Steve

Dad. Golfer. Climate doomer.

[John Mackin @mackin_john]

And after that glorious mid 60's spell of League, Cup & League, the following season we were walloped by Ajax in Europe 5-1, were knocked out the FA Cup at Goodison and finished 5th in the league.

No-ones head fell-off; no-one was hounded at Melwood. No-one was booed at Anfield.

[Murray Rothbard @MurraySuggests]

The Iranian navy, which has been destroyed eight times, has apparently closed the Strait of Hormuz again, because the United States, for the seventh time, won the war that wasn’t a war, so now the United States has to open the Strait of Hormuz that was already open before the not-war began.

The not-war began because Iran had uranium that was totally, completely, beautifully obliterated, so they can’t build the nuclear bomb they weren’t building, which is why the United States had to start the not-war it definitely didn’t start.

Now the United States, which has nuclear weapons, is threatening to use nuclear weapons to stop Iran from getting nuclear weapons, because nuclear weapons are far too dangerous for countries with nuclear weapons to allow other countries to have.

If the United States saw the United States doing what the United States does in other countries, the United States would invade the United States to liberate the United States from the tyranny of the United States.

[BladeoftheSun @BladeoftheS]

Boycott the World Cup.

NOTHING is worth giving your money to these Fascists.

[GDon @gdonlfc]

His first half performance alone is crazy, he created 3 big chances, 5 dribbles & won a penalty too. Even managed to get Del Bosque sent off towards the end of the game.

To do that against Real Madrid where you need to score at least 3 to go to the final, all timer performance.

[Steve @bradder63]

@JohnTurnbull03 @bunkeredgolf @TheOpen 50 increase for the Friday 2022 😳😕

[Steve @bradder63]

@Robbie_OR @Knox_Harrington Oh really? Haven’t heard Neil say that yet. Seve is my golf hero so that would be something!

[Steve @bradder63]

@BallsGolf @Sir_NickFaldo Remember buying a pack of the double covers for an expensive price and then lost one on the first hole I used it! I was gutted 🤣

[Izu_ManaMana @NwagbaraIzuchuk]

It's why I laugh when modern fans shit on old dudes and say they couldn't have coped in the modern game. How many of the present EPL attackers are as electric, brilliant, fast and skilful with the ball as Kevin Keegan here? How many ? 😆😆😆

[Peter Simpson @PeterSimmoYNWA]

Keegan & Dalglish. The men who made the iconic Liverpool number 7 shirt.

Love and best wishes to them both with their health and well being.

🏴󠁧󠁢󠁥󠁮󠁧󠁿 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁳󠁣󠁴󠁿 7️⃣

[Doc AI @Doc_A_I]

A few thoughts on Arne Slot.

The immediate one? Gratitude. He took on a job nobody wanted twice. Replacing Jürgen Klopp was one of the hardest assignments in modern football and he delivered a league title. Then he had to lead the club through a period of immense tragedy that transcended football entirely. Neither achievement should be underestimated, regardless of how 25/26 ended. He departs a Champion.

Secondly, this isn't a victory for those who wanted him out, nor is it a defeat for those who backed him. Supporting a coach through difficult circumstances is a fundamental part of supporting a football club. I backed Slot throughout the season. If Andoni Iraola becomes the next coach, I'll back him too. Coaches come and go. The club remains.

What fascinates me is the contradiction at the heart of the discussion. Much of the club's briefing to journalists this season was framed through mitigating circumstances, and rightly so. Grief, disruption, a broken pre-season, fitness concerns, squad imbalance, recruitment gaps, ageing profiles, injuries and lack of depth were all real factors. The message was one of support for Arne Slot. It made sense. Yet some of the very odd reporting that has emerged following Slot's dismissal has pointed towards concerns around training methods, preparation, academy integration and broader coaching standards. Those views aren't incompatible, but they require a more nuanced conclusion than either extreme. The most coherent interpretation is that the mitigating factors were real, but the club concluded Slot wasn't managing those circumstances well enough. That's very different from saying nothing was his fault or everything was his fault.

