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End Of Term Grades: Forwards

 Posted by on May 16, 2013 at 10:37 pm  Blogs/Media, England, EPL, Liverpool
May 162013
 

For those of you who haven’t been following along so far, I’m grading the 2012-13 campaign for individual Liverpool players using the O.W.L. rating scale from Harry Potter.

Here’s a quicker refresher…

Passing

O = Outstanding

E= Exceeds Expectations

A = Acceptable

Failing

P = Poor

D = Dreadful

T = Troll

 

Let’s get going!

Luis Suarez: O (Outstanding)

This one is pretty obvious.

Putting aside his extreme case of the munchies against Chelsea, the Uruguayan striker had a phenomenal season practically carrying Liverpool on his back throughout the season. He finished in the top five in terms of league goals and continued to show that he may just be the third best player in the world behind Messi and Ronaldo. He did struggle against better competition, but more than made up for it with his performances against the lower half.

The important people continue to say he’s not going anywhere, but we can’t help but wonder if he isn’t becoming more trouble than he’s worth. This won’t isn’t about to play itself anytime soon.

Daniel Sturridge: E (Exceeds Expectations)

Sturridge was pretty much on his last stop when he came to Anfield from Chelsea in January after washing out with Manchester City. Infamous for a piss poor attitude and a very selfish, “me first” game on the field, Sturridge has turned out to be a wonderful addition. In half a season he managed to score 10 goals and will be expected to fill the void up top whether Suarez returns next season or not.

I’m still not 100% convinced he’s a good fit for what Brendan Rodgers wants to accomplish, but there’s no denying he has revitalized his career at Anfield.

Fabio Borini: A (Acceptable)

Borini missed a decent number of games in his first season at Anfield, but he has shown a bit of a nose for goal and he’s still very young with lots of playing time ahead of him. Rodgers loves former players of his so expect to see the young Italian  a lot more next season, perhaps with an increase in responsibility if Suarez and/or Andy Carroll depart permanently.

Oussama Assaidi: P (Poor)

The Moroccan winger also saw little playing time with the first team in his first season at Anfield. He has shown flashes of the skill needed to play under Brendan Rodgers, but he did not capitalize on his chances to impress nearly as much as Fabio Borini; especially in terms of goal production. We’ll see if he can break out and snatch a more favorable role from his biggest positional competition, Stewart Downing.

Raheem Sterling: A (Acceptable)

He seemed poised for a massive break out in the first half of the season, but his form and playing time tapered off as the season wore on. He still has some growing up to do, but he’s got some time to do so and if he continues to develop properly, he can be a major contributor in a few years.

To Recall Or Not Recall Andy Carroll

 Posted by on April 8, 2013 at 8:31 pm  Blogs/Media, England, EPL, Global Football Today, Liverpool
Apr 082013
 

That was the question being asked ahead of Sunday’s clash with West Ham.

The scoreless draw has put Liverpool’s Europa League hopes in jeopardy. It also served to highlight just how inconsistent the Reds have played this season.

But it did not answer “the question”. In times of such doubt, I find it best to make a pros and cons list.

Con: Dribbling

Ready for some shocking insight?

Andy Carroll is NOT Luis Suarez!

The towering English striker has little to no technical ability to speak of whatsoever. As a result, he is not a good fit for the style of play that Rodgers wants to see out of his team.

Pro: Aerial Prowess

Carroll is more than capable of scoring with his upper half. While his technical ability (or lack thereof) hinders his chances with Rodgers, his tactical ability to play as a lone striker could be of great assistance.

With natural wingers like Stewart Downing, Raheem Sterling, Suso, and Oussama Assaidi on either side of him, Carroll would be ideal starting alone up top in a 4-3-3 formation.

Con: Attitude

Age and time away from Anfield haven’t exactly caused Carroll to mature. He still carries off the field baggage and Brendan Rodgers has made it quite clear that he will not tolerate dissent among his ranks.

