December Month Report

1W2D2L and it was a very poor month. We did beat Villa at home, but the two defeats against Newcastle and Wolves are simply unacceptable. With such a manager we really have no hope, but will NESV do anything?

Players of the month: (1) Lucas 7.00 (2) Babel 6.71 (3) Reina 6.50. Lucas was the one who really delivered consistently throughout this season, and Babel did shown some sparks especially during the Villa game. And Reina, Mr save hand got his 100th clean sheets at record time.

January Prediction:
1/1 Bolton Wanderers (h) Try our best to get the first double of the season.
1/5 Blackburn Rovers (a) We need to win, but it's away game...
1/9 Manchester United (a) Tough matchup
1/12 Blackpool (a) Revenge needed
1/16 Everton (h) Ditto
1/22 Wolverhampton Wanderers (a) Ditto
1/26 Fulham (h) We should try to win this game, but players may be tired at this point.
1/29 FA Cup 4th round (TBA) Let's get through 3rd round first.

December Month Report

1W2D2L and it was a very poor month. We did beat Villa at home, but the two defeats against Newcastle and Wolves are simply unacceptable. With such a manager we really have no hope, but will NESV do anything?

Players of the month: (1) Lucas 7.00 (2) Babel 6.71 (3) Reina 6.50. Lucas was the one who really delivered consistently throughout this season, and Babel did shown some sparks especially during the Villa game. And Reina, Mr save hand got his 100th clean sheets at record time.

January Prediction:
1/1 Bolton Wanderers (h) Try our best to get the first double of the season.
1/5 Blackburn Rovers (a) We need to win, but it's away game...
1/9 Manchester United (a) Tough matchup
1/12 Blackpool (a) Revenge needed
1/16 Everton (h) Ditto
1/22 Wolverhampton Wanderers (a) Ditto
1/26 Fulham (h) We should try to win this game, but players may be tired at this point.
1/29 FA Cup 4th round (TBA) Let's get through 3rd round first.

Match Report 101229 vs Wolverhampton Wanderers: Shame

0-1 and it is a real shame that we lose to the bottom club at home. The manager even said that 0-0 is a fair result, and that the fans are not doing the right thing. He is setting up enemies everywhere, and we really don't know how we can get out of this abyss.

Players Rating:
Reina: 6.5 Defense let him down.
Johnson: 6 Not good enough.
Kyrgiakos: 6 Poor clearance lead to the goal conceded.
Skrtel: 6 Had a goal rightly ruled offside.
Konchesky: 6 Not impressive at all.
Meireles: 6 Should have scored from a quick free kick from Torres.
Gerrard: 6 Very rusty after the long injury.
Lucas: 7 The only player deserved credit.
Kuyt: 6 Not going anywhere on the left.
Torres: 6 No supply at all.
Ngog: 6 Had a few shots but couldn't score.

Substitutions:
Babel: 6 Not much impact.
Cole/Aurelio: 6 Cannot change the game.

RH: 5 Please go.

Wolverhampton Wanderers: 6.5 Credits to them in defending well and take their chance.

Man of the Match: Lucas. If every player has the motivation like him...

Rested

After 2 games postponed we finally have a game after a good rest. Wolves is at the bottom of the league but we still need to work hard in order to take home 3 points to end the disappointing year.

My Team Prediction:
Reina
Johnson
Skrtel
Kyrgiakos
Konchesky
Kuyt
Meireles
Lucas
Maxi
Gerrard
Torres

Result 2:0

Improve in away games

If we want to climb up the table we need to start winning away games. We lost to Blackpool early this year, and now this is a chance for us to take revenge. Anything less than 3 points is unacceptable.

My Team Prediction:
Reina
Johnson
Skrtel
Kyrgiakos
Konchesky
Kuyt
Meireles
Lucas
Maxi
Gerrard
Torres

Result 2:0

Improvements

It is true that we play better at home but still we need to improve a lot. The next 4 game would be crucial so we need to take one game at a time, and try to will all 4.

