Anfield Roar - January 2014

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It seems that every month comes around, and all I can think of for my editorial is to express (ever milder) surprise that we are still up near the top of the tree! At Christmas we were very top, and, another month on, we are still sitting pretty in one of the most open Premierships we’ve ever seen.

Our fixture list is another reason to be positive about how this year might pan out: we only have to play mid-table United away from home, whereas we will be welcoming almost all of our title rivals to Anfield over the course of the next few months – which means that our destiny is in our own hands…

With Suarez signing another contract (albeit one that means he will earn in one week, what it takes me over five years to earn – how can that be fair? etc… etc...), then there is plenty of positivity about LFC at the moment, and long may it continue…!

Suarez has been the difference in making us a top-four team, and this issue is something of a Suarez-special: we look at how Suarez can even score when he’s injured, delve into the possibilities of what Luis being in the same group as England at the forthcoming World Cup might mean to LFC fans, as well as looking at the darker sides of his game (in diving and courting controversy).

Transfers also feature this month, with a look our transfer activity so far, the players we might be signing within the next 7 days, and the classic pub-chat of where we need to strengthen (if anywhere!).

So hopefully, in a months’ time, I will similarly be expressing surprise about still being in the fight for the Premier League!

YNWA Gary 3

Message from the Editor

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Excited for the new season!

Postbox

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Fan rants and opinion

Brendan Believes

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Are we still dreaming? Paul Baker asks the question we ask every month…!?

Getting Stronger

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We’re looking good, but where do we need to strengthen?

Open Window

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The tabloids have linked us to all sorts of players - we take a closer look at who...

Ins & Outs

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Who has come and gone so far? It’s not looking great...

Signed Up

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We celebrate Suarez signing up - even if it only means we have him for an extra year.

Luis ‘Controversy’ Suarez

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Just what is it about Luis Suarez that makes controversy follow him around!

Still Scoring Even with a bad leg and one foot, Luis Suarez would keep on breaking records...

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Does He Dive?

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The press love to hate him for it, but is he really the worst of a bad bunch?

Uruguay

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Who will you be supporting when England play Uruguay?

On the Pitch

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A look back on the last month’s games.

We’re in it to win it!

Kop Hero

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All it took was a last-minute penalty save to make Simon Mignolet a fan’s favourite...

The Month Ahead

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We preview the big fixtures, and predict the results (and we’re only slightly biased!)

Who Are Ya

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We look at the reasons we’ll always be the biggest and best team in Liverpool!

Best of Youtube

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Our pick of the best Youtube footage of the Liverpool vs Everton matches

As Clear as Day Are statistics important in football, and what can they tell us?

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Dear Anfield Roar, They may not be our biggest, strongest, fastest, most skillful, most determined or most authoritative players but if we are going to make a serious bid for top four this season one out of Lucas and Allen has to start every single league game if possible. Gerrard was shocking first half against Villa but looked a different player as soon as Lucas was behind him.

It will be interesting to see what Rodgers does for his next game now - he won't risk a formation like that again, and of the front four which started, Coutinho is on current form easily the most droppable. He had an appalling first half today, was the worst of our attackers by some distance last week at Stoke and really hasn't looked himself this season.

For all that having a defensive midfielder made a massive difference, I would give anything to have either Sakho or Agger back ASAP - Kolo Toure has been very poor. He lacks the composure to play simple forward passes into midfield consistently at Premier League level, and panics whenever somebody like Agbonlahor attacks him directly.

Steven Gerrard: the elephant in the stadium. Although his heart is very much still in it - and I believe he will always have something to offer Liverpool while it is - the debate over whether his world class quality from set pieces and his range of passing make up for his lack of positional sense at times. Against a dynamic side like Villa he really needs more than just Henderson by him to do the pressing and create space.

Roger Jones, Allenby 6

POSTBOX Dear Anfield Roar I have never and will never try to defend Suarez's actions on a football pitch. It's frustrating when players dive or make the most of contact.

However, what is just as saddening as seeing them do that is the realisation that so many referees are unwilling to give fouls if the player is still on his feet, even if he can't play advantage.

I think that as tough a job as referees have, it's not unfair to expect perfection from them - with the help of technology where appropriate - and if they are going to allow skillful but lightweight players to be kicked out of games (and as distasteful as Suarez's antics are, he has been on the receiving end of some horrific challenges this season that have gone unpunished; the game at home to Hull springs to mind) then it's not surprising when those players start trying to get their own back.

I want diving out of the game, but I can at least see why attacking players do it - if the less skillful defensive players gain a competitive edge by kicking them, elbowing them, pulling their shirts, etc, then they will get one in turn by conning the ref. It's not fair or moral, but if they want to win that badly, then you can see why they do it.

Peter Willams, Liverpool _________________________________________________________________ Dear Anfield Roar, Games like this make me doubt Brendan Rodgers abilities. I've backed him from the start and continue to do so but one definition of madness is repetition. This formation has failed before and will fail again.

His main problem, Gerrard aside, would appear to be a lack of tactical nous. He talks about control and formations but does he even know his best formation? He talks about 4-3-3 and 4-3-2-1 then abandons it at the drop of hat. He talks about controlling games then plays 4-2-4.

He just hasn't worked out how to accommodate both Suarez and 7

POSTBOX Sturridge without sacrificing defensive solidity, which is curious because a team down the road is playing a variant of 4-4-2 without being too open (City are open, but nothing like us).

Rodgers has worked some minor miracles, he's improved most of the players technically, he's got the best out of Suarez, Sturridge and (briefly) Coutinho, he's improved team spirit no end.

But why oh why must he tinker so and why are we so easy to play through? The defence is a shambles and has been all season.

It seems to me it only improved last season when Carra and Pepe decided to take control. The midfield was great, but having finally found his most effective formation he's sacrificed Lucas and Allen to accommodate an ageing icon and a centre forward who has just come back from injury. Arrant foolishness.

Django, via email _________________________________________________________________ Dear Anfield Roar, It's all about the club's owners then! We desperately need more goals from midfield. Quite telling that Rodgers didn't bring on Aspas, Moses or Alberto to change the game after we lost momentum. Nice for Henry to come and visit, but more importantly hope he make funds available to strengthen the squad.

This is the time for the club to really push on.

Danny, via email

Contact us Email: editor@anfieldroar.com Tweet: @anfieldroarmag Web: use the contact form on our site 8

This is a new community section of our Fanzine, where we highlight issues or news on behalf of other LFC fans around the world to show that we are, indeed, not walking alone.

Blind Faith A blind Liverpool FC supporter is hoping to raise £5,000 to name a guide dog in honour of club legend Bill Shankly. Lifelong Reds fan Lee Hodgson has had a guide dog since the age of 17 and wants to make a difference to another blind person’s life.

Lee said: “My dog Emily is my fifth guide dog. I’ve had them for 27 years. Guide dogs really are the Rolls Royce of mobility. There’s just no comparison between having a guide dog and using a cane.”

“I’ve had great support from Liverpool FC who’ve said they’ll support in any way they can. If we do raise enough money I’d love to take the puppy to Anfield to let the fans see what they raised the money for.”

To help Lee reach his fundraising target go to www.justgiving .com/Lee-Hodgson1 Sponsored Tattoo A die-hard Everton fan has promised to get Kop anthem ‘You’ll Never Walk Alone’ tattooed across his back to support a severely ill boy he has never met.

Matty volunteered for the charity effort after being touched by the story of George Johnson, a four-year-old who fights a daily battle for survival against an illness that means he is fed through the heart.

The 26-year-old said: “It took a few people to persuade me but I’ve got to go for it.

