***Official Soccer Discussion Thread*** (5 Viewers)

[Eephus]

SF Greeks won a couple of them too when I was a yut.

I had no idea. The Greek Orthodox cathedral that sponsored them is right in my neighborhood. If I pass it after leaving Zeitgeist, I know I'm going the wrong way.

 

[El Floppo]

I mentioned the SF Greeks- they were in the league I played in for a couple of teams post-college. They, and an El Salvadorian team were the tip-top of that league, and usually had good runs into the Open Cup (greeks won it several years before I played in the league).

it was interesting to me to see how I, and my team, stacked up against teams that were at the time considered amongst the best in the US.

 

[Sebowski]

SF Greeks won a couple of them too when I was a yut.

I had no idea. The Greek Orthodox cathedral that sponsored them is right in my neighborhood. If I pass it after leaving Zeitgeist, I know I'm going the wrong way.

####### love Zeitgeist

 

[El Floppo]

SF Greeks won a couple of them too when I was a yut.

I had no idea. The Greek Orthodox cathedral that sponsored them is right in my neighborhood. If I pass it after leaving Zeitgeist, I know I'm going the wrong way.

I forgot that Lothar was the coach.

I played in that league in 89 for SFIAC and then again for Mill Valley United (mostly guys from old HS) when they won it in 94. My youth club coach (USF coach/legend Steve Negoesco) wanted me to play with the Greeks to give me an in with Lothar. yeah. not selected for the youth national team, but maybe Lothar will see something in me for the grown ups.

During one period between 1986 and 1989, the Greeks were undefeated in 55 consecutive games and won five straight league titles from 1984 to 1989. Under former U.S. national team coachLothar Osiander the team won two U.S. Open Cups in 1985 and 1994.

 

[Eephus]

With all due respect to the talent of the forerunners, it does make you realize how far US soccer has come since 1994.

 

[Eephus]

SF Greeks won a couple of them too when I was a yut.

I had no idea. The Greek Orthodox cathedral that sponsored them is right in my neighborhood. If I pass it after leaving Zeitgeist, I know I'm going the wrong way.

####### love Zeitgeist

Mrs. Eephus won't go there anymore after seeing a rat outside, so my daughter is my new Zeitgeist drinking buddy.

 

[El Floppo]

With all due respect to the talent of the forerunners, it does make you realize how far US soccer has come since 1994.

I am constantly having to double/triple take at the state of things now (and I'll speak for Andy too).

but I've never heard of Zeitgeist.

 

[NewlyRetired]

With all due respect to the talent of the forerunners, it does make you realize how far US soccer has come since 1994.

I am constantly having to double/triple take at the state of things now (and I'll speak for Andy too).

two biggest leaps for me in the game as a whole here in the US were

1) from roughly 1990 to around 1996.

2) from the early to mid 2000's to what we have today

I am not talking about player quality, more just how the game is viewed, attended, talked about etc.

 

[El Floppo]

With all due respect to the talent of the forerunners, it does make you realize how far US soccer has come since 1994.

I am constantly having to double/triple take at the state of things now (and I'll speak for Andy too).

two biggest leaps for me in the game as a whole here in the US were

1) from roughly 1990 to around 1996.

2) from the early to mid 2000's to what we have today

I am not talking about player quality, more just how the game is viewed, attended, talked about etc.

I couldn't have conversations about formation/shape/tactics... ever, unless it was with guys who played high level ball.

I love that the game is on and talked about enough- seemingly since I've joined up here during the 06' world cup- to allow everybody insight into the finer points of the game, whether they played high level or never even played.

 

[El Floppo]

the internet and explosion of cable tv has definitely helped.

 

[B Maverick]

With all due respect to the talent of the forerunners, it does make you realize how far US soccer has come since 1994.

I am constantly having to double/triple take at the state of things now (and I'll speak for Andy too).

two biggest leaps for me in the game as a whole here in the US were

1) from roughly 1990 to around 1996.

2) from the early to mid 2000's to what we have today

I am not talking about player quality, more just how the game is viewed, attended, talked about etc.

Also the expectations at the national team level have gone from will we qualify to how far can we go? The expectation is now we will qualify and we should get out of our group. Anything less is a disappointment.

 

[jonessed]

SF Greeks won a couple of them too when I was a yut.

