Liverpool’s Big Step Four-ward
18, 30, 37, 9, 21, 11. No, these aren’t the winning numbers for tonight’s National Lottery — they’re actually the gap between Liverpool and the winner of the league dating back to the 2002-03 campaign. It’s sobering to realise that whilst Liverpool are a world class club, they’ve never been closer than nine points in the last six seasons.
Like most clubs, Liverpool came into the league this season with high hopes and a blank slate. Like most Liverpool would start hot out of the gates before dropping points around the end of October and falling out of the race completely by the first of the year. Like a fine-tuned watch, Liverpool seemed to collapse right on schedule every year.
So when the club came into January at the top of the table, people started to take notice. With almost the same squad, journalists and fans alike began to give their own antidotes as to why Liverpool had been so successful. Some claimed it was due to the increased partnership between Torres and Gerrard, whilst others said it was due to Rafa tinkering less with the starting XI. Whatever the case, there was something different about this Liverpool squad.
Whilst they may have dropped points during a critical stretch in January, Liverpool still have the chance this weekend to finish the 2008-09 campaign only one point behind Manchester United when it’s all said and done. And given the gap between Liverpool and the league champion in recent years, that’s something to be proud of.
But it still begs the question? What changed this season (besides not dropping as many points away from Anfield) that turned Rafa’s squad from a pretender to a contender? You needn’t look any farther than the number zero to figure that one out.
That zero is of course the number of times Liverpool faced defeat against Chelsea, Manchester United and Arsenal this season. If you go back to the 2005-06 season Liverpool have never taken more than 6 points off Arsenal, Chelsea and Manchester United in a given season. Compare that to 14 points taken off three of the best clubs in the world this campaign and it’s obvious to see that Liverpool’s success lies in their new found confidence against the teams that provide the biggest hurdle each season.
Gone are the matches where Liverpool walked on the pitch looking for a point against Manchester United. This season the club managed to take all six off the Premier League champions after falling to defeat in five of their past six. Yes, there’s a different mentality going on at Liverpool.
By putting Gerrard behind Torres and allowing him to play a more attacking role in a formation that didn’t force him to be so narrow, the squad went from being the hunted to now being the hunter.
Rafa put the pressure on teams like United and Chelsea early on and forced them to keep up. The old days of laying back and putting six or seven behind the ball were gone. What was once Liverpool’s Achilles heel has now become their greatest ally.
The points on the road against mid-table clubs still appear to be a hurdle that Liverpool needs to clear in the coming year but if there was ever one roadblock that seemed to be in their way, it was having success against big four clubs. Rafa has rectified the situation by instilling a killer instinct in his club that hasn’t been seen since the Spaniard took over at Anfield.
Liverpool may still be searching for that one piece of the puzzle to bring them No19 but if they play with the same killer instinct next season against Arsenal, Manchester United and Chelsea, most would probably agree that it wouldn’t matter who they brought so long as they could replicate their big step “four”-ward this season.
Topics: English Premier League, Fernando Torres, Liverpool, Rafael Benitez, Steven Gerrard
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Yes Russell, you are right that there has been progress in Liverpool this season in that they have succeeded in beating Chelsea and Man Utd while drawing with Arsenal.
May 21st, 2009 @ 19:47But their downfall this season can be attributed to all those home draws. If that can be avoided next season then they have a chance to push on from this season.
Well that’s the Liverpool slant on things. There is, of course, a different view!
Liverpool out-punched their weight in the first 13 games ‘getting-away’ with points against Wigan, Boro and City in particular.
In their next 14 games they had a record of W5, D8, L1, which is mid-table form.
A purple patch in March/April saved their season but they capitualted to Chelsea in the CL, again showing that they can’t compete all the way in 2 competitions.
With the easiest run-in and no other pressure on, they finished the season well.
Agreed that they did well against the Top 4 but they got Utd and Chelsea at the right times and also had a couple of very fortunate goals against them. Put it this way, if Liverpool are depending on doing the double over Utd and Chelsea again to stay on the pace I wouldn’t be too optimistic.
Circumstances helped Liverpool greatly this season. Chelsea and Arsenal will both be more potent forces next season.
