When Momo Sissoko was carried off the pitch on a stretcher against Maccabi Haifa out in Kiev, we all feared the worst with a string of tough away games against Everton, PSV and Chelsea up next. Hoewever we can bring you exclusive news on his fight for fitness thanks to RAWK’s Liverpool Nightlife Correspondent, Johnner:

“Good news on Momo. I met him Friday night in the VIP bar in Mood and he said he’d be fit for Everton. He was up dancing an’ all so I think he’ll be right.”

Yesterday’s Champions League draw brought echoes of both players and matches past. Drawn in Group C, the Reds will have to face PSV Eindhoven, Bordeaux and Galatasaray. It’s one of those groups whose strength is hard to judge.

We’ll be meeting PSV for the first time in Europe. They’ve had much recent success under Guus Hiddink’s tenure, but with Ronald Koeman now in charge will they be able to keep up the same consistency? Koeman of course was the manager of the Benfica team who knocked us out last season.

The trip to Galatasaray will trigger a million and one references to that magical Istanbul night of the 25th May, 2005. The game will be held in “our” Ataturk stadium, Gala choosing the revenue of a much higher capacity venue over the intimidating atmosphere of the Ali Sami Yen. The Lions are difficult opponents on their home turf, beating AC Milan, Lazio, Juventus and Real Madrid there in recent seasons. We managed to escape with a 1-1 draw in the Champions League in 2002 thanks to a late Emile Heskey goal. Former defender Rigobert Song now plays for the Turkish side and should be in the team to play the Reds.

The final side in the group is the evocatively named FC Girondins de Bordeaux, another team we’ll be facing for the first time. Our European record against French teams tends to be win at home, lose away so Bordeaux could pose problems. The five times former French champions have been the home to many great players in the past, such as Alain Giresse, Patrick Battiston, Didier Deschamps, Bixente Lizarazu, Jean Tigana and Zinedine Zidane, though it’s the presence of a European Cup winner in their current squad that draws the eye, our very own Vladimír Šmicer.

Vlad’s career at Anfield was very much a curate’s egg. Clearly very skilled, his proneness to injury and use out of position by Houllier meant we rarely saw the best of him in a red shirt. To me though, when Vlad played well the team played well, as his quick footballing brain lubricated our attacks. When you think of Vlad at his best what comes to mind is a last minute winner against Chelsea and running at Everton, Man Utd and Alaves to draw fouls which earnt red cards. But it’s his contribution to our Champions League win over Milan that will live long in the memory.

Having been told in April by Rafa that his contract would not be renewed, Vlad asked if the boss still needed him around the club or should be just start the summer search for a new club early. Rafa insisted he could still play a part so the Czech from Děčín trained as hard as he’d always done and found himself on the bench for the final. Within 23 minutes he was on for the hapless Kewell and could only look on as Milan tore us to shreds. A tactical change at half time saw Vlad given licence to roam in an advanced position alongside Stevie G and just behind Baros. This fluid formation was perfect for him and he contributed intelligently as we famously fought back to 3-3, scoring our second with a rasping shot from 25 yards into the bottom left corner that Dida couldn’t keep out.

Extra time came and went and when penalties arrived Vlad was an obvious choice. With the score at 2-2 he stepped up and sent Dida the wrong way, sliding the penalty into the opposite corner. He clenched his fists and kissed the Liverpool badge on his shirt in celebration, and with Dudek saving Shevchenko’s subsequent effort Vlad had effectively scored the winning penalty with his last touch in a Red shirt.

It’ll be great to see you back Vlad, you’re one of the good guys.

With Dirk Kuyt all but signed the usual songsmiths have been churning out their latest numbers for the Kop to sing. One tune that has been suggested on many forums is “Let’s go fly a kite” from Mary Poppins. Be under no misconceptions here. Anyone intending to sing this monstrosity will have to wear a flak jacket into the ground. The Kirkby Fusiliers have put their crack troop of snipers on advance warning and they will take out anyone seen so much as miming along to the tune.

Keep the Kop Disney free.

Hello, this is your Captain speaking. Will the ugly bastard with the awful suit please turn off his mobile phone?

We should be approaching Liverpool in around twenty minutes, the weather today has been … well, shit. The trolley will be coming round for the final time soon.

Thank you.

Thanks to our Flemish correspondent, B. van der Abelfish, we can bring you the latest on the Kuyt transfer from the Dutch Press:

“The Football Club of Liverpool is preparing to grab the proverbial dish-washer by its tusks, in order to pave way to witnessing the sight of Kuijt in a Liverpool shirt. Feyenoord manager has let in the fact that Dirk is about to kick the bucket, after reports claimed that the device was set and all was missing was the fingerprints. The denial sparked celebration in ranks as they dreamt a fairytale that came true. Friday seems the likeliest of destinations. Rumours confirmed it wouldn’t, but Kuyt’s agent got off at the wrong stop. All has been cleared and the purple monkey has found the diamond. Liverpool will get their man for a fee of four balloons and a liquorice stick.”

