Arsenile

A very good start in the league with that Norwich result aside which I'm sure we can count as a blip considering the results after. A very, very achievable Europa League group there too with a return to Russia in sight

Easy group in the CL which will help you concentrate playing your main team in the league.

I don't expect less than 18 points with this UEL group

Luke Hendricks has played in many a derby game, experiencing the passion of fans across the world in the hope for bragging rights. Today he experiences his first as Liverpool manager. The Merseyside Derby.

This is Luke’s Liverpool


The Merseyside derby. Splitting the city between red or blue. It is the longest running derby in the top flight of English football, with the set of matches taking place since the 1962/63 season. Liverpool have held the upper hand in the tie throughout history but in recent years, Everton have held their own. Since the 2019/20 season, Liverpool have managed to win just the once, with Everton holding their counterparts to draws in the remaining five league games.

This will be Luke’s first as the manager of Liverpool but it won’t be for captain Trent Alexander - Arnold, with the game being one he has witnessed as both a fan and player.

“The derby is something I grew up on, I remember watching it as a young boy in the stands just praying we win. It’s different to most derbies as everyone is so close together. You have some family members that are Everton fans and then the other half Liverpool. It’s great to win as you have the bragging rights but on the flip side it’s a horrible one to lose.”

“The first one I remember watching was when I was around six or seven. Stevie Gerrard got sent off early but we went 2-0 up. They scored to make it 2-1 then Harry Kewell scored a great goal to secure it. It sort of went down as a classic. It’s one of the many games I watched between the two as a fan and I know the tension of watching it.”

“I got my first derby game in 2017, which thinking about it is quite a while ago now. I came off the bench and we won 3-1. It was a very big moment for me and one I still cherish to this day. We love to beat them as we know how much it means to the fans.” said Trent Alexander-Arnold.

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Liverpool go into the game in second place, only behind top of the table Manchester United on goal difference. Everton on the other hand sit thirteenth, winning just one of their opening six.

“I’ve been going to Liverpool home and away for over ten years now” Gary Andrews, 34, says. “This will be my 27th league derby and I think we have won the majority of those. I remember Stevie G’s hattrick against them in 2012, that has to be my favourite derby day so far.”

“Today, 2-0 I think. Davies and Haaland to score. Alphonso has looked great since he joined, it looks a great deal for us. I think he has seven goals in six games or something, it’s a pretty impressive start with all the pressure of a move to such a big club for someone his age but he is handling it well.” Gary states just before kick off.

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1:12’ - Leonidas Disallowed Goal

“He’s on, hit it!” screams Gary. “YEEEEES! Get in!”

“NO, no chance. He was on ref!. Gutting, that would have been his first goal for the club as well. Great start though. COME ON BOYS!” calls the Liverpool supporter.

43:29’ - Erling Haaland Disallowed Goal

“Haaland is in! Play him Paulo. Yes. YES!” Gary cries once more.

“Oh fuck off. Again? Really?” Gary questions as he looks towards the scoreboard projecting the VAR decision. “What’s the point of this, just kills the excitement of it. He’s offside by a toe. Can’t catch a break today.”

Halftime - Everton 0 - 0 Liverpool.

“We have been much the better team to be honest. Much better than them, but it’s no surprise they are playing for a point once again. We need a bit of luck for once, those two goals were centimeters. I feel for Leo, he deserved his goal as he’s been great since he has come in. Would have been some way to start your career here. I still think we win, they won’t hold on forever.”

Full Time - Everton 0 - 0 Liverpool

“Just weren’t good enough in the second half, looked like we felt defeated by the two goals being chalked off. It’s what we saw a lot last season, a defeatist attitude, Luke really needs to stamp that out of us as soon as possible. It's a poor result and we can’t be pleased but it puts us top since United and City both lost. Still a long way to go, we need to carry on putting in bigger and better performances than we did tonight” Gary explains.

Despite a goalless draw, results favour Luke Hendricks’ side, sending them to the top of the table by a single point, with seven games played.

