Houllier Post Game Emails For those of you who aren't E-season members, I will post the post game emails from Gerard. Lazio - Disappointing result but good display Dear Liverpool fan, I was pleased with our performance against Lazio but only 50 per cent of the job was done because we lost the game. We were better offensively than we were defensively, but that is okay. These games are rehearsals and give us a chance to work out what is going right and what is going wrong. We must have had about 20 shots on goal and we definitely deserved at least a draw. But I told the players after the game just to take the positives from the performance. I have to thank the fans for the way they took to the two new players. Bruno Cheyrou and El Hadji Diouf both had good games and showed some of the qualities we brought them to the club for. Cheyrou has a good touch and had a couple of chances while I am pleased with the way Diouf is linking up with Michael Owen. That is very encouraging. The intensity and the quality of the game was excellent and it was just the sort of test we needed at this stage of our pre-season preparations. We are now looking forward to the game with Real Madrid on Friday. Regards, Gerard Houllier Liverpool Manager
Real - Madrid disappointment Dear Liverpool fan, I was disappointed with what we showed against Real Madrid. You have to take into account the hard work the players have put in during our training camp in Switzerland. Freshness isn't a problem but we had players who had been at the World Cup and players coming back from injury. We can play better but Real Madrid played very well. My team isn't totally settled yet as I have been experimenting with different formations and players. The strikers lack a bit of freshness which is understandable after they played in the World Cup. Real rested Roberto Carlos, Morientes and Raul today and they looked much fresher than us. Real start their season 15 days after us but they have only played two pre-season games before today. I wish them well in the final on Sunday. Emile had a good chance and could have equalised. It would have changed the game and would have given us the boost we needed. We went close in the first half as well as with a couple of chances from set pieces. It's a shame but the first goal Real scored was individual brilliance from Zidane and Figo. It was nice to see Jamie Carragher back in action as well tonight. My decision to put him on was a message for him. He has worked very hard to get back to fitness after his operation. We now look forward to another big game on Sunday when we play Bayern Munich or AC Milan. I will write to you with my thoughts after the game. Until then, take care. Gerard Houllier Liverpool Manager
AC Milan - Very pleased with Milan Victory Dear Liverpool fan, I was very pleased with my players tonight because we showed many Liverpool virtues. They played as a team. The first half was very good and we had a grip on the game. They scored in the second half and we showed our strength. We defended very well and showed when we want a result we go and get it. Our mental strength was very good and we put some very good moves together, all Liverpool virtues. I am pleased with our performance. There were some very good individual performances and it was nice to see Milan Baros among the goals again. Milan is a different player to last year. He has lost weight and his fitness is a very good level. He will be a good striker for us. He is powerful, two footed and he gave an experienced defender in Maldini the runaround. He will get games this season as Michael Owen, Emile Heskey and El-Hadji Diouf all played in the World Cup. Milan didn't and he will be the freshest of our strikers. I was also very pleased with Steven Gerrard. He did well and played for an hour or so and looked sharp and fresh. I thought Djimi Traore was outstanding again for us. He played left back in the first half and then centre back in the second. It gives me good options. Michael could have played tonight but I didn´t think it was worth taking any risk. He is fine and will be back for the Community Shield game with Arsenal next weekend. Regards, Gerard Houllier Liverpool Manager
Excellent work dcc134. I'll make this thread a sticky so it's always visible to non-Season Ticket members around here.
Community Shield - Arsenal August 10, 2002, 1-0 Arsenal Beaten by the better team Dear Liverpool fan, It goes without saying that we were disappointed to lose in the Community Shield on Sunday. Despite the fact we had legitimate claims for two penalties Arsenal were far too superior for us. All round they were better than us. We gave them too much respect and it took us half an hour to get into the game. They deserved to win, we have to acknowlege that. We are not ready yet. We need to add more flow in our game, more fluidity. Arsenal's players looked sharp despite a lot playing in the World Cup. For Michael Owen it was his first full game of pre-season, and the same for Steven Gerrard. We need to put things together. I wanted to try with Michael, Emile and El-Hadji together today. If you defend well against Arsenal then you have to attack them. We were too shallow in our attack. Our wide players weren't involved enough, and when we won the ball in midfield we should have had more movement with people finding width. Arsenal are ahead of us. In football things can happen very quickly. We still have team spirit but we need more work on our passing. Our priority is the league. Liverpool is about winning and we are disappointed with the result and performance. It was not a good day and we just have to keep our heads up and get back to work. We did have two penalty appeals turned down though, firstly when Michael would have scored had his shirt not been pulled and then when Diouf was fouled in the box. He may have made it look spectacular but it was still a penalty. We need to improve our passing and quality in the final third. Hopefully we will start doing that on Sunday at Aston Villa. I know we are good enough. Regards, Gerard Houllier
Houllier Post Game Emails Thanks again dcc134, and let's hope the lads follow through on GH's admonishments.
