July and August: Have 2012 lessons been learned?

ONE of the most popular phrases used in this close season so far concerning our club is the correct statement that we need to “hit the ground running” from the first minute of the first Premier League match.

This significant point will also mark the beginning of Brendan Rodgers’ second season and therefore the end of the deserved empathy which has been shown to him thus far by a majority of serious LFC supporters.

It is therefore imperative that lessons have been learned from the same period last season that led to our worst start for many decades.

There were a range of factors which left us “undercooked” last season. The late returns from international duty adding to the slight chaos caused by transfer window tactics like the Andy Carroll farce.

The period is also slightly confused by the Europa League qualifiers which needed to be negotiated against FC Gomel (and later Hearts,) Liverpool had played 6 matches before meeting West Bromwich Albion at the Hawthorns in 2012 while there will be 7 this time around before Stoke roll up at Anfield.

So on 18th August last year the starting XI had about 24 hours match time in total under their belts with Joe Allen turning out for the first time since his move from Swansea. This included the 3 friendlies in North America where the whole team was changed at half-time or after the hour mark.

In my opinion these tours are very important in terms of fostering our image around the world, enhancing merchandise returns, and for PR purposes, but apart from a little bonding and giving a run to some youngsters unlikely to start in a competitive match soon, they achieve little connected with the first Premier League match.

This is further shown by the appearances made by Sama, Eccleston, Ibe, Pacheco, Gulacsi, Adorjan, Morgan and McLaughlin- maybe potential stars of the future (at that time) but having no relevance to first team football, at least early season.

Rodgers was also using the period as a shop window with Charlie Adam, Jay Spearing, Alberto Aquilani, Danny Wilson and Joe Cole given game time. These players had surely been earmarked for departure or “farming out” on loan and should have been undergoing pre-season at other clubs. Perhaps understandable last year with his rushed entrance to a disorganised state of affairs, but that excuse is no longer a relevant issue and it should be addressed by this year.
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Back nearer home and the Europa league qualifying double header. Although these games had a more “real” feel to them with a degree of competitive edge, with all respect we should not have to think twice about this standard of opposition if we are going to return to anything like the force we aspire to be.

FC Gomel were plucky at best and the examination was passed with comfort. These two ties took us to within 90 minutes of Premier League action, so was it wise to include Spearing and Cole in the first starting line-up, with Adam getting a run out as a substitute in the second. At least Reina and Suarez were available for the return tie but I feel the writing was on the wall by this stage: we were not going to be going out against WBA with all guns blazing, to most of the players it must have seemed like nothing more than the back end of their summer holidays. Perhaps they were singing the Cliff Richard tune on their coach journeys to games!

Adam once again featured as a sub in the final warm-up against Bayer Leverkusen, and Sebastian Coates got a first start- I don’t think Brendan had made his mind up about him yet but he was pitched in to the second match against Manchester City with no other playing time.

Nearly a year on and I’m still not sure if a firm decision has been made to his future. However a decent win at Anfield was possibly the most useful exercise up to that point. The third match, a home defeat to Arsenal, saw the introduction of Nuri Sahin as a starter, and the die was cast for morbid early season lack of points.

All this emphasises the urgency to which the Suarez situation must be settled quickly one way or the other as well as any other important staffing matters. Younger players who have little chance of starting must be loaned out with our extra squad depth, and maybe there is a case for the PR friendly foreign tour to be made at the end of the previous season, leaving July and August free for more effective match practice and maximising our chances of “hitting the ground running.”
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