Liverpool have been on a terrible run of form in the Premier League as of late.  Losses to Queens Park Rangers and Wigan Atheltic have, once again, put the microscope on Kenny Dalglish's side. I think you would be hard pressed to find someone who would say Arsenal, QPR, or Wigan out played Liverpool but the fact of the matter is, the other team scored more goals than the Merseyside giants. 




As a Reds supporter, I have struggled as much as any fan this season. While we have seen incredible heights from the team, knocking out United in the FA Cup or finally grabbing some silverware in the Carling Cup, we have also seen incredible lows such as today's loss to relegation battling Wigan. 




Our defense has been great this year, especially when Agger was fit. During any given game, you will hear the announcers say how much possession Liverpool have had or how "intricate" or "clever" Luis Suarez is in and around the box. There is no doubt that the Reds have one of the greatest midfielders to ever play the game in Steven Gerrard. So where are the goals? Why is Liverpool not fighting for a Champions League finish?




The biggest problem Liverpool has faced is fairly obvious. We are not scoring enough goals. Andy Carroll needs to find the form he had with Newcastle. Suarez needs to be told to shut up and play and quit losing your composure at every bad pass or cross. Henderson needs to find some confidence immediately, the boy is afraid to have the ball at his feet. Downing is showing great improvement recently but his delivery and finishing needs improvement. 




Liverpool's midfield has been solid but far from great. Gerrard does what he can to control the midfield but they are desperately missing Lucas. Spearing's heart and effort are undeniable and he is a good player but he is no Lucas. The delivery and pressuring is just not the same without Lucas. Personally I would have liked Shelvey to stick around because I truly believe he can be great. 




The goals need to come from the players but it is a coach's duty to make sure each player is performing at their best and that the team is tactically sound. As much as I hate to say it, Kenny Dalglish may not be a good fit at the managing helm of Liverpool. There is no doubt he brought the players the emotional kick start they needed after the departure of Roy Hodgson. However, let's imagine for a moment that King Kenny was not in charge of Liverpool at the moment. Lets imagine it was someone like Hodgson. Would the KOP not be calling for the sack if he were in charge? The truth of the matter is Liverpool have looked far from dominant even in the games they have won (Cardiff on PKs anyone?). A squad with as much talent and history as Liverpool should have the 5 or 6 goal thrashing of lower tier sides just as City and United have done this year. The tactics used by Dalglish have been far from good this year. His lack of effective substitutes and questionable lineups have cost LFC a number of points.




One of the biggest problems at LFC is the incredible fan support of Dalglish. I know Liverpool is King Kenny's passion. I know that he would dive on the sword for Liverpool. You can actually see the sadness and disappointment after every loss. However, if you bring up a questionable choice from the bench, the typical reaction from most fans on twitter and the like is a nice big "F*ck Off! Dalglish is a legend!!". Their allegiance to him is understandable. He was one of the greatest players to ever put on the famed red kit. But the simple fact of the matter is the results are not good enough and the tactics have been poor. 




So what should Liverpool do? Perhaps I am off base with my criticism of Dalglish. There is a chance that perhaps Liverpool just needs more time. There is a real possibility that they may come together more and more in the near future (this has certainly been the case with Suarez and Gerrard in recent weeks). 

Is AVB to Blame? 

Let me first say that I am not a fan of Chelsea. With that said, I do not hate the club either. Chelsea has been an entertaining club in England for quite some time now. With that said, what a wonderful time it would be for Carlo Ancelotti to be manager. Already having the trust of veteran players, he would be able to use the leadership of the like of John Terry, Frank Lampard, and Drogba to transition the club into a new younger squad to set up Chelsea with future success. There is just one problem with that. Chelsea's mad, power-hungry owner Roman Abramovich sacked Ancelotti for not winning the Premier League or the Champions League last season. 


For those of us with short memories, let's think back to May, 2010. Many forget that not only did Chelsea win the Premier League title but also the FA Cup. Ancelotti had Chelsea firing on all cylinders and the support of players and fans alike. 

Fast Forward to one year later and Ancelotti was fired 2 hours after a loss to Everton. 

While 2010-2011 was not the title winning season for Ancelotti, I don't think many would consider it by any means a failure. It was only Manchester United, who had one of their greatest, if not the greatest seasons in their history, who stopped the Blues from repeating the League Title and going to the finals in the Champion's League. 

Evidently, the great success that Ancelotti had at Chelsea was not good enough for their tyrant of an owner. 


Enter Villas-Boas.


On June 22, 2011, Chelsea appointed a young Andre Villas-Boas to the manager of Chelsea FC.  Maybe it was a case of missing what he once had which prompted Abramovich to sign AVB to Chelsea. The Portuguese Mourinho protege was unproven, with no professional playing experience but at least he had mannerisms that were similar to "The Special One". 

My question is to Abramovich. What player in the league is going to respect the manager when the player knows he will be gone in a season or two anyway? Picture yourself at your job. If your boss changed every month and all the plans he had were trumped by someone else, would you even care to listen when he tries to help/coach/teach/lead you?

