Wenger’s put Arsenal on the road to nowhere

Wenger’s put Arsenal on the road to nowhere

Problems for Ferguson cut deeper than Nani’s leg

FOR once the Nani gash was nothing to do with Wayne Rooney.

And instead of being an embarrassment to Manchester United, it was a convenient smokescreen.

Phil Dowd got it wrong when he failed to dismiss Jamie Carragher for his shuddering tackle on Nan…

Problems for Ferguson cut deeper than Nani’s leg

FOR once the Nani gash was nothing to do with Wayne Rooney.

And instead of being an embarrassment to Manchester United, it was a convenient smokescreen.

Phil Dowd got it wrong when he failed to dismiss Jamie Carragher for his shuddering tackle on Nan…

Roy Hodgson: Not so great expectations

AS people who still believe Roy Hodgson is the right man for the job at Liverpool are finding out, defending the indefensible is nigh on impossible.

Hodgson’s crime sheet while in charge at Anfield is long and well-known: his signings, his football, his treatment of players, his public gaffes and his cringe-worthy press conferences. Not to mention results, or rather lack of them (although there’s plenty of players who have underperformed under two different managers who should shoulder a share of the responsibility).

But of all the things Hodgson has got wrong, most annoying is his constant attempts to play down expectations and create a culture where mediocrity becomes acceptable. He was at it again when talking about Fulham.

At the time of the press conference, Hodgson’s old club had won two games from 17 in the Premier League.

They hadn’t won away (surprise, surprise) and won only once on the road last season under the man now in the hotseat at Anfield.

The Cottagers’ record in terms of points gained away from home when Hodgson spoke out was the same as Liverpool’s: five.

The goals scored away record was the same, too: six. Fulham were only keeping their noses out of the relegation zone because of a superior goal difference compared to Wigan.

All in all, they are a team Liverpool should beat.

The Reds’ home record this season is better than Arsenal’s and Fulham haven’t won at Anfield in 29 attempts. Yet Hodgson can’t help himself.

It seems it is part of his make-up to prepare for the worst, to pave the way for failure, sow the seed of doubt: “I’m very wary of the game because they are a hard team to beat. In fact they have lost even less games in the league than we have so we know it’s going to be tough.”

Can’t the manager of Liverpool concentrate on the positives of his own team? Isn’t the Liverpool team, even in its current state, a class apart from Fulham’s?

Stifling negativity

Hodgson just does not exude confidence in public and fans can only hope he is not the same behind closed doors at Melwood and Anfield. His stifling negativity is in stark contrast to, for example, Bolton manager Owen Coyle.

Ok, Coyle is at a club where expectations are lower, the pressure is less and the spotlight is not quite so glaring. But nevertheless, he has turned a Bolton side that was struggling near the relegation zone into one that is challenging for Europe. And with a minimal outlay in the transfer market.

Some of Coyle’s recent line-ups have been identical to those fielded by predecessor Gary Megson aside from Stuart Holden (a freebie signing from the MLS). But what is refreshing about Coyle is his approach.

There’s no face-rubbing, scowling, or playing down of expectations, Coyle just tries to win – whoever his team is facing. Most of the time he does it with a smile on his face and he’s got a good relationship with the media, too.

I’m not saying Coyle should be Liverpool manager – he’s still relatively inexperienced and has no pedigree in European competition. But it would be nice if Roy could take a leaf out of his book when it comes to his general approach (I won’t be holding my breath).

When Coyle first took over at Burnley one fan commented on his impact: “Eleven points from his first five games and fans were already shouting his name! All the games we were clearly dominant.

“Compared with Cotterill’s tactics he had switched a moderately defensive team into one hell of an attacking force overnight and not just against the average bunch of relegation strugglers. Wolves, Watford and Charlton were in the first five and they were top six when we played them!”

Players too, have been quick to praise Coyle after working with him. Andy Cole, who played under Coyle while on loan to Burnley, said: “I cannot say enough superlatives about him. His enthusiasm made me feel like I was 21 again.”

But Coyle himself summed up his approach: “Each and every game we enter we try to win – and to do so by playing a style pleasing on the eye with chances being created and goals being scored.”

Could Hodgson put his hand on his heart and say the same? Of course he couldn’t.

