Clear & Obvious: How VAR’s tagline became Liverpool’s marching tone for a historic season

Image Source: LFC Twitter Handle

“This was built on Kenny’s soul and Steven’s legs “, remarked Jurgen Klopp on Sky after Willian’s goal, this time, won the league for Liverpool Football Club. That is why Liverpool are Champions of England. Time and again, Managers have come and gone who, on that unbearable weight of expectation, tried to sway the team away from the city and its character. Then comes a guy who was not from around here, not only stamps his own character on the team but also embodies everything the club and the city stands for. A hard working and passionate set of people who lives and dies by their football club, both sets of colours included. In the modern era it is such a refreshing thing to say that the manager is the best signing the club has made. This was no 198-million-pound signing that was going to change the footballing world. It was an affable German (if ever there was one) who simply asked the fans to believe and pleaded for time to improve. He then set out to do that one giant step at a time. Doing it the right way is one thing. It needs a much bigger term to define what Jurgen Klopp has built at Liverpool. It was methodical, it was ruthless at times and the progress was there to see every step of the way. A cup final here, a big win there, there was hope again for the faithful. Then one night in Kiev changed the footballing world on its head. A Sergio Ramos wrestling match for a final and a supposedly concussed but still worthless otherwise disaster of a goalkeeping performance later, Klopp manages to see the golden sky at the end of the storm. Alisson Becker’s world record move for a goalkeeper becomes the final piece in the jigsaw that was solved for the most part by the then world record move for a defender by Virgil Van Dijk. Then the 40 point swing happens and here we are, notwithstanding the worst pandemic the world has ever seen in a while and all the calls by a certain Null and Void FC, the holy grail that the club could only smell but never touch it is theirs with a 23 point lead with 7 games still to play. No team can ever manage 100 points in a season they said. Here we are after the most heroic of failures at 97 points, at the cusp of a 107-point season. When you haven’t won the league in 30 years, may be this is how you do it. Not scramble over the line but smash it over the park. From doubters to believers to Champions of Europe to Champions of the World to the Champions of England. Liverpool Football Club. Take a bow!

What amazes about this club is how you cannot pick an individual player or a moment as the reason why Liverpool were crowned champions. There is no Aguerooooooh moment, no Vardy party, no signing just for the sake of winning a title for the season as Van Persie’s and no 30-goal striker to define a season. But perhaps the most definitive reason for Liverpool’s title charge was embodied by the captain himself. A scrappy 2-1 win against Spurs and you could see how visibly angry he was at the final whistle barking at his teammates and acknowledging to his gaffer how terrible that performance was, not minding taking this into the dressing room. That was the level demanded by the men in charge and for the most part you can’t define who was in charge either. What a redemption story his has been! On the cusp of joining Fulham as a bit part to bring in Clint Dempsey (That’s right!), to succeeding Steven Gerrard as Captain (That’s right!), his has been a true warrior’s story of blood, sweat and tears. Redemption is a dish best served with trophies. Four in a year should do it doesn’t it?! Henderson, Milner, Van Dijk, Wijnaldum, Lallana, Alisson were all leaders on and off the pitch which explains being mentality monsters came easy for this lot. In an era of over exposed youngsters and twitter feuds and late-night pubs and disciplinary actions, you could not hear a peep about these fellas. There were no shenanigans. Just professionals going about their business. The only other manager who made this sort of environment possible won 13 titles. Le Professeur never regained it after the Vieira era. This is just old school football where the club comes first, and its manager is the final authority on anything and everything.

The gaffer’s penchant not to tinker too much with the first team and a refusal to indulge in individual brilliance means the entirety of that lot takes the plaudits for ribbons turning red on the trophy. Because for Sadio Mane and Mo Salah, there is their conductor in chief Roberto Firmino. For all the accolades the full backs would rightfully receive for their assists and creativity there are the nuclear-powered work horses of the much-maligned midfield. And then there are the Van Dijk and Alisson who have Joel Matip and later Joe Gomez to thank for keeping their lofty standards alive. The bench came good too with Origi, Lallana and Adrian with the most noticeable contributions. So, who is the hero then? Oh, there is that booming laugh from the side lines. That’s who!

For all the records that were and going to be broken during the season, can this side be cast among the greatest of the division? Most certainly not! Because for all the accolades, this team has still only won as many titles as Blackburn Rovers and Leicester City. Yes, this team is certainly is the finished product right now. So much so that they could afford to lose a player as talented and as keen as Timo Werner to their direct rivals and still do not see a par competition next season than currently dethroned champions of England. A forced 100-day break to the much travelled, much accomplished but a much weary team of the past year can now take it easy. Aim to break City 100, bed in the likes of Neco Williams, Curtis Jones, Ki Jana Hover, Harvey Elliot and Takumi Minanino and another freshen up time of a month later, they should be raring to go again without too much of an addition to their well settled squad. But until they at least do an Arsenal, Chelsea or Manchester City, they would simply be a one season wonder. May be Michael Edward can provide the swoop of the century and bring in Kevin De Bruyne if Manchester City loses in the Court of Arbitration. Then Liverpool can close their eyes and quadruple their way into history. I am just thinking out loud. But then, WE JUST WON THE LEAGUE! Give us that much! And, the gaffer just made us believe, made us dream, made us Champions. So what do we know!