I had no idea. The Greek Orthodox cathedral that sponsored them is right in my neighborhood. If I pass it after leaving Zeitgeist, I know I'm going the wrong way.

####### love Zeitgeist

I don't think I've been there for a decade. Used to go with a friend of mine who was in the Royal Navy. Stopped going when he passed.

 

[Good Posting Judge]

SF Greeks won a couple of them too when I was a yut.

I had no idea. The Greek Orthodox cathedral that sponsored them is right in my neighborhood. If I pass it after leaving Zeitgeist, I know I'm going the wrong way.

####### love Zeitgeist

Mrs. Eephus won't go there anymore after seeing a rat outside, so my daughter is my new Zeitgeist drinking buddy.

I have some bad news re: SF for your wife.

 

[Sinn Fein]

SF Greeks won a couple of them too when I was a yut.

I had no idea. The Greek Orthodox cathedral that sponsored them is right in my neighborhood. If I pass it after leaving Zeitgeist, I know I'm going the wrong way.

####### love Zeitgeist

Mrs. Eephus won't go there anymore after seeing a rat outside, so my daughter is my new Zeitgeist drinking buddy.

I have some bad news re: SF for your wife.

 

[Sinn Fein]

Gator's personal fappening

 

[Kafka]

Madness ensues at the Ghana-Equatorial Guinea game...military helicopter fly-over and all...African football can be theatre bizarre.

 

[El Floppo]

Madness ensues at the Ghana-Equatorial Guinea game...military helicopter fly-over and all...African football can be theatre bizarre.

looks like a nail-biter until the doors came off right before the half.

 

[Kafka]

Madness ensues at the Ghana-Equatorial Guinea game...military helicopter fly-over and all...African football can be theatre bizarre.

looks like a nail-biter until the doors came off right before the half.

Oh, it's a nail-biter alright...

 

[roadkill1292]

Gator's personal fappening

That looks like somebody's avatar in the making.

 

[El Floppo]

Gator's personal fappening

That looks like somebody's avatar in the making.

I didn't scroll down at first read...

 

[Eephus]

That's a pretty pathetic act by the Equatorial Guinea supporters. They entered the tournament through the back door and advanced thanks to a number of questionable calls.

I haven't found an account of what led up to the chaos but when you're down 3-0, it's usually not a fluke.

 

[The Gator]

Gator's personal fappening

I'm out

:slaps money on table:

 

[Jaysus]

lol @

• [SIZE=.9em]85'[/SIZE]
  [SIZE=.9em]Players are now being instructed to clear bottles as, unbelievably, the officials are attempting to restart the match.[/SIZE]
  

 

[The Gator]

Red underwear>>>>> black red>>>>>>>> black white

 

[shader]

the internet and explosion of cable tv has definitely helped.

I'm sure this is true. I got into Liverpool this year after the World Cup. I figured I'd be streaming games from an obscure website. But the only games I've missed are the early Capital One cup games. Everything else has been right there for me to watch.

 

[shader]

Gator/fellow Liverpool fans:

Thoughts on rest of season for Liverpool?

Right now the team is playing great. Sturridge is bringing a new dimension, Sterling seems to be learning the striker position quite well, and Coutinho is playing out of his mind.

I don't know whether guys on Liverpool message boards are always so over-the-top, but it seems that they are all of the consensus that this is a do-or-die season, in terms of getting to the CL, as we can't afford to fall behind Arsenal in revenue another 50M dollars.

I'm still learning the game and the financial aspects, but this team is one of the top ten in the world in revenue and is full of youth. I'd say the future is extremely bright.

 

[Eephus]

I've read a couple of match reports and I'm still not clear about what set the Eq. Guinean fans off. There was a penalty awarded in the first half but it wasn't hotly disputed. It's a shame really because the tournament had generally steered clear of the off-field nonsense that plagues African football.

 

[Battles]

the internet and explosion of cable tv has definitely helped.

I'm sure this is true. I got into Liverpool this year after the World Cup. I figured I'd be streaming games from an obscure website. But the only games I've missed are the early Capital One cup games. Everything else has been right there for me to watch.

I had to learn formations and tactics in order to beat sweaty spam playing South American rugrats at FIFA on xbox.

Don't remember what I was watching, but they mentioned how big of an influence FIFA has had on American youth being involved with soccer.

 

[El Floppo]

the internet and explosion of cable tv has definitely helped.

