“He’s been likened to a horse, had semi-serious cannibalism allegations thrown at him, and is theoretically barred from the world’s second largest continent. This could easily be the story of a villain in a bad ‘B’ movie, though instead, is the story of Luis Suarez; the Uruguayan striker spear-heading the new look Liverpool into a new era. A player who could possibly go on to define Liverpool for the next decade, similar to the way in which Steven Gerrard has spent the last decade doing so. That may sound a little optimistic, though after just a handful of appearances in a red shirt, the twenty-three year old has already had to modestly put to one side comparisons with another Liverpool number seven who needs no mention.” Some Team Up North

“A perfect day for an FA Cup semi-final. As Dr Glyn Phillips drove with his brother Ian and two mates from Merseyside to Sheffield, they all agreed the weather could not have been better. April showers had been replaced by radiant sunshine and the Pennines looked stunning beneath the immaculate blue skies. A beautiful day for the semi between Liverpool and Nottingham Forest.” Tomkins Times

“Chris Brunt’s second-half penalty double enabled West Brom to win the battle of Liverpool managers past and present at The Hawthorns. Current Reds manager Kenny Dalglish saw Martin Skrtel head his side in front five minutes into the second half. But his predecessor, Roy Hodgson, was indebted to Brunt for initially levelling matters from the spot and then scoring the 88th-minute winner. Albion were worthy of their victory and are now unbeaten in five games under Hodgson.” ESPN

“That’s right: Roy Hodgson was not the worst modern LFC manager. (No, this is not an April fools’ joke.) To my mind, that unenviable honour still belongs to Graeme Souness. But just as Hodgson’s acolytes stress that he wasn’t given time to get things right, to my mind the Londoner arguably only sits above Souness because he wasn’t given the time to get more wrong.” Tomkins Times

Jamie Carragher
“‘You don’t know what you’re doing’ has to be the harshest phrase for a manager to hear from his club’s supporters. (That said, maybe the name of another manager being chanted ranks up there on the hurtometer.)While many will think that Roy Hodgson doing well at West Bromwich Albion proves his critics (myself included) wrong, it seems to merely back up my oft-made point: he’s clearly a good manager, but only in certain situations. He has some great skills, but they are not universally transferable. Just as you wouldn’t play Jamie Carragher at centre-forward, even though he’s a long-proven footballer, you wouldn’t want Roy Hodgson managing beyond his comfort zone.” Tomkins Times

“Finally, some six weeks after signing, Andy Carroll squeezed his considerable frame into a Liverpool shirt and entered the action from the bench. Against Manchester United his introduction appeared to change the game for the worse – although the game was effectively already won – but against Braga his slipped more seamlessly into the action.” Tomkins Times

“West Ham today produced arguably their best display of the season to haul themselves back off the bottom of the Premier League and all but kill off Liverpool’s faint Champions League hopes. Goals from Scott Parker, Demba Ba – rapidly developing into one of the signings of the January transfer window – and Carlton Cole secured all three points at Upton Park and kept the pressure on the Hammers’ relegation rivals.” ESPN

West Ham firepower undoes Liverpool
“West Ham United’s season continues to hint at revival. The Londoners hoisted themselves from the foot and up amidst the clutter of clubs on 28 points either side of the cut-off by bringing to a juddering halt Liverpool’s eight-match unbeaten run here. This was a notable success, achieved in the knowledge that Wolves’ thumping win the previous day had demanded a response. Avram Grant’s team provided just that.” Guardian

West Ham United 3-1 Liverpool – Video Highlights, Recap, and Match Stats
The 90th Minute

“Liverpool’s ambitions of staging a late charge for Champions League qualification suffered an untimely blow as bogey side Wigan ended their four-match winning run in a draw at Anfield. A fifth successive victory would have put the Reds within four points of fourth-placed Chelsea but despite dominating two-thirds of the game they failed to press home their advantage.” ESPN

Liverpool 1-1 Wigan Athletic – Video Highlights, Recap, and Match Stats – EPL
The 90th Minute

“1. Kenny Dalglish makes his case for the full-time gig. From flirting with relegation under Roy Hodgson and playing the most unaesthetic style many observers had ever witnessed from a Liverpool team, interim coach Kenny Dalglish has overseen a dramatic turnaround in the club’s fortunes.” SI

