“Luis Suarez was visibly upset after being substituted against Wolves yesterday, and as soon as the final whistle went, he sped off down the tunnel as quickly as possible. Players get subbed off all the time, and there’s absolutely no shame in being replaced by Steven Gerrard, so why was Suarez particularly upset? For me, the answer is obvious, and I can understand his frustration.” Liverpool Kop

Reasons to be cheerful
“What it lacks in originality, it makes up for in familiarity. As many have done before them and, no doubt, plenty of others will do in the future, the travelling supporters from Wolverhampton asked: ‘Where’s your famous atmosphere?’ Their answer came three times before the final whistle. At a club where they celebrate their bona fide heroes and castigate the false idols, it was hard to say which drew the loudest cheer: was it Steven Gerrard’s first Anfield appearance for six months, a quite stunning goal by the irrepressible Luis Suarez or the announcement of Fernando Torres’ sending-off 200 miles away?” ESPN

“True enough, it’s only the Third Round of the League Cup and both of the teams playing this evening, whether rightly or wrongly, may well feel that they have bigger fish to fry than this competition this season. There is, however, something in the sea air in Brighton this evening. The trains into the railway station are jammed solid and the queue for the trains out to The American Express Community Stadium snakes out of the station and around the concourse outside. There’s no hint of trouble, of course, and everybody is safely in their seat by kick-off the time of kick-off, but the sheer volume of traffic of the majority of a crowd of almost 22,500 pouring through a main railway station during the rush hour adds inevitable pressures. It all seems, however, dealt with very professionally indeed.” twohundredpercen

“So apart from losing 0-4, having two men sent off and one taken off injured, everything went according to plan at White Hart Lane then! It was a sobering defeat and awful performance alright, the sort we don’t get too often, mercifully, and on a par both quantitively and qualitively with the worst of them. But not unprecedented. And where can you look for context, for solace, other than history? How often do these heavy defeats happen and what can we learn from them? How were we doing at the time they happened – in a trough already or did they come out of the blue? – and what effect did they have on us subsequently? Can we find any comfort from heavy defeats in the past?” Tomkins Times

“Liverpool stumbled over a familiar hurdle at the Britannia Stadium as they slipped to their first defeat of the season. In four visits to Stoke since the Potters earned promotion to the Premier League, the Reds have collected just two points and lost their last two matches. Not since 1968 have Stoke recorded back-to-back home league wins over Liverpool and the result brought a side brimming with confidence before the international break back down to earth with a hefty bump.” ESPN

Stoke City record valuable victory over wasteful Liverpool
“After a start to the season that took them to the top of the table for the first time in two years, there had been growing talk of Liverpool having developed into genuine title contenders. But at a ground that has consistently proved to be a graveyard of success for the club came the feeling that even at this earliest of stages, their championship hopes may just have died a little.” Guardian

“As a rule, English players rarely move abroad. These days, it’s arguable they don’t need to — the money is in England, as are many of Europe’s best clubs — but even when Italy and Spain find themselves in similar privileged positions, you see their players venturing to different countries. The English stick to what they know, for various reasons — poor language skills, perhaps, or a reluctance to experience a different culture. The lack of knowledge from overseas is arguably one of the many reasons that has made English football so insular.” ESPN

“THERE are remixes and then there are remixes… When I first started buying 12″ records around 1986, it seemed every single had a dance remix available to buy for a pound or so more. Less so much a remix, more a lengthening procedure – what you got was essentially just the same record but extended at the start for four minutes or so with some pre-house disco beats knocked out by the likes of Shep Pettibone, Jellybean Benitez or Arthur Baker.” The Anfield Wrap

“Jordan Henderson and Charlie Adam scored their first Liverpool goals as the Reds crushed Bolton 3-1 to move top of the Premier League. The summer signings struck either side of a powerful Martin Skrtel header as the hosts, inspired by the outstanding Luis Suarez, produced an electrifying performance at Anfield.” ESPN

Liverpool 3-1 Bolton
“Fluid attacking, solid defending, intense pressuring and high-scoring. It was a sublime performance from Liverpool. Kelly’s injury and Klasnic’s late consolation goal for Bolton were slight annoyance’s in an otherwise perfect day. Suarez was up to his usual mischief, running Bolton’s defenders ragged and creating some great chances. The beautiful cross with the outside of his foot eventually lead to Henderson’s first Liverpool goal, which was expertly finished.” Joshua Kearney

