Fagan

pauleta is pants, ive been watching him for years waiting for him to come good and still nothing please rafa no

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was just a bout to post that article, its a great read, arguably worthy of a seperate thread. i am always loathe top write them off, but with van nistelrooy gone they are in major major trouble. 1 injury to rooney and they are screwed

i though it was ok, i found it interesting cause im a big fan of his but as autobiographies go it was quite poor. i also didnt like the stuff about houllier, thought it came across as v bitter houlliers best bit of business was getting 11M for fowler at the time IMHO

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you dont think we'll sign kuyt and that greek kid?

we all know how much rafa changes his starting line up anyway so everyone will get their fair share of games given the amount of competitions we are in. and we have to expect some injuries so we should be delighted that we now have such a strong squad

now normally when a member posts a thread saying that hes been told a certain player is signing by the weekend he is laughed out of the forum, unless its elisha or 1 or 2 others. im assuming that because this guy micks post has been accepted without question that its reliable? if so, im made up, delighted we are getting kuyt and im delighted he had a sh*t world cup otherwise the price would have jumped

seems that way. clearly over 5 paragraphs is a bad thing! I actually think tomkins is pretty good, and he is a journalist and author, not some 2-bit internet blogger

V interesting i thought Liverpools Vital Statistics Well, even ignoring the fact that even 4th has significant rewards these days, 2005/06 was actually notable in a number of ways. There was the record-breaking sequence without conceding a goal, which contributed to the 33 clean sheets, one shy of the all-time record. There was also the incredible percentage of league games won by the Reds: the 2nd-highest in the club's history. It was a busy year for the ?stattos?. It was after being contacted by Oliver Anderson ? a statistician, Liverpool fan and qualified football coach ? that I stumbled upon the last fact. He had worked out the win percentages in recent campaigns, but I asked him to compare them to the 18 title-winning sides, to see how the current crop compared. With every passing week during the spring months the Reds eclipsed the win percentage of another Anfield Championship era, eventually overtaking the phenomenal 1987/88 side and finishing behind only the supreme 1978/79 vintage. Having helped me compile such statistics for my column on this website, as well as for my latest book, Oliver requested my input on his own project. So let me set the scene. I am waiting in a coffee bar to discuss the fruits of his labours: original and detailed statistical analysis of Liverpool's fortunes since the arrival of Rafa Benítez. Having only conversed by email, I am perhaps guilty of looking out for a guy carrying a clipboard, wearing a '70s civil servant suit and peering out through jam-jar glasses. It's hot and sunny outside, but over his death-grey clothes I anticipate some kind of anorak; possibly a cagoule, with its practical self-storage capacity. Unless the anorak has been hastily concealed upon his entrance, the person I meet has the look of a regular guy. He looks more like a sportsman than a librarian. He has a normal sized head. We discuss zonal marking, and he shows me figures that 'prove' Liverpool were actually the most successful team defending set pieces in the Premiership. There are comparisons between Steven Gerrard's productivity on the centre and on the right, and the same with Djibril Cissé. There's the revealing goals-per-minute of Robbie Fowler, and the eye-opening productivity of Luis Garcia in the Premiership; based on minutes played, he comes out as the top Liverpool player. I am shown Pepe Reina's save percentages, and how they compare with his rivals in the league, and with the other Liverpool keepers. Then there is the regularity with which players make mistakes that cost goals. We discuss all areas of the team's play over a number of hours (statisticians drink regular coffee, in a regular mug, without the aid of any unusual drinking apparatus), and I agree to help him with his own book. I've always liked statistics, but believe in common sense when using them. Stats should carry warnings similar to those associated with junk food: as part of a sensible debate on football they are a healthy addition; as an entire diet, they're bad news. Without thoughtful analysis, they can mean nothing. More and more managers and coaches use figures to tell them intricate details of their team's play. Technology is used to monitor all aspects of performance; it's better to be armed with too much information than too little. Knowledge is power. But it's important to have some kind of understanding of football in the first place, and to respect the limitations of anything that reduces a complex interactive game involving a number of free-willed participants into a series of numbers. Statistics are an additional tool for analysing the game; they are not going to tell the full story. Like Oliver, I feel it's now important to look at 'rate' stats, especially for strikers. In years gone by, clubs had two strikers and they played two strikers; a third may be present as back-up, but there was no such thing as rotation; just injuries and being dropped. Forty years ago there were no subs, and 20 years ago just one. Nowadays up to six players are likely to play just part of a game, either through being subbed on or off; the amount of minutes they play are the key factor here. No striker's goals-per-game rate will benefit from being sent on in the 92nd minute to waste time. Evaluating the amount of goals scored over the course of the season isn't as revealing as the rate at which those goals are scored. Goals-per-minute tell us a lot more, especially when four strikers are sharing the duties fairly evenly. Craig Bellamy was easily in the top 10 Premiership strikers based on goals-per-minute for Blackburn, and while someone like Darren Bent scored more goals, his scoring rate was significantly inferior to that of the new Liverpool striker. Marginally ahead of Bellamy was Robbie Fowler, based solely on his time at Liverpool. However, add his goal against Manchester United for City in a fleeting league appearance, and he leaps to 5th on the list. It's a quite remarkable achievement, considering that he was coming back from injury and not match fit for the first month, and that he also had two legitimate league goals chalked off. (Having said that, the Blackburn goal was conciliatory gift from the linesman's union.) The trouble is, of course, that it's no good being a 'one goal in two games' player if you only play two games a season. Fowler's rate remains impressive, but now he needs a good season under his belt. Of course, it's highly unlikely he'll need to find his best on 60 occasions; he's sharing striking duties, rather than being the sole provider of a decade ago. It's also interesting to look at the best positions of certain players, but not just for their own figures, but for the success of the team. Djibril Cissé's overall goalscoring record was impressive, but less so when he played as a striker, especially in the league. He was actually at his most prolific on the wing, but while his individual figures were fairly impressive out there, the team's results suffered by comparison with other players in the role. When Gerrard played on right, he created and scored less than during his time as an orthodox central midfielder ? which is his 'true' position, after all ? but the team benefited as a result; not only could he attack down the right, but his work-rate and defensive abilities meant he helped the team win a higher percentage of matches. He gave the team balance, in the absence of a specialist right-winger. Facts like this aren't always apparent when watching football on a match-to-match basis. You can have instincts and form impressions, but it often helps to see figures that provide another form of evidence. And that's something that Oliver, amongst others in the field, sets out to do.

