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Rodgers still searching for the right blend

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Liverpool v Aston Villa - Premier League-1491854Balance. The holy grail for every coach and manager in the game of football. When you break it down to its core it is as simple as it gets: Score goals. Don’t concede goals. Entertain, but make sure you remain rock solid in the process. Even some of the best teams in Europe struggle to get it right.

Barcelona, Chelsea, Borussia Dortmund, Atletico Madrid, Juventus and Real Madrid all have that in common to a various degree: issues with the balancing act. Not big issues, but big enough to be visible. Only a tiny little handful of teams are close to what you could call perfection.

LFC under Brendan Rodgers is still very much a work in progress in that matter. What strikes me the most about this Liverpool team is how different it is from his Swansea team in terms of its nature. Rodgers himself used the term ‘DNA’ to describe the core of the squad he had last season. You can put time and effort into altering it, but ultimately it will dictate your approach more than you can dictate it.

As a result I think we’re still seeing a Liverpool FC somewhat torn between the ideals of their manager and the evolution of the squad – maybe even the evolution of the manager himself.

Compared to the measured approach of the Swansea team he introduced to the Barclays Premier League, this Liverpool team is a beast of wilder proportions. Having players like Steven Gerrard, Jordan Henderson and Luis Suarez naturally means that the prospect of taming Liverpool and recreating a better version of Swansea – if that was his initial vision – was always going to be difficult.

The interesting part is that by adding the likes of Philippe Coutinho and Daniel Sturridge, he has – by choice or by consequence – further enhanced the underlying nature that dictates the Liverpool we now see week in week out: a team that looks capable of outscoring just about every team in the league, but conversely is capable of conceding a goal against any team at any given point.

From the outside it looks like a successful shotgun approach: throw everything you can and the odds of something sticking is in your favour, and then make sure you fire more than the opponent.

Is this then a conscious choice or is it a compromise based on the players at his disposal? The reason why I’m bringing this up now is because of the transfer window, and because the next couple of signings Liverpool make could be an indication about which direction Rodgers wants to take.

Personally I believe it’s the latter; I believe what Rodgers is aiming for is something similar to the game against Tottenham at White Hart Lane, which I think is the most balanced performance we have seen from a Liverpool team for many years.

Time will show if I’m right, but I think the next few transfers will include midfielders who can make Liverpool better at controlling games and dictate the events of a game rather than letting events dictate them, which I think is the weakness of the team right now and the underlying problem of what we perceive as defensive frailties.

We may have to wait until the next transfer window to get the answers due to the nature of the market in January, meaning we may have to live with the somewhat erratic Jekyll&Hyde performances – or perhaps moments is a better word – for the rest of the season, and hope we continue to hit more than we miss from now until the end of the season.

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53 comments

  • Patrick says:

    Will Rodgers EVER find the right blend ? …I very much doubt it . 80% of his signings are cack. Suarez has saved his job for 2 seasons now.

  • Denis D says:

    The main problem this seasons is our midfield:
    Centre and out wide:

    Centre Midfield:
    There is no protection of back 4 as we are conceding goals for fun:
    There is not enough class, creativity , goals from open play from centre :

    Out Wide:
    Lack of class, Consistency, Creativity and Goals:

    B Rodgers needs to stop wasting Millions on dud loan signings and players who are not of Liverpool class, its like he still thinks he is at Swansea. And signing players who would fit Swansea

    The likes of Alberto, Aspas, Assaidi, Borini, Cissokho, Llori, Moses, Sahin and Toure are players who would look ok and descent playing for Swansea City.

    But they do not look class or quality for Liverpool as they are not good enough and way out of their depth, B Rodgers needs to fix up as if we do not make Top 4 this year and Suarez goes WE are screwed.

    As S Gerrard(33) is on his last legs and like Giggs(36), Lampard (34) are coming to the end of their days. Gerrard needs to be rested , but the class and quality we lack at club and due to loyalty Rodgers doesn’t rest Gerrard(33)

    B Rodgers needs the owners to back him well, but he needs to stop wasting Millions on potential, we need proven class, quality brought to club:

    This should be the priority signings in next 9 days:

    1 and 2: Two players who will help stop the side shipping goals and actually protect the back 4, they will also bring mobility, physical presence, power and strength to Centre midfield. And both of them will cost a combine total of 16M, 1 M more than J Allen(24) and 2m Cheaper than J Henderson(23).

    In Febuary 2008, our club signed J Mascherano for 18.6M After he had a year loan spell at club, but at end of August 2010, the traitor at the end was sold to Barcelona.

    3 years and a half on, the class, quality, bite, mobility, how he broke up play, how he covered ground, How Mascherano stopped oppositions key attacking players dictate play and how he protected back four has still not been replaced:

    B Rodgers needs to bring in these two players to fill that hole:
    1: Yann M’Vila(23) Of Rubin Kazan for 8-12M not De Jong Of AC Milan, Not Badu Of Juventus. M’Vila(23) should be first priority

    2: Fernando Reges(26) Of Porto Or B Matuidi(26) Of PSG, both players have their contracts running out in the summer, so either one can be approached now. And signed now for 1-4M or signed on Pre Contract. B Rodgers should bring F Reges(26) Of Porto for 1-4M with M’Vila(23) in next few days to strengthen midfield.

    As in Allen(24), Gerrard(33), Henderson(23) and Lucas(26), we have leaked too many easy goals where opposition midfielders or attackers have run straight through centre and run on and had shot and scored or run onto flick on , without being tackled or challenged by any of the three centre midfielders in park who are supposed to protect back 4.

    And here are some of the players who have scored through the middle against us this season: A Ramsey Arsenal, Y Cabaye Newcastle, T Huddlestone, J Livermore and D Meyler all of Hull, Shelvey and Michu Of Swansea, Negredo Of Man City, Hazard Of Chelsea and C Adams of Stoke.

    M’Vila(23) Of Rubin Kazan and Fernando(26) Of Porto need to be brought to club as soon as possible for combined total of 16M

    Then B Rodgers needs to bring in these TWO players to bring more class, creativity and goals to midfield:

    3: CM: I Rakitic(25) Of Seville, A Lallana(25) Of Southampton Or Y Cabaye(27) Of Newcastle, one of these class, creative, box to box , Goal Scoring Centre Midfielders needs to be brought to club for 14-20M

    4: RW/ LW/ RWF/ LWF: M Salah(21) Of Basel should be brought to club at all costs for 8-12M

    As we are OVER Reliant on Sturridge and Suarez and sooner or later they may have dry spell without scoring. And apart from S Gerrard getting penalties, where else are our goals coming from?

    In over 20 games in league or midfield has 13 goals: Gerrard 6, Coutinho 3, Sterling 3 and Henderson 1. That is not good enough at all

  • Sean Murphy says:

    It truly is incredible how some Lfc fans on here continuously slate Rogers for any and every mistake he happens to make. I’ve been supporting this club for 40, so I know my beans. Let’s get down to brass tacks.
    Rogers is 40yrs old. He’s young. He will make mistakes.
    Some of his buys are questionable no doubt. Some have yet to show their quality, some may never be good enough. But check the buying history of all good managers. They’re all guilty of buying useless overpaid duffers.
    Right now we’re fourth behind two clubs run by billionaires and the other is cash rich and has match day gate receipts higher than any other sports team in the world. Rogers DOES NOT have the spending luxury of the three I mention.
    We play an exciting brand of attacking football and only City have scored more.
    Yes we have issues and yes there is still much work to do.
    Rogers has been in the job for 18mths. We’re doing fine.
    So stop moaning, support the team or disappear!

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