Rodgers at Liverpool: 6 Defining games

Brendan Rodgers took on the daunting task of replacing Kenny Dalglish as the manager of Liverpool Football Club 21 months ago. He inherited a squad that had finished 8th in the Premier League after amassing a paltry 52 points in the 2011/12 season. Right now, Liverpool lie second in the Premier League with 62 points on the board and 27 more to play for. Scratch that. They lie second in the Premier League with 62 points on the board and 27 more to be won. They have an excellent chance of securing their 19th league title. It has been an astounding turnaround in such a short space of time. I thought this might be an appropriate juncture at which to have a little glance back at six of Brendan Rodgers’ most significant games as Liverpool manager to date.

26/8/2012 Liverpool 2-2 Manchester City - Change is good

Rodgers’ first league game at Anfield did not end in victory. It did, however, set a precedent.

Right from the start against City, one thing was crystal clear: The new-look Liverpool would be cast in their manager’s image. They would be progressive and they would endeavour to entertain at all costs.

A Martin Skrtel header on 34 minutes deservedly put Liverpool one up before a messy second half equaliser from Yaya Toure - who would describe this game as ‘the hardest match I have played in since coming to England’ - levelled things. Luis Suarez scored a wonderful free kick to restore the Reds’ lead. With the match winding down in the late summer haze, Liverpool looked a side refreshed and one capable of playing neat, tidy, enterprising football. A massive win looked to be in the bag, but with the finish line in sight, Skrtel went from hero to villain and left Anfield deflated courtesy of an errant back pass. Despite the obvious disappointment, this was the day that the first building blocks of the Rodgers era were laid down for all to see.

What is particularly interesting about this game when you look back at it, is that it acutely brings into focus the pragmatism and adaptability that Rodgers has showcased during his tenure at Anfield. These characteristics have been pleasant surprises. This was a game where Liverpool played in his much publicised 4-3-3 Swansea ‘tiki-taka’ style. Possession was of paramount importance. On this day, Liverpool players passed. Then they passed again. Then they passed some more.

At the time, it was widely assumed that this would be Liverpool’s approach evermore under Rodgers. For a while, it was. The football was easy on the eye and it drew compliments aplenty, yet for all the admiration and praise, victories for were few and far between early on under their new manager (just 3 in the first 14 league fixtures). As a result, Rodgers implemented significant change on his team’s style and the Reds gradually became the far more direct side who enthrall today.

Liverpool have since become more flexible systemically, deviating regularly from the once set in stone 4-3-3. This game was emblematic of early life at Anfield under Rodgers. Plenty of promise with little in the way of tangible reward. This match provided a foundation, but what has been built on top of that base probably wasn’t what Brendan Rodgers had envisaged back in August 2012.

27/4/2013 Newcastle 0-6 Liverpool - A transformation taking place

At the beginning of last season Philippe Coutinho and Daniel Sturridge were often found kicking their heels on the substitute benches at the San Siro and Stamford Bridge respectively. Jordan Henderson was kicking his at Anfield of course, but only because he had refused to join Fulham as a makeweight in a proposed deal for Clint Dempsey (Yes, you read that correctly). By April these three men were proving to be instrumental in ushering in the second phase of Brendan Rodgers’ Liverpool side. On this day, at the ground formerly known as the Sports Direct Arena, Coutinho, Sturridge and Henderson were offering Liverpool supporters a tantalising glimpse of what was to come.

This game came hot on the heels of the whole Luis Suarez biting shitstorm. In the absence of the Uruguayan, Henderson and Sturridge each bagged a brace while Coutinho repeatedly bamboozled Newcastle with his dribbling and vision. Luis Suarez aside, it is this trio of players who have best symbolised and indeed, manifested Liverpool’s evolution under Rodgers.

Those players deserve a lot of credit for this, but so to does the manager. He has worked with Sturridge and his previously unfulfilled potential and turned him into England’s finest centre forward in under 18 months. He has transformed Jordan Henderson from a timid little boy lost into a midfield monster. Philippe Coutinho has everything that Rodgers wants and demands from his players - technique, intelligence and skill but the manager has also instilled an incredible work ethic into the little maestro. These three young players have helped to take Liverpool up a level and this game was an early clue for how influential they would be going forward.

Laugh as we might at the Geordies (and to be fair, we often do), teams simply don’t demolish them 6-0 at St James’ Park unless they have something a little bit special in their locker. This game was a precursor for what was to come this season and crystalised the shift in Rodgers’ methods from his embryonic days as Liverpool manager. His team weren’t at St James’ Park to keep the ball and pass Newcastle into submission - they had tried and failed with that approach at Anfield earlier in the season - they were now set up to go for the throat. To pilfer a lovely analogy from Jurgen Klopp; Liverpool weren’t attempting to play classical music anymore, they were on their way to becoming a heavy metal band turned up to eleven.

