Relax

With the league title gradually fading away the players should feel less pressure now, and we can start another winning steak. Torres and Arbeloa will be out, and Stevie G may not be able to start, but we will go forward to capture any Manchester slip up.

My Team Prediction:
Reina
Carragher
Skrtel
Hyypia
Aurelio
Benayoun
Alonso
Mascherano
Riera
Babel
Kuyt

Result 2:0

Match Report 090225 at Real Madrid: Perfect execution of game plan

1-0 and the players executed Rafa's game plan to perfection. With a rock solid defense, we were never in danger of conceding a goal. And we managed to score an away goal, which may be crucial. We are now in a very good position to progress, but the job is only half done. We still need to beat them in the second leg.

Players Rating:
Reina: 7.5 Made a few good saves.
Arbeloa: 7 Solid defending.
Carragher: 7.5 Rock solid.
Skrtel: 7 Defend with ease.
Aurelio: 7.5 Superb assist and handled Robben well.
Alonso: 7.5 Controlled midfield and almost scored from own half.
Mascherano: 7.5 Superb tackles.
Kuyt: 7 Worked hard as usual and earned us the crucial free kick for the winner.
Benayoun: 8 Scored a great free header and was always dangerous.
Riera: 6.5 A quiet game and was unlucky to get a yellow and will miss the 2nd leg.
Torres: 6.5 Had a half chance but was saved. Affected by the ankle twist.

Substitutions:
Babel: 6.5 Not much contribution.
Gerrard/Lucas: 6.5 Not enough time to impress.

Rafa: 7.5 Would be delighted that the players executed his game plan to perfection.

Real Madrid: 6.5 Apart from first 15 minutes they don't seem like they will win this game. But we need to beware of them.

Man of the Match: Benayoun. Did the Stevie G role well.

Get an away goal

After a disappointing weekend the focus has now turned to Europe, and we are facing the mighty Real Madrid. They are extremely strong with their recent run, especially at home, and we may not risk Gerrard that soon, but Rafa will have enough information to prepare a plan to beat them. In any case an away goal is crucial.

My Team Prediction:

Reina
Arbeloa
Carragher
Skrtel
Aurelio
Alonso
Mascherano
Kuyt
Benayoun
Riera
Torres

Result 2:0

Match Report 090222 vs Manchester City: Dream fading away

1-1 and our title dream is gradually fading away. With 12 games to go and 7 points behind, it is now extremely difficult for us to win the title. Nevertheless if there is still s possibility, we shall keep fighting and who knows what will happen?

Without Stevie G and Xabi, we do not have any midfield creativity. Especially when we are 1 goal down we lost the midfield completely at all. However Benayoun continues his recent good run and his crossing helped created the equalizer. He was unlucky not to score the winning goal, but one player played well won't win us the game.

Players Rating:
Reina: 6.5 Could not do much about the goal conceded.
Arbeloa: 6.5 Unlucky to have deflected the goal conceded.
Carragher: 7 Solid at the back but not much going forward.
Skrtel: 7 Solid defending.
Dossena: 6.5 Poor crossing.
Lucas: 6.5 Solid but could not create any opportunity for the forwards.
Mascherano: 6.5 Solid defending, but wasted many opportunities with his tame shots.
Kuyt: 7 Worked hard and scored the equalizer.
Benayoun: 7.5 Created the equalizer.
Riera: 6.5 A quiet performance.
Torres: 6.5 Frustrated in the game.

Substitutions:
El Zhar/Aurelio/Babel: 6.5 Not much inputs to the game.

Rafa: 6.5 With a huge mountain to climb now.

Manchester City: 7 Probably their best away performance so far this season.

Man of the Match: Benayoun. Unlucky not to be on the scoresheet.

Believe

After a break in the season the players are now fully recharged. With 13 games to go and 5 points behind, we need to believe in ourselves. Anything can happen, and with hope in your mind.

My Team Prediction:
Reina
Arbeloa
Carragher
Skrtel
Aurelio
Mascherano
Lucas
Kuyt
Benayoun
Riera
Torres

Result 2:0

Match Report 090207 at Portsmouth: Determination drives us on

3-2 and we are so determined that at the end Rafa's gamble pays off. With players exhausted Rafa had to star with a very strange formation. Basically it is like playing Football Manager and Rafa just picked players with condition over 90%. We made some silly mistakes in defending but at the end when the big guns come on they helped us to victory and keeping pace in the title run.

