[lfc-news] Everton report - PA

PA Sport, 11 Dec 2004
Everton 1 Liverpool 0

Everton set a few records straight with a memorable Mersey derby victory
over their bitter rivals.

They moved into second place in the Premiership thanks to Lee Carsley's
68th-minute goal and a dominant second-half display.

It was David Moyes' first derby win at his fifth attempt and Everton's
first at home against Liverpool since 1997. It also ended Liverpool's run
of nine derbies without defeat. Goodison Park celebrated wildly at the
final whistle.

Moyes reverted to his tried and trusted first XI for the 200th Merseyside
derby with the return of Leon Osman to midfield, while Benitez left out
fellow Spaniards Xabi Alonso and Antonio Nunez and opted for the more
combative Salif Diao.

The game was very much a slow burner in the first half-hour and only
started to heat up with Liverpool just on top as the break approached.

Everton had seen Kevin Kilbane plant a looping header over before Tim
Cahill wasted their best chance of the first half when he headed wide while
unmarked from a Marcus Bent cross.

Even that did not ignite the occasion, and it took bookings for Tony
Hibbert and Diao before the match showed some spark.

Liverpool soon had two great chances to go ahead. Cahill fouled Steven
Gerrard on the right and, when the free-kick was floated to the far post,
it reached Mellor all on his own.

Nigel Martyn produced a superb point-blank save to keep out the header but
the ball bobbled around the box and Gerrard fired in a vicious drive that
spun high into the air off Alan Stubbs for Mellor to follow up with a
second header over the top.

Everton responded with a fine pass out to Osman from Thomas Gravesen and,
when the 23-year-old cut into the box, it took a fine saving tackle from
John Arne Riise to block the danger.

Liverpool created another decent chance when Gerrard's ball into the box
was met by Hyypia, who took one touch and hooked a shot inches over the bar.

Riise was booked for sending Cahill flying out on the right on 58 minutes
and that drove Everton to up the tempo again as they tried to launch the
sort of sustained aerial attacks from deep that so exposed Bolton last weekend.

And Liverpool helped in that cause by conceding far too many free-kicks in
their own half, giving Everton extra ammunition.

The trend continued on 65 minutes when Josemi was at last booked for one of
a succession of fouls on Kilbane.

The free-kick was again fired into the Liverpool box, where Jamie Carragher
was by now looking over-worked.

A minute later, Hamann was withdrawn and Nunez sent on to play on the
right. But the major change was Gerrard pushed back into a central midfield
role and Pongolle moving up front.

But that was just the prelude to Everton taking the lead after 68 minutes.
Liverpool failed to deal with another ball into the box.

It was only half cleared to Carsley on the edge of the box, with the
Republic of Ireland international bending his shot away from Kirkland to
send Goodison wild.

Liverpool tried to respond, with Xabi Alonso on to boost the attack, but
they looked tired from their midweek heroics against Olympiakos and could
not muster the energy needed for a comeback.

They camped in Everton's box for the final few minutes, but barely created
a chance or looked like hauling themselves back into the game.

Everton fought for every yard and their reward was a deserved win that
takes them 12 points ahead of their local rivals and into second place
behind Chelsea.

Everton: Martyn, Hibbert, Stubbs, Weir, Pistone, Carsley, Osman (Watson
87), Gravesen (Yobo 83), Cahill, Kilblane, Bent (Ferguson 76).
Subs not used: Wright, McFadden
Booked: Hibbert, Ferguson
Goals: Carsley 68

Liverpool: KIrkland, Josemi, Carragher, Hyypia, Riise, Diao (Alonso 78),
Hamann (Nunez 66), Gerrard, Kewell, Sinama Pongolle (Traore 75), Mellor.
Subs not used: Dudek, Finnan
Booked: Josemi, Riise, Diao

Att: 40,552
Referee: S Bennett

MOYES: WE ARE TITLE CONTENDERS
Everton manager David Moyes insists his "small and committed" side have
every right to be considered serious title contenders after a momentous
Merseyside derby victory.

Lee Carsley's sweet second-half winner settled the 200th derby in the
Toffees' favour to earn them their first win over their great rivals at
Goodison Park for seven years.

The win opened up a 12-point gap between Everton and Liverpool and, until
Sunday evening at least, moved Moyes' team up to second in the Barclays
Premiership and he believes they have now earned the right to be taken
seriously.

"I hope I can continue to give these fans days like this, and I don't
believe any other club second in the table at this stage would not be
considered serious challengers," the Scot said.

"It will be marvellous if it continues, and if it was anyone else everybody
would consider it right to say we were in the mix.

"People have said it can't happen, that we haven't got the resources. But
why can't we prove it can be done with a small, committed squad?"

He added: "This win is very, very satisfying. This was our first derby win
in five years and our first home derby success in seven years.

"That surely shows the progress this club has made with a tremendously
committed bunch of players who are really working for each other.

"That is a big thing for us to say, they are a fantastic bunch of lads that
I am proud to manage. It is a massive jump to the big boys, but by hook or
by crook we are doing all we can to bridge it without having the finances."

Liverpool manager Rafael Benitez agreed with Moyes and believes the Toffees
have to be taken seriously by the more likely title contenders.

He said: "They are winning games, they are a strong, aggressive side and
have great spirit. Of course they must be considered challengers, and
certainly for a top-four finish."

Benitez added: "We had to look at the players and see who was tired after
the Champions League game, that is why we made the changes.

"This has been a bad end to a fine week for us. It has taken the shine off
the win over Olympiakos.

"I felt we had enough chances to be ahead at the break, but in tight games
like this you have to score them. They scored one and we didn't - that was
the difference, nothing more."



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[lfc-news] Gerrard brings focus to backroom bluster - Guardian

The Guardian, 11 Dec 2004
Gerrard brings focus to backroom bluster
Today's Merseyside derby concentrates Liverpool minds off the field
By Dominic Fifield

Rafael Benítez spoke of keeping Steven Gerrard at Liverpool for the next
decade last night. "I'm confident he'll be with us for another 10 years,"
said the Spaniard. But, should the manager's employers fail to resolve
long-standing issues in the boardroom, the England midfielder may not be a
Liverpool player in 10 months' time.

Reality bit early in what should have been a glorious week at Anfield.
Whether Gerrard intended it or not, his thinly veiled warning over his own
future on Tuesday - coupled with the devastating half-volley with which he
propelled Liverpool into the knockout phase of the Champions League some 24
hours later - has switched the focus off the team and back on to the club's
hierarchy. Liverpool enter this afternoon's 200th Merseyside derby at
Goodison Park aware that either they move on off the pitch or Gerrard will
reluctantly do so on it.

That prospect alone should be enough to prompt action, though in
Liverpool's case there is no guarantee. This, after all, can be a club
prone to inertia. It is almost a year since a cantankerous annual general
meeting left the chairman David Moores mumbling into his microphone and
admitting the time had possibly come for him to consider his future and 10
days ago precisely the same hollow threat was issued from the same
red-faced speaker on the top table while the man who would be king, the
third largest shareholder Steve Morgan, struggled to contain his
frustration in the front row of a fractious audience.

In the interim precious little has changed, other than the club's £3.6m
profit nose-diving towards a £21.9m loss in the wake of last season's
absence from the Champions League and the managerial changes instigated in
the summer. The chief executive Rick Parry, with the financial advisers
Hawkpoint Partners Ltd, has worked tirelessly in the meantime trying to
uncover an alternative investment package to that offered four times, in
various guises, by Morgan. None has yet proved viable.

Directors have spent hours in ultimately fruitless talks with the Thai
prime minister Thaksin Shinawatra. They have been plagued by unwelcome
offers from the Hollywood-based film producer Mike Jefferies and his L4
group, who insist they can uncover potential capital. Most recently a
foreign-based third party has emerged with a potential package currently
being scrutinised. "It warrants further examination," said Parry. "There is
sufficient evidence to think it might be a better offer [than Morgan's] and
we want to give it due consideration. We all want the right solution for
the club and, all being well, the issue will be resolved very quickly."

Moores must hope there is more substance to this mystery group's interest
because it is hard to see how Liverpool can hope to compete in the
Premiership title race in the near future, and so retain the likes of
Gerrard, unless resolution is reached on an investment package in the next
few weeks. Benítez may insist he is happy with the progress his current
squad is making but he remains a realist.

The captain and possibly Xabi Alonso aside, Liverpool boast few players who
would interest Chelsea, Arsenal or Manchester United should they become
available. Funds are desperately needed to raid the market, clout which can
clearly be generated from outside the club only from new investors, to
prove that the ambition in the boardroom matches that of the captain.

