Liverpool's Fulham gift show is a disgrace to football

next thing you'll suggest is fininf a player for missing a clear chance because other clubs could have been saved...get real mate...how many changes is ok with you, 3, 4 or is that over the limit?? liverpool, chelsea, man utd have perfectly good players on the bench which can play at the premiership level..it is only natural that a weakened side will play before big games if teams don't need to win at a certain point..if benitez played gerrard and he got injured, would charlton and wigan pay a fine???...after all, the way you see it, he was playing for their survival!!!...get real mate, this is football...it happens all around the world, not just the premiership and its the way things are..

Absolute rubbish.The team Liverpool put out was good enough to beat us yesterday, it was no formality and not an easy win.Look at the last couple of seasons, many clubs have fielded weakened teams at certain times, yesterday was no exception.Martin-Bromley-Kent.FFC.

...my guess is it's easy for someone of Mr Logan Holmes caliber's to come up with this kind of article. I mean not managing one of the team the world most important football league must have him (or her... sorry but from your name gender is not obvious to us japanese) to write something like that. this article so much doesn't required my or anybody intelligent arguments that i will not further my writing than next paragraph. wake up... the battle of survival doesn't lost at the last 3 league matches of 9 months long season, just look at Reading FC. it took calculated battle through out the season! Yes it's damn right the last 3 matches is part of the season... but for heaven sake just look back and ask the teams in relegation battle what are they doing throughout the season to warrant them any argument of any sympathy at the end of the season when team like Reading, an obvious candidate for a drop down at the beginning of the season managed to survive w/o begging for sympathy from other teams that have

Liverpool have a deep lineup. Taking some of the big names out of the equation gives the second string of players the chance to show they can be matchwinners.... this may earn them a spot in the Champions league final.... Testing out the form of these guys in order to see who deserves Zendens spot on the left wing, among others is a smart thing to do.

very well and interesting article but very harshly labelled liverpool as disgrace. please try to understand the basic meaning of any games/sports............. successful as in winning,comanding, tactics and etc. if anybody uses the dirty tricks like drugs, streoids or any other means of external substances to ensure victory its called disgrace. but if one individual uses techniques or some brains to bring the team or an individual for success its called tactics. its not forbidden nor its not dirty. well i guess u should try to understand what is the meaning of sports or games is all about before start comenting abt liverpool. what liverpool done, its very meaningful for their team to gain success at the same time , this is the best time for them to try out the new talents they have bought and give them the exposure they need. before any team or an individual complain abt this , put yourself in liverpools shoe and think what will you do, to bring success in all field to your team.

It is totally clear to see (although some on this comment thread don't know what they are talking about) Liverpool put a thoroughly weakened team (only two of the starting line-up from the Chelsea game), Fulham get their first win in 11 matches, bingo!And this is a Liverpool team that doesn't have another game for eight days! When no doubt a second eleven will lose 5-0 to Charlton!

Clubs don't owe other clubs a living. The clubs at the bottom battling against relegation have got 38 games to avoid being caught in that situation. If they just so happen to have been playing poor throughout the season and find themselves staring relegation in the face, what has it go to do with other clubs who wish to rotate their players around? Only Insua and Paletta have not been playing regularly in the first team squad. How can that be a weakened side? Get real you CB

How can anyone disagree, these Liverpool fans who are trying to talk around the issue, just be honest, you fielded a weakened team? The whole idea of this being a good time to try new talent, what utter rubbish! Why don't they try out some of this talent against AC Milan! oh hang on i think that you might want to play your best team in order to win the game? Just be honest!

Is it a club's job to show concern or consideration for other clubs? With so much money involved, would you do that if you were Rafa? This article is really lousy. Thumbs down.

Not a Liverpool fan at all,but with the amount of money Pool will win if they win the Champ League, Benitez would not be sane to send out a full strength team in EPL. He is looking out for Liverpool as is his job. Why should he care about other teams?

how can you say that liverpool displined have you see the game i thing officials should be disciplined and if you thinking about other teams in religation zone they had 38 games to avoid religation so shut your beack and stop blaming big names they are honour of your country and they loudly flied endland flag for years. god bless Liverpool we can bring 6th europian cup home. let bring on ac milan.

Disgrace to football? Maybe in the way the team plays, grinding opponents down, but since when has LFC, or any other team, had to justify team selection to rivals or opponents? If the players are legally able to represent the club, what standing do you have to assume the role of Football's Grand inquisitor, condemning the club for putting it's self interest ahead of the poor dears mired in the relegation battle? Logan, your case for disciplining Liverpool is pathetic.

What a lame argument that is... the precedents are there to see... look @ Chelsea. Doubt Mourinho would risk Ballack & Carvalho on starting 11 during the Bolton game if we are already out of league title you ***** ** ****! p/s come to blue side of london big sam... mourinho is beginning to lost the plot here!

a lot of teams would kill for that starting line up

I guess the point is this, a team is free to put out a weakened team, they don't owe any other team anything, however there is no need to cover it up, people saying that they were trying out new players and that it is a good platform to test untried players, that is rubbish. Liverpool don't want to injure any players before the biggest game in Europe, fair enough, Liverpool fans don't have to justify anything, just tell the truth!

As Rafa has said before, teams are not relegated based on results in the final 3 weeks of the season. It is of no concern to LFC/Rafa who is in the bottom 3, we have already assured ourselves of Champs Lge football & the Prem title is out of our reach & we have the Champs Lge final to focus on. Let's be truthful too, looking at the side the only 2 "Non 1st Team players" were Insua & Paletta & even Paletta has played 1st team football this year before the last couple of weeks. That was no weakened/reserve side & should have killed Fulham off in the 1st half easily too !!

Liverpool should have beaten Fulham easily. It was their lack of a top class forward which let them down, not the collective personnel. Another tosh article from this little site.

the comment below, masking aka hiding under Liverpool FC Crest as stupid as this article itself. what cover up? what truth do you want? i dont think there's a hidden agenda or a rule has been breached by fielding a (not so) new player? Insua and Paletta started for the last 2 games and El Zhar & Kewell already winning games in the reserves. so... your point exactly? nothing...? tot so... sigh*

To Waino: Lack of top class forward, is that because we rested Crouch and Kuyt? Why can't other Liverpool fans just be honest?

If I were Rafa and fielding a weakened team would help me win my second champs league in 3 years, then let him put his under 12s team against Fulham. Why should he give a shit about the relegation battle. He's got a job to do for Liverpool. PS I'm an Arsenal supporter

To Stu Pitt Phil (very clever use of words by the way), i am not saying that Liverpool are covering anything up, i am saying that Liverpool fans should just tell the truth, if you can honestly tell me that Rafa didn't rest almost his entire ideal first team? Then you are blind. P.S not hiding under team crest, have been season ticket holder for the last 22 years. Do you get my point now?