite well but him alone is not enough.
Substitutions:
Cisse: 7 A good shot but was slightly over.
Kewell/Smicer: Not enough time to impress.
Rafa: 8 A good tactic and we stopped Chelsea. However, 2nd Leg will be tough without Xabi, hope Hamann will be back and Cisse fit enough to start. We definitely need 2 strikers to win against Cheslea.
Chelsea: 7 Despite what their manager said I think they are nervous and will regret not to have scored.
Man of the match: Carragher. Shankly would be happy about his performance.
Wednesday, April 27, 2005
Stamford Bridge is falling down
No matter what tonight's result will be, we will get pass Chelsea to the Final. In Rafa we trust.
My Team Prediction:
Dudek
Finnan
Carragher
Hyypia
Traore
Garcia
Alonso
Biscan
Riise
Gerrard
Baros
Result 2-0
My Team Prediction:
Dudek
Finnan
Carragher
Hyypia
Traore
Garcia
Alonso
Biscan
Riise
Gerrard
Baros
Result 2-0
Monday, April 25, 2005
Match Report 050423 at Crystal Palace: What do we want?
0-1 and this is a very very poor result, especially we know Birmingham had held Everton to a draw. If Everton get 6 points from the remaining 4 games our chase for 4th pace will be over.
The match saw a hard-fight Palace team with lots of tackles, and Rafa is not happy with it. But we should expect more of this from a team fighting to avoid relegration. And why should be rest Alonso if finishing 4th is really more important than winning the Champions League? And why do we play a 3-5-2 formation, giving it never work before?
Rafa had a lot to do in the pre-season training. And he will sort it out.
Player Rating:
Dudek: 5.5 Lack of confidence.
Carragher: 6 Even our ever-reliable player had a bad day.
Hyypia: 6 Not a good day as well.
Pellegrino: 5.5 Although he saved us from a second goal, his performance in general was not good.
Finnan: 6 An Ok performance for Finnan.
Gerrard: 6.5 At least he tried to save us from losing. Play bad in 1H but much better in 2H.
Welsh: 5.5 Not a good day for our highly rated midfielder.
Traore: 5 He's just not a wingback. His defense is good but attack is poor.
Le Tallec: 5.5 Failed to inspire the team. But we may be asking too much from him.
Baros: 5.5 From the first minute he was fouled he did not play well. Certainly the injury did affect him.
Morientes: 5.5 No supply, and he was too slow up front. Need to work very hard in the pre-season.
Substitutes:
Potter: 5.5 Subbed the injuried Baros and played an OK game.
Riise: 5.5 Better than Traore, but not enough.
Cisse: 6 Had a shot but was saved.
Crystal Palace: 7 A well derseved result. I wish them good luck in the survival. But it's too close to call now.
Rafa: 5 Sorry but the rotation just don't work out. He's going to start pre-season 2 weeks earliers and let's hope the players will be much fitter and there will be less injuries.
Man of the Match: Gerrard. But we need a much better Gerrard on Wednesday.
The match saw a hard-fight Palace team with lots of tackles, and Rafa is not happy with it. But we should expect more of this from a team fighting to avoid relegration. And why should be rest Alonso if finishing 4th is really more important than winning the Champions League? And why do we play a 3-5-2 formation, giving it never work before?
Rafa had a lot to do in the pre-season training. And he will sort it out.
Player Rating:
Dudek: 5.5 Lack of confidence.
Carragher: 6 Even our ever-reliable player had a bad day.
Hyypia: 6 Not a good day as well.
Pellegrino: 5.5 Although he saved us from a second goal, his performance in general was not good.
Finnan: 6 An Ok performance for Finnan.
Gerrard: 6.5 At least he tried to save us from losing. Play bad in 1H but much better in 2H.
Welsh: 5.5 Not a good day for our highly rated midfielder.
Traore: 5 He's just not a wingback. His defense is good but attack is poor.
Le Tallec: 5.5 Failed to inspire the team. But we may be asking too much from him.
Baros: 5.5 From the first minute he was fouled he did not play well. Certainly the injury did affect him.
Morientes: 5.5 No supply, and he was too slow up front. Need to work very hard in the pre-season.
Substitutes:
Potter: 5.5 Subbed the injuried Baros and played an OK game.
Riise: 5.5 Better than Traore, but not enough.
Cisse: 6 Had a shot but was saved.
Crystal Palace: 7 A well derseved result. I wish them good luck in the survival. But it's too close to call now.
Rafa: 5 Sorry but the rotation just don't work out. He's going to start pre-season 2 weeks earliers and let's hope the players will be much fitter and there will be less injuries.
Man of the Match: Gerrard. But we need a much better Gerrard on Wednesday.
Friday, April 22, 2005
We need 4 good results and Emil to help
With both teams won on Wednesday now Everton need 10 points out of 15 and we will have no chance to catch up. We need to win at Palace, and if Emil can help us to beat Everton it will be very very nice.
