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Can Returning Stars Add Guile to Next Season’s Midfield?

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The end of the season is looming which means clubs all over Europe will be surveying the pros and mainly cons of the nine months gone by. All aboard the transfer merry-go-round!

With the Reds prodigal son Alberto Aquilani approaching the twilight of his latest loan spell away from the club and AC Milan seemingly wary not to trigger his automatic 25 game £6 million buy-out clause after the classy midfielders 22 appearances, it looks like the Italian giants faith in investing in him is wavering after failing to start the last four games.

Kenny Dalglish has been following his progress closely and seems happy to have him back if the Rosoneri fail to stump up the cash: “If they don’t want him, tell the boy you don’t want him. They will do what they have to do. If they don’t trigger it or they don’t want him, it’s not a problem. I’ll be disappointed for the boy, but then he’ll come back here as he’s our player”.

If the Italian does return he brings calm and intelligence to a midfield who have all too often surrendered possession cheaply this term. Fears about his fitness have come up again this season but he has been fit since March and in fine form by all accounts. With Dalgish’s midfield recruits underperforming for the majority of this season Aquilani may be the short term solution to cure us of our middle third malaise.

The Italian is not the only one who is set to make a summer return. Joe Cole’s £90 grand per week may be an expensive deterrent despite the fact that we have been heavily subsidising during his time at Lille which the club president admitting he will be difficult to keep:

“We will see. I haven’t found a machine yet that lets you make beautiful bank notes by pedalling. It’s true that the league table will have a bearing on Lille’s recruitment.”

The Englishman’s return may not be as be as popular to most Kopites after his ill fated time at the club chasing his illusive fitness throughout. Cole is the epitome of a player with immense talent but has badly suffered from never finding his true position. He was often used out wide under Hodgson and never really shone. My abiding memory of him in a red shirt is of him trudging off the pitch after his number was up, substituted again after failing to stand up to the rigours of the game. Nevertheless he has revitalised his game in Ligue 1, offering creativity and goals alongside Europe’s most wanted Edin Hazard.
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With European football back on the cards next season and Euro-legends like Dirk Kuyt and Jamie Carragher about to be shown the door and passed their best, we currently have a dearth of experience on our roster. Aquilani has both Champions League and Europa League previous with AC Milan, Juventus and Roma, whilst Cole has had a taste for all major club and international competitions. These may be only short term options but should freshen up a squad which has gone stale quite quickly.

I don’t believe any radical changes need to be made to the squad, just some minor adjustments which can freshen up a side which is haemorrhaging confidence. Taking these players back and giving them another chance is not a big risk. Aquilani looked like our best player in pre-season last year and after we sold Raul Meireles it seemed like the creativity was ripped out of our midfield especially with Gerrard out for a large chunk of the season. Both players suit sides who aim to play expansively which for all our faults this year we have, whereas particularly in the case of Cole, he never suited Hodgson’s “drop off and contain” playing philosophy.

As I said previously, these are only short term solutions, we will need to cast our net further afield to attract the young talent we need to drive the club forward, but bringing back experienced talent is not a bad idea for the present.

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I've been following the Reds ever since I set eyes on the majestic sight that is the Kop in full voice with flags aloft, albeit from the television with my dad as a 5 year old in my hometown of Dublin! He would tell me about the Irish contingent, the likes of Heighway, Whelan, Beglin and Houghton, he is a Leeds fan due to his hero Johnny Giles but I had to go against the grain on this one, his 3 year old grandson will not be afforded the same opportunity!
I completed a Higher National Diploma in Print Journalism back in Dublin where I briefly worked for the Irish Independent on a placement, covering Rugby, obituaries (including the great John Charles) and some sub editing. I then made the short journey to Liverpool, where I currently reside to undertake International Journalism at John Moores University. Some will say that over the years I have picked up a Jan Molbyesque native twang but I'm not so sure!
I was also lucky enough to have worked for the socialist publication "Morning Star" covering the Reds at Anfield which allowed me gain access to the press box and press conferences, I covered about 10 games and loved every minute of it!
I am excited to be joining the team at live4liverpool.com. From what I have seen so far the standard of articles have been first class, I hope to contribute to this by publishing pieces which create opinion and debate.

3 comments

  • Red John says:

    They’re better than what we’ve got, but they are more likely to be adding guile to the treatment table unfortunately.

  • Chan says:

    Aquaman could not be worse than Henderson, Adams or Downing. He was never given a proper chance. As the matter of fact, those 3 clowns would make Aquaman look like Maradona.

  • RAY says:

    LFC have to go Dutch – look at how AJAX murdered our super kids – they were superior in every single department – FORGET OLD MEN – GO DUTCH

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