At last the January transfer window has closed and Liverpool supporters can now stop all the gossip, rumour spreading and putting up with so called “in the know” lunatics.
What did you really expect from this transfer window? Defoe? Bent? Cavani? Or any of the other strikers on the planet? No it was never going to happen.
FSG may have a pound in there pocket but recklessness is not one thing you would associate with them, also there was a need to decide if we could cope with or without Suarez who was serving his eight match ban.
Well the answer to that dilemma was yes we can, Liverpool qualified for the Carling Cup Final and knocked United out of the FA Cup without our little Uruguayan magician, but if we would have failed to get to Wembley and get past Manchester United am sure that a new striker would have been considered by FSG but not necessarily brought in.
Kenny Dalglish would have evaluated the squad and looked at the performances since Suarez was on suspension, what he would have found is that apart from the match against Bolton is that we have not been bad at all, so why the need to buy anyone at all with the knowledge that Suarez is coming back.
There is an argument that we haven’t got an out and out goalscorer or that we haven’t got that cutting edge, but we have it just needed a team that had confidence and strikers who believed in themselves, after the successes against both Manchester teams we now have that, and Wolves where on the receiving end of the new found belief.
Andy Carroll looks like a new signed striker and so do the signings from the summer, so why buy when you have a team that can finish off games and can challenge the top teams at any level without Luis Suarez.
The return of Suarez is like a new signing ready to mark his first appearance in front of the Anfield faithful, we have missed Luis there is no argument on that or what he brings to the team, am sure his return will only give the squad greater confidence and better performances.
Charlie Adam, Henderson, Enrique and Downing have now started to fit in and the more the season carries on the better understanding they will gain plus now that Steven Gerrard is back Liverpool Football Club will progress and develop.
Many fans saw this transfer window as a failure but I saw it as a success, the reason being is that we have not paid over the odds on a striker we didn’t need or a winger that is no better than what we already have.
The problem with the transfer window is that we can get carried away with what we want but in reality its not what we need at all, any player who comes to LFC needs to fit into our playing system not because the player is a big name, many a big name player comes to a new club and doesn’t offer value for money or enhances the squad in any way, just look at £50m Fernando Torres move to Chelsea, in fact I would put more money on seeing Lord Lucan winning the derby on Shergar than I would seeing Torres becoming a success at Chelsea.
Liverpool’s season has been a predictable one, we where never going to challenge for the title this season or even be close, but what has gone to plan is the development and progress we have made.
Kenny Dalglish’s team is a new one and no one really expected this squad to win the title but we have reached a cup final and fighting for the 4th Champions League spot, so in some ways we have maybe overachieved this season, Liverpool is a work in progress and we must not lose sight of that.
When Dalglish puts together a squad he feels can offer a real challenge for the title all of this seasons achievements would be considered as a poor one but right now its progress and one that’s travelling in the right direction and with pace.
But lets be all honest here when Kenny took charge even if we knew that we are way too far off to make a challenge at present we all secretly hoped we would by some miracle be up there with City and United going for the title.
Liverpool will undoubtedly sign players during the summer and not only will they be players who can adapt to Dalglish’s way of playing and fit into the squad but most importantly be fairly priced as well.
It was interesting to see so many fans reacting to Liverpool’s virtually non-existent transfer market dealings with a very mixed response, some where in agreement with the lack of activity and then some where less than happy.
The hysteria about signing a new striker was really not needed as we had just beat Manchester City over two legs and looking forward to the clubs first trip to Wembley followed by beating Man United in the FA Cup and looking like a team that was brimming with confidence.
So when I hear fans saying or complaining about not signing anyone all I say to them is “Transfers? What transfers”.