Liverpool vs. Blackburn

Needed to do something to sooth my bubbling excitement. Have mentioned it somewhere, I love the Cups and would love to win this one; but not at the cost of Top-Four finish. So certain players should be afforded a rest in this one.

With injury to Jones, Mignolet has to play. Emre has played 18 consecutive games and should be rested. Toure to slot-in. Skrtel deserves a rest too. But can't have too many changes and so he stays. Lovren stays as well. Raheem to continue at RWB while Markovic returns on the other flank. Not sure about Gerrard-Allen in central midfield but it's necessary to give Henderson some rest. Balotelli deserves a recall while Lallana picks himself with recent performances. Up front!!! Sturridge off-course.

It's the final game of our two-games-a-week death run and we'll have a full week before our next game, so I doubt Rodgers is going to rest too many players here. Henderson and Coutinho will probably start. I'd really like Balotelli to get a start, though, I think he deserves it.

Blackburn have nothing to play for in the Championship any more, so I'm sure they'll be really fired up for this one.

Btw, he's cup tied now, but Jay Spearing actually joined Blackburn on loan until end of the season at the end of January. He was Bolton's captain before that, which makes it quite funny (and perhaps a tad embarrassing for Jay)
And, of course, Spearing already played against us in the competition.

Rhodes is their danger man, his goals-per-game ratio in the Football League is actually better than 1-in-2, which is impressive. But score a couple of goals ourselves and I'm sure that's enough to get into the semi-finals.

No resting or anything. Last think we need is a Replay at that shithole that's Edwood Park 4 days before playing Man U.

Go and smash them. I hate Blackburn

8 days of rest after this...they can rest for that one.

On the other hand, we should all wish Man U-Arsenal ends in draw, because that'll mean Man U will play the replay at Emirates 4 days before playing us, making it they'll play Spurs and Arsenal within 6 days of playing us increasing chances of injuries and suspensions for them

I hope we smack them. If we go through, we've got a good shot in this one - a lot of big teams have gone out already. Also I hate Blackburn.

Team news:

Gerrard is fit, Might not start.

Blackburn striker Josh King, who scored a hat-trick in the fifth-round win over Stoke, has a hamstring injury.

I think Spearing is cup tied?

So theyve knocked out 2 PL teams, Stoke and Swansea. Both teams we would assume the tie would be pretty tough.

They are a home team, Have won once in 4 months in away games.

So i think we should be comfortable. Jordan Rhodes is the guy to watch.

Just win the bloody game somehow and get some much needed rest for 9 days to get fit again for Swansea game.

Please don't bottle it

I think we'll win comfortably. I'm more worried about the draw

For the love of god please let us avoid ManU/Arsenal until the final.

I'm probably going to miss the first-half

Btw, it was the 3 - 1 loss to Blackburn that was Hodgson's last game in charge of us in January 2011. Our XI back then was:

Reina; Johnson, Skrtel, Kyrgiakos, Konchesky; J. Cole, Gerrard, Lucas, Maxi; Ngog, Torres.
Bench: Gulacsi, Agger, Kelly, Poulsen, Kuyt, Jovanovic, Babel.

Hodgson and his stuid 4-4-2 the most irritating time of watching Liverpool football in my life !

Art Morte wrote:I'm probably going to miss the first-half

Btw, it was the 3 - 1 loss to Blackburn that was Hodgson's last game in charge of us in January 2011. Our XI back then was:

Reina; Johnson, Skrtel, Kyrgiakos, Konchesky; J. Cole, Gerrard, Lucas, Maxi; Ngog, Torres.
Bench: Gulacsi, Agger, Kelly, Poulsen, Kuyt, Jovanovic, Babel.

Read this in Echo. The fact that there were just three bonafide imbeciles in the starting XI, speaks volumes about Hodgy's managerial acumen.

Mignolet, Can, Skrtel, Lovren, Johnson, Markovic, Henderson, Lallana, Coutinho, Sterling, Sturridge

Can in midfield and Johnson in defense?

Johnson ahead of Sakho is also little confusing, must be a fitness issue

Toure Johnson Lovren

I am little scared

Came back home to catch the 8-minute injury time of the first half. Reading that Skrtel got possibly a bad injury

So, nil-nil still and the BBC's live text suggests we haven't played that good. More sharpness in the 2nd half, I guess?

Blackburn are well organised. Sturridge making good runs but we should try more to find him inside the box.
We are not able to create anything , we need little more quality in the final third !!

So Skrtel is all right

Poor Skrtel. Hope he's ok. And he's very important to us. WE need him for Swansea.

As far as this game, man I'm getting worried.

you realise the importance of a player when he is missing. I think there are simple passes available for our 3CB but they are delaying these passes imo and it is slowing down our attacks. I think only Johnson has performed well, in terms of attacking contribution.

Markovic

Noone turned up today.

This isn't the result I ordered

We've had this problem many times before; control the game but become static in attack. One guy keeping the ball and no movement. He then passes it backwards or sideways and makes a half-arsed run. The guy now with the ball keeps it for a few seconds. No movement. Play a safe pass and make a half-arsed run. Eventually pump in the umpteenth cross like we had Carroll and Klose up front. Ugh.

We are arguably the bluntest team in attack this season in the top4 competitors.

The replay falls between United at Anfield and Arsenal at the Emirates, So basically the season is defined in that *bleep* week now.

Nishy wrote:We are arguably the bluntest team in attack this season in the top4 competitors.

The replay falls between United at Anfield and Arsenal at the Emirates, So basically the season is defined in that *bleep* week now.

That team won't beat Blackburn, Ifty.

There are two weeks between the ManU and Arsenal games anyway, so it's not really a problem. The problem is that at home Blackburn will have a better chance of winning.