Confidence is eroding - and the season hasn't started yet
A FEW weeks ago many Liverpool fans were more than quietly confident about the new season.
Keane had been signed, Barry was supposedly on the way and a team that only lost four times in the league last season and got to the Champions League semi-final was looking stronger.
Then, after months of chasing Gareth Barry and enjoying the steam coming out of Martin O'Neill's ears, suddenly, Mr Barry is "overpriced"? Forgive me, but it's not as if our owners didn't know what the price was? Why take three months to come to that conclusion? Then we have the short trip to Liege.
It was always going to be tricky but the performance was woeful. Few came out of the game with much credit and we have Pepe Reina to thank for keeping us in the tie. Mind you, even though Liege played well, their physical approach was not kept in check at all by the lenient referee.
Dossena was well outside the box when he supposedly handled the ball for their penalty but at least on that occasion he was up with the play. He seemed to spend most of the night chasing shadows and I fear Premier League wingers will have him targeted already.
The confidence of a few weeks ago has been dissipated by the strange about-turn of the owners over Barry. Barry is now cup-tied for the Champions League after playing for Villa in the UEFA Cup. So is the plan to get him cheaper because we can't play him in Europe or are we just skint and he's not coming at all? (If we can't afford Barry how are we ever going to build a new stadium?)
Then came the totally toothless performance against Liege to erode confidence further.
Sunderland at home, especially on the opening day of the season, will be a tough nut to crack. Expect partisan support and high-tempo, in-your-face football for the full 90 minutes.
The team have got to show that they are up for it and the owners have got two more weeks of the transfer window to show they are really up for it as well. The vast majority of Liverpool supporters think they are not.
What is the point of regularly doing well in the Champions League if the revenues earned are not put to use to have a real crack at the Premier League? It's time for our American friends to shape up.
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