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Liverpool FC: 20 for 20-21


Firemans4Horn

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https://www.bbc.com/news/uk-politics-56807515

buried in a bunch of stuff we already know:

Downing Street said ministers were looking at a "range of options", including a German-style system of fan ownership of clubs and clawing back coronavirus support loans.

But Labour urged ministers to do more, with shadow culture secretary Jo Stevens saying it was "time for the government to get off the subs bench and show some leadership on the pitch because we need reform of football".

She added: "It's not as if there's been a blockage here in Parliament preventing the government from taking action to sort the problems out."

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Si Hughes take from the Athletic:

Spoiler

Come and work for Liverpool, an advert has enthusiastically told listeners on local Merseyside radio recently. It is the place to be, where a full-time contract will mean you are a significant part of an already wonderful team. In fact, scrub that — why stop there? You will instead become family…
Yuck.
Families, remember, are not always functional. Perhaps this explains why only at around 8.30 this morning, employees of LFC received an email confirming what everyone already knew.
It came from Billy Hogan, the chief executive appointed last autumn as Peter Moore’s replacement.
The Athletic can exclusively reveal what Hogan wrote and some of the more interesting points that deviate from the waffle already included in other statements are highlighted below in bold…

Dear Colleagues,
You will be aware of the announcement published late last night regarding Europe’s leading football Clubs coming together to establish a new mid-week competition, the European Super League, governed by its Founding Clubs.
It’s important as a member of our team that I share with you some of the context.
For quite some time now, Clubs, including our own, have held numerous longstanding concerns about not only the future of European football but also the way football is run by UEFA. The global pandemic has also accelerated the instability in the existing European football economic model.
We have therefore joined AC Milan, Arsenal, Atletico Madrid, Chelsea, Barcelona, Inter Milan, Juventus, Manchester City, Manchester United, Real Madrid and Tottenham Hotspur as Founding Clubs of the Super League. It is anticipated that a further three Clubs will join ahead of the inaugural season, which is intended to commence as soon as practicable.
The Super League will be the future of European football and if we want to continue our journey of being a sustainable Club with ambition to grow and continue winning trophies then we should absolutely be part of that process and have a seat at the table rather than outside that group.
The new annual tournament will provide significantly greater economic growth and support for European football via a long-term commitment to uncapped solidarity payments which will grow in line with league revenues. These solidarity payments are expected to be roughly three times what is currently achieved from UEFA competitions. One of the core commitments of the European Super League is to vastly increase financial support for the football pyramid.
After the start of the men’s competition, a corresponding women’s league will also be launched, helping to advance and develop the women’s game.
We know that this announcement has provoked strong feelings within the game and elsewhere but we believe this decision is in the best long-term interests of Liverpool Football Club.
Importantly, this is the beginning of the journey and we can now start an engagement process with you, supporters and key stakeholders to help shape this process in the right way.
There is still much more information to come in due course.
I will keep you updated as we progress on this journey and discuss further on our Town Hall tomorrow.
Thank you for your continued support.

Now, I have long believed any football club’s sense of self-importance can be measured by whether its senior staff insist on part of the title at the institution they represent being consistently referred to with a capital C on all official correspondence even when mentioned independent from the rest of the name.
That’s one box ticked off, a minor revelation that nevertheless might help illustrate why we have reached this point.
Private or not, Hogan became the first person from Liverpool to put his signature to any of his own comments relating to where this is all heading. John W Henry, it turns out, is more comfortable with allowing Manchester United’s Joel Glazer speak for him on his own club’s website.
Staff, of course, might find out more about what will happen next if they register at the “Town Hall” — which, it is fair to say, is not the sort of dialogue anyone from Merseyside would use for what is essentially a business update.
Yet this is the way it has been at Liverpool for a long time, a club (note the small c) that permanently seems to be battling with itself because the language of local supporters is not used by the figures who run it. Here, it is sharply felt that the word “growth” masks uglier pursuits, and that the global image pushed by those who stand to eventually profit from it does not correlate with a grim reality.
It is true the commodification of LFC began long ago. Hogan, who was hired in 2012 initially as a commercial officer, had upon his appointment wanted to know exactly how much money each supporter was generating. Spreadsheets revealed the potential yield per seat inside Anfield and this reinforced the notion that more money could be made not by attendance and active participation in any live event but through a contract with a television company.
Despite the recent trophies, cringing and embarrassment have never too far away. Since becoming European champions in 2019 for a sixth time, Liverpool’s owners have unsuccessfully attempted to trademark the city’s name, backtracked on plans to take money from the public purse via the government’s furlough scheme and been outed as one of the conspirators in “Project Big Picture“. The club’s 2018 slogan devised in-house (and not embraced by the fanbase, it has to be stressed) should be amended for a more accurate representation: “We are Liverpool, this means (we think we are entitled to a lot, lot) more.”

