The Liver Bird  

Liverpool enter the Champions League group stages on Wednesday evening for the first time since 2014. The Reds' three year absence has felt like a lifetime to most fans and after a favourable draw in the group, all eyes are on Jurgen Klopp's side to open up our European season in a winning fashion.

Liverpool are no strangers to Sevilla having faced them extremely recently in the 2015/2016 Europa League final. This is however the only time that the two sides have met. Daniel Sturridge opened the scoring on the night but the Reds ended up losing the game 3-1.



Team news for Liverpool means that Philippe Coutinho could feature for the first time since the whole Barcelona saga unfolded. I for one can't be arsed with holding a grudge, I'm perfectly happy for him to feature in the side, frankly it would be a waste not to use such a talent. Hopefully if he does start he can find the back of the net.

Thankfully for the Reds Sadio Mane will also be available, his red card picked up…

Liverpool walked away from Anfield on Sunday afternoon with all three points after an emphatic victory over an extremely dire Arsenal side. The Gunners offered absolutely nothing in front of goal leaving Loris Karius with very little to do.
The lack of goalkeeping requirement was perhaps a blessing in disguise for the Reds as Karius looked nervous on occasion stepping in to the role after months without a game. The bizarre decision to entirely drop Simon Mignolet from the side (not even allowing the Belgian to appear on the bench) left many Liverpool fans scratching their heads before kick off.
Jurgen Klopp explained that Migs was simply being "rested" but I wasn't born yesterday. A goalkeeper doesn't need to be "rested" and certainly not this early in the season. Something has happened, I'm not sure what, but you don't just drop a keeper with no real reason behind it. I have no qualms with Karius making an appearance in goal to give Mignolet some com…

❓: Champions League first play-off round, first leg 📅: Tuesday 15th August 19:45 GMT 📍: Rhein-Neckar Arena, Sinsheim Who are Hoffenheim?  The German side hail from the Sinsheim region and up until 2008 were a team struggling in the lower realms of the German football system. Last year they finished 4th in the Bundesliga and they have some solid centre forwards to call upon. 

Manager Julian Nagelsmann got his side through the whole of the 2016/2017 season with just four losses to their name in the league.
Fun fact: Hoffenheim open their home matches by playing Rammstein's "Engel".

Should Liverpool be concerned? On the one hand, Liverpool should be very concerned, other than perhaps Nice most would agree that Hoffenheim were the toughest draw for our Champions League qualifier. The German side may be relatively inexperienced when it comes to Europe but they will be hungrier than most to get through and they enter this fixture on the back of a cracking season.
On the other hand Li…

Welcome back to The Liver Bird for the eighth year of me blogging about the Reds! Let's get stuck straight in with a preview for the opener against Watford shall we? CoutinhoI can't really type this post without bringing up Couts can I? On Wednesday evening the Reds rejected a £90 million bid from Barcelona for the magician, it's the second time they've come knocking this season, but manager Jurgen Klopp has no plans to let one of his star players go.

"No price at which we are ready to give in. Our goal is to have the best possible team. So we want to keep our guys and add new ones. That is our plan."
I honestly don't think Coutinho is going anywhere this window. I think he knows he can afford to give us another season and if he wants to go to Spain, Barcelona will still be there at the end of it. Liverpool of course can cope without the Brazilian but he'd leave a huge hole. Particularly when we need to turn those dogged draws into wins, he's the man…

It looks increasingly likely that Italian outfit Lazio will seal the signing of Lucas Leiva this week for £5 million. The Brazilian entered his 10th year at Liverpool Football Club in 2017 and while it's impossible to deny that his time here has consisted of some ups and downs, overall he has been a phenomenal servant to the club.


Signed by Rafa Benitez weirdly also for £5 million in 2007, he started his first game in November of that year. Lucas Leiva was the first ever Brazilian to score for Liverpool, a fact I always forget.

Throughout his Liverpool career I always appeared to be that fan who was constantly backing Lucas up, whilst others became frustrated I just saw dips in form as just that, a blip.

Lucas was invaluable at times to Liverpool and for me he was one of those players who you didn't really appreciate until he was gone. His ability to control the game defensively from the midfield, breaking up the play of the opposition assisted Liverpool on countless occasions…

Yes I know, this post is ridiculously late on the blog but better late than never ay? Below I provide you with a quick rundown of each month of the 2016/2017 season. 