My Team Prediction:
Reina
Johnson
Skrtel
Kyrgiakos
Konchesky
Kuyt
Meireles
Lucas
Maxi
Ngog
Torres

Result 2:0

Match Report 101215 vs Utrecht: Young stars still need to prove themselves

0:0 and it was a bored match. The youngsters did fine but they lack the ambition and motivation to win the game. Anyway the main thing is that we come out of the game unscratched, and now we really have to focus and improve in the league.

Players Rating:
Jones: 7 First clean sheet for the team.
Kelly: 6.5 Another good display.
Skrtel: 6 A solid display.
Wilson: 7.5 Perform very well.
Aurelio: 6.5 Should be our first team left back.
Shelvey: 6 Another solid display.
Cole: 6 Failed to take his chance.
Poulsen: 6 Suit Europa game better.
Jovanovic: 6.5 Lively performance.
Babel: 6 Failed to take his chance.
Eccleston: 6 A good first start.

Substitutions:
Kyrgiakos: 6 Solid performance.
Pacheco: 6 A nice run.
Kuyt: 6 A good run against his former team.

RH: 6 Team performance was not good.

Utrecht: 6 Solid display from the visitors.

Man of the match: Wilson. Getting better and better.

Give the kids another chance

This is a meaningless game and RH should play as many young kids as possible. Torres will be involved, but hope he will not play too long and injure himself.

My Team Prediction:
Reina
Kelly
Skrtel
Wilson
Aurelio
Pacheco
Shelvey
Lucas
Poulsen
Cole
Babel

Result 2:0

Match Report 101211 at Newcastle United: Defense let us down

1-3 and it was 3 defensive mistakes that see us conceded 3 goals. Also we seems to content to get one point, and sit back after the equalizer. This is yet another away defeats and we need to do something to change this all over, or we can forget getting to top 6, let alone top 4.

Players Rating:
Reina: 6 Get exposed for all 3 goals.
Johnson: 6 Failed to help in all 3 goals.
Kyrgiakos: 6 Can't cope with Carroll.
Skrtel: 5.5 Very poor defending.
Konchesky: 5.5 Lost Nolan and let him score.
Kuyt: 6.5 Scored a lucky goal.
Meireles: 7 Did well in a poor team.
Lucas: 6 Nothing spectacular.
Maxi: 6.5 Solid game.
Torres: 6 Did not take his chances well.
Ngog: 6 Still fail to shine in away games.

Substitutions:
Babel/Jovanovic: 6 Failed to contribute anything.

RH: 5 Please go. ASAP.

Newcastle United: 7 Did well and deserved to get all three points.

Man of the Match: Meireles. Players let him down.

Improve away form

We have not been getting results in away games and it is time for us to improve it. Similar to us, Newcastle gets a manager that the fans don't want, and the change may not be good to them. So we need to grab this chance and try to bring 3 points home.

My Team Prediction:
Reina
Johnson
Skrtel
Kyrgiakos
Konchesky
Kuyt
Meireles
Lucas
Maxi
Ngog
Torres

Result 2:0

Match Report 101206 vs Aston Villa: Good team display

3-0 and it was a very good team display. Even without our 3 big names the other players did well to spoil Houllier's return party. We did slow down a bit after 3 goals up but in general this is a comfortable win. Now we need to transform this to away games as well.

Players Rating:
Reina: 7.5 100th clean sheets and many more to come.
Johnson: 7.5 Did very well and could have been scored.
Kyrgiakos: 7.5 Another solid game and almost scored.
Skrtel: 7.5 Solid header to provide assist to kick off the goals.
Konchesky: 7 Solid at the back.
Kuyt: 7 Work hard as usual.
Meireles: 7.5 Getting better and better in midfield.
Lucas: 8 Control the midfield with authority.
Maxi: 7.5 Scored a great header.
Babel: 7.5 Coolly taken goal.
Ngog: 7.5 Superb header to kick off the game.

