SVEN HOPES LESSONS PAY OFF

By Simon Stone, PA Sport Chief Football Writer

Sven-Goran Eriksson is hoping a few valuable lessons learned in the famous Anfield 'Boot Room' can prove costly for Liverpool at Eastlands on Sunday.
The Manchester City manager grew up with a love of the Merseyside giants inherited from his father, a lifelong Liverpool fan until his recent conversion to club his son is now in charge of.
His interest extended so far, he made contact with Liverpool at the start of his own coaching career in Sweden.
By the time he was in charge of Gothenburg, Eriksson was a frequent visitor to the club, striking up a particularly strong relationship with Joe Fagan.
"I used to have a drink with Joe in the Boot Room after games," recalled Eriksson. "It was very nice and they made me feel very welcome.
"I was with Gothenburg at the time and I just made contact with them.
"I had been a Liverpool fan when I was younger. My father had always supported them, I am not sure why.
"We have had English football every week on TV in Sweden for 35 years, so I suppose we saw a lot of them.
"When I was beginning my coaching career, it just seemed natural to try and get in touch. In Sweden, there is no football for an entire month, which provided me with the opportunity to visit."
Eriksson also spent time with Bobby Robson at Ipswich and Ajax in Holland as he accumulated the knowledge which has provided the backbone for an impressive career which has seen him with league and cup doubles in Sweden, Portugal and Italy, as well as lead England to three successive tournament quarter-finals, quite a feat considering the abject failure to reach Euro 2008.
Yet it was those days with Fagan at Anfield which remain most vivid in Eriksson's memory, although there was little friendliness shown when the pair's paths crossed in a managerial capacity during the 1984 European Cup quarter-final when Liverpool were paired with Benfica.
"We lost 1-0 in the first game at Anfield," said Eriksson.
"We were a little bit naive and thought we had a good chance of getting through.
"Two weeks later, we played in front of 100,000 fans at the Stadium of Light and lost 4-1. It was a big lesson for us, although it has to be remembered Liverpool had some very good players at that time and won the competition by beating Roma in Rome."
Considering the vast amount of silverware Liverpool collected during those halcyon days, it seems odd the club are currently striving to avoid an 18th season without winning a league title.
Although Rafael Benitez insists his team are still in with a chance, they are now reliant on Manchester United and Arsenal slipping up having dropped off the pace despite already playing the remainder of England's 'big four' on home soil.
Indeed, should City triumph on Sunday, something they have managed only twice on home soil in the Premier League era, they will leapfrog Benitez's side into a Champions League berth.
Such a scenario is bound to have Benitez's critics out in force again, although Eriksson cannot understand why the Spaniard has found himself under such intense scrutiny.
"I believe Benitez is doing a good job," said Eriksson.
"Maybe it is surprising Liverpool have gone so long without winning the league but on the other hand in three years they have reached two Champions League Finals, which is fantastic.
"At any level, at any other club, whether it was Barcelona, Real Madrid, Inter Milan, AC Milan or Manchester United, two European Cup Finals in three years would be a top achievement."
It may be some time before City are competing at that kind of level but new owner Thaksin Shinawatra is clearly an ambitious man.
And, with the transfer window about to swing open, Dr Thaksin has already promised Eriksson the funds he needs to strengthen, a move the manager believes is vital is City are to reach the lofty aims that have been set.
"We have a good squad but if you look at the big four, they have bigger squads with quality all over," said Eriksson.
"But we will have that in the future too. That is a must if you want to play European football.
"If you try another way, you might do well in Europe and badly in the league.
"But if you want to hold a certain level in both, you must have a big squad."