The League that matters

The Premier League is back and what a way to kick off the start off the new season with a big upset in the very first game! Well, some might not consider it an upset but rather just Arsenal being Arsenal, never the less what a dream start for newly promoted Brentford getting maximum points over London's most famous club. For Mikel Arteta, his woes have already begun, the team did do a lot of spending over the summer but for their first outing it looked like it was done in all the wrong places. As much as we can laugh about this result, to the fans and supporters of the club, it ain't no laughing matter but reality is, Arsenal need to step up or they might find themselves in heaps of trouble, one thing results like this will guarantee for the rest of us is some epic AFTV viewing. 

Last season's second place team, Manchester United have laid down quite a statement with their opening fixtures against old rivals Leeds United, Ole's men took a while to find the back of the net but it was none other than star player from last season, Bruno Fernandes who opened their account and followed that up with two more goals to give himself a hattrick in the impressive 5-1 victory at the Theatre of Dreams. Paul Pogba still remains a hot topic for the club as many questioned where his loyalties lie after he was looking to move away from Manchester but those rumours should be put to bed with an impressive performance from the French World Cup winner, getting 4 assists in the game. Unless he was putting on a show for prospective buyers? One thing is for sure, Man United have claimed stake as title contenders and are willing to prove last seasons finish was not a fluke. With impressive signings over the summer, we could just see them fighting their city rivals this season. 

Speaking of their City rivals, the team in Sky Blue had a rocky start to the campaign as they opened the season with a 1-0 loss away at Spurs in London on the Sunday. Nuno Espírito Santo men held off a rampant City in the first 20 minutes at the Spurs Stadium with Son managing to get a stunning goal in the second half which secured the London teams 3 points. It was a spirited effort from Spurs which saw them play the game without star striker Harry Kane, who is reported to want a move to Man City. After seeing his teams performance, with the new manager and fans now back at the stadium will that have him change his mind? It's tough choice for him to make, will he be willing to take the risk to stay with his boyhood club and try to win silverware with them or opt to join a club like City whom are perfectly positioned to get trophies, season after season. 

It seems London clubs are the topic of this blog post as the next team that gets a mention is Thomas Tuchel's team, Chelsea! A surprise addition to their team see's former striker Romelu Lukaku  re-join Chelsea at an exorbitant £97 Million for the Belguim striker. He had an impressive stint at Inter Milan after leaving Man United where he just didn't seem to gel with anyone and the less said about his first touch the better but Tuchel see's something in him that we all don't, lets see what he can offer Chelsea on his second time with the club. 

Liverpool didn't fair too badly on their first outing in the league for the 21/22 season after notching up all 3 points on offer as they travelled to Norwich. Star play Mo Salah got onto the score sheet and provided 2 assists as Klopp's men recorded a 3-0 win. Last seasons wonder signing Jota got the Reds off the mark after latching onto a mistimed touch from the Egyptian, while Bobby Firmino got the Reds second. The team looked impressive but most importantly solid at the back, Tsimikas who was stand in replacement for Andy Robertson had a few mishaps but was firmly put in place by a returning Virgl van Djik and James Milner. The Reds looked comfortable throughout the game, with no major signings apart form Konate as back up central defender, one wonders if they have sufficient firepower to compete against City and the rest of them? It proves to be an interesting season ahead, and I for one cannot wait to see how it plays out. 

January Slump

Liverpool fans of days gone by won't be that surprised to what we're witnessing at the moment from our team as for years gone by, January was always our worst performing month. It was almost inevitable year on year that the team would lose form as a collective. No idea how or why but it used to happen and frustrate the living daylights out of the supporters as we would lose valuable ground on the league table. We've enjoyed a good few years under Jurgen Klopp and he seemed to have gotten us out of that terrible patch over the past three seasons but this year its come back to bite us and bite us hard! We're 22 days into the new year and we still haven't registered a league win as yet with two draws and two losses to show for it. We're 6 points behind the league leaders and in 4th position. Normally, any other club won't see this as a bad thing as we're only 19 games into the season but when you look at our position last year, where we were 13 points clear of second place at this stage, you begin to worry. What went wrong? Are we not the best team in the land anymore? Are the players tired? Are other teams figuring us out? Did someone curse the team? Well stranger things have happened as the events of the year has shown us so far but I don't see this as a massive panic for the team as certain supporters are acting like at the moment. 

