Issues that plague Roy Hodgson

Roy Hodgson is yet to dazzle in his managerial role at Anfield and he has made the worst start of a Liverpool manager since 1928. Even in trying, transitional times at Anfield, he has not presented a strong case that he can steady the ship.

Firstly, Hodgson could improve his communication skills. Describing Sunday's pitiful derby display as the best of his short Liverpool tenure was an insult to supporters trying to comprehend a passionless defeat and 19th place in the Premier League.

Fernando Torres frustration betrayed him against Everton. He told Jamie Carragher to "shut up" inside three minutes at Goodison Park and looked over-anxious in front of goal, but poor individual form is not only to blame. The service to the Spain international has been abysmal all season. Even fully fit and secure in his surroundings, Torres would struggle to prosper on a diet of long, hopeful punts towards the corner flag. He has been isolated tactically and personally under Liverpool's new manager. Steven Gerrard was supposed to provide Torres's main support against Everton but, along with his team-mates, was too deep to make an impact. Being singled out as the only Liverpool player with a confidence problem by his manager is also unlikely to help Torres. "I didn't see a lack of confidence in Maxi Rodríguez, Raul Meireles or Steven Gerrard," said Hodgson on Sunday. "Fernando is going through a bad time and if you are talking about him I'd have to agree, but there are not too many lacking confidence." Joe Cole has to start playing again. Liverpool's left flank was neither solid nor creative at Goodison, and Paul Konchesky and Joe Cole cannot be blamed on Rafael Benítez. Cole has endured a difficult start to his Anfield career and, now that Gerrard has returned to the central role he and the former Chelsea man prefer, the club's statement signing this summer is struggling to impress wide on the left. A lack of pace is telling but how to maximise the talents of Cole and Gerrard in the same team is a conundrum Hodgson has yet to solve.

Hodgson has not had any luck with his defenders. Daniel Agger, with whom the manager appears to have a fractious relationship, remains plagued by a serious back injury and Konchesky and Glen Johnson have also been sidelined. The England right-back has also suffered an alarming drop in form and looks a pale imitation of the £18m signing of last season, and even José Reina's commanding aura in goal has occasionally been misplaced. Liverpool's defence badly needs an injection of pace but many of its problems are self-inflicted. Hodgson pinpointed the number of games that Liverpool have had to chase this season as a reason for poor results, yet his gameplan – sitting deep at Everton, for example – invites trouble.

Edited from an article by Andy Hunter in The Guardian, Tuesday 19 October 2010

Tom Hicks blames Rafael Benítez after bitter Liverpool battle

Tom Hicks has hit out at the former Liverpool manager Rafael Benítez as he defended himself and his fellow former co-owner, George Gillett, against claims they did not provide the necessary financial support to the Spaniard during his Anfield tenure. "We spent £300m on players, £150m net – I think it's the second or third highest in the English Premier League," he said. "You never read about that in the media. I read a very interesting article in which Alex Ferguson [the Manchester United manager] said: 'Rafa had more money to spend than the rest of us, he just bought bad players. Rafa lost the club. We didn't finish at the top – that's not the fault of the owners, we spent good money. Rafa has to take accountability for his own results. When we finished second the year before, people weren't nearly as angry. Liverpool fans are just unbelievably strong supporters and they want to win. I'm not a novice, I've been in sport for almost 15 years. Whether it's hockey or baseball in the US or soccer fans in Liverpool, people want to win."

The club's chairman, Martin Broughton, and creditors Royal Bank of Scotland, also came under attack from Hicks, as he claimed in an interview with Sky Sports News that they had breached his trust. "This has been an organised conspiracy over many months," he said. "[Independent chairman] Martin Broughton wanted a good PR event in his life and be seen as the guy that got rid of those Americans – and he sold to another group of Americans. I can't go into the details but I can confirm the funds were available to pay off Royal Bank of Scotland entirely but between Royal Bank of Scotland, the chairman and the employees that conspired against us, they would not let us. They were people I thought were our friends, people I thought were loyal, and I was wrong."

Hicks said he had identified a buyer he felt would be better to take Liverpool forward, but claimed his attempts to broker a deal had been undermined by people inside the club. "My family members and I have been working very hard to solve the issue," he added. "We know there are better owners out there for the Liverpool Football Club than the Boston Red Sox group.

"We knew who they were. We were just frustrated that every time we had conversations with them we had people in our own organisation who somehow had those things not work out. They conspired against us. The process was continually frustrated by chatter about financial distress coming out of RBS. The interested buyers that we knew would be the right type of buyers for the club – look what's happened to Manchester City now with their new ownership – that's the kind of buyer we were trying to find for Liverpool and those people were scared off by the distress chatter and the organised internet terrorism campaign that was directed against people involved. I just want the truth to come out in the courts. Our desire was to get Liverpool into the hands of an owner who would be able to build a stadium and make Liverpool the top club in the world they deserve to be."

The 64-year-old Texan admitted that the debt he and Gillett had saddled on the club was "a little too much", but he hit out at RBS for attempting to drive through a sale too quickly. Hicks said: "Liverpool is a very healthy performing club which covers its interest fine. It has a little bit too much debt, no question. But we were going to fix that and we were frustrated by others."

He conceded that his struggle to communicate with the fans since he took over in March 2007 had conspired to the bitterness surrounding his departure. "I accept that fact that something went wrong in my ability to communicate with the fans and I'm saddened by it. I wish more people had the accurate information. It [the debt] has been a millstone because of the fans' reaction to it. There's been so many inaccurate numbers about what our interest bill is – we've had plenty of operating income to cover our interest payments with a lot of room to spare. We've invested. George and I put in $270m into the club. We've spent nearly $300m gross on players. About $150m net on players and you never hear that in the media. That disappears in all the noise and anger."

From an article in The Guardian, Friday 15 October 2010

NESV completes £300m Liverpool takeover with promise to listen

At lunchtime on Sunday , in a somewhat dilapidated stadium in an unfavoured district of an old port city in the north-west of England, the teams lying 17th and 18th in the Premier League will meet for the 214th time in competitive football. Never, in a fixture dating back to 1893, have the stakes seemed higher for both Everton and Liverpool. These are desperate times and desperate teams, and this is one of the matches of the season.

Some of the edge was taken off Liverpool's desperation, however, at 4pm today, with the climax to the compelling, sometimes excruciatingly protracted saga of the club's change of ownership. When Steven Gerrard leads his team out to face Everton at Goodison Park, he will be representing an institution in new hands: those of John W Henry and his fellow investors in New England Sports Ventures.

