Kenny Dalglish with the Manager of the Year Award in 1990. Pic: PA
by NEIL SCOTT
PERSPECTIVE.
Something we’re always being told we must maintain a sense of, yet no-one can definitively state what it does or doesn’t entail. An unflinching optimist’s perspective will differ wildly from that of a committed misery-guts and it seems pointless trying to establish any common ground between the outlooks and values they each hold. Usually, they’ll just end up getting cross and calling each other bad names on the internet.
To confuse matters further, perspectives change as the years pass. An example: in 1990, it would have been inconceivable to consider a time when Liverpool were not winning league titles. Granted, we’d just secured our tenth championship trophy in fifteen seasons and had established a dominance not previously seen in the domestic game. Perspective was a shiny silver trophy with red ribbons tied to it.
By contrast, for your average Manchester United fan perspective was a series of continual disappointments. It had been 23 years since the Best, Law, Charlton vintage had delivered their last title triumph, in 1967. Busby had long gone, Atkinson had flopped and Ferguson had only escaped the chop due to a redemptive FA Cup win. It would have taken a brave man, or a delusional one, to predict a reversal of the existing order anytime soon.
23 years. It’s now been more than that since the sunny April afternoon in 1990 when Liverpool were last crowned champions. In the same period United have won thirteen titles, employing a subtle mix of subterfuge, hubris, voodoo and possibly human sacrifice. And, to a much lesser extent, because they’ve been quite good at winning football matches. Sticks in the craw, doesn’t it?
I remember what it was like in the ‘80s. Year after year we knew that we’d be challenging for the league and, if we played to our potential, chances were we’d finish on top. Villa, Ipswich, Everton, Arsenal – they’d all had their moments, all threatened to gate-crash our perennial end-of-season party. But we’d always come back even stronger. Meanwhile, Old Trafford’s drought was extended by another season, and another. How we laughed at their misfortune, derided their underachievement and gloried in their disarray.
No-one saw the end coming. Not really. True, we might have had some concerns about the manner of our victory in ‘89-90. We had laboured uncharacteristically on occasion; for the first time Kenny’s judgement was being questioned in some quarters; an increasingly unsettled Anfield crowd had begun to vocalise its disquiet. But, with the only real challenge coming from an over-performing Aston Villa team, Liverpool did what was needed without ever reaching the devastating heights of two seasons previous, when Barnes, Beardsley and Aldridge shredded defences throughout the division, in much the same way that Paul Merson shreds the English language every time he opens his pie-hole.
If, at that precise point, someone from the future had emerged from an electrical storm like Arnie in The Terminator, to warn us that we were about to be plunged into a bleak 23-year long wilderness, and that the forces of evil, which had lain dormant while we feasted, would soon establish a reign of terror that would blight the land, we’d have locked him in a secure unit and hidden the key under a vase or something. I don’t know. I haven’t really thought this through. We’d definitely have told him to put some pants on, though. Of that I have no doubt.
Effectively, that’s what happened. Not the stuff with the pants. That would be hideous. But the wilderness thing and the reign of terror propagated by Ferguson’s grunting orcs. They became ugly reality. And our sense of perspective has never recovered.
Most people blame Graeme Souness. And in truth, they’d have a strong case. Though the obvious candidate to replace Dalglish when the pressures of Hillsborough finally took their toll, Souness oversaw a seismic overhaul of both the club’s culture and its personnel. To a degree it may have been needed, as an ageing squad and new restrictions on numbers of non-English players, combined with a spreading complacency, meant that action was required. But the decisions taken, the players brought in and the abrasive methods used to bend people to his will, meant that within two seasons Souness’s Liverpool had lost the air of invincibility that had sustained the club for so long.
When the dust settled, we were left with a Liverpool that found itself back amongst the mortals. That this co-incided with a United finally getting its act together and quick to capitalise on the newly-created Premier League’s status as a Murdoch-funded cash-cow, was an accident of timing that could not have worked out much worse.
