Crystal Palace 2 - 1 Liverpool


Steven Gerrard's goal not enough

Liverpool crashed out of the Carling Cup competition; with a 3rd round defeat by Crystal Palace at Selhurst Park.

Liverpool created many chances, but poor finishing & lack of goals let them down again. Palace scored first through Freedman in the 37th min. We didn't stay behind for a long time, Gerrard put the score equal with his 50th goal for the club in the 40th min.

However, the lack of goals & poor finishing prevented us from pulling ahead from Palace & the latter scored another in 2nd half. Palace's goalkeeper, Julian Speroni had a magnificent game & deservedly took the Man-of-the-Match award.



We are out of the Carling Cup competition, we have to look ahead to the next game.

Fulham 2 - 0 Liverpool


Defeat at Craven Cottage

What happened?
We were defeated 2 - 0 by Fulham at Craven Cottage. We were touted to win this surely. As Rafael Benitez put it, lack of goals cost us dearly.

Harry Kewell started for the side in his first premiership appearance since his last game at Istanbul. I wouldn't say he's great, but something's missing from the former Leeds player. Kewell isn't the same player for Pool, as he was for Leeds a couple of seasons ago.

John Collins' goal in the first half & a late strike by Luis Boa Morte marked the second league defeat of the season for Liverpool.

We have to win more games, be able to score goals. We made a zillion of goal-scoring opportunities, but none will count; if they don't find the net. Rafael mentioned that Kewell's return would boost the attack, but I didn't see that in this match.

10 points from 8 games, lying 12th on the table is indeed very worrrying. We need some of the magic we produced during our European competitions to be executed in our league games. It had better start soon.

Anderlecht 0 - 1 Liverpool


2 goals in 2 games - Cisse

Djibril Cisse was the goal hero again, scoring the solitary goal against Anderlecht in this morning's (S'pore time) Champions League match. They now have 7 points from 3 matches, in a very good position to qualify for the next round.

Surely, the confidence level of Cisse must have been boosted. He's certainly a good striker, no doubt about that. He just needs to play regularly & get his fitness & sharpness in front of the goal back.



Let's hope Cisse's goal spree continues. A couple more for the away game at Fulham, maybe?

Another Elimination on TAR 8

The Schroeder Family Eliminated

No, they aren't my favourite.
So the curse is true, I can't reveal my favourite; else they would be eliminated.

I don't know about you, but this season of The Amazing Race is getting a lil' boring. WHEN ARE THE TEAMS EVER GETTING OUT OF USA?? It's happening next week, just seen it on www.cbs.com. The teams would be travelling outta USA next week, can't wait.

The language barrier, the different culture, the dirty Roadblocks & Detours. Oh yeah, can't wait.

Bring it on, Wednesday better come quickly.

Pool Takes 3 points at Anfield

The trust in Cisse pays off

We have the 3 points. It wasn't the best display at Anfield against Mark Hughes' Blackburn Rovers, but we have the points.

Credit to Blackburn for putting up an impressive defensive display when they were 1 man down, after the sending off of defender Zurab Khizanishvili. They made changes & kept their focus of taking at least a point away at Anfield throughout the game.

We played 4-4-2 at last, with Crouch partnering Cisse in front. Blackburn was in fact the better side in the 1st half & things turned in Pool's favour after Khizanishvili was sent off. However, it took a dead-ball situation to break the deadlock at 75th min. Cisse took a marvellous free-kick that finally found itself at the back of Blackburn's net, past Brad Fridel.

Cisse missed a couple of definite goal-scoring opportunities in the first half. We could have been 2 - 0 up after the 1st half. Finan was impressive, given the unfamiliar role in right midfield. He made good passes, crosses & runs down the flanks. Alonso was again the perfect passer of the ball & his distribution & corners couldn't have been better.

In conclusion, I think we played a good game. But, much has to be done about our strikers. They can't seem to score from open play, the goal came from a free-kick. Morientes missed a couple of goal-scoring opportunities too, we surely could have done better if the chances at goal were put away nicely by Cisse, Crouch and Nando.