15/12/2013 Spurs 0-5 Liverpool - It all comes together

No Steven Gerrard. No Daniel Sturridge. No wins at the Lane in six attempts. No matter. Liverpool romped home to a resounding victory against Tottenham - who, remarkably, would have drawn level on points with the Reds in the table had they won this match - in the most accomplished manner imaginable. This was the single most impressive performance under Brendan Rodgers to date and it remains Liverpool’s best away performance for many a year.

Luis Suarez captained the Reds and scored 2 delightful goals while also providing assists for Jon Flanagan, Jordan Henderson and Raheem Sterling. This game saw the tenure of Spurs boss Andre Villas-Boas come to an end. There was no way back for the Portuguese after this comprehensive mauling.

Joe Allen, Lucas and Jordan Henderson showed everyone what a Liverpool midfield without Steven Gerrard might look like and boy was it a damn sight better than most had thought possible. The captain has rightly regained his place in the side since but it was comforting to see the lesser heralded midfielders at the club play with such purpose in this match.

The measure of control on display in this game from Rodgers’ side was particularly impressive. Tottenham were a team chasing the Champions League. They were hot on Liverpool’s heels in the table. They were at home. They barely created a chance in ninety minutes of football.

Liverpool’s pressing was relentless. Their passing was intelligent and direct. They exploited Spurs’ high defensive line ruthlessly, punishing them time and again with runs in behind. They made Michael Dawson look like a cat chasing it’s own tail. They chewed Tottenham up and spat them out.

28/1/2014 Liverpool 4-0 Everton - A lesson learned & A lesson given

Rarely can Evertonians have been more confident as they made the journey across Stanley Park as they were on this night. The Blues were just a solitary point behind Liverpool before kick off and were justifiably hopeful of beating their rivals to a top four finish. Their team had long since cast off the shackles of David Moyes and were now playing a vibrant, adventurous brand of football. This was supposed to be their night.

Liverpool went into this game with the same starting 11 that had performed fairly wretchedly against Aston Villa just ten days earlier (with the exception of Jon Flanagan, who replaced the injured Glen Johnson at full back). Fortunately, Brendan Rodgers didn’t apply the same tactical system as he in the Villa debacle. Once again he demonstrated that his own mistakes had been internally identified and swiftly rectified.

The theory upon seeing the two team sheets prior to kick off was that Everton would play through Liverpool’s midfield with their impressive triumvirate of James McCarthy, Gareth Barry and the returning Ross Barkley back in tandem. The practise was different. Very different. Where Gerrard had been isolated and exposed against Aston Villa, here he was guarded closely by the perpetual motion of Henderson and a deeper, tenacious Philippe Coutinho.

It was the skipper himself who opened the scoring right in front of the coin throwing away fans and not long after they had finished venting their anger at him, Daniel Sturridge had all but put the game to bed. His 2 goals in 2 minutes silenced the previously optimistic Blues and put Liverpool 3-0 up before half time. There was no coming back for Everton. Their fans were being shown the way to go home before they had even settled into their seats.

Rodgers’ surprise shift to a tighter, more compact midfield three and his positioning of Daniel Sturridge on the left wing - thus isolating and exposing the inexperienced John Stones - left Roberto Martinez and his Everton side flummoxed. Luis Suarez would make it 4-0 after the break as Anfield saluted yet another win over their neighbours. This was supposed to be the night that Everton rid themselves of their Anfield inferiority complex and closed the gap on Liverpool. Instead, by the end, the void across Stanley Park had rarely looked so vast.

8/2/2014 Liverpool 5-1 Arsenal - Bullies

The best opening 20 minutes of football Anfield has seen in decades. If Juventus in 2005 took the breath away then this was almost heart stopping stuff. Arsenal were the league leaders when they came to L4. They were the best English football had to offer.

A Martin Skrtel brace inside 10 minutes set the tone. Raheem Sterling and Daniel Sturridge had Liverpool four goals to the good after 19 minutes. It could have been more. It should have been more. Luis Suarez smashed a post with a 25 yard volley that would have been one of the greatest goals ever to grace Anfield. That the ball rebelliously bounced away from goal rather than into the net remains one of this season’s greatest regrets. Daniel Sturridge missed a one on one opportunity that he usually dispatches with ease. The Gunners had absolutely no answer. They couldn’t stem the red tide that engulfed and devoured them.