Pro: Depth

If nothing else, Andy Carroll is one more true striker to add to the roster. If Luis Suarez leaves this summer then suddenly Carroll looks like a good option with only Daniel Sturridge and a hobbled Fabio Borini to compete with.

By my tally that’s a 2-2 draw. Ultimately it remains to be seen if Andy Carroll can in fact provide any benefit next year. The deciding factor could end up being financial. Carroll won’t fetch the same fee that Liverpool paid for him, but Rodgers may have to take what he can get if he lacks transfer funds this summer.

As of right now, I say he gets sold. And I’d say that’s the right move.

Liverpool Song Of The Week: You’re The Best Around (Joe Esposito)

 Posted by on March 4, 2013 at 8:02 pm  Blogs/Media, England, EPL, Liverpool
Mar 042013
 

Sing it with me…

You’re the beeest arooounnddd

Nothing’s gonna ever keep ya down!

Doesn’t that feel great?! It certainly felt a lot better than Liverpool’s “routine” 3-0 victory over Wigan over the weekend. The reds controlled the match from the start and left little doubt about the result. The second goal in particular stands out as newcomer Philippe Coutinho calmly collected the ball and played a beautiful through ball to Luis Suarez, who did what he does best and put the ball in the back of the net.

Suarez now has 21 league goals scored, putting himself two ahead of Manchester United’s Robin Van Persie and the ever impressive Keebler Elf Gareth Bale. This stat alone is merit enough for the Uruguayan to be named Player Of The Year. But consider the situation Liverpool was in back in September. They looked foolish in their failed attempt to sign Clint Dempsey after letting Andy Carroll go on loan. Shortly thereafter, Fabio Borini went down with a long term injury and suddenly it was Luis Suarez and…no one else.

Fast forward to today and you’ll find Liverpool in seventh place in the table. They are third in the league in scoring. None of this would be possible without Luis Suarez. And if you think about it, how many other players currently in the EPL are capable of carrying a team on their back the way he has. The previously mentioned Van Persie and Bale are surrounded by more than enough talent.

This is what makes Suarez’s 2012-13 season so remarkable. He has not had world class talent around him. Not that he needs it though. Suarez might be second only to Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo in terms of individual skill. Whenever the ball arrives at his feet, you know for a fact he is firmly in control of it. It does not move unless he commands it. He creates goals with little to no service from his teammates; which is appropriate considering the best passer out of the midfield right now is a 20 year old Brazilian from Inter.

Time will tell if the Uruguayan forward will move on to the likes of Juventus or Bayern Munich (to name a few) this summer. He’s certainly capable of a massive raise the way he has carried Liverpool from the depths of mediocrity. He becomes even more valuable when you consider the latest news about Liverpool’s debt piling up. They may have no choice but to take market value for their prized goal scorer.

But in the meantime, whether you love him or hate him, let’s all stop and celebrate everything he has accomplished so far this season.

He’s the best around.

 

“Walk on with hope in your heart and you’ll never walk alone!”

Jury Still Out On Sturridge

 Posted by on January 16, 2013 at 8:53 pm  Blogs/Media, England, EPL, Liverpool
Jan 162013
 

He has said all the right things. He has scored twice in his first two appearances.

But I’m still not convinced Daniel Sturridge is a long term solution for Liverpool’s woes.

First he scored against Mansfield in an early round FA Cup match. Yes, it was away from Anfield but that’s hardly a true “test” of his ability. Jonjo Shelvey set him up brilliantly and I would EXPECT a player of lesser skill to finish that particular chance. He also had another one on one with Mansfield’s keeper later on, only to take way too much time deciding what to do and ultimately fluff his chance.

Then came his performance in the second half of a match at Old Trafford. Certainly a bigger stage for the young striker to shine. But once again Sturridge scored a goal that any halfway decent striker should score. Steven Gerrard did all the hard work and Sturridge simply buried the rebound.

