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.
Friday, 14 January 2011
Saturday, 8 January 2011
The Return of The King
So it's finally happened, Roy Hodgson and Liverpool have parted ways by mutual consent or so we're told, an lets face it, mutual consent is just the polite way of saying 'sacked'.This is undoubtedly the decision that the supporters have wanted most for some considerable time now, a few things need to be stressed about Roy Hodgson before attention is turned to the return of the king.
Roy seems to be a genuine man and im sure he is a true gentleman, and the behaviour of fans towards him is in no way an attack on him as a person. Personally i never wanted him to be Liverpool manager, but from the moment the decision was made, i, like most supporters got right behind him, unconditional support for the manager of Liverpool Football Club. In an ideal world we would currently sit four points off the top spot rather than four points above the drop spot and Roy Hodgson would be the man who steadied the ship, the leader we needed etc etc etc.
But it seems that we so not live in an ideal world and things have not gone as supporters would have hoped, nor as Roy himself would have hoped. When a manager is not performing well, which lets face it, he wasn't, poor tactics, poor substitutions and media statements that left a lot to be desired (Vs Wolves - dissapointed we couldnt get goal second half and obtain a draw ~ should be playing to win, ALWAYS, this is LFC. Roy was, quite plainly put, out of his depth. He lost the supporters due to his failing managerial abilities and that alone, most supporters, in fact most people in the game will acknowledge him as being a genuinely nice man. So thats that, Roys a nice guy.
Then there is the nonesense that has been spouted by past players, the mass media, supporters of other clubs, managers of other clubs and Roy Hodgson himself, and that nonesense is that he didn't have time to put his stamp on the team and that he didnt have a proper transfer windown in which to do business. Talk like this is utter crap and completely untrue, as i said in my previous post (http://mixedreception.blogspot.com/2011/01/roy-hodgson-saga-continues.html), Roy had more money to spend than Rafa did in his first window, brought in more players than Rafa did, and had a full TWO months in which to do business, and the team he inherrited was far superior to the team that Rafa inherrited. I'll paste in my comments on this matter:
'Now we turn to the issue of the transfer window that Hodgson has not had in order to build his own team. That quite simply is utterdogshit. Hodgson joined Liverpool on 1/07/2010, he had a full 2 months worth of transfer window to work in. He inherited a team that contained both World Cup winners and finalist, European Cup winners, UEFA cup winners and FA cup winners, he inherited a team that contained the likes of Gerrard, Mascherano, Torres, Reina, Kuyt, Agger, Carragher, he inherrited a very experienced team with most of the starting 11 players being pretty much the same starting 11 that enjoyed a fine season in 2008/09, a team which had struggled the season before but a team which undoubtedly contained a talented bunch of players with many that would be welcomed at most if not all of Europes top clubs.
Now im not an expert on transfer fees paid or received and most sources sight different figures, figures that are only marginally different, but for the purposes of getting this post out before Hodgsons out i've taken firgures from LFC site lfchistory.net. Hodgson spent around £23.8m in the summer on 5 players, Wilson, Meireles, Poulsen, Konchesky, Jones, with Cole on a free and Aurelio resigned for free. Now two of those signings have failed to make the grade so far, and one wholly unneccessary when you consider the fact that Aquilani who Hodgson farmed out quite quickly is a far better player and far younger and faster, the unneccessary transfer is of course Poulsen who at around £4.5m has proved thus far to be a bad buy.
Now, flashback to the summer of 2004, the arrival of Rafa, the dawn of the rafalution an all that. The team Rafa inherited had experience but did not contain even half the quality in the starting line up as the starting 11 he left. He inherited a team that contained the likes of Gerrard, Carrgher, Hyppia and Hamann but also a team in which Diao, Traore, Cheyrou and Biscan were regular staters. Rafa made 4 signings that summer, Josemi, Nunez, Alonso, Garcia, spending around £20.2m in doing so. Now two of those players can be considered bad buys but they combined only cost around £3.5m - less than Poulsen. And the other two had a huge impact on the clubs fortunes in the following seasons. Rafa made 3 additional signings in the January market, Pellegrino(free), Morientes(£6.3m) and Carson(£1m). This squad that Rafa assembled was certainly not in his image with a huge overhaul coming in the following seasons, but he took a largely inherrited squad, supplemented with a handful of transfers to European Cup glory. I dont think there is any manager past or present who would say that they would rather have inherrited the team that Houlier left rather than the one left by Rafa. Short line is, Hodgson has spent more in his first transfer window than Rafa did, brought in more players and has performed very poorly so far with no sign of that changing.'
I wonder would Utd fans be so quick to back Hodgson if he was their manager and if they were in a similar situation as far as the league table is concerned, i would go so far as to say that if that were to happen next season many supporters would be quick to call time on Fergies Utd reign. The comments of several past players over recent weeks also as far as im concerned demonstrates how out of touch with supporters they are, performances are unnacceptable, we had a manager who inspires no faith in fans and players alike, a manager who fails to back his players when they come in for any real criticism, a manager who had openly criticised some players and a manager who was on the whole contributing to the problem rather than the solution. He had to go, and if any past players felt that but did not want to go public then they should have remained silent, this club is about its supporters, we make the club, a club is nothing without its supporters, the vast majority of which wanted Hodgson out, the vast majority of which could not have been wrong.