Jordan Henderson hounded the £42m Mesut Ozil so effectively that by half time the German international resembled a kid in a playground who had had his lunch money taken from him by a bigger boy. Philippe Coutinho pulled strings in midfield as masterfully as Hendrix did at Woodstock. Liverpool were imperious and even after they were able to take their foot off the throttle with seventy - yes seventy - minutes remaining, they still bossed Arsenal around with unapologetic arrogance. Sterling would add a fifth in the second half before Mikel Arteta notched Arsenal’s least significant goal of the season from the penalty spot.

This wasn’t the precise, methodical, sedate tiki-taka ‘death by football’ that Rodgers had proclaimed he was aiming for when he arrived from Swansea. This was a slaughter. A bludgeoning. An evisceration. An awesome display of pace, power and tenacity against the hitherto best side in England - ‘Thanks lads. We’ll take that moniker from here on in’

16/3/2014 Manchester United 0-3 Liverpool - Poetry in Motion. But not really

This game hasn’t been selected because it was one of Liverpool’s best six performances under Brendan Rodgers. In truth, this routine, professional win wouldn’t even rank as one of Liverpool’s top six performances this season. That’s what made it so special.

Sure, this was United under Moyes - restrained by those same shackles that Everton have escaped from - and sure, they are pretty ordinary these days, but Liverpool’s record at Old Trafford is too. It was 10 defeats in 11 games in the last decade before Sunday, if you require the numbers. The Reds had even somehow conspired to lose to this Moyes incarnation of United earlier in the season in the Capital One Cup.

United’s defensive record at home wasn’t bad going into this game - they had conceded just 12 league goals all season at Old Trafford. That Liverpool’s attacking play was often wasteful in this match merely serves to highlight just how good they are now. Consider this if you will: Suarez and Sturridge were largely off colour and plenty of promising counter attacks broke down for Rodgers’ team, yet they still ran out 3-0 winners and could conceivably have scored 6 or 7 times. 6 or 7! Away at United. Away. At. United.

Gerrard missed a penalty, Sturridge and Suarez were denied further legitimate claims for spot kicks and David De Gea made one of the most astonishing saves you will ever see. While many predicted an emphatic Liverpool win in the run up to this fixture, no one could have imagined that happening with Liverpool being somewhat below par. That Brendan’s Tricky Reds managed to do just that underlines how far Rodgers has taken this team. And how far they can still go. There is a title to be won.

High time to end the Old Trafford Hoodoo

13th January 2013

‘Der der der der der der der RACIST BASTARD!’

I am sat in the South stand at Old Trafford awaiting kick-off as Luis Suarez predictably receives an earful from the Stretford End while he warms up. I have been afforded the dubious honour of sitting in with the United fans by my girlfriend’s Father who has very kindly given me his season ticket for this match. I couldn't refuse his generous, well meaning gesture and, against my better judgement, here I am, surrounded by the enemy and having to bite my tongue.   

‘This is the One’ by the Stone Roses blasts out on the speaker system as the players ready themselves in the tunnel. Despite the United connection that this song has, I love it but not even the sound of Reni’s genius drumming and John Squire’s guitar can lift my spirits. Any genuine hope I had of Liverpool winning this game has pretty much dissipated already. The Reds' starting eleven looks weak. Youngsters Wisdom and Sterling start and so does Stewart Downing. There is no Jordan Henderson. An out of form Joe Allen plays instead. Another defeat at the hands of the old enemy is on the way.

‘Ohh Robin van Persie!’

Twenty minutes in and United lead 1-0 through van Persie. It is a chastening experience being in amongst the gloating Mancunian masses. I am watching Liverpool being completely outplayed by a United team strolling their way to their 20th league title. I am freezing and I forgot my gloves. I am wondering why I am here.

Rob van Persie opens the scoring at Old Trafford last season

‘Giggsy twelve, Gerrard nil’

Mercifully, half time has arrived and the score line is still just 1-0. Liverpool have barely crossed the half way line with the ball. United haven’t looked that special - they rarely did last season despite being crowned champions - but they are far more assured than the away side. Joe Allen and little Raheem Sterling have looked like boys drafted in for a senior match. Stewart Downing has disappeared from view. United have toyed with Liverpool and Brendan Rodgers’ side have had no answer.

‘You Scouse Bastards’

The game is over. It ends 2-1 to United. Liverpool played better in the second half and Daniel Sturridge had provided some hope for his team with his first goal on his début - a sign of things to come - but in truth it was too little too late and United had retreated after they doubled their lead through Vidic. They were clearly the better, more accomplished team. It’s not been a great day. The worst thing though, is that this is no surprise. A defeat was expected. Despite an improvement after the break, Liverpool have limped their way to a loss at Old Trafford. Again. Snow falls as I exit the ground in amongst the throng of delighted home supporters and Liverpool’s prospects look as bleak as the weather right now. We’re miles behind United on and off the pitch and the Champions League is a distant speck on the horizon. A memory. A glorious memory, but a memory nonetheless.

