Liverpool top, but for how long?

good article phil, reckon your right about keane if he doesnt score alot of goals soon even the most ardent liverpool fans will realise he was a total rip-off, i'd rather have crouch any day. however i dont think liverpool will be involved in the title race in the end the squads not big enough itll be between chelsea and man utd. again.

Liverpool are top of the league. They are there because they have achieved better results than any other team in the league.

I thought I would give you that insight into the blindingly obvious because it seems to be conveniently forgotten by most.

Now we have a slender one point lead over Chelsea, which none of us dared believe would happen before the start of the season.

Keane clearly needs an effective strike partner and in my humble opinion it is time to unleash Ryan Babel in that striker's role.

Liverpool have had the easiest fixture list.
Man U have already played away to the rest of the top 6: Chelsea, Arsenal, Liverpool, Villa & City..

I can see Utd putting a run together and pulling away from both Liverpool and Chelsea. Liverpool just don't have the creativity to consistently break down well organised teams.

It is a wierd feeling being top of the league in December and feeling disapointed at the same time.

It was torture watching us struggle to score - we look like we're trying too hard and when Torres doesn't play Gerrard looks like he thinks he should take everything on himself.

Kuyt only looks good when we are winning

Dossena had his best game for us but still looks like "Doing a Traore" everytime he touches it.

Give Keane longer, get Babel on, trust in the team. Keep hoping!

To be honest with you, i never realy thought Liverpool had it in them to challenege for the title. They are top now, but i just cant see them being there at the end, they're just not convincing enough.

The problem is, because they have lacked a decent title challenge in a few years, teams dont fear them as much as they fear the big guns such as Utd and Chelsea, maybe even Arsenal.

As for Keane, he was a waste of money if you ask me, i dont think he's worth more than about 8 - 10 mil tops. he wont be there long, wont be this summer, but maybe off next summer after 2 dissapointing seasons.

Liverpool is deffinately worth a little flutter if you have it to spare, but i can see this being what has become a routine battle between Man Utd and Chelsea for the title

Yeah you're right, easiest fixture list, beating Man U and Chelsea! I can't see Man United putting a run together, the only team that will win the league other than Liverpool this season is Chelsea. Man U just think they have a devine right to be up there but this season they have been poor!

QUOTE
"Keane cannot be faulted for effort, but he barely scratched the surface of this game, and he will not have felt any better when it was the youthful and virtually untried figure of David Ngog who was preferred as Liverpool went in search of the crucial breakthrough with 24 minutes left.

Ryan Babel was the more obvious choice of substitute, but Benitez probably compounded Keane's misery with his choice of replacement."
A totally inacurate statement, as it was Babel who replaced Keane, Ngog replaced Riera.

Hi Phil

Lots of good points made, and you can understand the frustration the Anfield regulars would have been feeling, what an opportunity to go three points clear. But, as you commented yourself, top is top so things need to be kept in perspective.

Whilst your blog was about Liverpool and I understand that, without a bit of context you leave yourself open to a bit of 'he's Liverpool bashing again'.

Whilst it's totally true Liverpool have dropped points against the 'lesser' teams they've beaten both Man Utd and Chelsea, and last seasons criticism was they couldn't get results against their nearest rivals.

I'm still upbeat after last nights result. Here we are with crimbo just around the corner and Liverpool sit on top of the league.

Using last seasons criticism Chelsea can't win it (losing against their main rivals), Man Utd can't win it (losing against their main rivals)....so who is going to??

A long long way to go, but I know if you asked all of the top managers at the beginning of the season where they'd like to be sitting in the league right now what their answer would be.

Life is full of 'if only's'. Journo's, pundits all like to say the table doesn't lie, we'll see what it say's in April, but in December it's saying Liverpool rule the roost (and I'm not counting my chickens!!)

In the same way that when Greece won the Euros, if Liverpool win the league this season playing the brand of football, it would be bad news for The Game as a whole.

"Benitez delivering an emphatic and almost unprompted rejection of suggestions he would return to Anfield in January"

I read that article and there was no quote of that at all. What did he say about that?
Or is it just an assumption based on some off-hand comment that he was happy with the squad he has?
I didn't hear the interview but it just seems bizzare that if it was such an emphatic response it wasn't quoted, merely mentioned quietly a few paragraphs in.
Anyone know what he said?

The bottom line is that Liverpool dont have the know how to win a title. They have had 2 chances in the last week to pull ahead and they havent.

pressure might be getting to them. also with torres out and if gerrard doesnt score they have little else to offer.
Dont mean to completly criticise liverpool but i dont see them stopping united or chelsea. They have had a good start but let see what happens come the new year.

who going to write off united who now have most of the big teams at home. I hope the title race is exciting one but the scousers are looking at 3rd again

I am in agreement, the one simple problem we have is that when gerrard is not 'on it' nothing seems to happen, who will step up and fill his shoes, Alonso never gets in the box, Keane seems to running around in circles. As for the wing which is where the creativity was coming from early season Riera was playing well but seems to have dropped off, Benayoun as full of running but doesn't seem to be able to handle the games, he does nothing. Babel comes on and does it when hes bothered.
Its simple we need Torres back fit and on form or else we will continue to draw game we should win, and once we start to drop off the pace we will lose these games instead of draw. I dont see the problem with getting owen back, if hes available i think every liverpool fan would welcome him back and he wouldn't cost that much. I just think Benitez doesn't like him and that back up of an out an out striker, that poacher in the box is what liverpool need and may just be what ruins our best chance of winning the league in two decades.

If we'd have won against stoke, fulham and westham we would be 7 points clear and i think man u and chelsea would be worried, but i think in the position we are and the recent results chelsea and man u are just waiting for their chance.

But...but liverpool notoriously have bad novembers, maybe this year is our year, cus this year we sit top after november.

Andy-Wivit, Arsenal have beaten United and Chelsea but they wont win the league. Its no good Liverpool beating United and Chelsea if they drop 6 points to West Ham, Stoke and Fulham at home. That would be hard to stomach away from home and is not something i expect United to do.

The fact is Chelsea and United have yet to hit their respective strides.
United in particular have played all their key opponents away from home along with a couple of bogey sides in Blackburn and Pompey and have taken more points from the fixtures than they did last season.
If their home form in '09 gets anywhere close tro the home form of last season they will win the league.

Chelsea have been shorn of key players(Carvalho, Essien, Drogba to name but three) so the fact they are 2nd at the mo says a lot about them. Their problem is they are a bit one dimensional as Arsenal proved at the weekend. If you shut down Bosingwa and Cole you take away their width and they become congested in midfield.

How United come back from Japan will be key, if we take 6 points from Spurs and Sunderland before we go i wouldnt back against us.