George's family are trying to raise £15,000 to take him to America where it is hoped progress could be made to diagnose and treat him. To support him donate at gofundme.com/teamgeorge If you have an issue or idea that you would like to share with fellow LFC fans, then please get in touch!

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BRENDAN BELIEVES Paul Baker asks the same question we’ve been asking every month - Can Liverpool win the Premier League this Season?!

The Club and the players have made a fantastic start in the first half of the season, finishing in the top spot in time for Christmas Day. This allowed many fans to dream of league glory over the holidays. Sadly the results into the New Year programme did not go our way.

All Liverpool fans will wholehearted agree that 23 years to see the league title at Anfield is far too long! Maybe this could indeed be the Manager and team to change the record books. To win the league this season would surpass all exceptions and make Brendan Rogers a living saint.

History is on the club's side. Seven of the last nine title winning teams have finished top on Christmas Day, however as with all statistics, there are ones which are not so positive. The last side not to win the title after being in top spot at Christmas was Liverpool in 2009. It has also been 20 years since a team that finished 7th in the league (2012/2013), went on to win the title the following season.

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BR BELIEVES Champions League football is the absolute minimum requirement for this season. Most fans would have taken fourth place back in August if it was offered. Without this incentive to offer, keeping Luis Suarez and signing top new players after the World Cup will be difficult!

In order for the club to win the league in 2014, a lot of factors are needed. The Manager will require transfer funds to allow him to add to the squad. I am sure he has players in mind. The team had done well this season, but lacks cover in certain areas. A large amount of luck and decisions made by the referee to go our way.

Man of the moment Suarez is going to need to maintain his sizzling form and remain injury free. His goals and teamwork are vital to the club remaining genuine title contenders. Most forwards are by their very nature selfish, however Luis is a team player and does create assists for his fellow players.

The return of Daniel Sturidge will hopefully have the same impact as when he signed 12 months ago. If both players can stay fit and carry on the four-star partnership, the goals will flow and keep the team in the title race.

Can Liverpool win the League? Man of the moment Suarez is going to need to maintain his sizzling form and remain injury free.

Philippe Coutinho will need to add to his game by scoring more goals then he currently does. The ability is certainly there! Talk of a new right winger being signed, would maybe allow him to be used through the middle and then hopefully the goals will come.

Anfield will need to continue to remain a fortress if the title will be Liverpool's. Anfield must be a place that opposing teams find difficult to visit, especially as many of the other title contenders are yet to visit Anfield. There are only nine home league games left to play.

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BR BELIEVES The team will look to build upon the 27 home league goals scored so far. The club are currently the second highest scoring in the league.

The Manager is not a man lacking in confidence. When asked if he believes if Liverpool can win the Premier League, he said, "You don't set out to finish fourth or third. You always set out to win," before adding a tone of expectations management.

"You have to be realistic, as well. It's unprecedented for any team to go from eighth or seventh to go and win the league. That doesn't stop us fighting to arrive there."

“You don't set out to finish fourth or third. You always set out to win.� Rodgers Brendan Rogers has and continues to do a first class job at Liverpool. Some fans questioned his appointment by the club, but with the club moving in this positive direction, I can see him staying in the post for the long term.

Another factor that may assist in the title race is the lack of European Football.

While the club and fans alike miss the famous European nights at Anfield, this break between matches can only help players with adequate rest periods and recovering from knocks and injuries.

The team however will be looking to make the F.A. Cup number their number two priority. A good Cup run breeds confidence and allows the Manager to rotate to make full use of the squad.

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BR BELIEVES It is also an opportunity for the fringe players to show why they should be playing week in week out. Sadly this was not the case in the FA Cup against Oldham. Winning the Cup also brings guaranteed European Football next season.

Another reason to think this could be the season that makes Liverpool a real threat for the Premier League title is their ability to win league games on a regular basis. If Liverpool had beaten Manchester City and Chelsea, they would be currently top of the league.

A window of opportunity exists this season. It is set to be one of the closest of the past few years. With Manchester City seemingly scoring goals for fun at home, but not playing so well away from home, the return of Jose Mourinho and the form of our neighbours across the park, the team will need to work extra hard to pick up points away from home. Even if the performance is not great, the result is all important.

A special mention should go to David Moyes. He is a top top Manager and long may he continue his good work in Manchester.

A few people I have spoken to, were shocked and surprised that his name was not on the New Years Honours list.

Could this really be our season? I look forward to finding out!

Expertly written by: Paul Baker Feedback? Send your feedback to : @paul_baker 13

Getting

STRONGER Now is the time to build! Arun Kannan looks at where we might need to strengthen..

There is no doubt that we are genuine top four contenders this season - fans must remember that the core of this squad finished well outside the top four last season, finishing twelve points behind Arsenal.

It is important to take things in perspective and to realize that the team has possibly 'punched above its weight' for the first half of this season. So where do we need to strengthen to push for that top four finish and maybe even challenge for the title?

It's almost towards the end of the window and nothing concrete has come out of Anfield in terms of new additions to the squad.

Brendan Rodgers has recently been quoted saying that he is looking to add a left back, centre back, midfielder and a striker to bolster his squad.

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STRONGER Realistically, Liverpool fans should be looking at most of these players to come in during the summer transfer window – but it will be a great January for Liverpool Football Club if we manage to scupper through two players into Anfield before deadline day.

Liverpool need a defensive midfielder and they need one quick. Lucas is out injured and the reality of things is that Steven Gerrard cannot play that role.

Brendan Rodgers plays three in central midfield positions. In this system and on current form, Henderson is selected by default.

There was a period toward the end of December last year where we saw Henderson being paired up with Joe Allen and Lucas Leiva. It was no coincidence our midfield looked unstoppable during this run. This seems to be Brendan Rodger's favored midfield system.

Liverpool need a defensive midfielder and they need one quick. Lucas is out injured and the reality of things is that Steven Gerrard cannot play that role.

The problem is how do you fit our talisman Steven Gerrard into this midfield three? The solution would be to acquire a natural defensive midfielder who has the athleticism to provide defensive cover behind Gerrard and Henderson, especially since Lucas will be out for two months. We have been linked to the likes of Milan's Nigel de Jong and I think Brendan and his team of scouts are looking at the right options here.

Raheem Sterling has been sensational toward the later part of last year and has carried his good form into 2014.

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STRONGER It is no surprise that Liverpool have played some of their most exciting brand of attacking football during Raheem's resurrection.

Sterling provides a genuine outlet option during games especially when counter attacking.

His pace and trickery drags defenders out of position and creates space for other players to exploit.

The problem Liverpool have is that Raheem seems to be the only in form winger we have at the moment: Victor Moses has flattered to deceive this season and has become somewhat of a liability.

Playing Coutinho on the left disrupts the balance of the team as the Brazilian prefers to cut in to central positions when on the ball.

A second winger like Salah is essential to create a balanced attack.

You could almost imagine a scenario where Sterling and a Salah are able to swap positions throughout the game confusing defenders and creating space for SAS to thrive on.

The Mohamed Salah saga is reminiscent of Liverpool's troubles in the previous summer's transfer window: the club was reluctant to meet high asking prices and eventually loses out on key players.

The 'Egyptian Messi' currently plays his football at FC Basel and has publicly stated that he wants to join Liverpool amid interest from Zenit St Petersburgh and most recently Premiership rivals Newcastle United, but the deal has not yet happened.

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STRONGER It might sound absurd to think that Liverpool need a new central defender but there are some strong reasons why Rodgers himself is looking at defensive options.

