Season

In just a few weeks, it all begins again. Expectations are raised, new targets are set, and the preparation begins for months of toil. But enough about my summer job hunt.

It also marks the beginning of the new football season. It seems like a while, but not too long ago, that Blackpool were relegated, yet already the pre-season friendlies are well under way, the fixtures have been released, and many transfers have been completed. And, of course, fans have started dreaming about what their teams may accomplish come May next year.

But how realistic are these ambitions? Most Stoke City fans would agree that their team is unlikely to win the Premier League next season, but is this even achievable for the likes of Arsenal or Tottenham Hotspur?

After all, there are twenty teams in the League; only a maximum of three or four could end up winning something each season (although this doesn’t include European competitions), and there’s always the chance of a club winning more than one piece of silverware. Which means that supporters will be as disappointed as Santa when he sees how much petrol has to go into his sleigh. And this doesn’t include the sides that go down; their fans would feel lower than whale manure.

Personally, I tried to stay immune from the hype last year. The combination of a rotten season, which saw cup exits, repeated defeats and a compared-to-2009 disappointing seventh place finish. I thought, after several years of expecting a League title that never materialised, I vowed to stay realistic in 2010/2011, and appreciate that bad things will occasionally happen. (I support Liverpool, by the way.)

Like the first day, when a late own goal cost Liverpool the win against Arsenal. Many seemed frustrated; I was too, but not too much, and based on that first day, it seemed like a good season had just begun.

Erm, how can I put this . . . it was a disaster.

Well, much of it, anyway.

Defeats to Man City (Where Art Thou Javier?), Man Utd (although that was a close one), Northampton (embarrassing), Blackpool (ditto), Everton (not that they’re rubbish, but it is the local derby), Wolves (as welcome a late Xmas present as a stale advent calendar) and Blackburn (the final straw) summed up a torrid five months. Add to that the Hicks-Gillett saga, and the problems fans had in accepting Roy Hodgson as manager, and you’ll understand why the claim that these were the worst months in Liverpool’s 118-year history weren’t an exaggeration.

On the positive side, John Henry finally took LFC out of Hicks and Gillett’s hands, and Kenny Dalglish returned as manager. After a shaky start, things were looking up . . . and then Torres went to Chelsea. The most beloved player of the last four years, quickly deciding to defect to a hated rival, just as the turnaround seemed to have begun; it was a kick in the teeth for all of those who had chanted his name. The Kop had bounced for the final time. (Hopefully you’ll know what I mean by that.)

But, within days, Torres was a forgotten figure: Suarez and Carroll came in and, whilst neither would score all the time, they scored enough goals, and contributed enough to the team, that the remainder of the season was mostly enjoyable. The victory over Chelsea at the Bridge, several routs, the 3-1 defeat of Man Utd – suddenly, the season that started so poorly looked like ending on a high.

Except, Liverpool lost their last two games, missing out on Europe altogether. In the meantime, Man Utd won a record-breaking 19^th League title.

Shucks.

All that happened in nine months; and that doesn’t even include the pre-season departure of Rafa Benitez, or the (to be frank) total failure of such signings as Paul “My mum hates Scousers” Konchesky, and Christian Poulsen. Hard to predict that all that would take place when 2009/2010 ended. Yet, while questions remain unanswered about the campaign just gone (a notable one being, why do some journalists continue to insist that Hodgson was forced out by fans when LFC were 12^th when he left, and were never lower than that once Dalglish took over?), most thoughts now have turned to the upcoming season.

So, whilst I approached 2009/2010 with high expectations, the first half of 2010/2011 with trepidation, and the second half of 2010/2011 with fera as to what would end up happening, I don’t know how to approach 2011/2012. Granted, things look promising now, but that’s no guarantee of anything.

Should there be confidence due to the new signings? Should there be disappointment already, since there won’t be any “famous European nights”? Or should there be pessimism, considering how many promising seasons produced so little?

After much deliberation (well, not really but it sounds good), I’ve decided to approach next season with an attitude that anything could happen. Obviously, I want Liverpool to do well, but there is a chance that things could pan out badly. There’s also a chance that LFC will remain a big side, but not the biggest. Or maybe, just maybe, 22 (by 2012) years of hurt will finally end with King Kenny winning Liverpool’s 19^th League title.

All this makes for an exciting season ahead. The hype will never go away, each season is no more significant than the last, yet this one does look like being an interesting one. And I’m excited as to what lies ahead between August 2011 and May 2012.

Well, until LFC go out of the Carling Cup to Accrington Stanley.