flagpole corner

Thought I'd post this in the right place. Don't know how many of you have heard of it or visited the shop outside the Albert but hopefully there's no harm in spreading the message. http://www.contrast.org/hillsborough/ <img src='http://www.contrast.org/hillsborough/images/sunboycott03.gif' border='0' alt='user posted image' /> Cheers for your time, hopefully see some of you in the shop on boxing day.

No offence like, I like Newcastle but "One graeme souness, there's only one graeme souness" was probably the most cringeworthy thing I've ever seen. How fickle do some football fans want to be?

Interesting article in today's "Indie" saying benitiez REALLY got pissed off with MO & his advisors last year - doesn't rant about it to the press but thinks he just pissed the club around 24464[/snapback] Rumour is that Benitez was very annoyed that Owen had ditehred on a contract for 12 months and SFX had been talking to Real Madrid (not in the way that Gerrard had talked to Chelsea though). Infact at the start of the pre-season USA tour Owen was confident of signing a new contract. Rafa couldn't be arsed with it and called Owen's bluff and made sure the transfer was completed in 5 minutes so he had time and money to fund Alonso and Garcia before the deadline. But everything I've heard and read is that the two parties left on more than good terms, we had a "first-option" clause put into his real contract (doesnt mean much though) and for the last 4-6 weeks we've desperately been working together (LFC & Owen) to make a move back to Liverpool possible but Real weren't interested in cutting the asking price and Owen didn't want to gamble by waiting till January. But by keeping in touch with Newcastle as a "last resort" he basically blew our plans out of the water as Real knew he was desperate to leave for somewhere. If he has any regrets about not joining Liverpool (and although I dont think he regrets it as such, I think he was very dissapointed) he has only himself to blame.

You're definitely right about people being too hard on him when he first came. A lot of people had made their minds up before he'd even managed one game. To be fair the jury is still out, but he certainly wasn't given a fair crack of the whip by a lot of people. 24634[/snapback] Definitley mate. I think Parker, Luque and Emre are collectivley better signings than Owen for £17m but even last week Souness was being called every name under the sun? The team was booed off on Sunday and the Souness out campaign continued. Yet suddenly signing Owen sounds as if everyone thinks your troubles will go. They won't. He's forging an excellent first team (squad ain't great) and brought in players to play good football and he's won a HUGE PR battle with the signing of Owen but things wont click into place overnight. Owen will have a miserable time feeding off scraps (he did that enough after 2001 with Houllier). Newcastle need some patience I think. I've backed you for 6th place personally.

Looking inside from out, I can't understand the amount of stick Souness got. Half of the stick he got came before he even had a game. Fat Freddy was daft to back Robson last year but then sack him after 3 games which gave Souness no time whatsoever. Although he was maybe on the verge of the sack he did get Blackburn to 6th playing great football and winning a cup on the way. Newcastle were in a bit of a mess 12 months ago but Souness had a good run last year before fading away. He's got rid of the dickheads - Bellamy and Robert to name two and brought in some excellent players - Owen, Luque, Emre and Parker. I lost so much respect for Souness when he was manager with us but can't help that your fans have been far too hard on him. Just an outside opinion like.

Simao Sabrosa (portugese winger) will have a medical at Melwood later today so it's possible our interest in Solano is over.

His technique isn't that refined yes, he's still a raw striker. Dont know what you mean by the last sentence though. To be honest, when it became clear we were trying to flog him to sign Owen, I was dissapointed. I would've been gutted if we'd sold a man we paid £14m for 12 months ago to make funds availible for someone who at the same time, pissed around with us and went for £8m and isn't at the club he wanted most today, because of his own actions 12-24 months ago.

