Source: Daily_Mail
Liverpool missing the X-Factor: Xabi Alonso's absence is reason they don't get my vote for title
Liverpool will be relieved if Javier Mascherano is fit to face Chelsea today. The dismal defeat against Fiorentina showed how much they miss him against top opposition. They simply haven't got the cover to cope.
It is what separates Rafa Benitez from Sir Alex Ferguson or Carlo Ancelotti. Manchester United and Chelsea have great strength in depth, while Liverpool are in trouble if they put out anything short of a full strength XI.
I'd fear Liverpool getting a good hiding if they went into today's game without Mascherano. But even with the dynamic Argentine in their side, they have their work cut out without last season's hero Xabi Alonso.
Alonso scored the winning goal at the Bridge a year ago when Liverpool became the first team to win a League game there for four years. He had a hell of a partnership in midfield with Mascherano, a million miles away from Tuesday night's hapless duo of Lucas and Fabio Aurelio, if we're honest.
Chelsea have their own questions to answer after losing 3-1 against Wigan last weekend but it is a more worrying game for Liverpool.
Chelsea can put the Wigan game down as a blip because it was their first defeat of the season but Benitez's side have faced decent opposition three times - Tottenham, Aston Villa and Fiorentina - and were beaten by all of them.
Alonso has been a massive loss because Benitez hasn't been able to find anyone to replace him. Steven Gerrard is a fantastic player and there will be calls for him to be used in a deeper role against Chelsea but the truth is he is not a particularly strong defensive midfielder.
Benitez doesn't really trust him in that role; he is so attack-minded, you can't rely on him having the discipline to backtrack and hold his position in front of the defence.
Interestingly, Fabio Capello sees it the same way, which is why he has shifted Gerrard to the left where he is free to use his strengths without as much defensive responsibility.
Alberto Aquilani has been signed for a hefty price tag but we can't say he is the answer because we don't even know when he will be fit. At best, it will take him time to settle. As for Lucas, let's politely say we are still waiting to see what he has to offer.
One day, Benitez might even be forced to use Jamie Carragher as a holding midfield player; it is an option he will probably take before trying Aurelio there again.
All that puts a huge pressure on Mascherano. If he's not fit or out of form, Liverpool haven't got the strength in depth to cover for him - Fiorentina showed that.
Over 38 games, that thinness of squad will count against Benitez. It's why Liverpool have suffered more by losing Alonso than United have by losing Cristiano Ronaldo or Arsenal with Emmanuel Adebayor.
The real shame for Liverpool is that if Alonso had stayed, you could have made a proper case for them becoming champions. Without him, it severely reduces their chances.
To be fair to Benitez, his teams have been more open and aggressive this season and they have overpowered teams. Stoke and Hull drew at Anfield last season, this season Liverpool have beaten them 4-0 and 6-1.
But he was undone by trying to play an attacking line-up against Fiorentina. I am sure he didn't think for one minute the Italians would cause them as many problems as they did but Liverpool ended up looking lightweight.
You sense now he will revert to his more traditional approach against Chelsea, being cagey and trying to catch them on the counter-attack. I would be shocked if he does it any other way.
Liverpool have been good on the eye this season, with Fernando Torres and Gerrard being given a licence to thrill. But they can't play that way at Chelsea without the risk of being overrun in midfield, where Ancelotti's men are so strong.
At least Benitez understands now the importance of winning the Premier League. I am sure for the first few years in England, he regarded the Champions League as his priority. Now he is preparing players so they peak in big Premier League games.
There was no question of Mascherano being risked in midweek with Chelsea coming up but a few years ago, he might have played in Europe and not this weekend.
While Chelsea came a cropper themselves at Wigan, they will be glad to have bounced back with a win in midweek, albeit an unconvincing one in Cyprus. But Ancelotti has so much experience, he will not be worried at the moment because it is the way to respond to setbacks that is important.
Liverpool's best chance today is to return to the days when they were so hard to play against, defensively solid with Mascherano nipping at everyone's heels.
The alternative, the lightweight line-up we saw in Florence, isn't one Liverpool fans would like to contemplate.