Liverpool players are known to be disillusioned with Hodgson’s approach, fans have long since grown tired of the safety-first tactics (laughably instilled even in the dead rubber against Utrecht) and Hodgson is yet to hear his name sung by the Kop.

Those that advocate persevering with Hodgson are quick to highlight why Liverpool’s current plight isn’t his fault – he inherited the majority of the squad, the team had a poor away record last season, he hasn’t had a real opportunity to spend and so on. All true, but missing the point.

Hodgson isn’t the only reason for the failures this season, just as Rafa Benitez wasn’t the only reason for the failures last season. But Hodgson was supposed to get more from the players at the club – organise them, improve them – that was the whole idea behind his appointment wasn’t it?

Hodgson is now also benefiting from a stabilised off-field situation. Yet all he has done is verse Liverpool players in a style unsuited to many of them and an approach that long-term only seems to lend itself to a lowering of sights.

Good track record?

On appointing Hodgson, then chairman Martin Broughton said: “We weren’t looking so much for somebody who was just emerging, we wanted somebody who could, first and foremost, command the respect of the players, who had a good track record and could take us forward from where we are now.

“He wanted to focus on how he could get more out of the existing players. His focus wasn’t on ‘how much money can I have?’ or ‘I want to bring this person in or that person in’ – he was really focused on ‘I believe, and I’ve got a track record that demonstrates it, that I can take the existing players, get much better performances out of them and buy constructively to build for a better future.’”

Well whereas Liverpool still clung on to hopes of a top four spot until the end stages of last season, that feat is already looking out of reach this campaign. Only the poor quality of the league this season offers a chink of hope that Liverpool can sneak in with a late run.

That of course would require an improvement away from home, a more balls-out approach coupled with more consistent effort from the players. Going away and trying not to get beat is not good enough for Liverpool – it’s not even good enough for Bolton.

Coyle once said he would try and beat his kids if he played them at tiddlywinks. You get the feeling Hodgson would settle for a draw.

Liverpool need a manager who can instil players with confidence, motivate his stars, convince fans with his rhetoric and make the most of the resources available to him. A new manager, the right manager, can make a difference. Hodgson was never the right manager – his CV says so.

Returning to the Bolton example for a final time, look at Johan Elmander. Labelled a expensive flop under Megson, all of sudden he is a player reborn under Coyle. He said himself when comparing the two managers: “It doesn’t help to stare and scream at me. I got tired the more of it I heard.

“Owen Coyle is a great coach, who I really enjoy working with. As soon as he came to the club I started to play well, even though the goals didn’t come right away.”

Gretar Steinsson, another Megson signing, said: “It’s totally different from the first years when I was here, being in a team that actually believe they can get points against the strong sides instead of just hoping for a draw.”

Inspiration and positive approach

Liverpool and NESV do not have to accept mediocrity. They shouldn’t be happy with a plucky defeat at Spurs or progress in Europe’s second-rate competition. The squad is capable of more – 11 of the 23 players that achieved Liverpool’s best away record in the past 20 years are still on the books.

And while Xabi Alonso and Javier Mascherano have left, Raul Meireles and Glen Johnson have joined. The wage bill alone at Liverpool should dictate a certain level of success.

Perhaps inspiration and a positive approach could make the difference. Sadly, the likelihood is we’ll never know the answer to that question under Hodgson.

Asked about Liverpool’s poor form away, he recently said: “If you ask me why, when we have such a good set of quality players, then the only true answer is I wish I knew. There should be no reason, because we have a team that can win away from home.”

So Roy is looking at the players, knowing they’re good enough, yet puzzled by why they are not performing. Perhaps the players are looking at Roy, knowing he’s not good enough and that’s why they are not performing.

Roy Hodgson: Not so great expectations

AS people who still believe Roy Hodgson is the right man for the job at Liverpool are finding out, defending the indefensible is nigh on impossible.

Hodgson’s crime sheet while in charge at Anfield is long and well-known: his signings, his football, his treatment of players, his public gaffes and his cringe-worthy press conferences. Not to mention results, or rather lack of them (although there’s plenty of players who have underperformed under two different managers who should shoulder a share of the responsibility).

But of all the things Hodgson has got wrong, most annoying is his constant attempts to play down expectations and create a culture where mediocrity becomes acceptable. He was at it again when talking about Fulham.

At the time of the press conference, Hodgson’s old club had won two games from 17 in the Premier League.

