Teacher knows best?
By Fatman on the Lower Centenary
From Issue 57, Summer 2002
I hate being patronised. Whether it’s in
work, in social situations, or by complete strangers.
It just gets to me. I have been a big defender
of Houllier in these pages, in the past. Don’t
get me wrong, I still am a big believer that he
is getting it right. However, whether it’s
because of his past employment as a teacher, or
the fact that he is just French, he believes that
it gives him the right to patronise the fans.
For me, he did it a number of times last season.
From all accounts, it appears that he was still
having an influence on the team, and probably
team selection, throughout the period of his recovery
from illness. There are two ways we can look at
this. Either he is so dedicated to the cause that
he feels he has to have a hand on everything,
or he doesn’t trust the judgement of his
support staff. Bearing in mind his comments following
his return to the club, where he openly praised
the back-room staff for their efforts, the latter
option doesn’t really stand up to scrutiny.
The first scenario, however, is the more worrying.
It implies that we have a man in charge that
believes that his way is the only way, and to
hell with the consequences. He is a man who is
driven, to such an extent that it could affect
his health further in the future. A man who has
ignored doctors advice, according to the press,
on his recovery programme. A man who doesn’t
care, or ask for other people’s opinions,
maybe? Could it be this attitude that tempers
Houllier’s response to criticism, particularly
by the fans themselves?
I don’t think there is anyone who doesn’t
believe that Emile Heskey should have been dropped
at some time over the period from November to
January of this season. The stubborn refusal to
recognise that he was struggling with his form,
never mind the lack of goals, was ostrich behaviour
at its best. Other people I know have blamed our
system for his poor form, that just lumping the
ball up to him and expecting him to chase it is
a waste of time. But, how many times did we see
him standing too far from his other forward? How
many times did we see him ambling into the opposition
half of the pitch, when Owen has chased a no-hoper
into a wide position, and with no bastard to cross
to? You know within ten or fifteen minutes whether
Heskey is up for it. It’s when he takes
a belt in the first few minutes, and then proceeds
to terrorise the git who has kicked him. Likewise,
the occasional knock he does get, which he looks
like he could run off, is normally followed by
that hangdog expression and furtive looks towards
the bench.
The stubborn insistence by the management team
that Vladimir Smicer has ever contributed anything
to a Liverpool performance over the whole ninety
minutes is annoying in the extreme. I’m
sorry, but I have never seen this in all the time
he has been here, and if I live to be a hundred,
this man will never be a Liverpool player. For
them to think that we don’t recognise this
as patronising is even worse. I hate to plead
with the club ( I’m a terrible little pleader)
but get rid, get rid NOW!
Worse than this, though, was the reaction following
the defeat by Leverkusen. Anyone who thought that
Gerrard and Murphy had made a major contribution
to that game must have been taking drugs. The
public condemnation of Hamann by Houllier was
disgraceful, and it only served to start the rumour
mongers going at it again regarding a falling
out between the two. There are a lot of Hamann
haters who go to watch our side, but anyone who
thinks we looked more solid after he went off,
including our manager, were deluded. To replace
him with one of the most half hearted players
I have ever seen in a red shirt was disgraceful.
To compound that mistake, when we had to chase
the game in the last five minutes, by putting
on Berger, is almost criminal!
I know what I saw that night. We saw Basturk
and Ballack get forward more to the edge of our
box because of this ‘tactical’ solution.
This was what led to their fourth goal, because
we were having to defend the edge of the penalty
area. I saw a problem in our right back position,
with a player who is slower than a fat bastard
like me, which should have been resolved after
ten minutes!
My first reaction to the defeat was a resigned
acceptance that we weren’t good enough,
but that we did well for our first year in the
competition. But the following weeks made me feel
worse. Their reasons? “We aren’t experienced
in Europe”. That game was knockout. We were
the best in European knockout competition in the
U.E.FA cup, so to use inexperience as any type
of excuse wasn’t valid. We scored twice,
and should have had another three goals. And,
let’s be honest here, look what we had to
look forward to. To meet them, at a time when
they would have been under strength, on the back
of five victories against them, and with the added
bonus that some of their top players had spent
a week going around saying they weren’t
frightened of us!
On the night I was royally pissed off at individuals,
and to my shame, Michael Owen was one of those
individuals who bore the brunt of my rant. But,
in the cold light of time and perspective, I have
no hesitation in laying the blame at the door
of our manager. To go on and patronise us all
the next day, and to not own up to his own mistake
was a gross error in judgement and showed him
up to be the school teacher that he is. I don’t,
for one minute, believe that Phil Thompson would
have made those same decisions if he had been
out in Leverkusen on his own. I believe in my
heart that we missed out on a Champions League
cup final because of some awful tactical decisions,
and to compound that by not coming clean with
the most knowledgeable fans in the game made it
even worse for me.
I once had a teacher hit me that badly with
a cane that he broke my skin. My dad went to the
school and soon put him right. I wish he was around
today so he could have a word with Headmaster
Houllier. Teacher doesn’t always knows best.
Fatman on the Lower Centenary
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