My Team Prediction:
Dudek
Finnan
Carragher
Hyypia
Traore
Garcia
Alonso
Gerrard
Riise
Baros
Morientes
Result 2-0
My Team Prediction:
Dudek
Finnan
Carragher
Hyypia
Traore
Garcia
Alonso
Gerrard
Riise
Baros
Morientes
Result 2-0
Thursday, April 21, 2005
Match Report 050420 at Portsmouth: A result made in Spain and Norway
2-1 and 2 goals from Nando and Garcia, both assisted by Riise, are enough for this well deserved win. Unfortunately for a rare chance that we support Man United, they lost... So we are still 3 points behind while played one more game. There's no place for any error now.
The match was started dramatically and There may be 3 goals in the first 4 minutes. First Portsmouth had a goal ruled offside, then Baros' shot was superbly saved. But then Riise provided a great cross and Nando scored his first in 2 mouths and we are one up.
We then let Portsmouth into the game and they equalized. Fortunately, Riise provided another great cross and we are up in half time.
Both teams have chances to scored in 2H but none can, and we are happily back with 3 points.
Player Rating:
Dudek: 7 Have a superb save from Berger in 2H to give us 3 points.
Finnan: 6.5 Cleared from the line but was unable to do it the second time.
Carragher: 7 Carra as usual.
Hyypia: 7 A good display.
Traore: 6.5 With him at left back Riise is a much better player.
Garcia: 7 Scored a goal but apart from that his contribution is almost zero. And Rafa rested him in 2H.
Alonso: 7 As good as ever.
Biscan: 6.5 Good display but faded in 2H.
Riise 7.5 Two great display and almost scored the third. That's the Riise we need for the final run-in.
Baros: 7 A lively display despite not scoring any.
Morientes: 7 First goal for 2 months. His confidence will be lifted.
Substitutions:
Smicer: 6.5 A fair diaplay.
Gerrard: 6 Was duly rested. But we play OK even without him.
Cisse: Getting closer and closer to a start.
Rafa: 7 His decision to rest Gerrard is a good one and did not do any harm. We need four more good tactics like this for the league run-in.
Berger: 6.5 Come up in 2H with a nice shot but Dudek saved it.
Portsmouth: 6 They should be able to stay up this season.
Man of the match: Riise. Back to his best at the right time.
The match was started dramatically and There may be 3 goals in the first 4 minutes. First Portsmouth had a goal ruled offside, then Baros' shot was superbly saved. But then Riise provided a great cross and Nando scored his first in 2 mouths and we are one up.
We then let Portsmouth into the game and they equalized. Fortunately, Riise provided another great cross and we are up in half time.
Both teams have chances to scored in 2H but none can, and we are happily back with 3 points.
Player Rating:
Dudek: 7 Have a superb save from Berger in 2H to give us 3 points.
Finnan: 6.5 Cleared from the line but was unable to do it the second time.
Carragher: 7 Carra as usual.
Hyypia: 7 A good display.
Traore: 6.5 With him at left back Riise is a much better player.
Garcia: 7 Scored a goal but apart from that his contribution is almost zero. And Rafa rested him in 2H.
Alonso: 7 As good as ever.
Biscan: 6.5 Good display but faded in 2H.
Riise 7.5 Two great display and almost scored the third. That's the Riise we need for the final run-in.
Baros: 7 A lively display despite not scoring any.
Morientes: 7 First goal for 2 months. His confidence will be lifted.
Substitutions:
Smicer: 6.5 A fair diaplay.
Gerrard: 6 Was duly rested. But we play OK even without him.
Cisse: Getting closer and closer to a start.
Rafa: 7 His decision to rest Gerrard is a good one and did not do any harm. We need four more good tactics like this for the league run-in.
Berger: 6.5 Come up in 2H with a nice shot but Dudek saved it.
Portsmouth: 6 They should be able to stay up this season.
Man of the match: Riise. Back to his best at the right time.
Tuesday, April 19, 2005
We need 5 good displays
As Gerrard said we need 5 good displays in the league and hoping Everton and Bolton to drop points. It will be tough, but at least we need to try.
My Team Prediction:
Dudek
Finnan
Carragher
Hyypia
Traore
Garcia
Alonso
Gerrard
Riise
Baros
Morientes
Result 2-0
My Team Prediction:
Dudek
Finnan
Carragher
Hyypia
Traore
Garcia
Alonso
Gerrard
Riise
Baros
Morientes
Result 2-0
Monday, April 18, 2005
Match Report 050416 vs Tottenham Hotspur: It's fading away...
2-2 and we lost 2 important points and Bolton is now ahead of us. If we don't get 9 points from the next 3 league games in April, we probably need a miracle to be able to finish 4th.
This is a strange match that we don't play too bad at all - perhaps apart from 15-30 minutes. Just when we were starting to exert some pressures on Spurs, they took the lead from a superb goal from 35 yards by Edman. Absolute no chance by Dudek.
