Downing: John Henry in a white suit

Robbie Fowler still has the white suit. He is blase about it saying that if they’d won, no one would care, and I think he’s right about that. So much of media stuff deliberately manufactured and manipulated. Have a look at newsbusters.org any day to read examples from bias to outright lies.

Anyway, my brother and I have a fascination with Fowler and I had not seen the white suits in years. I still recall the sting of Cantona’s goal. I was at O’Donahue’s on 1st Street in Hoboken, NJ. I recall the ball brushed Ian Rush as it went by and I always thought, “…how odd that his last touch in Red was that one.” Cruel really. Things like that made yesterday all the more sweet.

There was one alarming piece of news regarding the Downing transfer. It is theorized that Werner and Henry were duped by this video of Downing putting balls into trash cans willy-nilly, from 30 yards. If you play footy, you know instantly that this is doctored footage. Once or twice you could get lucky, but it’s clearly not real. And even if it were, the game of football has so many different skills, that even if you could do that, it wouldn’t guarantee that you’d be a top EPL player!

So the urban legend that is building is that the stupid Americans got duped by this video and overpaid for Downing. While I’d like to think there was SOME explanation for it, this is bad. This will turn the fans on the American owners and now, as soon as anything negative turns up, the ire will be directed at John Henry. The Yanks need to do some serious damage control asap! This is not a good thing longterm. They’ll never live this down. They have gone from the guys who swooped in and, with Liverpool 4 hours from bankruptcy, saved the team and righted the ship. It was a great platform from which to start, but, I’m afraid, is pretty much undone in this one story, true or not.

Being that Henry made millions in farm futures, you are pretty sure that there is no grass growing under him. I don’t believe that their due dilligence was limited to this doctored video. I don’t doubt that the video might have piqued their interest, but I would like to think they did more homework, but, with the fans we’re looking at, it won’t much matter once this becomes accepted as “the version” of what went down. They don’t need much convincing to buy the “Americans are stupid and know nothing about soccer” meme. Henry might just as well show up at Anfield in a white suit next time. Is he Fowler’s size? The suit still hangs and is a phone call away.

Alex: have you knocked us off our perch?

The song remains the same: 5-3. 5-2 if John Terry’s studs grab. With all the banners about perches and what-have-you, I thought we should take stock.

Why Kenny holds the next Prem title in his hands

Watching Maxi and Suarez demolish lesser teams made me feel like the sky was the limit. In my enthusiasm, I made the typical fan assumption that any new players coming in (Carroll–I don’t include Gerrard) are ADDITIVE. They are not.

Today (Spurs @ Anfield) proved that to me. Today reminded me of the problem we had with Torres. When you run the offense through one guy, everybody KNOWS what you’re doing. It’s easy to defense. Beyond that, every ball that you try to force in to the “main” guy, is an opportunity that Suarez or Maxi or Dirk, DOES NOT have anymore.

Today, I got annoyed early and often that what passes for a smart ball now, isn’t a slick through ball to put Maxi or Suarez into space, deep, but basically ANY aerial ball to the vicinity of Carroll~! This is a ticket to 7th place next year. This will not get it done in the Prem!

You can not throw prayer after aerial prayer towards Carroll, when he is 20-25 yards out, and expect anything good to consistently happen. Kenny needs to get on this.

It amazed me when this was happening under Rafa and then Hodgson, and neither seemed to mind that they had TWO different offenses! One without Torres, where everyone worked hard and supported one another and found weaknesses in defenses and exploited them as they arose! It was pure improv, and good attacking football HAS to be mostly improv.

The other offense was the stodgy one with Torres on the pitch–where everyone was afraid to play a ball to anyone BUT, the fully covered Torres, and if they couldn’t do anything useful with the ball and they were knackered and out of options, they flicked it in the air in his direction and that passed for “service”.

If you were wondering where the swashbuckling, fearless, ground penetration was vs Spurs at Anfield today–the stuff of hat tricks in the last few games; if you were wondering where THAT was, then Carroll’s presence is your answer. And yes, Spurs played very much better than the recent opponents, I understand that, but to me, it was Carroll as the contaminant to the great recipe that had been brewing.

