TOMKINS: THERE WILL BE NO REPEAT OF 2002
Paul Tomkins 26 May 2009

Enough points to win the league on numerous occasions, the best goal difference, the top scorers, unbeaten at home and the fewest-ever defeats for a team who weren’t crowned champions.
If you can't see the positives about 2009-10 (and more are listed in the excellent 28 reasons why Reds should be proud piece on the official site), I can't imagine where you're looking.
But of course, it still reads 'runners-up' and even that high-water mark is registered for only the second time in 17 years. However, despite some people drawing the obvious conclusions, I see absolutely no reason to expect a repeat of what happened the last time Liverpool finished 2nd in the league. While the summer of 2002 should serve as a reminder to any team that annual progression isn't automatic, that doesn't mean there are any parallels between then and now. The problem wasn't so much the players signed in 2002 –– although they proved pretty disastrous –– as those who left the club. Liverpool lost Robbie Fowler, Gary McAllister, Nick Barmy, Jamie Redknapp, Christian Ziege, Jari Litmanen and Nicolas Anelka over the course, or at the end of that season, while Markus Babbel's unfortunate illness meant he'd played his last game for the Reds, having settled brilliantly in the Treble season. While some of those players were past their best, injury prone or had simply failed to shine, there still appears an impressive cachet to those names. Certain departures were inevitable, most notably that of Gary McAllister, whose time, at 37, was undeniably up. But maybe two or three of those names could have been kept on –– particularly Anelka, who, seven years on, has just finished as the league's top scorer, while the loss of Babbel was simply unfortunate. Experience was traded for youth, as Gerard Houllier swapped some of his own big-name signings for supposedly up-and-coming talent, and in the end, the younger players brought in failed to take the club to the next level. Indeed, the squad on the whole was weakened in terms of depth, from the very point when the Frenchman had appeared to be on the verge of a serious title challenge. I find it hard to fault his first four years, but nothing was the same after that summer. Put simply, too many good players left the club, and that just won't happen in 2009. Meanwhile, two of the three main signings –– Diouf and Diao –– went into the spine of the team. Seven summers later, the spine is very much in place. Not only that, the seven first-choice players have a very good average age (27.6), with only Jamie Carragher in his 30s. Everyone else is either in, or approaching, his peak. While everyone goes on about how young United's side is, their spine averages at 28.2 years of age (for the record, that's not including Giggs or Scholes). Chelsea's spine, meanwhile, averages at over 29, which in itself is not a problem right now, but suggests an overhaul will be necessary at some stage. While losing Hyypia could be compared with the exit of McAllister, the difference is that there are three brilliant centre-backs already at the club; the Finn's replacements are already bedded in. I do agree with Rafa in that it's important he has success in the transfer market this summer, simply because the task is to overtake a team at the peak of its powers; and that means perfection has to be sought in every area, to provide the best chance of doing so. Of course, if you go back over the history of transfers, even the best managers only tend to have an outright success rate of about 50 per cent; but those they do get right, they get really right. And at best, these normally work out at one top-rate player per-season. So far, Benitez has certainly done that with Torres, Alonso, Reina, Mascherano, Skrtel and Agger, with others like Kuyt, Aurelio and Benayoun adding to their reputations. If Benitez makes three signings and just one proves a roaring success, that can lift the team to new levels; another signing who succeeds, even to a lesser degree, and the squad will look a lot stronger. Some signings from last summer didn't work out as well as hoped, but at the very least they played some part in a number of victories (bar Degen, on account of injury), while Albert Riera has definitely added an important new dimension in terms of his style of play, and the width he provides. It's also important to remember that just four months ago people were writing off Yossi Benayoun, halfway through his second season; and yet since February he's played as well as anyone at Liverpool, and therefore, based on the club's imperious form in that time, as well as anyone in the country. Suddenly a squad player looks like a shoo-in, scoring goals no matter where he plays. Therefore, the improvement of a number of Reds this season shows that 'flops', 'so-so'; talents and supposed squad men can turn things around. On top of that, first-class players like Xabi Alonso and Steven Gerrard are still improving; another year on, and we could see five or six major players continuing to get better. In particular, I expect Daniel Agger, still only 25, to play a much bigger role, now that his injury problems appear to be behind him, and for Javier Mascherano to have a more consistent season; we've seen the best of him of late, but not before Christmas. As an aside regarding Mascherano, I was amazed to see one