We were then shocked and not until about 30 minutes before we started to do some serious threats to Spurs. And just before half time Garcia get the ball just outside the penalty box and scored a superb goal - maybe not as spectacular as the Juventus goal, but still it's a good one. And we have one more opportunity before half time but Robinson saved superbly Morientes' header.
Second half is a similar story and we exert a lot of pressures to Spurs, but we were again shocked. Robinson's freekick from an offside find Kanoute on the right, and Pellegrino failed to take care of it. The cross found Robbie Keane, whose header deflected Carra and Dudek again had no chance.
We then had a good chance to equalize as Gerrard is fouled and we get a penalty. Maybe it's really not good to have him fouled and immediately have the peanlty kick, and the ball was widely off target. Luckily a few minutes later from a resulting corner Hyypia volleyed into the net - and this is with his right foot and it is definitely better than the Juventus one.
We then had a few chance to win the game - the closest one being Gerrard hitting the post. Certainly it was not his day. And Dudek had to be at his very best to prevent Spurs win the game.
Overall 2-2 is a fair result, but now we are 3 points behind Everton and played one more game. Time is definitely running out. As Gerrard said, we need 5 good performances, and at the same time hoping Everton and Bolton to lose points.
Player Rating:
Dudek: 6.5 No chance for the 2 goals, and he saved us one point from some Spurs attacks.
Finnan: 6.5 An average performance but he had a good chance but couldn't take it.
Carragher: 7 Another good game although he may be partly at fault at the second Spurs goal of being not close enough to Keane.
Hyypia: 7.5 Scored a great goal. We need some more from him for the next 5 leagure games.
Pellegrino: 6 His lack of pace is probably the reason for the second goal.
Nunez: 6 Produced a few crosses but unfortunately they didn't reach the head of Nando.
Gerrard: 5.5 Tried very hard but due to his lack of match fitness and luck it turned out to be an extremely bad day for him.
Alonso: 7 Running the midfield very well.
Warnock: 6 Played quite well but was unfortunately injuried.
Garcia: 7.5 Scored another nice goal. We need more!
Morientes: 6 Unfortunately not to score.
Substitutions:
Riise: 6.5 Substituted the injuried Warnock and played quite well.
Cisse/Biscan: Not enough time to shine.
Spurs: 7 They scored 2 great goals and deserve to get one point.
Rafa: 6 Failed to improve our post European game misery...
Men of the Match: Garcia/Hyypia. The 2 goals gave us 1 point.
This is a strange match that we don't play too bad at all - perhaps apart from 15-30 minutes. Just when we were starting to exert some pressures on Spurs, they took the lead from a superb goal from 35 yards by Edman. Absolute no chance by Dudek.
We were then shocked and not until about 30 minutes before we started to do some serious threats to Spurs. And just before half time Garcia get the ball just outside the penalty box and scored a superb goal - maybe not as spectacular as the Juventus goal, but still it's a good one. And we have one more opportunity before half time but Robinson saved superbly Morientes' header.
Second half is a similar story and we exert a lot of pressures to Spurs, but we were again shocked. Robinson's freekick from an offside find Kanoute on the right, and Pellegrino failed to take care of it. The cross found Robbie Keane, whose header deflected Carra and Dudek again had no chance.
We then had a good chance to equalize as Gerrard is fouled and we get a penalty. Maybe it's really not good to have him fouled and immediately have the peanlty kick, and the ball was widely off target. Luckily a few minutes later from a resulting corner Hyypia volleyed into the net - and this is with his right foot and it is definitely better than the Juventus one.
We then had a few chance to win the game - the closest one being Gerrard hitting the post. Certainly it was not his day. And Dudek had to be at his very best to prevent Spurs win the game.
Overall 2-2 is a fair result, but now we are 3 points behind Everton and played one more game. Time is definitely running out. As Gerrard said, we need 5 good performances, and at the same time hoping Everton and Bolton to lose points.
Player Rating:
Dudek: 6.5 No chance for the 2 goals, and he saved us one point from some Spurs attacks.
Finnan: 6.5 An average performance but he had a good chance but couldn't take it.
Carragher: 7 Another good game although he may be partly at fault at the second Spurs goal of being not close enough to Keane.
Hyypia: 7.5 Scored a great goal. We need some more from him for the next 5 leagure games.
Pellegrino: 6 His lack of pace is probably the reason for the second goal.
Nunez: 6 Produced a few crosses but unfortunately they didn't reach the head of Nando.
Gerrard: 5.5 Tried very hard but due to his lack of match fitness and luck it turned out to be an extremely bad day for him.
Alonso: 7 Running the midfield very well.
Warnock: 6 Played quite well but was unfortunately injuried.
Garcia: 7.5 Scored another nice goal. We need more!
Morientes: 6 Unfortunately not to score.
Substitutions:
Riise: 6.5 Substituted the injuried Warnock and played quite well.
Cisse/Biscan: Not enough time to shine.
Spurs: 7 They scored 2 great goals and deserve to get one point.