Good article. Liverpool just don't look like a team who will win the league and certainly wouldn't have in past seasons. However, the rest of the big 4 is also faltering around them.

The problem is simply Rafa Benitez, his tactics and the players he buys. Although he sometimes gets his tactics perfect in cup competitions, they are often poor and too conservative in the league.

A 4-4-2 would have been the obvious selection in that game. Kuyt (who is a good, industrious player, but the exceptional standard that is required to challenge for the league) and Keane just behind him. Babel and Reira out wide, with Gerrard and Masch or Alonso in the centre is a balanced, attacking side.

Robbie Keane cannot lead the line himself. Liverpool look for a lot of knock-downs to the edge of the area for Gerrard but against Keane centre backs can clear their lines far enough to make this ineffective. Gerrard's one chance from this last night resulted in him missing the ball, when in other games he has scored, most notably against Middlesbrough after another poor performance.

Furthermore, playing up front alone, Robbie Keane cannot use his greatest strength, which is to link the play with his (now non-existent) strike partner.

Regarding transfers, Benitez has only made one exceptional purchase. Torres - easily worth 30m. Alonso and Masch were good buys too but play in the same position, albeit, to different effect. The rest of his money has been on players who just cannot compete with the likes of Ronaldo, Essien, Berbatov and Rooney.

With Benitez as manager I would be very shocked if Liverpool won the Premier League.

Rafa Benitez is an absolute melon!

You at home to Westham, who havent won at Anfield in however many years and have conceeded the most goals this season.

He plays Keane up front on his own against two big centre backs, with Yossi losing the ball whenever he can behind him.

He waited for 65 mins to substitute Keane for a 500, 000 unproven french kid in Ngog.

I mean what kind of message does it send to keane> and Babel who should have played from the start.. up front with Keane behind him.

I wouldnt blame keane or babel if they left.. id blame rafa

One of the subtle points proven over the years is that draws can actually be more dangerous than losses for a team challenging for the title; case-in-point Arsenal's title challenge last season crumbled as a result of four draws at a point where the eventual winners - Manchester United had actually lost more games!
Most big teams have the character to bounce back after a loss with a win as the criticism and outrage that follows a loss may actually end up inspiring the team.
On the other hand, a draw provokes this half-full; half-empty dichotomy within and the players may go into the next game with this "we played well, we deserved to win mentality".
The reason why Arsenal can only be 8 points behind the leaders after five losses is that they have managed to keep their draw count to a minimum.
Even though Liverpool are on top and they absolutely deserve it, three goalless draws at home can do their title contention no good and if history is anything to go by, it's likely to cost them; many a title race has been ended prematurely by 'too many draws at home'. . . .
No offence intended, but ask the gunners.

I really doubt if Liverpool is going to take the PL this season.

Twice were they given the opptunity twice they fail to take them.

Just like the game of Arsenal and Chelesa -were Chelsea have countless opptunities but fail to nail Arsenal-they will loss the league when it matters most.

I think Liverpools biggest problem is that they havent won the title for so long. They therefor lack the belief and mentality of champions. Yes Liverpool is on top of the log right now, but they seem more likely to drop points that any of the other top 4 sides ( the recent draws and they laboured and were lucky to beat Man C, Wigan and Middlesborough). I think Sammy Lee needs to step up and do a bit more work on the players and get them to believe that they can win the title (Benitez is too aloof and is incapable of doing this)

#7

What game were you watching? Ngog replaced Kean and Babel replaced Riera!

In a game where West Ham were for the taking I cannot understand why Babel only got 15 mins..!!?? He is one of very few Liverpool players that can make something happen by beating someone or gettting round the back with his pace.

Come on Rafa, give him more of a chance!

quiet funny when u hear things like we are on top " from liver poor point of view" well sorry to disappoint you as man united supporter all away difficult games are finished now catch us if you can you will see that in end of january... we will be on top it will be like role coaster..

Yes, it was a disappointing night/result. Yes we are not playing well at the moment. However, we must be doing something right. We are top of the table by one point.

When we do start playing again hopefully that will still be the case.

As a fan of over 40 years I have witnessed too many false dawns. Now is not the time to make assumptions or judge us. If we are stiil in the same position at the end of May last night will be a distant memory.

Move on and look forward to the next game...

It disappoints me that in the last two home games, against dug in opposition, Rafa's best attempts to change those games was to bring on Alonso for Mascherano (against Fulham) and Ngog for Keane (against W.Ham). Then last night, that was followed by another like-for-like sub with Babel replacing Riera.

Is Rafa Benitez lacking a back up plan in these games? Maybe it's just a lack of quality on the bench. Either way it casts doubts over Liverpool's title ambitions.

lfcjasonlfc,

You are wrong. Ngog came in for Keane in the 66th minute and 12 minutes after, Babel for Riera. Please get your facts right, before you fault the commentator.

well done west ham on becoming one of three rather average teams to leave anfield with a point!! youre all saying you miss torres but did he not play against stoke and fulham earlier in the season when you couldnt score?? anyway as a utd fan i cant understand the decision to spend 10m+ on babel and to then hardly ever use him,not just this season but he didnt seem to play much last season. i rate babel and i'd swap him for nani any day at the moment!! looks like the wait for the title might just go on and on and on...

Lads take a step back and think about things for a minute.
We're top of the league and qualified for the champions league with a game to spare from a tricky group. We've also beaten Utd at home and Chelski away, I think we'd of all taken this position before the season started wouldn't we ?
Yes its very disappointing to have drawn bankers against Stoke, Fulham and West Ham, but with a bit of luck (Gerrards free kick against Stoke, Yossi's effort last night) things could of been a lot better.
I know we've got to learn how to break teams down at home and that Rafa needs to realise Keane is better playing off a main striker rather than being the main striker, but WE'RE TOP OF THE LEAGUE and all the clubs below us want to be where we are.
There's no doubt things could be better and that we all have opinions on who should be in the team (I think Babel should be given a run with Torres out with Keane just behind him), but we need to stick behind Rafa and the team, at the moment you'd think that we'd been beaten in our last five games, don't jump on the band wagon created by the press, get behind the boys and support them all the way to No 19 !!!

Liverpool have done well this season - if you'd offered Rafa the position of top in early December, he'd have taken it. As would Arsene, Sir Alex and Big Phil. They outplayed Chelsea and, after the first 30 mins, United as well. Their first eleven is a match for most.

They have two problems. One is that their second eleven is fairly feeble. Any injuries or loss of form (especially Torres and Gerrard) affects them deeply. United won at the weekend without Scholes, Giggs (bar five mins), Tevez, Neville or Hargreaves. Chelski are second despite losing Essien, Carvallho and Drogba for most of the season. Liverpool simply don't have the depth. Over the course of a season, it's your fringe players that win you the title - they needn't be world-beaters, but they have to do the job for you.

