The Reds U12's 5-5 Arsenal (5-4 on pens) - Ramblings and Ratings

Welcome to my blog! I'll be here after every Liverpool game this season, giving my thoughts and views on the game, my player ratings, and probably the occasional rant. Feel free to comment, share, or get involved via social media. You'll find me on Twitter as @MNunny91. All abuse and opinion is welcomed.

Wednesday 30th October - The Reds 5-5 Arsenal (5-4 on pens)

The Cara-banter Cup. Seriously, what have I just witnessed?! The most gloriously shite 90 minutes of my 28 year old life probably. Both teams were so so bad, I've been using an online thesaurus for alternatives to the word 'shite' in order to avoid saying 'shite' 700 times. Amazingly ridiculous game of football. At least I think it was football. 

I suppose that's the sort of game you get when there's 22 changes combined. I can't figure out what I'd like us to do in this cup. I'd like to win it, but at the same time the experience the kids are getting is huge for them in the long term. What a moment for Curtis Jones, scouser, winning penalty in front of the Kop, proper stuff of dreams. I was a bit surprised he didn't start, Jurgen obviously wanted a bit more experience in the midfield to calm it down and help see the kids through. That went well. Lallana and Keita were absolutely horrendous. Keita especially. I'm sorry but I am rapidly losing patience. We waited a year for this bloke, gave him Stevie Gerrard's shirt, and forked out 53 million quid for him. Where is this nasty fucker who got sent off every other week in Germany? I've never seen him make a tackle. He's so timid and fragile. Looks like he's picked up yet another niggle, but I wouldn't be surprised if he was just embarrassed that he was getting the run around off a couple of Arsenal reserves. I fear for Naby a bit now, I was convinced he'd come good but there is absolutely no chance he's in our best XI. Needs a run of games but I just don't see how he gets them currently. 

The goals we gave away were laughable. You know its the Mickey Mouse cup when Jimmy Milner starts sticking their striker through on goal with a underhit backpass. Just so soft and sloppy, nobody could pass 5 yards. Both sides must have given the ball away 50+ times under pretty much zero pressure. Their first goal is offside, the second is awful from Origi, the third is a blind pass from young Elliott, the fourth is a shocking back pass and the fifth is a worldie, but we've still let him run 30 yards without anyone so much as breathing on him. I can't be too critical of any of the kids, there's a lot of ability in there and in Elliott I'm convinced we've got a potential superstar on our hands. Glides around the pitch, lovely balance and technique about him. Got a lot to learn obviously, but for a 16 year old he oozes class and definitely has a little bit of arrogance about him. Just look at that rascal haircut, you've got to have a set of stones to walk around thinking you're the man with a top knot. The only fear I have for him is that he has a year out to 'find himself' and goes backpacking in Australia. 

I don't tend to talk too much about the opposition on here, but Arsenal really are the gift that keeps on giving. Absolutely hilarious club. Why Emery took Ozil off I will never know, he was taking the absolute piss at times. Only Ozil could register an assist with a Cruyff turn. Looked the only real class player on the pitch and gets hooked after an hour, bizarre. I reckon we could have been 6-0 down with 5 minutes left and we'd have probably still taken it to penalties. The most mentally weak squad of players you could ever find. I've been wanting to write something about what happened with Granit Xhaka at the weekend, because I have a lot of sympathy for him. Shite player don't get me wrong, but who in this world would enjoy being booed and heckled by 60,000 people? Football fans are so hypocritical at times. Players get called every name under the sun and people are whining when someone has the audacity to give a bit back? Good on him I say. 

Anyway, we're into the quarter finals. It'll be interesting to see what sort of side we put out were we to draw a City or United, especially away from home. Its a big ask for some of these lads to go and play away from home in a big game, but Klopp is pretty loyal and it wouldn't surprise me to see us field this XI throughout the competition, however far we go. A trophy is a trophy but let's be honest, we've got far greater priorities. I feel like everything is building up towards that City game in a few weeks time, it's going to be monumental. Winning that game would put us in the best position we've ever been in to finally win this Premier league title, and maybe we should be treating this Cup as something of a bonus. If it gives us more evenings like this one, I'm all for it. Imagine turning up to Old Trafford with a bunch of pre-pubescent kids and turning them over. Next up is Villa away, potentially a tricky game but the big boys will be back and it should be fun. In the meantime, up the teenage Reds! 

