So we have bowed out of our last chance of Silverware this season. Despite a spirited win against Athletico Madrid, last weeks failure to score an away goal (I know, I know. we had a perfectly good one ruled out) cost us dearly last night.
We can't bemoan the lack of effort against the Spaniards. There were some outstanding displays and some tireless performances (Unfortunately not necessarily by the same players). I though Javier Mascherano was immense. Once or twice caught out of position but every time he seemed to make up the ground to get back. Unfortunately, what he provided defensively meant that our attacking options were reduced from that right hand side. Glen Johnson had a fair game at left back, and as Graham Taylor mentioned in commentary, you can see the sense of him going up against Reyes, as it meant, that that if the winger tried to cut in, as he regularly odes, he would be going onto Johnson's stronger foot. Again, from a defensive point of view this was a positive mood but it did curtail the England right back's attacking qualities.
But don't get me wrong, Although I have mentioned the full backs lack of attacking options, the midfield that Rafa chose had plenty of options in attack. Lucas worked hard to keep it tight, allowing Stevie G and Alberto Aquilani to push forward with intent and Benayoun and Kuyt were a constant threat. Ryan Babbel's work rate was impressive, although some of the touches he had didn't pay off. His attitude in recent weeks has improved immeasurably and once his talent and his attitude meet at the same peak, i am very excited by his prospects.
The first half performance was excellent, even though Athletico did show menacing thoughts at times. And the goal on half time was exquisitely finished by Aquilani. It's often said that just before half time is a great time to score, but in our case it seemed to have the opposite effect. Rather than buoying us up for the second half, we seemed to lose some of the impetus that had built up in the minutes before we scored. We seemed happy to play the patience game when we had come out for the restart, instead of continuing the pressure that had helped impose our style on the game. As the game wore on, our lack of depth on the bench ended up being crucial. Rafa was unable to bring on a game turning player as they were already on the pitch.
So, with mainly pride to play for in our last two games of the season, what will the summer bring? New owners? I fervently hope so. The sooner we are clear of the two money grabbing shysters the better for the club.It is difficult for anyone to see any benefit that they have brought to the club. Will they be gone in enough time for us to prepare properly for next season? I am seriously sceptical of that. If we are lucky then they may have sold up by the time the transfer window closes at the end of August, but we might just have to wait another 6 - 12 months before our ownership is settled.Of course, if they do sell, will it be an improvement or will it be from the frying pan to the fire? There are no guarantees. When the Americans turned up, i believed every last word they said because it sounded so good. Looking back I am angry with myself for being taken in by them.
Will Rafa Benitez be manager next season? It doesn't look likely to me. The speculation linking him to Juventus seems to have intensified and with the ownership issue looking like it might take time to resolve, I think he might decide that now would be a good time to taste Serie A life. As I have mentioned in previous blog posts, I think that Rafa has reached the pivot point at Liverpool. He has spent a few seasons improving the team but think that he has now got to the stage that he can't do any more. I accept that what he has done has been severly restricted by the owners. And I do believe that in general he has done a good job. But I also think that he has made decisions that have not been in the best interests of Liverpool Football Club. After last nights game he bemoaned the fact that we didn't have any alternative attacking oprtions. I have felt that since Robbie Keane left that this was the case. I know that he didn't see the money from the Keane sale to reinvest in talent, but when he did have money from the sale of Alonso, he decided to buy an expensive Right Back (a position that, in my opinion, didn't need strengthening) and a gamble on an injured playmaker (Aquilani looks very good at last, but we have spent far too long this season without him, and at least part of this was easily predicatble). And although I accept that he had to sell to buy, his management of Xabi Alonso during his courtship of Gareth Barry did leave a bitter taste.
Today, the Academy has come under the spotlight with the current coach Rodlofo Borrell revealing that he found the Academy Setup to be "unacceptable" when he arrived last year. Liverool's Academy used to be the envy of the Premier League. Producing talent like MacManaman, Owen, Fowler, Gerrard and Carragher show how successful it has been in the past. Steve heighway's directorship ended with winning the FA Youth Cup two years in a row in 2006 and 2007, yet none of this talented team have made the leap into a regular frst team spot. Rafa has staed that he wants to bring talented British players to the club. Very laudible but if that is the reason that Xabi was sacrificed (potentially for Barry and eventually for Johnson), then it seems a step backwards to me.
If Rafa does leave in the close season, I will be wary of who is successor would be. He has proved himself as a top class manager by winning the Champions League with us and La Liga with Valencia a couple of times. But, other than last season, he has never really mounted a serious challenge for the Premiership, and I now believe that his coaching style may well be suited more to a European league rather than the English version. I will wish hi all the best at juventus, or whichever club he goes to, and will thank him for the memories, but I am a firm believer that the club is bigger than any individual.
If we do go through a few more months of uncertainty about our ownership, we can probably write off our league prospects next season so a change of manager (even short term) would not be a bad thing, with a focus on winning a cup competition and preparing for the next Premier League season.
And who knows...
No comments:
Post a Comment