laugh said:
I agree that the manager must go. They can't be dishing out such crap with the team they've got. Phil Thompson can leave too.
Depends. Who would you get in to replace him?
And I think the problem most consider is not that the results aren't there (although they certainly aren't!) but that we don't have the team in the first place. As above, the only genuine class players we have are Owen, Gerrard and Kirkland. And to a lesser extent Kewell since then.
Can you honestly expect a team of Diao and Biscan etc are dishing out more crap than they should be dishing out?
When Man Utd buys pple like Kleberson, Ronaldo and Arsenal, despite being cash strapped, buys Reyes; who does liverpool buy? Liverpool buys players like Diao, Biscan, Cheyrou. It only goes to show Liverpool lacks ambition.
Kleberson has pedigree. I shot him a couple of nights ago, he was carried off injured but I wasn't altogether impressed in his short spell, and he certainly hasn't set Man Utd on fire. Ronaldo, not the one I also shot a couple of nights ago (that would have been a real signing), is widely held here to be still a failure of a transfer. And also too ambitious. £7m (or whatever it was) for someone who was unproven at international level in a deflated transfer market. And the view here is he's all fine and dandy but there's no end product from him.
Don't forget Man Utd also signed Djemba-Djemba, who could loosely be equated with Diao.
As to Reyes, it's more dubious spending. £17 million on reputation. Fact is in Europe Anthony Le Tallec is as widely regarded as Reyes; Florent Sinama-Pongolle not far behind. No idea what we paid for them. And Djibril Cisse, if the rumours prove as they appear to be, namely true, at the rumoured £14, also in theory represents a sounder investment for someone with similar potential and more experience.
Houllier spends his time searching the transfer market for cheap and good deals, I feel thats penny wise pound foolish.
In certain circumstances yes. But remember Heskey was a big signing in terms of value at the time. Don't forget Hyypia and Henchoz both of whom came fairly cheaply. We flogged £8 million on Didi Hamann who is a class act, at a time when £8 *was* a big sum of money. We bought Harry Kewell who is in the stratosphere as far as Premier League reputation is concerned (along with Giggs and Duff). Sure we didn't spend a lot of money on him, but surely that's a bonus?
Houllier is suffering from poor transfer decisions prior to the start of the 2002/2003 season. But on paper, that was amazing too. £10 million on El-Hadji Diouf. Diouf is a massive name. Twice African player of the year. At the start of that season we had the reigning European and African players of the year up front. Sadly Diouf has largely failed to deliver, but you can't tell me that's not ambitious.
Yes there have been a few dodgy purchases, but the club *is* competing on the transfer market with the best of them, excepting Abramovich's deep pockets and Man Utd's astronomical marketing clout.
Not to mention his man management skills needs some improvement. The way he got rid of Westerveld was disgraceful.
See, the man can do no right; give him a break. You accuse him of no ambition and not spending money. Yet in this instance you refer to, he spent over £10 million on a pair of goalkeepers (!). Dudek is a class goalkeeper. And Kirkland is an England number 1 in the marking, and easily the best young English goalkeeper around. Yet you've decided to focus on the parting of Sander Westerveld, who, all respect to him, isn't in the class of either of his two replacements.
Do not think Liverpool will achieve anything given Houllier around...maybe a few more carling cups and FA cups and a feel faarkups...oh...and a fourth place trophy..
Maybe, maybe not. I'm not able to predict the future unfortunately. But I for one will be happy with each Cup and Trophy we win. And each time we beat Man Utd. And each time we beat Everton. Come to think of it, anytime we win a game. Get in there and support your team!
Where is King Kenny anyway...
Actually, King Kenny left us with an ageing squad that lacked depth and future proofing, and handed a mess to Souness to take over. IF the current squad can be kept together, they can go on for a long time. The two French kids, Owen and Gerrard, Baros (who was also *very* hot property before he arrived on Merseyside), Kewell can all go on for a good number of years, and form the nucleus of a potentially very strong side.