Ratings. 

The Milky Bar Kid - Set the tone for the evening when he started dribbling outside his box and taking the piss for no apparent reason. Even started saving things that were going 4 yards wide so they could have another fucking tap in. Will be knackered in his P.E lessons tomorrow. 5.

Some Welsh Lad - I'll be honest, I didn't even know we had a player called Neco Williams. Sounds like an Aldi own brand television. Probably wasn't the worst player on the pitch. That's about all I can say. Looked like someone who had never played for us before. Only 14. Work experience will help him massively. 5.

Gomez - I was delighted to see him in the team and not Lovren. He then decided to play like Lovren and Martin Skrtel combined. Dreadful. Which means more Lovren for me to watch in the next 6 weeks. Joyous. 5.

Ginger Van Dijk - Played more like Dick Van Dyke at times but also looked quite composed on the ball. Had after school detention so it was understandable he took a while to settle in to it. 5.

Milly - Joined in with the banter by making his first mistake since he was the same age as the rest of the back four. Good for Robbo to get a rest. Other than the backpass, he was fine. Unreal from 12 yards isn't he? 6.

Lallana - This holding midfielder experiment needs to be culled. Why does he have to control everything, even a simple 5 yard pass, by doing a Cruyff turn? People jogged past him far too easily, and he gave it away far too much. Scored his pen though. 5.

Keita - I thought he was embarrassing. Really really bad. Looks like a frightened little kid out there who has absolutely no trust in his body. Did nothing but lose the ball, fell over constantly, just a desperate performance. 3.

The Ox - What a thunderbastard that was. His role this season is to do absolutely nothing positive for long periods, then smash one in the top corner. Would have liked to have seen an Adebayor type celebration in front of their mob, but the lad is the nicest bloke on the planet. 6.

Messi With a Top Knot - One really shit pass for their 3rd goal, other than that he was bright again. Does well for the penalty. You can just tell he's a player, everything he does is really pleasing on the eye. Other than the haircut, which I'm really struggling with. Hope Jurgen takes a pair of scissors to it in the dressing room. 6.

Divock - The most archetypal Origi performance of all time. Falls over, doesn't bother tackling Bellerin, falls over again, chases his touch, falls over, scores a worldie, shins in an overhead bicycle kick thing to make it 5 all. Its Divocks world and we are all just living in it. 7.

Brewster - Raw. Absolutely rapid isn't he? Definitely something about the kid but it's just not quite happening for him in front of goal. Seems a nice lad and popular in the dressing room, I reckon he's hiding people boots and pissing them all right off. Looks the type. 6.

Subs

Jones - Came on and he wasn't Naby Keita, which was enough for me already. Then sets up Origi and smashes the winning pen off Casper the friendly post. MOM. 8.

Chirivella - Pretty sure we brought him on just to stick 2 fingers up to the EFL. How dare you try to ban us, we're Liverpool and we'll play whoever we fucking like. 5.

The Reds 2-1 Spurs - Ramblings and Ratings

Welcome to my blog! I'll be here after every Liverpool game this season, giving my thoughts and views on the game, my player ratings, and probably the occasional rant. Feel free to comment, share, or get involved via social media. You'll find me on Twitter as @MNunny91. All abuse and opinion is welcomed. 

Sunday 27th October - The Reds 2-1 Spurs

Apart from the first 47 seconds, and the last 15 minutes, that was a sensational performance. We could have, probably should have, won by 4 or 5. And that's despite Spurs being a crossbar width away from making it 2-0. Fine margins in this game. I warned everyone midweek not to get too giddy at the prospect of seeing the Ox or Naby start today, it was never likely to happen. Klopp trusts this midfield, and who can argue with the results? Hendo was absolutely rancid for 45 minutes, then he pops up with the equaliser and everyone forgives his clumsy dawdling which led to them taking the lead before most of us had even sat down. 

