There’s a lot of fuss right now in football about how bad a manager is if he doesn’t shake hands with his opposite number at the end of a game. In some cases I am sure it is a deliberate act from either a poor loser or from a loser that has genuinely seen his side cheated. Poor loser springs to mind on Sunday – Benitez shrugs off Mourinho snub but to be honest I for one expect little else from Jose.

As for other managers, how would it look if Bobby Robson took another job on, but forgot to shake hands at the end? Well at his age I don’t think anyone would be too bothered. He forgets players names, and no doubt forgetting to shake hands would be another spot of age-related amnesia.

What if David Moyes didn’t shake hands with Rafa at the end of a derby? A snub? No, not really. Everton truly believe they are the people’s club, the club of the people of the city of Liverpool, the club that are above Liverpool. Like the queen doesn’t carry money and always wears gloves, they probably believe that they should not have to shake hands with an ungloved manager. And they certainly have no money.

Alex Ferguson (emphasis on the missing “Sir”) does not have to shake hands. He is allowed under Premiership rules to do pretty much as he likes. If shaking hands went into the rule books, he’d get an exemption. Although I don’t think I want to shake hands with someone who has a bad bowel problem. And in case it’s something that is passed on through a lot of contact, I’d steer clear of shaking hands with the managers of Blackburn, West Brom and Birmingham too.
Anyone playing against Spurs would be excused not to shake hands – Martin Jol reminds me of Jaws off James Bond movies, and gives me the impression you’d have broken hands should you follow the manager’s traditions. Arsene Wenger’s eyesight problems (which come and go, sometimes he has excellent vision) mean he’s not going to always see his opposite number. He may shake hands with a steward and assume it was the manager.

So although the press and TV media like to make a big issue of it, I don’t think the handshake means as much as they like to make out. Jose had no excuse on Sunday – after all who wouldn’t want to shake Rafa’s hands – but maybe some of the others have. As long as they don’t start kissing – that would raise some eyebrows.

United’s win over Spurs means that Liverpool are now guaranteed third place. The concerns that Arsenal could win the Champions League and take away the right of the fourth-placed team to go into the qualifiers is no longer a concern of ours. However the three points for the Mancs mean we have a much taller order on our hands if we are to take second place.

The Spurs game was one of two where we thought United might slip up, with their clash over Chelsea 12 days later the next problem for them. That didn’t happen, so things are just that bit simpler now. Liverpool can’t afford to lose any of their remaining games. Chelsea have to beat United. A win from Chelsea would leave things possibly going to the wire.

A win for Chelsea would, by the time Liverpool kick off against Aston Villa at Anfield half an hour later, leave the Reds ready to try and take another three points and so leave it all to the last game of the season. Assuming the Reds have taken the six poinst available from West Ham and Villa, and United had dropped those three, the two sides would be level on points, with United having a game in hand.

Even a win for United against ex-coach Steve McLaren’s Middlesborough would not quite be enough when the two sides meet on May 1st, although it in reality would be enough given the goal difference the Reds and the Mancs have. It’s an outside hope, but a win from McLaren’s lot would leave it all hinging on the last day’s football.

That last day, where all games kick off at the same time, sees United host Charlton and Liverpool travel south to relegation-threatened Portsmouth. It does look like the relegation battle is going to go down to the wire too, so no favours to come from Jamie Redknapp’s dad. On that day, assuming results have gone Liverpool’s way, will be a lot of tension as the results from Old Trafford and Fratton Park are relayed back and forth. Next season though, we don’t want to battling for 2nd – we want our title back.

Remaining fixtures:
Wed 26 Apr, West Ham v Liverpool, 19:45
Sat 29 Apr, Chelsea v Man Utd, 12:30 and Liverpool v Aston Villa, 15:00
Mon 01 May, Man Utd v Middlesbrough, 20:00
Sun 07 May, Man Utd v Charlton, 15:00 and Portsmouth v Liverpool, 15:00

This time last season Liverpool were trying to get themselves into fourth place in the league as a disappointing league season came towards its conclusion. In the end they had to settle for fifth, and UEFA had to change the rules because of the FA’s refusal to stick to the spirit of the Champions League rules. The rules were changed to make sure stubborn FAs can’t do that again in the future.

