From Sunday 27th February to Sunday 22nd May, the Reds will go to battle 11 times in an effort to regain pride and prestige and end the season on a high. For those that are eternally optimistic, the target is reaching the coveted 4th place and final Champions League spot. Is it impossible? No! Is it a mountain to climb? Yes!
Its 11 games and 33 points on offer! While we know others will drop points, especially in the many direct clashes, we will not be threading an easy path as we still have to play all the teams ahead of us in the table bar Chelsea . Six away and five home games! If we keep progressing in the Europa League we’d need to play another 8 games to reach the final, and eventually play the final in Dublin. That would almost double the tally of games to 20.
At this stage of the proceedings, you absolutely cannot afford to field a weakened side against any opposition. While the Reds see the Champions League qualification as their ultimate target for obvious reasons (income and prestige being the most obvious), it would be a mistake not to consider triumph in the Europa League just as important. Kenny’s philosophy is to take it game by game, but at this stage I honestly feel there is no other alternative philosophy.
West Ham United (A)
Manchester United (H)
Sunderland (A)
West Bromwich Albion (A)
Manchester City (H)
Arsenal (A)
Birmingham City (H)
Newcastle United (H)
Fulham (A)
Tottenham Hotspurs (H)
Aston Villa (A)
Yes, there is no easy game listed above. They are all menacing for one reason or other, and in my most modest opinion, clinching 4th spot would be nothing short of a miracle. This is the time when we will be watching Liverpool play while keeping an eye at what’s happening elsewhere. Some will do us favours, others won’t. What the Reds have to do is wear the Liverpool shirt with pride and make us proud of them. We are asking a lot of them, but rest assured they will want this more than any of us.
Good luck Reds!