Since last we spoke, Liverpool have acquired one point in the table, and one Japanese defensive midfielder. For me, both bring big sighs of relief. Not much joy, a bit of disappointment, and a lot of hope and expectation of more to come. But most of all, relief. Liverpool looked quite good for the first 25 minutes last weekend at …
A Lost Identity “Our identity is intensity.” From the moment Jürgen Klopp arrived at Anfield in 2015, he immediately began creating a new identity for the team and the club. After playing 81 minutes in his first match under Klopp, Adam Lallana comes off the pitch for a substitute. With a dazed expression, he moves to walk by the new …
Store Wednesday’s Fun Memories in a Safe Place For 45 minutes on Wednesday, it was quite fun to be a Liverpool fan once again. Please hold onto that feeling. It may not last long. On Sunday, the team that Jürgen Klopp (quite reasonably) describes as the “best football team in the world” march into Anfield. They bring with them the …
So far, my optimism has proven unwarranted. Yet again, Liverpool failed to click. Yet again, Liverpool gave up big chances to score (and were fortunate that Everton’s goal was offside). Yet again, we are left with questions about Liverpool’s lack of fluency and intensity. Everton are crap. Sure, this was a derby at Everton’s house, and they were always gonna …
The world feels like a different place after a 9-nil victory on Saturday. Yes, the opposition helped. Bournemouth are a promoted side that had already been smacked down hard by both Manchester City and Arsenal. Despite their opening day victory against Aston Villa, Bournemouth don’t look ready for the Premier League. And, this morning I learned that Bournemouth management apparently …
I don’t believe the players are trying less hard or playing with less passion, although it certainly looks that way at times. I believe, instead, that they are having to think about what they’re doing far more often than usual. And that thinking is creating hesitancy, lack of tempo, and lots of problems.
The stench of desperation wafting from the changing rooms at Old Trafford, two days before Manchester United hosts arch-rival Liverpool, is so strong that I can smell it from my house in Dallas, 4,600 miles away from Old Trafford.
This is the Golden Era. And we are in the middle of it, not at its end. More miraculous moments await us. Our job is to savor them. Treasure them. Plant them in our memory garden, where we can harvest, enjoy, and replant them over the coming years. This is the Golden Era. The time is still now, and we have the privilege of experiencing it.
I wanted to spend a bit of time talking about football tactics, including formations, positional roles, and styles of play. Hopefully this Part will give you newbies some new vocabulary and – to some extent – a new mindset that may make watching the game more interesting. Finally, because I often refer in my football writing to a few advanced statistics – most notably expected goals (xG) – here in Part III I will give you a brief overview of what those stats mean.
To put it mildly, the result was disappointing. It hurt. But at the same time, the ride to get there was fantastic and glorious. For two hours I was THIS CLOSE to experiencing one of the most joyful moments of my life. We Liverpool fans were really, really alive.