Kyle Johnson

When a 44-year-old Scotsman ventured south of the border to take over an ailing Manchester United team on Nov. 6, 1986, spouting out that he would 'Knock Liverpool off their f*%$ing perch,' it would not have been amiss to categorize him in with a doomsday prophet or carnival fortune teller.

But here we are, 26-years later, and one could arguably say that it Sir Alex Ferguson's mission has been accomplished.  Technically, Liverpool are still the most decorated club in English football, but only by the slightest of margins and certainly not in the amount of league titles won.

In the 2008-2009 season, Liverpool cam agonizingly close to winning the Premier League title for the first time, finishing a mere six points behind Manchester United.  Having not lost at Anfield all season and accumulating a +6 greater goal differential than United, many thought that Liverpool was finally back where they should be, among the elite of English football.  Tragically, the next three seasons would tell a very different story.