ye will bate them senseless.
Darwin to score the first goal and liverpool to win by 3 goals
That’s a lovely attacking line-up. I’m very jealous of you being able to stay on in Liverpool for the derby. Give the bluenoses plenty of stick today la.
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You’d imagine the bitters will kick lumps out of the young midfielders.
bitter about not getting a chance to play in the european cup after your fans killed people in Heysel?
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It’s very serious.
Liverpool Football Club is being urged by senior politicians to drop Standard Chartered as a front-of-shirt sponsor as the bank faces a backlash for endorsing China’s “brutal human rights abuses” in Hong Kong.
In a letter to executives at Anfield, the three vice-chairmen of Parliament’s all-party group for Hong Kong say the club’s continued association with Standard Chartered amounts to a “stain” on its reputation because of the bank’s support for a controversial security law.
Standard Chartered has been Liverpool’s main sponsor since 2010, with its logo plastered across the shirts of top-flight players such as Jordan Henderson, Mohamed Salah and Virgil van Dijk.
The bank agreed earlier this month to extend the deal by another four years to 2027, generating a reported £50m per year for Liverpool - up from a previous figure of £40m.
But in their letter, crossbench peer Lord Alton of Liverpool, Tory peer Lord Shinkwin and Labour MP Siobhain McDonagh call for the club to “send a clear message” and cut ties in protest.
They accuse Standard Chartered of being “complicit” in Beijing’s ruthless crackdown in Hong Kong, where more than 10,000 citizens have been arrested for participation in pro-democracy demonstrations since the introduction of a new law that effectively outlaws protest.
The bank has publicly endorsed the law, claiming that it can “help maintain the long term economic and social stability of Hong Kong”, despite widespread condemnation from the West.
In their letter, the APPG vice-chairmen said: “Standard Chartered has made no apparent effort to stand up for human rights and principles of freedom and democracy, from which they benefit as a UK headquartered company.
“Even as daily reports of fresh arrests, intimidation and incarceration demonstrate the national security law’s systematic attack on democracy, the bank has continued to expand its operations in Hong Kong and China.
“Liverpool Football Club encapsulates some of the very best values of integrity and respect. To receive financial support from a company that profits from human rights abuses is a stain on that exemplary reputation.”
he letter called on Liverpool’s board to urgently “reconsider this business relationship and look elsewhere for sponsorship”.
It said: “We must show Hongkongers that they are not alone, that those who support their oppression will not benefit from doing so, and that Liverpool Football Club supports human rights and freedom.”
Standard Chartered declined to comment.
The national security law was passed by China’s national legislature and imposed in Hong Kong in 2020.
It was rushed through following a wave of protests in the former British territory over plans to allow extradition of people in Hong Kong to the mainland, which had been widely seen as an effort by Beijing to silence dissent.
The law criminalises separatism, subversion, terrorism, foreign interference and any “acts” which - according to the state - threaten national security.
It has been condemned by western diplomats, with the US claiming the change had destroyed the autonomy promised to Hong Kong under the “One Country, Two Systems” that was agreed during the handover of the territory from the UK to China.
Liz Truss, the Foreign Secretary and Tory leadership contender, has said the Chinese authorities have “stifled opposition, criminalised dissent and driven out anyone who can speak truth to power” in the city since the law was passed.
Despite this, some British-based companies with heavy presences in China, including Standard Chartered and HSBC, have controversially backed the laws.
Liverpool and John Henry, the club’s billionaire American owner, have also faced controversy before over their links to China.
In 2018 the club was hit by protests over its partnership agreement with Tibet Water Resources, which critics said benefitted from “the Chinese government’s brutal occupation of Tibet”.
Mr Henry, who has an estimated fortune of $3.5bn (£2.9bn), is also the owner of the Boston Red Sox baseball team and the Boston Globe newspaper.
His company, Fenway Sports Group, did not respond to a request for comment.
**Comment: **
Liverpool FC shames its proud history by its association with Standard Chartered
By Lord Alton of Liverpool
“You’ll never walk alone” is famously inscribed on the Shankly Gates at the Anfield Road entrance to Liverpool Football Club. I’ve lost count of the number of times I have read those words since attending a cracking derby game as a teenager.
As a student, I was elected to the Liverpool City Council but despite the nuances of politics never made a secret of my allegiance of being a Liverpool FC fan. As a comedian pointed out, there are two teams in Liverpool; Liverpool FC and Liverpool Reserves.
As a Liverpool Member of Parliament, I shared in the triumphs on the field and in the tragedies off it. Liverpool enjoyed incredible success under Bill Shankly, Bob Paisley, Kenny Dalglish and more recently under Jurgen Klopp.
I’ve also seen what LFC’s success means to the city of Liverpool (even the blue half!) and I’m proud that our club and our city share important values such as solidarity, community and strength in adversity.
But I fear that these values are now under threat.
For years, Liverpool FC has been sponsored by Standard Chartered bank; nothing terribly controversial there, you might think. But Standard Chartered has a Hong Kong connection and has endorsed the National Security Law, a sinister agenda that takes away the human rights of millions of people.
