On Alberto Aquilani's Exit

So much for the hope that Aquilani would get a chance to shine with Cole suspended for the next three league games.

It didn't take long for Hodgson to decide Aquilani wasn't in his plans, and it didn't take long for Juventus to leap at the opportunity of getting a talented Italian on loan (if he passes his medical, naturally). That Liverpool statement unsurprisingly doesn't mention the details, but rumor is Juventus will pay all of his wages and have the option of buying the player for €15m at the end of the season. For some reason, I doubt they'll be ponying up that amount, but hope somehow still springs eternal.

Having more than a day to react to the news, which broke after the Trabzonspor match, has massively diminished my initial anger. I'm still not happy Alberto won't get a chance to prove his worth, but if he's not in Hodgson's plans, he's not in Hodgson's plans. There's truth in Roy's words about how Aquilani needs to be a regular starter to regain any semblance of consistent form, and that wasn't going to happen here. We can argue whether that's down to the player's inability to stay fit, an inability to settle in England and cope with the pressure, not wanting to be here after Benitez left, or ill-conceived promises to Joe Cole that he'll always be first choice to play behind the striker, but we'll probably never know for sure (and it's probably a melange of all four). We did see signs that this was coming when Benitez hesitated to use Aquilani last season despite reports that his ankle was fully healed and with the manager's neck already in the guillotine.

I'd obviously feel a lot better if Liverpool recouped some of the £18m paid for the player, but this is a "safer" way to try and make more money off him. No one's paying anywhere near that after last season, and €15m would be a good deal if Juventus takes it up in June. But let's not pretend this loan is to get him match fitness for an eventual return; another year in Serie A will do nothing to help him adapt to English football. If he goes to Italy, he's never coming back. Just pray he stays fit and thrives there.

Regardless of the circumstances, and this being a necessary evil, I'm still disappointed. I think he's a clever, creative attacking midfielder – arguably more suited to playing behind the striker than Joe Cole (that's another debate) – that we've still yet to see given a chance. In limited (extremely limited) action last season (26 appearances, 13 starts), Aquilani managed to create the second-most direct assists in the league (third-most in all competitions) with six, in addition to his goals against Portsmouth and Atletico. According to OPTA, Aquilani set up a goal every 136 minutes, which was the best assist rate in the top five European leagues. He was magnificent against Pompey and Burnley – admittedly not the toughest opposition, but magnificent nonetheless. He eventually showed signs of linking up well with both Gerrard and Torres in an advanced position. Now he'll go down as one of Liverpool's bigger transfer flops. But, news flash, to be a flop, you actually have to be given a chance to perform. Even if he never comes back, Aquilani's still got nothing on Keane or Diouf in this department. But, if this is truly the end, he was still a flop, and Benitez paid for the move with his job (among other reasons Rafa was shoved out).

I can't help but think there's conspiracy afoot – as usual – whether it's the cleaning out of Benitez's "projects" or Aquilani demanding a move home despite his (and his agent's) public pronouncements. Maybe the new Sports Medicine department is completely unconvinced about his fitness (again, despite public pronouncements), but that's even more of an argument for selling now before he absolutely falls apart. There's clearly something we're not being told. Whatever it is, it's not reassuring for the health of the club or the depth of the squad. But what else is new?

An already thin squad, especially at the sharp end of the pitch, just got thinner, and Liverpool didn't get any money to buy a replacement. Two of Liverpool's most creative players from last season – Benayoun and Aquilani – are now gone, and Jovanovic and Joe Cole seem the like-for-like replacements at best in a team consistently lacking inspiration. The midfield's now made up of Mascherano, Lucas, and Poulsen as holding players, and Gerrard and Cole as creative sparks. When the Kop was blasting out choruses of "we've got the best midfield in the world" two years ago, it leaves more than a little to be desired and is a more than apt description of how the American owners' lack of funds have ravaged the playing squad.

Let's hope this means many more chances for Dani Pacheco, who can play in a similar position, if obviously further forward. And Mascherano better be staying or else the midfield will be beyond demoralizing.

Liverpool's Strongest XI

I was such a big fan of the 4-2-3-1 with Gerrard as a second striker/in a free role because it seemed to get the best of out Gerrard and Torres. That and it led to Liverpool nearly winning the league. But after how this season's gone, we rightfully have to wonder if that's consistently possible without Alonso.

