What is going on at Liverpool?

It's no secret that there is turmoil at Anfield. To say American c-owners George Gillett and Tom Hicks are drawing the ire of Kop fans would be a massive understatement. After saying all the right things when they took over the club two years ago, Liverpool's owners are now being begged to sell the club to Dubai International Capital, a United Arab Emirates investment arm of the UAE government, because they can't seem to say or do anything close to the right thing today. Tension between Rafa Benitez and Tom Hicks has been well documented for the past two months, but it reached its crescendo when Hicks revealed on the Liverpool website that he had openly been pursuing Jurgen Klinsmann behind Benitez' back. The UK press has been eating this up, and rightfully so, although it should be said that Benitez has done little to endear himself this year to his owners, floundering in 5th place currently in the Premier League, and barely navigating his way through the group stage of the Champions League. With an FA Cup win, two Champions League finals appearances (and won title), and an always-competitive team, Benitez has had an impressive, if not earth-shattering, run of success in recent years at Anfield. But as is the case with Newcastle (and that Liverpool can be mentioned in the same sentence as the disaster that is Newcastle is testimony enough to the current crisis), ownership at Liverpool are anxious to install their "own man" as manager, especially now as Benitez and Liverpool are clearly out of contention for the league title and possess grim hopes of returning to the Champions League title with a daunting matchup with Inter Milan looming next month. It's hard to appoint blame here entirely to one side, but it's not so hard to forecast the future: Liverpool will be sold, either immediately or in six-twelve months after an owners refinancing, and Benitez will be gone. What happens first is uncertain, but what is certain is that times are hard for the scousers, and Liverpool are floundering both on and off the pitch.

Italian Supremacy?

After playing second-fiddle to AC Milan and Juventus both in Serie A and on the international stage for much of the past decade, Inter are emerging as the predominant power in Italy, and look poised to caputure the Champions League title for this first time in.... well, for the first time since it's been called the Champions League. Inter Milan are currently undefeated in Serie A, 7 points ahead of second place Roma, and a full 10 points ahead of 3rd place Juventus. At this point, it seems a formality that they'll win their second-consecutive scudetto, with this year's title carrying a whole lot more legitimacy as Juve is back from their Serie B banishment and the other rivals aren't carrying any point penalties from the match-fixing scandal of '06. Moreover, Inter are many punters' favorites to win the Champions League, although a round of 16 pairing with Liverpool, despite the Reds' dire status and poor form, cannot be taken lightly. So why are Inter Milan thriving? Put concisely, it's because of all the South American stars that litter the line-up.

Check out Gregory Sica's good piece on this: http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/2008/writers/gregory_sica/01/16/inter.milan/index.html

It's no secret that many of Europe's premier clubs rely on South American talent to get them to elite stature, but Inter's lineup is shamelessly oriented towards Argentines and Brazilians, and why not? Argentina currently sit atop Fifa's world national rankings at the dawn of 2008, with hordes of European stars hailing from the land of the Albiceleste. Brazil needs no hype, as it's been widely known for decades that the finest players in the world come from Brazil. What's interesting is that Inter carry only 4 Italians on their roster. There's nothing wrong with not utilizing domestic talent (just ask Arsene Wenger), but it does provide for interesting debate and nationalistic discussion.

I say kudos to Inter Milan and Arsenal for combing the world for unique talents, and I commend them for the approach. The international flavor of Inter and Arsenal make them interesting cultural studies on the pitch, and the fact that the current form of each team is among the best in Europe is testimony to true global football.

Diving Right In

Looking briefly at the mid-January landscape in England....

The poll question on last night's Fox Football Fone-In was "Is the Premiership a three-horse race?," implying that its down to Manchester United, Arsenal, and Chelsea for the title. The verdict from callers and from the hosts was somewhat split, but ultimately pointed to the prevailing winds that this is indeed a three team hunt for the Premier League crown. Though the fact that this is even a question at all is testimony to Chelsea's surprising form, as the loss of Essien, Drogba, Obi Mikel, and Kalou (egads!) to the African Cup of Nations plus injuries to John Terry and Schevchenko should serve as writing on the wall, yet the Blues continue to get results, having lost only once in their last 25 competitions. Meanwhile, many would argue that, Chelsea notwithstanding, its ludicrous to call this even a two-horse race right now, with the way United look. Arsenal have been the feel-good story of the year so far, especially for those who favor attractive, flowing football, but they're also facing overwhelming expectations of a late-season fade due to their youth and inexperience. The conventional wisdom is that Arsene Wenger's Gunners are a year away (and yet they stand tied with United at 51 pts!). The reason for the seemingly unanimous opinions of experts forecasting a repeat title for Man U. is probably due to the fact that they're the best team in England. Cristiano Ronaldo is playing out of his mind and would like to talk to Kaka right about now about that Fifa "player of the year" distinction, Rooney has further cemented himself as England's most dangerous and prolific scoring option, Tevez always seems to have an eye for goal, and they're solid and sturdy and deep at every position. They're the smart money, the safe pick, the odds-on favorite, whatever you wanna call it...but still, you gotta like the drama of a young, fearless Arsenal side trying to stay neck and neck with them down the stretch. The midfield rotation of Cesc, Rosicky, Flamini, Hleb and Eboue is the best for my money in the world, though Inter would have something to say about that claim (see below). And who knows if Avram Grant's boys can really stick their noses in there and make it a truly epic race to the end. I'm sure all the world will be keepign its eyes on this, the most popular league on the planet (but is it the best? ah, that is for another day...)


Key English fixtures this week:

Birmingham v. Chelsea
Fulham v. Arsenal
Reading v. Man Utd.

More on the lower half of the table, the relegation fight, and some observations on Serie A and La Liga next time...