When Liverpool reached the 2007 Champions League final and pushed Manchester United close in the 2009 Premier League title race, there were a handful of important factors.
Belief was the key word at the back end of the 2006/2007 campaign as the Reds overcame the odds to beat Barcelona and Chelsea en route to the final in Athens, where they, despite a more rounded performance than in Istanbul in 2005, lost 2-1 to AC Milan. Two years later, a clinical Fernando Torres and some dramatic late goals gave Sir Alex Ferguson plenty to worry about in the league title race.
But perhaps the most critical factor across both years was the midfield double act of Javier Mascherano and Xabi Alonso. Arguably the best pairing outside Barcelona, they dominated games and made the players around them considerably better, though they rarely grabbed the headlines. The team’s slump since Alonso moved to Real Madrid has spoken volumes and it is no coincidence. There could be a further slide too now that Mascherano has been lured to the Camp Nou.
Steven Gerrard is certainly missing Alonso. The Liverpool skipper has been well below his best during the last 18 months, leading many to realise that Alonso did not always receive enough credit for sparking the Reds with his passing. He made Liverpool tick just as much as the Englishman and it was telling that compatriot Pepe Reina attributed Liverpool’s early season struggles last term to Alonso’s absence.
Now Gerrard finds himself in a central midfield position, as opposed to the roaming number 10 role he enjoyed under Rafael Benitez. And, though he has played there countless times in his career for Liverpool and England, the transition is not proving easy. He looks unsure whether to drop deep to pick up possession or bomb forward to support the strikers. As a result, his performances have been average so far this season.
Mascherano’s absence will be felt too – not only by Gerrard, but also by the Liverpool back four. The Argentine has few equals as a defensive midfield screen and he rattled some of the world’s best forwards with his tenacious tackling during the Reds’ European run in 2007. His disciplined tracking of midfield runs and his ability to break up play made life easier for Jamie Carragher and company. As the 3-0 defeat to Manchester City last month proved, Liverpool are not the watertight force of two or three years ago.
There are also signs that the Reds’ are struggling at the other end – two goals scored in four games is a worrying sign. There was the struggle at home to West Brom – before Torres’ winner – and then the goalless draw at Birmingham on Sunday. At St. Andrews, it was only Reina’s brilliance that kept Liverpool level and new boss Roy Hodgson was forced to defend Torres’ ineffective display. There was no creativity in the first half and things only marginally improved after the break. Birmingham are a solid team, especially at home, but the Liverpool of old – with Alonso and Mascherano paired in midfield – would have taken charge and at least, as former boss Rafael Benitez so often said, controlled the game.
So, where do the Reds go from here? Well, with the transfer window now closed, Hodgson has no option but to press on with the current squad. He is trying to integrate several new faces, including Christian Poulsen, who will be asked to fill the void left by Mascherano, and Portuguese international Raul Meireles, an £11.5M buy from FC Porto. Meanwhile, Lucas has shown the odd sign of improvement in the midfield engine room and Liverpool are hoping his performances can rise in the way that the once-maligned Darren Fletcher has blossomed in a similar role at Old Trafford.
And things could be worse given the rumours that had swirled during the summer, suggesting that Torres, Gerrard and even Reina might be heading for the Anfield exit. Hodgson acted quickly to prevent such an exodus, but keeping Liverpool in the race for the top four, with ownership questions still unresolved, will be an even tougher feat. At this rate, fans should forget about the title.
Hodgson has a lot on his plate and the season is not even a month old. In truth, the situation will probably get worse for the ex-Fulham manager before it gets better. He must rally his players, build confidence and climb the table. Then in the New Year, he can access the transfer market again – although what funds will be available is up in the air, dependent as ever on whether the club is eventually sold, or the damaged American owners soldier on.
At that time, in addition to a backup striker to Torres, if Meireles and Poulsen are not cutting the mustard, finding a midfield duo worthy of succeeding Alonso and Mascherano should be high on his to do list. But, as Real Madrid and Barcelona realised when they opened their chequebooks, players of that calibre are hard to find.