“In the space of six months, all three of English football’s historical triumvirate – as well as its future force – have seen those idols their fans treasure above all others threaten to reject that devotion. Fabregas asked Arsène Wenger to allow him to move to Barcelona; Rooney informed Manchester United he would not sign a new contract; Tévez pleaded with Manchester City to release him from his £160,000-a-week bondage at Eastlands. And now Torres, first “verbally intimating” to Liverpool that he wishes to join Chelsea, then handing in a transfer request.” Telegraph

Liverpool selling Fernando Torres would be a sign of self-confidence
“Football’s most powerful clubs prosper by expelling those who no longer want to work there. The institution asserts its power over the individual. These partings can be painful, and appear calamitous, but there is always another talent out there to be hired. The club renews itself, the departing star is doomed one morning to retire.” Guardian

“So, one of the world’s best strikers signs, on the day that we’re told one of the world’s best strikers is supposedly intent on leaving. Nothing is ever simple as a Liverpool fan these days, is it? But while Suárez has signed, Torres has yet to go anywhere. In theory, they look like a perfectly balanced front pairing. Hopefully we’ll get the chance to find out.” Tomkins Times

“Liverpool’s renaissance under Kenny Dalglish continued as victory over Fulham lifted them into their highest Barclays Premier League position of the season. It was not the most notable of performances, although there were plenty of spells of good football from the hosts, as John Pantsil’s second-half own goal divided the teams.” ESPN

Liverpool 1-0 Fulham – Video Highlights, Recap, and Match Stats – EPL
The 90th Minute

Jamie Carragher
“Following the first two league games of the second Dalglish managerial era, something worrying occurred to me: in both games we had taken the lead, only to subsequently conceded twice and go behind. Don’t panic, this is not a rabid, foaming mouthed ‘DALGLISH OUT’ rant; rather a look at how Liverpool’s defensive record has shifted for the worse overall this season. I don’t profess to have all of the answers as to why, but I’ll share some relevant statistics I have in the aim of encouraging smarter people than me to get to the bottom of it. (While, at the same time, Liverpool’s new coaching and management structure work on addressing the problem.)” Tomkins Times

“The past week has been dominated with rumours of ongoing negotiations for the transfer of Ajax’s Luis Suarez to the Reds. The response to the rumours from fans, whilst generally positive about the prospects of the player joining, has seen a surprising number of demands for the club to pay whatever it takes, seemingly with little or no regard to the value placed upon the player by the club or any potential alternatives which may exist but of which we are not aware.” The Out of Towner

“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.” Tomkins Times

Jan Brueghel the Elder, Harbor Scene with St. Paul’s Departure from Caesarea, 1596
“It was not an entirely happy homecoming for Kenny Dalglish on his first match at Anfield since becoming Liverpool manager for the second time but a draw in an entertaining 215th Merseyside derby represented some progress. The club’s legendary former player went into the game on the back of successive defeats to Manchester United and Blackpool but the result against their closest rivals at least ensured his first point.” ESPN

Dirk Kuyt spot on again as points shared between Liverpool and Everton
“The Kenny Dalglish effect has its limits. Liverpool’s returning hero inspired a vastly improved performance and atmosphere at Anfield this afternoon but not the cherished Merseyside derby victory that would announce his arrival as the script-writers on the Kop had wished. The wait for Dalglish’s first victory as Liverpool manager goes on, and so too David Moyes’s first win for Everton at Anfield since 1999.” Guardian

Match of the Week: Liverpool 2-2 Everton
“Whatever optimism may have been brought about amongst the red half of Liverpool by the appointment of Kenny Dalglish and Liverpool’s performance at Old Trafford last weekend, the fervour quietened just a little during the week at Bloomfield Road, when a performance as insipid as anything seen under Roy Hodgson saw them capitulate to Blackpool for the second time this season. Today, however, is the Merseyside derby – an altogether different kettle of fish and and opportunity to exorcise another of this season’s demons, a 2-0 defeat at Goodison Park that was accompanied by a performance as poor as anything that Liverpool supporters have seen in recent years.” twohundredpercent

Liverpool 2-2 Everton (Merseyside derby) – Video Highlights, Recap, and Match Stats – EPL (Premier League)
The 90th Minute

“I’ve always attempted to see the bigger picture with Liverpool FC, and never liked short-term thinking. However, before we could focus on Fenway Sports Group’s long-term vision, we had a massive obstacle obscuring our view. If we were setting off on a long journey with our new American owners – accepting that it would take time to get where we wanted to go – then we were still entitled to scream Stop! when the driver they inherited was in danger of taking us off the road and over a cliff. (If that’s a little too dramatic, then perhaps it was simply a case of heading in the wrong direction, or down a cul-de-sac.)” Tomkins Times

