Topic: Chasing the Title

[exCite]

From the Burnley website: "The Clarets now have another tough game to prepare for, hosting reigning champions Manchester City on Sunday. Pep Guardiola’s men left Turf Moor with a solitary point last season after Johann Berg Gudmundsson scored a late equaliser in a 1-1 draw."

I'll take that!

[killer-heels]

A lot of people seem to think that if someone predicts City to win the title, it means they have no faith in Liverpool. The two aren't necessarily connected. Unless we rotate our team heavily, I think we can and will win each of our last three games.

I imagine a few people share my stance here. I have complete faith in our team to win. I just have zero faith in Burnley, Leicester or Brighton to take anything from City.

Quitter.

[deFacto please, you bastards]

City have won 8 trophies in 8 years, compared to our 1, we've had plenty of opportunities but cannot get across the line in finals.

I've already explained this to you in my previous post. 8 years ago we were in the brink of administration, we were fighting for survival as a club. While City were getting pumped in with cash and unlimited players [we spent money and wasted it however they did as welll and kept spending and spending without having to sell any of their key players]

The 2012 FA Cup final has nothing to do with this manager and this group of players. We were also no where as good as Chelsea that year, it's a cup final, it's a one off game, you need a bit of luck as I pointed out.

You mentioned City are beating the best sides. I asked you where? Comparing what they did 8 years ago to now is pointless, the only players that are still at the club are Aguero,Kompany and Silva.

Mentality isn't a problem to why we haven't won our last 3 cup finals. As I said you can debate Sevilla in that regard, despite the fact that Sevilla were the side that had won the competition two years prior in a row.

The Liverpool teams that dominated had that winning mentality and came through against the odds on a number of occasions because of it. This City side have it, we need to develop it and make a habit of it.

You seem to be confusing quality with mentality. The Liverpool sides that dominated had the necessary quality to win [they didn't win every single time keep that in mind].

This City side have unlimited funds to buy any player they want to get them in said position again and again to win. has feck all to do with mentality. Again they haven't beaten the best sides in Europe. That's a fact.

With respect to your comments about our recent finals, it reminds me a bit of 2001 of when the Birmingham and Arsenal fans both felt aggrieved about the way Liverpool pinched the cup from them in those finals - does anyone remember or care?

I am not arsed about other fans and what they think, I am talking on a Liverpool forum with a lad who says that mentality is an issue in finals when I specifically explained how each final under Klopp has been different from one another. So yes plenty of us who have objectivity care about the context. The 2001 finals, again prove what I said earlier, in football along with quality you need a bit of luck, especially in cup finals.

but I'll just say this, look at the characters in that team - Gerrard, Babbel, Hyypia, Carragher, Gerrard, Hamann, McAllister, Owen, Fowler - leaders and game changers

And none of them won the league!!! So for all or your leaders and game changers, that alone isn't enough. When we did win the biggest prize in European football with some of those players we needed a bit of luck to do so again proving what I said earlier, in football along with skill you need luck when it comes to club finals.

[deFacto please, you bastards]

Klopp - ''This is the first time we are challenging, NOT THE LAST TIME''

Some of yous need to read this several times.

[deFacto please, you bastards]

''If we win the league, it's only our first step, if we don't win the league, it's only our first step. We have room to improve '' Klopp

[killer-heels]

There is such a gap between City and Liverpool to everyone else. No one is getting close.

City also have many more bigger squad issues to address than what we do. We will definitely have a chance again next season.

[Bobinhood]

Were Brendan Rodgers Leicester
We're on our way to glory
he'll stick 11 behind the ball
and keep City from scoring

[LFCEmpire]

Were Brendan Rodgers Leicester
We're on our way to glory
he'll stick 11 behind the ball
and keep City from scoring

 

[S]

I imagine a few people share my stance here. I have complete faith in our team to win. I just have zero faith in Burnley, Leicester or Brighton to take anything from City.

Quitter.

I learnt from the best.

I have faith in my side, no one else.

[killer-heels]

I learnt from the best.

It was a joke. I have had the same responses as you.

[jillcwhomever]

There is such a gap between City and Liverpool to everyone else. No one is getting close.

City also have many more bigger squad issues to address than what we do. We will definitely have a chance again next season.

It still doesn't mean other teams can't get points on days when either team is below 100 percent. We are talking about humans here not machines.

[killer-heels]

It still doesn't mean other teams can't get points on days when either team is below 100 percent. We are talking about humans here not machines.