Then there is all the talk of Rafa, its Rafa's fault, Rafa left a poor spuad, Rafa spent millions, Rafa ruined LFC. Rubbish, utter rubbish. Rafa left in the summer, or to be more exact, Rafa was axed in the summer whilst on holiday, axed by a snake called Purslow who masquerades as an LFC supporter. Rafa never wanted to leave, the man signed a lengthy contract which would have seen his tenure at the club stretch beyond the 10year mark, and i for one would have loved to have seen him stay, i never wanted him to leave. He was, well rather still is a divisive figure but hes all the better for it, his only crime trying to play the media game, and with most of the mass media currently residing in Fergies back pocket there was no way he was ever going to succeed.
Rafa spent millions, but he also clawed pretty much every penny back, and the only money he didn't get back was money spent on players who are still at the club. UnderHicks and Gillet Liverpools transfer policy was pretty much sell to buy, i dont think that when they took over Rafa anticipated that he would have to sell 2/3 players just to bring one in, but that was the reality. So he made bad buys, but when you consider that in actual fact he bought only what we could afford, did he really do such a bad job? I'm sure he would have loved to spend £15m+ on players every window, but he could only buy in the less than £10m category for much of his transfer windows. He never wanted to leave the club, he never wanted to leave a mess, in fact i believe he envisaged himself being part of the Liverpool revival under potential new owners. People point to his time at Inter, no manager in the world was ever going to go there and match or even eclipse what Mourinho did, it was a bad job to take, ageing squad that let players go and brought little in, decimated by injuries not just to first team players but players who would have filled in for the injured first team players, even Mourinho himself would have struggled with Inter this season. Rafa is a good manager and he left Liverpool in the summer, he had no hand in Poulsen or Konchesky, he played no part in Joe Coles difficult start to his LFC career, he didn't farm Aquilani out to Juventus only to see him playing the kind of football which prompted Rafa to bring him to Liverpool in the first place, he didn't alienate himself from the supporters and he didn't guide us to our worst league campaign since the 50's. Put simply, its not Rafas fault.
Hodgson was not NESV's appointment, yet they backed him right into December, they stood by him even under intense pressure from supporters, they gave him every chance to turn it around. Ultimately business ruled over the football. Supporters arent happy with the manager or the teams performances, attendances drop, attendances drop which means merchandising sales drop, and money rules all in business. The club is not generating enough revenue to be competitive with the big boys even when we sell out on a regular basis, so what chance does the club have to be financially competitive when there are 10,000 empty seats at anfield. This i feel played a huge part in the decision to get rid of Hodgson. NESV gave Roy enough time.
So now the King has returned, a decision i also feel is motivated by business. A real buzz has been generated, the supporters have got their man and i dont think we will see too many empty seats at Anfield for a while. And Kenny is one man who demands respect from players and supporters alike without asking for it, he has earned it, and the though of his return to the dug out and the impact he will have just makes those hairs on the back of your neck stand on end. Kenny is Liverpool, his name associated with success.
I feel his appointment is for the time being only a temporary one, and i would expect that once the search for a new CEO has come to an end NESV will draw up a detailed list of who could possibly take charge in the summer, and i think Kenny himself will be on that list. And with unquestioned fan support and a real desire to do the job i think he is the favourite to get the job full time, but only time will tell and i dont expect NESV to give too much away in the mean time.
Optimism that our season can be salvaged and pride restored is higher now that it was when NESV took over last year, and with Dalglish in charge we finally have a man who we can get behind, someone who would fight to the last for the club, a man who knows what it means to play for Liverpool, a man who knows what the supporters want, a man determined to bring the good times back. Sunday against Utd is now a more interesting game, and Kennys appointment will provide a welcome boost, and i for one can't wait, but more importantly i can't wait to welcome the King home against Everton next sunday, you couldn't ask for 2 bigger games to kick off a rejuevenation and with Blackpool sandwiched inbetween there is a real feeling that this could be a very good week for the reds.
One thing is certain, there can no longer be any excuses, the players must now look at themselves and work for each other. In Kenny they have a manager who can bring the best out of them and a manager who they will all be eager to please. Where this leaves the club in terms of January transfers is open to specualtion, should Kenny be well backed in the January window that could be seen as an indication that the job is his beyond this season.
For now reds, lets get behind Kenny and the team, the last remnant of the old regime is now gone, the NESV era starts tomorrow, lets make 2011 a good year and hopefully this time next year im writing about how we shouldn't get carried away sitting 3 points clear at the top! well heres to hoping anyways. This post went on longer than i expected, and was dominated more by the parting of ways rather than the return of the King, but for me, there is nothing anyone else can say about Kenny that hasnt already been said or indeed anything that needs to be said, his reputation is as unquestionable as his love for the club. For me the real talking point is the absurd suggestions from the media that Hodgson was somehow mistreated and not given a fair crack at the job and the even more absurd suggestions about Rafa being the source of the problem, and supporters actually buy into that crap, im more concerned with the truth and all i've said is just my opinion! YNWA!!
Feedback appreciated,, nice one!
Roy seems to be a genuine man and im sure he is a true gentleman, and the behaviour of fans towards him is in no way an attack on him as a person. Personally i never wanted him to be Liverpool manager, but from the moment the decision was made, i, like most supporters got right behind him, unconditional support for the manager of Liverpool Football Club. In an ideal world we would currently sit four points off the top spot rather than four points above the drop spot and Roy Hodgson would be the man who steadied the ship, the leader we needed etc etc etc.