EPL Season Review – A Generation Gone

Sports can be such a different career in a lot of ways. Sports persons peak at an age when young men and women take baby steps in their careers. They retire in an age where every other professional attain their peak powers. The moment their bodies don’t respond to the mind, they call it quits. Yet in such a short career span, sport can be so satisfying and fulfilling. As a professional sport, dominated by club games, football can be so demanding on a player’s body and mind. Yet with their endurance and skill set, they manage to illuminate our hearts as well as the stadiums they play in. This particular season in English football, many players who would be branded as greats in the not so distant future and one manager who is probably the greatest of them all, chose to call it a day. Here is a look at those amazing people.

He was the most naturally gifted striker that England has ever produced. Fast as a blur, boyish charm and with the kind of instinct inside the box, he was a nightmare for defenders around the world. But post his explosive start and prolific scoring for Liverpool, Michael Owen never really found that gear at Real Madrid where he found his chances limited among the galaxy of stars at the Bearnabeu. His career hit rock bottom after a plethora of injuries he sustained during his stay at St James’ Park. But that did not stop Sir Alex Ferguson from signing him (Being a Reds fan, I was livid to say the least).  Though he played fewer matches during his time at Manchester Unted, he did make his mark with a signature last minute goal in that amazing Manchester derby. Despite his move to United, he is still my favorite striker. Two moments still stays fresh in memory, that amazing goal at the ’98 World Cup game against Argentina and his brace in the FA cup final against Arsenal in 2001 where the Gunners did not lose to Liverpool but to Michael Owen.

He would probably go down as one of the last one club player in the premier league. The great wall of Liverpool, Jamie Carragher’s legacy lies in his loyalty, commitment, using maximum use of one’s potential, fighting instinct and most of all, being the ultimate team man. He was the bedrock of Liverpool’s defense for the past 15 years and every time I see his name on the team sheet I feel secure and assured. Images of an exhausted Carra fighting cramps but still throwing his body around against a marauding Serginho in 30 tiring minutes of extra time at the Champions  Trophy finals in 2005 still stands out. Wonder if anyone can replicate that. 

He retired a year ago only to come back at his boss’ request. Though he had a very ordinary season by his high standards, one can’t take away the fact that Paul Scholes is one of the strongest pillars on which lies the museum of those glittering trophies that United won in the Ferguson Era. United will sorely miss and will need a midfield general that was Scholes. Who is going to deliver those killer passes from deep in the midfield? Who is going to dictate the game? Can Michael Carrick step it up? 

He is a superstar in more ways than one. Despite not being an exceptionally talented player, with his dead ball skills and that precise, defense splitting pass, he was such a potent weapon in any team’s midfield. But David Beckham’s footballing legacy lies beyond the pitch. He was an icon, a poster boy who drove people, especially women to watch the game. Though the game is much bigger than him, he became the reason why a lot of people watched football. That is something very few people can do. You can talk about Dennis Bergkamp’s technical acumen, laud Steven Gerrard’s leadership or wonder how cool Alan Shearer is every time he puts it past a keeper. But you always need a Beckham to make people watch all that in the first place. He was football’s brand ambassador. 

The English Premier League has indeed lost its sheen a bit after the decline and retirements of so many greats in recent years. When I first started to watch the game seriously, I remember the great battles between two amazing quartets. Sir Alex Ferguson’s trump cards Paul Scholes, Ryan Giggs, David Beckham and Ruud Van Nistelroy for Manchester United against Arsene Wenger’s invincible geniuses Robert Pires, Patrick Viera, Dennis Bergkamp and Thierry Henry for Arsenal. When will we ever get to see something like that again?

 

And now the biggie, the actual reason why most of you are reading this article. Being a Reds fan it is such a difficult thing to talk, let alone praise someone from 40 miles away, especially one who vowed to knock Liverpool off their perch and did that successfully. But of late, Sir Alex Ferguson is held in such high esteem that it’s okay to do so. Looking at him from beyond my mental borders, I have to say, “Thanks Fergie”! I remember my time in Manchester when I used to work at the Theatre of Dreams as a bartender, interacting with the club’s long standing members. They spoke so fondly of Sir Alex and how he is the source of all the glittering trophies that begs for space in the Museum downstairs and that no matter who comes and goes, as long as he is there United will be fine. I wonder if they can still say that next season.  Yes they do have a credible replacement in David Moyes, handpicked by Sir Alex himself, but it remains to be seen how the Red Devils play from here. Of course in all those interactions, I had to put up with a lot of RED faced poking, making a mockery of Liverpool’s current form and I had to endure all that with a straight face. Damn me and my dignity! I also vividly recall the aura that he carried. I remember this one time in the 1969 Suite inside Old Trafford where I was working, suddenly there was a buzz around the place. It was strange because I already saw Christiano Ronaldo, Nemaja Vidic and Ryan Giggs walk into the suite a while back and it was all normal. But this time there was a lot of buzz and this time it was Sir Alex himself. In a flash, the whole place transformed into some sort of a hypnotized magic hut. Everyone, including the players themselves was looking at him and only at him as he moved from table to table greeting the members. That aura is carried only by one other sporting icon that I know;  a little man who got the most British of all crowds in Brighton buzzing when he walked in during a tour match, a certain Sachin Tendulkar. Very few personalities justify this increasingly over used term, but from the next season “Football will never be the same again”.

This season significantly closes the chapter of the end of a beautiful era in EPL. With only the likes of Gerrard, Lampard, Terry, Cole & Ferdinand left, let’s hope that the Suarezs, the Carricks, the Matas, the Hazards, the Wilsheres, the Bales and the Walcotts will step up and become the next set of greats to have played the beautiful game. There certainly is talent but it also needs careful nurturing. This is where I hope the Rodgers’, the Villas-Boas’, the Martinez’, the Ladrup’s and the Mourinho’s will step it up.