The point is its not now or never. This is not the time to be fearful of other sides when we are one of the best already.

[Andypandimonium]

I agree that City are hot favourites to win the title with three games to go, but it certainly is not a foregone conclusion as long as our beloved reds don't jack it in like so many posters on here. We only have to think back to 1986 when Everton lost to a struggling Oxford on the run-in and King Kenny won the league on the final day. It would also be kind of fitting if we were to win it on the last day 30 years after Arsenal did it to us. There is still hope, and whilst there is hope...

Regardless of the outcome, where would English football be without the redmen? Staring down the abyss of non-competition like the French, Italian, and Scottish leagues. We are single-handedly saving the game from City! Let's have a great atmosphere on Friday night, score a shed-load of goals, and put the pressure back on Pep. 

[jillcwhomever]

The point is its not now or never. This is not the time to be fearful of other sides when we are one of the best already.

I'm not fearful at all its others saying everything is over now. The manager is adamant we fight until the end which is entirely what I would expect him to say.

[spider-neil]

There is such a gap between City and Liverpool to everyone else. No one is getting close.

I'm not taking anything for granted. Two seasons ago City and Liverpool were a shambles to allow Leicester to step in and take the league and now both teams are set to exceed 90 points. Nothing to say another team can't kick on as well.

[Sharado]

''If we win the league, it's only our first step, if we don't win the league, it's only our first step. We have room to improve '' Klopp

We don't deserve him. He's literally the greatest man alive.

[spider-neil]

Regardless of what City do in the next three games, we have to ensure they go into every game needing to win.

[killer-heels]

I'm not taking anything for granted. Two seasons ago City and Liverpool were a shambles to allow Leicester to step in and take the league and now both teams are set to exceed 90 points. Nothing to say another team can't kick on as well.

That took two seasons, huge investment between two sides and two top class managers to do that. Who has that below us?

[Sharado]

That took two seasons, huge investment between two sides and two top class managers to do that. Who has that below us?

Spurs could do alright to be fair, decent manager new stadium and all that. None of the rest are getting near mind.

[killer-heels]

Spurs could do alright to be fair, decent manager new stadium and all that. None of the rest are getting near mind.

They could do alright, not getting more than 80 points or not much more than that. Plus they wont be investing much unless they sell players.

[spider-neil]

That took two seasons, huge investment between two sides and two top class managers to do that. Who has that below us?

Sarri is a top class manager. His style of play (in Italy) is awesome. I'll actually be relieved if Chelsea gets rid of him in the summer.

[killer-heels]

Sarri is a top class manager. His style of play (in Italy) is awesome. I'll actually be relieved if Chelsea gets rid of him in the summer.

He may very well lose his best player and have a transfer ban on top. His club has loads of issues on and off the field to worry about.

This old prediction routine of everyone getting better is a myth. Only two teams are clocking over 80 points this season and looking at the sides, it will be the same next year.

[S]

Sarri is a top class manager. His style of play (in Italy) is awesome. I'll actually be relieved if Chelsea gets rid of him in the summer.

Hazard is the one that I want to see leave Chelsea. They're already having a bad season. Take him out of their team and it turns into a horrible one.

[LFCEmpire]

Sarri is a top class manager. His style of play (in Italy) is awesome. I'll actually be relieved if Chelsea gets rid of him in the summer.

Definitely a good manager but he has no titles to show for it.

[Dench57]

Were Brendan Rodgers Leicester
We're on our way to glory
he'll stick 11 behind the ball
and keep City from scoring

[the_red_pill]

I leave for a few hours, before the United match, I come back here and the world's gone to shit!?

Come, come! Chop, chop! There are still 3 games to go for both of us- anything can happen.
Also- we're in the semi-finals of the European Cup.

We're winning one of these or both! Chin up!

[hesbighesred]

I agree. There is no way Liverpool will get 97+ points next season.

Why not?
We've got a young team.
We've flogged the front 3 through almost every single game with little to no competition.
We haven't had a real attacking midfielder all season.
We've had no real cover/competition for our fullbacks.
A central defensive pairing which was conceding goals in a manner comparable to rainfall in a desert hasn't been seen in action since December 5th.

We've got clear room for improvement, which means we can shave a little bit off our already excellent xGA and add a small but significant amount to our xG. There's no reason to believe that the clubs outside the top 6 are going to improve much next season, which basically means we may be talking about a title decided in the head-to-heads against the top 6 and, especially, City - which if we do lose this season is ultimately where we will have stumbled.