At 35 million Lbs, Carroll isn’t going anywhere, and, if he’s fit, he’s in the first XI. But that has me worried. Kenny MUST understand and cultivate the THINKING that lead to the nice run of goals WITHOUT Carroll. He must completely understand why that happened and work to make his players understand why also. He must strive to ensure that NO PLAYER is bigger than the system. The system must include freedom for guys like Maxi and Suarez and Kuyt to improvise heavily ON THE GROUND and above all else, they must feel comfortable leaving Carroll totally OUT of certain plans–and that has to be ok.

Think of it–Carroll can be an expensive dummy (running, essentially, what they call a “clean out route” in the NFL), at times and take defenders with him while space is opened up for the smaller, faster men to do their mayhem on the ground! This will work, but it has to be ok with everyone. Everyone must be on board. It can NOT be what it was with Benayoun being afraid to penetrate defenses himself on the ground so long as Torres was on the field.

And the fullbacks and holding Mids need to STOP being satisfied with a long ball just basically hoofed up to the vicinity of Carroll~! We need to work the ball forward in the pass-and-move that Kenny so skillfully returned us to only recently.

My fear? That we were hitting the right note without the slow Carroll and the slower Gerrard, and that now we will get away from it because (a) we have to play the 35 million man AND service him to the exclusion of all else, and (b) we HAVE to play Gerrard in the first XI every week, because, well, because he’s Steven Gerrard, and who cares if he’s quite a bit slower than the thing that has worked great this year–which is swashbuckling, ground speed and penetration–ie: forcing defenses out of their comfort zone–making them bend and opening up space somewhere nearby the ball carrier.

I really don’t want to see Gerrard at all next season. I love the guy–he’s a legend to me, but I just honestly think he’s a net negative now at his age. There’s no shame in that. There IS shame, however, in letting your ego dictate that you hang on, even if it hurts your team: ask the Yankees with Jeter and Posada.

In summation:

I AM concerned about Carroll’s pace, but time will tell.

I am very concerned that Carroll’s introduction will take Liverpool out of a real winning formula that they were in recently.

Kenny, if you want to win the Prem next year, and I think you can, you have to solve this issue. This is 100% a coaching issue. Players have to feel comfortable with a system that may bypass the star, even over and over again! It’s up to you, Kenny to preserve what you had while working in the big man. I’m not saying that he isn’t good or that I don’t like a big man who can head the ball. He will be successful. What I’m saying is that if he’s serviced to the exclusion of all else, there will be many long, goal less stretches next year and you can’t have that and win the Prem, which I really believe they can do. A good offense is multi-faceted. If you mark one phase of it out of the game, another will do damage. Look at ManU’s goal scoring tallies the last 20 years. Look at the goal distribution when Liverpool are going well recently.

Winning the Prem next year is also going to hinge on the defense–they need at least one, and maybe two, world class, super Centerbacks, and I’m not talking about Glen Johnson, who has played much better than early on, but who I would sell for just about any decent price.

Guys I would sell if price was right?
Gerrard
Johnson
Lucas (but must be backfilled w/ a top holding mid–remember Alonso’s passing? Mascherano’s defense?)

Guys I never want to see again?
Ngog
Kyrgiakos

Guys who I hope they retain:
Maxi Rodriguez
Joe Cole
Jovanovic

***
Last point: I had noticed that the run of real bad anti-Liverpool calls seemed to have ended when Kenny came in. I reasoned that Kenny, being a nice guy that everyone in UK footy admired greatly, had an effect on the refs. They seemed to call games more fairly. Today was the first day that I thought we were back to the old reffing. The PK on Flanagan was ridiculous. It wasn’t in the box. It wasn’t a goal scoring opportunity. It WAS a 50-50 shoulder challenge that the forward went down on to great effect. Suarez was getting knocked around pretty harshly as well, and he couldn’t get a call, although I wish he’d stop looking for it. Just get up and get on with it. When you work the ref, you undercut your case.

