On Liverpool vs Tottenham

The Reds showed great character as they held on to a 2-0 victory against top 4 rival Spurs. It’s sad that I even need to use the phrase ‘top 4 rival’. It was great to see Albert Riera back on the pitch; he had some classy touches, and with match fitness, should put in a goal or two. Riera might even be best as a left forward of sorts. We did not get to see any of his left wing trickery.

Kudos to Dirk Kuyt for the all-important opener after a nice give and go with Aquaman. Aquilani gave his best every second on the pitch; more importantly this attribute can be applied to any member of the team. My only wish is to see more of Maxi Rodriguez. Degen was alright, but Maxi is supposed to have the higher pedigree.

The next five games are crucial: at Wolves, Bolton, Merseyside Derby, at Arsenal, and at Man City. Hopefully we have the quality and composure to beat Wolves and Bolton. The latter three matches are up for grabs. Everton has seen a revival: players are returning from injuries, and they have a great manager.

In reality, we need to beat Arsenal at the Emirates, to continue pressure on Spurs and Man City. Who knows, with Steven Gerrard back, we may even creep up to 3rd place.

On Stoke vs Liverpool

When I woke up today, I immediately checked my phone to see today’s line-up. To me surprise, Benitez played 6 natural defenders, and two defensive-minded midfielders, and Maxi Rodriguez didn’t get a start. Though Philip Degen is an attacking-minded right back, we lacked someone creative in the middle of the park. Aquilani sat on the bench for 85 minutes. Luckily, Fabio Aurelio possesses a great left-foot, and it was from his ensuing free kick that we were up 1-0.

Sadly, we are no longer the comeback kings, but more like the comeback allowers. Stoke finally equalized from a corner kick after 10 minutes of heaving pressure from marauding throw-ins and corners. Given our frailties in protecting a lead, especially with a few minutes to go, I am disappointed we don’t possess the quality to simply retain the ball during the final stretches of the game. Maxi and Aquilani did make it on to the pitch for the final stretch of the game, but Stoke had nearly all of the possession. Had we been able to retain possession somewhere along the middle and final third, we wouldn’t have had to face Stoke’s final push.

A 1-0 victory would have done wonders for the team’s spirit, and Dirk Kuyt had a fortuitous chance to equalize, but alas, we left with a point. Quite a few pundits thought we would lose, and the spirit was in the team. Javier Mascherano had some great, dare I say, Xabi Alonso-esque passes today. He looked like the leader he is on the pitch today.

I am hope Benitez fields a more-offensive team against Tottenham. Anything short of a win will further add to the team’s woes.

On Shattered Dreams

I was going to post on Haiti and discuss the three things greater than sports :family, nation, and religion. The tragedy in Haiti touches upon all three.

But…

It’s been revealed Fernando Torres is out 6 weeks due to a knee injury, and Steven Gerrard is out for 2 weeks. Without El Nino, there is no top 4 fight. Hell, we might not even make it to the Europa League.

For Spain to win the World Cup, they will need a healthy Torres. Maybe he should go on loan to Valencia for the 2nd half of the season so he can train with David Villa and Silva, or on loan to Barcelona to work with Xavi and Iniesta. This is the golden generation of Spanish football. They can still win without Torres, but that’s a lot of pressure to put on Villa up top. We also need to take into account El Nino is Spain’s most marketable star.

On Liverpool vs Reading

When Steven Gerrard went off for Ryan Babel to come in, I thought it would be good for the team to play a half without Torres and Gerrard. Babel was putting in more work (from the right side, I may add), and as stoppage time was near its end, it looked like Liverpool was riding its luck to the 4th round.

Lady Luck wasn’t so kind. A penalty 15 seconds before stoppage was given, and we faltered. In all fairness, the right side is advancing; Reading was better in the 1st tie, and better in the 2nd tie. There was no cutting edge in Liverpool’s attack, especially with the withdrawal of Torres, and the back four are always wary of protecting a 1-0 scoreline.

My only positive from the match is the improvement in Aquilani’s management skills in the middle of the pitch. I hope he plays more adventurous forward balls, rather than the defensive-minded pass backs, and return passes. Give the guy some time.

As for Liverpool, at this rate, we won’t go far in the Europa Cup. “Form is temporary,  class is permanent.” The question now: do we have the necessary class?

On Nostalgia and the Past

The passing of Eric Rohmer led me to question why and how I ever got around to watching “New Wave” movies. I did not want to use the word film, because we consume films digitally, and therefore everything is just a movie or even a 2 hour clip. What I like the most about New Wave movies is not about their plots, the supposed genius of the directors, their legacies in film studies, but the cinematography. Old movies give us a glimpse of how things looked and provide a measuring stick of how much progress we’ve made. If there were to be a modern day remake of The Moral Tales, we would think the main characters are weird and crazy. Only after expurgating the exaggeration of the character do we see universal traits and emotions. These traits still exist in contemporary movies, so why watch old movies? Scenery and nostalgia.