Like the Spanish league, we might well be looking at two utterly dominant teams, a group of four clubs that can compete on their day, and 'the rest', any of whom might very occasionally get a result but any of whom could easily be smashed by 5, 6 or 7 goals. The gulf is such that, as we've seen this season, it's not unrealistic to win just about every single one of those games.

I would be astonished if we don't get at least 90 points next season, to be honest, and I think it's entirely likely that we'll get very close to 97 at the very least.

Everyone was saying last season that there is 'no way' City will get to 100 points again, in fact they will finish very, very close to that mark. I remember saying at the start of this season that 90+ would be an absolute minimum just to actually compete for the title and that's proven to be the case. No way a team is going to win it next season with less than that, and I'll bet that the winner will, in fact, finish on at least 95.

Injuries to VvD or Allisson or the front 3 would certainly change that benchmark, but assuming the squad stays as fit and healthy as it has this season then...

(That doesn't change your central point - mind - our performance this season is already, at 88 points plus a CL final, a staggering level of improvement and consistency and is already as much as anybody could have realistically hoped for at the beginning of the season).

[hesbighesred]

Hazard is the one that I want to see leave Chelsea. They're already having a bad season. Take him out of their team and it turns into a horrible one.

Hazard is one of the problems. Yes, he's elevated them to titles, but he's also impossible to manage, coach and integrate into an aggressive, organised pressing side. He's a great player, but he's a luxury one.

Take him out of the team and change the ethos of the team and you can build a young, hungry side that may not win for a year or two, but which can properly be moulded into a unified, hard-working and systematic one. Hazard, as good as he is, demands a certain amount of exceptionalism (I don't *do* defending, I don't *do* tactics, I decide *how* to play) and players like that always undermine unity, work-ethic and tactics. It's ok when the team wins, but when things go badly then the team isn't losing together anymore because a player like Hazard was never really part of it in the first place. Ultimately, any team he's in is just a vehicle to make Hazard look good.

[N0rnIr0nRed]

Sarri is a top class manager. His style of play (in Italy) is awesome. I'll actually be relieved if Chelsea gets rid of him in the summer.

Not having that. He has been frauding his entire career away and hasn't won a damn thing.

[Alan_X]

What? Not sure how you've inferred that from what I posted.

I said it's understandable that people rue the draws to Everton and United more than the the loss to City, because City are really, really good and United and Everton are shit.

I was overstating it to highlight the fact that you can't include or reject any particular result. If all teams beat the teams they should do on paper then we wouldn't need to play any games at all.

We do play those games and sometimes the best team doesn't win. City are our rivals for this year's league and hopefully next year and the year after. If we accept losing to them because they're good then we have to get better results better than them in the other 36 games.

Isn't it a bit crazy to say we should be better than Manchester City in a 36-game 'against the rest' season to allow for losing to them in the head-to-head games?

 

[El Lobo]

I learnt from the best.

At least you’re a consistent pessimist 

[N0rnIr0nRed]

On our own run in, win those 3 games and see where we are.

It's been a remarkable season. Either us or City are worthy winners. I think we deserve it more because we have amassed a huge amount of points without the oil tycoon money.

I feel like there is at least one major twist left. Regardless I'm very proud of what Klopp has built.

Let's not forget we are still on for a remarkable double. I get goosepbumps thinking about it; Klopp deserves his rewards for how he has turned around this club since coming in. There isn't a manager in world football better suited for Liverpool Football Club.

[hesbighesred]

Nothing to say another team can't kick on as well.

There's lots to say that. There's no other team which can compete with how well run we are off the pitch. There aren't any other managers available who are better than Klopp. Spurs - who are run very well and have a lot of patience - can't compete with our budget. Arsenal don't have an owner with the ambition that ours do. Utd are a shambles. Abramovich can't be arsed any more.

That's not to say that such things can't change extremely quickly - heck, maybe the Sultan of Brunei or some Saudi royal fancies showing Sheikh Mansour just how gigantic his cock is and buys Utd for a billion in the summer - but even then it still takes more than a season to put the kind of foundations in place that us and City have.

The only team in England that will be able to compete with us next season are City, and they will either have to replace or accept a lower level of performance from some or all of Fernandinho, Aguero, Kompany, D Silva...even with City's wealth and squad those aren't players you can count on replacing all of in a single season while maintaining an almost flawless level of performance.

