With a draw against Arsenal today, Man United ensured they hit the 87 point target which the reds can’t reach, to land them their 18th title. Liverpool are now forced in to at least a 20 year wait for their 19th title.
In 1990 when Liverpool last won the league the men down the M62 had a mere 7 titles next to their name. Quite rightly, it was beyond the realms of any possibility that Liverpool would not win another title until United had matched our own figure.
For the vast majority of the last 20 years Liverpool stood still both on and off the field. United expanded their stadium to one fitting of one of Europe’s biggest clubs. Liverpool dismally failed. David Moores and Rick Parry failed to deliver massively and by the end of this season both will have left control of the club to two owners who have saddled the club with debt and failed to take us forward one single centimetre. They made big promises but they have proved only one thing – that promises are there to be broken.
Any Liverpool manager is up against it from the start. Saddled by the weight of history and expectation, but second in the queue for players behind the likes of Chelsea and United, and now even Manchester City. But Rafa has coped admirably. Considering the disgraceful behaviour of owners and Chief Executive, and even some moronic ‘fans’ who were calling for his head mid-season, he has turned Liverpool back in to genuine title challengers. Some of our demolition jobs this season have been immense.
We have had some much improved results against the other top clubs this season, and while unlikely we will get such a clean sweep next season against Chelsea and United, no longer do we have any reason to write off points against the other challengers. What has been utterly disappointing is some of the home performances against weaker sides.
Only losing twice in the Premier League loses its appeal when the number of draws reaches double figures. Winning the league is not about ‘not losing’ games. It’s about winning them. Unfortunately we didn’t win enough. And we didn’t win enough at Anfield.
My mind casts back to some of the dismal home draws this season in the League and the shocking performances from the home fans. You could sense the nervousness from the first whistle. The fans were almost waiting for us to throw our opportunity away and gasps and sighs were abundant, replacing what should have been cheers and encouragement. Maybe this season is all part of learning how to win titles again? And that could apply to the fans as well as the players – it took a 4-1 victory over United before many Liverpool supporters began to think we could really be in with a chance.
Maybe if the reds had a fully fit Fernando Torres all season instead of a tiresome and disappointing half season of Robbie Keane? Maybe if the Anfield crowd had genuinely believed from day one of the season? Maybe if the fans who get tickets for the Champions League games managed to get to the Premier League games as well?
Like me, all Liverpool fans will feel a huge disappointment tonight but we must look at the positives.
Begrudging congratulations to United. Dominating the league over such a period as they have is something we all know about. But we also know the feeling of watching your dominance end and your great rival taking over.
Let’s hope Rafa is allowed to get on with his job and brings in the men he wants and that next season we move off our 18th perch.
From the first whistle next season – for 38 games of 90 minutes – lack of determination from players, staff, fans or owners will not be tolerated.
YNWA.
A good book telling about the spending ratios of past Liverpool manager’s in comparison to their competitors since Shankly is “Dynasty: Fifty Years of Shankly’s Liverpool” http://is.gd/AISi Tells you almost how much Fergie has spent in his time at Old Trafford and also that it took him 4 years to sort Manure out and another 3 to win the title.
If Rafa pulls it in next season there’s no reason to doubt we can get back up there as THE BEST over the next 2 years, but obviously a new stadium is key to generating some serious revenue for transfers etc. in the future. We can’t stay in debt forever and risk turning into Leeds (sorry to go off on a financial tangent I just think its a crucial issue in our future success).
They’ve not over taken us have they,over all on the progress side I’d say we’ve had a very good season,m ake a couple of top class signings over the summer and im sure it will be our title next season.
Most of the papers are reporting that Rafa Benitez has been given a net transfer budget of £20 million this summer. Given that over £16 million of this comes from the sale of Robbie Keane back to Spurs this means the Club’s actual net transfer budget for this coming Summer is about £4million. Somehow we’re supposed to compete against United who routinely spend upwards of £20 million on one player. Any hopes of us being able to make some decent signings over the Summer have surely now been scuppered by the news that Hicks and Gillett have apparently been given another 6 months by RBS. Seriously it is now our taxpayer money that is keeping these two conmen at Liverpool. Is it really a concern for the British taxpayer if two slimy Americans have to sell a football club at its market value instead of being able to make a huge profit ???
I slightly disagree with your point of view.
1. Before the January transfer window it was obvious that we had a very good chance to move up and clear off the rest. Senior managment should have assessed the situation and reinforced our team!
2. Instead of reinforcing they sold out Keane, Voronin was not recalled, Keane was at times a gazed spectator on the bench! Is this managment of resources????
3. Our youth were never really tried out! Except for Ngog and the occasional Nabil. What a bright future! Managment?
4. I support Rafa very much except that at times he’s so hard headed that to spite some of our players the team effort suffers.
