- Daniel Sturridge can be England’s top striker
On a marvellous afternoon at
Craven Cottage, one man outperformed the rest. Lightning quick, ex-Chelsea
striker Daniel Sturridge stamped his name all over a potentially dull match
with a triad of marvelous finishes. Goals in the 36th, 62nd and 85th
minutes - all which showed off all of his best assets, his pace, trickery and
finishing, comprised his first ever premier league hat trick. This mercurial
performance could well have caught the eye of England national team manager Roy
Hodgson. In addition to Sturridge, England have recently used all of the likes
of Andy Carroll, Jermain Defoe, Danny Welbeck and Wayne Rooney, but Sturridge
will be looking to beat these players to a permanent spot in the first 11.
At the age of 23, if Sturridge
were to be given a chance by Hodgson and he added to his current international
goal tally of 1, scored in March’s 8-0 demolition of San Marino, then he could
potentially set himself up for a long illustrious career at the highest level
of the game. However, one thing is for sure, Sturridge certainly has the skills
to play at the very highest level and to forge himself a reputation as a
consistent goal-threat. His current tally with Liverpool is 11 goals from 15
games, a tally which would be envied by the very best.
2. Fulham desperately need a quality
central midfielder
One thing looked certain to me as
Liverpool’s midfield dominated the likes of Greek international Giorgos
Karagounis and Ajax loanee Eyong Enoh, Fulham could be a very good side if they
were to sign a top notch central midfielder. Considering Liverpool were missing
their greatest midfield asset Steven Gerrard, this should be an issue of great
concern to Fulham manager Martin Jol.
Jordan Henderson and Lucas Leiva
passed the ball around at will, as they played 61 and 67 passes respectively,
whilst successfully controlling the midfield battle. Overall, Fulham did not
put up a bad fight on the day, carving out a couple of good chances and only
finding themselves going down due to a few moments of brilliance from Sturridge
and Philippe Coutinho. The midfield was where Fulham lost the match, and had
they not been so overwhelmed in this area the match could well have resulted in
3 points for Fulham and not the unwanted record of their first ever 4-game home
losing streak.
If Jol were to look to strengthen
this aspect of his side then there would be a few options out there for him.
One name that leaps to mind is Newcastle midfielder Yohan Cabaye, who, since
arriving on Tyneside has proved himself as one of the top playmakers in the
premier league, however he could prove a bit dear for a side like Fulham.
Another one to watch could be Wigan Athletic’s James Mccarthy, who could come
on the cheap if Wigan are unable to stave off the drop.
3. Liverpool are capable of playing
good football without Suarez, Gerrard and Agger.
Liverpool fielded a new look team
in this match, employing a 5-3-1-1, with some seemingly odd positional changes,
and the absence of key players Steven Gerrard, Daniel Agger, and obviously,
through suspension, Luis Suarez. In doing this, Brendan Rodgers showed his
trust in his youth players, such as Jonjo Shelvey and Andre Wisdom who returned
to the starting lineup after a long layoff.
This match also showed just how
deep Liverpool’s roster can be, in previous years, without the likes of Gerrard
especially, Liverpool have struggled to gain any penetration in midfield.
However this was not the case in this match, with Lucas and Henderson providing
the influence deep, and Philippe Coutinho supplying the attacking prowess. This
showing could prove strong for Rodgers if injury were to strike next season, as
he ponders who to trust in the absence of usual starters.
4. Liverpool must sign a centre back
if they are to be top four contenders
The scorecard seemingly reflects
a reasonably comfortable afternoon for the likes of Jamie Carragher and
Sebastian Coates, however this wasn’t the reality. Both Struggled at points to
distribute from the back as well as to keep the dangerous Dimitar Berbatov and
former Liverpool academy player Alexander Kacaniklic. One incident springs to
mind in which, Coates could potentially have received a red card after
colliding with Kacaniclic as last man.
This told me one thing, if
Liverpool hope to reinstate themselves as one of England’s fabled top four,
then they must strengthen the centre back position, especially with the
impending retirement of Jamie Carragher. Names that have been rumoured to be on
the table are that of Swansea’s Ashley Williams and Feyenoord’s Stefan de Vrij.
Only time will tell if Rodgers can emulate his achievements in January’s
transfer window by pulling off another coup to the heights of their illustrious
past.
That’s Rosey’s wrap on Liverpool
vs Fulham,
Thanks for reading,
By Jake Rosengarten
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