Rafa: 6 Failed to improve our post European game misery...
Men of the Match: Garcia/Hyypia. The 2 goals gave us 1 point.
Friday, April 15, 2005
You'll Never Walk Alone
Today is the 16th anniversery of a date we won't forget. I kind of understand what the Juventus fans' feeling are when they refused to forgive - so do we.
Hillsborough victims, you will never walk alone.
My Team Prediction:
Dudek
Finnan
Carragher
Hyypia
Traore
Garcia
Alonso
Biscan
Riise
Le Tallec
Morientes
Result 3-0
Hillsborough victims, you will never walk alone.
My Team Prediction:
Dudek
Finnan
Carragher
Hyypia
Traore
Garcia
Alonso
Biscan
Riise
Le Tallec
Morientes
Result 3-0
Thursday, April 14, 2005
Match Report 050413 at Juventus: Against all odds
0-0 and once again, we surprised everybody, maybe even ourselves, in pulling out a 0-0 draw in Turin. As Gerrard said the players did performed the match of the career, and at theend Juventus just can't a way to score.
Defense was really great and not until 63 minutes did Juventus have a shot on target. Before that Baros had a golden opportunity (assist by Carragher!) but just missed it. And even when the back 4 failed to clear the ball, Dudek was also at his best to save a shot from Ibrahimovic. And when Cannavaro's header seemed unstoppable, lady luck was on our side this time and it hit the post.
It's really nice to see Xabi play the whole 90 minutes and Cisse running again. Now we have more firepower, let's start to be more serious, and grab the 4th place post.
Player Rating:
Dudek: 8 Have an important save to keep the clean sheet. This is Dudek at his best.
Finnan: 7 Solid in defense. Although he conceded a freekick and get a yellow card, fortunately Cannavaro's header from the freekick only hit the post.
Carragher: 8 He gave the Italians a lesson on defending.
Hyypia: 7.5 This time he raised to the challenge of captaining the team. Almost scored himself.
Traore: 7.5 Played more like a center back then a left back as we were playing like a 5-4-1. A solid display despite he had a few moments let us scare.
Nunez: 6 He tried very hard, although not as good as the others, but is still a good performance.
Alonso: 7.5 Run the midfield. It's nice to see him not afraid to go into high-gear tackles. Welcome back.
Biscan: 7 Doing all the dirty jobs. Try very hard to score but Juventus defenses is too strong.
Riise: 7 Played more like a left back most of the time. Very effective in closing down Juventus.
Garcia: 6.5 He tried very hard but was unable to break down the Juventus defense.
Baros: 6.5 He also tried very hard, had one great chance but missed it.
Substitutions:
Smicer: 6 Come on and had a fair game.
Cisse/Le Tallec: Not enough time to shine. It's really good to see Cisse running again after that horrible accident. See you in the Champions League final.
Rafa: 8 His tactics outclassed Capello's.
Juventus: 7 Unable to break through the stubbon Liverpool defense. But they are still a great team.
Men of the Match: Dudek/Carragher. Defense at its best!
Defense was really great and not until 63 minutes did Juventus have a shot on target. Before that Baros had a golden opportunity (assist by Carragher!) but just missed it. And even when the back 4 failed to clear the ball, Dudek was also at his best to save a shot from Ibrahimovic. And when Cannavaro's header seemed unstoppable, lady luck was on our side this time and it hit the post.
It's really nice to see Xabi play the whole 90 minutes and Cisse running again. Now we have more firepower, let's start to be more serious, and grab the 4th place post.
Player Rating:
Dudek: 8 Have an important save to keep the clean sheet. This is Dudek at his best.
Finnan: 7 Solid in defense. Although he conceded a freekick and get a yellow card, fortunately Cannavaro's header from the freekick only hit the post.
Carragher: 8 He gave the Italians a lesson on defending.
Hyypia: 7.5 This time he raised to the challenge of captaining the team. Almost scored himself.
Traore: 7.5 Played more like a center back then a left back as we were playing like a 5-4-1. A solid display despite he had a few moments let us scare.
Nunez: 6 He tried very hard, although not as good as the others, but is still a good performance.
Alonso: 7.5 Run the midfield. It's nice to see him not afraid to go into high-gear tackles. Welcome back.
Biscan: 7 Doing all the dirty jobs. Try very hard to score but Juventus defenses is too strong.
Riise: 7 Played more like a left back most of the time. Very effective in closing down Juventus.
Garcia: 6.5 He tried very hard but was unable to break down the Juventus defense.
Baros: 6.5 He also tried very hard, had one great chance but missed it.
Substitutions:
Smicer: 6 Come on and had a fair game.
Cisse/Le Tallec: Not enough time to shine. It's really good to see Cisse running again after that horrible accident. See you in the Champions League final.
Rafa: 8 His tactics outclassed Capello's.
Juventus: 7 Unable to break through the stubbon Liverpool defense. But they are still a great team.
Men of the Match: Dudek/Carragher. Defense at its best!
