I was pleased by the experiment as he did well against Fiorentina but yesterday it fell flatter than a Mondrian. Elsewhere we had two defensive midfielders against the worst team in the League (or at least we started with two), continued with Kuyt and…and…well, that’s about it. I can’t argue with Rafa’s selection other than that as it should be good enough to beat a pretty awful Portsmouth side.
Jesus, what do I know?
I left the Arsenal game screaming at the players but I scarcely have the breath this time. For once this season, I even had a simulacrum of sympathy for Rafa. You can train the team all week, drill them in the basics such as how to clear an unchallenged header for a corner and tell them about how to play at Fratton Park but, as the old adage says; once they cross the white line you can only allow the Fates to do their work. There was nothing unlucky about this defeat.
There’s speculation about the players disagreeing with Rafa and walking onto the pitch with the gait of broken men but all I saw were eleven men wearing Liverpool badges on their shirt pretending to be Liverpool players. And doing it badly. The lack of passion was frightening and when a team has to Rooney a referee into giving him everything you know you’re in trouble. A word to the wise, Nando. Sitting in the referee’s ear seldom works.
If criticising Torres sulk-fest is akin to slaying in the most sacred of cows I’m afraid his mate deserves equal billing. Steven Gerrard, a man who has pulled us out of the mire on dozens of occasions, currently demonstrates the body language of a Mark Hughes team talk. Things aren’t going to improve just because you don’t like it, Steven. As a captain you need to be shouting in people’s faces and reminding them about that badge, that song, that hymn, not sighing at every over hit pass or any play that involves Dirk Kuyt. You’re not just captain because you’re the best player in the club; you’re supposed to be leading too.
I could mention Dirk but I simply haven’t got the eighty hours to spare.
Rafa claims the Mascherano sending off was key and none too subtly blamed the referee. I expect any defeated manager to point at an excuse but was this really a viable one? A studs up challenge on the shin and an arm swipe. It wasn’t incorrect, it was moronic. I’ve just about forgiven him for his ‘please send me off’ Old Trafford performance but here we go again. At least Masch had the good grace not to complain. Mind you, he’s got Christmas and most of January off which is ideal for someone who may need to pop to Barcelona for a ‘holiday’. Let’s call that a happy accident.
So why has it gone so wrong? Was last season a massive overreach or are we still missing Alonso? The team has barely changed but the attitude stinks. Last season we won this fixture with two goals in the last five minutes. This season we didn’t manage two strikes on goal. Yes, we had ten men this time but we had Ryan Babel back then. The daggers are out for Rafa but will someone look at the players and the weak, shameful and shameless approach to the game, look at the second halves against Everton and Arsenal, the astonishing lack of fitness against Spurs and the late goals conceded in Europe? Someone needs to wield an axe but in days of player power and a paper thin squad we can’t do a thing. Like you, I lived through the dark days of the 1993 season. (Saturday was the anniversary of the 5-1 mauling by Coventry, our eighth League defeat at that point. We lost a further seven and closed on 59 points) but there was never such a hopeless apathy as we witnessed yesterday. That is far more worrying than the results. Something has to give.
I’m not saying Rafa should go as there’s no decent alternative who would take on the club in its current state. In any case, four wins in seventeen is perfect. He is the perfect man for the job and can perfectly lead us into the light once more. If he does go, I’d like to think that the players will look at their own performances and fund some of his pay off deal.