Substitutions:
Aurelio/Cole/Kelly: 6.5 Did OK when came up.

RH: 7.5 One of the better games under RH, now he needs to transfer this level to away games.

Aston Villa: 5.5 Sorry Gerald but this was really poor.

Man of the Match: Lucas. Another Hamann like performance.

Welcome back, Gerald

It is the first time Gerald Houllier is back to Anfield after his departure, and we miss him. We lost to Villa last year so it is a wonderful occasion for us to do better than last season. Gerrard and Carragher are both out but the remaining players should work hard and try to win the game.

My Team Prediction:
Reina
Johnson
Skrtel
Kyrgiakos
Konchesky
Kuyt
Meireles
Lucas
Maxi
Ngog
Torres

Result 2:0

Match Report 101202 at Steaua Bucharest: Qualify

1-1 and we are now qualified as top spot of the group. However the performance was not good and it shows the gap between the first team and the reserve. Anyway it was a good game for the young stars and they will have another opportunity in the final home game.

Players Rating:
Reina: 6 Made a horrible mistake but in general he was outstanding.
Kelly: 6 Did OK but at times was unsure about where to go.
Kyrgiakos: 6.5 Solid in leading the kids and was unlucky to hit the bar and not scored.
Wilson: 6 A nice Europe debut.
Aurelio: 6 Should make left back his own place.
Poulsen/Shelvey: 6 Solid in the middle.
Pacheco: 6 A nice run but still have a lot to learn.
Cole: 6 Solid display coming back from injury.
Jovanovic: 6.5 Scored a nice header.
Babel: 7 A good game with a nice assist.

Substitutions:
Ngog/Eccleston: 6 Did OK when coming on.
Lucas: 6 Not enough time to impress.

RH: 6 A good result but performance need to be raised.

Steaua Bucharest: 5.5 Lucky to have equalized but they need to improve a lot if they want to qualify.

Man of the Match: Babel. Should still work harder.

Young stars to shine

We only need one point at Steaut Bucharest and even RH is making sense and let the young stars a chance to show where they are up to. We may be weakened but one point is what we need, and with Reina in goal we will be in safe hands.

My Team Prediction:
Reina
Kelly
Kyrgiakos
Wilson
Aurelio
Lucas
Poulsen
Shelvey
Cole
Babel
Ngog

Result 2:0

November Month Report

3W1D2L and we are gradually pickup up ourselves. We started the month well with 2 games at home vs Napoli and Chelsea, but the results away from home are still poor as we lost 5 points at Wigan and Stoke. Another home win comes, but then we lost to Spurs by a last minute goal. Clearly we need to improve away from home, especially we now lost two key players in Carra and Gerrard.

Players of the month (1) Reina 7.0 (2) Kuyt 6.993 (3) Meireles 6.988. Reina was as usual very solid. And we need him to be even better in the coming month as our captain. Kuyt did very well back from injury, with an superb assit to Torres in the Chelsea game, and scored a penalty against West Ham. Meireles gradually shows us what he can do and did very well especially from the middle.

December Prediction:
12/2 Steaua Bucharest (a) A draw will see us through.
12/6 Aston Villa (h) Welcome back, Houllier.
12/11 Newcastle United (a) A tough away game for us.
12/15 Utrecht (h) Let the youngsters shine.
12/18 Fulham (h) Fulham will be eager to beat RH so we need to be careful.
12/26 Blackpool (a) We need to do a revenge on that shameful defeat at Anfield.
12/29 Wolverhampton Wanderers (h) A win to wrap up the miserable 2010 should be fine, but we need to work very hard to achieve it.

Match Report 101128 vs Tottenham Hotspur: Misery continues

1-2 and despite leading 1 goal at half time, we failed to build on it and lost the game. What's worse is that Carragher is injured. Something need to be done quickly or our season will go from bad to worse.

