Barclays Premier League – Sunday May 11th 2008 – Result
Tottenham 0 Liverpool 2
A game that was pretty meaningless ended with another three points for Liverpool, and for one player at least it certainly wasn’t meaningless.
Fernando Torres got his 24th League goal from 33 appearances, 33 goals in 46 appearances overall. The league total makes him a record holder, beating the total Ruud van Nistelrooy previously held for the most goals in a first season by a foreign player in the Premier League.
Free-signing Andriy Voronin got Liverpool’s other goal, his 5th league goal from 19 appearances, 6 goals in 28 appearances overall.
Pepe Reina made it 18 clean sheets in the league, the best in the league this season, meaning he’s won the golden gloves award every season he’s been at Anfield, this being the third season in a row.
Liverpool end the season in fourth place, 11 points from top, and 11 points above 5th place. They scored 67 league goals, 119 in all.
Peter Crouch, Jermaine Pennant and John Arne Riise, all strongly linked with a departure from the club before the new season, were left out. So too was Xabi Alonso, although in his case it was due to injury.
George Gillett sat in the stands to see what might be his last game as a co-owner of Liverpool.
Reaction:
Rafa Benitez: “We knew we had a lot of supporters here and we wanted to win for them. We created a lot of chances and could have scored more goals. The first half was frustrating but the second was much better and we deserved the victory.
“Gerrard and Torres are good players and they have a great understanding, but you have to credit the whole team.
“You know when you sign a player like Torres you will get goals and you expect that but this season he has been amazing. He has been fantastic. We were talking about the record before the game. He wanted to play in this game and wanted to score.
“Always when you sign a player it’s difficult to know if they’ll settle in the Premier League, but Torres is young and hungry. He wants to be successful for a number of years. He has shown all these things on the pitch. He is a good striker and there are a lot of good strikers in the Premier League. I don’t like to say he is the best because other strikers have other skills, but he is the best for us.
“When you talk about 119 goals, more than anyone in England, another clean sheet and a goalkeeper who’s won the Golden Glove three years in a row, and Torres being the most prolific foreigner in a first season, there are a lot of positives. People say we are a defensive team but the numbers are there. We play good, attacking football, and try to win every game. Sometimes you cannot do this.
“The only thing, and this is the most important, is that we didn’t win a trophy.”
(On possible new signings) “We are working hard trying to improve the squad. We have a list of players in different positions and we’ll try to progress. I think we will go forward. We now have a week more training and a lot of meetings. Then maybe I will have a holiday for a week, then I’ll be back doing interviews with you again!”
(On Spurs boss, and compatriot, Juande Ramos) “Sometimes I look over to the bench to see if they have anyone who speaks Spanish, but this was difficult because I knew when I was talking to Mascherano or Arbeloa that they could hear. I was having to talk in English and then in Spanish! He is doing a good job. It’s always hard when you come here and you can’t speak perfect English. It’s difficult but he’s doing a good job.”
Spurs assistant boss Gus Poyet: “It was a disappointing performance and we expected something different and something better than that. We wanted to win and prove ourselves against Liverpool. But they were better than us and we need to learn from this.
“We cannot complain too much, we have won silverware and qualified for Europe this season.”
Tottenham: 12 Cerny, 28 Hutton yellow card, 20 Dawson (23 Bent, 75), 39 Woodgate, 11 Gilberto, 15 Malbranque, 8 Jenas (22 Huddlestone, 45), 4 Zokora, 24 O’Hara (6 Tainio, 45), 9 Berbatov, 10 Keane
Unused subs: 1 Robinson, 2 Chimbonda, 6 Tainio, 22 Huddlestone, 23 Bent
Bookings: Hutton 63
Liverpool: 25 Reina, 17 Arbeloa, 23 Carragher, 37 Skrtel, 48 Insua yellow card, 18 Kuyt (21 Lucas, 80), 8 Gerrard, 20 Mascherano, 19 Babel (11 Benayoun, 59), 9 Torres, 10 Voronin (3 Finnan, 71)
Unused subs: 30 Itandje, 3 Finnan, 4 Hyypia, 11 Benayoun, 21 Lucas
Booking: Insua 58
Goals: Voronin 69, Torres 74
BBC Stats: (Spurs – Liverpool)
Possession: 45% – 55%
Shots on target: 3 – 12
Shots off target: 3 – 6
Corners: 8 – 4
Fouls: 11 – 9
Setanta Stats: (Spurs – Liverpool)
Possession: 48.8% – 51.2%
Shots on target: 3 – 11
Shots off target: 5 – 6
Blocked shots: 0 – 1
Corners: 8 – 4
Fouls: 12 – 9
Referee: Uriah Rennie
Attendance: 36,063
Reports: Setanta. BBC Sport. Sky Sports. PA Sport. Liverpool Banter.
