Mentality Monsters

It's been a while since I've written a post about my team, the current World Club Cup Champions, Liverpool FC and I'm not sure why because there is so many reasons to talk about this team. The rival fans are fuming and using every conceivable excuse to convince themselves that our team isn't the greatest but are doing well because of forces that are out to doom their team. Since the introduction of VAR this season, one has to say it has it's ups and downs but as many articles on the topic have shown that there are a number of incorrect calls being made by the referee's of which VAR is making right. Yes Liverpool have had a helping hand with VAR but all of which were legitimate cases and no one can argue with that but the team have had it's fair share of bad luck with technology as this past weekends game against Southampton showed with Firmino being clearly fouled off the ball on the goal line but VAR chose not to allow a spot kick. 

But I'm not here to dwell on the naysayers but rather celebrate a team that has shown a desire like no other to always leave the pitch with nothing less than a win. Our only dropped points this season in the league came in the form of an away game to undoubtedly our biggest rivals, Manchester United, if we go on this amazing winning streak for the rest of the league, those in the Red part of Manchester will remind us of their great success of getting a point from us, such is how low that team has sunk. We've been there though, in the dark days, it was not easy and as fans of the club, we have suffered a lot but it's been oh so worth it because what we are witnessing now is extraordinary. Klopp labelled this team as "Mentality Monsters" last season in a game against Southampton where we fought back to win the game 3-1, this was shown again in our second leg defeat of Barcelona in the Champions League. The German has managed to inject this winning mentality into each of his players, where they know every time they put that shirt on, it's their duty to give 110%. 

The beauty of this football story is that the everything has worked in such harmony, with the clubs owners picking out Klopp, listening to his plans and vision, trusting him 100% and allowing him to take this club to the level we are now. We have taken average players and made them the best in their categories, not searched the world for the best players and pay exorbitant prices for them in order to build a team of greats. Yes Alisson and Virgil were two players that did cost us a lot but with the sale of Coutinho, it brought our net spend down a lot. While the team is sort of complete, you can't help but note Klopp wants to add little by little when the time is right to make sure this consistency is kept for years to come. The sneaky addition of Minamino is proof of this, while the Japanese international is still finding his feet in the English game, you know under the guidance of Klopp he will do well. 

One player that I've backed since the get go, a player who has been through the mill, had large amounts of hate thrown at him but he kept on grafting, kept on doing what he was asked and is now bearing the fruits of his work, that player is our captain, my captain, Jordan Henderson. I think the majority of the fans felt this expectation of a Steven Gerrard successor and Hendo didn't fit the bill. Lets face it, there never is going to be another Stevie G and making comparisons with Jordan isn't going to help the cause. While Jordan Henderson will be the first Liverpool Captain in 30 years to life the League Trophy, lets not try to shadow this mammoth achievement by bringing Stevie into this. Yes, I just said Jordan is going to the lift the trophy come May. I think the writing is on the wall, 22 points ahead of Man City in second place, with just 6 more wins needed from 13 remaining games, only something drastic could cause this team of mentality monsters to derail them from glory. I too was cautious the whole of December, waiting for that tricky January, a month which always made us wobble, get silly draws or loses, which usually pulls the breaks up on our title charge and has us rethinking what is going on, but this year? We just kept steam rolling on. 

It's the first time the English FA have implemented a winter break and judging by Klopp's reaction to pull the first team away for their break and not partake in the FA Cup replay against Shrewsbury (that worked out quite well by the way). It shows that the boss knows how much effort each individual is putting in and deserves this time off. The season isn't over though and the players will have that in the back of their head, they're so close to the finish line they can almost taste it, as much as their bodies are enjoying the relaxation period, their minds must be wanted to come back even stronger to complete the jobs. This team has tasted victory in the Champions League, Super Cup and Club World Cup and now they want more. Thanks to the Under 23's heroics the other night at Anfield, Liverpool are still in three competitions in the run in, with the FA Cup, Champions League and Premier League to go for. Knowing them, they will want all three and we as fans wouldn't expect anything less even if all we crave is that League title. Whatever it is, just sit back and enjoy the wonderful football this team of mentality monsters, that don't know the meaning of defeat is, play week in and week out. 

Lucas, he is a Scouser

10 years ago, when then Manager of Liverpool Football Club, Rafael Benitez introduced a young, blonde, long haired Brazilian as his latest signing, many were upbeat at this prospect. At the time, the Brazilian National team were the talk of world football, the passion, the flair and the pure entertainment value from the Brazilians were something to be admired. So as you can imagine, with Liverpool signing a midfielder from the South America, many were anticipating sort of the same from this lad. Little did we know what he was truly brought in for and the special place he filled in our hearts as supporters. 