The idea appeared to be that, while not a direct replacement, Aquilani would play in a 'similar' position to Alonso in the 4-2-3-1 when fit. Maybe he just hasn't been fit until recently, but I think he's shone in the "Gerrard role," whether it's been Torres, Kuyt, Ngog, or Babel up top (obviously to varying degrees of success based on the striker).

Rafa's been reluctant to play Aquilani deeper in midfield, even after he received a clean bill of health, and especially in "tough" matches. He didn't impress in the position against Fiorentina in December or Reading in January, and was left on the bench throughout the winter. But we started to see the change when Liverpool faced Spurs at the end of January, winning 2-0, with the first goal set up because Aquilani was further up the pitch.

But he's been increasingly pushed further forward, and he's looked increasingly dangerous in the position, especially against Atletico, Burnley, and Portsmouth, tallying 2 goals and 4 assists in those two games. With only seven starts and nine substitute appearances in the league, he has Liverpool's second-highest Premiership assist total with six. Only Gerrard has more – seven – with Insua, Benayoun, and Johnson on five. But for all his clever, close passing, sometimes it doesn't come off, and potentially goal-conceding giveaways tend to concede less goals when the ball's given away higher up the pitch.

That leads to the contentious Gerrard in central midfield debate. Is it his best position or not? Benitez seemed happiest with second striker, Capello plays him on the left for England. Still, there a few sights more pleasing to Liverpool fans than trademark Gerrard lung-busters and blasts from deep. Like when he played on the right in '05-06, what's best for the team and what's best for Gerrard might not necessarily be harmonious.

There's space for Lucas in this formation whether he's partnering Mascherano or Gerrard. He's been too much of a scapegoat as it is this season, which is why his two fantastic assists in the last two games have been welcomed. And he's shown more in both attack and defense as the season's gone on. But with Gerrard, Mascherano, and Aquilani on form, he's the odd man out, unless, of course, Mascherano's forced into right back.

Maxi, Benayoun, and Babel have all looked better of late with Aquilani in a more advanced position. His quick passing allows those smaller, clever players to dice through a rigid defense, leading to goals like Maxi's against Burnley and Aquilani's yesterday. Torres and Babel also linked up excellently against the likes of Lille, Pompey, and Sunderland before El Niño was ruled out for the rest of the season.

Kuyt/Maxi on the right and Babel/Benayoun on the left are still a lot stronger than most teams' flanks. But that Babel and Benayoun are primarily right-footed still leads me to believe that left wing is the most important upgrade needed over the summer – yes, that drum again – although I'm well aware that left-back and another striker are fairly key as well.

However, the above still looks like a fairly strong side to me, no matter this season's results. Which makes me wonder why Benitez (and Torres, and Gerrard) are talking about 'four or five' new players when all three know how tight money is. A winger, a back-up striker, and a left-back, in addition to continuing promising youngsters like Shelvey and Sterling, is what my shopping list would entail, even in the best of circumstances.

Last night aptly demonstrated Liverpool's squad isn't deep enough, but you have to remember how many players were missing: Torres, Skrtel, Insua, Aurelio, Kelly, Ngog, and Riera. That's a full bench, and even a couple of those players would have helped Liverpool's lack of depth last night. Plus, the likes of Pacheco, Shelvey, and possibly Nemeth and others, might be ready to make the leap into the first team.

Maybe my questionable optimism is misplaced. Chances are I think this squad is better than it actually is. And I'm well aware how bad this season's been. But are Liverpool really that far away? You're telling me the line-up at the top of the page couldn't challenge for the league with one or two more signings and a far better injury record?

I don't understand this game sometimes.

(FYI: Preview for Sunday's match v Chelsea will be late tonight or early tomorrow.)

On Aquilani “versus” Lucas

Yep, can't help myself. It's the big talking point after yesterday's win.

It's simplistic, but the main difference between Lucas and Aquilani seemed the type of passes they look to play. I'm approximating for effect, but something like 2 out of 5 Lucas passes push the ball upfield (a big reason why his pass attempts and completion rate are so high). It was about 4 of 5 from Aqua yesterday.

Seeing Liverpool intent on getting the ball into the opposition half and perpetually moving towards goal is something we've all been rightfully clamoring for. The tactic worked a peach against Portsmouth, and I wish we had seen similar against the likes of Wolves and Wigan, even if both were away from Anfield. The direness in attack has demonstrated Benitez needs to remove the shackles since the defense has settled. But it won't work in every game, as much as we'd all love for Liverpool to set the tone and tempo every time out.

