Out with the old bunch- Is Rodgers Creating a new Core?

When we look back on the Rafa era, we automatically think of a core group of players who were integral to our success. Stalwarts and club legends such as Gerrard, Carragher and Alonso are inextricably linked with Rafa’s time at the helm, in which Liverpool Football Club enjoyed great success. With Carragher retiring at the end of last season and Pepe Reina, who was signed by Benitez in 2005, looking likely to leave, the core members of Rafa’s elite squad are exiting Liverpool in their droves. Were Reina to leave the club, Gerrard would be the only remaining member of the team who won the 2006 FA Cup Final in such dramatic fashion. The question is, can Rodgers create his own ‘golden group’ of players?

Since arriving at Liverpool, Brendan Rodgers has shown a clear preference towards signing young talent. He has brought in Fabio Borini (22), Philippe Coutinho (who recently turned 21), Daniel Sturridge (23), and most recently Iago Aspas (25) and Simon Mignolet (24). He has also nurtured the talents of younger players in the team, most notably England under 21’s captain Jordan Henderson, who this season became a regular in the starting 11. As well as this, he is rumoured to be after Tiago Ilori (20) and Kyriakos Papadopolous (21). Combined, these players cover a wide range of positions, and are good enough to either make the first team already, or else break into it in the near future. Along with academy players that are slowly being introduced to the starting 11, such as Jordan Ibe and Raheem Sterling, it is clear that Rodgers is building a team for the future.

Steven Gerrard is still going strong, and was arguably one of our best players last season. He is also a great role model to the younger players, fiercely loyal and committed to Liverpool. However, his illustrious career will at some point have to come to an end, and if Rodgers is to build an elite band of players that remains largely unchanged for long periods of time, he will need someone else to step up to the plate, and fill the role of leader. Seemingly the perfect candidate for this is Daniel Agger. At 28 years of age, he probably still has a lot of playing time left in him, and he has shown passion for the club since the moment he joined. Despite lots of interest from Champions League clubs, he has chosen to stay at the club he loves. He even has ‘YNWA’ tattooed on his knuckles. Agger has the potential to be the leader that all of Rodgers’ promising youngsters look to. If they rally around him in the same way the players of Rafa’s heyday rallied around Gerrard, the new generation of Liverpool starlets could well go on to achieve great things.

There has been a lot of worry in recent times that Liverpool are no longer able to attract ‘big names’ to the club. Although this is frustrating in some ways, it is also in some aspects a good thing for us. In a way, it allows us to start afresh, as Rodgers is forced to look to the young talent pool, rather than to those who have already established themselves as greats in the footballing world. Because of this, we aren’t simply replacing players if and when they leave or retire, we are building a whole new generation of players. This safeguards our clubs future, and allows us to build a squad that could potentially remain a tightly-knit unit for years to come. Obviously transfers sometimes have to be made, but as a general rule a team that remains largely unchanged will work better as a unit, and consequently play better football. Players such as Coutinho, Sturridge, Mignolet and Aspas, if all goes well, could remain at the club for years to come, and be the defining players of the Rodgers era.

-James Martin

Follow me on Twitter @JamesMartin013

BR’s Transfer Tactics- Are Foreign Signings the Right Approach?

This summer transfer window, Brendan Rodgers has got to work quickly.  Kolo Toure has already been signed (he officially joins the club on July 1^st), the deal between Iego Aspas and Liverpool looks to be effectively complete, and we also appear to be closing in on signing Tiago Ilori. Aspas is an exciting young Spanish talent who plays in the wide forward role for Celta Vigo, whilst Kolo Toure (Man City) and Tiago Ilori (Sporting) are both central defenders. They all look to be good acquisitions, but should Rodgers be searching closer to home for new players?