The second problem is lack of width. Liverpool don't stretch teams. Away from home that's fine - they defend solidly and can counter-attack. At home, especially against poorer sides, they are one-dimensional, overly-predictable and thus fail to win games they should.

As #16 rightly pointed out, defeats don't kill you. Draws do.

What is hapening behind the scenes between Rafa and Babel?

Yesterdays natural substitution for Keane was Babel, but Rafa introduced N'gog instead is there a kind of rift between the couple?

Can the unproven N'gog handel the pressure in attack, when the likes of keane, Morientes and Bellamy weren't able to ?

i know 3 questions but could u please answer one!

wot a joke loonypool r !!
the mancs r on there way to the top by feb and normal service will be resumed !!! utd were the victors last weekend,and you can smell the fear of defeat off the other so called big 3 !!!! as 4 city i cant be botherd 2 even go there!!!!

Aah, this feels so good. I remember Liverpool fans boasting about how they beat Manutd at Anfield without Torres and Gerrard. And now they can't even beat West Ham and Fulham. I guess you guys spoke too early.

Liverpool fans should be happy, they're top of the league- for now and probably it wont be for long. Lets face it based on the eveidence of the past seasons, Liverpool will fall away. And I can bet it wont take too long to find out the truth of this matter.

Not enough match winners on the park at the same time.
Rafa has built this squad but still too many of his signings are a touch "Negative". i just don't think there's enough goals in us to win the prem, being organised isn't enough to win the leage as Bolton, fulham and Stoke are organised" but they'll never win the prem.
Other than Torres and Gerrrard we don't have enough "flair" players and until he's brave enough to really go for it, Babel, keane, Riera, Gerrard and Torres on the park I will still have the same opinion as I did when Rafa first came over from Valencia, he is not the man to win us the league title.

Are Liverpool able to handle the pressure of being top of the tabel?

They love being underdogs, but when they play as favourites they tend to lose because their players can't handle the pressure!

e.g. Milan 2007, Barcelona(away),West Ham FA cup 2006, Sau Paulo 2006, (West Ham yesterday)

Only 4 players from the squad that won the 2005 Ch/L cup have survived, they can handle the pressure and know the meaning of being champions and have tasted it, but can the rest of the squad including Benayoun, Keane, Riera, Dossena, and Arbeloa handle it?


-To answer your question Phil about Babel:

I've little doubt that Robbie Keane will weigh in with a good amount, or that Ryan Babel has the ability to score goals whether starting out wide or up front.

Liverpool will regret these 3 0-0 draws at Anfield. Once the FA Cup begins and they get to the latter stages of the Champions League, they will begin to struggle as they do not have a deep squad.

Even Man Utd and Chelsea struggled to deal with all 3 competitions in terms of having enough top players fit and available. Benitez is going to have to decide when he plays his star players come the end of the season, Champions League Semi Final or Premier League. And we all know when he rotates, Liverpool struggle

Man Utd have easy away games after Christmas and play all the top teams at Old Trafford. I think United will be favourites

lfcjasonlfc, you must have been watching a different game mate. I watched it at 3 a.m in Thailand and even at that time of the morning I could see that Ngog replaced Keane not babel. Riera plays on the left, where Benitez also stupidly deploys the naturally right footed and superb talent of Babel so you will find that 99% of the times Babel comes on, it is as a direct replacement for Riera.

With regards to last night, people need to keep the faith. We are still top, don't moan and support your team. Come on the reds!!!

We have got to keep patient and positive as Liverpool fans. The nature of all 3 of our home draws are not great because they are against lesser opposition, who we should really be able to break down, but none the less we are top of the league going into one of the most crucial times of the year. We must be happy with that.

We must forget about Torres not playing, we can't use it as an excuse, if we can't beat the likes of Fulham and West Ham at home just because Torres isn't playing, then there is something wrong. We have to accept that the Premiership is a little bit tighter this year and points are slightly harder to come by.

As for last night, my problem was with Rafa's substitutions. As ineffective as Keane was i would rather of had him on for the last 25 minutes than the headless chicken that is, David Ngog. Keane was getting no service, so don't change the striker, change the production line! It was clear Babel should have come on 20 minutes earlier than he did. West Ham had prepared for Riera to hold his width and try and get balls in. He should have got Babel on, who is more direct, pacey and dangerous. Babel is a player who needs a chance in the team to get his confidence up rather than 15 minutes at the end when we are struggling.

If truth be told im actually quite looking forward to an away game on Saturday as this is, Man United aside, where we have been at our best. Teams open up a bit more at home which gives us opportunities going forward.

On the whole, we are top of the league and we must be happy with that. It is now up to us to cope with the pressure that comes with being top, starting at Blackburn.

In Rafa we trust!

Well in regards to Babel its clear rafa sees him more as a impact sub rather than a starter, but give him 20-30mins to be an impact rather than the last 15 mins when the team is getting more desperate.

I personally think Babel needs to be starting we had no pace up front at all, and Keane is struggling badly now. He is a natural replacement for Torres with his pace and exploviseness to do the unexpected. If we are really serious about winning the title, we need to see more bold decisions from Rafa at crucial times.

As for the rest of the team, we seem to get anxious and the balls get longer and longer, and Gerrard starts shooting from 40 yards!! And this starts of the crowd who are patient, but last night you can feel the sense of frustration, its not often a Liverpool team gets booed off at Anfield.

This period is crucial for the team, as our title challenge by this time in recent seasons is all but over. Mental strength is the key to winning the title - Man Utd and Chelsea have shown when the going is tough they can battle through, we need to show that we are made of the same stuff.

I've never known a manager like Benitez.....he buys players then never plays them or just subs them off. He then sells them off in a couple of seasons. I would not trust the bloke with my money! If I was Gilette/Hicks I would show him the door and check his pockets too!

Phil,

You are exactly right about Robbie Keane's inability to handle the pressure of playing for Liverpool and the observation that he isn't the first and won't be the last - Bellamy, Kewell, Diouf, Cisse, Morientes.

However, as this list suggests it is usually attacking players (which made Torres' instant impact last season all the more impressive) that struggle at Liverpool in recent times and this is because under Houllier and Benitez Liverpool haven't always played the most attacking and expansive football, with a lack of width a frequent criticism.

This season Riera has proven a very effective remedy to this on the left but the reason Liverpool have had these three 0-0 draws at home against teams they should be beating is a selection and formation issue. In home games against teams like Fulham with poor away records Liverpool must start with 2 forwards and 2 wingers, the 4-5-1 with a lone striker has been very effective in Europe, away from home, and against both Man Utd and Chelsea this season - but in these home matches against teams that come to defend the formation must be more attacking (we've seen Chelsea struggling in the same way at home this season).

