THE term ‘crisis club’ has certainly been doing the rounds in this season’s Premier League.
First it was Arsenal, for whom obituaries were written in the wake of a sluggish start to the campaign. Arsene Wenger’s past glories were never likely to calm the vultures while Manchester United were busy smashing eight goals past his side.
Then there was Blackburn, where supporter dissent towards manager Steve Kean reached new levels of vitriol throughout a surreal autumn, and Sunderland, whose poor form saw Steve Bruce sacked as manager before he could unwrap his Christmas presents.
Chelsea had a go, too. Andre Villas-Boas had been built up so high, it was inevitable he would come crashing down once results started to go against him.
Now, the wheel has stopped on Liverpool.
It shouldn’t come as too much of a surprise to see the Reds in the firing line. February’s Carling Cup win brought a welcome end to six years’ worth of trophy drought, but in the league the negative statistics are piling up.
Liverpool currently sit below neighbours Everton, their recent run of six defeats in seven league games is the club’s worst sequence for 59 years, while they have won just five of 15 home league games, and managed to drop significant points to four of the bottom five clubs over the past four months.
But there is always somebody worse off than yourself, and on Saturday Kenny Dalglish’s side run into another of the Premier League’s under-fire sides, as Aston Villa visit Anfield.
Villa’s ‘crisis’ is far more conspicuous; Alex McLeish’s men are just five points above the relegation zone, having won just two of their last 11 league games. Only Wigan Athletic, in 19th, have managed fewer league goals.
Ray Houghton knows a thing or two about both clubs. The former Republic of Ireland international spent five highly-successful seasons with Liverpool after signing from Oxford United in 1987, before moving on to enjoy three years at Villa as the Premier League era dawned.
Now a respected television and radio pundit, he has watched the struggles of two of his former clubs at close quarters in recent weeks.
Not that he would describe either as being at crisis level just yet.
“You go through spells like this in football,” says Houghton. “When you’re winning, everybody loves you, and when you’re not you get stick.
“Football coverage is blanket now. The internet is a constant, you have television, rolling news, radio phone-ins. Fans, pundits, people like myself, we all have our points of view, and there are plenty of places to air them. That is just part and parcel of modern football.
“I’m not surprised at the criticism that has been coming Kenny’s way of late. And he won’t be either. As manager of Liverpool, your job is to win games. If you aren’t, then stick will inevitably come.”
Houghton rejects the idea that Liverpool’s league form this season has been all bad – “for much of the season they have been playing decent football without getting the results they deserve,” he says – but believes there are confidence issues which need addressing at Anfield.
“When you are losing games, it dents you,” he says. “You can try too hard sometimes to put things right, and do things that don’t come naturally; try the risky pass or the ambitious shot.
“Luckily, when I was at Liverpool we had coaches like Roy Evans and Ronnie Moran. If I was having a bad run, Roy would say ‘just give it to the nearest red shirt’. We were always coached not to over-complicate things, and it is amazing how quickly that confidence can come back if you do a few simple things right.
“Kenny, I’m sure, will be working hard with his coaches to get the players back to basics. It is through hard work and restoring a bit of confidence and belief that Liverpool will get through this run of form.”
At Villa, of course, the issues are a little more serious. Underachievement is one thing, relegation is another. Demotion to the Championship would be a disaster at a club which recently announced record annual losses of £54m.
Manager Alex McLeish, who left Midland rivals Birmingham to succeed Gerard Houllier in the summer, was an unpopular appointment from the word go. Nine months on, there has been little to suggest that supporters’ fears were misplaced.
“Alex McLeish took on a really tough job when he went to Aston Villa,” says Houghton. “Not only was he moving from Birmingham to Villa, a move that was never likely to go down well with supporters, but he had the added problem of seeing Stewart Downing and Ashley Young, the side’s two best players, leave the club in the summer.
“Add to that injuries to the likes of Darren Bent and Richard Dunne, and it is easy to see why they have had such problems all season long.”
He adds: “There is always one team that gets dragged unexpectedly into the relegation fight, and I do have my fears for Villa.
“It’s a shame to see them struggling, because I have great memories of my time at Villa. It’s a big club, one that should be challenging up in the top half of the table.”
As, of course, should Liverpool. Houghton, though, says judgement on the Reds’ campaign should be reserved until the season’s end.
“That is the time to reflect,” he says. “The current run hasn’t been great, but at the end of the day Liverpool could end the season seventh or seventh, and with two trophies in the cabinet. If that is a bad season, then we look forward to a good one!”
Shut the fu'ck up Aldo!
