The man has a point, just how many of our team are actual title contenders?
Kuyt's predatory goal instincts help rescue mediocre Liverpool
By Eddie Johnson at Anfield
Last Updated: 12:10am GMT 05/11/2006
Liverpool (1) 2 Reading (0) 0
Of all Rafael Benitez's summer signings, the only player with the stamp of a
champion is Dirk Kuyt. The Dutchman's two goals disposed of unambitious
Reading here yesterday but could not obscure the fact that this Liverpool
side are flabby with mediocrity.
If this team consider themselves credible title challengers - and judging by
the optimistic rhetoric inside Anfield this week, they still do - they must
shed their excess weight. Inside this loose, baggy monster is a lean, trim
title-contender struggling to get out.
Yet how many members of this Liverpool side would get into the Arsenal,
Manchester United or Chelsea teams? Xabi Alonso is talented, Sami Hyypia was
outstanding yesterday and Kuyt is evidently emerging as a considerable
attacking threat, but really only Steven Gerrard would convincingly win a
place in any of those three XIs.
Players such as Jermaine Pennant and Boudewijn Zenden - competitive
Premiership types that they are - fall short of the standards required of a
team with league title pretensions.
Both goals were borne of Kuyt's finishing instinct, acquired for £9 million.
The first, on 14 minutes, came when Gerrard cut back on to his right foot on
the left flank and found Peter Crouch at the far post. The England striker
nodded across the face of goal. The Dutchman tapped in. Easy as that.
The second - Kuyt's fifth since arriving at Anfield - came after Liverpool's
supporters had grown uneasy about their team's failure to extinguish
Reading's second-half insurrection. With 17 minutes remaining, Pennant
floated in a corner from the left and Crouch headed down, only for Marcus
Hahnemann to save. The loose ball was instinctively volleyed in by Kuyt.
Game over.
"I've known about Kuyt for years," Benitez said. "He always works really
hard and is very consistent, which is not easy for a striker. He creates
chances and space for team-mates, and he has a good understanding with
Crouch."
Reading, who have now lost four games in a row, were always going to
struggle after they went a goal down. Steve Coppell's game plan was to try
to bottle-neck Liverpool by corking Kuyt.
The Dutchman has a great gift for finding space with his off-the-ball
movement, so the Reading manager opted to play Sam Sodje as a spare man at the back to try to suffocate the former Feyenoord striker's play. The
unfortunate trade-off was that Kevin Doyle, playing as a lone striker for
Reading, had no support. Indeed, aside from an early shot from James Harper,
which came back off Jamie Carragher's heel, the visitors created little in
the first half.
"Two years ago they were European champions and we were in a different
division," Coppell said. "We're trying to close a huge gap."
Liverpool's answer to Reading's tactical poser was to stretch the game
horizontally, trying to get crosses in from the flanks. That was how they
managed to open the scoring, yet the trick was not easily repeated. Kuyt did
miss two headers, just before half-time, but without any real pace to
threaten the space behind the Reading defence, Liverpool struggled to impose
themselves.
As the game wore on Liverpool inevitably got the jitters. Reading even got
the ball in the net, from a Glen Little corner, but Ibrahima Sonko had
accidentally butted Jose Reina - this, the same defender who had knocked out
Carlo Cudicini in the infamous game with Chelsea - in the process. The
Spaniard was left a little rattled and his handling deteriorated in the
closing stages.
If Reina had looked uncomfortable on corners, it was to be one at the other
end that proved decisive as Kuyt's predatory awareness spared Liverpool a
frustrating end.
If Benitez can find a system that gets the best out of Kuyt - and that may
mean ditching the enthusiastic, but impotent Crouch - then Liverpool can
start posing truly demanding questions of any defence.
The Kop gave the Dutchman a standing ovation as he was replaced by Robbie
Fowler with just minutes left to play. Should Benitez sign more players of
Kuyt's calibre for the faithful fans to applaud, then he could bring the
title to the thirsty banks of the Mersey.