The big difference between this Liverpool team and Liverpool sides I've watched in the past, is the lack of panic I feel when we go a goal down. I was still totally confident we would win that game, even at half time. Was a proper game of football, that. Quick, incisive, full of passion and power. The crowd got into it, the players responded, and we absolutely dominated all over the pitch. Fabinho was absolutely immense. What a footballer. Say what you like about Spurs this season but any side able to field a 4-pronged attack of Eriksen, Alli, Son and Kane, is going to carry a serious threat. Fabinho single handedly snuffed them out at times. He broke up play, he dictated the tempo, he was absolutely everywhere. He is the catalyst for the crowd noise at times. Nothing gets the Kop going like watching a bloke busting his guts to get back and make a crunching tackle. First name on the team sheet.

Trent and Robbo copped a bit of stick at Old Trafford last week. They were back on it in a big way today. Trent might actually be the best passer of a ball I've ever seen from full back. It's bordering on ridiculous. That switch to Robbo he plays 20 times a game stretches teams to death. Pulls it off every time. He just has so much ability it's almost impossible to imagine he'll spend his whole career in the back four. The kid could 100% play in midfield. His quality from wide areas is second only to De Bruyne in this league. Robbo got himself much further forward than he did against United, a little bit lacking in the final ball at times, but he's such a threat. I predicted that Serge Aurier would have his hands full with Sadio today, and so it proved with the penalty. Sadio must be an absolute nightmare to defend against. So strong, so quick, so direct. He doesn't always get the headlines that Salah does, but he's arguably more important to how we play.

That's another big test out of the way, with the City game looming large. What an occasion that will be. Anfield will be absolutely rocking. It's all about getting to that game with the six point lead intact now. I'm so much more confident this season that we're better than them and we'll turn them over. I can't see currently how they'll live with us going forwards, with the injuries they have. I cannot wait. Next assignment is the League Cup game against Arsenal on Wednesday, where I imagine we'll see Naby and The Ox again, and probably a few of the kids. Should be a good watch. I'll be back for that, in the meantime as always, up the Reds!

Ratings

Big Ali - The calmest bloke on the planet. Can do nothing with the goal, didn't have masses to do after it. Did well to force Son wide and not bring him down, and a couple of good late holds under pressure. Huge presence. 7.

Trent - Passing is a joke. Just absolutely phenomenal quality. The ball for Sadio's header was a knife, fork, plate and tray for your lap job. Class today, a huge weapon for us when he's on it. 8.

Deji - I don't ever expect much from the bloke, but Kane bullied him at times. Wasn't terrible, but wasn't great either. Virgil looks twice the player when Lovren doesn't play, and that tells its own story. 6.

Virgil - Headed chance was a sitter by his standards. Got to score. Got caught on it and gave it away a couple of times, by his ridiculously high standards, not at his best. I blame Lovren. 6.

Robbo - Just runs his arse off every week. Probably doing a half marathon round the Albert Dock as we speak. Should have done better with his final ball at times but still such a threat. 7.

Gini - Pretty average. Why's he not getting a shot off in the box second half? Got around the pitch well like he always does, but Fabinho is holding this midfield together at the moment. 6.

Fabs - Awesome. What a player. He was absolutely everywhere. Goes under the radar how good he is with the ball. Was clipping through balls to Mo like Alonso at one point. Sublime. MOM. 9.

Hendo - Rotten for 45. At fault for their goal, gave it away a lot and was playing right wing at times. Then he slices in that volley, all is forgiven, better than Gerrard. 7.

Egyptian King - Nearly missed the ball, he tried hitting that pen so hard. Constant threat, loves playing against Spurs. 7.

Bobby - Worked his bollocks off. Ties everything together. Does so much that goes unnoticed and allows Mo and Sadio to run riot. 7.

Sadio - Had Aurier on toast. Never gives up a lost cause, has absolutely no right to pinch that ball for the pen. He's just a right pain in the arse. 8.

Subs.

Got to be honest, didn't even see anyone come on, was too busy chewing my nails. Think I saw slab head Milner get booked at some point, couldn't tell you what for. Who cares, they all get a 10.

Genk 1-4 Liverpool - Ramblings and Ratings.

Welcome to my blog! I'll be here after every Liverpool game this season, giving my thoughts and views on the game, my player ratings, and probably the occasional rant. Feel free to comment, share, or get involved via social media. You'll find me on Twitter as @MNunny91. All abuse and opinion is welcomed. 

