Newcastle v LiverpoolSt James Park18th Feb, 17:30hReferee: Anthony TaylorAssistants: Gary Beswick, Adam NunnFourth official: Craig PawsonVAR: Chris Kavanagh, Assistant VAR: Simon LongIt's the hope that kills youOr something like that. Bloody hope eh? It's a dangerous drug to be sniffing in days of instant doom, nitro-powered by social media and every clueless asshole having 'an opinion'. Once you start hoping, there is really no way of knowing where the hell you might end up. Hope is potent, sprouts without asking, fills your head with visions of better outcomes, looks down on reality with contempt and never gives up. It doesn't need much to take hold of your thoughts and flip you into least fashionable being in today's world - an optimist who doesn't give a f**k. So whatever you do, don't hope. Seriously, just don't do it. Be strong. Never grow tired of offering realistic opinions, balanced inputs with a pinch of pessimism. It will protect you from so many 'told you so' moments, spiteful whatsup messages filled with laughing emojis and unexpected heartbreak. Embrace the reality of the present situation and expect the bad or mediocre outcome to everything ahead of you. It's what cool kids are doing. You want to be cool too?Yeah fucking right. Hope is what it's all about. Mana from heaven that makes dreams a reality. Eternal trigger for imagination and performing beyond ones abilities. And if we can't muster enough of it after that Everton game we have bigger problems than our midfield. We've had enough time recently to roll on the floor in a dark room, listening to Portishead on repeat while condemning 95% of our team to a quick summer exit. I did it, felt good to feel the peaks of tragedy unfolding. Fuck that. Time to air the room, put on some angry music and fight. Is it a train?It's funny how calendar offered us such perfectly designed obstacle course to turn things around. It seldom happens like this. Three game run we're in the middle of right now, has enough value of every kind in it - for us to build a solid foundation for the rest of the season. Different challenges, gradually increasing difficulty and enough time between games to build up tempo without burning out. We passed the first hurdle playing a game that was all about going back to doing the basics right. No silly fuckups, press, play direct, stay tuned in and reap the rewards. So it's now time to find out what the light at the end of the tunnel is. Newcastle away is a very different proposition to Everton at home. They are extremely robust in defence, seldom give away goals, let alone dumb ones like Everton did. However they are not a potent scoring side and games tend to simmer down into low scoring draws. Since the last day of 2022 they have played six PL matches, drew five and only scored three goals. Which tells us we'll be our worst enemies in this game. Our away form is such a steaming pile of crap I'm actually not even going to look at the numbers - I know its bad. We will need to turn around plenty aspects of it to get a win here - most importantly we must not give them undeserved gifts. Don't reward a team struggling to score goals with stupid defensive errors, make them work for it. In many ways, this is the crucial game in this three game mini-run. Deliver a performance here, get three points and we welcome Real in a very different mood to one just a week ago. Revert back to our recent away modus operandi and it's not looking quite as rosy. But much like against Everton, doing the basics right will offer us the platform to get a result. Having a bench - What a luxuryIt almost became the norm recently to look at our bench and have nothing but fresh legs there. Any potential match winner would start the game, with nothing available on the bench to create a meaningful impact. So it was very nice to see Jota and Bobby for example come on against Everton, with Virgil also being on the bench. Slowly but surely we're getting our players back and it's super important ahead of a game like this. It will be interesting to see if Klopp decides to start any returning players, my guess is no, but who knows. I think we'll start with a similar team to one that played the last match, perhaps Milner for Fabinho, but I don't see us making more than one or two changes to the lineup. I would normally advocate to rest Bajčetić, him being a kid and playing so many intense games recently - but how do you bench him after his MOTM performance against the blues. So yeah, Stefan starts. I'm also hoping Gakpo keeps kis place because with the monkey off his back we may see a different Cody, more confident, direct and dangerous. We'll see, but I expect a similar team, hungry and eager to kickstart the race for Top 4. Not to overstate things, but it is a very, very important game. Not only because it can bring us back into contention for Top 4, but also because it gives us a chance to break the cycle of bad habits. It's not an easy one and Nouveau Riche FC will be determined to claim a famous victory over one of the cartel teams, but what can one do except hope. So, are you eager to beat these? Do you see any changes to the lineup? Do you like Portishead?
However if something serious happens to them I will eat my own cock.
If anyone is going to put a few fingers deep into my arse it's going to be me.
Which version of Liverpool have turned up I wonder?
I’m not sure it’s the one I had hoped might turn up.
I love you Ali!
Early days yet, Newcastle were always going to start fast being the home team.
7. Chance for the reds as Darwin gets the ball on the left but his pass is behind Mo and the chance is lost without an attempt on goal
Took forever to make that decision
Control, pace, bang and finish!!!WOW NUNEZ!!
Place it? Nah...Smash it the fuck in!! WOOHOO!
94 Corner to us. Last kick. Ali in the box and he’s scored
Have we scored? I thought Tyler’s dog had just died.
Double Fuckin Wowwwwwwwww - what a great move
Holy shit! Where has this Liverpool been all season!
That turn from Bajcetic was outstanding