Goals: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=x4n8lKChn8g
Fantastic…Tórres the Magnificent!!!! No1 next Season…
In a bid to buck the trend it looks like Liverpool will try to get all their business for the transfer window done early, which means we could be very busy in the press in the next month!
I’d just like to list what I’ve learned from this season….
– Sky Sports is trash TV, when possible i boycott it.
– A steady boardroom is necessary for success.
– Having more than one world class player is important to share the burden.
– Liverpool have the best reserves and youth team in the country and arguably the world.
– Javier Mascherano is the signing of the season.
– Never trust Steve Bennett to referee your game.
– Martin O’Neil is very easily agitated.
– Dirk Kuyt has a LOT of balls.
What has everyone else learned from this season?
@ St. Chris, agree with you on the points made.
I managed to avoid the tv yesterday until about 11.25pm when BBC thought it would ok to show LFC’s goals v Spurs.
I cancelled SS subscription a few weeks back and I will not be renewing any time soon.
Some additional things I learnt this season:
1. MOTD is becoming a joke with big ears and the two ronnies…I mean the two Alans.
2. No one in the media seems to be able to state the correct price for Torres…Pehaps I am cynical but they can’t begrudge Rafa for spotting a bargain. Heaven knows why they can’t admit that Torres has been an excellent buy for £35million.
3. Gollum sank even further down in my estimation (if that was possible). O’Neill is working very hard to displace the top four (of most hated managers)
4. The age old conundrum of “are two heads better than one?” has been emphatically answered by LFC’s very own laurel & hardy.
5. Phil Thompson should get out more.
p.s. I could have sworn I saw Voronin score a goal yesterday.
Raju i know what you mean with the Torres thing, it bugs me.
People through a random inflated price in the air (£26m) and then use it to justify criticism on Benitez’ spending policies.
I’m sure it was Alan Shearer who compared Torres to Yakubu, praising Moyes for getting a striker for getting that many goals, and for a fraction that Benitez paid for Torres. When in fact the real sum was £18m to £12m with Torres bagging around 15 more goals.
Cesc Fabregas has really risen to new heights of dislike in my ‘hate-book’. Every time Arsenal have a big game he’s in the media yapping away about ‘beautiful football’, then quickly uses ‘beautiful football’ as an excuse for getting beat.
Vorinin cost nowt but scores goal. Ok – he’s not anyone’s idea of a Premiership winning player (yet!) but given Rafa’s budget constraints he’s not bad – and will be worth more now than before should he be sold.
PS Alan Shearer needs some TV training, instead of /as well as achieving his football coaching badges. Why should our licence fee money be going on a man who offers so little to viewers of MOTD!?!
Chris,
with you on Alan Shearer…I also have not forgiven him for his role in St. Michael of Owen joining the Barcodes instead of us a few seasons back.
A couple of more points:
6. You can always trust Garth Crook to start a pointless argument and go off message.
7. In media’s eyes, Liverpool only seem to ever play with 3/4 players every game…I wonder if they could actually name any of our other players.
Warning: this list is likely to get longer in this coming days.