Players Rating:
Reina: 6 Made a bad mistake in conceding the second goal.
Agger: 7 Solid defending.
Carragher: 7.5 Shield the defense very well.
Skrtel: 7.5 Did well defending and help created our first two goals.
Arbeloa: 7 Did well up and down.
Mascherano: 7 Did his job quiet but well.
Aurelio: 7.5 Scored a great goal and did well as makeshift midfielder.
Dossena: 7 Solid defending.
Benayoun: 8 Very lively performance capped with a superb assist for our winner.
Ngog: 6 Failed to make an impact.
Babel: 6 Lively performance but missed a sitter.

Substitutions:
Kuyt: 7.5 A very good performance with a nicely taken goal.
Alonso: 7.5 Controlled midfield well when came up.
Torres: 7.5 Superb header winning us another game.

Rafa: 7 Forced to make change after the hard fought game in midweek but at the end he was spot on.

Portsmouth: 6.5 If they played like this week in week out they will survive.

Man of the Match: Benayoun. Stood up and be counted.

Win it for our captain

With Stevie G injured and Lucas suspended we are now short of midfielder. Although Portsmouth is having lots of problem it is still a difficult place to visit. Yet we should be able to beat them, especially the prize is to regain the lead at least temporarily.

My Team Prediction:
Reina
Arbeloa
Carragher
Skrtel
Aurelio
Alonso
Mascherano
Kuyt
Benayoun
Riera
Torres

Result 2:0

Match Report 090204 at Everton: Get well soon, Stevie G

0-1 and we lost a hard fought battle. Stevie G was injured early in the game, and a stupid by Lucas had us down to ten men. We kept fighting, but at the end a deflected goal ended our cup run. It was a really bad night for us.

Players Rating:
Reina: 7.5 Did very well but at the end he was beaten by a deflected goal.
Arbeloa: 6.5 Did not go forward too often.
Carragher: 8 Solid as a rock and lead by example.
Skrtel: 7 Solid defending.
Dossena: 7 Good defending although he should go forward more often.
Alonso: 7 Did well in midfield.
Lucas: 5 Clumsy challenge that lead to the red card and our defeat.
Riera: 6.5 Did not go forward too often.
Gerrard: 6 Get well soon.
Kuyt: 7 Worked very hard especially after Gerrard injured.
Torres: 6 Not in form, and not interested in the game. Go down too easily.

Substitutions:
Benayoun: 6.5 Not as influential as the last 2 games.
Mascherano: 6.5 Did well in protecting the back 4.
Babel: 6 Not much offered.

Rafa: 6.5 Would need to sort out how we can cope without Gerrard especially now that Robbie Keane is gone.

Everton: 6.5 Did not do very well but with one man more, you expect them to win.

Man of the Match: Carragher. Did well although he would be gutted that we lose the derby.

3rd time lucky

After 2 successive draws against Everton this time there will only be one winner. Everton at home is difficult to beat, but we have confidence and the players are ready to beat them and go into the next round.

My Team Prediction:
Reina
Arbeloa
Carragher
Hyypia
Dossena
Mascherano
Lucas
Kuyt
Gerrard
Babel
Torres

Result 2:0

Match Report 090201 vs Chelsea: Bravo!

2-0 and this is a well deserved victory. We controlled the game from the first minute and there was only one team who is trying to win the game. It looks like we will get another draw, but at the end two find strikes from Fernando Torres sealed us the victory, and we are back in the race for the title.

One major talking point of the game would be the red card. It did look like a red card when Lampard committed this foul, and without the aid of slow motion, the referee made a mistake, and the red card should be rescinded. But no matter what, one team is going to win the game, and it is Liverpool.

Players Rating:
Reina: 7.5 Very solid with very few things to do apart from running all the way to celebrate Torres' first goal.
Arbeloa: 7.5 Very assured performance.
Carragher: 8 Rock solid.
Skrtel: 7.5 Solid performance.
Aurelio: 7.5 Solid in defense and provided a wonderful assist.
Alonso: 8 Very accurate passes.
Mascherano: 7 Tackles after tackles as usual.
Kuyt: 7 Work extremely hard.
Gerrard: 7.5 Tried very hard to win the game, including a few hard tackles and a dive.
Riera: 7 Have two chances in 1H but missed both.
Torres: 8.5 Still not back to his best, but the two goals are well taken.

