Imperfect Transfers & Injuries, the reason for Liverpool downfall
My sympathies are with Brendan Rodgers. After a brilliant season where they missed out on the title last season, it is back to the same dark hole where they are out of the Champions League spot and fingers are being pointed at Rodgers for a miserable season.
It seems each time, when Rodgers seems to find a successful formula which ignites the club, by some reason he keeps on hitting a hurdle in the form of a transfer, an injury or some contract issues which is not helping him in any way or the other.
Last season, after a long time, I have seen Liverpool play that beautifully which included a fast paced passing game with expansive elements mainly relying on the front three of Suarez, Sterling and Sturridge. It seemed as if Liverpool had finally come out of the closet after a long time and they will again influence the Premier League like before.
But then came Barcelona, and their main ‘go to’ man, Luis Suarez left the club for a hefty sum of money to pursue his career in Spain leaving the Reds in dire straits.
The reality of contemporary football is that, when players are performing well, they are most likely to attract attention from all the big guns around the world. And also, attributes like loyalty can be hardly found in today’s cut throat competition. Going by this theory, I can’t blame Suarez for going to Barcelona where he will get a chance to be a part of a glorious club and not to mention, Champions League football each and every season.
We have to live with this reality and move on. Good players stay and unfortunately they go, but football doesn’t remain stagnant. Liverpool acquired a huge sum of money from the Suarez sale, but like Tottenham, they did not spend it wisely which is a major reason they are failing this season.
Before the sale, Liverpool spent heavily on some players namely, Lazar Markovic from Benefica, Emre Can from Bayer Leverkusen & Adam Lallana from Southampton. Unfortunately none of the transfers have affected their play in a major way. Can although has been in better form off late with his performance in the Reds shaky back line, but Markovic still hasn’t justified his transfer fee with his below the par performances.
Lallana for me was not a good move. He had an above average season for Southampton, but he is not tested that much in top flight football to be playing at a club of Liverpool’s stature. 25 million pounds for Lallana was too much but this is expected in an age where the prices of English players are heavily inflated.
After the sale of Suarez, I was dumbfounded by the names of the players who Rodgers bought to consolidate his team. First and foremost, to replace Suarez, Rodgers brought in Mario Balotelli. I know there are only a handful of forwards in the world who can replace Suarez in a team, but Balotelli isn’t even in the top 100 of that list.
Balotelli isn’t not only overrated, but he is one of the laziest players I have ever seen. And to top that, he has an attitude which is the size of a mammoth. I understand that many players have an attitude which may not be seen in good graces, but I am ready to accept Messi’s attitude because at least he performs when needed the most. Balotelli on the other hand, brings no pace, no enthusiasm, no energy and especially no goals which is proving highly detrimental to Liverpool’s performance this season.
His 16 million price tag is completely unjustified and is one of the worst transfer moves I have seen, and when viewed from the perspective that he was brought in to replace Suarez, it makes the whole situation almost laughable.
More from The Top Flight
- Barcelona identify Newcastle star as Robert Lewandowski replacement
- Arsenal injury news: Mikel Arteta confirms “rapid” attacker suffered injury
- “600 days” Fans make SHOCK Chelsea revelation – They really are poor
- Arsenal transfer news: Mikel Arteta rivals Manchester United for wonderkid
- Manchester United: Erik ten Hag pinpoints 4 players amid Brighton loss
Another transfer failure is Dejan Lovren bought from Southampton. After his miserable performances in the red shirt, I wonder if Lovren was that good in Southampton, or his partnership with Jose Fonte disguised his below average performances. Liverpool chose the wrong center back. Absurd tackles along with horrible positioning has marred his performances and Liverpool are paying the price.
Apart from the substandard transfers the injury bug has also hit Rodgers hard. With Suarez gone, and Balotelli…..well, being himself as usual, Sturridge seemed to be the man who would take the place of Suarez, but regrettably, he has been out for most parts of the season with a lingering injury. In his absence, Sterling has been deployed as a striker in a formation containing a false nine. Yes, they went on a good run post 2015, but without important players playing in the respective positions, one can’t sustain a winning run for long.
This was evident, when they lost crucial matches to Arsenal and Manchester United which ended their hopes for a top four finish. Rodgers tactics aren’t to blame because his 3-4-3 formation with the wings backs in the form of Moreno and Markovic was ingenious. But to make that formation successful in the long run, he needed a proper substitute of Suarez or at least a fit and in form Sturridge. But sadly for Rodgers, he doesn’t have either. A false nine midfield player can’t win you titles.
With all the rumors of Rodgers’s position being under scrutiny, I think Brendan has done a wonderful job with Liverpool and he doesn’t deserve the sack. He should and I think he will be with Liverpool in the near future. He is tactically sound and has the ability to make game changing decisions.
He also has young and talented players in the form of Sterling and Countinho around whom he can build a superb Liverpool team. All he needs to do is be a little shrewder and more astute in the transfer market and he won’t be a long way from triumph which is unfortunately eluding him at the moment.