THE trouble with Liverpool this season has been the wide contrast in performances.
When the team’s played well, they’ve really played well. Passes have had a purpose to them, the ball’s had a fizz on it when making its way on the turf or through the air, and vision has been precise from the likes of Stewart Downing and Jordan Henderson, on top of the usual suspects: Steven Gerrard and Luis Suarez.
Of course now with the arrival of Philippe Coutinho and Daniel Sturridge, the team looks a lot more potent and lethal – on paper.
This isn’t a negative reflection of these players individually but Liverpool as a team seems to suffer from the same syndrome that the English cricket side suffered throughout the 90s and mid-2000s.
On their day, when all the pieces fit right in to that puzzle, they’re unbeatable. When it doesn’t – and sadly that happens more regularly than the other way around – it feels like there’s nothing to be expected but a wall to hit your head on.
Whether it’s psychosomatic or not, the jury’s out on that. Many will immediately take this opportunity to slay Brendan Rodgers. But Liverpool have suffered from this for years and years now – under Gerrard Houllier, then Rafael Benitez, and even Kenny Dalglish.
In fact, it was this temporary cluelessness which probably cost Dalglish his job.
Is this where an Alex Fergusson-esque hairdryer treatment is most needed, or more likely to work than anything else? Perhaps.
Then again, nowadays players’ egos tend to scale greater heights than their achievements and a right shouting down may do more harm than good for the morale.
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But something is needed to infuse consistency in to this side. If a 6-0 away doesn’t get followed up by a win, then the team’s in trouble. Managers can come and go but the mood needs to be right throughout the club, which breathes a self-belief.
Something that says “We’ve done good here today lads, but this isn’t a one-off. If we can do it today, we can do it again, and again.”
The truth may hurt but it needs to be faced. That’s been one of the underlying features of Manchester United overtaking Liverpool as the most successful English club – at least in terms of the league anyway.
Their consistency.
They’ve been arrogant on the pitch sometimes but they’ve managed to back that up by grinding out results week in, week out. Liverpool haven’t done so for quite some time now.
Even in the best season in recent years when challenging for the league, it was inconsistency that cost us. 11 draws, a number of them at home, against sides who should’ve been beaten. That’s 22 points dropped.
Until this side (whoever manages it) becomes more consistent, forget about league titles. It’s going to continue to prove a challenge to even make it to Europe – much like it has this season.
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Not true. We have been consistent. We beat the easy teams and can’t beat any of the good ones
That’s what average teams do .it’s shocking and embarrassing that liverpool has only beaten 1 top 8 team all season. BR is clearly not up to the job
Absolute tosh. The performances against most of the sides above us has been very good this season as well as the transition of the squad. Frankly most people who complain about BR are deluded fools and should go and support Man City.
You at in again . Insulting people under a different name . You are the deluded fool who thinks this cabbage of a manager can bring success
Grow up
In all honesty, Our club for last five years have had a weak and poor squad. The last four seasons we have become a side that is competing for a top 6-11 place in league with likes of Everton, Fulham, Newcastle and Stoke.
That is not good enough for our club and the main problem is we have weak squad with lack of class, quality competition for places.
Barnes, Hansen and Lawrenson for the last three seasons have been saying the club need some serious investment in playing staff before we can compete for the league again. And that is the truth we do
These five clubs currently have much better squads than us now and yet they will all strengthening again within the summer: Both the Manchester Clubs, Arsenal, Chelsea and Tottenham.
And those are the teams in the top 5
For our club to get back challenging for league, £100-£140M is needed. Not £200M
B Rodgers has shipped out 12 players since his reign at club (Adams, Aquilani, Aurelio, Bellamy, Carroll, Cole, Doni, Kuyt, Ngoo, Rodriguez, Spearing and Wilson.
4 of them were players loaned out, only one should be brought back (Carroll)
And only brought in 5 players to replace 12 ( Assaidi,Allen, Borini, Coutinho and Sturridge) This summer B Rodgers needs to ship out these 7 / seven dead wood average players: 1: GK: B Jones 2: RB: Flanagan 3:CB: Coates 4: CB: Wilson
5: DM: Spearing 6: FD: Borini 7: FD: Pacheco
Then the owners need to back B Rodgers with some heavy investment between £100-£140M between summer and January transfer window to bring in these 11 players to bring more class,quality competition for places and bring depth to club.
6/Six Defensive players: would cost club : £29-£46 to strengthen Back Line
1: GK: A MCCarthy (23) Of Reading for £2-£4M to compete with P Reina
2: CB: M Richards (25) Of Man City for £9-£15M to compete with Skrtel
3: CB: A Williams (28) Of Swansea for £7-£11M to compete with Agger
4: CB: A Pearce (24) Of Reading on Free Transfer to compete with every CB
5: LB: S Umtiti (19) Of Lyon for £5-£7M to compete with Enrique
6: DM: E Capoue(24) Of Toulouse for £6-£9M to compete with Lucas
5/Five Attacking players: Would cost club: £34-£49M
7: CM: De Guzman(25) Of Villareal for £5-£7M to compete with Allen, Gerrard and Henderson
8: AM: Isco(20) Of Malaga for £16-£20M to compete with Coutinho, shelvey and Suso
9: RW/ RWF: J Montero(23) Of Monarcas Morelia in Mexico for £4-£7M to compete with Assaidi and Sterling next season
10: LW / LWF: D Capel(25) Of Sporting Clube De Portugal for £4-£8M to compete with Downing.