I'm sure this is true. I got into Liverpool this year after the World Cup. I figured I'd be streaming games from an obscure website. But the only games I've missed are the early Capital One cup games. Everything else has been right there for me to watch.

I had to learn formations and tactics in order to beat sweaty spam playing South American rugrats at FIFA on xbox.

Don't remember what I was watching, but they mentions how big of an influence FIFA has had on American youth being involved with soccer.

I continuously underestimate that.

was riding the elevator down at a work- caught sight of an Arsenal cap inside my co-rider's pocket.

I asked him about it- turns out he became a fan playing FIFA a couple of years ago. had never watched the sport before and had never played... now he wants to go to the Emirates to see a game.

like I said... constant double/triple-taking for me... along with a lot of pinching.

 

[El Floppo]

I've read a couple of match reports and I'm still not clear about what set the Eq. Guinean fans off. There was a penalty awarded in the first half but it wasn't hotly disputed. It's a shame really because the tournament had generally steered clear of the off-field nonsense that plagues African football.

who knows... I'd guess the PK. I'm going off of the below:

he fans became incensed after Ghana scored two late goals in the first half, and riot police were called in to protect Ghana's players and fans.

After Ghana scored a third goal in the second half, the small section of Ghana fans were escorted out of the stadium for their own safety when water bottles started to rain down again.

The referee stopped the match in the 82nd minute and the players were left waiting in the middle of the pitch to find out if the match would restart, with the Equatorial Guinea players pleading with their fans to calm down.

 

[Kafka]

I've read a couple of match reports and I'm still not clear about what set the Eq. Guinean fans off. There was a penalty awarded in the first half but it wasn't hotly disputed. It's a shame really because the tournament had generally steered clear of the off-field nonsense that plagues African football.

Agreed; I didn't see what instigated it. I left the room & when I returned, saw a huge "District Nine" aircraft hovering over the stadium with searchlights...surreal. The final should be excellent though...Go, Go Gervinho!

 

[Jaysus]

lol x 2

• [SIZE=.9em]90'[/SIZE]
  [SIZE=.9em]Here we go again, finally. The match clock has been pro-rated to the 90th minute with three extra minutes of stoppage time thanks to some unknown formula.[/SIZE]
  

 

[El Floppo]

this is where I miss FSC's old nightly news program.

however bad the production and announcers, at least we'd get to find out #### like this.

 

[shader]

the internet and explosion of cable tv has definitely helped.

I'm sure this is true. I got into Liverpool this year after the World Cup. I figured I'd be streaming games from an obscure website. But the only games I've missed are the early Capital One cup games. Everything else has been right there for me to watch.

I had to learn formations and tactics in order to beat sweaty spam playing South American rugrats at FIFA on xbox.

Don't remember what I was watching, but they mentions how big of an influence FIFA has had on American youth being involved with soccer.

I continuously underestimate that.

was riding the elevator down at a work- caught sight of an Arsenal cap inside my co-rider's pocket.

I asked him about it- turns out he became a fan playing FIFA a couple of years ago. had never watched the sport before and had never played... now he wants to go to the Emirates to see a game.

like I said... constant double/triple-taking for me... along with a lot of pinching.

My 25 year old self hated soccer and would have thought my 37 year-old self was losing my mind at this point.

I've somehow become more fascinated with Liverpool games than any other sporting event.

I'm going to plan a trip to Anfield the next time they are in Champions League, as I want to catch a home-and-home EPL and CL game.

 

[T Bell]

Gator's personal fappening

The older that gets, the more he looks like Tom Cruise. Way too much plastic surgery.

 

[waiver wire]

im headed to paris in may and PSG is playing at home. does anyone know if scalpers are outside of the stadium on gameday and if it is legal

thx

I've got nothing- never seen a game there.

I would guess there are scalpers- and who knows if the tickets you buy are legal or even valid.

I would check in on a PSG fan site for best options buying tickets for that day. Might even find somebody willing to sell you theirs.

thx everyone for replies

the reason I asked was there was no tickets available on the PSG site but tickets available through brokers. So was trying to figure out if it was easier to grab off a scalper at gate instead of ordering them

if you do get a chance to see the game, please post here on the experience if you get a chance.

im definitely going to get a ticket . its a Saturday night game against reims (no clue about them) so should be a good time

 

[charvik]

Gator/fellow Liverpool fans:

Thoughts on rest of season for Liverpool?

