They – whoever they are – say time heals all wounds, and that certainly seemed to be the case at Anfield during the All-Star Charity game at Anfield. Two players who’d engineered moves away from Liverpool in the past; Fernando Torres & Luis Suarez, received tremendous receptions from the Kop as they made their appearance into the game at half time.
The reception for both was great to see and hear, but it also left a strange taste in my mouth.
Don’t get me wrong, I completely understand the welcomes that the two strikers received, after all, what’s the point in spewing bile and hate towards an ex-player? What exactly does it achieve?
However as I walked down Utting Avenue after the game, I couldn’t help but think of two things, both of which make me feel a little bit sad about the current state of Liverpool Football Club.
Firstly, having seen and heard the receptions that both Torres and Suarez as well as the likes of Xabi Alonso, Luis Garcia and Pepe Reina received, I began to think if Liverpool fans hold any of the current team in the same regard, and ultimately it became clear that – Steven Gerrard aside – we don’t.
I thought that maybe it was down to success, after all Alonso & Garcia deserve such adulation after what they did in Istanbul and the games leading to that final. However, as good as Reina, Torres and Suarez were, they didn’t lead Liverpool to a League or European title, despite getting close on a couple of occasions.
I completely understand that all three were great players for Liverpool – arguably the best in the world in their positions during their time at Anfield, and like I said, I completely get why the fans love them. I just think it’s a shame that we don’t seem to love our current players in the same way. I guess it just comes down to the fact that the current crop of Liverpool players simply aren’t as good as the ones we’ve seen leave in recent years. That makes me sad. We currently have a squad full of young players with the potential to be great, yet I think we only have one truly world class player in Daniel Sturridge, but his inability to stay on the field means he hasn’t really had a chance to establish himself as a true Kop icon.
I also think that Liverpool fans tend to find it difficult to really love English players who aren’t from Liverpool. Put a Scouser, Celt or a foreigner in the Red shirt and if they perform to a high standard, The Kop seem to fall in love. Put a lad from Birmingham or London in the same position and sure they get appreciated, but do they get truly adored? I’d argue not.
This isn’t a criticism as such, just an observation. Hopefully Brendan Rodgers’ current group can go on to achieve major success to buck this trend.
Secondly, I couldn’t help but feel a bit sad that Liverpool have found themselves in a position where it’s now deemed acceptable that a player can leave to go on to bigger things. There should be no bigger than Liverpool. Liverpool should be the pinnacle. Yet Liverpool aren’t.
It’s logical to everybody why players want to leave our club now. Other clubs can offer the money and success that Liverpool simply can’t. That makes me sad.
When Torres left for Chelsea, we all felt let down, but from his point of view he moved to a club that offered him more money and the chance to win the major honours that we seemed incapable of challenging for. Looking back, it makes sense why he made that move. That makes me sad too.
This might sound simplistic, and it probably is, but I want Liverpool to be the team taking players from other sides.
Sure, last year’s title challenge was great, but it’s left me wanting more. I want that feeling in late April and May every season. Challenging for fourth and winning the odd domestic cup shouldn’t satisfy us. We aren’t Arsenal. We’re Liverpool.
I’m not here to dissect everything that’s preventing us from having that continued success; that’s not my job. That’s the job of the powers-that-be at Anfield. I just hope that they, as well as our supporters, don’t begin classing mediocrity as success. We’re better than that. Or at least we should be.
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