Text Size Adjuster: 18px 19 Feb 2026 23:45:01 In order to view all of today's banter, you may have to visit our Liverpool banter 2 to Liverpool banter 10 pages linked at the bottom of this page.
19 Feb 2026 13:19:38
I've also watched a big match revisited recently. Kenny in midfield fairclough and Johnson up front. Vs crystal palace. Nil nil but highly entertaining. I'd forgotten how skilful super sub was but no stamina. Faded completely after about 70 minutes.
2
19 Feb 2026 15:38:22
To be fair, Super Sub probably wasn't used to playing 70 minutes. Quality player from the bench. 👌
3
19 Feb 2026 16:30:47
St Etienne, that's all! 👌
8
19 Feb 2026 17:22:38
One of the greatest nights in our history, Hero H.
7
19 Feb 2026 21:30:11
Great, great atmosphere that night.
19 Feb 2026 13:07:12
Mr Alonso has rejected Marseille.
1
19 Feb 2026 13:35:04
"Hello Mr. Extremely Highly Rated Young Manager being linked with Man City and Liverpool, would you like to manage our Team Evil concept to try and overhaul PSG in our ludicrously non competitive league?" I can't say his answer surprises me.
9
19 Feb 2026 13:47:44
I just can't watch Slot's interviews anymore. It is just horrible having this guy as manager. Fingers crossed he isn't here next season, so we can actually enjoy football again.
3
19 Feb 2026 15:43:42
Yep, cos it's all about the interviews.
10
19 Feb 2026 16:04:14
Bekind, OM is a poisoned chalice at the moment, so not surprised at all.
0
19 Feb 2026 16:46:41
I dunno, I quite enjoy watching us play lately.
7
19 Feb 2026 16:49:06
Does it matter what he does or says in interviews? Last time I checked, it's what happens at the end of a match that matters. I'll ask again - would you rather LFC win a match/title with the worst, most tedious football ever, or watch a team play like 1970 Brazil/Netherlands 1974/LFC 1988 and lose?
5
19 Feb 2026 17:36:47
If he isn't here next season, it will likely mean we're not in the CL. So, on that basis, I hope he is here next season.
8
19 Feb 2026 21:37:22
I would say only winning the CL would possibly save him. Qualification should be a bare minimum.
1
19 Feb 2026 23:28:27 I'm confused by your post, ShiningSlots. "Only winning the CL will save him, but qualification should be a bare minimum." That doesn't make sense.
19 Feb 2026 08:37:13
Just found an episode of "The Big Match" on ITVX.
It was Ipswich v Liverpool from 1980 and I'd forgotten how much the game has changed. Phil Neal 'clotheslined' an Ipswich player and not even carded. An offside wasn't proceeded by every defender raising an arm in the air. Tough tackles followed by a handshake, no play acting and none of my pet hate - players claiming a throw-in even though the ball clearly bounced off them.
No VAR, no endless betting adverts.
Some things have changed for the better; vastly better playing surfaces and stadia. The backpass rule, more than one sub.
I'm not sure the balloon-like ball of the modern game makes for better football than the old casey though.
Fter the game Paisley was quoted as saying "I shot 2 of my players at half time', I wonder what the modern players and press would have made of that?
There was an honesty about this era, an honest game for the working class. It's pretty sad to see how the modern game shapes ip against this era.
16
{Ed025's Note - halcyon days indeed Willo, now its all about who has the longest throw and all in wrestling at corners it seems mate..
18
19 Feb 2026 10:02:38
To be fair, if that's what people want to watch, they can always go and support their local non-league side or bottom-end football league side. The game is still there for the working class if they choose it. The upper echelons of the sport have pulled away, but as long as fans keep subscribing to Sky/TNT/Amazon and paying £50-2000 a ticket, on top of £120-270 for a replica shirt etc.
The Premier League/Championship sides will keep milking it. I love going and playing Sunday League personally, and that keeps me in touch with the grassroots side of the game. 10:30am KO, minimum 5 goals in every game, in the pub by 1pm with all the lads. Now that's an affordable way to get your football fix.
