Passing the Test

Many were doubting if Liverpool had the mental strength to cope with being in this title race and if they could pull off a win against Tottenham today. That question was answered with a resounding yes as they beat Spurs 4-0 at Anfield. I am not sure if Liverpool will win the title but they are certainly in this title race until the end and I am just loving it. I was however asking another question lately: is Philippe Coutinho good enough, or does Liverpool need to go out and find someone to start above him? That question was answered today as well, and with the same answer, yes, yes he is good enough.

Philippe Coutinho was brought in a year and a half ago and was fantastic during the second half of the season. He has done pretty well this season, though not as good as he did when he first arrived and I had begin to wonder if attacking midfield is a key transfer area for Liverpool in the summer. Last summer Liverpool went after a few different attacking midfielders like Mkhitaryan and Willian, but they failed to convince any to come and settled for young Luis Alberto, who has played a very minor role. So Coutinho continued in his crucial role in the starting lineup, playing in 31 games so far this season but only scoring 4, 3 before today. Today Coutinho started the buildup to the first goal and scored the third and was impressive throughout the match. Now I am convinced that he can be fantastic for Liverpool for years to come. 

Because of his big involvement at Liverpool it is easy to forget that he is only 21 years old, with his best years still to come. I think back to Jordan Henderson who was brought in when he was only 21 years old to Liverpool as well. For the first year and a half Henderson was largely criticized by the Anfield faithful, but as he grew and matured he developed into a mainstay in the starting lineup. Coutinho, while he has his flaws, is better than Henderson was when he was 21, so just think of how great he will be in two years time.

Coutinho's biggest weakness is his shooting prowess but Liverpool are doing fine letting SAS do the scoring for them. Today Coutinho showed that he is still capable of a goal every once in a while when called upon. Liverpool will undoubtedly be able to bring in the kind of players that turned them down last summer now that Champions League will return to Merseyside. Though now I am seriously doubting if any of them will be able to uproot Coutinho from his starting role. Rodgers has proven that he is great at developing young talent (he did work with clubs' youth setups before making the jump to management), and I believe that he will help Coutinho achieve his full potential. So I am happy to report that today Liverpool and Coutinho both passed our tests.