About Me:
I am the soccer analyst for the Fox Soccer Report and appear twice a week - every Monday and Friday at 10:00 EST. I have also been a regular contributor to the Fox Soccer Channel website since the summer of 2004. Over the last twenty years I have contribu
About Me:
I am the soccer analyst for the Fox Soccer Report and appear twice a week - every Monday and Friday at 10:00 EST. I have also been a regular contributor to the Fox Soccer Channel website since the summer of 2004. Over the last twenty years I have contribu
About Me:
I am the soccer analyst for the Fox Soccer Report and appear twice a week - every Monday and Friday at 10:00 EST. I have also been a regular contributor to the Fox Soccer Channel website since the summer of 2004. Over the last twenty years I have contribu
Thursday, November 5, 2009, 10:49 PM EST
[General]
On Sunday January 11th of this year Chelsea traveled to play Manchester United at Old Trafford in the Premier League. By early evening Chelsea had been taken apart in a manner not seen for many a season.
The final score may have been 3-0 to United but the score line flattered Chelsea so resounding was the home team’s performance.
It was to be a game that marked the beginning of the end for Chelsea boss Luis Felipe Scolari. Chelsea struggled to beat Stoke the week after – needing two late goals from Belletti and Lampard – before another less than impressive display in dispatching relegation bound Middlesbrough.
A 2-0 loss to Liverpool at Anfield made a parting of the ways close to inevitable while a scoreless draw at home to struggling Hull City sealed the Brazilian’s fate.
Two days after Scolari was sacked Guus Hiddink rolled into Stamford Bridge and invigorated the side albeit on a temporary basis. True to his word and original intentions Hiddink hardly had time to get the manager’s chair warm before returning from whence he came and the mantle was again passed, this time to Carlos Ancelotti.
Both managers have received ample praise for their work on a Chelsea side that had looked tired, placid and on some occasions past it. Answers to the why the change have ranged from the return of Didier Drogba (from both injury and sulking) to the spurious magic of the diamond formation and many in between.
Strangely absent has been the name Michael Essien. Hiddink did many things right but perhaps his greatest accomplishment – or in many peoples’ minds risk – was quickly he integrated Essien back into the first team line up.
Essien had suffered an anterior cruciate ligament injury while representing Ghana in early September 2008. But than a month into his temporary role as Chelsea manager and with the return leg of a Champions League game against Juventus looming Hiddink gambled and brought the Ghanaian on as a substitute in a FA Cup match at Coventry.
Essien played less than forty five minutes but he showed enough to be a shock inclusion in the starting line-up against Juventus.
Hiddink’s faith was repaid with interest as Essien scored a critical away goal (Chelsea had won the first leg 1-0 at Stamford Bridge) that provided Chelsea with some breathing space. Te second leg would finish in a 2-2 draw with Chelsea progressing 3-2 on aggregate.
However that was far from the end of Champions League heroics for Essien as he also scored with a stunning left foot volley against Barcelona in a semi final. On that night Chelsea would come within seconds of moving on to their second consecutive final appearance.
By the time Ancelotti arrived any concerns of Essien’s fitness had dissipated and it was not long before the new boss asked the multi-talented Essien to fulfill a new role – at the base of the midfield diamond.
Prior to the switch Chelsea bosses had essentially accepted that first Makelele and then his heir apparent John Obi Mikel held squatting rights to the position.
Of course that left only three other positions in midfield up for grabs and a number of very talented players battling for places. Ballack, Malouda, Lampard, Joe Cole (when fit), Deco as well as Essien had to be accommodated and inevitably a considerable amount of talent was left on the bench.
Ancelotti’s saw no reason why Essien could not play the Makelele/Mikel position and do so with more aggression, drive and attacking fervor. It is a move that has paid off in spades.
In days past the ball at the feet of Mikel would inevitably lead to the play stalling with the youngster almost always opting for the safe pass rather than taking the opportunity to spring a team mate making tracks to the opponent’s goal.
With Essien it is the opposite - Essien only resorts to a square ball when a forward penetrating pass isn’t on; Mikel would only play the penetrating pass when a square ball wasn’t on.
A look at the overall statistics also lends support to the importance of Essien in the starting eleven. During Essien’s spell out with injury Chelsea had a winning percentage of 68% - not bad – but since he returned in March that percentage has risen to a little under 74%.