This season Liverpool still have that aim to try and finish fourth or higher in the league, and that has now been attained. The lowest Liverpool can now finish after yesterday’s 1-0 win over Blackburn is 4th. For that to happen, Spurs need to win all their games, with Liverpool losing all theirs. This would leave the two sides level on points, so this amazing sequence of results would need to also see the gap in goal difference between the two sides reduced sufficiently in the process. Liverpool are currently 11 goals better off in that respect.

Liverpool have achieved that goal of finishing at least fourth now, an improvement on last season, but it might not be enough. If the above scenario happens and the Reds do finish in fourth, Arsenal will could scupper Liverpool’s hopes of Champions League football in season 2006/07. The new rules mean that if Arsenal won the competition they would go into next season’s group stages, with the league’s fourth-placed team taking a UEFA Cup place instead. So it’s important the Reds get at least one point from their last three games – then it can remain a North London matter over who gets the fourth English place in the competition next season.

The Reds want more than that though. Although the current holders of the European Cup are in charge of their own destiny in terms of ensuring at least a place in the qualifying stages next season, they have a chance of getting into the group stages if Manchester United slip up enough in their last four games. Liverpool are six points and nine goals behind United in the league table. If Liverpool won all of their remaining three games they’d have 82 points, six more than United have currently. Two wins from four from United would ensure Liverpool could only catch them if they reduced the goal difference gap, and that’s not really likely to happen. One win and three draws would be much the same.  So Liverpool’s outside chance of finishing second depends on United winning no more than one of their remaining four games, and losing at least one of the others. Seems unlikely.

At least it seems unlikely until you look at the remaining fixtures for United. Their next two fixtures are potentially their hardest two of what they’ve got left. First of all they are away to Tottenham today, and Tottenham will be desperate to try and get three points to put the pressure on Liverpool for third place, and to keep Arsenal from catching them in fourth place. United then get to rest for twelve days, a gap that could be a help or a hindrance depending on how things go. The next game is also away, against Chelsea. By then Chelsea will be confirmed Champions and in a mood to celebrate – which could mean either a lot of rested players and a half-hearted performance, or a desire to prove to United that they didn’t win the league just by cheating. In between those two fixtures Liverpool will have paid a visit to West Ham an evening kick-off in the city they never seem to do well in.

By the time Liverpool kick off against Aston Villa at Anfield half an hour after the Chelsea-United game has ended they’ll have a pretty good idea one way or another whether they’ve any hopes left of grabbing second place. By then they’ll have played Chelsea themselves in the FA Cup semi-final and will know whether a trip to Cardiff is on. If it is then Villa will have a game on their hands as the Reds players stake a claim for a cup final place. If things have also gone Liverpool’s way in the league and United have only managed a point from those two difficult games, with the Reds picking up six from their two games, then Liverpool would be in second, two points above United. Trouble is, Liverpool would have played one more game than United by then.

United’s extra game comes on May Day against Middlesborough. Steve McClaren’s team are pretty unpredictable, and McLaren will be relishing playing against his old boss, possibly for the last time if he does get that England job. Another draw in that game would see the table on the final day of the season with Liverpool on 79 in second and United on 78 in third. Then it all goes down to those final games. Charlton visit Old Trafford, where another England candidate will be trying to show his credentials off. Liverpool travel south to one of their bogey teams, Portsmouth. With Pompey still trying to stave off relegation and Harry Redknapp trying to avoid making it two seasons in a row that he’s sent a team down, Liverpool will have the toughest game of what they have left. It would be a dream for Sky Television if it went down to the wire, but a nightmare for the coronary departments of the hospitals in the North West.

So Liverpool have got a chance of that second place. If they could then follow that with an FA Cup final win (assuming they can get past Chelsea in the semis first) then it will bring to an end in style a season that started way back in July when the Reds played in the first qualifying round of the Champions League. It would also mean they needn’t worry about any qualifying rounds for the Champions League next season.

Remaining fixtures:
Mon 17 Apr, Tottenham v Man Utd, 12:45
Wed 26 Apr, West Ham v Liverpool, 19:45
Sat 29 Apr, Chelsea v Man Utd, 12:30 and Liverpool v Aston Villa, 15:00
Mon 01 May, Man Utd v Middlesbrough, 20:00
Sun 07 May, Man Utd v Charlton, 15:00 and Portsmouth v Liverpool, 15:00