regardless of their club loyalties.
When we perfect the partnership between Gerrard and Barry, the National team will be able to get the best of them both in the England team.
Gerrard is often shit for England. Barry's usually better. Once they realise how to play together, our midfield will be unstoppable. Thanks to Liverpool.
We'll leave it to the rest of the Prem to sort us out some decent strikers, after Newcastle ruined Owen and McLaren criminally overlooked the masterclass of Carragher.
Ruined Owen?
His goals per appearance record would suggest otherwise. It's also not our fault that he wrecked his cruciate while playing for England, and broke his foot in a collision with the opposition's goalkeeper...
nah
after his injuries with us (and ing-ger-lahnd) he's no world class striker at the moment
i really do want Barry to sign for liverpool
and I'm Leeds fan!
A good point about them playing together,
but I don't think Barry is a better player than Xabi Alonso. I'm not exactly sure why you want to sell Alonso, who's got to be one of the best passers in the prem.
Agreed.
This time last year I'd have said he was the second best passer in the league, after Ronaldo.
He had a bad season though. I think there's some friction between him and Benitez too. Then there's the fact that Gerrard and Barry are so close, and Gerrard clearly has lots of influence in the Liverpool board room.
Yeah, it's pretty strange when you have players with fantastic ability and previous good form,
then just seem to fall out of favour- like Van Nistelrooy, Stam, probably Adebayor and Hleb.
I think Barry probably will be a regular player in the Liverpool team- he can't just be a peripheral player after a £17 million move.
best passer in the league
when playing aginst teams who don't press them, he always needs to take a touch. He's so infuriating, this nonsense that he's the best passer in the game that every pundit seems to ram down our throats. It's just that he has nothing else, can't tackle, dribble or shoot.
Can't shoot?
lol
Indeed
England probably won't qualify for the next world cup, but I do think they have a good chance of getting wins, or at least avoid defeat, against Andorra and Kazakhstan.
And how is putting
a regular first team starter for a premiership side onto the magic rafa rotational list going to help England?
Thats a fair point.
He needs regular starts. Something he can't be guarenteed there.
You were doing so well
until you mentioned "the masterclass of Carragher". WTF? lolz.
Well the chances are they'd be playing in front of Mascherano
and there really isn't a 5-man midfield England could create that would replicate that, as we don't have anyone remotely like Mascherano of international quality. I can't really see Capello going 442 very often either.
And personally, I have big doubts about whether Barry can be effective at all in a 5-man midfield. What I've seen so far suggests not really.
england wont qualify for the next world cup
so it wont really make a difference.
I'd be surprised if we don't
It's quite possible
Croatia are in the group and is hardly a great leap of imagination seeing England finish behind them and 2nd placed teams go in to a play-off where they could end up playing all sorts of teams that would stand a decent chance against them.
Possible certainly
but England were absolutely awful for most of the last qualifying campaign and still nearly matched Croatia at their best. Croatia are a side of very average players with a good manager. England are a side of better players now with a better manager. Whether that will translate into wins or not only time will tell, but I suspect it will. I also have a feeling that Bilic won't be Croatia manager by the end of the qualifying campaign. He nearly joined Hamburg at the end of last season. If he keeps doing well and a big club comes calling, I can't see him sticking around.
Perhaps Man U could sign the entire England squad and they can learn to play together properly.
as long as Benitez picks Barry, anyway
i know you can say "but they're paying 16m" or whatever. well, that's less than they paid for mascherano...i'm slightly skeptical about how good a move it'd be for barry but hey it's going to happen anyway
Ironic thing is
they'll still only finish 4th at best in the Premier League.
Oh well.
I'm the first to admit it'll probably take another man at the top to get us the league. He doesn't understand that you can't field foreign flowers against dirty bottom-half clubs and expect to beat them with cultured football.
See also: Dirk Kuyt
Nah
You've relied too much on one player (Gerrard) for too long. Torres' arrival last year took a bit of the heat off but you have to say Wrighty, for all the scouse protestations that the Americans haven't backed the manager, £46 million over the course of one summer should be enough to buy you better quality players than most of the second rate foreign imports Benitez has squandered his money on.
The last constantly successful Liverpool squad that won the league in 1990 contained only FOUR overseas players (Grobbelaar, Molby, Rosenthal & Hysen) barring the Irish contingent. Make of that what you will...
That's not really a meaningful statement
Hardly any side had more than four overseas players in 1990 (in fact, did any?). The game's changed no end since then.
I think Liverpool are two signings away from having a serious title chance. Their form second half of last season was good enough to match the top two. Just need to do it for a season.
Which 2 players?
if you can't name names at least tell us which positions.
Striker (someone like Berbatov would be perfect)
and a world class winger, either side. The defence is really taking shape now, for me.
And I say this begrudgingly as
someone who hates Liverpool more than any other side.
But how do Gerrard, Barry and Mascherano play together?
Personally I hope Barry goes to Liverpool and struggles after the way he's dissed O'Neill.
What did Barry say exactly?
He said O'Neill had been swanning off working for the BBC
And not paid due attention to Barry's own needs (a larger wage packet).
Yeah
What was O'Neill thinking going off to watch some of the best footballers in Europe playing competitive football?
Hold on...
...you can't field foreign flowers against dirty bottom-half clubs and expect to beat them with cultured football....?
Since when have Rafa's scum ever played cultured football? Hit and hoof is all they do. Torres is a great finisher, but as for the rest, gimme a break.
Indeed,
that's how it rolls now.
Ambition is purely how much a team is willing to pay their want-away star.
pretty much this.
not really bothered about him staying anymore considering his attitude.
As a Birmingham City fan
this whole scenario has kept me thoroughly amused.
That's good
beacuse Birmingham City keep everyone else amused too