I can't help comparing yesterday's team to Liverpool's 5-1 win over Newcastle in December 2008. That line-up was:

Reina
Carragher Agger Hyypia Insua
Lucas Mascherano
Benayoun Gerrard Babel
Kuyt

Lucas and Mascherano holding, Kuyt as a lone striker, and Carragher instead of Johnson at right back. And yet Liverpool still scored five. I wouldn't have wanted to see that team yesterday, and Newcastle's defense was even worse than Pompey's on that day (especially on set plays), but it's worth noting that system's brought goals in the past (and a similar XI, albeit with Torres up top, featured in the 4-1 win over the Mancs).

Yesterday's line-up, with an equally emphatic scoreline against a team bound for the Championship, looked completely different. I wrote it up as 4-1-4-1 in my match review, even if Aquilani was a deep-lying playmaker almost in the vein of (say it quietly) Alonso at times. But he demonstrated far more off the ball movement and attacking verve (and much less, albeit unnecessary, defensive aptitude); this is an enjoyable compilation of his match. It's exceptionally early days, but Aquilani looked most like a bigger Paul Scholes.

But just because Aquilani was an absolute pleasure to watch yesterday doesn't mean Lucas is a bad player or Liverpool can't win with Lucas/Mascherano in midfield. The two aren't relative or reciprocal. Both Lucas and Aquilani have roles to fill and can succeed at the club.

Liverpool's found it difficult to break down sides with the usual 4-2-3-1 where it worked a treat last season. Whether that's down to Liverpool injuries (most significantly to Torres), poor individual performances, Alonso's exit, more conservative tactics from Benitez, or the opposition figuring the system out is for someone smarter than I to deduce (although my guess is it's a bit from each). This obviously could be a remedy.

Thursday's match against Lille will be an excellent barometer for any longer-term tactical changes. I don't want to take any steam out of the preview I'll write tomorrow, but we should learn a bit about the team and the rest of the season. It's a European match, so you'd expect Liverpool to be cagey, but they need a goal. But they also have to be more cautious than against Pompey as Lille have the pieces to pose a huge threat on the counter (Hazard, Frau, Cabaye, Obraniak). However, even though Liverpool play three games in six days during this crucial stretch, that the team played its best football in months on Monday will hopefully be the overriding factor.

Either way, it'll be interesting. It's a European night at Anfield.

Different games, different midfields

In the midst of the Alonso summer saga, I posted the results from different midfield pairings. Lucas/Mascherano’s line looked like this:

6 wins, 4 draws
2-0 West Brom, 3-0 West Ham, 4-1 United, 1-1 City, 1-1 Wigan, 0-0 Stoke, 5-1 Newcastle, 3-1 PSV [4-4-2], 0-0 Fulham [4-4-2], 2-1 Marseille

Let’s ignore the PSV and Fulham games because of the 4-4-2 formation in Gerrard’s absence (and Torres’ against PSV). So you have romps over United and Newcastle, two decent late-season wins when the entire team was in blistering form, three uninspiring draws, and a tough win in Marseille. This season, the pairing started against Spurs, Stoke, Villa, Bolton, West Ham, Chelsea, Lyon, and United (4 wins, 4 losses).

Those results, coupled with yesterday’s enormous win, reiterate a lingering suspicion many have voiced. Mascherano and Lucas are a good pairing against teams that match Liverpool in possession and tempo. Ferguson fed into Liverpool hands by selecting a lightweight midfield in Scholes and Carrick (United definitely missed the injured Fletcher), but yesterday’s was the type of game in which Mascherano and Lucas thrive.

Unfortunately, two-thirds of the Premiership doesn’t play like that against Liverpool. The Newcastle mauling was more of an aberration against a side in dire straights, while very few teams were able to knock Liverpool off its stride at the end of last season, let alone West Ham or Albion.

On his day, Mascherano is a beast of a midfielder. He is utterly relentless when the opposition’s on the ball, hassles and harries with the best of them, and can man-mark the likes of Kaka out of existence. Let’s just say his attacking qualities aren’t as developed. Lucas is underrated – decent at a lot of things, but not a standout in any area – and still quite young for the position. He’s energetic (a quality Benitez adores), ticks over play, rarely loses possession, and can get from box to box. But despite how I hate how he’s a main scapegoat, this isn’t solely a defense of the player. He’s not a creative force, not a scruff-of-the-neck midfielder, like what Gerrard built his reputation upon. Of course, he’s also 22.

