Liverpool 5-2 Fulham: Suarez takes over at the Cottage

Firstly, let's get a closer look at what Luis Suarez did Monday night in west London:



Suarez delivered an absolutely brilliant performance at Craven Cottage, working hard all night and essentially dictating the entire game. He was running the show; every time he was on the ball he had the Fulham on their heels, and when he wasn't, his movement was magnificent and he found space to further terrorize their defense. Suarez cooked Brede Hangeland on multiple occasions, and wasn't much nicer to the rest of Fulham's backline. He was by far the best player on the pitch Monday night, and was the catalyst for virtually every Liverpool attack.

It didn't hurt that he had a little help from Maxi Rodriguez, who has somehow turned the clock back to 2006 with yet another hat trick, his second in three games. Maxi hasn't gotten a lot of playing time under King Kenny in recent weeks, with Kenny and Steve Clarke preferring to play Meireles and Kuyt out wide. But with Andy Carroll's absence, Liverpool played a United-style 4-3-3/4-5-1 hybrid, which allowed Maxi and Dirk to support Suarez on the wings while Meireles, Lucas, and Spearing dominated the middle of the park.

Maxi surely now has a spot in the team for the remainder of the season, namely against Spurs in a huge game at Anfield this Sunday. And if it's true he'd like to stay at Liverpool for a while, even in a more limited role, he would be a quality player to have in squad next season. We all know the Reds are going to make a play for the likes of Ashley Young, Juan Mata, maybe even Adam Johnson this summer; we desperately need that sort of width and pace on the flanks, which Maxi just doesn't provide at this point in his career. He's a clever player, with wonderful technique and a great feel for the game, who picks his spots well and manages to make an impact. But like Kuyt and Joe Cole, he compensates for a lack of pace to get around defenders by cutting inside, which narrows play and takes away an important dimension of the team's attack. We've all seen this before; the loss to United in September comes to mind. For too long Liverpool have lacked real quality on the wing, dynamic players who have the pace and skill to transform an entire game. Someone who can deliver killer balls into the box for Andy Carroll, and team up with Suarez to pick apart a team. Someone like King Kenny's old pal John Barnes.

That's why I'm already looking forward to what Kenny, Damien Comolli, and the new owners have in store for us this summer. Certainly, injecting some more youth, pace, and quality into the squad is what's in order, and the likes of Ashley Young (it may very well happen) would be massive. Regardless, Maxi put in a great game against Fulham, one that showed just how valuable he can be to this team. Seven goals in three games (he scored one against Newcastle) is immense.

It was all about Suarez on Monday night, though. He managed to put in a Man of the Match performance on a night when another player on his team scored a hat trick, such was the magnitude of the game he played. He's looked a dangerous player from the moment he came into the side, but now that he's developing more of a sense of the English game and settling in, he's beginning to play at a world class level. If you watch the game tape posted up at the top, you'll see that he very, very easily could have had a hat trick of his own. Fernando made a huge mistake not wanting to play with this guy; not only would Suarez have made life so much easier, but they could have dominated together (stylistically and tactically, you can tell it would work). It would definitely be a better fit than what he has now at Chelsea. Note: What do Chelsea FC and the U.S. Navy have in common? They both paid 50 million for a sub.

But enough about the past. At the moment, it looks like we have ourselves something special. He's the best player on the team and the fans already love him. He's shown he can play out wide, in the hole, and even up top by himself. His efforts have lifted spirits around the club after we were abandoned by one icon and lost another to injury. And when Andy Carroll gets going and puts in more colossal performances, I think Liverpool will actually have themselves a terrifying strike partnership. Besides King Kenny, Luis Suarez is a huge reason why Liverpool are about to overtake Spurs and qualify for the Europa League next season; if they can beat them at what will surely be a rocking Anfield this Sunday. It's no wonder why we just can't enough.

Champions League Round-Up: On to Wembley

Here we go again; Barcelona and Manchester United will face off once more in the Champions League final this year, giving United a chance to redeem their loss to Barca two years ago in Rome. That match was notable for Messi & Co. outplaying United in Cristiano Ronaldo's last game for the English team, and this time, I think we can expect a similar result. United have been simply great this year, this despite their best player being out of form for over half the season and their game lacking of the sort of style and invention we're so accustomed to seeing from them. Still, I was convinced whoever won the SuperDuperClasico semifinal would go on to lift the European Cup, and I stand by that prediction.