Aston Villa Postgamer Dear Liverpool fan, I thought it was a very good performance at Aston Villa and that we deserved to win. We weren't brilliant but we showed we can be strong and efficient. We built our attacks up well and I was very pleased with our midfield who linked well with the attack. When you are 1-0 up there is always the danger that Villa could score but we defended really well. We showed strength and solidity at the back and I'm very pleased. There were many good signs in our performance. Had the finishing been better we would have sealed the game off in the second half. I was disappointed for Michael as on another day he would have scored three. Had we scored two or three goals everyone would have been praising us. So 1-0 keeps our feet on the ground! I thought Michael had a very good game, it was just a pity he couldn't get his name onto the scoresheet. I also thought El Hadji Diouf had a good Premiership debut for us. He showed the skill he has in turning people and his work-rate is absolutely phenomenal. This is the start of my fifth season at Liverpool and we had won on the first day of the previous four. I'm pleased the lads kept that statistic going today. Villa Park is never an easy place to come and get a result from, but we did well today and I'm proud of my players. Regards, Gerard Houllier Liverpool Manager
Michael Owen had a very good game?? This is another classic example of the "favorite son" treatment that Houllier excels at. "It was a pity he couldn't get his name on the scoresheet"?? His name wasn't on the scoresheet because he had a bad game. Still, he made huge headway by finally benching Heskey. Although I have a feeling the guy that replaced him is next in line to recieve the "favorite son" treatment.
I think Houllier was making more of a reference to Owen's overall play, not just his prowess in front of goal. In fact on a couple of occasions he finished well, but some brilliant goalkeeping stopped him. Sometimes the best finish in the world can be stopped. I think GH was looking to see how well Diouf and Owen linked up. Can they play together? Can they form a partnership? I would say it is early days, but it looks promising. Sure they have very different styles but I do think they will complement each other very well in the long run. Owen got more involved in a game than we have seen recently and looked very dangerous. Our next couple of opponents better look out as Michael will score!
Houllier Post Game Emails What was he supposed to say? "Owen is still only 80% fit, didn't look as sharp as he could and what the hell was he thinking, taking the penalty"? On that note - he's now missed 6 out of 13 penalties in the Red. Someone needs to tell him that he's not allowed to take them anymore.
Southampton Postgamer Dear Liverpool fan, I was pleased with my team's performance against Southampton and it was very encouraging to see the way we performed throughout the 90 minutes. Southampton played well and were probably the better side for 20 minutes in the first half, but we had the tactical momentum to resist and then start to play our own football. It was a good game, an exciting game. We went ahead after just a few minutes and it was nice to see El Hadji Diouf off the mark so quickly. People will now understand why I brought him to the club. Not many would have heard of him before the World Cup, but I knew what he could do. He worked his socks off for the team, he scored a couple of good goals and had a terrific home debut. He is a fast learner and, don't forget, he is only 21 years of age. I must also give a special mention to Emile Heskey as well. He worked really hard today and gave a good performance. I left him out of the side last week because I felt the World Cup had maybe taken something out of him, but I never had any doubts that he would get his old tempo back into his game. Emile has struck up a good friendship with El Hadji and the two of them get on really well. Six points out of six is a good start for us - but now we must keep it going at Blackburn on Wednesday night. Regards, Gerard Houllier Liverpool Manager
Blackburn v Liverpool Letter Dear Liverpool fan, If you ask me my thoughts on last night's 2-2 draw with Blackburn then I would say I am disappointed with the result but not disappointed with my players. I thought we were absolutely outstanding and, with a little more composure in the final third of the field, we could have done even better. But the effort and attitude of the players was top class and I was really pleased. To come from a goal down to lead at a place like Blackburn was a great effort. Not many teams will win here this season. When Johnny Riise scored I did think that would be enough, but you have to credit Blackburn for the way they came back and Graeme's late substitution paid off. I thought it was a great advert for the Premiership and both sides deserve a lot of congratulating because it was a very exciting spectacle played at a very high pace. Michael didn't get onto the scoresheet - but I have no worries about that. He's getting chances in every game and I know he will soon start scoring. It's just a matter of time. We are second in the table on goal difference, and that's without Michael scoring. Imagine what we'll be like when that changes! It would have been nice to go top of the table with a victory last night, but that will come. Don't worry about that. Regards, Gerard Houllier Liverpool Manager