Substitutions:
Benayoun: 8 Came on with an impact.
Babel: 7 Just run and run without a clear goal.
Ngog: 6.5 Not enough time to kick the ball.

Rafa: 7.5 Would be delighted about the victory and his gamble in leaving Keane out. Now we need to keep chasing.

Chelsea: 6 Did not deserve to get anything from this game, with or without the red card.

Man of the Match: Torres. First goals at Kop end since May.

Forget January

After the miserable January we now entered February and things will go better, started with the news that Rafa is getting what he wishes in control in transfer. Chelsea has a mini revival recently, but this is a home game and we will go for this game to maintain pressure on the top.

My Team Prediction:
Reina
Arbeloa
Carragher
Skrtel
Aurelio
Alonso
Mascherano
Kuyt
Gerrard
Riera
Torres

Result 2:0

January Month Review

1 win and 3 draws, and we are now down to 3rd place with 2 points behind having played 1 more game with a far worse goal difference, and are still hanging on the FA Cup. Too many draws this season has been killing our chance of winning the league, and Rafa seems to have lost the plot. We definitely need to clear up the mess and play better in February. At least January is now over, and we normally play much better in February under Rafa.

Players of the month: (1) Gerrard 7.51 (2) Reina 6.88 (3) Riera 6.88. Stevie G has not been affected by the court case and continues to shine, but he himself alone cannot drive us to glory. All the other players are playing badly, with Reina and Riera doing slightly better than the others.

February prediction:
2/1 Chelsea (h) If we do not win this game, our dream for league title will be almost over.
2/4 Everton (a) Another make or break game if we want to win FA Cup. But this time they will not park the bus in front of their fans.
2/7 Portsmouth (a) A trip to the south is always tough especially for a 5:30 game. Portsmouth are having bad times recently so we need to seize our chance.
2/14 Doncaster/Aston Villa (h) If we get pass Everton this will be another hurdle for our Cup glory, but this game will be at Anfield so we will have the advantage.
2/22 Manchester City (h) Last time we have the belief and won from behind. Surely we can win this again.
2/25 Real Madrid (a) Back to Europe, Rafa and Torres will be fire up for this.
2/28 Middlesbrough (a) A potential trouble game, but we have enough power to overcome it.

Match Report 090128 at Wigan Athletic: Sort out the mess!

1-1 and once again we were denied a victory. The players just did not have the right mentality to hold on for a win, and we are further slipped to 3rd place. Rafa seems to be a bit loss the plot, and we need him to be back to normal ASAP in order to have a real fight. Starting in February.

Players Rating:
Reina: 6.5 Not much to do.
Arbeloa: 6.5 A steady performance, but where were he when Lucas conceded the penalty?
Carragher: 6.5 Disappointed not to win on his birthday.
Skrtel: 6.5 Steady performance.
Aurelio: 6.5 Did not offer much going forward.
Mascherano: 7 Superb assist and solid tackles.
Lucas: 6 Good overall but conceded a poor penalty.
Benayoun: 7.5 Scored a wonderful individual goal.
Gerrard: 7 Good performance but lack that spark for a second goal.
Babel: 6.5 A better performance.
Torres: 6.5 Had one chance but hit the post.

Substitutions:
Riera/Kuyt: 6 Not much offered.
Keane: 6 Not enough time to impress.

Rafa: 6 Need to sort out the mess as soon as possible. We are gradually fading in challenging top spot.

Wigan Athletic: Did not do much to deserve more than a win.

Man of the Match: Benayoun: A great goal but not enough.

Start winning again

After 3 consecutive draws and conceded pole position, we now need to start winning again. As Sami said every game is now a must win game. Although Wigan did not have good result recently, they did gave us a lot of problems at home, and we need to be alert going to their place.

My Team Prediction:
Reina
Arbeloa
Carragher
Skrtel
Aurelio
Kuyt
Alonso
Gerrard
Riera
Keane
Torres

Result 2:0

Match Report 090125 vs Everton: Disappointed again

1-1 and this is another frustrating draw. Once again we dominated the game but failed to score one more goal. Now we need to visit them next Wednesday, which put us in an awful position as games are piling up. The road to glory is becoming rougher, but we need to fight till the end.

