Poof: (as in taaa daaa, not a raving homosexual) Aldridge: Hodgson facing an uphill battle Circumstance has not been a helpful ally to Roy Hodgson in his first couple of months as manager of Liverpool, yet Anfield legend John Aldridge believes his future will come under relentless scrutiny over the next couple of months. With the explosive takeover battle at Anfield - a harrowing nightmare that is quickly being banished to the history books by Liverpool fans - all associated with the club can focus their attention on faltering players once again. That may be an ideal scenario for Hodgson given his side's precarious position among the relegation battlers. Liverpool may only have played eight games prior to the visit or Blackburn to Merseyside last weekend, yet Aldridge believes the boss who took on the daunting task of succeeding Rafael Benitez last summer is already close to reaching the point of no return. Defeat against Blackburn last weekend may well have propelled John W Henry and his recently installed Liverpool boardroom team to trigger the search for their own manager, but a 2-1 victory against Sam Allardyce's battlers gave Hodgson some much needed breathing space as he attempts to revive a side that has been lacking in confidence all season. Aldridge was a firm supporter of Hodgson's appointment last summer, but he expects the new Anfield hierarchy to keep all options open in the coming weeks. "It sounds crazy to say a manager is under pressure after just eight games in charge, but that was certainly the position Hodgson found himself in on Sunday," he said. "The new owners have not put £300 million into Liverpool to be a part of a relegation struggle and they will be looking for a quick turnaround in fortunes before they give Roy some money to spend in the January transfer window. "The performance against Blackburn was better than we saw against Everton the week before, but it couldn't really get any worse if we are being honest. In the biggest Merseyside derby for many a year, Liverpool hardly had a shot on goal as they turned in a very negative display at Goodison Park. That set a lot of alarm bells ringing among the supporters. "Some of Roy's tactics have disappointed me so far as I feel the team has been playing far too deep for most of this season. It has forced Steven Gerrard to drop further and further back to get the ball and try to influence the game and Fernando Torres just hasn't been getting the support up front. "Hopefully Sunday's win gives everyone at the club a bit of belief, but the league table still makes horrible reading for Roy and the players. They have to back it up with two or three wins in succession because if they don't, the speculation over the manager's position will start again." Aldridge is the first to concede the scale of the task Hodgson has taken on at Anfield makes this a challenge that would test most managers, with his finger of blame for Liverpool's current plight being pointed firmly in the direction of the Spaniard who left Anfield with a £6 million pay-off last summer. "No one underestimates the scale of the rebuilding job required at Anfield because Rafael Benitez left behind a poor squad when he walked away from the club with his bumper pay day," Aldridge continued. "Liverpool's first choice XI is decent, but the players who need to fill the gaps are not good enough and that has been shown time and again. "The likes of Lucas, Ryan Babel and David Ngog are not up to the job and the trouble for Roy is the signings he was allowed to make with a very limited budget in the summer have been disappointing. No-one has been too impressed with Joe Cole, Paul Konchesky and Christian Poulsen so far and it gives the new owners a problem. "Do they trust Roy Hodgson with the money they have said they are willing to put into a transfer kitty in January, or will they look to bring in their own man and hand him the responsibility of starting off their new project? New owners generally look to make their own appointment and that's why Roy is in a difficult position. "Frank Rijkaard was the first big name coach to be linked with a move to Anfield last week and while there are clearly big problems in the Liverpool side right now, I'm sure there would be a queue of willing takers for the job if it became available. "Liverpool remains one of the biggest names in world football and the fact that we are no longer being dragged down by a debt that was costing £110,000-a-day means the club now has a chance to re-launch itself after years of neglect." Upcoming games against Bolton, Wigan, Stoke and West Ham would appear to give Hodgson an opportunity to confirm his authority at Liverpool and Aldridge is hoping the winning goal provided by Torres against Blackburn on Sunday gets the out-of-sorts Spanish striker back in the groove. "I was coming to the conclusion that Liverpool might need to sell Torres in the January transfer window because his body language and form has been poor for far too long," he said. "It didn't look like he wanted to be playing for Liverpool in recent months and it felt like the club may have been better off getting as much money as they could for him and trying to rebuild the squad. "Hopefully his goal against Blackburn will wake him up a little because Liverpool need Gerrard and Torres firing on all cylinders if they are to climb the table, but I have to wonder if there is an agent lurking in the background who has told Fernando that he may be better off getting away from Anfield. "The Wayne Rooney fiasco at Manchester United last week left me feeling as if football has lost its soul and loyalty is a commodity from a bygone era. I hope I'm wrong and that Torres means it when he says he is happy at Liverpool and loves the club, but his form this season has suggested something very different." http://soccernet.espn.go.com/columns/sto....england&cc=5739
