WHAT you get out of football is so often about expectations. Thanks to Roman’s numerals and Mourinho’s snide, Chelsea fans now expect to win the league every year. There’s nothing for them to enjoy if they finish second. The arrogant expectation of the nouveau riche is part of the thing that makes Chelsea supporters such an unappealing bunch to the rest of us.
Manchester City fans, on the other hand, haven’t yet adapted to the expectations that should come with the billions that flow in from Abu Dhabi. There’s still something ingrained in City fans; some sense that no matter how well things are going they’ll somehow find a way to balls it all up. It’s why everyone else seems to be more shocked when City don’t win a trophy than the supporters themselves, who still nod knowingly when something goes wrong.
United fans are in an interesting situation now, the intelligent ones, anyway. They know, deep down, that Alex Ferguson was the glue that held everything together at Old Trafford and that now they’re in a state of flux that they may never really get out of. They expect United to win trophies because United have won trophies for the last 20 years, yet somehow they know it won’t ever be that easy again.
Liverpool fans are still, just about, the reverse of Man City fans. We know in reality that we don’t have the financial muscle to win things as regularly as the teams above us, yet we still believe that we will. Our expectations far outweigh the reality of our situation. Yet it is those expectations that allow us to hit the highest highs. The belief that is ingrained in Liverpool supporters can drive the team on to achieve the unexpected. Of course those same expectations can also lead to devastating lows and feelings of immense frustration. In reality should we really have expected a team shorn of Luis Suarez & Daniel Sturridge, and with a Steven Gerrard who was another year older, to repeat the title challenge of the year before? Of course not; yet those unrealistic expectations led to planes being flown over Anfield by some bad teds.
What of this year? Some bookies have us as long as 28/1 to win the Premier League. Are your expectations that long? Mine certainly aren’t. I think we can win it. I don’t think, man for man, our squad is significantly worse than any of the teams above us, so if the new players can click and those first 7 aways don’t leave us broken, where should our limit be? The pundits think we’ll do no better than 5th, but they said the same thing in August 2013. Maybe I’ll be disappointed come May, but I’d rather feel let down then because of dream-like expectations than negative and miserable before a ball has even been kicked.
Players can live or die be the expectations placed upon them, too. In hindsight it’s clear that Mario Balotelli was never going to be a good fit for Liverpool, but he was damned even further by an expectation that he could fill the boots vacated by Luis Suarez. Morons who have spent the last month saying the club have “swapped” Raheem Sterling for Christian Benteke can only be disappointed by the big Belgian’s output because of the false expectations they’ve placed upon him. A 20 goal season won’t be good enough because he hasn’t run down the wing dead fast and then put his hand on his face when he scored in that weird way that Raheem used to do.
So where does Danny Ings fit into this world of expectations? How will his season pan out in relation to what we expect of him? Stop reading this for a second and have a think about what you expect him to do in a Red shirt. Not what you want him to do or what sort of player you secretly wish he was, what do you genuinely expect from Danny Ings this season? Are your expectations fair? If you’ve said you expect him to score 30 goals and assist 15 I’d suggest that perhaps they’re not.
Ings isn’t coming into the team as a first choice striker. He shouldn’t have the burden of expectation that has been placed on Benteke’s shoulders. But he isn’t coming in as some wide-eyed youngster enjoying the equivalent of work experience, either. He scored 11 goals for a Burnley side that was far more interested in admiring the dark satanic mills surrounding Turf Moor than in playing attacking football. There’s a reason Sean Dyche’s nickname is “Ginger Mourinho”, and it isn’t because he looks like the John Major Spitting Image puppet with red hair. It’s because he enjoys a good defence more than OJ Simpson’s legal team. Yet even within that set-up Danny Boy was able to put the ball in the back of the net 3 times more often than Sturridge, Balotelli, Borini and Lambert combined in the league.
What’s my expectation of Danny Ings this year? I expect him to develop. Given his exploits for Burnley last year it would be easy to forget that the lad’s only 22. He’s still very, very young in striker terms. I also expect him to be dedicated to the cause. He knows what it means to come in and play for Liverpool and is full of respect for the club as a whole. He deliberately chose a high shirt number when he signed for the Reds, saying, “Obviously I am going to work my socks off to earn that number one day. For now I will take a high number and work hard”.
Isn’t that what we all want? Isn’t that the key characteristic of any new signing? A burning desire to prove themselves and to drive themselves into the ground, giving blood, sweat and tears for the team? I hope he’s backing himself in private, of course, and doesn’t allow himself to get overwhelmed by the weight of the shirt. But I’m pleased he hasn’t come in to the club behaving like the Big-I-Am, wandering around like Billy Big Bollocks when he hasn’t proven himself on the pitch yet.