It's probably a mixture of reasons for the off form, the injury list has been a long one for the team and for a long time where most players have been playing more often than normal, so fatigue is a major issue at the moment. Also teams have been studying us and figuring out our weaknesses of which they are hardly much so the next best thing to do is to kill the game off by putting more men behind the ball. Often there are times where the teams have 8 players at the back trying to fend off our attacks, now this is by no means an excuse, we're Liverpool FC, we need to find a way to break these teams down but how is it so difficult for us at the moment? Well, my assumption is apart from the tiredness of the players, it also has to do with the motivation, I know this seems a bit daft in the greater scheme of things but I noticed that the lack of a crowd has really had an effect on us, and last nights first home loss since 2016 just goes to prove that the effect of the 12th man was missed. More often than not in the past, it was the crowd that lifted the spirits of the players and got us over the line, now with the pandemic, its not possible. The playing of the fan chants is nice but that roar of Anfield was missing last night!

Whatever the reason for this slump, I hope it goes away quick because we still have much to fight for and Jurgen knows this, the players know this so its a mental game at the moment. We need one game to kick-start things and the players can grow from there. I'm not talking about another 7 goal mauling, even a dodgy 1-0 win will do for us at the moment. Next league opponents are Spurs away, no easy feat and Jose smells blood and will want to go for the kill, we need three points from that game and there's nothing else that matters for us at the moment. We can do it with the players we have so its up to them to turn things around on the field. 

 

Whats the VAR?

So the new season of the Premier league is well under way with six games already been played and some or should I say a lot of surprise results since. Newly promoted Leeds United showed from day one that they were not here to make up the numbers but giving Liverpool a good run for their money in the opening fixture. The you have Aston Villa who were unbeaten until last weekend when they were well beaten by Leeds, this after thrashing Liverpool 7-2! So things in the Premier League aren't so straight and simple where you can deduce a clear favourite even after the first six games. While it did look like a straight two horse race again between Liverpool and Man City, the current table doesn't depict that at all, even Everton have raised their hand to be counted and currently sitting pretty at the top of the table on through goal difference. 

But this post isn't to talk about who we think is going to win, more rather what is going to determine the overall winner. VAR has been a major talking point yet again and while many rival supporters claim that the technology played a pivotal part in ensuring Liverpool's championship last season (I beg to differ), this year there can be no such argument with many controversial calls going against the Reds, in a number of games, most notably in the Merseyside Derby. First up was Jordan Pickford's late and rash challenge on star defender Virjl Van Djik. It was late, untimed and has ruled the player out of action for the rest of the season. Yes, there was a lot of hype made about this challenge but not because of the consequence of it but the ruling by VAR. In any circumstance, that sort of tackle would have been ruled as a red card offence, but the VAR deduced that the Virjl was offside so there was no reason to take further action because technically, play is stopped. After a major outcry. further investigation into the challenge by the FA concluded by them saying no action was necessary against the Everton goalkeeper. 

Any logical person with knowledge of the game can see what a dangerous tackle that was, I mean its got the player injured and out of action for the rest of the season and could very well cost Liverpool dearly in retaining the title. It seems the FA has taken their stance to back their VAR official instead of raising their hand and saying they got it wrong. What does that say about the integrity of the association though? Can players start fist fights when play is stopped because it "isn't part of play", where does one draw the line? The thing that got me more angry was Jordan Henderson's late winner being ruled out due to a hairline offside decision which did not make the slightest sense. Sadio Mane's elbow was adjudged to be offside in the build up. Now, with the new offside rules state that any part of the players body that can play the ball cannot be offside, last time I checked you cannot use your elbow to play the ball in football. It cost the team two vital points in the end. 