All looking promising then.

Great to see Daniel Agger fit and back in action on Sunday. The Danish central defender has been struggling with niggling injuries since his arrival in January from Brondby. His assured display against opponents of the class of Shevchenko and Drogba will have come as no surprise to those who watched him roll Rooney and Owen into a little ball, and tuck them in his back pocket when Denmark thrashed England 4-1 last season.

He appears to be a real throwback to some of our great centre halves of the past (Hansen, Lawrenson, Hughes and Tommy Smith whose ball skills remain criminally underrated). He’s strong in the air, positionally astute and assured on the ball, capable of bringing the ball into midfield or threading an accurate pass to players in a more advanced position. With Sami’s bones creaking more by the year, we should see Agger get frequent chances to partner Carra as the season progresses.

The flag says it all. Slowly but surely the world is coming around to the same opinion as most Reds. Sissoko is simply sensational. A player who according to Paul McCarthy of the Express was the “worst Liverpool player ever” after our defeat to Fulham last season, is now opening the eyes of those paid to report on the game to his incredible tackling, energy and capacity for work in midfield:

Independent: Sissoko stands tall in the face of Mourinho’s new muddled army

Telegraph: Echoes of Patrick Vieira reverberated in every tackle, every break made by the rangy Sissoko

Times: Mohamed Sissoko’s dominance of midfield enabled Mark González and Jermaine Pennant to rampage down the flanks

Guardian: Momo Sissoko was utterly dominant … and was the outstanding player in the match overall.

Keep up the good work Momo.

Patrons of the Anfield Nature Reserve were astonished to spot what appeared to be the Lesser Spotted Right Winger on Wednesday night. This rare bird was last seen in the 60s and early 70s and was believed to be extinct in the area. Only a couple of black and white pictures of what was once a native species are in the public domain, one of which we’ve managed to obtain from the Liverpool Museum.

The natural habitat for the Pennatus Interstinctus Dexterum Minor (its Latin name) are the long chalk laterals found on the edges of vast expanses of grassland in the Anfield area.

The lesser spotted has an oscillating flight and is often seen engaging other competing species in play, hopping up to challenge them before nipping around them with a flourish.

Unusually for a species which spends much of its time playing singularly on the periphery of open ground, it flocks centrally to feed, crossing the open spaces to provide for its fellow birds. We’re hoping that with Anfield twitchers now on full alert, we’ll be able to bring you a full-coloured picture of the Lesser Spotted Right Winger soon and that its return to the Anfield envrions will be a long and successful one.

Now little Djimi’s gone
He disappeared one day
But no one saw Iain Dowie
As he took little Djim away

Well the news has come through that Djimi Traore has left the club to join Charlton. The Mali international was a player who never lived up to the high hopes we had when he was signed by Houllier way back in 1999.

Prone to lapses of concentration and lacking ability on the ball, his decent defensive performances at both fullback and centreback were often brushed under the carpet in the rush to castigate his deficiencies. This seemed to be crystallised in that anti-Zidane turn at Burnley in the FA Cup.

What can never be taken away from him are his Champions League winners medal and his excellent performances in the knockout stages, being part of the defence that restricted Juventus and Chelsea to 1 goal in 360 minutes, before clearing off the line to keep the score at 3-3 against Milan.

And then there’s his one and only goal for the club.

Bucharest in November is a depressing place at the best of times. Grey buildings, grey people and grey weather combine to sap at the soul. To make matters worse Reds landing in Romania were met with monsoon conditions. It rained and rained and rained. There was serious talk of the game being called off. In reality it should have been. The Ghencea Stadium pitch was a waterlogged cabbage patch with large areas of surface water despite the use of a helicopter to try and blow the flood away. The open terraces channeled the relentless rain into waterfalls which pooled around the feet of fans quickly heading towards hypothermia.

The conditions were too tough for many but not our Djimi. Picking up a short corner from Stevie G, he cut inside the nearest defender on the edge of the box and as he slipped on the treacherous surface he swung a right boot at the ball and curled it into the opposite bottom right corner. Cue a few hundred Reds singing and dancing and splashing in the rain.

Thanks for that goal Djimi and good luck at Charlton.

I’m not selfish but I am a typical Red who cares less for the national team than my own sweet set of troopers from L4 and I’ll tell you right now, I hope for our sake, Gerrard isn’t the next England captain. He’ll have to show up for meaningless friendlies, press conferences, look good and be ever more aware of his public persona, an exhuasting role at the least of times. Not that it’s not an immense source of pride for a player, I’m sure.

But no, I want him to be a Liverpool Captain. I may be irrational but One Ship - One Captain.