Returning the Kop to the Top: The Catalonia Way

[ollie laaaaaaaad]

Walk On, Walk On, With Hope In Your Heart, And You'll Never Walk Alone

I'd like to thank 'Bracken' for the inspiration to start this thread; I know its not usual to do a one club thread with a team starting at the top here at SI, but i wanted to share my update/story here, due to some time restrictions and the much friendlier crowd!

Of course we all know about the mighty Liverpool but if you're from another planet...

Liverpool Football Club is an English Premier League football club based in Liverpool. The club has won eighteen League titles, seven FA Cups and a record eight League Cups. Liverpool has won more European titles than any other English club, having won five European Cups, three UEFA Cups and three UEFA Super Cups.

Of course some among you will refuse to acknowledge the phrase 'mighty' Liverpool *cough*united*cough* *cough*everton* but there's no denying the trophy haul above.

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So onto what i'm doing here - Liverpool is my beloved club, my life (sad as it may be) but as football engulfs people mine, it is the spirit of Shankley & Liverpool that's engulfed mine. I applaud the approach being taken by the club IRL however prudent it may be, so i'd like to do a long,long term save that see's me catapult Liverpool back to a dynasty of world football but done in a particular style and way.

Taking inspiration from our twinned scottish club Celtic and their 'Lisbon Lions.' I will be looking to build a purely British Team - with a scouse born captain - to a European Cup. This is the ultimate goal it may take a while, and there will be some exceptions to the British rule, the Ultimate goal is to see a local lad rise the steps of one of the worlds most recognizable stadia, and lift the European cup.

Goals & Rules

- Sign Only British Players (can sign one foreign player per calendar year)

- Players brought through the academy will be classed as british

- Win back Liverpool's first title since 1989

- Win Liverpool's 6th European Cup

- Get Liverpools tally of European cup's into double figures

- Spend more years at Anfield, than Sir Alex Ferguson did has at Old Trafford

- Introduce a conveyor belt of players into a tika-take brand of football ala, Barcelona

Facilities

Stadium: Anfield

Capacity: 45,276

Training Facilities: Top

Youth Facilities: Good

Youth Setup Category: 1

Junior Coaching: Good

Youth Recruitment: Well Established

[ollie laaaaaaaad]

Stats & Landmarks

2012/2013 - League - 6th - Cups -N/A

- Jamie Carragher Retires

[ollie laaaaaaaad]

The Squad

Goalkeepers - Pepe Reina, Brad Jones, Peter Gulcasi

Not a particularly strong position for us, in terms of quality and depth. Pepe Reina once in the leagues top five, has regressed in the past 18 months, and has been making mistakes on a somewhat regular basis. With no young british talent at this position it is definitely an area we will need to look to strengthen.

Full Backs - Glen Johnson, Martin Kelly, John Flannagan, Andre Wisdom, Jose Enrique, Jack Robinson

A real strong area for us, to top quality starting full backs, and bags of potential in behind. Young british players such as Kelly & Robinson can be at the cub for 10+ years and possibly be future skippers leading us to cup glory.

Centre Backs - Martin Skrtel, Daniel Agger, Jamie Carragher (vc), Conor Coady, Sebastion Coates, Danny Wilson

Again a position of a mild concern, solid starters in Skrtel and Agger. But with Carragher set to retire and poor potential from the younger lads (Coates, Coady) it is an area we really need to address as soon as possible, the likes of Nathaniel Chalaboah and Steven Caulker will be on the radar as well as hopefully a potential graduate from the youth academy.

Wingers - Raheem Sterling, Stewart Downing, Suso, Oussama Assaidi

Possibly the weakest position in the squad, and its been that way for years at Anfield, long gone are the days of wingers gracing Anfield turning defenses inside out. Since John Barnes and possibly Steve McManaman many have tried but failed. Raheem Sterling is probably the best (and youngest) player at the position, young, English and bags of talent, he certainly fits the bill. Stewart Downing will remain for a couple of years certainly due to is passport. Assaidi is not good enough, and will be sold next summer. Suso has potential particularly in our system and philosophy. We certainly have strikers who can play as the inside forwards however and expect when we play one upfront to see Borini, Sturridge and Suarez to occupy the wide positions.

