PATIENCE. That was the key word written, over and over, by journalists and supporters in assessment of Liverpool’s opening weekend.Patience. Furiously shorthanded in every notebook and tapped on every laptop, urging the supporters to give Kenny Dalglish and his squad time after a 1-1 draw with Sunderland.
I’ve used the word patience a number of times in this column over the past year, but not this week. Patience, in this instance, is wrong; patience indicates there’s something systematically at fault with the manager or the squad that needs time to be rectified.
Patience was needed once Dalglish took charge as he strived to strengthen the defence, sharpen the attack and give confidence to those bereft of it as a consequence of the previous six months.
It was also needed this summer, as the club gathered players right for the club – indeed, it’s still needed now, as the manager shapes the squad into his own.
You can understand why the word has been used so frequently, though.
After an hour against Sunderland, Anfield became restless. Songs had metamorphosed into sighs. Every misplaced pass was bemoaned; every scuffed shot and missed opportunity met with a collective head in hands. It sounded like impatience.
But this wasn’t impatience. There was nothing to be impatient about. Supporters witnessed what the side was capable of within the opening 15 minutes.
A penalty from Luis Suarez – albeit missed – created from his endeavour; a goal created by Charlie Adam’s left foot. Two things Anfield expected to see this season.
There were other things, too; the crowd had come to expect Pepe Reina commanding, Agger imperviously defending and Lucas tempo-setting. They had been told of what the new signings would bring; Enrique’s intelligence, Henderson’s energy and Downing’s penetration.
Half an hour of the new season had yet to pass and Liverpool supporters saw all of those things. Enrique’s balls to Suarez, Henderson’s relentless partnership with Lucas on the right, and then, what could have been the exclamation point – Downing’s individual attempt at breaking the crossbar in two.
And of course, there was a fine Andy Carroll goal, struck off for having the temerity to jump higher than the defender.
An excellent opening 45 minutes was immediately eradicated when Dowd began the second half. Larsson’s goal acted as a switch; agitation and restlessness followed, both on and off the pitch.
Anfield knew what this newly-constructed side was capable of already. This wasn’t impatience, this was anxiety and frustration - anxiety at not getting the result the first half performance deserved; frustration that the anxiety was well-founded.
Despite what some will say, there were few poor individual performances against Sunderland; the team simply couldn’t regain their first-half form – form the supporters already know they’re capable of.
In the first half, the team appeared on a telekinetic conveyor belt at times, sliding into position perfectly as they waited to receive the ball. The defence looked composed, the midfield fluid and Carroll and Suarez asked the Sunderland defence a lot of questions, most primarily the conundrum of which one they wanted to mark. It was never really answered.
Dalglish’s new men adapted admirably while last year’s stalwarts continued to impress. It changed in the second half, but it was enough to show that, while things will improve, there’s a solid foundation to begin with.
Dowd’s full-time whistle acted as a sharp, piercing needle, popping the pre-season optimism. As the swollen Kop deflated into the streets outside, it was disappointment, not anger, which resided amongst the chattered drone of Walton Breck Road.
It’s not patience Liverpool supporters have to afford the club because already, after one game, they’re aware of the squad’s capabilities. What they’re looking for is context.
The draw against Sunderland is an occurrence throughout every season for every top team. Arsenal, Chelsea, Manchester City and Tottenham all dropped points at home in games they should have won. Even Manchester United, with their incredible home record, stumbled to a 2-2 draw against West Brom – a record slightly tarnished by their mediocre away form, worthy champions though they were.
But at the start of a season, it feels different for supporters.
It’s a new start, an unblemished league table, a chance to fantasise with friends about what the next nine months will bring. To exhibit the tempo, understanding and merger of genuine threats all over the pitch in the first half, and fail to replicate that in the next 45 minutes, was disappointing; a disappointment heightened by it coming on the opening weekend.
Sunderland was merely the first game of a long season, and the first half had every supporter abuzz with optimism.
Pepe Reina, Jamie Carragher and Daniel Agger won’t forget how to form a strong defence. Lucas won’t forget how to patrol a midfield. Charlie Adam won’t forget how to deliver a set-piece. Stewart Downing won’t forget how to find Andy Carroll, and Luis Suarez won’t stop being Luis Suarez.
What will be forgotten soon enough is the disjointed second-half performance aided by a very well-organised Steve Bruce side, a poor refereeing performance, injuries to players and the side’s main attacking outlet feeling the strain of Uruguay’s successful Copa America campaign.
When Liverpool line up at the Emirates this weekend, that context will have clarity. Liverpool mightn’t necessarily take the three points, but the support won’t need patience, just the knowledge that the players are capable of playing out Dalglish’s vision of his squad. Over the course of a 38 game league season, that will tell – especially when the first-half performance is maintained throughout the whole game.
Soon, Johnson, Gerrard will return to full fitness, and Suarez will be capable of playing the full 90 minutes. Three players who are a big part of what Dalglish is trying to achieve. Johnson marauding down the right, Gerrard utilising space in the midfield and Suarez finishing everything those two create.
The supporters mightn't need patience, but they're forgiven not wanting to wait much longer to see that in full flow.
http://thekop.liverpoolfc.tv/_Why-context-not-patience-is-needed/blog/5045484/173471.html