16
{Ed025's Note - great stuff MK..
7
19 Feb 2026 11:32:56 MK, I am 51 now and still miss playing Saturday afternoon 2pm kick off, straight out on the piss. Wake up Sunday morning rough as f***, kick off 10:30, sweat the booze out and straight in the local club for a good few beers, a few games of killer on the pool table, home for a Sunday roast and the 4:30 kick off.
If Carlsberg did weekends, I'd love to go back to them.
14
{Ed025's Note - a man after my own heart Grino mate..
6
19 Feb 2026 11:59:49
Grino, you just described every weekend of my life from 27-30 years old! Those were the days. I'm only a couple of years away from Vets football now, where my knees truly belong.
5
19 Feb 2026 12:18:53
MK, I did that from 19 to 32. Both knees and ankles are knackered. I've got a broken bone in my wrist because I took the cast off so I could keep playing. From Monday to Wednesday I could barely walk, and then Wednesday and Thursday nights we had training. Then it was the weekend again. lol, I've got the body of an 80-year-old, and yet I've still got the mentality of a 12-year-old, lol.
The good old days, I would not swap them for anything.Ed025, I am from Grimsby and before my disabled son got too much for my wife to look after on her own I always got tickets for the European games and a few league games when possible. I always stayed over for the night. My daughter was at uni in Liverpool, she is working there now, and I always went to The Royal Oak Hotel for a few games of pool.
5
{Ed025's Note - you are basically living my life Grino.. :)
2
19 Feb 2026 12:52:18
That's a long old stint doing 2 games in back to back days, Grino! I was broken after doing it for 3 years, never mind 13 years! I'm 32 now and currently playing with a pin/synthetic ligament in my right elbow, loose cartilage in my right knee, and my left ankle fully strapped up with sport tape. I plan to keep playing until my body or my wife stops me, though.
Haha. I did play from 11 to 21 years old as well, but had to quit for 6 years due to a really nasty ankle ligament injury that took years to heal without help from fancy surgeons like the pros get. That's the same ankle I still have to strap up, 11 years after the injury. Why do we do it? For the love of the game. And the beers. Don't forget the beers.
4
19 Feb 2026 13:37:07
You are all light weights. I did it from 19 to 41 every weekend. Then, wife and kids came along. 😀 😀
1
19 Feb 2026 13:49:07
My wife had a word with me, MK, but it was when I went working away for 6 months with no football at all. Then, when I came back, I signed for a load of lads I've known for years, played a preseason friendly, came on after about 30 minutes, and everywhere the ball was, I was not. I've always been really fit, but my legs had gone. I could have probably got a lot of the fitness back, but I just didn't have it in me to be that far off the pace, so after about 15 minutes I told them to sub me off and said, "That's it for me, I'm retiring," lol.
I always played for the love of the game, but I could not stand losing and did not like not being able to do what I used to. It's why I never got into golf, tried it but was crap, and could not be bothered to learn when lots of my mates were already very good.
3
19 Feb 2026 14:41:44
Great conversation, lads! I'm like you, Grino. I played since the age of 9, but when I got into my mid 30s I'd gone from a marauding, goal-scoring right winger to a bit-part, limping left back, with the 18-year-old right wingers running rings around me. That was enough for me. I can't stand losing, and the frustration of having players who, in my mind, were nowhere near as good as I had been in my pomp, running me ragged caused me to call it a day.
I tried golf too and got frustrated, so packed it in, but I came back to it about 5 years ago and am now a single handicapper. You should persevere, mate. It's definitely worth it, and helps with that competitive nature we all have as ex-footballers.
1
19 Feb 2026 16:52:43
Let's all meet up and have a kick about on Maiden Lane Field on Townsend Lane.
0
19 Feb 2026 18:16:34
Kick off on Saturday afternoon was 3 o'clock, not 2. After a 10-minute interval, most games finished around 20 to 5. There was no massive added time, as time wasting was hardly a thing back then.