So what does 6% translate into? Over a Premier League season that would amount to between 6 and 7 points.
When you consider that Chelsea finished third last season, seven points behind United, three behind Liverpool and took only a single point from their efforts against the top two a case could be made that a fit Essien might well have been the difference. Will it be this season? We will find out a bit more on Sunday.
Manchester United also has a key midfield player and that is Darren Fletcher. The link between Fletcher and United’s performances over the last season and a bit is intriguing.
During that spell United have lost eight matches and Fletcher has only played in one of them. Overall he has appeared in over forty games and the only loss was a 2-0 defeat at Craven Cottage to Fulham in March of this year.
Fletcher has also gained a reputation as a player who may not score a lot of goals but many of his efforts are kept for the big occasions. The genesis likely goes back almost four years to the day.
On November 6, 2005 Sir Alex Ferguson surprised everyone when he started the young Scotsman at Old Trafford against, what at the time was, a rampant Mourinho led Chelsea side.
Fletcher scored the only goal of the game and although Chelsea would retain their title it was a game that in retrospect marked a turning point in United’s challenge to the Londoners.
At the time Luca Cigarini's volley for Napoli against Milan on Wednesday looked like a spectacular goal but nonetheless a consolation goal. It turned out to be anything but a consolation as Napoli tied the game up only seconds later. Spectacular it certainly was – as clean a strike from just outside the box on the drop, as you are ever likely to see.
And as it turned out Napoli were not finished with amazing comebacks and actually went a step better on Saturday when they rebounded from 2-0 down against Juventus to win 3-2. Marek Hamsik scored two and Jesus Datolo the other as Napoli recorded their first way away to Juventus in 21 years. New manager Walter Mazzarri has three wins (including two away from home) and a draw in four games.
One old adage is that you are at your most vulnerable to losing a goal when you have just scored one. In Spurs’ case on Saturday it was a little bit different. They had just gone behind to a Robin Van Persie goal and straight from the kick off the ball was lazily given straight to Cesc Fabregas. Fabregas went for the jugular and ran straight at and beyond a leaden-legged Spurs defense. He went from the half way line to the edge of Spurs’ penalty area before slotting the ball into the bottom corner of the net. Arsenal up by two and the game was over.
Bolton suffered a four goal thrashing from Chelsea in midweek Carling Cup action but promised it would be different come Saturday when they locked horns again. It wasn’t. Chelsea strolled to another four goal win with the final goal coming from a cheeky training ground routine that saw the ball move from Anelka to Deco to Lampard without touching the ground and then eventually to Drogba who administered the coup de grace.
Mario Balotelli was a one-man wrecking crew on Thursday as Inter jumped into a 4-0 half-time lead against Palermo. The youngster had to leave the game early in the second half and Inter had to withstand a Palermo fight back that at one point reduced the gap to a single goal before substitute Milito sealed a 5-3 win. Nevertheless, Balotelli offered an extended glimpse at how good he could be.
Honorable mentions……
Genoa have been struggling lately with only one win in six Serie A games and allowing 16 goals in the process. They finally got back to winning ways on Wednesday when they beat Fiorentina 2-1. Former Juventus wide man Raffaele Palladino got Genoa back on track with a mischievous backheel that left Fiorentina keeper helpless.
Two very well taken volleys by Manchester United’s Dimitar Berbatov and Stoke City’s Matthew Etherington against Blackburn and Wolves respectively.
Best forgotten…..
After a 2-0 win over Manchester United last Sunday it seems that rumours of a Liverpool recovery were largely unfounded. After losing two players to red cards and the game 3-1 to Fulham, Liverpool returned quickly to the ICU late Saturday afternoon in a condition that causes the red side of Merseyside great concern.
It is tough to figure out Wigan. They have beaten Burnley (at Turf Moor), Chelsea and Aston Villa as well as drawing with Manchester City. In fact they have the fourth best record against top half opposition based on points per game average. But when it comes to bottom half of the table teams no team comes close to Wigan for futility. They are averaging only 0.60 points per game – Portsmouth are the next worse at a point a game.
Stat facts…..
Arunda Dindane became the first Pompey forward to score a Premier League goal this season and he felt so good about it he went on to score a hat trick. It was the first hat trick from a Portsmouth player since Benjani Mwaruwari notched three against Reading back in September of 2007.