Wednesday, April 13, 2005
Let's make it a memorable and glorious night
With a tight 2-1 lead we have a good chance to go through, despite Juventus now seems to be the favorite. They are the king of 1-0 win, and our defense will have to be at its best once again. The first goal will be crucial. By the way, maybe it's a good time to give Carra the captain's armband.
My Team Prediction:
Dudek
Finnan
Carragher
Hyypia
Traore
Garcia
Alonso
Biscan
Riise
Le Tallec
Baros
Result 1-0
My Team Prediction:
Dudek
Finnan
Carragher
Hyypia
Traore
Garcia
Alonso
Biscan
Riise
Le Tallec
Baros
Result 1-0
Salute to Roy Keane
Much as I dislike the man as an arrogant Manchester player, sometimes you need to listen to his words. And sadly, it applies to Liverpool as well:
http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/football/teams/m/man_utd/4438523.stm
Keane slams poor Man Utd displays
Keane has not been impressed
Roy Keane has criticised his Manchester United team-mates, claiming some are failing to give 100% to the club.
"Results don't lie and the table doesn't lie. Our performance levels have not been good enough.
"Everyone at this club needs to look at themselves and ask whether they are giving 100% to the football club.
"I am not sure all the players can say they are. That is a crime in itself. People are sick of excuses and we're running out of them," he told MUTV.
Keane was forced to watch Saturday's 2-0 defeat at Norwich on television after being omitted ahead of this weekend's FA Cup semi-final with Newcastle.
United boss Sir Alex Ferguson refused to talk to the media after the game.
And Keane, who last season highlighted a lack of professionalism among the younger members of United's squad, has decided it is time to speak out.
He also placed serious question marks over players routinely earning over £50,000-a-week and insisted Ferguson was not to blame.
"How many chances should a player get? You can bring a horse to water but you cannot make it drink.
"The manager provides everything for the players. Everything they want, they get.
"All they have to do is come into training every single day with the attitude of trying to help the team improve.
"It is not about individuals. You can have the most talented players in the world but if you do not play as a team, I guarantee you will win absolutely nothing.
"Every player should be fighting for their place at this club," he said.
"Going back over the years, when we have been at the top of our game, players never took their places in the team or position at the club for granted.
"That is what made them really good players and what made us an outstanding team.
"It is all right having a laugh in the dressing room but maybe there has been too much laughter. You can go too far the other way.
"What matters is what happens on the pitch. We have talented players at this club, that is obvious, but talent without work rate and pride is a waste of time."
Keane added that United cannot afford to slip-up in Sunday's semi-final against Newcastle.
"We should go into Sunday's game looking to win it, but we should do that in every game," he said.
"Sunday's game is no bigger than last Saturday's.
"It doesn't matter whether it is Newcastle, Norwich, Arsenal or AC Milan, you treat every game the same, prepare as well as you can and give 100%.
http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/football/teams/m/man_utd/4438523.stm
Keane slams poor Man Utd displays
Keane has not been impressed
Roy Keane has criticised his Manchester United team-mates, claiming some are failing to give 100% to the club.
"Results don't lie and the table doesn't lie. Our performance levels have not been good enough.
"Everyone at this club needs to look at themselves and ask whether they are giving 100% to the football club.
"I am not sure all the players can say they are. That is a crime in itself. People are sick of excuses and we're running out of them," he told MUTV.
Keane was forced to watch Saturday's 2-0 defeat at Norwich on television after being omitted ahead of this weekend's FA Cup semi-final with Newcastle.
United boss Sir Alex Ferguson refused to talk to the media after the game.
And Keane, who last season highlighted a lack of professionalism among the younger members of United's squad, has decided it is time to speak out.
He also placed serious question marks over players routinely earning over £50,000-a-week and insisted Ferguson was not to blame.
"How many chances should a player get? You can bring a horse to water but you cannot make it drink.
"The manager provides everything for the players. Everything they want, they get.
"All they have to do is come into training every single day with the attitude of trying to help the team improve.
"It is not about individuals. You can have the most talented players in the world but if you do not play as a team, I guarantee you will win absolutely nothing.
"Every player should be fighting for their place at this club," he said.
"Going back over the years, when we have been at the top of our game, players never took their places in the team or position at the club for granted.
"That is what made them really good players and what made us an outstanding team.
"It is all right having a laugh in the dressing room but maybe there has been too much laughter. You can go too far the other way.
"What matters is what happens on the pitch. We have talented players at this club, that is obvious, but talent without work rate and pride is a waste of time."
Keane added that United cannot afford to slip-up in Sunday's semi-final against Newcastle.
"We should go into Sunday's game looking to win it, but we should do that in every game," he said.
"Sunday's game is no bigger than last Saturday's.
"It doesn't matter whether it is Newcastle, Norwich, Arsenal or AC Milan, you treat every game the same, prepare as well as you can and give 100%.