0
19 Feb 2026 20:47:27
We need to have a golf day for us old codgers.
1
{Ed025's Note - im in Ron, can we make it Texas scramble though so us lesser lights dont make a show of ourselves mate?.. :)
0
19 Feb 2026 21:10:45
I'm now 57 and still play 2, sometimes 3 times a week, 6 aside and 8 aside on a bigger pitch. Throw in the odd charity game, on a full-size pitch. The competition is good, ex NIFL, ex amateur league players and police, with a smattering of younger lads for the running.
A very healthy kitty for at least 4 free nights out a year. I always say it's not the playing that kills you, it's when you stop.
1
{Ed025's Note - you are a better man than me Irish, my old legs are gone mate so i could only do the Jan Molby role nowadays.. :)
19 Feb 2026 08:38:33
The best thing about this table is that we are top of it. The second best thing about it is that Everton have played 384 more games than us, but are still 412 points behind us.
2
{Ed025's Note - its quite sad actually MK that your second best memory in football is to see Everton not doing very well mate, and you have the cheek to call us "bitter"...but everyone to their own i suppose..
8
19 Feb 2026 09:06:52
Forgive me, what am I looking at? How have we played the same number of matches as Arsenal, but fewer than Everton? I'm obviously being thick, so forgive me.
0
{Ed025's Note - you were in the second division for a long while Rome, when football was good you were the equivalent of Tranmere mate.. :)
1
19 Feb 2026 09:19:22
Rome, it's the all-time top-flight league table. Many of these tables only include results after 1992 because it suits the agenda of Manchester United fans. Obviously, we spent some time in the second tier before Shankly saved us, hence why Everton have played more games.
1
19 Feb 2026 09:22:31
Is this a rabble starting in 1880, odd? The difference in games would be teams having fewer games due to relegation. Everton haven't been relegated for ever. Always the bridesmaid, eh @25?
1
{Ed025's Note - never being relegated does not make us bridesmaids WDW, it makes us the perfect marriage mate sticking together through thick and thin, for better or worse.. :)
1
19 Feb 2026 10:01:41
I believe this table is not accurate. I think it is based on 3 points for a win for all games, although for many years it was 2 points for a win. So Liverpool's actual points total is actually 6220, according to Football Rates website. Sorry to be pedantic.
1
19 Feb 2026 10:04:52
Ed025, to be fair, a lot of my favourite recent memories in football involve seeing Richarlison booked for celebrating, only to still lose to us in the end. So maybe I am getting bitter in my old age!
1
{Ed025's Note - i think you are MK, but all,s fair in love and football mate and a bit of friendly rivalry never hurt anybody in my book.. :)
2
19 Feb 2026 10:11:55
MK Scouser, For context, Everton have 5701 points and are actually 519 points adrift of Liverpool. But if that makes you happy, so be it.
0
19 Feb 2026 09:39:21
Morning Ed025. We were promoted to the old first division the year I was born! My confusion is, Arsenal, along with Everton, have never been out of the top flight, so how have Everton played over 300 games more?
0
{Ed025's Note - im not sure mate, we were founded in 1878 and the reds in 1892 but im not sure if that is the difference Rome?..
0
19 Feb 2026 09:42:43
Ed25 when we were in the second division what were you winning?
0
{Ed025's Note - football matches in the top tier Albey.. :)
1
19 Feb 2026 10:29:44
Not sure either, Ed. Hope you're well, mate. Bet your golf clubs are covered in cobwebs! This weather's depressing me!
0
{Ed025's Note - i has a knock the other day Rome and it was awful mate, no buggies so i really struggled wading through the mud, im good my friend and hope i find you well too..
0
19 Feb 2026 10:32:40
Rome, I think you will find both Everton and Arsenal have been relegated for a small number of years.
0
19 Feb 2026 10:33:47
Ed025, That did make me chuckle.
0
{Ed025's Note - cheers Gaga..
0
19 Feb 2026 09:55:15
Esp. the "Worse" part, Ed25.
