Xabi Alonso. Detrimental to 25th of May 2005. First season in the English game. The score stood at 3-2, to a nervy Milan side; having controlled the first half with some of the most beautiful football you're likely to see.
12 yards out seemed a long way, through the plastic screen I squinted at. The penalty needed nerves of steel, he missed but he had the nous to tuck away the rebound, despite Alessandro Nesta smashing in from behind and the massive frame of Brazilian Dida sliding in front of him.
Top corner, left footed. Bang. 3-3. If anyone deserved to be the hero that night, it was him. Alas there was 14 Heroes, subs included. Add to that the FA Cup, and a few other trinkets along the way, to the European Championships he has just won then it begs the question, Gareth who?
Alonso would be suited to the Italian game, with Juventus seeming to be plying the rights for the "best midfield in the world song" already poaching Momo Sissoko from us.
Gareth Barry hasn't won an awful lot. Sure, his left foot is very talented, and he is a mean set piece taker, corners, free kicks and an assured penalty master. Yet, I struggle to find a place for him in my best 11. Left back? Wasted there, and with the imminent arrival of Udinese left back Andrea Dossena he wouldn't get much playing time there it seems.
Barry and Steven Gerrard are good friends and have been since the Lilleshall England days, it tells the story for England where the resurgence of the English midfield is dominated by Barry and Gerrard, with Frank Lampard seeming surplus to requirements.
The two go together like a well oiled machine, Barry the cog to Gerrards spoke, firing the engine room for the forwards, be it Rooney, Crouch or Owen (When he isn't strengthening the Newcastle physio's muscles or bank balance).
Can that form be replicated for Liverpool? Well with Mascherano just behind them, Barry supplying the second striker in Gerrard for Torres it very well could. The team of,
................Reina
Finnan Carragher Agger Dossena
..........Mascherano Barry
Kuyt.........Gerrard............Babel
...............Torres
Could very well bear some fruit, but change Alonso for Barry and you have the same thing. Lucas will want some playing time, as will the new youngster to emerge from the academy, Damien Plessis
(If you wish to see one of the most assured débuts ever, see the Arsenal v Liverpool match from the Emirates from last season, unbelievable composure from one so young).
Of course there will be more signings made, you would hope. Kuyt is a good stop gap for the time being but to make the next step up we need some flair and a more creative force coming in from the right whilst Babel flatters to deceive and we have only seen him in glimpses of the potential which Marco Van Basten described him as "the next Thierry Henry" despite being Dutch.
All in all, Alonso and Barry could both be in red shirts next season but I know who I would rather have, sorry Stevie G, Gazza Bazza will have to make peace with the crazy one, Martin O'Neill. Xabi stays.
comments (10) write a comment »
write a new comment
3 months ago
Great Article mate, and welcome to bleacher report!
Your right about Barry, why waste money on him when you have a very capable Alonso(all that is needed is for Xabi to regain his form).
I think Rafa would be better served actually finding the "flair and a more creative force" on the right wing and a striker to take the goalscoring weight from Torres.
3 months ago
I agree!!
The fact that we are going to sell Xabi for 16 million and buy a player who has less experience and is older for 2-3 million more is a joke.
This is why managers like Wenger, Ferguson and Benitez go and buy abroad, the inflated price of English players with a few caps under their belt is laughable!!
Saying this it looks like it is only a matter of time till Barry arrives and I am thinking that Rafa is a better manager than me so I will go with his opinion and see what happens.
3 months ago
Great first article. Welcome to B/R!
I've always thought of Alonso as a talented player. Above average midfielder. I think he paired with quite well with Stevie G in Liverpool's well tuned midfield. For me, Alonso is a better player generally than Barry.
But they're completely different players, performing different functions. I don't think that Barry is supposed to be a direct replacement for Alonso; rather their respective transfers should be seen as two separate transactions, for different reasons.
What reasons? I'm not sure - I haven't followed the story in detail. And even if I have, the babble that you hear in the press always sounds contradictory, to me anyway. But if I was Rafa, I would be buying Barry as a holding mid-fielder to Gerrard. Maybe a surprise to you but I think that Gerrard is actually much more effective as an attacker, driving the team forward, than as a standard up and down mid-fielder as he is so often labeled.
I'd be interested to see how Alonso would do in, say the Italian league. You mentioned that you think he would be much better suited to the Italian game, and I agree. I think he would make a great impact.
3 months ago
No offense meant by this, and I will of course concede that the spanish midfielder has precision, but the words "grace" and "english" should never be used in the same sentence. Undoubtedly there are exceptions to the rule, but at the moment none come to mind. The best britons at the moment, stevie g and barry, have never been confused with gracefulness, but they certainly have been blessed with a plethora of various footy skills.
3 months ago
I agree with Steven that Barry and Alonso are two very different players. Alonso is similar to Pirlo. A deep-lying playmaker, slow and methodical, with a great passing range and the ability to receive the ball at any angle and see the whole picture. In the English game Alonso can be swamped by the pace of play, and that has had a mjor impact on his loss of form. He is also prone to ankle injuries. Alonso is ideally suited to the Italian game because it is slower and he can control the play.
Barry is far more of an English style midfield player, but with a technical edge. He can cover the whole pitch, he is not quick, but he has great stamina and is rarely injured. He can both defend and attack well, not outstanding in either regard, but he does his job sensibly and with great discipline. He is rare in the English game because he is a Left-footed central player, yes he is versatile, but his best seasons for Villa have been in the middle of the pitch.
Rafa has seen from their England appearances how well Barry and Gerrard work together. He has seen how well Barry adapts to different teams and scenarios. Rafa thought he could win the Premier League with the a Spanish style of play, and Alonso was at the centre of that. Over time I think he has realised that a player of Alonso's ilk struggles in the EPL because of the pace of the game.
Now, I think Rafa has changed his style, and the signing of Barry is a key component in this change. I agree with Rafa, its not about who is better out of Barry and Alonso individually, its about who is better for Liverpool in the EPL, and I think Barry is better at this moment.
The midfield will be Barry (Lucas) Mascherano (Plessis) and Gerrard (Voronin or a n other).
Ironically, Liverpool will be following the Chelsea model under Mourinho for success, just as Chelsea have decided to ditch that model in favour of a more creative game, played by the likes of Alonso. For Liverpool's sake, lets hope Rafa has not missed the boat.
3 months ago
Great read mate...
and to read Ryan's input was pretty funny, my first thoughts upon reading the heading were pretty much along the same lines....couldn't think of one graceful engilsh player right now. Beckham might be the closest to being graceful if at all.....
3 months ago
U left one pretty awesome player out of ur backline..
Skrtel
And what about Aurelio? These players were probably the January signings of the season!
3 months ago
I don't know if it's crossed anyone else's mind but maybe Rafa's sudden interest in English players (Barry, Milner etc.) may be because he needs to fill the UEFA quota for home-grown players for next season. You have to have 4 club home-grown (Gerrard, Carragher and probably two youth team players) and also 4 association home-grown (which explains the reluctance to sell Pennant, Crouch and Carson). Good article btw.
3 months ago
One thing which Barry also will bring is a better set piece delivery. Whenever I watched Villa they always seemed to be scoring off of a corner or free kick, something that Liverpool seem to rarely do. Part of that might be due to the amount of aerial threats but how many times do we see a Liverpool free kick go directly into the keepers hands or hit the first defender. Not having Steven Gerrard take the free kicks will also put another person in the box who can attack the ball.
Oh, and Barry also provides more of a goal threat than Alonso, except from about 40 yards out.
3 months ago
Thanks for all the comments guys.
Looks like with Barry being refused access to the entire clubs facilities, he will be a Liverpool player before the week is out.
Replacing Riise as the #6 more than likely.
An interesting quandary is now placed within midfield.
write a new comment