Build Klopp's Liverpool

As with most Liverpool fans this has not been a particularly enjoyable couple of weeks for me. One point earned from an available 9 against what we would usually term beatable opposition leaves a bad taste in the mouth and brings all that pessimism that built up in us over the last few years back to the surface. The fact that we thought we were past all this seems to make things even harder but it’s important to remember that far from being in the same situation, going through the motions like we had been for the previous few months/ years, we are actually only at the beginning of what is sure to become a bright new future under a young world class manager who would pretty much walk into any other job in world football if he were so inclined. Jürgen Klopp was confirmed as Liverpool FC’s manager back in early October, he is in the third month of his tenure having had very little opportunity to properly stamp his authority on the squad. No pre-season, no transfer window and not a lot of time to make judgements on who does or does not fit into his style of play. In the finite amount of time available so far there is actually only one thing that he could have truly learned and that is that when it comes to getting Liverpool back to where we belong there is no quick fix available that can solve all our ills. This is going to be a long term project so thankfully we have a manager in-situ who has proven in his previous 2 roles that if you give him time and support he can absolutely turn that into solid achievement.

What we have seen so far has been understandably inconsistent, yes there have been some very disappointing displays coupled with some very poor results but there have also been hugely encouraging performances alongside impressive results, 3-1 against Chelsea, 4-1 against City as well as a 6-1 demolition of Southampton should act as a candle which lights the current darkness and reminds us that when it clicks things can be good, but until the manager has been able to build his own team and implement his own ideas we will struggle to reach such levels on a consistent basis.

Given that there have been so many strange results throughout the league this season and very few of the usual top performers (in other words the richest clubs) have managed to maintain a level of consistency I think it is understandable that after some encouraging early performances Liverpool supporters started to look up the table and say “what if…” however the performance levels since then have been a stark reminder of how difficult things really are.

This is a crazy season and this is highlighted by the fact that even now we are only 5 points off the top 4. But even with that reality in mind I truly believe that our focus for the remainder of this season must be on building Jürgen Klopp’s Liverpool. Our new manager needs time to try some different things, test out players and situations to find out what works, what is needed, what we have already that is useful, what needs to removed and what needs to be added. I think that if, as supporters, we can accept this we can enjoy the high’s and lows of the season as it plays out and know that once we are through this difficult period we will be much better off for having gone through it. Its not to say we should write off the season, we should still take every game as it comes and if we can string together a few results who knows where it may lead us. We are still in every cup competition as well so the chance for some glory still exists but our focus needs to shift from winning at all costs to building at all costs. If a little bit of experimentation costs us a result or two we might need to live with that. No matter what happens from here through to the end of the campaign, lets be re-assured that we have the right man at the helm leading this club. Lets support the team and take confidence from the fact that every lesson learned this season will lead to a brighter future. Lets let the man do his job, maybe some of the players are not good enough, lets give the manager time to be confident in deciding that and to identify who needs to be replaced. Lets not allow that in-fighting and bickering to take hold again. Lets stay together behind a proven winner. Lets understand that sometimes its better to forego the quick fix in order to achieve even greater rewards in the future.

The Europa League, Why Bother?

On Thursday night Liverpool FC welcomes FC Sion of Switzerland to Anfield. A team who qualified for the competition having won their domestic cup competition in a season in which they finished 7^th in a 10 team league. Following our draw against Bordeaux in our opening fixture Liverpool will be hoping for a straightforward win against the Swiss minnows before our game against what should be slightly tougher opponents Rubin Kazan next time out.

Having just named all of the teams in our group it’s clear to see why a lot of people feel the Europa League has lost even the small amount of lustre that remained in its previous incarnation as the UEFA Cup. Certainly in these early stages the romance is all but gone. The long distances for some away games to face a side you may not have heard of before is not exactly the stuff of dreams for players or fans alike. And with clubs becoming more and more obsessed with money, although its justified, the relatively meagre financial rewards of the lesser European competition hold little appeal.

People make a lot of claims to support the idea of the Europa League as being nothing but a burden but a lot of these claims are questionable. The old chesnut of there being too many games in the competition is simply incorrect.  In reality you only have to play 2 extra games to go all the way in the Europa League compared to the Champions League. Of course if you qualify for the Champions League by finishing 4^th you have to go through a 2-legged qualifier, so that makes it exactly the same amount of games. The other claim that always baffled me is that it’s somehow harder to compete in the domestic league if you are in the Europa. Maybe this is true versus a team with no European football who have those extra midweek rests (like we did in 13/14) but compared against teams in the Champions League I can see no clear advantage. Quite why playing Thursday & Sunday is supposed to be a huge amount harder than playing Wednesday & Saturday is utterly beyond me.  Its not that so many games should be easy, but why not let this competition serve to prepare us for when we return to where we want to be. The competition itself does not offer incredible financial reward, of that there is no doubt.  Neither the prize money, nor TV money on offer is even comparable to that of its big brother, but for me, to focus on that is to completely miss out on the potential long term benefits. I hope the hierarchy at the club have recognised that this competition has many aspects which although they might not make it a priority, certainly make it worthy of serious participation.

Right now, we have a very young and very inexperienced squad. We also have a very young and inexperienced manager. The experience we could pick up in this competition would be absolutely invaluable to all at the club. You only need to look back to how the players who won Old Big Ears in Istanbul credited the experience they had gained when winning this competition in 2001 as playing a vital supporting role. There are also many managers who used their experience in this competition to springboard them onto greater success, Rafa Benitez and Jose Mourinho to name but two. Even our owners have no experience of the joy a run in Europe can bring.