Monday, April 11, 2005
Match Report 050409 at Manchester City: We threw it away again
0-1 and we missed a golden opportunity to take over 4th place. It was even worse as Everton beat Crystal Palace 4-0, and they are now back to 4 points ahead of us after the derby game. With only 6 games remaining we need to take every points now or risk even for Bolton to take over us.
This is a dull match and we never have any organization. The best players are Carson, Warnock and Carra and that tells you how worst our attack was. Nando was still short of match fitness, but the midfield is no where to be seen. We will also have a problem facing Juventus.
The next 4 games are relatively easy ones, and if we can get 12 points from them, we should be OK. Otherwise we need Everton and Bolton to drop more points.
Player Rating:
Carson: 7 Made a few good saves but sloppy defense denied him another well-deserved clean sheet.
Finnan: 6 An average result just like the team in general.
Carragher: 6.5 One of the few players that can hold his head up.
Pellegrino: 6 Have a few problems holding Fowler but in general not a bad display.
Warnock: 6.5 A good display from the local lad
Garcia: 6 Ineffective and Rafa decided to rest him for the Juventus game.
Gerrard: 5.5 Had our best opportunity but hit the side net.
Biscan: 6 Ineffective.
Riise: 5.5 Is he tired or what? He hasn't have a good game for a long time now.
Le Tallec: 6 Tried very hard, but was ineffective.
Morientes: 5.5 Cannot expect too much as he is still short of match fitness.
Substitutions:
Smicer: 6 Apart from a nice pass to Gerrard for his one-on-one that hit the side net, nothing spectacular.
Welsh/Traore: Unable to shine for the short time on the pitch.
Rafa: 5 Once again the team led him down and he has no plan B...
Fowler: 7 Tried very hard to score on his 30th birthday, but still he won.
James: 6 We never seriously test him.
Manchester City: 6.5 A draw is probably a more appropriate result. We only have ourselves to blame.
Man of the Match: Carson. But the rest of the team let him down.
This is a dull match and we never have any organization. The best players are Carson, Warnock and Carra and that tells you how worst our attack was. Nando was still short of match fitness, but the midfield is no where to be seen. We will also have a problem facing Juventus.
The next 4 games are relatively easy ones, and if we can get 12 points from them, we should be OK. Otherwise we need Everton and Bolton to drop more points.
Player Rating:
Carson: 7 Made a few good saves but sloppy defense denied him another well-deserved clean sheet.
Finnan: 6 An average result just like the team in general.
Carragher: 6.5 One of the few players that can hold his head up.
Pellegrino: 6 Have a few problems holding Fowler but in general not a bad display.
Warnock: 6.5 A good display from the local lad
Garcia: 6 Ineffective and Rafa decided to rest him for the Juventus game.
Gerrard: 5.5 Had our best opportunity but hit the side net.
Biscan: 6 Ineffective.
Riise: 5.5 Is he tired or what? He hasn't have a good game for a long time now.
Le Tallec: 6 Tried very hard, but was ineffective.
Morientes: 5.5 Cannot expect too much as he is still short of match fitness.
Substitutions:
Smicer: 6 Apart from a nice pass to Gerrard for his one-on-one that hit the side net, nothing spectacular.
Welsh/Traore: Unable to shine for the short time on the pitch.
Rafa: 5 Once again the team led him down and he has no plan B...
Fowler: 7 Tried very hard to score on his 30th birthday, but still he won.
James: 6 We never seriously test him.
Manchester City: 6.5 A draw is probably a more appropriate result. We only have ourselves to blame.
Man of the Match: Carson. But the rest of the team let him down.
Friday, April 08, 2005
Grap the 4th place and don't give it away again
With Everton to play on Sunday this is the perfect time to take over 4th place again. Crystal Palace will be in no mood to throw away the game, so if we beat Manchester City we will get 4th place again. Don't throw it away.
My Team Prediction:
Dudek
Finnan
Carragher
Hyypia
Traore
Le Tallec
Gerrard
Biscan
Riise
Garcia
Morientes
Result 2-0
My Team Prediction:
Dudek
Finnan
Carragher
Hyypia
Traore
Le Tallec
Gerrard
Biscan
Riise
Garcia
Morientes
Result 2-0
Thursday, April 07, 2005
Match Report 050405 vs Juventus: We can beat anyone
2-1 win and it proves again we can beat anyone - even the mightly Juventus - if players are all stand up and be counted. This result is very significant no matter what happened in the 2nd leg. It shows that we have the capability.
From the first whistle we were determined to win and assert a lot of pressure to Juventus. Their defense were under a lot of pressure and in 10 minutes a leak is found. Gerrard's corner to the near post found Garcia, who flicked the ball to the far post and an unmarked Hyypia scored with his left foot - his 2 goals this seasons are all by foot. And our last 2 goals are all from corners. We keep pressure and at 25 minutes we are 2 goals up. Biscan found Le Tallec on the right and his one touch pass found Garcia, who scored an unstoppable volley.