Lucas first few seasons at Liverpool were not the greatest, he was  stubborn, young and lacked knowledge of the English game which saw him struggle a lot, this made many of the supporters growing impatient of the Brazilian, I was one of them. When I saw Lucas name on the starting 11, I would wonder what in the hell was Benitez thinking starting this guy. I was adamant he wouldn't last more than 3 seasons with us. Credit to Lucas though, despite the moans and groans, he kept at it, giving his all, whether it be in training or on the pitch. Soon enough this lad who couldn't speak a word of English was starting a family in Merseyside and speaking the tongue of the locals, Lucas was evolving into a true Scouse legend. 

He kept his profile low, got the job that was handed out to him down, soon did we realise, this little Brazilian wasn't brought in to do tricks and flicks, he was another breed of footballer, one which doesn't get much praise or limelight but one which ensured the team could be expansive knowing he kept a tight seal at the back. This was proved by not just Rafa who brought him in but for the managers that succeeded him at the helm. All of them had high praise for the hard work that Lucas put in for the team. Injuries did plague him during his 10 years at Anfield but even that didn't deter him from getting back into the first team as that famous speech Brendan Rodgers gave the team before Lucas started a game after being one year out injured. He kept the fight to recover faster than expected, he pushed himself in training to get back into that first team and to put on that red shit that meant as much to him, as it did to us. 

The #LFC squad say their goodbyes to @LucasLeiva87 from Hong Kong.#ThanksLucas pic.twitter.com/9mQ20ip21t

— Liverpool FC (@LFC) July 18, 2017

If one has to look at highlights of his career, there weren't many goals, nor did the goals he score be any spectacular ones but the biggest highlight was his fight and tenacity. It's this key aspect that held him in such high regards with his team mates and managers. With him departing Liverpool after 10 years, it really is a sad day for the club but with competition in the league at it's highest level in a long time, Lucas knows there isnt much he can do now due to age and limitations to help. When players leave with a good conscious for the club, you know they're putting the club before themselves and it's with this, Lucas just earned himself one of the highest respects as a Liverpool Football player. A player who many regard as an honorary Scouser, a true lad and a servant of the game. 

You'll Never Walk Alone, Lucas #ThankYouLucas

WHEN I first joined Liverpool ten years ago, I had three main ambitions. First, I wanted to win a place in the team, which I managed to do. Next, I hoped to prove myself worthy of the shirt, an aim that others will be better placed than me to decide whether or not it was achieved. Finally, I looked ahead to the future with a hope that if and when the time came to leave this wonderful club I would do so on the best possible terms. That time has now come as I prepare for a new career at Lazio and while I am saddened that my days at Anfield are coming to an end, I can at least take comfort from the knowledge that my relationship with Liverpool and the supporters is stronger than ever. This is one of the greatest clubs in the world and my intention had always been to spend the rest of my career here but the less I have been able to play, the more I have realised that I need to go to another club if I want to play as much as I possibly can. When you love a club and a city as much as I love Liverpool that isn't an easy decision to come to. The easiest thing for me to do would be to stay here for as long as I can even if I do not expect to play so often but that would go against everything that I believe in as a footballer and as a competitor. It is for that reason that I will be joining Lazio, which means my sadness at leaving Liverpool is accompanied by a real excitement that I will be representing one of Italy's great clubs. Before I made my decision to take the opportunity to go to Italy, I discussed my situation with Jurgen Klopp and the way he handled it showed once again how respectful he is to his players. I am grateful to him and to all of the managers I worked under at Liverpool, especially the ones who showed faith in me when it would have been easy to do the opposite.  My priority now is to look ahead to a new chapter in my career in the belief that I can contribute to Lazio in the same way that I hope I have helped Liverpool....

A post shared by Lucas  Leiva (@leivalucas) on Jul 18, 2017 at 11:48am PDT

The Klopp Effect

The last time I spoke about Liverpool, we were five games into the season, made a decent start with 3 wins, a draw and a loss. The loss was something that concerned many at the time, it was against Burnley who are showing promise in the league and away from home so I suppose we were reading too much into it. After that loss though, Liverpool manager Jurgen Klopp said something that proved to be profound, it wasn't about reflecting about the loss but how we reacted to it. And that was going on a run of six games unbeaten in the league and unbeaten in all competitions and now sitting on top of the table just before the untimely international break.

