MY first league match missed this season will be Liverpool’s 15th. I’ve set out to do the full 38-game complement on about 10 occasions, but always come up short by a fixture or two. I’m like a metaphor for past Liverpool sides. We’re all nearly people, ultimately....
WE have a drill for Burnley away. It’s often felt like a rush to be getting there. It’s close, but there’s never quite enough time to fulfil all ambitions and expectations. This Wednesday will be a challenge. We’ve got to scoop my youngest, Rafael (Benitez) Gutmann...
THE Blues. The fucking Blues. And I guess that’s why they call them The Blues. I just cannot be arsed with them right now. And annoyingly, inevitably, they will be so invested in this weekend’s derby. Blues, blue men, blue people, you may well get your win, that win,...
IT’S a bigger game than we’d budgeted for. Yes, when the draw was made it was appreciated that a bum hand had been dealt, but still. Liverpool are often careless in Champions League group stage games, but now is not a time for regrets as we approach the decisive...
I LIKE a bit of Watford. It’s a no-nonsense away. Not so close that you barely feel you’ve had a day out but far enough that it feels like going on a mission. I’m becoming fonder of aways the older I’m getting. When I was young it was all about Anfield. That was going...
‘YESTERDAY I got so old I thought that I would die…’ (In Between Days – The Cure, 1985) There are abiding clichés in football about “regret”. Usually trotted about before cup finals by managers and pundits. There’s always talk of “leaving nothing in...
WE take the name of our opponents for granted. A touch of context is all we require. Red Star Belgrade have been a background presence in my European football consciousness since as long as I can recall. But I’ve never once paused for thought to consider their name....
THERE are good times to play teams. When they’ve won 10 on the spin isn’t one of them. When they’ve ended that run, regardless of the manner in which it ground to halt, that is the sweet spot moment. Arsenal conceded late and drew at Crystal Palace last weekend. They...
“I COULD hear the distant drums, “The sounds of bugles were coming from afar, “Can you hear the drums, Fernando?” (Andersson, 1975) Mo Salah could hear them. Sadio Mane could hear them. Bobby Firmino too. Three hearts beating as one. Once...
IT’S turning out to be a strange old season, this one. I genuinely don’t know how I feel about it. I mean, I’m happy, I think. Yeah, I must be. A good barometer of my football contentedness is my inclination to watch other teams play football. I’m watching any old...
The Anfield Wrap’s post-match reaction podcast after Southampton 2 Liverpool 3, a result that puts Liverpool 8 points clear at the top of the Premier League.
John Gibbons hosts Adam Melia, Rob Gutmann and Steve Graves.
