By Brian Reece
twitter @oldfattoad
Just two games into the new season and we have seen a significant shift of power within the top six teams, Chelsea have another new manager, Manchester City have made some fantastic signings and Manchester Utd have introduced a younger but still ever impressive team, but the shift comes from Arsenal and Spurs, the gunners have mistakenly sold their two best players in Fabregas & Nasri without buying an immediate replacement, this could be Arsenals biggest mistake in terms of financial implications and could seriously damage their top four Premier League status, if Arsene Wenger chooses to recruit from within for replacements of Fabregas and Nasri and not go into the transfer market Arsenal simply wont have the depth of squad to compete with other top clubs.
Spurs have not made any real headway in the transfer market to date but Harry Redknapp likes a last-minute bargain so we all wait and watch the circus unfold with Spurs, as it stands now they don’t seem to have improved since last season and with the increasing possibility of Modric moving on the worry for Spurs fans is one of disenchantment in the current squad.
Chelsea have an interesting team this season, new manager and some new faces the most fascinating one is Mata who I saw play at Anfield in the pre season friendly, the problem Chelsea have is that the team are still an ageing one and the spark they had a few season ago simply is not there now, Torres is still a £50m underachiever and its hard to see how he fits into the current set up of Chelsea in contrast to how he was when he first arrived at Liverpool, I have no doubts that Chelsea will still be a top four club at the end of this season which is where the opportunity knocks for Liverpool.
Liverpool have spent wisely this season and have made headway in selling some players which no longer fit into Dalglishs plans, I still believe Dalglish is not yet finished in the transfer market and that a defender and possibly another attacking option may still arrive but as it stands we look like the team that will make up the top four, we have to take advantage of the Arsenal and the Spurs situation to capitalise on their lack of transfer activity and depth of quality within their squads, we have a perfect opportunity to show our intent over the next few games and with Arsenal struggling with injuries and bad team discipline we must take every advantage presented to us.
The lack of European football this season could turn out as a blessing for Liverpool, there is no strains on the squad or the risk of needless injuries which can harm the challenge for the top four spot, we simply can concentrate on what’s important while the others continue to stretch their squad and risk key injuries to accommodate Champions League and Europa League matches, never will we have a better chance of reaching the top four than this season.
The players Dalglish has acquired have proven that he means business, Suarez is simply world-class Adam and Downing have adjusted perfectly, Henderson proved against Arsenal that he can play a part and Carroll will improve, not forgetting the great signing of Enrique and that Steven Gerrard has yet to return, so things for Liverpool can only get better but we must take every opportunity and secure that top four finish, if we do Liverpool will be able to command better quality players and be able to strengthen the squad even more so, Liverpool are fortunate to have owners who understand what success is all about and how to build a winning culture within a club, the current transfer deals show the level of intent the owners have to rebuilding Liverpool back to its former status and if Dalglish makes more good judgements in players and tactics we can reclaim our place among the footballing élite.