Euro Bite Review No.6: The Blues are the New Reds

After a crunch Match Week Six in Europe, six British teams are through to the knock-out stages, but not five-time champions Liverpool. Kate Partridge thinks there’s been a continental shift in the nation’s top teams.

When it comes to thrilling, back-from-the-brink nights in European football, Manchester City are the new Liverpool.

Two Champions League group matches ago, Manuel Pellegrini’s side stood on the edge of elimination. A galling 2-1 defeat at home to CSKA Moscow saw winless City bottom of Group E with two games to go. And the fans hitting the exits.

Worse, red cards for Fernandinho and Yaya Toure meant the two midfield engines would miss the next match, at home to then unbeaten Bayern Munich. Then there was a trip to Roma. Even unlikely victories in both games did not guarantee qualification. City’s inability to reproduce in Europe the form that had accrued such success domestically seemed set for another humiliating reprise.

Except they only went and did it. Despite Roma’s formidable Serie A home record and missing talismanic striker, Sergio Aguero, Pellegrini’s men showed at the Stadio Olimpico the kind of fortitude, skill and all-round team cohesion that has been the hallmark of their English title-winning campaigns. Magnifico.

Better yet, now also just three points behind leaders Chelsea in the Premier League, the champions face a Saturdaytrip to rock-bottom Leicester with the form and confidence of knowing they can beat Bayern without Toure and Roma without Aguero. Without their stars.

Liverpool can no longer say the same. Ten years ago, almost to the day, Steven Gerrard scored a late screamer as the Reds came from behind to light up Anfield with a vital 3-1 victory over Olympiakos, en route to THAT final in Istanbul and their fifth European title.

On Tuesday, history was set to repeat itself, with their Champions League future once again “in their own hands” and needing a win at home to Swiss champions Basel. The Kop was braced for another big European night in a long and prestigious history of big European nights. That was a total anti-climax.

When now 34-year-old Gerrard drove in a trademark equalising free-kick, the subdued crowd burst into life. But that was that. Paulo Sousa’s side comfortably held out for the 1-1 draw they needed to progress. The spotlight swung sharply to apologetic manager Brendan Rodgers, then on former talisman Luis Suarez, who was preparing to help Barcelona win Group F.

Yes, substitute Lazar Markovic was sent off, which was perhaps unfortunate. But the full story of five points from six matches is not a record worthy of the Last 16, five-time champions, or last year’s Premier League runners-up.

Yes, Suarez has been sold, but no fewer than 20 largely unheralded players have been brought in under Rodgers, while Chelsea plumped for the established triumvirate of Diego Costa, Cesc Fabregas and Filipe Luis. Yes, Daniel Sturridge has been injured – again – but Mario Balotelli has flopped, the result of an unwise decision to buy a poacher when they needed a game changer.

Finally, a porous defence’s manta of “you score four, we’ll score five” won’t work when there is no one to score one, let alone five, and – worse – when there are doubts among an attack-minded back line over the reliability of the goalkeeper.

When Plan A is based around one player and there is no obvious Plan B, opposing coaches cheer, the fans fume, the media maul and the chairmen check CVs. For the pivotal and world class Suarez last season read the overburdened and still maturing Raheem Sterling this one. And if the buzz word “transition” is offered as a reason for the decline, one could counter with two: Ronald Koeman.

Liverpool are currently ninth in the Premier League, fifteen points adrift of Chelsea, with a goal difference of nil, and go to third-placed Manchester United on Sunday. After Basel, Rodgers said: “We weren’t good enough,” but with the unwanted consolation of the Europa League. The prospect of being beaten by their old foes, who look odds on to replace them in the Champions League next season is unthinkable to Reds fans. They have to be good enough.

Ask Arsene Wenger. After 18 years managing Arsenal, a section of fans are unhappy, in their own quiet “thanks for the memories” banner kind of way. Sixth in the Premier League and following another humiliation at bogey side Stoke, Wenger has been taking solace in Europe.

The Gunners wrapped up the group stage with a 4-1 flourish at Galatasaray to finish second in Group D. Individual brilliance from Aaron Ramsey and Lukas Podolski will also have pacified the purists.

A Saturday teatime Premier League victory at home to Newcastle might raise yet more pre-Christmas cheer among the fans, many of whom admit there is no obvious replacement to their long-serving and consistent Frenchman. A favourable Last-16 draw that might for once not include Bayern Munich would also be a welcome early present.

Yet for consistency, nothing other than Newcastle has so far stopped Chelsea (or, at least their ball boys. Wink). A perhaps less-than-sporting display was followed by Sporting. Jose Mourinho rested Eden Hazard, Willian and John Terry, brought back a scoring Andre Schürrle and Diego Costa, then at 3-1 up brought on one of their own, 18-year-old academy star Ruben Loftus-Cheek. Now that’s special.

Yet in the Europa League, it was a night of defeats for the already-qualified Brits. In the only game with anything riding on it, Besiktas overcame two floodlight failures to pip Tottenham 1-0 in Istanbul to take top spot – and a handy seeding – in Group C. Elsewhere, surprise Russian high-flyers Krasnodar won 1-0 at Group H winners Everton, whose priorities lay with blooding youngsters. And Celtic lost a 4-3 thriller at already-eliminated Dinamo Zagreb.

But it’s Chelsea who have consistency, cohesion, strength in depth, as well as tactical and PR nous. City might be the new neutrals’ favourite in Europe. But it’s the Premier League leaders and unbeaten Group G winners that are England’s top team – and even still in with a shot at a unique quadruple. And maybe, one day, matching Liverpool’s five glorious titles.

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