I want to be absolutely clear, this is not me calling for our manager to go all in at the expense of our league form. His quotes yesterday with regard to protecting Daniel Sturridge and leaving him out of the squad are entirely agreeable to me. I think that’s the beauty of this competition, in these early stages there is no reason why, with some good tactical work from our manager, we cannot select what would be recognised as a “weakened team” and still hold a realistic chance of progressing.  All the while the squad, and manager, are picking up experience.  If we do progress through the group stage we will be joined after Christmas by the teams who finished 3^rd in their Champions’ League group and at this point the standard of the competition rises. Hopefully at the point we will have a more realistic idea of how our league season is panning out. I would argue that if at that point it seems our chances of achieving top 4 seem unlikely, it may even be worth moving this competition up the priorities list. Let’s not forget that the Europa League now offers the coveted Automatic Champions League place to the winner. At this stage of the competition there are 32 teams remaining so depending on the opposition we could start to enter stronger teams dependent on the opposition.  

In a less tangible sense I would like to see some European pride restored to the team. Liverpool in Europe has always been a romance. From the incredible nights under the floodlights at Anfield to the many legendary players who have reminisced about the beauty of hearing “You’ll Never Walk Alone”. Our last forays in Europe have been nothing short of depressing. I would like to see us make an impact once more. Of course I would rather that be in the Champions League but that is not on offer at the moment. It will be hard to qualify for the Champions League even next year, so why should we close one possible route without giving it a good shot? 

Brendan Rodgers: Lets Not Make This Personal

Firstly, as I’m writing this after another poor result for Liverpool I know that not as many people as usual will read it. I’m not sure if everybody is aware of this but there is a visible drop off in the number of hits an article receives after Liverpool lose, we are not talking tens and twenties here we are talking hundreds. Where a loss will lose me a few hundred, even a big important win rarely sees a jump of more than one hundred or so from article to article. This is true of most websites which are dedicated to one club in particular. And to me it explains why it sometimes feels like everyone is against the manager, because of all the critical articles. It should be remembered though that regardless of how the writer may feel they guarantee hits by sticking another nail in the coffin. I’ve thought about this a lot and although I don’t make any money from my articles (and I don’t really have any ambition too) it certainly makes the time and effort that goes into each article more worthwhile if I know people around the world are interested to read it. I’ve thought long and hard about how to combat this and I’m pretty sure I’ve found the solution. All I really need to do is follow public opinion and write plenty of articles slagging off Brendan Rodgers. That’s what’s in vogue right now and it’s easy. The opinions are already out there spreading among Liverpool fans desperate for somewhere to place blame I wouldn’t even have to come up with anything original. I could just regurgitate what’s out there and I'm pretty sure it would be click, click, click with no decrease in hits.

I’m not going to do that though. Not because of some holier than thou mindset or because I think that I’m better than anybody. I’m not going to do it because that’s not how I feel. The whole point of me writing in the first place was to express my own opinions so that’s what I’m laying out here. Feel free to disagree, feel free to comment to tell me so, but bear in mind it’s just an opinion.

At the moment we are all feeling down. We all come into supporting football for the joy it gives us, and it feels like for the last year or two the joy has been in scant supply. There is no doubting that performances have been terrible and results have been, at times, abysmal. This naturally, and completely correctly, leads to many questioning the manager. So far, so depressing.

That the manager wasn’t sacked in the summer was a shock to many and it was a dangerous gamble for the owners to take as they must have known that anything other than a perfect start this time around would lead to serious questions being asked. Well, the season started off far from perfectly and the inevitable and justifiable questions are being asked. What has accompanied these questions though is not, in my opinion, justifiable. The personal insults to Brendan Rodgers, the way he is portrayed in sections of the media, the reduction of any of his achievements to luck. It’s not right and I really don’t think it’s necessary. If you want the manager gone, there is a perfectly strong body of evidence to support your case without claiming that 13/14 was all down to Suarez or discussing his personal relationships outside of football. It seems to me that every article I read at the moment which discusses Liverpool is accompanied by a picture of Brendan with that crazy look on his face, as if to imply he is some crazy goof who has no clue what is going on. I'm sure there are plenty of normal pictures which could be used but they are discarded for some reason. It also seems like every article I read discussing Rodgers himself to reference his “Brentisms” as if he is the only football manager who uses management speak and buzzwords, just listen to LVG as an example but you will find many other examples too if you look for them.

At the moment things aren’t working, that is a fact. We are not playing anywhere near as well as we should and our results have been terrible most of the time. But we must not forget this is a hard job. Its been over 20 years since Liverpool last won the league title. He is far from the first manager who has been unsuccessful in delivering that trophy. This job breaks more managers than it makes, hell, Gerard Houllier almost died from managing this club. My own stance is that I do not actively want Brendan Rodgers out and I'm still willing to support his as the manager of Liverpool Football Club but at the same time I know that if I heard he was sacked in the morning I would probably feel a little bit relieved at not having to discuss this situation anymore… for a while anyway, until this job beats the next guy. If we get a Klopp or an Ancelloti I will be positive and optimistic, but lets not forget that is a big if.

What I find hard to take is how willing a lot of Liverpool fans are to join in the hatred towards the man. I’m sure he has done his best. It may prove to not be enough. If that’s the case, he goes and the next manager comes in. But remember all of this may end up being true of the next man as well as the cycle continues.

LFC build-up :Utd v Liverpool - The Perfect Remedy or a Poisoned Chalice

When Liverpool left the pitch having won a point away from home against Arsenal, in a performance which heralded the kind of optimism that had now been seen among the Liverpool faithful since January it seemed that this time we were finally going somewhere. The new signings who had so far been exposed to first team action were showing early promise and any supporter you listened to delighted in echoing the common refrain of “tell you what I would have taken 7 out of 9 points from these three games before the start of the season”.

