Post Blackpool Thoughts

Lets be honest, there was never going to be any quick fix to the predicament that we find ourselves in currently. The results still aren't going our way but the signs of improvement are there to be seen. Two games on from the return of the King and the  team has shown more spirit and a general improvement in play than we saw from them in the previous 2 months. If not for some dodgy refereeing from Coward Webb perhaps the outcome of both games may have been different......

Firstly, the FA Cup game, it wont live long in the memory for the quality of football on show, lets face it, neither side played good football at any point really. Berbatrips fall in the box with the game barely half a minute old proved to be the difference between the two sides. Flashback to earlier in the season, Berbatrips hat trick was the difference, in a much different game. To sum it up, Utd had a dive, a header off the post and a frantic 10-15seconds around the goal with Reina showing why hes the best at what he does, and that's it for the whole 90mins. Liverpool's only real chance that sticks in the memory was Aurelio's free kick. But its nothing to be disheartened about.

The arrival of Kenny Dalglish was never going to be the catalyst for immediate change, the problems are not superficial, they run much deeper than that, the team was not prepared by him, did not train under him, and had spent very little time with him prior to the game. But it was there for all to see, the players without ever setting the the world alight somehow looked different, there was clearly the influence of an Anfield Legend about them and there was belief. The one change that stands out was the inclusion of Martin Kelly at right back, easily one of the best on the pitch, a young player with a bright future, a player capable of challenging for that right back position outright. Lucas as he always seems to do in this fixture produced a fine performance, Torres looked more interested than he had been in a while, and even in defeat it seemed like a statement of intent had been made, albeit with out the reds ever looking close to dismantling their opponents a la 2009. To quote a great man, the penalty was 'a joke', the red card in my opinion unwarranted for a 50/50, both players go to ground and if Carrick catches Gerrard i don't think red would have been the colour, BUT you do see them given, and we did. An hour with 10 men and there was no hopeless capitulation which we might have endured before Christmas, and an unjust 1-0 defeat was never going to dampen the spirits on what was a big day for the club.

Just to say though, the referee has assistants for a reason, they are there to assist. How Coward Webb can give a penalty from all of 25yrds away with the absolute wrong view to judge the offence when his assistant no more than 10yrds away with the best view in the house does not give a penalty is absolutely beyond me. Assistant has a better view, sees no foul, waves no flag, referee wastes no time in awarding penalty. Webb had a shocking WC Final, said he wanted to give the game and the players a chance, he appreciated that it was the WC Final, biggest game of those players careers bar none. Liverpool v ManUtd is THE big game in England, but the impression he gave was that he was not going to give this game a chance, his judgement was poor. A referee should only overrule his assistant if he is absolutely 100% CERTAIN it is the right call, from his position he cannot be sure more than 50/50 in which case the assistants view is crucial. Interesting that Gerrard should suffer a straight red under pressure from Utd players but De Jong did not suffer the same fate even under protest from Spanish players for a kick on Alonso that Bruce Lee would have been proud of - Webbs idea of what is and is not a red is quite baffling to be honest. Guess Babel summed it up on Twitter though. OK rant over.

Blackpool, overall a much better performance from the reds, still the scoreline isn't what we want to see, but it was certainly more entertaining to watch than the reverse fixture earlier in the season, or more recent fixtures against Wolves and Blackburn to name a few. Again the signs of improvement were there to see. Torres looked a little more like the Torres of old for most of the game, and to see him run onto that through ball and smash one past the keeper from that position was stunning, Dalglish said himself, he will help him get the belief back and on that evidence hes well on his way. Kelly once again gave a good account of himself and doesn't look too bad going forwards either. Poulsen, much hatred flying round for him, in my opinion he has alot of experience, his only flaw i think, he just is not suited to the Premier League, not every player is and at his age i don't think he'll benefit too much from a fast paced physical game, he's much more suited to the Italian football he left behind, he also played a decent game, not the worst on the pitch.