What was perhaps most painful was the knowledge that our expectations would have to be adjusted. As much as we all still clung to notions of red supremacy, stark reality had a painful habit of intervening. However much we fought against the need to keep a level of perspective that reflected our position, we knew that things had changed. There was no turning back the clock; this was our future and it sucked, big time.
As the years went on, we grew accustomed to our role. For a while, Roy Evans gave us hope that we could close the gap. He instigated a style of bright, progressive football that appealed to our aesthetic sense, but which lacked the steely pragmatism of genuine contenders. The winning mentality that had underscored our dominance had been replaced by a fragility of mind that, isolated instances aside, we have struggled to overcome.
Houllier, too, made us dream of resurrection. He reminded us what winning trophies felt like, built a solid foundation and took us back to second in the table. But we were unable to make the final leap, ultimately reverting to the now familiar story of squandered opportunity and entrenched disappointment.
With Benitez, it seemed different. In bringing us European success, he showed that he was prepared to challenge the biggest and the best head on. He convinced us that we had nothing to fear and, just to prove it, he took on Mourinho and Ferguson at their own game and left them shaken. For probably the only time since 1990, we saw a genuine title push and, as Benayoun crashed home a last-gasp winner at Craven Cottage to take us top with seven games to play, we believed it was on. This time it was really on.
We all know what happened. Despite the cliché, it’s hard to see a failure as glorious. But Christ, we came close. Just four points separated us from the title. For once we were entitled to let our sense of perspective run away with us. We were back and our coronation as champions was merely postponed, not cancelled.
But as we’ve discovered over the years, perspective can be a slippery bugger. And, almost inevitably, ours was soon brought back into line, like a disobedient pooch that’s soiled a carpet.
What came next was a masterclass in expectation management. Hicks and Gillett, stetson-wearing Horsemen of the Apocalypse, brought the club to its knees. Hodgson, trumpeted as a safe pair of hands, instead resembled a man with grease smeared on his palms attempting to catch jelly as it was fired at him from a cannon made entirely of lard. Kenny returned to steady the ship and restore our pride, but was then undone by a combination of poor results, badly-perceived transfer deals and executive haste. Given the vitriol that some of our own supporters aimed at our greatest living legend, it was easy to conclude that he was better off out of it.
It is now Brendan Rodgers’ turn to see if he can end the wait. We all knew it was a huge ask. As the season kicked off, we weren’t just up against the traditional powerhouses, United and Arsenal, or the bankrolled behemoths of Chelsea and City. There was also a newly-vibrant Tottenham to contend with, not to mention our increasingly competitive neighbours. Amid that sort of opposition, not many people seriously saw us as genuine title challengers. Not really.
As we know, all that’s changed. United have been Moyesed into oblivion; Tottenham have proved that cashing in on your biggest asset can unexpectedly backfire; Everton have struggled to maintain their early-season form and suffered from a quality shortfall.
We’ve forced our way into genuine contention, playing a brand of football both incisive and effective, and which chimes with the traditions of the club. We’ve shown the consistency and creativity that has often been lacking in our recent past. We look capable of winning any game by a landslide, no matter the opposition, and it doesn’t take a top pundit, or Andy Townsend, to point out that that’s a solid base for any team to have. And we’ve got a manager of conviction and imagination, who has fully bought into the Liverpool ethos and who has the rare gift of coaxing the very best out of his players.
Put all that together, stand back, and enjoy where this ridiculous ride takes us.
Yes, we’ve had false dawns before. We’ve become experts at envisaging the oak tree while the acorn is barely in the soil. But isn’t that what football should be about? Hope? Expectation? Daring to dream?
I’m done with lying in the gutter. You just end up with a bad back and mucky trousers. Let’s aim for the stars. Let’s decide that this is the year and go all out to make it happen. Let’s win the sodding league. What’s the worst that could happen? Don’t answer that.
Me, I’m taking my sense of perspective for a long walk and pushing it in a lake. After all these years, I’ve realised I don’t need it anymore. This Liverpool team have given us a new set of ‘what ifs’ and there’s no point holding back now. We’ve got big fish to fry.