By continuing with this sponsorship arrangement, I fear that Liverpool FC is allowing its great name to dignify the daily assault on freedom and democracy to which, at the very minimum, Standard Chartered turns a blind eye.
To provide some context, in June 2020 the Chinese authorities passed a National Security Law (NSL) for Hong Kong which essentially made any form of protest or act deemed “unpatriotic” in the city illegal and punishable with up to life in prison.
Any Hongkonger who valued freedom or democracy or wanted to avoid further erosion of the liberties guaranteed under the Sino-British Joint Declaration, would now face going to prison.
The NSL allowed the Chinese-backed Hong Kong authorities to brutally crack down on all forms of protest and to further destroy the “two systems, one country” agreement that was so valued by Hongkongers who believed in freedom and democracy.
In June 2020, Standard Chartered issued a public statement of support for the National Security Law, stating its belief that the law “can help maintain the long term economic and social stability of Hong Kong”. This statement lent a veneer of legitimacy to the NSL and the subsequent brutal crackdown.
This means that Standard Chartered willingly and publicly endorsed a law that was deliberately designed to repress Hongkongers who simply wanted their legitimate rights protected, and for freedom and democracy to prevail in Hong Kong.
The NSL has now been operating for more than two years. In that time, it has been enhanced and used for all manner of repressions to limit the freedoms of Hongkongers and to forcefully bring them under China’s full control.
The NSL has been used to imprison most of Hong Kong’s political opposition, including 53 of the city’s most prominent pro-democracy politicians and activists.
The Hong Kong authorities have demolished press freedoms, with independent, free-thinking media such as Apple Daily, Stand News, and Citizen News all ceasing to exist following a relentless campaign of intimidation and the mass arrests of journalists and executives.
Beijing has also gutted Hong Kong’s legislature to make it a puppet parliament that rubber stamps the wishes of the CCP. Imposed last year, its “patriot” reforms have ensured that Hong Kong’s parliament is packed only with sycophants who will vote the way they are told to do so by Beijing.
These changes have paved the way for Beijing to install a former security chief, John Lee, as Hong Kong’s new chief executive. Key to crushing the city’s democracy protests, Lee’s disgraceful appointment only tightens Beijing’s powerful grip over Hong Kong.
By supporting the NSL, Standard Chartered is complicit in these brutal crimes against humanity. And by accepting Standard Chartered’s sponsorship money, Liverpool FC is providing a thin veneer of respectability to these crimes.
Those at Liverpool FC who continue to believe in its core values must end its sponsorship arrangement with Standard Chartered or risk being the latest depressing example of sports washing.
This is especially urgent with the club having this week announced a new sponsorship agreement with Standard Chartered that is due to run until 2027. Liverpool FC should urgently consider cancelling this contract or risk sending a message to the world that it supports the repression of freedom, democracy and human rights.
That is why I have written to the chief executive of Liverpool Football Club, Billy Hogan, urging him to think again about Liverpool Football Club’s sponsorship arrangement with Standard Chartered.
Liverpool FC should also reconsider the club’s environmental, social and governance standards and reflect the recommendations in the[joint report by the All-Party Parliamentary Group for Hong Kong and community group Stand With Hong Kong that called for human rights due diligence strategies to be incorporated by companies, as well as greater consideration given to supply chains.
It is also why I have been calling on the UK Government to impose severe measures on those politicians in China and Hong Kong most directly responsible for the NSL and the brutal crackdown.
These measures must include targeted, economic and diplomatic sanctions, asset freezes and travel bans on Chinese and Hong Kong officials guilty of destroying the city’s rights and freedoms.
Liz Truss has been right to say that we cannot continue to sit idly by as Hongkongers are brutally robbed of the universal rights and freedoms that we all take for granted.
As the football season kicks off this weekend with the Community Shield, Liverpool’s supporters will be singing ‘you’ll never walk alone’ in full voice. The club’s owners need to ask themselves if the sentiment in that beautiful song still rings true.
Lord Alton of Liverpool is co-chairman of the All-Party Parliamentary Group for Hong Kong and a crossbench peer
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Some job by medical team to get an 11 on the pitch
So the bank are just going about their business essentially and they want Liverpool to drop millions in revenue while the British government do business with murderers all over the planet 
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Looks to be issues with the fans outside. Amazing when you consider Liverpool are playing
Keep the updates coming… I’d take any kind of draw right now.
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Liverpool with a really good start, Everton cant get out
VVD poor there on Maupay. He looks a shadow of himself
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Jenas blaming Maupay because that liilttle ru t Gordon was standing up
Diaz had a little swipe there
Great to see Bruno Mars getting a start. He’s been very impressive in his fledgling Liverpool career so far. Great shot on him.
That was pretty shit by Darwin
TAA some man to cross a ball in fairness
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Get it in the mixer, he’ll score
What fucking clowns decided to put Celtic v Rangers on in direct opposition to Everton v Liverpool?
Is this the first time there has been a direct clash between the Merseyside and Old Firm derbies since May 20th, 1989?
We’re not going great here. It might take another Kloppage time winner like Manes at Goodison in 2016. I had completely forgotten that in my list of Kloppage time winners the other night. That was iconic.