Official Champions League Final post-match discussion thread (R)

[liverpool1003]

It hurts so much that we lost, but EVERY person on that liverpool team is still my hero!

I HATE that we lost against a team that should have not been there and we lost when we played so good, but i wont be a soar loser.

ALL OF THEM ARE HEROES!

[655321]

Discuss.

Trolls will be taken care of. Ask yourself, is it really worth getting banned for?

[USvsIRELAND]

My thoughts:

Alonso should have come off for Crouch, not Mascherano.

Crouch should have come on earlier.

Gerrard didn't play as well as he could have.

Mascherano + Pennant were fantastic. Pennant moreso in the first half, but still good in the 2nd.

Obvious handball for first goal.

Kewell should have replaced Zenden earlier, but Harry wasn't all that great when he came on.

2:40 of stoppage? Really?!

Agger is really good.

Kuyt works really hard. I would love to see Tevez up top with him next year.

Thanks to Fowler and Dudek and whoever else leaves this summer!

I'm excited about next year.

[jpick]

revelationx, ccsc, red bird, and others. I and others on the milan board appreciate the classy comments. I know this hurts, but liverpool played fantastic. cheers

[Twenty26Six]

Sometimes it is 655...

I think that I wouldn't have been so upset to lose, if we weren't the better team. When I look back at all the games and how hard it is to get to a Final, I get a bit choked up.

Today's not a happy day, but it's a long summer and some new guys will be coming in.

[Red Bird]

Oh, well it was good while it lasted. I can think of a dozen explanations as to why we lost but I'll echo your sentiments liverpool1003.

They are our heroes, full stop.

[catenaccio_L'pool]

They did play their hearts out...Carra could barely walk at the end...
It sure does hurt but I have a feeling that we'll be at the big scene again and soon

[dragback]

http://newsimg.bbc.co.uk/media/images/42964000/jpg/_42964019_red416.jpg

I havn't seen the game yet, got it recorded for when I get home in... 8/9hours. I'm not in much of a rush now though:mad:

So I have enjoyed this year and I look forward to doing it all again:)

[RCCook]

Seems like the story of our season- we outplay the opposition, only to lose on the few chances we give up. I thought the officiating was poor- particularly the missing 20 seconds of extra time- but at the end of the day, we just fell a bit short.

It's hard not to be disappointed, but I felt like the guys gave it their best today, and have nothing to be ashamed of. The only thing that sucks (besides losing) is that I'm going to have to hear it from my co-worker who is a huge Milan fan.

All things considered, we made it to a European final for the 2nd time in three years, finished 3rd again, and will be right back at it in two months, hopefully with Uncle Tommy & Uncle George footing the bill for a couple world-class additions. It always hurts to end a season with a loss, but I couldn't be much prouder of this club.

YNWA!

[dragback]

Obvious handball for first goal.

It was only 'obvious' and 'handball' if you think he intended to do it. I've seen the grainy video link. And I think he was just jammy. I don't like it, but its the rules of the game.

[Live in the Now]

My thoughts.

Left wing needs to be fixed this summer.

Pennant was awesome, as was the Masher.

Reina just wasn't there on that second Inzaghi goal. He seemed sorta out of it, but that's just a personal opinion.

Kewell was not the answer, and I don't think he will be back next year.

I'd complain about the handball, but we had so many chances to score later in the game that it was really irrelevant.

I feel for Fowler.

Riise is great.

The ref was not.

[Spartak]

You guys played us off the park tonight and deserved the win. But we deserved better in 2005 so I think it's only fair we both have one European Cup from our two match ups.

Anyways, congrats on a great season.

[AnyLuckForEngland?]

I'm still trying to find out how 6 subs, 2 goals, and a fan running on to the field equated only 2:40 of added time.

The referee and the officials was terrible, but we really should have scored more and we have ourselves to blame. Gerrard was a non-factor.

Zenden never should have started and probably cost a goal with his pitiful performance.

Liverpool should lodge a complaint about the five minutes Arbeola just stood there waiting to come in. That was absurd.

