Champions League Hopefuls (Liverpool)

Roy Hodgson and Liverpool seem to have succeeded in their most important summer assignment. That is, Fernando Torres is staying at Anfield.

Let's take a look at Liverpool's likely starting XI.

Pepe Reina in goal is outstanding, they are in trouble if he gets injured though.

Martin Skrtel and Daniel Agger are very good in the middle, although Agger is average or below at left-back. Jaime Carragher is awful, I don't know how long Hodgson can keep playing him based on name recognition. Glen Johnson is one dimensional, a threat going forward but terrible defensively. I am not quite sure who will start at left back long term, but they have nothing notable available. They still have Fabio Aurelio and Emiliano Insua on the books, but they have tried to jettison both of them.

Javier Mascherano started in the holding role next to Steven Gerrard against Arsenal, but

Mascherano wants to leave England. I guess Gerrard will keep playing deep, with Lucas or Christian Poulsen next to him. None of these players is a true defensive midfielder

or playmaker. So they will have gotten rid of a class central pairing of Xabi Alonso and Mascherano, with very little to show for it.

The attacking midfielders look pretty good though. Dirk Kuyt does all of the dirty-work. Joe Cole and Ryan Babel will have their moments, and if he can get fit Alberto Aquilani will make a big impression on the Premier League this season. Milan Jovanovic and Maxi Rodriguez will not make a lot of starts, but they are solid.

Young David Ngog scored against Arsenal, and he will have some role to play this season, but he is really a massive drop-off after Torres.

Any depth beyond the players I have mentioned is pretty unremarkable. It just doesn't look like a Champion's League club to me. There are a lot of mediocre players who will be counted on. I think Liverpool will be fighting to hold off neighbors Everton for sixth place.

World Cup - Netherlands

The babysitter, uh, excuse me, manager of the Dutch team is Bert van Marwijk. The talent he has at his disposal is as good as any team in the tournament, and he honestly does not need to do much tactically. What he needs to do is control the, let's call it eccentric, personalities of his superstars.

Many think the Oranje are weak defensively, and that may be true, but I think there is just enough at the back to keep them advancing through the later rounds. The goalkeeper is shaky, two of the defenders are "veterans," to put it kindly, and Johnny Heitinga is probably the most reliable guy in the back 4.

The real defense will need to be played in midfield. Luckily for Holland, Nigel de Jong and Mark van Bommel are both outstanding at this. De Jong might be the best holding midfielder in the world.

The attacking ability of this team is just ridiculous, even with Arjen Robben nursing an injury. Young left winger Eljero Elia may actually keep Robben on the bench when he does return. The lightning quick 23 year old scored 5 goals from the wing and created another 7 in only 20 appearances for Hamburg in the Bundesliga. Ibrahim Afellay, Ryan Babel, Klass-Jan Huntelaar and their big reputations will start most matches from the subs bench.

Dirk Kuyt of Liverpool will do all the running and hard work up front, even though his strike partner, Robin van Persie, believes Kuyt is not good enough to be in the Dutch team. Van Persie himself has a good chance to be the leading scorer in the tournament. And those opportunities will be created by Wesley Snejder. He just led Inter Milan to a league, cup, and Champion's League winning season, and he will pull the strings in the center of Holland's midfield. That is, if he and Robben have sorted out their feud.

So, to summarize, it all comes down to the manages ability to control the egos of the squad. If he can maintain harmony in the Dutch camp, they just may get all the way to the final, facing an opportunity to finally exorcize the ghosts of 1974 and 1978.