Football Dissected

One would be hard pressed not to say Liverpool don't deserve to be named as possible contenders for the Premiership, especially since their busy transfer summer so far and especially since this may be the first time in nearly two decades they have a chance to win the Premiership title. But can they win it?

Fernando Torres, arriving from Atlético Madrid for just over £20 million, takes up the legendary number 9 shirt which has been previously been worn by Anfield greats Robbie Fowler and Ian Rush. No doubt the young Spanish striker may have a hard time filling the boots of the Fowler and Rush. Although El Niño (The Kid) is one of the quickest strikers in the whole of Europe and one of the strongest, there's no doubt going to be the difficulty of adjusting to the speed and physically nature of the Premiership, particularly after coming from a league like La Liga where getting away with a dive is something more special for some players than actually scoring a goal. But with his stats from his playing days in Spain, 75 goals over 5 seasons which is an average of 15 per season, he's definitely something special. My prediction: 12 goals this season

Ryan Babel arrives from legendary Dutch club Ajax in a transfer worth £11.5 million but, like Torres, he's no doubt going to have difficulty in adjusting to the Premiership. In the 97 games he's played for for Ajax he's only scored 19 goals, just under 5 every season, so he's no goal-machine. But he does have potential. My prediction: a good buy, but will be out of form at the start of season while he adjusts to the Permiership.

Unlike, Babel and Torres, Yossi Benayoun, arriving from West Ham in a deal reported to be worht £5 million, is a different matter. Benayoun has already adjusted to life in the Premiership while at West Ham and there's no doubt in my mind that while Babel and Torres adjust themselves, Benayoun will be called upon straight away to add to the team. My prediction: a solid season as a back-up player to captain Steven Gerrard and Javier Mascherano.

With Gerrard, Mascherano, Alonso, Sissoko, Reina, Carragher and many other good-quality players already at the club, there's only one thing that the team needs to work on: consistency. Also will Rafael Benítez concentrate more on the Champions League and other cup competitions or the league or does he think he has enough depth in the squad to concentrate on all four? Nobody can argue Liverpool don't have european pedigree with their five European Cups and with reaching the Champions League finals twice in three years (05, 07), but, with the undoubted challenge from champions Manchester United and former champions Chelsea, do they have what it takes to win their first Premiership title since 1990?