Central Midfielders - Steven Gerrard, Lucas Leiva, Jordan Henderson, Joe Allen, Jonjo Shelvey, Coutinho

The most talented and deep area of the squad. Steven Gerrard is Liverpool, everyone knows his quality, i'd love nothing more than him to be the 'scouser to lift the cup.' However i fear he may be retired and on my staff by then. Lucas is another fan favorite but also an exceptional anchor man, playing with high wing backs, he will offer a perfect screen to the back two. The midfield is also a flush with young British talent, Allen, Henderson and Shelvey will be involved at this club for years with two of which potential future captains.

Strikers - Luis Suarez, Fabio Borini, Daniel Sturridge, Samed Yesil

I really, really love our strike force. Suarez is without doubt our best player and in the top ten world footballers. Borini and Sturridge allow us to constantly rotate the front three and keep the opposition guessing. Yesil is a real prospect again could be here for years and years, if over a ten year stretch he scores double figures a season i'll be delighted.

Budgets

Transfer - £0

Wage Budget - + £35k

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Tactic & Philosophy - Tika-Taka

“I like to control games. I like to be responsible for our own destiny. If you are better than your opponent with the ball you have a 79 per cent chance of winning the game…for me it is quite logical. It doesn’t matter how big or small you are, if you don’t have the ball you can’t score.” (Rodgers 2012)

The tactic

The idea is based upon a pivoted 'fulcrum' deeper player (I use Joe Allen) to sit and keep the game ticking over, the main idea of the formation is to keep short passes in the middle of the field. with the 3 central midfielders and defenders looking to play around 60 passes a game and the fulcrum around 100-120. The constant passing should move around the defenders and midfielders and hopefully isolate either 1 on 1 situations with the Wingers up against the fullbacks working the ball through various channels and quality of goal scoring opportunities (rather than quantity) are apropos of the Tiki-Taka school of football. To achieve the success found implementing Tiki-Taka football, not only are a particular set of players required but a template to enable the ever-flowing movement advocated by Spain, Barça and Swansea:

My template for everything is organisation. With the ball you have to know the movement patterns, the rotation, the fluidity and positioning of the team. Then there’s our defensive organisation…so if it is not going well we have a default mechanism which makes us hard to beat and we can pass our way into the game again. Rest with the ball. Then we’ll build again.” (Rodgers 2012)

A new set of fundamentals will need to be put into place; a move away from the over-reliance on direct football that maximizes the quantity of goal scoring opportunities and not quality - a degree of trust will need to be installed in the individual’s know-how and when to shoot or make the decision that the opportunity is only a half chance and not a sure thing. The approach works on the principles that ‘the whole is greater that then sum of its parts’:

The Overall Philosophy

Zone 1 – ‘the sweeper goalkeeper’ – This specialised zone is expected to take charge of a much larger zone in Tiki-Taka football compared to the more direct approach. The emphasis is on the goalkeeper to play with the ball at his feet and play far more short threaded passes than usual. Characteristics in this role include: good stature, efficiency with balls in the air, bravery, agility and willingness to play on the deck without fear – the keeper is expected to act as a pressure relief for under pressure team mates.

Zone 2 - the ‘líbero’ – The players in zone 2 are (like the goalkeeper) expected to play a much larger role in ‘keep-ball’. They are too expected to act as pressure relief to a compact midfield as a way-out option. The two centre backs are expected to compliment one another: one technically brilliant and one with a powerful physical presence (see: Puyol-Pique). The more technical of the two is to act as a playmaker for changing the pace of the game – Ashley Williams made more long ball attempts than any other outfield player during 2011/12, mostly fast yet grounded balls played forward to feet. As a ‘líbero’ you have the whole picture in front of you – you are in a position to say pim let’s go this way, pim let’s go that way.

Zone 3 – the ‘volante de salida’ – This player must be particularly good at playing his way out of trouble and yet still excellent at winning the ball back. Typical characteristics are the ability to read the game, act as an outlet for under-pressure team mates consistently and continually pass the ball within pressure:

“I get the ball, I pass, I get the ball, I pass, I get the ball, I pass.” (Xavier Hernandez 2011)

Xavi’s hypnotic approach to the game summaries the mindset for the player in this particular zone and like Leon Britton should boast a remarkably high pass completion rate – a 93.3% pass rate was widely acknowledged in January 2012.