Replies

James:It is a fairly easy group indeed, but a number of those will be focused on getting one over Liverpool. Thankfully United have finally dropped some points, at the right time too, with us dropping points once again against Everton.
Scott: I'd have to agree, we should be one of the favourites for this one, even when the Champions League sides drop down.
Justice:Good to see you pop in for an Arsenal dig!
Jack:Another blip with the luck not quite falling our way, but still unbeaten. The return to Russia will be interesting considering the last couple of times Luke faced Krasnodar they have won, including that 4-0 win in the cup.
OneMoreGame:You'd imagine this side to be able to get out of that group with some ease, but once again as I said to James, everyone will be wanting to beat us!
Tango:I think that'll be the aim!

Would have been aiming for a win in that game. Not an ideal result but one that sends Liverpool into first and puts them in the ascendancy regardless.

Bit disappointing that, but you've been FM'd via VAR it appears. The derby are always the most important games of the season, and they're what keep the fans onside [no pun intended!]. Hopefully eh next time you face the boys in blue: they batter you you get the 3-points.

Definitely seems like a game that should've returned three points but I guess that's the way derby games go.

In today’s Sky Sports, tackling racism special, we sit down with Liverpool manager, Luke Hendricks to discuss his past with racial abuse, his thoughts on being a black football manager and BAME management within the English footballing system.

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Good Morning Luke, thank you for sitting down with us today. To begin, why don’t we start with your history in the game, to when you first picked up a football.

Morning Gary

I’ve had a football at my feet since I can remember. My late father, rest his soul, was an avid football fan and he ensured I followed the game too. Ever since then I have been around the game, first joining a professional clubs academy in 1995. I eventually made my way through the Ajax Cape Town academy and made my first start in 2005. Following that I moved to Europe for the very first time joining Ajax Amsterdam.

You grew up in a very different period for South Africa, something many of us in the United Kingdom haven’t experienced. Having just left the Apartheid era around the years you were born and your childhood coming throughout those early democratic years, did you hear or notice much racism then?

Yes, 100%. We may have been out of the ‘dark times’ so to speak, with non-whites being given their rights for the first time in decades, but racism was still prevalent. In fact it still is to this day. Many of the particularly older people still think Apartheid was a good thing. So yes, racism was something I experienced from a young age. The little things like comments from children in school repeating what they had heard their parents say, to being told I was only making the squads to fill a quota. I was called all sorts of things from a young age, things I won’t repeat here for obvious reasons.

Having made your move to Europe in 2005, moving to Ajax and then to Zenit, how were your early experiences of the continent?

As a whole, positive. You will always find the odd person who will make a comment but you sort of grow up with a mentality of just brushing it off. That’s something I won’t stand for anymore, no matter how small or insignificant the comment is, I will call someone out on it as that is what is needed to end this issue. But yes, overall the move was positive, I felt supported and loved by the supporters for what I was able to do on the pitch.

A few incidents then occurred, didn’t they. You left Zenit St. Petersburg in 2010, following a falling out with Boyra Uys. You featured in a number of games as a CSKA player receiving some abuse, but the full force came out in the first return to Zenit as CSKA manager in April 2020. Can you explain that day to us?

Well my move away from Zenit was a confusing one. I had gotten injured in the World Cup, my first major injury of my career and my contract said Zenit would pay for any medical issues following the procedure. However, they failed to do so claiming it was South Africa’s problem due to it happening when I was playing for them. This led to issues between me and Boyra Uys and I eventually left. Whilst there I had a great relationship with the fans but having joined CSKA that changed.

Normally the abuse subsidies over time with the fans getting over the moves but for me it seemed to get worse and worse. I had a few moments where I was abused as a player but nothing like that return as a manager. The abuse was constant and I have never felt so alone. It felt as though I had been punched in the stomach, it’s like having the wind taken out of you. I found it hard to focus on the game in all honesty but you can’t show them that it is affecting you as then they win. It was a scary time for me and one I wouldn’t wish on anyone. We lost emphatically that day but it made me adamant I wouldn’t let them win again. Following that game we beat them four out of the six games we played, drawing the other two.

Following that game, the Russian Football Federation fined Zenit just over £2000. What did you think of that punishment and what punishment do you think fans guilty of racist abuse should receive?