With a goal against Napoli on Saturday David Trezeguet took his Serie A goal tally to 130 and his grand total to 166 for Juventus in all competitions. He is now just one short of all-time great Omar Sivori’s club total of 167. Sivori is Juventus’ fourth top scorer of all-time.
Sampdoria manager Gigi Del Neri just cannot put one over on Juventus. The 5-1 pasting was the 13th loss to Juventus in his career and the other game was a draw.
Robin Van Persie has now scored in the last six Premier League games for Arsenal. It is by far the Dutchman’s most consistent scoring run. Before this his best was three goals in three games in November 2005 (Sunderland, Wigan and Blackburn).
Borussia Mongengladbach traveled to previously undefeated Hamburg and left with all three points. The 3-2 win was Mongengladbach’s first at Hamburg since 1995. Canadian striker Rob Friend scored the winner with eight minutes to go.
Burnley’s 2-0 win over Hull City means they already have 5 home wins in 6 games and only Manchester United (16) have collected more points at home.
Tim Cahill picked up his first Premier League booking of the season. He went into the game against Aston Villa having committed 26 fouls without receiving a yellow card – a league high this season. He broke his duck in the 53rd minute and the world is once more unfolding as it should.
Stuttgart have not being having an easy time of it lately so a scoreless draw against Bayern Munich brought a little bit of joy. Up to Saturday Stuttgart had lost every competitive match played in this month of October.
What was said….
Javier Zanetti keeps on rattling up appearances for Inter.
The financial plight of Rangers but there is still no white knight in sight.
Marlon Kinghas been charged with more criminal offences than he has scored Premier League goals – 13 to 12.
Rob Hughes looks at what Michel Platinithinks European soccer can learn from US professional sports and his politicking with the European Union.
The Wall Street Journal’s Dave Kansastakes a look at the blue and red sides of Manchester.
Perhaps this might provide a momentary distraction for Liverpool fans – Robbie Fowler on target down under.
When you don’t have much to write about there is always a top ten list to fall back on. Jeff Powellcompiles two all-time lists – the top UK managers and the top world managers. Only Herbert Chapman makes it from the pre WW2 era and the only non-European is Luis Cesar Menotti. Let’s just say that Powell’s top ten lists will never make the all time best top ten lists!
Coming up this week…..
Back to European action with the Champions League on Tuesday and Wednesday and a cavalcade of Europa Leaguematches on Thursday.
On Thursday Real Salt Lake takes a 1-0 first leg advantage to MLS reigning champions Columbus Crew.
Thursday, October 29, 2009, 01:14 PM EST
[General]
We are at the half way mark of the Champions Leagues so it is time to have a look at how things are going for each of the thirty-two teams.
Well at least we got to play in the Champions League and the money was nice too……..
Maccabi Haifa have given respectable showings against both Juventus and Bordeaux but are still winless and pointless. Third place will be beyond their grasp but they could still be the banana skin that decides who misses out on a spot in the last sixteen.
Debrecen gave their all on match day one at Anfield and lost by the only goal of the game. However, since then they’ve shipped four goals at home against both Lyon and Fiorentina - albeit while giving the Italian side a few worries in scoring three. The Hungarian champions will finish bottom of the group – the only remaining question is will they join a list of teams whose Champions League stint turns out to be pointless?
Third at best……….
APOEL and Atletico Madrid are tied with a point each in Group B but they are already five points adrift of second place Porto. What’s more they have only scored one goal between them – APOEL’s marker against Porto on match day three. With Quique Flores hired by Atletico as their latest manager, the new manager bounce may come into play but not nearly enough to finish second.
Without a win but amazingly still in with a chance…….
AZ Alkmaar and Standard Liege have both have traveled to Greece and lost to Olympiakos who currently sit second in Group H. AZ trails by four points while Standard are a point further back. However, the Greeks do not own an intimidating away record and if either, or both, are going to take a second half run at the runners up spot then home wins are a must. AZ and Standard Liege would be happy to take this to the last day and hope that positions 2 through 4 are still up for grabs.
Stuttgart and Rangers shared the points on match day one and they have also shared a lot of misery this season. Both teams are struggling domestically and neither has won a Champions League game. Rangers have given up four goals at home in their last two Champions League matches while at least the German side can look to a draw away to Unirea as tiny consolation.
