Liverpool F.c.

[meemiathai]

Liverpool is playing in HK tonight against a local team.

[Jimjim]

Wish I was there.

[meemiathai]

Don't worry! I will go inside and watch it for you on Friday!

[spot]

Looks really hot and humid there at the moment. My bro in law just came back from HK and said it was far too hot for him, and he's Thai!

Not expecting much, just good to see them back and a chance to check out the new boys.

[scousemouse]

I'm watching the Portsmouth v Fulham game now , the Liverpool game is on straight after in the same stadium , with the winners meeting in the final on Friday .

The ground is jam packed with Liverpool supporters ( of course ) .

Portsmouth are leading 1-0 at half time with a goal from Benjani. David Nuggent is having a good game for Pompey.

[scousemouse]

Pics from the Asian throphy tournament :

Image 43 for 'Hong Kong goes LFC crazy' gallery...

Image 44 for 'Hong Kong goes LFC crazy' gallery...

Image 45 for 'Hong Kong goes LFC crazy' gallery...

Image 46 for 'Hong Kong goes LFC crazy' gallery...

[scousemouse]

Positive talk from Torres , lets hope he scores tonight .

Fernando Torres knows what to do to make name for himself Jul 24 2007

by Ian Doyle in Hong Kong, Liverpool Daily Post

THE translator may have had difficulty in getting the exact wording across, but the message from Fernando Torres was loud and clear in Hong Kong yesterday.

Liverpool’s record signing was given some idea of the far-reaching support his new club can claim when warmly greeted during his first appearance in a red shirt in the small town of Grenchen at the foot of the Swiss Alps last week.

But that was nothing compared to the reception both he and his team-mates have been afforded since touching down amid chaotic scenes at the Hong Kong International Airport on Sunday morning.

This striker’s performances with Atletico Madrid made him a household name in Spain and persuaded Rafael Benitez to splash out £18million for his services.

Story continues

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And now Torres wants to make a similar impression across the globe by proving an even bigger success at Liverpool.

“I’ve received a great welcome here from my new team-mates,” says the 23-year-old. “Liverpool have great players and I’m happy to be around them. “The more goals I can score, the better. But it’s not just about me, it’s about the whole team working together and scoring goals.

“It’s great to be playing with such great players. They are all known all around the world, and I want to be famous around the world too, not just in Spain like I was.”

Such ambition is often laced with a dangerous dose of arrogance, but Steven Gerrard is convinced Liverpool supporters should have no such worries over Torres.

“I knew how good Fernando was before we even signed him because I’ve seen a lot of him on TV and I was very impressed with him at the World Cup,” says the skipper.

“But what’s impressed me most is that he’s not come here acting like a star name, but to work hard. He’s the type of player we need and everyone’s really excited to have him among us.

Hopefully he will be our big name who scores the goals and helps us win the trophies. He’s come into a really good bunch of players who are helping him settle in and the likes of Xabi Alonso will set him up for loads of chances.

“I can’t see him having any problems achieving what he wants to achieve and we’re really pleased to have him.”

Torres and Gerrard joined Liverpool manager Benitez at the team’s Grand Hyatt hotel yesterday to face the media ahead of tonight’s Barclays Asia Trophy semi-final against South China.

The vagaries of the set-up meant a local translator struggled to come up with the right words in both Spanish and English to communicate with an increasingly bewildered Torres.

However, Benitez is confident the striker will have no problem expressing himself on the pitch, and pointed to the signing of Torres to help bat away a question from a Hong Kong journalist about Liverpool’s perceived negative style of play.

“We are not a conservative team, we’ve got a very good defence and there is a difference,” he says. “We shoot more than anyone else and we have signed Fernando Torres because we want accuracy.

“We’ve improved the squad every year and done so again. Everyone’s signing players, but we will work really hard and hopefully we will be fighting for the title.”

[meemiathai]

half-time, 2-1 to Liverpool.

Liverpool players drunk too much last night?

[scousemouse]

half-time, 2-1 to Liverpool.

Liverpool players drunk too much last night?

Well they were only allowed fluids on the flight over from Switzerland , apparently no food on long flights is supposed to help you recover from jet lag a lot quicker , it just depends on what fluids they were drinking !!! .

To be fair though , it would be a bit cooler if they were playing in a green house !!!!!! , it's very humid out there. So hot that there having water breaks in the middle of the half.