Fast forward one week and that optimism had been usurped by despair yet again. If the Arsenal game was supposed to show us how far we have come well then the game against West Ham showed us just how much father there is to go on our road to redemption. The fact that a performance like this came at Anfield only added to the anguish and in the end it somehow left most of us feeling worse than what was previously believed to be this side’s darkest day back on the last day of last season. And with good reason too. All of a sudden we saw how Benteke could struggle to influence a game, we saw our that defense (which had previously kept 3 clean sheets) was far from being the impenetrable unit it had previously appeared to be with Dejan Lovren seeming to return to type and prove his many doubters right.

The most unwelcome international break which followed that game couldn’t have come at a worse time for miserable reds who were left with no escape for at least a fort night. The fact that this chance for redemption comes against United at Old Trafford does little to inspire confidence that our moods will be lifted much come Saturday evening. We were soundly beaten 3-0 here last season as United completed the double over us and our record at this ground over the years is far from impressive. You wont find many arguing with my description  that this is hardly the greatest Liverpool side ever created. The thing is though, this is far from a vintage United side either and if you spoke many of their fans I believe you would find that, currently our mindsets are not so dis-similar. They had ground out a couple of wins to start their Premier League season without ever looking truly convincing, they then had a stale draw against Newcastle before slipping to a damaging defeat away to Swansea. The only differences between our season is their lack of a truly promising performance such as ours versus Arsenal and also their lack of a home defeat like ours against West Ham. The point of my ramblings is not to convince anybody that we are certainly going to go there and return with all three points at 7:30 on Saturday, what I am trying to show is that this result is not a foregone conclusion for either side.

It is far too early to talk about six pointers or the likes, but this game definitely has more about it that simply the 3 points which are on offer. Both managers are currently experiencing some real internal pressure and although it seems outlandish to suggest that this single result could result in either being removed from their position, it is not in doubt that the pressure will be multiplied on either manager if they were to lose this game. It is of course possible that the need to not lose this game could result in something of a stale mate, certainly in the latter stages if the game is tied in a score draw (the only result which could realistically see both managers saving face). However the Old Trafford faithful will not accept a team sitting back, at home against such a hated rival. This is the reason why I think it is possible for Liverpool to get something from this game. We’ve shown our most promising signs against teams that are willing to play. Whilst there is no denying our struggles at times, I think it is clear to most that they are most clearly visible against opponents willing to give us the ball and repel our attacks, this is why our recent home record  has been so poor as teams are so willing to soak up pressure at Anfield. Away from home, away from the frustrated Anfield crown, with our ever excellent away fans providing the loudest support they can possibly muster egging us on could just prove to be exactly what is needed at the moment.

While in truth this game offers nothing more than 3 points to the victor, with plenty of season remaining for a loser to make up that difference, if one team does emerge victorious it will be the perfect remedy to their recent ills, whilst the loser will have to take another sip of the poisoned chalice as the pressure on their leader approaches breaking point.

Utd v Liverpool - The Perfect Remedy or a Poisoned Chalice

When Liverpool left the pitch having won a point away from home against Arsenal, in a performance which heralded the kind of optimism that had now been seen among the Liverpool faithful since January it seemed that this time we were finally going somewhere. The new signings who had so far been exposed to first team action were showing early promise and any supporter you listened to delighted in echoing the common refrain of “tell you what I would have taken 7 out of 9 points from these three games before the start of the season”.

Fast forward one week and that optimism had been usurped by despair yet again. If the Arsenal game was supposed to show us how far we have come well then the game against West Ham showed us just how much father there is to go on our road to redemption. The fact that a performance like this came at Anfield only added to the anguish and in the end it somehow left most of us feeling worse than what was previously believed to be this side’s darkest day back on the last day of last season. And with good reason too. All of a sudden we saw how Benteke could struggle to influence a game, we saw our that defense (which had previously kept 3 clean sheets) was far from being the impenetrable unit it had previously appeared to be with Dejan Lovren seeming to return to type and prove his many doubters right.

The most unwelcome international break which followed that game couldn’t have come at a worse time for miserable reds who were left with no escape for at least a fort night. The fact that this chance for redemption comes against United at Old Trafford does little to inspire confidence that our moods will be lifted much come Saturday evening. We were soundly beaten 3-0 here last season as United completed the double over us and our record at this ground over the years is far from impressive. You wont find many arguing with my description  that this is hardly the greatest Liverpool side ever created. The thing is though, this is far from a vintage United side either and if you spoke many of their fans I believe you would find that, currently our mindsets are not so dis-similar. They had ground out a couple of wins to start their Premier League season without ever looking truly convincing, they then had a stale draw against Newcastle before slipping to a damaging defeat away to Swansea. The only differences between our season is their lack of a truly promising performance such as ours versus Arsenal and also their lack of a home defeat like ours against West Ham. The point of my ramblings is not to convince anybody that we are certainly going to go there and return with all three points at 7:30 on Saturday, what I am trying to show is that this result is not a foregone conclusion for either side.

It is far too early to talk about six pointers or the likes, but this game definitely has more about it that simply the 3 points which are on offer. Both managers are currently experiencing some real internal pressure and although it seems outlandish to suggest that this single result could result in either being removed from their position, it is not in doubt that the pressure will be multiplied on either manager if they were to lose this game. It is of course possible that the need to not lose this game could result in something of a stale mate, certainly in the latter stages if the game is tied in a score draw (the only result which could realistically see both managers saving face). However the Old Trafford faithful will not accept a team sitting back, at home against such a hated rival. This is the reason why I think it is possible for Liverpool to get something from this game. We’ve shown our most promising signs against teams that are willing to play. Whilst there is no denying our struggles at times, I think it is clear to most that they are most clearly visible against opponents willing to give us the ball and repel our attacks, this is why our recent home record  has been so poor as teams are so willing to soak up pressure at Anfield. Away from home, away from the frustrated Anfield crown, with our ever excellent away fans providing the loudest support they can possibly muster egging us on could just prove to be exactly what is needed at the moment.

