Week’s work has its just reward

Apr 5 2007 Red Watch by Andy Proudfoot, Liverpool Daily Post

NOT a bad week's work. Sweet revenge gained over the high-flying media darlings from the Emirates; great pictures from the Philips Stadion; £40m of catnip apparently winging its way from the good ol' US of A into Rafa's transfer kitty; and The People's Club finally sent packing to Tesco's.

Once again it seems Rafa has ensured that our season will retain some genuine interest until the last ball is kicked.

Though the securing of third or fourth place in the Premiership might not exactly set our pulses racing, the tantalising prospect of another Champions League final is more than enough evidence that, though the manager's rotation machine may have been have been set a touch too high too early, he's largely been proved right in the long run.

The displays against Arsenal and PSV were full of confidence and committed endeavour, both opponents utterly defeated by the final whistle.

The benefits of a large squad, each receiving regular football interspersed with rest periods, were there for all to see in the high-tempo demolition of Arsenal, and the calculated and composed dissection of PSV.

The players looked hungry, and everyone wants to cement a place as Athens looms on the horizon.

This is not to represent that all our problems are behind us of course; the dismal display at Villa is still too fresh to seriously suggest this.

But it's equally certain that progress is being made, and wise investment of the Yankee dollar in the summer might just set us up for a sustainable Premiership challenge next season.

There was much to admire over the two games this week. Perhaps the most encouraging aspect was the performances of Peter Crouch, who showed suspicious signs that the operation to repair his distorted proboscis had been a cover for the insertion of some much-needed aggression into his cerebrum.

His hat-trick against Arsenal was just reward for a truly awesome all-round performance, where he didn't put a foot, head or nose wrong.