Oh, that it should come to this

Manchester City 3 - Liverpool 0

It has been a tough time for Liverpool fans in the new millennium. We began as one of the contenders for the title, then saw Arsenal overtake us rather thoroughly, followed by Chelsea, Spurs and now it seems Man City are the latest in line to leapfrog the team that once straddled English Football like a colossus. Now, most of us are hard pressed to remember when the Reds last won the title. Mind you, I have not even mentioned Manchester United - the Manchester Reds seem totally out of reach after having seemed fallible in the early part of the decade when Liverpool seemed to be able to beat them at will.

Whatever the reason for the decline, one cannot deny that it definitely is accelerating. A Liverpool side losing three goals to nil to any team is nothing short of disaster. That they came up short against a side that has looked generally rickety against most top class opposition, notwithstanding all its star content, is a sad commentary on the state of affairs at Anfield. One could make excuses, like Masceranho's absence and Torres' lack of accuracy or point out that Gerrard did hit the bar, but the stark fact is that for most of the ninety minutes, City made Liverpool look out of their depth.

Some will say that this is the result of not spending enough in the transfer market, but heck, a team with the likes of Reyna, Carragher, Gerrard and Torres surely has enough talent to fall back on. And did not the relatively low-spending Fulham show what sheer determination could do when they held the mighty Man U (ugh! how I hate admitting that) to a 2-2 draw at Craven Cottage?

What we saw at City last night was not an absence of stars, but an absence of clarity in the team, which seems to be playing with no clear plan in mind. And that worries me. As it should worry every Liverpool fan.