Was 4th place good enough? Why do I think Klopp can often be as stubborn as hell? Why did 2017 contain one of the worst matches I have ever watched as a Liverpool fan? Read on to find out.
AugustLiverpool kicked off Jurgen Klopp's full season as manager in a game away to Arsenal. The Reds have had some interesting fixtures with Arsene Wenger's side over recent years and this opening tie was no different.

Seven goals were scored in the game, four of which came from Liverpool. I was left with a strange sense of disappointment at the result though after I bet 50p on a 4-4 scoreline for a hundred quid haha.
The Reds also picked up a draw with Spurs this month but famously were beaten 2-0 by Burnley.  A 5-0 win over Burton Albion in the second round of the League Cup completed the month of August.
SeptemberLiverpool kicked…

1) Playing two strikers can actually work

I've been saying for months now, Liverpool should not be afraid to field two strikers. For me, the whole season we have faced sides such as West Ham and failed to break them down with our Plan A. I love Jurgen Klopp but I think most of us would agree that he can be a bit stubborn at times. On far too may occasions this season Klopp has decided for whatever reason to field the same tactics and an extremely similar team against sides who are determined to make things difficult for us.

Teams like West Ham all season have been more than happy to sit back and allow Liverpool to keep possession, fail to score due to a lack of ideas and a lack of directness and then simply hit us on the break.

In my opinion, having a true striker like Daniel Sturridge on, even better in a front two gives us a much greater chance of breaking down this kind of opposition. Yes it took a significant proportion of the game to take effect on Sunday but it is not a coincid…

Liverpool travel to Watford on Bank Holiday Monday as they aim to pick up three points and continue their quest for Champions League football. The last time the Reds faced Watford they scored six, will it be another confident victory away from home?

Injuries for Liverpool mean they are unable to call upon Mane, Henderson and Klavan while doubts also hang over the fitness of Daniel Sturridge and Adam Lallana. The latter of the two is rumoured to be close to full health but it is not known at the time of writing whether he will make the cut.

For Watford, they are likely to be without Kaboul who has a hamstring injury. Zarate and Pereyra are also unavailable.

The Reds have to wait until Monday evening for this fixture meaning Manchester City could be on 68 points and Manchester United on 67 points (depending on their own results on Sunday) by the time they kick off. Liverpool currently sit in third on 66 points so a win would take them up to 69 points, once again giving them some air.

The le…

Liverpool travel to the West Midlands on Easter Sunday as they prepare to face Tony Pulis' West Brom. The Baggies come in to this game on the back of two defeats compared to Liverpool's six match unbeaten run. Pulis' side however are certainly one to contend with and the Reds may struggle with West Brom's style.

Injuries for Liverpool mean they are unable to call upon Sadio Mane, Adam Lallana and Jordan Henderson. Jurgen Klopp is hoping the latter two players will return to the squad before the end of April. 

For West Brom, manager Tony Pulis has a full strength squad to choose from aside from a mystery couple of players who are apparently nursing minor knocks.

The last time the two sides met was in October last year. Both Philippe Coutinho and Roberto Firmino were on the scoresheet for a 2-1 Liverpool win that day. The Brazilian pairing have proved vital for the Reds so far this season and it is expected both with start on Sunday after only making the bench and being cal…

After a disastrous defeat at the hands of Leicester on Monday evening, Liverpool welcome Arsenal to Anfield on Saturday in the hope of finding a victory. The Reds have had some terrible performances against the so-called lesser teams this season but it's been a complete contrast when Klopp's side have faced teams in the top six.
Liverpool have picked up 16 points from a possible 24 in games against Manchester City, Arsenal, Manchester United, Chelsea and Spurs this season. Against Leicester, Swansea, Middlesborough, Palace and Hull the Reds have picked up just 19 points from a possible 30.
It's no secret that the Reds have been extremely poor against the smaller sides but their set up seems to have the opposite effect against the bigger teams. For example, against Spurs, the likes of Firmino, Coutinho and Mane caused havoc. 
Along with Adam Lallana and on occasions Gini Wijnaldum, these attacking midfielders seem to fluster a lot of sides. I personally feel they work well aga…

Finally, Liverpool are back playing football. It feels like it's been an absolute age since the last match, bloody boring! The Reds travel to Leicester on Monday evening to face the managerless foxes. 
As soon as Claudio Ranieri came to Leicester I was immediately on his side. I have a huge soft spot for anything Italian and Ranieri almost instantly worked his charm, it was like he'd never left.
What Ranieri did with Leicester in 2015/2016 is nothing short of a miracle. An unbelievable feat that will never be matched. For him to then be unceremoniously sacked? Well it's a real shame. There's no hiding from the fact that Leicester have been poor this season but is that all Ranieri's fault? I don't believe so. Some of that blame lies squarely at the players door and I don't personally think any new manager will have the time or the magic touch to get enough out of the players now, but I suppose we will have to wait and see.
In bocca al lupo Ranieri! 
Despite the …