Right now the team is playing great. Sturridge is bringing a new dimension, Sterling seems to be learning the striker position quite well, and Coutinho is playing out of his mind.

I don't know whether guys on Liverpool message boards are always so over-the-top, but it seems that they are all of the consensus that this is a do-or-die season, in terms of getting to the CL, as we can't afford to fall behind Arsenal in revenue another 50M dollars.

I'm still learning the game and the financial aspects, but this team is one of the top ten in the world in revenue and is full of youth. I'd say the future is extremely bright.

Well, many questions, and somewhat complex ones, which opens things up for opinions and interpretations.

Liverpool (and I suspect most teams') message boards are nuts. Most are poorly moderated, or just run over by twelve year olds. You have to pick and choose your battles with those, they can be excellent, but also very frustrating. 0.1% of RAWK is worth reading, if that, but the insight you can gain from reading it is excellent. I find that I don't have the time or patience to keep that up though.

In my opinion, it's not a do or die situation, as I don't think those exist, except for very special circumstances. Our former owners were like that, and they nearly brought the club to the brink of ruin. Many of the fans have lived through that mismanagement, and are itching to get back to former glory. Also 26 years of not lifting the trophy is a very very long time, especially watching those teams up the M62 lifting it 15 times in the process. Sure, there's been Champions League, FA Cup and League Cup titles sprinkled in, but that isn't enough.

I feel FSG has done an excellent job turning our financial struggles around, and their methodology/strategy has been very successful so far (kind of a bastardized moneyball concept), but while all (most) acknowledge that the youth movement and level of play from it has been phenomenal, they are impatient and want the big splashes in the transfer market which the richer clubs can do. Most are not used to Liverpool being in 10th place in the money league, or any league. Only 1st place is good enough, and some fans don't feel the club is taking strides to get there fast enough.

I think it's a case of the club overperforming last year, and people's expectation were raised sky high, while the long term plan from management and the manager, was to finish top 4, get CL football, and repeat that again this year (this has been documented in multiple interviews). The idea is that next season, we will have a team that can push for the title. I don't know if we are quite there yet, but there are very promising signs that we are well on our way. We have a young manager though, and he is still learning, and learning well, but he has had a lot of struggles figuring out how to man manage for a large number of games, setting up the right formations for the squad he has available, and how to find time to tactically prepare for a condensed schedule. A lot of people just see Shanks and Paisley, and anything less isn't good enough. I feel BR will be a very good manager for us when it's all said and done.

From a financial perspective, CL footy next year comes with a big boost in revenue from TV deal, to the tune of an extra 30M I believe. If looking historically during the premier league era, the biggest spenders on wages are the clubs finishing the highest. There is a direct correlation between wage spend and points in the league (exceptions exist of course), and we want to win, hence we need to close the gap financially with the richer clubs. Getting the stadium expansion finalized (10 years, at least, delayed), new sponsors, but also TV revenue from PL and CL will help a ton in doing it. We don't have an oil baron with unlimited resources available, so we have to close the gap by doing well on the pitch, earning extra revenue and planning for the long term. I think we are 10+ years away from breaking into the top 5, and that is if everything goes great along the way.

 

[NewlyRetired]

I've read a couple of match reports and I'm still not clear about what set the Eq. Guinean fans off. There was a penalty awarded in the first half but it wasn't hotly disputed. It's a shame really because the tournament had generally steered clear of the off-field nonsense that plagues African football.

who knows... I'd guess the PK. I'm going off of the below:

he fans became incensed after Ghana scored two late goals in the first half, and riot police were called in to protect Ghana's players and fans.

After Ghana scored a third goal in the second half, the small section of Ghana fans were escorted out of the stadium for their own safety when water bottles started to rain down again.

The referee stopped the match in the 82nd minute and the players were left waiting in the middle of the pitch to find out if the match would restart, with the Equatorial Guinea players pleading with their fans to calm down.

I tell you, we all like one very screwed up sport

 

[bentley]

I just wanted to agree with the position that RAWK makes the craziest of college football message boards seem sane.

 

[T Bell]

Gator/fellow Liverpool fans:

Thoughts on rest of season for Liverpool?

Right now the team is playing great. Sturridge is bringing a new dimension, Sterling seems to be learning the striker position quite well, and Coutinho is playing out of his mind.