All the while Morgan hammers relentlessly at the door. The former building
tycoon's latest proposal - a £70m investment package, with roughly half of
that earmarked for team rebuilding - continues to nag at the back of
Moores' mind. His personal antipathy towards his club's persistent suitor
is of less significance than his assertion that the bid, which would
ultimately see Morgan assume control, seriously undervalues the club. The
chairman will consider diluting his 51.6% shareholding only at the right
price and he is entitled to dismiss an offer he deems derisory.

All of which leaves Liverpool in limbo. They have been there, arguably,
since claiming the first league title of the 1990s. United's marketing
machine has since colonised the globe, much of the sheen on Liverpool's
reputation has been smudged and Arsenal and Chelsea have emerged above them
in the elite.

The latter's manager Jose Mourinho may have dead-batted the Gerrard issue
yesterday but it is football's worst kept secret that Roman Abramovich and
his adviser, the agent Pini Zahavi, are still confident of luring the
24-year-old to Stamford Bridge next summer. The only factor which might yet
deflect that grim scenario for Liverpudlians is if the Anfield board clicks
belatedly into action.

In the circumstances it is appropriate that a tumultuous week should
culminate in a Merseyside derby. These are hugely traditional occasions, a
throwback to the 1980s when this city was the hub around which English
football revolved. This year Everton have taken huge strides on the pitch
to open up a nine-point advantage over the local rivals, the like of which
has not been witnessed since 1987. "But it's a long race and we are nearer
the start than the finish," said Benítez. "I want to see what happens in
the end." In Liverpool's and Gerrard's case, so does everyone.

The choices facing Liverpool FC

Option one: retain the status quo

Use the Champions League income to bolster Rafael Benítez's transfer funds
next month and continue to pursue new investment from outside the club.

Option two: accept the latest deal

Believed to have been put together by a foreign-based third party, the
proposal is likely to offer David Moores a more favourable price for his
shares than Steve Morgan's long-standing bid, increasing the prospect of
him being willing to dilute his majority shareholding.

Option three: accept Steve Morgan's offer

Morgan's fourth and most recent proposal to invest in the club would
apparently offer Benítez £35m to spend. However, Moores would essentially
have to accept what he sees as a 'cut-price' proposal from his long-time
rival which, in the board's opinion, undervalues the club.

Option four: sell Steven Gerrard to Chelsea

Get £30m-plus next summer and use those funds to allow Benítez to plunder
the transfer market and rebuild his squad into something approaching
Premiership challengers.



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[lfc-news] Everton v Liverpool team news - PA

PA Sport, 10 Dec 2004
HAMANN TO MAKE DERBY RETURN

Midfielder Dietmar Hamann will return to Liverpool's squad for the short
trip to face Everton at Goodison Park.

The 31-year-old was suspended for the heroic Champions League victory over
Olympiacos on Wednesday but is likely to return to centre-midfield with
Steven Gerrard in an attacking role.

Milan Baros is fit for the derby after returning from a hamstring injury,
but Luis Garcia is not expected back after suffering a similar injury a
fortnight ago.

Manager Rafael Benitez hinted, in light of the busy programme ahead, that
he might leave Baros on the bench.

Benitez said: "We were without Milan for more than three weeks and he
wanted to play against Olympiacos. In my opinion, he wasn't in the best
physical condition during that game.

"We have three games to play in eight days and so it's in my mind not to
have him on my list for the derby. That's a decision I will make this
afternoon."

If Baros is left out then his place could go to young French striker
Florent Sinama-Pongolle following his impressive second half display in
midweek.

Liverpool are unbeaten in the last nine derby matches and have not lost at
Goodison Park since 1997.

Everton expect former Scotland striker Duncan Ferguson, scorer in two of
his last three matches, to be fit for the 200th Merseyside derby.

Ferguson came into the starting line-up last weekend in place of youngster
Leon Osman and manager David Moyes must decide whether to continue that
policy against Liverpool.

The forward has been having treatment all week on a knee injury sustained
in the dramatic fightback to beat Bolton 3-2 last weekend.

Teams

Everton (from): Martyn, Hibbert, Weir, Stubbs, Pistone, Carsley, Gravesen,
Cahill, Kilbane, Osman, Bent, Ferguson, McFadden, Wright, Watson, Yobo,
Naysmith, Chadwick, Campbell.

Liverpool (from): Kirkland, Finnan, Josemi, Carragher, Hyypia, Traore,
Riise, Kewell, Gerrard, Hamann, Alonso, Nunez, Baros, Sinama Pongolle,
Mellor, Dudek, Diao.



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[lfc-news] Moran memories are hard to rival - Post

Liverpool Daily Post, 10 Dec 2004
Moran memories are hard to rival
By Nick Hilton, Daily Post

AMONG the 40,000 who attend the 200th Merseyside Derby at Goodison
tomorrow, no-one will be able to look back on more first-hand experience of
the previous 199 games than Ronnie Moran.

A rough calculation would suggest Moran was probably involved in close to
100 of them as a player, captain, coach and, briefly, caretaker manager of
Liverpool.

He played in his first derby 50 years ago and dedicated his working life to
serving the club until retirement five years ago. For more than two decades
Moran was coach to the most successful club team English football has ever
produced.

Moran still regards that early encounter with Everton - an FA cup tie at
Goodison in 1955 - with special fondness, not least because Liverpool upset
all the odds by winning 4-0.

It was the only Merseyside derby played in a decade when the two clubs were
kept apart by diverging fortunes in the league. Everton dropped out of the
first division between 1951 and 54 and when they returned to the top
flight, Liverpool had just begun an exile that lasted until 1962.

Moran could also be described as the player who fired the starting pistol
on the last 42 years of continuous derby rivalry with a Goodison goal in 1962.

Strictly speaking, the Liverpool Floodlit Cup final of that year does not
count as a fully-fledged derby. But you could not tell that to the tens of
thousands of fans who packed into Everton's home to watch.

Moran recalled: "The match was played at the end of the '61/ 62 season,
after we had just won the second division title and promotion back to the
first division. It had been so long since the last derby that the game
caught people's imagination and both teams had their full first team out.
Even so, it was a massive gate.

"We won 1-0 from a free-kick I scored from about 35 yards out. "I was going
to chip the free-kick into the box but Gordon Milne, who was standing by
me, said: 'Why don't you have a go Ronnie.' So I did, and it flew in past
Gordon West."

Moran's playing career at Anfield began in 1949, when he joined as a
part-timer while serving an apprenticeship as an electrician. The decision
to turn professional was made in 1952.

He recalled: "I was on terms known as 14 and 11: you got £14-a-week during
the season and £11 during the summer weeks.

No-one in my era made a fortune out of the game in wages. I retired as a
player on £30-a-week. These days a decent first-team professional in the
Premiership can earn enough to keep him for life on a two-year contract.
Not that I'm complaining. The rewards are just very different now."

By the 1954/55 season, Moran was a regular in the Liverpool side in
Division Two. His life changed when Bill Shankly swept into Anfield in
1959. The Scotsman's arrival opened a period of upheaval among the playing
staff.

Moran recalled: "Bill moved a lot of players on. Some went because they
were not good enough. Some went because they were good players but did not
have the right attitude when things were difficult.

"On away trips I would room with Alan A'Court and we would chat about who
we thought might be the next ones out and whether it might be us."

Moran need not have worried. Shankly made him captain of the side that won
promotion in '62 and four years later offered him a job on the coaching staff.

Moran said: "It was only after I began coaching myself that I began to
realise why we had not been a winning team before Shanks arrived. I hadn't
really seen it as a player."

Moran recalls the view Shankly expounded to his players about derby games.
He said: "Shanks looked on a derby game the same as he would a game against
a league club or a team from the third division. It didn't matter whether
it was Everton, or Scunthorpe. He wanted to win every game, no matter what
it was. Even five-a-sides in train-ing."

But there was no doubting the Merseyside derbies of the Shankly era took on
a fire of their own. Moran is not a man given to exaggeration, but he said:
"Some of those games could have been bloodbaths. Some of the things that
went on in them could not happen now because too many players would be sent
off.

"It wasn't a case of players going around kicking each other. But they were
physically very competitive and the spectators were inclined to enjoy it
that way.

"There was very little segregation of the fans in those days. You did not
have cases of the away club being allocated 3,000 tickets. People queued up
at each ground to get a ticket. Families came together, some with blue
scarves, some with red. And I don't remember seeing any violence at a derby."

An intense but good-natured rivalry was also established among the coaching
staffs on derby day. Moran said: "You stuck up for your team and a few
verbals flew with the staff in the other dugout. But after the match you
would sit down with them and have a couple of beers.