After an often bewildering flurry of legal arguments in London, Dallas and New York, followed by the signing of a contract at the City offices of Slaughter and May, the owners of the Boston Red Sox now appear to be free to pay off around £200m of debts owing to the Royal Bank of Scotland, giving them control of a club whose honours include five European Cups and 18 English league championships.

A jubilant Martin Broughton, Liverpool's chairman, emerged with the contract signed and Henry alongside him. "Every Liverpool fan knows that the most nerve-racking way to win a football match is in a penalty shoot-out," Broughton said. "But as long as you get the right result, it's worth the wait. We've always known that we were in the right and now we've got justice."

Henry, greeted by the cheers of waiting fans, declared himself "proud and humbled" to be the club's new owner. "We have a lot of work to do and I can't tell you how happy I am that we've finally got to this point," he said. He was unwilling to commit himself on plans for investment in new players or in a new, larger stadium. "It's too early to say what we're going to do," he said, "but obviously we're here to win and we'll do whatever is necessary."

By contrast with the previous owners, his style seems to be one of understatement. There was no red scarf around his neck and no one from NESV will be present at Goodison Park on Sunday. "I think it's better for our first experience of the Liverpool supporters to be at home," he said. That opportunity will come when Blackburn Rovers visit Anfield a week on Sunday.

"A very good day for the club," Roy Hodgson, the Liverpool manager, called today's events. And how badly he needed it, barely three months into the job and with only six points from a possible 21 – one win, three draws and three defeats – in his team's first seven league matches of the season. "It's a relief," he continued. "It's been a very difficult couple of weeks. We've had to live through a bad time. A big cloud will have been lifted from the football club."

But no one would expect a Texas gambler and a New York-based hedge fund to accept losses of more than £140m and melt away without putting up a fight. Tom Hicks and the hedge-fund managers at Mill Financial, the inheritors of George Gillett's 50% of Kop Holdings Ltd, have made clear their intention to sue for around £1bn in damages, but the legal position would now appear to allow Henry and NESV – and, presumably, a reconstituted board of directors – to assume the task of guiding Liverpool to a recovery from their worst start to a season since they returned to the top flight of English football under Bill Shankly in 1962, the point at which their modern history began.

Until recently, Everton's desperation seemed the more urgent. Trapped in a shabby home, the Toffees have effectively been for sale for several years, with no sign of a buyer willing to take the club off the hands of Bill Kenwright, the most benign of chairmen. Kenwright's only fault is that the business of filling theatres with plays and musicals does not raise the kind of money that Russian oligarchs and Arab sheiks are able to pour into their English football clubs, or that American investors can still borrow, even in the present economic climate.

Over the past few weeks, however, and particularly in the past 10 days, Liverpool's problems have taken precedence. This greatest of English clubs, in terms of aggregate results, found itself accelerating towards a precipice, increasingly out of control, and unsure how, and by whom, the brakes would be safely applied before the point of no return was reached.

Until the arrival of Hicks and his erstwhile partner Gillett less than four years ago, this was a club that might not have won the league title for a decade and a half but could still consider itself stable, solvent, reasonably well run and bursting with potential. But this week it veered perilously close to becoming a laughing stock to some and a sad example to others of what can happen when business imperatives and market forces are permitted to control the affairs of sport.

A resolution of the dispute over the ownership will remove an important excuse for poor performances. Apologists for the recent run of bad results can no longer claim that the players are depressed by the uncertainty hovering over the club, unable to deliver their best football and thus unusually prone to unexpected reverses like the shattering home defeat by humble Blackpool only two weeks ago.

"This comes on the back of a very bad result against Blackpool, something that would have set us back under all circumstances," Hodgson continued. "But if it's true that they [NESV] are taking over, it's very positive news. All clubs, all managers and players need stability. We've been a big, big story for the last few weeks but I'm hoping that the new owners will bring stability, give us a chance to concentrate on the football, and wipe out the debts, which will put us into a very different position."

The money that would have been spent on servicing the bank loans, he said, may now be freed to spend on players. "If that money was made available, we'd be quite wealthy. We've started the season badly, but luckily quite a few other teams have also started badly, so we're not entirely divorced at the bottom of the table."

Sunday's game, he added, is of crucial importance to both clubs. "I'm a great admirer of Everton. I think David Moyes has done a magnificent job there. We've only played seven games. It's 38 matches that count, and I'd be very surprised if Liverpool and Everton were fighting at the bottom at the end of the season. A local derby against our fiercest rivals is the best way to bounce back, if we're capable of doing so."

He will be hoping for an instant response from players such as Gerrard, Fernando Torres and Pepe Reina, the ones seemingly most affected by the recent turbulence, and whose continued presence on the playing staff would be most imperilled were the slump to continue. "As a manager at the moment I'm having some bad games and I'm trying to put that right," Hodgson said. "But I need the players to help me."

Torres will be the object of particularly close scrutiny in the coming weeks. In patchy form for Liverpool last season thanks to a series of injuries, he was almost unrecognisably subdued in Spain's colours at the World Cup finals and has only one goal to show for his appearances in all seven of this season's league fixtures. A revival of his characteristic effervescence on Sunday would be the clearest sign that the rebuilding of Liverpool will not be confined to the boardroom.

From an article by Richard Williams The Guardian, Friday 15 October 2010

9 Point Deduction Looms

The Premier League has given the go-ahead for New England Sports Ventures to complete a takeover of Liverpool. The move means only the high court action by the current owners Tom Hicks and George Gillett stands in the way of the £300m deal by the American company, owners of the Boston Red Sox, going through.

If the takeover is not completed by next Friday then the Royal Bank of Scotland could put Kop Holdings, the company owned by Hicks and Gillett, into administration over its unpaid £280m debt. If that happens, Liverpool would be at risk of a nine-point deduction.

Initially it had been thought the Premier League would not penalise the club for Kop Holdings becoming insolvent, but now the threat of a points deduction has become a serious one.

Under Premier League rules, the fact that the holding company is solely concerned with the ownership of Liverpool and football-related matters could trigger the nine-point penalty.

West Ham had been used as an example of why the Anfield club might escape a deduction if administration goes ahead when it was owned by the Icelandic bank Straumur. The London club, however, was a solvent part of a whole portfolio of different companies while Kop Holdings is solely concerned with Liverpool.