Personnel, with Torres injured I'd love to see Babel get a run of starts, either up front or on the right wing - He has incredible pace and an eye for goal.

Benayoun as well has been under used, he's arguably too much of a luxury against the top teams in tight games but with a few full games against a Stoke or West Ham his creativity could break down teams' stubbon resistance.

Liverpool are top of the league though and they look better than they have for years with a strong squad including players like Gerrard, Torres and Mascherano that would get in any team in the world. They'll be in the mix at the end of the season.......

I wonder if Babel isn't going to waste at Liverpool.

I can't help but think that under a manager like Arsene Wenger or Alex Fergusson, he would be a much better player already.

Benitez doesn't seem to have much faith in him, and as the example of Arsenal and Man Utd show, the best way for young attackers to develop and improve is to play them.

We need a striker in January - and not Owen, who stuffed us financially over his threatened Bosman.
Torres will return in 2009 but after 3 hamstrings it will take several more weeks to get match fitness and the confidence to run full pelt.
N'Gog should be in the reserves learning his trade and Babel should be on loan playing regular football at a lower level. Kuyt plays well with Torres but rubbish without him and Keane is just desperately sad right now.
Last night was crying out for Hyppia to go up front. I note the post that said we should have kept Crouch; but he left for regular football - his choice not ours.
The biggest worry last night was SG's evident frustration and the looks and gestures he made towards his far inferior teammates. In future years, will he settle for being LFC's best ever player or will he regret turning down Chelski? Hmmm.

It is great to be top of the table, there's no doubting that, and there's not going to be one Liverpool fan disappointed with it. But, looking to the title you have to question the depth in the squad to cope.

I have to agree with a lot of the comments no here about Babel. He has the ability to make things happen and should be played more often.

Also, does anyone know much about El Zhar? Seen him play a couple of times and he looked quite decent. Anyone else?

"True enough - except that they did not win this game and did not win their last home league game against Fulham either."

Phil...lets look at that in context. Chelsea - a nil nil draw then a loss. Liverpool, 2 nil nil draws. 1 point the difference. Liverpool top of the league.

What concerns me as a reds fan is the tactical decisions being made by Rafa, Pellegrino and Lee. It seems they rely on some statistical analysis rather than exploiting any weakness in the opposition.

To anyone watching the game it was obvious that having Babel working with Gerrard and Keane would have given the Hammers nightmares. Putting Ngog on seemed crazy and he spent 15 minutes giving the ball away and not knowing his role.

For me the loss of Torres should be the perfect opportunity for Babel. He is a versatile, quick and skillful player. It was worthless in the end but the goal he scored at the death in the CL semi against Chelsea was a perfect example of his ability.

Play Babel with Keane, Kuyt on the right, riera on the left and gerrard in the middle and you have the closest you will get to a worldclass attack without Torres.

Rafa has to address the goal scoring asap. Goal difference could well decide this in May.

After watching the last two home games, I can say that the problem is one of width. When we were doing well at the start of the season and creating hatfull's of chances, it was because the two wide players were getting to the byline and attacking defenders to put crosses in. Riera seems now to be positioning himself as an inside forward and when he is wide, cuts in on his right foot (weaker foot) and ends up passing backwards. The only outlet for us last night in the wide areas were Dossena and Arbeloa, but they didn't get forward enough. Judging from the way Liverpool setup, Keane was actually the supporting striker with Kuyt up front. Unfortunately, Kuyt is the type of player who drops deep to collect the ball at his feet and has trouble holding the ball up against big defenders. A better bet last night would have been to play Babel upfront, whose pace would have worried WHam's back line enough to have them on the back foot, giving Keane that space he needs to work more effectively. Plus Babel is tall and capable of winning headers against big defenders and he is strong. I have been very disappointed with Benayoun all season and I don't think he is a capable wide midfielder. He had a good season last season, but this season he seems to be looking a bit lost. Perhaps the weight of expectation is a little much for him. Kuyt is a much more effective right-sided midfielder, especially at home and he gets to the byline a damn-sight more often than Benayoun does. The wide players we had last night just wanted to come inside all the time, perhaps because they were afraid of conceding possession.
Also, I think there is a real fear in the way the team is playing at the moment. Expectation can be a terrible burden. the players should realise that the league is 38 games long and you should forget about it completely. The title is only ever won by taking each game as it comes, nothing else.

I'm disappointed by the result last night, but remain hopeful. We are top of the table without having played well for a while now, which in one way is a good thing. Of course, we have to start playing well. We've the Arsenal game on the 21st and then a decent run over the Christmas period. I'f we're still there after that, I think it'll be a good sign.

Keane isn't worth the money we paid. I've never been a big fan of his. He strikes me as someone who works hard, but is often headless and frequently wasteful in front of goal. He's certainly not someone who can lead the line and get us goals when we're missing Torres. I too quite like Babel and think he should be given more of a chance now that Torres is out. As has been said, I think our first team is a match for any other and can win the league. The problem is that our back-up players are not good enough (Keane included) so we need to hope that we've had our "injury crisis" for the season.

Should have left Keane on until the end - he gets a late goal L'pool win the game and with his confidence raised he goes on a run.

I can't believe the comments on here! Are you truly Liverpool fans? I'm an Arsenal fan. We share the unique experience of beating Manu (at home) and Chelsea (away). How can you complain about your title challenge? You are top of the league. Ask any gunners fan and we would swap, even if it means drawing to West Ham at home from time to time. Now's the time to get behind your team. Back 'em to the hilt. Stay positive and I look forward to playing you on 21st.

As a big Man Utd fan I'd say that the only time to doubt your team's credetials is when they do actually fall off the top.

You should enjoy being on top as this indicates you have been the best team so far, whilst not really playing that well on many occasions (this is normally a good sign?).

Yes of course, I kind of agree that you have things to worry about but I would only worry if you drift off the pace. Fergie has said this will be the closest title race ever and I agree. I think it is normal after a long break without a title to worry and over analyze but also pointless.

If you can be at the top without really ever hitting top form then maybe, just maybe your best is yet to come?

I think we're well placed and playing fantastic football at times, allbeit wasting lots of chances. I could worry about that but I somehow feel trust that the goals will come. I'll worry if we start to drop out of contention because of it but not until.

Conjecture never won or lost a title. The big guns are all in with a shout and it should shape up to be a classic campaign with us hopefully making it a treble of titles but you never know in football. Come on utd - let's focus on piling the agony on Keano's Black Cats!!!!