A performance lacking any real dynamic or end product left Liverpool with no route to Wembley on Wednesday night as Southampton once again proved they deserved their place in the final.
A late winner from substitute Shane Long didn't tell the complete story of the match but Southampton undoubtably should get full credit for pushing Jurgen Klopp's team to one side. 
The Saints did not defend for the whole 90 minutes, that would be unfair to say but when they did need to defend they did it well and they did it in numbers. Liverpool just have no clue how to break sides down and it's getting pretty bloody annoying. 
Pit us against a free flowing Manchester City and I'll show you a confident three points, pit us against a supposedly lower calibre of opposition and I'll show you a side that has no idea. 
For me, Emre Can created some of the issues as with both himself and Henderson in the midfield it throws things out of balance. His second half shot almost helped him redeem…

It was a dire performance from the Reds at St Mary's on Wednesday evening as they failed to find the back of the net against an inspired Southampton side.

A strong team put out by Klopp was unable to produce any real efforts leaving the Saints keeper with nothing to do all game. In contrast, Liverpool's man between the sticks Loris Karius was arguably the only player worthy of praise on the night. He pulled off two or three superb saves to prevent the Southampton damage increasing.

Image via Irish Mirror
Daniel Sturridge, a player you can usually rely on for a pop at goal was extremely quiet yesterday. His highlight perhaps running around the field with a handwritten note from Klopp trying to show it's hidden message to Adam Lallana. In fairness to Studge I don't think it was entirely his fault, he was extremely poorly served last night. For me, we should have brought Origi on sooner. I've said it a million times but in games such as that of Wednesday night I hones…

Well, if you're gonna win a Merseyside Derby you may as well break some hearts and do it in extra time! What a massive result that was for Liverpool on Monday night. Conte, we're coming.
1) The Estonian 
At 31 years of age the defender was signed by Klopp as some extra cover but if you've ever watched a performance from a man demanding a place in the side, last night was one of them.
Klavan had an absolute stormer. Every aerial ball defended, every challenge in the box nailed, distribution, positioning, timing. You name it, he bossed it. Without a glimmer of doubt Klavan was most definitely the man of he match.
2) Sturridge
I've said this many times on the blog; I often get frustrated at Klopp in games that are 0-0 when he refuses to chuck on Sturridge. For me if your initial tactical set up hasn't broken the opposition down within 70 minutes, chances are it's not going to happen so why not pull out the ace up your sleeve.
Sturridge soon found space in extra tim…

1. The youngsters have got talent

When the starting XI was first revealed on Tuesday night I can't have been the only fan questioning why Klopp didn't go with a slightly stronger team? I'm all for supporting the youth and giving them a chance but perhaps wrongly my faith in them was nowhere to be seen at kick off against Tottenham.

As the match progressed however my doubts were completely stemmed. The likes of Trent A-A, Ejaria and Stewart put in a great performance, particularly Stewart and Ejaria. The latter of whom appeared to be getting flattened left, right and centre meaning he must have been causing grief for the opposition.

2. Migs proved his worth?

It's a controversial one but for me, based on the last few games I am close to wanting to see Migs back in goal. My only issue is I worry how big an impact dropping Karius would have on the goalkeeper himself.

Mignolet proved last night for me that he's got conviction. His decisions to come for the ball and deal …

1) James Milner Despite a dodgy moment which some would argue helped create Spurs' equaliser I felt James Milner deserved a highlight for today's round up. James is one of those players that sort of just gets on with it, he doesn't really like the limelight, always puts his team before himself and it was fantastic to see him score the penalty yesterday.

His defensive performances of late have proven how adaptable he is, following up Moreno isn't exactly a difficult task but he has demonstrated that he is more than reliable at the back. Some players would raise concern with being moved out of position but Milner has just knuckled down and we all know how much Klopp loves a hard worker.
2) Premier League Badges Whilst watching the game on Saturday I had a bit of an OCD moment whilst looking at the new Premier League patches and it appears our kitman or whoever irons them on may well be in for a rollicking off the Premier League brand managers because they've been st…