Kuyt's predatory goal instincts help rescue mediocre Liverpool
By Eddie Johnson at Anfield
Last Updated: 12:10am GMT 05/11/2006
Liverpool (1) 2 Reading (0) 0
Of all Rafael Benitez's summer signings, the only player with the stamp of a
champion is Dirk Kuyt. The Dutchman's two goals disposed of unambitious
Reading here yesterday but could not obscure the fact that this Liverpool
side are flabby with mediocrity.
If this team consider themselves credible title challengers - and judging by
the optimistic rhetoric inside Anfield this week, they still do - they must
shed their excess weight. Inside this loose, baggy monster is a lean, trim
title-contender struggling to get out.
Yet how many members of this Liverpool side would get into the Arsenal,
Manchester United or Chelsea teams? Xabi Alonso is talented, Sami Hyypia was
outstanding yesterday and Kuyt is evidently emerging as a considerable
attacking threat, but really only Steven Gerrard would convincingly win a
place in any of those three XIs.
Players such as Jermaine Pennant and Boudewijn Zenden - competitive
Premiership types that they are - fall short of the standards required of a
team with league title pretensions.
Both goals were borne of Kuyt's finishing instinct, acquired for £9 million.
The first, on 14 minutes, came when Gerrard cut back on to his right foot on
the left flank and found Peter Crouch at the far post. The England striker
nodded across the face of goal. The Dutchman tapped in. Easy as that.
The second - Kuyt's fifth since arriving at Anfield - came after Liverpool's
supporters had grown uneasy about their team's failure to extinguish
Reading's second-half insurrection. With 17 minutes remaining, Pennant
floated in a corner from the left and Crouch headed down, only for Marcus
Hahnemann to save. The loose ball was instinctively volleyed in by Kuyt.
Game over.
"I've known about Kuyt for years," Benitez said. "He always works really
hard and is very consistent, which is not easy for a striker. He creates
chances and space for team-mates, and he has a good understanding with
Crouch."
Reading, who have now lost four games in a row, were always going to
struggle after they went a goal down. Steve Coppell's game plan was to try
to bottle-neck Liverpool by corking Kuyt.
The Dutchman has a great gift for finding space with his off-the-ball
movement, so the Reading manager opted to play Sam Sodje as a spare man at the back to try to suffocate the former Feyenoord striker's play. The
unfortunate trade-off was that Kevin Doyle, playing as a lone striker for
Reading, had no support. Indeed, aside from an early shot from James Harper,
which came back off Jamie Carragher's heel, the visitors created little in
the first half.
"Two years ago they were European champions and we were in a different
division," Coppell said. "We're trying to close a huge gap."
Liverpool's answer to Reading's tactical poser was to stretch the game
horizontally, trying to get crosses in from the flanks. That was how they
managed to open the scoring, yet the trick was not easily repeated. Kuyt did
miss two headers, just before half-time, but without any real pace to
threaten the space behind the Reading defence, Liverpool struggled to impose
themselves.
As the game wore on Liverpool inevitably got the jitters. Reading even got
the ball in the net, from a Glen Little corner, but Ibrahima Sonko had
accidentally butted Jose Reina - this, the same defender who had knocked out
Carlo Cudicini in the infamous game with Chelsea - in the process. The
Spaniard was left a little rattled and his handling deteriorated in the
closing stages.
If Reina had looked uncomfortable on corners, it was to be one at the other
end that proved decisive as Kuyt's predatory awareness spared Liverpool a
frustrating end.
If Benitez can find a system that gets the best out of Kuyt - and that may
mean ditching the enthusiastic, but impotent Crouch - then Liverpool can
start posing truly demanding questions of any defence.
The Kop gave the Dutchman a standing ovation as he was replaced by Robbie
Fowler with just minutes left to play. Should Benitez sign more players of
Kuyt's calibre for the faithful fans to applaud, then he could bring the
title to the thirsty banks of the Mersey.
Comment