If you expect Danny Ings to be Liverpool’s number 1 striker, smashing the ball into the back of the net every time he touches it, then you’re only going to be disappointed and, judging by recent trips to Anfield, will soon find yourself screaming abuse the young lad.
If you expect him to be a very useful cog in a well-oiled Anfield machine, however, then you might find yourself absolutely delighted with his development as the year goes on. He may not be as spectacular as Sergio Aguero or as snidey as Diego Costa, but he’ll run and he’ll harry and he’ll pester and he’ll chase – all qualities that this new look Liverpool team will have in abundance this year.
Imagine being a player for Norwich or West Ham or Aston Villa coming to Anfield this season. Someone passes you the ball and you take a touch before looking up to see who you can find and all you’ve got in your vision is Danny Ings, Jordan Henderson and James Milner running at you. You panic, try to go long but inadvertently give the ball to Philippe Coutinho who feeds it through to Benteke who puts it into the back of the net. Danny didn’t score; he didn’t even get an assist. Some of the bores in the crowd will spend the season asking, “What does Danny Ings give the team?” But we’ll know, you and I; we’ll know what he gives the team – he gives the team legs, movement and a never-ending desire to improve itself.
Expectations are funny old things: they make one man weep and another man sing. Whether a player, a team or even a club’s owners do well can depend entirely on how you expected them to do before they’d even moved a muscle. Perhaps you expect Danny Ings to be little more than mediocre this season. Maybe he’ll prove you right, maybe he won’t. I expect him to be a brilliant addition to the squad that goes on to achieve great things for the club, and maybe that’s unrealistic. But I’ll take my unrealistic expectations that are full of hope and joy over your expectations of doom and gloom any day of the week. So go on, Danny Boy, the goals, the goals are calling. Anfield expects.
@Adam_Smith_82
Pics: David Rawcliffe-Propaganda Photo
Absolutely love that ending! I’m not a Rodgers man but still can’t wait for the new season to commence. Nothing like watching our beloved Reds play.
I know it’s a bit facile but if you where in a scrap I would like Danny Ings on my side. I don’t know how it will work out for him but I really wish him well. I hope he is not Brendaned too soon.
“I hope he is not Brendaned too soon.”
With fans like you …? The article is about Ings, maybe stick to that, yes?
I think he’ll be terrific. Although he is only young he impresses me because he has good feet and can finish.
Like Suarez he has an unquenchable desire to compete – which is the one trait that really set Suarez apart. No, I’m not saying he is another Suarez, but he has that never-say-die trait.
In a couple of years, if he develops as I think he will, he will be a Kop hero.
You are having a laugh? Ings downed tools from last January for Burnley when he was linked with LFC, the lad let Burnley down and they got relegated, is that the character of player any right minded manager would want to sign? Unquenchable desire to compete?!!! That made me laugh.
Good read and totally agree. I think ings will be a good addition to the squad, and has already said he enjoys working off the ball making runs to create room for other players. Something I think we missed without Luis but only time will tell.
danny ings without benteke is a terrible addition, danny ings with the addition of benteke too? brilliant addition, a guy who can be a super sub and when benteke hits a bad run of form he cand come in and play with studge and or firmino.
what danny ings brings tot he table iswhat milner and firmino bring guys that will never stop coming at you they will never stop fighting.
Thats what suarez brought, I dont’ know that there is a player out there that cares more about winning than suarez. But adding milner and ings gets you two more guys that will run until their feet fall off chasing that win.
Also, that benteke strike, he’s good huh?
Him and Benteke in a two upfront is quite an exciting prospect. I think he’ll get ten. I think all of Liverpools current crop of strikers bar Benteke look more suited to playing in a two up front because of the space it creates. Even Sturridge looks a little lonely up front sometimes, hope his legs can get him through atleast 30 games though. Liverpool has some good striking options this season.
Well written. Love the positivity. Good on Ings for his attitude, and I’m pretty keen to see how he goes. His attitude alone sets us miles apart from Borini & Ballo and poor old Lambo (he was more deer in the headlights than a lack of application).
Try asking Burnley who got relegated about his attitude..
Or try asking Ings about Burnley, who decided that spending a grand total of 3million on George Boyd in an attempt to stay up?
Two sides.
Burnley aren’t owned by a billionaire, a modest club with little money. You conveniently don’t want to comment on Ings pathetic 2 goals in the second half of the season that pretty much got them relegated.
I don’t know where all this negativity about him is coming from ?
I saw him play at Aston Villa with my kid’s football team on the last day of the season and he was the best player on the pitch.
He is quick and presses. He scored an opportunists header and silenced the Villa crowd. He continued to press and harry Villa for the rest of the game.
