As the Reds took the traditional end of season lap around Anfield to thank the faithful for their season long support or sheer stubbornness, depending on how you see things, I couldn’t help but think that this isn’t Kansas anymore.
Those glory years of the 1970’s and 1980’s when Liverpool dominated not only English football but Europe seem light years away. Football has moved on and judging from reports so will their manager, Rafa Benitez, much to the relief of many.
Despite the pitiful seventh place and the meek surrender to Chelsea on Sunday, the Spaniard, is still held in high esteem by many on the red half of Merseyside. It does seem like misplaced loyalty when you consider the following:
The team has gone backwards and alarmingly so. Last season they were sensational and unbeaten versus members of the ‘Big Four’ cartel. That second place finish looks, in all honesty, like a fluke.
Baffling tactics that have left the players and the watching public mystified. I understand that using two holding midfield players is all the rage but surely Lucas and Mascherano are not needed against the majority of Premier League opposition.
Substitutions that bordered on times as sadistic - my particular favorite being the reaction of Steven Gerrard as Torres walked past him after having his number called against Birmingham, in a match that Liverpool had to win. The look on the pair of their faces was priceless.
And most damningly, $200 million wasted in the transfer market over the last five years, bar Fernando Torres, Javier Mascherano and Xavi Alonso.
I suppose the admiration and loyalty comes from winning two cup competitions, neither of which was won actually playing football, as we know it. Penalty shootouts are more akin to roulette than the ‘beautiful game.’
In the last 12 months, I feel like the only thing Rafa has truly got right was hiring the right agent and lawyers when it came time for contract renewal. His 5-year deal signed in March 2009 is delicious and no man in their right mind would walk away from that. This means the board will have to sack him and that kind of exit will potentially cost the club in excess of $16 million.
With the Spaniard fluent in Italian, Juventus feels like the logical destination unless, of course, his legendary hard-headedness kicks in to gear. New chairman, Martin Broughton, may have different ideas. He also has the advantage of sweetening the pot by offering Rafa first class travel for life on all BA flights.
So who will replace Rafa Benitez?
According to well placed sources and a splashy headline in the News of the World, (England’s most reliable source of information) Roy Hodgson of Fulham is high on the Anfield hit list.
I happen to be a big fan of the 62-year-old Hodgson who, unlike the majority of his English counterparts, has spent the majority of his career managing abroad. With spells in Sweden, Switzerland, Denmark and Italy, he brings a wealth of experience and that continental flair that is so beloved in Liverpool.
Hodgson has shown at Fulham that he can manage a small budget and get results, something that Benitez cannot do, or for that matter, Jose Mourinho, a man wanted by many Reds.
I’ve heard some critics point to his poor spell at Blackburn as proof that he would not be up to the task of the Reds. However, Rovers were on their downward slide by the time he got to them. Surely he’ll be joining Liverpool as they hit rock bottom. There can only be one possible direction to go in - right. I mean, it can’t get worse can it?
With no UEFA Champions League football next season it could get worse though.
One wonders what is going through the minds of the four world class players in the squad, Fernando Torres, Steven Gerrard, Pepe Reina and Javier Mascherano.
They’ll be going to the World Cup and hanging with club rivals who will be in the Champions League next season. There'll be more tapping up going on than a number involving Fred Astaire.
The biggest concerns will be Torres and Mascherano and I think it will be an anxious summer, as the two will be heavily courted. There'll be less worry over Reina who recently penned a new deal while Gerrard, well, what can one say.
Steven Gerrard has simply fallen off the map. Whether it’s simply from the burden of carrying the club for too many seasons or for off the field issues, we’ll probably never know. One thing is for sure, his aura has taken a beating and that’s awfully hard to rediscover.
Ultimately I’m worried for Liverpool FC. Off the field, they’re in a financial mess. In the dressing room they’re lacking a leader and on the field they’re looking completely shorn of confidence.
New owners, new management and a few new Liverpool quality players would be just the ticket to get this club back to where all football fans want it to be.
Until then, I’ll see you at the far post.