Boardroom Row Goes Public

The simmering war in the Liverpool boardroom between the American owners, Tom Hicks and George Gillett, and the three other directors, broke dramatically into the open last night after Hicks and Gillett turned down two bids, described as "credible", to buy the club and attempted to remove two directors from the board.

One of the bids is understood to have come from John W Henry, the multi-millionaire owner of the Boston Red Sox Major League Baseball team, and the other from business interests in Asia.

An official statement from Liverpool, surely unprecedented in the history of a club which has always prided itself on keeping internal disagreements private, said the board was preparing to approve the sale yesterday. However, Hicks and Gillett sought to block that decision by ousting the managing director, Christian Purslow, and commercial director, Ian Ayre, and appointing instead Hicks's son and a close ally.

The three directors opposed to the owners – Purslow, Ayre and the chairman, Martin Broughton – who can outvote Hicks and Gillett, clearly approved the release of the statement. It suggested they believed both bids were solid enough to approve because they would "repay all [Liverpool's] long-term debt" and they were preparing to do so.

However, Hicks and Gillett, the statement said, not only opposed the offers, apparently because they would not provide them with a satisfactory enough profit for their shares, but tried to replace Purslow and Ayre with Hicks's son, Mack, and Lori Kay McCutcheon, the financial controller at the Texan's company Hicks Holdings. That would have given the Americans a majority on the board.

The other three clearly resisted and Purslow and Ayre remained on the board last night, finally at odds publicly with Hicks and Gillett. The statement said of the balance of power in the boardroom: "The matter is now subject to legal review."

The statement left no doubt that Broughton, Purslow and Ayre, the majority, were in favour of accepting one of the offers and selling the club. "The board of directors have received two excellent financial offers to buy the club," it said. "A board meeting was called today to review these bids and approve a sale."

The clear implication was that, while both offers committed to clearing the £237m Liverpool owe Royal Bank of Scotland and Wachovia, which is due for repayment in nine days' time, they were not preparing to give Hicks and Gillett much for their shares. One source said the bids would repay Hicks and Gillett the money they have loaned into Liverpool, which stood at £144m at 31 July last year, but not pay them a personal profit for transferring ownership.

Gillett and Hicks have been holding out for a significant payment, even though Liverpool are sinking into crisis while they do not appear to be in a position to repay to the banks. One informed source described Henry as "extremely interested" in buying Liverpool, saying he has the means and expertise required, evidenced by Boston's two championships under his ownership and the iconic Fenway Park stadium.

Liverpool supporters will, however, be naturally suspicious of any US bid after the bitter experience with Hicks's and Gillett's "leveraged buy-out".

A source close to the discussions said Broughton, Purslow and Ayre would not approve any bid which brought more debt to the club. In a clear act of defiance by those three non-owner directors, the board statement concluded: "Martin Broughton, Christian Purslow and Ian Ayre continue to explore every possible route to achieving a sale of the Club at the earliest opportunity."

Hicks and Gillett responded with a statement late last night confirming their "commitment to finding a buyer" but saying they will not accept bids which in their view "dramatically undervalue" the club which they said had nearly doubled its revenues since they took over.

 From an article by David Conn published in The Guardian 6 October 2010

Going From Bad To Worse

When Liverpool's fans called for Kenny Dalglish on Saturday, they were really calling for a restoration of lost values. The Kop's mournful chant during Liverpool's 2-1 defeat by Blackpool on Saturday of "Dalglish, Dalglish, Dalglish" was more than just a call for the Anfield icon to replace Roy Hodgson, last season's manager of the year, now so beleaguered just seven league games into the red maelstrom.

Yesterday's official club statement, in effect a public declaration of war on Hicks and Gillett by the majority non-owning directors, Martin Broughton, Christian Purslow and Ian Ayre, signalled the total exasperation of those three with the continued ownership by the Americans. It was in itself a previously unthinkable act, at the club where an integral part of the self-proclaimed "Liverpool Way" was to keep everything private, within the Anfield corridors.

Now the faithful, the fans who named their campaign group Spirit of Shankly knowing everybody will understand what that means, can add a final unravelling to the litany of what has been done to the club Shankly built. Hicks and Gillett famously promised they would not "do a Glazer", then did exactly what that Florida-based family engineered at Manchester United – borrowed the money to buy the club, then loaded the club with the responsibility of paying their debts.

The pair pledged they would have the stadium built, unveiled shiny plans but barely a sod has been disturbed. They did back Rafael Benítez with transfer funds of borrowed money and sank £144m in themselves – in loans – but the financial pressures of such indebtedness have caught up with them. This season supporters are finally witnessing a club unravelling, Steven Gerrard and Fernando Torres bearing the haunted expressions of superstars lost already in a relegation zone. Even to say that Liverpool lost at home to Blackpool seems like a result from another age, around 1953 perhaps, when Liverpool last made a start worse than this one. But the tangerine team won on merit after 7,000 supporters marched outside Anfield against Hicks and Gillett.

As for what happens next in this endgame being played by Broughton, Purslow and Ayre against the bank deadline of 15 October, it is still in flux. Hicks and Gillett sought to remove Purslow and Ayre yesterday to prevent the three, as a majority, approving a sale of the club to John W Henry, owner of the Boston Red Sox, or another, unnamed, Asian buyer. Neither, apparently, would have delivered a personal payday to the Americans. The statement said: "This matter is now subject to legal review." But the fact that the board meeting did not proceed and a sale was not approved strongly suggests that the non-owning three cannot force Hicks and Gillett to sell.

Hicks has tried to refinance, borrowing the money he and Gillett owe Royal Bank of Scotland from another finance house, which the other three directors opposed and which did not come off.

The power, everybody knows, rests with RBS, the collapsed bank now 84% owned by the British taxpayer who bailed it out. Yet the last thing the bank wants is to be in charge of a football club as high-profile, crisis-hit and emotionally volatile as Liverpool. All along, tThe possibility most pondered has been for RBS to reclaim the club on 15 October, if Hicks and Gillett do not pay up, with a buyer lined up for the bank immediately to sell to.

There are many twists lying in wait before so clinical a solution can be orchestrated, especially with the club's three directors having decided to make no secret of their opposition to Hicks and Gillett.

It is all a world away from the days when Dalglish was dinking the ball over the FC Bruges goalkeeper to win the 1978 European Cup or winning the double in 1986, his first season as manager. Hence, in contemplation of today's dreadful mess, the fans' plaintive cry for yesterday's hero.

