TERRACE TALK: Horrific stuff as arrogance and complacency punished

Absolutely pitiful.

Spare yourself the pain of reading the rest.

We’re all had enough time wasted.

There’s always a problem whenever we get vaguely close to the top. You’ll enter a red twilight zone where arrogance and expectation overtake actual ability; sometimes slightly, sometimes so much it’s frightening.

That’s supporters and players in equal measure.

Approaching three games in succession against ‘lower’ sides people jumped the gun, looking further forward instead at hellish trips to Spurs, City and Chelsea.

They’d pocketed this week’s nine points before the dreary imposition of winning them.

It’s difficult to determine what talent you’ve got, how far they’ve come and who’s responsible for it; the white-suit dandies who played under Roy Evans are the closest similarity to what we’ve got now.

One or two exceptional individuals (Fowler and Suarez could be interchangeable) papering over the cracks, an ageing static but occasionally brilliant captain augmented by an overstocked midfield, beautiful to watch when allowed to play but stuttering alarmingly if anyone put up a spirited, often dirty fight.

Roy never got the usual worship of Liverpool managers and nor does Brendan. Those of us who distrusted the lionisation of Houllier and Benitez, then felt slightly shamefaced for a similar indulgence with Kenny, aren’t completely unhappy with the disappearing pedestal.

Distressed over the sale of Suarez and skewered by the tenterhooks of Sturridge’s fitness; both reactions hinted at renewed appreciation for the players’ efforts.

So long as they don’t exploit it; given his England faux pas and his bizarre dash to celebrate in front of Evertonians not us, the latest injury news is a painful reminder of previous Liverpudlian dependence.

The best clubs have back-up; they don’t cry and squeal if one decent player goes AWOL. “Why can’t we copy United and withdraw players from meaningless internationals?” Because United players know if they mess their manager about, he could call on others? Okay Rodgers did put Sturridge on the bench, but we knew at the time that wouldn’t last. Let’s not even mention how the man who stirred up so much turmoil in the summer became Hero Fantastico again with unseemly haste.

You pray others step up, remember the alternatives are Aspas or Borini and stock up on flatulence tablets. What would happen if we had European football to contend with too?

A chill set in when Hull lost to 10-man Palace amidst public squabbling with their chairman. It was too good to be true, and you just knew the dreaded complacency would creep in again. This was horrific from the off. Disjointed and distracted, at one point you looked on in sheer disbelief. They’ve put a whole week’s work into THIS?

Hull were busy and aggressive, with nothing else to complement it, and they still scored three goals. It might have been worse.

Fitness has been unsatisfactory at this club for a long time. There must be some reason why we ‘lose’ every second half we play. Not a problem if you’re two goals to the good; it’s become a very bad unbreakable habit now. We dip tentatively into the squad and emerge with fistfuls of sand. Count the money; Sakho, Allen, Aspas and Alberto sat on the bench with little or no chance of changing this result whilst Borini wasn’t even present.

Nearly £60 million’s worth of footballer.

Where is the so-called possession game, the “death by football?” I felt like killing someone, if that counts.

We were a joke all day. You looked to the touchline and compared Fathead’s animation to Brendan striking his pose, every inch the vogue manager.

December was always going to be testing. We are on a level playing field now, eight games in 32 days, so an absence of midweek football couldn’t benefit us. The squad got its first tweak of the season and instantly shattered into embarrassed fragments.

The season to be jolly? Wanna bet?