[scousemouse]

Liverpool - 3-1 - South China

A bullet of a free kick from Riise , a penalty from Alonso and a well crafted goal from Agger gave us a comfortable if tiring win in the end .

It was a shame we couldnt see Torres or Babel in action , they hadnt got international clearance to play in time but will be o-k to play in the final against Pompey on Friday.

Special mention to the chinese player who scored a scorcher of a free kick for South China.

[spot]

Pity couldn't get to see the other new boys play, but I thought Veronin looked good.

Should see everybody out on friday.

[scousemouse]

Liverpool unveil new stadium plan

Liverpool have released the design for their new 60,000 all-seater stadium.

The ground, which is scheduled to open in 2010, is part of a £300m investment by the club and has the ability to increase capacity to more than 75,000.

The architect is American company HKS, which is also designing the Dallas Cowboys' new stadium.

Chief executive Rick Parry told the BBC: "The stadium will send a message out that we want to be best on the pitch and the best off the pitch."

606: DEBATE It looks OK, but a lot like the majority of new NFL stadiums

American owners Tom Hicks and George Gillett, in conjunction with architects HKS, have radically redesigned the original plans for the stadium.

Parry said: "It's very exciting and I think the designs are fantastic. It's a testament to the new owners and the architects they have brought on board.

"The architects have understood the challenge and understood the need to make the stadium uniquely Liverpool.

"It will sit so well in Stanley Park and will be an integral part of it.

We expect the best and this will be the best

Liverpool skipper Steven Gerrard"People from far and wide will be able to come to the stadium and get a glimpse both of the outside and inside. The area will become a tourist destination.

"It will be a world-class development for a city that deserves world-class developments."

The move will see Liverpool leave Anfield, which has been their home since they were founded in 1892.

The unveiling of the design coincides with the club's submission of the planning application to Liverpool City Council.

Parry added: "The construction will start as soon as practical. We hope the new designs will find favour and excite the planners. Our aspiration is to be ready for 2010."

The designs include a single tier stand with a capacity of 18,000, which Parry hopes will replicate the atmosphere of Anfield's famous Kop.

Parry says the new design is futuristicHe said: "It is fundamental that the Kop becomes bigger and that acoustics are good - we're trying to recreate the Kop of old. It's steep and the seats are tight together.

"The whole stadium will be spectacular, but the Kop will be extra spectacular.

"Apart from the Kop, everything else about the stadium will be brand new. It's futuristic, imaginative and very exciting. People who see it will think Liverpool.

"It may well be that the site of the existing pitch will be preserved, the Shankly gates and the Hillsborough memorial."

Reds boss Rafael Benitez:

"The plans for the new stadium are absolutely fantastic.

"The facilities the new stadium will provide are going to ensure that the future of this club is a great one and this is what the fans deserve.

"There are a lot of windows and it really is ground-breaking in terms of stadium design."

<LI>Liverpool skipper Steven Gerrard:

"I knew it was going to be great but after spending five minutes looking at the plans I was just completely blown away by it.

"It's amazing and the best thing about it is that it's so different to any other. We will have our own identity stamped all over this stadium and that's how it should be.

"We are Liverpool Football Club. We expect the best and this will be the best."

[scousemouse]

The first rumour can't be right , but the second rumour makes sense.

Liverpool are considering ditching the name Anfield and selling the naming rights for their new stadium for £100m. (Daily Star) Reds boss Rafael Benitez has been told it is time to deliver some trophies. (Daily Mirror)

[scousemouse]

Some words from the new owners :

New stadium is our future says Tom Hicks Jul 26 2007

by John Thompson, Liverpool Echo

An Artist's impression of new Liverpool FC stadium - Aerial South East ViewClick for hi-res image more

LIVERPOOL co-owner Tom Hicks insists the £300m investment in a 76,000-plus capacity new stadium can pay rich dividends on the pitch in future years.

Hicks, who intends to be at Anfield with co-owner George Gillett for the opening home Premiership game against Chelsea, said: “The new stadium will give us help in delivering more revenues which in turn can help the manager."

“The new stadium is the single most important thing in helping Liverpool remain competitive with the Manchester Uniteds, Real Madrids and Barcelonas of the footballing world.

“It was our highest priority when we closed the deal to buy the club.