Edited from an article by David Conn in The Guardian 6 October 2010

Liverpool must hold their heads through this storm or face falling apart

Prior to the game, during an interview with LFC TV, Christian Purslow was heard to say in no uncertain terms that "the club's raison d'êtrehasn't changed – we exist to win trophies". A few hours later, it became clear someone had forgotten to inform the players of that mission statement as they sank, almost literally given the monsoon-like conditions, to apitiful defeat against Northampton Town in the Carling Cup third-round. Just when Kopites thought it could not get any worse, it very much did.

Talk of yet another full-blown crisis at Anfield should be tempered by acknowledging that the side Roy Hodgson put out lastnight was far from his strongest. Of those that started, none began the 3-2 defeat by Manchester United last Sunday and, before kick-off at least, only Daniel Agger, Lucas Leiva, Milan Jovanovic and Ryan Babel could have realistically hoped to be involved against Sunderland on Saturday. Nevertheless, it remained a strong team, one that contained five internationals, four of whom travelled to the World Cup in South Africa. They should never, ever, have lost to a team who sit 17th in League Two and whose previous fixture was a 3-1 defeat at Shrewsbury.

What must have been most distressing for the home crowd was the manner of the defeat. This was no freak result, a smash-and-grab that was wholly unjustified or based on the whim of an incompetent referee. No, Liverpool were thoroughly outplayed after they had taken the lead through Jovanovic's ninth-minute effort and would not have reached the penalty shoot-out had their right-back Martin Kelly not cleared a shot off the line immediately after David Ngog had pulled the score back to 2-2 in extra-time.

Hodgson's third defeat since arriving from Fulham would also have made it clear to the Liverpool manager that the squad's depth is not as healthy as he perhaps first thought. The second string had performed encouragingly in pre-season and even more so in the early stages of the Europa League but, when pressure is put on them and momentum is hard to find, they appear to lack the talent or nous – or both – to turn things round.

Some leeway should be given to the goalkeeper Brad Jones and defender Danny Wilson, who were making debuts following transfers from Middlesbrough and Rangers respectively, and to Kelly, who has looked generally impressive since making his debut last season.

No such excuses can be found for Lucas or his central-midfield partner Jay Spearing, both of whom have been given multiple chances to establish themselves in a midfield shorn of such players as Xabi Alonso and Javier Mascherano, but have only infrequently performed to a high standard.

Of the senior players Sotirios Kyrgiakos and Jovanovic are undeniably willing but, given their status as regular international players, must be considered to be falling short of the required Anfield standard, a judgment that could also be made about Agger, who is generally assumed among Liverpool fans to be a star in the waiting.

Then there is Babel. Given until January by Hodgson to prove he is a player of substance as well as potential, the Dutchman should have viewed an outing against fourth-tier opponents as a chance to run riot. Instead, he again went into hiding.

What may also concern Hodgson is the general sense of stagnation and despondency that continues to associate itself with the club. However hard they try, whatever positives they can gain from new signings, displays or results, Liverpool remain, from the outside at least, a once-mighty being that has lost its heart and soul.

The ongoing dramas of the boardroom do not help, and the pain that has caused the supporters will be evident again this weekend, when many will protest before, during and after the visit of Sunderland. But it should be remembered that under Tom Hicks's and George Gillett's ownership the club reached the 2007 Champions League final and the semi-final in 2008, and were within four points of winning the Premier League the following year. The Americans must take a large chunk of the blame for what has gone wrong, but they cannot be expected to carry the entire burden. It causes only bafflement to wonder when and why the gloom truly descended. 

Credit should be given to Hodgson for not attempting to camouflage the defeat in excuses. He seemed genuinely confused and hurt by the team's performance when apologising on their behalf afterwards. The 63-year-old now fully realises the scale of the task ahead of him and will no doubt spend as much time as he can before the Sunderland game studying what went wrong against Northampton and pondering how he can prevent it happening again.

The damage can be limited immediately with a win against Steve Bruce's side, but that will take such players as José Reina, Jamie Carragher, Steven Gerrard and Fernando Torres, all of whom are scheduled to return to the team, to prove that this season is not going to be like the previous one – to show that a dispiriting defeat does not have to be followed by another.

Edited from a post by Sachin Nakrani in the Guardian on Thursday 23 September 2010

No. 28 shirt for Poulsen

Liverpool have confirmed the signing of the Denmark international midfielder Christian Poulsen from Juventus for a fee of €5.475m (£4.5m). 

A statement from the Serie A side today read: "Juventus announces that an agreement has been finalised with Liverpool for the disposal of the registration rights of the player Christian Poulsen for a consideration of €5.475m to be paid in two instalments: €2.725m immediately upon the execution of the contract and €2.75m on 1 July 2011. Deferred payment is covered by a bank guarantee." 

"This operation generates a non-significant capital gain in the 2010-11 financial year. The consideration for the disposal may increase by a further maximum of €1.2m on achieving given sports performances in the course of the duration of the contract." 

Liverpool have now confirmed the deal and Poulsen, who will wear the No28 shirt, joins fellow new signings Joe Cole, Milan Jovanovic, Jonjo Shelvey and Danny Wilson in moving to Anfield this summer. The 30-year-old, who has 77 caps for Denmark, knows Liverpool manager Roy Hodgson well, having first joined his FC Copenhagen side in 2000. 

A holding midfield player, Poulsen's arrival at Liverpool has been on the cards ever since Javier Mascherano indicated that he would like to leave the club. Mascherano is keen to be reunited with Rafael Benítez at Internazionale, although the Serie A club appear unwilling to meet Liverpool's valuation of £25m. Barcelona, who tried to sign Mascherano 12 months ago, are also believed to be interested in the 26-year-old having failed in their bid to sign Arsenal's Cesc Fábregas.

The latest happenings and first look at our potential new boy

Liverpool close to signing Juventus midfielder Christian Poulsen | Football | The Guardian

Christian Poulsen has pulled out of Denmark's game with Germany to discuss personal terms with Liverpool. Photograph: Adam Davy/Empics Sport

Roy Hodgson hopes to complete the signing of the Denmark international Christian Poulsen in the next 48 hours and is close to bolstering his back-room staff with the arrival of Mike Kelly from Fulham. Poulsen, the Juventus midfielder, has been allowed to withdraw from Denmark's friendly with Germany on Wednesday to discuss personal terms with Liverpool and to undergo a medical on Merseyside. The 30-year-old will cost around £6m and could make an immediate debut against Arsenal in the league on Sunday, with Javier Mascherano seeking a move to Internazionale and Lucas Leiva not due back from Brazil's friendly against the USA in New Jersey until Friday.

