Liverpool FC Official Thread

He should be scoring more than 7 from open play (if that is true) regardless of how shit Milan are, and in all honesty they weren't that bad.

Yeah but "clear-cut" is a subjective term. I think he has a worse record than that, he scored 16 goals so I don't know what they define as "clear-cut".

Balotelli scored 10 open play goals, 4 free kicks, and 4 penalties. He also had 8 assists in all competitions last season according to Transfermarkt. He was comfortably Milan's top scorer -- Ricky scored 9, Muntari () scored 6 -- and he had their most assists last season.

Eplindex (run by Opta, I think) define a 'clear cut chance' as:

A situation where a player should reasonably be expected to score usually in a one-on-one scenario or from very close range. I’d like to call them “sitters” because it’s an easier way of describing it to the football fan out there. A free header, a one-on-one, a penalty – basically any free shot on goal for a player who is un-marked and only has the keeper to beat.

Pretty shocking, if Giroud missed 15 of them. I am quite certain that the worst ever has to be Negredo from 2012-13 at Sevilla, though. Negredo missed 29 clear cut chances in 2012-13 for Sevilla.

Are those 29 just in the league? He would have scored something like 54 goals otherwise   

Yeah, I've mentioned it on EA before. I can't remember the thread though. Fucking mind-boggling stat.

Still can't quite believe this. Balotelli at Liverpool? Crazy. Never would have imagined such a thing to happen.

Love it.

FAO Keyser

http://www.theguardian.com/football/2014/aug/22/mario-balotelli-liverpool-pay-brendan-rodgers?CMP=twt_gu

Relevant quotes:

Mario Balotelli agrees 50% pay cut for move from Milan

Mario Balotelli has accepted a 50% pay-cut to join Liverpool from Milan but the stunning transfer will proceed only if Brendan Rodgers is convinced the Italian striker is willing to develop at Anfield.

The striker has accepted a basic £80,000-a-week deal from Liverpool, half what he earns in Italy, with top-ups dependent on a series of stringent behaviour-and-performance clauses worth up to £2m a year. He has been offered a three-year contract with the option of a fourth belonging solely to Liverpool.

Can't really criticise that.

More:

Echo (James Pearce) wrote:Mario Balotelli has convinced Liverpool he’s fully committed to joining the club by agreeing to take a staggering 50% cut in his basic wage.

The Italian striker, who is on the brink of completing a £16m move from AC Milan, arrived at Melwood on Friday evening after starting his medical in Manchester earlier in the day.

Liverpool is prepared to complete the deal after receiving the assurances they wanted from the 24-year-old regarding his attitude and application.

Balotelli has agreed to a contract which is heavily incentive based.

He will earn around £100,000 per week at Anfield – around half of what he pocketed in Serie A.

You're so insecure   

He's still earning equivalent to nearly £125K a week, how you pay him is irrelevant.

Pretty smart from Liverpool I guess. The only worry is once Balotelli gets his wage fully bumped up will he start acting up again

Keyser Söze wrote:You're so insecure   

He's still earning equivalent to nearly £125K a week, how you pay him is irrelevant.  

If he's earning that much, then he's behaving and is hitting the performance clauses, so it would be worth it.

Scott_LFC wrote:

Keyser Söze wrote:You're so insecure   

He's still earning equivalent to nearly £125K a week, how you pay him is irrelevant.  

If he's earning that much, then he's behaving and is hitting the performance clauses, so it would be worth it.

"worth up to"

Doesn't mean it's all or nothing.

I don't even know why you're bothered about how much we're paying him. It's not like we can't afford it, and it's not your money, or mine. So who gives a fuck? Suarez was on £200k. Rooney is on £300k. Gerrard is on a lot more than what he should probably be receiving. Sterling is apparently going to be offered a £100k deal soon.