"I think Liverpool were among the first clubs to start that after match
tradition with the boot room at Anfield. Bob Paisley and Joe Fagan
instigated it. Bill never used to come in. He did not drink. He would just
pop his head around the door.

"The visitors only stayed for around 20 minutes or so after a game. If it
was Everton for instance, we would have a drink and a natter about old
times. But we would not talk about the game that had just happened in the
afternoon. It was the same with other clubs.

"It was a kind of etiquette. You did not speak about any incidents. Maybe
when the opposition staff had gone, you might grumble to each other about a
controversial moment, or a refereeing decision."

From a vast treasure trove of derby memories as coach, Moran sets aside a
few more to add to the two from his playing days.

There is a 1-0 Liverpool win at Anfield on the morning of the Grand
National when David Fairclough ran through the Everton defence in the last
minute to score the winner.

And there is a 5-0 victory at Goodison in the early 1980s when Ian Rush
scored four times.

A more surprising inclusion is an FA Cup tie that took three games to be
resolved in 1991. Kenny Dalglish resigned as Liverpool manager after the
second game, a 4-4 draw at Good-ison, which led to Moran taking charge of
first-team affairs on a caretaker basis for several weeks.

Moran recalled: "I was 58 at the time when the chairman, Noel White asked
me to take over. I was happy to do it for a few weeks but I made it clear I
wasn't looking for the top job."

Liverpool lost the second cup replay to Everton in Moran's first game in
charge. There were other defeats in a mixed bag of results in which the
club posted their best ever away win in the league, 7-1 at Derby.

When the new manager Grame Souness arrived he kept Moran on the staff, just
as Dalglish, Fagan and Paisley had done before and as Roy Evans would do
again when his turn came in 1994.

The curtain fell on half a century of service to LFC as Moran approached
his 65th birthday just as the new regime of Gerard Houllier was being
ushered in in 1998.

In a gesture of respect Moran was granted the freedom to continue the habit
of a working lifetime by running around the perimeter of the Melwood
Training ground every day.

Those runs have become a walk taken twice a week in the years since Moran
suffered a heart condition. But the 74-year-old said: "While I have had to
slow down a bit, there is no problem. I am fine and still going strong."



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[lfc-news] Academy: Under-18s hope to end on a high - Post

Liverpool Daily Post, 10 Dec 2004
Under-18s hope to end on a high
Academy Football With Chris Wright, Daily Post

LIVERPOOL under-18s aim to end a difficult first half of the season with
victory at Manchester City tomorrow (KO 11am) - and give themselves a lift
for next week's FA Youth Cup tie.

John Owens's side are bottom of the FA Premier Academy League Group A table
as they go into the four-week Christmas break. But against Manchester City
tomorrow they at least have the chance to end the year on a high.

And as they are set to begin their FA Youth Cup campaign with a third round
fixture at Anfield against non-League Wealdstone on Tuesday, December 21
they will use the match against Manchester City as the perfect way to boost
confidence.

Last week's defeat to Stoke City was another blow and showed the problems
Owens's side have faced this season. Lack of a cutting edge in the
opposition area and the odd defensive mishap proved costly. It was
Liverpool's ninth defeat in 14 matches.

Owens said: "Every week we build it up as if each game is by itself.
Obviously our form is there for everyone to see. We have got to work
against that form and show that we have got something to give each Saturday
and hope everything goes all right."

Liverpool lost 3-0 to Manchester City at the Kirkby Academy in October, so
they know it will be difficult to get all three points tomorrow.

Owens said: "We lost here to them and we know they are always tough
opposition. They are at the top of our league. But in terms of the next
game - the Youth Cup game - we can use it as preparation.

"There will obviously be different players as we can't play the third years
in the Youth Cup. So for Danny O'Donnell, James Smith Paul Willis and Ryan
Wilkie this will be the last game of the half season up until Christmas.
And they will want to end on a positive note."

Defenders Adam Hitchen and Jordan Holmes will continue their quest for full
match fitness. Both played their first 45 minutes of football in the 2-0
defeat to Stoke last weekend. They will hope to get more action tomorrow
ahead of the Youth Cup clash.

Liverpool are hopeful Calum Woods will be fit to play after he went off
last week with a thigh strain.



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[lfc-news] Parry: Gerrard 'will not' leave in January - Post

Liverpool Daily Post, 10 Dec 2004
Gerrard 'will not' leave in January
By David Prior, Daily Post

RICK PARRY last night insisted there was "no chance" of Steven Gerrard
leaving Liverpool in next month's transfer window.

Liverpool's qualification for the knockout phase of the Champions League
this week allayed immediate fears - aired by the skipper himself - that he
would have to move from Anfield to fulfil his ambitions.

And now chief executive Parry has sought to ward off any approaches in
January - and pledged to "never" let the 24-year-old midfielder leave.

He said: "There is no chance of Stevie going in January. That just won't
happen. Our intention is that we will never let him go.

"Of course he is ambitious, but so are we. We firmly believe that if we can
satisfy his ambition he will remain a Liverpool player.

"We have an open and straightforward relationship. We both know where we
stand and that played a big part in his decision to stay last summer.

"If he was not so committed to Liverpool he would have gone by now. But he
has made it plain that there is an extra value to winning a trophy with
Liverpool. That probably would not exist at another club."

Parry claimed the presence of Rafael Benitez at the club should be an
important factor in persuading Gerrard to stay at Anfield beyond next summer.

Benitez tasted much success himself while at Valencia, claiming two La Liga
titles and the UEFA Cup during his stint at the Mestalla.

And Parry added: "Just look at Rafa's record. There is no one who can
better that in Europe over the last three years.

"Believe me, Rafa did not come here to finish fourth.

"He came here to win things. Stevie appreciates that."



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[lfc-news] Rafa gets ready for his first derby taste - Echo

Liverpool Echo, 10 Dec 2004
Rafa gets ready for his first derby taste
By Chris Bascombe, Liverpool Echo

RAFA BENITEZ admits his only Merseyside derby experience to date has come
from reference books.

The Anfield boss has never attended a Liverpool versus Everton match, and
says he never even watched the games on TV in Spain.

Tomorrow will be a journey into the unknown, but he has plenty of
researchers filling him in on the finer details of the fixture.

"I'm sure Jamie Carragher and Steven Gerrard will tell us what to expect,"
said Benitez.

"In Valencia we didn't have an important derby game like this. The other
side nearby, Levante, have only recently joined the first division and
weren't big rivals.

"Real Madrid versus Barcelona is seen as the biggest fixture in Spain, but
they are different cities so it's hard to compare it with a derby.

"The most similar in terms of how the supporters feel is Seville against
Real Betis. Three weeks before that game, the fans are talking about it and
the atmosphere is very good.

"In a big town like Liverpool it's normal to have so many supporters for
each club. If you lose, it's a problem to the fans because you have to see
the opponent all the time in work. I've never seen the game but I've spoken
to a lot of people who work for us and they've told me why it is such an
important match.

"I've also read all about the history of the clubs and I like the way both
have their own identity. That's why I don't agree with the idea of sharing
a stadium.

"I went to the Everton versus Arsenal match at Goodison Park and the
supporters who saw me were friendly. They just said 'don't beat us'."

As Benitez will soon discover, reading or hearing about the event is one
thing, experiencing is another.

But he insists he'll be trying to ensure the occasion doesn't overshadow
what's really at stake for his side.

"I try to think only of the three points," he says. "I see we're playing a
side which is doing well in the table and is in the top four. For me, the
situation is important not only because it's a derby, but because of the
league positions.

" With such an important Champions League game, I've not even thought about
the fixture until yesterday.

"Now we are working out our approach. Mentally, I don't think there will be
a problem. The players see the atmosphere and that ensures they're ready.

"I know Everton play as a team. It will be difficult, but we shall try to
use the right style we need to get a good result."

Benitez is hoping the momentum of Wednesday's heroic Champions League
victory will have a galvanising impact tomorrow.

"When you win, it can have a snowballing effect," he says..

"At this moment I'm very proud of the players and the supporters. Wednesday
was an important night for the finances and prestige of the club. We can
now be considered in the top 16 of Europe. This should give us more
confidence in the future.

"We know we can win difficult games."

Having secured at least £5m, Benitez can also reconsider his options in the
transfer market.

"I have not spoken to the chairman or chief executive about how much money
there is," insists Benitez..

"I'm working with the scouts, looking at different players at different
levels. The main thing is to bring in players we need, not just the most
expensive or the cheapest."