Raju – Everyone is quoting all different prices for Torres from 19 – 26 million. The Liverpool Echo has stated Torres as costing 19 million. I would take the Echo’s price tag as the most accurate as it is not a sensationalist paper. I also believe that his transfere fee was also boosted by other terms and conditions such as the deal when Torres scored more than 15 goals each goal after that meant that LFC had to pay Athletico 100000.
@ Midland Red: tbh, I don’t have any problem with Voronin. He is enthaustic and hard working. Hardly complains (on the football side of things).
Does anyone know if we have actually agreed to sign Deggem? I saw some conflicting reports recently to doubt this.
Raju – Is he the Swiss defender? If so I believe that LFC where in a hurry to get a deal done in principal.
Anthony,
My point is that Rafa himself confirmed the price in a press release which included Garcia moving the otherway as well. Yet the media carry on regardless.
When is the last time you heard how much Rooney cost or Walcott or Shevchenko or Rio Ferdinand?
Raju – I was not aware that Rafa confirmed how much he cost. When I have been listening to local radio shows they have used the Echo’s valutation as probably being the most accurate, as no-one is actually sure what he did actually cost.
MOTD is just a disaster period. (from a footballing and Liverpool perspective).
Voronin took his goal well, but he needs to score alot more which I’m sure he knows.
I hope Babel, Kuyt and Alonso get some games at Euro 2008.
Rafa speaks of the Torres price here: http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/sport/football/premier_league/liverpool/article3648804.ece
“Whenever we talk about the deal for Torres with Atlético Madrid we always include Luis GarcÍa in the price. The total cost of the operation is around £20 million.”
I believe there are some other clauses in the deal too.
Edward – Voronin done sweet FA all game and scored a goal which was gifted to him. Voronin is a disgrace to the red shirt, he is bloody hopeless. I have heard people say that he is the worse free signing they have ever seen. I listen to the matches on Radio city with Aldo commentating and he talks to other old pro’s during the half time break and reports back to the listeners that people are saying that Voronin is a waste of space. John Aldridge has said that people have been embarresed for Voronin, especially during the Boro game. He does not deserve to wear the red shirt.
With grateful acknowledgement to St. Chris and raju…
Ten things I’ve learned about football this season:
1. Liverpool currently has the best striker in the world…even though, as raju points out, commentators insinuate he was overpriced at £20m plus Luis Garcia. He will get better and he will always be faster than that Manure winger because Torres won’t be weighed down by half a kilo of hair product.
2. There’s an inverse relationship between the amount of a referee’s hair and how strict he must act (ie. less hair, harsher ref). Is it like guys with fancy motors and loud stereos who are trying to overcompensate for the small size of something else personal to them? (That’s a rhetorical question, by the way.)
3. The disaster currently playing itself out in the Liverpool boardroom was unimagined by the supporters at the beginning of last season. The lesson hammered home here: abject greed is incompatible with true passion.
4. To crib from St. Chris…Mascherano is incomparable, though a little nuts if his goal-scoring celebration or his Steve Bennett rant is any indication. But a little nuts in a totally endearing way.
5. Long blond ponytails and effective strikers are not compatible. Adebayor got his groove back after a Samson-like period, post-haircut. I’d be willing to endure another season of Voronin playing ball hog and not passing if he did an Adebayor and dramatically improved. Otherwise, I will bitterly resent his place in the squad ahead of the departing Peter Crouch forever after.
6. All football managers are also a little bit crazy. No wait, maybe more than that – full-blown crazy. And the line between charming crazy and irritating crazy is very fine. Refer to Martin O’Neill here.
7. If Liverpool had manged to convert even half the number of our 13 draws this season into wins, we would have won the Premiership. We’re that close.
8. (Health warning: some may want to take an anti-nausea tablet here.) My respect for Arsenal and the beautiful football they play (and they do) makes me wish Arsene Wenger and Rafa could either (a) have a love child together and produce the perfect manager who combines flowing play with pinpoint tactics, or (b) visit the local cloning salon for faster production of said perfect manager.
9. See point #3 above. I want to reiterate it as I’m thinking right now about how much I despise Tom Hicks. How did Newcastle fans cope with Freddy Shepherd or Aston Villa fans with Doug Ellis all those years? Should the FA inaugurate provisional funding to give psychological support to fans traumatised by chairmen from hell? Discuss.
