[lfc-news] Harry fails to fulfil massive promise - Echo

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Liverpool Echo, 23 Aug 2004
Harry fails to fulfil massive promise
David Prentice, Liverpool Echo

HARRY KEWELL was the talk of an expectant press box at Anfield on Saturday.

Someone had suggested he was in the frame for penalty-taking duties - and
an army of eager hacks piled on him at 9/1 for first goalscorer.

He let us all down. Not for the first time.

It wasn't that the winger missed any decent openings - the disappointing
Steve Finnan and the promising Djibril Cisse did that. But he flattered to
deceive once again in front of an Anfield audience.

Much of the frustration with Kewell stems from the qualities the Australian
clearly possesses.

Few can strike a ball as cleanly and as crisply, or with as much vicious
intent. There aren't many full-backs who can match him for pace, and his
ability to go around a defender is evident.

But all too often Kewell will beat his man, then check. Not for him the
head-down, single-minded intention of reaching the byline before producing
a damaging cross. He prefers the easier option.

But now could be the time for a critical reassessment - a turning point in
his Anfield career, even.

Because Rafael Benitez is a demanding coach.

He may smile disarmingly. His command of English may still be insufficient
to clearly express his ideas to an assembled press corps. But privately he
knows what he wants - and he has already started to go out and get it.

Antonio Nunez and Luis Garcia are both wide men. True, both prefer to
operate on the right, but Benitez has clearly identified the wide areas as
a weakness in the current Liverpool squad.

And if that doesn't act as a kick up the backside to Kewell nothing will.

In fairness, he wasn't the only Anfield regular to struggle on Saturday -
especially in an opening 45 minutes that showed little, if any, improvement
on some of last season's stale, witless shows at Anfield.

But by the end, the scoreline might have been the same as the last time
Manchester City came to visit, the identity of the winning goalscorer was
the same - Igor Biscan was even introduced as a late substitute again - but
with only 15 seconds remaining that was clearly a time-wasting exercise
rather than a bid to keep City at bay. But there was something noticeably
different.

Liverpool rolled their sleeves up, dug their heels in and came back from a
half-time deficit to win.

Wowee! So what? I can hear you say.

Except May 1999 was the last time a Liverpool team managed that less than
magnificent feat.

Rafael Benitez espouses the theory of teamwork and team spirit at every
available opportunity.

That is largely why he felt it necessary to split up the dressing room
clique led by local stars like Owen and Murphy.

And Saturday provided a very early sign that the lesson is starting to lodge.

Now if only Harry Kewell can embrace some of those lessons as well . . .


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