Anyway, I’ve been meaning to mention that the reffing has gotten less anti-Liverpool with Kenny and now just as I was getting used to it, this game reminded me of how it’s been for the last…decade? Longer?

One theory of why it might have been this way was a backlash against Liverpool’s dominance in the 70′s and 80′s. These refs grew up on that and maybe they resent them? Also Heysel and Hillsborough are in the mix perhaps? The Continental ban? Dunno. You have any other ideas? I’m imagining it? Oh, no I’m not. It’s there. Particularly when contrasted with Chelsea the last 6 or 7 years.

Oh, and Miereles was sorely missed today. Difference maker, all by himself.

Drawing with the relegation zone

A Liverpool draw with Stoke confirms what I said about the league.  There goes 2 points to Chelsea and there’s no use getting upset about it, because, like the Mets, they’re not that good.  And that’s also what makes the Champ’s League runs so much more amazing~!  Because they can’t beat a side that will struggle to stay up, but on certain nights they can slug with the best sides in Europe.  You want to win the League?  Then you destroy these kind of clubs and get the 3 points.  30 shots for Liverpool vs 2 for Stoke.  76% time of possession for Liverpool~!  That’s ridiculous and yet, you came away with a goaless draw.

I see Benayoun on for Riera and Babbel for Keane.  Can these two get in the first team and stay there?  And exactly what has Keane done in Red so far?  Skrtel got his usual yellow card.  I love the guy but sooner or later he’s pulling someone down in the box and it’ll cost 3 points.

There’s always the Champ’s League [said on Sept 20].

***

Reading a little more about this and now I realize that AGAIN the referees have made a bad decision that cost Liverpool 2 points.  Read this on Gerrard’s mysteriously disallowed goal

I can’t recall a team more abused by bad officiating over a stretch than Liverpool.  You can’t win the league with the refs grabbing your points!

Gerrard: Better than Beckenbauer

Click here to see Gerrard’s goal against Marseille in the Champ’s League in a new window

Gerrard is back in the side after groin surgery.  I’ll never understand that, but apparently, that’s the deal.  And he scored both goals in the first group-stage game, vs Olympique Marseille.  The PK was scored twice, because apparently Dirk Kuyt was in the box before it was struck.  It made me think WHERE was THIS REFEREE when Michael Essien was shaking hands with Liverpool set piece and corner takers in last May’s Champ’s Leauge semis?  I still maintain that the UEFA wanted NO PART of Liverpool in that final.  Not again; not after finishing 4th in their league and having to qualify in each year.

The goal that you point to on May 25th, when Liverpool is hoisting their 6th European Cup, is THIS one.  You can not count this man out.  I’ve seen breathtaking footy from the Brazillians over the years.  I’ve seen the creativity and sheer audactity of Eric Cantona.  I’ve see wonderful touch and footwork by Thierry Henry.  And years ago, I saw Franz Beckenbauer’s elegance and inteligence on the field.  But I was thinking.  If I had to play one game for my life and I could choose anyone…you know how this goes.  Would my first pick be Beckenbauer or Gerrard?  Not sure anymore.  Of course I start at forward and come off after 1 minute for the 1995 version of Robbie Fowler…or Keegan?  Hmm.  Check out the goal and realize that it is right after a Marseille goal.  Take that!  YNWA.

Liverpool will NOT win the league

Just watched the Villa-Liverpool match and I’ve come to the conclusion that Liverpool will not win the league.  Don’t hold your breath.  Don’t sweat it.  They aren’t up there in quality like Chosee and ManU.  Not from what I saw today.

Torres went off mildly hurt, it looked like, and Keane underwhelmed me as the feature guy for 2/3′s of the match.  His big chance was squandered when he took an eternity to put a settling touch on a great through ball, as if he were looking for a PK (which he didn’t get but might have if his crest said “Man U” on it).