Perhaps film studies majors are just nostalgic. If they were so interested in movies, they would write a screenplay and learn how to shoot a project. Nostalgia is forcing NBC to put Jay Leno back at 11:35. The argument is that so many Americans are used to Leno hosting after the local news, it’s like a divine right. What about my current generation? Where is our opportunity for nostalgia when we’re in our 30s and 40s, and we tell our kids, “I remember Conan when he was doing Late Night”. When will we be afforded to tune in to the mostly gray, but tinted orange-red haired comedian on a whim?

I believe nostalgia is greater in sports. I am lucky I grew up in the generation that saw Michal Jordan’s greatness, the “give me one chance and it’s in the back of the net” precision of Ronaldo (the Brazilian), the no-fuss attitude of John Stockton, and the grit of Allen Iverson. No doubt, I will be saying “they don’t play ball like they used to” in the future.

Forget the above words, just watch this:

On “Beautiful” Research

Abstract

We study the effect of the red card in a soccer game. A red card is given by a referee to signify that a player has been sent off following a serious misconduct. The player who has been sent off must leave the game immediately and cannot be replaced during the game. His team must continue the game with one player fewer. We estimate the effect of the red card from betting data on the FIFA World Cup 2006 and Euro 2008, showing that the scoring intensity of the penalized team drops significantly, while the scoring intensity of the opposing team increases slightly. We show that a red card typically leads to a smaller number of goals scored during the game when a stronger team is penalized, but it can lead to an increased number of goals when a weaker team is punished. We also show when it is better to commit a red card offense in exchange for the prevention of a goal opportunity.

– Jan Vecer, Frantisek Kopriva, Tomoyuki Ichiba

For more, please read “Estimating the Effect of the Red Card in Soccer” , as hosted on Professor Vecer’s website.

On the Conan Fiasco

Now that NBC’s late night changes are official, it must be disconcerting for Conan O’Brien to see NBC has set up his downfall. Based on the information from today’s NYT article that reveals there are only 1.1 million viewers for the Jay Leno show, and the lead in is not large enough for local news, isn’t it fair to say the lead in to the new Tonight Show at 12 will also be poor? What is with NBC’s fixation on retaining Jay Leno? If a 10 PM show that broadcasts weekdays can only garner one million viewers, maybe it’s time to change personnel, not time slots.

Will celebrities on promotional duty prefer being interviewed at 11:30 or 12?

Here’s a wildcard for you: why not get Dave Chappelle to do a weekly show at 10?

On Liverpool’s Stuttering First Half of 09-10

As a fan, it is difficult to see one’s team not recapture its champion-like quality form. For every morale boosting home win against Manchester United, we had a letdown in Fulham. For every Gerrard-esque wonder strike by Ryan Babel, there’s an appalling equalizer conceded. The reaction to the loss of Xabi Alonso  has taken up many mediums -  blogs, newspaper pages, pundits on TV, heated conversations at home – but early in the season, it was the team’s lack of reaction that gave us the bad start. I cannot understand why Rafa Benitez did not adjust his tactics to accommodate Lucas into the lineup, or another striker.

Many pundits and fans dislike Lucas playing, but the guy has been improving. Sure, he makes rash decisions when it comes to tackles, and the own-goal in the Villa game at Anfield created more frenemies, but on his day, he can dictate the center of the park, like Javier Mascherano. It is good to see Mascherano back to his best. Given the roller-coaster World Cup qualification campaign for Argentina, Reds fans should not be surprised if country was ahead of club for the captain. We must hope Monster Masch doesn’t have Barca on his mind because we need him.

Speaking of guys we need, I have gone two complete paragraphs without mentioning Fernando Torres and Steven Gerrard. No shit, we need the dynamic duo at their best as long as humanly possible. No other words need to be said regarding this topic.

Fans around the world hope to add Aquilani into the Torres-Gerrard partnership. It will take time for Alberto Aquilani to catch up to the Premier League speed and style, but from what I’ve seen, the guy has class. His passing is neat and tidy, but his game management skills must grow.  My fear is that people in Merseyside will expect Aquilani to develop into another Xabi. We should let Aquilani play his game, not make him play the Alonso role. My only disappointment in Benitez is that he did not try  to acquire Wesley Sneijder from Real. He was healthy, and is a world-class CM. And to think, Sneijder was bought for only 15 million.

As we all know, we have no one ready yet to fill the Alonso role, so shouldn’t the tactics change? Many have called for Benitez’s sacking, but I am merely asking for some innovation. After all El Nino is human; he needs help once in a while. Why not put Babel as the 2nd striker or in right wing, where he clearly belongs? A right-footed player who has no left foot should not be expected to cross from the left side; his task should be to cut into the box as much as possible and deliver balls from there. Babel’s fabulous strike against Lyon would have given him and the team much needed confidence…had we won that match. Triumph and disappointment has gone hand in hand for us this season. But let’s focus on the bright side, and the possibilities of a second half push.

Thank God Yossi Benayoun can play as a left or right winger, but the crafty veteran may be best served playing off of Torres. I hope Maxi Rodriguez is a hit at Anfield, and adds an attacking/crossing threat from the right. The lure of a World Cup place will spur him to give his all.

In short, for a team that is talented on paper, it’s disappointing to fans that our main goal is a fight for 4th. Let us hope the goal gets met, and Aquilani gels with the team.