Why always Mee? Ask the referees
WHEN Joe Gomez had his leg broken by a challenge from Ben
Mee, referee Stuart Attwell did not deem it a foul and Sean Dyche referred to it as a “fantastic tackle”.
On Wednesday, Michael Oliver did not consider a challenge from Ben Mee on Wesley to be illegal.
The Aston Villa striker is out for at least six months after sustaining cruciate ligament damage from the tackle.
Mee does not strike anyone as a malicious, dirty player and the injuries might be an unfortunate coincidence.
But a priority for referees should be clamping down on what look like “legal” tackles, but unnecessarily endanger the safety of an opponent.
There are too many players sustaining too many serious injuries.
And, as the stricken Wesley would testify, that is far more important than whingeing about minor issues with VAR and the offside law.
ACCORDING to Henry Ford, past achievements and deeds mean nothing.
The founder of the Ford motor company – at the beginning of the 20th century – said that “history is more or less bunk”.
When it comes to football, it isn’t. And certainly not on Merseyside, where the storylines of the two clubs who meet at Anfield this afternoon are celebrated on a weekly basis.
Football history has been blurred by the creation of the Premier League, seemingly the be-all and end-all for clubs.
It will certainly mean a lot to Liverpool when they lift the title, probably before Easter, and will go down in their annals as a landmark moment.
There have been plenty of those. The title win of 1983/84, which completed three on the spin, the first of six European Cups in 1977, the most recent of those six in that it gave Jurgen Klopp his first trophy as Liverpool manager.
Some might even claim the recent success at the Club World Cup was a hugely significant chapter.
But talk to the oldest generation of Liverpool followers and there is a good chance they will highlight a triumph almost 55 years ago as one of the most memorable in the club’s history.
When, with the score level at 1-1, Ian St John headed in a winner against Leeds United, three minutes before the end of extra time at Wembley, to give Liverpool their first FA Cup.
Bill Shankly called it his greatest moment in management.
The stature of the FA Cup might have diminished in recent times, but it should remain a competition close to the heart and soul of Liverpool and every other club.
Which is why Klopp (right) has a difficult balancing act to perform today.
His team have played a lot of games during the past month, for sure.
He and his medical staff know the squad’s needs better than outsiders. Accepted.
And the fate of, for example, Harry Kane – who won’t be facing Liverpool next Saturday or anyone else for a couple of months – will have put the rest requirement for key players into sharp focus.
But this Liverpool team, who now have a run of only seven fixtures in the next 46 days, could do something really special. Why should
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THE Treble – the one won by Manchester United in 1998/99 – be beyond them?
Many observers, reflecting on the year unbeaten in the Premier League, are suggesting this is the best Liverpool side of all time.
The team that won the league and European Cup in 1976/77 would surely disagree.
An FA Cup Final loss to Manchester United cost that team the Treble.
To win all three would end debate – this would be the finest team in the club’s history. And Klopp probably understands how important history is to the fans of a football club.
Such has been the job that Klopp has done, those fans will not raise a murmur of dissent if he rotates on a large scale against Everton.
But if he does know his history, Klopp will know the FA Cup should mean a lot to Liverpool.
That is why today’s derby is as big as any game this season.
Because the FA Cup still matters.