my liverpool fc

DEAR LUIS: A LIVERPOOL FAN WRITES... Jimmy Rice 22 August 2007
	Luis Garcia's open letter to Liverpool fans caused quite a reaction amongst supporters when it was published on the club's official website on Tuesday – so much so, we decided to ask you to write a reply.
We were bombarded with letters on our message boards – all of which will now be forwarded to the little Spaniard in Madrid. The best effort has been published below. We've also included Luis's original note in case you missed it first time around. Dear Luis, From your very first appearance we knew you would be a special player for us. Whenever you stepped on to the pitch an air of expectation and excitement filled the ground. We never knew what you were going to do and sometimes I'm not sure that you did either...but that just made it more fun watching you! You have a special skill and the confidence and audacity to try different things - I liked that in you. Everybody talks about your special goals: the ones against Juventus and of course Chelsea, and that last-gasp effort against Arsenal when you came off the bench to win it for us. If you did nothing else but score that famous goal to knock Chelsea out of the CL and take us to Istanbul on that most special of Anfield nights, you would still have been a legend to us Luis, but you gave us so many more memories. My extra special memories of you are the way you were always first to grab the ball out of the net when we scored in Istanbul - eager to get on with the greatest comeback in the history of football; the way you played on against Everton when you were injured and the way you were always so eager to take a penalty. The joy on your face when you travelled around the city after Istanbul will always stay with me. These moments told me what your letter finally confirmed - you knew what it takes and what it means to be a Red on the pitch and on the terraces - you wore our shirt with pride and determination. For this Luis I will never forget you and would like to say a huge 'thank-you' for all you have done for our club. I wish you every success in your new club and health and happiness to you and your family and friends in Spain. We will still sing your song and maybe one day you will come back to Anfield and hear it sung again. Thank-you, Luis - You Will Never Walk Alone Speedy1, LFC.TV message boards **** Dear Reds, First of all I'd like to apologise for not having been back in touch sooner, but I needed to take some time to take on board all the recent changes and then to put down these words for you. I'm sure you will understand. I would rather this be a letter of thanks and gratitude, not simply a goodbye. Yes, that's right, gratitude, because that is the word that best sums up my feelings for you all. Taking the decision to change clubs hasn't been easy. Not easy at all. I've experienced three fantastic years at the club and in the city. Three years in which together, the fans and the team, we have accomplished some fantastic achievements, and I'm sure that these successes will continue to be repeated in the near future. You know that I like a challenge and that I don't just settle for second best. Back then Liverpool Football Club gave me the opportunity to be part of an ambitious plan to put the Reds back at the summit of the game. I think that together we managed to achieve that. As I said, I do like challenges and in spite of the fact that at that time I was playing for my home town club, one of the biggest in the world, I wanted to be a part of that project that was being presented to me by Liverpool, and so I accepted the challenge. Now, after three seasons in the Premier League and having won some major trophies, the chance came up for me to return to La Liga and be part of a new project at a club I already knew. The idea of enjoying things in a Spanish club like we experienced together at Liverpool over these last three years appealed to me, and that's why I accepted the offer. I want to thank everyone working at Liverpool Football Club for how well they have treated both my family and I, making us feel at home from the very first day to the last. I also want to thank the management, coaching staff and directors for the opportunity they gave me back then to be part of such an important and well-loved club as Liverpool. A club which has helped me to grow as a footballer and where to date I have enjoyed the biggest success of my career. Without a doubt, this success has been possible thanks to the outstanding group of players with whom I've been able to share a dressing room over the last three seasons. I'm not going to mention anyone specifically, because I think that the secret of this team's success has been exactly that: nobody wanted to stand out above the rest and there has always been a great togetherness in the squad, which made it into something more than a group of players, it was a group of friends. Thanks to all of you for your help and your friendship. I've left until last the thank you which for me is the most important: Thank you to the supporters. Your support allowed me to settle quickly at both the club and in the city, and you made me feel really at ease with you all right from the word go; that's the kind of help that you notice most of all during the difficult times, of which there have been a few during my time here. I'd like to especially thank you for making up a song for me and you should know that every time I heard you singing it, it was like an extra injection of strength and motivation, even helping me to overcome pain occasionally during a game. Your unconditional support is the thing that ensures that this team manages to pull through in the most difficult circumstances; and I can assure you that the whole squad is aware of this and thanks you for it. A football club isn't just made up of players, coaches and directors. More than anything else it's the supporters who make a club, and that perhaps is the ingredient which best distinguishes Liverpool Football Club from every other team. The supporters. Because if one thing has remained obvious to me after these few years, it's that with supporters like you, Liverpool Football Club will never walk alone. I really hope that the club wins lots of major trophies in the future; I'll be following it all from a distance, with the pride that you can only get from having been a Red and played for the home team at Anfield – a ground that every football fan must visit at least once in their life. Thank you for everything. Yours most sincerely, Your friend, Luís García

Labels: Luis Sanz Garcia

All Hail King Luis!

