Written by Zarif Rasul
2010 has not been a vintage year for Liverpool Football Club. The demise and departure of Rafa Benitez, embarrassing cup defeats to lower league opposition and some of the side’s worst performances in living memory have all contributed to a year of miserable mediocrity.
However, the ousting of despised Americans Hicks and Gillett and subsequent arrival of John Henry and his, erm, American pals have managed to bring a sense of optimism and hope back to Anfield.
With the re-opening of the transfer window just a few weeks away, Liverpool fans will be hoping that Henry indulges in some festive generosity.
Here are five things that Liverpool fans will hope to find in their stockings this Christmas…
Width
Roy Hodgson’s unswerving commitment and loyalty to rigid banks of four has unfortunately turned Liverpool into the narrowest side in the league.
The inward tendencies of Joe Cole, Dirk Kuyt and Maxi Rodriguez have deprived the side of any natural width; indeed Glen Johnson is the only first-team regular seemingly capable of heading for the byline and taking on opposing full-backs.
An injection of pace and trickery down Liverpool’s flanks is sorely needed. The Reds have been linked with the likes of Eljero Elia, Ashley Young and Arda Turan over the course of the last six months. A player of this ilk would be a welcome addition at Anfield.
A reborn Fernando Torres
5 goals from 15 league starts is not the sort of return we’ve come to expect from El Niño.
The Fernando Torres of 2010 is a shadow of the man who frequently terrorised Nemanja Vidic and nothing like the player who became the quickest to reach 50 league goals in Liverpool’s history.
Whether it is due to lack of form or frustration we don’t know, but the former Atletico Madrid man appears to have lost his hunger, pace and clinical edge in front of goal. A timely return to this sort of form would definitely bring festive cheer to Anfield this Christmas.
A new striker
Torres’ lack of form and injury problems mean that Hodgson cannot continue to rely upon the Spaniard as Liverpool’s primary source of goals.
Whilst top scorer David Ngog is constantly improving, he is not yet imposing enough to cause trouble for the league’s toughest defences. Ryan Babel has shown recent glimpses of his ability to operate as a lone striker but remains inconsistent.
A strong, established striker with good aerial ability would offer the side another option in attack, and would allow Torres to find more space in and around the box. Both Mario Gomez and Fernando Llorente have been touted as solutions to Liverpool’s striking problems, and either one would surely help to alleviate the side’s toothlessness up front.
Away form
Amazingly, Paul Konchesky has not been the worst thing that Roy Hodgson has brought with him from Craven Cottage. Hodgson’s horrific away record has also followed him to Anfield.
Six defeats, two draws and one solitary win, with just six goals scored, is not good enough for a club with aspirations of qualifying for the Champions League.
What’s more worrying than the away record itself is the abject nature of some of the side’s performances – the insipid displays away at Eastlands, Goodison Park and St. James Park highlighted a string of organisational, creative and mental deficiencies.
Solving Liverpool’s away day troubles will surely be Hodgson’s biggest task of all over the next few months.
A new manager
The last days of Rafa Benitez seem positively harmonious when compared to the divisive opinion of Roy Hodgson currently held by the Anfield faithful. Many believe Hodgson should never have been given the job in the first place, and his work so far would suggest that the former Fulham man is woefully out of his depth.
Axing a manager mid-season is always incredibly risky, and doing so certainly isn’t in the traditions of the club.
However, owner John Henry has a history of ruthlessness, and has stated his desire to help Liverpool to return to where they belong.
With Frank Rijkaard, Martin Jol and Martin O’Neill all out of work at the moment, Henry may feel that now is the right time to end Hodgson’s Anfield stay.
Follow me on twitter at www.twitter.com/zarifrasul
Play FootballFanCast.com’s first LIVE football fantasy – Picklive – HERE!