Keane: You need to look for goals and not whistles; the whistles will come as the defenders fear the goals!  Not the other way around.  I think Torres buries 3 of 5 of those and maybe 4 of 5: THAT’s how good the ball and pace and the space were.  Wide open.

Liverpool made very few good penetrating runs up into the Villa defense.  You need to do what Benayoun did in the Chelsea C-Lg game last year and penetrate on the ground and by doing THAT, you will get the defense to open up space that you can use as well as force them into penalties and mistakes.  You don’t win a footy match by having every goal be a perfectly drawn up cross or through ball.  You need to work and grind to earn the occasional picture perfect goal.  Make them work.  Make them fear.  Give them no space.  Grind and grind and make them feel pressured.  THEN you can capitalize on errors and fatigue.  Liverpool played that game like no one wanted to take the ball in HARD on the GROUND through the MIDDLE.

Like to see more Benayoun and Babbel, as they are more prone to do that, and less prone to think, “…Fernando will think of something”.

C’mon you Red Men! You only play for a tie against Chosee, ManU and Arsenal.  All Else, you play for 3 points.  THAT’S how you win the league.  Draws are great to stay out of relegation zone.  Stoke loves ‘em.

–Same old.

–Fog

Beckham in NY: Teenybopper madness

Click here to read about the game in a new window (from Yahoo)

We decided to go to the Red Bulls last night, almost last minute.  Max and I head down to Giant’s Stadium and he tells me that he’s never been there.  I find that hard to believe but I guess it is so.  When you get down there, you see the silly xanadu but you also see the steel skeleton of the new Giant’s Stadium, which is well along in construction.  Annoyingly typical of Metrostars/Red Bulls is that you can not just park where you want.  We ended up parking in the lot they funneled us into, lot “Y”, which is a mile from stadium, or so it seemed.  So far away, in fact, that they were running buses to the stadium and back.

Max has a baseball (9U) playoff game today, so last night he wanted to throw a full bullpen session.  We did that in the parking lot of the stadium.  He liked that.  I was worried about bounced “changeups” chewing up the ball.  I was also worried that if he didn’t catch the return throw, it would roll about a quarter mile across the asphalt.  But the legendary Meadowlands wind, the same wind that made Phil Simms a hero, and other guys chumps, was blowing hard.  The wind made it fun because my knuckler was dancing on the return throws.  Max was bug-eyed over it.  I don’t think he ever really saw it move like that.  He wanted to know why and I told him because it was in a 20 mph headwind, which means that in stead of throwing it 30mph, like I was, it was like I was chucking it 50mph, and thus it moves more.  He got it.  I think.  He threw well and liked the local.  We’re ready for the playoffs.  Then we took out the soccer ball and kicked that around for a while.  Old times with the Cosmos, almost.

We took the bus in to the stadium and right as we got to the gate without tickets, Max pointed to a guy holding up two.  I noticed they were good seats and I talked him down 30% which he grabbed and we were both happy.  See?  Why is scalping illegal? Wiling buyer.  Willing seller.  Happy people all around.  The government should NEVER be able to tell you that you can’t sell something that is yours.  You wouldn’t like it if they did that with your car?  Why is it ok with tickets?  Intelligent initial distribution is all you need to do.  After that, secondary sales are your Constitutional right.

Inside it’s a sauna as it is 97 degrees all day.  I like the 6:30pm kickoff time though.  Good choice as it was still light when we came out!  We were amazed to find that our tickets were at midfield only 19 rows up.  Primo seats.  And with David Beckham in town, they are looking to sell out the bottom two levels, tallying about 45,000 people.  Max has never been to pro footy and he is getting into it.

Looking around, you see almost every 10th person in a “Beckham” LA Galaxy kit.  A few Manchester United tops, but not many.  About every 5th was an England jersey.  I looked around for Liverpool colors but found none.  The closest was a Fernando Torres top from his old La Liga team in Spain.  I’ll take it.

