• You may have to login or register before you can post and view our exclusive members only forums.
    To start viewing messages, select the forum that you want to visit from the selection below.

Alonso

Forums Unread posts
Status
Not open for further replies.
I remember reading that many Sociedad people became Liverpool fans because the first non Basque they signed was John Aldridge.

Fuck knows what they think of their ex-captain signing for Franco's team though.
 
[quote author=SaintGeorge67 link=topic=43742.msg1258531#msg1258531 date=1295621669]
I remember reading that many Sociedad people became Liverpool fans because the first non Basque they signed was John Aldridge.

Fuck knows what they think of their ex-captain signing for Franco's team though.
[/quote]

Yeah George that is the only thing I hold against him,but if your back is against the wall you'll do anything to get out of the situation ( I hate Real as much as the Mancs )
 
[quote author=SaintGeorge67 link=topic=43742.msg1258535#msg1258535 date=1295622467]
I wouldn't go that far!
[/quote]


I can see Benitez’ point. Why have someone in the squad who might not make the game, and will probably be exhausted when he arrives? But seems like the whole thing could have been handled better. Important as football is, some things are more important. Way more important. Benitez could have just given Alonso a few days off out of generosity, rather than denying him the extra day and telling Alonso he wasn’t wanted. Seems like further proof that while Rafa knows his tactics, he’s not a people person.

But at least he’s not as mean as Trevor Francis. In the late eighties, Francis took his first managerial job at QPR and decided he was a badass. So much so that he refused striker Martin Allen permission to see the birth of his child, because Francis felt football should be Allen’s priority. Allen went anyway, and has no regrets.
 
He was/is a very good player, no doubt.....




......but lets not rewrite history and pretend that his middle couple of years with us were anything other than distinctly average.
 
Peter, obviously I agree, I think a lot of the blame for Alonso leaving is with Rafa. But I just want him to move on and let us do the same.
 
[quote author=grjt link=topic=43742.msg1258543#msg1258543 date=1295623583]
He was/is a very good player, no doubt.....




......but lets not rewrite history and pretend that his middle couple of years with us were anything other than distinctly average.
[/quote]

While he did suffer a dip in form, he was never 'distinctly average'. That's rewriting history in itself. Inconsistent, perhaps, off his best, definitely. But not distinctly average. Even when he wasn't playing his best, he was still an integral part of what we did well. You only have to look at our deterioration after he left to realise that.

Lucas, however...
 
You're drawing a false distinction. Grjt is right. Alonso's unquestioned importance to us overall doesn't alter the fact, and it IS a fact, that he played below his own very high standards for two seasons running. If he'd been better than "distinctly average" during that time, our record overall would also have improved, precisely because he was so important to the club.
 
[quote author=Judge Jules link=topic=43742.msg1258568#msg1258568 date=1295627642]
You're drawing a false distinction. Grjt is right. Alonso's unquestioned importance to us overall doesn't alter the fact, and it IS a fact, that he played below his own very high standards for two seasons running. If he'd been better than "distinctly average" during that time, our record overall would also have improved, precisely because he was so important to the club.
[/quote]

his form dipped, why do you think rafa tried to get rid? because he (rafa) was bored?
 
Alonso was great for us but Rafa was within his rights to want to flog him for his non performance. 2 seasons of non performance wouldn't be tolerated at any top club.

He had a sensational final season but that was down to his determination to prove a point to Rafa.
 
And that's what frustrates me. If he loves the club so much, why up your game when you want to prove your manager wrong? Shouldn't that (albeit with some accepted slight dips) your standard form?
 
[quote author=Squiggles link=topic=43742.msg1258588#msg1258588 date=1295629396]
Oh god, it's starting again...
[/quote]

just smile and ride the wave, squiggs 😉
 
[quote author=SaintGeorge67 link=topic=43742.msg1258586#msg1258586 date=1295629365]
And that's what frustrates me. If he loves the club so much, why up your game when you want to prove your manager wrong? Shouldn't that (albeit with some accepted slight dips) your standard form?
[/quote]

isn't that what happended with rush? didn't bob tell rush he was going to sell him and rush went full out to prove his worth?
 
Non-performance?

I can't fucking stand this. Which two seasons are you talking about? Please be specific.

Xabi Alonso was fucking magnificent in every single one of the five seasons he played for us. The only dip in form he ever had saw him fall from a world-class player to an out-of-form world class player. And it was in 2007-08, when he was injured for half the season and could only make 23 appearances. Barring this, he was for us, as consistent and as good a central midfielder as any in Europe. Anyone who thinks otherwise knows fuck all.

Rant over.
 
[quote author=dmishra link=topic=43742.msg1258595#msg1258595 date=1295629736]
Non-performance?

I can't fucking stand this. Which two seasons are you talking about? Please be specific.

Xabi Alonso was fucking magnificent in every single one of the five seasons he played for us. The only dip in form he ever had saw him fall from a world-class player to an out-of-form world class player. And it was in 2007-08, when he was injured for half the season and could only make 23 appearances. Barring this, he was for us, as consistent and as good a central midfielder as any in Europe. Anyone who thinks otherwise knows fuck all.

