LIVERPOOL v ARSENAL

[ynwa.tv]

Down Memory Lane

 

Double Agents

 

Meet the Referee

[Reggie]

Meet the Referee

 

Graham Poll

 

Hate that prick.

[Stevie H]

oh for f***'s sake. anyone for a sweep on how many yellow cards?

[CarraLegend]

That game of ours he reffed at Highbury was horrific, sent off two of ours, failed to give us one of the most stonewall penalties you'll ever see on Nick Barmby and let Grimandi get away with whatever he liked.

[fred milne]

Myles Palmer has his say......

 

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

 

Kolo Toure marking Robbie Fowler on Valentine's Day?

 

By Myles Palmer

 

TOURE is just back from five weeks in Egypt and Fowler is just back from five years in exile.

 

Toure has missed nine games for Arsenal and Fowler has missed his adoring fans on the Kop. The goal-machine has come home on a six-month contract to prove he can still do it.

 

Of the nine games Toure has missed, Arsenal have won only four.

 

After Juventus and West Ham, what's my bet for three wins in a row? Do I back Liverpool? How many goals at Anfield tonight? Will there be any goals tonight?

 

Adebayor might become Arsenal's Mark Hateley and he might pick up where he left off on Saturday. Will he rattle Hyypia and bamboozle Dudek.

 

Mark Hateley was a tall, quick striker with presence who did very well for England for a short spell in 1985-86 (from memory) and later played with Hoddle at Monaco under Arsene.

 

MY FAVOURITE BET is More Than 2.5 Goals and I did that last night for the West Ham-Birmingham game.

 

Marlon Harewood scored in 11 minutes as I read The Guardian, half-watching the game. After 63 there was a silly handball, a penalty to West Ham, and Harewood hit it well and Maik Taylor saved brilliantly, but Harewood followed up to make it 2-0.

 

And I thought : There's half an hour left and West Ham will shut up shop now.

 

Then Dean Ashton headed in for 3-0.Within two minutes.

 

YES!!YES!!!

 

That's why More Than 2.5 Goals is fun. Because you don't care what happens after the third goal. You don't care if four penalties are saved or Birmingham hit the post seven times.

 

That 3-0 win put West Ham sixth and equals a 21-year old club record. Like Arsenal, they have 41 points. Like Arsenal, they have won 12 games and scored 39 goals. But Arsenal have played 25 games and West Ham have played 26.

 

ROBBIE FOWLER is a striker Arsene once wanted. He was a freak, a scally goal-thief, a finisher of genius.

 

Famous in Liverpool since he was 10, Fowler is now 30, a veteran who used to score hat-tricks against Schmeichel and Seaman.

 

England Under-18 coach Ted Powell told me that Fowler was like Yeboah, a left-footed player who has a good right foot. Ted said that Fowler could also play in the hole. Yeboah played for Leeds and was on £18,000 a week at a time when many top players were on peanuts. I phoned him once but he didn't want to be interviewed.

 

LAST SATURDAY I saw Wigan v Liverpool on PPV and Fowler linked well with Morientes and Gerrard. The football brain is still there. It was his first start for Liverpool since November 2001.

 

After defeats at Man United, Chelsea and Charlton, and a 1-1 draw with Birmingham at Anfield, Benitez needed that 1-0 win at Wigan to set his team up for tonight. Hyypia scored the goal.

 

He must have been pleased by Fowler, who is not 100% fit but can get by on what his manager calls ?game intelligence?.

 

Fowler scored 171 goals in 330 appearances before falling out with Gerard Houllier, who sold him to Leeds for £11 million, and after 14 injury-troubled months Kevin Keegan signed the fading star for Manchester City. That was a gamble which did not pay off.

 

Keegan's successor Stuart Pearce then allowed Fowler to re-join his first club, having turned down an offer from Everton the previous week. A remarkable story which might yet have a happy ending, especially as Fowler is eligible for the Champions League.

 

After Arsenal, Liverpool have an FA Cup clash with Manchester United, followed by a trip to Lisbon for Benfica in the Champions League. Fowler will be extra-motivated in Europe. He travelled to Istanbul as a supporter last May, when Steven Gerrard led Liverpool to a remarkable victory after they trailed 3-0 to AC Milan.

 

Liverpool's fifth European Cup was obviously the highlight of Benitez's 20 months in charge. But will he ever win another trophy by playing the belt-and-braces football that worked so well at Valencia?

 

To really compete with Chelsea and Manchester United, he needs a striker as good as Wayne Rooney, Thierry Henry or Hernan Crespo. Cisse is too erratic, Kewell and Morientes are too lightweight. Luis Garcia is lightweight AND erratic. If Bill Shankly could see those four players he would weep.

 

THE ARRIVAL of the spiky Adebayor gives Arsenal a gladiator who allows them to vary their game and play pressure football, rather than passing the ball across the field all the time.