Zone 4 – the wing backs – the players in this zone will need to be prepared to work particularly hard up and down the wing; both defensively and in more advanced positions. It is important to note that crosses will now be made from the by-line rather than from deep –

Zone 5 – the box to box creative midfielders – flair, the ability to change the pace of the game within a second, the decision of when to do so and an all round technical ability are required to fulfill the roles in zone 5. Zone 5 players are expected to continually find space amongst the ‘traffic’ and complete the triangles in possession. The players should not constantly look to create the spectacular but are expected to simply knit the possession and keep the ball more often than not.

Zone 6 – the inside forwards – Messi, Alexis Sanchez, Sinclair, Dyer et al. all represent the highly creative, technically gifted and unpredictable player expected to fulfill the requirements of this zone.

Zone 7 - the linking target man – This player is expected to be technically gifted when assessing his first touch, link up play and off ball movement. The hard working approach and sensational techinical ability of Luis Suarez should more than fill this role. Anyone lucky enough to watch Fabio Borini will know that he was a huge loss to Swansea this past year, despite the success of Danny Graham.

Zone G – the goal scoring opportunity and assist zone – this zone is vastly important zone to understand. The quality of chances cannot be stressed enough. Liverpool has, over the past five years, been noted for creating chance after chance without scoring. The players who break into this zone should be extremely good at making the decision as to whether a goal scoring opportunity is available or to turn back and play the ball back into the organism of Tiki-Taka. Barcelona however, highlighted the danger in over relying on this concept as their play became slower and more predictable as the game went on against Chelsea in the Champions League 2011/12.

En Assemble - The formation laid out sets about moving forward as a team and defending as a unit too. The team are expected, rather poetically, to move back and forth much like turquoise waves crashing onto shore:

“You win the ball back when there are thirty meters to their goal not eighty” (Guardiola 2009)

The Six Second Rule

This is based on the principle that when a player regains or receives possession he as at that moment, or for a few seconds, is vulnerable to being dispossessed.

But, and this is crucial, if you cannot win the ball back within those 5 or 6 seconds then you must recognize as a team that you can’t run around pressing the ball for 90 minutes. It’s just not physically possible. So you retreat, regain your defensive shape, and wait for the ‘signs’ to start pressing again.

“You cannot go (press) on your own, You work on zonal pressure, so that when it is in your zone, you have the capacity to press. That ability to press immediately, within five or six seconds to get the ball, is important. But you also have to understand when you can’t and what the triggers are then to go for it again because you can’t run about like a madman.” Brendan Rodgers

[SRL88]

Will follow .

[B.W.G]

Best of luck at Liverpool,hopefully you will destroy any record of Man Utd's

[iHeadHunta x]

Will follow as much as I hate Liverpool

[ollie laaaaaaaad]

Will follow .

Will follow as much as I hate Liverpool

Best of luck at Liverpool,hopefully you will destroy any record of Man Utd's

haha, thanks guys. I hope to erase them, but with their financial muscle i doubt it!

Post above has been updated with squad breakdown and tactical analysis

[ollie laaaaaaaad]

Pre-Season/Start of Europe

It was a decent pre-season, the start of the Europa League was basically our new beginning, after wrapping the tie up in the first leg, i used the 2nd leg as an experimental match to try and generate as much possession as possible.

I've made no changes to the backroom staff as of yet, that will all be done next summer when i'm in a position financially to start having staff and player turnover.

Transfers

I had absolutley zero funds, so i was limited to just loaning out a few players, Jon Flannagan is the main guy im looking forward to getting back an seeing how he progresses. There are players in the squad i know wont be here next season, but i didn't want to much of an upheaval this early in my reign.

Heading into the season we have some bad injury concerns, Gerrard, Reina and Lucas are all out for aound 3-4 weeks. It's a particular problem at the back with us facing Spurs, Chelsea and City all in the first couple of months

[ollie laaaaaaaad]

August 2012

An up and down start, a stunning display against Southampton was misleading. We were outplayed, outmuscled and outclassed at White Hart Lane. Jermain Defoe bagged four before half time as AVB's new club ran rings around us. On another positive note we cruised through to the next phase of the Europa League getting a good luck at some of the young lads in the first team.