Kolo Toure is by no means an inspiring signing, but he is a sensible one. He came to Liverpool on a free, having run out of contract at Manchester City. It is unlikely he will get regular first team action, but he is a very experienced centre-back, and his presence in the squad should put pressure on the likes of Martin Skrtel (and potentially Tiago Ilori if he joins) to perform well in order to fight for their place in the team. The only issue with the deal is Toure’s relatively large wage demands, believed to be about 70k a week, which is a lot to be forking out to a player who isn’t even getting first team action. He will have a positive impact on the club, even if it is just giving the other centre-backs a metaphorical kick up the backside, but the money we’re spending on his wages could have been better invested elsewhere, possibly on a young, homegrown talent with lots of potential.

However, there is a problem with ‘buying British’ in the football world. English players that have really made a name for themselves tend to be hideously overpriced, and an equivalent overseas talent cam often be acquired for half the fee. Brendan Rodgers appears to have taken this into account, and we know he is good at spotting up-and-coming foreign talents based on Coutinho’s instant success at the club. This means that the only feasible way of signing English players is taking a gamble, and buying a player who has gone relatively un-noticed by pundits, potentially someone from the lower end of the football league. A prime example of this tactic paying off is Norwich’s signing of full-back Russell Martin. He started his career at Wycombe (where I watched him a lot, as I used to have a season ticket there), then moved to Peterborough. Norwich then took him on loan for a season, as a sort of trial run. He impressed them, and they then proceeded to buy him the following season. He is now a regular in the Norwich first team, and is one of their better players. It’s a risky tactic, but buying young players who have slipped under the pundits’ radar can prove very effective.

With Aspas and Ilori, the situation is slightly different. They are both young and upcoming talents, and Ilori in particular is not very renowned. Aspas has attracted a large amount of praise and attention from Spanish pundits, but until very recently was practically unknown in England. In these cases, it is pointless to try and buy an equivalent British player. Aspas is going to cost approximately 9 million, and for a player who has attracted so much attention in the top division of Spanish football that is very cheap. An English wide striker who had shown a lot of talent in the Premier League would most likely set you back at least double that. It’s the same story with Ilori. He is relatively unknown, but has still been capped 4 times this year for the Portugal under-20’s. The rumoured fee is around three-and-a-half million. Swansea signed Danny Graham for that sum in 2011, even though the forward had only scored 38 goals in almost 100 appearances for Watford in the Championship. This goes to show that unless you are looking to make a gamble on a really obscure talent, it’s not worth buying English players. As a general rule, those who have managed to make a name for themselves are massively overvalued by their club (looking at you, Tom Ince and Blackpool), forcing Premier League clubs to look to the foreign market. It’s sad in a way, as the top division of English football is now swamped with foreign talent, which isn’t how it should be. However, the Premier League clubs can’t be blamed for looking abroad in order to get better players for cheaper prices, and so far in this transfer window Liverpool appear to be doing so very effectively.

-James Martin

Follow me on Twitter @JamesMartin013

Suarez to Real - Deal or no Deal?

NOTE: Suarez saga number 2 is written about here: http://jamesmartinblogs.blogspot.co.uk/2014/07/not-again-suarez-saga-version-20.html

In the 2012/13 season, our best player has been Luis Suarez. He has been prolific in front of goal, and terrorised defences with his superb on-the-ball skills. Naturally, he is attracting a lot of interest from other clubs, and the club that looks most keen to sign him is Real Madrid. At this stage there are only rumours, but it has been suggested that Madrid are looking to do a swap deal whereby Liverpool get Benzema and Di Maria in return for Suarez.

This swap could be great for Liverpool. Angel Di Maria would be an excellent signing, as he is a proven talent and we could do with another winger. Stewart Downing has improved vastly this season, but is still not up to the standards of the rest of our attacking line. Di Maria has assisted 16 goals in all competitions this season, which is extremely impressive. He has also netted 9, which isn’t a bad tally for a wide player. If both he and Benzema were able to make the transition to English football, the attacking partnership of Di Maria, Benzema, Sturridge and Coutinho has the potential to be formidable, one of the best in the Premier League.