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[lfc-news] Millwall and Liverpool charged - PA

PA Sport, 9 Dec 2004
MILLWALL AND LIVERPOOL CHARGED

Millwall have become the first club to be charged by the Football
Association over racist behaviour by fans.

The disciplinary action comes after Liverpool's French defender Djimi
Traore was racially abused during the Carling Cup game at the New Den on
October 26, and Millwall have been charged with breaching FA rules by
failing to prevent racist behaviour by their fans.

Both Millwall and Liverpool each face another disciplinary charge related
to violence in a stand that had to be broken up by riot police.

The second charge against Millwall relates to missiles being thrown onto
the pitch - around 70 seats were ripped up during the disturbance - while
Liverpool are in the dock in relation to violent or threatening behaviour
by their fans.

There were claims following the match, which ended 3-0 to Liverpool, that
Millwall fans chanted songs about the Hillsborough disaster and Kenneth
Bigley, the Merseysider who had just been murdered in Iraq.

Both clubs have until December 23 to respond and Millwall are expected to
mount an impassioned defence.

The Lions chairman Theo Paphitis today attacked the credibility of the FA.

"I find it very difficult to explain it because there was never any
indication of racist abuse being brought into the discussions," he said.

"God knows what the FA are up to. We are still waiting for the FA to send
us their evidence.

"I just find the whole thing staggering. It just seems like the FA is a
rudderless-ship at the moment and are seeking publicity for their own aim.

"Racism is too an important subject to use to point score."

Paphitis added on Sky Sports News: "We will respond and we will invite the
FA for discussions.

"Maybe they will leave their palace at Soho Square to show us the evidence
they have on these charges and if they show us the evidence then maybe we
can respond in a more detailed way.

"The charges are completely ridiculous and we'll see what evidence they
have got to back it up."

Former Liverpool skipper Phil Neal, who works as a charity co-ordinator for
the families involved in the Hillsborough tragedy, was at the game as a
local radio pundit and was stunned by the chants.

He said at the time: "Seeing what happened tonight made me rather subdued,
and I had to apologise to my listeners because I did not say anything for
about 20 minutes."

Millwall's official supporters group have condemned the decision to charge
the club for racist behaviour among their fans.

Joe Broadfoot, a board member of the Lions' Trust, insisted Traore had been
singled out by Millwall fans solely for an incident during the game.

"Djimi Traore was being booed because he fouled [Millwall midfielder]
Marvin Elliott early in the game," he said. "There was no racist chanting
at all during the match.

"And when the fans began booing, I remember wondering whether the FA would
bring out the old chestnut about racism.

"It had nothing to do with racism. If a visiting player winds the home fans
up with something he does on the pitch, they will boo him. Millwall fans
are like that.

"The FA's incompetence has never astounded me, but I think that even they
have gone a stage further this time."

Broadfoot also claimed Millwall's history of supporter violence means the
slightest indiscretion is punished by stewards at The Den.

He added: "Millwall have to make sure that, as a club, they are completely
free of suspicion; they cannot afford to mess up on anything.

"That's why there is a zero-tolerance policy on racism, and people are
ejected very quickly.

"I know of people who have been thrown out of the ground simply for
shouting 'come off it ref'.

"I go to other grounds, and I always notice that the stewards are so much
more relaxed than the Millwall ones."



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[lfc-news] What a night - Echo

Liverpool Echo, 9 Dec 2004
What a night
Exclusive by Chris Bascombe, Liverpool Echo

STEVEN GERRARD today urged Liverpool not to waste the opportunity to build
on their heroic Champions League victory over Olympiakos.

The Reds looked buried when they trailed 1-0 at half-time.

But Florent Sinama-Pongolle, Neil Mellor and the skipper secured a £5m
windfall for the club with a stirring second half comeback.

Gerrard wants his 86th minute winner to prove one of the most significant
in the recent history of the club, but doesn't want the celebrations to
gloss over the work which still needs to be done.

"It's one of the most important goals I've ever scored, and I hope it turns
out to be one of the most important for the club for a long time,
especially in terms of what it means financially," said Gerrard.

"I said before the game, the team and the club is what's important. We have
to build on wins like this, not just settle for a great win and then not
progress any further.

"We've made the last 16 and we're all thrilled, but we've got to put that
behind us now. We've got the derby to come which is another masssive game
and we want to go even further in this competition.

"I think a special mention should go to the young lads who came off the
bench, who I thought were tremendous.

"Florent Sinama-Pongolle and Neil Mellor made a hell of a difference
because it was looking a bit difficult before they came on."

Gerrard's future dominated the pre-match coverage, and the skipper hopes
his openness is respected by the supporters.

He said: "I know I put a lot of pressure on myself because of what I said.
I felt I needed a big performance last night, but I was asked the questions
and I wanted to be honest. I always will be.

"If I'm asked a question, I'll give a straight answer. I'm not going to go
around the world telling lies about how I feel.

"I'm a fan as well, and I think what I've said the supporters will agree
with. The main point I've made is I want to be in a Liverpool side which is
challenging for the title and Champions League all the time.

"That's where the club needs to be. I want to be winning things with
Liverpool, not somewhere else. That's the most important thing.

"But last night wasn't about me. I scored a vital goal for the team and for
the club, not myself."



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[lfc-news] Counting down to the big derby: Part 4 - Echo

Liverpool Echo, 9 Dec 2004
Rush broke Dixie's record and Blue hearts

IAN RUSH holds Liverpool's record for derby match appearances, featuring 37
times in the fixture.

But it is another statistic which is most celebrated by Kopites everywhere.

Rush struck 25 times in derby-day action to become Everton ' s nemesis for
a decade-and-a-half.

For more than 50 years, Dixie Dean's 19 derby goals (18 League and one FA
Cup) were the most amassed in the fixture.

Then Rush took over. By the time he had finished his one-man demoliton job
on the Blues he had celebrated 25 times - 13 in league games, five in FA
Cup ties, one in a League Cup tie, one in a Charity Shield and five in the
Screen Sport Super Cup competition.

The first, uncharacteristically, was bundled in off his chest during an
Anfield derby on November 7 1981.

The most talked about statistic that afternoon was an Eamonn O'Keefe
sending-off for a high tackle on Ronnie Whelan, making him only the third
player sent-off that century in a Mersey derby.

Rush's next derby appearance, however, is still sung about on the Kop now -
22 years later!!

In one of the best goal-poaching displays ever seen in a Merseyside derby,
Rush scored four times at Goodison Park in a 5-0 rout.

Glenn Keeley was sent-off on his derby debut for hauling back Kenny
Dalglish, and Rush took ruthless advantage of the gaping holes in the
Blues' defence to run riot.

Long balls out of defence from Alan Hansen set up his first two, Mark
Lawrenson slid in the third, then Rush completed his hat-trick off a
goal-post from a Kenny Dalglish assist.

Now strutting around Goodison as if he owned the place, Sammy Lee released
Rush for a fourth - equalling the achievements of Fred Howe and Alex
'Sandy' Young..

That haul merely whetted his appetite and goals flowed regularly against
the old enemy - four famously coming in FA Cup finals - before his final
strike, appropriately enough another match-winner, came at Anfield in March
1994.

Even after leaving Anfield, Rush hadn't finished with the Blues.

He returned to Goodison Park with Newcastle in an FA Cup tie - and
scrambled his only goal in a black-and-white jersey into the Gwladys Street
goal to knock the Blues out of the cup.


# The Welsh wizards who cast a spell over Scouse derbies

THE Merseyside derby is a potent expression of civic Scouse pride.

But the fixture's two most celebrated stars statistically were Welshmen.

No-one made has made more appearances in the fixture than Neville Southall,
Everton's legendary goalkeeper who took a derby bow in March 1982 - and
stood down 15 years and 41 derby matches later; while nobody scored more
derby match goals than Liverpool's predator supreme, Ian Rush, who netted
25 goals against the team he supported as a boy, in five different
competitions.

Ahead of Saturday's 200th derby day showdown, we examine the records of the
respective derby legends.

TO put Neville Southall's astonishing derby day longevity into context,
Saturday will be the 200th showdown between the Merseyside rivals - and the
enigmatic but outstanding goalkeeper has played in 41 of them.

That is almost 25 per cent of all the Mersey derbies ever played.

He made his bow on March 27, 1982 - when Liverpool put three goals past him
at Goodison Park, then after a broken ankle ruled him out of the 1986 FA
Cup final, the subsequent Charity Shield and two Screen Sport Super Cup
finals - he made an unbroken run of 30 successive derby appearances.

Some of the saves he made in those games are imprinted on Evertonian memory
banks.

