Liverpool are progressing

Brendan has overseen an upturn in the team’s performances in recent games

On Wednesday 26th November, Brendan Rodgers issued a rallying cry to his squad: “Our season starts here.”

It was an attempt to create a blank slate, enabling the players to put aside all the poor performances and start again, safe in the knowledge that they could still save their season if only they began performing now.

They drew 2-2 with Ludogorets. Not necessarily the result we needed, but it put an end to a run of four consecutive defeats in all competitions, even if two of those opponents were Chelsea and Real Madrid. We then ground out a 1-0 win against Stoke, beat Leicester 3-1 and drew 0-0 with Sunderland. After four losses in a row, suddenly we had two wins and two draws. Not top 4 form, but it was an improvement.

Then we drew 1-1 with Basle when we needed a win to qualify for the knockout stages. Of course a win was an absolute must, but people forget that Basle are a good team. This is a side who have gotten results against both Chelsea and Manchester United under Ferguson in past years. A draw in itself against this Swiss Champions is not an embarrassing result by any stretch of the imagination, especially considering the run of form from which we were recovering.

A harsh 3-0 loss against United put an end to our unbeaten run, but we bounced back with a 3-1 win over Bournemouth and most recently a 2-2 draw with Arsenal. Since Rodgers’ announcment on the 26th November, we have won 3, drawn 4 and lost 1. Again, it’s not where we want to be but it’s instantly preferable to the record in our previous 8 games: 2 wins, 1 draw and 5 losses.

Some of the fans who have turned against Rodgers will pick however many games from those previous 8 as they want to peddle their view that we haven’t progressed, but if you listen to what the manager’s said when he’s said it then it’s clear that in recent weeks we have improved.

The key change has been the return of attacking intensity. During September, October and November we passed the ball around so slowly it seemed we didn’t know what to do with it. We persisted with playing either Balotelli or Lambert up front on their own, two forwards not exactly known for their mobility. Now we’ve put Sterling up front, supported by Lallana/Coutinho/Markovic, and we’re finally seeing results. Sterling’s explosive pace and agility makes him a very mobile forward; our best option in Daniel Sturridge’s continued absence.

This means we’ve been able to move the ball around a lot more quickly, and as Sterling isn’t your archetypal target man his team mates have been forced to play it on the

Lallana, Sterling, Markovic and Coutinho worked well in tandem against Arsenal

ground rather than knock it long or put crosses in the box. It suits us so much more and isn’t far off last season’s style of play. The only problem is that Sterling has never been a clinical finisher. He’s scored some good goals in the past, but never when playing as a striker. He’s having to learn how to play in a different way and it shows.

I honestly believe that if we had a fit Daniel Sturridge in our last 2 league games, then we beat both Manchester United and Arsenal. Sturridge is just as mobile as Sterling but far more clinical. Supposedly he returns to action in the new year. By that point we will have played Burnley and Swansea, and our next four games will be Leicester (H), AFC Wimbledon (A) in the FA Cup, Sunderland (A) and Aston Villa (A) before our League Cup semi-final clash with Chelsea.

Those last 3 fixtures have the potential to be tricky, but if we keep improving in the vein that we have been recently and Sturridge finally, finally comes back to the starting XI, they are all winnable.

Before, supporters were counting on Sturridge’s return to pull us out of some truly wretched form. Now, the club seems to be doing that all on its own and it almost looks as though Sturridge is the final piece of the puzzle to finally get us firing on all cylinders again. That in itself is a step up, no matter how minor it may seem.

Don’t listen to the cynics who have already given up. There might just be some light at the end of this long, gruelling tunnel.