Wednesday 23rd October - Genk 1-4 The Reds

WE WON A GROUP GAME AWAY FROM HOME IN EUROPE. Comfortably in the end but at times that first half was anything but. Liverpool looking shaky at the back? Lovren in the team? Coincidence you say? Seriously, he is shocking. Virgil looks so fed up having to babysit him constantly. We got the early goal, happy days, then all of a sudden Usain Bolt was through on goal twice after dead straight 70 yard pings from their centre halves. Ridiculous. 

Loved the look of the team before the game. Midfield looked fresh, forward thinking, full of energy. There was a lot of good things happening out there tonight, but we were a bit too careless with the ball at times, a little lackadaisical. The Ox got his goals, but he needs to tighten up a bit if he's going to be a regular again. He's 100mph constantly. Looks like he's trying his socks off to impress and I'm not convinced that helps him. We all know how good he can be, just look at the second goal, a thing of beauty. I've been calling for Keita and Ox, or anyone that can get in between the lines, for a while now, but it's nights like these where I understand why Klopp reverts to Fabinho, Hendo and Wijnaldum in the real big ones. It's just so much more reliable. You know you're getting a 7/10 from all of them every week. With Naby, you feel like he could be a 10/10 or a 2/10. He played well tonight on the whole, a few sloppy moments in the first half but far more positives than negatives. I will, however, be shocked if we see anything other than Fabs, Hendo and Gini in the engine room against Spurs.

Let's talk about Joe Gomez. I feel like we've all forgotten how good he was before the injury last season. We were talking about him as much as we were Van Dijk, now we're picking a midfielder and Dejan bloody Lovren ahead of him when half of the back line is injured. I don't really understand it, but who am I to argue with the great man? He could re-sign Paul Konchesky and give him the arm band for all I care and I'd still back him. But seriously, England need Joey G back to his best as much as we do. He's been a victim of Matip's success more than anything, then Lovren plays against Leicester out of nowhere and has a stormer. He reverted to type this evening, which is probably good news for Joe. Will be interesting to see who Jurgen goes with at the weekend if Matip is out.

Good to see the 3 amigo's back together again. You can't help but think we'd have won at Old Toilet at the weekend with Mo in the side. He was garbage for an hour tonight and then suddenly remembered he was Mo Salah and took the piss out of them. Some of Firmino's flicks and touches tonight were bordering on ridiculous. That rabona through ball. My word. I will be replaying that for weeks. So nonchalant. We underestimate just how good these 3 are sometimes, we are lucky to have them. You just know that it's impossible for all 3 to go through 90 minutes without doing something individually brilliant. None of them were at their best, yet we're going home after scoring 4 goals. They are just sublime.

Also, apologies for repeating myself, but VAR is absolute dog shite. Anyone that wants it as part of the game can stop reading this now and find another sport to watch. Absolute emotion killing, robotic, time consuming dross. I despise it so much I can barely type. Those poor Belgian fuckers in the stands had just watched some geezer jump 7 feet in the air and plant an absolute bullet header into the bottom corner, to then wait half an hour wondering what the hell was going on, before it gets ruled out. Yeah, he was offside, but why did we not even get shown a replay? The commentators are going on like it was a foul because he jumped so high he actually stood on Milly's head at one point. Nobody knows what's happening. Joke of a system. I'm still raging about that foul on Origi at the weekend. Clear and obvious? How clear and obvious do you want a bloke getting kicked in the calf to be?

That's me done for the night. Can't beat a win on the road in the Champions League. It's been a while, in the group stages at least. Check out my ratings below. Spurs on Sunday, the big games just keep coming. Can't wait for that one. Up the Reds!

Ratings

Big Ali - Belter of a save early doors when we couldn't defend a straight 70 yard ball over the top. Didn't have anything to do after that until he picked the ball out of the net late on. Looked absolutely raging about it. Hope he twatted Lovren on the head with his boot in the changing room. 7.

Milly - Mr never lets you down didn't let anyone down. Played right back, left back, sure he even nipped in net for a few minutes. Such a professional. Give the slab head a new deal. 6.

Deji - Shite. Just absolutely desperate. Whenever he plays we look so vulnerable every time theres a ball in behind. First 20 minutes they were through on goal twice and Lovren was on the halfway line. What's he doing at the end for their goal? Just get rid of it. Toilet. Should have driven him to Milan to in the summer. 4.