10. I am more proud than ever to be a Liverpool fan. The passion for the manager, the players, the club as a whole over the course of this terrible terrible season off the pitch has proved why this is the greatest football club in the world.
Anthony, please re-read what I actually posted!
@ Julie: excellent post; that 10 extra points that I did not/notice until your post.
@ point 8: well at least you are not trying to mix any other variation 😉
btw, have you managed to develop the formula for the £/$ billion? If so, please pass some of it on as I would like to buy a football…seems to be the in-thing these days.
raju: things have gone a little awry in my quest to conjure up a potion and produce one billion pounds in a big black cauldron (just a reminder for the record, one billion pounds is two billion dollars and that requires a really big pot) – I had the formula ingredients narrowed down to Aggression, Greed, Luck, Nepotism and really good Gin, but the proportions must have been off ’cause I’m typing this from the middle of my back garden with the debris from my exploded house in bits at my feet
For the time being, would you settle for buying a Terry’s chocolate orange instead? It’s the right shape, if nothing else.
raju: by the way… There was a rumour I read in the newspaper a few months back that the MLS All-Star match (held in Toronto this summer) would be a competition between the MLS all-stars against an English Premier League club, and Liverpool was one of the teams being approached. I had a dream last night that I walked by the Toronto FC stadium and there was a sign up announcing tickets for “LFC v MLS.” If it turns out that divination is a skill thus far untapped, I may be able to devise another way to find that billion you’re looking for.
Julie: Being childishly enthuastic, I tried to find the missing ingredient/mix. I tried blissful ignorance with a bit of tar (borrowing some from the estate of the late Richard Prior). Unfortunately no luck, but a divorce petition is on the way from wife for my troubles.
I suppose chocolate orange will suffice as consolation but only if you mean the everyday version you get from the shops (as opposed to a missing part from Terry, the football/thug from Kensington and Chelsea)
Turning to your divination skill, more power to your elbow (scientifically proven to the be location where powers of divination originate) if this turns out to be true.
raju: you may have hit the proverbial nail on the head when it comes to including blissful ignorance in the mix, though in my experience tar only works when accompanied by an equal measure of feathers. I hope your wife forgives you – it seems you have a great future ahead of you as an acclaimed alchemist (plus it affords the opportunity to wear a much more interesting outfit than that silly lawyer uniform).
I would never offer you (nor anyone else I respect) anything associated with the Thug of Stamford Bridge. Henceforth, maybe we should refer to the lovely chocolate oranges as Gerrard’s.
I didn’t know that the power of divination resided in the elbow – is that why my eyes go blurry and I see stars when pushing my way onto the bus? (I always assumed it was the fumes.) My research has only turned up a date for the All-Star match – July 24th. If Rafa’s boys are playing Villareal the last week of July, I fear my skill as a diviner might go the same way as that useless French language course.
Julie – don’t lose heart over your potential capabilities.
re: alchemist – I may have found my calling in life. I was always told that there would be a career changing at some point in my life. Better now, at least my clients will be put out of their misery. I can’t stand wearing a suit on a daily basis pretending to feel important and obnoxious in equal measure is hard work.
Chocolate oranges by Gerrard’s sounds fine. Hell, we can bring out a whole new range..inc. Monster’s crazy potato rings (taste to die for).
raju: let’s chuck divination and alchemy and make that billion pounds selling your fabulous idea of Liverpool-inspired confectionary and savoury treats:
Gerrard’s Chocolate Oranges
Monster’s Crazy Potato Rings
ummmm….
Skrtel’s Turtles
Babel’s Kababels
Kuyt’s Dutch Treats
…Torres’s Roses
Dagger’s mints.
oh the sky is the limit Julie!
p.s. suggestions from all and sundry welcome on this most noble venture.
Oh, yes, everyone is encouraged to make suggestions for this venture – we can all share in the bounty and launch our own caloric-based version of ShareLiverpool.
