Djibril Cisse will face Liverpool when he lines up for QPR tomorrow night. Can he help his new side to a win?
It is hard to say which had the most detrimental impact on Djibril Cisse’s Liverpool career, his horrific leg break, or Rafa Benitez’s decision to play him on the wing.
When he was signed in 2004, there were not so much high hopes for Cisse at Anfield, as astronomical ones.
After scoring 90 goals for French club Auxerre, he was billed as France’s next sensation, with Liverpool supporters hoping he could even become their own Thierry Henry.
He had a good start at Anfield, netting 11 times in 19 games, before disaster struck.
In a freak accident he broke his leg, with his studs becoming caught in the turf. It remains one of those images which is horrific to see, and principally, it was this injury against Blackburn Rovers which most impacted his Liverpool career.
He recovered quicker than expected, most memorably, he managed to comeback to assist Liverpool’s glorious 2004-05 Champions League run, netting in the miraculous penalty shoot-out win over AC Milan.
It was next season that his career continued a downwards trend, with Rafa Benitez playing him out on the right-wing.
No longer was the the ‘bright hope and next great Premier League striker’ but he had become a striker recovering from a career threatening injury being deployed out of position, and also began to sulk at his position, expressing dissatisfaction with his manager.
He went onto score 24 goals for the club in total, including the opener in the 2006 FA Cup Final, which Liverpool also drew 3-3 and won on penalties.
The next summer he was loaned to Marseilles, and later joined permanently, before embarking on a nomadic career taking in Sunderland, Panathaniakos, Lazio, and now QPR, also suffering a second horrendous leg break playing for France.
It remains a great shame that a striker bought for £14 million by Liverpool, who was hoped to go on to become a superstar, failed to fulfill his potential.
He has had a mixed start to life at QPR, scoring twice in his three appearances, and being sent off, causing him to miss three games.
With the club battling relegation and desperate for a win, 30-year-old Cisse will be keen to show Liverpool and their fans that he is still a player who is not ready for retirement just yet, and who has plenty to offer.
He has a lot more to give, and it would be nice to see him settle somewhere, but if QPR are relegated, he will be bound to move on. His mission to avoid that will continue at tomorrow night, and Liverpool would be advised to be wary.
What are your thoughts on Djibril Cisse’s Liverpool career? Will he have an impact tomorrow night?
image: © adifans
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