Pep Guardiola's Barcelona are, in my opinion, the best team to ever play the game; no side in the history of the game has ever delivered such stunning results with such aesthetically flawless football, and they've done it by sticking to a formulaic philosophy that is not only unique, but devastatingly effective. They've done it with a crop of players who are largely homegrown academy products from La Masia, including several who constituted the backbone of the greatest Spanish national team of all time and ended decades of misery by lifting the World Cup in South Africa last summer. Without going into the furor surrounding the events that played out over the course of the semifinal against Madrid (too much to get into, but it is just typical Jose, and typical Barca to some extent as well), Mourinho tried his best to stop Barca once more and couldn't do it, not with the current Real squad anyway. Those of you who read my post from several weeks ago on Barcelona know how much it pains me to admit that they're the best in the world, but I have to stand by my statement: they're the best ever. No, I never had a chance to see Bob Paisley's Liverpool or Arrigo Sacchi's Milan or Johan Cruyff's Ajax sides of the late 60s/early 70s, and yes, you could attribute this to some sort of generational bias. But considering the level of competition in the game today, and the individual level at which FC Barcelona's players are plying their trade every week, I think its safe to say this team could beat anyone, ever. And I certainly hope they do it against Manchester United.

If you haven't deduced this yet, I'm a Liverpool fan. In fact, later on I'll be posting about our crucial game at Craven Cottage tonight against Fulham, which we'll need to win if we want to make it into European competition next season. I try my best to be levelheaded and fair to Manchester United, and I think I do a pretty good job of it when commentating on them here. So since they're about to be crowned champions of England for a record 19th time, allow me this much. I hate Manchester United. I hate how they're about to overtake Liverpool's tally, and I hate how they will revel in the victory as finally knocking Liverpool off their f***ing perch, as one Alex Ferguson would put it. I wish them the worst against Barcelona and hope they disgrace their nation by getting embarrassed on home soil at Wembley. I will be rooting against them with everything I have, which will be refreshing because I look at it as an opportunity to put aside my distaste for the Great Barcelona and cheer on their magnificence. I hope they fail because I'm determined that we maintain our record as the most successful English team in European competition, and I want them to get nowhere near our tally of 5 European Cups. In fact, I can't wait until August when we can finally start a new season and tie up the league championship record at 19 a piece. I hate Wayne Rooney, I strongly dislike Nemanja Vidic, and Javier Hernandez just annoys me. And I can't say anything about Alex Ferguson (I refuse to call him 'Sir') that hasn't already been said about cholera.

So, now that we've gotten that out of the way, well done to United. They eased past a potential trap in the Schalke tie, and if it weren't for future United/Bayern/Arsenal/Milan goalkeeper Manuel Neuer, they would have crushed the Germans in Gelsenkirchen. Then, Alex had the audacity to field a central defensive partnership of Jonny Evans and Chris Smalling behind a midfield of Paul Scholes, Anderson, and Darron Gibson(!!!) in the second leg of a Champions League semifinal, which was cool because he could actually do that, give his starters some much needed rest, and still get a great performance from his squad (depth is the key to this United squad's success, as Ferguson himself indicated). They have been the best English team in a year when the Premier League was so competitive and top-heavy that the top six teams threatened to cancel each other out -- and very nearly did. United haven't played spectacular ball, but its clear when you see them take the pitch that they're still on an elite, world-class level and not to be underestimated. You don't go over half a season in the Premier League undefeated on luck alone, no matter what Arsene says. As for their European campaign, it has thus far been sublime. They deserve to be at Wembley, as much as I hate to say it.

But I cannot envision a scenario where they beat Barcelona. David Villa was the perfect foil for Messi up top, and as soon as he signed for Barca last summer we all knew it was over. Pedro's emergence as an elite player, with Andres Iniesta's determination to stay healthy after an exhausting season last year, have allowed Barcelona to perform at an unprecedented level in 2010-11, and that's saying something.

Sure, Wayne Rooney may be back (sorta) and what Ryan Giggs has done is nothing short of incredible (we know). And of course, Rio Ferdinand's determination to battle through his back problems, and injuries directly related to them, to give it one last go when everyone thought he would be done for the season (perhaps for good) is admirable. It's clear that his and Vidic's ability to anchor the backline together once more has resulted in the defensive stability needed to make yet another run at a European Double.

Regardless, I just don't think it will be enough. When you throw a First XI of Valdes, Alves, Puyol, Pique, Abidal, Busquets, Xavi, Iniesta, Pedro, Villa, and Messi on the pitch at Wembley, playing in the biggest match in club football for the most prestigious trophy in club football, there's just nothing anyone can do. Not even Alex Ferguson's Manchester United.

Prediction: Barcelona 3-1 Manchester United