By Akshay Nadkarni
As Liverpool Football Club push on through the final third of the season, I’d like to take a minute and reflect on the events that led the team up to this point, as well as give my feedback on what has transpired. I don’t pretend to be a football pundit; I’m actually a fan who is very new to the EPL, having only followed LFC and the premier league in general since the middle of last season. I’ve been reading EOTK for almost the same amount of time, and am encouraged by the diversity of opinions and the passion of fans who comment on the club’s doings. I’d like to give my perspective, as a new fan of the club. When I began watching, LFC was right in the middle of the 2009-2010 EPL season. This was apparently a disappointing season for supporters, and as a person who wasn’t at the time familiar of LFC fans’ expectations, I was appalled at the sentiment during the season and immediately after. The media were lambasting Rafael Benitez, a manager who had won a Champions’ League trophy for the club and finished second in the table a year before. Sure, it was a bad season, but it was one bad season. Looking back now, that season seemed like a purge of the bad clouds hanging over the club. From the wreckage of that season came the appointment of a new manager in Roy Hodgson, and the sale of the club to new owners (along with a clearance of the debt).
There were not many positives to take from the short-lived Hodgson regime. Right from the beginning, the club was dropping points in the EPL where, even two years ago, anything other than a win would have been unacceptable. Many people were calling for Hodgson to be fired, and others were urging fans to support him, and give him more time. It was easy to see his tactics were not working, and I feel most of the blame falls on the players here. A squad which was itching to play free-flowing football now had to play conservatively, and as a result games were lost due to lack of team coordination. Once we started dropping farther down the table, players seemed unmotivated, which exacerbated the problem. Could we have won under Hodgson? I believe so. His tactics worked for a Fulham squad which was miles below us in terms of quality. I think it was the lack of willingness from the players, combined with the lack of immediate success, which mired us in the middle of the table. At this point, the ownership took the only remaining option and fired Roy, citing that his tactics did not fit the club’s idea of football.
And in came King Kenny. What a refreshing change of pace he brought! Bringing in an Anfield legend to manage the club, combined with more free flowing tactics and attacking football, has motivated the players to a six-game unbeaten streak. Realizing that it was futile to play a style of football that the players themselves did not want to adopt made it clear that firing Hodgson for a more attack minded coach was the best way to move forward. In the middle of this run, we have strengthened the team both through subtraction and addition. The club saw Torres and Babel leave for a gain of about 55 million pounds. In came Suarez and Carroll at a combined cost of 58 million. After Torres handed in his transfer request he was useless to us, as he showed he didn’t want to play for us anymore. If you ask me, getting a world-class striker and the best young English forward in the league, all at a cost of two ineffective players and about 3 million pounds, was a huge success.
After the frenzied beginning to the season, we find the club still in European competition, and with an outside shot of qualifying for the CL next year. The aim for the rest of the season must be to finish as high as possible in the EPL, with a deep run in the Europa league an added bonus. There is also a golden opportunity to develop the future of the team. As the Gerrard generation enters its twilight, I am excited to see the likes of Kelly, Shelvey, Spearing, and Pacheco come to the forefront, as these players will be the ones the club depends on for success in the future. In the upcoming summer, I am sure we will see the team address key deficiencies in the squad by buying one or two big-name players. I am also looking forward to the young prospects we will sign. NESV’s model is not one of spending exorbitant amounts of money for immediate success. It is one of building a foundation of youth and only splurging on a few key supplements. Normally this approach would take a few years to come to fruition, but with the squad we already have as a base, I am sure we will be back challenging for a top spot in the EPL next year. This is truly an exciting time to be a Liverpool fan. With the right owners behind the club, the right manager in the dugout, and a top squad being developed, the stage is set for LFC to have another golden era.
‘It was easy to see his tactics were not working, and I feel most of the blame falls on the players here.’
Because he couldn’t put out a team if dogs perhaps?