Also, Suarez brings a lot of controversy. He picked up a 7-match ban last season for racism, and is currently serving a 10-match ban for biting Ivanovic, meaning he will miss the first six games of next season. This prompts a question: Is he worth it? Benzema has scored 19 goals for Real Madrid this season, and has assisted 20! For a forward, that is a ridiculously high amount of assists. We also know he can be extremely deadly in front of goal (he netted 32 times for Madrid in the 2011/12 season). This sort of return for goals and assists is on a par with Suarez’s (arguably even better), and Benzema doesn’t bring with him the excess baggage of controversy. If he could carry his form from Madrid over to Liverpool, he would arguably be even better for us than Suarez has been. Getting Di Maria on top of this would be an added bonus, and if Madrid were to offer this deal we would be foolish not to at least consider it.

On paper at least, this looks like an extremely tempting offer. However, things have the potential to go very wrong. We know that Suarez fits in at Liverpool, and he has proven his ability to score goals for us on numerous occasions. Benzema is a very talented striker, but has never played in English football. It is more physical than La Liga, and if he failed to make the transition Liverpool would be in trouble. Without a suitable replacement for Suarez, we would be hugely reliant on Sturridge to get us goals, and his form is much too hit-and-miss to warrant the role of main striker. Di Maria could also prove a bad signing. Despite his relatively high goals and assists return, he does have a tendency to squander chances by going for ambitious long shots or trying fancy passes. We need a winger who can consistently provide chances, not one who throws them away.

All this uncertainty makes me think that it wouldn’t be worth taking the risk. Without Suarez we would have had an absolutely awful season, and if we’re going to get rid of him the price has to be right. However, were more to be offered, I think that it could be a good deal. If Real were to offer some money as well as the two players, we would at least have a safety blanket that allows us to sign others if Di Maria and Benzema backfire. Another name that has been mentioned a couple of times in relation to this deal is Diego Lopez. If Madrid were to offer him as well as Di Maria and Benzema in return for Suarez, Liverpool should definitely do it. Lopez has been keeping Casillas out of the first team recently in La Liga, and with Reina seemingly on his way out I cannot think of a better replacement. If Madrid were to make this offer (which is admittedly unlikely), we would be extremely foolish not to take it.

To sum up, it will have to be a pretty special offer from Madrid to make it worth getting rid of Suarez. Although Benzema and Di Maria are great in La Liga, they have never played in the Premier League, and may struggle. Suarez is a proven talent at Liverpool. However, were money or Diego Lopez to be offered alongside Di Maria and Benzema, it would make it a good trade, and I think Liverpool should go for it. If everything went well, we could end up with one of the best ‘keepers in the Premier League as well as one of the best attacking line-ups. Suddenly Suarez is starting to seem like a small price to pay.

-James Martin

Follow me on Twitter @JamesMartin013

Carra’s final game- Liverpool 1 QPR 0

As I walked up towards Anfield before the match yesterday, it was clear something was different; this was no ordinary match day. All around me were Liverpool fans with Carragher shirts, scarves and flags. Thousands of people had come to bid the club legend goodbye, and the usual pre-game excitement was tinged with sadness, but also with gratitude towards our great centre-back. Liverpool got the victory, but more poignantly kept a clean sheet, Jamie Carragher’s 200^th and last for the club, the game finishing 1-0.

We were treated to some wonderful attacking football right from the off, with Glen Johnson looking extremely threatening as well as Coutinho lighting up the stadium with his skill. We deserved a goal for our incredibly bright start, and it seemed as if Coutinho had provided it after just two minutes, heading the ball into the net from a corner. From my seat in the Main Stand I had an uninterrupted view of the goal-line, and at the time I was convinced the ball had crossed. Having seen replays since, I can see that I was not wrong, and indeed the goal should have stood.

The team were not disheartened. 17-year old debutant Jordan Ibe was making some very promising runs down the left, although he was often outmuscled and dispossessed too easily. Although Ibe is a winger and Carragher is a defender, there was certainly an element of ‘the passing of the baton’, and the symmetry of a promising academy youngster making his debut in Carragher’s final game was excellent. It was Ibe himself who assisted Liverpool’s goal when it eventually came, laying it off to Coutinho who guided it powerfully and expertly into the bottom corner. As it went in I looked up at the match clock in the corner of the stadium, and saw that it had been scored in the 23^rd minute. This was as good a tribute to our exceptional number 23 as any of the ones planned by the club.