A stunning, twisting, onehanded tip over from a point-blank John Barnes
volley at Anfield, a scrambling double-save at John Aldridge's feet in the
first post-Hillsborough derby - and a crucial block, low-down to his right
to parry a Steve McManaman shot at Goodison Park.

The Reds' winger shook his head in disbelief and congratulated Southall on
the save.

He was less magnanimous 20 minutes later when the Blues built on that save
to win the derby 2-0.

That incident came in the November 1994 showdown - Joe Royle's first as
Everton manager.

Southall outlasted Royle, as he did Colin Harvey and Mike Walker during his
Everton reign.

The manager who named him on a derby team-sheet for the final time, on
October 18, 1997, was the same man who had given him his derby-debut 15
years earlier, Howard Kendall.

By the time Everton went to Anfield in February the great man was out
on-loan at Southend.

Reds' supporters and players everywhere breathed a sigh of relief.


# The top 10 . . . who crossed Stanley Park

FRED GEARY was the first player to switch derby-day allegiances, Abel
Xavier the last, but there have been plenty more throughout the 110 years
of the fixture.

Here is our top 10 of derby side-shifters:

NICK BARMBY

"IT'S not as if he's changed his religion," bleated Gerard Houllier after
paying Everton £6m in the summer of 2000 for Everton's Player of the
(previous) Season. He was right.

Evertonians would have forgiven him for such a religious trifle. Abandoning
the Blues after one of their steadier seasons in recent years was deemed
unforgiveable and spawned one of the funniest - if grimmest - Mersey derby
chants.

"We know where you live, we know where you live," chanted the Everton fans
. . . followed by the exact address and town.

RED RAG FACTOR: 9/10

ABEL XAVIER

THE colourfullycoiffured Portuguese international was out of contract when
he swapped sides in January 2002.

After two-and-a-half years at Everton when the closest he got to scoring
was in the Living Room, he netted on his Liverpool debut - but even that
wasn't enough to incite emotions on either side of Stanley Park.

Evertonians weren't sorry to see him go, Liverpudlians were equally
nonplussed to have him on-board.

BLUE HAZE FACTOR: 1/10

DAVE HICKSON

STILL the only man to feature for all three Merseyside clubs - Everton,
Liverpool and Tranmere - when Hickson's second spell at Everton ended with
a switch to Anfield both sides of Stanley Park erupted.

Evertonians were appalled, Liverpudlians weren't much happier. But they
changed their tune when he scored twice on his debut and went on to claim
38 goals in 67 appearances.

RED RAG FACTOR: 10/10

KEVIN SHEEDY

THE young Irishman was the first player since Johnny Morrissey - 20 years
earlier - to directly cross Stanley Park, and there was no doubting who got
the best of the deal.

One of the finest left-sided players the club has ever had, he also
flourished on an international stage for the Republic of Ireland.

Scoring a stunning free-kick at the Kop - then celebrating Winston
Churchill fashion - did little to make Liverpudlians recall him with much
in the way of fondness.

BLUE HAZE FACTOR: 7/10

ALAN HARPER

Such was the quality and dominance of Bob Paisley's Liverpool squad of the
1980s, they could afford to let gems like Alan Harper leave without fear of
consequence. They might have questioned the decision a year later, when he
buried a Goodison derby day equaliser.

RED RAG FACTOR: 4/10

PETER BEARDSLEY

ONE of the few players who can claim the distinction of scoring for both
sides in a Merseyside derby. Beardsley also enjoyed the unique distinction
of being universally liked. Adored at Anfield, Graeme Souness believed he
was a spent force and allowed him to cross the Park. He wasn't, but such
was his style and demeanour he was cherished by both sides.

BLUE HAZE FACTOR: 3/10

GARY ABLETT

HIS switch from Liverpool to Everton sparked one of the more embarrassing
phone calls Howard Kendall has ever taken. Sat in his office completing the
formalities of the deal, he took a call on his private line.

Daughter Hayley told him: "Dad, the Liverpool fans at school say you're
buying Gary Ablett," she said. "Yes, that's right love," replied dad.
"Don't do it," she said. "They all say he's rubbish!" He wasn't - and he
ended up claiming an FA Cup winner's medal for the Blues to add to the one
he won for the Reds six years earlier.

RED RAG FACTOR: 5/10

FRED GEARY

AN Everton legend who rattled the astonishing total of 86 goals in 98
appearances.

He joined the fledgling Liverpool Football Club in 1895, but despite four
years at Anfield his powers were clearly on the wane. He managed just 14
goals in 45 appearances from 1895 to 1899.

BLUE HAZE FACTOR: 1/10.

STEVE McMAHON

NOT a direct switch - but the two seasons McMahon spent at Villa Park
before Kenny Dalglish made him his first Liverpool signing failed to dim
Evertonian ire at his defection.

RED RAG FACTOR: 10/10.

DAVID JOHNSON

THE striker didn't just cross the park once - he did it twice! A promising
young Everton talent, he was bizarrely swapped to Ipswich Town for the
dreadful Rod Belfitt.

Liverpool spotted his potential and took him to Anfield for the most
productive years of his career. When Everton took him back in 1982 his best
days were sadly behind him.

BLUE HAZE FACTOR: 4/10.



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[lfc-news] "Excellent" Gerrard hailed by Benitez - PA

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PA Sport, 8 Dec 2004
'EXCELLENT' GERRARD HAILED BY BENITEZ

Rafael Benitez hailed his match-winning skipper Steven Gerrard after the
priceless goal that sent Liverpool into the last 16 of the Champions League.

Before the game the Liverpool boss had seen claims that his influential
midfielder would soon be on his way out of Anfield.

But Benitez insisted: "The goal was important for the team, the club, the
supporters and for Steven more because he is the captain and he wants to
win with this club and at the end it was a very, very important goal for
everyone.

"We knew before the game that it was very important for the club to gain
these extra finances. Now we have a gap between the next stage and we can
fight for other things, but for the club this result is very, very important.

"Steven was excellent, he can play from one side of the pitch to the other.
I told him he has freedom and he has talent, when you see performances like
that you see how important he is to us. He can work from end to end and it
was a wonderful display.

"But I felt that the difference between the sides was really our
supporters, I cannot that them enough.

"I want to say thank you to the supporters, they were magnificent tonight
to help us achieve this result."

Liverpool's comeback rekindled great memories of their European Cup past
and, in particular, the 1977 comeback at home to St Etienne when they had
lost the first leg away 1-0 but, thanks to 'supersub' David Fairclough,
achieved a 3-1 home success.

This time Liverpool had two supersubs in goalscorers Florent
Sinama-Pongolle and Neil Mellor to cancel out Rivaldo's free-kick opener.

Benitez said: "I had decided as we came off at the break one down that we
needed to change things and that we needed out substitute strikers, and
they both paid off for us."

Olympiakos boss Dusan Bajevic conceded that Liverpool deserved their
comeback win, saying: "When you are watching a game like that you do not
believe you can lose in that way. But we brought the problems on ourselves,
we did not create a chance from open play during the match.

"Liverpool were faster, stronger and better than us and when we conceded so
early in the second half there was always the fear that they could come
back at us. If we had held the lead a little longer maybe we could have
done something.

"But this was the worst we have played for a very long time. We had very
little up front and the pressure told on us in the end.

"Liverpool were just better on the night, we were under so much pressure
and were not able to get out of our half to really turn the pressure on them.

"We are bitter, with 10 points we have still not progressed in the
tournament. We did not give up but we did not lift the pressure on us.

"Liverpool's winner was a very good goal scored by a quality player who is
one of the best players around Europe at the moment."


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[lfc-news] Olympiakos report - PA

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PA Sport, 8 Dec 2004
Liverpool 3 Olympiakos 1

Steven Gerrard sent Anfield wild and his beloved Liverpool into the last 16
of the Champions League in a game that will go down as a fantastic night in
the club's European history.

Skipper Gerrard had made it pretty clear before the game that playing in
Europe's elite competition was all he was interested in with his whole
future on Merseyside clearly in doubt.

Lose and Gerrard would have been looking for the exit door, so the theory went.

And at half-time with a Rivaldo free-kick having put Olympiakos ahead, it
looked all over for boss Rafael Benitez's men.

They needed an unlikely three second-half goals to put them in the next
phase, but driven on by Gerrard that is exactly what they achieved.

Young substitutes Florent Sinama-Pongolle and Neil Mellor put Liverpool
level as they laid siege to the Greek goal, and with just three minutes of
normal time left, Gerrard arrived on cue to blast home a stunning 20-yard
shot to make the dream a reality.