They hadn’t won away (surprise, surprise) and won only once on the road last season under the man now in the hotseat at Anfield.

The Cottagers’ record in terms of points gained away from home when Hodgson spoke out was the same as Liverpool’s: five.

The goals scored away record was the same, too: six. Fulham were only keeping their noses out of the relegation zone because of a superior goal difference compared to Wigan.

All in all, they are a team Liverpool should beat.

The Reds’ home record this season is better than Arsenal’s and Fulham haven’t won at Anfield in 29 attempts. Yet Hodgson can’t help himself.

It seems it is part of his make-up to prepare for the worst, to pave the way for failure, sow the seed of doubt: “I’m very wary of the game because they are a hard team to beat. In fact they have lost even less games in the league than we have so we know it’s going to be tough.”

Can’t the manager of Liverpool concentrate on the positives of his own team? Isn’t the Liverpool team, even in its current state, a class apart from Fulham’s?

Stifling negativity

Hodgson just does not exude confidence in public and fans can only hope he is not the same behind closed doors at Melwood and Anfield. His stifling negativity is in stark contrast to, for example, Bolton manager Owen Coyle.

Ok, Coyle is at a club where expectations are lower, the pressure is less and the spotlight is not quite so glaring. But nevertheless, he has turned a Bolton side that was struggling near the relegation zone into one that is challenging for Europe. And with a minimal outlay in the transfer market.

Some of Coyle’s recent line-ups have been identical to those fielded by predecessor Gary Megson aside from Stuart Holden (a freebie signing from the MLS). But what is refreshing about Coyle is his approach.

There’s no face-rubbing, scowling, or playing down of expectations, Coyle just tries to win – whoever his team is facing. Most of the time he does it with a smile on his face and he’s got a good relationship with the media, too.

I’m not saying Coyle should be Liverpool manager – he’s still relatively inexperienced and has no pedigree in European competition. But it would be nice if Roy could take a leaf out of his book when it comes to his general approach (I won’t be holding my breath).

When Coyle first took over at Burnley one fan commented on his impact: “Eleven points from his first five games and fans were already shouting his name! All the games we were clearly dominant.

“Compared with Cotterill’s tactics he had switched a moderately defensive team into one hell of an attacking force overnight and not just against the average bunch of relegation strugglers. Wolves, Watford and Charlton were in the first five and they were top six when we played them!”

Players too, have been quick to praise Coyle after working with him. Andy Cole, who played under Coyle while on loan to Burnley, said: “I cannot say enough superlatives about him. His enthusiasm made me feel like I was 21 again.”

But Coyle himself summed up his approach: “Each and every game we enter we try to win – and to do so by playing a style pleasing on the eye with chances being created and goals being scored.”

Could Hodgson put his hand on his heart and say the same? Of course he couldn’t.

Liverpool players are known to be disillusioned with Hodgson’s approach, fans have long since grown tired of the safety-first tactics (laughably instilled even in the dead rubber against Utrecht) and Hodgson is yet to hear his name sung by the Kop.

Those that advocate persevering with Hodgson are quick to highlight why Liverpool’s current plight isn’t his fault – he inherited the majority of the squad, the team had a poor away record last season, he hasn’t had a real opportunity to spend and so on. All true, but missing the point.

Hodgson isn’t the only reason for the failures this season, just as Rafa Benitez wasn’t the only reason for the failures last season. But Hodgson was supposed to get more from the players at the club – organise them, improve them – that was the whole idea behind his appointment wasn’t it?

Hodgson is now also benefiting from a stabilised off-field situation. Yet all he has done is verse Liverpool players in a style unsuited to many of them and an approach that long-term only seems to lend itself to a lowering of sights.

Good track record?

On appointing Hodgson, then chairman Martin Broughton said: “We weren’t looking so much for somebody who was just emerging, we wanted somebody who could, first and foremost, command the respect of the players, who had a good track record and could take us forward from where we are now.

“He wanted to focus on how he could get more out of the existing players. His focus wasn’t on ‘how much money can I have?’ or ‘I want to bring this person in or that person in’ – he was really focused on ‘I believe, and I’ve got a track record that demonstrates it, that I can take the existing players, get much better performances out of them and buy constructively to build for a better future.’”