It’s still too early to form an opinion about Sturridge’s fit at Anfield, but I did not like what I saw in the second half of that Manchester United match. When Sturridge came on, Liverpool seemed to lose their shape. Everyone ahead of the back four seemed to drift in and out of various positions. Not only did the team’s shape look poor, but there were several occasions where Sturridge showed us why Manchester City and Chelsea gave up on him by demonstrating his propensity to keep his head down and look for his own shot when it’s not there. This would be a problem on any team, but it’s an especially large problem for Liverpool because Luis Suarez needs to have the ball at his feet as much as possible in order to be successful. Sturridge, on the other hand, needs a lot of service. Despite the results, I’d rather have the former scenario.

Yes, Liverpool have had issues scoring, but when Suarez is the focal point of the attack everyone’s role is that much more defined. The team is able to hold its shape much better and the attack looks more fluid. Liverpool need an attacking player to complement Suarez; not clash with him. Fabio Borini struggled early in the season, but he’s on his way back to being 100% healthy and I still think he’d be a better option. He can play on the wing in Rodgers’ 4-3-3 and complement Suarez much better than Sturridge can. If the ManU game showed us anything, it’s that Sturridge and Suarez (at first glance) appear unable to co-exist on the field at the same time.

Of course, it’s only been two matches. As the second half of the season unfolds we’ll learn more, but for the time being I’m still not impressed with the man who consumed 90% of Liverpool’s January transfer budget.

 

“Walk on with hope in your heart and you’ll never walk alone”

Welcome Back…Fabio Borini Out 3 Months!

 Posted by on October 18, 2012 at 10:40 pm  Blogs/Media, England, EPL, Liverpool
Oct 182012
 

The international break can be quite the double edged sword. It gives some players the chance to get some much needed rest. It also gives other players a chance to sharpen their skills while serving their country.

Liverpool forward Fabio Borini did the latter, but he also aggravated an injury supposedly suffered during the Reds’ match against Manchester United back in September. Borini will be out for three months, leaving Liverpool with exactly one true striker on their senior roster. Brendan Rodgers has said he will not recall Andy Carroll from his loan with West Ham in January. There is “good news” for Liverpool fans though as the club announced 18 year old Spanish youngster Suso received a new, more lucrative deal.

Actually the real good news is that Liverpool return from the international break with one of the few clubs that WON’T be favored against the Reds for the next three months: Reading. And it’s at home, although the Reds have yet to earn three points at Anfield. You almost have to wonder if Luis Suarez will be “rested” this weekend on the bench. Brendan Rodgers literally cannot afford to lose the Uruguayan to any sort of injury, lest Liverpool’s senior squad be reduced to a reserve side overnight.

It’s just one thing after another. This nightmare of a season continues to get worse. I continue to stress that it would be better for Liverpool to get relegated, lick their wounds, and come back better than ever with a new outlook on life in 2014. But odds are the Reds will battle the Drop Zone the entire season only to finish in 15th. It will be truly fascinating to see what happens during the January transfer window. Notice how I assumed something will happen. There is no possible way John Henry can afford to keep his checkbook completely shut when the window opens after Christmas. American Liverpool fans like myself will also be watching the offseason for Henry’s “other toy”: the Boston Red Sox baseball club. I imagine Henry and Fenway Sports Group will be hesitant to make any big deals for either team, meaning Liverpool will have to continue to limp to the finish in the second half of the season. I’m pretty much throwing away all expectations for the Europa League too for that matter.

Of course, the real challenge at this point is filling out the front three in Brendan Rodgers’ 4-3-3 for Saturday’s match with Reading. Here’s my two cents…

Reina

Johnson – Wisdom – Skrtel – Robinson

Shelvey – Allen – Sahin

Sterling – Suarez – Suso

Obviously Suso’s new deal says a lot about Rodgers’ plans for him in the future. With Steven Gerrard as old and fragile as he is, it would be wise to keep him out for what is sure to be Liverpool’s easiest opponent this season. In fact I had to talk myself out of starting Adam Morgan for Suarez, but I don’t trust these youngsters THAT much. Not yet anyways. With Daniel Agger’s health also in question of  late, this seems like a good spot to give Andrew Wisdom the nod since he’s had a decent season thus far. The same goes for Jack Robinson at left back since Jose Enrique also doesn’t appear to be 100% and, again, Saturday’s match is very winnable to begin with.

