The knives are firmly being sharpened for Liverpool manager Rafael Benitez at the moment with the English Premier League giants in the middle of a nightmare period both on and off the pitch.

Rafael Benitez has looked an increasingly desperate figure on the touchline this season.

Liverpool go into Sunday’s home clash against Manchester United in their worse run since 1987 – and four defeats in a row could easily become five should the Reds lose to their bitter rivals, a scenario not witnessed at Anfield for 56 years.

The glory days of that remarkable Champions League triumph in 2005 seem a distance away for Benitez and the Spaniard’s body language has become more and more agitated and irritable as a crippling injury list, loss of form from experienced players and new-found defensive uncertainty have all combined to give Liverpool a distinctly fragile appearance in recent weeks.

Suddenly every aspect of the club is being scrutinized, from the continued boardroom travails involving unpopular American owners Tom Hicks and George Gillett to Benitez’s transfer policy which has seen him sign over 70 players since taking charge of the club five years ago.

Benitez has moaned about his squad size in recent weeks but, from where I am looking, the Liverpool squad appears as big, if not bigger, than most of their rivals’ squads.

Size is not the issue, quality is, and it is my firm belief that Benitez only has himself to blame for the current mess his club are in.

The accusation that Liverpool rely too heavily on superstars Fernando Torres and Steven Gerrard is true, but it is nonsense to say they are the only class players at Benitez’s disposal.

The likes of Yossi Benayoun, Javier Mascherano, Albert Reira, Daniel Agger, Jamie Carragher, Glen Johnson and Pepe Reina are all top quality, but the truth is the second tier of players are simply not good enough.

Who scores the goals when Torres is absent?...David Ngog?..Andrei Voronin?...How the Liverpool faithful must yearn for Robbie Keane, Peter Crouch or Emile Heskey, all experienced Premier League strikers jettisoned by Benitez.

Who provides the creativity in midfield following the sale of Xabi Alonso?...Lucas? or will the still injured Alberto Aquilani provide the spark so sadly lacking when he eventually makes his debut?

And who plays in the full-back positions?..Glen Johnson?, Fabio Aurelio?, Philip Degen? Andrea Dossena? Martin Kelly? Emiliano Insua? Jamie Carragher?...How many full-backs does a club need?

I do not expect Liverpool to beat United on Sunday, although a draw might be enough to instil some much-needed confidence…

Either way, they have already lost four league games, double last year’s total, and their title hopes will be extinguished should defeat number five occur at the weekend…

Is Benitez’s job safe?...For the moment he won’t be going, especially as the ink on a lucrative recent five-year contract is barely dry..

But if Liverpool fail to finish in the top four, don’t expect the dour Spaniard to be at the helm next season, and, you know what, he’ll only have himself to blame.

The signing of Arsenal defender Kolo Toure, with the prospect of at least one more top center-half being signed to partner him, marks Manchester City down as genuine English Premier League title contenders for the forthcoming season.

City appear to have been signing up every available world class striker this summer in an attempt to break the current monopoly held by Manchester United, Chelsea, Liverpool and Arsenal and there is no doubt that a forward line of Adebayor, Tevez. Santa Cruz, Robinho and Bellamy will trouble even the most resolute of defenses.

Toure's arrival marks City down as genuine title contenders.

However, the capture of Toure is even more significant.

Firstly, the signing takes away a vital player from a potential title rival.  To some experts, Arsenal are the most vulnerable of the top four clubs. Selling Emmanuel Adebayor to City was seen as good business, but Toure - as the final member of the unbeaten 'Invincibles' Arsenal side that won the title in 2004 - was a key component of Arsenal's back four and his reaction speed, athleticism and ability to read dangerous situations are as good as any Premier League defender.

And secondly, Toure's arrival addresses what was an obvious deficiency in the City set-up, that no amount of attack-minded player could solve.

Defensively, City were woeful last season. Irishman Richard Dunne, a stalwart and fans' favorite in previous seasons, was exposed for his lack of pace more than ever before, while Micah Richards - who looked destined to be an England regular for many years to come under the national team leadership of Sven-Goran Eriksson - was completely overlooked by the Swede's replacement Fabio Capello, resulting  in a worrying loss of form amid rumors of petulant behavior and disagreements with City manager Mark Hughes.

While Hughes was busy assembling his dream team strike-force, the issue of City's leaking defence remained a major concern, but the moment Hughes made his intentions to snatch England captain John Terry from Chelsea known, City immediately became genuine title contenders.

Ultimately Terry opted to remain with Chelsea, but his head was undoubtedly turned, and with the seemingly bottomless pit of Abu Dhabi money ensuring the blue half of Manchester can offer whatever it takes to make their team title contendors, then a top quality partner for Toure will not be long  in coming.

Perhaps City won't win the title this season, but don't for one moment believe they cannot challenge. Hughes has signed proven champions. Tevez won the title at Manchester United, Toure at Arsenal, Santa Cruz with Bayern Munich in Germany. These are not players who are wet behind the ears, they have a winning mentality.

The rest of the Premier League should beware.

I’m beginning to think that the croissant I had for breakfast was a complete waste of time, such is the amount of free food and drink being offered to me by the Tour de France organizers.

A mini-breakfast of bacon and sausage, just one of the many free food options in the Tour de France village.

Luckily enough, I have the correct ‘accreditation’ to enter the Tour village, prior to the 10^th stage from Limoges to Issoudun and, despite the drizzly conditions, I am certainly not alone.

It is easy to see why they call it the village. I haven’t located a bed yet, but there is a sufficient amount of food, drink, toilet facilities and entertainment, to provide me with everything I need should I, and the thousands of other privileged enough to have the ‘golden ticket’, get locked in here for the next month.

While the rank and file are being entertained by all sorts of weird and wonderful creatures who form part of the Tour de France cavalcade, I begin my feast-fest by tucking into a couple of mini-pastries.

I decline the offer of some coffee and opt out of the wine-tasting, which seems surprisingly popular considering it is only 10:30am. I am handed the French sports newspaper L’Equipe. It’s a great read, for those who speak French, but as my vocabulary is limited to ‘bonjour’, I fear it is wasted on me.

A man is offering me fruit by the handful. I accept an orange and a little green thing which I think is a sort of plum, very nice it is too, before gratefully scooping up some sweets courtesy of our friends at Haribo.

Bizarrely, I can’t find any water so I decide to partake in an apricot ice drink, which I soon realize is a huge error as my brain freezes up for a good 20 seconds.

There is a crowd gathering around a particular tent, where I notice the genial host/chef is offering up a mini fry-up of bacon and sausages. Imagine, if you will, having to create a breakfast for a doll’s house...then this was it. Bacon was a bit on the fatty side, but that’s just me being ungrateful for no reason.

Before I get stuck into the mini-pasta dishes, I hear a commotion. The riders are beginning to arrive and I’ve got to start work. With regret I leave the much-fancied diet of durum wheat to attend to business, with much food for cycling-based thought.