Rafael still has alot of work to do.


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Aiello Family Crashs Out

My Favoured Team Eliminated Again

I can't say I like them huh? If I did, they get eliminated!

I didn't watch The Amazing Race this week, missed it due to work; so I can't really make any comments. It's a pity that both my favoured teams are eliminated simultaneously on TAR 8. I have a new favourite, but I shall keep that to myself now. I can't say it out loud, can't take the risk that they might get eliminated next.

All Ok now

I have been absent from my blog for a long time now.

There are so many things to blog about for the past week. I'm not feeling too happy for the past week & I need some time to reflect on the relationship. I'm glad that things worked out after we had a heart-to-heart talk with each other. Hopefully, things stay alright this way for a long time.

We are now trying to furnish the flat simply & hoping to rent it out real soon. The unit's at Bedok, pretty near to the interchange & amenities are close by. Wet market, supermarkets, provision shops, food centre, you name it. It's a good location, generally.

Anyone interested, just send me a email.

What Else Should I Do?

I'm totally clueless now. I have not a single idea what I should do to make things work.

We quarelled again, 3 hours ago.

I didn't wanna blow up, but i just hated him for using the 4-letter word on me. Surely, i deserved more respect than that. I totally ignored him on our way home, i told him how i felt. He didn't give me a response or an acknowledgement. I don't what else i can do.

I probably gave up my comms' job for him & my father-in-law.
I probably have to wait for 3 years to hold the customary rites.
I can't live in the new flat we bought, it has to be rented out.
I can't make use of the furniture (bedroom suite) we bought earlier this year.
I respected his decision to quit his job, to carry on with driving his dad's cab.
I keep my problems to myself, fearing that i would add on to his burden/stress.
I have to bear with some of his unreasonable relatives, without complaints.

I really don't know what else I could possibly do, to return to our happier days before. It might not be possible, I kept feeling that he thinks I'm not doing enough. I really don't know. I'm terribly upset, entirely lost.

Hunk of the Day

Matt Damon

Not the most handsome of the lot, but I kinda like his 'intellect' look & his movies.

Especially Good Will Hunting.

Rogers Family Eliminated

Rogers Family Last to Reach Pit Stop

One of my favoured teams got eliminated this week on The Amazing Race.

The Rogers Family made a drastic mistake enroute to Washington D.C. & didn't realise their mistake soon enough & was eliminated during the 2nd leg of TAR.

Many other teams made mistakes, but were fortunate enough to make up for the lost time & avoided being last. Hopefully, the Rogers Family walked away from the Race; learning something or strengthening their family ties/relationships. That would be something no one could take away from them.

Brittney really does look like Christina Aguilera !

Liverpool vs Chelsea (Rd 2)

LIVERPOOL 1 - 4 CHELSEA


A Tale of 2 cities - Rafael Benitez & Jose Mourinho

I still can’t believe my eyes at the end of the match, the scoreline read 1 – 4 after 90 mins of play. It was supposed to be close between the rivals, who would have thought?

We played relatively well for the first 30 mins, save for a penalty given against Pool; thanks to Traore when he fouled Drogba in the box. Lampard stepped up for the spot kick & Reina nearly stopped it, damn. 1 – 0 to Chelsea. I thought we were visibly disappointed after Chelsea took the lead, it’s clearly shown during the play after the penalty; for a couple of mins after we were behind.

Of course, Liverpool never gives up. We responded with a Steven Gerrard’s goal in the 36th min, Riise’s swung in the ball from the corner, Carra’s flick of the ball off his head had the ball falling into the path of Gerrard & it was 1 – 1 from then. We were level within 9 mins after Chelsea took the lead.

