Liverpool's B-Team To Play In Europa League

After a season in the doldrums where seventh was the best they could muster, Liverpool would do well to kick-start their 2010/11 campaign in style.

Their opening fixture comes fully into fruition with a third-round qualifying tie for the Europa League.

Few have heard of their possible opponents, Rabotnicki of Macedonia or Mika of Armenia. So the Anfield faithful will expect a comfortable win.

Or after todays' news about team choices, will they really?

New manager Roy Hodgson has stated that the World Cup players of his team may sit the match out. He doesn't want to risk their fitness for the opening of the league season.

Some will say this is a clever move. The team's punishment for a lacklustre league 2009/10 campaign was a difficult opener against Arsenal.

So providing Liverpool emerge triumphant in the Europa League, the decision will turn out to be commendable.

Yet as a Liverpool fan myself, I can't help but wonder if a repeat of the Havant & Waterlooville debacle is on the cards.

Liverpool may have won that FA Cup match 5-2, but they had to come from behind twice against a side five tiers below them.

Havant were pinching themselves at the reality of even being there and the final scoreline was a harsh reaction on their efforts.

The lack of first-team members in that fixture caused anxious moments and made a slight mockery of the team.

What if then, the European opponents don't just edge pressure onto the Liverpool, what if they take the fixture to the wire and prove themselves capable of an upset?

The list of players being put to the sidelines is extensive.

Torres, Kuyt, Babel, Reina, Gerrard, Carragher, and Johnson are, to name a few. We all know that a Premier League match missing any of those last season was sometimes a lost cause.

After England's dismal performance in the tournament, I do think that a start for Gerrard, Carragher, and Johnson could do them a world of good. What better boost in confidence is there than a triumphant victory in European football?

It may be a shallow win against opponents lacking in killer instinct, but it would be a win nonetheless.

I just hope with his first important game in charge, Hodgson knows what he is doing.

The Europa League position was a pitiful consolation prize to the loss of Champions League football. But it is one that Liverpool fans will expect the team to tackle with great determination.

Anything less than a credible run deep into the tournament and a possible final performance would be considered a travesty.

The outcome of the qualifying tie will tell us much of what we need to know. Let us hope then that the result is positive.