The club has never replaced Sami Hyypia properly. When he was playing, we would win many aerial duels and clubs could not bully our defenders around.

The likes of Christian Benteke and Romelu Lukaku seem to enjoy playing against Skrtel and co.

If you go back to a few years ago, Skrtel and Agger had the same kind of problem with a certain Drogba when he was at Chelsea.

Individually the likes of Skrtel, Agger, Sakho and Toure are fantastic defenders but they do not seem to be able to complement each other in a defensive partnership and this is costing Liverpool vital points this season.

The likes of Skrtel, Agger, Sakho and Toure are fantastic defenders but they do not seem to be able to complement each other in a partnership If Liverpool can bring in reinforcements in these departments, we have a good chance of challenging right at the top come May this season. Liverpool play some fantastic football at times and with a few improvements, we are as good as any team in the league. We already have the best strike partnership and we just need the other nine players to be able to support SAS. If we can bring the right elements in January, we will be up there challenging for a top four spot this May and maybe even competing higher up the table. YNWA. Expertly written by: Arun Kannan Tweet us your thoughts - @anfieldroarmag 17

OPEN WINDOW There are just days left to go. Janoo Wasan takes a closer look at the rumours and potential signings...

This January transfer window hasn’t kickstarted just yet. There haven’t been any crazy deals, any crazy bids, and not too many crazy transfer rumours either…

The ITKs are still here but the ridiculous rumours haven’t been flying around as they were previous transfer windows. It seems like Liverpool FC have learnt a little bit from the previous summer transfer window about keeping things more under wraps.

Nonetheless there are still some rumours floating around that will satisfy the minds of the eager optimists. And with Liverpool having stumbled a little during the December month, there is no doubt that everyone at the club, fans and staff included, would welcome a few new additions this January window to strengthen the squad and improve the squad depth.

In fact, Brendan Rodgers himself admitted following the 5-3 win against Stoke City that, “we’ll see what’s available, there’s nothing at this moment in time but we’ll see how the market goes over the next few weeks…I would like to strengthen if I could.”

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WINDOW And, with bosses John Henry and Tim Werner in town to witness Liverpool’s slightly dismal 2-2 draw at home against Aston Villa, it seems like Rodgers may have got the backing he needs to splash some cash, and there is now more of a possibility that some of the rumoured names may be in a Liverpool FC shirt come the end of the January window.

“We’ll see what’s available, there’s nothing at this moment in time but we’ll see how the market goes over the next few weeks…I would like to strengthen if I could.” BR Let’s take a look at some of the players Liverpool have been rumoured to sign this January window…

Mohamed Salah It seems like Brendan Rodgers and Liverpool’s number one target is FC Basel winger Mohamed Salah. The 21 year-old winger who has been coined the ‘Egyptian Messi’ for some of his dazzling performances has been on Rodgers’ agenda since last summer.

In fact, the Liverpool scouting team have been monitoring his progress since.

According to many British newspapers, following John Henry and Tom Werner’s visit to Liverpool and their meeting with Brendan Rodgers, it seems like Liverpool are ready to finally make a formal bid for the player.

Liverpool seem to be valuing Salah’s qualities at 7-8 million, whilst FC Basel have a valuation of around 16 million. Though the two clubs valuations for Salah differ by a large margin, Liverpool might negotiate a deal for the Egyptian, a player who would add to Rodgers’ already attack-minded squad.

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WINDOW Being a young yet experienced player, Salah would definitely benefit Liverpool, who besides Sterling and Coutinho (who prefers to operate more centrally) don’t really have any settled and established wingers.

Signing a player like Salah would give a new dimension to Liverpool’s attacks and ease the pressure off Coutinho (who has come under a lot of recent criticism) and strike duo, Suarez and Sturridge. With his experience in Europe, Salah shouldn’t find it too difficult to settle in the Premier League and he would provide another creative option in Liverpool’s relatively weak midfield.

Yann M’Vila Following Lucas’ recent injury in the game against Aston Villa, which is rumoured to have him sidelined till the end of the season, Liverpool have no true defensive midfielder.

Rodgers has already tested Steven Gerrard in the defensive midfield position and that hasn’t worked out too well for Liverpool.

Without Lucas, it seems like Liverpool, a predominately attack-minded side, are very exposed at the back during counter-attacks as a result of their weak midfield.

It is no doubt that apart from Lucas, who has arguably been poor on occasion this season, Liverpool lack a strong figure in midfield who will do the dirty work and grind out opposition attacks. Thus, it would seem that rumoured defensive midfielder, Yann M’Vila of Rubin Kazan would be an ideal addition this January transfer window.

However, there are a few big clubs interested in the Frenchman.

Rodgers is known to rate M’Vila highly and M’Vila’s agent, Werner Baader has said that: “I think many players dream of playing in the Premier League - Yann is no different.”

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WINDOW Though M’Vila is believed to favour a move to Liverpool over the other interested non-english major European clubs, it seems that Liverpool only want M’Vila on a loan deal first. Rubin Kazan are asking for 12 million for M’Vila, but Rodgers and Liverpool do not really want to gamble on the 23 year-old, who is also known for his poor temperament and behaviour both on and off the field.

With no real defensive midfielder at the moment, Liverpool are vulnerable in defence and against the counter-attack and though Yann M’vila may be a bit of a gamble for the club, it may be a necessary gamble if Liverpool want to be in the top 4.

Ivan Rakitic Another name being thrown around and rumoured with Liverpool is Sevilla winger, Ivan Rakitic. The Croatian is 25 years old and sits in the middle of Sevilla’s midfield. Not only that, but he is also their captain.

Being a very important player at the club, it would seem highly unlikely that Sevilla would let him go in the January window.

However, with Liverpool’s relatively weak midfield, a player like Rakitic, who has scored 10 goals and created 12 in 25 games, would definitely bode well and help with the reds aspirations for a place in the top 4.

But, it would certainly take a very hefty bid for Liverpool to lure Rakitic away from Sevilla and thus, at this stage, it would be highly unlikely for Liverpool to even make a bid.

Cristian Tello Here’s one player who will sound familiar - Cristian Tello, a player Liverpool were rumoured to sign in the summer transfer window.

The speedy Barcelona winger has been linked with Liverpool since last September and had even said that he would welcome a move to Liverpool, but would prefer to fight for his place at Barcelona.

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WINDOW The 22 year-old has only completed a full 90 minutes twice in the La Liga for the club and has been given very limited game time. It is rumoured that Liverpool might sneak in with a loan deal for Tello, which would benefit both Tello himself and Barcelona.

Though the loan deal does seem favourable, it appears that Tello is adamant to stay and fight for his cause at Barcelona.

From Liverpool’s point-of-view, signing Tello on loan may be beneficial, as it adds to the squad depth and provides Liverpool with the option of a exciting winger, but it may be difficult to settle the youngster, whose mind seems set on Spanish football.

Karl Darlow Karl Darlow, not the biggest or most exciting rumoured name this January window, but a player with huge potential. The 23 year-old goalkeeper has established himself as the number 1 for Nottingham Forest and has caught the eye of many English clubs including Liverpool and Tottenham.

It is rumoured that Liverpool might try to sign Darlow this January as a backup for Simon Mignolet, who himself has stumbled in recent weeks.

If Liverpool are able to sign Darlow, it might prove to be a very important buy.

Though Mignolet would still definitely be the number 1 shot-stopper at the club, with young Darlow rising, Mignolet would have more competition and need to consistently show his quality.

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WINDOW

Iago Aspas Though Liverpool’s lack of squad depth suggests they won’t really be letting any first-team players go, they have already let Tiago Ilori go out on loan to Granada in Spain.