Rant over.
[/quote]

I rate you as a poster normally but that's a load of hooey. The two seasons in question were the two which preceded his magnificent final season and I'm still trying to figure out how someone who, on your own admission, was out of form can have been "fucking magnificent" at the same time. Had your version of events been accurate, someone would have taken Alonso when he was up for sale the first time.
 
[quote author=Judge Jules link=topic=43742.msg1258602#msg1258602 date=1295630497]
[quote author=dmishra link=topic=43742.msg1258595#msg1258595 date=1295629736]
Non-performance?

I can't fucking stand this. Which two seasons are you talking about? Please be specific.

Xabi Alonso was fucking magnificent in every single one of the five seasons he played for us. The only dip in form he ever had saw him fall from a world-class player to an out-of-form world class player. And it was in 2007-08, when he was injured for half the season and could only make 23 appearances. Barring this, he was for us, as consistent and as good a central midfielder as any in Europe. Anyone who thinks otherwise knows fuck all.

Rant over.
[/quote]

I rate you as a poster normally but that's a load of hooey. The two seasons in question were the two which preceded his magnificent final season and I'm still trying to figure out how someone who, on your own admission, was out of form can have been "fucking magnificent" at the same time. Had your version of events been accurate, someone would have taken Alonso when he was up for sale the first time.

[/quote]

quite, that's the crucial point. it's all very well us on here arguing about just how below his best he was during that time, but the best 'evidence' is that we struggled to sell him for half the amount real madrid paid just a season later.
 
[quote author=Ryan link=topic=43742.msg1258485#msg1258485 date=1295618314]
"I'm not taking it personally... But I am."
[/quote]

Not really.

My rants about Mascherano might suggest that, but not this.

I dont hate Alonso for leaving, he felt like he was fucked around and decided to leave.

Him coming out now with this super special special fans 2 years after leaving just sounds like wank, thats all.
 
Ned... Ryerson. "Needlenose Ned"? "Ned the Head"? C'mon, buddy. Case Western High. Ned Ryerson: I did the whistling belly-button trick at the high school talent show? Bing! Ned Ryerson: got the shingles real bad senior year, almost didn't graduate? Bing, again. Ned Ryerson: I dated your sister Mary Pat a couple times until you told me not to anymore? Well?
 
[quote author=Judge Jules link=topic=43742.msg1258602#msg1258602 date=1295630497]
[quote author=dmishra link=topic=43742.msg1258595#msg1258595 date=1295629736]
Non-performance?

I can't fucking stand this. Which two seasons are you talking about? Please be specific.

Xabi Alonso was fucking magnificent in every single one of the five seasons he played for us. The only dip in form he ever had saw him fall from a world-class player to an out-of-form world class player. And it was in 2007-08, when he was injured for half the season and could only make 23 appearances. Barring this, he was for us, as consistent and as good a central midfielder as any in Europe. Anyone who thinks otherwise knows fuck all.

Rant over.
[/quote]

I rate you as a poster normally but that's a load of hooey. The two seasons in question were the two which preceded his magnificent final season and I'm still trying to figure out how someone who, on your own admission, was out of form can have been "fucking magnificent" at the same time. Had your version of events been accurate, someone would have taken Alonso when he was up for sale the first time.

[/quote]

It was a rant. Forgive the use of the phrase 'fucking magnificent'. His only dip in form, as I have pointed out, was in 2007-08, when he was injured. In fact, if you remember, he started that season very well, scoring two goals against Derby (the 6-0 victory). He had a torrid time through injuries (injuring his metatarsal in training, coming back after 6 weeks and re-injuring himself again). When he did come back, he struggled a bit (natural if you’re coming back from injury) but what was inexplicable was the fact that Benitez had started favouring Lucas (who had signed that season) ahead of him >🙁. The primary reason for the cold shoulder treatment WAS that row (in March that season – just after his comeback from injury) over the birth of his child. There’s no way you can deny it. Depsite that, he did end the season strongly (re-claiming his starting spot and helping us on a strong run to 4th), and he was quite clearly ready to be back to his best.

The point about him being ordinary in 2006-07 is utter tripe. It was probably his second best season for the club. He made 50 appearances. He scored that outrageous goal against Newcastle. He formed that excellent partnership with Momo, and then with Mascherano in the latter of that season. We finished 3rd. We reached the CL final. He started in central midfield with Mascherano and did that absolutely gorgeous pirouette (in an imitation of Kaka) on the ball, and was probably our MOTM in the final. He was absolutely integral to a successful season. Which is why in June 2007, we offered him a five year contract!

And yet you think we tried to flog him because of his poor form for two continuous seasons? We tried to flog him because Benitez was pissed off with him for some godforsaken reason, and thought that Gareth fucking Barry would be better than him. Also, you really can’t be serious about there not being any takers for him? There was serious interest from both Juve and Arsenal. The reason he didn’t end up moving, as far as I remember, was because (i) the clubs couldn’t agree a fee for a while, and (ii) because we started shitting our pants when we realized we couldn’t get Barry.
 
