1. Our editor, Ste Hoare, is obsessed with Colin Pascoe’s shorts. How brilliant are they and are there any better short wearers?
First of all, I should admit that shorts and myself have an uncomfortable relationship. There are goalposts that are less white than my legs so the less my lower limbs are seen in public the better it is for everyone.
So I feel a bit unqualified to comment on Colin Pascoe and his shorts except to say that someone of his vintage would be better off wearing trousers. A nice pair of Farah slacks would do the trick.
In terms of better short wearers I can think of a few. Come to think of it, it’s been a while since I watched Kylie’s Spinning Around video. *Goes on YouTube*
2. How would you sum up Liverpool’s season so far?
Not good enough. Meandering in mid-table and going out of the cup competitions early is not what Liverpool Football Club is supposed to be about. Brendan Rodgers himself has admitted that by Liverpool’s standards it can’t be regarded as a good season and he’s right. The hope is that this is a period in which methods will be honed and players are either developed or disregarded but whether the process of change Liverpool are going through has actually benefitted them will only become clear in the seasons to come.
3. What are your thoughts on Brendan Rodgers? Have they changed since he was appointed?
I was unconvinced when he got the job and I’m still unconvinced now. This isn’t a criticism and it shouldn’t be regarded as one. I just think in football these days too many people are too eager to be proved right about a manager, that he’s either good enough or not good enough, and that every contrasting result is used to suit either agenda. When Rodgers took over last summer he had a lot to prove and we’re only eight months on from his appointment so it conforms to logic that he still has much to prove.
In terms of his first season, it definitely isn’t Hodgson abject but it also isn’t Dalglish (the 85/86 version) brilliant. He’s revealed his own potential but he’s also shown that he still has a great deal to learn. Again, this is to be expected. If you appoint a young manager who is going to gain experience and learn on the job, you have to allow him the time to do that. For me, it’s still too early to pass any kind of definitive judgement.
4. To what extent are the problems Liverpool are facing now a consequence of the previous ownership?
That goes without question. My real fear is that in the decades to come people could look back on the Hicks & Gillett era as the one that ultimately cost Liverpool their place in the elite. Someone at Liverpool said to me recently that the previous owners detonated a nuclear bomb at the heart of the club and the fallout is still being dealt with. That process is still going on and it is a long, long way back for Liverpool to become competitive again.
5. Are FSG introducing a model that will allow Liverpool to compete in the short term, or is it more of a long term structure under the Americans?
Time will tell if it will allow Liverpool to compete in either the short term or the long term. There is a definitive model in place and that has to be a good thing after the constant changes of direction in recent years but it’s too early to call it either way.
6. With Carragher retiring and Coates and Skrtel seemingly leaving, who will Rodgers bring in to fill the void at centre back? Dede, Williams and De Vrij have all been linked. Are these realistic targets?
Williams is probably the most realistic target. De Vrij has been scouted throughout this season but Williams is first choice as things stand. The problem is several clubs are in the market for a centre back this summer and Liverpool won’t be the only ones pursuing him.
7. Luis Suarez is a world-class player and numerous clubs will want him come the summer. Can you realistically see Liverpool being able to keep him for much longer?
I always think the kind of situation that Suarez and Liverpool are currently in doesn’t actually depend on them as much as people think. Suarez isn’t desperate to leave and Liverpool aren’t looking to sell. The concern is that everything could change if an elite club (Real Madrid, Barcelona, Bayern Munich) makes a significant offer. If that happens then Suarez’s loyalty will be tested.
As things stand I can see Suarez giving Liverpool another season but it’s hard to expect one of the best players in the world to stay any longer than that if Champions League football isn’t secured in that time-frame.
8. George Sephton told us that the atmosphere at Anfield will never return to how it used to be. Do you think this is the case?
George has been going to Anfield for a lot longer than I have and he’s also a lot more knowledgeable than me so I’m not going to argue with him. In truth, there isn’t a ground in the country that is as atmospheric as it once was. The rising cost of match tickets, all-seater stadia, the gentrification of football fans and the barriers that are placed in the way of young people attending games is not a good combination if you value atmosphere.
Anfield can and will still have its moments and it is important to remember that not every game in the past was as raucous as Inter Milan, St Etienne or Auxerre. But the games when you leave the stadium feeling blown away by the atmosphere are becoming few and far between. That’s sad but there doesn’t seem any appetite to improve things so I suppose we best get used to it.
9. This year we have seen some of our young players get a chance in the first team. If the squad size does increase in the summer, will some of these players get the chance to go out on loan?
In theory, this should happen. In practice, it may not be that straightforward. The likes of Suso, Jack Robinson and Jonathan Flanagan were rewarded for their progress into the first team and their salaries would be beyond the means of many clubs outside of the Premier League. That might mean Liverpool having to subsidise their wages if the club wants them to go and build up their experience elsewhere. It’s also difficult to find clubs who would actually benefit their development. There would be no point in Suso, for example, going somewhere where they play anything but a possession based game because he needs to be part of a team, like Liverpool, in which passing football isn’t just an objective, it is a set way of playing.
10. Finally, who has the better hair – Suso or Borini?
As with the shorts question, I’m on thin (very thin!) ice answering this one. Given my losing battle with a receding hairline I’m going to say that the best hairstyles are the ones with less hair. Johnny Metgod (younger readers will need to look him up on Google images) knew how to carry off the follicly challenged look and I also admire Andy Johnson in that respect.
