Just after the Barnsley defeat, and consequently the humbling exit from the F.A. Cup, it was widely felt that Liverpool has hit rock bottom. Like a brick thrown into the abyss of a well by some unskilled labourer. With Inter Milan next in three days time, the lure of Champions League wasn’t feeling too great. A big meal is awaiting when you have just thrown anything inside your guts possibly through food poison. The thought of it alone makes you even sicker, but you know you have to attend. Liverpool had to honour the fixture, just not to make matters worse.
At that time, statistically a mere month ago, the blindest optimists would argue that the only way is up. Surely Liverpool couldn’t sink even further. It seems that the food poison just helped to shed a few kilos off the body weight and a few inches off the waist. Since then Liverpool have looked leaner and lighter. They looked different and consequently have won matches - for seven consecutive times. Gloom has turned into glare, and optimism has turned into expectation. Once again, Liverpool repelled the adversity. Forthcoming matches are not chores anymore but the main point of your week.
When last Saturday, the Czech Matejovsky produced a superlative effort, reminding us of his compatriot Patrik Berger, after just five minutes, heads were ruffled but the same heads never went down. The hill got steeper, another gear was put in, simple. The name of Javier Mascherano got sung around Anfield to the tune of The White Stripes, Seven Nation Army song. Since that afternoon against Barnsley, the Argentinean has put his name officially on the books of Liverpool F.C. after a too long saga, put his name a few times on the ‘Man of the Match’ statistics, and now even on a score-sheet. Talk of a good month! And then, a floated free-kick through Steven Gerrard got met by Fernando Torres. And the rest is history. The latter achieved the twentieth Premiership goal and another three points were won.
To put things into perspective, through these seven games, Liverpool has beaten home and away one of the top sides in Europe in Inter Milan, and then four times out of five won at home against lower opposition in the Premiership. The other time, Liverpool put to the sword, a team that is currently in the eighteenth position.
What is though more encouraging is the way Liverpool accomplished these five wins on the trot. Scoring fifteen and conceding a mere three is a testament that Liverpool have been adventurous and played great football. Another even more encouraging aspect of it all is the way Fernando Torres had a hand in this run with his eight goals, and stamped his class all over the place. I, for one, am a firm believer in team work, but only a player of his class can make the whole difference in the small details. His telepathic understanding with Steven Gerrard is a marvel.
What Rafael Benitez has achieved against Inter Milan is to his great credit, and an immeasurable achievement. He has only repeated his triumphal tactical acumen on the biggest stage of them all. He has done it all before albeit in not such audacity. After these five consecutive wins, he changed the mood into his dressing room, the streets of Liverpool and every red’s around. He has built a strong foundation for the next five big matches.
In Rafa’s own words, it’s the next one that matters for the moment. And the next one is one of the biggest in the fixture list and the recent record is only forgettable. It is now time to consolidate this great run and for Rafa to emulate Mascherano and break his duck on the local stage against his inferior in European football. With a little help from his compatriot, big things can happen.
At that time, statistically a mere month ago, the blindest optimists would argue that the only way is up. Surely Liverpool couldn’t sink even further. It seems that the food poison just helped to shed a few kilos off the body weight and a few inches off the waist. Since then Liverpool have looked leaner and lighter. They looked different and consequently have won matches - for seven consecutive times. Gloom has turned into glare, and optimism has turned into expectation. Once again, Liverpool repelled the adversity. Forthcoming matches are not chores anymore but the main point of your week.
When last Saturday, the Czech Matejovsky produced a superlative effort, reminding us of his compatriot Patrik Berger, after just five minutes, heads were ruffled but the same heads never went down. The hill got steeper, another gear was put in, simple. The name of Javier Mascherano got sung around Anfield to the tune of The White Stripes, Seven Nation Army song. Since that afternoon against Barnsley, the Argentinean has put his name officially on the books of Liverpool F.C. after a too long saga, put his name a few times on the ‘Man of the Match’ statistics, and now even on a score-sheet. Talk of a good month! And then, a floated free-kick through Steven Gerrard got met by Fernando Torres. And the rest is history. The latter achieved the twentieth Premiership goal and another three points were won.
To put things into perspective, through these seven games, Liverpool has beaten home and away one of the top sides in Europe in Inter Milan, and then four times out of five won at home against lower opposition in the Premiership. The other time, Liverpool put to the sword, a team that is currently in the eighteenth position.
What is though more encouraging is the way Liverpool accomplished these five wins on the trot. Scoring fifteen and conceding a mere three is a testament that Liverpool have been adventurous and played great football. Another even more encouraging aspect of it all is the way Fernando Torres had a hand in this run with his eight goals, and stamped his class all over the place. I, for one, am a firm believer in team work, but only a player of his class can make the whole difference in the small details. His telepathic understanding with Steven Gerrard is a marvel.
What Rafael Benitez has achieved against Inter Milan is to his great credit, and an immeasurable achievement. He has only repeated his triumphal tactical acumen on the biggest stage of them all. He has done it all before albeit in not such audacity. After these five consecutive wins, he changed the mood into his dressing room, the streets of Liverpool and every red’s around. He has built a strong foundation for the next five big matches.
In Rafa’s own words, it’s the next one that matters for the moment. And the next one is one of the biggest in the fixture list and the recent record is only forgettable. It is now time to consolidate this great run and for Rafa to emulate Mascherano and break his duck on the local stage against his inferior in European football. With a little help from his compatriot, big things can happen.
posted by jean paul at 1:44 pm
0 Comments:
Post a Comment
<< Home