“We all love the player that scores and gets assists. Those guys whose moments of genius at the end of an attacking move directly create the goals that get our teams to glory. And why not? The professionals, however – the coaches, the directors, the scouts, and so on – are capable of seeing things outside the box. Or, rather, inside the box. The large technical box of cogs and gears which power the team and allow those creative players to shine.” Tomkins Times

“This was another of those occasions that confirmed how much more comfortable life is under Kenny Dalglish, Liverpool succeeding where they failed last year by overcoming lower-league opposition to progress to the next round of the Carling Cup with the minimum of fuss. Daniel Nardiello scored a late penalty for Exeter City but Liverpool were strolling by that stage, following an outstanding display by Luis Suárez, who left the field to applause from all sides of the ground.” Guardian

“Occasionally in life, something happens that is so alien, so counterintuitive, so brain-jarringly wrong that it makes you question whether there can ever again be such a thing as certainty. It was May the 14th 1988, FA Cup final day, and I was in the pub. Nothing unusual or counterintuitive about that, as anyone who knows me would confirm.” Twisted Blood

“Footballers are always going to be in the headlines. Late night drinking, kiss-and-tell stories and mega transfers create big news stories. We even have Kenny Dalglish (and most of his extended family) on Twitter. Traditional media has relied on the mutually beneficial relationship between on one side players, clubs and managers and on the other, local and national journalists to publicise (and criticise) in equal measure. The advent of Twitter and other social media platforms has provided novel and more direct channels of communication and interaction. Clubs, associations, companies and individuals can communicate instantaneously with fans and followers. The immediacy, ease of communication and the instantaneous nature of, for example, tweeting players means mistakes and mishaps are inevitable. The more high-profile the individual, the juicer the story.” Tomkins Times

“Liverpool manager Kenny Dalglish believes the club have gone about their transfer business ‘responsibly’ – even though the club have spent over £100 million since he returned as manager. Luis Suarez, Andrew Carroll, Jordan Henderson, Stewart Downing, Charlie Adam and Alexander Doni…” ESPN

“‘The 0-10-0 formation looks quite viable,’ reports Koichiro Yamamura” Guardian

“TALK to anyone in the game about Dominic Matteo and the soundbites are always the same. ‘Decent player, never really fulfilled his potential at Liverpool, did well at Leeds though… what’s he doing now?'” Liverpool FC

“First off, I’ll spare the usual story–let’s just say I fell in love with the game and due to various (seemingly extraneous) reasons, fell even more deeply in love with Liverpool Football Club. And yes, I’m also an American–Texan to be precise. This site (and many others) are full of stories like mine. Americans who, for one reason or another, became passionate fans of teams thousands of miles away. That’s the short version, for now at least. What has finally distinguished me from this teeming multitude that wear jerseys and get up at ungodly hours to watch the English Premier League on weekends, is that I’ve made the trip to my football holy land–Anfield.” EPL Talk

“A certain player happens to have completed more successful crosses in the past three seasons than anyone else in the Premier League; he is the top-flight’s 5th-most successful chance-creator over the past seven seasons, and the only one of that top five to not be in a Champions League side over the duration (the other four being the world-famous quartet of Fabregas, Gerrard, Lampard and Giggs). His club’s Player of the Year, he is someone who has regularly registered in excess of ten assists a season throughout his career, with as many as 14 in 2006/07, and is capable of getting double-figures in goals (he did so in 2007/08, and was just one shy of last season). All this, and on average fit to play in all but three games a season over the past five years. (Stats courtesy of Opta Joe.)” Tomkins Times

“Liverpool’s new midfielder Charlie Adam may have been playing beside the seaside at Blackpool last season, but he was the ultimate big fish in a small pond. Ian Holloway was frank about Adam’s impact upon his side. ‘If he plays well, we play well,’ Blackpool’s manager said.” ESPN

“Director of Football Damien Comolli speaks about Charlie Adam, set pieces, transfer strategy and how he believes there will be plenty more comings and goings at Liverpool over the coming months.” Liverpool FC

“In a summer packed with tedious transfer speculation surrounding the on-off-on-off sagas of Cesc Fabregas and Carlos Tevez, it was a pleasant surprise that Liverpool were this week linked with an €8m swoop for little-known Brest striker Nolan Roux. Liverpool sports director Damien Comolli obviously knows the French market well, but with Andy Carroll and Luis Suarez already at the club – not to mention Dirk Kuyt, Maxi Rodriguez, and at time of writing, David N’Gog, Joe Cole and Milan Jovanovic also on the books – where would Roux fit in? We asked a French football scout who has watched Roux in action for his thoughts.” Sabotage Times

