It’s understandable that many are throwing the blame of Liverpool’s struggles of late at the door of our American owners, with the club still yet to engage in the winter window.
We’ll be the first to note, obvious as it is to many, that the club is in need of defensive reinforcements, considering Jurgen Klopp’s continued reliance on the ever-remarkable midfielder-turned-defender Fabinho, and the ever-fragile Joel Matip.
However, that’s not to say that we agree with the bile-filled remarks made by repeat offenders on the Twittersphere (those you may know as the #FSGOUT crowd) – far from it.
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It is possible to take the middle-ground between outright praise and the pitchforks and torches approach; noting that, while FSG are majorly responsible for the current state of the club, the ownership are taking an ill-advised risk with the lack of transfer activity.
Amadi’s brilliant thread below, which directly compares Liverpool’s project with Frank Lampard’s ongoing one at Chelsea, illustrates why we shouldn’t be quick to dismiss FSG’s importance.
Just to reiterate one last time: the owners are absolutely not immune to criticism (though their inaction is partly understandable given the financial ramifications of COVID-19), but neither are they deserving of unadulterated contempt.
Enjoy the read and be sure to give him a follow on Twitter after:
Klopp joined Liverpool in October 2015 with the club 13th in the PL. Having inherited Brendan Rodgers' squad, he saw them finish the season in 8th. To rebuild, FSG made wholesale changes from the front office to the first team, and they experienced their fair share of poor form.
— amadí (@amadoit__) January 23, 2021
Ahead of 2017/18, LFC spent big [£168m]. But Klopp's side were still very much a work in progress – conceding 16 in the first nine (including a 4-1 loss at Spurs with Lovren subbed on 30'). They signed van Dijk in January, righted the ship, finished 4th and lost in the UCL final.
— amadí (@amadoit__) January 23, 2021
With the desired team assembled, LFC only spent £4.5m in the summer before 2019/20. They hit the ground running and bossed the league, winning it comfortably. Klopp's arrival had marked a transformation at Anfield – patience and belief in his project yielded legitimate results.
— amadí (@amadoit__) January 23, 2021
Which brings me to Chelsea. Lampard's project has (literally) been bought into [£200m] by the club hierarchy, but patience is not necessarily something they're known for. Having sacked a slough of managers while still enjoying success, it's hard to argue that it hasn't 'worked.'
— amadí (@amadoit__) January 23, 2021
Compared to Klopp's tenure at LFC, Lampard is still in the stage of drilling his philosophy and weeding out dead weight. It likely won't be until the end of the season or the start of the next that he has his desired team. And there are probably more frustrating periods to come.
— amadí (@amadoit__) January 23, 2021
The Chelsea hierarchy needs to decide what kind of club they want to be, and whether to pursue the project Lampard has begun. But backing him halfway and balking at the team's first poor run of form under his tenure will see us back at square one with nothing to show for it.
— amadí (@amadoit__) January 23, 2021
In his first season, with a transfer ban, Lampard managed the club into the UCL places and lost in the FA Cup Final. Few (fans, media or otherwise) believed he would even achieve that. Mere weeks ago, CFC went 17 matches unbeaten, won their UCL group and were top of the league.
— amadí (@amadoit__) January 23, 2021
Chelsea surely had to expect the sorts of mistakes Lampard is making as a third year head coach. It's simply impossible that they wouldn't have included it in their risk assessment before his appointment. That being said, they also clearly believed in his potential to succeed.
— amadí (@amadoit__) January 23, 2021
The same was true for Klopp's Liverpool over the past five years. The 4-1 loss at Spurs must have hurt. The 5-0 loss to City must have hurt. Losing to United at Anfield must have hurt. The UCL Final loss must have hurt. But nobody thinks about those results anymore, do they? Why?
— amadí (@amadoit__) January 23, 2021
TL;DR – Trust the process, believe in the project, back the manager. We've got a ways to go yet – at least, I hope so. #KTBFFH
— amadí (@amadoit__) January 23, 2021
Klopp managing that squad at Chelsea would be a totally different prospect to inexperienced Lampard.
Liverpools owners aren’t exactly helping Klopp with this defensive crisis.
At City, Chelsea or Utd it wouldn’t be an issue
Its been a long 10 year journey for FSG. They are taking a risk too far this time. If LFC miss out on champions league then FSG will have stump up even more cash – and if they don’t then it would say a lot about them. Maybe FSG have taken lfc as far as they can?