The event’s at Anfield certainly have been exciting over the past couple of days and it was fantastic to see Fernando Torres finally unveiled as our new number 9 at this afternoon’s press conference. (click here)

Liverpool have paid a record amount for the player but I think it was warranted. The team has been crying out for somebody a little bit special upfront to add to what we’ve already got and I think we’ve got that in Torres. Whether he will turn out to be this mythical “25 goal a season” striker remains to be seen, but I would agree with Rafa Benitez’s comment today when he said, “I’m not thinking about 20 goals (a season). I’d rather have four strikers who score 15 goals each.” (click here)

However, it needs to be noted that we currently have 5 strikers and this comment coupled with his later comment confirming that Peter Crouch is definitely staying, would seem to indicate that it’s the end of the road for Craig Bellamy as a Liverpool player, but let’s save that subject for another blog.

Our defence and the centre of our midfield is stronger then most teams and at least as equally strong as others. Adding Torres to our front line has vastly increased our strength in this area and should ensure that there will be intense competition for places among our forwards next season. Both wings are the area’s that now badly need to be addressed to complete the picture and I was very happy to hear Rafa mention that these are the area’s that he is now focusing on when he said today. “Really we are working with wingers. People can talk about a lot of things and a lot of names but we’re working on wingers.” After a quiet start to the transfer window, things are really starting to get exciting for us and I look forward to hearing exactly which wingers Rafa has in mind.

The close season is always an exciting time as we watch some fresh faces coming into the club and speculate about how they’ll fit into the side. But the excitement can also be tinged with a little sadness as we sometimes also have to say goodbye to some old friends. This was the case a couple of month’s ago when we learned that the Legendary Robbie Fowler would not be with us next season and he has now been joined on the departure list by another favourite of mine, Luis Garcia. (click here)

The serial thumb-sucker has left the club and rejoined Atletico Madrid, and I was sorry to see him go as he was one of my favourite players of the Benitez era. So as my own little tribute to King Luis I delved into my archive and found a piece I wrote about him back in November 2005 that I think is still relevant today.

This came at a time when he had put in a couple of frustrating performances and there were some fans calling for him to be dumped. Given that he had played such a crucial role in helping to get us to Istanbul for our historic Champion’s League win just a few month’s earlier, I felt this was totally out of order and I wrote:

As you have probably guessed from the title of this blog, I’m a fan of King Luis, but that doesn’t mean I’m blind to his faults. The main gripe people have with Garcia is the amount of times we’ve seen him needlessly give away possession. Like every other Liverpool fan, I too have often screamed in frustation when one of our attacks broken down due to him electing to try a fancy flick instead of a simple pass. I strongly believe that football is all about possession. You can’t score goals without the ball, so when you have it you keep it and you use it to hurt the opposition, when you don’t have it you’ve got to go and get it. Being of that mindset, it would take a very special player for me to overlook a weakness in possession such as Garcia’s but I believe Garcia is a very special player.

We all know how meticulous Rafa is in his preparations and I’m sure he re-watches videos of our performances at least several times and also has the team watch them. So I’m certain both he and Garcia are very well aware that he needs to work harder on keeping possession and it should be noted that this season and in particular in recent games, this area of his game has improved. Rafa has spoken very highly of Garcia on a number of occasions and in particular has also mentioned what a clever player he is and I totally agree with this.

We see so many games these days where teams cancel other out with their sterile tactics. In such games its often a mistake or a moment of magic that makes the difference and with the possible exception of StevieG, Garcia is the player in our side most likely to provide that moment of magic. Garcia’s tricks and flicks don’t always come off and when they don’t he can sometimes look foolish but at least he has the courage to try them and even in those games when it seems nothing goes right for him, his head never drops and he keeps going.

He made a huge contribution to our Champions League win of last season and has even been recently nominated, along with Carra and Gerrard, for the European footballer of the year for his efforts. Who will ever forget his 3 goals over the two legs against Leverkusen in the last 16, his magnificent strike against Juventus in the quarters and in the chelski game while others were standing around shouting for a penalty for a foul on Baros, it was Garcia’s determination and quick-thinking that forced the ball over the line (ish). We should also remember Alonso’s penalty in the final. Thankfully Xabi was able to put away the rebound when his spot kick was saved but who was right behind him reacting quicker then anybody else? Garcia. If Xabi hadn’t got to that rebound Luis would have.

That’s often the case with Garcia, he seems to think and react quicker then those around him which is why I agree with Rafa when he praises Garcia’s cleverness, its not just the tricks and flicks but also the intelligent runs he often makes. A recent example of this was his fabulous headed goal against Anderlecht. In an interview after the game he was asked about the goal and said that he knew Steve Finnan would put in a good cross from the right and made a run to get in front of the defender on that side to ensure he got to the ball first and the result of this quick thinking was his a brilliant flicked header that looped over the keeper and into the far corner.. So while others were hanging around the box waiting for things to happen, he was out there making them happen.