Virg - Coasted through the game. Rolls Royce. Looks like he can't be arsed 75% of the time and he's still the best player to ever play the game. Had to sprint a few times because Lovren was useless. I reckon he'll smash one in the top bins from about 50 yards soon, just for a laugh. 7.

Robbo - Looks absolutely shattered at the moment. Probably his 400th game in the last 2 seasons. Got a knock and came off. Still went the long way around the pitch. He just loves running. Imagine his fitbit numbers. Probably does 10k before any of us get out of bed in the morning. 6.

Fabs - First name on the sheet these days. He's like that big submarine you smash in the middle of the board when you're playing battleships. You know it's there but it takes about 20 hits to blow it up. Never gives it away, wins it back, whacks people. Hell of a player. 7.

Oxo - Keeper is having an earl grey by the corner flag for his first. Second is a worldie. What a finish. Delightful. Was about to slate him a bit before that hit the net. Gave it away too much for my liking, a bit careless at times, but he always tries to make things happen. Will the goals get him in at the weekend against the spuds? I doubt it. Gets MOM for that delicious finish alone. 8.

Naby - Thought he looked quality at times, but I'm always left wanting more for some reason. Every time I watch him I think there's an absolute freak in there somewhere, he can do everything but sometimes looks a bit timid. I'm waiting for him to explode. Played well though, good minutes for him. 7.

Mo - Looked dead injured and leggy for most of it, then slots a beaut of a ball for Sadio and sends 3 blokes down the shops before getting one himself. What a player. Couldn't trap a bag of sand first half. Who cares? He's Mo Salah. Will probably get a hat-trick at the weekend without breaking sweat. 7.

Bobby - That rabona flick through ball for Sadio was the filthiest thing I've ever seen. That will be on XVideos by the end of the night. Disgusting. Played his part in most of our positive play, without getting out of first gear. Si senorrrrrr. 7.

Sadio - What a finish. Just pure quality. Class goal that was. The front 3 at their absolute best. Can see him absolutely ruining Aurier at the weekend. Get your money on a red card for him now. You heard it here first.  7.

Subs.

Gomez - Did alright. Got to be a worry when a midfielder is getting a game over you when half the defence is injured. 6.

Wijnaldum - Tidy little cameo. Would be shocked if he doesn't get straight back in for the weekend. 6.

Origi - Got a nice round of applause for the being the best player in the world. Scored the winner in the final last year. Champions of Europe. 6.

United 1-1 The Reds - Ramblings and Ratings.

Welcome to my blog! I'll be here after every Liverpool game this season, giving my thoughts and views on the game, my player ratings, and probably the occasional rant. Feel free to comment, share, or get involved via social media. You'll find me on Twitter as @MNunny91. All abuse and opinion is welcomed. 

Sunday 20th October - Manchester United 1-1 Liverpool.

Well that was frustrating. My God have the tables turned. Like 360 turned. 10 years ago, an 85th minute equaliser at Old Trafford would have seen some serious limbs. This year, it was all a bit 'meh'. 

This United team is shocking. Really really bad. Make no mistake about it, that goes down as a huge opportunity missed in my book. Even more so than last season when United had about 8 injuries in the first half. Take away the emotion, take away the fixture, take away the past failings and the old inferiority complex, we were playing the 14th best side in the league. We didn't turn up. Too passive. Too predictable. I really wanted us to roll up and flex our muscles, show them how much better we are, rub that sixth European Cup right in their faces and brush them aside. It never really looked like happening.

I love this team, they've given me some memories I'll cherish forever. But, we still have a massive mental block when we turn up at Old Trafford. There's no point denying it, it's there for all to see. Man for man, we are stronger than United in every single area. I thought the midfield picked showed them too much respect before a ball had even been kicked. We were desperate for someone to break the lines, to force the issue, especially with Mo missing. There was no creative spark in there, too many sideways passes and far too slow. I want to see more of Naby Keita from now on. Let's see this player that tore up the Bundesliga, he deserves a real run in the side now he's fit again. This Fabinho, Hendo & Gini midfield is reliable and solid, but we don't need all three of them. Especially not against mid table teams. Wink. 

