NEIL MOXLEY Jurgen can turn back clock as Jose stutters

Follow us on Twitter: @peoplesport SIR ALEX FERGUSON claimed his greatest achievement as Manchester United manager was knocking Liverpool off their perch 14 years ago.

For those of us who lived through the Reds’ domination of English football, he was right.

It has taken a while but the wings of the Liver Bird are flapping once more. If they are not yet scaling dizzy heights, the signs are that they will be soon.

And while tomorrow night’s result against United at Anfield will not be conclusive, it will act as a marker to how far the wheel of footballing fortune has turned.

It may have moved slowly – too slowly for the Reds – but the evidence before us suggests that the long-awaited rebirth is concrete.

Jurgen Klopp’s enthusiasm is contagious. Anfield feels more like a stadium fit for the 21st century now the Main Stand has been redeveloped. And the German’s players are athletic – promising entertainment and goals.

The team is not the finished article yet. But their Premier League campaign should be helped this term by the absence of European football.

Belief

It has been a while since the owners, fans, manager and players have all appeared to sing from the same hymn sheet.

More importantly, it’s been decades since the footballing staff was of the highest quality.

There were times during the r ei gns of Gerard Houllier, Rafa Benitez and Brendan Rodgers when that final bridge should have been crossed. But one ingredient or another was missing.

But what Leicester City’s glorious season has proved to everyone is that if you can get it right, you don’t need to worry about anyone else.

The Foxes closed themselves off into their own little box and did what they did. It was beautifully simple. No weight of history on their shoulders. Just a belief which grew and grew.

And so Liverpool’s 27-year wait for a title shouldn’t act as a yoke around the club. There’s no future in the past. It can’t be changed, so it shouldn’t be a THE LA ST WORD ... barrier to anything that might happen. At Old Trafford the positives are more difficult to spot.

Back in the day when Ferguson ruled the roost, there were few cracks.

His players were top- drawer, the support he received f rom t he boardroom was unquestioning and the redevelopment of the Theatre of Dreams only added to the gigantic revenues that the club was generating, enabling them to stay ahead of the competition in attracting the best talent. It was a one- way ticket to footballing heaven. Fast forward three years. The club has struggled in the wake of David Gill’s exit, and Jose Mourinho is following Louis van Gaal in desperately trying to rediscover a DNA that came so easily to Ferguson. The players certainly aren’t the best in the business and news this week that 50 scouts are to be employed across Europe screams t hat t he Old Trafford infrastructure is nowhere near where it should be for a club of Manchester United’s size.

Distractions

Oh, and noisy neighbours Manchester City have finally got to grips with their new position in the English football hierarchy. Defeat at Anfield will leave Mourinho well off the top of the Premier League with almost a quarter of the campaign over. Liverpool will be hot on the heels of the league leaders, without any European distractions. It’s always a big game, this. But t here can be little argument to whom it matters more. It won’t be a fatal blow should Jurgen Klopp finish glumfaced. But if Jose Mourinho is on the wrong si de of a result, that perch could be out of reach for him already this season. chamDEPOSEDDEPOSEDchampEPOSEDpSEDchammpmp TysonTysonT F Fury i is cuttincuttin solitary ingg ga figure, with taalklk mental health of he ississues. LLeet’st’s hopee receives treatment and andd considers andd recovvers,rs , the vilvile stantnce takenenken on several he hhas s sexismsexismsexi xism issu issues – raacism,,i and andd hhomophobia homophobiah bi in the same sameme –d –ddidisheddhd manner out psychiatricpropsychiatric at p peooplepl witthh ih problems.blems I IIt shhould help Fury developadiffdevelopa diffdifferentferent s sense nse of persp perspective. ti A Andd d that’sthat s no bad thing.thing.thi . g