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Phil,

Good points in your comment, and Liverpool is going through a rough patch at the moment, nobody will deny that and the stadistics are there to prove it, however it has to be noted that Liverpool play much better yesterday that they did against Fulham, and against Marseille.

This time last year Carragher, together with Reina for that matter, was constantly hoofing the ball to the sky hoping a redmen will get it in the rival,s area, now Liverpool is playing decent passing football, even yesterday that was inecfectual, and Alonso, in my opinion the best player of Liverpool this season, was controlling the tempo of the game perfectly.

What is the your opinion on the extra pressure Anfield is creating, i think this is affecting to certain players, and yesterday was evident in Gerrard, he was so anxious to get a goal that start looking for a shot every single time he touched the ball, it was very fustrating to watch, not only for fans, but i guess from his team mates as well, being the massive figure he is for Liverpool, what do you think?

Benitez has ruled out making a move for Owen, which agree with, are you aware of any move for Heskey? Liverpool is missing a target man in certain occasions, specially when Torres is not in the pitch, and Heskey has already hinted he would love to move back to Anfield.

Phil, and most others on this (and most other blogs). You are all guilty of using past seasons' results patterns to make judgements on this seaon's likely outcomes. Thus received wisdom is "you can't lose more than 5 games a season and win the title", it is easier to accumulate points at home than away, the top four mini league is a guide o the destiny of the title, etc., etc.

This approach is wrong on so many counts, but mainly it ignores the growing evidence that this season will buck all kinds of previous trends. As an example, it may well be tactically that Chelsea and Liverpool have styles more suited to accumulating points on the road, whereas Man Utd may be the reverse - this season's record to date for all the three clubls suggests exactly this. Does this mean that only Man Utd are credible title challengers? Of course not.

Similarly, the idea that Man Utd have played all their 'hardest' fixtures because thay have played many of the stronger sides away from home does not take account of the fact that these teams are often capable of frustrating big four teams on thier own grounds. Utd will drop points at home to at least two out of Villa, Spurs, Man City, Everton, Fulham (this year's model, not previous ones), West Ham, At least one out of Chelsea, Liverpool and Arsenal will win at Old Trafford, the other two are more than capable of holding Man Utd.

Thus dated, cliched thinking borne of previous seasons provides no insight whatsoever - it is the laziest and most dangerous form of strategic thinking because it assumes that past patterns are destined to be repeated interminably.

As for despondent comments by leading club supporters that "we must be beating teams like [Wigan, West Ham, Stoke, Fulham] if we are to have any hope of winning the title - they are so off the mark as to render the authors unfit to call themselves 'supporters'.

Rosey05 how can you call Ngog a headless chicken. he done more for you than Keane.
20 million well spent.

yes it is very nice being top now but titles arent won now and surely it only going to get tougher for liverpool as the games go on.
Torres could be another owen in the wings wiv all injuries.

Liverpool need to be consitent and show people they have got what it take and blackburn away is perfect example. no one will be surprised if a useless blackburn team turn them over.

Here to another year of misery for the scousers

How long at the top for? About a week.
They are a one man team, Torres.

Keane, what an overrated player he is.

i was at the game last night as well as the fulham game, ive been disapointed with keane the last two games hes really struggled, along with a few others, watching him you can see he is lacking confidence, its still early days in his liverpool career, two draws at home is not good, ok we are top but we will have to go on a good run now to cement our place at the top of the league.

I like Keane, but even at Spurs he was 'carried' a bit by Berbatov. Berba was so damn good - and played with so much freedom - that anyone next to him was going to grab a hatful.

I don't think I'm wrong when I say most Spurs fans wanted keane - rather than defoe - to leave. The Liverpool bid was an utter bolt from the blue, but, as we recover from the mank start, it looking better and better business for Spurs.

I hope Robbie Keane turns it around - seix seasons at White Hart Lane and lots of great memories - but I don't think it will be under Benitez at Liverpool.

I'm not averse to taking him back - if the price is right - but I have a nasty feeling he will go to a Wigan or Hull. Nothing wrong with those clubs, but he would have been better off at Spurs.

Two goals in the Prem league? For a team that's top of the table.

Oh dear, oh dear......

Brooksy you're obviously a rather envious United fan who for the first time in recent years sees Liverpool as a threat and rather than offer some constructive criticism you have just thrown around petit insults which just make you look rather childish. How can you say Liverpool are feeling the pressure? We have had two bad results at home but away from home we look far more manacing, its been the same for Chelsea this season. United still have to go to Japan which is another game back and i would much rather have the points than the game in hand! so lets see...

Im not sayin we are going to run away with the league but over the course of the opening 15 games we have been the best team but unfortunately the season in 38 games long!

well done to Liverpool for being top the league - they are looking a much better bet than in previous years - when often they are way off the pace already... i hope they keep it up.

However - it is very interesting to see that Man U have played Liverpool, Arsenal, Chelsea, Villa, Portsmouth and Everton away thus far (these are the top 8 less Hull) and have also played Man City away. These are probably the hardest games they could of had...

in comparison - Liverpol have drawn at home with Fulham, Stoke and West Ham....

I hope all of the top clubs can stay in the chase and make it an exciting season... but i think people will be hard pushed to say that Liverpools games have been harder than Uniteds... and I would back United or Chelsea for the title still... if Man U win their game in hand (against Fulham) they go to 3 points off of Liverpool... i.e. 1 game...

Benitez has built a team in his own image, obstinate and rigid. The team are fit and determined and the players carry out orders or are left out. There are some good players and of course Gerrard and Torres to give the star quality. However something is still missing and for them to win the title i think it will need Man utd and Chelsea to slip up unexpectedly a few more times. Liverpool s passing is too slow and easy to defend against. These latest results are not unusual they are in an established pattern and are likely to continue unless Raffa can come up with a plan B. Liverpool need a player who can run with the ball to pull defenders out of their set positions.You have to question Raffas use of Keane and players who are unproven like Ngog at crucial times in matches. The sale of Crouch doesnt look wise as Liverpool rarely score from set pieces. All in all i still think this is Liverpools best chance to win the title for a decade but in my opinion Benitez needs to be more creative in his thoughts, tactics and signings.

The problem with Liverpool down the years has been that whenever they have had a positive result and gone top of the table, which has been far too seldom for my liking, they have always managed to back it up with an appalling result the following week! relinquishing the top spot in the process, they never have a sustained run at the top. Hopefully this time they can buck the trend by having a negative result followed by a positive result. Hopefully this will mean a sustained period at the top of at least a couple of weeks!

Steven Gerrard Gerrard

He kisses the badge on his chest

Then puts in a transfer request

Steven Gerrard Gerrard!