Doesn’t it feel good?
Liverpool batter Palace in the semi go on to overcome Manchester United comfortably at Wembley . Ferguson is sacked and the last two decades were completely different !
Couldn’t agree more. This is the finest Liverpool side since 1989. I don’t know what Brendan and the good Dr Peters have done, but those players love pulling on the red shirt and playing for each other. For the first time in years our team plays without fear, rising to every challenge. It’s a remarkable turnaround. And I, too, have started to believe.
It’s easy to overlook with all the current euphoria, but for me the 08-09 team was easily the best Liverpool team in 20 years. But this team just has a cohesiveness, hunger and passion that’s going to take us places.
It’s close but (respectfully) I disagree. Rafa’s teams nearly always played with the opposition in mind, with caution in their hearts. It was only during the second half of 08/09 that the hand break was released. The 08/09 team was defensively sound, and you can’t argue with Masch, Alonso, Gerrard and Torres, but look at how many goals the current side has scored in comparison: 76:49 and we’ve stopped drawing games against second rate opposition.
Gerrard is settling into the Alonso role with added goals, if Suarez stays we may be talking about one of the best if not the best player to have pulled on a red shirt, Sturridge may well prove to be as good as Torres, Henderson, Allen, Sterling and Coutinho all offer more than Masch, Riera, Babel and Benayoun…..
It’s a close call, and I’ll always respect Rafa’s achievements, but Rafa signed Peter Crouch and Brendan sold Andy Carroll. We play better football than we have done in years, with no fear in our hearts, all eleven players are comfortable on the ball. Look at Flano for goodness sake, and compare him with Josemi or Degan. Too often Rafa set us up to avoid defeat, Brendan sets us up to win and I prefer that.
Make Us Dream!
I agree with Paul, but circumstances are different It would be interesting to see if Rafa would have given more game time to home grown kids if he’d had the products of the academy that he revolutionised. Also, Brendan so far has had the luxury of no Champions League, and priming his lean squad for one competition. Let’s see how he does next year with a bit more on his plate, plus expectation.
Love this season though, and much respect for Brendan, I think he’ll do well.
Nice article.
Yes we are doing surprisingly well this season, but we can play with freedom partly because there has been little in the way of expectation until the last few weeks.
When Rafa was in charge there was always the weight of expectation – especially after Istanbul. I believe that the 08-09 team would have had this season’s PL sewn up some time ago. There is no monolithic United or Chelsea to force our way past and no team seems to be taking charge, as has invariably been the case for most of the last 20 seasons. We had a GD of 50 in 08-09 (currently 41) – so hardly ‘defensive’ I’d say – just better balanced. Don’t think the comparison Flanagan v Josemi/Degain is particularly apt Paul. Why not Flanagan v Aurelio?
Bear in mind too that half this current team are Benitez signings, including Flanagan and Sterling who came through the revamped Academy. Rogers gets the credit for picking them, but they are not his products.
Will be interesting to see how things develop next season, especially with the extra commitment of European football again.
In simple terms, Rafa’s teams were overly reliant on Gerrard and Torres. Take one of them out for any length of time and we weren’t any good. This season we’ve played substantial chunks of the season without Suarez, Sturridge and Gerrard and remained in contention throughout. We won 6-0 away without Suarez last season and 5-0 away without Gerrard and Sturridge this season. I just don’t see that happening on Rafa’s watch.
As for Flano v Fabio: Fabio was a fabulous player but spent most of his time on the treatment table. I chose to compare like for like: Flano was our second or third choice full back at the start of the season, Fabio would start when he was fit, so a more reasonable comparison would be Johnson or Enrique with Fabio.
The big difference is Europe. Liverpool were always competitive under Rafa and that did put a strain on resources. We’ll see how Brendan does next season. We play much better football under Brendan, there was still a whole lot of hoofing and 100 mph play under Rafa; just watch the 4-0 Real game, all speed and intensity, not a great deal of quality compared to today’s team. Both good teams, and you may be right that Rafa would have had the title wrapped up by now, but I know which team I’d prefer to watch, and I know which one is future proof.