Houllier Post Game Emails Dear Liverpool fan, Our performance against Newcastle was probably our best of the season - it was just a shame we couldn't hold onto the result. I told the lads afterwards that the only thing I could blame them for was not taking the points. I can't blame them for showing ambition to go on and score more goals. We had enough chances to have scored plenty more goals, but we know that having a two goal lead with ten minutes left to play should have been enough for us. We played really well, passed it well, showed great movement and more fluency. We created a lot of chances, so much so we could have scored 10. Newcastle rode their luck. At 2-0 up though we should have scored when Emile's header missed and Michael and El-Hadji had chances. At 2-0 up though instead of sitting back we were trying to get a third goal and we should have been more resilient. I feel sorry for my players because we didn't deserve that. Jerzy Dudek picked up a groin injury and will have a scan on Tuesday, but Steven Gerrard is okay after picking up a twisted ankle in the first half. He showed great bravery to play on to the end. Regards, Gerard Houllier Liverpool Manager
Never posted the one after B'ham: Dear Liverpool fan, I'm sorry for the players that we didn't beat Birmingham because we deserved the three points. We had a lot of chances to make the game safe but, as with our last game against Newcastle, we paid the price at the end. I have the confidence in the players that they will bounce back from this. We are going through a difficult spell at the moment but you don't achieve success before going through these kind of situations. They are a good bunch of lads here and they will want to put things right at Bolton on Saturday. We had to make a defensive change at half time because Stephane Henchoz picked up a calf strain. It's true to say we didn't look the same team without him. Now you will understand why I don't rotate my defence too often. Stephane is an unsung hero of the team and we missed him in that second half. Michael Owen could have scored three tonight - and he also could have scored a hat-trick against Newcastle last week. It's just a matter of time before he starts putting the chances away. So far our midfielders have been doing well in terms of goalscoring, so can we imagine how well we'll do when the strikers find the net as well? Regards, Gerard Houllier Liverpool Manager
Houllier Post Game Emails Houllier's Post Game Email--Bolton 2:3 LFC (9/14) Dear Liverpool fan, I was so pleased to see the third goal go in against Bolton on Saturday because we definitely deserved to win the game. It took us a while to get going but once we started passing the ball around we created a lot of chances and played some good football. Of course when Bolton made it 2-2 I thought 'here we go again'. I thought we were about to re-write history because Liverpool have never been involved in four straight 2-2 draws. I didn't have any negative feeling about it though and I was pleased to see that we didn't become disheartened and that we pressed for the third goal. Emile scores important goals for us and, despite what the critics say, he makes a contribution in every game he plays, I can tell you that. Milan Baros did well to score two goals as well and he showed some of what he can do. I have always known what quality he has – but I think my staff thought I had made a mistake in bringing him to the club last year. They didn't tell me that but I know they thought it. Now he is looking more like the player I coached and, remember, he is still very young. A lot has been made of the fact that Michael didn't play, but the reason for that is simple. He has played seven games in a row since coming back from the World Cup and so I told him he would be rested at some stage. There's no problem with that. We are now looking forward to our game in Valencia on Tuesday night. Hopefully we can get our Champions League campaign this season off to a winning start. Regards, Gerard Houllier Liverpool Manager
Houllier Post Game Emails Houllier's Post Game Email--Valencia 2:0 LFC (9/17/02) Dear Liverpool fan, It goes without saying that I was very disappointed with our display against Valencia in Spain. On the night they were better than us and deserved to win the game, but we should have competed better with them from a physical and tactical point of view. We knew this would probably be our most difficult game. They are top seeded and they showed they are a better side than we are. We have to do better and I was disappointed with us. We didn't show the true Liverpool today. I thought this would be a physical encounter and that's why I strengthed my midfield with Emile on his own up front with Diouf just behind as a second striker. It didn't work as well as I expected. We weren't as bright in midfield, and could have done much better up front. It's a day off at the office for Liverpool I would say. The good thing is the players were really angry with themselves with themselves. They are not happy, they let themselves down and they will respond. Didi's sending off was very harsh in my opinion. He was fouled and the player tangled his leg around Didi. Didi just tackled him and it wasn't malicious. He got involved aginst his will and nothing happened. It could have been avoided. We now have to regroup and bounce back against West Brom at the weekend. All of our energy is now focused on doing just that. Regards, Gerard Houllier Liverpool Manager
Liverpool v West Brom Dear Liverpool fan, We had to work hard for our victory against West Brom but I was pleased that we kept going and kept pressing for the breakthrough. It was always going to be difficult when they had their goalkeeper sent off because it's hard to play against ten men. It was important that we kept moving the ball around quickly and looking for space to make the extra man count. We were patient and eventually we got our reward. We showed better maturity and didn't panic. We knew what we had to do and even after we scored the first goal I was surprised they kept defending. We're getting in the habit of scoring in the last minute which I quite like! I was pleased with the way we played. We are getting forward and creating chances. Attack is the best form of defence and I told the boys to just carry on attacking and keep scoring goals. It was unfortunate for Michael that he wasn't on the scoresheet today. He was a bit unlucky because he missed a penalty and then only missed another chance by inches. He was creating chances and set up the second goal for John Arne Riise. He could be top scorer in the league by now. Now we are looking forward to our Champions League game against FC Basel on Wednesday night. Regards, Gerard Houllier Liverpool Manager
