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The 2008–09 season was the 117th season of competitive football played by Liverpool. It began on 1 July 2008 and concluded on 20 June 2009, with competitive matches played between August and May. Liverpool finished the previous season in fourth place behind Manchester United and Chelsea and Arsenal . The club ended the campaign in second place, four points behind Manchester United, with a record of 25 wins, 11 draws and 2 losses. Liverpool fared below par in the cups, eliminated in the fourth round of the FA Cup and Football League Cup by Everton and Tottenham Hotspur respectively. They exited the UEFA Champions League in the quarter-finals to Chelsea. Liverpool purchased a few players in the transfer market early in the season, with Philipp Degen, Andrea Dossena and Diego Cavalieri arriving in early July. Those arrivals were supplemented with the addition of striker Robbie Keane from Tottenham and midfielder Albert Riera later in the transfer window. Goalkeeper Scott Carson and striker Peter Crouch were sold in the summer transfer window, while six months after arriving Keane was sold back to Tottenham in the winter transfer window. Liverpool began the season in good form; they won eight of their first ten matches before suffering a loss against Tottenham. They picked up their form after the loss and a 5–1 victory over Newcastle United at the end of 2008, ensured they would be top going into the new year. Three successive draws at the turn of the year meant Manchester United caught Liverpool and a 2–0 loss at the end of February to Midlesbrough dented their hopes of winning the league. After the loss, Liverpool won ten of their final eleven matches, which included a 4–1 victory over Manchester United. The run was not enough to overhaul United and they finished four points behind in second place. 26 different players represented the club in four competitions and there were 16 different goalscorers. Liverpool's top goalscorer was Steven Gerrard, who scored 24 goals in 44 matches. Defender Jamie Carragher made the most appearances during the season with 54. ==Background== The 2007–08 season was unsuccessful for Liverpool. Despite new signing Fernando Torres scoring 33 goals in all competitions, including 24 in the Premier League, Liverpool finished in fourth place, 11 points behind eventual winners Manchester United. The club fared little better in the cup competitions. They exited the FA Cup in the fifth round, losing 2–1 to Championship club Barnsley at Anfield. A 2–0 defeat against Chelsea resulted in the club's exit from the Football League Cup in the quarter-finals. Liverpool fared better in European competition, where they reached the semi-finals of the UEFA Champions League. For the fourth consecutive year in the competition, they faced Chelsea, but lost the tie 4–3 on aggregate. Liverpool made a number of additions to their squad during the pre-season. Defenders Philipp Degen and Andrea Dossena were the first to arrive from Borussia Dortmund and Udinese respectively. Goalkeeper Diego Cavalieri was signed from Brazilian club Palmeiras as backup to Pepe Reina, while French striker David N'Gog joined from Paris Saint-Germain. The biggest signing of the summer transfer window was the purchase of striker Robbie Keane from Tottenham Hotspur for a fee of £19.3 million. Midfielder Albert Riera joined from Spanish club Espanyol at the end of the summer transfer window. At the end of the 2007–08 season, Liverpool sold a number of players. Defender John Arne Riise was sold to fellow Premier League club Fulham after seven years at the club. Forward Anthony Le Tallec was sold to French club Le Mans, while midfielder Harry Kewell joined Turkish club Galatasaray on a free transfer. Later in July, striker Peter Crouch joined his former club, Portsmouth for £11 million and goalkeeper Scott Carson was sold to West Bromwich Albion. Defender Steve Finnan and midfielder Danny Guthrie left the club in August to join Espanyol and Newcastle United respectively. During the January transfer window, striker Robbie Keane returned to Tottenham after only six months at the club. Sebastián Leto joined Olympiacos on a two-year loan after his application for a work permit was rejected, while striker Andriy Voronin was loaned to Hertha BSC. The biggest change going into the new season was Chelsea appointing Brazilian Luiz Felipe Scolari as manager to replace Avram Grant. When asked for his opinion on Scolari, Liverpool manager Rafael Benítez stated, "He is a good manager with a lot of experience and passion. Chelsea are a good team with a strong squad and I thought Avram Grant did a good job for them, and Scolari will want to do the same." Chelsea were regarded as the favourites to challenge champions Manchester United for the title, while Liverpool were expected to struggle initially as their new signings adapted to the squad. ''The Guardian's'' Paul Doyle opined, "If they are to sustain a challenge for the title beyond Christmas, Liverpool will have to develop the offensive diversity and unpredictability to turn last season's costly draws against smaller teams into victories." 抄文引用元・出典: フリー百科事典『 ウィキペディア（Wikipedia）』 ■ウィキペディアで「2008–09 Liverpool F.C. season」の詳細全文を読む スポンサード リンク
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