I don't know whether guys on Liverpool message boards are always so over-the-top, but it seems that they are all of the consensus that this is a do-or-die season, in terms of getting to the CL, as we can't afford to fall behind Arsenal in revenue another 50M dollars.

I'm still learning the game and the financial aspects, but this team is one of the top ten in the world in revenue and is full of youth. I'd say the future is extremely bright.

Well, many questions, and somewhat complex ones, which opens things up for opinions and interpretations.

Liverpool (and I suspect most teams') message boards are nuts. Most are poorly moderated, or just run over by twelve year olds. You have to pick and choose your battles with those, they can be excellent, but also very frustrating. 0.1% of RAWK is worth reading, if that, but the insight you can gain from reading it is excellent. I find that I don't have the time or patience to keep that up though.

In my opinion, it's not a do or die situation, as I don't think those exist, except for very special circumstances. Our former owners were like that, and they nearly brought the club to the brink of ruin. Many of the fans have lived through that mismanagement, and are itching to get back to former glory. Also 26 years of not lifting the trophy is a very very long time, especially watching those teams up the M62 lifting it 15 times in the process. Sure, there's been Champions League, FA Cup and League Cup titles sprinkled in, but that isn't enough.

I feel FSG has done an excellent job turning our financial struggles around, and their methodology/strategy has been very successful so far (kind of a bastardized moneyball concept), but while all (most) acknowledge that the youth movement and level of play from it has been phenomenal, they are impatient and want the big splashes in the transfer market which the richer clubs can do. Most are not used to Liverpool being in 10th place in the money league, or any league. Only 1st place is good enough, and some fans don't feel the club is taking strides to get there fast enough.

I think it's a case of the club overperforming last year, and people's expectation were raised sky high, while the long term plan from management and the manager, was to finish top 4, get CL football, and repeat that again this year (this has been documented in multiple interviews). The idea is that next season, we will have a team that can push for the title. I don't know if we are quite there yet, but there are very promising signs that we are well on our way. We have a young manager though, and he is still learning, and learning well, but he has had a lot of struggles figuring out how to man manage for a large number of games, setting up the right formations for the squad he has available, and how to find time to tactically prepare for a condensed schedule. A lot of people just see Shanks and Paisley, and anything less isn't good enough. I feel BR will be a very good manager for us when it's all said and done.

From a financial perspective, CL footy next year comes with a big boost in revenue from TV deal, to the tune of an extra 30M I believe. If looking historically during the premier league era, the biggest spenders on wages are the clubs finishing the highest. There is a direct correlation between wage spend and points in the league (exceptions exist of course), and we want to win, hence we need to close the gap financially with the richer clubs. Getting the stadium expansion finalized (10 years, at least, delayed), new sponsors, but also TV revenue from PL and CL will help a ton in doing it. We don't have an oil baron with unlimited resources available, so we have to close the gap by doing well on the pitch, earning extra revenue and planning for the long term. I think we are 10+ years away from breaking into the top 5, and that is if everything goes great along the way.

Isn't this why people are saying "do or die" about top 4 this year? It's already well established that the longer you're out of the top 4, the harder it is to get back in.

I agree that the "or die" shouldn't be taken literally - Liverpool at its worst won't finish lower than 10th, such is its inherent commercial power and stature, but with the increased CL revenue kicking in the division between the CL "haves" and the non-CL "have nots" will be greater than ever. It's frankly why United are ####ting themselves about Southampton seemingly being a legit challenger for the top 4 as it means they're at risk for missing out for a 2nd year running, which would spell big trouble even for them (they're already having trouble attracting top talent because of the lack of CL).

 

[charvik]

I guess I missed the first question...

I think we will close the season strong, as most Rodgers teams do, and challenge for top 4, and a CL spot. Will we get there? Well, who knows. I think February will be very telling, with big games on the schedule, which we will need to win to stay close and put pressure on the clubs ahead. The derby this weekend is huge, and so is the Anfield game vs Spurs. Then we have Southampton away, and ManC at home (3/1), and our fate may well be decided after those games. It is promising that we are showing good form, creating a TON of chances, and keeping clean sheets in the new 3-4-3. We need to finish though, and while Raheem has gotten a few, and the AMs a couple, we just aren't clinical enough. Getting Studge back, and keeping him healthy, will go a long way. I just hope there isn't an international break coming any time soon...

