Monday 7 February 2011

A fairytale ending to a rollercoaster week

What a week in the life of Liverpool Football Club. It is hard to know where to begin!

It is Monday, 7 February 2011. Seven days ago, Fernando Torres was still a Liverpool player and Andy Carroll and Luis Suarez had not yet joined the Red revolution occurring under the canny management of Kenny Dalglish. The visit to Chelsea loomed large with all the speculation surrounding Torres' future (with no disrespect to Stoke, who the Reds were due to face first), and even the most optimistic fan might have thought "Champions League, you're having a laugh".

That was then. This is now. Sixth in the table and only six points behind Chelsea in that coveted final Champions League spot has Reds all over the land dreaming that we might see the return of Champions League nights to Anfield sooner than anyone had any right to expect following the disastrous first four months of the campaign. A 1-0 victory over Chelsea, including a fourth clean sheet in succession, was achieved through a combination of tactical astuteness from Dalglish (ably assisted by Steve Clarke and Sammy Lee) and passion, desire and fight for the jersey from the lads on the field....and all that without fielding either of our new strikeforce.

"The most important players at this football club are those who want to be here".

So said Kenny Dalglish when quizzed last Monday morning about the future of one Fernando Torres. Of course, Torres would go on to leave the Reds and make his debut in Chelsea blue against his old team yesterday afternoon, a debut which, I think I can say without fear of contradiction, did not go well. A forearm smash from Agger into his face probably just about summed up Torres' afternoon, during a match in which the Reds crushed the life out of their opponents, with exemplary performances from Carragher (despite having been out for two months), Kelly, Agger, Lucas and Kuyt, and an acrobatic winner from Raul Meireles, notching his fourth goal in five games under Dalglish. Fernando who?

Opting for a three at the back, 3-4-2-1 formation has to be seen as something of a risk from Kenny, but his players were incredibly well disciplined and committed to the task at hand, running our deserving winners.

The result put a welcome seal on a rollercoaster of a week, the look on Torres' face after he was given the hook with a hour gone perhaps going some way to draw the sting out of some fairly tactless comments made in the wake of his transfer, comments which have gone some way to ensuring that he leaves with his reputation significantly tarnished amongst those who used to adore him. After all, we have new heroes to look forward to lauding now.

Luis Suarez has already written himself into the Anfield record books, a goal in front of the Kop on his debut helping to put the seal on a 2-0 victory over Stoke City, and his infectious display brimming with energy and vigour contrasted sharply with what we've been used to seeing from our now departed number 9. The number 9 now resides on the back of man-mountain Andy Carroll, currently sidelined through injury but undoubtedly one of the hottest prospects in English football after 11 goals so far this term for Newcastle. A £35m transfer fee is a colossal sum to pay for a player with only half a season under his belt at the top level, but with £50m swelling the coffers FSG have shown that they can ally grand sporting ambition to financial prudence, spending barely more than was received for Torres and Ryan Babel on Carroll and Suarez. The future looks bright once those two can be assimilated into the Liverpool team, if they can get in the side!

As for Dalglish, his welcome return has brought Liverpool's old values flooding back. Pass-and-move, one game at a time, do your talking on the pitch, everyone singing from the same hymn sheet, no one is bigger than the club, all of these feature regularly whenever he talks to the media, and by extension, to the fans. Dalglish derives his authority from the highest possible source, the supporters, and when he speaks, the club as a whole speaks through him. I don't think there can be a Liverpool fan in the world who hasn't revelled in the return of these values to the club. Even before talking about results it has to be said that the appointment has been a masterstroke, but combining the humility and dignity with which he conducts himself to the best record of any Premier League manager since his return had made Liverpool fans dare to dream. The calls for him to be given the permanent manager's job are only going to grow louder on the evidence so far, and so they should. I, for one, would dearly love to see him remain in the dugout for the opening game of next season. The man himself won't be drawn on the subject of his future, putting the club before the individual is a clear priority for Dalglish, and that extends to his own position. Woe betide anyone who might come in to replace him come the summer though, his are some mighty big shoes to fill.

What a week it's been.