It’s pretty much common knowledge that Brendan Rodgers told Stewart Downing that he could leave Liverpool in January. Downing’s play was inconsistent at best, and with youngsters like Raheem Sterling and Suso performing well when given a chance, Rodgers probably thought he could earn some money and free up some space on the wage bill by letting Downing go. When the news broke that Stewart could leave, it hardly caused an uproar from Liverpool fans. Stewart was one of the players who the fans were blaming for everything being wrong with Liverpool’s season and squad. Many questioned his ability, skill and, most of all, his nerve. Downing had shown glimpses of his true talent in a red shirt; he put in a man of the match performance in last year’s League Cup final and had performed well at left back in the Europa League group games. However when you spend a reported £20M on a player, fans want more than glimpses. His price tag was used as a tool to beat him (as it has been with Jordan Henderson and Andy Carroll), and that was unfair.
Stewart Downing didn’t ask for Liverpool to pay £20M for him, that was the choice of the club back in 2011. I think we’d all agree that Liverpool did overpay for players at that time, but that’s not the players fault – the club were the ones who agreed the deal. Having said that, regardless of the fee it was clear that Downing hadn’t played anywhere near to his best at Liverpool and it was looking like time (and patience) had finally run out and Stewart would be moving on.
Things have changed since January. Stewart stayed at the club and his performances have improved. Perhaps this conversation was the kick up the backside that Stewart needed? Maybe his performances have been his way of proving Brendan Rodgers wrong? If that’s the case then I, for one, will be a bit disappointed in Downing. Don’t get me wrong, it’s great to see a player in a Liverpool shirt playing well, but I’d hope that wearing that shirt is motivation enough to perform. The fact that we have to threaten a player before he performs doesn’t sit well with me.
Having said that, we don’t know all of the reasons behind Stewart’s improvement so it is difficult to form a clear opinion. What we do know is that we now have two strikers who look to be in very good form, and that means Stewart will hopefully be able to create and score more goals. Whether he stays in the summer or not, I think we’re all glad to see what looks like the player Liverpool thought they were getting when they paid a big fee back in 2011.
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