ON GREY Merseyside afternoons such as these, Liverpool's shirts seem more vivid than plain red. Yesterday at Anfield they were aflame as Chelsea and their unbeaten record were swept away on a crimson tide. Liverpool themselves remain unbeaten, their place at the top of the Premiership consolidated. None burned brighter than Patrik Berger on his full debut, brought in to replace Stan Collymore as Liverpool made their first team change of the season. The 22-year-old Czech bounced into prominence with two goals as a substitute at Leicester last Sunday, and two more yesterday confirmed the wisdom of his pounds 3.2m transfer from Borussia Dortmund in the summer. Also confirmed were Liverpool's title credentials as they overcame some ill-disciplined Chelsea tackling with smooth movement and sharp finishing "Not being flash I think we can play better. Some of our passing was a bit sloppy," said the Liverpool manager, Roy Evans.The scoreline also served notice of the flimsiness of Chelsea's own pretensions. "Maybe it's good that it happened," said their coach Ruud Gullit.
"Everyone thinks that we are there but that's not true yet."Gullit chose to counter Liverpool's adventurous approach with an ambitious 4-3-3 formation It proved folly. He is also a strong supporter of Eric Cantona and friend of David Dein, the Arsenal vice-chairman to whom he recommended Wenger. He would undoubtedly work well with the Francophile England coach Glenn Hoddle.During his spell at the top of the French game, Houllier has overseen significant improvement in their international results, and developed a youth programme that saw their under-18 team win the European Championship. His current youth schemes reach fruition in 1998, after which he could well be ready for a new challenge.Having gone so long without finding a better alternative, the FA may now be tempted to extend the contract of the caretaker Don Howe as technical co-ordinator beyond the middle of next year and, unless their current interviewees impress strongly, hold on for their man.French connection, page 23.
Should the two new men also not measure up, they may return to Houllier."We would have to weigh up the urgency of the job and things that need to be done, against somebody who might not fulfil all the criteria," said the FA's chief executive Graham Kelly. "We have been aiming high and if we had the prospect of getting the right man, somebody who would be evangelical about coaching in this country, we would look again."Houllier, acknowledged as an expert organiser of coaches and coaching structures, has been with the French Federation for 10 years, which include two as assistant to Michel Platini and two as national coach He is an Anglophile with strong contacts in this country. They have considered, among others, Howard Wilkinson and the Portuguese Carlos Queiroz, who is succeeding the new Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger - himself also mooted - at Grampus Eight in Japan. THE Frenchman Gerard Houllier could re-emerge as the man to fill the post of English football's technical director. I understand that Houllier would be willing to take the job if the Football Association decide to wait for him until after the World Cup of 1998.