0
19 Feb 2026 11:12:01
Gaga, you are spot on, mate. I was always of the belief that Everton and Arsenal hadn't been out of the top flight. I just realised that Everton were in the old 2nd Division in the early 50s. That shows my ignorance. I think the stat is that Arsenal and Everton have the longest run in top flight football. Followed by us.
0
19 Feb 2026 11:58:15
I think both Arsenal and Everton were relegated for a couple of years, which wouldn't account for the large difference in games. I believe Everton have been around longer than Arsenal. If they were established about 10 years before Arsenal, it would explain the difference in the number of games played.
18 Feb 2026 22:19:12
Looks like, definitely maybe, but let's commend Owen Goal, who's having a storming season for them. He's their third leading scorer.
10
18 Feb 2026 22:21:35
Cmon, the Villa. 😮🤪
8
18 Feb 2026 22:21:57
They are doing the worst thing possible, which is giving City a sniff. At this stage of the season, City chasing is a different beast. Yes, City have problems. But Arsenal could go into the NLD with a buffer of two.
That will be a whole different type of pressure, and the next few games will be very telling. It's just incredibly annoying that we aren't in the conversation!
8
18 Feb 2026 22:28:47
Exactly, Wy. Arsenal and City are not all; we should be up there with them, at the very least. I've always expected Arsenal to fall away. I've said all season they won't score enough goals from open play to win enough games. They will draw too many. The question is, are City good enough to punish them for it? I have doubts about that, too.
5
18 Feb 2026 22:54:11
I'd be more than happy to see the set-piece heroes flunk it.
9
18 Feb 2026 23:25:22
😂 It would be funny if Arteta blows it again.
12
19 Feb 2026 00:14:14
I said all along they won't win it. He's too cowardly in his football. Also, Saka is very good, but insanely overrated. It's good to see someone else challenge City while we're not up to it, though. The quality of football globally right now is the worst in my memory.
10
19 Feb 2026 00:38:42
Imagine what we should have done with this league.
6
19 Feb 2026 06:20:28
I'd much rather see Villa win it over Arsenal or City.
11
19 Feb 2026 06:55:48
It's incredible they're even still in it. There was a time when we'd win 15 games in a row, draw one, season over.
5
19 Feb 2026 08:01:30
This is why Slot got to go at the end of the season. We should be running away with this league with the points we have chucked away against teams near the bottom of the league.
9
19 Feb 2026 09:20:24
In fairness the league is more competitive now. Even the bottom 3 teams have been giving everyone a game since Christmas. Some of the teams in midtable in England would walk into the Champions League spots in Spain, Germany, France, and Italy.
2
{Ed025's Note - more competitive or the biggest load of crap ever played on a football field FM?, i think the standard is poor and maybe even a worse standard than when you won it last season...if thats at all possible mate..
2
19 Feb 2026 09:24:52
Like Arsenal against Wolves, eh, @Grino? The league has been poor for a couple of years now. Most teams are as bad as each other, and some are worse.
3
{Ed025's Note - i agree..
0
19 Feb 2026 09:40:03
League is certainly more boring. The fact teams play not to lose does kind of make it more competitive, but not in a good way.
3
19 Feb 2026 09:56:23
Bristol_Red, I'll get the popcorn ready if you bring the cans.
0
19 Feb 2026 13:21:43
You're on, Oli! I know we shouldn't gloat, as we've been truly awful this season, but they really are a horrible club! Would dearly love to see them end up pot-less this season.
1
19 Feb 2026 15:19:45
The standard of football, especially in the Premier League, has been dropping for quite a while. Klopp's team and Pep's team were exceptional when they were really at it, but the level of quality of players now is very poor. Where are all the stars? We have the most money and wages over here, but the players of the 80s, 90s and early 2000s were much better than what is around now.
Football tactics may have stifled them, with strikers being turned into forwards. It is a poor league, with big teams getting worse, which has made the league more competitive at least, but the overall quality is sliding drastically.
3
{Ed025's Note - spot on for me Magico..
