Daniel Sturridge – The Phantom Menace

Liverpool 3-3 Arsenal: a pulsating match; end to end, with chances galore; a “great advert for the Premier League”. All these English football cliches, and more, could’ve been, and were, used to reflect on Liverpool’s latest home match, under the floodlights at Anfield on Wednesday evening. A crackling pre-game atmosphere was pitched up several notches […]

Liverpool Needs Its Own X-Factor To Progress

The Oxford Dictionary defines x-factor as “a variable in a given situation that could have the most significant impact on the outcome”. X-factors tend to be the difference between teams that win trophies, those who fail to make top 4 and those that end up being relegated. An x-factor of some sort is therefore a […]

Simon Mignolet – Is he still good enough? A comparison to rivals

Earlier in the season, following Liverpool’s 2-1 defeat at Manchester City, I wrote an article looking at Simon Mignolet’s first season up to that point as the Reds’ first choice goalkeeper following his summer move from Sunderland. At the time he had just made himself public enemy number one to a group of fans (oh […]

Premier League Goalkeeper Analysis – 2010/11

The man between the sticks is forgotten about far too often in football. Just look at Barcelona, the best team in the world right now. Victor Valdes may be a quality goalkeeper, but he is very rarely given the chance to prove that due to the nature of Barcelona’s football. As Ian Rush famously said, “It’s best being a striker. If you miss five then score the winner, you’re a hero. The goalkeeper can play a blinder, then let one in… and he’s a villain.”