So another trophyless season ends with so many could ofs and what ifs.

A year filled with such promise. A year of new faces. A year we finally had the chops to give the other “big 3″ a run for that shiny trophy that’s been on hiatus from its home for 18 agonizing years.

Starting strong and going unbeaten in the EPL right up until the 8th of December, the Reds were looking good all around. New signing / man crush magnet Fernando Torres was banging in the goals, we had thrashed Besiktas 8-0 in Europe and more importantly gave the Toffees a slap over at that sewer they call Goodison. Like the last few seasons in recent memory though, the black cloud of Christmas was not at all kind to us.

A string of frustrating draws and a 3-0 pasting at our unfriendly neighbors followed, effectively pushing us farther and farther back from the top and closer and closer to our final resting place at fourth. Outside of the ownership issues, the biggest shock of the season came when we crashed out of the FA Cup to Championship bottom dwellers Barnsley FC. Fair play to them, they wanted it more but it’s still a big brown streak on a season that had begun like so many clean pairs of underwear.

As usual, an absolute truckload of pressure was put on Rafa Benitez to deliver the goods. It goes without saying that our “esteemed” owners did nothing but complicate the situation. Being the consummate professional, thankfully, he was able to stayed focused on coaching and training his team. As the Americans made a complete fool out of their coach by sounding out Jurgen Klinsman as a potential replacement and engaged in verbal handbags between themselves & Rick Parry, the press chose to focus more on our off field problems rather than those happening out on the pitch. Even soft spoken David Moores went so far as to have a pop at their managerial tomfoolery.

Summer signings Yossi Benayoun, Ryan Babel and the January edition of Patrik Skertel all proved to be astute purchases by the Gaffer but no one held a candle to 24 goal (in the EPL alone) Fernando Torres. I do believe that tally breaks a certain horse faced strikers record. One player that definitely couldn’t hold a candle, let alone find a match to light said candle, is Andriy Veronin. A wasted wage bill and a pony tail only a mother could love. What a muppet.

Bowing out in the Champions League semi finals to a team of Chelseas calibre is, as much as it pains me to say it, nothing to be ashamed of. That’s not to say that knocking the spaghetti out of Champions League pretenders Inter Milan weren’t lofty heights to reach or taking Arsenals bang away wasn’t entertaining. They just didn’t, in reality, do all that much for us. Alot can be said for confidence and the team gelling but god knows it’s what goes in the trophy case at the end of the year that matters. Had Aston Villa or Newcastle (not to take anything away from either of these teams) beat the Nerazzuri, they’d be singing about it 20 years from now. For Liverpool though, this is what’s expected. Rampaging through Europe and leaving no foreign heart unbroken has been our job, neigh our calling, since Bob brought home big ears for the first time.

Seems like a whole lot of the same, albeit with a new stadium finally on the way. Almost every year I’ve written this same article in my head and recited the same old phrase “Next year is our year!” as I watch Man United or Chelsea or Arsenal lift the one trophy every scouser has been pining after. As long as Rafa doesn’t get shot by that mad Texan and we add a few solid players during the summer, I think this time next year, this story might have a happy ending. Then again it could be more of the same. Fuck.

See you in the transfer season.