With all this said, I must admit that AVB's coaching abilities seem to be questionable at best. I try to avoid giving too much credit to what the papers say about coaches (which in AVB's case is always jaw dropping). Instead I focus on in game decisions and the form he has players in. WIth AVB, it seems that all the moves he makes in games is like for like subs. He seems to never deviate from his game plan. The ability to change your game plan and make the proper starts/subs is what makes a coach great. For instance, when your team is in desperate need for a goal, and you have a defensive midfielder on a yellow, why take out your hottest striker like Sturridge to put in Drogba. I am reminded of the time when Chelsea needed a goal desperately against City and so AVB made the decision to remove Mata for Lampard… Lampard ended up scoring a penalty but I think most soccer fans realized that while it was a great penalty, Chelsea were lucky to get it.


His refusal to even try getting Torres to his true form is shocking. And letting a blistering talent like Malouda slip from your fingers is unacceptable. Anelka is gone. Rumors of Lampard, Terry, and Drogba being sold are out in abundance. The future of Chelsea should be one filled with glory, titles, and joy. The true future is one of question. If you ran Chelsea with a budget like a mid table team, they would be relegated within 3 or 4 years. 


I think it is only a matter of time before AVB gets the sack but who in their right mind would want to take his place? 

 Manchester United is playing good football. That is really I have to say about this. I figure if I start saying how good they are they will be doomed to suffer the same fate as my teams. Seriously, has there ever been anyone who wrote some irrelevant blog that every time he posted it’s like the entire EPL goes out of their way to f**k up what he says?

            When Meireles went down today at the 20th minute with injury, all I could think was “Damn, Liverpool cannot catch a break.” Then from off the bench came Steven Gerrard. The Liverpool captain had a fairly forgettable first half. When Taylor delivered a perfect ball across for the Bolton goal, my heart sank like a rock. I thought it was the nail in the coffin for Manager Hodgson.

            What we saw from Liverpool’s captain in the second half was nothing short of remarkable. I have been giving Gerrard grief all season about some of his leadership and performances this season. What I witnessed today was nothing short of remarkable. Gerrard changed the whole complexion of that game and the second half was ALMOST back to the Liverpool I remember from 2 seasons ago. Gerrard’s assist to Torres was absolute brilliance. It was also good to see Fernando Torres having some fire in him in that second half.

            To beat Bolton means a lot more today than it did the last few years. And hats off to the Bolton side, they did their best and did very well with the few chances they created. It is amazing to see how they have transformed from probably the most boring team in the EPL to one of the most brilliant under Coach Coyle.

            One major area of concern is, as always, Glen Johnson. He is laughable as a defender. He almost single handedly gave up the points to Bolton. It was his man who headed it home for Bolton. He was burned out of his shoes on a simple move from a never-that-fast Taylor. Then towards the end, he literally gave Bolton a would be assist if it weren’t for a lack of composure. That dude needs to leave Anfield. He has never been a good fit.

            The story of the day though is Gerrard. What a player. What a performance.

Though I am frustrated as humanly possible with them, I will continue to sport my Liverpool kits with pride just like I wore my Newcastle jersey when they went down. T

What is wrong with Liverpool?

It is hard to believe that just two years ago, I was going on and on about how Steven Gerrard and Fernando Torres were the greatest attackers I had seen play the game. The creativity from Gerrard was rampant. The brilliant goal scoring from Torres was near weekly, baring injury of course. Kuyt’s hustle and finesse were second to none in the league. The performances they put in week after week were truly remarkable. The new stadium was on the horizon, Benitez was promised transfer funds to rival those of United and others.

            So, what happened? We have all watched one of the greatest teams in the history of football fall from grace in the past 2 seasons. It is halftime right now in the UEFA Europa league and the performance is pitiful. Throughout all of it, I have said the defending has at least been spirited. Now even that seems to be out the window.

            Can we really blame the owners Hicks and Gillete for all this? I say no. HELL NO. The amount of talent located in this squad should easily be enough to beat mid table teams. Is the financial future of the club in doubt? Sure. What does that have to do with the players on the field today?

            Can we blame Roy Hodgson? At first thought, I would love to say no. It is however a coach’s duty to get the team up for any challenge. It is the coaches job to choose the best team. These players look done. They should pack the bags and just head home because in their heads, they are already out of the Europa League, out of the title race, and out of everything! Hodgson may have been unlucky to inherit this legendary team at a time when they were mentally so far on the decline.

            For me, the blame falls squarely on the shoulders of Captain Fantastic Gerrard and Fernando Torres. What is the captain thinking going on press saying, “the best we could hope for is 4th.” Really? YOU ARE CAPTAIN OF THE MOST WINNING TEAM IN ENGLISH FOOTBALL HISTORY. Act the part. When the team is down, you bring them up! What has happened to his mentality in just two years? Was it the World Cup failure?? I don’t know. And what can you say about Torres? He is out there looking to just collect a paycheck. It is painful to watch.

            All in all, this Reds team reminds me of two years ago when Newcastle United were relegated. I am not saying NUFC should have been in the top of the table but the team had plenty talent enough to finish midtable and possibly qualify for Europa. I think in that case, the club had some serious inner cancer issues. One stand out in mind was Michael Owen. He gave up on that club. He was terrible mentally which led to poor form and he brought everyone around him down too. Once Newcastle got rid of him, it was skyward for the Toon and they have been great since. \

            Is it time for Liverpool to follow suit with Torres and Gerrard? If they don’t want to play, if they no longer believe, get them out!

            More than anything I hope they prove me wrong. I hope I am 100% wrong. I have never felt this way about the players of Liverpool. I never liked Benitez but I always loved the players. Where is the passion? Where is the spark?