Redwire

Yes!

Come on Redmen!

Two failed managers and a shyte pundit telling Rafa he's wrong. Hilarious. Hoddle will be saying next that Gerrard did something bad in a past life and is now being punished by being made to play on the right.

Sky saying Gerrard is to play on the right, though I don't know how they know.

The Liverpool crowd had done an astonishing thing. They made Chelsea play worse than they can, they made Liverpool play better than they can, they made the referee turn a crucial decision their way. That's 23 people all behaving in the way that the Liverpool crowd wished. It was, in the most literal sense, a triumph of hope over expectation.There's a lot of guff written about football crowds, particularly Liverpool's. But the fact is, the tradition of a club is not in the hands or even the feet of players, or managers, hirelings all, who will be off the minute a better offer comes along. No one in football has loyalty to anyone, or is expected to. Only supporters have loyalty. They are not loyal to persons or institutions so much as loyal to loyalty itself. And with Liverpool, the loyalty passed the test of time, the years of comparative failure. Simon Barnes, The Times The best team may or may not have won, but the best supporters definitely did. Just ask them. Like Jose Mourinho himself, Liverpool fans are good and they know it. A walk down Anfield Road late on Tuesday night was a walk down memory lane. The locals celebrated reaching another European Cup final as if their last one had been months rather than decades ago. Once a champion of Europe, always a champion of Europe. I thought Jamie Carragher captured the Merseyside mood when he said that Liverpool fans had come to take success for granted 20 years ago, and that it would never happen again. Well, not until the next time. The current generation of supporters may have tired of listening to their fathers' fireside stories about the Paisley years, but they never lost the taste for world domination or shed their superiority complex. Even Torben Piechnik and Jimmy Carter couldn't shake their faith altogether. Carragher's eloquent eve-of-battle cry empowered the Kopites again. Like voters in a marginal seat, they were told they could influence the big result. They all volunteered noisily for selection as Liverpool's 12th man. But while Juventus may have suffered stagefright in the quarter-final, it wasn't the decibel level that beat Chelsea but the spirit level. Liverpool's togetherness more than matched the champions' own. The heady atmosphere inside the stadium provided the oxygen for their tireless resistance but the players won the game. They just did it with the pride and passion that their supporters demand of them. Liverpool United are quite a team. Clive Tyldesley, Daily Telegraph When 40,000 supporters stood as one and held their scaves up and belted out the most rousing rendition of 'You'll Never Walk Alone' some of us have ever heard, it felt humbling to feel such passion. One of the great sights in world football right there in front of you. People stared at each other in awe. Oliver Holt, Daily Mirror For Liverpool the end justified the means. To be precise, the noise at the end justified the means. When the Slovakian referee Lubos Michel finally blew the whistle after his extraordinary decision to award six minutes of injury-time - what a sound. Anfield has exploded down the years but surely this was volume to rival anything heard before. Part joy, part tension, part release, the stadium erupted. As Jose Mourinho said afterwards: "The power of Anfield Road, I felt it. Anfield was as manic as everyone said it would be and their Liverpool team, the Liverpool of Rafael Benitez, have reached a first Champions League final. Michael Walker, The Guardian The occasion, with its cyclonic passion and raw desire, ranked alongside the Anfield nights of the 1970s and 1980s when Liverpool won the European Cup an imperious four times. Jason Burt, The Independent The Slovakian referee's whistle and triumphant Kop signalled the start of the biggest party at Anfield since the last league title. When Liverpool last prepared for what proved a notorious European Cup Final, whowould have predicted the two decades which would follow? Managerial upheaval, wasted millions, decline in status at home and abroad, humiliating cup exits and a 14-year championship drought. For older supporters and explayers, this night revived images of a distant past. For their sons and daughters, these events meant more than those forefathers can ever imagine. Liverpool Football Club has undergone an era of immense change in the last 20 years. Last night proved some things will never change. Chris Bascombe, Liverpool Echo A new Anfield era has begun. Fate, fairytale, whatever, Liverpool are in the European Cup final. Anfield had surpassed the noise level of Stamford Bridge half an hour before kick-off and the Kop was only a quarter full. Packed, it proved an awesome 12th man. Andy Hunter, Daily Post The people's club, clad in red, have shattered the biggest, blue-blooded ambitions of the most wealthy power-broker the game has ever known. They did it in an epic, defiant way too. Truly, there has not been a racket like it since, well, since Liverpool last won a European Cup semi-final on one of these white-lit spring nights or since they closed the old, standing-room only Spion Kop end of Anfield in 1994. It was not just a wall of bulging, stretching, moving red shirts upon which Chelsea had to mount a long, fruitless and toothless assault here. It was a wall of noise too. John Dillon, Daily Express IT MAY or may not have been his wife, but the man who moped wishfully around Anfield in the hours before kick-off holding aloft a placard bearing a picture of a buxom blonde above the words, "One night with my wife for a ticket", just about summed up what football means to the people of Liverpool. James Ducker, The Times Here were the Saints of Etienne, the burgomasters of Moenchengladbach and the Borgias of Rome rolled into a single semi-final for the new ages. Tinnitus night on the Mersey. This was the European Cup revisited in all its old sound and fury. This was Liverpool throwing themselves back through time. This was a journey down memory lane. Jeff Powell, Daily Mail It is Liverpool who carry the Premiership standard on to the greatest stage of them all. And nobody can deny them that right. The flame burns bright, their dream, remarkably, lives as it has not for 20 years. Martin Lipton, Daily Mirror It is one of the oddities of modern football that it was Liverpool - with, as their supporters never tire of telling us, 18 championships and four European Cups on the shelves - rather than Chelsea - with two and none - who picked up the