[quote author=Judge Jules link=topic=43742.msg1258568#msg1258568 date=1295627642]
You're drawing a false distinction. Grjt is right. Alonso's unquestioned importance to us overall doesn't alter the fact, and it IS a fact, that he played below his own very high standards for two seasons running. If he'd been better than "distinctly average" during that time, our record overall would also have improved, precisely because he was so important to the club.
[/quote]

His form dipped, but Alonso in second gear is still an excellent footballer. If you want a clear idea of what 'distinctly average' is, just look at what we replaced him with.
 
[quote author=dmishra link=topic=43742.msg1258644#msg1258644 date=1295633096]
[quote author=Judge Jules link=topic=43742.msg1258602#msg1258602 date=1295630497]
[quote author=dmishra link=topic=43742.msg1258595#msg1258595 date=1295629736]
Non-performance?

I can't fucking stand this. Which two seasons are you talking about? Please be specific.

Xabi Alonso was fucking magnificent in every single one of the five seasons he played for us. The only dip in form he ever had saw him fall from a world-class player to an out-of-form world class player. And it was in 2007-08, when he was injured for half the season and could only make 23 appearances. Barring this, he was for us, as consistent and as good a central midfielder as any in Europe. Anyone who thinks otherwise knows fuck all.

Rant over.
[/quote]

I rate you as a poster normally but that's a load of hooey. The two seasons in question were the two which preceded his magnificent final season and I'm still trying to figure out how someone who, on your own admission, was out of form can have been "fucking magnificent" at the same time. Had your version of events been accurate, someone would have taken Alonso when he was up for sale the first time.

[/quote]



It was a rant. Forgive the use of the phrase 'fucking magnificent'. His only dip in form, as I have pointed out, was in 2007-08, when he was injured. In fact, if you remember, he started that season very well, scoring two goals against Derby (the 6-0 victory). He had a torrid time through injuries (injuring his metatarsal in training, coming back after 6 weeks and re-injuring himself again). When he did come back, he struggled a bit (with Benitez often favouring Lucas, who had been signed that season >🙁), but when he did start getting back into his stride, he helped us make a strong run to 4th place. One of the reasons he was given the cold shoulder was because of that row with Benitez (in March that season – just after his comeback from injury) over the birth of his child.

The point about him being ordinary in 2006-07 is utter tripe. It was probably his second best season for the club. He made 50 appearances. He scored that outrageous goal against Newcastle. He formed that excellent partnership with Momo, and then with Mascherano in the latter of that season. We finished 3rd. We reached the CL final. He started in central midfield with Mascherano and did that absolutely gorgeous pirouette (in an imitation of Kaka) on the ball, and was probably our MOTM in the final. He was absolutely integral to a successful season. Which is why in June 2007, we offered him a five year contract!

And yet you think we tried to flog him because of his poor form for two continuous seasons? We tried to flog him because Benitez was pissed off with him for some godforsaken reason, and thought that Gareth fucking Barry would be better than him. Also, you really can’t be serious about there not being any takers for him? There was serious interest from both Juve and Arsenal. The reason he didn’t end up moving, as far as I remember, was because (i) the clubs couldn’t agree a fee for a while, and (ii) because we started shitting our pants when we realized we couldn’t get Barry.


[/quote]

we couldn't sell him for the £15m or so we were after, i think that's pretty much a fact.
 
[quote author=Delinquent link=topic=43742.msg1258647#msg1258647 date=1295633325]
[quote author=Judge Jules link=topic=43742.msg1258568#msg1258568 date=1295627642]
You're drawing a false distinction. Grjt is right. Alonso's unquestioned importance to us overall doesn't alter the fact, and it IS a fact, that he played below his own very high standards for two seasons running. If he'd been better than "distinctly average" during that time, our record overall would also have improved, precisely because he was so important to the club.
[/quote]

His form dipped, but Alonso in second gear is still an excellent footballer. If you want a clear idea of what 'distinctly average' is, just look at what we replaced him with.
[/quote]

End thread.
 
What Del said. And I would like to add that he dropped to 2nd gear ONLY in 2007-08 (the injury ridden season).

And with that, I will exit this thread.
 
Status
Not open for further replies.

Similar threads

the count
  • Locked
Milking him to the end
Replies
21
Views
1K
dee
dee
6cmRed
  • Locked
Liverpool Echo Fearful ex-Liverpool star’s bombshell theory on Xabi Alonso and Arne Slot
Replies
0
Views
18
6cmRed
6cmRed
Brizzle
    • Like
    • Love
    • Happy
  • Locked
Favourite Klopp Moments
2
Replies
35
Views
873
localny
localny
MomoWASright
  • Locked
I’m an alien, I’m a legal alien; An English tie in New York
2
Replies
34
Views
995
StevieM
StevieM
the count
    • Like
  • Locked
The futures so bright....................
Replies
13
Views
574
rurikbird
rurikbird
Back
Top Bottom