Liverpool Transfers: Why Midfielders Should Be Rodgers' Premier Target
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(Featured Columnist) on June 20, 2012
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It's still early days at Liverpool FC for Brendan Rodgers.
But the message that he sends out is simple and clear. He is as committed to the cause of the club as every last supporter.
Rodgers has revealed very little about what the board expects out of him. All he has done is to assure the supporters to expect an improved quality of football with which he expects to churn out results that will please the board and the supporters alike.
But, essential to do that is to have the right kind of players in the mix.
Now, Rodgers proposes to implement a style of play which is not any different to the Liverpool way that Kenny Dalglish tried to bring back during his short tenure as Liverpool manager for the second time.
Most people refer to it as the Barcelona way and let's keep it that way for argument's sake.
Analysis and repeat analysis of this style of play has revealed that it is the midfielders—and Lionel Messi—that make FC Barcelona tick.
Inefficient, and often times incomplete, performances by the midfield players coupled with bad luck in front of goal saw Liverpool blow any hopes they had of finishing in the Champions League qualification places.
Rodgers should know that weeding out the midfield problems is one of the important things to do in order to get the team back to firing on all guns.
And he seems to be on track going by the positive rumours surrounding Icelandic international attacking midfielder Gylfi Sigurdsson's move to Merseyside.
Is it the midfield that needs tinkering?
· Yes
86.1%
· No
7.6%
· Don't Know/Can't Say
6.4%
Total votes: 595
But that doesn't settle the midfield issues of LFC.
Jordan Henderson and Charlie Adam still don't seem to be the answer to LFC's midfield problems, as the duo found it tough to dictate the play from their centre midfield positions.
Clearly, the losses of Lucas Leiva and Steven Gerrard were more than what the club could cope with and that showed in the team's miserable performances on field since the start of 2012.
The purchase of Sigurdsson should ease the pressure on Gerrard, as the time is now right to lift the weight off of the veteran Liverpool skipper's shoulders.
However, a solution to the Lucas Leiva problem still remains unanswered.
A suitable cover for Leiva is virtually inexistent at the club, as can be inferred from Jay Spearing's unsuccessful spell filling in for the Brazilian defensive dynamo.
Capturing Mohamed Diame turned out to be futile, as it emerged that the Senegalese international opted for a switch to London with West Ham United.
And then, there is the case of the wide midfielders.
Dirk Kuyt's departure has now left a vacuum for the right wide-man position at the club. Suarez, despite his versatility, is not going to find playing out wide to his liking.
A Marco Reus-type of player is exactly what Liverpool need to settle their wide-men issues. On the left, the Stewart Downing situation continues to divide supporters, with a few backing the former Aston Villa man to come good in his second season while others offer far less respite for the English international.
Does Sigurdsson represent good business for LFC?
· Yes
87.9%
· No
3.6%
· Don't Know/Can't Say
8.5%
Total votes: 589
Poor transfer decisions ultimately proved to be King Kenny's undoing at Anfield. The only reason he could afford himself the extended period was due to his standing as club icon amongst the supporters.
Rodgers is smart enough to understand and not expect a similar kind of leverage afforded to Kenny Dalglish by the Anfield faithful. He knows fully well that he is one misjudged transfer dealing and a few bad results away from losing the patience, support and trust of the Kop faithful.
He knows that it is essential to kick off his time at Liverpool with a few positive results in order to charge up the atmosphere around the club.
The Premier League fixture list—revealed earlier in the week—underlines the effort that it will take to get the positive results in the first few weeks, as Liverpool entertain Premier League heavyweights Arsenal, Manchester United and Manchester City.
Arsenal, City, United and Chelsea have all started to make notable additions to their squad—like Podolski, Hazard, Kagawa to name a few—in order to boost their Premier League title hopes.
Liverpool and Rodgers too should make a few quality additions in order to sustain their dream. Else it will be a massive mismatch of proportions and you can expect the press to play the David vs. Goliath card in the instance of a big clash all through next season.
But, Liverpool FC deserve much better than that.
I rest my case!
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