As for Utd? Well by the time the season ends they will have played 66 games as against Liverpool’s 55. That 20% more games or the equivalent of 2 games a week over 5 weeks! A huge difference in terms of pressure, with the fatigue, injuries and suspensions that goes with that. I havn’t seen this mentioned by many but, make no mistake, it is a big big factor!
But even with that handicap Utd have beaten Liverpool to the title.
Liverpool HAVE improved this season but the extent of that improvement is exaggerated by other factors and they have a lot to do if they want to win the title next season.
As for Benitez, he’s firmly set himself up for next season. Either he delivers or he’ll be gone….and it’s the fans who’ll make that call.
May 22nd, 2009 @ 07:35say if liverpool were ahead,or even joint top around march,you have to wonder if rafa would have thrown caution into the wind and let the team loose.he knew he had to go all out to have any hope of winning the league,but would he have done so if liverpool were not chasing united?i dont think he would
May 22nd, 2009 @ 15:24Well I’ve read this website for a while and generally don’t comment, but I really get fed up of reading ‘the other view’ based on a Man U fan’s biased view.
First off Liverpool didn’t out-punch themselves at the start of the season, they just never gave up in games and had a slice of fortune, something that Man U certainly have had as well this season. A good example being the away game at Stoke where Ronaldo was lucky to stay on the pitch before you scrapped a 1 nil win.
As for Chelsea and Arsenal being more potent forces next season, well that works both ways as Man U certainly didn’t drop as many points as the could have against them. As for capitulating against Chelsea in the CL, maybe you might look at this with a ‘different view’ and say Chelsea played better, or caught Liverpool at the right and we had to coin a phrase used after a certain 4 – 1 loss by a certain team ‘a bad day at the office’.
As for fortunate goals whilst playing Man U and Chelsea, I don’t think you’ll find many neutrals who would argue that Liverpool weren’t the better team in the games they played.
About the only thing i can agree on is that Man U have played more games, but as everyone keeps harping on about Man U have this large squad of world class players leaving Mr Ferguson with more options, no one critises him for the amount of rotation he has done because he’s got the better squad. This just comes down to money which Man U have more of and unfortunately is now a deciding factor in the game.
Please next time spare us your ‘other view’ rubbish, you could for a change say well done Liverpool you’ve improved we’ll see what you can do next season, but unfortunately you’re stuck trying to get a rise out of Liverpool fans as usual.
Btw good article, i’m please with the progress Liverpool have made this season and hope with a few good transfer buys we’ll be challenging next season.
May 22nd, 2009 @ 15:45BD Condell, take those tinted glasses off mate your talking absolute rubbish! United have a huge squad so can afford to play many more games so it will not of affect them in the slightest, and if United are so much better than Liverpool it wouldnt matter when a slight dip of form occurs they wouldnt of been completely destroyed at there own ground! please for your own good take off those glasses and watch the game pleace.
May 22nd, 2009 @ 19:27“but unfortunately you’re stuck trying to get a rise out of Liverpool fans as usual.”
Yes indeed! And it works every time!
As for rose tinted galsses. I keep trying to buy a pair of those but constantly find that they have been bought out by Liverpool fans! (20 years of trying!)
Here’s to next season. I’m confident!
May 23rd, 2009 @ 02:55I think Liverpool fans are getting a bit touchy. Im an Arsenal fan with no bias against Liverpool this year (as they’ve finally started playing good football)and thought there was nothing wrong with BD Condell’s comment, it didn’t fabricate or exaggerate anything at all. The main article was interesting, fair and unprovocative but seeing another side might help a few fans get some more perspective.
Benitez bombed last summer by signing Robbie Keane for £20 million, which made him have to start Keane to the detrement of the team. You also had no natural wingers and were very fortunate to get as many points as you did at the start of the season where you weren’t good. However once you sold Reira and went back to your established system you were very good, and much much closer to Man United and Chelsea. Your now in a position where if Benitiez has a good summer and signs Tevez you’ll have a first 11 almost as good as Man uniteds and Chelsea’s so could have an even better go of challenging.
May 23rd, 2009 @ 13:20