 

Adebayor will be better in March than he is now, and better still in April. He caused havoc in Bolton's box but could find Carragher, Hyypia and Hamann a bit tougher.We shall soon see.

 

The Togo star is the answer to the question I asked Arsene after the Newcastle FA Cup Final.

 

"Are you specifically looking for a striker who can head the ball?"

 

He smiled and said, "That's a good question."

 

That was his reply in 1998 and this is 2006, so I've only had to wait eight years.

 

Arsene is a stubborn man who is having his worst season in a decade. He is being obliged to address issues he has been able to ignore for a long time.

 

If Arsenal are top or second in the table, if they are winning seven trophies in nine years and losing two cup finals by a whisker, it doesn't matter that his team can't defend a set-piece and don't have a striker who can head the ball.

 

If they are 8th or 6th or 5th, it does matter.He has realised that.

 

GENERALLY, PREVIEWS of games are impossible, since we do not know which players will be playing. That is why I stopped writing previews here.

 

On Saturday, Benitez hosts Manchester United in the FA Cup and Liverpool have not beaten Man United in the FA Cup since 1921. So that game is much bigger than this game.

 

And Benfica is bigger than this game.

 

Therefore you cannot preview Liverpool v Arsenal without knowing whether Benitez will rest Xabi Alonso or Stevie G.

 

With Toure back, and Senderos at left back, Arsenal could conceivably get a draw. But I won't be betting on that.

 

And I won't be betting on More Than 2.5 Goals either

 

Feb 14, 2006

 

http://www.anr.uk.com/articles/m-2006-02-14-10-05-09.html

[Siang]

Lehmann says Arsenal will win tonight...

[Guest Kev]

Garcia out

Crouch doubtful

[nvdm]

Lehmann says Arsenal will win tonight...

 

It'd be a little odd if he said they'll lose.

[Mike]

big game this tonight...

a lot at stake.

[owenthomas]

how big? i've just been asked: "Question - you can win only one game, tonight, Man U or Benfica. Which one do you pick?"

 

i said tonight's game..

 

you go now..

[Andyjandy]

Man Utd, others can be re-couped.

[Romario]

Benfica for me everytime. I really feel we could win it again.

 

Second is deffo the Mancs in the FA cup.

 

As for the league as long as we keep up and get 2nd

3rd or 4th I'm happy.

Bar a few qualifiers after 1st it's all the same to me.

[Cisse]

Financially wise I'd say tonite. 10 points up to a*** and 4th must be guaranteed. If we can get the right pliers this summer we won't look back in a long time.

[Falconhoof]

I'd take draws at benfica and against the mancs. Tonight will get our league campaign back on track. If we win and if we have a striker on the scoresheet then it will do wonders for confidence.

[Guest KD2OO4]

Financially wise I'd say tonite. 10 points up to a*** and 4th must be guaranteed. If we can get the right pliers this summer we won't look back in a long time.

 

 

If we get a couple of screwdrivers and a hammer too, we will be unbeatable.......

[fred]

If we get a couple of screwdrivers and a hammer too, we will be unbeatable.......

 

'Zackerly - that way, if anyone ever gets Rafa a lamp when he wanted a table. he can do the conversion himself...

[Stigger]

Fowler starts according to sky.

[Morgul]

Robbie Fowler and Fernando Morientes have been entrusted with the responsibility of shooting down the Gunners when they lead the line for Liverpool at Anfield tonight.

Momo Sissoko is recalled to the centre of midfield with Steven Gerrard moving to the right hand side.

 

The Liverpool team in full is:

 

Dudek

Finnan

Hyypia

Carragher

Riise

Gerrard

Alonso

Sissoko

Kewell

Fowler

Morientes

 

Subs:

Carson

Hamann

Garcia

Traore

Cisse

[sbaros]

Fowler starts according to sky.

 

Yep;

 

--------------Dudek

--Finnan-Carra-Hyypia-Riise

Gerrard-Alonso-Sissoko-Kewell

---------Fowler-Morientes

[Bailo]

Garcia on the bench is a plus point.

[Stigger]

Confirmed team:

 

Dudek

Finnan Carra Hyypia Riise

Gerrard Alonso Sissoko Kewell

Morientes Fowler

 

Subs

Cisse

Garcia

Hamann

Carson

Traore

[McBain]

I'd have played Hamann meself

[Morgul]

I'd have played Hamann meself

 

Agreed.. would have preferred Hamann to Sissoko. Apart from that I think it's a great team.

[Bootle Buck]

Sissoko and that young Frenchman the @rse just signed should be a battle in midfield. I'd be surprised if there are 24 players on the pitch at the end of the game.

[Nebraska Red]

take a guess on when Sissoko gets booked.

 

for me between 10th and 20th minutes.

 

Poll will book 5 and 1 will get sent off tonight, it's the only big game tonight and Poll will want to be center stage to push his World Cup chances.