Hodgson, a new era or a continuation of old Spanish habits?

Four weeks into Roy Hodgson’s reign as the new Liverpool boss and on fan websites supporters are already beginning to grumble about the lack of direction and ambition that is evident in the side’s early matches of the 2010/11 season. Is this justifiable, or just Liverpool’s fanatical fans getting prematurely worried?

Before discussing Roy’s start, maybe a look back at Rafa Benitez’s reign would be a succinct way of putting things into perspective. In six long and arduous years at disputably the biggest club in the world, Rafa Benitez gained what many thought impossible, especially at the time it was achieved: A Champions League victory.

What’s more the impossible was achieved in one night all Liverpool fans will never forget, recovering from the brink of a humiliating defeat and succeeding in what must be regarded as the greatest comeback in European football history. What many people fail to notice, is that the huge majority of the team that won that night in Istanbul and indeed played the rest of the competition, were not Benitez’s buys. Only Luis Garcia and Xabi Alonso were and despite Alonso’s goal, neither made a huge impact upon the game. Not in comparison to the colossal Steven Gerrard and Jamie Carragher. Another unsung hero of the victory was Dietmar Hamann, who in fairness was brought on at half time.

The point is that although seen by many as Benitez’s victory, it was more Steven Gerrard’s. There is no denying Benitez’s tactical astuteness, to the point that astuteness became obsessiveness, fuelling later claims that players that usually thrived on freedom, felt handcuffed by his managerial style. Another saving grace for Benitez in the eyes of Liverpool fans is the memorable purchase of Fernando Torres, a player who has already burnt his name into the hearts of Liverpool fans for ever more due to his unsurpassable scoring record and seemingly endless dedication to his club’s cause.

This signing was not down to good scouting and definitely not good managing. Torres always supported Liverpool as a child, and his quality was unquestionable with it being common knowledge that Sir Alex Ferguson had approaches rebuffed in each of the two close seasons before Torres finally joined Liverpool. That said, even with such world class players such as Gerrard and Torres, Benitez supplemented this quality with players that genuinely lacked quality; he spent poorly.

The nail in the proverbial coffin in my view was his treatment of Xabi Alonso, one of the few buys that had made Liverpool a far better team. By attempting to offload Alonso and buying a player that by no means is as technically gifted as Alonso, Gareth Barry, and then refusing to pay the fee demanded of him was ultimately Benitez’s downfall. Alonso made Liverpool tick, his incredible passing range was envied by every club in Europe and rightly so. Alonso predictably moved on to Real Madrid and Gareth Barry never arrived, prompting Benitez into a clear and idiotic panic buy, Alberto Aquilani.

Aquilani’s class cannot be denied but he arrived on the back of a season plagued by injuries and even carrying an injury that delayed his Anfield debut by four months. Benitez in short, was too stubborn to ever succeed, he never accepted when he was wrong, something that was depicted in his mad rant about ‘Facts’ when Liverpool were in the driving seat in the league title race and conceivably were on course to gaining their first title in 20 years.

Last season’s 7th position was overdue, with Liverpool over reliant on the more often absent Torres and ageing Gerrard. Something had to give, Gerrard simply couldn’t keep carrying Liverpool on his own. And so out went Rafa, and in came Roy on the back of an incredible season with Fulham. Straight away the grumbles came from the Kop: “He’s too old” , “One good season and he’s ready for the biggest job in the world?” The fact is, Roy Hodgson has a wealth of experience in football, he has managed in Finland, Switzerland, Sweden and Italy and has been successful in each.

Under Benitez there was no player communication, certainly none positive, despite him buying players that seemed to need his arm around them, telling them they were doing well. Football players are a hugely temperamental bunch and sometimes if you excuse the wording, just need ‘a bit of loving’. Something that displays this lack of compassion in Benitez is Ryan Babel, a player that arrived on Merseyside as Holland’s greatest prospect. In Liverpool’s match against Tottenham Hotspur towards the end of last season, Ryan Babel hadn’t played two games in succession for 11 months. How can a young player develop and progress when he knows he won’t be playing in the next game, no matter what his performance?

Ok, Babel has underperformed in comparison to his billing, but nobody can say he didn’t have one good game in those 11 months? Roy Hodgson in this sense is the perfect fit for Liverpool and the group of players he has inherited because he is the precise opposite to Benitez in his man to man management style. He WILL talk to the players, he WILL tell them when they are playing well and more importantly he will give players such as Gerrard and Torres the freedom to express themselves. When Liverpool succeeded under Benitez it was almost as if the players had decided against his will, to play their own style of football. Not the restricted and overly tactical way Rafa set out his teams. Roy needs time, which is something Anfield boards have always given, and in the short weeks since he has been in the job, he has already steadied the considerably rocky but glorious ship that Liverpool Football Club is.