March 10th 2014

Fourteen months on and here I am having to drag up memories of that disappointing experience that I've tried my best to forget. This weekend Liverpool go back to Old Trafford and since that horrible day in Salford not too much has gone wrong for the Reds. They have been on an upward curve since that day and have amazingly long since passed a descending Manchester United as their own remarkable slide down the Premier League table has taken place.

Liverpool are now a better team than the reigning champions. Who saw that coming when Nemanja Vidic made in 2-0 back last January? United are floundering under the tutelage of ‘The Chosen One’ while Brendan’s Tricky Reds lie second in the table. What a difference fourteen months makes, eh?

Liverpool are eleven points clear of United in the league. They beat them in the reverse fixture at Anfield 1-0 early on this season. United look devoid of confidence and rhythm while Rodgers’ team are the form side in the country with a front line that is the envy of Europe. So why are plenty of Liverpool supporters not exactly brimming with confidence ahead of this weekend’s clash?

In short, because it’s them. And it’s there. Liverpool are almost uniformly awful when they play in Salford. One win in ten years. Ten defeats in the last eleven visits. Even when the Reds have played well and deserved a victory at United’s stadium they have somehow managed to blow it. Be it Djibril Cisse missing an open goal or Rio Ferdinand snatching an undeserved injury time winner, Liverpool always seem to find a way to lose at Old Trafford.

Despite lying 6th in the league table and on being on a rotten run of form that has lasted for months now, United are a shorter price for a win on Sunday than Liverpool. History seems to count for a lot in this fixture.

Even when Liverpool were dominating English football for two decades, United away was always a game where the potential for defeat loomed large. Old Trafford isn't a lucky ground for Liverpool to put it mildly. It never has been. Supporters expectations are usually low and rarely are they proven wrong. It is high time that Liverpool reversed the pattern. If they require an example of how to approach this upcoming game then their captain should have the answer.

This Sunday it will be almost exactly five years to the day since Liverpool last recorded a win at Old Trafford. Five years since that glorious 1-4 mauling. The spirit and approach of that victory must reappear on Sunday. The Reds had to win that day to maintain any type of title challenge and win they did. They were assertive. They played to a clear game plan. They were bold. They battered an excellent Manchester United team. They sent a message out that they were still in the hunt for the title and they almost snatched the trophy from United in the remaining games as a result. It was the last time that Liverpool held any hope of a league title as spring approached. Until now.

The last time Liverpool won away to United was memorable

At this moment, Liverpool aren't in a battle for a top four finish. They are once more gunning for the title at the business end of the season. This Sunday they need to play like it. A draw away to United - even this Moyes (un)inspired United - would be a decent result for a side aiming for fourth place, but for Liverpool it would be of little use. The margin for error in the next ten games for Brendan Rodgers and his players is zero. They are walking a tightrope with no safety net. Chelsea will likely be ten points clear of the Reds when kick-off arrives on Sunday afternoon (having played 2 games more) and nothing but a win at Old Trafford will suffice.

The spirit of Andrea Dossena’s lob, Fab Aurelio’s pin-point free kick and Gerrard’s camera kiss has lay dormant for too long. Too often Liverpool have exposed their fans to the kind of demoralising day that I described earlier in this piece when visiting Old Trafford. It can't happen again. It’s time for Liverpool to cement their superiority over Moyes’ team. It’s time to banish the painful memories of the last decade. It’s time to be bold and go for the throat. It’s time to end the Old Trafford inferiority complex. It’s time to win the fucking league again.

Suarez vs The Best: A Statistical Analysis

When top strikers go on a prolonged scoring streak, certain people begin to look for flaws. The most obvious way of denigrating a forward’s goal output is to point out that they don’t score as often against the better teams that they face as they do against the rest of their opponents. Liverpool fans used to cite the fact that Cristiano Ronaldo only scored once from open play against them as if that somehow rendered his incredible achievements meaningless. Ronaldo never scored a league goal against Chelsea, either. Ian Rush took an age to score his first goal against Manchester United and people weren’t shy of reminding him.Critics of Lionel Messi would repeatedly talk about his less favourable record against English clubs. People who don’t want to admit that a forward is truly world class will always use this method to run that player down. It is a last resort. It resides in the final paragraph on the last page in the big book of footballing denial. It is an argument that is now being used against Luis Suarez, the is the latest player to elevate himself to the realms of the ridiculous when it comes to goal scoring.

