Disaster in Istanbul by Mark Lee

The Draw - Room for optimism
Come on now lads. Tell me what each of you thought when you first saw the draw. We all knew that Marseille and Porto would not be pushovers but I don't think any of us expected to be outplayed by either of them, not after the number of quality signings we made. Not one of us could have been blamed for thinking that this team would be better and stronger than the last. We made additions to the team and to have thought that we would be playing piss poor football would have been blasphemous.

The Reality
After just 1 point from a possible 9, we are bottom of Group A and it looks almost certain that we are halfway through our campaign in this years Champions League. UEFA Cup Champions anyone? Perhaps we will look more at home in Europe's 2nd tier tournament. Marseille top the group with 7 points, Porto are 2nd with 5 points, Besiktas are 3rd with 3 points and last seasons finalists are dead last with 1. Even if we are to score maximum points from now, we will have to hope that Porto falter to either Marseille or Besiktas. European adventure well and truly over? A friend of mine had said he feared another Basel when he saw the draw and it looks like his fears have been realised.

Toothless
I'm sick of hearing how we played well despite losing. Let's be realistic now and put things into perspective. Yes, we did create chance after chance and yes, we did have the lion's share of possession but in the end what wins games? You got it, goals and unfortunately for us, they are as common as a saber tooth tiger. We signed exciting forwards in Voronin, Torres and Babel. Ok so Torres was out with an injury but I would hate to think we are only reliant on one individual to get us goals. Torres isn't going to play every game and he isn't going to be impervious to injury. We were playing one of the worst teams in Europe and we struggled to score! Our forwards were virtually non-existent and were spotted in the 18 yard box as often as Everton wins trophies. Don't get me wrong. It's great that we have so many players who are willing to work their socks off but it would be fabulous if one of them could stick the ball in the the net with some degree of regularity.

Before we had a problems with dodgy keepers who in spite of being big blokes, inexplicably had problems dealing with aerial threats. Cometh Pepe Reina who commands his airspace well despite other faults. Now it seems we have been stricken with another virus and inhibits us from scoring. Something in the water?

The Besiktas Faithful
A truly passionate bunch that never stopped singing or chanting the entire game. There were some shots of them moving about in unison and it was truly a sight to behold. Reminds me of what the Kop used to look like back in the day. The Besiktas Ultras are fans of the English game and many of them have expressed admiration for Liverpool because they believe that like us, they are the people's club. They are also a working class club who's fans show and undying devotion to the club. Did anyone hear our rendition of "You'll Never Walk Alone" towards the end of the match? It's not big secret that our song is famous world wide and the home fans showed some respect by applauding us when we sang it. Aside from the moment Stevie G's well placed header found the top corner, it was the only time the home fans weren't singing or chanting.

To look at it from another perspective, I couldn't help but wonder if the home fans were there to intimidate other first with the thought of supporting their teams second. I have much respect for Besiktas fans because of their passion. A few of them have also posted on RAWK showing their admiration for us but a particular scene of Pennant getting pelted by a projectile somewhat warped my perception of them. It then occurred to me that it wasn't just about supporting their team, it was about intimidating the opposition. I can't blame them really. Being one of the worst teams in Europe, they need to resort to every conceivable means that will give them an edge, and it worked.

Sami Hyypia
Poor old Hyypia, his heart is in it but his legs are shot and he knows it. You'll still see him getting forward each time he can, eager to make things right but deep inside he must know, his time is up. I found it a little harsh that they credited the goal to Sami. If anything, the ball deflected of his booth, it's not like he diverted it into goal. For a living legend that has achieved so much in his time here, it's sad to think his last memories of the club will to have put 2 goals into his own net in consecutive games. On a scale of 1-10, I don't think Sami has rated more than 5 in any of his games this season. Harsh but true. We love you Sami, we do and parting will be such sweet sorrow. We had good times but all good things come to an end. I think it's time that Rafa takes a gamble and fields players for the future like Jack Hobbs.

Rafa Benitez
He is not above criticism and it is foolish to think that he is. With our Champions League campaign looking all but over, the pressure will be on him to perform in the league. There are no more distractions now and failure to achieve anything other than a top 3 finish will be unacceptable. Next we play host to an Arsenal side in devastating form, as opposed to our indifferent one. If Besiktas could put 2 past us, how many do you reckon we'll concede on Monday morning?

It may be a little too soon to say this but this could be the game that defines our season. Arsenal will be 9 points clear of us should they win and in todays competition, 9 points is a mountain, especially given the inconsistent form we have been in.


I can imagine our rivals reinventing our song. "We won it 5 times... In Istanbul we won it 5 times" No wait, "You lost it this time... In Istanbul you lost it this time".
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"Let us all hope that the shadow of this defeat does come to haunt us when we meet Arsenal this Sunday"- MyRAWK Admin

and for all those out there..............there is DEC 16!