He won't move back abroad anytime soon. Part of the season he wanted to come home was he (as in his family) couldn't settle abroad and his partner desperately wanted to move away from Madrid. He had to live in a hotel for the first 3 months last year with a baby child. They weren't happy. And the only club he'd want to join in this country is Liverpool and it's doubtful if a) Benitez can be arsed going through the whole circus surrounding him, for the 3rd succesive year He is nobby enough to shit on Newcastle unless you have a really bad season You've got nowt to worry about.

Dont knwo matt or his mate to be honest but I'm just giving an opinion on what I've seen and heard. He scored 70 goals in 111 starts for Auxerre and 11 in 34 games total (incl half sub) when he's joined a new league and broke his league 2months into his career. I'd have been gutted if we sold him to make way for Owen, but unless he has a great season it's likely that he'll be sold next year

He talks rubbish a lot of the time mate. Was convinced Benitez wasn't on his way to Anfield 12 months ago and the same with Morientes. Very hit and miss journalist but gets a lot of press coverage because he speaks good english and talks as if Perez and co. tell him their exact transfer plans every night over dinner.

He's the hottest prospect to come out of the French production line for a few years. He needs a run in the side and a bit of confidence and he'll be shit hot.

Yes he probably came out of production line at the wrong time so to speak. If he was a few years older and came after Rush it would've been different probably. I've got nothing against him now, I was gutted 12 hours ago but rather it be Toon than going to the mancs or chavs. Slightly annoyed though as I remember him often saying he'd never want to sign for another english club ahead of liverpool though. edit : see above. Also, some people suggest it was Rafa who called his (and his agents) bluff by saying MO wasn't worth a 90k p/w contract and sold him to Real so he could sign Alonso and Garcia before the deadline. His dithering over a new contract for a year wasn't good though, but he held all the cards when Houllier was still in charge.

It is true. I think it's partly because he has always had a lot more character than Michael and was, in his short-lived prime, a better player; and also because Robbie's a scouser who we know would never even remotely consider playing for Man Utd - we don't get that impression with Owen. I do think though that considering his contribution to the club he probably deserved a bit more singing than he got. 23819[/snapback] Cheers, its something i've heard many times, that Liverpool fans pretty much all worshipped Fowler but didn't feel the quite same about Owen. Wonder if it bothred him that much not being sung about as much as you'd expect for such a goal scorer? 23833[/snapback] He was still loved though by almost all fans (just the knee jerk, hyped up sky supporters who used to slag him off) and the club always bent over backwards for him. As I said above, he got a great reception when it was announced he had scored.

The bit about Owen not being loved enough is very true but it didn't detract from his desire to come back. But I suspect if we had signed him he would still have had to have re-built bridges with some supporters. Some of his performances in his final year weren't good and there were lots of rumours about a clique being formed and players like Owen having too much power. But with that said, when it was announced at half time that Owen scored his first goal for Real (as it was a CL night) the whole crowd stood up and clapped/cheered. That was great.

He looks a bit like Scotty Parker! Certainly looks different than he used to in Red. It'll be a bit tough to watch him play for you lot.

I've got nowt against NUFC, except the constant "big club" assertions by the press but it's another story for another day. Certainly favour you lot over Boro or Sunderland though! lol. We certainly do have some bad apples in our fanbase (not saying I'm that juicy lol) but watching sky sports and fans singing "are you watching liverpool" is a bit silly and I know a lot of geordie england fans who have been quick to criticise St Michael in the past but thats football. Just one request - please please please dont sing that shite "Sign On" song. It was funny the first time someone sang it, now everyone does, including Wolverhampton Wanderers. arf! NUFC fans have a reputation of being good willed supporters, up for a laugh and witty in their songs and humour - a bit like the Kop used to be. Speak soon

Chris Bascombe in the Liverpool echo seems to think there is. There wasn't one in his Real Madrid contract, just a "first-option" clause which meant Real Madrid had to offer Owen at the same price as any bidder to Liverpool FC. First option clauses mean nothing though, a release clause is odd in this country (almost all big players in Spain have them) but wouldn't surprise me if it's there.

nah I'm not softlad. No problem. Without turning this into a Liverpool discussion lol, there was always the belief that Owen & LFC had things sorted and all that was needed was some patience from both parties to get Real to lower their asking price (which is why Owen came out last week saying he'd only move to NUFC on loan). I think it became apparent that Real Madrid weren't prepared to budge since Newcastle's huge offer was on the table which led us to basically saying we can't afford him. Both Monaco and Marseille have said they wanted Cisse and Rafa didn't really do anything to stop the speculation.

