Guillem Balague: The Times The following is an article first published in The Times last week. In many ways it is an open letter to the new owners of Liverpool Football Club: an impassioned plea for an institution I hold very close to my heart to recover it`s sense of what it stands for and where it is headed. It is a very personal view and I welcome any thoughts on what is needed for the club to regain its place at the top of the game.... Liverpool`s new owners, NESV have taken charge of an institution that has lost its way and lacking direction, it is being pulled in different routes by people who, with the best of intentions, think they know the way. It is the sign of a weak club when a member of the medical staff, a player or an employee feels strong enough to try and lead in the search for that elusive `Liverpool way`. It seems that a huge number of fans have decided Roy Hodgson, the manager, must go. Yet that highlights the main reason why you should never allow supporters to direct clubs as they don`t appear capable of looking beyond the latest results. Pointing the finger of blame at the manager is the most simplistic analysis of what is wrong at Liverpool because the club`s ills go way beyond Hodgson and his front line staff. They are rooted in the club`s current lack of a philosophy, of where they are headed and how they are going to get there. It is a real shame because it doesn`t need to be so. There are many talented individuals working behind the scenes, all of whom are more than capable of helping the club get to where it wants to be - yet because nobody seems to know where that is, their talent and effort is going to waste. For example, without an overriding philosophy regarding how Liverpool FC should play, the youth academy has no future goal or ambition. The academy should provide the platform, the foundations upon which the future of the club is built, yet nobody knows what shape the groundwork should take because nobody has seen the final plans for the building itself. We know what the archetypal Barcelona player looks like; we talk of Arsenal players being typical of a certain set of characteristics. What does it mean to talk about a typical Liverpool player these days? What standards do we expect from them? We`ve been hearing a lot about Damien Comolli`s appreciation of sabermetrics, learning about the financial model that NESV wishes to introduce – which reveals something of the economic plan, but little about the footballing vision. In other words, we`re learning what Liverpool`s stars of the future will look like on the balance sheet, but have no idea what they`ll look like on the football pitch. In mitigation, these are early days for the new owners and for Comolli, but I am impatient to learn what shape their footballing vision will take and have little interest in their short term plans for January. Large sections of the media have been focusing on the micro this week: on the relationship between director of football (or strategy) and coach, when the macro is what matters. Despite what the British press may think, such director/manager relationships can work but the constant focus on the individuals and personalities is a distraction, when what really matters is the vision, the strategy and a clear understanding of everyone`s role within it. Meanwhile, NESV and Comolli will have to deal with the confusion over who is in charge. For example, there is a doctor working at the club who has been allowed to make sports science a priority. Nothing wrong with that, you might think, a characteristic of many clubs in the modern age; however, this particular doctor has a level of influence over team selection unseen anywhere else. Then, there is a manager who recently enjoyed great success working with very different types of players at a very different club. His methodologies are very different to those that players at Liverpool are accustomed to – which has two potential outcomes: either they embrace his way, or there is a breakdown in communication. At the moment, there is a bit of both as some players trust the manager, others need to be convinced. On the surface, the fact that the new owners have invited the fans to give their thoughts on the club appears a positive step and has been welcomed by many supporters groups. But we only ever see the fans given the power to shape the direction of the club at a time of weakness, because it is at those times when those in charge need the most vocal elements of support on board. But, as stated above, football fans should not run football clubs. Liverpool does not need a reactionary leadership, but a long term plan put in place by those who know how – and then adhered to until it reaches its conclusion, even if, in the beginning, the fans can`t quite understand why it`s being done. NESV have their work cut out, and there is an issue regarding several players currently at the club who signed contracts under the previous owners. The former owners were preparing Liverpool for a sale, and needed to retain as many big name players on their books to elevate the club`s value. In order to get them to pen deals, concessions were made and clauses included in those contracts that favour the players but leave the club vulnerable. It places the club in a conundrum, because in order to avoid some of the top players activating those clauses, they will need to do the very thing that I was previously warning against: investing in short term quick fixes. It is a pivotal moment for Liverpool, should they invest in impact signings now, in order to convince current stars to stay, or do they play the long game and ride the storm in the immediate short term? Personally, I would prefer the latter. One thing does need to be said: in the post-Benitez era, there was media-led clamour (but also some politicking going on at the club) to make the club more English; the idea being that the club had lost the very essence of what it means to be `Liverpool`. But, if the club has lost its way, that has nothing to do with the nationalities of the players; because individuals like Fernando Torres and Pepe Reina are as representative of the Liverpool way as anybody else, whatever is written on their passport. It is because of the admiration, love and respect that I have for the city that gave me a home and the club that made me recapture a love for the game that I make no apologies for the fact that much of the above is perhaps tinged with too much passion. It is sad to see such a wonderful institution floundering, but with the right vision, there is also hope for the future - it`s up to those who have the privilege to make it so. http://www.guillembalague.com/blog_desp.php?titulo=Liverpool must recover sense of direction&id=526
Decent read and I agree with the sentiment of the peace that we need to have a long term plan in place with footballing priniples and youth at the heart of it. Howeve I have a couple of issues with the above piece. 1st quoted paragraph: Is he actually suggesting Bruckner influences team selection? Hard to believe this is the case except suggesting when a player is match fit or not, same as the doctor at any other club. 2nd quoted Paragraph: Again I can't stand by this. Surely it is speculation. Rafa and the previous regime hardly allowed players to have get out clauses placed in their contracts?
No idea mate just thought it was decent read. Alot of people seem to say that managers have very little if any input into contracts. Would find it hard to believe myself about clauses etc though.