This guy will never win the PL.

what did he sell steve finnan for? that right wing has never been the same since he left... Riera off the boil lately. keane was a huge boo boo and waste of cash! we should be 8 points clear at this point... stoke, fulham and west ham should ALL have been beaten at home. eamo

Reddeviltunde and MarkRoyston66

Fair play to a pair of Utd fans with class... great responses lads showing a fair and balanced opinion... wish there were more like you.

As far as I'm concerned we're top of the league without playing anywhere near our best yet, and traditionally (and contrary to the 'falling away' bunkum spoken above) we are very, very strong after Christmas. If you look at 2008 as a calendar year, LFC are clear top and by a decent margin I think, so I'm hoping we continue with gradual improvement and start to address some tactical/creative defficiencies...

As for last night... I distinctly remember Jose Mourinho talking about teams 'parking the bus'... I think West Ham gave a fine example of that last night with their 8 man defence, and good luck to them, after all, it's our job to break them down.

Here's to a good title run in with plenty of excitement... may the best team win, and remember that's the team with the most actual points... not points for artistic merit ;-)

Its a really strange feeling being sat at the top of the league in december (we are usually out of it at this point) and still feel disapointed.

i think the problem sometimes is not that Benitez get his tatics wrong, its that he applies to much tactics to teams that should be disposed of. Sometime he needs to show a little less respect to these teams and we would start thrashing them like Man U and Chelsea do (and that kills me to say it)

we will be needing Gerrard and Torres back to the form they showed last season if we have any chance of winning the league.

I think Rafa got it wrong last night. Leaving Mascherano on the bench was the biggest mistake - it shackled Gerrard, and his performance dipped as a result. He should have stuck to the team that have got us to the top - left Kuyt on the right and Benayoun on the bench, with Gerrard just behind Keane. Taking Keane off was premature too - he might not have had a good game, but with Torres out he's our main striker and needs to know he has Benitez' confidence. If he knows he's going to be subbed after an hour every time he plays, it can't be good for him.

rosey you are forgettin we been to these things before and came back to win the league.

there is little worry among united fans as by xmas we will be in striking distant.

full credit to liverpool for bein top at moment. best place to be.

but simple answer is champions of england and europe.

been there done it and got t-shirt

Interesting to see the support for Babel here. He has looked more dangerous as a substitute than a starter, but I would have given him half an hour last night.
-----

I would agree with you to an extent there. But when was the last time Babel started along side our strongest team?

I can't remember that this season. His 15 minute cameos are draining his confidence, at least give him a run of 2-3 games to see if he starts to find the skill we know he has.

Being top of the league this morning means nothing. It's a bad result but we're not the only ones having difficulties otherwise we wouldn't be top clearly. This is just the type of panic that crashes stock markets.

I feel for Robbie Keane how can he score a goal from the bench, as West Ham were tiring Keane still looked stronger. Kuyt was way too deep, he should on been higher up the pitch thus creating room for Keane. Benayoun is a complete waste of space, he looks very weak in all respects.

Ryan Babel must be used on the right, him and Riera should be encourage to swap sides during the game too. This creates confusion for the opposition and is a tried and tested tactic that works.

In nutshell Babel and Keane must be given a full 90 minutes for all games up until Torress’ return.

This may be clutching at a rather large straw but Liverpool are actually better when they dont have the ball ie they play better against teams which are of a similar standard or better than them. Thats why we have always done well in the champions league under Benitez-and this eason against the bigger teams ie Chelsea and Man Utd. I fully expect us to go to Arsenal later this month and get a result-even a win. But its against the lesser teams who we are expected to beat that we have trouble against. For Stoke, Fulham and West Ham see also Middlesborough (very lucky),Wigan (had man sent off at crucial time) and Portsmouth (needed a penalty to get past). The only time Liverpool have opened teams up this season at home have been against West Brom-who came out and tried to play football-and Man United-who were awful on the day but we know are the best team in the league. So from 8 home league games-Liverpool have played well and won well twice. Its only our away record that has kept us up there. This lets us look at the other side of the coin. Liverpool have still to play Man utd and Arsenal away-plus all the teams that we have played at home. I expect these games to be a bit easier for us because of the way we play. If you look at our away results-Bolton, Sunderland, Everton and dare I say it Chelsea were dispatched with relative ease and in much more convincing fashion. A comfortable draw was garnered at Villa and the defeat at Spurs was against the run of play. Its no coincidenece that Liverpools "slump" (two draws and a champions league win) have coincided with a run of home games. If we can figure out how to beat teams at home I think we'll be right there.

Liverpool had to win today! Thats what tiltle contenders do. I don't think they wil go on to win the title.

From : https://idoitforfootball.wordpress.com/

i think the league will remain very tight this season..a lot of the teams outside the top 4 have improved a lot and no longer roll over against the big teams..i must admit i think we (arsenal) have dropped too many points already, but Chelsea and Liverpool look like they could drop more points..i think the danger is that man Utd hit their stride and pull away..i think its great that the league is so competitive, just gutted we lost some silly games!!

I firmly agree that Kuyt should stay on the right. I also believe that Riera is about the best we have on the left, and Babel should partner Keane in the middle in the absence of Torres.

However, we all remember how much we criticised Rafa during the last two seasons for consistently changing the team around in the name of rotation. We should leave him alone if he has finally decided to go with some people whom he believes will do the job for him.

Us fans must realise that we would rather play poorly and win the league than play the most exciting football like we did against Spurs and end up with nothing like we did in that game.

As long as we remain top of the table, we should leave the worrying about our performances to those who are paid to do exactly that, while we support them in any way possible.

What we must make them understand is that we will accept nothing short of the Premiership at the end of this season, but we will not presume to tell them how we want it delivered.

Keane didn't do much, but then there wasn't much he could do since he never got the ball. In fact it rarely came near him.
Even Pele couldn't score without the ball.
Top of the league, true, but we still struggle when teams come to Anfield and put eleven men behind the ball.

A good, albeit obvious blog Phil. Agree with the points on form and performance. Pointing to the fact we're top is understandable from Benitez but a weak argument. The disappointment and concerns from fans is that we're playing poorly, and are unable to break teams down. Sooner or later, the 'form' won't be temporary and we'll drop too many points.

Where I disagree is the points on Keane. Regardless of Gerrard or Torres, we lack a cutting edge for a number of reasons. Firstly, we're set up too negatively - a 4-5-1 at home to West Ham? And last night was an attacking formation in comparison to the two holding midfielders we normally play, with Kuyt almost playing as a 3rd on the right. The other top 4 teams would have put out an attacking team and formation last night, confident they could take apart West Ham at home - Benitez needs to relax his rigid tactics against weaker teams and just let our quality come through.