It is unlikely that Stuttgart will gain any solace from a midweek visit to Sevilla but can look to final fixtures against the weaker sisters of the group. As outrageous as it may seem should Rangers turn Unirea over, the battle for places 2 through 4 would take on a whole new look with a myriad of possibilities.
One draw, one goal scored but with home games left against their second place rivals Besiktas’ fate is not yet preordained. If they are to turn it around then wins against Wolfsburg (Tuesday) and CSKA Moscow (match day 6) are mandatory. One slip and it will third at best but more likely on the bottom looking up.
Hopes are hanging by a thread……
Since losing to Fiorentina and Lyon articles pontificating on Liverpool’s fate have consistently pointed out that two seasons ago they only had one point at the half way mark, were bottom of the group but still qualified. This time around they have three points, are sitting third so things can’t be that bad – right? Sorry wrong.
Unfortunately for Liverpool fans the points’ totals tell lies. Two years ago Liverpool knew at the half way mark that three wins would certainly put them through – not the case this time around. Other results could conspire to derail a Liverpool revival even if it was three straight wins.
Need to do better …….
Bayern Munich are experiencing trouble in the Bundesliga and in the Champions League. A 3-0 match day win away to Maccabi Haifa has been followed by a scoreless home draw with Juventus and a 2-1 away loss to Bordeaux that might have been a lot worse. Bayern needs to beat the French Champions on match day four.
Inter are unbeaten but are also without a win. They face trips to the Nou Camp as well as to Kiev this week. Two wins in the last three games should be enough to qualify from a group that is far tighter than almost anyone forecast. Anything less and Inter might be Europa League bound or ……
Barcelona’s home loss to Rubin Kazan turned the group upside down and presented the current Champions League holders with a problem or two. The two problems are trips to Eastern Europe or in the case of Rubin, even further east. Like Inter, Barcelona needs a couple of wins and can ill afford another loss to the Russian Champions. However, should the unthinkable happen (again) it would set up a dandy at the Nou Camp on match day five when Inter comes calling.
A very disappointing and spiritless opening day loss to Milan placed Marseille firmly behind the eight ball and a trip to the Bernabeu not unexpectedly resulted in no points. However, the French club benefited from Zurich upsetting Milan and in turn losing to Marseille. Another win against Zurich is obligatory and then they will have to knock off one of the big boys – not impossible but third place might be more realistic.
Things could change quickly……..
Juventus sits second in Group A two points behind leaders Bordeaux and a point ahead of Bayern Munich. The Turin club is still carrying the damage of a Bordeaux equalizer on match day one and so there is little wiggle room over the last three games.
Another team that failed to make full use of home advantage has been Wolfsburg. Although they came back to beat CSKA on opening day, match day three brought a scoreless draw and two dropped points to Besiktas. Now a trip to Istanbul beckons and things could become a lot tighter.
Expectations are great for Real Madrid but the loss to Milan on match day three and conceding two goals to Zurich in the opener would have raised questions in other seasons as well. Real still have Zurich at home and should have more than enough to take care of a Marseille side that has yet to impress. However, a loss to Milan in the San Siro would ratchet up the pressure on Real before their final two games.
On the face of it Milan are probably where most would have expected them to be. Most punters would have opted for six points off of Zurich and Marseille and nothing from a trip to Madrid. Sure enough Milan have the six points but they went about things very differently – a home lose to Zurich and a first ever victory in the Bernabeu. The way Milan are playing this season nothing is out of the question and nothing should be taken for granted.
A week or so ago CSKA Moscow fell victim to Manchester United as the English Champions slowed the play down only to sting the Russians in the dying minutes with the only goal of the game. CSKA approach gave United far too much respect and they paid a price. CSKA will see a very different United on Tuesday as the Old Trafford faithful drive the Red Devils forward. That will likely mean that CSKA’s fate will be decided over the last two matches against rivals Wolfsburg (H) and Besiktas (A) - third at the moment but just as likely to finish second or fourth.
Better than expected so far…….
With two home wins and a draw in Turin French champions Bordeaux have a right to be pleased with their record so far. However, there is a sense that the heavy lifting has still to come with a trip to Munich next up, followed by a visit from Juventus. One way or another it looks as if match day six away to Maccabi Haifa is going to be a pressure cooker for Laurent Blanc’s boys.