Then this past weekend, Liverpool's game against Sheffield United, Fabinho's tackle which was on the line was given a penalty, yes I understand the line belongs to the striker but it was really close, also that was a legit tackle where the defender won the ball yet in the earlier game with Chelsea and United, Harry Maguire was allowed to have a headlock on Azpilicueta in the penalty box when a corner was being taken. Clearly an offence that should have resulted in a penalty for Chelsea but again, VAR seemed there was no offence. The match ended in a goaless stale mate and cost the Blues two points. So while I'm all for technology, it does not help if you have blithering idiots in charge of it or ones that don't know the rules of the game. They say these decisions tend to even themself out at the of the season but the rate I see things going, it is only going to get worse with more dodgy decisions coming. The FA claim the strikers are given the benefit of the doubt but that was again not shown when Mo Salah scored what would have been a contender for goal of the season against Sheffield ruled out, again by a marginal offside decision. 

As it is, with no crowds these games are tough enough on the players, we don't need these absurd decisions to hinder their confidence as well. 

We are Premier League Champions

At the risk of being called "unbearable" I decided to do this post exactly a week after Liverpool have lifted the much eluded Premier League trophy. Many would say it's arrogance, the rate which us Liverpool fans are behaving, yes there is a lot of that and I'm loving it, because of years of torture, hurt and being on the wrong end of many league jokes, we've finally got that monkey off our back and it feels so damn good! So allow us to bask in this glory, albeit a bit weird since we could not have our supporters in the stadium to cheer the team lifting the trophy, since we cannot have a parade which no doubt would have had close to a million people lining the streets of Liverpool to see, since we cannot celebrate in the pubs with a pint, so let us have this. Its been 30 years and with the team we got, I'm quite confident in saying it wont be another 30 till the next one, which is what has supporters of other teams cautiously worried. After going through numerous managers, some of which came close, Jurgen Klopp managed to do something they couldn't do, get us over the line and in what a fashion too. After finishing last season in second place on 97 points, just 1 behind the eventual winners, it seemed like it would have been another "came close but not close enough" seasons for us but the mentality he instilled in this group of players, to be better is nothing short of inspiring. At one stage, many feared Liverpool would never drop points, let alone lose a game!

Obviously that would have been a difficult task and our first defeat came against the most unlikely team in the league, it just spur'd the team to do better.  You can argue with this point all you like but the biggest threat against Liverpool this season was a virus rather than another team. When the league was stopped, Liverpool were a massive 25 points ahead of second placed Manchester City. Eventually in the end, City only amassed 81 points, the number of points Liverpool had at the time the season was paused? 82. Yes, Liverpool didn't even have to play another game since the restart and they still would have won so put that in your pipe and smoke it! The accolades just kept pouring in for the team and the players, with Jordan Henderson winning the FWA player of the season award, much to many bitter comments, if you watch Henderson over this season and saw what a commanding force he was on the field, you would understand why he got this accolade. His on field and off field performances never go unnoticed by the team and fans .Yes, he wont have the most goals, or the most assists but in creating play, going back to defend, giving 110% every time which ultimately got us over the line in very difficult games. His contribution has been outstanding and while many say he could never equal Steven Gerrard, he in his own right has now reached legendary status for the club. Heck, the guy has lifted 4 of the very highest ranked silverware in the past 13 months, so put some respect on his name for God sake! 

Jurgen Klopp was awarded the LMA Manager of the season trophy, another deserved accolade for someone who kept his promise to the owners, the club and fans. When he came in, he said he would get us this trophy, okay it took one extra year than he said but he damn well did it. Also what is interesting to note about this partnership Klopp has with the club and owners, is the level of trust they've bestowed on him, these days clubs are too quick to let go of managers who have a wobbly, fall short of achievements and with that, it shakes the whole system. The owners trusted Klopp, gave him time, didn't give him all the money in the world but lets face it, we didn't need it as Klopp is the type of manager that takes average players and shows them their true potential, I mean Gary Neville said it best, Jurgen takes 30 million pound players and turns them into 130 million pound players.  While the squad does change ever so slightly every season, the new additions always step up and show the reason Klopp brought them in. Last season Naby Kieta was finding his feet, battling with injury as most players do when first getting into Klopp's training methods but this season has stepped up and showed us what he can do, and I have the same confidence that Minamino will do the same next season for us. 