Liverpool are keen on bringing Peter Crouch back to Anfield but not at the £14m they have been quoted for the Tottenham Hotspur striker. The club's next import is likely to be Kelly, Hodgson's goalkeeping coach and assistant manager at Fulham, who has been offered a similar role at Anfield. The club are also interested in the Middlesbrough goalkeeper Brad Jones, subject of a rejected £2m bid last week.

The consortium fronted by the Chinese businessman Kenny Huang has promised to meet the Liverpool supporters' group, Spirit of Shankly, if it succeeds in buying the club from Tom Hicks and George Gillett. SOS have led the fierce protests against the American co-owners and have been contacted by the Chinese consortium ahead of this week's deadline, set by the Liverpool chairman, Martin Broughton, for interested parties to prove they have the funds to proceed with a deal. "It is significant that we're hearing directly from representatives of the China bid and we cautiously welcome it," an SOS spokesperson said. "We have a very clearly defined agenda and would be happy to meet and discuss our aims in detail with them. Of course, we do not, and would not, endorse any particular bid without detailed discussions and negotiation."

Roy Hodgson orders Fernando Torres to stop making excuses | Football | The Guardian

Roy Hodgson has told Liverpool's star names it is their responsibility to inspire the club's revival and that the Anfield ownership saga is no excuse for another season of under-achievement. The new Liverpool manager, who has confirmed his interest in a £6m move for the Juventus midfielder Christian Poulsen, yesterday welcomed Fernando Torres's public commitment to the club following a summer of uncertainty surrounding the Spanish striker and captain Steven Gerrard. Nevertheless, Hodgson had little sympathy for Torres's previous declaration that Liverpool needed to sign "four or five" top-class players. He insisted the onus is on leading players "to look in the mirror" rather than blame a lack of investment by the co-owners Tom Hicks and George Gillett for the recent malaise at Anfield.

Hodgson is looking to recruit "quality signings … we are not looking at cut-price deals in any way", despite being unsure if a takeover will be completed before the close of the transfer window and how it might affect his budget. But he is adamant the fight for control of Liverpool should not distract Torres, Gerrard and others, even if the club does not make the signings they crave.

"People on the outside will have more sympathy with those comments than me," said Hodgson of Torres's frustrations with Hicks and Gillett. "As a player you have a chance to change things. If you don't think the team is doing as well as it should, as a player you can do something about it. If you are a big player, maybe you will. "I don't get involved in that. My attitude is that we want our big players because they will help the team to win. If they are not playing well and not helping the team to win I will be advising them to look into the mirror rather than look for excuses elsewhere and blame the owners for not having spent £500m.

"If we look at Real [Madrid] last season they spent a fortune on two or three players and it didn't give them what they wanted. They didn't win the Champions League or even get to the semis, and they didn't win the Spanish league or the Spanish cup. The two most expensive players in the world par excellence didn't help them get what they want. Are those players then entitled to say :'I should not have come here because the club lacks ambition.' Or is the club entitled to say: 'We spent £150m on you two, we wanted you to help us win.'"

Hodgson's rallying call echoes the assertion Rafael Benítez made after Liverpool's home defeat by Aston Villa last August, when the former manager said it was "up to the senior players to take the responsibility and take us forward". That comment was frequently cited as the moment a chasm appeared between Benítez and influential figures in the Liverpool dressing room, although Hodgson does not anticipate a repeat performance.

Hodgson takes charge of his first home game as Liverpool manager tonight against FK Rabotnicki in the second leg of their Europa League third qualifying round tie. "What a coach does is to say 'look into the mirror and do something about it'. That is our job. The players of the highest echelon do look in mirrors and analyse performances, so I am not fearful of that. I am just sceptical about comments where players are questioning the club's ambition. I would tend to throw that back at them and say that the club's ambitions rest in your hands, you're the ones playing for us and you're the ones people are paying to watch."

Hodgson added: "The 20 or 25 big European clubs are only big clubs if they have good players. Players are the key. We pay to watch football. We do not pay to watch José Mourinho, we pay to watch his [Real Madrid] team. Sometimes I can be lured into thinking that is what fans do pay to see, that they go to see the owners in the stand, but I refuse to believe that. People go to watch players, like they go to watch film stars when they go to the cinema, not who the director was or who produced it."

The Liverpool manager confirmed there has been no bid as yet from Internazionale for Javier Mascherano, who was not on the original squad list for the Rabotnicki tie, and that he was keen on bringing 30-year-old Danish international Poulsen to Anfield. "One of our representatives went on Tuesday to Italy to speak to Juventus. Poulsen is a legitimate transfer target if it can happen," said Hodgson. "He's a player I know well. I kick-started his career some years ago now [at FC Copenhagen] and I've followed him closely ever since. "If we could get him from Juventus for a price I consider to be reasonable, he will be a very good addition to our squad."

Liverpool get Danny Wilson from Rangers

Danny Wilson had been a target for Tottenham Hotspur as well as Liverpool. Photograph: Lynne Cameron/PA

Liverpool are close to adding a third summer signing after agreeing a potential £5m deal with Rangers for Danny Wilson. The 18-year-old central defender, voted the SFA's young player of the year last season, was pulled out of the Rangers squad that departed for a pre-season tour of Australia today to undergo a medical at Liverpool's Melwood training ground. The Rangers chief executive Martin Bain confirmed: "We have agreed a deal in principle with Liverpool for the transfer of Danny Wilson. Liverpool's offer will see the club receive £2m up front with add-ons linked to games played, taking the total value of the deal to £5m."

Liverpool have been in talks with Wilson and his representatives for several months, with the club ambassador Kenny Dalglish playing an influential role in negotiations for a player who was also a target for Tottenham Hotspur. Wilson will join Joe Cole and Milan Jovanovic as Liverpool's new faces for next season once the transfer is completed, and provides a further illustration of the club's intention to sign more British talent to meet Uefa's impending regulations on homegrown players in European squads.