But it seems that we so not live in an ideal world and things have not gone as supporters would have hoped, nor as Roy himself would have hoped. When a manager is not performing well, which lets face it, he wasn't, poor tactics, poor substitutions and media statements that left a lot to be desired (Vs Wolves - dissapointed we couldnt get goal second half and obtain a draw ~ should be playing to win, ALWAYS, this is LFC. Roy was, quite plainly put, out of his depth. He lost the supporters due to his failing managerial abilities and that alone, most supporters, in fact most people in the game will acknowledge him as being a genuinely nice man. So thats that, Roys a nice guy.
Then there is the nonesense that has been spouted by past players, the mass media, supporters of other clubs, managers of other clubs and Roy Hodgson himself, and that nonesense is that he didn't have time to put his stamp on the team and that he didnt have a proper transfer windown in which to do business. Talk like this is utter crap and completely untrue, as i said in my previous post (http://mixedreception.blogspot.com/2011/01/roy-hodgson-saga-continues.html), Roy had more money to spend than Rafa did in his first window, brought in more players than Rafa did, and had a full TWO months in which to do business, and the team he inherrited was far superior to the team that Rafa inherrited. I'll paste in my comments on this matter:
'Now we turn to the issue of the transfer window that Hodgson has not had in order to build his own team. That quite simply is utter
Now im not an expert on transfer fees paid or received and most sources sight different figures, figures that are only marginally different, but for the purposes of getting this post out before Hodgsons out i've taken firgures from LFC site lfchistory.net. Hodgson spent around £23.8m in the summer on 5 players, Wilson, Meireles, Poulsen, Konchesky, Jones, with Cole on a free and Aurelio resigned for free. Now two of those signings have failed to make the grade so far, and one wholly unneccessary when you consider the fact that Aquilani who Hodgson farmed out quite quickly is a far better player and far younger and faster, the unneccessary transfer is of course Poulsen who at around £4.5m has proved thus far to be a bad buy.
Now, flashback to the summer of 2004, the arrival of Rafa, the dawn of the rafalution an all that. The team Rafa inherited had experience but did not contain even half the quality in the starting line up as the starting 11 he left. He inherited a team that contained the likes of Gerrard, Carrgher, Hyppia and Hamann but also a team in which Diao, Traore, Cheyrou and Biscan were regular staters. Rafa made 4 signings that summer, Josemi, Nunez, Alonso, Garcia, spending around £20.2m in doing so. Now two of those players can be considered bad buys but they combined only cost around £3.5m - less than Poulsen. And the other two had a huge impact on the clubs fortunes in the following seasons. Rafa made 3 additional signings in the January market, Pellegrino(free), Morientes(£6.3m) and Carson(£1m). This squad that Rafa assembled was certainly not in his image with a huge overhaul coming in the following seasons, but he took a largely inherrited squad, supplemented with a handful of transfers to European Cup glory. I dont think there is any manager past or present who would say that they would rather have inherrited the team that Houlier left rather than the one left by Rafa. Short line is, Hodgson has spent more in his first transfer window than Rafa did, brought in more players and has performed very poorly so far with no sign of that changing.'
I wonder would Utd fans be so quick to back Hodgson if he was their manager and if they were in a similar situation as far as the league table is concerned, i would go so far as to say that if that were to happen next season many supporters would be quick to call time on Fergies Utd reign. The comments of several past players over recent weeks also as far as im concerned demonstrates how out of touch with supporters they are, performances are unnacceptable, we had a manager who inspires no faith in fans and players alike, a manager who fails to back his players when they come in for any real criticism, a manager who had openly criticised some players and a manager who was on the whole contributing to the problem rather than the solution. He had to go, and if any past players felt that but did not want to go public then they should have remained silent, this club is about its supporters, we make the club, a club is nothing without its supporters, the vast majority of which wanted Hodgson out, the vast majority of which could not have been wrong.
Then there is all the talk of Rafa, its Rafa's fault, Rafa left a poor spuad, Rafa spent millions, Rafa ruined LFC. Rubbish, utter rubbish. Rafa left in the summer, or to be more exact, Rafa was axed in the summer whilst on holiday, axed by a snake called Purslow who masquerades as an LFC supporter. Rafa never wanted to leave, the man signed a lengthy contract which would have seen his tenure at the club stretch beyond the 10year mark, and i for one would have loved to have seen him stay, i never wanted him to leave. He was, well rather still is a divisive figure but hes all the better for it, his only crime trying to play the media game, and with most of the mass media currently residing in Fergies back pocket there was no way he was ever going to succeed.
Rafa spent millions, but he also clawed pretty much every penny back, and the only money he didn't get back was money spent on players who are still at the club. Under
Hodgson was not NESV's appointment, yet they backed him right into December, they stood by him even under intense pressure from supporters, they gave him every chance to turn it around. Ultimately business ruled over the football. Supporters arent happy with the manager or the teams performances, attendances drop, attendances drop which means merchandising sales drop, and money rules all in business. The club is not generating enough revenue to be competitive with the big boys even when we sell out on a regular basis, so what chance does the club have to be financially competitive when there are 10,000 empty seats at anfield. This i feel played a huge part in the decision to get rid of Hodgson. NESV gave Roy enough time.
So now the King has returned, a decision i also feel is motivated by business. A real buzz has been generated, the supporters have got their man and i dont think we will see too many empty seats at Anfield for a while. And Kenny is one man who demands respect from players and supporters alike without asking for it, he has earned it, and the though of his return to the dug out and the impact he will have just makes those hairs on the back of your neck stand on end. Kenny is Liverpool, his name associated with success.