Milan Baros returned up front from the start and Benitez included Antonio
Nunez for his first European match in Liverpool colours.

The home side launched the predictable early assault on a Greek side who
had previously never scored in a European match on English soil, or won an
away Champions League match.

The omens were good, but things started to go wrong for Liverpool as early
as the third minute when Baros seemed to have been awarded a goal for a
close range header, but Spanish referee Manuel Gonzalez was actually giving
a free-kick for a foul by the Czech while the Liverpool players were
celebrating.

The pressure continued, but Rivaldo was starting to appear in far too much
space and he saw an effort clear the bar before watching another flick off
Gerrard to clear the bar. The warning signs were already there.

Liverpool's bad luck continued when Xabi Alonso's curling free-kick from
the left was flicked goalwards by Gerrard and the ball bounced off the foot
of a post before being hacked clear.

You could have guessed what was coming, with Liverpool suffering the sucker
punch they feared on 26 minutes.

Rivaldo picked up possession off Alonso near halfway on 26 minutes and set
off on a superb run, even if he did look to hand off the Spanish midfielder
on the way.

Sami Hyypia had to bring the Brazilian down and Liverpool were punished
when Rivaldo curled the 20-yard free-kick past Chris Kirkland, the shot
going a gap in the wall. Suddenly Liverpool had to score three to progress.

Two minutes later a still angry Alonso fouled Rivaldo and was booked,
Liverpool clearly stunned by the turn of events.

The rest of the half saw Liverpool become more nervous in the face of
Rivaldo's ability to win free kicks around the edge of their box.

Without the defensive shield of the suspended Dietmar Hamann, Liverpool's
defence looked vulnerable.

With Gerrard and Alonso both trying to push forward, the Greeks found
plenty of space to exploit in front of Liverpool's back line, just to add
to the tension.

Rivaldo by now was enraging the home players and fans by his ability to hit
the deck at every opportunity.

Jamie Carragher was booked for one foul on the Brazilian who was virtually
running the show with his clever, street-wise play.

At the break Liverpool threw on another forward in Pongolle, with Djimi
Traore going off and Jon Arne Riise reverting to full-back.

And the move worked within two minutes of the restart when Kewell battled
his way to the byline and found Pongolle in the six yard box with his low
cross. The French teenager stabbed home the equaliser.

The game threatened to get out of hand after a fierce challenge by Gerrard
on Tassos Pantos upset the Greeks, and then when Giovanni tried to kick the
Liverpool captain, Gerrard followed through into Ieroklis Stoltidis and was
booked.

Then Gerrard thought he had scored when a hook from the edge of the box
squirmed through the hands of Antonios Nikopolidis and rolled into the net.

But in the build-up Gabriel Schurrer had gone down in a challenge with
Baros, and the Spanish referee upset the Kop even more by taking play back
and awarding the Greeks a free-kick.

With 12 minutes left, Liverpool replaced the tiring Baros with Mellor, the
last throw of the dice for Benitez.

And the Mellor gamble worked with 10 minutes to go when he smashed the ball
home from close range after Nikopolidis had palmed away a Nunez header from
Pongolle's cross.

Suddenly hope was restored as Liverpool went in search of the goal that
would send them through.

And with three minutes left Mellor's nod down gave Gerrard the chance to
send Anfield wild with a blistering 20-yard effort that at last gave
Liverpool their two goal margin.

Liverpool: Kirkland, Finnan (Josemi 85), Carragher, Hyypia, Traore (Sinama
Pongolle 45), Nunez, Alonso, Gerrard, Riise, Kewell, Baros (Mellor 78).
Subs not used: Dudek, Henchoz, Diao, Warnock.
Booked: Alonso, Carragher Gerrard
Goals: Sinama Pongolle 47, Mellor 81, Gerrard 86

Olympiakos: Nikopolidis, Pantos, Anatolakis, Schurrer, Venetidis (Maric
84), Georgiadis (Rezic 70), Kafes, Stoltidis, Djordjevic, Rivaldo, Giovanni
(Okkas 87).
Subs not used: Giannou, Kouloucheris, Castillo, Vallas.
Booked: Pantos, Schurrer
Goals: Rivaldo 26

Att:42,045
Referee: Manuel Enrique Mejuto Gonzalez (Spain)

Champions League last 16.
Group A: Monaco, Liverpool. Group B: Bayer Leverkusen, Real Madrid. Group
C: Juventus, Bayern Munich. Group D: Lyon, Man Utd. Group E: Arsenal, PSV,
Group F: AC Milan, Barcelona. Group G: Inter Milan, Werder Bremen. Group H:
Chelsea, Porto


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[lfc-news] Countdown to the big derby: Part 3 - Echo

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Liverpool Echo, 8 Dec 2004
# After wartime famine, Scouse fans gorge on return of rivalry

"ANY spares?" will be the words heard all over Merseyside in the build-up
to Saturday's 200th Merseyside derby.

But in the days before all-ticket derbies, it was a case of first come,
first served.

And on September 18, 1948, an astonishing 78,299 supporters managed to cram
into Goodison Park before the "house full" signs were posted.

The nation was rediscovering competitive football again after a wartime
diet of friend-lies and regional clashes, and the first clash of the 1948-9
season saw an attendance which is unlikely ever to be topped on Merseyside.

Goodison's previous ground record was 74,721 - set in a match that did not
feature Everton!

With Manchester United's Old Trafford ground closed because of bomb damage
sustained during the War, United's fourth round FA Cup tie the previous
season had been played at Goodison Park.

But even that astonishing mark was eclipsed for the showdown of the Mersey
giants in 1948.

"Each section of the ground looked to be well and truly packed and there
were many thousands outside.

"There were many casualties and some swaying in parts of the paddock,"
reported that night's Football ECHO.

The match itself ended all square.

With TG Jones forced to the touchline to receive treatment, Liverpool took
advantage of the gap in the Everton rearguard to snatch a late lead through
Joe Fagan.

But with Liverpool seemingly set for victory, Shepherd handled a Wally
Boyes shot.

Jones was the ordained penalty taker but, still carrying his injury,
declined the responsibility.

Instead, Ephraim 'Jock' Dodds stepped up and drove the ball past Sidlow.

The match ended 1-1, but the most memorable statistic was a gate of 78,599
- later amended officially to 78,299, and still a record on Merseyside.

Goodison derbies topped the 70,000 mark on a further three occasions - in
August 1949, September 1950 and finally in September 1962, the last
occasion a league fixture attracted a crowd of more than 70,000 in this
country.


# How Reds great Liddell made most of rare derby

WITH Everton and Liverpool swopping places in the top-flight in the 1950s,
Merseyside derbies were rare occasions to be relished when they came along.

One, in particular, which always stood out in Billy Liddell's mind.

Speaking before his death a couple of years ago, he recalled vividly: "Of
all the derby games I played in, one stands out - when Liverpool, then in
the Second Division, went to Goodison in the Cup in 1955 and won 4-0.

"I scored the first goal and the thrill of winning so convincingly was even
more than that of the 1950 semi-final when we beat Everton 2-0 at Maine Road.

"Although the papers and radio used to build up the derby so much, I never
found it a great deal harder than any other. I didn't seem to suffer from
any nerves.

"There has always been tension surrounding the fixture. That's one of the
troubles - no-one wants to get beaten in this particular match.

"Even so, there has always been a close link between the players of both clubs.

"I used to see Peter Farrell quite a lot - speaking at youth clubs together
- but friendship had to be put aside at least twice a year.

"Maybe I'm prejudiced, but I have always said that the Mersey derby is the
best in the country.

"There often seems to be trouble in Manchester and, of course, a different
type of fervour causes problems in the Rangers-Celtic match.

"Anfield is a little better than Goodison for atmosphere - maybe it is
because the ground is more compact compared with the high stands at Everton.

"But the supporters seem more mature than at most other grounds. "Though
there are younger supporters, the average age seems higher than in most
places - and, above all, everyone seems to appreciate good football."


# D-Day looms for the Gang of Four
Paddy Shennan talks to the four men who help stage the Merseyside derbies

IT takes more than two sets of players and fans to make a Merseyside derby.

The games wouldn't be able to take place at all if it wasn't for the work
put in by those responsible for ensuring the safety of fans, and keeping
order both inside and around the ground and in the city centre afterwards.

As the city prepares for the 200th Merseyside derby, the ECHO brought
together a very important Gang of Four - the Merseyside police football
liaison officers for Everton and Liverpool and the clubs' safety officers -
for a special pre-match meeting at Goodison Park.