It's not just that we won a lot of games but the manner in which we are doing it, Klopp's high pressing style of play almost bully's the opposition and forces them on the back foot. Teams who came and tried to disrupt this type of play paid the consequences with only United showing the only way to nullify it was to be on full defensive mode with no counterattacking. It made for a real dull game that, and I for one went to bed frustrated and angry but you have to hand to to Mourinho, he knew his team were not playing at their expectations and to avoid defeat he had to play ugly football. 

Since that stalemate Liverpool have scored 14 goals in 4 games, that is  3.5 goals per game, an insane statistic in it's own right but the concerning factor is the number of goals we've leaked through. Getting a clean sheet of late has been difficult with silly errors costing us. I say costing us because although it's all good and dandy on the opposite end of the pitch, those goals we concede could come back to hurt us when goal difference comes into play. We saw that over the past few weeks 3 teams were tied for 2nd spot with goal difference separating them so come May next year, it could be a problem for us. While many supporters might be saying, "as longs as we're winning", it's really a matter of concern but Klopp recognises this and hopefully has a plan to sort this out. 

Going back to our front players, the trio of Mane, Coutinho and Firmino are proving to be a menace of note to teams. The tricks and pace these three have and combine is nothing short of sublime. Many questioned the Senegalese signing at the beginning of the season but he's proving to be a bargain for us and probably the signing of the season if he continues the way he's playing. While they may not be topping the lists for highest goal scorers in the league, they're spreading the goals amongst themselves, with Mane currently on 6 and the Brazilians with 5 each. Their number of assists are climbing up as well. It will be a tough losing Mane for International duty during AFCON but we trust there will be another player to stand up and fill his place.

Watching Liverpool play is becoming addictive, almost like a drug, even watching highlights is satisfying. On Sunday the game was so high paced and action packed that even when I switched over to watch a bit of the United game during the half time break I found it boring and dull, even though they scored 3 great goals. We just want more of it and while many "experts" claim that players of Liverpool will tire out by next year, that remains to be seen. Klopp has always had this vision for his teams so obviously he has a strategy in controlling the players fitness levels, he did at Dortmund and won 2 league titles, so it's not something he's doing for the first time. So underestimate him at your own peril.  

Gerrard

Rumours were rife for the previous 2 weeks, "will he sign?", " Contract negotiations have broken down", "He wants more playing time", "He's off to the MLS" but then the inevitable happened. Following Liverpool's 2-2 draw against Leicester, the club called for a press conference on the Friday morning to make an announcement, by then everyone had knew the reasoning. 

It's almost like a bad dream you never want to come true but the reality is, it was happening. The blue eyed boy from the Red half of Merseyside was calling it quits on his career as a player for Liverpool. Emotions overwhelmed at that time, silly might say but Gerrard was not just a player to me and I'm sure many share the same feelings. He is an inspiration, a role model, someone you look to for motivation. A couple years ago after his testimonial game I wrote a piece on why he is so important to me in: Not just a name, so in this post I'm not going to divulge into what kind of player and person he is but rather reasons to why he is leaving.

After the announcement I sat there wondering why? but it made sense to me. I remember when Thierry Henry left Arsenal for Barcelona, many said it was for money, others said it was for trophies Arsenal could not win but following his move to the Catalans, he spoke out in an interview saying that one of the main reasons for him leaving Arsenal was that the youngsters could shine. With him there, he was always the focus of attention and play generally revolved around him, he knew the talent Wenger had and felt his time was up and it was their time to shine. So the Walcott's and Fabregas's rose to fame in his absence. 

Henry, a very close friend with Gerrard, as documented many a time would agree that Stevie is doing the something similar. When I play FIFA15 I have trouble deciding my midfield, we have got some excellent youngsters waiting in the wing but with Gerrard there, his name would always be first on the team list. Allen, Henderson, Markovic, Can, Lucas, to name a few, all are young, full of energy and ready to give it there all. Yes they might not have that gift Gerrard has of an all round player but if given freedom, you never know what you might end up discovering about one of them. Already Henderson has stepped up in leaps and bounds which saw him take the vice captain role in the team and I'm almost certain he will be Liverpool's new captain come the start of the 2015/2016 season. 

