Standing On The Shoulders Of Giants – Roma 4 Liverpool 2

It's 22.19 on 2nd May and my head's gone. Seriously. I’m all over the place. Logic has left the building. I feel like the character Red at the end of The Shawshank Redemption when he says “I find I’m so excited I can barely sit still or hold a thought in my head.” I'm on the Tube...

Chelsea v Liverpool Preview – Face-off for Fourth

The Details Venue - Stamford Bridge, Chelsea Referee - Anthony Taylor Date & Time - Sunday, May 6th @ 16:30 GMT Current Odds - Chelsea 23/20, Draw 5/2, Liverpool 11/5 Form Chelsea Form Chelsea have had something of a renaissance in recent weeks. Just when I had written them off and considered Antonio Conte to be just seeing out his time until the end of...

Liverpool’s ‘Misfits’ 90 Minutes Away From Becoming Legends

Liverpool are in the Champions League final. Just keep thinking about that. The Champions League final - the biggest match in club football - and Liverpool are in it, in their first season back in the competition since 2014/15. It is a genuinely staggering achievement and one that Jurgen Klopp merits endless plaudits for masterminding. But...

Why Pepijn Lijnders Would be the Ideal Buvač Successor

Liverpool refuse to do things the easy way. 5-2 up in a Champions League semi-final ahead of the second leg, Jürgen Klopp would surely have been less restless had his side already confirmed a top four place, but alas the looming figure that is the tie in Rome seemed to provide enough distraction for Stoke...

Key Stats from Roma 4-2 Liverpool: Nervy night at the Olympico

ALLEZ. Liverpool lost 4-2 in Rome, but it was enough to send them through on aggregate, as they saw off Roma 7-6 on aggregate to reach the Champions League final in Kiev. But what were the key stats from a magical if horribly tense night for Klopp’s side? Game of Two Halves On paper, this was...

Observations as Liverpool book their trip to Kiev

KIEV BABY! Get in you beauty, up the Champions League final Reds. We didn't really do it the hard way if you think about it, there was no comeback needed for us and even when Roma scored to bring the gap back to one there was no time. Of course, watching the game I was fully...

Second Leg Bonanza Sees Reds Advance to Kiev

So, Liverpool are a bit good. Jurgen's Reds booked their place in the Champions League final following a 4-2 defeat in Rome (7-6 aggregate win) with another supreme performance among Europe's elite. Only Liverpool fans would have been worried walking into a second-leg tie three goals to the good, with two late goals for the Italians...

Liverpool Player Ratings as the Reds book their tickets for Kiev

Allez, Allez, Allez! I’m tempted just to give them all 10’s.  OK, we lost the actual match 4-2, but one was a wacky own-goal and another a last second, questionable penalty.  Bottom line is that we didn’t look overly nervous as a collective and we had enough players with supreme performances to get us through....

Liverpool Refuse To Do It The Easy Way

Killer whales. Orcas. The most dominant force in the ocean. They could feed on tuna, penguins, small children, anything really. But what really seems to get an orca going is a nice, fat sea lion. Now, your average orca tries to catch a sea lion out in the open water when they're feeding or transiting...

Liverpool’s Depth Issues Are Being Overstated

A lot has been made of Liverpool’s depth issues recently, and particularly in attack. There are good reasons for this, as Liverpool have drawn three of their last four league games, two of them 0-0, as they attempted to balance crucial Premier League and Champions League fixtures. I myself wrote an article on the...

Buvac Departure: Short Term Blow but Long Term Gain?

The news of the sudden departure of Zeljko Buvac comes as a surprise to many. Personal reasons have been cited but the full details are currently unclear. Whether Buvac returns next season remains to be seen. The timing isn't great, particularly as the Reds go into the remaining handful of games that will define...

The Bobby Dazzler Gets Just Rewards for a Stellar Season

So, a video wherein a contract was signed without looking, and said person proceeded to leave the room whistling ‘Allez Allez Allez’. Liverpool’s announcement of Roberto Firmino extending his contract for five more years was about as Roberto Firmino as it could get. Firmino isn’t about being normal. Be it his role on the...

Five Potential Liverpool Targets from the Championship

With the summer fast approaching and Liverpool’s march towards Kiev in full effect, injuries are shining a light on Jürgen Klopp’s worrying lack of depth. A devastating long-term injury to Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain, Danny Ings’ glaring lack of cutting edge in comparison to the men he usually replaces off the bench and Emre Can’s likely...

AS Roma v Liverpool Preview – Finish the job, Reds!

The Details   Venue - Anfield, Liverpool Date & Time - Wednesday, May 2nd 2018 @ 19:45 BST Referee - Damir Skomina (SLO) Current Odds - Roma 27/20, Draw 11/4, Liverpool 9/5 Form Roma Form Roma had a good win at home to Chievo on Saturday evening. They were in the mood for goals, too, with their 4-1 victory. Liverpool are not Chievo, however. Roma...

Top 4 Still in Sight Despite Klopp’s Limited Options

A disappointing goal-less draw at home to Stoke following the Lord Mayor's show, as Lineker put it last evening. But a point nonetheless and a point which should go a long way to securing top 4, come the end of the campaign. The real pressure is on Chelsea and that's ready-made for our approach. The...

