Kop Rot

Much has been made of Liverpool’s situation.  Ink has been wasted going over figures, journalists and media commentators trying to forensically pick over the scene just so the average fan can understand what has gone wrong; ‘leveraged buyout’ has joined metatarsal in the lexicon of 21^st century football terms.  There is no need for economic virtuosity, no place for xenophobia in the explanation of their plight; what has happened, in the heartland of socialist England, is the free market has done a number over one of its prized positions.  Two slavereringly greedy men thought they spotted a way to make swathes of money and instead they have made a huge loss.  Such is business.  Should the looming clash with Everton arrive without the present situation having been resolved Liverpool could line up against their arch rivals propping up the table on -3 points.  Whatever has been written about the boardroom drama, the rot is evident in far more than just the accounts.

Benitez must shoulder far more of the blame than is currently being levelled at him.  He has cut and run; Liverpool fans can’t.  They are stuck with a squad that was never stocked for lean times.  Benitez had an infamous disregard for youth and in his time at the club managed to blood not one young upstart.  N'Gog is probably the youngest acquisition bought at the age of 19 and he, like Babel, has struggled to make any impact bar a clutch of goals in Europe’s backwaters earlier this season.  Where is the young buck pushing through to put Carragher out to pasture?  At Goodison Park on the 17^th Liverpool will be faced with the proof that the city had a deep talent pool, and they might rue the years they have neglected it.  Jay Spearing is the only player I can call to memory who has stepped out for Liverpool’s red half having played for their academy side.  He is 21.  No spring chicken and has been farmed out on loan having been deemed incapable of playing any role in lifting the senior players out of this slump.  Any close analysis of the situation could draw conclusions that, just as the current owners have let the side down, Benitez has left the squad hollowed out and overdependent on major stars who are prime pickings for the circling vultures of Europe’s Elite clubs.

At a time when Manchester City have announced huge spending pledges on youth development to wean themselves off the heady delights of buying Galacticos, whose signatures mainline a shot of pure excitement right into the glory gland of fans, the economic merits of this strategy are enticing.  Nurturing young talent is not, as Wenger will testify, the easy route to success.  Arsenal have seen off their own years of frugality by focusing on the fruits of the home counties and as Jack Wilshere prepares to lace his boots  alongside Steven Gerrard for England on Tuesday night, it is a policy that is finally gleaning results.  Even Chelsea have begun to plan for life after Lampard, Josh McEachran among a select few being given the minutes to develop alongside the likes of Essien and Malouda. 

The rot at Liverpool pervades the entire establishment.  From Steven Gerrard’s inability to carry the team, to the broken promises regarding the Stanley Park stadium; from Torres’ frayed and faltering physique, to the fans’ lamentable YouTube video comparing the management of the club, among other things, to the rape of one’s family over a very long period.  The club need to understand they are not entitled to a place at the top table of football.   History is littered with the tales of Empires crumbling, undermined by overdependence on past glories to underpin the foundations.   What are we witnessing here?  Will Hicks drag the club down with him?  Will the Premier League impose a points ban on one of the ‘Sky Four’?  None of us can be certain, but this is not a problem money alone can fix. 

~ Ed