Liverpool: Premier League Season Preview
Andrew Jordan@@Andrew_Jordan
Senior Writer IAugust 4, 2010
With the Premier League season now rapidly approaching, I have decided to take a look at each of the 20 sides that will be playing at the top level of English football during this upcoming season.
I have decided to actually go in reverse order, with Wolverhampton starting off the list and Arsenal concluding it right before the start of the Premier League season.
In the 11th installment of this series, I will look at Liverpool, which had a sub-par year last season, finishing seventh in the Premier League because of a slew of injuries and inconsistent play only a year after nearly winning the league.
Review of Last Year
After a great season in 2008-2009, Liverpool started off their season with consecutive losses, and the season never got any better for the Reds.
From getting eliminated in the group stage of the Champions League to losing a match to Sunderland thanks to a strategically placed beach ball on the pitch from a Liverpool fan, Liverpool caught no breaks in one of their worst seasons in recent memory.
At the end of the season, Rafa Benitez left Anfield for the greener passages of Inter Milan while Roy Hodgson took over as the new manager of Liverpool.
Transfers
Incoming Players
Jonjo Shelvey (Charlton Athletic), Milan Jovanovic (Standard de Liege), Joe Cole (Chelsea), and Danny Wilson (Rangers).
Departing Players
Mikel San Jose (Athletic Bilbao), Robbie Threlfall (Bradford City), David Martin (Milton Keynes Dons), Yossi Benayoun (Chelsea), and Alberto Riera (Olympiakos).
All times are GMT (Greenwich Mean Time)
Major Questions Going into This Season:
No. 1 Will Liverpool rebound after disappointment last season?
Liverpool continued to have bad break after bad break last season, so bad luck will hopefully skip them this season.
Regardless, this is a better squad than last year's, and it should have a more positive attitude without Rafa Benitez.
No. 2 Will Steven Gerrard and Fernando Torres be healthy?
A major key to Liverpool's success is the health of Gerrard and Torres, both of whom were not up to par last season, which helped result in Liverpool's disappointing year.
With the World Cup behind them, Gerrard and Torres will focus more on Liverpool's success this season, and that should result in a healthier season for both.
No. 3 How big of an impact will Joe Cole have?
The biggest move by Liverpool this summer was signing Cole from Chelsea, a move that Liverpool fans have liked, as he is supposed to be the player who will help The Reds get back into the Champions League.
But will Cole (who suffered injuries last season) be healthy, or will he be a shell of his old self instead of being great?
Liverpool hopes it's the former.
No. 4 Can Roy Hodgson lead Liverpool back into the Champions League?
The manager behind Fulham's amazing run in the Europa League, Hodgson now brings some much needed life to Anfield after Rafa Benitez's disastrous season last year.
He will certainly help make Liverpool better, but it still is unknown if Liverpool will return to the Champions League after last season.
For a preview of Manchester City's Premier League season, please click here.
For a preview of Manchester United's Premier League season, please click here.
For a preview of Newcastle's Premier League season, please click here.
For a preview of Stoke City's Premier League season, please click here.