I’ve been pretty gloom and doom all season about this team, so the confidence I have in the youngsters for this weekend’s match should tell you how I feel about their chances against Reading. It won’t be easy, but the Reds should finally earn their first league victory at Anfield this season.

Prediction: Liverpool 2-1 Reading

Tipping Point (Liverpool @ Norwich)

 Posted by on September 27, 2012 at 9:30 pm  Blogs/Media, England, EPL, Liverpool
Sep 272012
 

Before we get to this weekend’s match, I would be remiss if I didn’t comment on Wednesday’s league cup (I will not call it by its “proper” name) victory over West Brom.

Another non-league match, another glorified youth squad.

If it wasn’t obvious enough, Brendan Rodgers has a thin bench. Any non-league match at this point forces him to trot out the youngsters by default. Case in point: Wednesday’s match saw a new record for youngest debut with the senior team. A  lot of people are optimistic about the future after Wednesday’s display. It’s hard not to be, even if it was Nuri Sahin who scored both goals. There are talented players waiting in the wings.

But do not tell me that all of a sudden Dani Pacheco and Samed Yesil deserve a shot at the first team. These players are not prepared for the rigors of a full length season against some of the most talented individuals in the world. Will they be ready in two or three more years? Absolutely. But as I’ve said before, Liverpool are only falling farther behind by trying to play their youth/academy players too early.

And with that we turn our attention back to league play!

Saturday’s trip to Norwich has the potential to make or break the rest of the season. Liverpool currently sit in the third relegation spot with Norwich right on top of them. The Canaries have plenty to fight for at home and will not roll over. A loss will only magnify fears of relegation. It does not get any easier after this weekend with Stoke City (impossible to score against) and Everton (pesky local rival) coming up in October before November welcomes Newcastle and Chelsea. I would love nothing more than to let Brendan Rodgers have all the time in the order to try and create the “English Barcelona”, but nothing good can come from fighting off relegation for the entire season. Are we really better off finishing 14th or 15th and going into next summer with another meager transfer budget?

So with all that being said, who should start Saturday? Do some of the youngsters deserve a look? Here’s what I think…

Reina

Johnson- Skrtel – Coates – Enrique

 Sahin – Allen – Gerrard

Sterling – Suarez – Borini

Daniel Agger and Martin Kelly have left massive holes in the back line and Jonjo Shelvey will serve his three match ban so a spot opens up for Sahin to start. I no longer believe in Jamie Carragher, so Coates gets the start. It’s time for him to prove he’s worthy of being a first team regular. There really aren’t a whole lot of options without dipping into the new found Fountain of Youth. If Rodgers wasn’t so stubborn about the 4-3-3, a 4-4-2 with Gerrard and Sterling at the outside midfield spots would make a whole lot more sense. Fabio Borini’s natural position is at striker. He struggles when he has to create for himself on the wing, far away from the goal. But if the 4-3-3 is must, then this is really the only option.

I think some momentum from Wednesday will carry over this weekend, but not enough to earn three points.

Prediction: Liverpool 1-1 Norwich

“Walk on with hope in your heart and you’ll never walk alone!”

Redundant (Liverpool 1-1 Sunderland)

 Posted by on September 16, 2012 at 10:51 am  Blogs/Media, England, EPL, Liverpool
Sep 162012
 

I wasn’t able to get in front of a screen with Saturday’s Liverpool-Sunderland match until just before halftime. At one point I saw someone on Twitter say the following (paraphrased)…

“I’d like to say something insightful about Liverpool, but it’s as simple as a need to score goals. Something we knew back in August.”

I responded: “I feel like my job as a Liverpool blogger is to find 35 different ways to say that for the rest of the season”

Many will feel optimistic about the way Liverpool dominated possession and looked to have Brendan Rodgers’ new system finally under control. Unfortunately, all the  possession in the world couldn’t stop Sunderland from capitalizing on one of their few spells when Steven Fletcher got free in front of goal and redirected a cross to give the home side the early 1-0 lead in the first half. After that we saw more of the same from Liverpool: lots of possession, a couple posts nicked, and no clinical finishing. Granted, Luis Suarez managed to bring one back in the second half to ultimately save a point, but the fact of the matter is he is the only true threat to score for Liverpool.

