Today's Banter: De-constructing Rafa, Babel babble, & A look at our depth

There isn't really much going on in the world of Liverpool Football Club, just reiterations of yesterday's headlines, so I've decided to just ramble on about a bunch of nonsense. Feel free to share your opinions below.

Before I go down that long and winding (or winded, which ever you prefer) road, there's an excellent piece on Rafa's obsession with our club and football in general by Oliver Kay at the Independent.ie. It gives good reason to laugh at all those who feel as if they are obligated to criticize the boss' managerial decisions. He puts in the time and has the trophies to prove it.

Anyhow, moving on, I think it's time Ryan Babel is made a permanent part of our striker force, don't you? From the looks of our last three matches, Rafa may have already decided to do so. He started there against Cardiff and when Kewell came on for Voronin in the Beşiktaş match, the young Dutchman was moved up to partner Crouch. He appears more comfortable there anyhow and in fact, when he plays for the Netherlands, that's his normal spot.

It seems as if when he does occupy the left, he's basically trying to play the role of a forward instead of a winger anyhow. Though I think it would be great if he learned to be effective on the flank, his talent seems best suited up front. With Harry Kewell back to share left wing duties with Riise and occasionally Benayoun, Babel is really no longer needed over there.

Which brings me to squad depth. Just for kicks, let's take a gander:

GK - Pepe Reina, Charles Itandje (inj), David Martin
LB - John Arne Riise, Fabio Aurelio, Alvaro Arbeloa, Emiliano Insua (res)
CB(2) - Jamie Carragher, Daniel Agger (inj), Sami Hyypia, Alvaro Arbeloa, Jack Hobbs
RB - Steve Finnan, Alvaro Arbeloa, Stephen Darby (res)
LM - John Arne Riise, Harry Kewell, Ryan Babel, Yossi Benayoun, Sebastian Leto (res)
HM - Javer Mascherano, Xabi Alonso (inj), Momo Sissoko
AM - Steven Gerrard, Lucas Leiva, Xabi Alonso (inj), Momo Sissoko
RM - Jermaine Pennant (inj), Steven Gerrard, Yossi Benayoun, Ryan Babel
F2 - Dirk Kuyt, Andriy Voronin, Peter Crouch
F1 - Fernando Torres, Ryan Babel, Peter Crouch

(I put in bold who I believe to be our ideal starter at that spot, (inj) = injured, and (res) = primarily a Reserves player but capable of filling in on the first team on an emergency basis.)

The thing that stands out to me is our lack of depth at centre back. With Babel establishing himself as a forward, our focus during the January transfer window has to be a class centre back at any cost. Even when Agger gets back, having Jack Hobbs even in the depth chart is a scary aspect. The kid may be good one day, but he's still very raw.

The depth on the flanks is great, but most goals are scored from the middle of the field. One of the most positive results of the Beşiktaş match was that Hyypia and Carra had to do very little, which means they'll probably be pretty fresh come Saturday. After that, there's a two week layoff for the international break, which means when the team plays again at St. James Park on the 24th, we could have a full, fresh squad including Danny Agger and possibly Xabi Alonso.

Some other links to kill some time:
- Before there was Stevie Finnan, there was Jimmy Willis
- Carra calls on the entire squad to improve