Reporting by Andy Hunter, Guardian

Joe Cole joins Liverpool on four-year contract

Liverpool today signed Joe Cole on a four-year contract, subject to a medical due to take place "in the next 48 hours". The 28-year-old England international has moved on a free transfer after his contract with Chelsea expired at the end of June. He had also been linked with Tottenham Hotspur and Arsenal, who will both compete in the Champions League next season, but has chosen instead to move to Anfield where he becomes the second signing of the summer after Milan Jovanovic, the Serbian winger who joined from Standard Liège earlier this month, also on a free transfer. The capture of Cole was seen as a key factor in proving to the likes of Steven Gerrard and Fernando Torres, who have both been linked with departures after a disappointing seventh-placed finish in Rafael Benítez's final season in charge, that Liverpool can still compete for quality signings. He will be seen as a replacement for Yossi Benayoun, the 30-year-old Israeli creative midfielder who has joined Chelsea for £5m.

Hodgson is still on the look-out for a new left-back with Fabio Aurélio having left and Emiliano Insua on the verge of completing his move to Fiorentina. After that the Liverpool manager will hope to secure commitments from Gerrard and Torres about their futures.

Rafa Ben�tez made my life a misery at Liverpool, says Yossi Benayoun | Football | guardian.co.uk

Rafa Ben�tez made my life a misery at Liverpool, says Yossi Benayoun | Football | guardian.co.uk

Yossi Benayoun said the former manager never gave him any credit while at Liverpool. Photograph: Mike Egerton/EMPICS Sport

Yossi Benayoun has accused Rafa Benítez of trying to break him atLiverpool. The midfielder said the former Liverpool manager was the sole reason for him wanting to leave Anfield. The Israeli midfielder, who joined Chelsea in a four-year deal this month, said the former manager made his life a misery while he was at the club.

"Everyone asks me why I left Liverpool," said Benayoun. "There is only one reason – Rafa Benítez.". The midfielder says the Spaniard, who left Liverpool to manage Internazionale, never treated him with respect he felt he deserved. "If I played well, I never felt he gave me credit," he told the News of the World.

"When I scored, I still expected to be out of the team the next game. On two occasions early last season, against Fulham and Lyon, the fans booed when I was subbed. They thought I was playing well but Benítez told me he was surprised the fans booed because I was not good enough. "He tried to destroy my confidence. You can't treat a player like this and expect him to be happy."

Benayoun said he was very unhappy but out of respect for the club he did not speak out. He said the players and people at the club know how he felt. "I don't want to speak on behalf of other players at Liverpool, but people know what happened to Albert Riera and Xabi Alonso. It was the same for me. Benítez tried to break me like he broke Riera." The 30-year-old said before the final game of the season Benítez pulled him aside in training and said: "You will not be in the squad for this game. Thank you for your three years of service, now you can call your agent to do a deal with another club."

"That's when Chelsea made an offer," said Benayoun, "and the deal was done before Benítez left."

Best pic you'll see all year - Liverpool FC

Best pic you'll see all year

Liverpool appoint Hodgson - Liverpool FC

Liverpool appoint Hodgson

Roy Hodgson has been appointed the new manager of Liverpool FC.

The 62-year-old former Fulham, Inter Milan and Switzerland manager has agreed terms with the club on a three-year contract and becomes the 18^thmanager in our history.He will be unveiled to the world's media this afternoon after overseeing the first day of pre-season training at Melwood.

Hodgson joins us from Fulham, where he guided the Cottagers to the Europa League final in May and was voted Manager of the Year by the League Managers' Association.He exclusively told Liverpoolfc.tv: "This is the biggest job in club football and I'm honoured to be taking on the role of manager of Britain's most successful football club. I look forward to meeting the players and the supporters and getting down to work at Melwood."

Kenny's the man

Deschamps may be good, as would be Roy Hodgson. Christian Purslow is doing what a good MD should, and that is to look at all the possibilities. Logic counts, but football is not all about that. The heart says to give Kenny a chance to put things right from all those years ago. His decision to leave put us on the slide, though it's not his fault. Then as is now, the owner and directors should shoulder the ultimate blame for our wanderings. Now is the best time to let him have a go. He will be cheaper than the rest, most people want him, and he is very keen with all his heart. Methinks it's a conspiracy by the Yanks to not let him have the job, else he gets too big to the detriment of their health. Kenny's the man for now, not anyone else.

Anfield politics, not results caused Rafael Benítez's Liverpool downfall

Were it simply a football decision, a detached analysis of where Liverpool should be in the midst of a debt-ridden power vacuum, then Rafael Benítez, for the many faults, facts and suspect full-backs, would not be leaving Anfield with a lucrative pay-off. But it is not simply football that has done for Benítez.

It is the politicking that is as much a feature of the Spaniard's managerial career as European expertise and the misfortune to fall into the employ of Tom Hicks and George Gillett. The leverage buy-out experts promised a spade in the ground for a new stadium within 60 days of their arrival in February 2007 but have only dug the hole into which Benítez has now fallen. He moved closer to the exit with every refinancing deal the Americans secured while his reputation inevitably suffered with every transfer window without additional funds. Not that Benítez walks away blameless.

In announcing the end of the manager's six-year reign Martin Broughton, the chairman parachuted into Liverpool from British Airways to lend gravitas to the sale of the club, and who could not attend the final home game of last season due to his Chelsea allegiances, stresses that football was behind the departure. No one would dispute Broughton's analysis of the "disappointing season" just gone but this was one dreadful campaign following five seasons of steady progress. The man who delivered Liverpool's fifth European Cup in such miraculous style in 2005 and the FA Cup a year later had enough goodwill left on the Kop to be allowed a shot at redemption. Circumstances inside the club, many Benítez-created, however, ensured that could never happen.

It was only November 2007 when confirmation of an approach to Jürgen Klinsmann from Hicks and Gillett brought Liverpool supporters on to the streets in support of the former Valencia coach. On the back of two Champions League finals in three seasons, FA Cup success and the astute purchases of Fernando Torres, Javier Mascherano and José Reina, Benítez was untouchable in Anfield eyes. An Indian sign over José Mourinho's Chelsea in Europe didn't damage his cause either. His own discontent with the inner-workings of a club without the stadiums or resources of their main Premier League rivals was already surfacing, however.

The morning after defeat to Milan in the 2007 Champions League final brought the first evidence of Benítez the agitator in Liverpool colours. He left Valencia owing to boardroom interference and transfer restrictions, famously stating: "I asked for a table and they brought me a lampshade." He had earlier fallen out with Jorge Valdano at Real Madrid over his input into the youth team. Now he was voicing frustrations inside Anfield. Prevarication on transfers, an underachieving commercial operation, lack of progress with a new stadium and being pressured to keep pace with clubs who could afford to make £20m mistakes on players; his protests were set to repeat until today's exit.