Not so long ago, chairman Tom Werner told The Athletic that Liverpool would not back any plans that threatened to damage the domestic game. “Our first intention is to protect the inherent strength of the Premier League,” he said in the summer of 2019. “I don’t want to participate in anything that in any way harms the experience both from a Liverpool supporter’s point of view and also in the primacy of English football.”
Only a month ago, indeed, Hogan thanked the fans for their patience throughout the pandemic. There is something to be gained by saying, “It is never taken for granted but in the absence of supporters at Anfield, we have had a reminder of why we value it as much as we do”, but evidently there is less to be gained by engaging with them even though you know your superiors are busy signing their futures away.
Even if Henry did speak, how could anyone really trust what he says? When he chose to stay silent despite being at the centre of Big Picture, sources close to him were insistent that he cared about the structure of English football. Despite criticism of the plan, it was possible to see some benefits for those who needed money most but this is different. The owners, Fenway Sports Group, tend to get incredibly upset whenever they are called greedy capitalists but no other description feels appropriate at the moment.

 

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13 hours ago, Buzzrock said:

Agree with Klopp here
 

Neville is a grandstanding cunt.  Never said a word about the multitude of events that gave rise to the current situation but is now "courageously" railing against the resulting situation in a transparent effort to burnish his personal brand.  Very 2020s.  Klopp's dissection of Neville is a bit more subtle and biting than the media has recognized imo.

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With Chelsea being the first domino, how soon do we think FSG takes to back out? Even if they do, you have to think there will be tremendous pressure to force them out. I'm not sure what can be done but all the goodwill they built up has been erased. 

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3 minutes ago, mdmost said:

With Chelsea being the first domino, how soon do we think FSG takes to back out? Even if they do, you have to think there will be tremendous pressure to force them out. I'm not sure what can be done but all the goodwill they built up has been erased. 

United fans tried to burn Ed Woodward's house down and led years long LUHG/Green and Gold campaigns to no avail.  Liverpool is also in the midst of its most successful run since the 80s.   

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15 minutes ago, mdmost said:

Shitty statement. Fuck off with talk of stakeholders. Stakeholder talk is part of the problem. Nothing about the supporters. FSG OUT!

to be fair, I think the supporters are included in the "stakeholders" but I'm with you.  Hard to see this ending well with FSG.

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2 hours ago, mdmost said:

This is how you do it and comes from a club that also has an American owner.

 

 

"It doesn't make a shit" -Super Bill Bradley

 

All 12 are covered in an oil slick of greed. Who gives a fuck about their PR after the fact. Changes nothing. Man City aren't heroes for leaving first and Real Madrid aren't any worse for staying in longer.

 

FSG are a private equity firm that have been living on yachts the last 20 years; they vultured Liverpool FC at a rock bottom price. With all the foot in mouth moments the last decade they have achieved some great heights through Klopp and Edwards while running a balanced budget. Doesn't mean they aren't greedy mother fuckers.

 

They just sold out to a SPAC (they Ivy league version of cryptocurrency). They would sell the club to MBS or the dumbfuck from WeWork if they got a big enough multiple on their investment.

 

 

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1 hour ago, Hagbard Celine said:

of all the owners, henry and fenway should have known better than to faafo.

google is not cooperating; i can't find the best ynwa banner from the hicks / gillet debacle....

 

here before you

here after you

here despite you


“Blow me, Fuck Face” -Tom Hicks Jr (don Jr’s coke buddy these days)

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Put me in the camp of man that was bad, but this ownership group has done a crapload of great things for the club.  From the squad reinvestment, to the hiring and extension of Klopp, to the sound financial status we have, and the renovation and expansion of Anfield.  

Can't deny the missteps for sure, but some of the fans anger needs to be balanced a bit imo.