While in truth this game offers nothing more than 3 points to the victor, with plenty of season remaining for a loser to make up that difference, if one team does emerge victorious it will be the perfect remedy to their recent ills, whilst the loser will have to take another sip of the poisoned chalice as the pressure on their leader approaches breaking point.

Happy Birthday Bill Shankly

On this day (2nd September) in 1913 Bill Shankly was born in Glenbuck Scotland. He played for Cronberry Englington, Carlisle Utd and Preston North End and was manager at Carlisle Utd, Grimbsby, Workington and Huddersfield before arriving at his spiritual home Anfield in 1959.
When Bill Shankly arrived at Anfield in 1959, Liverpool were in the second division and going nowhere. The training ground, Melwood was a shambles and Anfield was not a pretty sight. With Roger Hunt and Ian St. John Scoring goals and Ron Yeats in defence Liverpool won promotion back to the old 1st division in the 61-62 season. In 63-64 Shankly delivered the League Title with a side which still contained the nucleus of the side which had gained promotion 2 years previously.

To summarise Bill Shankly's contribution to Liverpool I will use the words of Bob Paisley: "One man transformed Liverpool from a run-of-the-mill Second Division team into the greatest team in the world. That man, of course, was Bill Shankly. His philosophy was simple; If you are going to to play football, you play to win. While he was the making of Liverpool, there is no doubt that Anfield was the making of Bill Shankly. His character, his own enthusiasm, his will to win were so infectious."

This is just intended to be a short tribute to the great man.




MANAGERIAL RECORD:

League Matches: 609
Won: 319
Drawn: 152
Lost: 138

Best Placing:
1st in Division 1 1963/64, 1965/66 and 1972/73



HONOURS:

1961-62 - Division 2 champions

1963-64 - Division 1 champions

1964-65 - F.A. Cup Winners

1965-66 - Division 1 champions, European Cup-Winners-Cup finalists

1970-71 - F.A. Cup finalists

1972-73 - Division 1 champions, UEFA Cup winners

1973-74 - F.A. Cup winners


ANECDOTES:

IAN ST JOHN - Liverpool 1961-1971



I could confirm a thousand times the Shankly caricature. I was around, for example, one day when he took a bemused reporter into a toilet cubicle in the new dressing room at Anfield, pulled the chain and said: 'You know it refills in 15 seconds . . . it’s a world record.'"


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TOMMY SMITH



"I was trying to get fit and Shanks caught me in the medical room at Anfield with Joe Fagan shaving my leg preparatory to strapping it up. Shanks said, 'What the hell are you doing?' I said, 'I want to play, so Joe's strapping my leg.' He said, 'Don't be daft. You're not playing. Get off that table!' After a bit of an argument, I said, 'I am playing. It's my leg.' Straight away he answers back, 'It's not YOUR bloody leg. It's LIVERPOOL FC's leg. And you're bloody not playing!'"


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GEORGE BEST - Man Utd and Northern Ireland legend



"In 1967, we arrived at Anfield to play Liverpool and as I glanced out of the window of the coach I saw Bill Shankly standing at the main entrance. I was the first player to alight from the coach and when I reached the entrance Bill shook my hand warmly. 'Good to see you again, George,' he said. 'You're looking well, son.'


This was unusual for him, and knowing Shanks to be a wily old fox, I decided to hang around to try to find out what he was up to. As each of the United players entered Anfield, Shanks shook his hand, welcomed him and told him how good he looked. Eventually, Bobby Charlton, a born worrier, came up to Shanks.


'Bobby, son. Good to see you,' Shanks said, shaking his hand. 'But by God, if ever there was a man who looked ill, it's you, Bobby!'

Bobby's face went as colourless as an icicle. 'Ill? I look ill?' he repeated, running the fingers of his right hand over his forehead and down his right cheek. He was visibly shaken.

'Aye, Bobby, son. You look like you're sickening for something. If I were you I'd see a doctor as soon as you set foot back in Manchester.' Shanks patted Bobby on the back and took off down the corridor, leaving him trembling in the foyer.

In the dressing room, Bobby was conspicious by his absence and, ominously, there was a delay in announcing the team. We sat around kicking our heels, no one daring to get changed in case Matt Busby had a tactical plan which meant leaving one of us out. The thought of getting changed only to be told to put your clothes back on because you're not in the team is a player's nightmare.

Eventually Matt Busby entered the dressing room with Jimmy Murphy and told us they had reshuffled the team which had beaten West Ham the previous week. Bobby Charlton was unavailable. He'd suddenly been taken ill."

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PETER THOMPSON



One day Shanks called me into his office. As I walked in, he began swearing and saying how disappointed he was in me. I was shocked, because I had been doing exceptionally well and the team had been winning. He agreed that I was playing brilliantly and I was now more bemused, until he said, ‘I’ve just heard that you’ve got a blue car, bloody sell it!”


QUOTES:

The famous Chris Lawler story



"The only time Chris Lawler was injured was when Tommy Smith 'did' him in a five-a-side match at Melwood. We had just got the pitch levelled and Tommy, who was younger than Chris, caught him with the sole of his boot. Chris' ankle went up like a balloon, but he was only out of action for ten days.

It was around this time we were due to play Anderlecht and one day we were playing a five-a-side game and Chris, still injured was watching. The boys called Chris 'Silent Knight' because he had so little to say for himself. My team in the five-a-side was claiming a goal and I said, 'Just hold on. Chris, you were watching.' 'Yes', he said. 'Speak up, Chris,' I said, 'I can't hear you. Did you think that was a goal, Chris?' 'No, he said.' 'Good God, Chris,' I said, 'this is the first time I've heard you speak to me and you tell me a bloody lie!'"