The press greeted the announcement in mixed views, many questioned why Liverpool were letting him go, even old team mate Jamie Carragher brought it up that the club should have tried harder to persuade him to stay. I think Stevie had his mind pretty much made up though. He knows he is old, turning 35 in the summer, he hasn't got the pace and energy that he had 10 years ago. He made mention about this in the emotional interview he had with LFC TV. So it was only fair to others that the manager treated his age and performance with the best interest of the club. He was told that he would be rested more, that means no guaranteed place in the starting 11. After 26 years with the club, and starting almost all of the games this would be a shock to any player and as he made mention in an interview, he isn't ready to be a squad player.

Fans of the opposition sides, especially those from Manchester questioned his "legendary" status, saying that a real legend would end his career at the club. For me thats nonsense, Gerrard has nothing more to prove to anyone, let alone the fans of his club. We know what he did for us in those years of service. He made us smile, he made us cry, he made us jump from our seats with joy. His passion flowed with us and it's that connection he had with the fans that made him unlike no other player. You can't compare Stevie to anyone, not Scholes, not Lampard, not Giggs or Henry, he is his own legend and if you ask those players they would agree. 

The outpouring show of emotions from fans via the various social media streams was there for the world to see but players who had the chance to play alongside the talismanic captain also gave their appreciation to the great player. It was quite touching to see the players send their tributes via twitter, none more so touching than the message from Xabi Alonso which I'm sure left no Liverpool fan with a dry eye. He was a players player, a fans player and a managers player as every manger who worked with him only spoke in praise. 

Being his last season at Anfield, he is still missing one medal from his collection, the Premiership, there's still 6 months to do it but it doesn't look likely... then again at half time in Istanbul, no one could ever imagine Liverpool lifting that trophy at the end but one man didn't give up and that man was Gerrard. He said he wants to end his career at the club on a high and he has every right to do so, we're still in contention for the FA Cup, in the semi finals of the League Cup and have the Europa League to fight for as well, so here's hoping we win some silverware for Stevie, our  hero, Mr Liverpool, Captain Fantastic, Legend.

You'll Never Walk Alone

The Italian Job

There's a saying "don't go looking for trouble, trouble will find you" but in the case of Liverpool FC, they might have went and did the  exact opposite. Having already disposed troublesome star striker Luis Suarez to Barcelona for a fine fee, one would have thought Ian Ayre and Brendan Rodgers would've looked for a replacement that wouldn't capture headlines for all the wrong reasons. It was never easy to replace a striker of Luis calibre, he is the ultimate striker, while many won't agree with that statement, there is no denying his quality upfront and any team would kill for a player like that. So the search began, after securing the services of Ricky Lambert, many thought he was the guy. 

Whilst fans of Liverpool FC received taunts from supporters of other teams that we replaced Suarez with Lambert, we really didn't know what the management had up there sleeve. Take nothing away from Ricky though, I always thought he was fantastic striker for Southampton, he has been consistent over the years and deadly at free kicks, so having him in the squad would keep the flow of goals going should Sturridge have a bad day at the office. Also what we've come to learn from Rodgers style of play that while bulk of the goals did come from up front, we did rely on players from other positions to chip in when they can. 

Then came the bombshell, when rumours started about Balotelli, they weren't just hearsay, they were strong ones coming from all the right people in the know. Next reports of him saying his final goodbyes to his team mates at AC Milan surfaced from Italy. Reports of him being spotted at Manchester airport the next day were rubbished by some but when pics of him surfaced of him arriving at Melwood, there was no denying that Mario was on the radar for LFC.

Why though? We know his track record and on and off field antics, did we really need another trouble maker in the squad? After all the misery Suarez dragged the club through for things unrelated to football, did we really have to add another potential problem to our squad?  Well, like Luis, there is no denying the quality of Mario, he is superb and at times leaves you dumbfounded at his skill. He aint no Suarez but he is his own brand of player. One that focuses on getting the job done, as he said once in an interview on why he doesn't celebrate after scoring "When a postman delivers letters, does he celebrate?". He has the right mentality but occasionally strays from the path but I have faith in Rodgers guiding him to glory. 

Last season after Luis returned from serving the rest of his 10 game suspension, he went an entire season without doing anything controversial, as soon as he joined up with his Uruguayan team for the World Cup, he lost it and bit a player...again. Whether it was bad management from his countries side, I feel a lot of his good behaviour had to do with Rodgers. He guides players a lot and devotes a lot of one on one time with all of them, I think his influence on Suarez was lacking at the World Cup and that probably caused him to snap. Whether Rodgers has the same effect on Mario, it remains to be seen but I think I speak for most of us when I say I cannot wait to see what he can do for us. 

You'll Never Walk Alone