I still think alves might be on the cards, particularly if rafa goes for a striker on a loan deal (trezeguet?)

Bascombe is back: echo Benitez sights could be on a flight of fancyJul 25 2006 By Chris Bascombe, Liverpool Echo FOR the second successive summer, Rafa Benitez expects to head to Liverpool's pre-season base in Switzerland with at least two spare seats on the flight.The Liverpool boss hoped to conclude his transfer business before the week's intensive training in Europe, which begins tomorrow. And although Benitez remains confident some of the new faces he craves may arrive by the end of the week, there are undoubted signs of frustration with the regularity the phrase 'transfer saga' allies itself to many Liverpool deals. Over a year since the Reds' first pursuit of a right midfielder, the elusive winger is still to be paraded in Liverpool colours. If things go to plan, this will be resolved with the imminent arrival of Jermaine Pennant. The Reds are in the process of increasing their initial £3.5m valuation to nearer £5m. That will still leave Benitez with funds available to pursue an equally, if not more, urgently needed striker. While the apparent delays make pre-season an often excruciating period for supporters craving transfer news, they are an inevitable consequence of Liverpool's far more careful recruitment policy. Benitez refuses to pay over the odds for players valued above their talent. That's why, despite money being available if the manager had given the go-ahead, players such as Simao Sabrosa and Daniel Alves have, at differing points in the last 12 months, teetered on the brink of a switch to Anfield, but never crossed the line. Whenever valuations have increased, Benitez has declined to concede to the will of chairmen sensing an inflated price, or agents yearning ridiculously high commission. It should be noted, however, that Benitez takes such a moral stance towards his transfer deals as much as a matter of necessity as principle. The tighter the purse strings, the easier it is to be prudent. Liverpool will be thankful the foresight of Craig Bellamy's agent inserted a get-out clause in his Blackburn contract, allowing one major statement of intent so far this summer without a prolonged period of negotiation. Benitez would be more willing to meet Seville's asking price for Alves if he knew he had enough money left to buy a top class striker too, but the lack of interest in Liverpool's unwanted squad members - making it impossible for Benitez to accumulate before he can speculate - means the manager must consider how best to allocate his remaining funds. Alves' agent also expects a significant reward for negotiating a deal. As Seville's asking price increased, Benitez hoped the agent would amend his personal expectations. Thefact he'srefused to do so is a major reason for the transfer stalling. There's little doubt Pennant is second choice, but pound for pound he represents better value than Alves, who'd swallow up funds set aside for another forward. Liverpool first approached Birmingham three weeks ago when the Alves deal reached a dead end. The Reds hoped allowing themselves to be linked with Damien Duff late last week might prompt Pennant to hurry Birmingham into listening to offers. That backfired somewhat when Duff signed for Newcastle claiming he'd turned down Liverpool. He nevergot the chance to, and probably never would have, but the link was as much of Liverpool's making as Chelsea's. Now a fresh approach is to be made for Pennant, with the Reds' hopeful their interest will prompt the 23-year-old to make it clear,in the same way as Bellamy, his heart is set on a move. Sources in the Midlands believe, privately, Steve Bruce is already resigned to losing the winger and is merelyfighting for an acceptable fee. "We are continuing to work to bring in more players, but it's difficult to say where we are at this moment, in depends on two or three factors," said Benitez. "We are closer with some players, but I'm not the kind of manager who will say 'I want this player and I'll pay £20m to get him' if his value is only £10m. We don't have the money for doing this and we have a responsibility. "We will try to sign the best players for us with the money we have. "When you have experience, you know it's the same every year. Sometimes you have to wait until the last minute. "I'm really happy with the squad now, but we will continue working and I think this week we can makeone or two signings. If not, we can wait a little longer." This time last year Benitez left for Switzerland frustrated at the slow progress of the deal to bring his main target to Anfield. Within a matter of days, Peter Crouch was wearing a red jersey and joining his team-mates in Switzerland. Both the manager, and fans,will be hoping the sense of d?j? vu yields the same positive outcome, ensuring the empty seats reserved on the flight out are suitably filled on the return home.

why is it that we are led a merry dance when it comes to transfers! at least thats how it seems.

and their name is...

anyone know what the away kit looks like?

She's got great things in front of her..

Utter rubbish. why on earth is he a c*nt? i think his attitude has been spot on. hes a professional and a v hard worker on the pitch. if he was so interested in money he could have stayed at chelsea and earned higher wages and more than likely win a trophy and then leave for free next summer of if he wanted and make millions. but he didnt, he went to newcastle for whatever reasons. maybe he wantged to go back up the northwest which is why he turned down spurs. i doubt we were in for him at all.

and cue duff tearing his hamstring and missing 3 months of the season

no never to any major effect, but i put that down to having below average players around him and a manager with no tactical nouse. he is best as a left winger though, no doubts about that but he is v versatile agreed re mourinho, he got nullified his attacking genius by making him play a more defensive role in chelsea's crap system