traditional British support for the underdog. But that's what money does for you. Money and Jose Mourinho. Jim White, Daily Telegraph The night - and maybe the football year - belonged to Benitez. As the Kop sang so passionately, it could not have been in better hands. James Lawton, The Independent I think for Liverpool supporters Tuesday night's victory is the best because it is happening now. They have tremendous memories of the great days but that was a long time ago. This has given them belief, hope and optimism for the future after a couple of years of under-achievement. They are in dreamland. We saw that at the final whistle. The atmosphere at Anfield on Tuesday night and for the quarter-final against Juventus was sensational - better than anything I experienced in my time as a player. Those people who said the supporters would be a 12th man were spot on. They are a great bunch of supporters, even though at times recently they might have been disenchanted. It is a fitting tribute to them that the team have got to the Champions League final. Alan Hansen, Daily Telegraph The Anfield people are back in the final 20 years after Heysel. The people, not only the team, because the magic of this stadium made the team. coached by the genius Rafa Benitez, unbeatable. Mourinho is the great loser ofthis tie but he remains a great figure. It was thanks to him that this game turned into a melodramatic battle between good and bad, rich and poor. Milan will not underestimate the great history and tradition Liverpool seem to take with them wherever they go to the soundtrack You'll Never Walk Alone. Corriere dello Sport, Italy Chelsea had 40,000 screaming fans to contend with. The noise level at Stamford Bridge for the first leg would probably have proked Roy Keane into a rant about the prawn sandwich brigade, but here the sandwich brigade, but here the atmosphere boomed into the Merseyside night air and a seething gallery became a sea of red and white. Paul Joyce, Daily Express The scenes at the end were incredible. Gerrard was last off the pitch having gone to all four sides in ecstatic celebration. For this particular observer, Anfield will always remain special having been generously clapped off the pitch when Arsenal won the title here in 1989. Not as special, mind, as for the boy from Huyton. How can he say goodbye now to his umbilical cord? Of all Liverpool's momentous results down the years, this one could prove one of the most crucial. Alan Smith, Daily Telegraph Liverpool are no longer the half-ignored club that has never won the Premiership and sweats even to finish fourth. This tournament has seen it embrace its former status. It is not sentimentality to declare that clubs can sometimes gain strength by drawing on the store of folk memories. "Respect for your elders gives you character," the message read on a banner in the stands. It could have sounded like a fortune cookie but the four pictures of the European Cup beneath gave it resonance. Considering the pride that Anfield took in the great displays of synchronised passing a generation ago there was a certain irony to the booing when Chelsea composed themselves by holding the ball but this was the moment for any Liverpool fan to be at his most partisan. The spectatorswere participants. Kevin McCarra, The Guardian It was a night that will be remembered by Liverpool on a par with St-Etienne in 1977 and the thrilling defeat of Roma three years ago and it means that in Istanbul on 25 May, they have a chance to win their fifth European Cup. The banner in the Kop that read "Make us Dream" might have been touched with the sentimentality to which Anfield is prone but now the home support have good reason to hope. It had been an affront to Anfield tradition that, winning the toss, John Terry chose to defend the goal in front of the Kop. But no one could have expected them to pay for it so quickly. Liverpool's first goal was not quite as swift as the John Arne Riise strike against Chelsea that took just 45 seconds of the Carling Cup final but it was equally devastating and its effect on the atmosphere in the old stadium was quite electrifying. Sam Wallace, The Independent Whatever they go on to achieve under Jose Mourinho, Chelsea and their billionaire owner learnt last night that there are some things money cannot buy. Four famous Scousers once sang that it can't buy you love, but add to that the type of passion that was required to propel Liverpool into their first European Cup final since 1985. Mourinho had shaken his head when asked whether the Kop could be the opposition's twelfth man, but instead they proved to be Liverpool's ninth, tenth and eleventh, inspiring players such as Djimi Traore and Igor Biscan to play like the immortals that they might now become. Oliver Kay, The Times It had been a start from the manual of Anfield dreams, ferocious, cyclonic, and there were, of course, those vast layers of keening noise that had to be anticipated from the moment Liverpool walked out of Stamford Bridge with more than a taste of the old glory.This wasn't the Reebok Stadium and a splash of champagne. This was place practised in grabbing you by the throat and, and if you are not utterly attuned, somewhere in rather lower regions. Chelsea were far from acclimatised. James Lawton, The Independent Anfield constructed three layers of defence last night. The first, the conventional back four, did everything that could have been expected of them, with Jamie Carragher again setting the tone. But those demands had already been reduced by the partnership of Didi Hamann and Igor Biscan in a front screen which gradually eroded the morale of Chelsea's forwards. And the third layer was formed by the 17,000 fans filling the old Kop and creating a steel wall of noise that surely kept out Eidur Gudjohnsen's blazing cross-shot in the sixth and final minute of stoppage time. Richard Williams, The Guardian We were promised Anfield's most memorable night in 20 years, and boy, we weren't left wanting. It was difficult not to get caught up in the atmosphere. Even Roman Abramovich, the Russian who has bankrolled Chelsea all the way to the Premiership title this season, was spotted clapping along enthusiastically to the Kop choir. It's the kind of support that no amount of Abramovich's billions can buy. Ian Doyle, Daily Post http://www.liverpoolfc.tv/news/archivedirs...050505-1437.htm Remembering that roar at the final whistle makes the hair on the back of my neck stand up. Perhaps even more than the recollection of the moment in Istanbul when Dudek made the final save and I lost my mind. I've been to hundreds of Liverpool games but that night on the Kop was beyond anything else I've experienced. This thread has inspired me to dig out the DVD yet again.