The punishment was a joke, everyone knew that and I still can’t quite believe they got away with it so lightly. The problem with racial abuse is, often it’s hard to pin it down to the fan. I believe the clubs need to take more responsibility in all honesty. My view is there should be a three strike policy. If a fan is heard to be racially abusive, the club should work with the police in order to find the person responsible. The clubs should receive a warning for the initial case. A second case should see a partial closing of the stands for a game, with clubs and fans then being punished in regards to matchday income and viewing the games. It may be harsh but it’ll mean fans become more willing in identifying those being abusive. Finally, if a third strike happens in a season, the club should be forced to play behind closed doors for a period of time. Once more this will hurt the club financially and hopefully then they will look to do whatever they can to address the issue.

I know some will see that as a harsh take, but the issues need harsh punishments. Nobody should go to a game of football, as a fan, pundit, coach, player or manager and be abused. It has to be taken out of both the game and society and it’s about time people stand up to the issues we face.

Yourself and Chris Hughton at Stoke make up the entirety of the non-white managers in the Premier League. Do you think this is a fair representation?

I think it’s a hard one to answer in all honesty. Broadly speaking, it’s clearly not a fair representation. However, the Premier League is the highest level of world football, nobody is just given a job here and that isn’t what anyone wants. What is wanted is an opportunity, whether that is as a Premier League coach or at a lower level of football. But that’s what we aren’t seeing enough of, opportunity. There are many talented BAME coaches in this country and many talented minority coaches across the world. I think of Chris Powell, who is currently a coach in the national setup. He is a brilliant coach and someone I have a great respect for.

In his managerial career, he has had a few opportunities, and in my opinion proved to be a good second tier manager. His time at Charlton, where he won promotion from League One, was very successful. He struggled towards the end of his time there but he has now been out of management for three years. There are a number of managers in the lower leagues with poorer records than Chris’s who have been on a revolving door of jobs despite that. I haven’t personally spoken to Chris but I can’t imagine he wouldn’t love to get back into management.

There’s also Keith Curle, who has had a magnificent record throughout the lower leagues who since leaving Northampton in 2020 couldn’t get another job until he dropped into the non-leagues. I just think BAME managers need to be given more opportunities based on their ability. Those who want to take on those roles should be given a chance and then it is down to them to prove themselves. If they fail to do so, it’s on them, but clubs need to be taking the stance to give out these opportunities.

So do you believe that the Rooney rule is a positive one?

No absolutely not. I am calling for more young black and minority coaches to be given a chance based on their ability. Not because of the colour of their skin. That isn’t what I want, we need to be given chances based on our ability and that is all. I am very grateful that Liverpool have given me the opportunity at the very highest level due to my ability and I hope to prove them right. I feel as though I proved myself at CSKA Moscow who again were willing to give me a chance because they believed in me and my ability not my skin colour. I think it’s vital that the minorities should be given opportunities, but not because of the colour of their skin. That is something I have seen throughout South Africa with the implementation of a quota system enforcing a percentage of black players must be in the squads, but that leads to further issues with fans claiming certain players are only picked for that reason.

If we get rid of these systems in order to ‘benefit’ us, and instead we as players and coaches are given the opportunity purely based on our ability, that will be the perfect scenario.

Luke, thank you for your time. Good luck for the rest of the season.

It’s been a pleasure, thank you.

Replies

Scott:A missed opportunity I'd say. Two dissallowed goals didn't help but we need to be winning those games.
James:It was a tough one but have to move on now and continue picking up the points. The day they smash us is the day Luke retires
Jack:100% TOP OF THE!

So... Luke is retiring in a few months then? haha.

Very interesting interview on an extremely important topic. Their needs to be heavier penalties for individuals found guilty of racism, and clubs who don't try to stamp it out. There's a long way to go, but at least it's finally in the spotlight and being talked about in the open.

I agree entirely. There does need to be more inclusion within the sport but it needs to be inclusion that isn't forced too heavily. The rule doesn't have much of an impact, I believe, anyway. It's fine having candidates sit an interview but there's nothing to say that the interview is just a waste of time because they have no plan on appointing said manager and are just interviewing as per the regulations. More needs to be done, I agree.

