deacon

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Marseille and PSV as the second and third seeds - it could have been a lot worse. I think it's a fair group, could have been much tougher

Milner's a good player. Amazing to think he's only 22 and seems to have been around for ages.

I remember Elisha said a few weeks back that Agger was apparently looking very sharp in training. He looked ok in the first leg against Liege, but hasn't had a look in since. Very strange.

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I fancy Boro to surprise people this season. They're not going to make Europe and I can't access any gambling sites at work, but I reckon you'd get a decent price on them to finish in the top half of the table.

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Completely disagree with this statement. The game in England is very different to the way it's played elsewhere, Rafa was saying it himself - in England players get very little time on the ball as most sides press all over the pitch, the game is very quick and is more physical. Shevchenko went from looking like the best striker in the world to way out of his depth at times in 6 months, this is not down to a lack of effort, he's a top pro. Same with Morientes. You could day the same for Veron too. Riquleme is another one who would not do well in England as he wouldn't get the time and space required. Rafa said these elements in the English game have become more apparant year on year during his time at the club. This is why I think he's decided to sell Xabi, his main strenghts have been tempered by the way the game is played here. I have to say, I think the outcry over Alonso being sold is way over the top, people are remembering the Xabi of 2004-2006 rather than the Xabi from the past 18 months, when his form has dropped massively.

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Apologies if this has been posted elsewhere, but this is a great clip of Torres banging them in as a 12 year old.

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This post is utter bullsh1t, it's got to be said. Bring it on? You're trying to defend the fact that large parts of stadiums in Spain racially abuse players by lauding the other values Spanish citizens uphold, as if Spain are the only country in Europe that uphold these. You sir, are an idiot.

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If that had been the Man U players after they won the Champions League final we wouldn't be saying this. What they did was hugely disrespectful to Schweinstieger and the German players and shows a complete lack of class. I'd be ashamed of the Liverpool players if they did something like that.

Xavi was their best player, he's the one who makes them tick. Russia's pressing game was completely nullified by his ability to always find the right pass. He didn't have the best of games against Italy and he should have used the longer pass sometimes, but in fairness Italy defended exceptionally well, particularly Chiellini. Xavi's game is suited perfectly to his position on the pitch. Iniesta, however, plays a similar game to Xavi, but does it in wider areas where there's more space on the pitch, making it easier to find the pass. I also think that as Iniesta plays further up the pitch, he should be a little more direct. While he's lovely to watch, he can be rather ineffective at times, a bit like Hleb. For instance, against Man U in this season's Champions League semi finals, he received so much of the ball in attacking positions and not once did he look threatening. Still a great player though, just a minor flaw.

I remember when Man City won at Anfield with Fowler and Anelka up front. The natural question from the post match interview was about Houllier's decision to let them go and he totally lost it and called the question out of order. Houllier would be like that sometimes.

The Macca derby is my favourite. The 2-1 win against Arsenal with the Mellor winner is up there too. 3 brilliant goals in that matech. Gerrard was amazing in that game

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