Thus far…
Gerrard’s Chocolate Oranges
Monster’s Crazy Potato Rings
Skrtel’s Turtles
Babel’s Kababels
Kuyt’s Dutch Treats
Torres’s Roses
Dagger’s mints
…
Rafa’s Rollos
Parry-eh? Sparkling Water
Hobbs’s Nobbs
smacking of desperation but here we go:
DIC almond dates
Hick’s coconut cigars
Gillette’s dark chocolate dollars
Moores’ Con Bons
Hmmm, this is getting tougher…
Alonso’s Garbanzos
Fabio’s Flake
Carra’s Burgers
Julie; I thought we were limiting it to confectionary…I object to Carra’s burgers.
btw what do you do for a living Julie?
Same question to Anthony as well.
I did suggest savoury treats, but your objection, counsellor, is duty noted. Carra’s Burgers is ousted – suggested replacement: the manly Jamie’s Jellies.
Currently I’m a proofreader by trade, an unexpected occupational U-turn after burnout from years as an arts administrator.
Glad you’re limiting the product range – otherwise I assume you’d have a non-player in mind for Red Bull.
Julie, my apologies about the burgue fiasco. You are right, you did suggect savoury treats. The replacement is much better.
regarding burnout: I think I am on my way to burnout as well in my not-so-well chosen profession.
Jim is a bit quiet these days: I wonder if he is missing those verbal bashings from messrs. Anfielder et al? 😉
Jim: if I was tempted to add a four-letter word that started with S, ended with T, and had an HI in the middle, I’d offer up Red Bull for that non-player’s use.
raju: burnout, for me, had almost depression-like symptons at work – falling asleep at my desk, inertia and indifference. For all that the financial uncertainty of going freelance and working from home initially did my head in, I’m way way happier than I was two years ago. Just my personal experience, eh.
Okay, on a happier note, to recap our stocklist towards the billion-pound mark thus far:
Gerrard’s Chocolate Oranges
Monster’s Crazy Potato Rings
Skrtel’s Turtles
Babel’s Kababels
Kuyt’s Dutch Treats
Torres’s Roses
Dagger’s mints
Rafa’s Rollos
Parry-eh? Sparkling Water
Hobbs’s Nobbs
DIC almond dates
Hick’s coconut cigars
Gillett’s dark chocolate dollars
Moores’ Con Bons
Alonso’s Garbanzos
Fabio’s Flake
Jamie’s Jellies
Julie: good to know you are enjoying what you are doing!! : )
I think in respect of the product range this is good to start off with. Although I don’t think Hick’s Coconut cigars and Moores’s Con Bons will sell very well.
p.s. trust me to ask where Jim is and he posts at around the same time.
Very odd day I am having today at work!
Jim: can you perchance keep the above product range in a prominent place on this blog. alot of time and expensive product development and market research has gone into this and LFC should be able to have ready access to this.
Jim, I would echo raju’s request for safe-keeping of this lucrative product range – the Toronto boardroom alone is bustling with high-priced marketers, product developers and sleight-of-hand artists, and all that talent has to be good for something.
@raju: “Jim is a bit quiet these days: I wonder if he is missing those verbal bashings from messrs. Anfielder et al? ;)”
“Missing” is one word you could use…
@raju: Jim: can you perchance keep the above product range in a prominent place on this blog. alot of time and expensive product development and market research has gone into this and LFC should be able to have ready access to this.
@Julie: Jim, I would echo raju’s request for safe-keeping of this lucrative product range – the Toronto boardroom alone is bustling with high-priced marketers, product developers and sleight-of-hand artists, and all that talent has to be good for something.
We just need to find the finance to launch it all…
….and with the credit crunch the possibility of that happening is……….
raju: it’s confirmed – my elbow is devoid of power. MLS All-Stars will be playing West Ham, not my beloved Liverpool, on July 24th.
@ Jim and Midlands-Red: I don’t think that will be a problem – the market will like it: It is well known that in times of depression people turn to chocolate 🙂
@ Julie: don’t lose belief in your powers so easily!