I agree. He's dead now so it's too late.

That's the same AP report as the Sports Illustrated one but with the Hillsborough reference removed.

Bascombe's take on it: CRAIG BELLAMY has found himself back in the place which has consistently undermined his career – the front page. The Welshman has already felt the force of a club fine, and now faces an anxious wait until the end of the season to see if he will be evicted from the ‘last chance saloon’ into which he was granted entry when moving to Anfield last summer. However, although the 27-year-old felt the wrath of manager Rafa Benitez on Friday, there is also a feeling within Anfield a picture of events has been painted with the primary intention of presenting Bellamy as the bad guy. Benitez’s despair at the events in the Algarve on Thursday was only marginally greater than his anger at the leaking of the details to the newspapers. It is clear information was provided which, to quote an Anfield source, ‘was designed to kill Bellamy’s Liverpool career’ when he wasn’t the only one at fault. Ironic as it is, yesterday’s front pages may have won Bellamy more sympathy from the manager than seemed possible on Friday. Both Bellamy and John Arne Riise have been hit in the pocket, but other senior stars were also fined by Benitez, who won’t tolerate such breaches of discipline, after allowing the squad a night out after an arduous week’s training in Portugal. Jamie Carragher, who left Portugal a day early to attend a funeral back home, was one of the few senior players absent. Benitez set a 12.30am curfew, but this was broken by several players. It is suggested the argument which broke out between Bellamy and Riise was unsavoury, but nowhere near as violent as has been claimed. Contrary to the Sunday newspaper report which broke the story, Benitez did not have to intervene to break up the pair. The first the manager knew of the trouble was on Friday when Bellamy, Riise and numerous other players were summoned to explain why they had defied his instructions. Bellamy and Riise settled their differences and several star names apologised to the manager for breaking the curfew and accepted the club fine. The squad then trained as normal on Friday morning prior to their return to Merseyside. Benitez hoped the matter would remain private, but was stunned when it emerged an English newspaper had been given intimate details of events. The Spanish manager has no intention of discussing the matter publicly, other than yesterday’s brief announcement confirming all those in breach of discipline will be hit in the pocket. That’s believed to be as many as six players. He won’t be immediately kicking anyone out of his squad either, although it is inevitable the long-term futures of certain players must now be under a cloud. The ultimate kick in the teeth for Benitez is the incident came just hours after he had praised the players for creating a positive atmosphere, and training so well before their trip to the Nou Camp. It was this which prompted him to trust the players with a night out. And even though this seems to have backfired, Benitez would willingly allow similar nights out in the future as he doesn’t believe what occurred equates to much more than young, rather irresponsible footballers, making a series of stupid errors of judgement. He’s now juggling his managerial responsibilities by taking firm action while ensuring the focus remains on Wednesday’s cup tie, and any internal divisions are swiftly erased for the good of the club. Although many believe Bellamy has now sealed his fate in the summer, the striker,Riise and the others now recognise they owe a huge debt to their club and Benitez, and it isn’t just financial. http://icliverpool.icnetwork.co.uk/0500liv...-name_page.html