It's just what it is.

brb not bothered about how much he's paid
brb posts comment directed at me nearly 5 hours after initial post
brb definitely not bothered
brb

Keyser Söze wrote:brb not bothered about how much he's paid
brb posts comment directed at me nearly 5 hours after initial post
brb definitely not bothered
brb

It's 5 hours later because the news has only just come out, you div. And I posted it to show that, in fact, Liverpool were being sensible in how we're paying him, and how much. Doesn't mean I'm personally bothered what that total is.

Scott_LFC wrote:

That picture makes me concerned for the future. I feel like there's going to be a huge circus from this point forward. It was semi-bearable when he was at City because we don't have as many fans. Now he's at Liverpool I can see every little thing getting jumped on by 13 year old LADs making sure everyone knows about it.

vel wrote:Balotelli scored 10 open play goals, 4 free kicks, and 4 penalties. He also had 8 assists in all competitions last season according to Transfermarkt. He was comfortably Milan's top scorer -- Ricky scored 9, Muntari () scored 6 -- and he had their most assists last season.

Eplindex (run by Opta, I think) define a 'clear cut chance' as:

A situation where a player should reasonably be expected to score usually in a one-on-one scenario or from very close range. I’d like to call them “sitters” because it’s an easier way of describing it to the football fan out there. A free header, a one-on-one, a penalty – basically any free shot on goal for a player who is un-marked and only has the keeper to beat.

Pretty shocking, if Giroud missed 15 of them. I am quite certain that the worst ever has to be Negredo from 2012-13 at Sevilla, though. Negredo missed 29 clear cut chances in 2012-13 for Sevilla.

I was talking about the league, he scored 14 in the league, half of those were fks and pens. That's pretty shit considering Lambert got more in the BPL.

Mario Balotelli: Of the 117 players to score 10+ goals in Europe's top 5 leagues last season, Balotelli had the worst conversion rate (9.2%)

FFS world class  

All of these posts are going to be so satisfying to quote when Balotelli beasts it in the Liverpool red.

While you're here jerking off to Balotelli, have you even thought of the implications it would bring to the team? We press high up the pitch to win the ball and score from quick counters. Do you think Balotelli has the workrate to battle for the ball? To you think he'll sprint to get in a good position? Every game I've seen from Balotelli he's always lazy and caught offside many times. Not gonna fly in a team like Liverpool that wins from matches from industry rather than individual magic (bar coutinho). Coupled with his average goalscoring record, I'm not expecting big things. I don't expect he'll score more than ten this season. 

I'm not against signing Balotelli because at the very least he'll bring some laughs into this team which always lets you down.

Dagbon wrote:While you're here jerking off to Balotelli, have you even thought of the implications it would bring to the team? We press high up the pitch to win the ball and score from quick counters. Do you think Balotelli has the workrate to battle for the ball? To you think he'll sprint to get in a good position? Every game I've seen from Balotelli he's always lazy and caught offside many times. Not gonna fly in a team like Liverpool that wins from matches from industry rather than individual magic (bar coutinho). Coupled with his average goalscoring record, I'm not expecting big things. I don't expect he'll score more than ten this season. 

I'm not against signing Balotelli because at the very least he'll bring some laughs into this team which always lets you down.

You don't think Rodgers will have thought about all this? I have faith in the man, considering what he's done with us over the last 2 years. If Rodgers has gone ahead and decided to sign him, then he believes Balotelli will fit our system.

Just you wait. He's going to be brilliant. His agent has come out and said it's last chance saloon for him at a big club. Make or break. Balotelli is going to grab it with 2 hands, IMO.

Also,

Raiola (Baloteli's agent) interview this morning on Corriere 1: #LFC have been interested in Baolotelli for 3 months. Offer only came this week.

Looks like Rodgers was bullshitting when he said we categorically wouldn't sign him.

still won't finish in the top four.

Novi on Fabregas:

Novi wrote:Arsenal wouldn't turn down the chance to sign him while Arsene is in charge. No way.

On Giroud:

Novi wrote:Grioud is a great striker.

On the prospect of Liverpool finishing above Arsenal because of Arsenal's run of hard games:

Novi wrote:I don't think a fixture pile up will benefit you because either way i'm confident you will still finish below us.