Player of the Month

Sturridge bagged two on his debut, followed by a hat-trick of assists in the Europa League

Next Month

We will get a look at the big game capabilities of our current squad, we hugely disappointing at Spurs bordering on the embarrassing, we face Manchester City and Chelsea in the space of three days both at Anfield, i'm looking for four points to get the Kop and the home crowd faithful on board.

[ollie laaaaaaaad]

September 2012

Again another up and down month, 'Rome wasn't built in a day' as they say. We are introducing a new style, away at Swansea we were completley out footballed, as at Spurs thy just looked much more confident in possession. Then we return to Anfield for the big double header. 20mins in and again we were being bossed out of the game, behind to a Zabaleta goal before Edin Dzeko's moment of madness drops City to ten men. We took control from then on, a goal each from Coutinho and Borini, before Coutinho scored a stunning 25-yard free-kick five minutes from time. The Chelsea and Newcastle games both followed the same pattern, we outplayed both, at Chelsea we couldn't hang on, and at St.James' Park we couldn't break the deadlock despite 68% of the possession.

Player of the Month

Coutinho showed his class in the league by continually slicing open the Champions of England & Europe, bagging a brace against the former.

Next Month

Five games next month, two in the cups, three in the league, all of which are winnable the most difficult game being a trip to the Hawthorns to see former Liverpool assistant manager Steve Clarke.

[ollie laaaaaaaad]

October 2012

An incredibly disappointing month, i know its still early days, and one month doesn't change our overall goal. But after four points of two of the biggest clubs in the league i was expecting a clean sweep in the league. At West Brom we were abysmal, there's no other word, absolutely pathetic. At Home to Norwich it was typical Anfield performance from recent Liverpool teams, we created three clear cut chances and couldn't finish any of them, two of which fell to Sturridge who's going through a tough time of late. At home to West Ham it was a similar story, we were drawing 1-1 heading into the final five minutes but we sealed the victory with two late Borini and Skrtel goals.The game ened in horror though as our best player of the month Fabio Borini, tore his calf to rule him out for up to four months

As i said overall a poor poor month, the Europa League is being used as basically a 'back-up' league.

Player of the Month

No one had a good month in Octobr, but Borini was able to bag goals at important times for us, losing him for four months is a major blow.

Next Month

November is a critical month, we start with a trio of away league games, followed by a home game against the Arsenal. Then its crunch time as we face our first Merseyside derby of my reign.

[Bracken]

Great stuff mate, awesome to see somebody else is doing something similar to my save (even if it is with Liverpool ) I'll be following closely

[SeanNUFC]

Enjoying this, hope you don't give up on it.

[ollie laaaaaaaad]

November 2012

Well its been a fantastic month for us. Unbeaten throughout the month in both the league and the Europa League. However the greedy part in me knows it could have been better away at both Wigan and Fulham we conceded 90th minute equalizers. I was delighted with the Arsenal result we were 2-0 down and playing poorly at home before a stunning Coutinho strike put us on the road to a fantastic point. Looking at the table had we converted those two away draws into wins we would have been just three points of the top four. Overall though i am happy going into the crucial Christmas period.

League Table

The Derby

It was a classic Merseyside derby as they so often are. Local hero Stevn Gerard inspired us to a 2-0 win setting us on our way with a late dart into the box and a strong finish. The game could have turned out so differently however as with twenty minutes to go Sebastian Coates gifted Everton the opportunity to equalize by conceding a penalty infront of the Kop. Baines was bested by a stunning Pepe Reina save however, and from then on Everton struggled to regain their composure. With Liverpool now passing the ball with great confidence and freedom new signing Daniel Sturridge put his recent poor performances behind him, by dispatching a lethal finish past Everton's Tim Howard.

Player of the Month

Gerard drove us on in the darkest of times this month, his highlight being a derby day goal. His season has been setback so far by injuries but he appears to be coming on strong now.

[iHeadHunta x]

Great month and being lead by Stevie G putting in some great performances

[ollie laaaaaaaad]

December 2012

A typical month for us unfortunately. Up and down throughout. Two fantastic back to back wins against United and QPR were followed by two disappointing draws away. At Stoke we should have hung on to our lead, but once again we through it away late. At Southampton we were atrocious and had no right to score a 94th minute leveler.