In games like those against West Ham and West Brom last season, as well as the Hammers and Bolton this season, the pairing suffices when Liverpool’s firing, but the creativity often comes from other sources. And when the other players, especially in attack, are underperforming, neither Mascherano nor Lucas can change proceedings. See: Spurs, Villa, and Lyon.

Which is where Alberto Aquilani, whose debut should take place soon, comes in.

We saw it in the Lucas/Gerrard pairing against Burnley and Hull – 4-0 and 6-1 wins – which worked well, but was probably a stopgap given how Gerrard and Torres combine upfront. Mascherano’s forte isn’t needed against the bus parkers. If Lucas isn’t picking up silly fouls, he can be an even more effective defensive midfielder in those games because of his aerial ability, which is how a lot of those teams attack Liverpool. And his versatility next to the likes of Gerrard gives Liverpool far more threat than that of Mascherano. The attacking capabilities of Aquilani should mix well with Lucas’ in those games.

So what does this mean for the future? If everyone’s fit, the team should continue to be built around the Gerrard/Torres attacking partnership. Mascherano, Lucas, and Aquilani would interchange in central midfield depending on the opposition.

Against the likes of Stoke and Burnley, it’ll be Lucas and Aquilani. Against the Uniteds and Chelseas, Benitez will probably go with Lucas and Mascherano. And against the rest – the mid-table opposition, the deceptively difficult away games – we’ll get the balanced Mascherano/Aquilani partnership: one defends, one attacks, and ideally in better proportion than Lucas and Mascherano. More balanced than Mascherano/Alonso as well, which was too defensive for some games last season.

Again, I worry that I’m building Aquilani up into an unreachable paragon, but what Benitez has in mind, and the reasons for gambling over Aquilani's fitness, seems evident.

For the love of God, don’t call him Aquaman

The main reason I hate writing during the transfer window is it prompts even more uninformed opinion than usual. I try to have at least some observation and statistics to back up my other “analysis.”

Consequently, I’m hesitant to write too much about Alberto Aquilani or define the player before he plays for Liverpool. I simply haven’t seen enough of him, let alone the unknown that surrounds every foreign player coming to the Premiership.

However, and unsurprisingly, I’ve got a few thoughts and concerns.

• The first option, with a minimum of fuss. This deal was announced one day after Alonso’s sale. One day. I don’t think Rick Parry completed a single task in a day. Granted, this was obviously in the works given Alonso’s protracted saga (which, the more I read, the more I’m convinced took so long because Benitez was fully content to wait until Madrid succumbed to the asking price), but there was no hesitation once the Spaniard was sold. Rafa picks a player, Rafa gets the player. That buys Aquilani a lot of leeway with me.

• Aquilani plays further forward than Alonso. I touched upon this in earlier speculation, and all that I’ve read, the YouTube video’s I’ve subjected myself to, Benitez’s recent comments, and that different looking 4-1-4-1 in the last friendly make me suspect it even more. Aquilani seems likely to force some sort of change in tactics. I assume he will play deeper for Liverpool than he did for Rome, in an attempt to give him that much more time on the ball before he’s closed down, but some change is likely. And this isn’t a season where Liverpool will have much time or patience for experimentation.

• Yes, I’ve seen his appearance record too. League appearances with Roma (since ’04-05): 29, 24, 13, 21, 14. Some of that is down to having Totti, De Rossi, and Pizzaro in front of him, but he has a reputation for being frequently injured. As he’s recovering from ankle surgery now, we’re not likely to see him play until September at best. We’ll see how his medical goes, but Benitez hasn’t been afraid to take a gamble on players with a “history” of injuries – Aurelio and Degen pop immediately to mind. However, and it’s a rather big however, both of those were free transfers. This deal falls somewhere between £15-20m. A slight discrepancy. How much you worry probably depends on how much you trust Rafa, but despite my sycophancy, I’m still wary.

• It’s a small sample, but… Liverpool hasn’t had the best history with Italians, although that includes all of two players over 107 years. Reserve goalkeeper Daniele Padelli’s stint in ’06-07 was ignominious at best – a lone start in the last game against an already-relegated Charlton saw the stopper concede twice in a 2-2 draw. Dossena seemed all but on his way out before Aurelio’s injury, and even afterward, rumors of a deal with Napoli appeared around the same time as Arbeloa’s sale. But now I really don’t expect him to be sold. I’ve no idea if the two are friendly off the pitch (having both played for the national team), but as an American who’s lived abroad, I can attest that it’s nice to have a countryman around sometimes.

So, welcome to Liverpool, Alberto. Make us dream.