2013 Review (and a Thank You!)
2013 has been a great year for both basstunedtored and, far more importantly, Liverpool, so I thought I'd end the year with a review of the last twelve months, including links to my favourite articles from this year.
After receiving approximately 100,000 hits in total across the first two years of its existence, the site has surpassed all of my expectations by getting around 180,000 views in the last twelve months alone. Thank you all for your fantastic and continued support, I really appreciate it.
Now, what's happened since January 1st?
The years started superbly, with the club securing the services of Daniel Sturridge and Philippe Coutinho for a total of about £20m. Both would prove to be bargain buys worth far more than their price tags would suggest.
I wrote about the impact that defensive errors were having upon the Reds, but also defended Pepe Reina from inaccurate tweets that were flying around cyberspace, in the site's most read article that was published in 2013. It was clear that Liverpool weren't going to finish in the top four though, and I explained why here.
As the season drew towards its conclusion, I investigated the form of Joe Allen following his injury, looked at Jordan Henderson's improvement, and Jonjo Shelvey's appalling shot placement, as well as the contribution that the Reds' academy graduates made, and I wrote a tribute to Jamie Carragher as he pulled down the blind on a sensational Liverpool career.
With 2012/13 drawing to a close, I inevitably tried to assess whether Brendan Rodgers was the right appointment or not. By looking at his tactical versatility, his record against the Premier League's minnows, the fact that he was performing better than his immediate predecessors and that he logged some impressive sequences across the season, I came to the conclusion that he deserved to stay on.
A look at Liverpool's woodwork woes, rough treatment from referees, and their phenomenal numbers for shots in the box at both ends of the pitch only reinforced this view.
The transfer window rumour mill and merry-go-round lead to numerous articles on players that joined (with Aspas, Alberto, Mignolet, Toure and Cissokho all receiving the basstunedtored once over), as well as plenty who were rumoured but never arrived, such as Mkhitaryan, Eriksen, Matri, Costa, and Sinclair.
Away from Liverpool directly, I continued my look at football stats in general, with a look at shots on target difference, and I wrote a piece for a Tomkins Times book which was an in-depth look at shots on target stats.
I also developed new forms of statistical analysis, such as final third efficiency and chance quality, and I also had a crack at assessing which team won a tactical battle by using stats. Perhaps my favourite personal achievement this season was writing a piece on the truth about tackles, which lead to Opta updating their event definitions page.
I've also started monitoring Luis Suárez' scoring form in 2013/14, and I'm compiling pass heat maps for every league match this season.
Not a bad year, eh? All that remains is to wish you a happy Christmas and new year. I'm going to take a couple of weeks away from the blog to clear my head for the January transfer window, and Liverpool's charge towards the 2013/14 Premier League title.....
Ok, perhaps not, but the improvement Liverpool have made between 2012 and 2013 can only fill me with optimism ahead of 2014. Enjoy the holidays, and thanks again for your fabulous support.
Cheers,
Andrew