Liverpool’s season: A post-mortem
by Steve
I was just listening to some of tonight’s Manchester City/Tottenham Hotspur game, where both sides are fighting for the fourth spot in the Premier League and the place in next season’s Champions League that comes with it. As a Liverpool supporter facing a Champions League-free 2010/11 season, I began to think that should be us.
Then I realised that no, it really shouldn’t be us.
In one sense, Liverpool should be expecting a whole lot higher than fourth in the Premiership. Last year saw us finishing second, losing just two league games all year. That could have, and should have, been something to build on. This season was a golden opportunity to go forward and win the league.
This year arguably saw a lack of quality throughout the league, but especially in the bottom half. In other years the likes of Wolverhampton Wanderers and Wigan Athletic would have been staring relegation in the face. Even the tops sides struggled, dropping more points than in previous years. The title was there for the taking. Liverpool, and me as a supporter, really needed to expect more than just fourth place.
In another sense, it shouldn’t be us competing for fourth spot because, frankly, we haven’t been anywhere near good enough. There have been flashes of quality, such as beating Manchester United earlier in the season and the recent defeats of Portsmouth and Sunderland, but all in all there has been a lack of class and a lack of consistency.
We can point to a lack of squad depth, certainly. If Torres had been fit all season, there could have been a few more wins here and there. But the best sides do not rely on one or two players. The best sides can grind out results no matter what the circumstances.
Sixth or seventh spot, a Champions League first round exit and capitulation in the Europa League is a poor, poor return. For a club of Liverpool’s ambition and size, this season has been a disaster.
And as someone who has supported Rafa Benitez more than most, I hate to say it, but the blame has to lie squarely with the manager. Boardroom uncertainties cannot have helped, but they cannot explain bewildering transfers, both in and out of the club, and tactics that basically haven’t worked.
As Liverpool limp towards the end of the season, rumours persist around Benitez’s future, with Juventus and Real Madrid (maybe) courting him. I think now is the time for Liverpool to let him move on and for the club to make a fresh start. If Rafa leaves of his own accord they can avoid a massive pay-out to cover the rest of his contract.
The summer is the perfect time to rebuild. I hope Liverpool take that opportunity and appoint a manager who can inspire the likes of Torres and Gerrard to stick with the club and make it great once again. I won’t be getting excited just yet, though. Did I call this a post-mortem, because as it stands the club is dead in the water? I really hope not.
Wait until next year 
Am worried about all the current rumours which point to a Torres exit. Allegedly he’ll go either because he’s fallen out with Rafa who would be happy to have 60 or 70 million to spend if he’s still in charge next season. Or he’s fed up with all the uncertainty over who will own the club and manage the club next season and is ready to bite Chelsea’s hand off (or Man City’s) in return for a hefty contract and guaranteed CL football. Mind you, the same was said of Gerrard a few years back and, even though he came close, he stayed with Liverpool so who knows?
You know my opinion on Benitez. Time for him to go but who on earth will replace him? I change my mind about that every five minutes. Can’t we get Nick Clegg?
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I think keeping Torres and Gerrard has to be a priority. If they are more likely to stay if Rafa goes, then so be it. Of course, then you need to get a strong manager in, so it isn’t a case of the lunatics running the asylum.
I’m struggling with possible replacements too. Mourinho would be fun, and would probably get more results, but is he a good fit for the club, or would he just cause more unrest? Hodgson would be a steady hand, but isn’t really a long-term solution. O’Neill is set at Villa. Who would be able to convince big names to stay and other big names to join, while advocating attractive, winning football? I have no idea.
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One guy I think could do the job but is unlikely to want to come to Anfield is Alex McLeish. He’s doing a decent job at Birmingham, has managed Rangers with some success, and his teams play attacking football as well as playing very well as a team rather than relying on specific individuals. He’s be a lot cheaper than Jose too. Other than that, you could aplly and employ me to come into the dressing room now and then and remind the players of the pride they ought to be feeling about pulling on the shirt.
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I think we could do a great job together!
Failing that, the rumour I liked wasn’t far from what you’ve suggested in the past – Kenny Dalglish, with Ian Rush as assistant, as a stop-gap to begin with. While I’m not sure it would work in the longer term, it would certainly revitalise the club, and seems as good an option as any.
I agree that Alex McLeish is doing a decent job and would be a reasonable fit. I think the problem with the likes of him and O’Neill is that they are at clubs where they are reasonably free to spend, and are reasonably secure. Would they give that up to go to a club for sale, with a potentially very limited transfer budget?
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My heart would love to see Kenny and Rushy running the club for a while. But Rush has never been that successful a coach (1996 blip helping Keegan at Newcastle aside) and Kenny is possibly a little old school. Then again Kenny is the last manager to bring the league title to Anfield so it’d definitely be a boost for the fans until a longer term solution can be found.
Sadly true about O’Neill and McLeish being freer to spend where they already are. But then again wouldn’t O’Neill at least relish the challenge of restoring Liverpool to top of the table status?
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I think you’re probably right about Kenny and Rushy – but I think they are a sensible option as caretaker managers, until either a new owner, or new manager, is found.
I have a theory about O’Neill that he only ever goes for jobs with underperforming clubs, where he sees he can easily make a noticable difference – I think Leicester, Celtic and Villa are all examples of this. Perhaps Liverpool now fit this bill. I’m sure he could improve on seventh spot with Liverpool’s resources at his disposal.
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Spot on about O’Neill. A bit of the Clough influence perhaps?
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