Juventus also had a few chances, most notably Carson saved a shot by Del Piero when we were 1 up, and after we are 2 up Ibrahimovic hit the post immediately, and Del Piero's "offside" goal, which should actually be good, although I think Carson would have saved it should he not hear the whistle. At half time we were 2-0 up and looks very safe.
In 2H our players look a bit tired and allowed Juventus to score one back. Carson's confidence was high after making a few more saves, but then he misjudged a header and let the ball went in - should have parried it out for a corner instead. Anyway, 2-1 against Juventus is a good result, and in some away it could be a blessing in disguise as players won't get carried away and concentration will remain. We need to keep the pressure against Juventus and hope to score a goal, and of course keeping a clean sheet will do.
Player Rating:
Carson: 7 He's young and will learn from this mistake. And don't forget he made a few good saves to keep the score at 2-1.
Finnan: 7 He's making the right back a place of his own now.
Carragher: 7.5 As good as it should be.
Hyypia: 8 He still need to score a header in this season. Nice goal!
Traore: 7 Made a few important tackles.
Garcia: 9 One goal, one assist. Our best player in the past 2 months just rolls on! If he can reduce his mispasses he will be a better player.
Gerrard: 8 He's everywhere and he's enjoying his football now!
Biscan: 7 His vision has led to the second goal. Well done Igor!
Riise: 7 Another good display and this game we saw his long free throws again.
Le Tallec: 8 As good as he can. It's an excellent display from the young man.
Baros: 6.5 Causing a lot of troubles to the Juventus defense, unfortunately he still can't score.
Substitutions:
Nunez: 6.5 Come on to give some strength to the midfield.
Smicer: 6.5 Nice hair cut but not much contribution.
Rafa: 7.5 His game plan of keeping pressure up worked, although the players cannot do it in 2H.
Juventus: 7 They are a good side and are the king of 1-0 win. We need to keep a clean sheet next game.
Man of the Match: Garcia. He is on fire again!
From the first whistle we were determined to win and assert a lot of pressure to Juventus. Their defense were under a lot of pressure and in 10 minutes a leak is found. Gerrard's corner to the near post found Garcia, who flicked the ball to the far post and an unmarked Hyypia scored with his left foot - his 2 goals this seasons are all by foot. And our last 2 goals are all from corners. We keep pressure and at 25 minutes we are 2 goals up. Biscan found Le Tallec on the right and his one touch pass found Garcia, who scored an unstoppable volley.
Juventus also had a few chances, most notably Carson saved a shot by Del Piero when we were 1 up, and after we are 2 up Ibrahimovic hit the post immediately, and Del Piero's "offside" goal, which should actually be good, although I think Carson would have saved it should he not hear the whistle. At half time we were 2-0 up and looks very safe.
In 2H our players look a bit tired and allowed Juventus to score one back. Carson's confidence was high after making a few more saves, but then he misjudged a header and let the ball went in - should have parried it out for a corner instead. Anyway, 2-1 against Juventus is a good result, and in some away it could be a blessing in disguise as players won't get carried away and concentration will remain. We need to keep the pressure against Juventus and hope to score a goal, and of course keeping a clean sheet will do.
Player Rating:
Carson: 7 He's young and will learn from this mistake. And don't forget he made a few good saves to keep the score at 2-1.
Finnan: 7 He's making the right back a place of his own now.
Carragher: 7.5 As good as it should be.
Hyypia: 8 He still need to score a header in this season. Nice goal!
Traore: 7 Made a few important tackles.
Garcia: 9 One goal, one assist. Our best player in the past 2 months just rolls on! If he can reduce his mispasses he will be a better player.
Gerrard: 8 He's everywhere and he's enjoying his football now!
Biscan: 7 His vision has led to the second goal. Well done Igor!
Riise: 7 Another good display and this game we saw his long free throws again.
Le Tallec: 8 As good as he can. It's an excellent display from the young man.
Baros: 6.5 Causing a lot of troubles to the Juventus defense, unfortunately he still can't score.
Substitutions:
Nunez: 6.5 Come on to give some strength to the midfield.
Smicer: 6.5 Nice hair cut but not much contribution.
Rafa: 7.5 His game plan of keeping pressure up worked, although the players cannot do it in 2H.
Juventus: 7 They are a good side and are the king of 1-0 win. We need to keep a clean sheet next game.
Man of the Match: Garcia. He is on fire again!
Tuesday, April 05, 2005
Milan to repay the fans
This is by far our biggest test in Champions League history: Playing Juventus. Baros should try to repay the fans and show us his worth. It's also good news that Alonso is at the bench, but I really hope he will just be out to stretch his legs. And defense need to be at their best of not conceding a goal.