We also saw the end (or perhaps a temporary halt) to the experiment of playing Stewart Downing at left back. Downing came on for Fabio Borini in the second half to try and steal three points. What really struck me was how much Raheem Sterling looks like a young Stewart Downing in that he’s great in one on one situations with the ball at his feet. Unfortunately, as Downing has showed us so far, that’s hardly the ideal skill for Brendan Rodgers’ new system. Passing is valued above all else and there is little room for individuals trying to dribble at the defense.

So while Liverpool certainly looked like they are finally getting the system firmly into place, it was still the same old Liverpool failing to capitalize. There is no room for error in the next seven days either. Thursday includes a trip to Switzerland for the Europa League opener against Young Boys and then it’s right back to Anfield over the weekend for a meeting with Manchester United. As improved as the Reds looked, I’m not convinced they have what it takes to earn three points against the Red Devils. Emotions will be riding crazy high with the combination of Liverpool’s first home match since the Hillsborough Report and a Manchester United on the other end of the pitch.

It’s still very early, but this week can tell us quite a bit about the direction Liverpool are headed for the rest of the season.

 

“Walk on with hope in your heart and you’ll never walk alone!”

 

Back To Business (Liverpool @ Sunderland)

 Posted by on September 13, 2012 at 9:46 pm  Blogs/Media, England, EPL, Liverpool
Sep 132012
 

I am a 24 year old American who has never been to England.

Unfortunately, this means I can never truly appreciate the significance of what has happened this week. Based on everything I’ve read, it does sound like justice was served this week for the families of the 96 fans who lost their lives at Hillsborough in 1989. My heart certainly goes out to them and I hope they can rest a bit easier now knowing that guilt has been properly assigned for the disaster.

I don’t mean to sound insensitive, but the Reds are back in action this week after the international break. Saturday marks the return of Liverpool football and they’ll travel to Sunderland for a match with the Black Cats.

When last we left the Reds, they were free falling towards the bottom of the table after a 2-0 defeat at the hands of Arsenal. Despite having a week to simmer, I still do not feel optimistic about how the season will turn out. The roster is still paper thin and once powerful veterans like Steven Gerrard and Pepe Reina are still performing poorly. The situation has not improved much.

That being said, Sunderland hasn’t looked all that great so far this season either. Away matches are never easy, but it’s better than next week’s date with Manchester United. Anything less than a point taken will unacceptable and a win would be huge in restoring the club’s confidence going forward.

Here’s the lineup I would trot out…

Reina

Johnson – Skrtel – Agger – Downing

Gerrard – Allen – Sahin

Sterling – Suarez – Borini

It sure is great to have Daniel Agger back! At this point we might as go all in with the “Downing at LB” experiment. Raheem Sterling is no longer a young prospect, but rather the best option available. Joe Allen continues to impress and it will be interesting to see how Nuri Sahin does in his second appearance.

There are a million ways this one could play out, especially due to the emotional impact of the Hillsborough Report. But this one isn’t at Anfield, so I’ll settle for a 1-1 draw and move on to Thursday’s Europa League match at Young Boys.

Prediction: Liverpool 1-1 Sunderland

EVERYBODY PANIC!!!

 Posted by on September 1, 2012 at 1:30 am  Blogs/Media, England, EPL, Liverpool
Sep 012012
 

Count me among the Liverpool fans/supporters who are worried the sky could fall at any second.

The transfer deadline has come and gone. Liverpool sent Andy Carroll and Jay Spearing out on loan and sold Charlie Adam for roughly 4 million Pounds to Stoke City. This would’ve been a cause for celebration except the Reds failed to outbid Tottenham for the services of American forward Clint Dempsey.

