Liverpool lack a cutting edge – is this sign of things to come?

Football FanCast columnist Rob Facey reflects on Liverpool’s lucky escape in last nights Champions League qualifier and wonders whether it could forecast what lies ahead for Rafa Benitez’s side this season.

Liverpool could be in for a long season last nights dour stalemate in Belgium was anything to go by.
The much hyped partnership between the clubs two record signings, Robbie Keane and Fernando Torres, did not last 90 minutes and until Gerrard’s late arrival the team lacked drive.

Though inevitable the pair would not hit it off straight away, it is hard to recall either of them having the ball at their feet for more than a few seconds, or indeed Liverpool having the ball in the final third.

The Liverpool boss admitted he was shocked at his side’s lacklustre performance against Standard Liege after a solid pre-season programme but will be more worried about how it will affect his team ahead of this weekends clash against Roy Keane’s Sunderland.

"I am surprised with how we played because the team had been playing in pre-season with a lot of confidence," Benitez said, as reported in The Guardian.

"The performance was poor but the result was good.
"It is always important not to concede away from home and with the second leg at Anfield there will have to be a massive difference. I didn't need to say much to the players afterwards because they know it was a bad performance."

It was a bad performance all over the pitch.

In defence, the partnership of Agger and Carragher at the back looked sloppy and were often second best.

Even Reina who saved the early penalty was lucky not to concede a goal late on when he rushed out only to be beaten by a cheeky header from the attacker.

Xabi Alonso has now played in European competition so if his expected transfer to Juventus does go ahead it will be for a vaule less than the ones stated in the pre-season, meaning that Benitez will have even less money to prize Gareth Barry away from Villa Park.

One bad performance does not mean that a season of struggle is ahead, but Liverpool can not always be the Premier League’s ‘nearly’ men.

It is hard to imagine Man United, Chelsea or Arsenal stumbling through 90 minutes, creating so few chances against such mediocre performance.

Benitez would have hoped for more from the players after the stressful summer he has had and fans would have hoped that, after seeing various transfer targets sail by, that the faces the manager did bring in perform a lot better.

Liverpool should progress with the second leg being at Anfield, but the fact that they have failed to wrap things up already whereas Arsenal have, show that if anything Benitez’s team are closer to dropping out of the top four than winning the Premier League.

One dodgy away leg does not constitute doom and gloom for the Reds, but surely fans are now reassessing their thoughts about what the club is going to achieve this season.

Can that team really push for the league? Why are they still so reliant on Gerrard? How long will it take before Torres and Keane click? Will they ever click?

Would Barry have improved that midfield? The club looked out of options with some players on Olympic duty, is getting rid of Alonso, arguably the best ball player, the best option?

So many questions, so little time before the season starts.

Can we have a referee?

Who’d want to be a ref anyway? All that stomping around, shouting and getting angry – and that’s from the players and supporters.
So what happens when an amateur star-studded football team tries to play 11-a-side without a ref?
About the same as what happens to any football game played without a ref – chaos and farce.

Featuring England Manager Fabio Capello, top referee Howard Webb and ex-pros and footballing celebrities, including Mark Bright and Les Ferdinand.