With five games left of the Premier League season, Liverpool find themselves in an unfamiliar position at the top of the Premier League table. Not even the most ardent Reds fan would have backed them for title glory this term, but few will be complaining should Steven Gerrard be lifting the trophy in May! Here are ten huge surprises from Liverpools season, that have all contributed to their (potential) success... 10) New signings have barely contributed to Liverpools season... In the summer, Liverpool spent nearly £50m on the likes of Mamadou Sakho, Tiago Ilori, Iago Aspas, Luis Alberto, Simon Mignolet and Victor Moses on loan. Of these, only Mignolet has been a first-team regular. For a team to have such a bad transfer window in terms of signings (although they did keep Luis Suarez) and be at the top of the table with the end of the season approaching, is very rare. 9) The brilliance of Steven Gerrard in his new role... Gerrard made his name as a world-class box-to-box midfielder, and during his peak, he actually played as a second striker behind Fernando Torres. In the last two seasons though, he struggled to consistently find his best form, and many believed his reign as one of the countrys best midfielders was over. Because hes lost his pace and mobility - Brendan Rodgers has cleverly deployed him in an adapted anchoring midfield role. At times, hes been so deep that he plays in line with his central defenders - but from here, he can dictate tempo and spray the ball around with his wonderful array of passes. Brendan Rodgers deserves huge credit for this, as does the captain himself. 8) Luis Suarez signed a new deal, and is happy at Anfield... At times last summer, it looked for all the world that Suarezs position at Liverpool was untenable, and that he would leave the club before the transfer window closed. Due mainly to Liverpools stubbornness, he stayed - and has handsomely paid them back with a season that sees him now regarded as one of the worlds top two or three players. Despite publicly criticising his manager in the summer, and repeatedly claiming that he wanted to leave the club, he signed a bumper extension just before Christmas. 7) The revival of Martin Skrtel... The Slovakian couldnt get in Rodgers side at the back end of last season behind Jamie Carragher, because of his inability to play the ball out from the back. This term though, Skrtel is the first defender on Liverpools team sheet. His passing has massively improved, as has his composure on the ball and his ability to marshall those around him. For a player aged 29 to suddenly develop into one of the leagues finest defenders is virtually unheard of. If his defensive performances were not enough, hes also scored six goals this term as well. 6) The ability to cope without a left-back... Jose Enrique is perpetually injured and loanee Frenchman Aly Cissokho is nowhere near good enough. The Reds though, have somehow managed to cope without a left-back. Natural right-footer Jon Flanagan has mainly been used in this role, and has done excellently - as has Glen Johnson when hes similarly been asked to perform on his unfavoured flank. 5) Winning matches during Luis Suarezs suspension... The Uruguayan was famously suspended for the opening five league matches of the season, but thanks partly to three winning Daniel Sturridge goals, Liverpool coped without him. They won three, drew once and lost once, putting them in a decent position for Suarezs return. Suarez came back to the side against Sunderland in September, and scored twice in a 3-1 in. 4) The tactical flexibility of the players... Footballers are notoriously animals of habit. They prefer set roles, and set responsibilities which they become more comfortable with over time. Brendan Rodgers though uses different formations, and asks his players to play different roles depending on the opposition. Early in the year, the Reds used a wing-back formation, and now, the manager switches between a 4-3-3 and a midfield diamond formation. Because of their versatility and talent, Liverpools attackers can mostly play anywhere theyre asked to. Coutinho for instance, has played as a deep central midfielder, on the left of a front three, or in the pivotal no.10 role so far. 3) Liverpool are the highest scorer in the whole of European football... Liverpool have scored more goals than Pep Guardiolas brilliant Bayern Munich side, Manuel Pellegrinis Manchester City team, a Lionel Messi inspired Barcelona, and a Real Madrid team spearheaded by Cristiano Ronaldo, Gareth Bale and Karim Benzema. Thats crazy. 2) The rapid development of Liverpools young English players... At the start of the season, there were doubts over the long-term suitability of Raheem Sterling and Jordan Henderson, and Jon Flanagan didnt even come into the conversation. Now, both Sterling and Henderson are vying for starting places with England at this summers World Cup, and Flanagan is drawing praise from legendary Brazilian right-back Cafu. The rise of all three has been astronomical. 1) The ability to thrash rivals... Liverpool havent just beaten their rivals, theyve regularly humiliated them. Rodgers men beat Spurs, who were actually rated as better top four hopefuls back in August, 5-0 at White Hart Lane and 4-0 at Anfield. Arsenal were demolished 5-1 at Anfield (and it could have been plenty more), Manchester United were battered 3-0 at Old Trafford, and the Reds slaughtered Merseyside neighbours Everton 4-0 at home as well. Not only did this install huge confidence amongst the Liverpool side, it had the complete reverse effect on the opposition.
Posted on: Mon, 07 Apr 2014 14:42:31 +0000
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