Dempsey was the biggest prize for Liverpool all summer. Both sides wanted a deal to get done, even though Liverpool will not play in the Champions League this season. And at less than 10 million Pounds, many fans are scratching their heads as to why Spurs ultimately came out on top. Many are speculating that this only confirms what we’ve all feared: last summer’s signings of Jordan Henderson, Stewart Downing, and Charlie Adam have caused irrevocable financial damage.

But this goes far deeper than Liverpool. Fenway Sports Group, who owns both Liverpool and the American baseball team Boston Red Sox, just completed a trade for the Red Sox that allowed them to dump over $200 million in salary. This is an ownership group that is backtracking and wants to put financial stability ahead of anything else. And I can understand that…to a degree.

I’ve said all summer that despite last summer’s terrible deals, Liverpool needed to splash some cash on one or two big name players. Now it seems they have almost no cash whatsoever. The ownership group did the same thing they did with the Red Sox: they made moves solely for the purpose of cutting their losses. It also sounds like they failed to discuss this with manager Brendan Rodgers. Rodgers said just last week that he’d be foolish to try and deal Andy Carroll without a viable backup. Now he appears to be just as confused and angry as the rest of us. This roster has become incredibly thin, especially up top. Liverpool needed a high profile goal scorer. Instead they signed a Germany/Bayer Leverkusen U-18 player named Samed Yesil. And in a less publicized move, Nathan Eccleston was sold at the deadline today as well. So if you’re keeping score at home that means Luis Suarez and Fabio Borini are the only players capable of playing a striker/forward role. I was hardly impressed by Adam Morgan the other night which means the Reds are up a creek without a paddle.

To make matters worse, they learned their fate in the Europa League today. Their group will consist of Udinese, Anzhi Makhachkala, and Young Boys. This year’s Champions League draw shows us just how important Europa League results are in determining a country’s coefficient score which ultimately determines the number of teams who qualify for the Champions League. If Liverpool wanted to increase their odds of making it back next season, they needed to make a run here. Now with a thin roster, the task seems even more daunting.

Oh and let’s not forget that Arsenal are in town Sunday morning!

I am usually incredibly optimistic when it comes to supporting my favorite teams. I always prefer to look on the bright side of any bad situation. But this is a huge problem. I posed a rhetorical question earlier on Twitter: When was the last time a team won the EPL or UCL as a result of building a team from the ground up? Whose 3-5 year plan ever works out? There is only one way to succeed in European football: Buy Buy Buy!!! You HAVE to buy great players. Luis Suarez did not come cheap. Nor did past players like Xabi Alonso, Javier Mascherano, and Fernando Torres. You have to spend money in order to bring in talented players. If your owners cannot provide that money then you are left with only one option: auction off your Academy teams. But how can Liverpool try to sell a player like Raheem Sterling when in fact they need him to play with the first team? Now they have to keep him. I don’t see Liverpool churning out too many teenage sensations for a decent price. So Brendan Rodgers is now stuck with an incredibly shallow squad while his bosses scramble to correct the mistakes of the past.

Make no mistake about it: Friday’s deadline day was a disaster for Liverpool. The future certainly doesn’t look bright. Suddenly you have to question management’s plan to turn things around. And don’t expect reinforcements in January when fees are the most inflated. The following is your 2012-13 Liverpool roster…

GK-Pepe Reina, Doni

DEF-Glen Johnson, Jose Enrique (currently not fit), Daniel Agger, Martin Skrtel, Jamie Carragher, Martin Kelly, Stewart Downing, Sebastian Coates, Jack Robinson, Jon Flanagan

Midfield-Steven Gerrard, Joe Allen, Lucas (out 2-3 months), Nuri Sahin, Jordan Henderson, Jonjo Shelvey, Joe Cole (currently unfit), Raheem Sterling, Oussama Assaidi

Forwards-Luis Suarez, Fabio Borini, Adam Morgan

Now keep calm and slowly push the panic button with me…

 

“Walk on with hope in your heart and you’ll never walk alone!”