They were poor as well, there for the taking. I'm not buying into this rhetoric that they were much improved, outran us, outfought us etc. We just let them off the hook. VAR is a joke, we all know that, but I'm not using it as an excuse. Was it a foul on Origi? I thought so. It was more a refereeing mistake than a VAR mistake in my opinion. Atkinson is 10 yards away, looking straight at it. As long as this 'clear and obvious' nonsense is in place, nothing is getting overturned. What exactly is the point of having a screen at the side of the pitch? The whole system needs tearing up, I can't stand it. I couldn't even properly celebrate the Lallana equaliser because I was convinced he was probably a toenail offside or had breathed too heavily on Rojo inside the box. Can't really have any complaints about the hand ball against Mane, as much as I'd like to.

A point isn't a disaster, just more irritating and frustrating than anything else. The winning run just had to come to an end against that mob. There was an air of over confidence in the media and the fan base before the game and it made me very uncomfortable. Most of my childhood was spent watching us travel to United more in hope than expectation. We were always the ones trying to throw a spanner into the works and dent their title charge, now the shoe is firmly on the other foot. Another season gone, another missed opportunity to prove we're back on our perch.

9 games in, 8 wins and 1 draw is title winning form. Every one of us would have taken it before a ball was kicked, so onwards and upwards. We are off to Belgium on Wednesday to play a team that sounds like some some sort of reptile, should be fun. I'll be back then, with more ramblings and ratings, and hopefully a win. Up the reds!


Ratings

Big Ali - Good to have him back. Looked bored. Still devilishly handsome. Couldn't do anything about the goal. Would have liked to have seen a Cruyff turn or a rabona at some point. Could have had a traffic cone in net and still got a point. 6.

Trent - Not his best game. Looked a bit lost. Was either caught far too high or far too deep. Kept whipping balls in from everywhere like we had Crouchie up top. Only local lad on the field. You hate to see it. 5.

Joel - Got roasted a couple of times. Severe lack of mazy Giraffe style surges forward. No funny facial expressions to turn into memes either. Disappointing. 5.

Big Virg - Ended up on his arse at one point. Genuinely thought I'd been transported to some sort of parallel universe. Did alright after that, also looked bored. Hit Dan James like a freight train which was very enjoyable. Still the absolute main fella. 6.

Robbo - Similar to Trent, looked a bit confused at United's back 12 or whatever it was. Didn't get forward as much as he'd have liked. Picked up another assist with probably his worst cross of the season. We will take it. 6.

Fabs - Another one not at his best. Gary Neville kept digging him out which annoyed me. Leave it out Gaz. Bit sloppy at times. Picked up his customary booking. Probably his 30th card of the season. His worst game for 12 months and he still wasn't bad. Class act. 5.

Hendo - Passed it sideways a bit and then backwards a bit. Ran around a lot. Definitely not a right midfielder. One good ball for an offside Bobby in the first half. Other than that, not a lot. I think I'd like to see more of Naby and less of Hendo at the moment. 5.

Gini - Thought he was on for a stormer when he skinned a couple early doors and had a go at goal. Didn't see him again after that. Wouldn't mind seeing him utilised higher up the pitch. Koeman has got him banging them in for Holland. 5.

Div - Okay, I'll be the one to say it. I know it's sacrilege. I know he's a cult hero. Yes, I'll always love him. But I'm sorry, I can't have him. Shite player. Can't be having Divock come in for Salah when City have got Aguero and the like to come on. Fouled for their goal, mainly because he was chasing his touch. 4.

Bobby - Quiet. Dropped too deep looking for the ball. Understandable with the lack of service he was getting. Should have done better with the chances he had first half. Missed having Mo up there more than anyone else. 5.

Sadio - Was still our biggest threat, despite not really being at it. Disallowed goal was frustrating. Top run for Bobby's chance first half. Thought he might have had more of a go at Rojo. 6.

Subs.

The Ox - Thought he changed the game. Real willingness to get forward and make things happen. Gave it away a few times but showed more intent than any of the starting midfield. Nearly stole it late on with the left foot strike. Need him back fit and firing. 7.

Lallana - Chuffed for the bloke. Gets way too much stick. Not as good as he used to be but still useful, really nice moment for him. Tremendous knee slide, executed to perfection. Gets MOM for that alone. 7.

Naby - Really positive. Nice and crisp when he came on. Played his part in the goal. I want to see more of Naby now, there is a top player in there somewhere and I'm still convinced he'll be huge for us eventually. Come on lad. Should start midweek in Belgium. 6.