Secondly, we have the wrong players in the wrong positions. Keane has never been a lone striker, and needs to play off a main striker which he doesn't for Liverpool. Playing him up front on his own is utterly pointless. And substituting him FIFTEEN times won't help him pinch goals late on or build an understanding of playing that position. I don't think the price tag is a problem for him, it's how he's used by Benitez.

Thirdly, playing Benayoun ahead of Babel beggars belief. Benayoun has his qualities but is never a top 4 player whereas young Babel must be wondering what he's done wrong to not get a look in. Clearly Babel is out of favour but I can't see why and he's exactly the sort of player who deserves a run up front or on the right - as much as Liverpool fans love Dirk Kuyt's workrate, he'll never beat his man or offer genuine pace and skill out wide.

For me, last night proved why we're not good enough to win the league yet; I expect United to come through strongly. The irony is, we could be good enough - if only Benitez would put out our best players with a simple brief: attack!

Liverpool, on current form will not win the league.

Yes they have beaten Chelsea and ManU, but they cannot break down lesser teams. They have not played like champions against any team except possibly Chelsea and ManU.

Unfortunately for liverpool are there are more LESSER teams that BIG teams, so yes they may beat Arsenal, Chelsea and Manu again, but will they beat the others who come to defend???

I've watched Liverpool 5 times in this last 6 weeks. I've not been impressed once by them. The only game they dominated in all the games I've seen them play in this season was the Man United game, and United had been playing away in Europe the Wednesdya night and the game was a midday fixture on the Saturday.
I can't see Liverpool winning the league - too many second rate players.
United are behind with a game in hand and have been everywhere.
United will go on a massive run with all those home games and the lad who thinks they will not either hasn't had a look at the fixture list or doesn't know what he's talking about.
You cant drop points at home to teams like Stoke or West Ham and expect to win the title.
The lack of quality at Liverpool is clear for all to see.

The game was very disappointing, to say the least.
There was no pace or aggression from Liverpool from the start and the movement in the top half of the pitch was non existant at times.
Having said that, we're sitting at the top, 1 point clear of Chelsea, 6 of Man Utd and 8 in front of Arsenal.
We will have the usual talk of, when other teams hit their strides and easier fixture lists but this is all theoretical.
As we are told year in year out, the table never lies and at the moment we're perched at the top.

NB. the "fans" booing at the end of the match should be disgusted with themselves. I've always been brought up to support the team, through thick and thin, (and there's been a lot of thin over the past 15 years..), the only thing they have succeeded in doing is supplying the media with a story to Liverpool bash with.

I was excited at the prospect of yesterday's match. I fancied a 4-0 home victory. But as I watched successive and I might add relentless attacks on the West Ham goal in a match in which Liverpool must have had 60% possession - I couldnt help scratch my head. The pace was at times torrid. Kuyt and indeed Gerrard and Arbeloa and Dossena ran around like greased lightning. And there in, I thought might lie the problem. Could it be that Liverpool's game is just too fast? So fast and furious, that its difficult to control anything? There were a number of passes that went the wrong way, there always are in any match, but wasn't the same true against Fulham. Then I began to wonder why, where is this coming from? THe chief exponent of industry, and perhaps rather cruelly, industry without effect is Mr Kuyt. Is too much emphasis being placed on effort and not enough on precision and calm by the current regime? It might be interesting to rest Kuyt, who after all, doesnt get on the score sheet as much as he should and give a more starts to Babel and indeed Robbie Keane.

I've said it before and I'll say it again. Based on their performances so far, all the top 4 English sides are mediocre this season. There is no going around that fact.

I agree with the posts calling for babel to be played when torres is out. He's big, strong and quick and will be more of a handfull then keane, who should only be played as a second striker - looking for knock downs etc.

However, despite being a little disappointed after the result last night, today I see the bigger picture. This time last year we were out of the title race but went on to have a strong second half to the season, even though the CL was our only realistic chance of a trophy. We have been without undoubtly our 2 best players in gerrard and torres for half our games and we're still top of the league.

I think Keane on the stats was good value. Looking over the last few years he was in the top 5 scorers and certainly outshone the likes of over rated Rooney. But no one would buy Peter chech and play him as a defender or on the left wing. Keane while playing a strikers role for Liverpool has never been a 1 up front type of player. He trives on partnership, and mixing positions with his partner. What is clear as many have said is A) Benitez although on top doesn't know how to get the best out of what he has, and b) he went and bought a good car and parked it

The myth seems to be that it is the results when the top four play each other that'll decide the PL title - which is almost total bunkem. Usually, these games cancel each other out (draws or one win a piece).

The title will be decided by which side drops the fewest points in games they really should win - i.e. LFC v WHU, CFC v NUFC, AFC v Hull, MUFC v NUFC. It is these kind of games that any winner of the PL should not be dropping points against.

I have always said that it's who drawers the least number of games (outside those v the other top four) that decides the title.

CFC slipped up v NUFC (and others?!!). LFC, whether they like it or not, slipped up last night.

For what it's worth, I agree with one of the other posters - LFC will not be there come the end of the season; they do not have enough quality in their squad and they seem to be relying on a couple of players who, if absent or just not on form, mean the difference between 3 points and 1 point.

As ardent Liverpool fans I think it's time for us to stop commenting via the 'red' tinted glasses we always do and be totally honest with the current situation. The truth of the matter is clear, as long as Benitez is at the helm we will never win the title, an obvious trail of thought shared by our American owners hence why they are so reluctant to offer a new contract. You don't pay £20 million for a Striker and substitute him 15 times, a ridiculous move which is obviously affecting Keane's confidence week in week out. You don't pay £19 million for a young winger / striker such as Babel and give him 10 minutes at the end of each game. What on earth does Benitez see in Ngog? Lucas? El Zhar? Dossena? Du Plessis? The list is endless. Would any of those players get in the match day squad at any other so called top four clubs? NO. Benitez has been given an absolute absurd amount of money by the owners in all fairness, the guy is sadly totally out of his depth. He raised concerns about player confidence in his post match interview last night, as Manager he should be the one installing the confidence. Real Madrid will be looking for a new head coach soon, might be just the opportunity for us to bring someone in whilst we're in the position we are who will be able to drive us on towards the title instead of throw it away.

It's true, Keane cannot do anything without the ball. The crosses from the flank do not suit his size and he is a player who thrives on balls played through the middle, then he is very creative. Michael Owen is someone who also thrieves on through passes, because of his size and style.
I would say it is Benitez's job to change the playing style, according to the players he fields. Every time the Liverpool middlefield players got the ball, they played it wide... they never even considered playing the ball through middle. If I were Benitez, I would be looking at varying the style of play against the weaker teams, to avoid draws.