Go Deeper (Europa League: Liverpool 1-0 Hearts)

 Posted by on August 23, 2012 at 5:52 pm  EPL, Europa League, Liverpool
Aug 232012
 

They didn’t score, but Liverpool will leave Scotland with a one goal advantage thanks to a 78th minute own goal from Hearts defender Andy Webster.

I found the game to be surprisingly enjoyable, though for all the wrong reasons. It was a very back and forth affair with both sides making more mistakes than actually creating chances. When it was all said and done though, all I could think about was one thing.

“I’m absolutely right.”

Arrogant, I know. A couple weeks ago I wrote about how I wish Liverpool would go out and spend more during the transfer window. Well this match showed just how much Liverpool need to spend if they want to remain a serious threat for the English Premier League title and a berth in the Champions League every year. Right now it seems like Fenway Sports Group and Brendan Rodgers have a long term plan in place to rebuild the squad from the ground up with Rodgers handpicking each player for his “tiki taka” system.

I don’t think Liverpool can afford to wait that long though. Rodgers sent out a reserve team against Hearts (minus Daniel Agger and Pepe Reina) and they struggled mightily against the Scottish side. Hearts certainly played well enough to have earned a draw, but we saw the reinforcements, so to speak, for Liverpool and they did not impress. I asked myself: how many of these starters would I feel comfortable inserting into the regular Starting XI at a moment’s notice? All I could come up with was Raheem Sterling and he didn’t have that great of a match. No other player impressed me enough for consideration.

This is where money and transfers comes into play. Many will say that Manchester City bought the EPL title last season. Strange when you consider they needed a last gasp goal on the final day of the season to do so. Sure, City have splashed lots of cash on plenty of quality players. That’s exactly what you’re supposed to do. Because if you’re a top flight club in England, you need all the help you can get. It’s already difficult trying to navigate league play from August until May. It’s even more difficult when you have two cup competitions and European competition thrown on top of that. You almost need two Starting XIs in order to be successful. City had that last season and Arsenal have attempted to do so going back to last summer. You don’t spend a ton of money on one player (i.e. Ronaldo, Fernando Torres, etc) but rather you go out and spend on many different players. Last season Arsenal pulled in the likes of Yossi Benayoun and Mikel Arteta. This season they’ve gone out and gotten Lukas Podolski, Olivier Giroud, and Santi Cazorla. Chelsea have gone out and bought Romelu Lukaku, Daniel Sturridge, Eden Hazard, Oscar, Gary Cahill, and now (reportedly) Victor Moses; all within the past 18 months.

Now I realize the problem here: Liverpool went out and did just that last season by buying up Andy Carroll, Charlie Adam, Jordan Henderson, Stewart Downing, and Sebastian Coates. They spent a fortune on a handful of players. But those players were not being properly rated. Why? Because for whatever reason, British players are constantly being overvalued in today’s transfer market. So far Joe Allen and Fabio Borini, Brendan Rodgers’ two purchases who have played so far, have looked like decent pickups. Time will tell if Oussama Assaidi was a smart choice to bring in. But it can’t stop here. Liverpool HAVE to do whatever it takes to bring in Clint Dempsey AND Nuri Sahin. Veterans (Jamie Carragher) and promising youngsters (Jonjo Shelvey and Jay Spearing) have to be sold in order to be flipped into a quality center back and striker who are talented enough to start on any given Saturday, regardless of the system being used. The new system relies so much on precision and timing that you literally cannot afford to have mediocre players playing within it, regardless of their pass completion percentage. It works for Barcelona (and Spain) BECAUSE they have the best players in the world…and then some very good players coming off the bench as well.

Depth is the most important thing right now for Liverpool if they want to return to the Top 4 every year. If Manchester City, Arsenal, and Chelsea have taught us anything, it’s that you need to reach deep inside your wallet to obtain that depth. Two of those clubs weren’t always great. They became great when they found owners willing spend money to make money.

It’s time Liverpool does the same before Charlie Adam and Jordan Henderson become the only options available to start at a moment’s notice.

 

“Walk on with hope in your heart and you’ll never walk alone!”

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