With two home games left against Debrecen and Lyon and presently sitting in second place Fiorentina are in a solid position in Group E. However, Liverpool are not going to roll over and die and the last thing the Italian side wants is a final game visit to Anfield with qualification on the line. In a head-to-head Fiorentina already have a 2-0 win bagged but as it sits Liverpool would gladly take a situation that would need them to win by three clear goals in order to qualify.
Romanian Champions Unirea Urziceni are following in the footsteps of Cluj and Anorthosis Famagusta and threatening to break through the glass ceiling of group qualification. Ultimately Cluj and Anorthosis Famagusta failed last season succumbing to pressure and some bigger clubs getting very serious.
However, this time around Unirea Urziceni find themselves in a milk toast group with Sevilla the only heavy weight. If they can beat Rangers this week then there is a very good chance that the points cushion will be increase to five with two games to go. One of the games will be against a Sevilla side that might have already locked down a place in the round of sixteen. Dynamo Kiev and Rubin Kazan are sitting second and third in Group F and both have two home games left. In the case of Dynamo their remaining away game is at Rubin Kazan. The pressure may yet get to one or both teams but as it stands either one is only a surprise result away from pulling off a major upset and sending Barcelona or Inter into the Europa League.
Zurich’s position at the bottom of Group C is no surprise and most would bet that they will still be there come mid-December. No matter they will always remember September 30th when they went to the San Siro and beat Milan.
On track…….
Lyon have powered their way to the top of their group with a 100% record. If it was not for Fiorentina and Liverpool the French club would be lumped in with Chelsea, Manchester United and Sevilla. As it is, Lyon may only be a point against Liverpool away from qualifying but until it is all signed and sealed nothing should be taken for granted.
Porto have made it to the group stage of the Champions League 15 times and have an excellent record of making it to the last sixteen since the second group stage was scrapped. The Portuguese champions are tucked in nicely behind Group D leaders Chelsea and a second win against APOEL would leave them within a smidgen of moving through once more.
They have been a couple of slips along the way for Arsenal but no tumbles as of yet. The Gunners’ opening game could not have started worse as they fell behind 2-0 in the first five minutes away to Standard Liege. However, a three goal fight back gave the London side a somewhat fortunate three points. Then in their last outing a last minute goal was given up against AZ and that cost two points. There is, however, a five point gap with third place AZ and three more points over the final three games would likely be enough to move on.
Olympiakos joins the “on track” group but it comes with a significant caveat. The Greek Champions have already played two games at home and they need at least one win or two draws (away to Standard) in order to maintain a margin of safety. Otherwise they will face Arsenal on match day 6 needing to get something from the game.
Cruising to the last sixteen……
Chelsea, Manchester United, and Sevilla all have 100% records and are only a point away from guaranteeing passage to the last sixteen. Chelsea has yet to concede a goal, Sevilla has the best goal difference out of thirty-two teams and Manchester United appear to have perfected the art of qualifying from the group stage with the absolute minimum amount of effort and a total lack of fuss.
Liverpool’s opening goal against Manchester United was wonderfully constructed and decisively executed. The move went from box to box and included five players. But the key moment may have been when Kuyt had a late change of mind and instead of sending a difficult through ball to Torres he played it square to Benayoun – albeit while stumbling to stay upright. Benayoun had a far better angle and was able to play in Torres who timed and directed his run quite beautifully.
Not many teams go to the Nou Camp and escape with a point let alone three. Although they were badly outshot Rubin Kazan made their two shots from Aleksandr Ryazantsev and Gökdeniz Karadeniz count as they beat Barcelona 2-1 and turned Group F in Champions League upside down.
Can Italian national team boss Marcello Lippi resist the pressure to call up Antonio Cassano or is he just playing an end game that keeps Cassano on tenterhooks (as well as focused and behaved) until the last possible moment? Cassano was the architect of Sampdoria’s 4-1 hammering of Bologna.
Three of the goals fall into the category of “special” but the second goal involving Cassano, Pazzini and Daniele Mannini had something extra. The ball travelled from Cassano to Pazzini before the former Napoli player struck a fantastic volley past the Bologna keeper – the ball never touched the ground from Cassano until it rested in the net.
Honorable mentions....
It was tucked away and largely ignored because of other higher profile Champions league games this week but the goal by Debrecen’s Rudolf was excellent.
Debrecen has still to gain a point in group play but when you include their qualifying games they have struck some great long range goals that would grace any highlight real.