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"Of course I didn't take my wife to see Rochdale as an anniversary present.It was her birthday. Would I have got married in the football season? Anyway,it was Rochdale reserves."
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"Some people believe football is a matter of life and death, I am very disappointed with that attitude. I can assure you it is much, much more important than that."


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"If a player is not interfering with play or seeking to gain an advantage, then he should be."


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"If Everton were playing at the bottom of the garden, I'd pull the curtains."

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About the "This is Anfield" plaque:



"It's there to remind our lads who they're playing for, and to remind the opposition who they're playing against."

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To Alan Ball, who'd just signed for Everton:



"Don't worry, Alan. At least you'll be able to play close to a great team!"

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At Dixie Dean's funeral:

"I know this is a sad occasion but I think that Dixie would be amazed to know that even in death he could draw a bigger crowd than Everton can on a Saturday Afternoon."


This information has mostly been taken from the excellent http://www.shankly.com/ which contains a biography and basically anything you could wish to know about the great man, including many, many more excellent quotes, anecdotes and tributes

Gomez - Youth is Pushing him Forwards

I’ve been kind of reluctant to put down in words something that’s been on my mind whilst watching Liverpool’s first three matches of the season. When players and the team are going through a good run of form it seems that anything you say which isn’t 100% positive is interpreted as a negative by some people. I really don’t want to be negative in this piece but I do want to bring some realism to discussions about this player.

During the first three matches of this season Liverpool have been defensively excellent, three clean sheets and we hadn’t really given away any clean cut chances until the Arsenal game when Simon Mignolet, who was being decreed as an imposter at this time last year, showed that he has truly left the poor form of them days behind him by proving equal to the gooners most dangerous efforts. Martin Skrtel has shown us that he just might be able to break from his form history of being good one year and poor the next. Nathanial Clyne has come into the side and immediately looked like he has been at the club for years. Dejan Lovren, whilst not yet looking the €20m powerful leader we were promised last summer has at looked like he might just have something to offer the first team. On top of all these players as the pick of the bunch is an 18 youngster signed from mid-table Championship side Charlton Athletic for a fee in the region of €3m – Joe Gomez.

It’s a wide held belief that, in spite of what the manager may claim now in hindsight, Gomez was signed with the intention of loaning him out to gain further first team experience. That he managed to do enough in training and pre-season friendlies to not only convince the manager to keep him within the club to develop, but also to put him in the starting line-up for the first league game of a season which saw the manager on the brink from the first whistle was an incredible testament to his character and ability.

Gomez has taken to this challenge better than I think even the most optimistic of supporters may have thought possible. He has looked assured in defence, comfortable in possession and he has looked dangerous going forward. It used to be that I could sound like an auld arse here and say “haven’t seen potential like that since….” But in fairness its only a couple of years since Raheem Sterling was showing incredible potential as an 18 year old at the club so I won’t go down that route. Sufficed to say Gomez has bags of potential.

However, as with any 18 year old the important bit when eulogising over their performances is to remember their age and inexperience. At the moment he is playing to an incredibly high level but as we have all experienced when watching young players trying to adapt to senior football it is perfectly natural for them to be inconsistent. Right now his form shows no sign of dissipating but that is often the case with developing players. Another truism for developing players is that inevitably their form hits a patch where they find it hard to perform at all. This period often turns out to be the acid test in that those who recover their form after this period go on to have careers in the higher echelons of the league whereas those who don’t tend to transfer downwards until they find their level

Gomez has a number of attributes, both developed and achieved, which are helping him to shine at this level. His height, strength and pace give him an immediate means to level the playing field against older more experienced players somewhat. His technique and tactical awareness ensure that he not only functions within the team he positively influences performance. I believe that, at this point, his lack of experience and youth are also contributing to his rich vein of form. He clearly has a lot of self-belief so his confidence is high from the get go. He has yet to receive a rinsing from any opponent thus far so he is unaware of the dangers which lie ahead from unforgiving opponents when they identify a weakness.  At some point in the future this will come and it is at this point we will find out if Gomez will go on to be truly world class or if he will simply become a good level defender.

At the moment I am thoroughly enjoying watching this guy play and I’m very much looking forward to seeing him develop but when I keep hearing people talking incredulously about his performances “In spite of his age” I can’t help but feel that we need to remember at this early stage perhaps his performance isn’t in spite of his age, maybe it’s because of it.

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Satisfied With Improvement, Daring To Dream

At the start of this season I had one target in mind - to see Liverpool improve. Long gone are the years where every season began with fanciful dreams of unprecedented glory. Age, experience, and the last few painful seasons had coloured my thinking to a level where I dared not raise my expectation levels to even a European place. To my mind, it seemed like the mentality throughout our support had re-adjusted itself to a similar idea. I read countless blogs, listened to podcasts, went on forums, even had some good old fashioned face to face conversations with friends and it seemed something was different. Although our rivals delight in our, previously unabashed optimism it seemed to me that a sea-change had occurred and the consensus was that expectations for the season ahead needed to be realistic.

Suddenly the only cries of “this is going to be our year” were lowly taunts from those who have loved reveling in our dashed hopes in years gone by. Unfortunately for them, their taunts though fell on deaf ears as the Red faithful remained focused on our most important target for the season ahead – Improvement.

Wouldn't you know it though, just when we decide to get real, they go and alter our reality!

Even with a huge slice of the season remaining I think its clear that the improvement we have craved has been displayed... and then some! The swashbuckling displays against Spurs, Bitters and Gooners stand up as the incredible examples of how far we have come. The improvement we wanted didn't only come, it came so thick and so fast that its left us right in the mix with an actual, realistic chance of lifting the big one with 12 games to go.