Suarez has scored 22 times in 16 league games this season for Liverpool and is smashing records left and right. Lots of people still dislike him (as is their right) and therefore attempt to poke holes in his record. More than a few articles have appeared recently (as well as thousands of social networking posts) claiming that Suarez still has to do more against the top sides before he can be mentioned in the same breath as Ronaldo and Messi (or even Zlatan Ibrahimovic if you are unfortunate enough to be a reader of Adrian Durham’s articles in the Daily Mail).

Ronaldo had a poor record against Liverpool and Chelsea

Stating that top strikers’ goal records dip against better opposition is a facile argument. Of course they do. Playing against better drilled, more skilled defensive opponents generally means less goal scoring opportunities for every striker, no matter how good they are. Messi will always be more likely to score more goals against F.C Basle than he would against Chelsea. Ronaldo will always be more likely to score more goals against FC Shalke 04 than he would against Bayern Munich. It doesn’t take a rocket scientist to work that out but, for some reason, credence has given to this ridiculous argument.

In light of some of the tripe that I‘ve read recently regarding Suarez’s form against England’s best teams, I decided to do some investigating into just how ‘poor’ Liverpool’s number 7 has been against the better sides in the Premier League since the start of last season. My analysis only begins at the beginning of the 2012/13 season because it was only at that point that Suarez elevated himself to being a world class goal scorer after a previously erratic season and a half for the Reds in front of goal. In this article I have selected the best 6 teams in England over the last 18 months that Liverpool have faced and analysed Suarez’s performances against them. The teams are, unsurprisingly; Manchester United, Manchester City, Arsenal, Chelsea, Everton and Spurs.

Since the start of the 2012/13 season, Suarez has featured in 16 league games against those 6 opponents. 11 of those appearances have been away from home with just 5 matches taking place at Anfield. In those 16 games, he has netted 10 times. 3 in 5 at Anfield and 7 in the 11 away fixtures. Now let’s look at his record against each of those sides in isolation, starting with the reigning champions:

Manchester United

Suarez played in Liverpool’s 2-1 home defeat to United at Anfield last season but did not score. He also appeared in Liverpool’s defeat of the same scoreline last season at Old Trafford and again, did not score.

2 Games: 0 Goals

Obviously, 0 goals in 2 games is not something for a striker to write home about but this is a very small sample size and both games took place when Liverpool were a far less threatening team than they have been over the last year. They also played the majority of the home match with 10 men after a red card to Jonjo Shelvey.

Manchester City

Suarez has lined up against City 3 times over the same period. He scored in the 2-2 home draw last term but failed to find the net in a 2-2 draw at the Etihad later in the season and just a few weeks ago Liverpool lost 2-1 to the title favourites away from home. Suarez didn’t score.

3 Games: 1 Goal

Again, 1 in 3 isn’t the best record for Suarez to have but he did score against City in the only home match he played against them and he was mightily impressive leading the line on Boxing Day despite Liverpool’s eventual defeat. He created 2 clear cut goal scoring opportunities for Philippe Coutinho and Raheem Sterling that were wasted and he was roundly praised for his performance. His record against City isn’t stellar but it ain’t too shabby either when you look at it in context.

Arsenal

Suarez has played poorly in 2 of the 3 matches he has appeared in against the Gunners over the last 18 months. Liverpool lost the first of those games 2-0 at Anfield and also lost this season by the same scoreline at the Emirates stadium. In that game Suarez hit the post and wasted a one on one chance. He did score away against Arsenal last season in a 2-2 draw, however.

3 Games: 1 Goal

The same record as against City for Suarez but his performances haven’t been as impressive against the North London side.

Chelsea

Suarez was snuffed out of the game at Stamford Bridge a few weeks ago and despite the fact that he should have been awarded a penalty in that match, it was probably his quietest performance of the season to date against an extremely well marshalled Chelsea back line. Having said that, he scored home and away against Chelsea last season, earning Liverpool 2 points and also produced a wonderful assist in the match at Anfield for Daniel Sturridge.

3 Games: 2 Goals

Suarez’s record against Chelsea and his performances in general have been good with the exception of the recent fixture at Stamford Bridge.

Everton

Suarez missed the home derby match at Anfield last season due to suspension. He did play in the fixture at Goodison Park though and scored a brace (which should have been a hat trick but for an errant offside decision in the final minute of the game). He also curled home a wonderful free kick in this season’s derby.

2 Games: 3 Goals

Suarez’s record against Everton has been excellent since he joined Liverpool back in 2011 and in the last 2 seasons he has scored 3 crucial goals away from home. A very good record.

Spurs

Suarez opened the scoring in a 3-2 Liverpool win at Anfield last season and also won the decisive penalty later in the match, converted by Steven Gerrard. This season he tore Tottenham apart at the Lane, scoring twice and assisting three goals as the Reds romped home to a 5-0 victory. He failed to find the net at White Hart Lane in last season’s 2-1 defeat.