Clearly, Brendan Rodgers is a big fan of giving his players an opportunity to get game time elsewhere (on loan) if they are unable to settle and make the grade in Liverpool’s fixtures.

Thus, Rodgers may also be looking let Aspas go out on loan.

It is rumoured that Valencia are interested in a short-term loan deal for the unsettled and struggling striker.

If Brendan Rodgers does want to loan out Aspas, he should try and loan him to an interested Premier League (or even Championship) club, to see if he is cut out and able to play in the English League.

Though, Brendan Rodgers may see this as an opportunity to give Aspas some playing time, it may not be the best of ideas. Though a move to Spanish side, Valencia may allow Aspas to get more playing time, it just gives him playing time in Spain, a country and a league he has already played in and was settled in.

If Brendan Rodgers does want to loan out Aspas, he should try and loan him to an interested Premier League (or even Championship) club, to see if he is cut out and able to play in the English League.

Expertly written by: Janoo Wasan Tweet Janoo - @janoow10

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INS & OUTS Ronan McCourt takes a look at the business we’ve done so far - not much sadly...

Unfortunately for LFC fans so far this January, and more unfortunately for the writer tasked with chronicling the clubs transfer activity during this window, transfer activity has been rather slow up to now. So slow in fact, that up until Granada secured a loan for Tiago Ilori this week, this piece was a profile of Adam Morgan…

In: None Out: Morgan (Yeovil, free), Ilori (Granada, loan) Outgoings have been the only activity to date then this window.

U21 striker Adam Morgan made permanent his loan move at Yeovil at the very start of the month.

Despite being a regular fixture for the U21’s last year, the teenager’s need for first team action was clear to continue his development, so a move to Yeovil initially on loan seemed a good fit for both parties.

However the Glovers clearly seen enough to make the move a permanent one and this was confirmed on January 3rd for no fee.

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INS & OUTS The quality of striking options available to the Reds at the moment meant that progression to the first team was always unlikely for Adam so the move makes sense from his point of view.

Everyone associated with the club wish Adam well for the rest of his career, one which will be followed with interest given his love for the club, being a local lad.

The quality of striking options available to the Reds at the moment meant that progression to the first team was always unlikely for Adam Another youngster whose development will be tracked closely is Tiago Ilori.

The English born Portuguese defender has been loaned to La Liga outfit Granada for the remainder of the season.

Ilori has yet to make an appearance for the first team but has featured for the Under 21’s, and is seen as one for the future so again his move seems a good fit for both parties.

Tiago is a cultured, ball playing centre half with a great turn of pace; so his style of play should be well suited to Spanish football.

Granada have been in the market for a defender and will see Tiago as someone who can come in and make an immediate impact in their first team. It’s up to him now to take his chance when it comes and make the most of the experience of first team action in a top league, and hopefully follow in the footsteps of fellow La Liga loanee Suso, who has impressed at Almería and should return to the club a better player as a result of his experience.

Expertly written by: Ronan McCourt You can tweet your responses to @anfieldroarmag 25

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SIGNED UP! George Way celebrates Luis Suarez putting pen to paper on his brand new multi-million pound contract...

Having missed the first 6 games of the season due to suspension, Luis Suarez has quickly raced to the top of the goal scoring charts, and also straight to the top of many clubs transfer targets. Thankfully for the Reds though, after signing a mammoth contract, ‘El Pistolero’ is here to stay.

This, to many fans, is better than any transfer we could of made, given that there are few (if any) players playing at his level in the world this year. And even if anybody was, they would surely be well out of the Reds’ price range.

Not only is the new deal as good as signing a new player, it is probably worth the same amount as one financially – now that he is raking in £200,000 a week, Suarez is by far the Reds highest paid player. That might sound a lot, but for many, he has earned it.

Didn’t count apparently

Since signing as a replacement for Torres in January 2011, the Uruguayan has grown to become one of the stars of the League.

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SIGNED UP This year in particular, little could be said against his ability, and in addition he has recently vowed to improve on his past behaviour, and so he becomes an even greater asset to an ever-improving Liverpool line-up.

Some would say that after the cloud of controversy that we guided him through, he owes his commitment to us, and that such a hefty salary was therefore unnecessary. In spite of this, before this contract was signed, I personally believed a substantial offer from the likes of Real Madrid would have been difficult to refuse.

We can all sleep easy in the knowledge Suarez will be wearing Liverpool red for the foreseeable future.

It was one of the summers leading transfer stories; Arsenal went looking for a buy-out clause in Suarez’ previous contract, and even with the infamous £4,000,001 bid, they failed to find it.

It would seem now though that they would not even attempt to activate any kind of clause, as the common case with contracts of this magnitude is that such a clause is so huge that no club would be willing to pay such a sum.

Ruling Arsenal out of the running for Suarez is some of the best news of all, as perhaps the most painful thing for Liverpool fans would be seeing a player of his quality at a rival club within the Premier League.

In summary, while the clubs around us may be making millions of pounds of worth of signings, Liverpool have made perhaps the best signing we possibly could – we are going to keep hold of our (and indeed the league’s) best player for the next few years to come!

Expertly written by: George Way - you can send your feedback to us and we’ll pass it on - editor@anfieldroar.com 28

LUIS ‘CONTROVERSY’ SUAREZ

Is that really his middle name?! I guess being controversial is all part of his genius? Aizaz Sheikh investigates...

2013 epitomized the career of Luis Suarez: Audacious skills, outrageous performances and ridiculous controversies.

Luis Suarez is a genius footballer, with an incomparable will to win, but like many genius footballers that have been before him, you just have to take the rough with the smooth. And that is the narrative of his career - the highest of highs seem to be followed by bizarre lows.

His career started in 2005, and after a successful season with Nacional, he headed to Europe to join Groningen in August 2006. He went on to score 10 goals in 29 league games, but in February 2007, he marked his international debut with a rare distinction.

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CONTROVERSY Hat-trick? No. 25 yard screamer? Wrong again. As his debut against Colombia drew to a close, Suarez was shown a second yellow card for dissent, tarnishing his first turn out for ‘La Celeste’ with a red card.

2007 would prove to be an eventful year for Luis – he joined Ajax in August for €7.5m, and would go on to have a successful first year, scoring 17 league goals in 33 games. So, is that the only thing that can be said about his first season in Amsterdam? Why, of course not.

In November 2007, three months in to his Ajax career, Suarez was fined by Ajax for an incident at half-time in a match against fierce rivals Feyenoord. Was Suarez caught berating a referee in the tunnel?

No. Did he get in to a spat with a Feyenoord player or official? Again, that would be too obvious.

The correct answer is that Suarez was fined for getting into an altercation with his own team mate - former Newcastle flop Albert Luque - over a free-kick of all things. Manager Adrie Koster chose to substitute them both before the second half. See a pattern emerging?

After finishing the 2008–09 season with 22 league goals in 31 games, he was named Ajax Player of the Year, and in July, 2009, new Ajax coach Martin Jol named him the team captain. Suarez’s reply was to shoot to the top of the Eredivisie's top scorer charts with 35 goals in 33 league games, and 49 goals in all competitions.

He was named Ajax Player of the Year for the second straight time and Dutch Footballer of the Year, and went in to the World Cup 2010 as part of a dangerous tandem with Diego Forlan. That World Cup is where Luis Suarez would become a household name.

What comes next is very well known, so no need for the questions of what happened next like earlier in this article. It was THAT incident during the quarter-finals, when he prevented Ghana's Dominic Adiyiah's goal-bound effort with a deliberate handball on the line in the final-minute and was subsequently sent off.

