AFTER what can only be described as a hard fought, gratifying win for Liverpool FC against Tottenham on Sunday, it would be difficult not to envision a late surge from the red men of Merseyside for a Champions League place.
However, haven’t we seen this before somewhere? Didn’t a lot of Liverpool supporters feel at the start of this season that we could genuinely challenge for the top four and get back in the Champions League?
There was an air of optimism at the start of the season that a new style of play and a relatively young, ambitious manager could possibly be what Liverpool needed to force their way back into their rightful position amongst Europe’s elite. Unfortunately, too often this season, Liverpool’s good results have been bought to a sudden halt with a staggeringly bad result, often against so called lesser opposition.
The games against Manchester United (where we were the better side in the second-half), Manchester City and Arsenal illustrated that we could comfortably stand toe to toe with the Premier Leagues best were overshadowed by losses to West Bromwich Albion twice, Aston Villa and Oldham Athletic in the FA Cup. I can’t help but feel that this could be another false dawn for Liverpool where we beat Spurs by playing with guile and determination then go back to being our inconsistent best with mediocre draws against Southampton and Aston Villa.
Call me a pessimist but I’ve seen this many times before and have always seen the optimism drain away after another underwhelming performance against a “lesser” side, so as much as I want Liverpool to progress I feel they won’t yet and that is because they have yet to address the single biggest problem of this campaign: Brendan Rodgers’ style of management.
Now don’t get me wrong, I think Rodgers has many endearing qualities, he’s good with the media, he’s an advocate of the Barcelona style of playing and he’s made some good signings. Unfortunately I feel he lacks the necessary qualities we need in a manager to really progress as a club and the major issues I have outlined below:
1. Experience.
Rodgers isn’t lacking in management experience exactly, but he is lacking in big club management experience. Having managed Watford then Reading, and subsequently being sacked by the latter, then going into management with Swansea can hardly be called big club experience. Regardless of Rodgers’ success at Swansea, I feel he hasn’t had enough experience to handle the pressure that comes from managing a big club like Liverpool.
2. Selection
All too often this year I personally have been disappointed when looking at a team sheet and seeing the likes of Downing, Henderson, Allen and Borini starting games. Now admittedly Downing and Henderson have improved within recent weeks but even with the improvement they have to be firmly slotted into the average category alongside Joe Allen and Fabio Borini.
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Some of the blame here can be attributed to Kenny Dalglish and Damian Comolli splurging astronomical fees on average players and Rodgers having to make do, but remember, Rodgers picks the team and he chooses where players play. To be constantly choosing Downing, Henderson and Borini when they aren’t playing well is not good management in my eyes.
Another problem is the defensive selections that Rodgers seems to favour. I’m all for sentimentality but playing Carragher over the 6’6” Coates (regardless of Coates performance at Oldham) just seems like an attempt to curry favour with the fans when the smarter move would be playing the tall Uruguayan international in an attempt to make him integral to the team. Skrtel and Agger would also benefit from some competition from Coates.
3. In-game Management
This is where Rodgers really falls down in my opinion. During games he seems to wait for the game to slip away before making changes to shape or personnel in order to influence the outcome.
The successful managers in the league aren’t afraid to change personnel at half-time if the game isn’t going to plan and Rodgers too often seems to be content that the team will turn the result around before he needs to make changes. Sometimes the team needs help and guidance during a match and they need a manager who is reactive in a positive way, Rodgers has shown consistently this season that he actually prefers to take off certain players during the game, much to the annoyance of the fans, leaving Liverpool’s creative lifeline stifled.
It was only through Lloris’s clanger on Sunday that Liverpool turned the game round and this was after Coutinho was hauled off severing Suarez’s supply. Goodness knows how the game would have turned out had Spurs not had such a shocker in the second-half and this win can certainly not be attributed to Rodgers’ in game management.
4. Transfers
£10 million for Fabio Borini. £15 million for Joe Allen. Enough said. Seriously, I wish that I could heap praise on these players but unfortunately Borini has been so eye wateringly poor in front of goal and Joe Allen’s inability to pass forward has only highlighted Rodgers’ ineptitude in the transfer market.
People also point to the Andy Carroll loan deal as one that wasn’t really Rodgers’ fault, but he was the one who wanted the player out and also wanted to replace him with a forward who hasn’t exactly been prolific at Spurs this year. All this points to a bad eye in the market, and although he signed Sturridge and Coutinho, I fear we are in for another Benitez style summer of one great player bought, alongside three awful ones.
Of course this is only an opinion and I truly hope Rodgers can push the team on from here to try and snatch a Champions League place. However at the risk of sounding harsh, I feel that this could yet be another false dawn and Brendan Rodgers isn’t the right man at the helm therefore we would be better off with the likes of Carlo Ancelotti, Jurgen Klopp or Diego Simeone in order to forge a new dynamic at Liverpool FC. Agree?