3 Games: 3 Goals

A goal a game over the past 2 seasons against Spurs is nothing to be sniffed at and his performance in this year’s match will live long in the memory.

Suarez scores at Goodison again

So there we have it. Luis Suarez’s record against the top 6 sides in England over the past season and a half. 16 games, 10 goals at an obvious average of a goal every 1.6 matches. Strikers who can score at better than a goal every other game are at premium in football and, even against the best 6 teams in the country, Suarez is currently scoring at far better than that rate.

If his goal ratio against those teams is more than decent, it is elevated further when we look at his assists in those matches. The penalty he won at home to Spurs, the wonderfully weighted cross for Sturridge against Chelsea, his trio of assists at White Hart Lane not long ago as well as two scruffier assists he was awarded away to Everton and Chelsea this season. That all adds up to 7 goal assists and 10 goals in his 16 games against England’s elite sides.

In those 16 matches, Liverpool scored a total of 27 times, meaning that Suarez has scored or assisted a pretty impressive 63% of the Reds’ goals in those games.

When we go back to just Suarez’s goals though, 10 in 16 obviously falls below his usual standards since the 2012/13 season began. In that time, the striker has netted 45 league goals in 49 games. That averages out to a goal every 1.09 matches. A phenomenal record. To expect him to score at the same rate against top sides like Man City, Arsenal et al is unrealistic (especially when the majority of his games against such stellar sides have come away from home) and if you want to use the fact that his ratio drops to ‘only’ a goal every 1.6 games against the best sides in the country then consider this:

If we extrapolate his ratio of a goal every 1.6 games against these top sides over a 38 game period (the amount of games in a Premier League season), he would still average 23.75 goals in a season. If we round that down to 23 goals (you can’t score 0.75 of a goal, after all), that comes in at just 3 less than last season’s top scorer Robin van Persie managed. Oh, and one further caveat: Luis Suarez doesn’t take penalties. How many pens did van Persie notch last season I hear you ask? Coincidently, 3.

During this ridiculous run of form that Luis Suarez has compiled over the last 18 months or so, he does indeed score less against ‘the big teams’ than he does against the rest of the Premier League. If it comes as a shock to anyone that a world class player scores more goals on average against the likes of Norwich City and West Ham United than he does against Chelsea and Arsenal then I would suggest that they don’t understand football.

The important point here is not that Suarez scores less against Liverpool’s rivals than he does against mid table sides and relegation fodder. Anyone with a brain would assume that. The point is, that for all the besmirching of his record against the elite of the Premier League, Suarez still scores at a more than credible rate.

The Uruguayan is currently just 13 goals away from breaking the Premier League goal scoring record of 34 goals which is jointly held by Alan Shearer and Andy Cole. Both those players amassed their totals in 42 game seasons while the record in the current format of 38 games is held by Cristiano Ronaldo, who scored 31 times in 2007/08. Suarez needs 9 goals in the remaining 17 games to eclipse the Portuguese.

So instead of trying to find minute holes in the record of player who is currently peerless in this country and undoubtedly one of the finest players on the planet, can we all just sit back and enjoy him now?

Victor Moses - Who is to blame?

Chelsea are reportedly upset with Liverpool for not giving Victor Moses enough game time. They have seemingly leaked to the press this week that they feel their on loan Nigerian winger should be playing more often for the Reds and they are so upset that they are apparently unwilling to do further business with Brendan Rodgers who holds a long standing interest in their full back Ryan Bertrand. Perhaps they have a right to be angry given the way that Moses’ loan moan has panned out, but that anger is somewhat misdirected. They should save their frustration and ire for their player, not the club they sent him off to. He is the main reason he is not progressing at Anfield.

When Liverpool acquired the services of the 23 year old, as a Liverpool supporter I was pretty happy. Moses had had a decent second half of the 2012/13 season under Rafa Benitez at Stamford Bridge. He’d always looked a talented player in his days at Wigan and when he joined Liverpool he certainly seemed a better bet out wide for the Reds than the peripheral Oussama Assaidi (ironically flourishing on loan away at Stoke City right now) and teenager Raheem Sterling who had fallen down the pecking order after a loss of form. Moses had lots of Premier League experience and undoubtedly, a lot of talent as well.

Victor Moses watches Liverpool as he has done for much of this season

His debut for the Reds was encouraging. He scored a goal away at Swansea in his first start and was pretty impressive in that outing in South Wales, full of direct running and menacing pace. Unfortunately, that performance remains his only significant contribution in Liverpool’s season to date. So what went wrong?

