A Football Report

By Owen Morgan

It seems an age has passed since Liverpool visited Old Trafford and emerged rampant 4-1 victors; In fact it was less than four years ago in March 2009. The crushing pressure of the modern football industry means that a club cycles through teams with relative frequency, only four of the Liverpool squad from 2009 are still at Anfield, yet even so the gulf between the two clubs has rarely been greater.

However, under Brendan Rodgers, Liverpool slowly, tentatively, seem to be gaining ground. Despite wasting the prolific talent of Nuri Sahin, the woes of the second Dalglish era are gradually being covered over and there are signs, although they were second best on Sunday afternoon, that the jigsaw that is Brendan Rodgers’ Anfield ‘project’ is starting to take shape.

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By Darshan Joshi, writing in Sydney

It may be stretching the truth a little had I begun this by saying that there was only one team on the field, but it wouldn’t be a lie either. There was one moment during the match when it seemed as though Liverpool weren’t in grotesquely severe control of the match – Dimitar Berbatov lashed a half-volley, so curvaceous it may have made this month’s Playboy centrefold, beyond Pepe Reina, but, alas! All it did was shake the frame of the Spaniard’s goalmouth. And then there was a silence. Liverpool’s defensive third remained untouched for a long, long period, like a virgin resolutely set on prolonging its spell of abstinence. The picture is painted clearer than a van Gogh masterpiece when you notice the possession statistics: the Devils with 58% of the ball, yet, this very ball remained in United’s half for the majority of the match. And when United did get their goal, oh, if only there wasn’t a period of ninety minutes before then!

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 By Ainsley Jacobs, writing from London

Torres’s transfer request turned down by the Reds but is this really the end of ‘El Nino’ at Anfield?

Liverpool supporters could be forgiven for wondering whether they were coming or going on Friday. After news broke of Chelsea’s bid of £35 million for Fernando Torres, the fans received the news that they have wanted to hear for the past month. After prolonged discussions, Luis Suarez was finally on his way to Anfield from Ajax for a fee of around £22.8 million.  However Luis’s big moment was about to be trumped by the bombshell that Torres wanted out of Anfield and had formally written a transfer request which was subsequently given short shrift by the club. So on a day when Liverpool and NESV have shown their ambition in the transfer market with the acquisition of Suarez; what has turned Torres’s head and can Liverpool cope without him?

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Liverpool, Tom Hicks, and the 1.6 billion dollar Lawsuit 

As a little extra feature after we recorded our first ever Podcast, which you really should listen to, AFR’s Nick Lichtenberg, who works for an American law magazine, broke down Tom Hicks’ $1.6 billion lawsuit against Liverpool in the context of the American legal system. Nick made sense of how punitive damages could account for $1.6 billion, as well as where the terms “epic swindle” and “conspiracy” come from. It’s only a four minute clip, but definitely worth a listen. Did this help clear things up?

(Source: matchcentre)

By Amy Quinn, writing from Dublin

Giant killings are a common story in all walks of footballing life. Few football clubs can say, with conviction, that they have never fallen foul of the ambition and drive that lower-ranked teams can often bring to the fore. Liverpool are no exception, with memorable FA cup exits to the likes of Barnsley and just last year, Reading, and with the spectacular banishment from the Carling Cup just two weeks ago at the hands of Northampton Town barely forgotten. It’s strange, however, that all of this pales in comparison to a desperate defeat in Liverpool’s own back yard yesterday afternoon against Ian Holloway’s Blackpool. The Seasiders now find themselves four points ahead of Liverpool in the Premiership (begging the question, are Liverpool now the underdogs?), and previously seen as relegation fodder, the shoe is now on the other foot for the struggling Reds.

It was particularly telling that late that Sunday, as Liverpool sunk to their lowest point in recent memory, the Kop erupted with chants of “Dalglish!” - referring, of course, to the former Liverpool player and manager, and current Academy director, Kenny Dalglish, who was present at Anfield yesterday with fellow legend Ian Rush, as he is every week. Surely not a pleasant experience for Liverpool’s manager, Roy Hodgson, who has come under fire from all corners of the team’s fanbase, but it represented something crucial. Liverpool fans have forged loving relationships with so many players and leaders down the years. Having adapted to so many different managerial styles, it is surprising that any approach would jar so horribly with the club as Roy’s has so far, but there’s an explanation for that.

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By Eric Beard, who finally turned 21 today

A friend of mine said to me Wednesday morning, “How many goals do you think Chelsea will win by? No way they put six in again, right? I think Newcastle will put up a good fight, so Liverpool will probably outscore Chelsea for once.” The Anchoring Trap is, simply, over-relying on your first thoughts. So if I asked (an ill-informed) you, “How many professional clubs are there in England? More or less than 40?”, then you may very well guess over 40, but your specific answer will likely be nowhere near the true number of 92. Anyway, it was early (10 am is early for a college student), and I was tired while walking towards by Strategic Management class. This was essentially my thought process: “Chelsea are amazing, but Liverpool are playing a team I have never heard of. Therefore, advantage Liverpool.” I was caught in the anchoring trap like a fool. His question assumed victories for Chelsea and Liverpool, and his assumption, through the ineffable footballing transitive property, became my perception.

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