Benítez's motivations were to improve Liverpool but, having won the battle to oust Rick Parry as chief executive and also secured a lucrative five-year contract with no release clause that also ceded to him control of an unproductive youth academy, he consolidated his own authority in the process. That left him exposed should Liverpool falter, and the Americans' financial problems combined with several expensive transfer mistakes made for a fatal concoction last season.

The now former Liverpool manager justifiably raged against having to sell players before he could buy in recent windows, particularly with his squad finally emerging as genuine title contenders in 2009. In that restricted climate, however, he erred badly in marginalising Xabi Alonso and compounded the problem by replacing him with Alberto Aquilani, a talented midfielder no doubt but not, as he recovered from ankle surgery, the player needed to enhance Liverpool's title credentials.

Starved of funds but not, until now, the will to fight, Benítez refused to be silenced on the financial problems, and relationships with the boardroom continued to fracture until the point where he had little support above him. Liverpool could not start next season with the same dysfunctional power structure in place and, with no sign of Hicks and Gillett selling up, the manager became increasingly isolated.

The value of today's Liverpool squad is vastly superior to the one Benítez inherited in 2004 and may be the commodity that has prevented the Royal Bank of Scotland taking more drastic action against Hicks and Gillett. Perversely, however, Benítez inherited a Champions League team from Gérard Houllier and a ticket to his finest hour, the victory that guarantees allegiance among many supporters to this day, in Istanbul the following May. His successor is bequeathed a pass to the Europa League and a team that could struggle to emulate last season's seventh place finish should Steven Gerrard and Torres decide they have witnessed enough false promises and turn the Anfield exit into a revolving door.

Before Benítez bit the bullet there were reports the Liverpool board were forced to act by a threatened dressing-room revolt should the manager stay. Gerrard, Torres and others, so the line goes, have questioned Benítez's management following the last, miserable season. Who hasn't? What is more pertinent to the futures of Liverpool's finest players – many of whom are aggrieved their names have been dragged into the argument – is the direction the club is taking and its ability to strengthen the squad to compete for the top honours once again.

These were the very same assurances that Benítez wanted to hear in his recent meetings with Broughton. Unable to grant them, due to the on-going uncertainty at the top of the club, the Liverpool chairman was left facing a manager disillusioned with financial constraints, in dispute with most of the Anfield hierarchy and accepting that something had to give. That it was him, and not the American co-owners who are the root cause of Liverpool's implosion, will be a source of immense pain for Benítez.

Andy Hunter
guardian.co.uk, Thursday 3 June 2010 19.18 BST

Official Club Statement

Mr Benitez relinquishes his position as team manager after six years and the Board of Directors would like to place on record their grateful thanks for his services and wish him all the best in his future career. The Board has now asked Managing Director Christian Purslow, with the assistance of Club Ambassador Kenny Dalglish, to begin a formal search to identify and assess potential candidates for the managerial position. No timescale has been placed on the process and Liverpool FC will make no further statement until a new manager is appointed.

Rafa Goes

"It is very sad for me to announce that I will no longer be manager of Liverpool FC. I would like to thank all of the staff and players for their efforts.
"I'll always keep in my heart the good times I've had here, the strong and loyal support of the fans in the tough times and the love from Liverpool. I have no words to thank you enough for all these years and I am very proud to say that I was your manager.
"Thank you so much once more and always remember: You'll never walk alone."

Depressing facts

Following on from Rafa's very public future discussion, the club's financial accounts dated July 31st 2009 show the Reds in debt to a tune of roughly 351 million pounds, up from 299 million the year before. And all this after a relatively successful year with 2nd placing in the Premiership and a guarterfinal show in Europe. The current seasons' performances have provided ample evidence of a further rise in this debt level, if not the actual level. It is now dawning on the faithful that money to spend on new players will not be available preseason and might hasten Rafa's departure. Of more concern would be Liverpool's continued premiership existence and avoidance of a "Portsmouth" next season on the back of a thin squad, boardroom drama and mounting debt. It seems that the earliest we can expect to see the backs of the Yanks may be only in a few months. This is depressing.

Talk or walk

Rafa very recently held much-publicized talks with Martin Broughton on his immediate future at Anfield. Not surprisingly, not much came out of these as Liverpool would probably just stall and see what Rafa's actions will be soon. With an expiry date on his discussions with Juve, it won't be long now before the future becomes much clearer. If Rafa walks, Liverpool would be well-compensated and their search for a replacement would begin, if it hasn't already. If Rafa stays, well then, business as usual. Indications are, he'll probably walk as it's quite apparent there's no money to be had for buys. And who'll be coming in? Could be Dalglish.

Fragile hamstrings

The big issue this weekend, and it seems one of the largest this season, is "Do we give the title to Chelsea?". Opinion is divided, and at the end, bound to create controversy. If Liverpool lose against Chelsea, the title would most likely head to London, hence the dilemma of doing our best and beating them, as this would mean a record-breaking 19th Mancs title. This isn't a good position to be in.
It's quite clear for me: if either Aston Villa, Man City or Spurs win, putting 4th place beyond us, then we shouldn't worry too much about beating Chelsea. As Dara O'Brien from the Guardian said, the 12th man may be hamstrung this Sunday. One of the best sights from a forgettable season would be the look on Alex Ferguson's face. Almost as good as an Europa League final spot, methinks.

Travel travails for Reds

UEFA Europa League Semi Final 1st Leg
Atlético Madrid 1 Forlan 9
Liverpool 0

Liverpool's 16th European semi-final (a British record) saw a severely depleted side go down to a fired-up Athletico side intent on salvaging their season in the Cups. It was a difficult game from the beginning with David Ngog having too much to do try as hard as he might. An early onslaught from the home team got their only return, thanks to haphazard Reds defending, although a bit fortuitous thanks to a Soto slip. Again, luck held for them when Yossi's goal was wrongly disallowed for offside, but overall, 'Pool were on the defensive throughout.
In a match much hyped and documented for the novelty of land travel thanks to the Icelandic eruption,the lack of travelling support probably contributed, albeit a little, to the dispirited performance
Yet, all things considered, the deficit remains at one, and that is important for the return, where it is hoped that one of those special Euro nights return and we can all go to bed making plans to Hamburg.

