Reaching the Benchmark
Over the past few seasons I’ve always felt Liverpool’s squad was strong, and that maybe all we needed was a player or two with an extra touch of class to drive us forward.
However, looking at our teams for the opening two games one of the most noticeable things has been the strength of the players left out of the starting eleven. For our game against Toulouse, our bench read: Itandje, Agger, Riise, Torres, Alonso, Kuyt, Sissoko. Jermaine Pennant had been left back home. On Saturday against Aston Villa, three of yesterday’s starters (Mascherano, Crouch and Benayoun) were left at home as we went chasing our first league win of the season.
Manchester United benefitted last season from a great injury free run for most of the season. Whether or not we now have those players with the extra bit of quality to win us the title, we look stronger than ever in terms of the ability to cope with any injury crisis that should hit, which can only be good news for the upcoming season.