Dear Liverpool fan, It was obviously very disappointing for us all that we couldn't beat Basel last night because I thought we thoroughly deserved the three points. This was the type of game in which you feel extremely frustrated and disappointed for the players. They gave everything out there, they tried everything and played some fantastic stuff. We created at least eight chances if not more and no-one would have complained if we had won because we deserved to win. At this stage last season we had two points and now we have one. It is still very open but the next two games will be extremely decisive. I'm confident especially if we play like we did tonight, and maybe next week we will have less chances but win the game. At half time we should have been 3-1 up and their keeper made some very good saves. I just said to the boys at the end that they were brilliant and that if they keep playing like that the goals will come. Once again Michael was unlucky not to be on the scoresheet, but we had plenty of chances during the match to score more goals. He missed chances because he was in a position to score. His work rate and skill is still there. Maybe at the moment he lacks confidence so he thinks too much about a chance. He had a volley he should have scored with which was typical of a striker going through a drought period. I was pleased with his movement and he continues to create chances. Regards, Gerard Houllier Liverpool Manager
Man City letter Dear Liverpool fan, Beating Manchester City at Maine Road is a good result for us because I don't think many teams will win here. I can't find the words to describe my players after this game because they were all superb. They gave everything they had and came away with a great result. Even when City put us under pressure we had the mental strength to cope with that and to resist them. Michael's goals lifted the whole team and everyone was shaking his hand and congratulating him. Michael knew he had the 100 per cent support of everyone at this club. His game awareness is better and he is sharp. His first goal showed he is back and he came to the bench and gave me a signal, and it showed he knew I believed in him. The good thing is Michael Owen is extremely strong mentally and can take a lot. You do go through difficult periods as a striker. If he had scored in our earlier games he probably would have been flying by now but he has no point to prove to anyone. It's a good sign to have your main striker scoring three goals before the match with Spartak Moscow on Wednesday! Nobody wins the title in September. We have only lost one league game in our last 25 and it's early in the season. Chelsea and Manchester United are up there. Arsenal seem to be flying, but we will be flying as well. We have a young team and the talent is there. Regards, Gerard Houllier Liverpool Manager
LFC v. Spartak Moscow Letter Dear Liverpool fan, We scored five goals against Spartak but it could have been more! We hit the post twice, and the movement between Michael Owen and Emile Heskey in attack was very good. Michael was unlucky not to score and he was very unselfish at the end when he passed it to Emile to score. I think it's a good performance as we made them look very ordinary because of our movement. We had width, we were good off the ball and we created chances. The tempo of our play was very good. It's always a bit tricky when you play teams like Spartak Moscow and Dynamo Kiev because they are very good at breaking and probing around the edge of the box. So that's why I'm pleased we kept a clean sheet. It was the right time to put Emile Heskey back up front. He scored twice and made a goal for Salif Diao. Emile played very well against Manchester City and I knew it was the right time to put him back up front with Michael. He showed his strength, his power and offensive skills. The group now is wide open. I still don't know how we didn't beat Basel last week as we had so many chances in that game. I actually thought we played better against Basel last week than we did tonight. When we lost in Valencia people said we are not good enough. Well we are doing our best and we know there is still a lot of work to do. For various reasons we have a point to prove, either in Basel or here against Valencia. Regards, Gerard Houllier Liverpool Manager
Liverpool v Chelsea Pinocchio writes today's letter... Date: Mon, 7 Oct 2002 13:36:00 +0100 (BST) To: "Liverpool FC Fan List" <fanlist@liverpoolfc.tv> Subject: Great result v Chelsea From: p.thompson@liverpoolfc.tv | This is Spam | Add to Address Book Dear Liverpool fan, It wasn't our best display of the season against Chelsea on Sunday, but there's no doubting the attitude and character of the lads for going out and getting the three points. I thought we looked a little bit tired in certain areas and we told the players before the match that it could be similar to last season's game, where chances were at a premium. Our play wasn't very fluid at all and Chelsea did have a lot of the ball, but we stayed strong at the back and didn't really allow them to create anything. We had the better of what few chances there were and for that reason I think we probably did deserve to win. Michael never misses from six inches! I thought Emile's shot was going in, then I thought it was going wide. I was right behind it all the way and it was great to see Michael put the ball into the net. The disappointing thing to come out of the afternoon was an injury to Stephane. He'll be missing for up to five weeks because he needs a calf operation. That's a blow for us because he is a very influential member of our team, but I have every confidence that Djimi Traore will come in and do a great job in his place. Regards, Phil Thompson Assistant Manager