Liverpool Comment: Picking Up The Pieces Of Another False Dawn?

Rafa Benitez has never been one for getting carried away. Even in the immediate aftermath of Liverpool's famous 2005 Champions League triumph, whilst the rest of the Red party drank and danced until dawn, the Spaniard could be heard muttering to the then-chief-executive Rick Parry about poor marking, lack of composure and Milan Baros' shortcomings.

That is the way he is, and some would argue it is indicative of a winning mentality. A mentality which helped him to immortality at Valencia, in the shape of two Primera Liga titles and a UEFA Cup, and which dragged that rag-tag, Gerard Houllier-built side to glory in Istanbul in his first season on Merseyside. Make no mistake, Benitez is a very special manager.

Which is why the current situation at Anfield, one that sees Liverpool nine points short of league leaders Chelsea and playing the kind of football that is likely only to lengthen that deficit, is unlikely to have the man from Madrid overly-concerned. After all, this is a man whose Valencia side were booed in the early days of their title-winning season in 2001/02.

A defeat in Liverpool's next fixture, however, could well have Benitez worried. The grimace on the Spaniard's face as he trudged across the Craven Cottage pitch on Saturday, having seen his side swotted aside 3-1 by Fulham, will be even greater should the Reds fail to collect a win in Lyon's intimidating Stade Gerland on Wednesday night.

Because for the first time in his five-year reign, Benitez is facing the possibility of elimination from the Champions League at the group stages. Whatever the financial implications for the club - and there will be plenty - the damage such a loss would do to both Benitez's prestige, and the faith he shares with Liverpool supporters, would be huge.

Realistically, Liverpool know even a draw in Lyon is unlikely to be enough. It must be assumed that Fiorentina will defeat Hungarian minnows Debrecen in Group E's other fixture, and the Italians already boast a three-point lead over Benitez and his side. If that was to lengthen, with two games remaining, it would make Liverpool's task nigh-on impossible.

It should never have got to this for Liverpool. Last year's runners-up spot, and 86 points, represented their best Premier League season ever, and the club's best return since their last league title in 1990. How then, less than six months later, can the club be staring at a new year with both of their prize targets out of sight?

The answers will never be truly known, but it is fair to say that Liverpool have suffered from a mixture of other teams' improvements, and a failure to do so themselves. Having lost both Xabi Alonso and Alvaro Arbeloa to Real Madrid's new-look Galacticos in the summer, a squad that was already considered two or three players short was stretched further.

Glen Johnson's arrival, at a significant outlay, replaced Arbeloa - albeit with a different, more risky type of player. Alberto Aquilani, when fit, should go some way to filling the undoubted void left by Alonso. The Italian is a more inherently attacking footballer than his Spanish predecessor, yet both share the same passing style, the same propensity to strike from long distance, and the same low-fuss defensive abilities.

Absent minded | Aquilani has been sorely missed

Which leaves the squad. Liverpool's squad was talked about at great length even as Benitez was guiding it to within four points of the title last season. When the end of Robbie Keane's ill-fated six-month spell on Merseyside was confirmed at the end of January, critics were eager to point out that it left the Reds dangerously short on forwards, in the event of an injury to Fernando Torres. Throw an injury to Steven Gerrard into the mix and it would be panic stations, they said.

Those critics must now have a smile as wide as the Mersey tunnel, as the likes of Andriy Voronin, Ryan Babel and David Ngog - albeit the latter with more promise - struggle to step up on a regular, or even semi-regular, basis. One got the impression that even Benitez did not believe himself when saying that Voronin's return (from a loan spell with German side Hertha Berlin last season) would add to his side's options.

Still, Liverpool operate best with their backs pressed against brick walls. A win in Lyon would reignite their qualification hopes - although it would still require two more to follow - and few sides have an injury list as long as Benitez's at the moment.

Nor, I would venture, do they boast a manager so adept at getting the right result when it really matters.

Neil Jones, Goal.com