Talk is Cheap

Talk is indeed cheap. That’s why I like it. It costs me nothing and provides fodder upon which to build/comment/rally against.

As Liverpool feels the pressure grow after recent lackluster performances, more of their own are stepping out of the shadows to make their voices heard. The latest is former Red fullback, Alan Kennedy.

The European Cup winner on Rafa, the squad and the title:

I think they’re there, I really do, but they have to go out to win every game. They have really got to go out there and aim to beat the team in front of them, whether it be in the Champions League or the Carling Cup.

If Rafa wants to rotate and he feels he can get the best out of his players that way, I can’t argue with that. What I can say is that results at the end of the season will determine whether he’s doing the right thing.

He’s already left Torres out on a couple of occasions. If he feels the team can do without Torres, then all well and good. But I think we’ve seen how good Torres is, and if you ask the fans, the majority will say Torres is the number one striker.

I don’t think Liverpool would get rid of him but by the end of next season, Rafa would have been there five years. I wouldn’t say it’s now or never but in the next couple of seasons they have got to win the Premier League. Rafa strengthened in the areas we needed strengthening and he’s built a squad that’s based on ability. It’s as good a squad as we’ve ever had and it’s one that’s good enough to win the Premier League.

He’s made big strides, he really has, and people might say he’s spent money, but Sir Alex Ferguson has done that as well and so have other clubs like Tottenham.

I think it’s much too early to be talking about Rafa’s job security as a FA Cup and European Cup buy him some well-deserved time, but the point about winning the league is valid enough. I think it’s more than fair to expect a league trophy in the next two seasons.

But, Alan… “other clubs like Tottenham”?

You have seen the league table lately, haven’t you?

On a lighter note, Sami Hyypia wants to hang around the Merseyside a bit longer:

Rafa Speaks

 

Rafa has sounded off on the Marseille debacle and has done so in spades. And, quite honestly, I might add.

Evil Rafa is not happy:

That could be the worst performance since I came here, especially at home. We didn’t create much from the beginning. It was a poor game, we were not playing well from the beginning. We were giving the ball away and not creating chances. Only at the end we produced some pressure and created a little bit.

We knew Marseille were playing better in the Champions League. They’re a good team and we knew the quality was there. You must give them credit because they were working hard, were well organised and were pressing and we were giving the ball away. We knew it could be like this with the players they have with pace and ability.

Marseille played well, they pressed us hard and worked well. But we should have been able to create chances behind teams who attack and press like that. But we did not create any clear chances. We did have the options, but just failed to take advantage and you do not win if you do not create openings.

We were trying to change players and trying to change positions. We were trying, but really the team was playing bad.

We did not deserve anything. From the beginning, the team did not play well. We were giving the ball away, losing second balls and not winning possession up front. It is very difficult to win a game like that. It was worse than in Porto in our first group match.

The only comfort I can take from this game is that it’s finished.

French Folly

A new month on the calendar, but the same uninspired play on the pitch.

In what looked like Liverpool of old for long stretches, the Reds were out-played and out-hustled by an inferior team, content to play long balls in hopes of finding a gift instead of working to create their own chances.

At least we can’t blame rotation for this one.

Lack of passion and adherence to any sort of coherent tactic have to be labeled as the culprits for the deserved loss. That is, unless Rafa instructed the team to mindlessly hit the ball up the field and not to exert too much effort. While Marseille closed down each red jersey with urgency, played a quick passing game, kept the ball grounded and looked dangerous at times, Liverpool did the exact opposite with contrapositive results.

Even when Liverpool tried to play in a more quick, productive manner, their touches let them down or their passing was too heavy. It would be easy to blame the weather if it weren’t for the stark constrast of Marseille’s performance.

Liverpool’s form is disturbing. For a team that’s sitting fourth in the league, we certainly don’t look the part. This is a team that isn’t passing the ball well, not playing with real passion or creativity and looks to be going through the motions for lengthy periods of time.

Maybe this team really does miss the passing influences of Agger and Alonso. I don’t know what’s going on right now. But to watch this squad consistently play the same mediocre ball they’ve played for years after having just watched them play a more attractive and much more effective brand of footy only mere weeks ago is highly frustrating.

This is a team that needs a slap upside the head. Maybe tonight’s loss can be the catalyst for change. Something needs to because this mediocre form cannot continue if they are to seriously challenge for silverware on any front. A few bumps in the road is one thing, those are expected; But an extended rough patch is quite another. Rafa needs to straighten them out. And quickly.

So, with one point after two matches, Liverpool now sit third in the group ahead of pointless Besiktas, but trail Marseille’s six points and Porto’s four. While I’m not in panic mode, there is certainly a fuck-ton of work left to do. So much for having qualification wrapped up early.

I’m interested to see how the team reacts when Tottenham visits Anfield this weekend.

Read the Official Site’s match report here.

Read a slightly more ‘honest’ version.

We’ll see how long this stays up but…

(link courtesy of 101 Great Goals)

My thoughts on the match action:

Absence Makes the Heart Something Something

My apologies for the radio silence around these parts the past few days. While I do my best not to let my silly ‘real life’ interfere with my true loves of footy and writing, occasionally, like a flood water, it seeps in and causes some damage.

So, while Captain Fantastic has been running over children with his car and God has been planning to return to Anfield, I’ve been quietly going about my personal business on the touchlines. Let’s just say that I was rotated out to keep me fresh for the latter portions of the season.

But, I apologize for those of you who are so good to visit Being Sven on a daily (or even weekly) basis. Normalcy will resume after the Marseille game and just like Jermaine Pennant, I’ll be serving it up over and over again – some on-target, some shockingly poor, but always with the effort.