Not that they're strangers. Inspector Lindsay Veitch (in the Blue corner)
and Inspector Bernie Swift (in the Red corner) work together day in, day
out, while Goodison ground safety officer Norman Whibley and Ged Poynton,
Anfield's stadium manager and safety certificate holder, meet regularly.

And Ged obviously has the greatest respect for his friend across the park,
because he turned up at Goodison in blue jacket, blue shirt and blue tie!

But how friendly - or otherwise - are Everton--Liverpool games these days?

And how different are they to other high-profile Premiership games on
Merseyside, involving matches against clubs from, say, Manchester, London
or the Midlands?

"I don't think we can bury our heads in the sand and say all fans from both
clubs arrive at the games hand in hand," says Inspector Bernie Swift, who's
been on the Anfield beat since 1996.

"I think it's great that there is such a passionate atmosphere at the
games, but there can be unpleasant incidents. One thing which has certainly
increased in recent years, for example, is the number of complaints being
made by fans about the behaviour of players on the pitch, regarding alleged
incitement and provocation."

Although, he adds, the police have to be cautious about such complaints,
and what may motivate them: "I've never known of an incident in which a fan
wants to complain about the behaviour of one of his or her own players."

That's tribal loyalty for you, I suppose.

Inspector Lindsay Veitch took over from the retiring Inspector Tom King in
the summer, but has many years of derby experience in other police roles.
And he says: "While there is an element that may look for confrontation,
the vast majority of fans are decent people."


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Brilliant. Completely superb.

Liverpool started tonight, with the usual complications you get on the last night of 4-teams-in-a-group footy tournaments, needing to win by two clear goals. (Unless blah blah blah).

When Rivaldo scored from a poorly-defended free kick in the middle of the first half, it looked like UEFA cup action for Liverpool in the new year.

At half-time it was still 1-0. This meant they needed to score 3 goals in the second half.

Liverpool could do things like that in the seventies and eighties. Of course they famously did just that against St Etienne in the 1976-77 season. The season that brought them their first European trophy.

In those days a striker by the name of David Fairclough started to be known as supersub.

Tonight there were two super-subs. Sinama-Pongolle, on at half-time, put Liverpool level after less than one minute of the first half.

Neil Mellor came on with around 15 minutes to go. And scored. 2-1. They couldn't could they?

Well yes. Neil Mellor laid the ball back to his captain, and Steven Gerrard ensured Liverpool were into the last 16 and the knock-out stages of the tournament. After the game Gerrard commented that it's been a long time since he's hit one as "sweet" as that.

It's the sort of game that only happens in films. And one they need to make into a film. To be shown to the players before the next Champions League game to prove to them how good they can be.

Let's hope they play the second leg at home.

Well done Liverpool - an all-round good performance, certainly in the second half.

More reports to follow.

[lfc-news] Time running out for Gerrard - Post

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Liverpool Daily Post, 8 Dec 2004
Time running out for Gerrard
By Andy Hunter, Daily Post

LIVERPOOL will have form, home passions and a tradition of European heroics
on their side at Anfield tonight but they do not have any more time among
the also-rans if Steven Gerrard is to provide their inspiration beyond this
season.

Liverpool not only have to defeat Olympiakos to book a place in the
knockout stages of the Champions League and pocket an extra £5million from
UEFA, they must beat the Greeks to simply keep the wolves from Gerrard's
door in January.

The club and the player will not contemplate an Anfield exit during the
transfer window and no matter how big an offer they receive or how much
money they require to construct a new squad or stadium, Gerrard (above)
will continue to drive Liverpool this season.

If the new year brings only UEFA Cup football for a fourth time in five
seasons, however, then there will be more chance of peace and love at an
AGM than of Liverpool keeping their prized asset beyond next summer.

Gerrard left no-one in any doubt yesterday that Liverpool have got six
months to prove they can compete for the Premiership title and Champions
League or the loyalty that resisted Chelsea in the summer would be
seriously strained when they inevitably come calling again.

That is exactly the message the skipper has relayed to Rick Parry and
Rafael Benitez ever since doubts over his Anfield future first emerged, and
while his words will provoke under-standable fear among supporters the
refusal to hide behind false platitudes does him credit.

Gerrard would love nothing more than to hold the game's greatest prizes
aloft in a Liverpool shirt. And despite lending his support to chairman
David Moores last week, the brutal reality is the club has to give Benitez
every opportunity to compete with Arsenal, Chelsea and United - and fast..

At 24 the England international already fears time is slipping by in which
to match his world-class talent with an appropriate medal collection.

So with Champions League qualification on a knife-edge against Olympiakos,
expect to see a performance that even eclipses Gerrard's usual standards at
Anfield tonight.

He insisted: "It is not about me at the moment, it is about how well the
team does. If I am successful at this club I won't have to be looking
anywhere else but if things are not looking good then I will have to think
again in the summer.

"I am a winner and I want to win medals. By the time I am 35 I want a big
family and to be able to show my children all the medals I won in my career.

"I have supported this club all my life so it will mean a lot more to win
those medals with Liverpool and I hope from now until the end of the season
the club shows it is as ambitious as I am to win something.

"I will be 25 next summer and will only have five or six years left at the
highest level to win things so I hope the turnaround will happen quite
sharpish.

"I want to give the club the best chance to get back in the title race and
to be successful. That is why I decided to stay in the summer. I didn't
want to make a quick decision in the summer, I wanted to help turn things
around this season.

"I don't have to say how important this game is against Olympiakos, but I
hope if we win the manager will get the money to strengthen the squad.
Everyone knows the club needs strengthening.

"The manager knows better than anyone how many players he needs but it
would be nice to see a few new faces in January."

Gerrard and an uncertain Liverpool future were inextricably linked the
moment his head was turned at Euro 2004 by Chelsea's staggering
£110,000-a-week offer and the promise of an all-out assault on the title
and European Cup.

And he has already contemplated the consequences of leaving Anfield in his
prime as captain as he admits his frustrations are borne out of being a
Liverpool fan, while his ambitions must be shaped by life as a professional
at the top of his game.

"The fans want the same as I do," he insists. "I know if I leave the club
at any time in the next two or three years I will have some fans who
support my decision and others who turn against me. It is only natural they
don't want to see their best players leave, and as the captain and a local
lad it would probably hurt them more if I decided to go.

"I am in a difficult situation. I am a fan myself and I want to win things
with Liverpool but I don't have time on my side.

"I can't wait three or four years for the club to turn around and to wait
for it to become a title-winning side again. I hope it happens this season
but already we are 15 points off the top. Hopefully we can be in the frame
by the end of this season and be in the title race from the very start of
next season."

But Gerrard wants improvement now, and Liverpool will take a small but
crucial step forward if they defeat Olympiakos in tonight's Group A
decider. Anything else is unthinkable.

"It will be a disaster for the club and myself personally if we end up in
the UEFA Cup," admits Gerrard. "I have already won it, it plays second
fiddle to the Champions League and I don't settle for second best. The
Champions League is where I want to be. All the players here realise how
massive it is so tomorrow is so important individually and for the club.

"That's why I think you will see a very big Liverpool performance against
Olympiakos.

"I have never seen the boys so excited before a match and we will show what
being in the Champions League means to us."

He added: "Nobody is talking about the UEFA Cup at the moment and hopefully
that will still be the case come Thursday morning. Everyone at the club
wants to stay in the Champions League and we don't want to be thinking
about the UEFA Cup draw at the end of the week.

"It's a massive week for the fans because these are the games they want to
see, us in Europe and then playing Everton on Saturday. These are also the
games you want to play in, but from now to the end of the season the games
will just get bigger and bigger.

"There are a lot of things to play for and we want to have a successful
season, so we must just concentrate on doing our best in every game.

"I wouldn't say it's win or bust but it is a massive game for me personally
and everybody associated to Liverpool."

Gerrard believes the response Liverpool have issued to their astonishing
injury crisis is reason itself to be confident that the victory he craves
tonight and the improvement he demands this season can be achieved.

He explains: "You can either feel sorry for yourself when you have a lot of
injuries or dig deep. We showed against Arsenal and in the first half
against Aston Villa how we are dealing with it and hopefully we can build
on those performances until the end of the season.

"Being realistic I don't think we can win the Champions League this season
but I do think we can improve on our quarter-final place of a few years
ago. We have a better squad and a better team now.

"The squad still needs rebuilding though, you only need to look at the
league table to see there is still some strengthening to do. The manager
has only been here five months but he is definitely the man to turn it
around. How soon he will do it I don't know.

"The players are getting used to the manager and what he wants. He is a
fantastic coach, one of the best I've ever worked with, but how quickly he
can turn it around I don't know."