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CONTROVERSY A penalty was awarded but missed by Asamoah Gyan.

Footage showed an elated Suarez celebrating, and when Uruguay eventually went through following a penalties to reach semi-finals, he instantly become a national hero, but a global villain.

And it got no better in November, as Suarez was handed a sevenmatch ban by the Dutch FA and fined by his club for biting PSV midfielder Otman Bakkal. In fact, he would never play for Ajax again as he moved to Liverpool for £22.8m in January 2011, scoring against Stoke on his debut, and finishing the 2010-11 season with four goals in 13 games. He’d go on to win the Copa America with Uruguay that summer, and was named player of the tournament. His rollercoaster ride was gaining momentum.

He instantly become a national hero, but a global villain October 2011 saw Liverpool take on their two main rivals, with Suarez right in the thick of the action.

He was accused of getting Everton's Jack Rodwell sent off after going down with what was perceived as minimal contact, and later that month, he was alleged to have racially abused Manchester United's Patrice Evra in a heated Anfield clash.

In December, not only was Suarez was found guilty of the charge by an independent regulatory commission, banned for eight matches and fined £40,000, he was also seen making an offensive gesture towards Fulham fans, and was handed a further one-match ban for the gesture.

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CONTROVERSY Upon his return, United and Liverpool met again at Old Trafford, and more controversy followed as Suarez refused to shake Evra's hand before kick-off.

The British media’s knives were well and truly out at this point, and Suarez appeared to be a marked man. And yet, could anyone outside Anfield have any sympathy for him?

You could argue no, but the more everyone else turned on him, the more Liverpool fans wanted to protect their own.

Later than month, Suarez won his first trophy with Liverpool after a penalty shoot-out win against Cardiff City in the Carling Cup, but Liverpool’s disappointing 8th place finish saw Kenny Dalglish sacked.

A wasteful Suarez, who undoubtedly showed signs of brilliance throughout the season, finished with just 11 league goals, and many in the media blamed his antic as the reason why King Kenny lost his job. Nevertheless, Suarez signed a new long-term contract in August.

In October 2012, Suarez celebrated a goal against Everton by diving in front of their boss David Moyes, who had earlier claimed that "divers" were putting fans off the English game, and more controversy followed as a “handball” preceded his winning goal for Liverpool as they defeat Mansfield Town 2-1.

But this is when the media witchhunt seemed the most ridiculous, as his regular goal celebration of kissing his wrist had been twisted to be a gesture of mockery.

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CONTROVERSY In March 2013, the referee missed Suarez punching a Chilean opponent during a World Cup qualifier, and later that month, Suarez’s was banned for 10 matches for biting Chelsea defender Branislav Ivanovic’s arm.

The summer was highly stressful for anyone associated with Liverpool as their star striker confirmed in a Uruguayan press conference that he wished to leave Liverpool, blaming the press for being intrusive as the reason. But despite links with Real Madrid, and a cheeky offer from Arsenal, Liverpool refused to let Suarez leave.

Which brings us to today. After sitting out the first 5 games of the season due to the remainder of the biting ban, Luis Suarez has set the world on fire in the first half of 2013-14. By notching 22 goals in 17 games, he has not only captured the imagination of the footballing world, he also recaptured the hearts of (most) Liverpool fans by signing a new long-term contract to remain at Anfield, stating "I am so proud to represent them and go out to do my best for them every time I pull on the shirt.”

Days shy of his 27th birthday, he is about to enter the peak years of his career. Unquestionably, there are countless highlights and memories yet to be discovered, and Liverpool fans will hope that they can secure Champions League football to ensure that these moments are captured with a Liverbird on his chest.

But, what seems inevitable, is that regardless of what jersey he is wearing, those moments of magic will be peppered with moments of ridiculous controversy. It’s just the nature of the beast.

Expertly written by: Aizaz Sheikh Tweet us your thoughts - @anfieldroarmag 33

STILL SCORING Even when he’s injured, he can still score goals! Micheal Reid reckons Luis Suarez is fast becoming a goal machine!

Brendan Rodgers may have said he had a foot injury during the game, but when Luis Suarez stepped up to take the free kick against Hull that would ultimately be his 20th goal of the 2013/14 Premier League season, was there really much doubt that he wasn’t going to curl it into the top corner in front of the Kop? That’s the kind of form the man is in right now – people don’t hope he scores, they know he will.

But can it even be called ‘form’? I’m sure you will have heard the old saying, “form is temporary, class is permanent”. Luis Suarez’ class with the ball at his feet is just that. Permanent.

Last season, Premier League top scorer Robin van Persie scored 26 goals having played in all of Manchester United’s games in that campaign. This adds to an average of a goal every 0.68 games.

Luis Suarez scored 3 goals less, but with him missing 5 games through his untimely ban, his average was still better at 0.70 goals per game.

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SCORING If that wasn’t world class enough, he has almost doubled that in the matches he has played this season, prior to the Aston Villa game at Anfield. Again, Suarez has missed 5 games of this season in the Premier League and yet he’s still managed to maintain his run, scoring a never before achieved 1.38 goals every match.

Better than Andy Cole’s 34 Goals / Game goal average in 1993/94.

Luis Suarez 1.38 Better than Alan Shearers equal number of goals the Andy Cole 0.85 following year. These two Alan Shearer 0.81 managed comparatively fewer 0.85 and 0.81 goals per game in those seasons respectively – and remember that was when there were 42 games played, not 38 like there is now.

If Suarez goes on at his current rate, he will have 45 goals in 33 games this season - hitting that previous 34 goal record out of sight!

Even this year’s Ballon d’Or winner Cristiano Ronaldo could only reach 31 goals at 0.91 a game in his most productive season in the English league. To get above a goal a game is unheard of. Suarez doesn’t just look all but guaranteed to achieve this on his current run, but to set a record that will be almost unbeatable in the process.

Even Cristiano Ronaldo could only manage 0.91 a game. To get above a goal a game is unheard of.

This is the sort of goal scoring form that can only lead to one thing. Some may argue it will be a season too late, but Suarez seems the cast iron favourite to win Premier League player of the season 2013/14 by a landslide. Can he be beaten to it?

Finding an answer to that with any genuine substance to it is very difficult. Never before has the winner of the award looked so certain less than two-thirds into a season. Even Cristiano Ronaldo had competition from the likes of Fernando Torres and Didier Drogba in his Premier League days.

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MIGNOLET SCORING When it comes to Suarez, however, it was a ban that may have cost him the award last year, and with Suarez having received a lengthy sanction in each of his last three seasons as a player for both Liverpool and Ajax, that possibility can’t be ruled out.

Let’s take a less pessimistic look at the players that could have a chance of beating him to the trophy.

A few names stand out: Chelsea’s Eden Hazard, who looks better than ever under Jose Mourinho; Yaya Toure of Manchester City, as well as his teammate Sergio Aguero, Suarez’s closest rival for the Golden Boot with 13 goals so far; and Manchester United’s Wayne Rooney, who seems to be almost single handedly dragging them through what has been a difficult season for the champions to say the least.

There may be a few others with a chance but in truth, even the aforementioned four players stand little hope of catching up to the player many consider to be in the top three (or even better) in the world right now.

Liverpool, and indeed the Premier League, is lucky to have a player of such quality. As Steven Gerrard has said, we need to enjoy him while he lasts because, even with this new contract, performances like Suarez has been producing will always attract the world’s greatest clubs – Real Madrid may well be thinking they went and bought the second best available ‘marquee’ signing last Summer, and not only missed out on the better player, but also £30-40 million extra out of their back pockets...