The Cost Of Being A Football Fan

The Premier League trophy is one of the most prestigious trophies available in England which has only been won by 6 teams since the formation of the league 1992. The Premier League odds at Betfair at the start of the season suggested it would be a tight race between Manchester City and Manchester United. Although...

Key Stats From Liverpool 0-0 Andre Marriner (Stoke)

Liverpool suffered another Champions League hangover as they were unable to score past Stoke at Anfield. But what are the key stats from a frustrating 0-0 draw? Reds High-Flying Attack Brought To Earth Liverpool’s normally scintillating attack ran into a brick wall against Stoke. On paper, there was nothing wrong with their attacking performance, with twenty...

Observations as Liverpool Endure Another Stalemate

Funny isn't it. Tuesday night saw one of the most free-flowing attacking performances Liverpool have produced this season, possibly ever under Klopp. Running riot against Roma, five goals in the Champions League semi-final was no small feat; an indication of what this side are capable of in the final third. The contrast between that performance...

Liverpool toil yet again on an early Kick off as the game ends on a stalemate

Starting XIs Liverpool: Karius; Gomez,Van Dijk, Klavan, Moreno; Trent Alexander Arnold, Wijnaldum, Henderson; Salah, Ings, Firmino Stoke: Butland; Pieters;Martins Indi, Shawcross, Zouma; Shaqiri, Ndiaye, Allen, Bauer; Diouf, Crouch The game got off to a steady start with Stoke tending to be more positive than expected. The mystery about Liverpool's line up was sorted with Trent Alexander-Arnold lining...

Liverpool Player Ratings From Stoke Stalemate

A performance that makes you wonder why you bothered getting up for it in the first place. Yes, Liverpool have got bigger fish to fry at the moment, but in a season that's been defined by European nights it seems a little odd that we're not more worried about making sure we're in the Champions...

Roma Rampage Offers a Glimpse of What Midfield Can Do

Liverpool’s irrepressible front three once again stole the show as the Reds gloriously ripped Roma apart in the first leg of their Champions League semi-final but, for 80 minutes at least, it was close to a perfect team performance. As so often under Jurgen Klopp, a manager who licks his lips rather than quakes in...

Three Years And A Week: Liverpool 5 Roma 2

It’s the early evening of 19th April 2015 and I’m walking home from Kingsbury tube station. The sun is on my back and summer is on the way, but my heart is heavy. I pull my phone out of my pockets and press the necessary digits to find young Sachin Nakrani with whom I am writing...

Patience, Patients & Prospects: Reviving Liverpool’s English Core

Aside from the last ten minutes of the past two matches, everything is looking rosy in Liverpool-land. Sunday night Mo Salah was awarded the PFA Player of the Year award and, of course, Tuesday night ended with Liverpool holding a 5-2 advantage going into the Champions League semi-final away leg. Things are going so...

When in Rome: What’s Your Red Travel Style?

The home leg against Roma brought with it tragic stories that you never want associated with a football match. The terrible consequence is that many Liverpool supporters either will avoid the trip to Rome or won't be able to enjoy it because they'll be on a alert. Liverpool, Roma and UEFA are meeting to...

Wielding the Sword – Is Klopp’s Philosophy Viable?

If ever a night encapsulated a team. Liverpool took their season to new heights with a thrilling, brave, brilliant performance at Anfield, smashing Roma to all four corners of the ground as they took a 5-0 lead in a European Cup Semi-Final. And then, well, you all know what happened next. Lovren switched off,...

Liverpool Must Avoid Summer Repeat Of 2002, 2009 & 2014

What do the summers of 2002, 2009 and 2014 all have in common? Liverpool ballsed up every one, that's what. On those three occasions, the Reds had a wonderful chance of kicking on after near-title-winning campaigns, only to come crashing back down to reality after recruiting poorly and allowing rivals to pull clear again. Gerard Houllier...

Liverpool v Stoke City Preview – Closing in on Top Four

The Details Venue - Anfield, Liverpool Referee - Andre Marriner Date & Time - Saturday, April 28th @ 12:30 GMT Current Odds - Liverpool 1/4, Draw 5/1, Stoke 9/1 Form Liverpool Form Liverpool's crazy season continues. Roma were put to the sword on Tuesday night at Anfield and if not for a lapse in concentration during the final ten minutes then we would be all...

Observations as Liverpool Deliver Another Strong Message To Europe

Two late goals for Roma may have taken the gloss off the scoreline, but they shouldn't take away from what was a truly special performance from Jurgen Klopp's side. Mohamed Salah made the biggest statement for Ballon d'Or imaginable, notching two world-class goals in the first-half to make yet another mark on Europe's elite competition....

Key Stats as Reds Move Into Pole Position – Liverpool 5-2 Roma

Liverpool ran riot at Anfield, putting five past Roma before a couple of late goals for the visitors took the gloss off a brilliant and explosive European night, and gave the Italian side half a chance of reaching Kiev. Here are the key stats. Magnificent Mo Leads The Charge In an attacking sense, this was an...

Reds Blast Roma Despite Late Wake Up Call

If blowing out Manchester City in the first-leg of the quarter-final was a statement, this was equal to it. Liverpool were in a rampant mood for 80 minutes, picking AS Roma apart piece by piece to win 5-2 and take a huge step towards Kiev. Referred to as the 'Mo Salah' Derby prior to kick-off,...