“We have come up with a fresh design to meet our needs. The previous design had become obsolete – it was seven years old and there were other stadia like it around the world. There had been a lot of change in the footballing world in that time.”

Hicks said the radically redesigned look to the stadium had also been a vital factor – with the revamped 18,000 seater Kop as its heartbeat.

“We challenged the architects to do something that would be unique to Liverpool, that would be world class, that would encompass the Kop and something that would be recognisable to the world as Liverpool’s,” he said.

“When George and I attended the Barcelona game with the architects, we had talked to them previously about the importance of the Kop but once they had been to that match they understood what we were getting at.

“The Kop will be the symphony stage that plays to the rest of the symphony hall.”

Hicks said the glass frontage, which will allow a view through to the Kop, would help show off the stadium at it best.

“People had said we would get people trying to look in and watch the match but the pitch level will be lower so you can’t see the action.

“But you can see the fans on the Kop singing and dancing and that will be great.

“We also wanted the stadium to integrate into the park.”

Hicks added: “If we didn’t know about Liverpool’s history when we started out we certainly do now!”

[spot]

Interesting match last night (LFC V Portsmouth). Both teams gave it a good go.

Torres to me looked good. He looked confident and his touch was good. His positional play looked good too.

Should have won it in normal time.

[scousemouse]

Interesting match last night (LFC V Portsmouth). Both teams gave it a good go.

Torres to me looked good. He looked confident and his touch was good. His positional play looked good too.

Should have won it in normal time.

All in all , the trip was a good work out for the lads.

Torres did look good , I never realised he was that quick , but he did miss a penalty in the shoot-out and has yet to score for us but after seeing him live for the first time in a red shirt I feel pretty confident he'll prove a good signing .

Harry Kewell was talking about how he gave up his holiday ( poor sod ) to come and play in this tournament and prove to Rafa that he still wants to play for Liverpool.

Correct me if I'm wrong , but isnt this the same Harry Kewell who used Liverpool's remaining games at the end of 2005-2006 to get match fit so he could play for Australia in the world cup and usually only plays for us in the finals ( he did again last night ).

I have to be a bit sceptical when it comes to hearing Harry Kewell's "desire" about playing for Liverpool , especially as his contract is up next summer and he can sign for another team for free in January.

IMO Harry Kewell is just trying to put himself in the shop window , maybe he got the tip from Mark Viduka .

[scousemouse]

All in all , the trip was a good work out for the lads.

Torres did look good , I never realised he was that quick , but he did miss a penalty in the shoot-out and has yet to score for us but after seeing him live for the first time in a red shirt I feel pretty confident he'll prove a good signing .

Harry Kewell was talking about how he gave up his holiday ( poor sod ) to come and play in this tournament and prove to Rafa that he still wants to play for Liverpool.

Correct me if I'm wrong , but isnt this the same Harry Kewell who used Liverpool's remaining games at the end of 2005-2006 to get match fit so he could play for Australia in the world cup and usually only plays for us in the finals ( he did again last night ).

I have to be a bit sceptical when it comes to hearing Harry Kewell's "desire" about playing for Liverpool , especially as his contract is up next summer and he can sign for another team for free in January.

IMO Harry Kewell is just trying to put himself in the shop window , maybe he got the tip from Mark Viduka .

[scousemouse]

Liverpool's in's and out's so far , and with just a few weeks left untill the transfer window shuts I reckon there will be maybe 1 more new face ( Heinze ) :

Liverpool Transfers

Players In

Ryan BabelAjax£11,500,000Mikel San JoseAthletic BilbaoundisclosedAndriy VoroninBayer LeverkusenFreeFernando TorresAtletico MadridundisclosedNikolay MihaylovLevski SofiaundisclosedDavid AmooMillwall FCundisclosedKrisztian NemethMTK Hungaria FCSignedAndras SimonMTK Hungaria FCSignedRyan CrowtherStockport CountyundisclosedYossi BenayounWest Ham Unitedundisclosed

Players Out

Luis GarciaAtlético MadridundisclosedDanny GuthrieBolton WanderersSeason LoanGodwin AntwiHartlepool FCLoanDjibril CisseMarseille£6,000,000Boudewijn ZendenMarseilleFreeJerzy DudekReal MadridFreeFlorent Sinama PongolleRecreativo Huelva£2,700,000Adam HammillSouthampton FCloanCraig BellamyWest Ham United£7,500,000Robbie FowlerCardiff CityFree

[Torv]

So take in to account of our sales, we haven't spent that much huh?

