Taking Sides: Liverpool vs Everton

otm!

I am looking forward to the transfer window. The Nun has given the board a list of four players. Robbie Savage denies all responsibility for his future. Etc.

I'm trying to rationalise this little blip in terms of things that were long overdue - the Tight Game Lost Late On Through Indecision And Indiscipline (quite a few last season, but none before the Charlton game in 04-05) and the Thrashing By Side With Glut Of Attacking Flair (used to happen a lot under Smith, not this season since the opening day). Also slated to make an appearance before long: Agonising Home Reverse After Dominating Possession (plenty of these in 03-04, just the Spurs game in September so far this season) and Bright Start Ends Game As Contest Inside 30min With Surprisingly Good Finishing (did this vs Fulham, Leeds and Spurs last year but never this season - Beattie might change this).

Bit worrying that Martyn can keep 10 clean sheets in 19.5 games and Wright concedes seven goals in 140 minutes. We might need to score five vs Portsmouth.

I think 65pts is still a realistic target: 7-4-6 would do this. That's been good enough for a top six finish in each of the last nine seasons and a CL position in '98 and '04. I think it might be between LFC and Spurs for 4th spot ultimately.

how weird!

Well, they had eight shots on target if the BBC stats are correct. So, Wright did OK considering the shambles going on in front of him. I saw the highlights and, yes, Spurs were rampant.

I think the presumption is we that can't be that fragile again, but we can and we will as injuries accumulate. I wonder about the wisdom of spending two-thirds of our apparent transfer budget on a talented but inconsistent big-name striker with a sub-1-in-3 goalscoring record.

I once saw an article about James Beattie and he was a robot in the pictures, you could see his wires and stuff. I think he was jumping over rooftops too.

No, I don't believe it either.

It increasingly looks as if TG isn't going anywhere near a new EFC contract so the question is - get £2m for him now off Real or let him go for free in July. £2m = about four Premiership places, I think. TG = probably the difference between top four/six and top half or Europe and no Europe.

I see Super Kev left for WBA last week. Walter Smith's Small Number Of Good Ideas will soon be history.

Just reading this morning Henchoz is on his way out, to Celtic or Rangers, supposedly. He's really deteriorated so much, though obviously Liverpool need a new central defender and have done for some time. Be interesting to see how Pellegrino does.

This is not a sentence I ever expected to write in my life, it must be said, much as like Gravesen. I also apologise to Mike for tempting fate with my last comment in this thread, as well as "Kevin Kilbane - Galactico!" during the summer.

Now I look like a girl.

Nevertheless, I wouldn't want to leave Everton right now.

Does he play 'in the hole' then?

Perhaps if I wrote him a nice letter he'd stay?

http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport2/shared/bsp/hi/football/statistics/players/g/gravesen_41516.stm

Agents, eh?

He could've said that.

i am going off topic here, unfortunately.

Mike OTM - lure of Real Madrid is cockrot; they were shit until 1999, had two good seasons, and have been living off the petrol fumes of hype after the gasoline of 'being good' disappearred (see 'Manchester United')

Beckham > Japan, Qatar, Bolton, Boro, Rangers, somewhere like that. Also I suppose there will be a new round of millionaires wanting to make a mark.

Chileswatchers! It's time for 'Working Lunch'.

It hurts but not as much as two seasons ago (when a one-point advantage turned into a two-point deficit on Easter Saturday and we knew all was lost). I even exchanged texts with Jerry, instead of chucking myself under a 63 bus.

This might not really change things. The Olympiakos, Arsenal and Leverkusen victories didn't spark the classy surge Rednoses expected and I doubt this will (in fact, Bolton could take a point - or more - from Anfield in a fortnight) and I don't think Everton will simply dissolve into the pack either. I'm taking comfort from the memory of the 86-87 run-in when Liverpool 'had to win' the Anfield derby - they did but promptly lost at Coventry a week later, effectively ending their title challenge.

To play:
EFC (51pts, +3gd) - Palace, B'ham, Man U and Newcastle at home, West Brom, Arsenal, Fulham and Bolton away.
LFC (47pts, +12gd) - Bolton, Spurs, Boro and Villa at home, Palace, Man C, Portsmouth and Arsenal away.

Place your bets.

Probably Nunez's best game to date, thought Smicer was really awful and gave away the ball an awful lot, he's so weak! Thought Pellegrino was good today actually, which is unusual. Baros was great if he could just score. Very good match but god do we always make it hard for ourselves.