“its the hope that kills you”

It’s been a heck of a season but its caused us some difficulty in re-adjusting our ambitions. There are those captious souls who simply refuse to get their hopes up. There are many eternal optimists who have already raised hopes so high, if a fall were to come they may not survive (maybe slight bit of hyperbole there). The majority, to my mind, are like myself and caught in the middle trying to find the balance between hope and expectations. The scars from previous travails have given us a reluctance, but we must recognise there is no harm in hoping so long as you accept the reality of what actually marks out success for the season.

Success is what we wanted at the start of the season. Success is improvement. We can hope that this improvement could include us winning a league title, we can dream of Stevie lifting that trophy above his head in May. We can dream. As long as we understand that that is not the only marker for success we can dream. 12 games to go who knows what can happen. One thing I do know is I’m happy with how the season has gone so far. I will be ecstatic if we do finally manage to win no.19. Either way though I’ll be happy with improvement. And sure, if we don't win it in the end, Next year will be our year J

This article was originally published on www.tomkinstimes.com as a subscribers only piece.

Twitter: @barrymeehan7

Liverpool F.C - Champions Elect?

Tomorrow, whilst kids all over the world will be jumping on their parents heads at ungodly hours of the morning before rushing to their tree/stocking to enthusiastically unwrap gifts which will delight or disappoint them depending on how accurately the contents reflect their pre-Christmas wish, Liverpool supporters can take their time. Maybe spend an extra few minutes in bed, take a shower before putting on their freshest clothes and sauntering in to join the festivities all the while basking in the glow that Santa has already been and gone having delivered their team to the summit of the table, where they shall remain until the big day has passed at least.

Of course over the Christmas period we have some major tests to face, and it is for this reason alone I have decided to stop tempering my expectations and begin to hope that maybe, just maybe this is no short term success. Brendan Rodgers said, in what would be praised as intelligent “mind games” if uttered from the mouth of Ferguson or Mourinho, "I still believe the title is Manchester City's to lose. They have the strongest squad. The resources they have are incredible. We can't ever think we have cracked it. We can't become complacent. You have to be focused and move on to the next game." This not only helped to put some pressure on City before the meeting it also gives an honest assessment of our chances at this time. There is still a lot of football to be played before the champions are crowned, but there is no denying that we are sitting pretty. That is why I have decided to simply enjoy our current situation. As Rafa might have said “We are in a good moment” as we embark on a difficult couple of fixtures in quick succession which will reveal more about our ambitions.  I have confidence in this team. I have confidence in this manager. I have doubted them before and they have proved me wrong. I honestly believe it is possible for us to get something from each of these games away to City and Chelsea. Unfortunately you have to acknowledge the challenge this entails and recognise that we could sit outside the top 4 by new year. If that were to happen we can re-align our targets and again become embroiled in the day to day mundanity of scrapping it out amongst the other troglodytes for one of the  runner-up spots that awards a seat at Europes top table next year.

Right now though, its Christmas and Liverpool are TOP of the League. We have a manager whose game plan seems to be coming together at the right time. We have a team who look equal parts stylish and dogged, ready to run through brick walls before deftly finishing an exquisite passing move. We have the best player in the world leading our line and scoring world class goals every week. Its not a bad place to be.

If, somehow, you are still struggling to enjoy it, just think back to the end of last season, how far away did the top of the league seem then?

I also want to take this opportunity to say Happy Christmas from The Red Article and a heartfelt thank you for all of your support throughout 2013. Eat, Drink, be Merry, enjoy every minute of it for who knows whats up ahead.

Liverpool FC – Champions elect..... for now at least!

Barry

Twitter:@barrymeehan7

Pressing the Point

Pressing the opposition successfully is something that has come into vogue in the last few seasons, mainly as a result of the successes of the dominant Barcelona side which was expertly perfected under the stewardship of their celebrated manager Pep Guardiola. Its something that Liverpool fans were already aware of from the time of our own outstanding manager Rafa Benitez. Back in 2009 we learned how profitable and successful effective pressing could be to a side looking to dominate and win football matches at the highest level. The successes of the Houllier teams of 2001 will not be denied but they were achieved through a more reactive style of defense  and attack for that matter. Even in 2005 we saw under our Spanish leader how we may look in the future as we rocked giants of the game on our successful Champions League run. It showed us a way of football we had forgotten but now could look forward to reveling in. As Benitez’s reign ended, and subsequent managers stepped into the fray, pressing became a less prominent component of our side. It was completely forgotten under the jaded and archaic management of the former Malmo kingpin Roy Hodgson. Then Kenny found it difficult to implement on any consistent basis, even if by this stage the quality of the team had diminished so much as to make it extremely difficult regardless of manager.

When Brendan Rodgers arrived we immediately looked to his previous team for guidance on how we may approach games. Swansea were excellent proponents of pressing the opposition and when this was married to their passing and movement they were a force to be reckoned with. “Philosophy” was the buzzword upon his appointment and Liverpool fans set about the task of learning as much as possible about his philosophy as soon as he was linked with the job. There were comments such as “when we haven’t got the ball is the moment for intense pressure to get the ball back’ which gave a glimpse of the future and excited supporters. Of course anybody expecting any immediate transition to this style soon had their expectations tempered as the complexities of the system were highlighted “You cannot go (press) on your own,You work on zonal pressure, so that when it is in your zone, you have the capacity to press. That ability to press immediately, within five or six seconds to get the ball, is important. But you also have to understand when you can’t and what the triggers are then to go for it again because you can’t run about like a madman.”. It was certainly going to take time to implement a complex system, and philosophy “You do(need time to implement that philosophy). There is no doubt about that. I'm very much a realist. It's certainly going to be a few years in relation to where the team is at now. It will need some investment and it will need time for me to work. But of course we're in the business of winning and winning games is important. But it's a philosophy and a style that's very much in the DNA of me and the club and hopefully we can roll that out over the years to come.” Since then there has been a lot of work done to implement this philosophy but at times there has been frustration, certainly for me, as there was little evidence of the work being carried out on the pitch on match days. It seemed at times that perhaps this was a part of the philosophy that had been left behind. Rodgers had said in his opening press conference “Your philosophy and your principles will always be governed by the players.” I had found myself wondering at times, if pressing had been deemed too difficult for this group and so had been left behind. It causes for incredible tactical awareness, good communication and very high levels of fitness. Perhaps Rodgers had decided to go a different way?