I would add, I think the difference between Benitez and the others is that the others adapted their systems to their players and the strenghts therein, Benetiz while not unsuccessful has imposed his system and it is unchangeable. He should have gone for it at Anfield. It's almost like they were afraid of loosing. A sure receipie for failure.

Liverpool have won games this season they should have lost and they have drawn games they need to win if they are to be up there at the end of the season. The frustration at present is if we are to be challengers then maximum points should have been taken against Stoke, Fulham and West Ham...6 points have been dropped. We could have been 7 points clear this morning. Once you take Torres or Gerrard out of the equation and/or either of them as an off game we lack the ability to win games. Liverpool are too dependent on star players turning games rather than 'team performance' beating the opposition.

But I'd still rather be top of the pile unhappy with performances compared to worrying about Villa pushing us for 4th!

Benitez has stated that he thinks Babel doesn't have the fitness levels yet to manage 90 mins, and that he has shown that he has a great impact from the bench against tiring defenses (from an article amonth or so ago on the official site).

What he didn't state (but reading between the lines, and from watching Babel you can see this) is that Babel doesn't have the same impact when he starts.

So it makes sense to use him from the bench, but possibly earlier in the game. Against a West Ham side that was clearly intent on packing a defense, Benayoun seemed to struggle to find any time or space, and Babel could have been a good sub for him with 30 mins to go.

Frankly there isn't one team that look like title winners at the moment.

It seems to be like the Chuckle Brothers at the top - "to you, to me" with no-one making a concerted effort to pull away from the top.

Chelsea are stuttering, Liverpool are stuttering, Arsenal don't know whether they're a top team or just a decent side at the moment and Man Utd are supposedly going to 'go on a run', but we're 15 games in already and I've seen no sign of a run yet.

I'm not sure whether the teams outside of the so called 'big four' have got stronger or just that those four teams have plateaued, but either way it is apparent that any team can take points off of anyone.

I think this season will see the eventual winners have quite a low points total.

If you can beat the big teams around you that are competing for the top of the table, it is not that much of a problem that all the games against teams 'parking the bus' don't turn out to be victories.
Liverpool had an excellent run of nabbing games at the beginning of the season, which goes a long way to fulfilling the quota needed to be near the top come May.
They are ahead of everyone this season regardless. All the Big 4 have had suprise results this season and that is sure not to have finished.

OK, maybe Robbie (Keane) doesn't have an X-Factor voice at the moment, but given time and a smiley scouser vote, he would still beat OWEN (the Irish one) in a sing-off. And I've heard Keanie sing!!!!
C'mon, guys, get real!!!
Who's perched proudly on TOP of the greatest league in the world? Liverpool, FC!!
I follow Leeds - imagine my mood today. Q: Where am I on Saturday? A: Tranmere!!!!
You do the math!!

A frustrated Liverpool fan here. Of course many have said that we are top of the table so stop winging.....yes ok..BUT...DROPPING crucial points at HOME to teams like Fulham, Stoke and now West Ham ( no disrespect ) is at the end of the day, in my opinion going to be crucial come end of the season. Man Utd seem to be worryingly in good form so I can see us needing a result at Old Trafford by the way our home form is going. Just another frustrating thing to say to Benitez......WHY ON EARTH DONT YOU PLAY BABEL FROM THE START!?....He came on last night and was fantastic for the few minutes....really really..frustrated..

lfc jason lfc
wrong sir!
Ngog replaced keane
babel replaced riera
Dont know what game you were watching, but it wasn't last nights game

Not sure what people mean when they say Liverpool have had the easiest fixture list of the top 4. In 15 games we've played Man United at home, Chelsea, Everton, Villa, Spurs and Man City away. Certainly an easier fixture list than United but no harder than Arsenal or Chelsea's.

Gooooooners! We'll certainly see what Liverpool are made of when they come up against The Arsenal 21st Dec - Cant wait!

"Rafael Benitez preferred to see his glass as half-full as Liverpool hit the Premier League summit on a wave of Anfield indifference."

I have to be honest Phillip, I stopped reading after this bit. Are you a professional journalist? Do you get paid to get it wrong in the opening paragraph?

Should Benitez be regarding the glass as half-empty instead? What's wrong with positivity? You wont win anything by conceding before you try. The typical British media response.

You could have said something like:
Rafa Benitez will probably have a word with his players after last night but he must secretly at least, be pleased his misfiring Liverpool team are sitting top of the PL despite a frustrating period for Reds fans. Already they have shown a resilience that has been missing but whether they can still top the table come May remains to be seen.

Instead you went for the "I don't know what Benitez has got to be so cheery about" approach.
Honestly, you should either
A: Try harder to write articles that are worthy of their association with the BBC the blueprint for international media,

Or

B: Sack whoever said: "Yes Phil, that's anice piece, we'll go with that as your main article concerning last night's game at Anfield.

Terrible.
Bring back National Service.

Remember that Man Utd have only played 6 home games, and have another one postponed vs Wigan in December

United may end up playing 4 straight home games, and if they play anything like they did last season, that should make the difference to whether they or Chelsea/L'pool win the league

Remember, Chelsea are no longer invincible, Arsenal are vulnerable, L'pool have a weak squad and Man Utd have a hectic fixture list. All this plus the rest of the Prem becoming stronger means that the PL this season is wide open and and team that puts in 7 straight victories will probably win the title

After the weekend's results, the race for the title is in United's hands - if they win all their remaining games, they will be champions.

So at a time when goals are at a premium, Torres is injured and looks like he will be for some time, Keane can't score, Babel apparently can't last 90 minutes, etc. Rafa comes out and publically rules out a move for Owen. Why? When fit, Owen is as good a finisher as there is in the Premiership. OK, so he's not a 90 minute a match player anymore, but surely he could contribute to the Reds' title challenge by coming off the bench, starting some cup matches, gives Torres and Keane a rest now and then. He'd be familiar with the ground, the club, etc. still knows a decent number of players, and might just revel in a return home.

I generally like Rafa, but his decision making sometimes baffles me - e.g. trying to sell Alonso to make way for the older and less talented Barry in the summer. And he must have made a pact with the devil for all the close and undeserved wins, particularly in Europe, the Reds have clocked up during his tenure.

Didn't see the game...but even if the result IS a lost opportunity for Liverpool, if you'd offered their fans the chance to be top of the table by just 1 point at the start of December, they'd have taken it with open arms.

Disappointing, yes. Disastrous, hardly. At least the star goalscorer (Torres) still has his heart in playing for the club, which is more than can be said (I suspect) for Drogba, Ronaldo, maybe even Adebayor.

Phil- when you say you've "rarely seen or heard Anfield less excited by an ascent to the top of the table" - could you tell me when those rare occasions were, please?