Liverpool’s 3-0 win at Tottenham in August was a picture of fluency. Here was a performance to banish any thoughts of Luis Suarez and reassure supporters that the team remained an effervescent attacking force.
Spurs were certainly unable to resist them with their high defensive line a guarantee of humiliation at the hands of Sturridge and Sterling. The latter seemed almost too embarrassed to apply the finish after dancing through the defence with one mazy run.
For Rodgers it was hugely encouraging. He’d marked his 100th game in charge with win No.56 – the exact same record as Bill Shankly and Rafa Benitez. “I think that everything that could be good in our game, was there,” he said afterwards. “Our organisation defensively was very strong.
“We played the diamond for the first hour and were a threat in between the lines in midfield, and obviously the two boys up front (Sturridge and Mario Balotelli) were fantastic. Our quality was exceptional. We got three goals and could maybe have had more.”
Three days later, Sturridge was playing 89 minutes in an England friendly against Norway. Injury followed and he didn’t return to the Liverpool starting line-up until the return fixture against Tottenham earlier this month. For Rodgers, much of the intervening period was a struggle.
Liverpool’s record after that win at Tottenham was woeful. They picked up just six wins in 21 matches culminating in a 3-0 defeat against Manchester United at Old Trafford that marked a complete reverse of the previous season’s fixture.
With Balotelli and Rickie Lambert unable to assume Sturridge’s mantle, the role fell to the supplier himself – Sterling. The gifted youngster responded with a brace against Bournemouth just three days after that defeat to United and it marked the start of a new run.
Now unbeaten in 17 games in normal time, succumbing only in the added 30 minutes of their Capital One Cup semi-final at Chelsea, the stage looks set for Sterling and Sturridge to be paired together from the start. And that spells danger for Sunday’s opponents Southampton.
Rodgers has handled the duo delicately in recent weeks, reintroducing Sturridge with care and easing Sterling back after a foot injury. The latter played 13 minutes against Besiktas and while he’s been on the pitch with Sturridge, it’s the stats when they start together that are startling.
Liverpool have won 12 of their 16 Premier League games (75%) when the new SAS have featured in the starting line-up with only one defeat – away to champions Manchester City. That compares with a win percentage of 49% without them under Rodgers, a figure that drops to 45% this season.
In part that’s a reflection of Liverpool’s staggering run towards the back end of last season, but it’s also indicative of the movement that the pair bring to the team when they are together. Balotelli and Lambert offer a threat but it can be too static to take advantage in quite the same way.
Sturridge and Sterling feed off each other’s energy with the willingness to make third-man runs vital to opening up defences and it’s a union that appears to be strong on and off the field. “Raheem has done extremely well,” Sturridge told Liverpool’s official website earlier this month.
“He's working hard and I'm proud of him as his ‘older brother’ to look at him and see how well he's done. I take him under my arm when he goes through difficult times as well, but I give him all the credit in the world and I'm really proud of him.”
Sterling will benefit from Sturridge’s return in other ways too. The England striker’s ability to stretch defences forces them to play deeper than they otherwise would or risk getting caught out and allowing him one-on-one opportunities in the gap behind them.
That tendency to drop off opens up space for Sterling to exploit. It’s a phenomenon he appears to understand. “Daniel is a massive miss for us with his goals and the way he plays in behind defenders,” he said earlier this season. “Him coming back should add another dimension to the team.”
The warning is there and with Liverpool able to move within a point of Southampton with a win at St Mary's this weekend, the chance is there for the Reds to build on their winter momentum. History suggests that reuniting the SAS could do just that.
Spurs were certainly unable to resist them with their high defensive line a guarantee of humiliation at the hands of Sturridge and Sterling. The latter seemed almost too embarrassed to apply the finish after dancing through the defence with one mazy run.
For Rodgers it was hugely encouraging. He’d marked his 100th game in charge with win No.56 – the exact same record as Bill Shankly and Rafa Benitez. “I think that everything that could be good in our game, was there,” he said afterwards. “Our organisation defensively was very strong.
“We played the diamond for the first hour and were a threat in between the lines in midfield, and obviously the two boys up front (Sturridge and Mario Balotelli) were fantastic. Our quality was exceptional. We got three goals and could maybe have had more.”
Three days later, Sturridge was playing 89 minutes in an England friendly against Norway. Injury followed and he didn’t return to the Liverpool starting line-up until the return fixture against Tottenham earlier this month. For Rodgers, much of the intervening period was a struggle.
Liverpool’s record after that win at Tottenham was woeful. They picked up just six wins in 21 matches culminating in a 3-0 defeat against Manchester United at Old Trafford that marked a complete reverse of the previous season’s fixture.
With Balotelli and Rickie Lambert unable to assume Sturridge’s mantle, the role fell to the supplier himself – Sterling. The gifted youngster responded with a brace against Bournemouth just three days after that defeat to United and it marked the start of a new run.
Now unbeaten in 17 games in normal time, succumbing only in the added 30 minutes of their Capital One Cup semi-final at Chelsea, the stage looks set for Sterling and Sturridge to be paired together from the start. And that spells danger for Sunday’s opponents Southampton.
Rodgers has handled the duo delicately in recent weeks, reintroducing Sturridge with care and easing Sterling back after a foot injury. The latter played 13 minutes against Besiktas and while he’s been on the pitch with Sturridge, it’s the stats when they start together that are startling.
Liverpool have won 12 of their 16 Premier League games (75%) when the new SAS have featured in the starting line-up with only one defeat – away to champions Manchester City. That compares with a win percentage of 49% without them under Rodgers, a figure that drops to 45% this season.
In part that’s a reflection of Liverpool’s staggering run towards the back end of last season, but it’s also indicative of the movement that the pair bring to the team when they are together. Balotelli and Lambert offer a threat but it can be too static to take advantage in quite the same way.
Sturridge and Sterling feed off each other’s energy with the willingness to make third-man runs vital to opening up defences and it’s a union that appears to be strong on and off the field. “Raheem has done extremely well,” Sturridge told Liverpool’s official website earlier this month.
“He's working hard and I'm proud of him as his ‘older brother’ to look at him and see how well he's done. I take him under my arm when he goes through difficult times as well, but I give him all the credit in the world and I'm really proud of him.”
Sterling will benefit from Sturridge’s return in other ways too. The England striker’s ability to stretch defences forces them to play deeper than they otherwise would or risk getting caught out and allowing him one-on-one opportunities in the gap behind them.
That tendency to drop off opens up space for Sterling to exploit. It’s a phenomenon he appears to understand. “Daniel is a massive miss for us with his goals and the way he plays in behind defenders,” he said earlier this season. “Him coming back should add another dimension to the team.”
The warning is there and with Liverpool able to move within a point of Southampton with a win at St Mary's this weekend, the chance is there for the Reds to build on their winter momentum. History suggests that reuniting the SAS could do just that.
Related Post
No comments:
Post a Comment