You might want to take a seat, or if you’re already sitting down, stand up and then re-sit, because I’m about to say something nice about Liverpool. It doesn’t happen often, so enjoy it while it lasts, because it’s not in my nature to be complementary about teams in red.
For the first time in a long time, Liverpool and Chelsea actually produced a top four game that was compelling and worth watching all the way through. The scoreline, though predictable, didn’t go the way I thought it would before the match kicked off and despite the fact Chelsea’s jaw-dropping record had to go sometime, my money was on a battling Stoke carve-up. To be honest, I thought the Reds would bottle it.
Where should the credit lie for Liverpool’s statement of intent? At the moment, I think facial hair should take a lot of the credit, seeing as Benitez and Xabi Alonso are erring on the side of face-fuzz and that seems to be doing the trick so far this season. Maybe the Chelsea defence got scared; after all, a lot of serial killers and geography teachers like to sport a beard.
But to bring us back to reality for a nano, just how much was Liverpool’s victory deserved and what does this mean for those title chances that ache just below the nads of every Liverpool supporter?
First thing to say is that Liverpool didn’t fluke it by any means. The only element of luck that the Reds enjoyed was perhaps spent out on Xabi Alonso’s deflection but other than that, Liverpool set out with a fantastic game plan to play tight, pressing football and it worked wonders. Scolari’s Chelsea this season are keen to show off exactly how expansive and fun they are, and while it has worked wonders against teams that think they can play them at their own game, Liverpool knew that a win was always likely to come down to a solitary goal. They made sure they got it, and then fell back on their experienced and excellent defensive qualities.
Since Liverpool last won a title, the defence perhaps hasn’t been the thing to praise, but yesterday they were superb. Like Paul Scholes, Jamie Carragher doesn’t seem to regret his decision to give England a bum steer one iota, and with every season he improves exponentially. By the end of his career he’ll probably be scoring thirty goals a season – that’s how much work he puts in to wearing a Reds shirt. But even his performance at Stamford Bridge was perhaps overshadowed by his colleague Daniel Agger, who has put in some impeccable defending despite uncertainty over his role at Anfield. Maybe what we all thought was typical vacillation by Rafa Benitez is actually some short-term kidology.
Liverpool have been accused in the past of being a one-man team, or perhaps more recently a two-man. But for me, it’s all about Steven Gerrard. Let’s not forget that the chap was winning games for Liverpool while Torres was still advertising films at Atletico Madrid, and despite every fibre of my being screaming otherwise, the pragmatist in me thinks that if he doesn’t manage to win a title before he retires from the game it’ll be a travesty of his talent.
But will it be this season, and will it be with Liverpool? Well, that’s the $64,000 dollar question (about half what Gerrard earns per week, incidentally). With the Premier League season two months old, it might be worth being a bit of a Brooking and taking up residence on the fence but an unbeaten start isn’t anything to be ashamed of, as is a victory at the home of your nearest rivals.
All around pundits are sounding notes of caution, making sure we’re aware of the provisos and catches but there is no doubt that Liverpool have to be considered the form team in the country right now and with games coming thick and fast, they have yet to stumble over completely. Critics might say that when Chelsea have won, they have done so at a canter, while a great number of Liverpool’s victories have seemed like hard work, but they now have two victories in two against two of their traditional rivals. I’d take a last minute goal against Middlesbrough if it meant having the steel to do that.
There is a feeling with Liverpool that perhaps they’re not pacing their efforts like true title winners. Not that they should stop winning, but that they need to convert their dominance in matches to early victories rather than having to keep pushing until the last ten minutes. How you criticise any win is difficult to explain, but a team with as much potency and defensive capability as Liverpool can easily score two in the first half and soak up pressure in the second. The slower start that they are making in games compared to their rivals might indicate a burn-out later on in the season – Liverpool traditionally have a blip before Christmas, so results next month are crucial to indicating how long they can be comfortable leaders.
But these are unknowable quibbles. Liverpool have the personnel and the talent to keep winning, and key to it is psychology. They have jumped a high fence by defeating Chelsea, and as long as Benitez indicates that the league is not won by headline-making results but quiet and efficient victories without having to expend all their efforts, it might be time to believe.
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