That’s Liverpool’s hopes of securing a top four finish done and dusted then; after Manchester United slipped up to Everton at the weekend, the Reds had a perfect opportunity to steal a march on their bitterest rivals, but their lethargic display at the KC Stadium will almost certainly cost them a place in Europe’s elite club competition.
In front of an away end littered with empty seats, the Anfield outfit floundered once again. Philippe Coutinho and Mario Balotelli both had chances to break the deadlock as the visitors enjoyed the lion’s share of possession throughout the first half, but it was a header from Michael Dawson on the back of his perfectly timed run that sent the home supporters into a frenzy. Glen Johnson, who ambled through much of the 90-minutes, produced a scintillating run as the opening period petered out, but his tempting ball across the face of goal couldn’t find a friendly foot to get on the end of it — a passage of play that’s fitting enough to sum up this season.
The Tigers, it would seem, have our number. Though it hardly makes up for today’s display, one would do well to forget that we lost on this ground last season as well with a performance somewhat reminiscent of today. It was a bit of history repeating itself with our hosts allowing us to knock the ball about and control it in our own half, but keeping us well marshaled in dangerous areas, packing the channels and doing just about everything they could to keep us frustrated.
It worked last winter and it worked again this spring; not that we did all too much to upset their plans. After the poor displays against Aston Villa in the FA Cup and West Bromwich Albion at the weekend, you’d think there’d be some sort of shake-up, but it wasn’t forthcoming. If nothing else, it just re-enforced how poor we are without a striker that’s able to provide some movement up top.
Unfortunately, that’s not getting fixed anytime soon. With Daniel Sturridge likely ruled out for the remainder of the season, our problems in front of net aren’t going to be solved before the end of the season — and even if they were, it’s not like we really have anything besides pride left to play for. With the promise of Champions League football now fallen by the wayside, it’s hard to dodge the fact that this season has been an unmitigated disaster.
Like I said earlier, Johnson’s effort at the end of the first half sums it all up nicely with all the build-up and expectation getting ruined when you realize there’s no one there willing to step-up and follow through on it. Maybe our expectations were too high after last year’s near miss, and despite all the very real, very understandable mitigating factors that have contributed to our poor form this time around, it’s still hard not to feel let down.
Really, the only way to avoid talking about it is to stop typing; so, I think it’s about time I did just that.
–Steven