Chelsea was contented to sit deep & struck when the opportunity came for counter-attacking. The game plan worked perfectly for Jose Mourinho’s team. Duff had his goal in the 43rd min, after Drogba’s work in the midfield; shaking off Finnan & Hyypia. Pool was once again 1 – 2 down at Anfield.

Chelsea continued to add more pain to the Liverpool fans at the stadium, by scoring a third through Cole in the 63rd min. Drogba was going for goal, but his shot went wide by miles. Luckily for him, Cole was around to tap it in. Easy goal for Joe Cole, Chelsea are 1 – 3 up.

Rafa then replaced Hyypia with Sinama-Pongolle, hoping to add more attacking power. However, it was a case of too little, too late. Cisse was then brought on for obvious reasons. Moments after Cisse got on the pitch, Chealse scored the 4th one in the 82nd min through Geremi.

Having played Chelsea so many times, whether for Champions League or the Premiership; this has to be our worst performance to date. We played more attacking football, but were let down by our finishing in front of goal & the defending of Chelsea trio – Terry, Makelele & Cech. We certainly took more risks by pushing more players foward & resulted in a laspe defensively. Traore & Hyypia were outta sorts & made mistakes that Chelsea capitalised on & converted to goals.

Our formation of 4-5-1 didn't work with Chelsea, though Crouch was good in the air; almost winning every ball in air, there just isn't enough support from the other players. Sinama-Pongolle & Cisse should have started for the side, i'm really baffled by Rafa's play yesterday. The 4-5-1 formation gave them strength & control in the midfield, but support is seriously lacking in the attacking department. The formation also allowd Gerrard a more versatile role, hovering behind Crouch & playing in the midfield.

The scoreline was certainly not a clear indication of the gap between the 2 teams. However, we lost. We should not dwell on the manner of defeat, we lost.


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Hunk of the Day

Xabi Alonso (click for the link)

Hmmm....certainly hunk material.

LIVERPOOL 0 - 0 CHELSEA

Italian referee Massimo De Santis cost us the match & the scenario of Pool beating Chelsea again at Anfield; securing the 3 points & being the team that Chelsea loses to consistently.

WTF

We had 2 clear penalty claims waved off by the ref & we could only settle for a point last night again Jose Mourinho's team. We were the better side, definitely. We played well offensively & defended well. The game plan Benitez had worked well against Chelsea, we had the upper hand; especially during the last 30 mins.


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We face Chelsea again this Sunday for EPL match-up. I'm confident that we are going to beat them this time round.

My prediction : 1 - 0 to Liverpool at Anfield

Black Family first outta TAR 8

The Black Family is the first casualty of The Amazing Race 8 - Family Edition. They reached the Pit Stop last & were eliminated from the race.

It was an interesting 2-hr special, watched it on AXN. Was really impressed with the kids from the Gaghan Family. I know the Race can only get better, keep watching.

Birmingham vs Liverpool

Away Game at St Andrews

We have to win this.
We are already 12 points apart from leaders, Chelsea.
We have to score.
We might have Nando & Kewell back from injuries.
We have to get the 3 points.
We can't lose to Birmingham.
We cannot settle for a draw.
We cannot afford to drop points.
We have to play the 4-4-2 formation.

WE WILL WIN THE MATCH with a 0 - 2 scoreline.

======================================

We didn't win.
We could only manage a draw.
We picked up only a point at St Andrews.
We scored 2 goals.
We let in 2 goals.
We scored a own goal.
We were overly-cautious in the first half.
We played the 4-5-1 formation again.

WE DREW with Birmingham, 2 - 2 scoreline.

The Amazing Race !!

The Amazing Race - Family Edition

I love the Amazing Race.
There's a twist this time, instead of 2 in each team; there's gonna be 4 members in each team. It's already tough for 2 members to reach an agreement on which Detour to take & who's to do the Road Block, we might see double the sparks & disagreements with the 2 additional members in each team.


The Rogers Family & The Aiello Family

I kinda like these 2 families, not because the men are cute.
Hope they fare well on the Race.

