Following the Champions League qualifying draw, many fans breathed a sigh of relief. The draw means a short trip across the Channel in 10 days' time thus avoiding long trips into the unknown or more dangerous opponents such as Atlético Madrid or Galatasaray.
Liverpool must defeat Belgian champions Standard Liège to reach the group stages and the large windfall that brings. On paper, Standard Liege looks an easy draw but is there any way this could be a potential banana skin? Let's look at our Belgian opposition in detail...
Liverpool must defeat Belgian champions Standard Liège to reach the group stages and the large windfall that brings. On paper, Standard Liege looks an easy draw but is there any way this could be a potential banana skin? Let's look at our Belgian opposition in detail...
European pedigree:
No titles, their best performance was reaching the 1982 Cup Winners' Cup final, losing 2-1 to Barcelona at the Camp Nou after taking a shock early lead. They suffered a huge scandal in the aftermath when allegations proved Standard had asked opponents to ease off during the title run-in to allow Liege to face Barcelona fully-fit. As a result, they were punished with a severe fine which meant they had to sell the bulk of their playing staff - something from which they never recovered. They have never reached the Champions League group stages.
Manager:
Laszlo Boloni, an experienced Romanian coach who took over this summer after ex-Belgium goalie Michel Preud'homme was head-hunted by rivals AAA Gent after leading Liege to their first league title in 25 years. Boloni, 55, made his name as a manager in France with AS Nancy and Rennes, which led to him being appointed Romanian national team boss in 2000 until being offered the manager's job at Sporting Lisbon. His 18-month tenure was a failure but his main legacy was the introduction of Ronaldo, Quaresma and Viana into the first team. More recently, he had a disastrous spell at Monaco followed by a stint in Saudi Arabia.
Key players:
Milan Jovanović, a 27-year old Serbian striker who won Belgian players' player of the year after scoring 16 goals to lead Standard to an historic title win.
Steven Dufour, a diminutive 20 year old playmaker and the Standard captain. Already capped 12 times for Belgium and tipped to star in Belgium national team for years to come.
Marouane Fellaini, a tall Belgian international of Moroccan origin, aged 20. A midfielder, also comfortable at the back, he finished runner-up in national player of the year award.
[Unfortunately, he has been called up to represent Belgium at the Olympics with another Liege youngster, defender Landry Mulemo]
Oguchi Onyewu, the US international central defender, was on loan at Newcastle in 2007. His aerial ability is both an asset defensively and at set-pieces.
Dieumerci Mbokani, a powerful 22-year old striker from DR Congo, tipped as the new Didier Drogba in the Belgian media.
Verdict:
On paper, an excellent draw - inexperienced European opponents and a relatively short trip. However, complacency must be avoided at all costs. Liverpool's stuttering pre-season will hopefully take shape over the next week with the return of the Spanish contingent and the arrival of Robbie Keane.
The change of manager over the summer will mean Boloni will keen to implement his own style and tactics on his new players. An inexperienced team could prove a weakness but on the other hand, a high-profile opponent gives the young Standard stars an opportunity to make a name for themselves. Attacking players such as Mbokani and Jovanovic are ably assisted by skipper Dufour and Brazilian Igor de Camargo in midfield mean that Liege do pose an attacking threat.
Ultimately, Liverpool's attacking options should prove too much for Liege's defence as despite the potential in their ranks, few will have played against opponents of the calibre of Torres, Keane or Gerrard in the short careers. All in all, I expect a comfortable passage but we cannot afford complacency as a slip-up would be unthinkable for the club.
No titles, their best performance was reaching the 1982 Cup Winners' Cup final, losing 2-1 to Barcelona at the Camp Nou after taking a shock early lead. They suffered a huge scandal in the aftermath when allegations proved Standard had asked opponents to ease off during the title run-in to allow Liege to face Barcelona fully-fit. As a result, they were punished with a severe fine which meant they had to sell the bulk of their playing staff - something from which they never recovered. They have never reached the Champions League group stages.
Manager:
Laszlo Boloni, an experienced Romanian coach who took over this summer after ex-Belgium goalie Michel Preud'homme was head-hunted by rivals AAA Gent after leading Liege to their first league title in 25 years. Boloni, 55, made his name as a manager in France with AS Nancy and Rennes, which led to him being appointed Romanian national team boss in 2000 until being offered the manager's job at Sporting Lisbon. His 18-month tenure was a failure but his main legacy was the introduction of Ronaldo, Quaresma and Viana into the first team. More recently, he had a disastrous spell at Monaco followed by a stint in Saudi Arabia.
Key players:
Milan Jovanović, a 27-year old Serbian striker who won Belgian players' player of the year after scoring 16 goals to lead Standard to an historic title win.
Steven Dufour, a diminutive 20 year old playmaker and the Standard captain. Already capped 12 times for Belgium and tipped to star in Belgium national team for years to come.
Marouane Fellaini, a tall Belgian international of Moroccan origin, aged 20. A midfielder, also comfortable at the back, he finished runner-up in national player of the year award.
[Unfortunately, he has been called up to represent Belgium at the Olympics with another Liege youngster, defender Landry Mulemo]
Oguchi Onyewu, the US international central defender, was on loan at Newcastle in 2007. His aerial ability is both an asset defensively and at set-pieces.
Dieumerci Mbokani, a powerful 22-year old striker from DR Congo, tipped as the new Didier Drogba in the Belgian media.
Verdict:
On paper, an excellent draw - inexperienced European opponents and a relatively short trip. However, complacency must be avoided at all costs. Liverpool's stuttering pre-season will hopefully take shape over the next week with the return of the Spanish contingent and the arrival of Robbie Keane.
The change of manager over the summer will mean Boloni will keen to implement his own style and tactics on his new players. An inexperienced team could prove a weakness but on the other hand, a high-profile opponent gives the young Standard stars an opportunity to make a name for themselves. Attacking players such as Mbokani and Jovanovic are ably assisted by skipper Dufour and Brazilian Igor de Camargo in midfield mean that Liege do pose an attacking threat.
Ultimately, Liverpool's attacking options should prove too much for Liege's defence as despite the potential in their ranks, few will have played against opponents of the calibre of Torres, Keane or Gerrard in the short careers. All in all, I expect a comfortable passage but we cannot afford complacency as a slip-up would be unthinkable for the club.
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