There is nothing new, perspective, ideas or otherwise anywhere here. How about ‘we should move for Zoltan Gera, available on a free’? At least it’s new!
Hosgson’s tactics only worked at Fulham because there were no expectations at the club.When he went to a club where a jaunt in to Europe isnt seen as a cause for mass partying ,the wheels fell off
My apologies, but you really don’t seem to understand football at all, judging from your second paragraph. As Liverpool fans, we want to win, but if circumstances dictate otherwise, we want to at least see a proper performance.
Hodgson did himself no favours here and even considering the fact that he might win games with our players is foolish to a great extent. Fulham had players who had little technical ability and numerous target men (Zamora, etc) and could thus play hoof-ball. Liverpool had none and our players were essentially continental ones with higher emphasis of skill over strength.
Hodgson’s style of football would never succeed in Liverpool without a major overhauling of playing staff. No Liverpool fan would like to see his style of football either. This coupled with his disastrous press conferences and pathetic attampts to apologise after several daft comments made him no angel.
This is seriously a very poor article. Perhaps you should stick to watching football for another few seasons before writing for EOTK. You would do it’s reputation no favours.
YNWA
I agree with what you have to say except for your observation that we might have won under Roy. I do not think it was possible. If you have watched the games under roy, the defense was chatting with Reina on the back line with just Torres up front at the half way line. Now to score from such a position we needed really fast wingers- who we do not have- who can move the ball up front quickly with minimum touches and have the ability to place that ‘killer’ pass for the striker. (Dont have those players too.(remember kuyt trying to pass to raul in the box against Chelski when he was unmarked with just one man to beat?)
Roy, has won nothing of note and his style of play was nothing to write home about. It was a matter playing the “Liverpool Way”. This is what the players like Stevie and Carra have seen growing up and fans like me expect from our club. Since you are new to football i would recommend that you watching a Barcelona game and see the number of passes they string up and the way they play. pass and move is the Liverpool way. Its identity and soul. You do not sell your soul. YNWA
The author did say they were offering a new perspective. The Liverpool fanbase is constantly growing and not everybody who follows the club is aware to the full extent of the expectations, traditions and opinions of the lifelong reds. I enjoyed the article because, as the title states, it was a fresh perspective on what has been a bad period for the club.
What a load of utter rubbish. As soon as your superiors see you saying that crap about Woy they should sack you so we won’t have to listen to anymore of this tripe.
This ‘refreshing change of pace’ you refer to is how Liverpool fans expect their players to behave on the pitch. We don’t demand success we demand effort, intelligence, commitment and a desire to win. Hodgson didn’t get that in my opinion he was too concentrated on nulifying the opposition rather than playing the Liverpool way. The promising thing is Fenway seem to understand what the fans want so as a new fan, expect allot of the same as what you have seen since Kenny took control.
Thanks for the feedback guys. Maybe something which was not really clear in the article: I never said I liked Roy’s tactics, only that the players themselves never seemed like they bought into them completely. I guess, judging from your reactions, this speaks more about how bad Roy’s tactics were, not the players’ willingness to adapt.
I’m still mystified by what this new perspective is. There’s nothing new here, maybe a new person offering an opinion, but not a new opinion. I see too many ‘stories’ with a headline designed only to draw the reader in, usually under false pretenses, and then fail to deliver – a failure common to politicians also. In the words of Dirty Harry, ‘Opinions are like assholes – everybody’s got one!’
If you’re going to offer your opinion on something, it should be an informed one…
Damo, Damo. Always has something to say. The man did say he is relatively new to LFC and the PL! However, I do like your controlling attitude….
In fairness, Tonio, if you’re going to start out writing, it’s a good idea to get into good habits. Avoiding sensationalist headlines that fail to deliver, proofing your work before publishing, that sort of thing…
Damo, this is a Social Blog not a news organisation.
Point taken, so what’s the new perspective then? ;-)