I feel his appointment is for the time being only a temporary one, and i would expect that once the search for a new CEO has come to an end NESV will draw up a detailed list of who could possibly take charge in the summer, and i think Kenny himself will be on that list. And with unquestioned fan support and a real desire to do the job i think he is the favourite to get the job full time, but only time will tell and i dont expect NESV to give too much away in the mean time.
Optimism that our season can be salvaged and pride restored is higher now that it was when NESV took over last year, and with Dalglish in charge we finally have a man who we can get behind, someone who would fight to the last for the club, a man who knows what it means to play for Liverpool, a man who knows what the supporters want, a man determined to bring the good times back. Sunday against Utd is now a more interesting game, and Kennys appointment will provide a welcome boost, and i for one can't wait, but more importantly i can't wait to welcome the King home against Everton next sunday, you couldn't ask for 2 bigger games to kick off a rejuevenation and with Blackpool sandwiched inbetween there is a real feeling that this could be a very good week for the reds.
One thing is certain, there can no longer be any excuses, the players must now look at themselves and work for each other. In Kenny they have a manager who can bring the best out of them and a manager who they will all be eager to please. Where this leaves the club in terms of January transfers is open to specualtion, should Kenny be well backed in the January window that could be seen as an indication that the job is his beyond this season.
For now reds, lets get behind Kenny and the team, the last remnant of the old regime is now gone, the NESV era starts tomorrow, lets make 2011 a good year and hopefully this time next year im writing about how we shouldn't get carried away sitting 3 points clear at the top! well heres to hoping anyways. This post went on longer than i expected, and was dominated more by the parting of ways rather than the return of the King, but for me, there is nothing anyone else can say about Kenny that hasnt already been said or indeed anything that needs to be said, his reputation is as unquestionable as his love for the club. For me the real talking point is the absurd suggestions from the media that Hodgson was somehow mistreated and not given a fair crack at the job and the even more absurd suggestions about Rafa being the source of the problem, and supporters actually buy into that crap, im more concerned with the truth and all i've said is just my opinion! YNWA!!
Feedback appreciated,, nice one!
Friday, 7 January 2011
Roy Hodgson: The Saga Continues
Roy Hodgson is still the manager of Liverpool Football Club. A line i fear we may be tortured with for a while longer. Its not what we as supporters want to hear, the media are slowly coming to the conclusion that their managerial champion is out of his depth and continually the supporters of other clubs lambast Liverpool supporters for their 'shameful treatment of a really good manager'. If the shoe was on the other foot they would not be so quick to defend him.
The only person who believes that Roy Hodgson has the ability to turn things around at Liverpool is Roy Hodgson. Past players have in recent days come out in support of Hodgson but this support is unwanted and demonstrates only that such past players are out of touch with the supporters and how they feel. In my opinion the only reason Kenny Dalglish called for supporters to get behind Hodgson and the team is because of the position he is in. Regularly large section of the support both at home and away are calling for Dalglish to take over, hes a club ambassador and made no secret of his desire to take the job in the summer. It would seriously undermine his position at the club and leave him open to widespread criticism from the mass media were he to come out and say 'Hodgson should go, and i'll take over'. Other past players notably Phil Thompson have come out and said that its time the club and Hodgson parted company, a statement which will be unanimously backed by the supporters.
The main defence of Hodgson is that he is a good manager and a real gentleman who has not had time to build a team in his image and who has not had a proper transfer window in which to do business. Only one of those defences holds any merit and that is that Hodgson does seem to be a genuinely nice man, and im sure he is. But, the other two defences are grossly misleading and wholly inaccurate. Despite a stint at Inter Milan in the 1990's the Liverpool job is by far the biggest of his career, a managerial career that began in 1976 in Scandanavia, a part of the world where he did enjoy success most notably amassing 9 major domestic honours with Malmo FF in just shy of 5 years in the mid-late 80's. He has never won anything outside of this region with his last honours coming in 2001 witht the Danish Superliga and Super Cup titles.
He has spent time managing at international level with Switzerland, Finland and the UAE, nations that are regularly contesting for the World Cup crown. He holds the title for the worst away record of any manager in Premier League history. In the whole of last season Liverpool lost 8 away games which was unacceptable and 11 defeats in total for the season as a whole. Only 20 games played this season and already we have suffered 7 yes SEVEN away defeats and 9 in total. So already under Hodgson we have lost almost the same amount of games - both away from home and for the season as whole - as we did in the whole of last season, and there are still 18 games left to play. Quite simply not good enough.
Consider this, manager with a shockingly bad career away record in England comes to Liverpool, a team that had poor away form last year, and pleads for time to build a team in his own image. So far under said manager Liverpool now have what can only be described as catastrophic away form perhaps even relegation form away from home. I would say that he has done a very good job of creating a team in his image.
Now we turn to the issue of the transfer window that Hodgson has not had in order to build his own team. That quite simply is utterdogshit. Hodgson joined Liverpool on 1/07/2010, he had a full 2 months worth of transfer window to work in. He inherited a team that contained both World Cup winners and finalist, European Cup winners, UEFA cup winners and FA cup winners, he inherited a team that contained the likes of Gerrard, Mascherano, Torres, Reina, Kuyt, Agger, Carragher, he inherrited a very experienced team with most of the starting 11 players being pretty much the same starting 11 that enjoyed a fine season in 2008/09, a team which had struggled the season before but a team which undoubtedly contained a talented bunch of players with many that would be welcomed at most if not all of Europes top clubs.