11: FD: L Remy(26) Of QPR for £5-£7M to compete with Carroll, Sturridge and Suarez, so club could have four good strikers at club.
Those 11/Eleven players would cost club just under £100m (£95M). But with those 11 players at club, we would have strong competition for every position in first 11 at club like the great Liverpool sides of old used to have.
Squad with those 7 players shipped out and Carroll back at club with 11 player mentioned brought in:
GKS: MCCarthy and Reina CBS: Agger, Pearce, Richards, Skrtel and Williams
RBS: Johnson, Kelly and Wisdom LBS: Enrique and Umtiti DMS: Capoue and Lucas CMS: Allen, De Guzman, Gerrard and Henderson
AMS: Coutinho, Isco, Shelvey and Suso RWS / RWFS: Assaidi, Montero and Sterling LWS / LWFS: Capel and Downing
FDS: Carroll, Remy, Sturridge and Suarez
That squad is definately Top 4 Material and even sure they could challenge for the league if we had that squad. And that is half of what G McAllister thinks our club needs to challenge for the title again.
I’m sure your Football Manager skills would make you very suitable for real football management. We need a manager just like you.
Absolute fool. Get back to your crayons
Poor manager is to blame. Simples
Idiot, Simples.
Rodgers is completely to blame for this dreadful embarrassing season
We’ve improved a little bit in the league this season, mainly because of Suarez rather than anything Rodgers has done, but gone backwards in the cup competitions.
We’re on the verge of losing the only world class player we have, someone we won’t replace at anywhere near the same level, and our track record in the transfer market under FSG is very mixed.
The manager has issues in every areaof his role – transfers (2 out or 7look ok), playing system (totally flawed), man management (slight improvements in average players,he’s wrecked atop class defender), team selections and substitutions (some of which I can’t believe aprofessional would make), media performaces (embarrassing).
If anyone thinks this goon is going to take us anywhere near 4th they are seriously deluded, including those on here shouting down any dissent (some of whom are clearly somehow connected to the club).
LFC is amid table club with owners who only have mid table aspirations,mostly mid table players, a mid table MD and amid table manager.
This time next year we will not be any higher in the league than we are now, that is a certainty
If they wanted to, FSG could sack Rodgers and bring in Rafa this summer.
Rafa is the only manager of his level who would consider LFC, a manager who has just reached yet another European final.
If FSG think Rafa is not the right man to be Liverpool manager and Rafa goes to Real Madrid, then it will confirm that they either don’t know what they are doing, or that they don’t intend for us to compete at the highest level.
Hear hear!.
Comical management from BR. Everton were poor and we still couldn’t beat em
. If anyone doubts b4 they should be sure now he is not a good boss
The more I see of Rodgers the more im sure he is a fraud and a waste of our time
He must be got rid of quick.
Anyone can see thst in many many this season…when we need a goal , Rodgers has no idea how to affect the game with a sub or a tactical switch
He is totally below Liverpool standards …and should never have got the job
….and next season he will have his little pet Joe Allen back and we will be worse
David Brent must go
Rodgers, Rodgers, Breden Rodgers how many times did i call you? I wish you can read this Go go go gooooooo, u r a championship manager and cannot coach liverpool. Pls FSG, W Henry bring back Rafa, He alone can take us any Step closer up the table. Let him get rid of Allen, Borini and bring out the best in kelly, sterling and shelvy and bring skertel back for us. This Rodgers Clown will ruin us further. Pls Come RAFFFAAAAA.
Just like most fans I think Brendan is rubbish.he is destroying this good team.
Rodgers out !
…Liverpool fans must realise that it is not the manager’s fault…they didn’t hire themselves for the job…they were hired by liverpool…and it’s not really the players fault either cause they didn’t buy themselves into playing for Liverpool…they were bought by Liverpool…the thing is they are already there and they all deserve a fair chance…even aissadi and carroll…the reality is the problem lies with the owners…it’s always been that way…when rafa got us close to the title he needed to sell before buying…do you see Manchester city doing the same now that they lost the title…yes, they will sell but only to get rid of players they think they don’t need to buy even better ones…for Liverpool we have to sell our assets to buy players that we think may be better but runs the risk of being worse…and it’s the same now…can we seriously compete when the likes of Chelsea, Man City and even Man Utd will just go out and splash the cash…we buy younger players-cheaper and hungrier with points to prove like sturridge and coutinho who were not successes at their previous clubs for whatever reasons…but if we continue in this vein will they actually wait for it all to come together when they themselves do come good or will they leave if someone bigger comes along for them?…just think if countinho becomes an incredible success and Liverpool still are not challenging after 3 years…and man city comes along…anyone sure he would stay?…we need to invest in a core of young and great players…the cavanis, falcaos, eriksens of this world…and unless we do…not even pep guardiola can help…
Rubbish like I said before. Are you 4 ?
…nope…am 3…are you retarded?