Did you watch the 08/09 season? Torres and Gerrard were both out for decent periods of time. Other players stepped up. As mentioned in the (brilliant) article, Benni-noon and also Kuyt were brilliant.
I’ve watched every season since 1977. If memory serves (and I may be wrong), Gerrard and Torres weren’t both out of the team for any length of time. I’m pretty sure I’d remember if they had been as it would have been cause for a panic attack at that time. Whereas Gerrard, Suarez, Sturridge and Coutinho have all missed big chunks of this season, often at corresponding times, and we’ve just got on with it. But you’re right, Kuyt, Benayoun, even Babel stepped up and Riera had a good year. I just feel that we’re able to cope without key players this season because the team’s the thing. Everyone coming into the team knows his role because Brendan’s established a clearly defined way of playing.
If I’m honest, I’m in danger of losing perspective. I think Brendan may be the real deal, the guy who makes Liverpool a bastion of invincibility again, the guy who gets the club and the city and turns Anfield into a citadel.
They (Gerrard and Torres) played only 10 league games together in 08/09. It beggars belief to read it but it’s true, and shows just how good a side we had that year.
Pointless to try and draw comparisons between then and now, futile even: circumstances a million miles apart.
“The big difference is Europe. Liverpool were always competitive under Rafa ”
A little more than that. By 2009 Liverpool were UEFA’s no.1 ranked team in Europe.
I think the point about Benitez completely overhauling the youth set-up is well-made. It should also be remembered that Benitez had two utter c**ts as owners to cope with in his last 4 years.
Agreed.
Why do we need to rank them? I loved watching us in the champions league under rafa and trying to work out in vain just how he was outsmarting the opposition manager. At that time there was no one better at it and I don’t see how it can get better than being a liverpool fan watching the 2004/05 champions league campaign unfold in terms of drama.
But Rodgers’ liverpool offers something quite different, yet also very exciting, a dominant approach more in line with the clubs values as Craig Bellamy puts it. It is not just the amount of goals we have scored this year but the quality of them too. I mean who scores 5 goals away at stoke, regardless of how many we conceded? What’s more, probably the most exciting thing is just how much upside there is. The players we have are only going to get better as most a young, and hopefully now we are almost certainly back in the champions league we can finally start making our transfer targets (although with Ian Ayre still in charge I won’t hold my breath), and to cap it off Rodgers is only going to get better with experience over the next 20 years. Think about that for a second.
Not taking that all for granted as anything can happen as we saw with the rapid dismantling of all rafa’s good work but I don’t think now is the time to be ranking which of the teams in our history was the best, just sit back and enjoy being up there competing and playing some beautiful football again
It’s views like this that have been holding us back ever since his time here. Brendan will prove to be in a different league to Rafa, give him another year or two and he can do this without alienating us with the british media.
Great piece of writing. I particularly loved this line ‘United have been Moyesed into oblivion’.
I’m not sure they’re quite at the point of oblivion, however, their future prospects look bleak.
It was only later when we started to think about not winning things you know.Throughout the 60’s and 70’s we just enjoyed the football;game by game.We wished we could be on that pitch but realised that we never would be.So we just went and did our best with our own teams.
The players weren’t that much different to us then.They were just better footballers than us and we didn’t begrudge them anything.We maybe saw them in a club or pub in town and had a quick word.occasionally had a couple of pints with them.
I can’t really remember being over concerned about winning the league in those days.Probably because it just kind of happened anyway.But we used to get excited if we had a chance of Wembley.
Anyway,the point is that somebody else looked after marketing and money then.We just enjoyed watching great players playing great football and just wished we could be that good.Sometimes I was!
And here we are again!Just watching great football being played by a great team.That’s all we ever wanted.The trophies might come.The sponsorship might increase.We might splash out £100 M on a player.Who cares?
For the moment I just thank Brendan Rodgers for restoring my faith in human nature!
Well in Brian.
Seconded.