Response to me saying we will be above Arsenal after Arsenal's nightmare run of 7 games:

Novi wrote:

Novi wrote:See you in 7 games then.

And now..

Novi wrote:still won't finish in the top four.

Guess we're finishing in the top 4, then.

Keyser Söze wrote:

El_indian wrote:Did I get upset? No not all. I very rarely get upset.

And no, it is not relevant.

You do seem pretty upset. Look how serious your tone has become compared to before.

Yes it is relevant. They both share the same personality trait so they'll have some common ground to build a working relationship around.

Sean wrote:I guarantee if Balotelli is average Scott will be in here like "well I didn't say he'd definitely do well.."

Like he always does   

eh. I just felt like giving a serious answer. How will that translate to a player-manager football relationship?

Scott_LFC wrote:Novi on Fabregas:

Novi wrote:Arsenal wouldn't turn down the chance to sign him while Arsene is in charge. No way.

On Giroud:

Novi wrote:Grioud is a great striker.

On the prospect of Liverpool finishing above Arsenal because of Arsenal's run of hard games:

Novi wrote:I don't think a fixture pile up will benefit you because either way i'm confident you will still finish below us.

Response to me saying we will be above Arsenal after Arsenal's nightmare run of 7 games:

Novi wrote:

Novi wrote:See you in 7 games then.

And now..

Novi wrote:still won't finish in the top four.

Guess we're finishing in the top 4, then.

so bitter, get over it we have alexis

Novi wrote:

Scott_LFC wrote:Novi on Fabregas:



On Giroud:



On the prospect of Liverpool finishing above Arsenal because of Arsenal's run of hard games:



Response to me saying we will be above Arsenal after Arsenal's nightmare run of 7 games:





And now..



Guess we're finishing in the top 4, then.

so bitter, get over it we have alexis

Highlighting that you're often completely wrong means I'm bitter about Sanchez? Sanchez is irrelevant to this.

We'll have Sturridge and Balotelli up front, whilst you'll have to rely on Giroud and Sanago

Scott_LFC wrote:

Novi wrote:

so bitter, get over it we have alexis

Highlighting that you're often completely wrong means I'm bitter about Sanchez? Sanchez is irrelevant to this.

We'll have Sturridge and Balotelli up front, whilst you'll have to rely on Giroud and Sanago

u fookin wot m8 lol

scoring goals this season won't be a problem for us, our real problem is getting a defensive mid in.

Novi wrote:

Scott_LFC wrote:

Highlighting that you're often completely wrong means I'm bitter about Sanchez? Sanchez is irrelevant to this.

We'll have Sturridge and Balotelli up front, whilst you'll have to rely on Giroud and Sanago

u fookin wot m8 lol

scoring goals this season won't be a problem for us, our real problem is getting a defensive mid in.

And will it be a problem for us without Alexis?  

Balotelli will smack in at least 15 league goals, hopefully the majority in front of the adoring Kop.  

Scott_LFC wrote:Also,

Raiola (Baloteli's agent) interview this morning on Corriere 1: #LFC have been interested in Baolotelli for 3 months. Offer only came this week.

Looks like Rodgers was bullshitting when he said we categorically wouldn't sign him.

Yeah, his agent is going to come out and say Balotelli was a panic buy. Definitely no vested interest at all in that statement. Just like when Liverpool said they sold Suarez for £75million.

Look how insecure you are  

Glen Miller wrote:

Novi wrote:

Scott_LFC wrote:

Highlighting that you're often completely wrong means I'm bitter about Sanchez? Sanchez is irrelevant to this.

We'll have Sturridge and Balotelli up front, whilst you'll have to rely on Giroud and Sanago

u fookin wot m8 lol

scoring goals this season won't be a problem for us, our real problem is getting a defensive mid in.

And will it be a problem for us without Alexis?  

Balotelli will smack in at least 15 league goals, hopefully the majority in front of the adoring Kop.  

Liverpool got 12 penalties last year, that's at least 12 for him guaranteed mf.