HATTERS HEAD NEARER TOP
Henderson: Time to end wait for title
JORDAN HENDERSON can almost reach out and touch it, imagining the feel of the silverware in his welcoming hands.
And that’s why, when asked point-blank about Liverpool and the Premier League title, he answers without a flicker: “We’re ready.”
Henderson (below) knows Liverpool’s history inside out and is more than aware of the club being 18-time winners of the old First Division in their momentous history.
But after 18 years of not being crowned kings of England, Liverpool’s captain can clearly envisage the occasion when Jurgen Klopp’s men finally put that record straight.
The England midfielder said: “We definitely have the potential to win trophies but it’s up to us to go and do it on the pitch.
“I have every confidence, with the talent that we’ve got and the people in the dressing room, that we can go and produce trophies in the very near future – and hopefully it’s this season.” Henderson feels privileged to be leading a team of potential title winners and he is boosted in his beliefs by the incredible team spirit that is evident in the dressing room.
The 28-yearold added: “Yeah, it’s a good mood at the minute. The lads are confident obviously because of the performances and results.” LUTON closed the gap on leaders PORTSMOUTH to four points with a 2-1 win at COVENTRY. Goals from Matthew Pearson and James Collins earned the Hatters a sixth successive victory to take advantage of Pompey dropping points in a 1-1 draw at BARNSLEY.
Portsmouth went ahead through Gareth Evans but Cauley Woodrow equalised.
DAVID MOYES doesn’t hesitate for a moment as he says: “Yes, I’m mad keen to get back in charge of running a team.” After 20 tumultuous years as a football manager the Scot is still full of passion and pride in his job, still entranced by the old game.
He is also a man in demand around the world – if not just now by a Premier League club.
You get an immediate sense of how British football managers are more appreciated abroad than at home when Moyes talks of recent spells helping coaches in Norway and the USA, and of time spent with the Red Bull sporting group, which includes the Leipzig and Salzburg teams.
He was a member, too, of the elite UEFA technical study group that assessed the
Champions League
Final between
Liverpool and Real
Madrid.
Perhaps the most prestigious invitation came from Italy, where the former Everton and Manchester United boss was asked to deliver a lecture at their famous Coverciano coaches’ school.
The audience included Juventus head coach Max Allegri and Claudio Ranieri.
“That was so fascinating,” says Moyes. “The Italian managers were very interested in how we coach intensity in the Premier League.
“It’s what we do because that’s how our league is. We like to see teams squaring up against each other. There was a Q and A session afterwards and nearly all the questions were about intensity.
“You can see that the Italians are changing; at a club like Juventus, where the pace of play has increased. “The UEFA role is interesting, too. One of the big points the next SUNDERLAND stay third after coming from behind to beat managerless BRISTOL ROVERS 2-1. Alex Rodman gave the Pirates the lead at the Stadium of Light before goals from Adam Matthews and Josh Maja (left) consigned Rovers to an eighth loss in 10 matches. BRADFORD climbed off the bottom as David Ball scored twice in their emphatic 4-0 home victory over WALSALL. morning about the Champions League Final was the Sergio Ramos foul on Mo Salah. It was the key moment of the game.
“Ramos was telling Salah this is the big boys’ game now and you will have to deal with that, but he wasn’t trying to deliberately dislocate his shoulder. I certainly felt it altered the outcome of the match.”
Moyes has been a football manager since 1998 and has a formidable perspective on how the game has changed during that time.
“The biggest thing is the money,” he says. “Today £50million, £60m, £70m transfer fees are not seen as outrageous.
“Football has also become much faster and more athletic. The pitches, the facilities and the stadiums are so much better. The use of sports science is a big improvement for managers.
“The quality of play in the Premier League is better overall but I don’t think today you can find a better team than the great Arsenal side of the Invincibles. Nor are they better than the best teams built by Sir Alex Ferguson at Manchester United or the best Chelsea team of Didier Drogba and Frank Lampard.
“When Arsenal had Henry, Bergkamp and Vieira, you used to think, ‘My goodness’. One of my best memories was early in my time at Preston, when we drew them in the FA Cup, went 2-0 up and eventually lost 4-2. That game probably helped to propel my career forward.”
The scandal of so few British managers currently employed by Premier League and elite Championship clubs is a reality that saddens Moyes, who says: “They are really getting squeezed. I think Eddie