Liverpool stars are alleged to have gone on an alcohol-fuelled rampage during a training camp last week in Portugal. Goalkeeper Jerzy Dudek, Jermaine Pennant and former England striker Robbie Fowler were named by local newspapers as being involved in a drunken spree at the Barringtons Golf and Health Club, in Vale do Lobo, on the Algarve, in the early hours of Friday morning. Dudek, a hero of Liverpool?s Champions League triumph in Istanbul two years ago,was reported to have been handcuffed after the incident, which is alleged to have occurred at the end of a warm-weather training camp undertaken to prepare for Liverpool?s Champions League game in Barcelona on Wednesday. A Liverpool spokesman said last night: "The matter will be dealt with internally." The future of all three players will be in doubt if the allegations are shown to be true. But Pennant, whose troubled past includes a spell in prison for drunken driving, has the most to lose, with veterans Dudek and Fowler already likely to be leaving the club at the end of the season. Liverpool manager Rafael Benitez was in nearby Vilamoura at the time of the alleged trouble. He will be disappointed with the claims against Pennant after he gave the player a chance to resurrect his top-flight career by signing him for £6million from Birmingham last summer. The allegations will also make waves across the Atlantic, where the club?s new American owners, George Gillett Jnr and Thomas Hicks, are unlikely to be impressed at the tarnishing of Liverpool?s reputation on the eve of the next formal stage of their £450m takeover. Local sources claim the trouble began at a bar called Monty?s, in Vale do Lobo, where about 15 members of the squad had gone for a drink after a team meal on the eve of their departure from Portugal. After several rounds of beer, the party reportedly became rowdy and, despite the efforts of captain Steven Gerrard and England international Peter Crouch to defuse the situation, police were called. Officers escorted the party back to Barringtons but trouble is said to have flared again. No one was arrested or charged but Dudek is alleged to have been restrained by police. It is understood that Barringtons reported only a broken glass and Liverpool are said to have agreed to pay for any damage. The incident recalls the scandal of another sunshine trip by an English club, when a drunken night involving Leicester players in La Manga in 2004 ended in three of them being charged with sexual assault, a case which subsequently collapsed. Although not as serious, the allegations against Liverpool could not have come at a more crucial time for the club. Shareholders will receive a formal offer document in the morning from Kop Football Ltd, the Hicks/Gillett company bidding for the club. Kop will then have a minimum of 21 days to agree a deal with the owners of 75 per cent of the shares, at which point they would be irreversibly committed to buying the club. http://www.dailymail.co.uk/pages/live/arti...in_page_id=1779

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I sat amongst the Barca fans last time we played there without any problems.

319 is behind the goal about halfway up.

Are we sure it was actually Reina playing on Saturday? I flew back from Barcelona to Liverpool last night and in the row in front of me on the plane were Alonso and Reina. That must have been a fleeting visit by Pepe having played just the afternoon before....maybe it was some error-prone twin who turned out for us in geordie-land.

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No one wants to play on the left for England.

Oops. Nasty bobble.

"The history of trophies has always been a red herring. A history based on trophies is the real gloryhunter history - Liverpool being the prime example."

SSN just said that the Premier League have received all the papers but are going to take their time to satisfy themselves that the deal is kosher.

SSN saying he's ours.

Why? Surely that's good news?

Maybe we are reassessing the DIC bid in light of the new lucrative TV deal.

Yes! FT