It was a case of baby steps for the reds though, much more attacking, more belief, more urgency but the same problem that has dogged us all season resurfaced again, we were very poor in the final third. Loose balls, bad passing, lack of real creativity at times but i suspect that will change in the coming weeks, can't improve everything at once. Read alot about Jovanovic, i think he's strong, he makes some determined runs, isn't too eager to be knocked off the ball, and i think he is a real victim of Rafa's departure. Rafa identified him, Rafa draughted him in, Rafa obviously had an idea of how he would fit into the team and that idea left with him. He represented a low risk, free transfer and was pretty much overlooked by Roy Hodgson probably because he never wanted him and nothing to do with ability. He is a player who racked up 52 goals in 116 appearances for Liege contributing double figures every season - fairly decent, and against Blackpool, for me, he just looked like he was trying too hard to make an impression. Chances have been limited for him during his time at Liverpool, he didn't look match sharp and its hardly surprising given his lack of game time and i suspect more opportunities may come his way from now til May.

What i will say, and it is something i have been saying for over a year now, Glen Johnson is a poor defender. You may point to the fact that against Blackpool he was a right back playing out of position at left back but the fact is he was playing out of position due to the fact that he was in the back line full stop. Personally he should have at the very least put pressure on Campbell who was given a free header from close range, they way the players lined up it was clear that he was Johnson's man. Too many times have we been caught short or players given too much space and free headers/shots on goal courtesy of Glen Johnson, its criminal. That said, i do think he is a good player but whoever identified him as a right back during his youth days at West Ham made a poor decision. His attacking qualities far outweigh his defensive ones, he has pace, quick feet, a decent shot and a fair bit of skill, those skills are completely under-utilised at right back, he looks uncomfortable. Rumours before the game suggested that he would play at right mid, but i think those rumours may have been started by someone who shares a similar view to myself, and i know there are a few out there. Give him a shot at it, Kelly is more than competent at right back, as is Aurelio at left back, bring Insua back for cover if only til the summer, free Johnson of his defensive shackles and i think we will reap the benefits. Like i said, poor defender but a good player, or rather a good right winger.

Like i said, and many others aswel, we were never going to improve overnight, we are not going to win the league now that Hodgson is gone, top six is not beyond us, in my opinion, top 4 is. Europa League football next season is not a shameful thing for a team that is locked in transition and it provides a good avenue to hand experience to younger players, and bringing in younger players in NESV's ethos. Sunday against the bitters, the day the King really does return, and what an atmosphere there will be, i cant wait, that said i cant stand to watch us in this fixture but i also can't stand not to watch, regularly the most uncomfortable 90mins of my life. Form goes out the window, previous results mean nothing, roared on by the supporters, filled with the belief and determination instilled in them by the King, this could truely be the game that signals the start of a different Liverpool. Not saying we will 'turn the corner' or any other such phrase you may want to use, but i expect that we will at least reach the 'corner' at the conclusion of this game.

In order to improve the results, the mentality and the belief of the players had to improve, that is happening, it looks promising, only once that belief has been restored can we move forwards, the missing link?? the Anfield faithful - i think that this is one homecoming parade that will suffer no upset, not from the bitters and not from Phil Dowd. The supporters will throw their full voice behind the team and the manager, something which is yet to happen on both fronts this season and that i think will be the signal the players need, that will lift them and i think Kenny Dalglish will have them worked up for this game like never before.

The media and general football crowd may cry that Hodgson was unfairly dismissed, and that his successor has been no different but the state the team is in at the moment is down to Hodgson, forget Rafa, I'm sick of hearing that one, the team had no belief, no spirit, they looked disinterested, unmotivated, the starting 11 Hodgson inherited was as good as any on their day, the backup players not all up to standard but years of 'sell to buy' will do that to a club, it is the managers job to lift the players, to inspire them, not just to coach them and pick a team and a formation. Hodgsons tactics were poor, his demeanor as uninspiring as his substitutions, it quite clearly was not working, and he had six months in the job. From now til the end of the season, Kenny Dalglish is only going to get 5months, were we go from there is currently unknown, but already in 5 days he has given the players a lift and the performances if not the results are improving, on the basis of the last 5 days, cant wait to see what he will do in 5 months.

Keep the faith reds, unlucky against Utd, perhaps a draw was the best outcome against Blackpool but they were good for what they got, the best is yet to come and now all attention is firmly on what is happening on the field and thank god for that. I'm sure the players are looking at themselves and I'm sure they know they must improve, but in Kenny Dalglish they have a manager who knows what a privilege it is to represent Liverpool Football Club and he will definitely let them know what the fans deserve and what they are required to do, and he will do it the Liverpool way.

As always feedback is welcomed, and you can follow my ramblings on Twitter: the_real_ash_23 there's a link on the page somewhere too, cheers.