allawee

Same for me as well. I am not disagreeing with you often now adays!

But why, he is just a coventry supporter! Why was he banned from Anfield and by who if that's true?!

You would think that after 19 years of doing this week in/week out, that he would improve. No chance. I feel sorry for Dermot Gallagher though, he looks like fish out of water!

Although Dermot Gallagher agress with you that winning the ball is immaterial, still no one else thinks it was red. But who cares, it was Lampard and he is a c***

I am not sure. He does seem to be naieve technically and has issues handling big players with big egos (according to Chelsea forums). He may not get another offer from a top European club

He can be done if the Ref missed it and did not give it as a foul. If the ref did give a foul, then the player can't be punished following the game.

Made the difference when he came on. I did not realise before today that he could shoot!

Fair point. I was not saying that Keane should be started, I was just trying to think if Keane is played, who would come in for? As I could not see Kuyt being dropped for a big game.

I think that will be the team. But I am interested to see if Rafa has been playing reverse psychology with Keane and may start him on Sunday in place of Mascharno and say to him, prove your worth!

I really hate short corners and can never understand the point. Also, while Stevie is our best corner taker, there need to be variation, whether Aurelio, Xabi or even Reira should be allowed to alternate as they may offer something different and unexpected. As much as I hate Everton and Cahill, both of their corners that led to the goals were clever and pre-planned. The last goal that I remember for us which came from a pre-planned set play was the Agger goal vs. Chelsea in the CL semi final. May be in the current situation where we lacking creativity and confidence, should be an avenue that Rafa should focus on. He is known for perfection and meticulous pre-planning, but our set play definitely does not endorse that at the moment.

Actually I would also add to that list David Pleat, who also offer balanced and unbiased commentary on TV and analysis on Radio 5. On Tuesday, I was really impressed with Paul Joel when he was questioned over Benetiz transfers and answered the question by saying that Ferguson and Wenger have also made transfer mistakes and the media should focus on the successful signing that Rafa has made.

Well said! and absolutely spot on.

That will be magic. Hopefully Black January is over.... February and a new start. We will win the title

If we lose Keane, we could always have Voronin back!

This whole debate is ridicolous. 1.Rafa should not be compared with GH. Under Rafa we are one of the best 3 European sides for the past 3 years. 2. We have attracted and have world class players, arguably the best striker in the world and the credit goes to Rafa for spotting him and bringing him to England and Liverpool. 3. We have been making improvements year on year, there is no doubt about that. If we were falling behind Man U and Chelsea, then fair enough. 4. Relatively, we have modest budget compared to Man U and Chelsea. And ok, not all of Rafa's signings have been great and we have had the odd failure, but look at Chelsea under Murinho (Paulo Ferrera, the Uruguan stiker, belharouz,) and others like sidwell, Alex, etc. Look at Ferguson, Taibie, Veron, Djimb Djimba or whatever his name is). 5. He has learnt from his previous seasons, less rotation, taking the FA cup seriously. Also, it is not like we are 20 points behind Utd and are out of the CL and FA. We are still battling on all fronts in the major competitions. This kneejerk reaction need to stop and we need to support the team (truly and not Jeer Babel at home like on Saturday), show faith in the manager who is buying young players with potential. I remember many on this forum at the beginign of the season, who accepted that success this season is to still get to April and May and still be in with a shout of the title, and this title race is far from over. Nightmare January is hopefully over. Let's start fresh in Feb and Chelsea's scalp hopefully on Sunday.

There is nothing wrong with Mascharano and Yossi scored a great goal last season. Have faith

apparently that same opinion was shared by Merson on Sky. What is the world coming to when illeterates like Merson and Stan are the so called "experts"!

Heard a rumour that Keane is odds on to be a Spurs player by the weekend. If that's true, can't see him playing tomorrow!

Well we replaced him with Benyon!

This is exactly what I would like to see Rafa try for few games.

Same for me

I see more promise in him than Aurelio. I like his willingness to provide an outlet on the right. To be fair to him today he had no support or link play with Babel but still showed endavour and willingness.

So Kuyt held the ball well......for who? Lucas and Benyon (the other 2 subs!)....is that a positive considering that neither Keane nor Torres were on the pitch at that stage to capitalise on the ball possession near the Everton box!

I am not disagreeing that Keane substitution is justified on various occasions. And I don't disagree that Kuyt has played much better in various games this season than Keane. But when they are both equally ineffective in a a game, and in recent games this has been the case, it is inevitable that Keane is always the one substituted. Class is permanent and Keane's dip in form is temporary. Keane is a more skillful player and a more natural finisher than Kuyt and may be, just may be, it is worth in one of the games sticking with Keane rather than Kuyt!

I realise that Kuyt has started every league game, but what I meant that even when Kuyt has been equally ineffective during a game compared to Keane or others, Rafa never substitutes him. Instead, it seems that Keane is always the one asked to leave the stage and Kuyt is shifted more centrally to replace Keane in attack. That shift in position or change in formation has not worked since the City game. And my point is that I can understand why Keane confidence is dented and so low. I was also making a point that I don't agree with most members of this forum having a go at him, when he is disappointed at being substituted in every single match.