Now im not an expert on transfer fees paid or received and most sources sight different figures, figures that are only marginally different, but for the purposes of getting this post out before Hodgsons out i've taken firgures from LFC site lfchistory.net. Hodgson spent around £23.8m in the summer on 5 players, Wilson, Meireles, Poulsen, Konchesky, Jones, with Cole on a free and Aurelio resigned for free. Now two of those signings have failed to make the grade so far, and one wholly unneccessary when you consider the fact that Aquilani who Hodgson farmed out quite quickly is a far better player and far younger and faster, the unneccessary transfer is of course Poulsen who at around £4.5m has proved thus far to be a bad buy.
Now, flashback to the summer of 2004, the arrival of Rafa, the dawn of the rafalution an all that. The team Rafa inherited had experience but did not contain even half the quality in the starting line up as the starting 11 he left. He inherited a team that contained the likes of Gerrard, Carrgher, Hyppia and Hamann but also a team in which Diao, Traore, Cheyrou and Biscan were regular staters. Rafa made 4 signings that summer, Josemi, Nunez, Alonso, Garcia, spending around £20.2m in doing so. Now two of those players can be considered bad buys but they combined only cost around £3.5m - less than Poulsen. And the other two had a huge impact on the clubs fortunes in the following seasons. Rafa made 3 additional signings in the January market, Pellegrino(free), Morientes(£6.3m) and Carson(£1m). This squad that Rafa assembled was certainly not in his image with a huge overhaul coming in the following seasons, but he took a largely inherrited squad, supplemented with a handful of transfers to European Cup glory. I dont think there is any manager past or present who would say that they would rather have inherrited the team that Houlier left rather than the one left by Rafa. Short line is, Hodgson has spent more in his first transfer window than Rafa did, brought in more players and has performed very poorly so far with no sign of that changing.
Much has been said of the silence from NESV. My view of it is that they are in a very awkward situation, one which i do not think they envisaged they would be in so soon into their time at the club. They took over at a very awkward moment in the clubs history and let us not forget they have removed the debt saddled onto the club byHicks and Gillet. They arent new to sports club ownership, but they are new to football and to the way in which the game works. They are Americans unused to the way we do things over here. They are still learning. If this was happening 4/5 years down the line i have no doubt that the manager at the time would have been relieved by now. They are still conducting a search for the right CEO to join the club, they have set out their plan to bring in the best young talent to the club to ensure that the future is a bright and secure one, they have said they are willing to supplement the squad in January with the right players who can make a difference to the current personnel. They have said they are willing to listen to supporters views and thus far they have. The next move is a crucial one and i feel that they do not want to be hasty and rush into things. Both Henry and Werner have expressed disappointment with results prior to the new year, so it can only be assumed that the way things have turned out since those comments has not gone unnoticed and is from their point of view wholly unwelcome.
Hodgson himself is not making it easy for them, he will not walk, he needs more time, he needs money, the press have his back, hes like a dying dog that no one has the heart to put out of its misery. The situation is not an ideal one. Silence on their part is not good news for Hodgson, previously the owners had been quick to voice that they had faith in Hodgson but now there is only silence and that silence must be haunting Hodgson. It would be impossible to say that they have not heard the supporters frustrations, they have heard, and they are very competent, experienced businessmen, and they are dealing with the situation as businessmen and it is my opinion that they already know what will happen over the coming days and i suspect the silence will not last for much longer and i also suspect that should this situation ever arise in the future that following on from this experience they will know exactly what needs to be done and will act alot quicker.
So for now the saga does continue, there has to be, by now, zero fan support for Hodgson. It has been said that supporters calls for Dalglish to take charge, echoes the calls of Newcastle supporters calling for Shearer to save them, but anyone who has watched MOTD over the last few years will know that Shearer whilst being an exceptional striker in his day, has all the personality of a goal post and would never have saved Newcastle from relegation even if he had been playing FIFA on amateur mode. He isnt a manager, he had no managerial experience, it was never going to happen, as the Kop said, he should have stayed on the telly. Dalglish on the other hand has managerial experince, ok so hes been out of the game for a while but he is Liverpool, he is an almost ever present on match days he knows the predicament the club is in and more importantly given his standing at the club, he commands the respect of every player, supporter, official, everyone at the club down to the cleaners, he commands their respect without ever asking for it - he earned it.
Hopefully the situation is resolved soon, its getting more and more painful to watch. Im sure Roy is a nice man but he wasnt hired to be a nice man, he was hired to win games and push on back up the table not drag us down to Fulhams level so he feel comfortable, he might be used to being closer to the tables foot than its summit but we are not. NESV removed the last obstacle saving him from getting both barrels from the supporters, things have not improved, do not look like improving and actually things are getting worse and it is time for a change, time for the last remnant of the old regime to part ways with the club, we need a truely fresh start all round.
The only person who believes that Roy Hodgson has the ability to turn things around at Liverpool is Roy Hodgson. Past players have in recent days come out in support of Hodgson but this support is unwanted and demonstrates only that such past players are out of touch with the supporters and how they feel. In my opinion the only reason Kenny Dalglish called for supporters to get behind Hodgson and the team is because of the position he is in. Regularly large section of the support both at home and away are calling for Dalglish to take over, hes a club ambassador and made no secret of his desire to take the job in the summer. It would seriously undermine his position at the club and leave him open to widespread criticism from the mass media were he to come out and say 'Hodgson should go, and i'll take over'. Other past players notably Phil Thompson have come out and said that its time the club and Hodgson parted company, a statement which will be unanimously backed by the supporters.
