4411

spot on!

Barca's team was second rate tonight; they were missing so many key players and it doesn?t help having an average goalkeeper who makes the odd mistake that can cost you the game. Ronaldinho, Xavi, Deco and Messi are vital players for their attacking play and without them Barca look very ordinary.

Aimar was absolutely brilliant tonight, his first touch is f*ckin sublime!

The deflected one or the one that any decent keeper would've saved?

Stevie has been the most consistent player in the premiership this season from the start and deserves to win it.

Xabi was s****! Dudek MOTM for me, made sure Hyypiä didnt put the ball in his own net and he made 2 world class saves. One thing though that pisses me off a bit is that Dudek is so slow putting the ball back into play, Reina is always looking to counter.

Benitez's favoritism of Morientes is sickening, he was bloody useless today! Fowler was creating opportunities and making intelligent runs in the box (only for Morientes to rule him offside) but he's taken off instead of Morientes. Fowler deserved to play 90 min today.

Very disapointed that he didnt bring in a winger and Michael Owen. This summer will tell us alot about Rafa and whether Liverpool will be challenging Chelsea or not. I just hope he doesnt do a Houllier and buys 2 or 3 expensive players from some african country just because they had a good world cup.

And his heading is any better?

After he took over the club's in profit and the wage bill is lower then last season. Buying and selling players isnt the only thing a manager does. And I doubt you have a clue what Rafa's transfer budget is. And if paying £7M for Peter Crouch isnt overpaying I dont know what is! Think we'll ever sell him for that?

1. Micheal Owen and Wayne Rooney 2. Adriano 3. Gilardino 4. Defoe

His free kicks were perhaps a joke but his overall contribution to the game was vg and he created a brilliant chance for Crouch only for Crouch's instinct not to let him score.

OR he was getting dangerously close to the 7 goal a season striker tally set by Rafa

Whether he/she does or not, Sissoko is still a diving cheat and throws himself on the ground almost everytime he looses the ball.

Dudek 6, its obvious defenders are not confident having him behind them. Finnan 7, good game as usual Traore 6, ok Carra 6, decent Hyypiä 5, exposed and cost us the 2nd goal for lack of pace Kewell 8, had an excellent game Cissé 7, he's a good athlete but not a footballer but he did his best on the flanks Alonso 8, his set pieces were inconsistent but his overall play was excellent Sissoko 7, worked hard as usual but poor distribution let him down and he should spend more hours practicing his shot Morientes 5, worked hard but that doesn?t really matter because he didn?t score Crouch 4, his finishing is a joke! So what though he holds the ball up here and there, he doesn?t score goals subs: Fowler 7, He comes on and our midfield gets tired and doesn?t create anything. He got himself in some excellent positions and created a good opportunity for Kromkamp. He should start the next game, doesn?t matter if he only lasts 45 min. at least we're pretty much guaranteed a goal from him ever 2 opportunities. Riise 6, did ok for the short period of time he was on Kromkamp 6, same as Riise

Ofcourse he wont miss every oppertunity that comes to him, but the amount of chances that he wastes is worrying.

That doesnt matter really. When has he, this season, ever scored from a header and how many heading oppertunities has he had? Doesnt mater how clear cut it would be, he'd still miss it.

Crouch had enough heading opportunities to score at least 1 goal.

Aren?t Sissoko, Garcia and Morientes doing it enough for you? Cheating is the worst thing that?s happened to football and every player who does it should get an automatic 3-6 match ban, seeing players dive and go down like they've been shot is f***ing despicable.

The main differences between the two sides are set pieces and finishing. We couldn?t capitalize on the 5 or 6 corner kicks we had in the first half, Chelsea only needed 1 to capitalize. Crespo was awesome today, he finished ALL his chances and what a brilliant chip for the 3rd (although it was ruled offside). Crouch, Morientes, and Cissé just aren?t good enough for us.

Well, according to some people on here, we only need a 7 goal a season striker, after all, we are Valencia 2 right?

Making sure he starts against Chelsea Xabi Alonso - February, 2th 2006 People often ask me how important Rafa Benítez was in my decision to join Liverpool and the answer is simple: fundamental. His determination to sign me and the confidence he placed in me were vital - I knew things would be far easier for me with a coach that knew me well and that had made such an effort to include me in his plans. He explained to me what he expected from me, what I could expect from the club and he really convinced me that coming to Anfield was the right move. I also knew him from his time at Valencia, of course, where he had won two league titles and the UEFA Cup in just three seasons. I would define him as a perfectionist. He's very methodical, very thorough, and has a keen eye for the tiniest details. He analyses the opposition, and his own team, very closely indeed. He's a big part of the reason that we won the European Cup. He was very important at pivotal moments and throughout the campaign with his decisions and tactical game plans. To take a club to the European Cup in your first season in charge is a huge, huge achievement - and one that surprised everyone. Everyone respects him, they all love him in Liverpool, and there's no at all doubt that he deserves it. http://spaces.msn.com/worldcup-es-uk/

I dont think Aimar is a striker in the first place, but Mista's failure in front of goal in Rafa's first season the defence made up for by keeping countless clean sheets. And didnt Mista score around 17 goals in the league the season after? And yes, goals ARE everything! Try to prove me wrong on that one!

Eiler, I do understand why you wont admit it isnt as "black and white" as it looks, but the fact of the matter is that strikers are judged by goals and assists, not workrate and determination. Although thats also an important factor, strikers need to have an end product and so far Morientes just isnt producing it. Liverpool cant afford to have a striker thats shooting blanks, let alone 2.

How can it not be anything BUT a failure? in 30 games he's scored 6 goals and had 3 assists in the premiership, thats well below average, its poor!