The other strange thing about the crowd was the inordinate amount of young women.  Teenyboppers, really.  They were there to see Becks.  And scream.  I think my eardrum was punctured at one point.  It was like the Beatles on Ed Sullivan.  It was rock-star-dom.  If he even came near your side, people would stand and the screams would start and the pointing and the yelling.  It was weird.  I mean, here you have a bunch of marginal footballers, scraping by on as little as $30,000 a year (can you live in LA or NY on 30K?), and there’s Becks making 60 million from all sources last year.  Astounding.  And I don’t care for the guy at all, I’ll tell you.  I think his “advertisments” and publicity shots are tasteless porn that I wouldn’t want my daughter looking at.  His body is covered in silly tatoos and he is basically an ass, hanging out there with Tom and Katy.  Oy.

But I will not deny that he is a great footballer.  He is.  Years ago, Shearer called him “the best crosser in Britain”, and he was right.  He takes a great set piece too.  Practices long hours on that stuff as well.  And for passing and playmaking, Giant’s Stadium hasn’t seen that kind of quality since Franz Beckenbauer was in town circa 1978.

A few things struck me about the game and Beckham.  His passing and field vision were clearly a gear or TWO above anything out there, except maybe Landon Donovan.  Little things, which I tried to point out to my nephew, like taking a pass with his head swiveling quickly to print the location of all the nearby players while waiting for the ball.  He was one touch almost all night.  He knew before he touched the ball, where it was going and which foot and how he would deliver it.  I thought the the hundreds and thousands of hours that he spent on the training ground in the UK with Man United, playing the five-a-sides and fearing any loss of the ball with Sir Alex looking at him.  A place in the first team and Man U riding on every one of the millions of balls struck.  Read Gerrard’s book and get an idea of the training and the pressure that these kids fall under, beginning as early as age 12!  This guy probably had more touches between age 12 and 16 than some of the MLS’ers will have their whole lives.  Touches.  Lots and lots of them.

His quality was clearly above the others and yet he restrained himself from trying to do too much.  He would not succumb to trying to take over the game.  He only made a really offensive run once, late in the game.  Mostly, it was as if he was on the ManU training ground, one-touch passes.  He gave the little girls barely any time to scream when he had the ball because it was gone before you knew it.  And he had a few chances to maybe ball handle into some space and have a go himself and you know what?  He NEVER did it.  Not once.  Not even when it would have made 1000 girls faint in the joint.  He distributed the ball all night without fail to players who wouldn’t have been good enough to clean up the boot room for the juniors at Man U (except Donovan).

Other observations were the silly Americans who are getting into or out of their seats just before a set piece that Beckham was taking a little past the 18.  This is the one thing everyone paid to see and these big fat guys are in front of us just CLUELESS, trying to find their *&%$n seat!  A lady with an English accent behind us and I, were the ones yelling “SIT DOWN” at them.  Everyone else was happy to be robbed of what they paid to see I guess.  At Anfield, in Liverpool, you would not see ONE person get up or return from their seats during play.  My goodness, it’s only 45 minutes!  If you can’t go 45 minutes without nachos or potty, then go watch American football!  There’s plenty of commercials.  Geez, soccer is OVER in 90 minutes!  You won’t waste away there without a hot dog! hahaha.

The game ended in a frustrating 2-2 draw and the play was sloppy.  If you are used to the EPL then you will be horrified by the missed opportunities, mistimed or not-bothered-with runs, balls played to no one and so on.  But in spots, there was decent play and it was end to end and entertaining at times.

Max enjoyed it and now wants to play in the Fall again, instead of baseball (that was the idea).  He was fired up and told me that he wouldn’t mind going back any time.  After the match, he wanted to kick the ball around in the parking lot and we did that.  And, while I’m trying to get him fired up about footy, and show him some stuff, as if sent by God, a man walks over to us in the parking lot.  I can barely understand him but he says I’m pretty good and am I a coach?  I say no and not really and he tells me he was a professional player. He’s wearing dress shoes but he takes the ball and does about 5 different tricks that are eye popping!  And he is showing Max how to do the tricks and demoing it and it is really cool.  I give him a “gracious” and he leaves and we fool around a bit more then go home.  Mission accomplished.  We will be back.