And at the level us and City have been this season, any significant wobble is basically the end of the title. We've had one all season, as have City. Ultimately the race is going to be decided either on City having another (tiny) one or our head to head matches. That's how close it is.

[hesbighesred]

Isn't it a bit crazy to say we should be better than Manchester City in a 36-game 'against the rest' season to allow for losing to them in the head-to-head games?

I am (and certainly will be should we fail to win the title) more frustrated by those results than any others this season. Particularly in the game at their place, the Kompany non-red was an inexplicably dreadful decision (having given a foul, it absolutely had to be a red card, there was no other acceptable card to give once it had been accepted as a foul) and our own (slight) passivity was slightly frustrating. I think we went into that match at that point as the better side, and not the one needing the points, but it felt like we played it as if we were underdogs.

Not that I'll lose sleep over it, mind. We've been absolutely fucking magnificent this season and it's a delightful, delightful time to be a Liverpool supporter.

[Jookie]

Not having that. He has been frauding his entire career away and hasn't won a damn thing.

Love it when someone reaches the top 0.1% in their profession worldwide and some no mark calls them a 'fraud'.

Assume you are at the absolute top of your game in your profession to be accusing others of being frauds?

I'd ban anyone from this site who used the term 'fraud' or 'bottler' again. Just a personal opinion of course.

[soxfan]

I'm actually quite peaceful about things. I have a good feeling that we're going to win one of the two big trophies. Winning #6 will be a sweet "consolation prize" if City keep winning. And if they don't...

[LovelyCushionedHeader]

I'm actually quite peaceful about things. I have a good feeling that we're going to win one of the two big trophies. Winning #6 will be a sweet "consolation prize" if City keep winning. And if they don't...

Even if we win neither, I'm calm because I truly believe this is just the start of something special. Throughout 08/09 we knew Alonso would be leaving and that we had ownership issues, whilst 13/14 always felt like a bit of a fluke year and Suarez was always going to leave. This time around, we have great owners, a great manager and a great squad that I'm 99% sure will be kept together and added to over the Summer.

[johnny74]

I agree that City are hot favourites to win the title with three games to go, but it certainly is not a foregone conclusion as long as our beloved reds don't jack it in like so many posters on here. We only have to think back to 1986 when Everton lost to a struggling Oxford on the run-in and King Kenny won the league on the final day. It would also be kind of fitting if we were to win it on the last day 30 years after Arsenal did it to us. There is still hope, and whilst there is hope...

Regardless of the outcome, where would English football be without the redmen? Staring down the abyss of non-competition like the French, Italian, and Scottish leagues. We are single-handedly saving the game from City! Let's have a great atmosphere on Friday night, score a shed-load of goals, and put the pressure back on Pep. 

Five years ago, top at Christmas, lost to a team from Manchester by a couple of points. Five years before that top at Christmas, lost to a team from Manchester by a couple of points. In both cases points totals were very high which would have won the title in many other seasons. City not only have more points than us but they have no CL distraction now so are entirely focused on winning their next three games. Nothing else. They also have the best head to head record against the top 6 so probably deserve to win it. It would be AMAZING if they slipped up but I'm not going to waste my energy on it. It's time to turn off the TV and go and do a Fergie on the golf course and maybe something will come up.

I think an equally great achievement this year would be to win the CL because that would really show the team that the stats about Klopp not winning finals are rubbish. He's changed his style to be more robust so let's hope we can grind out the CL this year instead of blazing to the final only to narrowly miss out.

To win the CL but miss out on the league by the slightest margin would, to me, still be a massive success. But don't waste your energy watching city's games.

[hesbighesred]

I'd ban anyone from this site who used the term 'fraud' or 'bottler' again. Just a personal opinion of course.

Not a bad call. The fraud mods on this site will bottle it again, of course.
_{(pleasedontbanmeilovethemodshereandyoudoagreatjobijustcantresistajokeprettyplease)}

[Frank Becton]

Whatever happens we can be proud of the lads this season.

I was hoping Tottenham or United (ha ha) might just scrape a point but not to be, honestly cannot see City dropping any points now.
Just to think they may have had to win so many consecutive games makes me proud to be a red, but also a bit pig sick at the same time.

We have lost 1 game all season and drawn just a few, not sure what else we could have done to be honest and just shows how hard it is to finish above them.

Still some games to go, just need to win ours and see what happens. We have done fantastic anyway.