Boots do not come any bigger to fill: if Alberto Aquilani accepted mission impossible last summer, how must Sotirios Kyrgiakos have felt upon touching down at Anfield?
As the man bought to replace Xabi Alonso, a huge crowd favourite and Liverpool's play-maker supreme, Aquilani was always destined to be subjected to a succession of unfavourable and unhelpful comparisons with his predecessor.
When a player has enjoyed the kind of popularity that Alonso did on Merseyside, and been able to exert such an influence on the team, no matter what Aquilani does in a red shirt, he will be unable to stop certain sections of supporters hankering for the past.
Aquilani, however, was not in a unique position at the start of this campaign.
Kyrgiakos, after all, was drafted in to assume the role vacated by Sami Hyppia, a defender who had been a giant for Liverpool over 10 trophy-laden years, giving them phenomenal service.
So if Alonso’s departure to Real Madrid was mourned when results started to go askew in the autumn, the same could also be said of Hyppia – particularly when Liverpool found it impossible during that ruinous spell to keep a clean sheet.
Having been recruited for a nominal transfer fee, Kyrgiakos was, rather unfairly, immediately deemed not good enough to play for Liverpool, with cynics wondering what someone who had spent their career predominantly in Greece could contribute.
Happily, though, Kyrgiakos has shown during the course of the past month why Rafa Benitez felt he should come on board and play in the games that might have been reserved for the Big Finn, who is now plying his trade with Bayer Leverkusen.
Outstanding in the games against Stoke City, Tottenham Hotspur and, most recently, Tuesday night’s draw at Wolverhampton Wanderers, the rugged Kyrgiakos is a no-nonsense defender, someone who simply loves to head and tackle.
Those qualities will, more than likely, serve him well tomorrow, when Bolton Wanderers – a side who have traditionally employed primitive tactics – arrive at Anfield, looking to make life difficult for the Reds.
Hyppia, of course, excelled in such physical battles but while it would be wrong to try and compare the two as players, Kyrgiakos is doing his best to show he, too, can be relied upon to shine when the going is tough – and his manager is delighted.
“Everyone here knows that he is a good professional, a really good lad and his team-mates can see that he is someone who will do anything for them,” said Benitez, who signed Kyrgiakos from AEK Athens on a two-year deal in August.
“Even when he doesn’t play, you know he will work very hard. Soto knew when he came here that he was only going to play specific games but he wanted to improve and when he has come in, he has done the job that we have needed him to do.”
Kyrgiakos might be new to the Premier League but, with 55 caps for his country and being able to number Glasgow Rangers and Eintracht Frankfurt among his former employers, he is clearly streetwise and knows how to defend.
“He is good in the air and he is tough,” Benitez continued. “You have to remember Sami was amazing for us. At the end, he was not playing too many games but he was just as important because of his personality and the role he had within the squad.
“On the pitch, he wasn’t getting too much time because of Martin (Skrtel), Daniel (Agger) and Carra. When he left and we replaced him with Soto, he knew exactly what kind of situation he was coming in to. He’s doing really well.
“Sami was terrific on the ball, he could use both feet and pass really well. He also knew the Premier League inside out. But Soto has his own qualities; he has had to adapt but he is learning now and he is doing the job we were looking for.”
The job Benitez will be looking for collectively tomorrow is an efficient, clinical performance – with a vast improvement in terms of creativity – to extend their recent unbeaten run in the Premier League to a sixth game.
“We will have to be strong and it will be very tough but we have to keep showing character,” said Benitez. “I know everyone was expecting us to get six points from these two fixtures but you just have to keep approaching one game at a time.
“It’s important to show that the team has strength. You can win games and lose games but do things very differently. OK, we only drew with Wolves but the team has shown they are very strong.”
That new found strength has led to Liverpool only conceding once in the last five league fixtures and the steady succession of clean sheets suggests that, perhaps, normal service is close to being resumed.
Steven Gerrard, for one, is certainly happy to seize upon that information and he is convinced that the fight and resolve they are showing to stay in the race for a Champions League spot will soon blossom into something more easy on the eye.
“We know we have got quality but everyone is rolling their sleeves up and battling well,” said Gerrard. “That gives me a great belief because you just know with that kind of attitude, a quality performance is just around the corner.