Expertly written by: Michael Reid Feedback? Send your feedback to : editor@anfieldroar.com

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DOES HE DIVE? Why is Luis Suarez vilified for diving, when there are all sorts of players who are worse? Emma Rhodes tries to work it out.

Diving in football is a topic which continuously rears its ugly head, and there is always a great deal of controversy and at times hypocrisy surrounding this issue.

Suarez is a regular on the back pages and not always for the right reasons so it is inevitable that the two would meet at some point.

Following Liverpool’s trip to Stamford Bridge on 29th December viewers saw Samuel Eto’o make a lunge on the Uruguayan which should have at least resulted in a penalty.

Instead referee Howard Webb watched on, pointing to the players, but decided any action.

To add salt to the wound, Jose Mourinho shifted the blame onto Suarez, labelling his reaction an “acrobatic swimming pool jump” claiming the Red’s number 7 should have been booked for diving.

Seriously!?!?

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ALL DOES HEI WANT DIVE? Mourinho also expressed that it is when a player like Suarez is losing that his true colours come out, “the wild nature, the cultural nature of the player. Culturally, people from that area, they like it.”

Footballers on Splash?

This is not the first time El Pistolero has been wrapped up in a diving controversy. Last season Everton’s manager David Moyes expressed his hopes that Luis Suarez would not dive prior to the Merseyside derby.

Naturally when celebrating his goal, Suarez dived in front of Moyes in the technical area who looked on, embarrassed by his previous comments.

This is not the first time El Pistolero has been wrapped up in a diving controversy Suarez is clearly seen as a huge threat to any opposing team with only Ronaldo, Messi and Ibrahimovic scoring more than him in Europe’s major leagues last season.

This season has been just as successful for the Uruguayan scoring 20 goals and creating 5 assists for Liverpool since returning from his ban.

This may lead to why players target Suarez, including John Terry’s elbow as well as the Eto’o tackle at Stamford Bridge, but is it fair to accuse him of diving every time?

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DOES HE DIVE? Once again it seems to be easy for people like Mourinho to shift the blame onto the controversial player, despite their own players being far from the model professionals they claim to be. Suarez has gained a reputation for diving and in some cases this can be justified. But when compared to other Premier League players, does he deserve to be the face of this campaign?

Since August 2008 Suarez, Andy Carroll, Chelsea’s Oscar and Ashley Young have all received 2 bookings for simulation. Torres in this period has been booked 3 times for diving but leading the way by some distance is former Spurs star Gareth Bale was booked an incredible 7 times for the same offense.

This brings up the question as to why Suarez is the player with the poor reputation.

He may have only been in the Premier league a few months but Manchester United’s Adnan Januzaj has already caused a huge stir with his acrobatic ability.

The 18 year old Januzaj has only played 14 Premier League games and has already been booked three times for simulation. This ranks him joint second in Premier League history alongside fallen hero Torres.

So far this season Manchester United have collected 4 bookings for simulation whilst Chelsea and Everton both have 2 bookings. Liverpool have none.

Recent dives making the headlines include Chelsea’s Oscar being shown a yellow card for diving against Southampton, angering Chelsea fans as he decided to fall instead of scoring.

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ALL DOES HEI WANT DIVE? Further to this, Ramires also received a booking for diving during Chelsea’s game against Derby. Mourinho claimed he did not see the incident but explained that his position means he will sprint down the pitch, often leading to falling.

He also explained how he hopes referees make these decisions for every team which ultimately makes him a hypocrite as Liverpool were denied a clear penalty after the Eto’o incident with Suarez.

So far this season Manchester United have collected 4 bookings for simulation whilst Chelsea and Everton both have 2 bookings. Liverpool have none.

With diving becoming more and more regular in not only the Premier League but many European games, referees are reluctant to act upon the tackles as players are doing whatever they deem necessary to win and gain a decision.

Whilst players will take the chance of gaining any advantage, their reputation is at risk.

Let us hope that Luis Suarez continues to be a regular on the back pages… for the right reasons.

Expertly written by: Emma Rhodes Feedback? Send your feedback to : editor@anfieldroar.com

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Paul McFarland thinks that Uruguay and Suarez could make it interesting for England next summer!

Interesting......Uruguay have been drawn in the same group as England for the coming World Cup finals.

My first thought when I saw this was ‘Sh*t! This has the makings of Portugal v England and Ronaldo the winker written all over it!’. I don't mean that Luis or any of the Liverpool players would be that hateful to do something like that, but you get the picture.

You just know that from now to the end of the season that if Luis does anything wrong, it will be amplified a hundred times by the press.

Then come June, and if Luis has a brilliant game against England, will it divide the English Liverpool supporters loyalties? Probably not.

But what if he does something stupid would that make the Liverpool supporters love him any less?

I think as long as he's still a Liverpool player, it won't matter one bit to them but Jesus, can you imagine what’ll happen if he gets a penalty at the World Cup because he went down to easily (and I don't just mean against England).

Say he went down against Costa Rica or Italy and got a penalty and then, through that, earned his team the point or 3 points that inevitably knocked England out... Can you imagine what would happen?

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URUGUAY I think the press would campaign for a national ‘Hate Luis Suarez day’. Or the scum newspaper would have a "Wear your hate Luis badge with pride" thing going on.

But how many Liverpool supporters would care if Luis ended England's World Cup hopes ? Me personally, I wouldn't give a flying one to be honest - I support Northern Ireland so I have enough of my own footballing problems. But we did beat England the last time we played them ( 1-0 , cheers Sven :-)…. just saying!

How many Liverpool supporters would care if Luis ended England's World Cup hopes ? I wouldn't.

On a serious note, come the World Cup, when I'm watching England play I always want to see the Liverpool players do well, and I’ll cheer them on to a certain extent, and pray none of them gets hurt. I certainly won't get my knickers in a twist if results go against them. I’ll probably be a bit relieved if they get knocked out at the group stages and come home early and unscathed.

But anyway...if Luis knocks England out through scoring a hat-trick or going down for one, I really don't think there would be a hell of a lot of Liverpool supporters ringing the Anfield hotline demanding for Suarez to be sacked. From my experience, the Scousers put their own team first, and most of them can take or leave England.

One thing I do hope is that we have qualified for the Champions League before Suarez goes off and has an outstanding World Cup. Because if we haven't then I'm afraid the World Cup will just be a four week advertising campaign for Luis, and we will be one world class player lighter come August.

So, as much as I want Luis to do well out in Brazil, a part of me thinks ‘I hope he has a stinker, because hopefully then there won't be as many teams chasing him in the summer, with or without the Champions League for Liverpool.

Expertly written by: Paul McFarland Feedback? Send your feedback to : editor@anfieldroar.com

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How did Liverpool do on the pitch over the last month?

George Way guides us through our wins, draws and losses...

Liverpool 2 – 0 Hull 01/01/2014 Following a difficult end to December, Liverpool greeted 2014 with a welcome 2-0 victory over Hull at Anfield. It was a win that the boss labelled as the “best” of the season following back-to-back defeats to Manchester City and Chelsea.

Daniel Agger gave Liverpool the lead after 36 minutes with a header from Philippe Coutinho’s corner and inevitably, Luis Suarez ensured victory with an exquisite free-kick.

The win was a much needed confidence boost for Rodgers’ side and pushed them back into the top four at the end of a hectic Christmas period.

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ON THE PITCH

Liverpool 2 – 0 Oldham 05/01/2014 Attention turned towards the FA Cup a week later when Liverpool hosted Oldham Athletic – the side who had knocked them out of the competition last season.