0
19 Feb 2026 21:15:39
Well they've taken the creativity away from all the players. They're like robots, sticking to orders, and probably scared of doing anything too different, so they don't get dropped to the bench. Boring football.
0
{Ed025's Note - hard to argue with that Greg..
0
19 Feb 2026 23:26:44 It's very difficult to say the quality of the Premier League is poor when we've got 6 teams in the last 16 of the Champions League. 5 of the top 8 in the league phase were from the Premier League, which shows the quality is much better than any other team in Europe.
What we have is a crisis in playing style, but it is effective. Very boring and very negative, but teams are hard to score against and score a lot from set pieces and long throws.
18 Feb 2026 19:45:18
I can see Dom going to RM as apparently the new RB they brought in last year is not up to scratch.
11
18 Feb 2026 20:33:55
No returns. They can keep the rat Arnold.
10
18 Feb 2026 21:54:00
I agree, Victor.
10
18 Feb 2026 22:46:25
Victor, if Trent was still here we would be in a three-horse race with City and Arsenal.
4
19 Feb 2026 06:22:38
Trent's a good player, but I'm not sure him being here this season would have helped our defensive woes, especially at set pieces. One of those ones we'll never actually know.
4
19 Feb 2026 06:24:29
After a couple of injuries, it looks like Trent is starting to play very well for Madrid.
1
19 Feb 2026 06:40:58
Agree, Livered, particularly the past 4 or 5 games. I hold no grudges toward the lad, however unpopular that opinion may be.
7
19 Feb 2026 09:57:22
Spot on, ViktorVaughan. No take-backs. They wanted him. He wanted them. A match made in heaven, and they should keep it that way.
18 Feb 2026 17:49:42
Sent to soon. king Kenny and Keegan. That team would truly be something.
Premier League team Ali, Robbo, Trent, VvD, Hyypia, Gerrard, Alonso, Milner, Fowler, Mo and Mane.
Someolaywrs overlap eras like Barnes and Rush but they go pre Prem as that was their peak. Be interesting to see Man Citys best pre Premier team compete with their best Premier team.
1
18 Feb 2026 19:27:20
Milner was a squad player, how can he be in the best Prem team?
6
18 Feb 2026 21:37:34
I feel Henderson has to be in there over Milner.
3
18 Feb 2026 22:00:48
I would actually pick Fabinho over Hendo, and Hendo over Milner, despite the respect I have for Milner.
9
18 Feb 2026 22:51:37
Agree with both, Zed. Fabinho and Henderson were key players.
3
19 Feb 2026 09:58:02
We don't win it all w/o both Hendo and Fab. Not in a million years.
1
19 Feb 2026 11:25:11
Mine pl team would be. Ali Trent Hypia Vvd Robbo Hendo Fabinho Gerrard Mane Firmino Salah Subs Reina Carra Finnan Alonso Milner Garcia Fowler.
0
{Ed025's Note - i presume you are quite young MOT?, a least half of them dont get in the best Liverpool sides that i have seen mate..
0
19 Feb 2026 11:48:30
I'm similar, Tod. If I was to pick my favourite team purely from players who I've seen play live I'd have to go with: Alisson Trent, Virgil, Agger, Robbo Hendo, Szoboszlai Salah, Gerrard, Mane Torres My 7 super subs, in case I need a goal, would be Hyypia, Riise, Milner, Kuyt, Jota, Firmino and Origi. Hyypia is for if we've got a late corner.
Riise is for if we have a free kick more suited to a lefty. Milner is if we need nerves of steel on a deciding penalty. Kuyt is if it's against United or Everton. Jota is if it's against Spurs or Arsenal. Firmino is if it's against Man City. Origi is if it's a Champions League semi or final. Milner is also my back-up keeper, seeing as he's a swiss army knife.
0
19 Feb 2026 12:06:50
MKS, you have to add Origi if it comes to Everton as well. Ed25 would be crushed if you didn't.
18 Feb 2026 16:50:38
Ed1,
Saw some links again to Morgan Rogers again today.
Hypothetical question, as I don't think we'll sign him.