My Team Prediction:
Dudek
Finnan
Carragher
Hyypia
Traore
Nunez
Gerrard
Biscan
Riise
Garcia
Baros
Result: 2-0
My Team Prediction:
Dudek
Finnan
Carragher
Hyypia
Traore
Nunez
Gerrard
Biscan
Riise
Garcia
Baros
Result: 2-0
Monday, April 04, 2005
Match Report 050402 vs Bolton Wanderers: Igor may have saved his Anfield career
1-0 and it was never a pretty win. The match may have been lost for 15 minutes but somehow we resisted and gradually regained momentum. Certainly with Nando not starting and Gerrard forced to move up front our forward and midfield were not in good shape, and for Finnan's superb off the line saves (1 each half) we managed to keep a clean sheet before Igor scored that wonderful header. He was humble in saying that he was just at the right spot and everybody can score it, but that sense of alert to be at the right spot is really highly appreciated. We are now within 1 point of Everton and they are in greater pressure now. Keep on the pressure and we will finish 4th place.
Player Rating:
Carson: 7 Surprisingly called up and was shaky at first, especially when Bolton have that 5 consecutive corners and Carra's back pass header, but at times go by he becomes stronger and stronger and at the end had a superb save of Okocha's shot. A fully deserved home debut clean sheet.
Finnan: 7.5 2 saves off the line when Carson is beaten. If it's not him Biscan's goal may have no use.
Carragher: 6.5 For his high standard this is not a good game, especially the back header that almost resulted in an own goal.
Pellegrino: 6.5 The fact that Hyypia is not missed certainly tells how good he has been playing.
Traore: 7 Back from injury and he had a very nice assist before exchanging passes with Gerrard.
Nunez: 6.5 With no target man available his crosses are of no use. He did had a shot on target but that was not strong enough.
Biscan: 7.5 The goal that probably saved his Anfield career. Remember Smicer had a similar run a few years ago? Expect more to come from Igor.
Welsh: 6.5 A good debut home league start. Have a shot from 40 yards but was a bit too high.
Riise: 6 Not a good game and were also injuried.
Gerrard: 7 Did not play well at forward but as he moved back to midfield, his influence become easy to seen again.
Garcia: 6.5 Did not play well as the lone striker but when Le Tallec and Smicer were bought up he played better.
Substitutions:
Le Tallec: 6.5 He played a good game and with him on, we played better.
Smicer: 6.5 He seems to still have the hunger to play for us. This is good.
Morientes: Not enough time to impress.
Rafa: 6.5 With Baros and Nando out we struggled up front. But Rafa did make some good changes and so we won. Not a pretty game, but we need to win this kind of ugly game more.
Bolton: 7 They gave us a lot of pressures but at the end luck is on our side. They should qualify for UEFA Cup.
Men of the match: Biscan/Finnan. Biscan for scoring that important goal and Finnan for the 2 off the line saves.
Player Rating:
Carson: 7 Surprisingly called up and was shaky at first, especially when Bolton have that 5 consecutive corners and Carra's back pass header, but at times go by he becomes stronger and stronger and at the end had a superb save of Okocha's shot. A fully deserved home debut clean sheet.
Finnan: 7.5 2 saves off the line when Carson is beaten. If it's not him Biscan's goal may have no use.
Carragher: 6.5 For his high standard this is not a good game, especially the back header that almost resulted in an own goal.
Pellegrino: 6.5 The fact that Hyypia is not missed certainly tells how good he has been playing.
Traore: 7 Back from injury and he had a very nice assist before exchanging passes with Gerrard.
Nunez: 6.5 With no target man available his crosses are of no use. He did had a shot on target but that was not strong enough.
Biscan: 7.5 The goal that probably saved his Anfield career. Remember Smicer had a similar run a few years ago? Expect more to come from Igor.
Welsh: 6.5 A good debut home league start. Have a shot from 40 yards but was a bit too high.
Riise: 6 Not a good game and were also injuried.
Gerrard: 7 Did not play well at forward but as he moved back to midfield, his influence become easy to seen again.
Garcia: 6.5 Did not play well as the lone striker but when Le Tallec and Smicer were bought up he played better.
Substitutions:
Le Tallec: 6.5 He played a good game and with him on, we played better.
Smicer: 6.5 He seems to still have the hunger to play for us. This is good.
Morientes: Not enough time to impress.
Rafa: 6.5 With Baros and Nando out we struggled up front. But Rafa did make some good changes and so we won. Not a pretty game, but we need to win this kind of ugly game more.
Bolton: 7 They gave us a lot of pressures but at the end luck is on our side. They should qualify for UEFA Cup.
Men of the match: Biscan/Finnan. Biscan for scoring that important goal and Finnan for the 2 off the line saves.
Friday, April 01, 2005
No European Hangover
As Rafa said players must not have Europe hangover. Garcia will be back and Nando may also as well. Build up the derby momentum and close the gap to 1 point!
My Team Prediction:
Dudek
Finnan
Carragher
Hyypia
Traore
Nunez
Gerrard
Biscan
Riise
Garcia
Morientes
Result 2-0
My Team Prediction:
Dudek
Finnan
Carragher
Hyypia
Traore
Nunez
Gerrard
Biscan
Riise
Garcia
Morientes
Result 2-0
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