When Liverpool fans reflect on this season, will they be filled with satisfaction or a feeling of deflation? When players talk of the true greats; the Clough’s, Shankley’s, Ferguson’s and Mourinho’s, they always say how they made them believe they were the best, how they brought out the best in them. Can anyone really say that Dalglish has really improved the team he inherited?
He has been a master of circumstance and timing. By not coming in after Benitez left he avoided what was a volatile situation in which the rift between the owners and the issues with certain players were ripping the team apart. Populist opinion was behind Dalglish coming in and “fixing” things, however I wonder how well he would have done in that situation. His timely return came with new owners willing to back the manager and a very fortunate transfer of a persistent injury case in Torres. Dalglish has been given everything required to challenge for the title this season, yet he has failed, they are 7th and 19 points off the top.
In a summer where stability was found for the first time in years and with investment that had been lacking in recent seasons, the foundations were in place to push this team forwards. However, his purchases have reflected the old school mindset of English football. His reliance on purchasing British players has prevented Liverpool from being a force this season. He has tried to change the side to accommodate his signings instead of bringing in players to complement the formation and team. He believed he needed out and out wingers in Downing and Henderson to supply his number 9 in Carroll with goals. He replaced a dynamic, attacking player in Meireles with an old fashioned, slow and immobile player in Charlie Adam. Jordan Henderson plays like a linesman, hugging the line continually, keeping with play and playing no part in the game whatsoever. Downing has been abject, one dimensional and without an assist or goal to his name, he has been a huge disappointment. When looking at these players it is worrying that they have not hit the heights of their previous clubs, questions must be asked of the manager and how good his man management skills really are. When performances are poor is it the players who should be blamed or the manager? In my opinion it is the signings that Dalglish has made this summer that have been the biggest disappointments of Liverpool’s season so far. Of the £120 million spent in the past 12 months only three signings have been a success; Suarez, Enrique and Bellamy on a free. His big signings have proved to be failures.
Tactically Dalglish has been credited for his changing formations and team line ups. These changes may confuse the opposition, who may struggle to deal with a line-up that is not predictable. However, more often this season, it is Liverpool who have looked confused and disjointed by the changing formations and rotations. It appears to show that perhaps, even now, Dalglish does not know his preferred team, does not know how he wants to play. This must be a worry to the fans at Anfield. who seem willing to give him more time than many would be allowed.
What is ironic is that when Dalglish took over at the end of last season, his playing style looked progressive and modern. Using Suarez, Maxi, Kuyt and Meireles in an attacking 4-2-3-1 they scored bags of goals and propelled the team forward. What Liverpool needed was a player who could play wide and drift inside, to be a modern No 10, players like Eden Hazard, Eduardo Vargas or Christian Erikson would have been ideal instead of the average English players that they went for. It is no secret that English players come at a premium and is no further surprise when they don’t perform to warrant their transfer fees. Defensively Coates may be a top class defender in the future but they needed a player like Hummels who could have fitted in straight away. And why Scott Parker was not considered baffles me, as his performances this season indicate that he would have made any side better.
A look into Dalglish’s history shows a worrying trend for Liverpool, of poor decisions, frailty and disastrous transfers. It is always pernicious to bring back a manager for a second run, especially one who was successful as both player and manager. The reason being is that the fans will always remember the good times and conveniently forget the bad ones. It is common knowledge that he left the first time because he couldn’t handle the pressure of the job. He guided Blackburn to the title by spending a lot more than any other team, won the title and yet could not follow that up again and ended up quitting and moving upstairs. In his time at Newcaslte he narrowly avoided relegation and ended up being sacked because of poor performances and importantly, poor transfers. He signed old friends in Rush, Barnes and Pearce, players who were clearly beyond their best, while getting rid of Ginola who was a player with real class. His purchases later of Guivarc’h and Hamman did not produce the desired effect. All in all Dalglish ripped apart the team challenging for the league created by Keegan and put the club back years in regards to their title ambitions. His decision making was questioned them as it is now, it must be worrying how it seems all too familiar a story of poor transfers, poor decisions and subsequent poor performances.
Another aspect that has not helped this current campaign has been the handling of the Suarez-Evra affair. Dalglish has simply handled it wrong. He still considers it to be the wrong decision and refuses to accept that he needs to drop it, as it neither helps the club or the player. Continually, he misses the point; Suarez was not accused of being racist but of saying a derogatory word. The campaign that Liverpool crusaded for was misguided, incorrect and has led to Liverpool’s brand being tarnished. Luiz Suarez has become a hate figure for many fans based on Dalglish’s comments and his handling of the affair and it may have actually ruined Suarez’s career in England, which for football fans is a real shame.
Many fans will say that Liverpool look set to win the League Cup this season and perhaps a run in the FA Cup, that this is a good season. Yet surely they key for the season must have been Champions League football. With all the investment and intent of the owners and with the failings of the teams around Liverpool anything below 4thmust be deemed failure. And if the fans are content with current performances and Europa League football then they need to consider how “big” a club Liverpool really are anymore.
If Liverpool genuinely wish to compete for the title again then they need to consider if King Kenny is the man to achieve this. I have serious doubts about his strength of character and ability to handle pressure along with his poor transfer decisions and tactical nous, if they wish to achieve top 6 then perhaps he is the right man. But if they want more, then a modern manager is required. A major characteristic of being manager is being able to deal with pressure. Dalglish has shown in his history a constant the feeling of nostalgia and especially one who has a tendency to buckle under pressure. when his last reign was cut short because of the pressure of the job.
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