The Reds struggled to find the breakthrough in the first half, but ten minutes after the break, Iago Aspas scored his first Liverpool goal with a neat half volley.

The Spaniard was one of a number of changes Rodgers made for the tie but it was a player who has featured heavily in the first team of late who influenced the clinching second goal.

Raheem Sterling’s corner-flag bound shot was deflected into his own net

by James Tarkowski and sealed a fourth round tie with either Bournemouth or Burton Albion.

“We needed to have more speed in our game and a bit more intensity. You don't want to do it (making the substitutions) but the last thing I wanted was the game to go to a replay.” BR Stoke 3 – 5 Liverpool 12/01/2014 Liverpool returned to Premier League action against Stoke the following week and both sides produced a true classic. The Reds ignited a two-goal lead after half an hour with a Shawcross own goal and Luis Suarez registering his 21st league goal of the season. Stoke fought back however with Peter Crouch and Charlie Adam – two former Reds – levelling the match before half time.

However, Liverpool came back in the second half and regained the lead when they were awarded a soft penalty, which Steven Gerrard converted.

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ON THE PITCH The three points looked all but secured when the returning SAS combined for Suarez to slide in his second of the game.

Stoke again caused worry into the Liverpool fans when Jonathan Walters’ weak shot somehow found its way past Mignolet.

But the return of Daniel Sturridge reminded everyone of how prolific his partnership with Suarez is when they again linked up for the England striker to smash home his first goal since November.

Liverpool 2 – 2 Aston Villa 18/01/2014 Many would have considered the home tie with Aston Villa a comfortable win for the Reds, yet Rodgers could only settle for a point.

It could have been a lot worse with Villa taking a 2-0 lead thanks to goals from Cristian Benteke and Gabriel Agbonlahor. Sturridge, making his first start since November, grabbed a precious strike on the stroke of half time.

Rodgers’ change in formation to facilitate Sturridge’s return had backfired against Villa’s pacey counter attacking play.

Lucas was subsequently introduced at half time and it didn’t take Liverpool too long before they were level after half time. Suarez won a penalty, which Gerrard converted, yet the Reds were unable to complete the comeback and their disappointing display resulted in two dropped points ahead of the Merseyside Derby.

Expertly written by: Ross Webber Ross’s site is liverpoolnewsandviews.tumblr.com 45

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KOP HERO He’s been an instant hit, and so impressive between the sticks… Emmanuel Ivan tells us Mignolet’s story...

After eight years of Pepe Reina in Liverpool's goal, a change in that department was almost inevitable. Eventually, on 25 June 2013 that change came: bearing a price tag of £9m and the name Simon Mignolet, from Sunderland: a 25-year old experienced goalkeeper, with well over 90 appearances in English top-flight football when he joined us.

The weight of the expectation must have been huge on Simon's shoulders, because to be frank, replacing Pepe Reina wasn't going to be the easiest task for the Belgian keeper. He was replacing not only one of our best players, but one of the main pillars in Liverpool’s dressing room, and for me (and probably the majority of Liverpool fans) a legend that stood by the club in one of its most turbulent periods.

Nevertheless, against the odds, Simon had a dream start for us: saving a penalty in the 89th minute of his first official game for Liverpool, and with it, three points for the team.

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MIGNOLET With a brilliant start to his Liverpool career under the belt, Mignolet went on to achieve a 100% clean sheet record in his first three games. He first conceded goals in a Liverpool shirt in a 2-2 draw against Swansea, a game in which, despite the final result, he was named man of the match. His good form continued during the first part of the season, as he achieved 5 clean sheets, 1.12 goals conceded per game and 2.59 saves per game, in a total of 17 appearances.

“Any goal you concede is a disappointment. I've been there in the past as a goalkeeper, and you have to accept it and move forward to the next game." Mignolet However, during the festive period, Liverpool faced away games at Manchester City and Chelsea, two of the hardest games in the season. In both games, Mignolet made an error which resulted in a goal for the oposition. So is it possible that he might not handle the pressure in big games? I don’t think so. I don’t believe that there is a goalkeeper in the world that has never made a mistake.

Mignolet is still young in terms of being a top keeper, and he is growing and maturing in every game. Also, and take into account that I'm not taking any pleasure from saying this, it's quite amazing how quickly we all moved on from Jose since this this man arrived between Liverpool's posts.

Expertly written by: Ivan Emanuel You can tweet Ivan at @emy_2good

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Gary McParnaby looks at the matches coming up - will we still be in with a shout after these…?

So, another month of fixtures, another month of wins! The month ahead sees a couple of BIG games, but should also be a chance for us to continue to pummel a few teams and get some ridiculous results!

First up is Bournemouth away. Yes, Bournemouth. If that doesn’t say five or six nil to you, then I am not sure what will!

The resting of our big players for that game will undoubtedly be great preparation for welcoming Everton to Anfield on the subsequent cold, rainy Tuesday night.

At Goodison, the game descended into some kind of farce, but expect nothing of the sort on our own turf: A Suarez hat-trick will be all we need to take the three points and leave Everton languishing back in mid-table where they belong.

Next up will be new-managered and Anelka-less West Brom. Three points.

Then the month gets interesting: Arsenal are in town for a Saturday lunch-time kick off. Win, and I suspect that we will be top of the league – which means that, essentially, we will be top of the league.

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FIXTURES Goals from Sturridge and Suarez will be enough, but Stevie G will do a job on Mesut Ozil just to be sure!

Finally, Fulham away. They are having a miserable season at Craven Cottage, so do I really need to write anything? By my reckoning, winning this will put us two point clear at the top of the table, with just 12 games to go‌!

Comp FA Cup

Opposition Bournemouth (a)

Date Sat 25th Jan

Time 12:45

Predict WIN

Prem

Everton (h)

Tue 28th Jan

20:00

WIN

Prem

West Brom (a)

Sun 2nd Feb

13:30

WIN

Prem

Arsenal (h)

Sat 8th Feb

12:45

WIN

Prem

Fulham (a)

Wed 12th Feb

20:00

WIN

Again?

Expertly written by: Gary McParnaby - you can send your feedback to us and we’ll pass it on - editor@anfieldroar.com

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WHO ARE YA? Thomas Jordan looks at why Liverpool wll always be better than Everton. It’s to do with class… :) For many of us Reds, it may seem a little worrying to think that our supposedly smaller Merseyside neighbours have finished ahead of us in the league the past two years running. They presently lie just one point behind Liverpool in the league, and with our former managerial target Roberto Martinez seemingly building positively on the Moyes foundations, a worryingly healthy future seems likely for Everton.

Clearly, chairman Bill Kenwright has found the perfect manager in Martinez. The young Spaniard is a refreshingly honest and genuine character – and he’s not a bad coach either. Moving on from his bizarrely mixed fortunes of FA Cup success followed by relegation with Wigan last year, the ex-Latics manager has settled in remarkably quickly.

David Moyes take note.

In fact, considering that Martinez is only half a season into his job, it is slightly upsetting to think of the progress that could be made once he has really made the side his own.

Currently, his squad is an excellent blend of both exciting young players, such as Ross Barkley and James McCarthy, combined with the sturdy experience of veterans such as Tim Howard and Gareth Barry. In Romelu Lukaku they have a consistent source of goals, as well as another young star to compliment their well-balanced squad.

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EVERTON Just to make it worse for us Reds, the club is also a fairly stable one in comparison to most in the Premier League. While Cardiff’s Vincent Tan is ripping their club apart from within, and Hull’s fans protest against their club’s proposed name change, Everton fans sit comfortably in the knowledge that they have the perfect combination of a well-liked manager and a sensible chairman. Martinez and Kenwright seem to be very compatible, as the latter was with Moyes.