It’s safe to say that Moses is not a popular figure on the Kop. His languid, individualistic style is often a source of frustration and his appetite for hard work has been questioned vociferously. Not without reason, either. Some of his recent displays have been reminiscent of a school boy forced to play a football match in P.E when he’d much rather be at chess club or behind the bike sheds with a Marlboro light. It is a far cry from that promising debut at the Liberty Stadium. Perhaps it’s not all his fault though. Circumstances beyond his control have undoubtedly played a part in his declining game time.

Moses came as a winger, probably identified by Brendan Rodgers as an attacking threat to utilise primarily down Liverpool’s left flank. That is where he played away at Swansea to good effect, after all. The first bump in the road came when Luis Suarez returned from his early season suspension. Daniel Sturridge’s form and Suarez’s availability meant that Rodgers had to play both players up front. That strike partnership led Rodgers to switch to a 3-5-2 formation and the removal of the attacking left wing position that Moses seemed set to occupy. Initially, Rodgers kept Moses in the team despite the systemic reshuffle by deploying the Nigerian behind Liverpool’s impressive strike duo. For a few games he did okay in that role. It was clearly not a position that suited him down to the ground but with Philippe Coutinho injured, Moses offered Rodgers a decent option in that attacking midfield berth.

It didn’t last. Even when Liverpool were still persevering with their three at the back system, Rodgers was soon picking Jordan Henderson to fill the role behind the strikers instead of Moses. Liverpool reverted back to a 4-2-3-1 formation a few weeks later with Daniel Sturridge out injured. That meant two wider midfield roles were now available and Moses was given an opportunity to start away to Hull City back on the left flank. Liverpool were terrible, falling to a 3-1 defeat and Moses was woeful. His nonchalance in the defensive third of the pitch contributed to Liverpool conceding the first goal of the game and his all round performance was somewhat of a disaster. His first touch was awful, his effort appeared minimal and his contribution was negligible. He wasn’t alone in having a bad day at the office but in a pile of rubbish served up by Liverpool on Humberside, Moses still managed to stand out - and not in a good way.

Coutinho and Sterling are keeping Moses out of the team at Anfield

Since that awful outing on December 1st, Moses has played just 100 minutes of football and started once for the Reds. In that time Liverpool have played 8 matches over a crowded Christmas period where rotation is a necessity. The fact that Moses has only been asked to start against Oldham in the cup during that gruelling run of games says enough about how much Brendan Rodgers trusts the player. That Moses was taken off at half time in that game merely adds an exclamation mark to Rodgers’ damning assessment.

Moses now finds himself in an extremely difficult position. Philippe Coutinho is occupying the left wing position for the Reds (and lets be honest, Moses has as much chance of displacing the young Brazilian as he did of displacing Oscar at Chelsea) while Raheem Sterling has stepped up a level on the right flank - the only other position that Moses could fill in Liverpool’s current set up. The teenager’s performances have put Moses to shame in recent weeks and Sterling now looks a far more attractive prospect to play on the Reds right hand side in the second half of the season than the Nigerian. When you factor in Daniel Sturridge’s imminent return, it is pretty hard to see Moses getting back into the Liverpool team any time soon.

A combination of systemic shuffling from Rodgers, good form from other Liverpool players and a chronic lack of interest and good performances from Moses have led to this situation. One could ask why Rodgers signed Moses, an out and out wide forward, if he intended on partnering Sturridge and Suarez together centrally in a formation that essentially negates the need for such a wide player, but at the same time, one must also ask why, when Liverpool have quite often had to use wide forwards this season (albeit when Sturridge or Suarez have been unavailable), Moses hasn’t been able to wake himself from his slumber and actually perform as he undoubtedly can.

Judging by the player’s uninspiring performance against Oldham, it now seems the Chelsea man is resigned to his fate and that he knows he will spend the rest of the season on Liverpool’s bench being a bit part player. Such is the risk a player runs when moving from a highly placed Premier League club to a Premier League club fighting for the same thing. Selection isn’t guaranteed in those circumstances and it was never likely to be for Moses. It was up to him to earn his spot and maintain it with high levels of performance. Ultimately, he has failed to do that and no one in their right mind can say he deserves to be starting ahead of Coutinho or Sterling these days. Chelsea should keep that in mind when they are searching for answers for why their player’s value has decreased since he left London.

Raheem Sterling: Time to eat some Humble pie

Humble pie isn’t generally something that tastes too good. Being served a slice usually involves some embarrassment and an apology you’d rather not give. It’s time for me to swallow some during the course of this article.