Well whereas Liverpool still clung on to hopes of a top four spot until the end stages of last season, that feat is already looking out of reach this campaign. Only the poor quality of the league this season offers a chink of hope that Liverpool can sneak in with a late run.

That of course would require an improvement away from home, a more balls-out approach coupled with more consistent effort from the players. Going away and trying not to get beat is not good enough for Liverpool – it’s not even good enough for Bolton.

Coyle once said he would try and beat his kids if he played them at tiddlywinks. You get the feeling Hodgson would settle for a draw.

Liverpool need a manager who can instil players with confidence, motivate his stars, convince fans with his rhetoric and make the most of the resources available to him. A new manager, the right manager, can make a difference. Hodgson was never the right manager – his CV says so.

Returning to the Bolton example for a final time, look at Johan Elmander. Labelled a expensive flop under Megson, all of sudden he is a player reborn under Coyle. He said himself when comparing the two managers: “It doesn’t help to stare and scream at me. I got tired the more of it I heard.

“Owen Coyle is a great coach, who I really enjoy working with. As soon as he came to the club I started to play well, even though the goals didn’t come right away.”

Gretar Steinsson, another Megson signing, said: “It’s totally different from the first years when I was here, being in a team that actually believe they can get points against the strong sides instead of just hoping for a draw.”

Inspiration and positive approach

Liverpool and NESV do not have to accept mediocrity. They shouldn’t be happy with a plucky defeat at Spurs or progress in Europe’s second-rate competition. The squad is capable of more – 11 of the 23 players that achieved Liverpool’s best away record in the past 20 years are still on the books.

And while Xabi Alonso and Javier Mascherano have left, Raul Meireles and Glen Johnson have joined. The wage bill alone at Liverpool should dictate a certain level of success.

Perhaps inspiration and a positive approach could make the difference. Sadly, the likelihood is we’ll never know the answer to that question under Hodgson.

Asked about Liverpool’s poor form away, he recently said: “If you ask me why, when we have such a good set of quality players, then the only true answer is I wish I knew. There should be no reason, because we have a team that can win away from home.”

So Roy is looking at the players, knowing they’re good enough, yet puzzled by why they are not performing. Perhaps the players are looking at Roy, knowing he’s not good enough and that’s why they are not performing.

Dalglish v Hodgson – It’s no contest.

by JOHN ANTHONY

AT the press conference to announce Roy Hodgson as new Liverpool manager, chairman Martin Broughton went to great lengths to explain the long, considered process the board had gone through when deciding who should get the job.

He talked about the track record, reputation and experience that all pointed to Hodgson being the right man.

Yet if the board went through such an extended process, how could they miss the chance to bring the most successful football manager in recent history to Anfield? No, Alex Ferguson didn’t apply for the job – but, according to a respected football statistician and economist, the best manager of his generation did.

There are many ways of measuring the best manager. The easiest is to count up league championships won – and Ferguson has won 11, at least double his nearest current challenger.

But it’s taken him 25 years to win those titles. How many would Bob Paisley have won if he’d managed us for 25 years instead of just nine? After all he won it seven times in his comparatively short time in charge. Read that again – seven in nine years.

Ferguson had been United manager for seven years before he won his first title.

How about looking at how often managers win the title and the average finishing position of the clubs they manage. This can at least make it a more level playing field for bosses that haven’t been around since football was in black and white.

Take Ferguson, on average he wins 0.44 top-flight championships per season. You can’t win 0.44 of a championship but his record of 14 top-flight titles from 32 seasons with Manchester United, Aberdeen and St Mirren works out at 0.44 championships per season.

Look at his finishing positions in those seasons: 8, 4, 1, 2, 2, 3, 1, 1, 11, 2, 11, 13, 6, 2, 1, 1, 2, 1, 1, 2, 1, 1, 1, 3, 1, 3, 3, 2, 1, 1, 1, 2. That’s an impressive run of form and equates to an average finishing position of 2.8.

Again, you can’t come 2.8th in the league but you get my drift. So a championship roughly once every two seasons and an average of finishing in the top three makes SurAlex a pretty good yardstick.

Semi-pro title

Arsene Wenger is another manager talked of in hushed tones. Yet in 24 seasons of top-flight management it is surprising he has won just four titles, meaning he wins 0.17 titles per season.