The highlight of the month was of course beating United at Anfield, we took the lead early on through Seb Coates. Coates' performances of late have been sensational, i was ready to ship him out in January to free up funds to start making some moves, but i will now keep him till the summer and re-evaluate him then. After the early goal we went to the counter attack consistently punchering their back line, Sturrdige and Suarez each had a hat full of chances and we could have easily ran out 2 or 3 nil winners.

League Table

We are sat in a decent position - ten points back from the top four is a long way, but we will only come on stronger in the second half of the season. I'd like to think we can get up there and challenge the four incumbents.

Mid-Season Review

Key Players

Suarez

Luis has been underwhelming in my opinion, he has had chances but never seems to convert them, i'll continue to tweak the system to get the best out of our best player.

Gerrard

Stevie started the season with a load of injuries since around mid October he has come back extremely strong and has powered us to points single hand-idly.

Coutinho

Coutinho has been much better than i had initial expected, i thought he'd struggle in the premier league, but every goal he seems to score is either crucial or world class. He also never seems to give the ball away, and often looks a class apart among opponents.

Reina

As a last line of defense Reina's done OK. it's been difficult without a solid center half pairing. Agger, Skrtel and Carragher have all been subject to injuries at one time or another. That said there have been no huge mistakes, and i will probably keep him until the summer until i can cash in, and have been able to scout his successor.

[Bracken]

Good stuff so far mate, hope you can catch the top 4. Looks like you've been getting some really good performances out of Coutinho, and he's improving nicely. Keep up the good work, really enjoying this thread.

[cerud]

A decent start for Anfield. A top 4 is definitely a good capture this year.

[ollie laaaaaaaad]

January 2013

A great, great month for us. I thought of the Spurs game as a measuring stick to see how far we've come since the start of the season. The 5-0 defeat away played on my mind, i knew a credible result would show progress, and that was the case. The time showed fight and heart, something we didn't display in the first meeting. 3-0 down at half time was embarressing, but to fight back to 3-2 was a great achievement. The rest of the month was simply incredible, unbeaten in the league and progressing in the cup. The draw away to Chelsea was fantastic and in truth we should have sneaked it, and what can i say about the City game. Our outstanding result of the season a stunning 3-0 win away the Champions. We played them off the park for 60minutes, Lucas, Joe Allen and Shelvey were like Busquets, Xavi and Iniesta, and we ripped them to shreds.

League Table

So here we sit, we are beginning to mount pressure on the top four, we have a very kind February month that can see us really push up the table, its unlikely but Champions League qualification is definitively still a possibility.

Player of the Month

It was a real toss up for this month. There were outstanding performances from Gerrard, Sturridge and Coates. But ultimately i have to give it to Luis. I have been critical of him all season, but in January he was sensational lit it up at Stamford Bridge and the Etihad and saved us with a 90th minute goal at home to Swansea

Next Month

Some kind fixtures and time to really start mounting some pressure on that top four, we have to go undefeated once more to keep in the hunt.

[ollie laaaaaaaad]

February 2013

Well what can i say a stunning month, we are on a fantastic run, we won out in the league with three clean sheets. The victory over Norwich was particularly satisfying, we were fantastic. We also cruised into the next round of the cup, we've drawn Huddersfield in the quarter-finals so we have a great chance of getting back to Wembley.

We are still some way back in the league, but our run in isnt too difficult, we have closed the gap significantly and i still maintain hope of making the top four.

Player of the Month

Suarez was once again unstoppable this month, he is really growing as the season comes on, i think i've unlocked the key to himself and Sturridge and that's simply to leave Daniel out!

[Bracken]

Two superb months mate, shame Danny has to get left out though, always liked him as a player

Good luck getting top 4, hope you make it, even if it means my beloved Chelsea missing out

[ollie laaaaaaaad]

March 2013

It was a disappointing month for us. Our second time in north london this year and a second 5-0 thumping, but the most disappointing part was a horrific 1-0 defeat at home to Huddersfield. We were fantastic, but it was one of those days. We had about 5 or 6 good chances but their keeper had an unbelievable day. I really thought we'd be able to win the cup and send Carra off into the sunset with a trophy.

League Table

8 points back looks too far to overcome, but we wont give up until the last game, next month we face two huge fixtures away at Eveton & United, big Derby's both away, in truth we'll probably suffer at Old Trafford but i fancy us to sneak it at Goodison.