I’ve been pretty hard on Raheem Sterling over the past year or so. His form dropped off a cliff around the time he was awarded a bumper contract by Liverpool. He’s had some publicity that has been none too favourable and he seemed to be heading down that path trodden by so many promising starlets before him into career oblivion before he’d even got into his stride. From being a sprightly, energetic bright spot in Brendan Rodgers’ troubled early days on Merseyside, he faded quicker than a new years resolution and spent the first few months of this season as little more than an afterthought. The most optimistic assessment of his career prospects that I could muster a couple of months back was that he was in desperate need of a loan move to reignite a flame that had petered out long ago. Jordan Ibe had replaced him as Liverpool’s most promising young winger in my eyes and I’d have much rather seen Victor Moses in a red shirt than Sterling. Shows what I know, eh?

Sterling’s Liverpool career wasn’t on an upward trajectory during 2013 and it’s nadir came away to Hull City on the first day of December. Liverpool were woeful in defeat and their wingers (Moses and Sterling), bore the brunt of many supporters’ ire, including mine. Taken in isolation, that game seemed to cement the malaise that Sterling had fallen into. He was ineffective throughout and looked every inch a little boy lost rather than a great hope for the future. I fully expected him to be relegated back to the bench or the under 21 squad before being sent off on loan in January in the hope that he could get himself back on track. Brendan Rodgers thankfully had other ideas.

Raheem Sterling is back on track for Liverpool

Sterling started the next match at home to Norwich and bagged his first league goal of the season. A confidence boost. He followed that up with a solid supporting act in the Luis Suarez show against West Ham three days later. Then came Spurs. A tough game away from home against Champions League chasing rivals. I wasn’t expecting much. It was the kind of game that I could see Raheem struggling in. Sterling produced his best 45 minutes in a Liverpool shirt to date with a wonderful first half display. He twisted Kyle Naughton’s blood so badly that the full back was mercifully removed at the break. He got to the byline several times, repeatedly beat his marker on the outside and delivered into the box time and again. He fittingly finished the game with a goal to complete the 5-0 rout. He found the net once more against Cardiff at Anfield and made Philippe Coutinho’s goal away to Manchester City while also having a goal wrongly chalked off for offside by an absurd decision. Even during Liverpool’s toughest 45 minutes of the season away to Chelsea, Sterling was Liverpool’s biggest attacking threat in a difficult first half for the team. He was quieter against Hull City last week but that was to be expected after such a demanding run of fixtures over Christmas. Starting again in the F.A cup against Oldham, he once again provided a goal for the Reds when he shot was deflected into the Kop goal by the unfortunate James Tarkowski.

In a crucial 8 game period, Sterling has been directly responsible for 5 Liverpool goals. For a boy who has just turned 19 and is only in the side because of injury to Daniel Sturridge, that is some going, especially when you factor in that his confidence must have been shot after his display away to Hull just 6 weeks ago.

Goals and direct assists haven’t been the only impressive thing that Sterling has added to his game of late. His pace had been somewhat of a bugbear for me in the past. The general perception from the moment Sterling made it into the first team was that he was a speed demon. I didn’t see it. At youth level, sure he looked incredibly quick, but against Premier League fullbacks he looked nippy at best to my eyes. Since his reintegration though, he seems to have found an extra yard, maybe even two. He threatens in behind defences far more than he did before, evidenced by his goals against Spurs and Cardiff as well as his assist and wrongly disallowed strike at City.

Not only does his speed of foot seem to have helped him offer a greater threat behind opponent’s defences, his runs now seem more intelligent and refined. His partnership with Luis Suarez in that respect is something to behold. Even in the embryonic stages of last season, Suarez assisted the youngster with two through balls for goals against Reading and Sunderland. This season that understanding seems to have gone up another level. The two seem to be on the same wavelength and while Suarez dishes out many a rollocking when Sterling makes a mistake, the Uruguayan seems to take extra delight when a goal is scored by his little accomplice in crime, Raheem. He is a great foil for Suarez when the striker drops deep and adds depth to Liverpool’s attacking play.

Partners in crime: Suarez and Sterling link well together 

Talking of partnerships, Sterling seems quite at ease with Glen Johnson behind him as well. The two have dovetailed pretty effectively despite their partnership coming at a time when Johnson’s form has hit rock bottom. Even when out of nick, Johnson’s desire to attack and his distribution to Sterling have helped the young winger to flourish. If Liverpool’s right back can recapture his best form then that should only bode well for Sterling in the future.

So there you have it: I was wrong about Raheem Sterling. He has knuckled down, improved his end product, his work rate and is proving himself a valuable member of this Liverpool team aged just 19. He clearly doesn’t need a loan move right now and it’s not likely that Jordan Ibe would be doing a better job for Liverpool than the Jamaican born winger if he were playing in his place. His career isn’t set for oblivion, it’s just starting and is again on a tangible upward curve. My humble pie has been eaten and to be honest, it tastes pretty sweet at the moment. In fact, I’d love seconds.