Saturday 11 February 2017

An upgrade?

I expect most Liverpool fans think that Jurgen Klopp has been an upgrade on Brenda (as I used to call him) Rodgers. Indeed, I thought Klopp was getting some momentum and that Liverpool might be building up to challenge again. But Liverpool had an awful January, apparently forgetting the Shanklyism that "we don't lose three in a row".  They have lost 4 of their last 5 matches, none of them against big clubs: three at home (against Swansea, Southampton and Wolves) and the fourth away at Hull.

So how is Klopp doing compared with Rodgers?

The answer is that, after 54 games, they have identical records: won 26, drawn 16 and lost 12.

Some upgrade eh? I suppose that, before January, Klopp's record was significantly better than Rodgers'. So a blip? Found out tactically? Players fatigued by his high pressing game and no mid-season break, such as Klopp's previous teams would always have had? We'll see.

But quite probably neither is an upgrade on Rafa Benitez. Last weekend's paper had an interesting interview with Didier (Didi) Hamann. Unlike Gerrard Houllier, Benitez is not an arm round shoulder, people person, asking about the wife and kids. He would tell players not to come knocking on his door if they were out of the team to ask why: just knuckle down and work harder. "And do as you're told, or I'll bring someone else in". "What's wrong with that?" Hamann asks. Benitez was concerned that Stephen Gerrard's burgeoning reputation would be harmful to the team and was determined to show him no favours. To the extent of announcing the team using player's nicknames, with one exception: "...Sami, Carra, Didi, Xabi, Luis, Gerrard..."

It's hard to diasagree with Hamann that former players like him will find it almost impossible to get a job as Premier League manager, so he is punting at being a director of football (and training at Man Met's business school). If Giggs couldn't get the United gig, how is it going to happen? Yes, such a person might get a job with a smaller club but, after United's experiment with Moyes, that is very unlikely to provide a pathway.

I've got a lot of time for Benitez, now he isn't at Liverpool and I think they made a big mistake in sacking him. I agree with my younger son that, if the FA hadn't decided the England manager should be English, Benitez, with his extensive Premier League knowledge and ability to set a team up for a one off game (which all England matches are really), was the ideal candidate. Maybe next time.

While on matters Liverpool, according to Charles Sale, long serving Liverpool CEO's last Premier League meeting was not marked with any warmth from the other clubs despite Ayre attending such meetings for over a decade. The reason is Liverpool's stance that the £3.5 billion of TV money from overseas sales should be divided by performance and viewing figures rather than equally between the 20 clubs. Liverpool might have 4 or 5 supporters around the table with all the other clubs against. I must have gone blue in the face banging on about how the Premier League should take a leaf out of the NFL's book and share all league negotiated revenues equally, so I am firmly with this status quo. The attraction of the Premier League is that it is a league. A one off game between Liverpool and say Manchester United is an exhibition match and has little commercial value. So it is logical to share the cash equally but the NFL rules are more about ensuring there is competition and a handful of franchises don't dominate. Businessmen like Ayre will always try to reduce competition and it is incumbent on the FA to ensure that they don't succeed. This is much more important to the FA's competence as a governing body than its make up by gender or ethnicity.

Didi Hamann was interviewed by Jonathan Norcroft in the Sunday Times, 5 February.
Charles Sale's column is in the Daily Mail.

2 comments:

  1. I just can't cope with the way football is going presently as Mansfield Town are unbeaten in 8 matches!!!! Surely normality has to be resumed soon does it not?

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    Replies
    1. Inevitably. Though the monkey could type the works of Shakespeare....

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