Sigmund Freud once said of the Irish: “this is one race of people for whom psychoanalysis is of no use whatsoever.” To stereotype a country does too many an injustice and is lazy, but such things can still pervade with some truths, so given the inexorable links – via trade, immigration and religion - between the City of Liverpool and the country that forced Freud to admit defeat in one particular pursuit, it would perhaps have been no surprise to the "Father of the Organised Mind" that in 1987, residents of the City erected a statue of Carl Jung, his most vehement critic - a man with a heartfelt, spiritual accent to his works.
Marginalised by Thatcher, as were many of course, but also a city that has historically benefited from an eclectic mix of minorities - genuinely oppressed, even in recent eras - it is perhaps no surprise that something of a persecution complex does pervade within parts of Liverpool. The comparative successes of their traditional rivals from Manchester [United] cannot have helped.
Contrary, reactionary, provocative, a proclivity towards paranoia and cynicism - accusations often levelled at Liverpudlians - but, as Rafa Benitez would attest: show the heartbeat of the city your values, loyalty, desire and the passion for the fight; and they will reciprocate with patience, support, humour and a defence of almost unparallelled vigour.
So, where the combination of the Jungian archetype Shankly and Liverpool FC seemed to have been one conceived in heaven, at least to supporters of the club, the union with Roy Hodgson appeared to have been tarnished forever, for a vocal section, by his association with the hellish reign of Gillett and Hicks, and their apocryphal era of mediocrity and failure. But also, deemed to be in the Managing Director, Christian Purslow’s pocket, given the inferences over who ultimately initiated Joe Cole’s signing.
Moreover, where Hodgson was concerned: Southern; speaker of five languages (no easy task for an Englishman); with the distant, measured air of a politician; the recent manager of Fulham; and incontrovertibly more a Freudian than a Jungian; if ever a fate seemed pre-ordained, it was that he would fail at Liverpool.
But, given the unstable parameters within which Hodgson was to operate during his reign, even Jung would have deemed the immediate treatment of the current League Manager of the Year, by some, as a classic case of displacement.
With a hard-core, fringe element able to cut loose on the internet and employing an equivalent of guerrilla tactics, both inside and outside the ground - the treatment that Paul Konchesky received was spiteful even before “Facebook night” and the player was a stick with which to beat the manager - their ultimate desire was always, if not to subvert the majority irrevocably to their cause, to test Hodgson’s mettle; and in truth, he was found wanting. The fans were right.
Hodgson’s reaction to Sir Alex Ferguson’s slight on Fernando Torres was too apathetic for too many and lost him much sway; since then, results became increasingly poor with any positive ones isolated; the Dane, Christian Poulsen was an absurd signing; but, most disconcertingly, the team selections become haphazard and without much discernible logic.
It seems likely that in an age of social networking, forums, gifs and almost omnipotent media coverage the prevailing image of Roy Hodgson’s tenure as Liverpool manager will be his actions on the touchline during the fixture with Newcastle United. To see an eminently decent man demonstrate such stress was something only comedians would take solace in but, from that night - without a resurrection of biblical proportions - the ever increasing minority appeared to have succeeded in achieving the result they craved: the nose would be cut-off and if necessary, the face briefly spited.
Unfortunately, for Hodgson, his problems at Liverpool were also compounded by its previous manager. The same fans most vociferous in voicing their disgruntlement at his management, included a significant proportion of those that never wanted Rafa Benitez removed from his post. He became a stick with which to beat the media, whom this section of the fans felt, had prevaricated too determinedly over the Spaniard's failings and despite a performance at Inter that replicated some of these - if not the ill-conceived attempt at rebuilding the club's infrastructure in his own image - there remain some fans who would still welcome Benitez back into the bosom.
With attendances falling, results worsening and defeat at their rivals United [in the FA Cup] perhaps deemed inevitable, Roy Hodgson was relieved of his duties. It had been a matter of time; many ex-Liverpool players voiced their support for the club’s then manager, but the eulogies retained the air of an unused substitute being awarded “Most improved player” by the management of a children’s Sunday league team. Most significantly, whilst silence is reputedly golden: where Hodgson’s future was concerned, the silence of one particular Scotsman seemed increasingly deadly. It was no surprise when Kenny Dalglish was appointed in lieu.
Liverpool’s problems, though, have been deeper than just Hodgson’s unsuitability and the shifting-sands of the club’s ownership; some major players were letting the club down even before this season, for example and not least Fernando Torres, who has been lacking in application for almost ten months and most worryingly, appears to be overweight, unfit. He more than any other player, must step-up to the plate, proving that he retains the same desire he showed upon his arrival at the club; if not, he will remain a £30million albatross, relying on a combination of his past glories and the limitations of others, to obscure his own shortcomings. Despite the posturing to the contrary, a sale may be best for both parties.
Glenn Johnson is another high-earner [£90,000 a week] who has to show an aptitude for the fight ahead; £16million worth of right-back and yet to contribute positively to any team’s defending. A self-proclaimed fan of The Inbetweeners; Johnson has for too long displayed all the defensive positioning and tactical awareness of Laurel or Hardy. It is time for the England right-back to prove his willing; to learn, to accept the flaws, to take responsibility, to grow-up.
Whether Dalglish will retain the manager’s job on a permanent basis, is obviously unanswerable for now, as it will be determined by results, at least in some regard, but, he has the absolute support of the Red part of the city; and the addition of Steve Clarke, as first-team coach, should be a constructive move.
Liverpool’s future will invariably depend upon the owner’s [New England Sports Ventures] ability and determination to succeed; on the funds available, ostensibly. But, although it remains an exaggeration to describe the club as a sleeping giant - a sleeping giant wouldn't have won a European Cup [or derivatives thereof] within the last six years and reached the final twice in succession – with Manchester United, Arsenal, Manchester City, Chelsea and Tottenham Hotspur currently ahead in the pecking-order, there remain some testing-times ahead, you feel.
