The Fickle Few

It's always a case of not all but a few who are the rotten ones in a bunch, but this few is growing larger and larger.  Being a supporter of a football club isn't easy, especially now in the business end of the season. Liverpool find themselves in a strong position both in the league and Champions League, with the distraction of the FA Cup not there, it gives Jurgen and the team time to concentrate and really make this final push to the end of the season one that will bare some reward. At the moment, it's City in the driving seat for the league, while we do occupy top spot, they have a game in hand and if that translates into a win for them, it would change things immediately. It's not the first time Liverpool have been in this position, it's harsh but back in April 2014, we were strong contenders for the league title and we had a home game against Chelsea that weekend, it was the same game of "the slip" and while many put that down as the deciding factor in us falling short that season, I still say it was not. I could list over ten reasons why but that will just be dwelling in what could have been while we now can chat of what could happen. 

Which is why the team, more than ever needs every ounce of support from their fans, whether you're at the ground or at home watching them play. But while we are winning games and getting results, I've found a number of fans, especially online being highly critical of players and in other words, talking a lot of shit. This needs to be cut out, if you don't know what you're saying, don't say it at all. I've seen our captain, Jordan Henderson catch a lot of flack for merely just being on the starting line up. These fickle few want other players to start every game, like they have not heard of player management and fatigue. Also if the manager deems it good enough for a player to start, you go with it, if in the case like last week against Southampton, things are not working out, the manager and his coaching staff will change things to try and gain an advantage. After Jordan and James were brought on at St Mary's, the entire team dynamic changed, Jordan was playing in his preferred forward position, made life difficult for the opposition when they had the ball. Many cheered Salah's goal that broke the tie but not many realise that it was Henderson's header, that make the break happen in the first place. 

Then his goal, to seal the deal was the icing on the cake, you could see the emotion in him after he netted, what it meant for him, what it meant for the team and more importantly what it meant for the fans. The players go out there every week and give it there all, for the fans and this is how the fans return the favour? By slagging them at every opportunity online? Facebook groups, Twitter, comments on the clubs Instagram pictures?! When I see these comments I feel embarrassed being grouped with supporters like these. Those who only have negative comments, who see Salah missing one opportunity and want him subbed, those who see Jordan pass the ball back on more than one occasion and feel he isn't good enough, those who criticize Bobby for not scoring in more than one game, it's like they just started watching football recently and haven't a clue how this game works or how our team play. It's one of my biggest fears that we get glory hunting fans that only support the team because we're winning, the type of fans became synonymous with Manchester United, Chelsea and Man City. 

We don't need that crap at our club, we want fans that devote their passion of support to the team, those give of positive energy and not negative bile at every disappointment we see. Our club have achieved a points total that would be worth of winning the league 5 seasons ago, but yet here we are with still 5 games to and the league undecided. While Liverpool have the supposed "easier run in", every game from now on will be a final for the team and judging from the past few games, nothing is going to be handed to us. This weekend, we face Chelsea again, a battered giant, a team that started the season strong but found themselves coming up short after the turn of the year but the same team that provided a massive stumble in our challenge back in 2014. Some of their star players are looking to move away in the new season so they'll be here to perform till the end of the season. We already saw Hazard steal the show on Monday night and you can bet your bottom dollar he'll be ready to go again on Sunday. 

The team say a number of times, they're here to do their job not for themselves, not for the club but for us, the fans. The least we can do is show them support and not be a bunch of fickle idiots on the internet by moaning and groaning at any chance or slating players. Lets back them, as this is the time, more than ever they need us. 

What Went Wrong?

Normally when it comes to big matches, I tend to get really nervous and often expect the worst but for most of last week I was relaxed. I was actually excited and ready to enjoy the Champions League final. Liverpool were going into the game as underdogs, having just gotten back into the Champions League after a lengthy absence and making it to the final, overcoming some tough opponents, it was nerve wrecking but also a joy to watch if you were a fan of the game. Liverpool were rampant in attack and while their defence was as shaky as someone with Parkinsons disease they somehow managed to get through to the final. 

It felt right, Liverpool are England's "European Team", with them having won 5 trophies and having appeared in 7 finals before this. Jurgen Klopp joked a press conference prior to the game that if you had to Google "European Nights" most of the results would be of Anfield, and he was not wrong!  The atmosphere at Anfield during Champions League games is unrivaled, ask any opposition player who stepped out onto the pitch to play and they will all tell you the same thing, it unsettles their nerves, it mesmerizes the away fans and it powers the team to achieve the impossible. 