The Burnley fans absolutely loved him and were singing his name.
The man is a pest and I really hope he gets more game time. I still have horrific memories of the scores being read out at half time mind…
Pity he never showed their fans the same passion and respect. Barely broke sweat once his head was turned by LFC in January.
Hmm. A lot of the attributes afforded to Ings in this article are all the same attributes Borini has. Movement, pressing, works hard, wants to improve, gives the team legs etc etc.
He’s a striker. When talking about a liverpool striker you’d hope to be talking about his touch, his finishing ability, his instinct, his trickiness/his ability to win freekicks and pens. But we’re not, and that tells you all you need to know about expectation levels.
On another note, the contradiction from the author in the article is amusing. On one hand we should be realistic of expectations but on the other hand we can win the league. On one hand we are not significantly worse player for player than any of our rivals, but how about manager for manager?
Whats next? Lots of Borini like performances. A few more goals maybe. But ultimately sold in a few years time without us taking a loss.
Sorry to disagree with you, Padraig, but I’m not sure I did say we should be realistic about our expectations. My point is what are your expectations and will you be disappointed if they’re not met? I haven’t suggested anyone should lower their expectations, just asked if they’re realistic. I genuinely think LFC can challenge for title this season, though I won’t feel let down if we don’t. Not sure that’s a contradiction.
I also don’t think we are worse than any of our rivals manager for manager with the exception of Mourinho. Van Gaal is only slightly better than Moyes, Wenger is fair from the manager he used to be and Pellegrini showed last season he’s fallible even with one of the world’s most expensive XIs. I have immense faith in Rodgers and think it will be a season in which he shuts up a lot of his detractors.
I also think Ings is a significantly better player than Borini and the main thing he has that the Italian doesn’t is an ability to finish. As the article says, maybe I’ll be disappointed come the end of the season but I’d far rather be hopeful of his potential right now than miserable before he’s even kicked a ball competitively for the club. I’m a glass half full kind of guy.
Is this why Liverpool fans get so much abuse? Is this the point we just dispense with all pretense that evidence and facts play a part in our thinking as football fans? Is this the point Brendan Rodgers becomes the God character from the Bible?
To suggest he’s not worse than LVG, a man who has won 7 league titles in 3 different countries, won 2 doubles, won the champions league, won a league with AZ Alkmaar, reached a semi final of a world cup and has a win percentage of 61%, you have to ignore every fact there is.
To suggest he’ not worse than Pellegrini, a man who has won 4 leagues in 3 different countries, who took Villarreal to two champions league quarter finals and one semi final, who finished 2nd in la liga with Villarreal (vastly superior achievement than Rodgers coming 2nd), who got 96 points in his one season with Real Madrid, the highest in the clubs history at that time, who was only denied a champions league semi final appearance with Malaga(!) due to two injury time goals from Klopp’s Dortmund, who has a win percentage of 51%, you have to discount all the evidence that exists.
To suggest he’s not worse than Wenger, a man who has won 5 leagues in three countries, who has reached a champions league final, who has won 6 FA Cups, who has spent a lot less per season than Rodgers has yet maintained a top 4 spot and built a brand new stadium while keeping his club competitive (an unbelievable achievement proving he is at least as good a manager as he was 15 years ago), who has won just won back to back FA Cups, who has win percentage of 54%, you have to neglect the truth.
They are all proven winners. They all know what they are doing in Europe. They can all attract top quality players. Rodgers has won nothing. Rodgers has been a complete failure in Europe. Rodgers win percentage is 45%, much lower than theirs. By every definition, Rodgers is worse, nay, significantly worse than those three. If either of those three leave their club now, they get another major job. If Rodgers lost his job now, he has to apply to become manager at West Ham. Im surprised you didn’t throw Mourinho in there for good measure – it wouldn’t have made your argument much worse.
You keep your faith by all means. Like the religious, it may give you comfort even if we know its just a fairy tale. At least you have that, because you certainly don’t have anything tangible – facts, evidence, truth – for your assertions.
There’s such a thing as judgement, how many top clubs were after Ings ? Truth is he’d be a squad player at the Hammers seeing as their after Hernandez.
Did Ings run over your dog or something?
Or are you just desperate for him to fail so you can use his recruitment as a stick to beat Rodgers with?
Dark satanic mills????
I’ve worked in those mills, they were light, bright and full of fun, never dark or satanic!
As for Danny ings, I think he will be a star.
ANFIELD WRAP: WHAT NEXT FOR REDDO
I believe Reddo will spout frothing nonsense on each and every article the Anfield Wrap post in the hope he gets something right and can say “I told you so”.
After all, every now and then, even a blind squirrel finds a nut.