Players Rating:
Reina: 6.5 Can do nothing about that goal.
Arbeloa: 6.5 Glad to see him coming back.
Carragher: 6.5 Solid in defense.
Skrtel: 6.5 One lapse of mind led to the goal conceded.
Dossena: 6.5 Did well especially going forward.
Alonso: 6.5 Should have mark Cahill better during corner.
Mascherano: 6.5 Did well, but should have stay on the ground firmer.
Kuyt: 6.5 Should have shot the ball better.
Gerrard: 8 Once again saved us the day.
Babel: 6 No real contribution.
Torres: 6.5 Superb assist and getting closer to top form.

Substitution:
Riera: 6 Not much contribution.

Rafa: 6 Should be disappointed in getting another unwanted game. But we definitely need to work out on set pieces.

Everton: 6.5 Come for a draw and get what they want.

Man of the Match: Gerrard. Bring us to a replay, but is it a good thing?

Take two

After a disappointing draw on Monday this is now a chance for us to move on. Rafa will rest certain players, but we still have enough manpower to win this game.

My Team Prediction:
Cavalieri
Arbeloa
Carragher
Skrtel
Dossena
Benayoun
Gerrard
Mascherano
Babel
Keane
Torres

Result 2:0

Match Report 090119 vs Everton: We did not do enough to win

1-1 and it is very disappointing as Everton seems to be the team that want to win it more. We did not work hard enough, and defense had made a big mistake and paid the price. At the end of the day, a draw is not too bad, and we still have 16 games to go. And we will keep on fighting till the end.

Players Rating:
Reina: 7.5 Did very well but that goal conceded was too good.
Carragher: 6.5 Not much offered going forward.
Skrtel: 6.5 May have conceded a penalty just before we scored.
Hyypia: 6.5 Solid in defense.
Aurelio: 6.5 Solid but without going forward too often.
Kuyt: 7 Hard working as usual.
Gerrard: 8 Scored a great goal but unfortunately it was not enough.
Alonso: 6.5 Solid in the midfield.
Riera: 6.5 Did not offered too much from the side.
Keane: 6 Very quiet performance.
Torres: 6.5 Should have scored and won a penalty for us.

Substitutions:
Benayoun: 6 Did not offer too much, and conceded freekicks too often.
Lucas/Babel: 6 Not enough time to impress.

Rafa: 6 It becomes more and more difficult, but we will fight till the end.

Everton: 7 Solid as a team, came for a point and get what they deserved.

Man of the Match: Gerrard. 250th captaining but unfortunately his goal was not enough to bring us victory.

Regain the top spot

With so many off the field sagas happening and everybody else winning, this game becomes more important. Everton will be without many players, but they will gear up to face us. And we need to be at our best to win the game.

My Team Prediction:
Reina
Arbeloa
Carragher
Agger
Aurelio
Benayoun
Gerrard
Alonso
Riera
Kuyt
Torres

Result 2:0

Match Report 090110 at Stoke City: Frustated

0-0 and we were deeply frustrated by Stoke City. We started with a 4-2-3-1 formation, which we did extremely well at Newcastle. Unfortunately with Xabi injured this time we could not break the Stoke defense, as we lost midfield completely. Credits to Stoke as well, they did create many chances and not just sitting back. At the end a draw away is not too bad, but we are now in danger of being overtaken.

Players Rating:
Reina: 7 Did well in defending the set pieces.
Carragher: 7 Solid in defending.
Skrtel: 7 A bit rusty but in general a good come back.
Hyypia: 7.5 Solid in defending and almost scored.
Aurelio: 7 Good display after so many games out.
Lucas: 6 Too many miss passes.
Mascherano: 7 Closing down the opponents well.
Benayoun: 6 Failed to break down the Stoke defense.
Gerrard: 6.5 Was double marked and did not shown up until late.
Riera: 7 Provided a few great crosses.
Kuyt: 6.5 Did not do well as lone striker.

Substitutions:
Torres: 6.5 A quiet performance.
Babel: 6 Not enough time to impress.

Rafa: 6.5 Would be disappointed that the team failed to break through tough opponents.

Stoke City: 7 Credits to them, they executed their game plan well and was rewarded with a point.

Man of the Match: Hyypia. 700 superb displays.

Move forward

With Chelsea playing on Sunday a win today will bring us 6 points clear on top for a day. We failed to break down Stoke at home, and they have Delap's free throw attack, but the team is well prepared to tear them down.

My Team Prediction:
Reina
Arbeloa
Carragher
Hyypia
Aurelio
Mascherano
Lucas
Kuyt
Gerrard
Riera
Torres

Result 2:0