[Jimjim]

Did Babel play? Seems like Heinze has the legal right to buy out his own contract but Sir Fergy doesn't want to break the last 4 decades of tradition of no players going to the main rival.

[scousemouse]

Did Babel play? Seems like Heinze has the legal right to buy out his own contract but Sir Fergy doesn't want to break the last 4 decades of tradition of no players going to the main rival.

Babel did play against Pompey and his performance was a bit under par to say the least but lets not make any judgements , it was only 50 minutes of a pre-season game he played .

The chances of us signing Heinze are slim and none and slim's left town thanks to Fergie , stubborn old bar steward .

[Phoenixred]

Hi everyone. The season is about to start. Feeling excited?

[spot]

I always feel excited - like a kid.

I just hope we get off to a good start, and the new players gel quickly.

[Phoenixred]

We have 6 captains in the team.

Gerrard - the official one

Carra - long regarded as the unofficial one

Torres - captain for A.Madrid

Leiva - Brazil U-21 captain

Hyypia - ex captain

Kuyt - Feyenoord captain

Any more to add?

[Phoenixred]

Liverpool will find out who they'll face in the Champions League third qualifying round at 7pm (GMT+8) on Friday. The draw, in which the Reds are top seeds, involves 46 teams and takes place in Nyon, Switzerland.

Spartak Moscow, AEK Athens, Sparta Prague and Fenerbache are among the sides Rafa Benitez's men could face.

Matches will be played on 14/15 and 28/29 August. Stay logged on to Liverpoolfc.tv for all the latest Champions League news.

[Torv]

I'd be happy if we dont' get those four.

[Penkoprod]

I'd be happy if we dont' get those four.

Liverpool V Toulouse

The first legs will be played on 14/15 August, the return fixtures 2 weeks later

Penkoprod

[Jockstar]

Liverpool V Toulouse

The first legs will be played on 14/15 August

Soccernet had Liverpool playing West Ham on the 15th. Maybe its been changed. BBC doesnt have Liverpool v WH. So we'll see.

[Penkoprod]

Liverpool V Toulouse

The first legs will be played on 14/15 August

Soccernet had Liverpool playing West Ham on the 15th. Maybe its been changed. BBC doesnt have Liverpool v WH. So we'll see.

The West Ham game was postponed before the 2008 fixtures came out, almost

1st home game is Chelski on Saturday 19th August

Penkoprod

[Phoenixred]

Nice 2-0 win over Shanghai.

My opinion on the players:

Martin - Good exposure for the young keeper. Nothing much for him to do.

Leiva - Living up to his sky-high expectations. Very soon, more will be raving about him.

Insua - What a surprise. This 18 year old is confident, calm, tackles well, willing to take on opponents

Hyypia - is Hyypia

Finnan - is Finnan

Paletta - the reason why I wanted Heinze or another CB to join. not impressed to date, room for improvement ...

Leto - A very decent debut, a pleasant surprise. Looks like a good young player with pace, all 1.88 of it. HK (get ready to look handsome on the bench)

Benayoun - looked much sharper. Great incisive pass to set up the goal for Torres. Pennant will have to watch his back.

Momo - Bosses the midfield, wrong, field as usual. Looks comfortable playing with Leiva. Critics who say he cannot pass should watch this game again. His best is yet to come so watch him again and he'll score his first goal for Liverpool this season.

Torres - He's fast! Looking sharper and look nothing like an EPL flop as many touted him to be.

Look at the way he broke the offside trap to score his goal. The last striker who showed a genuine ability to do that for us is Owen.

http://www.dailymotion.com/relevance/searc...i-shenhua_sport

Crouch - I'm worried for Crouch. I hope he get involved soon, the season is starting.

Captain - shows why he is MBE. What a goal, that's the first time I saw him scoring a goal like that.

http://www.dailymotion.com/relevance/searc...shenhua_sport/1

Shanghai keeper: Ouch

Babbel - was playing better than previous matches, but game appears to be affected by jeering fans. I believe there are more to come from him.

Arbeloa - Did his job.

Kuyt - works hard and obviously loved by the home fans.

Mascherano - still a monster.

This may not be a tough opposite team but precisely so, I am pleased to see the team doing well, we had to and did the job. Forward to the next game.