Transfer season in European football is an interesting time of year. The tabloids go nuts inventing the most out-there rumors they can come up with, every big name in the game gets paired with every other big name, from managers to clubs to players, and I sometimes get a kick out of the things that actually do end up happening. Torres to Liverpool, for instance. I nearly fell out of my chair when that one actually went through. A friend texted me the news, but I refused to believe him, because he has a tendency to get his info from tabloids. Then I went online and saw it made official on BBC.
This season, however, is stressing me out. Xabi Alonso, one of my favorite players in the red jersey, is almost always the subject of transfer speculation during the closed season. Not really sure why this was in the past, but this season it makes sense—he had a poor season this year, picked up an early injury and never really gained his best form. A lot of people are questioning whether he’s suited to the holding midfielder role Rafa’s put him in, as well as the fast pace of the EPL. Some think he’d be better off at a Spanish or Italian club, where the pace is slower and he’d be allowed to go forward more.
I agree Alonso didn’t find his best form this season. But I think a lot of that is down to the injury. European football is such a grueling contest from start to finish, with game after game after game and no major rest periods in between. One injury, maybe a slight miscalculation in the time it takes for an injury to heal, and a player is suddenly light years behind his teammates in terms of fitness. Right near the end of the season, Alonso played in both legs of the CL semi-final against Chelsea, and particularly in the first leg, he was excellent. He kept up with the pace, fought hard on the defensive end, and played some class passes in the offensive third.
I don’t know a great deal about Gareth Barry, the guy Rafa seems to want to bring in, but whose high price might necessitate the sale of Alonso to Juve (or elsewhere). Steven Gerrard has said he thinks Barry should be playing CL football and that he wants him in the Liverpool midfield with him. But I don’t know if that’s worth losing Alonso. When Alonso is on his game, he’s the driving creative force behind the Reds offense. Masch is a beast on defense, but he’s not much in the distribution department. Gerrard can play some brilliant through balls, but he’s more of a power player, the strong backbone of the midfield. And while Lucas has the potential to be very good, Rafa clearly recognizes the importance of experience, as he played Alonso in the CL matches last season, even though he wasn’t at full fitness.
I also think Alonso has become a leader for the Reds, solid and experienced and well-respected by the fans and his teammates. I think if he left, it wouldn’t leave a hole only on the pitch, but off the pitch as well. Gerrard, to my eye, is the bleeding-heart loyalty of Liverpool, passionate and driven, but not always the most rational. Alonso is, as many have said, the brain, the calm leader and organizer. Passionate, of course, but also a counterweight to Gerrard in both playing style and on-pitch persona.
To conclude, I would be gutted to see Alonso leave. He seems to love the club and to understand what the club means to the fans, and I still believe he’s one of the most important players on the squad, a part of the spine Rafa has talked about. I don’t believe selling him to make way for Barry will improve Liverpool’s chances at a title run next season.
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