The team as a whole played very nicely throughout the game, but Sturridge simply wasn’t at the races. This is why we need to ensure we buy a new striker in the summer; Borini is frankly not good enough, Suarez is suspended and Sturridge is brilliant on his day but some weeks just doesn’t turn up. Yesterday was one of his poor games, and consequently Coutinho didn’t have as much of a chance to show his excellent through-ball ability (although he still demonstrated his all-round talents). It was immensely frustrating to watch, as Sturridge has tremendous pace, but seemingly couldn’t be bothered to use it. In his demeanour and playing style he strikes me as similar to Berbatov, slouching around and not making many runs, but being absolutely deadly when the chances come his way. At first I was sceptical about the idea of buying Loic Remy in the transfer window, but now I see that his willingness to make off-the-ball runs could be very useful to us, and fully utilise Coutinho’s immense passing skills.

One of the highlights of the match was Jamie Carragher striking the woodwork with a screamer of a shot from outside the box. Yes, you did read that correctly! Whenever he got the ball the crowd were urging him to shoot, and on one occasion he did. It was struck with a huge amount of power, and would have easily beaten Rob Green. Unfortunately it was marginally too high, and Carragher was not able to sign off with an unlikely wonder goal. He was given a standing ovation when he was substituted in the last 10 minutes. Credit to the QPR fans here, a large majority of whom joined in with the applause as a footballing legend left the field having played his final game.

QPR made a couple of half-chances, but never looked like scoring. In the end the action of the game was overshadowed by the occasion, Carragher’s farewell. Coutinho scored a brilliant goal, once again showing that he is a brilliant signing and may well play a key part in Liverpool’s push for the top four next season, but the man of the hour was Jamie Carragher. After the match he came back on to the pitch, making a short speech. Unsurprisingly, there were no Beckham-esque tears from the born and bred scouser, but you could sense that he was sad to have played his last. He then joined the team in a final lap of honour. Luis Suarez also participated in this, as did Steven Gerrard, who had his arm in a sling. He then left the pitch to tumultuous applause from the Liverpool fans, nearly all of whom had stayed in the ground for this tribute after the final whistle. The great defensive stalwart will be missed, not only for his defensive prowess but for his leadership, passion and love of the club. He has been at Liverpool since before I was born, and has walked through many a storm, but also been part of many glorious ‘golden skies’, most notably the 2005 Istanbul Champions League Final where he threw his body on the line despite serious cramp. He will be missed.

Thanks Carra.

-James Martin

Follow me on Twitter @JamesMartin013                                    

Sturridge Show at Craven Cottage

On Sunday 12^th May, Liverpool faced Fulham at Craven Cottage. Despite going 1-0 down, Liverpool romped on to a 3-1 victory, and frankly it could (and probably should) have been a lot more.

Unusually, Liverpool weren’t able to get off to a quick start. They saw more of the ball early on, but weren’t being at all incisive, and struggled to create any real chances. Fulham were also struggling to come up with any decent attacks. However, on 31 minutes, Sascha Reither put in a lovely cross, which allowed Berbatov to head home from close range. It was obviously disappointing to go behind, but in my opinion we weren’t positive enough in possession, and consequently were asking to be caught out by a one-off attack.

Fortunately, Fulham’s goal acted as the stimulation Liverpool needed. They came alive, and just 3 minutes after Berbatov’s strike we equalised through Daniel Sturridge. The striker was picked out in the box and looked to have dwelled too long on the ball, but then showed a quick burst of pace to get past his defender, then blasted high into the net, past a helpless Schwarzer. Despite a couple more chances for Liverpool, the teams went in level.