Among his other qualities are the fact that he virtually guarantees you 10 or 12 goals from midfield a season and despite often been regularly battered by hefty defenders, unlike Drogba and other such players, he doesn’t roll around on the ground feigning injury he just gets up and gets on with it. Finally, he also plays the game with a smile on his face and seems to have a genuine affection for the club and the supporters. With all this in mind, I really can’t see how any supporters in their right mind could possibly be of the opinion that Rafa should dump Garcia but that’s exactly what some have been saying. I for one hope to see Little Luis running towards the supporters sucking his thumb for many years to come.

Sadly there’ll be no more thumb sucking antics from Garcia in a Liverpool shirt but I wish him all the best in his future career at Atletico. All hail King Luis!

Labels: Luis Sanz Garcia

HE CAME FROM BARCA AND BROUGHT US JOY Mark Platt 03 July 2007
	As Luis Garcia says adios to the Kop, Liverpoolfc.tv pays tribute to the diminutive Spaniard and remembers his best moments in a red shirt.
He didn't drink sangria, but Luis Garcia certainly came from Barca and most definitely brought us plenty of joy in his short but successful career at Liverpool. Without doubt he proved himself as the little man for the big occasion and, in turn, won the hearts of almost every Liverpudlian. His critics argued he was lightweight, drifted in and out of games and didn't contribute enough on a consistent basis but try balancing that against the fact that in just three years at the club he netted some of the most memorable and important goals in Liverpool history and there's no argument. Rafael Benitez knew what he was getting when he swooped to sign him from Barcelona at the start of his first full season at the Anfield helm. Having worked with him at Tenerife, Benitez was confident he'd added a creative spark to the team and that was certainly the case. Luis Javier Garcia Sanz Midfielder 2004 to 2007 Date of Birth: 24/6/1978 Birthplace: Badalona, Spain Debut: 29th August 2004 v Botlon Wanderers (a) Premiership: lost 0-1 1st team games: 121 1st team goals: 30 Other clubs: Real Vallodilid, CD Toledo (loan), CD Tenerife (loan), Atletico Madrid, Barcelona Caps for Spain while with LFC: 18 Goals for Spain while with LFC: 4 Honours with Liverpool: Champions League(2005), Super Cup (2005), Community Shield (2006) The number ten shirt at Liverpool has long been associated with exciting, skilful players and Garcia fulfilled this reputation. A tricky attacker who could beat defenders and set up goals as well as score them, Garcia was capable of filling a variety of forward positions – left side, right side or through the middle in the 'hole' just behind the strikers. Despite his small frame he was more than adept in the air but it was with the ball at his feet that he was at his mesmerising best. His goalscoring instincts were evident on his first game for the club, when in a 1-0 defeat at Bolton he had what looked a perfectly good goal disallowed but he soon made up for that disappointment. During Liverpool's glorious march to Champions League glory in 2004/05 Garcia registered an impressive five goals, including two that Kopites will never tire of replaying over and over again, albeit for different reasons – a spectacular dipping 30-yarder that set up victory over Juventus in the quarter-final and the less spectacular but more crucial scrappy effort that ultimately defeated Chelsea in the semi-final. Throw in a decisive strike in the Merseyside derby and it's easy to see why Garcia became such a firm favourite of the fans. After such a successful first season at the club, his second was always going to be difficult but while, on the whole, he was probably slightly less effective, his remarkable knack of netting in big games continued and the now famous Luis Garcia' song, to the tune of 'You Are My Sunshine' regularly rang around Anfield. Another derby goal raised the roof of the Kop once again, while Chelsea were made to suffer at the hands of little Luis for a second time in a major semi-final, this time in the FA Cup at Old Trafford. Although suspension ruled him out of contention for a place in the FA Cup Final victory over West Ham, you got the impression that with Garcia in the team anything was possible. His trademark thumb-sucking goal celebration was mimicked by kids all over Merseyside and he was well on his way to achieving cult-status among those who sat on the Kop. Unfortunately, he then suffered a cruciate knee ligament injury in a Carling Cup-tie at home to Arsenal and the sight of him being stretchered off the Anfield pitch was to be the last we'd see of him in a red shirt. During the summer of 2007 he surprisingly returned to Spain to rejoin Atletico Madrid and closed the book one one of the most colourful Anfield careers of recent times. He may only be five foot seven but thanks to Luis Garcia Liverpool fans were taken to football heaven and back on numerous occasions in the past three years. And for that, he'll forever be fondly remembered in these parts. Thanks for the memories and good luck at Atletico.

Labels: Luis Sanz Garcia

Labels: Luis Sanz Garcia

Labels: Luis Sanz Garcia, Scott Carson