Liverpool Match Review
“Blackpool beat a sluggish, negative and stagnant Liverpool at Anfield back in October and with the return of Kenny Dalglish to the Liverpool hot seat, this match could’ve got away from Blackpool as Fernando Torres scored an early opener. It was a credit to Blackpool as they never panicked or broke from their game plan to get back in to the match.” Tangerine Dreaming

The challenges Kenny Dalglish must overcome at Liverpool FC
“KENNY DALGLISH was keen to point out at his unveiling as Liverpool manager that the romance of his reappointment was no foundation for improving the club’s results. The unfortunate circumstances surrounding Sunday’s FA Cup defeat to Manchester United had meant the result could be attributed to hard luck. However, Wednesday evening’s 2-1 loss at Blackpool illuminated the scale of the task ahead for the new reds boss.” Daily Post

“The manager and the year may have changed but Liverpool’s problems away from home continued as Kenny Dalglish’s first Premier League match since returning as boss ended in a 2-1 defeat at Blackpool. Liverpool’s troubles on the road contributed to the departure of Roy Hodgson last weekend but the Seasiders showed October’s win by the same score at Anfield was no fluke.” ESPN

Blackpool 2-1 Liverpool – Video Highlights, Recap, and Match Stats – EPL
The 90th Minute

Kenny Dalglish
“A step back or a step forward for the mighty reds? Kenny Dalglish is back at Liverpool and wears the Anfield suit far more easily than the ill-fitting Roy Hodgson. Liverpool is the pool of life. Welcome to IBWM Matt Savage.” In Bed With Maradona

Roy vs Rafa: Endgame.
“Following on from his comparisons between last season and this, Andrew Beasley looks at the final 20 league games of Rafa Benítez and Roy Hodgson. A lot was made of the fact that Liverpool weren’t very good in 2010 before the change took place, so this piece examines that belief.” Tomkins Times

Steve Clarke: A step in the right direction for Liverpool
“Liverpool’s recent woes have been all too well documented in the national press, the club’s nigh on disastrous form under the stewardship of Roy Hodgson this season having seen any realistic chance of silverware long since evaporate. However, with little to lose and a reputation to regain, recent developments at the club in terms of its managerial structure would appear – at least from the external perspective of a neutral – to be of a largely positive nature.” The Equaliser

“So, Roy Hodgson has left Liverpool by mutual consent, and has been replaced by Kenny Dalglish for the remainder of the season. Hodgson leaves with a dignified statement, but his time at the club was disastrous (although the man who replaces him knows the true meaning of ‘disaster’).” Tomkins Times

“Here’s a thing about Roy Hodgson. An intelligent man, one of the few football types who knows which way up to hold a book, Hodgson’s favourite novelist is JP Donleavy. A grand choice, is that; the Irish-American is one of the 20th century’s greatest writers. But Roy’s pick from the Donleavy canon – defined by the bona fide 1955 classic The Ginger Man – is a throwaway 1979 effort called Schultz, a novel the author himself would struggle to recall. This is like saying your favourite Shakespeare play is Timon of Athens, or that your favourite Beatles song is PS I Love You. Or that the most dependable left-back in the world is Paul Konchesky.” Guardian

“As I wrote before for Russian-speaking supporters, I had been very sceptical to Roy Hodgson since I heard he would be appointed as a manager of Liverpool FC for the first time. It seemed really obvious for me he wasn’t good enough to be a manager for the club like ours, and his experience meant nothing because he was a flop with two big names he tried to manage.” AnfieldRoad

Henry silence only adds to Hodgson’s agony and state of crisis at Anfield
“The graffiti scrawled on a Melwood wall yesterday stated ‘Hodgson Out’ but the Liverpool manager was in at an early hour and still at his desk late into the afternoon, even though it was a designated day off for most of the players whose capitulation at Blackburn Rovers on Wednesday night left his job in such jeopardy.” Independent

“In any season, some ‘winnable’ games will not be won. You can’t win ‘em all. Sometimes, shit happens. C’est la vie, as Robbie Nevil put it. But having dropped points at home to Blackpool and Sunderland, and away at Everton, Wigan and Stoke, the fixtures against Newcastle, Wolves, Bolton and Blackburn were supposed to be where the balance was redressed. “We’ve played the hard teams” was the (semi-valid) excuse at the start of the season, even though performances were often well below acceptable standard, with timid tactics and aimless hoofing.” Tomkins Times

