THE new season is so close you can almost
reach out and touch it.
It’s the time of year when you should be dreaming up songs for
new signings, dusting off your lucky boxer shorts and picking your
fantasy footie team with a big smile on your face.
But if you believe the ex-pros and national newspaper
columnists, you needn’t bother this year.
Carry on shopping, cutting the grass and painting the fence –
because without Xabi Alonso there’s no hope of the title coming to
Anfield in May.
Now it seems, Liverpool are no longer a two-man team, other Reds
players are decent – now they’ve left, that is.
But if Xabi’s suddenly so good he can single-handedly swing a
title one way or another – where were the articles hailing him as
the world’s best?
Where was the praise for Benitez for plucking such a gem from
the relative obscurity of Real Sociedad?
Well don’t bother exercising your Google searchbar – they’re not
there.
Not just because it didn’t suit certain journos’ agendas to
write that kind of piece. But also because Alonso had two ordinary
seasons before peaking in the last campaign.
With the saga of his sale out the way, a sizeable sum of
£30million banked, Rafa Benitez kissing his middle finger in the
direction of Madrid and the quickfire signing of Alberto Aquilani,
everything should be alright again though, right?
Wrong. He’s a crock, we’re told. Not in Xabi’s class. Too
lightweight for the Premier League. And on it goes.
Suddenly, everyone’s an expert on Aquilani.
Well I’m not – and I’m not afraid to say it. I’ve read the
background and watched the clips on Youtube. I’ve heard the Roma
players and staff speak favourably about him, not least former Red
John Arne Riise.
But I’ll judge for myself when Aquilani runs out in red which,
unfortunately by the looks of things, won’t be until October.
Meanwhile, everyone continues to overstate the influence of
Alonso.
How far can it go? It’s like when Kevin Keegan left, Kenny
Dalglish retired or Ian Rush headed for Italy?
Even better. How about that Liverpool’s title challenge is over
before a ball is kicked because of the sale of Alonso?
I’m exaggerating though, right? No-one could write off a club
that finished four points shy of the title. A side that won home
and away against the Champions and Chelsea. And all this despite
not having the best striker in the world available for a large
chunk of the season.
They could you know.
According to Daily Mail columnist Martin Samuel, by selling a
player who was desperate to leave for an inflated fee and
immediately replacing him with a highly-rated Italian, the Reds
have: “put a stick of dynamite under their title aspirations
again”.
And once one ‘expert’ reels out this unsubstantiated drivel,
they all follow suit. It’s like a huge snowball – only this one is
a browner shade of white.
I’ve been away on holiday for a week. And in the matter of hours
since I’ve been back I’ve watched Ray Parlour and Andy Townsend
write us off because Alonso’s left.
Then I read a few season previews – everyone trotting out the
same old line that Liverpool have been severely weakened by his
departure and can’t possibly push for the title.
It seems Rafa Benitez can’t do anything right – while Alex
Ferguson never does any wrong.
Glen Johnson is the England right back, Portsmouth’s player of the
year and could have gone back to Chelsea.
But he’s too dear.
And there’s no point in having a decent right back because
there’s no decent left wingers in the Premier League (according to
Paul Merson).
On the other hand, it’s a stroke of genius to sell arguably the
world’s best player in Cristiano Ronaldo (in his peak) and replace
him with Michael Owen (definitely not in his).
Sometimes I despair, I really do.
But then I remember I’ve got some boxer shorts to dust.
Anyone got any Aqualani songs?!