As a handicapper I would give us a 1 in 3 chance for 3rd/4th, and 2 in 3 chance finishing 5th. I hope to adjust that after February is over. The fan in me has us finishing 3rd easily, pushing for 2nd, and hope Manchester falls down a giant sink hole.

 

[charvik]

Gator/fellow Liverpool fans:

Thoughts on rest of season for Liverpool?

Right now the team is playing great. Sturridge is bringing a new dimension, Sterling seems to be learning the striker position quite well, and Coutinho is playing out of his mind.

I don't know whether guys on Liverpool message boards are always so over-the-top, but it seems that they are all of the consensus that this is a do-or-die season, in terms of getting to the CL, as we can't afford to fall behind Arsenal in revenue another 50M dollars.

I'm still learning the game and the financial aspects, but this team is one of the top ten in the world in revenue and is full of youth. I'd say the future is extremely bright.

Well, many questions, and somewhat complex ones, which opens things up for opinions and interpretations.

Liverpool (and I suspect most teams') message boards are nuts. Most are poorly moderated, or just run over by twelve year olds. You have to pick and choose your battles with those, they can be excellent, but also very frustrating. 0.1% of RAWK is worth reading, if that, but the insight you can gain from reading it is excellent. I find that I don't have the time or patience to keep that up though.

In my opinion, it's not a do or die situation, as I don't think those exist, except for very special circumstances. Our former owners were like that, and they nearly brought the club to the brink of ruin. Many of the fans have lived through that mismanagement, and are itching to get back to former glory. Also 26 years of not lifting the trophy is a very very long time, especially watching those teams up the M62 lifting it 15 times in the process. Sure, there's been Champions League, FA Cup and League Cup titles sprinkled in, but that isn't enough.

I feel FSG has done an excellent job turning our financial struggles around, and their methodology/strategy has been very successful so far (kind of a bastardized moneyball concept), but while all (most) acknowledge that the youth movement and level of play from it has been phenomenal, they are impatient and want the big splashes in the transfer market which the richer clubs can do. Most are not used to Liverpool being in 10th place in the money league, or any league. Only 1st place is good enough, and some fans don't feel the club is taking strides to get there fast enough.

I think it's a case of the club overperforming last year, and people's expectation were raised sky high, while the long term plan from management and the manager, was to finish top 4, get CL football, and repeat that again this year (this has been documented in multiple interviews). The idea is that next season, we will have a team that can push for the title. I don't know if we are quite there yet, but there are very promising signs that we are well on our way. We have a young manager though, and he is still learning, and learning well, but he has had a lot of struggles figuring out how to man manage for a large number of games, setting up the right formations for the squad he has available, and how to find time to tactically prepare for a condensed schedule. A lot of people just see Shanks and Paisley, and anything less isn't good enough. I feel BR will be a very good manager for us when it's all said and done.

From a financial perspective, CL footy next year comes with a big boost in revenue from TV deal, to the tune of an extra 30M I believe. If looking historically during the premier league era, the biggest spenders on wages are the clubs finishing the highest. There is a direct correlation between wage spend and points in the league (exceptions exist of course), and we want to win, hence we need to close the gap financially with the richer clubs. Getting the stadium expansion finalized (10 years, at least, delayed), new sponsors, but also TV revenue from PL and CL will help a ton in doing it. We don't have an oil baron with unlimited resources available, so we have to close the gap by doing well on the pitch, earning extra revenue and planning for the long term. I think we are 10+ years away from breaking into the top 5, and that is if everything goes great along the way.

Isn't this why people are saying "do or die" about top 4 this year? It's already well established that the longer you're out of the top 4, the harder it is to get back in.

I agree that the "or die" shouldn't be taken literally - Liverpool at its worst won't finish lower than 10th, such is its inherent commercial power and stature, but with the increased CL revenue kicking in the division between the CL "haves" and the non-CL "have nots" will be greater than ever. It's frankly why United are ####ting themselves about Southampton seemingly being a legit challenger for the top 4 as it means they're at risk for missing out for a 2nd year running, which would spell big trouble even for them (they're already having trouble attracting top talent because of the lack of CL).

Yeah, that's true. I guess I view it more long term. Not getting CL footy next year is a big loss financially, one that could take 5 years to dig out from...