Pennant? Crouch – don’t you remember Crouchie being substituted from the bench in extra time – having sat the whole game? Keane? Reira, Babel???? Watch how they all started with us and how they ended up playing. You cannot simply get a striker and mould him into a left wing or a right wing. Example Kuyt is best as second striker (same as Babel) and that’s when he got his goal tally.
5. As to January signings I would have gone for some British talent. Kevin Nolan to fill in for Alonso or Stevie (4M to Newcastle) and Darren Bent when Harry was calling on his grandmother to replace him (8-10M) he would be a good cover for Torres, strong in the air and pacy – got 12 goals one less than Torres!
6. Sorry guys I don’t think there will be another golden chance! We will not beat Manu and Chelsea home and away (that’s were I fully agree with you).
I agree that the club should have gone out and done some January business but that is exactly the struggle we face with our lack of finances.
United could quite easily have afforded to lash Keane on the bench. We were forced in to a sale simply because an opportunity arose to get a sizeable fee back on him which may not have existed come the summer.
Simple financial failings.
I’m not sure I agree with point 5, don’t think either of those (Nolan & D. Bent) are top level players.
Well they have so muich money which tends to be the number one factor over the long haul. they have a second squad who could be valued at 150 mill. plus a really big stadium. The reds are very limited in funds for the transfer market. when we get injuries to fernando and stevie we suffer. untill we have the second squad of exceptional quality we will struggle.the epl should have a transfer cap of so many millions and draft picks like the sports in North America then it will be more of a level playing field. but this year we have done exceptional in the circumstances
This season it doesn’t matter but we have to win next season and don’t let them over take us. Plus has anyone seen Wayne Rooney’s interview with the bbc. “Liverpool a great Team, pressure all the way” compared to ” I hate Liverpool”
YNWA
I agreee there were many fans who didn’t believe that our reds had a chance, and after that 4-1 win against man utd they started to believe, also man u had lots of help from the fa, they get so many games off, and they’re not as tired as the rest of the teams that’s why they won the title, anyways for us reds why not believe since the first whistle on the first game even better from the first game of pre-season be a red a part of our glorious team that like the phoenix will rise again and will dominate once again!
YNWA
So that club has finally caught up to Liverpool, but at what cost? Does anyone have the actual figures of what they have spent in comparison to other clubs, before and during the premier league days?
Their rise is directly proportional to their spending over all these years as is ferguson’s success.
I would like to see how some of the great managers of the past would have feared if they had the money that is available to ferguson. How other managers may have had the luxury of wiping away their errors with a check book as others may use toilet paper.
Never in the history of football has a manager and a club spent their way to the top in such a brazen way.
Accrington Stanley would be challenging for the premiership given the resources they have.
So I and I assume the majority of football fans will not be celebrating today.
I totally agree, we’ve made huge progress this season and were in the driving seat and practically handed the title over to manure in the space of two weeks.
I wouldn’t mind seeing Fergie live out the rest of his days as a bitter old man. And if we clinch next season’s title, which I believe we will do, it will mean Fergie has to win another 2 league titles and surely that old “geezer” (as Redknapp put it this arvo) doesn’t have it left in him.
YES i agree with the comments about the owners and past failures of moores and parry letting the grass grow under their feet. I also agree benitez is up against it because frankly we are skint compared to utd,chelsea, and now city largely due to moores and parrys negligence.
However it does not help when your manager for most of the season uses negative tatics at home games against dross sides. I pray that next season from the off we go at teams like we have in the last 2 mths.
Its not rocket science lfc dominated football by playing that way and fergi and utd have simply done the same by buying attack minded players who know 3pts in this league is everything.Well done rafa and the lads for putting in a good fight.For christ sake next season do it from day one!!!
You are SPOT ON.The blame is not on rafa or the yanks but those who were in control of liverpool for the last 18 years Rick Parry and David Moores.You can’t help but feel angst against them. These 18 titles were a massive heritage from our proud great players and managers of yesteryears. They’ve blown it away they lacked courage,they watched helplessly like cowards. Rafa Benitez depite being a spanish has understood our club and what was wrong with our beloved club.
He has only pushed us further he raised our games he made us progressed. Albeit he made some mistakes too but what are those compared to those two cited above.Can’t believe our fans didn’t demand Parry’s head our moores heads before. Anyway let see the positives we ‘ll get better. It needs guts to challenge united we’ve done it.Rafe will win us more titles than Fergie mark my word .Get behind him. Walk with hope.
YNWA !!!
We won our 18th title 20 years before Manutd and our 19 is reality
YNWA.
Overall it’s a positive season for us. Though disappointing at the end because of what could have been. Not to discredit Man U, but really we threw this one away ourselves. There were no untouchable invincible teams this season, and it was there for the taking.
Now Fergie’s set his sights on overtaking us in the title race. That’s one more goal publicly stated instead of retiring at the peak of his glory. Here’s to us grabbing number 19 and him never seeing it come to pass; here’s to Fergie being remembered as the brave manc who managed to draw level with Liverpool; here’s to him dying a very bitter old man indeed.
YNWA.