To be fair we've gone for Owen, Figo, Mexes and Milito - all have been priced out. And Reina, Crouch and Sissoko are good signings IMO and Zenden is decent. Also Rafa's philosophy has always been the team ; the collective. He's not one for stars or crowd favourites and infact his first deed at Valencia was to sell favourites Claudio Lopez and Mendieta. As for Souness, think you're being a little unfair considering Blackburn played with Duff and Davey Thompson on the wings.

We had to fight tooth and nail to grab Morientes from Real Madrid (who we don't really have a great working relationship with...) and he's Rafa's man. There's no way he'll be gone anytime soon. Re your board, to be fair, I think it's crap aswell but credit where credit is due, theyve done well this time. If we had the money that NUFC are branding about then Michael would've been in Liverpool red a long time ago I'm sure but we didn't and that's life. I wonder if rumours of a £12m release clause are true? Certainly it would tie in with reports saying that is as far as we were prepared to go on Michael. Wouldnt surprise me to see him move in 12 months time but we'll see eh!

Hello there boys and girls. Well done on the Owen signing. Great clinch it is for you and although it pains me to see us play the situation so poorly fair play to Newcastle. Your guys laid the cards on the table and did what was required while we pussy footed around trying to play poker without the money. The way I've seen the whole saga is that we've had contact with Michael and SFX for a long time. His family and his friends (at the club, in the city) have been prompted he was coming back. Rafa wanted him. The club wanted him. Everyone in Liverpool knew he was on his way back. Sure everyone talks about the "friend of a friend" but Liverpool is a small city and things get around and it was nailed on. He had even accepted a pay cut to come back. He was on his way back but at some point in the game we've pussied about. Rafa was told he'd have money for Owen + a right winger (hopefully Solano now) and centre back. But when it's come time for us to make our move we havent got the money (partly due to your bid) and have to flog Cisse to make way for Owen which would have been madness. Owen was told to sit tight and even wait till January if we couldn't settle something in the 48 hours and call Real's bluff by not moving. Clearly he wasn't prepared to that and took the safe option of joining Newcastle as a 4th option. In the end I'm gutted but selling Cisse and buying owen for £16m would have been foolishness on our part. Shepherd has done the business for you lot but Rick Parry has a lot to answer for us as we enter the season with the possibility of a completely inexperienced strike force, no right winger and absolutely no cover for Sami and Carradona. Frightening it may be but we have the best manager in Europe and will cope I'm sure. Anyway, you're getting a decent squad now. Boumsong, Given, Emre, Parker, Dyer, Shearer, Owen and Luque is very healthy but defence still needs a lot of work from what I've seen. But it's a new squad and will take time to blend & gel, I dont think expectations like a top 5 finish will do the club any good to be honest. Also interested to know where the club are financing all this money from too? Can't all be from the sale of Woodgate can it? Will the fans get off Souness' back? He's a legend for his playing career with us obviously and although he sold his soul as manger with us it surprised me to see the amount of stick he got before he even had 10 minutes in the job. This is his first full season in charge and where he should be judged. Although things went downhill at Blackburn he did win the league cup and get them to 6th, it was kind of inevitible that things would slide after Dunn and Duff were sold. Anyway, good luck for the season (not too much though lol) and see you on Boxing day, will be interesting. Oh and since I'm here can I take the time to direct anyone unaware of it, to the Hillsborough Justice Campaign. Ta.