This season, however, there have already been signs that the philosophy is bedding in. Early in the season we ground out results to set the stall, in more recent games we have started to dominate possession all the while being clinical when chances are created. The last game, the 5-0 victory away from home against Spurs, showed us how effective this system can be when implemented correctly. This is not to say that we are now the finished article and we can expect to witness this level in every game while Rodgers is at the helm. We are still a work in progress and there is still plenty of work to be done before we can achieve this standard on a regular basis. The difference now is we have the sampler, the paradigm, for what we may come to expect. We have something to put our faith in as supporters and something for the players to believe in which will lead them to become further invested in the project.  Our league position is one thing, ok its the biggest thing, but for me the improvement in our performance levels has been the most satisfying part of the season so far. 

Twitter: @barrymeehan7

Spurs 0 - 5 Liverpool (Talking Points)

A couple of days has passed now since our 5-0 victory Spurs, but such was the impact of this result, Liverpool fans all over the world are still basking in its glory. Thankfully this result just confirms what many of us believed since the start of the season, Liverpool will be crowned champions in May. Of course that's not actually what this means,  no single game played in December could confirm that no matter how impressive.  What this result does so however is give Brendan Rodgers a base camp or platform on which he can build.  It gives him a reference point he can use in future to point doubters toward to assuage their skepticism   Up till now we had seen glimpses at best of where we might be headed.  We had witnessed some good periods of play, strong halves and fought to gain some confidence building results but up until Sunday we were yet to put all these aspects together into one 90 minute performance.

Expectations can only have been raised by such a performance and that is not only natural it is exactly what we need, we don't have to feel like pretenders to the thrown anymore. This results shows that our current league position if fully justified and has been achieved through our own merits. Everyone connected with the club is obviously on a high right now but there is an imminent test for Rodgers to prepare for immediately. It's his job to ensure that confidence isn't allowed to morph into complacency. He won't need to look too far as a reference point for disappointment, the recent abject performance against Hull will remind everyone how quickly a club seemingly on the crest of a wave can change to one being touted as pretenders. A win against Cardiff at home this coming Saturday is expected and has to be considered a must. Anything less than 3 points pretty much wipes out the achievements in London. Once Cardiff leave Liverpool we embark upon preparations for an extremely difficult Christmas period which includes away fixtures versus both Chelsea and City. We need to make sure they leave empty handed

Now for somewhere talking points from the Spurs game...

Pressing
I think the most frustrating part of the season, so far, for me has been the pressing. We've been inconsistent at best with regard to pressing. Although results have been good I've frequently worried that it would be impossible for us to control games in the manner proffered by Rodgers unless we were able to master this vital component of that style. Sundays performance more than tempered my concerns as we harried or opponents into mistakes in dangerous areas time after time. One or two players focussing on pressing is what has caused us trouble in previous games. Against Spurs we got the team approach spot on, with the midfielders and Suarez responding to triggers instantaneously to hunt the opposition in packs. After almost 1.5 seasons it seems the pressing style mentioned by Rodgers upon his appointment may be starting to come together.

That Flanagan Goal!
I honestly can't tell you the last goal I enjoyed so much. Of course it was a great goal,  made all the better by smashing in off the bar but mainly because of the pure and unbridled joy all over the face of the young Liverpuddlian. He looked like he had been introduced to the action directly from the Kop ten minutes beforehand. I think by now everyone has identified his improvement leaving few questioning his credentials as a Liverpool player. His primary role is not that of a goalscorer but having dangerous players all over the pitch is what marks or great sides.

See, we’re better without Gerrard
I’ve heard this said by plenty of people in the aftermath of the game and I want to speak about it briefly. My opinion is that rather than this game providing proof that Steven Gerrard should be dropped from the starting 11, this game showed that we now have several options in midfield, Gerrard is just one of them. In many situations he can still be the best option but maybe this doesn’t have to be every week anymore. 1 for 1, we still dont yet have any 1 individual midfielder who can provide the magic that Gerrard has the ability to bring, in fairness very few teams do,  but in his absence the sum of the alternatives can be better in his absence. Players like Henderson and Allen certainly stepped up to the plate in this instance ably supported by Sterling and Lucas but of the players just named, 3 are lacking in the experience needed and 1 is still trying to rediscover his best form after coming back from injury. Inexperience can bring the inconsistency that Hendo, Allen and Sterling have shown so-far in their Liverpool careers and the experience provided by Gerrard can guide them through these difficult stages. Regardless of that even, his statistics still show he is a fine addition to our squad. If the learnings from this game enable Rodgers to bench his Captain due to fatigue, poor form or purely tactical reasons in future, well that to me is an improvement on the season so far.

Quick hits

Sakho was immense, he quickly seems to finding his feet in the league . He looks strong powerful and comfortable on the ball. Once acclimatised I really feel he will become one of the strongest defenders in the league

Sterling had without doubt his best performance in the first team to date. He looked hungry, he pressed relentlessly and showed great skill in tight situations at times. He needs to maintain this form though as plenty will remain unconvinced after 1 (albeit excellent) performance.