The main defence of Hodgson is that he is a good manager and a real gentleman who has not had time to build a team in his image and who has not had a proper transfer window in which to do business. Only one of those defences holds any merit and that is that Hodgson does seem to be a genuinely nice man, and im sure he is. But, the other two defences are grossly misleading and wholly inaccurate. Despite a stint at Inter Milan in the 1990's the Liverpool job is by far the biggest of his career, a managerial career that began in 1976 in Scandanavia, a part of the world where he did enjoy success most notably amassing 9 major domestic honours with Malmo FF in just shy of 5 years in the mid-late 80's. He has never won anything outside of this region with his last honours coming in 2001 witht the Danish Superliga and Super Cup titles.
He has spent time managing at international level with Switzerland, Finland and the UAE, nations that are regularly contesting for the World Cup crown. He holds the title for the worst away record of any manager in Premier League history. In the whole of last season Liverpool lost 8 away games which was unacceptable and 11 defeats in total for the season as a whole. Only 20 games played this season and already we have suffered 7 yes SEVEN away defeats and 9 in total. So already under Hodgson we have lost almost the same amount of games - both away from home and for the season as whole - as we did in the whole of last season, and there are still 18 games left to play. Quite simply not good enough.
Consider this, manager with a shockingly bad career away record in England comes to Liverpool, a team that had poor away form last year, and pleads for time to build a team in his own image. So far under said manager Liverpool now have what can only be described as catastrophic away form perhaps even relegation form away from home. I would say that he has done a very good job of creating a team in his image.
Now we turn to the issue of the transfer window that Hodgson has not had in order to build his own team. That quite simply is utter
Now im not an expert on transfer fees paid or received and most sources sight different figures, figures that are only marginally different, but for the purposes of getting this post out before Hodgsons out i've taken firgures from LFC site lfchistory.net. Hodgson spent around £23.8m in the summer on 5 players, Wilson, Meireles, Poulsen, Konchesky, Jones, with Cole on a free and Aurelio resigned for free. Now two of those signings have failed to make the grade so far, and one wholly unneccessary when you consider the fact that Aquilani who Hodgson farmed out quite quickly is a far better player and far younger and faster, the unneccessary transfer is of course Poulsen who at around £4.5m has proved thus far to be a bad buy.
Now, flashback to the summer of 2004, the arrival of Rafa, the dawn of the rafalution an all that. The team Rafa inherited had experience but did not contain even half the quality in the starting line up as the starting 11 he left. He inherited a team that contained the likes of Gerrard, Carrgher, Hyppia and Hamann but also a team in which Diao, Traore, Cheyrou and Biscan were regular staters. Rafa made 4 signings that summer, Josemi, Nunez, Alonso, Garcia, spending around £20.2m in doing so. Now two of those players can be considered bad buys but they combined only cost around £3.5m - less than Poulsen. And the other two had a huge impact on the clubs fortunes in the following seasons. Rafa made 3 additional signings in the January market, Pellegrino(free), Morientes(£6.3m) and Carson(£1m). This squad that Rafa assembled was certainly not in his image with a huge overhaul coming in the following seasons, but he took a largely inherrited squad, supplemented with a handful of transfers to European Cup glory. I dont think there is any manager past or present who would say that they would rather have inherrited the team that Houlier left rather than the one left by Rafa. Short line is, Hodgson has spent more in his first transfer window than Rafa did, brought in more players and has performed very poorly so far with no sign of that changing.
Much has been said of the silence from NESV. My view of it is that they are in a very awkward situation, one which i do not think they envisaged they would be in so soon into their time at the club. They took over at a very awkward moment in the clubs history and let us not forget they have removed the debt saddled onto the club by
Hodgson himself is not making it easy for them, he will not walk, he needs more time, he needs money, the press have his back, hes like a dying dog that no one has the heart to put out of its misery. The situation is not an ideal one. Silence on their part is not good news for Hodgson, previously the owners had been quick to voice that they had faith in Hodgson but now there is only silence and that silence must be haunting Hodgson. It would be impossible to say that they have not heard the supporters frustrations, they have heard, and they are very competent, experienced businessmen, and they are dealing with the situation as businessmen and it is my opinion that they already know what will happen over the coming days and i suspect the silence will not last for much longer and i also suspect that should this situation ever arise in the future that following on from this experience they will know exactly what needs to be done and will act alot quicker.
So for now the saga does continue, there has to be, by now, zero fan support for Hodgson. It has been said that supporters calls for Dalglish to take charge, echoes the calls of Newcastle supporters calling for Shearer to save them, but anyone who has watched MOTD over the last few years will know that Shearer whilst being an exceptional striker in his day, has all the personality of a goal post and would never have saved Newcastle from relegation even if he had been playing FIFA on amateur mode. He isnt a manager, he had no managerial experience, it was never going to happen, as the Kop said, he should have stayed on the telly. Dalglish on the other hand has managerial experince, ok so hes been out of the game for a while but he is Liverpool, he is an almost ever present on match days he knows the predicament the club is in and more importantly given his standing at the club, he commands the respect of every player, supporter, official, everyone at the club down to the cleaners, he commands their respect without ever asking for it - he earned it.
Hopefully the situation is resolved soon, its getting more and more painful to watch. Im sure Roy is a nice man but he wasnt hired to be a nice man, he was hired to win games and push on back up the table not drag us down to Fulhams level so he feel comfortable, he might be used to being closer to the tables foot than its summit but we are not. NESV removed the last obstacle saving him from getting both barrels from the supporters, things have not improved, do not look like improving and actually things are getting worse and it is time for a change, time for the last remnant of the old regime to part ways with the club, we need a truely fresh start all round.