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1 hour ago, pied said:

Put me in the camp of man that was bad, but this ownership group has done a crapload of great things for the club.  From the squad reinvestment, to the hiring and extension of Klopp, to the sound financial status we have, and the renovation and expansion of Anfield.  

Can't deny the missteps for sure, but some of the fans anger needs to be balanced a bit imo.

It's hard as a fan living 5,000 miles away to appreciate the gut punch this was. I think the dust will settle but Liverpool Locals will never forget. Global fans will forget as soon as we sign Haaland.  

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FSG were so focused on getting more revenue, understandably with having to keep up with Chelsea and City, that they forgot what made Liverpool the global brand they so desire it to be. I don't begrudge them trying to get more revenue. I want Haaland or Mbappe as much as the next fan. I do begrudge the way they went about doing it. They severely misjudged the desire of their supporters for Super League. Tradition, even if it's crumbling and corrupt in England, is still a big deal. Liverpool isn't just a global brand to the supporters who have attended matches there for decades. It's part of the identity of the city and region. This whole episode reminded FSG just what built the foundation of the club whose brand their banking on. You'll Never Walk Alone isn't some creation an ad wizard came up with. Americans here don't have the same concepts about a club that the English do. Our clubs can leave the area if they wish. The closest is college fandom. Texas isn't leaving Austin for another city. 

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I don't disagree with either of you.  Owners, like managers are gamble.  Some work out and some don't.  They've made some huge missteps with the season ticket price, COVID furlough among a few others.  Part of the greatness of the fans and area is they don't forget and the examples are obvious.  My only point si that I hope all involved look at the good things they've done as well.  Reading the message boards and listening to TAW I think many are. 

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This SL seems to have taken what air we still had out of this thread’s sails. 
 

Klopp had some good stuff to say in his program notes. 
 

Supposedly agreed to a deal for Konate. 
 

Play on peasuck at the 7:30 game tomorrow. 

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TEAM NEWS

Liverpool have Curtis Jones back in contention after a three-match absence because of a muscle injury.

Nat Phillips missed Monday night's draw at Leeds with a hamstring strain and remains unavailable.

Newcastle winger Allan Saint-Maximin has recovered from the swollen ankle which prompted his substitution against West Ham last week.

Ryan Fraser and Karl Darlow have had respective groin and knee operations and face a few weeks on the sidelines.

Fabian Schar is close to a comeback from ruptured knee ligaments but Saturday's game may come too soon.

MATCH FACTS

Head-to-head

Liverpool haven't lost at home to Newcastle in 24 league matches spanning 27 years (W20, D4).

The goalless draw in the reverse fixture at St James' Park ended a run of five successive Liverpool victories against Newcastle.

Liverpool

Liverpool are unbeaten in four Premier League matches, winning three.

However, Jurgen Klopp's side could become the first team since Sunderland in 2008 to concede the first goal in eight consecutive Premier League home games.

They have dropped 13 points from winning positions in the league this season, more than in their previous two campaigns combined.

The Reds have lost six top-flight home fixtures in a season for the first time since 1953-54. They most recently lost seven in the 1937-38 campaign.

This is also the first time since 1954 that Liverpool have lost as many as 10 competitive matches in a calendar year before the end of April. They last fared worse in 1953, with 12 defeats.

Mohamed Salah is one short of becoming the first player to reach 20 top-flight goals for Liverpool in three seasons since Ian Rush did so four times in the 1980s.

Newcastle United

Newcastle are unbeaten in their past three matches (W2, D1), having been winless in their previous seven in the league.

They could win three top-flight fixtures in a row for the first time since November 2018 under Rafael Benitez.

Steve Bruce last won three consecutive Premier League games in January 2009 during a run of four while in charge of Wigan Athletic.

Ciaran Clark's next Premier League appearance will be the 200th of his career, as well as his 100th in any division for Newcastle.

LAWRO'S PREDICTION

I always thought Newcastle would get results when they really needed them and they have done exactly that in the past couple of weeks.

The Magpies are not mathematically safe yet, of course, but they are eight points above third-bottom Fulham, who are not going to catch them.

Liverpool played really well in the first half against Leeds on Monday and should have scored more than the one goal they managed. In the second half, though, they were really poor and could have conceded a lot more than one.

That is a worry, even if you factor in how good Leeds are, so the Reds need to find some consistency here.

Prediction: 2-0

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