Liverpool FC - No more than a supplier club right now

Suarez moved to Barcelona from Liverpool this summer

The way Liverpool played last season was an absolute delight to watch. They were probably the most entertaining team, not only because they scored a lot but also conceded many. So if you ask the neutrals then you know which games they would have picked to see.

One reason why they were so entertaining was the fact that they had one of the best players on the planet last season – Luis Suarez. They fell just short and missed the Premier League trophy by 2 points. After the season ended, most of the Liverpudlians were distraught after having gone so close, but in the whole, they would have been happy with the 2nd place finish. After a season like that surely the Liverpool faithful will be looking forward to the new season right?

Well, the answer is more of a “NO” rather than “YES”. Of course, Liverpool will play in the Champions League, which is a big deal in the red half of Merseyside and something to look forward to as they have experienced some unforgettable European nights, but the matter of fact is this - Liverpool simply cannot hold on to their prized assets and challenge for honours!

Suarez was so desperate to play for Liverpool that he put in a transfer request when he was at Ajax, and even claimed that he used to play with Liverpool using his Playstation. We don’t know if he is telling the truth or not, but one thing is certain – if he was so desperate to play for Liverpool then why move to Barcelona to achieve your “lifelong” dream? Don’t fall for stuff like that Liverpool fans, players do not move to Liverpool because they want to win trophies right now, they do because of the history and the fact that it serves as a platform to move to a bigger club and win silverware.

Players often move on after they become “too good” for Liverpool

Liverpool over the last few years have become a seller of top talent.

There was a lot of excitement at Liverpool in December last year when they tied down Luis Suarez to a long-term contract and there was genuine belief that they could challenge for the title in the same season and seasons to come because they had a good player on their hands and had built a team around him. The same had happened a few years back under Rafael Benitez when they had some world class talent at their disposal; Fernando Torres, Xabi Alonso, Javier Mascherano, Alvaro Arbeloa etc. etc. What happened in the season after that? They sold a key cog in their team, Xabi Alonso, after finishing second. Alberto Aquilani was signed to replace him but ended up having a torrid time.

In the seasons that followed, they sold Javier Mascherano to Barcelona, Alvaro Arbeloa to Real Madrid and probably their best striker after the Owen days, Fernando Torres to their rivals Chelsea. Everyone managed to win big silverware with their clubs. This could happen with Suarez (he has a higher chance of winning a trophy with Barcelona) and I fear the same will persist in the years to follow when Philippe Coutinho or Lazar Markovic will feel that they need to win trophies and move on to bigger clubs (by bigger I mean more recently)!

So there might be some sense of excitement over the new signings but unless Liverpool start winning silverware, they will forever remain a feeder club to bigger teams who want good experienced players! Looking at potential departures, you could look at Coutinho, Markovic and even Emre Can. All three are really young and have signed for a good team in Liverpool, so from a development point of view it’s brillaint for the three of them.

You might argue that Markovic and Can came to Liverpool looking at the prospect of playing European football, but you cannot prize away everyone like that! Can Liverpool sign Falcao by telling him “come and play Champions League with us son”?