 

[El Floppo]

from what I've seen, Liverpool will score the goals with Sturridge back and Sterling and Coutinho playing lights' out. The new guys in the MF are looking good too. That back line and Lucas having to play tells me they'll continue to give up goals.

either way- they'll continue to be a fun team to watch for the neutrals with GOALS, GOALS, GOALS on tap.

 

[charvik]

from what I've seen, Liverpool will score the goals with Sturridge back and Sterling and Coutinho playing lights' out. The new guys in the MF are looking good too. That back line and Lucas having to play tells me they'll continue to give up goals.

either way- they'll continue to be a fun team to watch for the neutrals with GOALS, GOALS, GOALS on tap.

Have you watched them since they moved to 3-4-3? Lucas has been outstanding, and the back 3 as well (considering how poor they were). They haven't given up many goals from open play since the new year.

ETA: 3 straight clean sheets in the PL, set pieces against Chelsea (pk and an abysmal job by Balotelli on the free kick in ET), and an iffy pk against Bolton.

 

[The Gator]

Gator's personal fappening

The older that ###### gets, the more he looks like Tom Cruise. Way too much plastic surgery.

You don't plastic surgery granite, guy

 

[T Bell]

Gator/fellow Liverpool fans:

Thoughts on rest of season for Liverpool?

Right now the team is playing great. Sturridge is bringing a new dimension, Sterling seems to be learning the striker position quite well, and Coutinho is playing out of his mind.

I don't know whether guys on Liverpool message boards are always so over-the-top, but it seems that they are all of the consensus that this is a do-or-die season, in terms of getting to the CL, as we can't afford to fall behind Arsenal in revenue another 50M dollars.

I'm still learning the game and the financial aspects, but this team is one of the top ten in the world in revenue and is full of youth. I'd say the future is extremely bright.

Well, many questions, and somewhat complex ones, which opens things up for opinions and interpretations.

Liverpool (and I suspect most teams') message boards are nuts. Most are poorly moderated, or just run over by twelve year olds. You have to pick and choose your battles with those, they can be excellent, but also very frustrating. 0.1% of RAWK is worth reading, if that, but the insight you can gain from reading it is excellent. I find that I don't have the time or patience to keep that up though.

In my opinion, it's not a do or die situation, as I don't think those exist, except for very special circumstances. Our former owners were like that, and they nearly brought the club to the brink of ruin. Many of the fans have lived through that mismanagement, and are itching to get back to former glory. Also 26 years of not lifting the trophy is a very very long time, especially watching those teams up the M62 lifting it 15 times in the process. Sure, there's been Champions League, FA Cup and League Cup titles sprinkled in, but that isn't enough.

I feel FSG has done an excellent job turning our financial struggles around, and their methodology/strategy has been very successful so far (kind of a bastardized moneyball concept), but while all (most) acknowledge that the youth movement and level of play from it has been phenomenal, they are impatient and want the big splashes in the transfer market which the richer clubs can do. Most are not used to Liverpool being in 10th place in the money league, or any league. Only 1st place is good enough, and some fans don't feel the club is taking strides to get there fast enough.

I think it's a case of the club overperforming last year, and people's expectation were raised sky high, while the long term plan from management and the manager, was to finish top 4, get CL football, and repeat that again this year (this has been documented in multiple interviews). The idea is that next season, we will have a team that can push for the title. I don't know if we are quite there yet, but there are very promising signs that we are well on our way. We have a young manager though, and he is still learning, and learning well, but he has had a lot of struggles figuring out how to man manage for a large number of games, setting up the right formations for the squad he has available, and how to find time to tactically prepare for a condensed schedule. A lot of people just see Shanks and Paisley, and anything less isn't good enough. I feel BR will be a very good manager for us when it's all said and done.

From a financial perspective, CL footy next year comes with a big boost in revenue from TV deal, to the tune of an extra 30M I believe. If looking historically during the premier league era, the biggest spenders on wages are the clubs finishing the highest. There is a direct correlation between wage spend and points in the league (exceptions exist of course), and we want to win, hence we need to close the gap financially with the richer clubs. Getting the stadium expansion finalized (10 years, at least, delayed), new sponsors, but also TV revenue from PL and CL will help a ton in doing it. We don't have an oil baron with unlimited resources available, so we have to close the gap by doing well on the pitch, earning extra revenue and planning for the long term. I think we are 10+ years away from breaking into the top 5, and that is if everything goes great along the way.

