Liverpool Hint at Life After Raheem Sterling in 4-0 Win over True Thai All Stars
Liverpool confirmed the sale of Raheem Sterling to Manchester City on Tuesday, bringing an end to a saga that dogged an otherwise positive summer. With the announcement coming shortly after the Reds' 4-0 pre-season win over the True Thai All Stars in Bangkok, Brendan Rodgers' side showed there would be life after their once-cherished 20-year-old forward.
On announcing Sterling's departure, Liverpool's curt, three-line statement saw them sign off by saying everyone at the club "wishes Raheem well." But the souring of the former Queens Park Rangers youngster's relationship with the Reds' hierarchy belies this feeling.
The transfer struggle that ensued for much of the summer so far saw the player's representative publicly attack the club, while Sterling himself asked to be omitted from Rodgers' pre-season tour squad and missed two days of training prior to their journey to the Far East after claiming illness. To the more vociferous of Liverpool supporters he is now a mere caricature of a football player—a vacuous money-grabber. Although perspective would be advised.
This is a disappointing situation, given his importance to the club over the past two seasons. In 2013/14, he joined Luis Suarez and Daniel Sturridge in spearheading the Reds' unexpected title charge, particularly shining during the forward pair's drop in form in March; in 2014/15 he excelled as Rodgers' Jack-of-all-trades, in wide-attacking roles, reserved-defensive roles and in a stint as a centre-forward over the turn of the year.
Speaking after Tuesday's win, Rodgers told the club's tour website: "The door has closed on last season so we move on." This statement not only symbolised a desire to put behind them the miserable sixth-placed finish of 2014/15, compounded by a 6-1 final-day loss away to Stoke City, but also a desire to move on without Sterling.
The manager continued: "I’ve been really pleased with the quality and importantly the work of the players. For us if we are going to progress it’s going to be as a team and a lot of our work will be done on our team and our spirit because we’ve brought quality."
Liverpool have lost a supremely talented, high-potential young player, but now they must move on without him—Tuesday's victory over the All Stars showed signs that this will be very possible.
Naming two lineups for the Rajamangala Stadium clash—one for the first half, one for the second, as is becoming custom during pre-season—Rodgers showcased the wealth of young attacking talent at his disposal. Though his second-half selection perhaps represented closer to that which will line up against Stoke on the first day of the 2015/16 Premier League season, with Jordan Henderson, Martin Skrtel, Simon Mignolet, Nathaniel Clyne and James Milner all key players for the Reds, it may be that the performances of his attacking players in the first half outweighed that of a monsoon-stricken final 45.
This was largely due to the exploits of Lazar Markovic, who excelled at the tip of a diamond formation in Rodgers' 4-4-2. The 21-year-old's role in Bangkok was very different to that which he was utilised in throughout 2014/15—which saw him largely deployed as a wing-back—and he showed the talent that saw Benfica demand a £20 million fee upon his move to Merseyside last summer.
The Serbian injected energy into Liverpool's attack, with intelligent, pacy runs between the lines and creative interplay in the build-up. Opening the scoring in the third minute, Markovic made his mark on proceedings early—this is a player who has a point to prove this pre-season, after being marginalised last term.
He wasn't limited to driving the attack, however. Markovic played an all-encompassing central role which often saw him dart back into the Liverpool half—to pick up the ball from a team-mate or retrieve it from an opponent—in a role which was reminiscent of that which Sterling so often played under Rodgers.
In the first half, he was complemented by a bustling Danny Ings, with the 22-year-old former Burnley striker performing with endeavour and a touch of quality as he linked up with Markovic and his strike partner, Rickie Lambert. Ings had the ball in the net before the half-hour mark and this would have been a just reward for his performance, but it was cruelly ruled out after centre-back Mamadou Sakho was adjudged to have fouled the All Stars' goalkeeper during a corner-kick melee.
In the second half, Ings was replaced by Divock Origi (21) and Markovic by Jordon Ibe (19)—though Ibe played a more right-sided role in what resembled more of a traditional 4-3-3. Both players performed well, with the persistent Origi in particular proving that a poor 2014/15 season on loan with Lille wasn't indicative of his quality. This was compounded by several strong efforts on goal from the Belgian, followed by a thumping header to round off the result in the closing stages.
With the club's tour reporters highlighting the performances of Markovic and Origi in conversation with Rodgers after the game, the manager was effusive in his praise for the duo:
"Firstly Divock, I thought he was excellent. You can see his movement and what really pleased me tonight was his persistence. He had a couple of chances that he missed that he would want to score. But he kept going, he was very positive, and obviously he showed how good he is in the air. [It was] a great cross into the box and it was a good header that he scored, so we're very pleased for him.
Lazar Markovic was playing in a position in the first half just behind the front two and he broke forward very well and it was an excellent finish. So I was pleased.
"
Beyond Liverpool's main event young quartet, returning loanee Joao Carlos Teixeira—only 22 years old himself—impressed in a role which former Liverpool midfielder Luis Garcia told the Kop Magazine was "like [Philippe] Coutinho." The Portuguese, who moved back to Liverpool after breaking his leg while on loan with Brighton and Hove Albion last season, served as a shuttling central midfielder in Rodgers' 4-4-2, and combined well with Markovic to supply the Serbian's opener. He showed not only a Coutinho-like guile, but also the hard work and tenacity that have become hallmarks of the Brazilian's game.
Teixeira, Markovic, Origi, Ings, Ibe and Coutinho (23) are also joined by £29 million signing Roberto Firmino (23) in representing a bright, youthful future within Liverpool's attack. Add to that the finesse of 27-year-old Adam Lallana, and the goalscoring prowess of the currently elusive Sturridge (25) and Liverpool's forward line is in safe hands without Sterling.
However, there is still a way to go. This was a largely one-sided clash against a decidedly poor opposition often at awe with their surroundings, and while these performances should encourage Rodgers, the Sterling fee—reported by Anthony Jepson of the Manchester Evening News as being worth an initial £35 million to Liverpool following deductions due to QPR's 20 percent sell-on clause—must be utilised carefully in reinforcing his squad further.
Primarily, this should be used to add a genuine cutting edge in front of goal. While Origi and Ings look set to be useful centre-forward options and more systemically suitable upgrades on Lambert and Fabio Borini, their inexperience in scoring regularly in the Premier League—paired with Sturridge's injury-prone status—points to Liverpool's need to sign another 20-goal-a-season striker this transfer window.
Whether this is key target and Aston Villa striker Christian Benteke is up for debate, but there is a worrying dearth of top-level centre-forwards on the market this summer. In the best possible situation the majority of the Sterling money would go towards Lyon's 27-goal, 33-game striker Alexandre Lacazette (24), but the likelihood that Liverpool would be able to sign the Frenchman without the lure of Champions League football is highly doubtful.
Elsewhere, Rodgers would be wise to add another centre-back and a specialist defensive midfielder to his first-team ranks, while a direct replacement for Sterling should be sought if a player of the calibre of Barcelona's Pedro Rodriguez—available, according to the Guardian, for just £21.4 million—could be convinced to move to Merseyside.
However, the performances of Markovic, Ibe, Ings, Origi and Teixeira proved in Liverpool's 4-0 defeat of the True Thai All Stars on Tuesday that there is life after Sterling under Rodgers. That five-strong group, complemented by the more experienced players within the Reds' group in Lallana and Sturridge, as well as the Brazilian duo Coutinho and Firmino, could be an effective Premier League squadron.
As long as the money received following Sterling's move to City is reinvested wisely, Liverpool could boast a fearsome attack once more in 2015/16.
Statistics via WhoScored.com.
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