Instantly would not only be nice, it is vital.


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[lfc-news] Skipper leads way in battle against transfer vultures - Echo

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Liverpool Echo, 8 Dec 2004
Skipper leads way in battle against transfer vultures
By Chris Bascombe, Liverpool Echo

A CASH-STRAPPED club will fight to avoid a multi-million pound injection
into the accounts this evening.

A west London consortium is desperate to plough £30m into Liverpool
Football Club in exchange for a certain number eight.

Worried fans should be comforted by the knowledge this is one particular
cash investment Steven Gerrard himself is trying to render unnecessary.

Ever since the skipper rejected Chelsea last summer, Liverpool's opponents
have tried to recreate the circumstances which forced him to consider leaving.

Tonight they sense an ideal opportunity.

Liverpool failing to overcome Olympiakos will make Gerrard's departure for
Stamford Bridge or Highbury inevitable, according to common wisdom.

The skipper's craving for Champions League is cited as a reason why,
somewhat overlooking the fact he's cup-tied and couldn't play in Europe for
any other club this season.

While not lacking validity, the scare-mongering regarding Gerrard's future
relies on the presumption Liverpool won't make significant improvements
before the summer.

Six months before the end of the season, on the day of a game which could
transform the mood of the club, supporters are being asked to consider the
dire consequences of a poor campaign.

Since Liverpool could be celebrating reaching the later stages of the
Champions League in a few hours, this seems a tad premature.

The case supporting an imminent Gerrard transfer infers Liverpool will lose
to Olympiakos, presenting a worst case scenario where the end of the
skipper's tether is nigh.

Even his charitable words of sympathy for David Moores to the ECHO last
Friday - made as a friend to a friend in need rather than a demand for the
chairman to stay in charge for the next ten years - have been mischievously
misinterpreted as some kind of ultimatum.

Clearly a Liverpool failure tonight won't just be damaging for financial
reasons, it will expose the club to more intense stalking from Chelsea,
those close to Chelsea, and those who have nothing to do with Chelsea but
are desperate for Liverpool to lose their best player.

Rather than slice their brains with concerns about the future, Liverpool
supporters know well enough to judge Gerrard on the present.

For as long as he's here, he should be cherished. And the contribution he's
making to ensure success and a stay well beyond this season must not be
taken for granted.

These are not the performances of a player with his mind elsewhere. His
form hits new peaks with every game, and Chelsea-lovers ignore at their
peril the fact that he, as much as anyone else in red tonight, will be
doing his best to inspire Liverpool to the last 16.

It must be matter of grave disappointment for the Londoners to see Gerrard
fighting so hard to ensure he stays.

"This game isn't about Steven Gerrard, or January, or the summer, it's
about Liverpool Football Club," said Gerrard yesterday, when the 'Chelsea'
question was first posed.

"It's not about my future at Anfield. I want to play Champions League
football. I stated that at the beginning of the season and I have done for
several years. I won the UEFA Cup and I respect it, but it's second best to
the Champions League. As a player and as a club, we don't want second best."

Gerrard later went further. "If I am successful at this club I won't have
to be looking anywhere else, but if things aren't looking good then I will
have to think again in the summer," he said..

Did anyone think the situation was any different? "It's not win or bust
tonight, but it's a massive game for me, personally, and everyone
associated with Liverpool," added Gerrard..

"Everyone needs to be on their game. You can expect a good performance.
I've never seen the boys so excited about a match before. This club needs
to be in the Champions League. This is the competition to be in.

"Financially it's important, but it's where the boys want to be.

"We won't be underestimating Olympiakos. We'll show them respect, but we've
got to concentrate on ourselves.

"A lot of people were down when we had the injuries. We could either sink
or swim, and I think we've been swimming along very nicely. Now we have
some new faces back. Things are looking good.

"Unfortunately, Didi Hamann is out so maybe I'll have play a more
disciplined role, but I can guarantee I'll be up for this one.

"The fans understand we don't need to win it in the first 15 minutes. The
fans have their part to play, but I know they'll make as much as noise as
they can."


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[lfc-news] Why future could hinge on Anfield progression - Post

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Liverpool Daily Post, 7 Dec 2004
Why future could hinge on Anfield progression
By Mark Lawrenson, Daily Post

I ALWAYS looked forward to night games at Anfield, because they had a
special atmosphere surrounding them.

Add a big European game to the mix and you have a tremendous occasion,
which is what the players are preparing for against Olympiakos.

I remember that I could sense when something was a bit different from the
norm on my way to the ground and then in the dressing room.

By the time we made it out on to the pitch, everyone was buzzing and
feeling inspired, from the crowd to the stewards, the players and
management team.

For a game like that, the great players show everybody just why they are great.

Tomorrow night, I expect the likes of Steven Gerrard and Xabi Alonso to do
just that in front of a packed Anfield with the crowd lifting the roof off
the stadium. I can't see the Greeks being able to withstand that pressure.

If you said to Rafael Benitez before the Champions League campaign started
that he would have to win the last game at home to get through, I think
he'd have taken that. Given the way the team have played in the past couple
of games against Arsenal and Aston Villa, I believe this match could be
coming at just the right time for them.

The system they have been forced into playing because of the lack of
strikers has coincided with the return of Gerrard, and that has melded the
team into a formidable force.

They were too good for Arsenal and with a little more luck and ruthlessness
against Villa, they'd have won by three or four goals.

With that in mind - and if he is fully fit - I'd have no hesitation
bringing Milan Baros back into the starting line-up. A more lively striker
is definitely needed to really complement the verve and enthusiasm we've
seen in the last week.

Hamstrings are funny things though, because you are either fully fit, or
you cannot play. There is no in-between.

In training this week he will have to have worked himself hard - pushing
off, stopping, twisting - and if he has felt it at all, then he should not
risk further injury.

Should Liverpool come through - and I expect them to - then I believe the
fact they are in the Champions League knockout phases will shake loose a
genuine bidder in the current war of words over who controls the club.

If you ask any Liverpool manager from the last 15 years, they will tell you
that David Moores is the best chairman they have ever worked for. He tries
his best to get what they ask for, while keeping out of team affairs and
supporting them to the hilt.

But judging by his comments of the past few days, about maybe it is time to
go, I think if a genuine bidder comes along and wants to take control of
the club, then he would let them. You'll notice I say a genuine bidder. I
don't think the club has received a genuine bid yet, one that values the
club at what it is worth.

Once the Champions League is secured, then we will see just who comes out
of the woodwork.


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[lfc-news] Ian Rush column - Echo

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Liverpool Echo, 7 Dec 2004
Let Milan make start on return
By Ian Rush, Liverpool Echo

MILAN BAROS will be desperate to take part in what is a massive game
tomorrow night and I'm sure he will be back to lead the Liverpool attack.

His experience in European and international football will be so important
to the Reds.

No doubt Olympiakos will come to Anfield looking to defend. The Greeks are
renowned for it - that is how they won Euro 2004.

But Liverpool have three or four match-winners in their ranks and can
afford to be patient.

The crowd will also make a massive difference. It will be another great
European night.

After his hamstring injury, there may be a temptation to start the game
with Baros on the bench. But if the player feels right, it is better to
start with him.

I faced a similar situation with Michael Branch as my Chester side faced
Halifax in the FA Cup at the weekend.

After a month out he was flying in training and I decided I would rather
start with him and hope to get an hour or so out of him.

Sometimes with players coming back from injury you are better off starting
with them because if they come on as a sub they may not be fully warmed-up.

It worked for us on Saturday. Michael scored twice and I got 85 minutes out
of him.

Passion can lift Reds

EVERTON are the favourites in Saturday's derby.

They are flying in the league and will be facing a Reds side coming off the
back of a huge European match just four days earlier.

Everton are hard to break down. They have had six 1-0 wins in the league so
far this season.

But no team can cope with the quick passing football we saw Liverpool play
against Arsenal and in the first half at Aston Villa.

The big concern is how much tomorrow night's game will take out of Rafael
Benitez's players.

But if one thing can equal the occasion of a major European game, it is a
Merseyside derby.

Clarets have proved threat

LIVERPOOL have not been handed an easy tie in the FA Cup third round.

Burnley knocked Aston Villa out of the Carling Cup earlier in the season.
The Reds must be aware of that and get their preparations spot on.

I can even see it going to a replay, but Liverpool should have enough
quality to go through.

Although you dream of a Premiership draw, I'm not too disappointed Chester
will face Bournemouth away.

Our main aim was to be in the hat for the third round and we achieved that.

We are capable of beating Bournemouth. The pressure is off and we are
playing better away.


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