He’s just a man, and not a freak…

Nothing much new today. Seeing the oil refinery explosion and realizing that oil isn’t going to pull back below $90 anytime soon. My strategy is to wait for the next big pullback, hopefully into the mid 80′s and then, assuming that that pullback pulls down MRO Marathon Oil to a nice, sub-45 price, I load up on some Marathon Oil and am pretty certain I’ll see it at 60 sometime in the next 12 months. Remember though, I’m no Jim Kramer.

Also trying to figure out a way to see Liverpool-Inter tomorrow at 2:45pm here Eastern Standard Time or Daylight Time or whatever. Options now are to see if Fox Soccer Channel will air it and tape it while at work. The other option is to go to work at 5am and not take a lunch (mostly don’t anyway) and then ride down to the Bronx at 2:30 and go to Rory Dolan’s and watch it. That’s where I saw them win the European Cup in 2005. Which reminds me. I had thought to list my “top greatest sports thrills” list, for anyone who cares. Here goes:

And this is just me, ok?

Detail Oriented Stadium Meister

Click here to open the site in a new window

http://www.majorleaguemodels.com/about.asp

This is something interesting I found while looking for the little plaster model of Yankee Stadium for 93-year-old-Max’s grandson. This man builds huge, tabletop scale models of old ballparks from scratch. You know, the exacto knife and the balsa wood and a thousand other things. I can relate to this man because of what I do with the wood products and all and will even admit to having built a cardboard model Shea Stadium in 1976 that was pretty darned good.

I love this kind of wacky, I’m-going-to-build-this-thing-in-my-cellar-and-sell-it-for-150k attitude. Take 5 minutes and visit the guy’s site. Look at the original wooden 1888 Polo Grounds model and see how baseball was just after the Civil War. It’s amazing work.

It also points out that I need to do better on my website. But now, we’re 7 minutes from the kickoff of Liverpool-Chelsea. The first league encounter of the year was way back in August, on the day we had our boy christened. I left for the church at half up 1-0 only to come home and find out that the ref called a silly PK and GIFTED the point to Chelsea. So strange was the call, that the next day, the ref PUBLICLY stated that he was wrong to point at the spot! I’ve never heard of such a thing but when taking points from the Reds, the refs have done some funny things. I think it’s because they all grew up in the 1970′s and 1980′s when Liverpool won every darned thing and I think there is some lingering resentment. Kind of like if I worked the plate at a Yankee game.

To give you an idea of how big these things get (he does different scales), take a look at the Old Comiskey Park. Old Comiskey is my favorite of the 38 ballparks I’ve been to. It was a real timewarp to go there and the place just felt right. They say that Jimmy Foxx hit two homers completely over the roof in left between the two light towers. Double-X was the best hitter no one’s ever heard of.

If the first 10 minutes of Liverpool Chelsea are any indicator, then Chelsea will get the points. They seem a whole gear faster than Liverpool and more confident and more creative. Liverpool look slow and I think it’s only a matter of time. Chelsea’s defense is so fast and shuts everything down so tightly, that I don’t see Kuyt and Crouchy cracking it. What we need is the pace of Fernando Torres.

Well, at least ManU lost their derby to City today. No points for Alex. That’s what you get for ripping your boss, Sir. With United coming away with none…if Chelsea could be beaten…oh stop dreaming. Wake up!  And I have to say: After watching only 25 minutes: Dirk Kuyt shouldn’t be in the first team.  Really.  He looks slow and lost.  Zero confidence.  And his play on the right is atrocious.  He can’t beat his man deep and he can’t do anything on the cut inside–every posession that reaches him, goes awry.  Perhaps he can be productive in the middle, but Crouchy is there now.  Play another midfielder and let them go forward.  Kuyt should come off.  Caragher has more mojo going up the right wing than this guy.  Oy.  Rafa.  Help. (Of course Kuyt till make an a** of me and score the winner but I’ll take it and eat my words if that is so).

Anfield Road End 1998