Coming back to the trust between owners and manager, this could be seen by other clubs and make them realise, maybe they should give their manager more time. Ole was having a dreadful season but ended up guided Manchester United to 3rd place, something even their own supporters would have said was far fetched back in December. It will definitely change the mindset and I think improve the way clubs are managed going forward, while it will spell bleak news for the media who are forever ready to see who will be fired next, it will be good for the game. Anyway, back to Liverpool, so you see guys, you have a lot to thank us for inadvertently, so I ask again, let us celebrate, it's been 30 years, let us have our glory, keep your snide remarks to yourself and let us have our time. It might be different but we still can celebrate none the less, also whether you like to admit it or not, Liverpool FC single handedly ruined 'Show Me Love' for every other supporter of another team in the league, you'd hate to admit it but we did, you saw that video, don't pretend like you didn't!

19

For a long time I thought this day would never come, after so many years of coming close but which ended as heart break I thought I would never see my beloved football club achieve the one trophy we wanted so badly, the Premier League but what I witnessed last night, what I felt last night, will live with me till the day I die. Liverpool didn't kick a ball, in fact the team were at a hotel, sitting on the deck watching Chelsea take on current champions Manchester City. The result of that match wasn't tremendously important as Liverpool would have secured the title in any case with them needing one more win in the last 7 games they had to play but seeing the team sat with each other, celebrating the way they did in the early hours of the morning felt so much better than them playing in front of an empty stadium. 

It hurts me writing this as I was meant to break my Anfield virginity this year, I had tickets to the game against Aston Villa which was scheduled to take place in April but due to a pandemic that's pretty much crippled the entire world I could not realise this dream. Knowing that I would have been there, sitting on the Kop, chanting for the Champions sends shivers down my spine but I have to wait a bit longer for that dream to become a reality. I'm sure it will be still as special and I read something on Twitter, that with borders being closed in England it is sort of poetic justice that the people of Liverpool get to celebrate this one by themselves. After all it's the city and its people who the club was born and molded to, we, the global fans should let them have their moment. 

Today is not a day to talk about our bitter rivals but rather to bask in the glory of what this magnificent team has achieved. They like many teams of the past have proven to always get up after you've fallen, do your very best and you will succeed. After falling short by just 1 point last season, no one could have predicted such a brutal onslaught for title glory by Jurgen and his men. They were devastating to any opponent, only losing once so far this entire season, being 23 points ahead of their nearest challenger. The stats are crazy, and as they were crowned champions of England last night, they did so by the biggest winning margin ever in the history of the league. This team is just incredible and to see the unity they have with each other off the field along with the symmetry they pose on the field, it's just a joy to watch. 

Jurgen Klopp said last night in a live TV interview where he was left in tears, that this one is for the fans and boy do we deserve it. We've waited 30 years for this moment and even with all that is going around at the moment, it still feels great to sit here knowing that Liverpool FC have finally achieved greatness. Seeing the team and the manager get the recognition they duly deserve is heart warming but seeing the fans lap up the celebrations is even better. This is a team for the ages, and when Jordan Henderson so deservedly lifts that trophy a loft, albeit in an empty Anfield, he can be sure that there will be millions around the world screaming when he does so. Many may say this is a "tainted title" or season with what has transpired but I think not, it's the one season that nobody will forget and be remembered for years to come, where the closest thing that came stopping Liverpool from winning their first Premier League title was a virus and not another team!

You'll Never Walk Alone

Project Restart 2020

This week saw "Project Restart" commence in the UK much to the joy of many football supporters worldwide which saw us go without our beloved sport for three months, that is longer than the summer break! Many Liverpool fans, like myself are breathing a sigh of relief that the English FA took the decision to try to conclude the season rather than end it prematurely in whatever fashion, be it null and void or award the title to Liverpool who look all likely to wrap the title up with just two more victories required to confirm their champion status. It's been a 30 year wait, so the additional 3 months have been frustrating to say the least, but it will definitely go down as one the most memorable league years in the history of the game.  The first game between Aston Villa and Sheffield United had everything, including a malfunctioning Hawk Eye which did not detect that the ball crossed the goal line which would have handed Sheffield United the lead and possible victory in that match. Referee Michael Oliver was not in a position to see if the ball had crossed the line and relied on the technology which failed the Blades on the day. The next game saw two heavy weights Manchester City take on Arsenal, after an injury that saw David Luiz summoned from the bench proved to be the downfall to the Gunners as the defender was the main culprit for the first and conceded a penalty and red card for City's second. A 3rd goal was added in injury time to add insult to injury to Arteta's men. While we may have to get accustomed to watching games in empty stadiums for the next 94 games, the addition of fan noises do prove to give you a semi feel of the real match day atmosphere via the tele but it definitely must be lacking for the players. With the uncertainty of the future of the virus, this could be how the 2020/21 season takes place to ensure fan safety. 

