So what? The thread is about the league. Good God!! The "We didn't really want to win it anyway" bit? Come now, that's a bit of a lame defence isn't it?
Who will stop Liverpool in the EPL 2007-08? I can't see them losing with Eto'o, Tevez, Alves, Pedersen, Ronaldinho, Maradona, Pele, van Basten, and Beckenbauer!
It's always "Liverpools year" at the start of every season. I see no good reason to fear them this coming season. They are still short of a league winning side with no credibale goal scorer, and no wide men. Their full-backs are ok I guess but they lack depth in every position apart from centre midfield.....
My God... I can't believe this thread is still around. One of the first I remember reading in my time here. I always thought it was lost in the great crash of 02. Brilliant!
Brilliant The best thing is this thread could be repeated (complete with each season's mediocre signings) for the last 5 years!
NEWS UPDATE Chelsea help themselves to Scousers' CL place; livid Gerrard settles for red card Ranieri's men finally show their mettle The race for Europe: Liverpool's season ends with the blues as Stamford Bridge gets the Champions League spot, while Blackburn edge Moyes men from a Uefa Cup place Jon Brodkin at Stamford Bridge Monday May 12, 2003 The Guardian Ken Bates said before kick-off that he hoped Chelsea fans would be able to get drunk for the right reasons afterwards. They were certainly given cause to celebrate as the club defeated Liverpool to move within a qualifying win of the Champions League. The chairman surely indulged in a tipple as well, given that reaching the first group stage would bring in a minimum of £10m. Chelsea's recent Uefa Cup experiences suggest it would be foolish to assume they need only turn up to join the elite, but such worries can wait. They could enjoy themselves last night while Liverpool were drowning their sorrows. Gérard Houllier's team had needed a victory here to snatch fourth place from their opponents but threw away an early lead and never looked likely to recover. The Uefa Cup awaits Liverpool after a season in which they have manifestly gone backwards. Their frustration was shown near the finish in a dangerous tackle by Steven Gerrard on Graeme Le Saux which earned him a second booking and a red card. Chelsea's determination had been controlled and they found a hero in Jesper Gronkjaer. The Dane set up Marcel Desailly's equaliser and scored a fine winner before the half-hour. Ultimately, though, Chelsea were just as grateful to William Gallas, Emmanuel Petit and Desailly, who played through back pain and was refused permission to come off, for making sure Liverpool could not find a way back. Liverpool's need for creativity when they are forced to break down teams rather than counter-attack was again evident. They scored from a free- kick but created only one more notable chance, missed by the otherwise service-starved Michael Owen. As Chelsea gave Owen no space in which to run behind them, Liverpool struggled. This was a far more tactically astute Chelsea performance than they gave when faced by the counter-attacking skills of Arsenal here in the FA Cup and the rewards are vital. With the Champions League in view, they ought to find it easier to keep key players and will hope to renogotiate contracts with Gallas, John Terry and Gianfranco Zola. Terry and Gallas, though, will expect significant rises. Claudio Ranieri must trust that he will not lose players such as Gallas and Terry if big offers are made but there will be departures. Albert Ferrer is retiring, Jody Morris seems keen to move in search of regular football and Chelsea will probably offload Jimmy Floyd Hasselbaink if they can find a buyer. Big summer signings are unlikely for them under their new regime, which places more emphasis than before on stability and developing youth. Ranieri said he hoped to bring in "one or two players" and believed continuity was key to their success. In any event Chelsea cannot count on Champions League lucre just yet. In the past three seasons they have gone out of the Uefa Cup to teams from Switzerland, Israel and Norway. "I think we have learned the lesson," said Ranieri, who would love the Champions League challenge. Whereas Chelsea can look back with pleasure, Liverpool have underachieved. Winning the Worthington Cup does not constitute success for them and in the two major competitions they have regressed. Having reached the quarter-finals of the Champions League last season, they failed to make it past the opening group. From second in the Premiership, they slipped to fifth. They also lost in the FA Cup against Crystal Palace. Houllier did not invest well last summer, spending £19m on El Hadji Diouf, Bruno Cheyrou and Salif Diao. Houllier admitted that some of his key players "have not been at their best". He is expected to have money but does not envisage making many signings. "I don't think we need a lot of players," he said. "The temptation is to have a total clear-out but that would be a mistake." Liverpool had made the perfect start when poor marking by Petit allowed Sami Hyypia to head in Danny Murphy's free-kick. But Chelsea's nerves were settled when they responded with two goals in quarter of an hour thanks to poor Liverpool defending. First Liverpool failed to clear a corner and Desailly outjumped Diao to head in Gronkjaer's cross. Then Gronkjaer cut across John Arne Riise on the edge of the box and scored with a low shot before Djimi Troare could close down. Houllier suggested some of his players had felt "a bit too much pressure". Certainly they looked more likely to concede again than score against a well organised Chelsea, and the game was up when Gerrard was dismissed. "Sometimes I wish I had a couple more like that," Houllier said of Gerrard's commitment. He will certainly wish he had Chelsea's Champions League qualifier to look forward to. Man of the match: Emmanuel Petit (Chelsea)