But there's a wrinkle in all of this.

My view when we hired Slot was always that recruitment would dictate his ceiling. When we ripped the squad up after 24/25, I felt we were going too far. Technical quality? Yes. But also athleticism, running power and graft. Instead, we ended up with a strange blend. Very specific attacking profiles sitting on top of a relatively low-tech build-up structure. Lots of technicians in the final third, but not enough progression, tempo control or pace beneath them. If the original vision was Slot plus a technical-possession squad, then this summer would've been the next phase of the rebuild. Had the season gone better, Liverpool may well have continued down the same path. And I think they believed it was financially viable to build a small squad around a high-quality core. In theory, that makes sense. Fewer players. Higher average quality. Less money tied up in depth. The problem is football rarely cooperates. Injuries, form, availability and succession planning all eventually arrive at the same door.

So in the end, the club looked at the cost of creating the ideal conditions for Slot's vision to succeed and decided it wasn't a gamble they wanted to make. That's the interesting part. I don't think this decision was really about whether Slot was a good coach or a bad one. It was about whether the club wanted to keep investing in the same plan. The answer appears to have been no. Liverpool now seem to have pivoted towards a coach whose teams thrive in transition. That suggests a different philosophy entirely. Not recruitment built around the coach's philosophy, but recruitment built around the squad, with the coach expected to establish the floor and overperform from there. Something closer to the environments Iraola has worked within at Bournemouth, or Emery throughout much of his career.

This feels like the crossing of the Rubicon. Precedent suggested patience. Precedent suggested rebuilding with the coach who had delivered a title under extraordinary circumstances. Patience with a coach who oversaw a tumultuous season that began in tragedy and ended with a jaded fanbase searching for answers. Instead, the club made a strategic choice. It wasn't sentimental. It was rooted in the cost of the rebuild and the level of investment required to continue.

That's neither right nor wrong. But a line has now been drawn. Because pressure remains on recruitment to solve the structural issues. But the easiest outlet will now be the coach if results disappoint. Liverpool may have fully redefined where responsibility sits when performance, recruitment and cost collide.

How sustainable that be? We'll find out.

Thank you, Arne Slot. You leave as a league-winning Liverpool manager. Not a bad legacy at all. Welcome to Andoni Iraola, if indeed it is you. You'll get the same support from me that every Liverpool coach deserves until the day your own story reaches its conclusion.

[Steve @bradder63]

@gdonlfc Thanks for sharing this! Some of the positions he received the ball in were amazing , all over the pitch. His heading as well. What a player

[Steve @bradder63]

@mackin_john My first football hero. What a player

[Steve @bradder63]

@LewisSteele_ Context though !

[Steve @bradder63]

@JamesSkellyBand @SteKelly198586 @theliverpoolway @guardian It’s not a great article sorry and I like Dave. I don’t think think it was unanimous that fans wanted Arne out.

[Alex Cole @acnewsitics]

Bands that played for Obama.

U2, Bruce Springsteen, Bob Dylan, The Grateful Dead, James Taylor, Stevie Wonder, Aretha Franklin, Earth, Wind & Fire, and Booker T. & the M.G.'s. Wynton Marsalis, Herbie Hancock, Trombone Shorty, Buddy Guy, Beyoncé, U2, Usher, and many more.

Donald Trump: Vanilla Ice, Kid Rock.

[Steve @bradder63]

@TheAthleticFC @JamesHorncastle I don’t think any of this is admirable

[Steve @bradder63]

@StanCollymore With a couple of asterisks of course

[Simon Clancy @SiClancy]

28% possession and one shot on target but apparently the better team lost.

[Joe Connolly @JoeMConnolly]

Right decision. Can remember him fondly now.

Vamos 🇪🇸 🐂