On that count Ferguson is more than twice the manager Wenger is. Looking at his top-flight formline, Wenger teams have finished: 11, 18, 19, 1, 3, 3, 2, 2, 2, 6, 3, 1, 2, 2, 2, 1, 2, 1, 2, 4, 4, 3, 4, 3 for an average finishing position of 4.2.

There wouldn’t have been many complaints had Wenger been sitting next to Broughton in a new LFC tie at that press conference. But what of the man who did get the job?

It’s tricky to assess Roy Hodgson’s career in the same way as the “Big Two” because much of his top-flight experience has come in semi-professional leagues.

It’s ridiculous to value a mid-1970s Swedish semi-pro title alongside winning the Premier League. To make a sensible comparison we can look at the seasons when Roy managed in the top flight in England and Italy at Blackburn, Udinese, Inter Milan and Fulham.

Some allowances have to made in these figures as he has been sacked in mid-season by three of those clubs. Hodgson’s finishing positions in the English and Italian top-flight reads: 7, 3, 6, 19, 14, 17, 7, 12. That’s 0 titles per season and an average finishing position of 10.6.

Even allowing for the small sample those are not particularly impressive figures. So the candidates for Liverpool manager this time around must have been a modest bunch if someone who has yet to win a top-flight title and whose teams finish mid-table got the job. Not so.

According to respected football statistician and author Stefan Szymanski, the best manager of the past two decades and more had thrown his hat in the ring.

Szymanski compiled a database of football statistics from 1974-1995 and calculated that Kenny Dalglish has the best record of all managers in English football.

Modest resources

He looked at factors such as spending on player wages, the number of players used in a season and the proportion of home-grown players in the squad. Dalglish was particularly good at getting the best out of relatively modest resources.

Szymanski said: “The assumption is that anyone can buy their way to the top of the league, but you have to be Kenny Dalglish to do it cheaply.”

How useful those skills could be for the current Liverpool manager in these cash-strapped times. Granted, his study was completed in the mid-90s before Ferguson had really got going at Old Trafford.

And it came just before Kenny’s “disastrous” – © all newspapers – spell at Newcastle United. A spell so disastrous it featured a second-place Premier League finish and an FA Cup Final in less than three seasons.

So I applied the manager test to Kenny Dalglish and the results were something of an eye-opener. In completed top-flight seasons as manager, his finishing positions were: 1, 2, 1, 2, 1, 4, 2, 1, 2, 13, 2. The fourth came in Blackburn’s first top-flight season and the 13 was his second term at Newcastle when Alan Shearer suffered the injury that he never really recovered from.

Even with that blip, Dalglish has won 0.36 titles per season with an average finishing position of 2.8. So a very similar record to Ferguson even after his run of success in Kenny’s absence.

It’s twice the title return that Wenger has managed and is in a different league to Hodgson. This excellent record seems to have been forgotten – when the editor of this very magazine was interviewed on Radio Merseyside, the presenter asked him about “Dalglish’s average record last time he was Liverpool manager”.

Why didn’t the club roll out the red carpet when Dalglish said he wanted the job? Just look at his record again – not only did he keep the Liverpool dynasty rolling, he took a midtable second division club and won them the league.

He spent a few quid doing it but considerably less than Alex Ferguson did to bring success to Manchester United.

And is it a coincidence that Ferguson was only able to dominate English football when Dalglish was out of the way? His mind games didn’t seem to work in those days.

The reason given was Dalglish’s “10 years out of football”. This is a reasonable caveat but it’s not like he’s forgotten what to do – he wouldn’t have come in on day one to ask when we were playing Coventry and Sheffield Wednesday.

The passing over of Dalglish for Hodgson was a puzzling one but Kenny hasn’t gone away. Would he be happy to hold the fort until the next permanent manager is identified? Could he provide the short-term boost that could secure a place in Europe or even a cup win?

It could be a gamble worth taking. And on the evidence of the statistics, not actually that much of a gamble.

Dalglish v Hodgson – It’s no contest.

by JOHN ANTHONY

AT the press conference to announce Roy Hodgson as new Liverpool manager, chairman Martin Broughton went to great lengths to explain the long, considered process the board had gone through when deciding who should get the job.

He talked about the track record, reputation and experience that all pointed to Hodgson being the right man.