If Rafael Benítez leaves Liverpool, he'll go fighting to the end

Paul Wilson
The Observer, Sunday 18 April 2010
Rafa Benítez's 50th birthday finds the Liverpool manager with half a dozen things on his mind before he can turn his attention to the Europa League semi-final with Atlético Madrid.
First he has to deny, or at least stonewall, persistent suggestions, including fairly detailed comments from his own agent, linking him with a move to Juventus in summer. Then he has to reaffirm that he is employed at the club in a footballing capacity, and any questions about Liverpool's present and future ownership should be addressed to the new chairman, Martin Broughton. Then he has Monday's Premier League game against West Ham to consider and the slim possibility that, if Liverpool win all their remaining games, they could still make it into fourth place.
But most of all he would like a progress report on his star striker, who has been unable to see his specialist in Spain because of all the flights being grounded due to volcanic ash. Fernando Torres has a chance of playing against West Ham tomorrow and would dearly love to play in Madrid later in the week, but on the other hand there is a real possibility that he may have played his final Liverpool game of the season already and even a fear he may need an operation.
"The situation is not yet clear," Benítez admits. "Fernando seems fine to me but he still needs to see his specialist and he has been unable to do so. There are a lot of things going on at the moment, it is normal for the end of a season but I am more worried about Torres and his injury than all the other things."
Benítez did not watch the three-way political debate last week and indeed says he would not waste his time with such things, yet he can evade a question better than many a parliamentarian – even the same question, posed about six times a week throughout the season. He is not going to talk of his future beyond Anfield, he is not going to disparage the outgoing American owners or speculate how much he would like any new buyers to make available for transfer purposes. He has played these games before and always the answer is the same. The important thing is to prepare the team for the next game.
Only one thing is certain, whether or not this turns out to be Benítez's last season at Anfield. He would like it to have an upbeat ending and the Europa League represents Liverpool's only chance of getting their hands on silverware. It may not be everyone's idea of success, and the very fact that Liverpool qualified by virtue of failing in the Champions League taints it in many people's eyes, yet no other European trophy can now be won by an English team and the two remaining domestic prizes could both end up at Chelsea.
So the trip to the Vicente Calderón is more than just an emotional return for Torres, should he play. It could be a chance to be one of only three Premier League clubs with a trophy to wave at the end of the season and, after the sort of season Liverpool have had, that has to count as an incentive. There is also, tantalisingly, a growing realisation that in the general scheme of things, winning the Europa League probably amounts to more than winning the Carling Cup, if that is all Manchester United end up with.
"The Europa League is a massive trophy," Benítez says, possibly overstating the case slightly. "When you look at the teams involved, just the teams still involved even, they are important teams, teams who could be in the Champions League." This may come as news to Fulham but one can see Benítez's point. Should Liverpool get past Lille, Benfica and Atlético Madrid home and away to reach the final, it will at least be comparable with United's route to Wembley that pitted them against Wolves, Barnsley, Spurs and Manchester City.
"We always try to win a trophy each season at this club. Sometimes it is not possible to achieve that, and you must accept it, but when you have a chance to win a trophy you should go for it."
Many were expecting Benítez, rather than Torres, to be facing his former club at the semi-final stage, though for the Liverpool manager it was no surprise that Atlético, in 10th place in La Liga, raised their game to knock out third-placed Valencia.
"Atlético are a good team, they have very good players but they are a little bit inconsistent," Benítez says. "They are out of the league so they have been focusing on the cups. Sometimes they can play really well – they have reached the final of the Spanish Cup – for instance, but they can also lose to Xerez, at the bottom, as they did this week. Maybe they lose concentration, or perhaps they know they cannot achieve anything in the league now and save their best performances for the cups. We won't be underestimating them, not with Fernando Torres and Maxi Rodríguez in our side. We know Atlético really well."

Same boat

So it has come to pass. The truth is out. It seems ManUare (this is not a typo) are in the same sort of muck 'Pool have been dropped into. According to the MU Finance prospectus plc launched in Manchester yesterday, the Glazers have taken up to 22 million pounds in undisclosed payment from the club. Having exposed the club to 700 million pounds in loans, the club is saddled with an annual interest of 45 million pounds, leading it to announce a profit in excess of 40 million, which would not have come about if not for the sale of one Ronaldo. In essence, they are in the red. Sounds familiar. It is quite clear that the Glazers are milking the club (all of them, including 1 daughter, are directors of the club) and are in it only for the money. This has led to rising ticket prices and little money to spend on player purchases. David Conn puts it aptly: "It is, quite simply, impossible to sustain the argument, to intelligent supporters stumping up their hard-earned cash for tickets at ever-increasing prices, that the £700m borrowings the Glazers have imposed, and £67m of interest payable last year, is having no impact." On the field performances have been mediocre this year, probably as a direct effect of a stagnating gene pool.
Despite lots of similarities between the 2 clubs pertaining to their current fiscal quagmire, it actually looks like MU are worse off than 'Pool. There doesn't seem to be another 80 million pound player sale to save them next year.
We should all work towards getting rid of these Americans from our lives.

Frustration down Reading way

FA Cup Third Round

Reading 1 Church 24
Liverpool 1 Gerrard 36
The Madejski Stadium, Saturday 2 January 2010

Liverpool's first game of the new year brought more frustration to the faithful. A drab and dour away draw to former Premiership compatriots currently languishing in the lower regions of the championship left many yearning for the smart and crisp performances (albeit patchy) seen in the preceding 2 games. One can't help but feel that the players weren't really as serious about this game as their manager, sitting back and letting the home team come at them, only being galvanised after the goal. Kuyt again seems poorly, his lack of confidence disallowing any goalward attempt throughout the match, discounting the fortuitous miss that lead to the equalizer. It's beginning to dawn on why Aquilani isn't starting games, as he again seemed out of sorts when eventually coming on in the second half, being slow and uncomfortable with the pace of the game. Looks like his orientation still isn't over. Gerrard could have done much better, constantly misplacing passes and excelling only in fits and starts. Lucas's reflex reaction seemed to be defensive, with most of his passes being backward rather than forward, implying that he's taking his defensive midfielder role too much to heart. as is usual nowadays, the defense's response to set pieces was abject allowing for anxious moments amongst the followers.
At least we live to fight again another day. The immediate concern is to overhaul those above in the League, and it is hoped that Spurs provide ample motivation to that end. A repeat of the result and the manner that win was procured in May 2009 would provide evidence of turning the corner.