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. 

Citizens do it right

Yup, its that time of the year again, the final weekend of the Premier League. While there still may be football left this season, the end of the league still leaves a dent in the social calendars of many in the world. It's a somber moment that you can't really put into words as for the next few months, normally, many would not know what to do with themselves. Thankfully it's a world Cup year, so we have that distraction to keep us occupied for a month. This Premier league season has given us a lot to talk about though, records were broken, some amazing players have entered the league to give us some brilliant football, there were antics on and off the field and as always some shockers along the way.

In just his second season in the English league, Pep Guardiola went to prove why he is probably the best managers out there. After finding his feet last season, he made strategic signings to strengthen his team, found the ideal shape and style that suited their play and on they went, rampant from start to finish, suffering only two losses the entire campaign so far! While we can single out key players like Kevin de Bruyne who was instrumental in City's devastating attacks, the entire team pulled their weight along the way and in such helping the team achieve their 3rd English Premier League title.  The trophy was handed to them last weekend, letting the team start their celebrations a bit early as Sunday's game see's that as their last fixture for the season having being knocked out of the major cups. 

Chelsea, where do you start? After coming off as Champions the season before, one would not have expected the team to dip in form so badly. Antonio Conte seemed lost at times, as he could not fathom what was going on with his team. No matter what you say, being Champions the one season and finishing outside the top 4 the next is never ideal, especially from a team that is firmly rooted in the top 4. The fight for those spots over the years have been hotly contested though, with Tottenham, a runner up last year, having a major role in the decided spots. While Conte's team might not see this season as an entire failure with a spot in the FA Cup final booked, it certainly would worry the supporters should they not claim silverware at Wembley next weekend as Antonio's days at the Bridge could be numbered. 

Everyone loves to hate United and with the arrogant Jose Mourinho in charge, that hate grows even more but honestly, I cannot understand the criticism they've been receiving since the beginning. of the year. They are in second spot, be it 19 points behind the winners, but they also will be competing for the FA Cup next weekend, so there is a genuine chance of a trophy but still the press seem to berate Jose and his team, my question is why? They say their style of play is unattractive, but please show me a Mourinho side in the past 6 years that did play attractive football? He's a type of manager who grinds out results, keeps things tight and that's how he's being stacking his sides up over the years, why would you expect anything different now? Because he spent a shit load of money on an overrated French midfielder? No! For him, he's done his job and I'm sure the Glazers are happy so we'll be seeing more of the same next season.

Much was expected from Spurs this season, after giving Chelsea a good run for their money the season before but Mauricio Pochettino's men didn't really live up to expectations. While most of the teams did strengthen over the season, the seemed to be content with what they had. Unfortunate for them, as it saw City, United and Liverpool leapfrog them. While they are currently in 3rd spot, one down from last season, they have a tricky last game against Leicester who seem to be ending the season on a high after drubbing Arsenal 3-1 in midweek. A draw or less for Spurs could see Liverpool regain 3rd spot on the final day. 

For as long as I can remember the English League, there has always been one constant, and that was Arsene Wenger. After he announced he would be leaving the club after 22 years in charge, it was an awakening to many that we will no longer see the tall, lanky Frenchmen in the league again. In my opinion, it was 2 seasons too late. Most of the fans had turned against him, while his teams performances left much to be desired. For the second year in a row, his Arsenal team won't be qualifying in the Champions League, something which was unheard of before as he was masterful in always securing that top 4 spots. Arsenal have good players but not the type of quality required to challenge the likes of City and United, there is no indication yet of who they are going to replace him as manager but I'm sure the Arsenal faithful want someone who has a proven record. 

