Secondly, the fact that Villa were reluctant to let go of both of Downing and Young in one summer. Ashley Young moved first to Man Utd for £17m and this indirectly inflated the Downing valuation. Villa were in a strong bargaining position, Liverpool, having just been beaten by Man Utd to Young, were not.
In 46 efforts on goal this season, Downing is yet to trouble the scorers. For a player that cost £20m, that is a quite frankly appalling return. The contrast down the left flank alone is enough to make the blood boil – the machine that is Jose Enrique is quicker with the ball than Downing is without it.
Pundits aplenty have decried Liverpool’s lack of cutting edge this term, Dalglish even admitted as much himself after the defeat to Man City this week after calling on his side to develop a more clinical edge in front of goal.
A decent barometer of the toothless nature of Downing et al comes courtesy of the fantastic Opta stats – Liverpool, Man City and Chelsea have all had 282 shots on goal in the Premier League this season, the top three for such a stat in the entire league. Man City have had 132 efforts on target and have 56 goals to show for it. Chelsea from the same number of efforts on goal have been on target with 126 shots and have scored 39 times. Liverpool, however, have been on target with only 114 shots on goal and have a quite miserable return of just 24 goals, less than both Bolton and Blackburn.
It’s also worth pointing out that this Liverpool side have scored the exact same number of goals as Roy Hogson’s team had by this point last season. The difference between performances of the two sides is clear for all to see, though. Whereas Hodgson’s Liverpool were devoid of anything even resembling creativity, it’s clear from the aforementioned stats that at least Dalglish’s side are creating chances. The problem lies in the personnel, though, and their inability to finish them off, with Downing a main culprit.
Jordan Henderson may go missing at times and may appear too eager to play the simple option rather than risk the wrath of the terraces for trying something different, but his purchase has to be seen as a long-term investment and he’ll come good eventually, with him showing signs in the past few games in a more familiar central midfield position.
Carroll has been a huge disappointment and the only thing currently stopping him going down as the Premier League’s biggest ever flop is the fact that Fernando Torres cost Chelsea the princely sum of £50m on the same day. However, while he may have a lot of facets to his game that need improving, Liverpool fans should reserve a smidgen of hope that he’ll come good also. He’s not a ready-made striker and will require a lot of patience, but there is at least potential.
Downing, though, at 27 years of age should surely be approaching the peak of his powers. If a manager investing £20m in you and challenging you to help spearhead the rebuilding of a great club like Liverpool isn’t enough to give you confidence, I don’t know what is.
It looked a risky purchase at the time but it’s of no coincidence that the fates of Liverpool’s two biggest transfer mishaps in recent times are intertwined and their underperformance interlinked. Carroll at least has the excuse that the service hasn’t been up to scratch, though, whereas for Downing, there is no hiding place.
The article was written by James McManus for FootballFancast.com. Make sure to check out the latest news, blogs and podcasts at FFC – ed.
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wrong – have you heard of Henderson or Carroll
Downing could have had 5-6 assists if it wasn’t for the woodwork or Carroll’s inability to score
Funny you say that! Hendo is still under 21 (but still a waste of 16 mill as Jonjo is 10 times better and only cost 1.5 mill!!!) Carroll is 22 years old trying to fulfill expectations of the greats! He will come good, but 20 million for Downing (27 yrs old and no resale value) made me sick when I heard it! The other funny thing is that his performances still make me sick and I blame Daglish for it! I’d rather have Kuyt on the left (as he plays it with Holland) and I’m definately sure he would’ve done a better job! I was screaming for Adam Johnson, Boudebouz, Gamst, Keisuke, N’Zogbia instead! If Rafa was here we’d have Mata and an inform Torres (without all the nonsense the previous “owners” promised. Torres offered his thoughts on bringing Mata/Silva and they dismissed it)! Downing is a waste! Period! We all may love Kenny for who and what he’s done, but I guarantee we would’ve been better off with Rafa at the helm! Aqua would’ve done well! and look at the players he brought here! (Pepe, Nando, Arbeloa, Alonso, Kuyt, Lucas, Agger, Skrtel, Glen, Sterling, Jonjo, Silva, LuisG, Babel etc!) plus he guided Stevie G and Carra to their greatest moments as a Red! Plus as an outsider, he lives and breathes LFC; just look at the Hillsborough ceromony when hes thanked for his support! In Rafa we miss! Kenny’s got it all wrong with his ridiculous spending on crap!
I totally agree with this comments, dalglish is OLD SCHOOL ,he has lost touch with modern foot-ball tactics & he is wasteful in his transfer dealings.He is respected for what he achieved in the past for liverpool & i think that’s the reason fans are not calling for his sack yet. He defintely can’t give the club champions league football next season.
Thanks for the understanding. Daglish is releasing his “leashes” allowing mediocrity to set in! Kuyt is defo unhappy, and this is a major concern why we are not winning games! I understand he’s trying to justify his stupid buy in Henderson (young and has upside..BUT, he has no right to playing in the first team week after week with lacklustre performances!), but its at the cost of Kuyt’s leadership and prowess on the pitch! I, to be honest think Carroll will come good! A 30 goal a season type scorer..hmmm. may be not, but he’ll justify “some” of his price tag! The sad thing is he’s not getting breaks (hit post and unbelievable saves from keepers) and as well, not as fleet footed as the quick Torres was! Agreed with ya mate: No CL Football again is really getting my blood boiling! Another thing, when I heard that Chelsea offered Sturridge and 40 mill for Torres, I was jumping for joy! He declined it for the extra money to sign Carroll! :s Idiocricy at its best Daglish and Co.! Sturridge is just like Defoe! They type of player we needed for years on this team! *can’t stop shaking my head* Good luck to the lads and lets hope for a turn around!
Bunch of mugs! Shows Kenny’s genius that as crap as Downing, he’s got serious competition for the title of Dalglish’s worst signing. Seriously, if u lot don’t get champions league by the end of the season ur all f***ed. Villa r in a bad way but Im glad we’re not in Liverpool’s shoes. Expect to be a club in crisis this time next yr. Cheers for the £20mill!
Well VillaTillIDie it was only fair after all the junk we sold off to your lot over the years
AKA. Nothing.
With Downing what we’ve seen is all we’re going to get. I always believed his stock has been talked up big time by pundits and the media. He’s a good player, but I doubt whether he can consistently deliver what is required by LFC. £20 million was far too much to pay for a 27 year old that will have no resale value at the end of his contract. Mata is a much better player and was a better option, and was available to LFC even without CL football. £20 million buy out clause at the start of the summer for a 23 year old WC winner with a much better resale value than Downing could ever command.
Have u ever heard of ‘AUNTY CAROLL’.
Thats wat happens when u dont buy players based on quality. Imagine demba ba ans bellamy’s contribution as free transfee then u will understand what a flop aunty caroll is.
ANDY Carroll’s stats has a better reading than Downing’s.
Carroll :: Played – 31 , Scored – 4 , Assits -2, Woodwork – 3.
Downing :: Played – 24, Scored – 1 , Assits – 0, Woodwork – 3.
NOTE:: Downing was bought to put cross in for Carroll.
Carroll and Hendo has time to learn but Downing at 27 is at his peck.
Agreed Jacko! FULLY AGREED!
i would say hez the worst signing of kenny.just runs,nothing comes out.reminds me of riera
Best signing you ever made as far as we are concerned. 20 million thank you so very much!
I think we should give a few of our young players a run out after all they are supposed to be. Lfc,s. Future. And they can’t be any worse than what’s on show at the moment and they would show alot. More hunger than most of our big buys so why not give them a try