Liverpool came out strongly in the second half, as they should have done in the first. Fulham were pinned back, and both Phillippe Coutinho and Glen Johnson had goal-scoring opportunities. They didn’t convert, but eventually the LFC pressure paid off,  Sturridge latching on to Coutinho’s deflected shot and guiding it smartly round the keeper. This effectively killed off Fulham, and despite being only a goal behind, they never showed any signs of being able to salvage anything from the game. Liverpool then created a plethora of chances, but somehow failed to add another until five minutes from time, where Sturridge completed his hat-trick with a lovely chip over the oncoming Mark Schwarzer.

Daniel Sturridge played brilliantly, and is so far proving to be an excellent signing. He certainly made the difference in this game. However, his form is slightly hit and miss, and he does have a tendency to be too selfish. Had he passed a little more yesterday instead of desperately trying to complete his hat-trick it may well have been 5 or 6! On the whole though, he has the makings of a potential key player in Liverpool’s upcoming seasons, as he is the potent goal threat that (other than Luis Suarez) we have been lacking recently.  With two clinical strikers (once Suarez returns from his ban), Liverpool will hopefully no longer have the issue with wasting chances that they had at the start of this season. If we are able to make a couple more quality additions to our squad over the summer, there’s no reason why we can’t push for the top 4, or potentially even higher, next season.

-James Martin

Follow me on Twitter @JamesMartin013

Liverpool vs Everton- Dull Derby ends in Deadlock

Today (Sunday 5^th May), Liverpool played local rivals Everton at Anfield. Neither side created many chances, and the game ended goalless. The only real talking point was a goal from Sylvain Distin that was disallowed.

After our game against Everton earlier in the season Gerrard accused the Blues of being too direct, but it was he who was playing the long passes in the early exchanges of this game. They were working well; he set Sturridge away a couple of times, whose pace got him in behind the defence. However, he wasn’t able to provide the finish on either occasion. Everton also created a couple of chances in the first half, but weren’t able to get any shots on target. Coutinho looked lively, playing some brilliant passes and showing some nice on the ball skill. Henderson also played quite well, combining nicely with Sturridge and Coutinho on a few occasions.

Liverpool started the second half brightly, and it looked like it was going to be a better 45 minutes of football than the first. 3 minutes in, Coutinho played an absolutely sublime through-ball towards Daniel Sturridge. It put the striker clean through on goal, but he couldn’t round Tim Howard, and ended up putting the ball into the side netting. Two minutes later Enrique created a decent chance, drilling a cross low into the box. Unfortunately nobody could get on the end of it, and Howard claimed the ball.

The most controversial incident of the game happened on 56 minutes. Leighton Baines whipped in a great corner, which was headed powerfully home by Sylvain Distin. However, the referee had blown his whistle very soon after the corner came in, and gave a free kick to Liverpool. It was unclear what Michael Oliver had spotted, but the replays showed Distin to be climbing slightly on his marker, Jamie Carragher. All the same, it was a soft free kick, and in all honesty the goal probably should have stood. Still, as Jamie Carragher rightly pointed out after the game, it makes up for the reverse fixture earlier this season, where Luis Suarez had what would have been a late winner incorrectly disallowed for offside!

The game then died down a little, and to try and rectify this Brendan Rodgers took off Jordan Henderson, replacing him with Fabio Borini. In my opinion, this was a frankly awful substitution. Henderson had been one of our best players, and Fabio Borini has thus far not proved himself to be an asset in any way, especially not grabbing goals! The Italian did not help Liverpool’s attack, and they were penned into their own half for the next fifteen minutes. However, Everton still failed to test Reina. In the last few minutes the game opened up a little, and the Liverpool ‘keeper was finally called into action on 87 minutes, beating away a hugely deflected shot from Victor Anichebe. This turned out to be the last real action of the game, and this wholly uneventful derby ended 0-0.

The goalless draw was probably a fair result. Neither side posed a real goal threat, and Sturridge in particular was simply not at the races. The stand-out players for me were Steven Gerrard and Philippe Coutinho, both of whom showed passing prowess. Gerrard excelled in the long cross-field balls, whilst Coutinho carved open the Everton defence multiple times with some glorious through-balls.