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It’s been a embarrassing disastrous season . Wins against Wigan , Swansea reserves and a fortunate win v spurs will NOT make up for the mediocre first 7 months
What a silly website, dear oh dear.
Why do u hate BR so much .and u call yourself a liverpool fan
Why do u like BR so much ? Are you a Man utd fan ?
What happened to you that made you so down Ed? It is clear that you e been hurt before. Who hurt you Ed, who hurt you?
Awful article! Give BR time you silly fan!
9 months he has had. Did you want hodgson to stay too ?
Good article mate. Perfect summary of our season YNWA
what a load of bollocks. if you want a conjurer go get Gandalf or Harry Potter. BR is a man doing a human job quite well thus far thank you very much.
Quite well ???? .We had a disastrous season u muppet
of course you would say that seeing as you dream you are the league’s top scorer.
he is right . kop on kid
what a load of rubbish, how can a person with such a negative mind think abt writing anything?
Experiance?– rafa has a bag full of it. A champians league n 2 spanish league trophys won, but what he is doing at chevesky? Arsenal wenger has 15 yr experiance at his own club . Still right now they are no far from us…,this experiance crap is all bull *. Not only in sport but everywhere, experiance cant be the factor to count success. Had barca asked messi that u dont have any experiance in spain go n play with espeniol, would it have changed messi? Talent is a factor whice can exist withot experiance.
Abt team selection –
well again there are may things go in and around the club dugout. We fans cant know everything abt, why a player was not picked up. Like pepe was replaced by jones. We have our fevorite 11. And we want them to see every match.
Abt in game tactics-
wigan(h),chevesky(a),manc both, everton(a), spurs(h), are few matches where the in game tactics yeild us results. Against spuds ,we adopted the long ball tactics just to avoid bale n co getting behind our defence on counter. against everton we played an extra defender just to get grip on felleni. So the fact of the matter is. Br knows what he is doing. What is needed. Just for eg. Use of suso, sterling. At the start of season we were so thin as a squad we had to use kids . Mind it though suso ,sterling are mind blowing. These are future .cant play a 30 game season .so you can see there is a techenician in him. There are people like the kenny n rafa supporters. (there are many). Who are still not ready to give BR the support needed to succeed. But enven
then a man who has his own picture on his wall, shows n has something spl and definite abt him not to get fased by the articals like this. We finaly have someone who can deliver.
What a load of bull. Stop talkin nonsense please.
Mr. Suarez wannabe do you actually have something to say, our do you just reject everything that’s sensible
Nothing sensible in that lot . A dope pretending he knows football . Anyone who thinks BR knows what he is doing needs a lobotamy
good one.
He thought naming himself suarez, he can score a GOAL here. Lol
Rubbish mayur. Rubbish . Rodgers has won nothing achieved nothing and has shown nothing to suggest he will succeed
He will be sacked eventually , he doesn’t have the ability or tactical savvy to succeed
Only question is – how much time will Liverpool waste before starting again. He certainly will be sacked at end if next season
I’m sorry to say it but …. Rodgers was the wring choice … The sooner he is gone the better fir LFC
@liverbaby..
U sound so stupid to me. Br has done nothing? Has not won anything? Well there always a first time. And mind u kid, even if he had won anything in past, whats our club has to do with it? Suppose jose mourinho is signed, who has won champions league with,porto,inter, and la liga with madrid. So? What it has to do with us? New club diff players different league everything changes. Past trophys has nothing to do with todays success.
Abt br doing nothing, are you realy liverpool fan or a scum? Liverpool have already won more games then last year, scored more than last year, curuntly sit 3rd in form meter. Have scored most goals ind 2013. .
I dont know what ur expecting of a club in transition.
clearly, you are living in the past. Made particularly obvious by your recommendation of an archaic form of treatment. wake up. Liverpool feel behind over years. won’t get back to the top over 7 months so give the man a chance
He has had long enough to show everyone that he is out of his depth
Terrible terrible season , one of the worst. What kind of fool are you that wants us to keep a championship manager like that
ur i guess on a wrong place.
Sitting 6th in the toughest league, with a team in transition. The form meter shows, we have scored most goals in 2013. And have 2nd highest poinds won in 2013. With a form suggesting we will continue to do so.
If u were expecting liverpool to win league. And sitting 6th in mix of top4 place is,worst performance, you are at a long place.
U better start supporting the scums, blue scums or chevesky. May be they can buy what u want.
Well written. Never understand why he likes allen so much.,dont know what he brings to the team..having stevieG babysit all the time.
Hate to say I told you so.Outplayed by Southampton in every department.If Suares has an off day we stink.Rogers starting Allen-top manager – for all of you who after Spurs thought we had arrived – wake up – lack of quality – no pace no creativity and no muscle with a poor manager who cannot select a team and cannot influence a game