Liverpool v Arsenal Part 2

[dan]

Benitez today:

Rafa Benitez has called on the Anfield board to back him with more money and to move quicker in the transfer market.

The Liverpool boss has taken the unusual move to condemn his club's own actions in the transfer market as he feels The Reds are missing out on some top talent.

Benitez was speaking after seeing Arsenal's second string tear his own reserves apart on Tuesday as they cruised to a 6-3 victory.

"If Arsenal can play nine reserves and score six at Anfield, people should be asking why," said Benitez.

"It's not because of one game, it's because of many reasons.

"There is a lesson for the whole of our club. That lesson is that if you want to compete at the top level you must be able to spend a lot of money - not only on your first team but on the young players and the reserves.

"My scouting department has done an excellent job but sometimes we go too slowly as a club to make signings we need.

"We need to work quickly. And when we do, there is not a lot of money. Arsenal spent £4million on Abou Diaby, £4million on Denilson, £8million on Theo Walcott and Julio Baptista is a £22million player.

"We had seven players with first-team experience and still we could not win."

Benitez did confirm the club were in the process of tying up deals for Sampdoria's Danielle Padelli and James McCarthy of Hamilton.

"We are signing a young Italian goalkeeper on loan with an option for longer," said Benitez.

"We have also been working for many weeks to sign James McCarthy, a young Scot [from Hamilton Academicals].

"These are deals we are doing because we want to build for the future. But without spending money it is difficult.

"Arsenal have two or three players, for example, who we were monitoring but couldn't sign because we didn't have enough money."

Courtesy of SkySports.

Benitez has spent £94m since he has been there, with very little coming back the other way, £6m from heskey and £8m from owen. Houllier spent £110m.

FM but how much money do you want to spend.

triple X said about wenger's net spend, this is quite hard to know for sure because alot of our buys are "undisclosed amounts" i beleive it to be around the £35m not bad for 10 years in charge

[Nem]

I really have been disappointed with Benitez purchases since he has been at Liverpool. It seems that all he is interested in is average Spanish players he knows "can do a job" and English players who have talent, but seem to blow cold more often than not.

[Triple X]

Yes that sounds about right - could not find a league table of net spenders but found a couple of places quoting that Wenger's net spend is approx £3.5 - £4 m per season.

Not much at all!!

[Nem]

Yes that sounds about right - could not find a league table of net spenders but found a couple of places quoting that Wenger's net spend is approx £3.5 - £4 m per season.

Not much at all!!

Yes Wenger is in a different league in the transfer market compared to ALL managers. Panicbuyor is coming good, as is Van Pervert - I wish spurs had him!

Still, Liverpool are ahead of you in the league - I wonder if it will last...

"You only sit when you're singing"

[Triple X]

Nem - you coming to the home of football for the 2nd leg??

I see that no ticket details are out for either leg yet as the police are getting heavily involved - trying to stop both clubs giving the usual 15% to each other!!

even in such a mickey mouse cup should still be a fiery night both on and off the pitch.

As for -e-bad-day, he actually is coming quite good.  Thing i like about him the most is that he tries so hard.  Hes like a slightly less skillful Kanu, but with bags more pace and 100% more committment. As for Van - Nutcase, he is absolute quality.

It goes back to what i said in an earlier thread - every single player for Arsenal in the best 11 (other than Clichy) is a regular international and that really makes the difference and with age on their side too, should be a good sign for years to come.

Berbatov is looking quite good for you guys too.

[Nem]

Nem - you coming to the home of football for the 2nd leg??

I see that no ticket details are out for either leg yet as the police are getting heavily involved - trying to stop both clubs giving the usual 15% to each other!!

even in such a mickey mouse cup should still be a fiery night both on and off the pitch.

As for -e-bad-day, he actually is coming quite good.  Thing i like about him the most is that he tries so hard.  Hes like a slightly less skillful Kanu, but with bags more pace and 100% more committment. As for Van - Nutcase, he is absolute quality.

It goes back to what i said in an earlier thread - every single player for Arsenal in the best 11 (other than Clichy) is a regular international and that really makes the difference and with age on their side too, should be a good sign for years to come.

Berbatov is looking quite good for you guys too.

Only at home and against 2nd rate teams in the UEFA Cup He does look class in these games though (I'm quite amazed that we got him!) give him a season and he will be banging 'em in home and away.

The semi final will be some game. It's fucking rigged that Chelsea got Wycombe but it would be a fairy tale if we can beat Arse and then Chelsea in the final - micky mouse cup or not!

I'm not confident though

[Nem]

Spurs and Arse*** have been given the go ahead with 15% allocation for away fans,

Arse*** will receive 5500 tickets at WHL
and spurs will receive 9000 for the game at ashburton Grave.

[dan]

Nem - you coming to the home of football for the 2nd leg??
I see that no ticket details are out for either leg yet as the police are getting heavily involved - trying to stop both clubs giving the usual 15% to each other!!

even in such a mickey mouse cup should still be a fiery night both on and off the pitch.

As for -e-bad-day, he actually is coming quite good.  Thing i like about him the most is that he tries so hard.  Hes like a slightly less skillful Kanu, but with bags more pace and 100% more committment. As for Van - Nutcase, he is absolute quality.