Coutinho has played a key role in most of Liverpool’s games since his arrival from Inter in January, and is fast becoming an integral part of the Liverpool team. If he carries the form he has shown this year into next season and we are able to buy one or two decent strikers in the summer (as our finishing was poor today, and we will have to play the first six games without Luis Suarez), I think we could mount a genuine challenge on the top 4, potentially even the top 3. It was a dull derby on the day, but it did serve to highlight both our strengths and the areas that need improving before the next campaign.

-James Martin

Follow me on Twitter @JamesMartin013

Newcastle 0-6 Liverpool- Post-Match Analysis

Star Players- Coutinho, Sturridge and
Henderson celebrating

On Saturday 27^th April, Liverpool faced Newcastle at St James’ Park. Many thought Liverpool would struggle to score goals with the prolific striker Luis Suarez serving the first match of his 10-game suspension, but they smashed six past a lacklustre Newcastle side.

Right from the kick-off, Liverpool looked the stronger side. They got on the attack straight away, and took the lead after just three minutes. Newcastle failed to get the ball away, and Downing was able to play a nice cross into Agger, who headed simply past Elliot, the Newcastle goalkeeper. They continued to press, and made it two on 17 minutes. Coutinho played a glorious long pass into Sturridge, who put it on a plate for Jordan Henderson to tap home. It could have been 3 or 4 before half-time, but the keeper made some decent stops and Liverpool wasted a few opportunities. The hosts didn’t get into the half at all, and their only clear-cut chance was missed by James Perch, who headed wide from close range.

The second half started in much the same way as the first.  Liverpool dominated Newcastle, playing some lovely attacking football. In the 54^th minute they went three up, Coutinho brilliantly setting up Sturridge, who drilled it home. The little Brazilian dispossessed Hatem Ben Arfa, knocking him off the ball, then darted down the wing before chipping the ball sublimely into the path of Sturridge. The finish was also good, Sturridge smashing the ball past Elliot into the roof of the net. Six minutes later he scored again, Henderson returning the first half favour by squaring the ball across goal to Sturridge, who took a touch and tapped it in coolly.

At 4-0 you would have been forgiven for thinking Liverpool might ease up a bit, but that was not the case! In the 72^nd minute Fabio Borini came on for Steven Gerrard (ending the skippers run of playing every minute of Premier League football this season), and a minute later added his name to the score-sheet. Downing showed quick feet to beat his man and get a low cross in, which Borini then hit home. It was a nice finish from the Italian, who had to adjust quickly to slot the ball in the back of the net. Things got even worse for Newcastle soon afterwards, when Coutinho beat Debuchy with yet another clever piece of skill, who then dived in rashly and picked up a second yellow card. This means he will miss the remainder of the season. Henderson took the free kick, and whipped in a cross. Nobody got on the end of it, but it curled all the way into the far corner! Liverpool had a couple more chances after this, but the game ended 6-0.

Although Newcastle did not play well, Liverpool exhibited some wonderful football in this game. It was a clear message to critics that we are not just a one-man team, and we can still get great results without Suarez. It also gives fans a lot of hope for the remaining 9 games of Suarez’ suspension, as we showed yesterday that we can win, and win well, without him. It was a fantastic team performance all round, but there are also some individuals I would like to mention. Daniel Sturridge once again showed himself to be a great signing, getting two goals and turning provider for another. Jordan Henderson showed how much he has grown as a player under Rodgers, also scoring two and assisting one. Stuart Downing, who is often criticised, also had a great game, assisting two of the goals. However, the man of the match for me has to be Coutinho. He showed his sublime dribbling skills, and played some frankly phenomenal passes. He even made a tackle or two! He looks like he could be the bargain of the century at only £8million, and at just 20 years of age he can only get better.

To sum up, this game is just what Liverpool needed in the first of the 10 games Suarez is missing. It gave the fans (and indeed the players) the confidence they sorely needed that we can get wins without our star striker, and that we are not a one-man team. To see Liverpool at their best is always a great spectacle, and this performance bodes very well for next season.

-James Martin

Follow me on Twitter @JamesMartin013