In CONCACAF Champions League play Houston Dynamo goalie Tally Hall scored for Houston Dynamo against Metapán from open play.
Best forgotten…..
Rangers got off to a great start against Unirea Urziceni when the Romanian club conceded an own goal with only a couple of minutes played in the midweek Champions League Group G match.
But instead of enjoying the good fortune Rangers opted to return the favour …….and more. Two own goals (it could well have been three) and a missed penalty by Steven Davis contributed to Rangers worst ever European performance as they lost 4-1.
Going into this weekend Toronto FC held the final play-off spot in MLS. A win against the poorest team in the league, New York Red Bulls, would not have guaranteed post season play but it would have given Toronto an exceptionally good chance.
The ensuing 5-0 defeat was an absolute embarrassment and if the Toronto players cash their pay cheques this week they should be charged with taking money under false pretenses. Based on that performance they would have struggled to defend themselves against a door-to-door bible thumping grannie.
MLS referees and TV commentators seem to have had a difficult time picking out two-footed tackles this past weekend. On Saturday Red Bulls keeper Bouna Condoul rushed out of his box and sailed into Toronto FC striker Chad Barrett with both feet. Barrett had to leave the game after being injured by the “challenge” – no card and no comment.
On Sunday it was the Crew’s Frankie Hejduk turn as he went into Kenny Mansally with both feet – no card and the ESPN color commentator described it as a well timed tackle!!
Stat facts…..
When David Ngog scored a late goal for Liverpool against Manchester United it not only sealed the win but it was only the second time in 2009 that United have conceded two goals in an away game. The other team to do it? That would be Fulham back in the spring.
The New England Revolution took it to the last game of the regular season but they did finally wrap up the last MLS play-off spot. That makes it eight straight years in post season MLS play for Revolution Coach Steve Nicol – a new MLS record.
On Saturday Stoke City became only the second team in 2009 to shut out Tottenham Hotspur at White Hart Lane. The other was Arsenal who drew 0-0 earlier in the year.
Losses to Hamburg and Unirea Urziceni means that Celtic and Rangers have now combined for only four wins in regulation time in their last 33 European matches.
Vidic and Mascherano seem to be having their own personal red card duel going within Liverpool and Manchester United matches. Red cards for both on Sunday makes it three for Vidic (a natural hat trick?) and a double for Mascherano.
Manchester City not only surrendered a two goal lead to Fulham and had to settle for a draw but a run of twenty-six home games without a tie ended. City never drew a home game all of last season.
Napoli beat Fiorentina 1-0 and recorded their first away in Serie A in one day short of a full year. It was October 26, 2008 when Napoli beat Lazio 1-0 in the Stadio Olympico in Rome.
Tony Cascarino takes on the persona of Mr. Micawber with an updated version of, “Annual income twenty pounds, annual expenditure nineteen nineteen six, result happiness. Annual income twenty pounds, annual expenditure twenty pounds ought and six, result misery.”
And it applies to clubs as well. Rangers are essentially under the control of their bankers - HBoS.
Mark Robins, the man who changed the course of English and European football history.
Coming up this week…..
There is no shortage of European league and cup soccer this week. Serie A has a full fixture list on Wednesday and Thursday.
Thursday, October 22, 2009, 05:42 PM EST
[General]
Crisis is such a relative term – particularly in soccer. How else can you explain Burnley, with 12 points sitting in 9th position and a goal difference of –10, being regarded as a success while Liverpool are two positions and three points better off and enjoy a goal difference of 9 but are currently the crisis club of the Premier League?
Much of it comes down to the old adage about under promising and over delivering. Burnley supporters have seen their side return to the top flight after a trek through the Football League wilderness that lasted just short of a record set back in biblical times. For Burnley this season, survival equates to success.
However, for Liverpool supporters and many media pundits this was going to be the year that Liverpool won the Premier League for the first time and secured their 19th top flight title after a drought of two decades. Expectations, while always high on Merseyside, were ratcheted up.
The source of the optimism was Liverpool’s performance last season. They collected more points (86) than any other runner up had ever recorded, did the league double over Chelsea and Manchester United, rattled off an amazing 31 points from a possible 33 down the straight all while pushing United to the second last round of play.
