Draw Disease

By AM Thursday, February 13, 2025

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Anthony McIntyre ⚽ Another day, another draw.

If Liverpool continue with the dance of the seven veils the team might well find itself naked in terms of silverware at the end of the season. They crashed out of the FA Cup on Sunday to the mighty Plymouth, a club not exactly renowned throughout the world for the mass of trophies it has accumulated over the years. Plymouth's religious Brethren are probably better known than its soccer club. If the purpose of fielding a weak side against Plymouth was to save the energy for last night's more important game against Merseyside rivals, Everton, it was a waste of effort and a cup exit to boot.

Last night myself and Paddy headed to the local. He rang me as evening approached and asked if I fancied a pint. Parched from a two hour river walk with the dog, I fancied a pint more than I fancied Liverpool. As the local serves Corona on tap, I was inexorably drawn to the pub and what I sensed would be a drawn game. I was somewhat reassured by the presence of Conor Bradley in the right back position. At least, unlike TAA, he would not be seen as a soft touch, a target for persistent forays from the Everton left. But what is gained on the swings can quickly be lost on the roundabouts. On the other side of the backline the once reliable Andy Robinson seems to be terminally stupid, which I suppose is what continues to guarantee him the Scotland captaincy. Daft pushes to the back of an opponent under the nose of the referee without a semblance of guile, cuteness or discretion. Even Arne Slot groaned in exasperation.

I'm not sure why I do it. There is no enjoyment to be derived from watching Liverpool. They rarely play scintillating soccer, and often they just about manage to eke out a win. There also seems to be an element of bluff about their current top of the table position, something they are aware of and live in dread of being found out. The scenes at the end of the game last night pointed to this. To my mind the post match chaos kickstarted by Curtis Jones, was less about Doucoure winding up the Liverpool fans and more about the sense of nervous vulnerability that the team seems to be feeling as matters move towards the business end of the season. Three red cards in a game already over - what a foolhardy investment for the poorest of returns. The petulance never changed a thing other than who will appear on the next team sheet and in the technical area.

Earlier on TPQ, in response to a claim about how well the team was doing,  I made the point that:

At Christmas 2018 they were seven points clear and still never made it over the line. A slew of draws brought them down. Last season the title was in their own hands. They were the only side who if they won all their remaining games would win the title. No other side could do that. Mathematically impossible. Yet, they blew it against Manchester United in a 2-2 draw. After that they fell apart. The scourge of draw disease has caused them to be the nearly men - and it was back at them last night. I will be surprised if this lot don't fold as embarrassingly as they did last year. They are all the same players, just a year older. Soccer stamina does not grow with age.

That is pretty much the lay of the land to me. Paddy does his best to calm me down and is more laid back about it than I can ever be. I guess the guy seated next to us must have thought he was eavesdropping on a conversation between Pollyanna and Jerimiah. I am not a good conversationalist during Liverpool matches, so absorbed am I in the play. But a certain logic still managed to break through. His view is that unlike previous seasons Liverpool are in a race to the finish with Arsenal, not Manchester City. He remains certain that the Gunners will drop points. While it makes sense, my problem is that I don't trust this current side to deliver. If any team is capable of drawing its way to disaster, it is this one.

For the city of Liverpool the best outcome last night in the last Merseyside derby at Goodison was a draw, everybody can take something from the game. The same cannot be said of Liverpool's title hopes. They are now two points closer to the pursuing pack with no reason to believe that they have any more stamina at the end of this season than they had last time around. Now that the rubber is hitting the road, Liverpool's roadworthiness may fall short of NCT.

⏩Follow on Twitter @AnthonyMcIntyre.