So a few points.
Can't we just agree to suffer togethor? Is it not enough to watch that soul-destroying last 15 minutes, without having to log onto a fucking Liverpool forum and get some small-time cunts posting self-congratulatory gifs of Daniel Agger to somehow vindicate a point they made 4 months ago.
What the fuck is wrong with you?
I feel the exact same way when I read all this shit about Suarez maybe not deserving the Player of the Year Award, or his goals not quite being as valuable as someone else's. Don't you just enjoy watching him play? Don't you just think you know what, the cunt's scored 30+ goals for us, that deserves some leeway. It's as if there's more to be gained from being the controversial tool. We were 7th last year, and the year before that, and we've been shite for just about as long as I can remember. And we go from that to top of the league with a game to go, and everyone's quick to point the finger at Rodgers, or he lack of Daniel fucking Agger, or Suarez's 30 goals not being the right goals. I do not get that. There are times to be the cunt, and we can point the finger deservedly, but you know - other times it's OK to just be a fan and admit it hurts.
This is one of those times. We've effectively just lost the league. We don't need to log onto our own forums, and have our own fans trying to win points.
While we're on Daniel Agger. There's a reason why he was on the bench, and has been for half the season. There is. We've had 6+ years of Daniel Agger. We don't need another 12 minutes of him. He's been a good defender for 6 years, but has always made mistakes. Always. And now he can't get in the side. Skrtel's gone past him, Sakho's been preferred to him, and for the first half of the season - Rodgers chose Kolo Toure over him. He's the best ball-playing centre back in our squad, and our manager - who wants the fucking side to pass their way out of a phone box - still doesn't pick him. That's enough for me. What's the point in revisionism now? What's the point in wailing about him not getting a chance tonight? He's had 6 years of chances. He's 29 - isn't that when you're supposed to be at your peak as a centre back? Terry at 29 was a colossus, Vidic, Carvalho, Carragher. Those guys didn't sit on the bench when they were 29. Fuck right off with this 'Daniel Agger would have made the difference' shite.
I don't excuse Skrtel and Sakho either. Carragher and Neville were right, not good enough. It's almost as if this Liverpool side is waiting for it to get to parity at 3-3, cos then they can get on the front foot again. They don't know how to play any other way. You could see it coming tonight, 3-2 and everyone knows it's coming. You know they'll score. In the back of my mind I'm almost hoping they do get the third quickly, so then we've got enough time to try and go forward to get a 4th. Mad.
Skrtel reminds me of Mascherano. Reactive all the time. Launching into tackles, headers, bouncing balls. He prefers kamikaze football. How many times do you see him sliding on his arse to make tackles? Alan Hansen never went to ground. Tony Adams. Hyypia. Stand the fuck up and control your defence. Mascherano used to do that shite - it's like they prefer the game being played on the edge. Skrtel just throwing himself over the top of Chamakh all night trying to win headers. What's the point? You're on the fucking halfway line, Chamakh's going nowhere. Just stand him up and press him back. You don't have to fucking win every header. It's as if he compensates for his inability to manage a defence by overstretching himself into lunatic tackles - as if that's die-hard defending. It's not, your playing Crystal Palace - don't turn it into a fuckfest, just cool the game. Look at that third goal - all he wants to do is charge in to head it. Charging forward again. No cool head, no fucking game-management. How is he supposed to control a defence when he can't even control himself?
Anyway. Anyone else think we looked tired? Out on our legs pretty much. I kept thinking to myself during the second half - make a fucking change Brodge. But then you remind yourself of who he's got on there. A half-fit Coutinho, and Victor Moses. Pellegrino had David Silva, Negredo, Kolarov, Javi Garcia, Lescott, Navas on the bench at Goodison 2 days ago. There's 150 million quid right there. That's the difference I guess. We've all been saying it for months now - dropping too deep, inviting half-baked sides onto us in the second half, over-reliance on 2 or 3 players up front, and a makeshift defence. That's when mistakes happen - Mignolet coming waving at it away to Norwich, Gerrard, tonight's mess. Sure you need cool heads, sure you need to make the right defensive subs, sure you need to not make mistakes - but you also need fucking quality on the bench and in your squad to change shit up. We didn't and don't have that, and it's ultimately what's cost us. We're all lamenting Jordan Henderson's absence - sure he's a loss, but let's face it - he's not in the top half dozen players at the club, why do the walls come crumbling down when one player is missing for 3 games? Because we've got fuck all else to fill in for him.
You've got to admire the effort all season long though, and again tonight. Gerrard again killing himself all over the ground, Joe Allen who was the best player on the pitch by some way, Sterling - a kid trying to drag us into it, and Suarez. Suarez. He frustrated the shite out of me tonight to be truthful. But he bust his hole trying to win. Again and again and gain he fronted up trying to take the game on, but fatigue got the better of him in the end. As it did for John Flanagan who's form has dipped. He's a kid too, he needs support. And Coutinho who probably should have come on, but we've got fuck all alternatives, just as we had none last Sunday to we had to turn to Sturridge. It's why they were all so distraught at the final whistle - cos they've given everything they've got I guess.
That's admirable. Guys putting themselves out there - injured, fatigued, whatever - trying to win the league from 7th position. I'd prefer to focus on that, and take some joy in how hard they went for it. That's been the most enjoyable season of my life as a Liverpool supporter - I was too young to really remember what happened in the 80's. My whole adult life has been us doing bits and pieces of things, having the odd amazing night, but being a middling side really. And then this year we play football that I never dreamt we'd play, and we battered everyone - top sides too. I laughed watching us we were that good, game after game of just tearing sides apart. Isn't that what you hope your football club will one day give you - winning and doing it breathlessly? I'm amazed at the football we played, the results we got, and the 15, 45, 90 minute spells of football we strung together week after week. I've never known supporting Liverpool football club to be like this. We're a good side again. We've come up short, but not for the want of trying.
Dunno, maybe I'm being a sentimental dickhead, but that was probably the hardest 15 minutes of Liverpool-supporting I've ever had, I don't need then to read a load of point-scoring wank from our own straight after it.
Just be a fan.