“Jordan Henderson has yet to kick a football for Liverpool – even in training – and many are already writing him off. If playing poorly – or rather, failing to shine as expected – for England at any level is an indicator, John Barnes and Steven Gerrard would have been totally worthless for Liverpool; little matter that they are two of the club’s top five players ever. Hell, even Lionel Messi hasn’t been even half as good for Argentina as he has for Barcelona, and Argentina actually pass the ball.” Tomkins Times

“Saturday afternoon, along with hangover I was at probably the highest seat in the Liverpool Echo Arena, but it was a seat that did make for a good view of the whole of pitch at the Merseyside Master. Liverpool lifted the trophy captained by a very round John Barnes. His side included FA Cup winner Stephane Henchoz, Paul Jones the Southampton keeper who only ever played 3 games for Liverpool during an emergency loan spell, alongside him Norwegian Kvarme and the tournaments Golden Boot winner Paul Walsh.” Touchline Shouts

“The club came into existence following a row between the directors of Everton FC and the owner of their Anfield ground, John Houlding. Houlding was a brewer as well as the club’s landlord. He insisted that only his beers be sold inside the ground and, as Everton grew in stature he put up their rent from £100 in 1884 to £250 in 1890. On the 12th March, 1892, Everton quit Anfield and three days later, Houlding formed Liverpool FC. Originally the new club played in the blue and white shirts that Everton left behind (see photograph – Everton changed to ruby red) but in 1896, they adopted the municipal colours of red and white and in 1901, took the city’s liver bird emblem as their badge.” Historical Kits

“While it’s understandable to want to be excited about Liverpool’s transfer activity, I started to wonder if our preconceptions had any bearing on how good the player turned out to be in a red shirt.” Tomkins Times

“THE sporting commentariat are often fond of cliché, and in football there is no phrase more well-worn than the one about it being a game of two halves. But in Liverpool’s case, the 2010-11 season truly was bi-polar. The club’s renaissance under Kenny Dalglish, following a grim six months with Roy Hodgson at the helm, has seen the side tighten up defensively while at times playing some wonderfully free-flowing passing football.” Daily Post

“Aston Villa duo Stewart Downing and Ashley Young have been on Liverpool’s radar for some time and manager Kenny Dalglish witnessed first-hand their qualities as his side slipped to the defeat which ended their Europa League hopes. With Tottenham only drawing the Reds could have leapt into fifth place and secured European qualification with a victory but they rarely troubled their hosts on an afternoon when Villa’s two wingers provided the main attacking thrust.” ESPN

“IT’S the job every supporter wants – and thinks they would be great at. The role of the football scout is one of the most important in the modern game. With stakes high, and pressure and expectation burdening clubs like never before, transfer market prowess has seldom been more crucial. Put simply, a club’s recruitment policy can be the difference between success and failure, boom and bust.” Liverpool Echo

“After months of positively explosive squibs, the performance against Spurs was a bit of a damp one. It disappointed because it came so quickly after the scintillating display at Craven Cottage, that was one of the Reds’ best for a couple of seasons, and several convincing home wins.” Tomkins Times

“Tottenham seized the advantage in the race for the final Europa League spot as Liverpool’s first match since the appointment of Kenny Dalglish as permanent manager ended in a 2-0 defeat. But referee Howard Webb could have been accused of having a helping hand in deciding the outcome with a series of questionable decisions which culminated in the award of a very favourable penalty for the visitors’ second.” ESPN

Liverpool 0-2 Tottenham Hotspur – Video Highlights, Recap, and Match Stats – EPL
The 90th Minute

“When Luis Suarez scored his fourth goal for Liverpool on Monday night at Fulham, there were fans typically beside themselves. They now had ‘the best player in the world’. Now obviously this is nonsense, and Suarez himself probably can’t believe his start. In the past, such form certainly wouldn’t have lasted. One thing you could set your watch by – almost without exception – is that whatever happened in the first year or two for a player signed by Liverpool, he’d end up devoid of spark and a lesser player.” ESPN

“Even though I spent November and December 2010 pushing for Kenny Dalglish to be given the caretaker’s role – using what little influence I may have had after meeting John W Henry – I didn’t think it would happen. And when it did happen, months later, I didn’t think it would turn out this well.” Tomkins Times