Sunday, 2 January 2011
2011 The Year of Uncertainty
I think we can all agree that 2010 was definately a year to forget. Way back in the summer of 2009, many believed and myself included that 2010 would be the year that the club made that one final push and ascend to the summit of English football. Que boardroom power struggles, lack of investment, loss of belief and complete mismanagement and the club began a rapid and painful fall from grace which continues to this day.
What a new year will bring is always uncertain, but 2011 is THE year of uncertainty and what the club does this year i think will shape the clubs future for the foreseeable future. Now that the seemingly endless nightmare that wasHicks and Gillet is finally over, the distracting boardroom side show is over and what happens on the pitch has now - thankfully - taken centre stage. And one thing is clear, now that the off-field antics have vanished the on-field nightmare has been laid bare for all to see, there is no longer any distraction to hide it, nor indeed to use as an excuse to hide behind.
NESV are here, they have been careful not to make bold and outlandish statements a laHicks and Gillet but have instead walked the line of caution stating quite rightly that there is no quick fix, and that they are here for the long run, to learn more about the sport and the club and to set out a plan to secure the long term future of the club both on and off the field. Where they lie with regards to transfer budgets and on the stadium debate is open to speculation and im sure all will be revealed in time but there is still enough uncertainty to cause concern.
They have, admirably or foolishly stood by a manager who they did not appoint, and in the midst of the clubs worst start to a league season in over 50 years it is a huge talking point. The fans for the most part are unanimously against present manager Roy Hodgson and there is no sign of that changing any time soon, media reports suggest that the owners have grown tired of the situation and the breakdown between manager and supporters, but then they are just reports nothing is confirmed.
What i can confirm is that the clubs current run of form, performances, league standing and over all entertainment value is shockingly bad, the game against Wolves a particular low point with not one player having an overall standout performance and most on the whole looked completely disinterested. Many voices in the media pointed the finger squarly at 'the mess that Rafa left' - despite 8 of the players who featured against Wolves having also featured in the 4-0 thrashing of Real Madrid almost TWO years ago, that would suggest that Rafa left a group of players who on their day are capable of beating anyone, what we need is for someone to bring that fighting spirit and belief back into them. Where ever you stand on Rafa, if he did leave a mess it was certainly not a mess that he left or created by choice.
What will happen in 2011 no one can say, a much improved but nowhere near perfect performance on new years day heralded a welcome 3 points and hopefully we can build on that one game at a time and then 10 games from now lets see where we are, lets not declare this the start of our season, the day we got back on track, our 'mini-revival', too many times in 2010 did we hear talk of those things and never did it get us anywhere, all it did was raise expectations and make the fall all the more painful to take as evidenced after the superb result against Chelsea, the hype, the expectation, the painful spell following on from that which made that hard fought victory seem worthless.
As i said, 2011 will be the year that will determine the clubs path for the forseeable future, a combintation of good management on and off the field, some wise and much needed investment in the playing staff and a renewed sense of belief will see us transformed into a team capable of reclaiming a top 4 place and back challenging for top honours on every front, the opposite will see us resigned to fighting for a Europa league place and labelled a 'top 10' team, i think we can all agree on which one we want the most.
The new owners are yet to really make any big and bold decisions regarding the club and this year will be a big year for them, and on what i've seen so far i think they can really change the fortunes of the club and take us to the next level, and hopefully current star players who may have sought an exit had the previous regime continued, will decide to stay and play their part in the revival of this countries greatest sporting family.
Whatever 2011 may bring, lets get behind the team, lets play our part, lets dare to dream a little whilst maintaining a little caution, and maybe, just maybe, we will remember 2011 as the year this club hit back and rose from the flames. The year ahead is uncertain but there is one certainty that binds us, that defines us, that unites us through the good and the bad.........You'll Never Walk Alone.
Have a great 2011 folks!
What a new year will bring is always uncertain, but 2011 is THE year of uncertainty and what the club does this year i think will shape the clubs future for the foreseeable future. Now that the seemingly endless nightmare that was
NESV are here, they have been careful not to make bold and outlandish statements a la
They have, admirably or foolishly stood by a manager who they did not appoint, and in the midst of the clubs worst start to a league season in over 50 years it is a huge talking point. The fans for the most part are unanimously against present manager Roy Hodgson and there is no sign of that changing any time soon, media reports suggest that the owners have grown tired of the situation and the breakdown between manager and supporters, but then they are just reports nothing is confirmed.
What i can confirm is that the clubs current run of form, performances, league standing and over all entertainment value is shockingly bad, the game against Wolves a particular low point with not one player having an overall standout performance and most on the whole looked completely disinterested. Many voices in the media pointed the finger squarly at 'the mess that Rafa left' - despite 8 of the players who featured against Wolves having also featured in the 4-0 thrashing of Real Madrid almost TWO years ago, that would suggest that Rafa left a group of players who on their day are capable of beating anyone, what we need is for someone to bring that fighting spirit and belief back into them. Where ever you stand on Rafa, if he did leave a mess it was certainly not a mess that he left or created by choice.
What will happen in 2011 no one can say, a much improved but nowhere near perfect performance on new years day heralded a welcome 3 points and hopefully we can build on that one game at a time and then 10 games from now lets see where we are, lets not declare this the start of our season, the day we got back on track, our 'mini-revival', too many times in 2010 did we hear talk of those things and never did it get us anywhere, all it did was raise expectations and make the fall all the more painful to take as evidenced after the superb result against Chelsea, the hype, the expectation, the painful spell following on from that which made that hard fought victory seem worthless.