Blackburn Rovers 3 – 1 Liverpool
“Roy Hodgson has survived many low points in his short spell as Liverpool manager but a 3-1 defeat at Blackburn would seem to be one disaster too far and could hasten his exit from Anfield. Even before Saturday’s injury-time winner against Bolton the suggestion was club owners New England Sports Ventures were actively looking for a replacement.” ESPN

Blackburn Rovers 3-1 Liverpool – Video Highlights, Recap, and Match Stats – EPL
The 90th Minute

“Below are Match Of The Day (MOTD) video highlights for all the EPL matches on January 4, 2011 & January 5, 2011. The full edition of MOTD can be viewed here.” The 90th Minute

“Exclusive: Liverpool’s owners are so determined to end Roy Hodgson’s reign as manager that they are now prepared to delay the search for his long-term successor until the summer and install a caretaker until June, raising the prospect of an emotional return to the club for Kenny Dalglish.” Telegraph

Grumbling on towards an inevitable conclusion
“Football supporters turning on their club’s manager is not new but for a manager to turn on his club’s supporters is more unusual. Roy Hodgson’s dismal and utterly predictable time as Liverpool manager effectively came to an end last Wednesday night. Hodgson is just a patsy, one of the last remaining figures from the old regime. The hopes of the Fenway Sports Group that the club could stagger on until the summer vanished with that defeat to Wolves.” Independent

Liverpool 2 – 1 Bolton Wanderers
“Liverpool earned manager Roy Hodgson some breathing space, but nothing more, with a last-gasp 2-1 victory over Bolton at Anfield. With reports suggesting owners New England Sports Ventures are now actively seeking a replacement, the 63-year-old knows he is living on borrowed time after a woeful six months in charge.” ESPN

Liverpool 2-1 Bolton Wanderers – Video Highlights, Recap, and Match Stats – EPL
The 90th Minute

François Perrier, Olinde et Sophronie sur le bûcher
“With the derisory and ironic chants of ‘Hodgson for England’ from the Anfield crowd ringing fresh in his ears, following Liverpool’s stunning and stultifying 1-0 home loss to then bottom-placed Wolves, coach Roy Hodgson committed probably the final fatal two verbal missteps in what has been a tortuous six-month reign.” SI

The Media Narrative In Full Swing.
“Originally published on July 1st 2010. As much as I remain a fan of the Guardian and its football output, I continue to find Paul Hayward’s take on Liverpool as daft as any I’ve encountered. But it’s not like I’m being wise after the event…” Tomkins Times

An historic year in review
One of the most dramatic years in the history of Liverpool Football Club is almost at an end, so we asked those who support, work for and write about our famous institution for their reflections on 2010. From new owners and boardroom battles to a change of managers and on-the-field pain, the last 12 months will never be forgotten by those who lived through them.” Liverpool FC

“The news that the unemployed Rafa Benítez has returned to his Liverpool home creates remarkable artistic opportunities for the staff of The Run of Play. Our problem is to decide among the many options.” Run of Play

Liverpool vs Wolves – A Horror In Chalkboards.
“I’m back to take another depressing look at the chalkboards. Skipped a few games in between largely down to the fact that the chalkboards didn’t have any interesting tale to tell. While the news from the Wolves game isn’t positive, there are a few things worth noting.” Tomkins Times

Ward’s strike leaves Hodgson reign hanging by a thread
“Roy Hodgson has been waiting a long time to hear the Kop sing his name but never did he think it would be quite like this. The bitterly ironic barbs of ‘Hodgson for England’ rained down on him last night as his Liverpool side fell to a dispiriting and justified defeat to a club which arrived with the worst away record in all four English divisions.” Independent

Broughton: The big interview
“Liverpoolfc.tv spoke exclusively to Chairman Martin Broughton about the appointment of Roy Hodgson as well as the future of the club.” Liverpool FC

Hodgson hits back at Kop boo boys
“Under-pressure Liverpool manager Roy Hodgson has risked incurring further wrath from disgruntled fans by claiming they should be getting behind the team instead of directing their anger at him.” ESPN

Wolves slay troubled Reds
“Liverpool’s lack of match practice cost them dearly as they lost an ei,ghth Premier League match of the season and bottom side Wolves picked up their first three-point haul since last March with a 1-0 win.” ESPN

Liverpool 0-1 Wolverhampton Wanderers – Video Highlights, Recap, and Match Stats – EPL
The 90th Minute