Youth Intake

I'm unbelievably chuffed with this youth intake, i've never had a couple of good player come through at once, with the direction of the club, trying to promote players i'm made up.

Alex Pouso

In the mold of Luis Suarez, looks a top player can't wait to see him develop.

Ian Lowe

Another good young striker, a local lad. Will deffinetely end up being a squad player. If he scores double figures a season for ten years, that's 100 goals for his boyhood club and id be absolutley delighted.

Shane Gill

A local lad who probably isnt good enough, but again could be a decent back up squad player, going to train him into a DLP as a DM.

[ollie laaaaaaaad]

April 2013

I'm gutted by the two big Derby results, we should have beaten Everton, we simply havent been good enough in the big games this year.

League Table

Well it looks as though we'll be finishing sixth, i'm not exactly delighted with it but it will do as i can finally look to improve the squad next year.

New Contract

A great bit of news to end the month, a new long-term deal, securing my future for the long term!

[ollie laaaaaaaad]

Two superb months mate, shame Danny has to get left out though, always liked him as a player

Good luck getting top 4, hope you make it, even if it means my beloved Chelsea missing out

haha, i know desperate for them to work together but Suarez's form has been so much better when i've left him out. Cheers mate my im is to top them this year!

A decent start for Anfield. A top 4 is definitely a good capture this year.

Yeah it would have been perfect, but out of reach now i think!

Enjoying this, hope you don't give up on it.

I wont mate, real long term save (Y)

[ollie laaaaaaaad]

May 2013

A decent end to the season, Carra played the final too games, a nice win to see him off at Anfield. In his final ever game for the club i rested the key players and played the kids, i wanted Jamie to go out with a winners medal desperatly but it wasn't to be, but he left ith a goal in his final game, an emotional moment! I've already signed Carra up as a coach, players like that will never be allowed to leave this club, both he and Stevie G have automatic contract offers as coaches from me, both will then be competing to be my assitant.

League Table

I thought we'd be able to chase Chelsea down now under the stewardship of Mr.Bielsa, but it wasn't to be (bracken is quietly pleased!) i'll do a full run down of the season and my goals in a future post.

Goodbye Carra!

[ollie laaaaaaaad]

Season Run Down 2012/13

England

Premier League Champions - Manchester United

Champions League - Arsenal, Manchester City, Tottenham

Europa League - Chelsea

Relegated - Sunderland, Aston Villa, Wigan

FA Cup - Manchester United

Capital One Cup - Hull

The Football Writers Player of the Year - Yaya Toure

PFA Player of the Year - Olivier Giroud

PFA Young player of the Year - Jack Wilshere

Golden Glove - David De Gea

LMA Manager of the Year - Sir Alex Ferguson

Spain

Liga BBVA Champions - Real Madrid

Champions League - Barcelona, Valencia, Sevilla

Europa League - Atletico Madrid, Malaga, Athletic Bilbao

Relegated - Getafe, Real Sociedad, Real Zaragoza

France

Ligue 1 Champions - Lyon

Champions League - PSG, Lyon, Bordeaux

Europa League - Marseille, AS Nancy Lorraine

Relegated - AC Ajaccio, Valenciennes FC, ESTAC Troyes

Germany

Bundesliga Champions - Dortmund

Champions League - Bayern Munich, Werder Bremen, Wolfsburg

Europa League - Schalke, Bayern Leverkusen

Relegated -Freiburg, Dusseldorf, Nurenberg

Scotland

SPL Champions - Celtic

Europa League - Motherwell, Kilmarnock, Hearts

Relegated - Dundee

UEFA Champions League

Champions - Real Madrid

UEFA Europa League

Champions - Dynamo Kyiv

[Bracken]

I thought we'd be able to chase Chelsea down now under the stewardship of Mr.Bielsa, but it wasn't to be (bracken is quietly pleased!) i'll do a full run down of the season and my goals in a future post.

