Approaching 10 games in... time to assess the possibilities?

....anything is possible.

As it was drummed into us during the days of Rafa... We have many possibilities. Although this was probably more to do with his favourite English phrases when a camera was shoved in his face.

It's still very early days, but a couple of iffy results aside, we're doing pretty well so far. The Newcastle game was disappointing. It seems strange to be talking about two points dropped after equalising twice away from home, but this was against 10 men for 50 minutes and no disrespect to Newcastle (prepare for disrespect to Newcastle) it was only against Newcastle. A team we ground up into mush (without Suarez) only 6 months ago.

But let's not dwell on that.. largely because we didn't win so it's best forgotten.

It's usually about this time you get to see how the various teams are shaping up and where we are likely realistically end up, and sadly usually revise out expectations for the season.

The rather horrific reality is that quite a lot of you reading this won't actually remember the last time Liverpool won the league.. basically if you're under 30 you'll probably struggle. I've never actually thought about it in those terms before. That really is depressing. I'm just going to go and have a bit of a cry. I shall be back in a minute.......

Right, I did have a point earlier but it was lost for a moment. Well it was this, it took a long time for the hope to be eroded. It was always going to be "our year" when very few occasions this was ever a remote possibility.

Bob Paisley.. quite good.

It used to be that Liverpool's expectations could be summed up in this rather elegant quote from Bob Paisley - "Mind you, I've been here during the bad times too - one year we came second!" Now that was a while since as we have established. The goal-posts have shifted somewhat. Quite what the likes of Shankly and Paisley would have made of the clamour for fourth place is anyone's guess. Contemplating pretty much anything involving modern football would be enough to make their heads spin.

But it is what it is.. finishing fourth is now apparently an achievement regardless of whether you actually achieve anything when you get there. Just ask Arsene Wenger. Seventeen (ish) consecutive appearances in the Champions League is impressive, although less so when you consider they have only got past the quarter-final stages once.

It looks like that we might actually be in the mix for for the top 4 this year. Admittedly we've not exactly had the toughest run of games, but then neither have Arsenal and they are now apparently the greatest side in Europe because they beat Norwich at home.

But we have been picking up the points and we are only a couple off the top which frankly makes a refreshing change. Normally by this point we're about where Man Utd are now.. "well maybe if we have a good run, and there's always the cups"... and really where Man Utd isn't really a good place to be.

Phillipe Coutinho... (life size)

We do have pretty brutal run around Christmas. Spurs, Man City and Chelsea all away and it would have been handy to have some of those around the European games, but you can't really pick and choose your games.

The most promising aspect of the upcoming games is the thought of Coutinho linking up with Suarez and
Sturridge. If those three can hit form together, preferably around those Christmas games then I'd be pretty confident of us beating anybody.

In the end I think it will come to how well we can keep momentum going. If we can keep our first 11 more or less together then we will still be in the mix when it gets towards the pointy end of the season. Actually it's not even the first 11.. Suarez, Sturridge and Coutinho. If we can keep at least 2 of those fit we have a decent crack at the top four. If we can keep them all fit, well we might even be in with a shout of having a decent season.. in Bob Paisley terms* and you never know.... siempre es posible.

(* Please excuse the rather wild optimism.)