I'm going to end off with my beloved Liverpool, it was the second full season with Jurgen in charge, much was to be expected but he kept our ego in check from day one. He said we were not title ready yet, and whatever we achieve this season would be the best he could do. With one more game to go, and only requiring a point to secure Champions League qualification, it seems that the German has done enough to please everyone. That position could have been much higher if we didn't have a major distraction in the Champions League, but we're in the final against Madrid and you can bet your bottom dollar Jurgen will want to change his records of being the losing finalist this time round. But we have one more game left against Brighton which won't be a walk in the park but 3  points is needed to ease the nerves and to head into the final full of confidence. 

It's been a great season for the neutral, City will only grow in strength over the summer and so will the rest of the league. There will be many who will be staking claim to the title from early on but only one shall end the season on the top. I cannot wait but for now, let us enjoy the final day of the season and all the drama it will bring with it. 

Whose line is it anyway?

So after the weekend's football matches, one couldn't help but get sucked into the controversy that stole the headlines in the battle for 4th spot game between Liverpool FC and Tottenham Hotspurs. The game was a much hyped one with Spurs coming off a great win against second spot Manchester United and while Liverpool did suffer a glitch in two fixtures before this one, losing to Swansea in the league and getting knocked out of the FA Cup by Westbrom, they still were held in high esteem for being the only team to defeat log leaders Manchester City this season. So with all this in mind, we were sure to be in for a cracker at Anfield on Sunday night. 

The deadlock was broken within 3 minutes with Egyptian maestro Mohammed Salah punishing an error by Spurs defence and slotting the ball home for his 20th league goal of the season, making him the fastest player to do so for Liverpool. With the home side gaining such an early advantage, you would have expected them to go on and dominate and maybe get another goal in the process but to Spurs credit, they didn't let that lapse in concentration ruin their game plan and kept things tidy and the score line at just 1-0 come half time. 

In the second half, Spurs were the dominant team, keeping most of the possession and the team that looked most likely to score, it took them a while but substitute Victor Wanyama rifled home a poor clearance from Liverpool's keeper to level proceedings. It was then that things took a turn for the game and which sparked much talking points after the final whistle, Tottenham were on the ascendancy and looking for a winner, a through ball played through the Liverpool defence, found its way to Harry Kane who was in a clear offside position and went on to get impeded by Karius and resulted in referee Jon Moss pointing to the spot. Eddie Smart, the linesman did not raise his flag but opted to chat to Moss, asking him if Lovren, the Liverpool player closest to the ball had touched it on its way through. 

Now I know there is new rules when it comes to the offside ruling but surely logic has to prevail here. If a player is offside at the time of the pass, and it nicked an opposition player on the way through, it should still be offside. If Lovren took the ball and played a back pass to Karius, then by all means, it's a pen. This means that a team can have a player sitting constantly offside, and his team mate just has to kick the ball against an opposing defender and hopes his partner can get the ricochet? Madness I tell you. If Eddie Smart was really smart, he should have raised his flag before Kane could get the ball. The conversation that the two referees had was an even bigger joke, with Moss admitting to not know anything but still awarded the penalty. How can you award something you don't know about? 

Karius went on to save the penalty and kept things at 1-1, not too long after that, Mohammed Salah netted his 21st league goal of the season that can only be described as magical. That goal came in the 91st minute and should have been the winning goal, it would have got the headlines it deserved as it was something that not many can do, weaving through the Spurs defence like they were not there and poked it over the Spurs keeper. Some even said only Messi could do something like that, and I won't doubt them. 

Alas, it was not to be the headline moment of the match, on a final attack to salvage something from the game, Liverpool's star defender and most expensive one in the world, was flagged by Eddie Smart for adjudging him to tackle Spurs, Lemela, who in any case was offside, without the ball in the box, this after Jon Moss who was there, waved it away. Was there contact? Yes. Was it enough to warrant a penalty? Not in a million years, especially if you take into context the type of challenges that Spurs were making in the first half where Jon Moss waved play on. Erik Lamela went looking for a penalty and thanks to Eddie Smart, he got one. Kane stepped up and slotted in his 100th league goal for Spurs and the points were shared. Furious, Klopp didn't hide his feelings as did most of the team after the final whistle blew. 