journalist on TV this weekend say, and I quote, "fantastic in that role [of holding midfielder], and basically he gets left out all the time." What next? Why doesn't Rafa play Pepe Reina more? It's worth pointing out, in reply to this baffling assertion, that Michael Carrick, vaunted by all and sundry this season, has started just one more game than Mascherano, despite United's 10 extra matches. Darren Fletcher, the United player who performs a similar role to the Argentine, also started just one more match than Masch, despite the Argentine being away for the Olympics, having some injury niggles and obviously excluded after extremely arduous trips to South America for World Cup qualifiers. Any major matches, and Mascherano is on the team sheet, providing he's not just back from from a round-the-world trip. Of course, Alex Ferguson, who has rotated more than his Liverpool counterpart this season, is a 'genius' for keeping his midfield fresh, but heaven forbid if Rafa tries the exact same approach! It's as if there must always be a stick with which to beat Rafa, to the point of inventing fictions. Anyway, with all my previous points in mind, I think there are many valid reasons to expect an even better season next time out. And while I will list further reasons, I feel it must be prefixed with the caveat that unexpected things can go wrong (particularly serious injuries), while other teams won't be standing still, either. For starters, Fernando Torres will surely play more games. Spain have a fairly busy summer, but it's nothing like last year's, which came at the end of a tough and tiring first season in English football for the striker. It wasn't just the time missed this season with injuries, but the stop-start nature, as he continually gained and then lost match sharpness. If Gerrard and Torres play more league games together, it can only bode well. It's fairly remarkable that Liverpool finished as the Barclays Premier League's top scorers given their injuries and a perceived lack of depth up front, particularly after the sale of Robbie Keane, and with potential fill-in Krisztian Nemeth injured. Next, as well as no European Championships, there's no Olympic games. I don't think it's a coincidence that the three Liverpool players (the most from any English club) who went –– Mascherano, Babel and Lucas –– struggled in the aftermath. It wasn't so much the games that they missed as not experiencing the proper preparations for an English season. Another positive is that certain players have now 'proved' themselves; earned their liverbird wings, if you will. It doesn't mean their form cannot subsequently dip, but I feel that players like Benayoun, Kuyt, Aurelio and Arbeloa won over their doubters, and perhaps more importantly, proved to themselves that they can do more than simply hold down a place in the side; they have all shone. Also, Lucas Leiva will surely benefit from a difficult first half of the season; the way he performed in the second half of the campaign, particularly from Old Trafford onwards, shows that he's a better player than many gave him credit for. It's almost a rite of passage for a youngster play himself through a really sticky patch in form; once he's done that, it adds psychological strength and builds character. A little more physical strength (which he's working on) and he can become an ever-more valuable member of the squad. Next, there's a lot of young talent on the fringes. Of course, this is true of most top clubs, but at least Liverpool have their own crop. This season saw the emergence of Emiliano Insua, who now looks very much at home in the first team. It was a shame that injuries kept Nemeth out of the picture; it's too soon to say how far he'll go in the game, but he appears to have that little something extra that marks out top talents. And as I've mentioned a few times of late, after an understandably inauspicious start David Ngog is coming along very nicely, and looking stronger in every sense. Jay Spearing will also be pushing for a place in the squad. I'm also curious to see if Daniel Pacheco makes the step-up in 2009-10. He's not the biggest, but he has bags of skill and an impressive turn of pace. If he matures in time, he could be a handy weapon in breaking down packed defences at Anfield. None of these players are anything like certainties for even a place on the bench next season, but at least the potential is there. Another important difference is that for the first time under Benítez there is no need to play a Champions League qualifier. That means two fewer games, and not being a match behind in the league from the second week onwards. Crucially, Sami Hyypia aside, I don't see any other key squad players departing. If Liverpool can add proven quality players without losing any of their own, the squad has to get stronger. That can make keeping everyone happy even tougher, but it's what Alex Ferguson has had to do, and a reason he has rotated so much. Finally, Liverpool won't have to go to Middlesbrough next season; nothing against them, but it has never been a happy hunting ground! The flip-side to that is that Newcastle tended to be an almost guaranteed six points a season, as were West Brom. So, plenty to feel genuinely optimistic about, as Liverpool look to build from a position of strength. I don't think I've ever been so disappointed at a season ending. I wish it was August already