“Yes, of course we were disappointed not to take three points but we are really happy with how we are playing defensively.”
As the man bought to replace Xabi Alonso, a huge crowd favourite and Liverpool's play-maker supreme, Aquilani was always destined to be subjected to a succession of unfavourable and unhelpful comparisons with his predecessor.
When a player has enjoyed the kind of popularity that Alonso did on Merseyside, and been able to exert such an influence on the team, no matter what Aquilani does in a red shirt, he will be unable to stop certain sections of supporters hankering for the past.
Aquilani, however, was not in a unique position at the start of this campaign.
Kyrgiakos, after all, was drafted in to assume the role vacated by Sami Hyppia, a defender who had been a giant for Liverpool over 10 trophy-laden years, giving them phenomenal service.
So if Alonso’s departure to Real Madrid was mourned when results started to go askew in the autumn, the same could also be said of Hyppia – particularly when Liverpool found it impossible during that ruinous spell to keep a clean sheet.
Having been recruited for a nominal transfer fee, Kyrgiakos was, rather unfairly, immediately deemed not good enough to play for Liverpool, with cynics wondering what someone who had spent their career predominantly in Greece could contribute.
Happily, though, Kyrgiakos has shown during the course of the past month why Rafa Benitez felt he should come on board and play in the games that might have been reserved for the Big Finn, who is now plying his trade with Bayer Leverkusen.
Outstanding in the games against Stoke City, Tottenham Hotspur and, most recently, Tuesday night’s draw at Wolverhampton Wanderers, the rugged Kyrgiakos is a no-nonsense defender, someone who simply loves to head and tackle.
Those qualities will, more than likely, serve him well tomorrow, when Bolton Wanderers – a side who have traditionally employed primitive tactics – arrive at Anfield, looking to make life difficult for the Reds.
Hyppia, of course, excelled in such physical battles but while it would be wrong to try and compare the two as players, Kyrgiakos is doing his best to show he, too, can be relied upon to shine when the going is tough – and his manager is delighted.
“Everyone here knows that he is a good professional, a really good lad and his team-mates can see that he is someone who will do anything for them,” said Benitez, who signed Kyrgiakos from AEK Athens on a two-year deal in August.
“Even when he doesn’t play, you know he will work very hard. Soto knew when he came here that he was only going to play specific games but he wanted to improve and when he has come in, he has done the job that we have needed him to do.”
Kyrgiakos might be new to the Premier League but, with 55 caps for his country and being able to number Glasgow Rangers and Eintracht Frankfurt among his former employers, he is clearly streetwise and knows how to defend.
“He is good in the air and he is tough,” Benitez continued. “You have to remember Sami was amazing for us. At the end, he was not playing too many games but he was just as important because of his personality and the role he had within the squad.
“On the pitch, he wasn’t getting too much time because of Martin (Skrtel), Daniel (Agger) and Carra. When he left and we replaced him with Soto, he knew exactly what kind of situation he was coming in to. He’s doing really well.
“Sami was terrific on the ball, he could use both feet and pass really well. He also knew the Premier League inside out. But Soto has his own qualities; he has had to adapt but he is learning now and he is doing the job we were looking for.”
The job Benitez will be looking for collectively tomorrow is an efficient, clinical performance – with a vast improvement in terms of creativity – to extend their recent unbeaten run in the Premier League to a sixth game.
“We will have to be strong and it will be very tough but we have to keep showing character,” said Benitez. “I know everyone was expecting us to get six points from these two fixtures but you just have to keep approaching one game at a time.
“It’s important to show that the team has strength. You can win games and lose games but do things very differently. OK, we only drew with Wolves but the team has shown they are very strong.”
That new found strength has led to Liverpool only conceding once in the last five league fixtures and the steady succession of clean sheets suggests that, perhaps, normal service is close to being resumed.
Steven Gerrard, for one, is certainly happy to seize upon that information and he is convinced that the fight and resolve they are showing to stay in the race for a Champions League spot will soon blossom into something more easy on the eye.
“We know we have got quality but everyone is rolling their sleeves up and battling well,” said Gerrard. “That gives me a great belief because you just know with that kind of attitude, a quality performance is just around the corner.
“Yes, of course we were disappointed not to take three points but we are really happy with how we are playing defensively.”
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