Four Premier League defeats in their first nine games this season is just not how it is supposed to be. And now the pressure on the team and coaching staff as they approach Sunday’s match against Manchester United has risen considerably. With a squad that now looks gossamer thin Rafa Benitez has to pull a few bunnies out of the hat if his side is going to take anything away from Sunday’s game at Anfield.
And it is when you take a close look at Liverpool’s squad that you realize how lean it is in compared with their traditional Premier League rivals. So how come Liverpool are in such a predicament?
The answer is, not surprisingly, money and in Liverpool’s case a distinct lack of it. The club just didn’t invest enough to strengthen the squad over the summer nor does it have a raft of promising youngsters ready to break into the first team.
Rafa Benitez has taken a few body and head shots this week as supporters and columnists have lined up to take aim at his transfer record. Such criticism is not only unfair but holds Benitez to a higher standard than the likes of Ferguson, Wenger and a gaggle of managers who have popped into Stamford Bridge for a cup of coffee over the last few years.
Benitez is certainly culpable for some poor buys but he has also made some very good ones as well. Essentially, he is no different than any other manager.
Ferguson’s cupboard contains skeletons of Veron, Kleberson, Liam Miller and Djemba-Djemba while Wenger would like Arsenal fans to forget Giovanni van Bronckhorst, Igor Stepanovs, Francis Jeffers and Pascal Cygan. (Chelsea fans no doubt can come up with an extensive list as well).
The difference is that Manchester United, Chelsea and Arsenal all enjoy some wiggle room while Benitez has none. Liverpool is a club teetering on the financial brink while its business model seems to attract many of the negatives but few of the positives employed by the likes of Arsenal, Manchester United and Chelsea.
Liverpool have moved more aggressively to beef up their academy over the last couple of years but it is far too early for the changes to pay off. Arsenal got a jump on retooling their youth scouting and training operations a few years ago and it has paid off – albeit not as fully as some would demand. Arsenal youngsters may still lack experience but they appear miles ahead in terms of development when compared with Liverpool’s future stars.
Hicks and Gillett followed the path trodden by fellow American Martin Glazer and decided to buy a Premier League club with other people’s money employing a leverage buy-out.
The plan may have been the same but the business fundamentals of Manchester United and Liverpool are very different. By good fortune rather than good planning Manchester United’s reincarnation as the dominant club in England coincided with an unprecedented boom in revenue made available to clubs through TV rights and subsequently the Champions League.
The uptick in revenue has benefited all Premier League clubs but the distribution of riches is very much tilted to the most successful ones and none has been more successful in England over last 15 years than Manchester United.
What is more United’s success has been replicated in foreign markets where they enjoyed a great deal of popularity founded on the Busby Babes of the 50s and Law-Charlton-Best the decade after. (One thing that was down to good planning was the investment United made in Old Trafford which assured the club of a modern facility and spared the expense of building new).
The Glazer business model is a high-wire act with little in the way of safety measures but United’s continued success and popularity has so far provided sufficient cash flow to fund the high cost of borrowing. It is high risk but it enjoys a buffer of cash generation that Liverpool’s owners Hicks and Gillett can only dream of.
The dilemma faced by Hicks and Gillett is compounded by the need to replace Anfield. This has been known for a very long time and was in fact one of the selling points of a Hicks-Gillett ownership group. The financial reality is that the stadium is really no closer to fruition than when David Moores decided to sell to the Americans.
Of course Chelsea can be thrown out as an example of a club that manages to succeed with a stadium that holds around 40,000 so why can’t Liverpool make Anfield work?
The reason is quiet simple – Chelsea has an owner who is filthy rich and when push comes to shove Chelsea does not live or die financially from game day revenues but from the willingness of Roman Abramovich to maintain his interest in the club.
Even then, should the Russian decide to find another toy the only short term casualty will be his bank account. If he put Chelsea up for sale he would take a sizeable – but probably manageable – hit to his personal fortune.
When the Americans bought Liverpool they were viewed as a step or two down from Abramovich when the truth was they were and still are nothing but opportunists looking to make a quick buck. But as Liverpool struggle on the field the chance that Hicks and Gillett will make money on the deal begins to evaporate.
There is blood in the water and any prospective buyer worth his salt is going to circle waiting for the asking price to drop significantly before moving in. For Liverpool fans it might require the loss of a nose to get rid of two unwanted faces.
Who is hot and who is not…a weekly look at the form teams over the last 5 games. Premier League Manchester United – 13 points West Ham – 1 point
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