As you can imagine, tickets for the game were hot property, having been offered one myself but unable to get a visa in time is a story for another time. I, like many were convinced Liverpool were going to bring home their 6th European Trophy, it would be the perfect way to cap off an interesting season. After selling what could be arguably our best creative midfielder halfway through the season, many expected us to fall but with our dynamic front three, they just kept going, especially our new signing Mohammed Salah. After picking up almost every individual award imaginable, it was all set for him to shine on the continents biggest football spectacle. 

The thousands of the red army descended to the Olimpiyskiy National Stadium in Kiev, strong in voice, strong in confidence. They believed we could do it, they believed we had what it took and with Klopp at the helm, it seemed inevitable that glory would be ours come the end of the 90. It was bullish to be so confident, after all, our opponents were vying for their 3rd trophy in 3 years, their coach, a former player of the club, a masterful tactician as he was a player. But none of that scared us, we had our own army, our own tactician. The game started, with Liverpool controlling much of the possession, a good solid 25-30 minutes of Gegenpress, the famed Klopp's style of high pressing, fast passing football. Liverpool creating a few chances, and should have been more clinical but there was no rush, there was still plenty of time on the clock. 

Now, in football, there is an element of physicality but to an extent. Laws are there from preventing players getting injured badly and potentially suffering career ending injuries. Having watched Real Madrid in previous matches, there are elements to their game which don't really sit well with many, a few players like to bring in this physicality that is borderline illegal, one of those players is their captain Sergio Ramos. I don't need to list examples, just go search on YouTube, there's plenty of videos showing his dirty ways, but surely in a final, with millions watching, he wouldn't dare attempt to pull off something like this? but he did. After 30 minutes, where Liverpool were definitely the team on the ascendancy, Ramos got hold of Salah's arm while he was on the ball and proceeding to yank the winger down, locking his arm underneath his and falling on top of him. It shocked many to see the Egyptian lying on the pitch in pain, not now, not in the final. For people who question the actions by Ramos, even the European Judo Union came out and said that what he demonstrated was "Waki-gatame" which is a technique that isn't allowed in their sport because of the damage it could do. 

What do you think about this foul during the #UCLFinal between #RMALIV? https://t.co/zGhEHchtDw pic.twitter.com/SAprXfttKD

— European Judo Union (@europeanjudo) May 28, 2018

Damage it did, after coming back on, trying to fight away the pain, Salah eventually collapsed again and had to be replaced by Adam Lallana, who himself just returned from a lengthy injury. The team was in shock, so were the fans, we were not prepared for a game without Salah. They made it to half time with the scores leveled and after the break, Real started to show  they were in the game too, but then Ramos popped up again, charging a corner, coming no where near the ball, the Madrid captain then made contact with his elbow to the head of Liverpool's keeper Loris Karius. In front of the officials, yet again nothing was done. It didn't stop there for Ramos, he later in the game theatrically dived, when Mane was nearing him, clenching his face as to say he was hit in the face. Mane received a yellow card. I'm aware people will do whatever it takes to win a final but being a cheat and a fraud? That never sat well with me, if the person was punished for his actions as per the rules of the game, then maybe, example Luis Suarez handball in the 2010 World Cup against Ghana, he was sent off and Ghana got the chance to get their goal. 

I could honestly go on about Ramos and his barbaric ways to unsettle the opposition but it would look like I'm playing the blame game. There is no doubt Salah's substitution changed momentum in the game, but two costly errors from Liverpool's keeper Loris Karius would be the main talking point from the game. The first, a total brain fart throwing the ball so close to a charging Benzema who's deflection ended in the back of the net. There was a glimmer of hope when Mane leveled the scores for Liverpool but when Zidane threw on Gareth Bale, no one was prepared for what was to come. A remarkable overhead kick which left everyone rooted to their position, just standing and watching it go into the net, it left us numb. The third, another howler by Karius, attempting to palm down a long range effort from Bale but rather went through his hands, into the goal. It was all over then, there was nothing more we could do. The team was deflated, out of ideas and basically threw in the towel. It was not meant to be, Real secured their 13th Champions League, Zidane's 3rd on the trot as manager. Comments from some of his key players after the game sort of dampened their victory as speculation over the futures of Ronaldo and Bale hung in the balance. 

While Madrid's win will be the the one written in history, Liverpool's emphatic run will be one to be remembered. They managed to beat the number of goals scored in the competition with Sadio Mane's strike in the final being number 47 for the team, surpassing the record previously held by Barcelona of 45 in the 1999/2000 season. While its taken Liverpool 11 years to reach the final of the Champions League, it might not be all that difficult for them to do it again, with them already bolstering the team ahead of the 2018/19 campaign. Having already secured Champions League football for next season by finishing 4th in the English League, adding players such as Naby Kieta and Fabinho will only do wonders for the Merseyside team. There are talks of potential other signings, but I think for now what we all want to see is a new keeper being brought in.