Tony Cascarino: Analysis

[The_MC]

http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/sport/foo...icle1480747.ece

 

"Shrewd BenÍtez gets lucky once again as Barcelona fail to punish his caution"

 

"BenÍtez was fortunate that his decision to substitute Craig Bellamy and then Dirk Kuyt was not costly. A great night was almost ruined by what would have been an undeserved exit. Time and again, teams who try to hold on to what they have lose everything and regardless of his forwards? fatigue it was risky to meddle with tactics and a lineup that was working perfectly. Jermaine Pennant, who came on, did not cover himself in glory for Barcelona?s goal and as the Spanish team went for broke and brought on attackers, they saw more and more ball because Liverpool lacked an outlet."

 

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Elements of truth in there, but to say that we were lucky, wtf?

 

I think Cascarino is confusing fortune with tactical nouse. Reina barely had a save to make after we'd changed to the more cautious tactic. Admittedly it took away some of our forward outlets and gave them alot more posession, but we are the best teaam in the world at going all-out defensive mode, and barely gave them a shot in the closing 10mins. As for substituting Bellamy and Kuyt being a risk ... did Pennant and Crouch (their replacements) not link up for one of the most clear cut chances of the game about 2mins from time?

 

Whenever we go into defensive mode i am confident we will hold any attackers out, thats not luck thats just brilliant management.

[Guz]

Thought it was the wrong decision to bring off Bellamy because he didnt seem to be tiring that much and it seemed we wouldn't have an outlet ball. But Kuyt kept running his b******s off and pushing Gerrard up behind Kuyt worked because his energy was on a completely different level tonight.

 

Either way, f*** off Cascarino.

[beejay]

How can anyone - let alone a no-mark like Cascarino - criticise Rafa's tactical acumen after winning a tie that most "experts" thought we would be outclassed in, against the best team in Europe.

 

Beggars belief.

 

To me, Rafa's subs were smack on. He wanted Pennant to give us more width, Riise was cream-crackered and moving Stevie back into the middle was important to stem their flow through the centre.

[Diarmuid]

Dunphy & Brady were hilarious on RTE.

[Gary Gekkaloys]

Dunphy & Brady were hilarious on RTE.

 

I've never seen two people change their minds so much over the course of two matches

 

[Diarmuid]

They did a complete u-turn between half time and full time.

Edited March 7, 2007 by MF Red

[Guest Greasy Belcher]

I doubt you going to hear any commentator say " I have not got a f?cking clue what benitez is doing with his tactics and substitutions, but he's won all the big trophies and I'm just a pleb working for tv, so lets just roll with it and see what happens"

 

Being a commentator is much like being a fortune teller, try and pick up on small hints to guess the future, if your wrong forget about it, if your right remind everyone.

[Gary Gekkaloys]

I doubt you going to hear any commentator say " I have not got a f?cking clue what benitez is doing with his tactics and substitutions, but he's won all the big trophies and I'm just a pleb working for tv, so lets just roll with it and see what happens"

 

Being a commentator is much like being a fortune teller, try and pick up on small hints to guess the future, if your wrong forget about it, if your right remind everyone.

 

 

Thats pretty much what Giles and Dunphy said prior to the first leg actually. You could expect so-called experts to actually analyse why Liverpool won over two legs rather than going on a bizarre rant about Benetiz not having the moral courage to get his team passing. They had a point about Liverpool giving the ball away too much but it was engulfed in so much guff most viewers wouldn't have noticed.

[Lee W]

What a load of drivel.

[San Diego Red]

What a loag of s***. Ignorant twunt

[John am Rhein]

Dunphy & Brady were hilarious on RTE.

 

What were they saying? I saw their faces on the screen but couldn't hear their voices over the noise in the pub.

 

Time and again, teams who try to hold on to what they have lose everything

 

And time and time again they win.

 

When d1cks like him (and Charlie Nicholas) go on like this, you'd think

 

1) they have some basis of achievement of their own with which to talk with such authority

2) teams who attack when already ahead somehow guarantee themselves victory

[Lee W]

Seems Cascarino's been at the performance-enhancing drugs again.

[RafaShanks]

Was disappointed with the 2nd half and a couple of Rafa subs to be honest.

 

Crouchy should have come on much earlier than he did to help us hold up the ball.

 

The Pennant substitution was pointless.

[Ronnie Whelan]

The Pennant substitution was pointless.

 

 

You wouldnt be saying that if Crouchy stuck his opportunity away.

[jimmylibel]

What were they saying? I saw their faces on the screen but couldn't hear their voices over the noise in the pub.

 

 

Was priceless John. Dunphy said he'd "made up his mind about Benitez last night" describing him as a coward and that's not how football should be played. Let a lacklustre Barca back into the match, passing was terrible and that we were basically a team of hard working cloggers. Brady was just moaning cos he's become a recent subscriber to 'beautiful football' and only the pure football teams such as Arsenal and Barca deserve to be going through, blah, blah.

 

Giles was (as usual) much more measured. Was critical of us but said we deserved to go through as we worked so hard. Dunphy then said he could get anyone off the street to work hard and that football should be about more than that.

 

I was however particularly pleased when Dunphy and Brady wrote us off as challengers for the CL!!!

 

 

The Pennant substitution was pointless.

 

 

Disagree. Rafa was clearly trying to expose their flanks and our 2 strikers were too knackered to be running from the centre to out wide.

 

The execution of this tactical switch wasn't great but there was definite method in Rafa's approach.

[RafaShanks]

You wouldnt be saying that if Crouchy stuck his opportunity away.

 

I would. We were getting pushed back further and further.

 

Crouchy would have relieved this somewhat with his general hold up play and ability to help us win free kicks.

[Lee W]

Was priceless John. Dunphy said he'd "made up his mind about Benitez last night" describing him as a coward and that's not how football should be played.

 

 

How does he manage to surpass himself with such panache - what a clown. Hit the bar twice and one cleared off the line in the first 1/2 hour. How cowardly is that ?

[RP]

Two weeks ago Cascarino wrote that if Lille managed to knock United out he would give up writing a footy column.

 

So there's yet another top reason (as if anyone needed one) to support the French tonight.

 

Cacsarino is a clown.

[smicer07]

I thought Bellamy looked f***ed, he'd run himself into the ground.

[jimmylibel]

 

How does he manage to surpass himself with such panache - what a clown. Hit the bar twice and one cleared off the line in the first 1/2 hour. How cowardly is that ?

 

Even funnier was that he was absolutely praising us at half time. Dunphy is the U-turner's U-turner.

[Behind Enemy Lines]

Tony Cascarino? remind me - exactly what he won as player & manager?

[Cunny]

here is dunphy, brady and giles on rte

 

[jimmylibel]

Forgot to mention Dunphy also said that Gerrard got found out as an 'ordinary player' or something to that effect last night and the whole panel thought Alonso did nothing.

 

Personally I thought Xabi was reminiscent of Didi at his best in the way he broke up their play last night. Loved that sliding tackle he did 2nd half and all where just went flying in.

[ricflairandy]

Total madness!

 

loads of bitter chelsea fans on the radio last night for osme reason instead of praising there team moaning about benitez being a lucky manager , saying hed have won nothing without any luck.

 

 

Who does cascarino support again?......

[_00_deathscar]

Dunphy & Brady were hilarious on RTE.

 

For those that haven't seen it: