Liverpool: Consistently Inconsistent

Ups and downs

If you asked Liverpool fans to sum up their season so far in one word, I would imagine 'frustrating' would be a common reply.

It is conceivable that in the next fortnight Liverpool could find themselves out of Europe, 13 points behind Arsenal in the Premier League, and out of the Carling Cup at Chelsea's fortress Stamford Bridge.

That would be a disaster of epic proportion for a club of Liverpool’s stature, and would add fuel to the growing bonfire of rumour that says Rafael Benitez is living on borrowed time.

Liverpool’s form in the Champions League has been a microcosm of their season as a whole. They have gone from the sublime to the ridiculous. They were largely dismal in Porto and Besiktas, and the home defeat to Marseille was probably the worst display since Benitez' arrival.

Thes matches have been followed by two eye-catching results for the Reds: first in showing how dismal Besiktas actually are, and then by rather flatteringly putting four past Porto.

Crunch match 

Which Liverpool will arrive at the intimidating Stade Velodrome on Tuesday? If the players still trust the manager, then the real Liverpool will surely arrive and show that they still believe in the team's methodology.

However, it will not be easy. Marseille are a tough nut to crack on their own patch in Europe—especially against English opposition. In 2004, a Drogba-inspired Marseille knocked Liverpool and Newcastle out of the UEFA Cup.

Two years later, and it was Bolton who were beaten in the Velodrome, with Ribery as the conductor of a very noisy home orchestra. Drogba and Ribery have since moved on to bigger and better things, but Marseille still have enough talent to challenge any team.

The Opposition: Marseille 

However, Marseille's form has been even more inconsistent than Liverpool’s this season. In Champions League play they too have fallen in Turkey, alongside the heights of the Anfield win and a hard-earned point at home to Porto.

In Ligue 1, they have beaten perennial champions Lyon on their home turf. On Saturday, they beat Monaco to move up to 13th—amazingly, their highest position of the season showing their inconsistent domestic form.

In contrast to those victories, they suffered an embarrassing defeat at home to an awful Toulouse side whom Liverpool coincedently hammered 4-0 in the pre-qualifiers. They have also been beaten by such luminaries as Sochaux, Valenciennes and Nice.

The Marseille danger-man is likely to be Mamadou Niang, a Senegalese international who has eight goals this season.

Niang will look to finish off what the midfield schemers Valbuena—the match-winner at Anfield—and the highly rated Ziani create.

Furthermore, Liverpool might yet be haunted by former players Zenden and Cisse looking to prove Benitez's decision to unceremoniously dispose of them wrong.

Former Glasgow Rangers’ man Julien Rodriquez provides the steal in the back line, is an attacking threat from set pieces and will look to put Rafa's controversial zonal marking system to the test.

Expectations

Liverpool rarely lose two games in a row, so a narrow win or a frustrating draw in the Velodrome looks to be the best bet. That said, the only thing predictable about this match is the kick-off time considering Benitez's rotation and Liverpool's inconsistent campaign.

George Gillette is rumoured to be traveling to France for the game to provide moral support for this crunch match and for Rafa’s sake, I hope he likes what he sees.