Nothing quiet about it

Nah but seriously, unlucky on missing out on top 4, I'm sure you'll grab it next team, still a very good first season with a lot to build on for the future. Keep it up mate

[ollie laaaaaaaad]

Season Review

League Performance: 6th

I’d say our league performance was adequate, I was hoping to compete more for the top four, we were never really in the race. To not make 70points was another disappointment. I thought the style in which we played in the league was stunning, next year we need to keep our second half of the season form throughout the entire year. If we can maintain that second half of the season performance then next year’s target of a top four finish should be attained. Our worst performances came away at league position rivals, we beat some great teams at home. But when we travelled away, we were destroyed on some instances. So I’ll be working more on a 4-6-0 tactic for away from home, it was a formation and style we used to rip apart Manchester City at the Etihad.

Next Season Target: 4th

Cup Performances: Europa League – Group Stages, FA Cup – 6th Round, Capital One Cup – 4th Round

We used the Cup competitions as a way to bed in some of the younger and new players, it’s really benefited the likes of Coutinho and Sterling. As the season went on and it became apparent that the Champions League was out of our reach the FA Cup became our main priority, however it wasn’t to be and a famous giant killing took place! I was gutted particularly as Hull went on to win the trophy. Next year with no Europe (with hull winning the cup, 6th wasn’t high enough for the EL) then the FA and Capital One cup’s are huge priorities.

Next Season Target: Win one cup

Performances

Team Stats

Excellent performances all round, players such as Lucas and Gerrard were as always Word Class, Coutinho & Sturridge had good first seasons and I expect them to continue to progress. Stewart Downing was a big time player this year, he was a true out and out winger, and his ability to whip the ball in from the wings has given us that second option to playing tika-takka through the middle. He has been a real surprise, I expected Raheem Sterling to beat him out during the course of the season but Downing has been playing so, so well, and is now guaranteed a place in the first 18 next season.

My Player of the Year

Luis Suarez –

Luis had a slow start as we couldn’t unlock the key to both himself, Coutinho and Sturrdige playing together. He started the season out on the left cutting in, but I moved him into the centre and it had a devastating effect. I hope he can aim for around thirty goals in all competitions next season.

Underperformer of the Year

Pepe Reina –

Unfortunately Pepe has put a nail in his Anfield coffin. He will be able to bring in some much needed transfer funds. He simply wasn’t good enough, I’m a big fan of his and I don’t really want to see him leave, but I have a few targets in mind, who will be cheaper and will play at as good a level as he has.

Overachiever of the Year

Sebastian Coates -

I only held on to Seb because I knew Carragher was retiring at the end of the season. Simply put his performances were outstanding, he lead us from the back. At the end of the season Daniel Agger asked to leave the club in the pursuit of a ‘new challenge’ and while I’d love to keep DAGGER with Danny Wilson coming back and Seb’s form I’ll let him go.

Transfers

As of writing this im yet to receive my budgets for the New Year. That said I hope to generate funds by allowing Daniel Agger and Pepe Reina to leave. With Jamie leaving that also frees up £85k a week in wages. I have only one oversees (nationality not league) signing to make per calander year so I think I’ll hold off on that until January, so here’s my current list for transfer targets (if you have any others please share) Note: part of me is pleased to see Villa go down as they have lots of young British players haha.

We also have local lad Jay Spearing returning, which is good to have with us looking to bring local talent through. We also have the burning question of the return of Andy Carroll. A strike for consisting of Luis Suarez, Daniel Sturridge and Andy Carroll could be prolific. I will try to re-negotiate his contract for cheaper wages, other mind I may have to let him go.

Targets In

Jordan Rhodes

Gabriel Agbonlahor

Jack Cork

Ciaran Clark

Ashley Williams

Gary Hooper

Fraser Forster

Jake Keen

Will Hughes

Mattt Phillips

Nathan Redmond

Jon Williams

Sam Byram

Adam Henley

Luke Shaw

Steven Caulker

Nathan Dyer

James McCarthy

David Beckham

Club Style

Our Tika-Takka style was beautiful to watch last year, of course our style us under constant evolution. I moved the side away from a 4-1-2-2-1 from the start of the year to a 2-3-2-3 as well as a 4-6-0. We are playing this style of football throughout all levels of the footballclub. It may take ten years to win the Champions League in this style, but it will feel so much more satisfying when we do.

A parting gift from an all-time club LEGEND, and new coach.

[SRL88]

You have something to build on at least.

[Lenzar]

Did the game allow you to retire 23, or will you just be not assigning it to anyone?

I hated when AW gave 6 to Senderos...