Apologies for the late wrap, as I was on Blackhawks duty last night (which if you can believe it was even worse than Liverpool duty. My life rocks right now).
You know, it started so well. I thought the first 15 minutes were about as smooth and confident as the team has looked all year. I'd like to live in those 15 minutes. Have them hold me tight and tell me everything will be all right. Everything I've ever wanted to achieve is in those 15 minutes. I bet those 15 minutes would buy you a beer, and the good kind too. A Carlsberg, not a Bud Light. They were stamped gold when Torres took a lovely through ball from Gerrard, and somehow without appearing to break stride even by a fraction of an inch slotted perfectly home. For a moment there, I allowed myself to believe that Liverpool would build on that and try and roll over an inferior side before the orange wedges.
But this is Hodgson's Liverpool. And for reasons even the manager can't seem to explain, the Reds invited Wigan (??!!) more and more forward, allowed them more and more possession, more and more chances. They were pinned in the latter half of the first half, and for pretty much all of the second half. They were content to hit Wigan (??!!!) on the break. Naturally, after giving Rodallega all that space, he made us pay. The match pretty much petered out from there.
Notes:
-This will be a continuing theme on this blog, but Paul Konchesky sucks, and I will say so every time he does. Never did I think I'd long for Fabio Aurelio. Oh wait, he's right there!
-I know he's 19, and I have to admit that I didn't watch any Charlton football last year (I would like to talk to a girl one day), but Jonjo Shelvey has put on two of the worst performances I have ever seen in a Liverpool shirt. Did he complete one pass? Did Dani Pacheco or Jovanovic run over Hodgson's dog or hit on his daughter?
-You know who didn't complete one pass for sure? Christian Poulsen. He played for Juventus? Only when they were in Serie B, right?
-Though they were heroic on Sunday, naming an unchanged side is just the wrong decision. All of these guys were out of gas at the end of the Chelsea match, and fresh legs somewhere could have made a huge difference. Just having Glen Johnson out there to maraud could have helped, as even Martin Kelly found space to do so. And Johnson wouldn't have to worry about defending, because everything was going down the Liverpool left anyway.
-Despite one poor giveaway, Lucas was all right, but clearly fatigued.
-When our manager is at a loss to explain why his team sat back after going ahead, this does not breed confidence. Has someone told him he can do something about it? His sub of Kuyt for Poulsen wreaked of holding on to a point, when a win would have brought us to fifth, though we wouldn't have deserved it. Hodgson reverted to managing and looking like he defecated himself form, and it's already old. This is your only big time job Roy, and you're only on a two year deal with new owners who are not afraid to make changes. The least you can do is go out on your shield.
-Oh great, and an away date with Stoke next, because we play so well there. Hodgson will have to make some changes, but I'll be watching them through my fingers.
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