Re: More Football Chat : Mon Jan 17, 2011 1:47 pm  

PAUL M wrote:

Wasn't he getting overlooked all the time by Rafa, he has been supposedly wanting to leave for a while for not getting enough games until Kenny brought him back against Utd in the cup.

No. He was injured quite a lot under Rafa, but still played regularly when fit, other than the time when Carra and Skrtel forged a great partnership together.

He signed a new contract not so long ago when Benitez was here, the wanting to go stuff was just his agent trying to get him a new contract.

Re: More Football Chat : Mon Jan 17, 2011 1:49 pm  

Fresh Prince of Chesh-air wrote:

I wasn't being sarcy about anything fella.

I just don't see what all the hype is with Agger. Much the same with Jagielka with us. Jags can be a great defender but has brain farts far too often to be considered one of the best in the country. I think Agger is very ordinary/ steady, middle of the road. Not a patch on Hyypia or Carragher in their hay day.

Depends how you look at Agger and who you play him next to. He isn't a 'beast', he's not like Vidic, he's elegant, good on the ball and plays tidily defensively. He's got a fair amount of pace when he gets going and he has as much ability as any centre half in the league. I like him, he's always been solid for us when he's played, but, like a lot of Liverpool players over the years, he's been thrown into media stereotypes as being average and whatever. Much like players like Aurelio, Crouch and Arbeloa were, whilst it's taken the media years to cotton on to Reina actually being the dog's nuts.

Re: More Football Chat : Mon Jan 17, 2011 2:00 pm  

http://translate.google.com/translate?h ... ogle.co.uk I await Balague to announce his latest scoop...

http://translate.google.com/translate?h ... ogle.co.uk I await Balague to announce his latest scoop...

Re: More Football Chat : Mon Jan 17, 2011 2:02 pm  

Robbie Rotten wrote:

Why isn't Rooney being charged by the FA for his reaction to Rafael's red card? His reaction was absolutely disgraceful, yet the FA will charge Babel for posting a jovial picture on Twitter, but Rooney can abuse whoever and behave however because the FA are spineless scum.

Fck me, if that was the case the whinging poncey spaniard Torres would never play. All he does is moan at the ref and Carragher.

Re: More Football Chat : Mon Jan 17, 2011 2:22 pm  

Robbie Rotten wrote:

Managers question refereeing decisions after the game, does that mean they insinuate cheating? If the manager finds a decision so blatantly wrong, what else are they suggesting when they openly question decisions after games?

The FA are stupidly pedantic with the things they come out with. I remember Rafa getting charged for taking his glasses off and slamming them on the table post game, because the FA seen it as some sort of visual code for the referee being blind. Yet managers come out after every game and say things like "you all seen how bad it was", "I won't talk about it as you can all clearly make your own assumptions", they all question decisions and disagree with decisions. I just can't understand why Babel retweeting a picture has to be taken further, yet a player absolutely disgracing the sport, setting the complete wrong example and absolutely belittling a referee on the field gets absolute nothing done to it. What's the excuse? It's always happened? Everybody else does it? So that makes it alright, then?

As for the Rafael decision, you see them yellow carded so often. It's alright saying 'he couldn't do anything else', but that's why some players do it, intently accidental, they still stop the opposition's move at a good moment, but it comes across as an accident and doesn't deserve a booking. He should have been off for his first challenge if Webb's rulebook is anything to go by, so for him to go so late on, you should be grateful.

Managers get asked direct questions so respond accordingly and often get into trouble if they go too far with their views.

'Absolutely disgracing the sport' have a word with yourself mate, he shouted at the ref, it happens every week yet you only seem to be getting upset as it's Rooney!! Does not make it right but footballers have always abused refs, why is Rooney so special? Go back 30 years it was happening and probably will another 30 years. Do Liverpool players not do this and if so why don;t you react so strongly when they do?

It was not a yellow card to me and his first was a yellow not a red, imo.

Re: More Football Chat : Mon Jan 17, 2011 2:25 pm  

Nikaed wrote:

Fck me, if that was the case the whinging poncey spaniard Torres would never play. All he does is moan at the ref and Carragher.