As i said, 2011 will be the year that will determine the clubs path for the forseeable future, a combintation of good management on and off the field, some wise and much needed investment in the playing staff and a renewed sense of belief will see us transformed into a team capable of reclaiming a top 4 place and back challenging for top honours on every front, the opposite will see us resigned to fighting for a Europa league place and labelled a 'top 10' team, i think we can all agree on which one we want the most.
The new owners are yet to really make any big and bold decisions regarding the club and this year will be a big year for them, and on what i've seen so far i think they can really change the fortunes of the club and take us to the next level, and hopefully current star players who may have sought an exit had the previous regime continued, will decide to stay and play their part in the revival of this countries greatest sporting family.
Whatever 2011 may bring, lets get behind the team, lets play our part, lets dare to dream a little whilst maintaining a little caution, and maybe, just maybe, we will remember 2011 as the year this club hit back and rose from the flames. The year ahead is uncertain but there is one certainty that binds us, that defines us, that unites us through the good and the bad.........You'll Never Walk Alone.
Have a great 2011 folks!
Wednesday, 15 December 2010
A Nightmare Before Christmas
It's becoming almost second nature once more to write the season off before christmas. And there is a very real risk of this season being even more of a nightmare than the last. Last season was far from perfect, but after 17 games last year Liverpool had 27 points, five more than this season. There seems little to be optimistic about and lets face it there is good reason for that too.
A wave of boos descended onto the Anfield pitch following the final whistle against Utrecht, the feeling is that Hodgsons final whistle as Liverpool manager will receive a far different response.
Supporters are not happy and rightly so, Liverpool's football in 2010 has been, on the whole, absolutely awful. Under Rafa last season, a season that promised so much yet delivered so little, Liverpool lost their way, and after only one bad season the 'rafalution' was ended. The main problems from last season - poor away form, and a distinct lack of attaching options in the absence of Torres. The response was perhaps the last great disaster of the old regime, hire a manager with an even poorer away record, a manager who in two seasons at Fulham had one good league run by the standards of the club and then a ride to Europa League final in the next without hitting the domestic heights of the previous season.
So Hodgsons in, he's good on a tight budget they tell us, the man made one good signing in Raul Meireles which was only facilitated by the exit of Mascherano. Konchesky, Cole, Poulsen all brought in, all have had far from a good start to their Liverpool careers. Aquilani was allowed to go out on a season long loan despite showing towards the end of last season that he might actually be starting to come good, his form for Juventus thus far has been so good they dont want him to leave ~ Hodgson never gave him a chance. To address the striking issue our top target was Carlton Cole, yes, that Carlton Cole who cant really buy a game for struggling West Ham, but he was seemingly the answer to our lack of attacking options, whilst Van Der Vaart was dismissed as a player that does not interest Liverpool FC, we all know who the vast majority would opt for. Admittedly under
The only thing that saved Hodgson from the full backlash of the fans early on was the continuing circus of
NESV quite rightly want to give the man time, he hasnt really had a chance to properly mould the team in his image altho many would say that that is exactly what he has done. And many simply do not trust Hodgson with the money that could be going his way ~ Carlton Cole.
Continually we are reminded in the media, on the message boards - mainly by
Hodgson has managed 16 teams in 8 different countries, a fantastic achievement, yet he hasn't won a single thing outside of scandinavia and the bulk of those honours came in the 80's. So this is the great manager who no one else would have, but we are meant to be happy hes ours. He has had a fantastic career - but he will NEVER be remembered as a truely great manager, im sure hes a great guy, but in football quite often there is no room for sentiment, and being polite and well spoken just wont cut it. At a time when Liverpool needed somone to come in, steady the ship and steer us back on course, we got a man who seems intent on scuttling the ship with a rub of his face and endless waffle about good performances and needing time to gel.
Football is a viscous world and there is absolutely no room for sentiment in football management. No other club would afford so much patience to a manager that the supporters quite frankly do not want. Not once this season - having attended every home game - have i heard Hodgsons name chanted, yet on different occasions i have heard the names of Benitez, Dalglish and Houlier chanted by the crowd, one out of respect on a first return since leaving, and the other two in direct opposition to the current management. Something has to give.
Resluts are unacceptbale, fans know it, NESV have admitted it, and Hodgson agrees, yet continually we are subjected to dire performances with each minor victory being hailed as the start of the 'mini revival' only for us to self destruct in the next game. We owe our league position to the fact that it is incredibly tight this year, in years gone by we would be well and truely adrift of the top four. Over the years Rafa was forced to admit that the title was beyond us by christmas, if things proceed the way they are going then it wont be long before Hodgson is forced to admit that a top 4 finish is beyond us by christmas.
Repairing the damage of the old regime was never going to be a quick and easy job, but the current manager, with his outdated tactics, away day blues and Mr nice guy attitude is the last failed remnant of that regime and the time has surely come for change. The players are not altogether blameless - but the lack of ambition stems from the manager as do the poor tactics, poor in game decisions and terribly tiring excuses.
2010 has been as close to a nightmare as you can get for a top team in football, and there is a great deal of renewed hope and expectation around the club at present and it seems only right that the duty to take the club forward rests in a manager entirely of NESV's own choice, someone who actually knows what it is like to manage a top team in the current footballing climate, someone who commands the respect of the players and earns the respect of the support.....
.....Roy Hodgson is quite simply not that man.
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