Do you rate him?
I think I remember previously you spoke positively of him.
I think he's exactly what we need.
Love him as a player, but his best position is central, where we have Wirtz. Would like to see him as a LW for us but he's probably not good enough there for what we want to achieve.
1
{Ed001's Note - he is very good in the centre, but I would prefer either Dom or Wirtz playing there, so don't see a need for him.}
8
18 Feb 2026 17:49:27
We will do anything in our quest not to buy a centre back.
4
18 Feb 2026 19:07:41
Jeremy Jacquet.
5
18 Feb 2026 19:25:35
At the moment we have 5 senior CB's on our books.
1
18 Feb 2026 20:07:56
We bought Leoni last summer, and Jacques is already signed for the coming summer. We've brought in three young lads (or was it four) who are regarded as very good prospects. That's five or six CBs signed within 12 months.
4
19 Feb 2026 09:58:55
Ed, I don't see a need for MR either BUT I would take him and figure it out later because that kid is awesome.
0
19 Feb 2026 11:31:48
We need another, more mobile and defensive midfielder, centre back and a wide forward. The last thing we need is an attacking No. 10. Wirtz, Dom, Macca and even Jones can play there. For squad balance, Rogers would be a total waste of money.
18 Feb 2026 13:08:58
For us older generation, football started a long time before 1992. An all-time top league division would probably see Liverpool at the top.
27
18 Feb 2026 13:40:21
What did we do before '92 when football was invented?
16
18 Feb 2026 13:52:30
I posted the all-time table after I saw this. We are nearly 200 ahead of Arsenal; Everton is 3rd and United 4th, 600 pts behind us. Football started before 1992.
16
18 Feb 2026 13:53:07
Good question, @Hoof?
2
18 Feb 2026 15:54:42
That is something I'd never post, especially since it's only the Premier League and United are at the top of it. Post it to their page; I'm sure they'll be delighted, but football existed long before 92.
13
18 Feb 2026 16:06:49
Unfortunately, points mean very little unless they come with titles. I am not really sure how the league titles won table would look in its entirety.
1
18 Feb 2026 16:08:35
Well said, Salah.
3
18 Feb 2026 16:47:59
I'll be sure to check in with you first, Salah, before sharing something others might find interesting. 👍
5
18 Feb 2026 17:27:29
Stop bullying each other, lads.
6
18 Feb 2026 18:26:58
We are the most successful club in England by cups and titles, not including the Charity Shield. End of.
3
18 Feb 2026 20:18:52
The era of football as a business. The first Football League was set up in 1888/89, so it has been in existence for 138 years. The PL incarnation of the league has been around since 1992 - 34 years. So, if you think of the lifespan of the Football League as a football match - 90 minutes - the PL can be viewed as approximately the last 20 minutes or thereabouts.
So basically, the PL stats are interesting, but are nowhere near the full picture.
1
18 Feb 2026 21:23:13
I can't stand this "Prem Era" nonsense. The top tier is the top tier.
4
18 Feb 2026 21:57:11
Can I get all my money and memories back from pre-1992 from all the games I attended, if they didn't matter.
2
19 Feb 2026 06:50:02
Division 1, 2, 3 and 4. The Premier League, Championship, League One and League Two. The second set looks and sounds like they were made up by someone who couldn't be arsed about what the leagues were called. I suppose it must have had something to do with sponsorship, naming rights - everything does these days.
0
19 Feb 2026 10:02:03
Indeed, 1jj. United fans can use stats or whatever era suits them to create whatever "carve-outs" they like to make them feel all warm and fuzzy. The facts are what you say they are. They can read that and weep, but I know they won't.
0
19 Feb 2026 10:26:38
There is a website, Football Rates, which appears to be up to date, as Arsenal have now played one more game than Liverpool. I believe they use actual points gained rather than 3 points for all games won.
{Ed025's Note - halcyon days indeed Willo, now its all about who has the longest throw and all in wrestling at corners it seems mate..
{Ed001's Note - thanks mate.}