Also I notice that Brittney Rogers looks a little like Christina Aguilera (before she became wild)
What do you think?

LIVERPOOL 0 - 0 MAN UNITED

It was another draw for Liverpool. We should seriously start worrying about the stats, 1 goal in 4 games is indeed something to ponder upon. Sure, we kept 4 clean sheets. But the only goal came from Alonso, not our strikers. While we can say that having collected 6 points from a possible 12 out from 4 games is passable, but we are now a long way behind Chelsea; 12 points to be exact.

Pool was definitely the more adventurous side of the two. The 4-5-1 formation was kinda working effectively against Man Utd, with Sinama & Riise down the flanks. However, i tend to think that we are pumping the high balls to Crouch too early & he's not getting the support that a fellow striker can provide. I would love to see the Crouch/Cisse combination sometime soon. Rafa gives me the feeling that he's gonna sell Cisse during the January transfer window.


Bloody hell, Rio Ferdinand should have been sent off

Hell, Rio Ferdinand should have been sent off for the uncalled retaliation on Crouch. The referee did Man Utd a big favour by letting him off. And we thought that only Rooney was capable of such impulsive & childish behaviour.

Damn, we should have gotten all 3 points at Anfield.

Real Betis 1 - 2 Liverpool



Garcia & Sinama Goals Sealed Victory for Pool at Seville

I couldn't have been happier with the final scoreline.
Real Betis played well, I thought a draw would have been a fairer result for both sides.

The match was shown at 0245 hrs this morning in Singapore, mind you. And I'm at work now, trying my best to stay awake. Luckily, the goals came early & I didn't have to wait too long for the excitement.

Benitez stuck with the 4-4-2 formation, with Sinama & Crouch leading the attack & he rested Gerrard; in preparation for the league match against Man Utd this coming weekend. Goals from Sinama & Garcia came in the first half & Betis did well to pull one back early in the second half. If not for Reina's magnificent saves; Betis wwould have gotten the equaliser. We were kinda lucky to be able to keep the 1 goal lead for the second leg back at Anfield.

We are truly the Champion of Europe, well done!!

Let's Return to EPL Action

Spurs vs Liverpool at White Heart Lane

Damn, it's so bored on weekends without EPL action. I'm glad that we are returning to some football this weekend.

Crouch & Cisse would start for Pool, hopefully we can see Crouch scoring against Spurs after his return from injury. Cisse had a good international outing with France, fingers crossed that his scoring form continues this weekend.

My prediction, 0 - 2 to Liverpool at White Heart Lane.

FINAL RESULT : 0 - 0

Gone

My father-in-law was cremated this afternoon at Mandai Crementorium.

He's physically gone forever, but he would always live in the hearts of his loved ones. Thanks to all whom left comments on the previous post.

The Passing

This post has nothing to do with football or Liverpool.

My father-in-law lost his battle against cancer & passed away on Saturday's afternoon. I was by his side when he breathed his last. His battle with cancer lasted only 8 months. He was a very brave man, he went through a major surgical operation, countless sessions of radiotherapy & chemo; but couldn't fight the cancer cells no more, with his poor/non-existent immune system.

Standing by his hospital bed, seeing him breathing his last was traumatizing. I felt a great sense of loss, but also a sense of relief for him. Maybe this might be the best arrangement for him; he needn't suffer anymore from the painful process of chemo & the needles pricking his flesh. He was reduced to skin & bones for the last 2 weeks of his life, he couldn't eat anything & his eyes were almost bulging from its sockets & his cheeks were so sunken that it was so painful to see. I cried every time when I see him in this condition. There was nothing I could do neither to lessen the pain nor agony of his illness.

But I told myself that I must be strong for the living. My mother-in-law needs to be well taken care of, she lost her husband & the children are the only support she has in her life now. There are still tons of things to be done after the funeral, I must be strong for my husband & my mother-in-law.

Life is so unpredictable, treasure what you have now; don't let them turn into regrets when you lose them.