Yet if the board went through such an extended process, how could they miss the chance to bring the most successful football manager in recent history to Anfield? No, Alex Ferguson didn’t apply for the job – but, according to a respected football statistician and economist, the best manager of his generation did.

There are many ways of measuring the best manager. The easiest is to count up league championships won – and Ferguson has won 11, at least double his nearest current challenger.

But it’s taken him 25 years to win those titles. How many would Bob Paisley have won if he’d managed us for 25 years instead of just nine? After all he won it seven times in his comparatively short time in charge. Read that again – seven in nine years.

Ferguson had been United manager for seven years before he won his first title.

How about looking at how often managers win the title and the average finishing position of the clubs they manage. This can at least make it a more level playing field for bosses that haven’t been around since football was in black and white.

Take Ferguson, on average he wins 0.44 top-flight championships per season. You can’t win 0.44 of a championship but his record of 14 top-flight titles from 32 seasons with Manchester United, Aberdeen and St Mirren works out at 0.44 championships per season.

Look at his finishing positions in those seasons: 8, 4, 1, 2, 2, 3, 1, 1, 11, 2, 11, 13, 6, 2, 1, 1, 2, 1, 1, 2, 1, 1, 1, 3, 1, 3, 3, 2, 1, 1, 1, 2. That’s an impressive run of form and equates to an average finishing position of 2.8.

Again, you can’t come 2.8th in the league but you get my drift. So a championship roughly once every two seasons and an average of finishing in the top three makes SurAlex a pretty good yardstick.

Semi-pro title

Arsene Wenger is another manager talked of in hushed tones. Yet in 24 seasons of top-flight management it is surprising he has won just four titles, meaning he wins 0.17 titles per season.

On that count Ferguson is more than twice the manager Wenger is. Looking at his top-flight formline, Wenger teams have finished: 11, 18, 19, 1, 3, 3, 2, 2, 2, 6, 3, 1, 2, 2, 2, 1, 2, 1, 2, 4, 4, 3, 4, 3 for an average finishing position of 4.2.

There wouldn’t have been many complaints had Wenger been sitting next to Broughton in a new LFC tie at that press conference. But what of the man who did get the job?

It’s tricky to assess Roy Hodgson’s career in the same way as the “Big Two” because much of his top-flight experience has come in semi-professional leagues.

It’s ridiculous to value a mid-1970s Swedish semi-pro title alongside winning the Premier League. To make a sensible comparison we can look at the seasons when Roy managed in the top flight in England and Italy at Blackburn, Udinese, Inter Milan and Fulham.

Some allowances have to made in these figures as he has been sacked in mid-season by three of those clubs. Hodgson’s finishing positions in the English and Italian top-flight reads: 7, 3, 6, 19, 14, 17, 7, 12. That’s 0 titles per season and an average finishing position of 10.6.

Even allowing for the small sample those are not particularly impressive figures. So the candidates for Liverpool manager this time around must have been a modest bunch if someone who has yet to win a top-flight title and whose teams finish mid-table got the job. Not so.

According to respected football statistician and author Stefan Szymanski, the best manager of the past two decades and more had thrown his hat in the ring.

Szymanski compiled a database of football statistics from 1974-1995 and calculated that Kenny Dalglish has the best record of all managers in English football.

Modest resources

He looked at factors such as spending on player wages, the number of players used in a season and the proportion of home-grown players in the squad. Dalglish was particularly good at getting the best out of relatively modest resources.

Szymanski said: “The assumption is that anyone can buy their way to the top of the league, but you have to be Kenny Dalglish to do it cheaply.”

How useful those skills could be for the current Liverpool manager in these cash-strapped times. Granted, his study was completed in the mid-90s before Ferguson had really got going at Old Trafford.

And it came just before Kenny’s “disastrous” – © all newspapers – spell at Newcastle United. A spell so disastrous it featured a second-place Premier League finish and an FA Cup Final in less than three seasons.

So I applied the manager test to Kenny Dalglish and the results were something of an eye-opener. In completed top-flight seasons as manager, his finishing positions were: 1, 2, 1, 2, 1, 4, 2, 1, 2, 13, 2. The fourth came in Blackburn’s first top-flight season and the 13 was his second term at Newcastle when Alan Shearer suffered the injury that he never really recovered from.

Even with that blip, Dalglish has won 0.36 titles per season with an average finishing position of 2.8. So a very similar record to Ferguson even after his run of success in Kenny’s absence.