There's a difference. I don't agree with dissent at all, but squaring up to the referee and screaming absurdities at him goes way below any proverbial belt, especially when the decision didn't affect Rooney in any way. He had no reason to be involved.

Re: More Football Chat : Mon Jan 17, 2011 2:43 pm  

Redknapp said of Rafael's sending off 'it was 'harsh', likened it to Mary Decker and Zola Budd, hardly makes it sound like the most sinister, nailed on red card of the season does it? Possibly why the players were a tad pi$$ed off, along with the fact that crouch made a very similar challenge to the one that earned Da Silva his first booking, but went unpunished.

Re: More Football Chat : Mon Jan 17, 2011 3:07 pm  

flipper wrote:

Redknapp said of Rafael's sending off 'it was 'harsh', likened it to Mary Decker and Zola Budd, hardly makes it sound like the most sinister, nailed on red card of the season does it? Possibly why the players were a tad pi$$ed off, along with the fact that crouch made a very similar challenge to the one that earned Da Silva his first booking, but went unpunished.

Never seen the Crouch challenge.

If Rafael's second yellow challenge was made on a breakaway against the last man, it would have been a straight red. He could argue it was an accident and he couldn't have done much else, but these accidental collisions happen all too often, to the point where I feel that it's done intentionally. Watch Rafael, he didn't have to run across the Spurs player, he could have run straight down the line and gone shoulder to shoulder with him, but the way he runs across the players make me think he knew what he was doing, whilst the result of that was stopping Spurs breaking into a dangerous position, thus resulting in a yellow card, IMO.

Re: More Football Chat : Mon Jan 17, 2011 3:17 pm  

Robbie Rotten wrote:

Never seen the Crouch challenge.

If Rafael's second yellow challenge was made on a breakaway against the last man, it would have been a straight red. He could argue it was an accident and he couldn't have done much else, but these accidental collisions happen all too often, to the point where I feel that it's done intentionally. Watch Rafael, he didn't have to run across the Spurs player, he could have run straight down the line and gone shoulder to shoulder with him, but the way he runs across the players make me think he knew what he was doing, whilst the result of that was stopping Spurs breaking into a dangerous position, thus resulting in a yellow card, IMO.

yes,the Crouch offence was bookable,the first Rafa tackle was borderline yellow/red for me and the second Raf yellow was harsh IMO - thought the ref did ok generally tho',speaking as a Spurs fan - VdVs yellow was stupid for dissent and Rooney just needs to grow up
Felt Crouch should have been replaced at half-time with Pav or Defoe and Jenas replacing Palacios but 'Arry seems to like Crouch for some reason - wonder if he will be part of the Carroll to Spurs deal soon ?

Re: More Football Chat : Mon Jan 17, 2011 3:19 pm  

Robbie Rotten wrote:

Never seen the Crouch challenge.

If Rafael's second yellow challenge was made on a breakaway against the last man, it would have been a straight red. He could argue it was an accident and he couldn't have done much else, but these accidental collisions happen all too often, to the point where I feel that it's done intentionally. Watch Rafael, he didn't have to run across the Spurs player, he could have run straight down the line and gone shoulder to shoulder with him, but the way he runs across the players make me think he knew what he was doing, whilst the result of that was stopping Spurs breaking into a dangerous position, thus resulting in a yellow card, IMO.

it wasn't on the last man.

I know what you are saying, and he is a bit prone to it as per the Bayern game last year, i am not generally bemoaning the decision, United have got away with a couple of shockers from Neville this season, I was just saying it was soft, their manager said it was soft, and that was probably a contributory factor in the players having a big whinge.

I think Rafael is going to be good for a red or two for a few years yet, but his tempo and enthusiasm probably make that a worthwhile trade so long as Neville isn't coming in to cover him whilst suspended.

He could have gone shoulder to shoulder, but I suspect he was trying to get goal side of the ball, otherwise he would have been on the wrong side of the player, and in a worse than useless position to make a challenge or try and usher the player away from goal