[catenaccio_L'pool]

"We can be proud of ourselves. We've done so well getting to the final and I know we'll play in another one of these finals.
We've got to pick ourselves up, have a good rest in the summer and then go again next season.
We're going places, there's no getting away from that." - Stevie G after the game
I agree with him 100%...Once we figure out how to put away the chances after outplaying opposition, nobody will be able to stop us.

[Gandalf The Red]

like I said in the other thread alonso is supposed to be a play making holding midfielder, it showed tonight mash is the superior holding midfielder and alonso play making and killer passes have gone to the sh*tter.

For 10.6 million I expect more, if barca match that they can have him as it will help fund our need for real class attacking players, and both momo (once hes fit) and mash can do what he does now.

Please guys dont come complaining about the referee both gerrard and pennant had chances to score and they both fluffed their lines, it simply wsnt our night.

[Springbok FC]

My thoughts:

Alonso should have come off for Crouch, not Mascherano.

Crouch should have come on earlier.

Gerrard didn't play as well as he could have.

Mascherano + Pennant were fantastic. Pennant moreso in the first half, but still good in the 2nd.

Obvious handball for first goal.

Kewell should have replaced Zenden earlier, but Harry wasn't all that great when he came on.

2:40 of stoppage? Really?!

Agger is really good.

Kuyt works really hard. I would love to see Tevez up top with him next year.

Thanks to Fowler and Dudek and whoever else leaves this summer!

I'm excited about next year.

That just about covers it. May as well shut this thread down, too.

[Suss]

You guys played us off the park tonight and deserved the win. But we deserved better in 2005 so I think it's only fair we both have one European Cup from our two match ups.

Anyways, congrats on a great season.

Thanks for that. Its sad to say, but I wouldn't consider it "a great season." We had a great run in the Champions League, but overall the season has been a disappointment.

I wouldn't say we deserved to win either. For all our good play, we created few genuine chances. Gerrard messed up the one that we did get. Milan gave the ball away in their own half all game and we couldn't capitalize. Yes, we were the better team overall, but thats not good enough.

[kjksccr]

My first thought in the first half is how much better Liverpool was prepared than Man U. People keep saying Liverpool had one striker. Gerrard was a striker and his pressure plus that of Kuyt, Zenden and Pennant up high was causing AC all sorts of problems. Long balls from the back, knock them down where lots of red shirts are. It worked far better than whatever Man U tried to do and not leaving a striker up alone against 4 also worked better. Liverpool needed something special from a player and didn't get it tonight. I thought for sure Gerrard would score when he was put through. Just not one of those nights.


(Funny thing is Man U played the same stupid formation against Chelsea in the F.A. Cup. Why are the two top teams in England playing with one forward? WTF?)

[Wangy]

It was only 'obvious' and 'handball' if you think he intended to do it. I've seen the grainy video link. And I think he was just jammy. I don't like it, but its the rules of the game.

I agree. I watched the game live and in no way was that an obvious handball, nor was there an obvious intention to touch the ball with his hand by Pirlo when replays were showed.

All in all, I'm quite disappointed that we lost today. As some one said in this thread, when you consider how hard it is to make it to this stage, I was extremely disappointed that we did not win today, even though we certainly played like the better team. To Milan's credit, their constant long passes to the middle and, well, Inzaghi, payed off eventually and that was well deservedly the game winner.

Definitely looking forward to next season. We could certainly use a new striker. Fernando Torres or David Villa, anyone? Steven Gerrard is his most effective when he is playing a bit farther from the opposition goal mouth. Before the game today, I thought that the 4-4-1-1 might work but alas, it didn't win us the game. It just sucks that even with the improved roster next year, the chances of making it to the CL Final for the second year in a row are very slim (mathematically) and we probably won't get a chance to lift the cup for quite some time. To me, Europe is FAR more significant than FA Cup or the Prem title.

[Red Bird]

You guys played us off the park tonight and deserved the win. But we deserved better in 2005 so I think it's only fair we both have one European Cup from our two match ups.

Anyways, congrats on a great season.

Thanks. When I see the gloatings by the Everton and Manure fans, I suddenly realise why their trophy cabinets do not have European Cups and why yours (and ours) do.