It’s twice the title return that Wenger has managed and is in a different league to Hodgson. This excellent record seems to have been forgotten – when the editor of this very magazine was interviewed on Radio Merseyside, the presenter asked him about “Dalglish’s average record last time he was Liverpool manager”.

Why didn’t the club roll out the red carpet when Dalglish said he wanted the job? Just look at his record again – not only did he keep the Liverpool dynasty rolling, he took a midtable second division club and won them the league.

He spent a few quid doing it but considerably less than Alex Ferguson did to bring success to Manchester United.

And is it a coincidence that Ferguson was only able to dominate English football when Dalglish was out of the way? His mind games didn’t seem to work in those days.

The reason given was Dalglish’s “10 years out of football”. This is a reasonable caveat but it’s not like he’s forgotten what to do – he wouldn’t have come in on day one to ask when we were playing Coventry and Sheffield Wednesday.

The passing over of Dalglish for Hodgson was a puzzling one but Kenny hasn’t gone away. Would he be happy to hold the fort until the next permanent manager is identified? Could he provide the short-term boost that could secure a place in Europe or even a cup win?

It could be a gamble worth taking. And on the evidence of the statistics, not actually that much of a gamble.

Well Red Magazine – Issue 5

December 2 sees the launch of the latest issue (number 5), which includes an exclusive and extensive interview with Liverpool legend, Sir Roger Hunt, who remains the most profilic marksman in the league in Anfield history. As always the independent LFC magazine “for the fans & by the fans”, put together by the rather talented Gareth [...]

Dear Mr Hicks..

Dear Mr Hicks..

Well Red’s new website…

 WELL RED HAS MOVED!
Unlike Liverpool FC under Tom Hicks and George Gillett, Well Red now has a new home. Visit us at www.wellredmag.co.uk

Please do not post comments here as they will be deleted. Visit the new site and join the debate. Than…

Well Red’s new website…

 WELL RED HAS MOVED!
Unlike Liverpool FC under Tom Hicks and George Gillett, Well Red now has a new home. Visit us at www.wellredmag.co.uk

Please do not post comments here as they will be deleted. Visit the new site and join the debate. Than…

LIVERPOOL FC: There’s Klingons on the starboard bow

From the new Well Red magazine website: liverpoolfc.wellredmag.co.uk
YEARS of listening to music – good and bad – has left the legacy of a rare ‘gift’. Being able to think of bizarre songs that apply to any given situation.

The latest is Sta…

LIVERPOOL FC: There’s Klingons on the starboard bow

From the new Well Red magazine website: liverpoolfc.wellredmag.co.uk
YEARS of listening to music – good and bad – has left the legacy of a rare ‘gift’. Being able to think of bizarre songs that apply to any given situation.

The latest is Sta…

LIVERPOOL FC: Solid start but same old problems

Gerrard applauds the Kop after Sunday’s draw with Arsenal
AFTER the tantalising but tiresome takeover talk that has made two months feel two years, it was just nice to get back to the football – for a couple of hours at least.

Everyone connected wit…

LIVERPOOL FC: Solid start but same old problems

Gerrard applauds the Kop after Sunday’s draw with Arsenal
AFTER the tantalising but tiresome takeover talk that has made two months feel two years, it was just nice to get back to the football – for a couple of hours at least.

Everyone connected wit…

Liverpool v Arsenal: Reds can make the most of Anfield’s air of optimism

NEW BOYS: Roy Hodgson with Joe Cole, Milan Jovanovic and Danny Wilson

SO here we are, the new season and who would have thought things would have felt so positive around Liverpool Football Club?

When the curtain closed on last season’s dismal le…

Liverpool v Arsenal: Reds can make the most of Anfield’s air of optimism

NEW BOYS: Roy Hodgson with Joe Cole, Milan Jovanovic and Danny Wilson

SO here we are, the new season and who would have thought things would have felt so positive around Liverpool Football Club?

When the curtain closed on last season’s dismal le…

New owners at LIVERPOOL FC? Well just Huang on a minute…

If I knew back then what I know now If I understood the what, when, why and howNow it’s clear to meWhat I should have doneBut hindsight is 20/20 vision

GEORGE BENSON had it right, hindsight gives us 20/20 vision. And if we’d had that benefit, …