A Memphis Depay brace led Liverpool to a 4-0 victory over Krasnodar, in Luke’s return to Russia. The game ensures Liverpool qualify for the knockout rounds with two games to spare.

With the game billed as Luke Hendricks’ ‘big return’ to Russia, his side didn’t disappoint claiming a four to nothing victory over Krasnodar. The high scoring result comes as no surprise in reality, with Liverpool scoring sixteen goals in their last four games before today, including a 6-0 win over Group H opponents Lech Poznań.

Despite being expected to come out victorious, Luke Hendricks opted to field a relatively strong squad, with only Memphis Depay, Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain and Roberto Firmino replacing Alphonso Davies, Naby Keita and Erling Haaland respectively, from his usual eleven.

It was one of his changes who made an immediate impact too, with Memphis Depay opening the scoring in the twenty-second minute. The Dutch winger has lost his starting berth to summer arrival Alphonso Davies, who joined the reds from Bayern Munich on transfer deadline day, with Depay only making four starts in all competitions so far this year.

Mohamed Salah, who scored a hattrick in Liverpool's last Europa League game against Lech Poznań, doubled his side's advantage. Liverpool were in full flow, creating chance after chance, with the game probably ending kindly for Krasnodar. Having seventeen shots on target and hitting the post twice, Liverpool showed their class from the first to the last whistle.

Going into the second half, Memphis once again got on the scoresheet. The former Manchester United player, scoring a stunning goal from twenty-five yards. If the goal hadn’t put the game to bed, Viktor Claesson’s red card with fifteen minutes to play did, as the Russian side were made to play with ten men.

With the victory all but confirmed, Paulo Dyabla, arguably Liverpool's best player so far this season having scored six and assisted eleven, put the final nail in the coffin. His goal sent the away fans home happy taking their Europa League record to three wins from a possible four, scoring fourteen goals. The victory also confirms Liverpool's progression to the knockout rounds of the Europa League, with top spot still to be confirmed.

The victory comes against a Krasnodar side who were one of the few teams to get one over Luke Hendricks whilst he was at CSKA Moscow. In fact it was Krasnodar who ended a run of thirty-nine games unbeaten domestically, between September 2020 and August 2021, for Luke’s side. But today, it was the South African managers turn to celebrate against the Russian side.

Luke Hendricks was full of praise for his team, saying he was ‘proud’ of his side's performance as he spoke in his post-match press conference.

Luke Hendricks:

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“You have to be pleased with a victory like that, we were superb from the first whistle and looked comfortable all day. I am proud of the boy’s and how they put on such a professional performance. Memphis (Depay), who hasn’t had many opportunities this season was very impressive throughout and took both of his chances very well, he looked sharp, as did the other lads, Alex (Oxlade-Chamberlain) and Bobby (Firmino) who came into the side today.”

Luke also spoke about how it felt coming back to Russia for the first time since departing in July.

Luke Hendricks:

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“It’s great to be back, I had many great years in this country, where I met my wife and my daughter spent her first few years living. To come back, even for a short period of time, was great and I am very happy to see CSKA are doing so well in the league once again this season, sitting top.”

Luke will now turn his attentions to Crystal Palace, as he looks to keep his team top of the table having so far gone unbeaten in the league.

Replies

James & Scott:We will get there eventually but for now it's not good enough. We need to keep talking about the issue and not just let it become the norm.

Good to see that your back-up players played a role in a convincing win on your return to Russia, but it's all about Dybala it appears. He makes everything tick, and you're gonna have to hope you can keep him fit over the course of the season, or you might be in a world of trouble. Keep up the good work

Comfortable as expected. The knockout stages will provide more competition with sides dropping out from the Champions League.

Luke speaks a lot of sense on the topic of abuse and inclusion of BAME communities in football and I agree with him massively. Interesting to see that he doesn't come across absolutely enraged about the Uys thing but I suppose time is a healer.

As for Luke's return to Russia, he's back to normal over there