With the recent FA Cup tie against Westbrom shrouded in controversy over the use of VAR, which ultimately cost Westbrom in a number of decisions going against them, I still feel it is useful in occasions such as this. As a football fan, I do agree it kills the tempo to the game but in crucial games like this, where every point matters, decisions like these need to be vindicated. I hear fans of the oppositions saying things like "these mistakes balance out at the end" or "leave it as it is, because it gives us talking points", that is utter bullshit, if it was your team affected, you would have been just as upset. Ref's are human, but they have a job to do, if you don't do your job properly, their should be consequences for the error. It leaves the the clubs from 2nd to 6th in a tricky situation with not much points separating them, it will ensure that things go down to the wire for those Champions League qualification spots come May. 

Silly Season is Over

As the door slammed shut on the summer transfer window last night, it brought much relief to many clubs out there who were trying their hardest to hold onto their star players. Over the years the game has changed and the money has escalated, I mean it's quite ridiculous in some cases. This transfer season saw the record price for a player being smash, previously it was held by Paul Pogba who's transfer from Juventus to Manchester United cost the English club a cool £89 million but a year later saw PSG come in to shatter that price by triggering a release clause in Neymar's contract with Barcelona to lure the Brazilian to the French side for a whopping £198 million! With clubs prepared to fork our insane amounts as those, it just blew the costs per players out of proportion. 

Smaller clubs who had players who gained interest from bigger clubs had exorbitant price tags slapped to them, just so the club could make a great profit from the sale but what that actually did in most cases was scare the prospective buyers away, ultimately ruining chances for the players. Then in certain instances you get players who wanted a change, and tried forcing moves but were unsuccessful. One case which is close to home is of Philippe Coutinho wanting to switch to Barcelona. Understandable it was a life long dream for him and I agree with the player that he tried to be reasonable and respectable about it with the club but when Liverpool didn't budge, he played the transfer request card which didn't go down well with the club nor the fans, thereafter faking injury to make matters worse. 

While we might be livid with the player and can't understand why he would want to move away from what seems like an exciting future for the club, we can't tell what his ambitions or aspirations are. Like Stevie Gerrard said in an interview, it might have been a dream for him to play for Barca as a kid and they could have threatened him and said this would be his one and only chance to join. So you can sort of understand the predicament he was facing. It's quick for supporters to get angry at situations like this but this where football teachings come into it, there is no player bigger than the club. For me, it was a tough pill to swallow when I heard it but if he doesn't want to stay, let him go. Virgil van Dijk faces a similar fate with Southampton but yet with just 2 hours to go in the window, both Coutinho and van Dijk still remain servants to their club, whether it be loyal ones remains to be seen. 

While there was plenty of drama, there still was a lot of sales going on, so who do you reckon did the best business in the Premier League? Many say City, getting their players in before or during preseason, they spent a lot, got in some quality players, prices on some of them remain questionable but at the same time you got to see how the market reacts. Chelsea made some clever purchases but would it be enough for them to defend their title? I personally don't think so but they should still be putting pressure on whoever is. Spurs, finishing second last year and still have a squad which is probably the same as last years may find things a bit different this season, as it is they haven't had the greatest first 3 games but I feel their lack of desire in the transfer market may come back to bite them. Arsenal? The less said the better, for them it's all about holding down the gates and making sure there isn't a max exodus. So far Oxlade-Chamberlain managed to break-out and sign for Liverpool. A signing which confused me a bit seeing that we didn't really need him but who am I to judge. 

I personally think the cleverest deals were done by Jose, he's a shrewde guy and gets what he wants. Signing Lukaku and Matic proved to be the last pieces in his jigsaw puzzle that is Manchester United. They have been unbelievable since the first kick of the ball this season and really look like the United of old, with Zlatan declaring himself fit again and rejoining the Red Devils for one more season for "unfinished business", who knows what this team who looked destined for 6th place again can achieve. My only concern if I was a United fan, is what happens if players get injured, what then? We saw how sides could frustrate United last season and we saw how United could frustrate teams by not wanting to play football in fear of losing. Overall, this Silly Season has been one that certainlly riled up emotions from many and most of us are glad to see its over so we can concentrate on the real matter at hand and that is the football!