Isn't this why people are saying "do or die" about top 4 this year? It's already well established that the longer you're out of the top 4, the harder it is to get back in.

I agree that the "or die" shouldn't be taken literally - Liverpool at its worst won't finish lower than 10th, such is its inherent commercial power and stature, but with the increased CL revenue kicking in the division between the CL "haves" and the non-CL "have nots" will be greater than ever. It's frankly why United are ####ting themselves about Southampton seemingly being a legit challenger for the top 4 as it means they're at risk for missing out for a 2nd year running, which would spell big trouble even for them (they're already having trouble attracting top talent because of the lack of CL).

Yeah, that's true. I guess I view it more long term. Not getting CL footy next year is a big loss financially, one that could take 5 years to dig out from...

They're probably most comparable to Arsenal right now financially, except that they lag behind Arsenal by ~5-7 years in terms of stadium revenue, Arsenal having already built their stadium. If Liverpool are financing the stadium the way Arsenal did, then they're maybe twice that far behind because they'll have to pay off some of the debt before they can start plunging more money back into the team. I've not kept up with Liverpool's stadium project much though, so I don't know.

Arsenal, for all their improvements financially, are still squarely in 4th place in the league financially. The good news is that they have room to grow commercially and will make up ground on United (especially if United continue to flounder outside of the CL spots), but they're really not close to overtaking the top 3 teams, which means even Arsenal are fighting an uphill battle to stay competitive in the league.

The bottom line is that it's harder than ever to compete for the league, and seeing as how I view the Europa League as a net negative for teams to be in given the Thursday night games and fixture congestion with only modest offsetting financial gains, "just missing" the CL and landing 5th or 6th in the league may be even worse than finishing 8th. It's a money league, for better or worse.

 

[El Floppo]

from what I've seen, Liverpool will score the goals with Sturridge back and Sterling and Coutinho playing lights' out. The new guys in the MF are looking good too. That back line and Lucas having to play tells me they'll continue to give up goals.

either way- they'll continue to be a fun team to watch for the neutrals with GOALS, GOALS, GOALS on tap.

Have you watched them since they moved to 3-4-3? Lucas has been outstanding, and the back 3 as well (considering how poor they were). They haven't given up many goals from open play since the new year.

ETA: 3 straight clean sheets in the PL, set pieces against Chelsea (pk and an abysmal job by Balotelli on the free kick in ET), and an iffy pk against Bolton.

well, ok then.

I will say what I've seen of Can has been encouraging.

but Lucas will hurt you in the end- lock it.

 

[T Bell]

Gator's personal fappening

The older that ###### gets, the more he looks like Tom Cruise. Way too much plastic surgery.

You don't plastic surgery granite, guy

ORLY?

 

[charvik]

from what I've seen, Liverpool will score the goals with Sturridge back and Sterling and Coutinho playing lights' out. The new guys in the MF are looking good too. That back line and Lucas having to play tells me they'll continue to give up goals.

either way- they'll continue to be a fun team to watch for the neutrals with GOALS, GOALS, GOALS on tap.

Have you watched them since they moved to 3-4-3? Lucas has been outstanding, and the back 3 as well (considering how poor they were). They haven't given up many goals from open play since the new year.

ETA: 3 straight clean sheets in the PL, set pieces against Chelsea (pk and an abysmal job by Balotelli on the free kick in ET), and an iffy pk against Bolton.

well, ok then.

I will say what I've seen of Can has been encouraging.

but Lucas will hurt you in the end- lock it.

Yeah, I don't disagree on the long term effects of playing Lucas, but he's a stop gap. I don't think he'll get many starts after this summer. We will either splash on a big name DM this summer (or maybe one for free, Sammy> call me), or move Can up to his natural midfield role, and add a solid CB.

ETA: That's not the only need sadly... but that might be a topic to save for summer.

 

[charvik]

Oh, and shader, if you are planning a trip to Anfield, splurge and pay through the nose for Kop tickets, at least for one game. I would plan a week in town, maybe Tuesday travel from London, Wednesday CL game (when they get back), Thursday/Friday tours of the grounds, Melwood etc, Saturday PL game, Sunday travel back to London. I would try to find a game in London too, either before or after the Liverpool trip.

It'll be expensive, but well worth it.