It goes back to what i said in an earlier thread - every single player for Arsenal in the best 11 (other than Clichy) is a regular international and that really makes the difference and with age on their side too, should be a good sign for years to come.

Berbatov is looking quite good for you guys too.

im going to the home leg, i cant honestly remember the last league cup game i went to at home. i went to west brom away about 2 years ago and that wasthe 1st league cup game i went to for about 7 years i think

[Nem]

Nem - you coming to the home of football for the 2nd leg??
I see that no ticket details are out for either leg yet as the police are getting heavily involved - trying to stop both clubs giving the usual 15% to each other!!

even in such a mickey mouse cup should still be a fiery night both on and off the pitch.

As for -e-bad-day, he actually is coming quite good.  Thing i like about him the most is that he tries so hard.  Hes like a slightly less skillful Kanu, but with bags more pace and 100% more committment. As for Van - Nutcase, he is absolute quality.

It goes back to what i said in an earlier thread - every single player for Arsenal in the best 11 (other than Clichy) is a regular international and that really makes the difference and with age on their side too, should be a good sign for years to come.

Berbatov is looking quite good for you guys too.

im going to the home leg, i cant honestly remember the last league cup game i went to at home. i went to west brom away about 2 years ago and that wasthe 1st league cup game i went to for about 7 years i think

I went home and away in 1987 - will try and get a ticket this year.

[Triple X]

in 87 i went to home, away and the replay!!!

to think halfway thro the 2nd leg we were 2-0 down!!

This 14 year old boy at the time could not believe the comeback

Rocky RIP - You were my 1st hero in football and will never be fogotten.

[Nem]

I was only 7 - lol.

I went to the home leg and the reply - not the away leg.

08-Feb-87     L.C. Cup SF (1L)     41,256     A     Arsenal     W      1     -      0     Allen C                         
01-Mar-87    L.C. Cup SF (2L)    37,099    H    *       Arsenal    L    1    -    2    Allen C                   
04-Mar-87    L.C. Cup SF®            41,005    H    *    Arsenal    L    1    -    2    Allen C

Amazing how low the crowds were in those days. Highbury's capacity was 57,000 (or 54k?) and Spurs was 48,000.

If we could use Wembley for this years S/F's, both games would be sold out - without doubt

[Triple X]

yep what that doesnt show is that u were 1-0 up in the 2nd leg and also 1-0 up in the replay.

The replay was at WHL as u won the toss of the coin

Think it was Viv Anderson and Rocky in the 2nd leg and Rocky and Ian Allinson in the replay.  Obviously we went on and won the final v Liverpool with Champagne Charlie scoring the winner.  Think it was the first time that Ian Rush had scored for Liverpool and Liverpool had not won or some silly stat like that....

As it happens, probably the best game i ever saw at Highbury was the semi-final second leg the year after where we beat everton 3-1.  It was just an amazing night and the atmosphere was electric.  Shame about the final v Luton (THANK YOU GUS CEASAR!!) Oh and the most left footed player ever Nigel Winterburn playing right back and missing a penalty at 2-1 to us.


Memories hey - have we done a thread of best home and away games u ever went to?

[The Baron]

Baron - you and Benitez make it sound like Arsenal are so rich and Liverpool are so poor.  I thought it was the other way around?!?

Pennant - Kuyt - Bellamy - Aggar - Crouch.  Thats £30 mill between that lot.  All of them are not great players and money could have been better spent elsewhere.  Benyitez himself admits he overspent on Pennant but that he was forced into it as a panic buy to get width in the team.  We spent the same money on Rosicky, a PROVEN international who has a great scoring record from midfield internationally.

Benitez mentions Denilson, Walcott and Diaby.  Forget Baptista, we havent paid a penny for him!!  All of these were able to be made because of Wenger's astute transfer policy - not because he has a huge chequebook.  His net spend will be one of the lowest in the premiership, WAY lower than Liverpool.

But 9 times out of 10, when he spends he gets it right and can even still sell on for more.  Lets not forget in August we got £2mill for Cygan, and even got almost £2 mill for Pennant (thank you for that!!).  Plus the year before we got £13 for Vieira.  The net spend is hardly in the positive.

I am now going to find out how much NET we have spent under Wenger!!  Back Later!

Yes, agreed, but you are buying youth players as your first team was/is already good.

Benitez is still cleaning up after Houllier's first team shambles. Every season/transfer window he's had to buy between 3 and 6 first teamers! Wenger hasn't had to do that for years!

Now that we have a semi-decent first team I think things will change.

EDIT:

We've signed (or are close to) 5 youth team players this window. One Scot, one Italian, one Swede and Two Arentinians.

[The Baron]

Oooh don't forget winning the CL netted us about 35m apparently.

[The Baron]

I completely agree that Dudek had to be kept and Kirkland sold and Carson loaned out...


to what extent does the recent run of results begin to put pressure on Benitez?

"The remarkable 4-0 dismissal of Fulham at Anfield on December 9 ensured Rafa's 50th league win - in less than two and half years. That's a better record than both Alex Ferguson and Arsene Wenger over the same period."