Players Rating:
Reina: 7 Can't be faulted on both goals.
Johnson: 6 Could not cope with Modric.
Carragher: 7.5 Never say die spirit and even saved a goal from the line.
Skrtel: 7 Scored at both ends.
Konchesky: 5 Fault at the second goal conceded.
Kuyt: 6.5 Worked hard as usual.
Meireles: 7 Bossed the midfield and even saved a goal from the goal line.
Lucas: 7 Tackles everywhere.
Maxi: 6.5 Missed a few great chances.
Ngog: 5.5 Conceded a very childish handball.
Torres: 6 Indecisive or else should score 2.

Substitutions:
Aurelio: 6.5 Gradually picking up his games.
Kyrgiakos: 5.5 Missed time defense lead to the goal.

RH: 6 The team is playing better, but somehow we still lost the game.

Tottenham Hotspur: 7.5 Credits to them in never give up. We should learn from them.

Man of the Match: Carragher. We will miss him dearly.

Steal a point

With RH's mindset we won't win too many away games, but we may have a chance to steal a point at White Hart Lane. We have the whole week to prepare the game and if luck is on our side, we may get 3 points home.

My Team Prediction:
Reina
Johnson
Carragher
Skrtel
Konchesky
Lucas
Meireles
Kuyt
Cole
Maxi
Torres

Result 2:0

Match Report 101120 vs West Ham United: Good display against a poor team

3:0 and this is a good display, despite the fact the West Ham are really poor. We were already 3 up in half time and was very relaxed in second half, but in truth the real test is next week when we visit White Hart Lane. It will see how high we can go.

Players Rating:
Reina: 7.5 Not really tested and his delivery were superb.
Johnson: 7.5 A much better performance with a nicely taken goal.
Carragher: 7 Solid in the middle.
Skrtel: 7 Good performance.
Konchesky: 7 Great delivery to the final goal.
Kuyt: 7.5 Worked hard as usual and taken a penalty coolly.
Meireles: 8 Pulling all the strings in the middle.
Poulsen: 7 A good performance against a poor team.
Maxi: 7.5 Very deadly inside 18 yard.
Torres: 7 Had a great opportunity denied.
Ngog: 6.5 Not really into the game.

Substitutions:
Aurelio: 6.5 Solid display in his first league game of the season.
Shelvey/Babel: 6.5 Not enough time to impress.

RH: 7 Would be delighted about the result, he should give the kids more time in 2H though.

West Ham United: 5 Very poor performance and apart from Green and Cole, the rest of the team was disinterested in fighting.

Man of the Match: Meireles. Middle is clearly his best position.

Any hope

With such a manager and so many injuries and suspension, do we have any hope against a bottom team at home? We should give the youngsters a chance to shine and fight for the team.

My Team Prediction:
Reina
Kelly
Carragher
Skrtel
Konchesky
Maxi
Poulsen
Shelvey
Jovanovic
Kuyt
Torres

Result 2:0

Match Report 101114 at Stoke City: Expected defeat

0:2 and this is one the most toothless display by our team, but it is kind of expected from the negative approach of the team. We seems to just want to play for a draw away, and with this mindset, it is difficult for us to expect any win away from home. The owners need to do something.

Players Rating:
Reina: 6 Cannot do to much to save both goals.
Carragher: 6 Never go up to support attack. Manager order?
Kyrgiakos: 6 Nothing special.
Skrtel: 6 At least willing to fight.
Konchesky: 6 No support to attack and don't look solid in defending.
Lucas: 5 Stupid challenges.
Meireles: 6 Had a few sparks only.
Kuyt: 6.5 Run all across the field.
Gerrard: 6 Could not drive the team this time.
Maxi: 6 Not effective.
Torres: 6 Played through injury.

Substitutions:
Ngog/Babel: 6 Did not do much to change the game.

RH: 3 Should go now.

Stoke City: 7 Credits to them with a solid game plan that was executed perfectly.

Man of the Match: Kuyt. Worked hard as usual.