The form of both Lucas and Johnson improved again for this game. Neither was impeccable but an improvement was needed and it was given. Lets hope this continues

Another cameo from Alberto who also seems to be finding his place in this side. He is showing signs of becoming a viable first 11 option. He has a long way to go yet but passes like the one for Suarez’s 2^nd will live long in the memory.

Clean Sheet...... well it was about bloody time!

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Liverpool v Fulham - (Preview & Prediction)

We've had a really good start to the season.  So good in fact that a defeat away from home against the league leaders had been greeted with huge disappointment because it seems to signal that we are not the title challengers we had convinced ourselves we were. Personally, I'm not so worried about the result but I must be honest and say the performance did leave me a little bit cold.

Our target at the beginning of the season was Champions League qualification, this is still the case. If at any stage during the season we seem to be on course to achieve more than that it can only be a bonus but our base target is top four and the result against Arsenal did not unduly damage our progress on that front.

In order to achieve top four it is essential that we win the games against the teams we are expected to beat and the game this weekend against Fulham is a prime example of this. A lot of people are taking it as a given that we will win comfortably and of course that's understandable because of the poor showing from Fulham so far this season, but I always fear teams a little bit more when they are at a particularly low ebb. This is mainly because results tend to improve eventually with the downward trajectory halted, it's our job to make sure any improvement doesn't come against us.

Having said that.... Fulham are a week side and on paper seem the ideal game for us following last week’s defeat. Individually they have some real talent in their squad.  They have some pretty decent game changers in their side even if they are yet to turn them into a team who can consistently perform.  In their last game against Utd they were truly awful in the first half and any improvement they showed in the second half was caveat-ed by the fact that Utd’s intensity dropped off a little with the game more a less won, they began keeping one eye on their big European game to come.

As for us, the only truly poor results we have had so far have come against teams with real quality who were bang in form. That's not a phrase that can be used to describe The Cottagers. We have some question marks around our line up.  Controversial as it may seem I would be happy to see Stevie rested for this one with Joe Allen finally getting a chance to show what he can offer. I’m not fond of Stevie playing as defensive midfielder in the first place, but he has also looked tired recently and a particularly poor showing from him last weekend should trigger a period of rest for our captain. I dont believe this will happen, but I would be happier if it did. Obviously if Johnno is fit again it may influence the set up drastically.  I think our 3-5-2 last week looked tepid in his absence even though Flanno's individual performance was decent.  Johnno is tailor made for the attacking requirements of the formation however we don't have any other player who can match his levels. If Johnno is still out we may consider going back to basics formation wise. Coutinho is in line to come back into the first 11 and a game against Fulham would seem ideal for him to get some good game time under his belt.  It will take him time to get back to top gear but the only way to do it is with minutes on the pitch. With the Goodison Derby coming up and a rough run of fixtures following on it’s tail, we really need to get him back firing on all cylinders ASAP. Even though Cissokho's performance last week was very poor I think he will continue on the left hand side of defense regardless of formation mainly due to Enrique’s continued absence.

All things considered, we have no reason to doubt our quality at the moment. Our strikers may have drawn a blank last week but they will truly relish this match up. We’ll need to be switched on to ensure there are no scares from their danger-men but overall I think we will prove to be to strong for Fulham in all areas of the park.  If we can get a goal early enough to settle the nerves of players and fans we could really push on and win by a decent margin. 

I’m going to predict a scoreline of 3-0 to the Red men for this one.

Swansea 2 - 2 Liverpool (Talking Points)

The Fourth game of the season saw Liverpool lose their 100% start to the season as we drew away from home against a dangerous Swansea side. But we did hang on to our unbeaten run. The result saw the reds return to the top of the table, a position few would have expected us to occupy as the season moves into the end of September. The result wasn't as impressive as some we have achieved this season but it is most certainty a respectable result and it was also a point which may prove valuable when you consider end of the game and the real possibility of walking away empty handed.

Sturridge

There's not much left to say about him, we have all seen he is an excellent striker by this stage, and more. We've seen him score every league game so far this season with different types of goal in the set so I won't go on about the finish but I can't not mention his anticipation for this goal. He recognised that Shelvey was in trouble before the man himself did and it was this that got him in the position to score because the failed back pass itself wasn't so dangerous without the movement and anticipation from Sturridge.

Sakho

Bit of a shaky start from of marquee summer signing. It didn't strike me as anything to concerning though and just looked like a man playing his first game for a while on a new league. He certainly did well in his aerial duels which was encouraging. He definitely grew into the game second half and his passing was confident and of excellent quality. It could also be that due to Aggers injury and Kolo's recovery he was thrown in a little earlier than planned. Swansea seems like a particularly difficult game for a central defender to their surroundings. Their passing and attacking game will make life difficulty for many defenders throughout the season. It may have been more straight forward for him to spend his debut dealing with long aerial balls but this game will at least have given him good experience

Phil

The little Brazilian got kicked off the park for most of the game and finally succumbed to a rotten challenge from Ashley Williams. It seemed that as he left the pitch our ability to control the ball for any length of time went with him. It was one of them games where he didn't do much you would consider exceptional but everything he did was good and helped us keep possession. It's a pity that his injury seems to require surgery. We're certainly a stronger team when he is on the pitch.

The Pessimism

Already after the game you’ve probably already heard a few whoppers giving the same old crap they always do after a performance which dips anyway below stelar. In fairness you would have to be completely blinkered to not have noticed some of our deficiencies in this game, but the simple fact is we took it on the chin and managed to pull out the draw, the draw which we needed to get back on top of the league. In fairness, there have been too many occasions in the past few years where it has been hard to find positives anywhere, so lets all make a pact to just enjoy this period eh. In kicking off a new campaign.... “Say No to Pessimism”

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