But there is no need to worry, fellow Kopites, for there are two footballing elements that we have, and probably always will have, over the second-best side in Liverpool (sorry Tranmere fans, you’re not far behind!)

Firstly, our deadly strike force has depth. Despite both Suarez and Sturridge being out for significant periods of time so far this season, the goals have continued to flow, with one of them always able to turn it on when the other is unavailable.

Lukaku may be scoring regularly, but if he were injured, there would not be much behind him to provide cover. Arouna Koné is an erratic player who has not made an impact so far this season, while Nikica Jelavic has just been sold to Hull.

Firstly, our deadly strike force has depth. Secondly Everton just don’t have that big-name player to drag their team into the top four.

Secondly, and more importantly, Everton just don’t have that bigname player needed to drag their team into the top four. Martinez’s side may have the solid midfield anchoring of Barry, or the individual brilliance of Barkley, but the best sides will always have a Suarez or a Gerrard - the type of player who can change matches on their own on a regular basis.

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EVERTON If Everton were able to make an emphatic, high quality January signing of this ilk, their chances of making the top four would increase dramatically. Not only would it add a game-changer to the squad, but such transfers can lift a whole club. One need only to look at the influence of Mesut Özil at Arsenal after his £42 million transfer. Arguably, he hasn’t been their most instrumental player on the pitch this season, but the intention shown by Wenger’s deal galvanised the entire club, sending them soaring to the top.

Even if Everton did manage to obtain fourth spot this year, they would have very little chance of making an impact in Europe or retaining their position the following year without such a player. To add to this effect, two of Everton’s most important players – Gareth Barry and Romelu Lukaku – are currently on loan and will leave huge holes in the side next season.

Unfortunately (or fortunately, depending on which side of Liverpool you come from), Everton’s conservative financial approach makes it very difficult to take this vital step towards becoming a regular top four side. The Toffee’s record signing is a mere £15 million (for Marouane Fellaini, incidentally), probably less than half the sum they would have to consider spending in today’s inflated market in order to bring a world-class talent.

This leaves Roberto Martinez and his side in a tough position. They may well be able to continue making the top six, but in order to grow as a club, they must take the gamble of investing in true quality and hope that they are repaid by the television rights provided from the resulting Champions League football. But such a gamble was taken by Leeds a few years ago, and, well…

With Manchester United and Tottenham Hotspur not even in the top four, it is looking tougher and tougher to make that fourth spot. If Everton don’t move soon, they will find themselves perpetually shut off from those sacred Champions League positions. Well, we’re not complaining.

Expertly written by: Thomas Jordan Tweet Thomas - @teejbusbys1 53

This month we’ve scoured Youtube for the best clips of our matches against Everton...

Everton 0 Liverpool 5

Ian Rush terrorises Merseyside rivals with four goals and remains to this day the only Liverpool player to have scored a hat-trick at Goodison Park.

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YOUTUBE Gary McAllister nets 44-yard winner

Liverpool won a free-kick 44 yards out, and had thrown everyone into the box with seconds remaining. McAllister was expected to cross the ball, but instead curled it sweetly into the top corner.

Steven Gerrard

Another moment of confirmation that Steven Gerrard was one of the brightest talents in the country. 21 years old at the time, Gerrard had developed a penchant for netbusters. The special nature of this goal, was that it looked almost inconceivable to score from his position.

Send us your favourites - @anfieldroarmag 55

I've always found it pretty pointless, in many regards, to compare teams and players from different eras even if it does provide for engrossing conjecture over a cold beer. The matter is highly subjective and usually requires taking the subject matter out of context from the period in which they operated.

Football has changed so dramatically, even in the past decade or so, with everything from rules and tactics to the quality of pitches and kit evolving significantly over time.

That said, it's still interesting to analyse recent statistics and their historical equivalents and raise a glass when long-standing records are finally broken.

In that regard, the turn of the year always produces a host of facts and stats concerning the preceding 12 months and this January has been no different.

For the first time in a long time, Liverpool fared rather well during 2013 and we actually led the way in categories other than hitting the woodwork!

Our tally of 84 goals scored in 37 Premier league games, at a healthy ratio of 2.27 goals per game, was more than any other top-flight side.

The figure is two more than Manchester City (82), 13 more than Chelsea (71), 14 more than Arsenal (70) and a whopping 16 more than Manchester United (68) managed. At the time of writing, the Reds are having their most prolific Premier League season in front of goal ever with 53 goals scored in 22 matches.

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CLEAR AS DAY With 16 fixtures remaining, our current highest final total of 77, notched in 2008-09, is clearly under threat although we'll need to go some to challenge a pre-Premiership top-flight high of 92.

Much of the club's proficiency in front of goal has obviously come via Luis Suarez with many well-placed observers suggesting the Uruguayan is fast becoming the best player to ever pull on the famous red jersey.

With 16 fixtures left, our current highest final total of 77, notched in 2008-09, is under threat although we'll need to go some to challenge our top-flight high of 92.

Suarez led the way individually in 2013 with 29 strikes, a massive nine ahead of second-placed Romelu Lukaku (20). A feat made all the more remarkable given he played significantly less games than most as a result of the 10-match ban for biting Chelsea's Branislav Ivanovic.

Goals in 2013 Consider the fact captain Steven Gerrard remains on penalty duties, he despatched five spot kicks during the calendar year, and the former Ajax man's numbers could have been even more astonishing.

Suarez

29

Lukaku

20

Looking at the current season in isolation, Suarez has 22 goals and is on course, at his current rate, to surpass the existing 38-game Premier League record of 31 which is jointly held by Cristiano Ronaldo (07-08) and Alan Shearer (95-96).

Suarez

22

Aguero

14

Goals in 13 /14

In fact, should he find the net a further 13 times in the final 16 games, Suarez could actually surpass the overall Premier League record of 34 goals set by both Shearer and Andy Cole when the top-flight

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CLEAR AS DAY still contained 22 teams and therefore four additional fixtures were played.

El Pistolero's 2013-14 numbers even compare favourably to lauded La Liga-based duo Ronaldo and Lionel Messi. The 26-year-old has one more league strike than Ronaldo, despite playing two fewer games, and 14 more than Messi.

If the phenomenal South American gets somewhere near the alltime Premier League records it will clearly increase the chances of Liverpool earning a return to the Champions League.

Talk of a first title since 1989-90 has understandably rescinded in recent weeks following defeats to Man City and Chelsea, and the dropped points at home to Aston Villa last weekend, but the Reds are still in a great position.

Out of the current top eight, Liverpool must travel only to David Moyes' stuttering United whereas the other six leading sides – Arsenal, Man City, Chelsea, Everton, Tottenham Hotspur and Newcastle United – all still need to visit Anfield before the season is done.

Winning these proverbial 'six pointers' is going to play a key role in determining the final standings and consequently Tuesday's Merseyside Derby against Everton becomes an even bigger encounter than usual with more than just local bragging rights potentially up for grabs.

It should be a cracking game and we will need to improve markedly on the exceedingly poor defensive displays against Villa and Stoke City to win.

It should be a cracking game and we will need to improve markedly on the exceedingly poor defensive displays against Villa and Stoke City to emerge victorious.

Hopefully the required solidity won't hinder the club or Suarez in their pursuit of record goal hauls in 2013-14.

Expertly written by: Gavin Day - tweet him @superbag Visit Gavin’s site at http://www.liverpool.vitalfootball.co.uk 58

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