How Man U, Liverpool Have Traded Places In EPL Fixture

*Race is on: Rodgers, Moyes;AAP

THE modern day Manchester United has become the modern day Liverpool, very quickly.

Does that mean Liverpool is now Manchester United? No. They are heading in the right direction, but to say they have totally swapped sides would be flippantly stupid and in keeping with the world’s splendid ability to overreact.

Manchester United have won 13 of the last 21 titles.

But back to the first point.

Manchester United have become the very thing they’ve laughed at for 2 decades.

A club not totally sure of what direction it is heading in. Two steps forward, 3 steps back, 3 steps forward, 1 step back.

Go back 10 months, to May 5 last year, and all of what we see now would belong in a parallel universe.

Liverpool drew with Everton 0-0 and were limping towards a seventh place finish in the league.

Join Adam, Mark Bosnich and Robbie Slater on Saturday and Sunday night this week for EPL action.

Matchday Saturday’s A-League triple header will flow straight into Hull-Manchester City on Saturday night, then the boys return Sunday night, at midnight EDT for the big double-header: United-Liverpool and Tottenham-Arsenal.

Doubts intensified whether a) the suspended Luis Suarez take his boots and fangs elsewhere and b) whether Brendan Rodgers, after his first season in charge, was the right guy to restore past glories.

Sure, they’d go unbeaten in eight to finish the season, but only half of those were victories, again highlighting the inconsistencies that plagued their campaign.

Rodgers had been under the pump all season; Swansea fans mocked their old boss in a League Cup defeat in October 2012, singing “you’re getting sacked in the morning”.

By December, Liverpool had 25 points from 19 games – the same tally as Roy Hodgson had in 2010, and after 20 games, Roy got the bullet.

So to May 5, 2013 and on social media, that area of life that is way over used as a social barometer but required nonetheless for the purposes of this article, Rodgers was a maligned figure.

On Twitter, the account ‘Sack Rodgers’ (@rodgersout) didn’t need the whole 140 characters to relay their thoughts – “#sackrodgers”, was the simple message.

Three days later, Sir Alex Ferguson quit.

‘Sack Rodgers’, and relative to their former self, Manchester United, has been dormant ever since.

A new account is thriving – ‘David Moyes Out’, or @MoyesOutASAP

This gathering of frustrated Manchester United types, bandwagoners and assortment of other clubs’ fans just stirring the pot totals over 8500.

They’ve even come up with the idea to run a Twitition (no, me neither) and collect money in a fan funded drive to give to the club to finance Moyes’ dismissal.

The club that booked out the entire Park Hyatt Sydney for a week last July.

The club that made $241.5 million from commercial operations alone in 2012-13.

The club which, as part of that $241.5 mil, did a deal with Bakcell. Who? Well they’re the club’s Telecommunications & Broadcast Partner for Azerbaijan, of course.

And an angry mob want to collect a few schillings towards punting the manager.

Fans, God love ‘em.

But that’s the feeling of apathy towards to current administration.

They are staring at the abyss that is midweeks watching, not attending Champions League football.

The dark place of an ageing squad, with the next generation needing of reinforcements from elsewhere to challenge again.

So “overs”, like the ransom Wayne Rooney now gets per week, are paid to keep up.

Thankfully with deals like the one in Azerbaijan, there are funds available.

Is Moyes the man to deal with that chequebook?

Brendan Rodgers can be deemed trustworthy now, given the type of player he’s brought in to compliment the class already at Liverpool.

The squad is youthful – just two, Steven Gerrard and Kolo Toure are over 30.

Manchester United? Gulp.

Evra, Giggs, Carrick, Fletcher, Vidic, van Persie, Ferdinand all over 30. The last two expected to follow Vidic out the door in June.
-Courtesy: FOXSPORTS