THE genie is out of the bottle now, and he won’t be corked back in before the season’s out, writes LIAM BLAKE. Selhurst Park proved a watershed for a second successive season, if for very different reasons. Even before the surrender in the rain the odd — and occasionally very odd — rumour was bubbling to the surface during the barren patch of the international break. We all read them even if we don’t believe them, but a few closet Beniteztas‘ pulses might have quickened when they read FSG may have learnt from the folly of their ways and decided to sound out Rafa on the prospect of a sequel.
Now the Klopp quotes are being dusted down and re-run as if fresh from the German’s mouth. “I’ve always wanted to manage in England one day” plus another debacle for Rodgers = a story, 2+2=53, etc. He’d be an odd target in any case given his Dortmund side are, domestically at least, in the midst of a similar downward trajectory to Rodgers’ Liverpool.
Nevertheless, the odds on him managing in England next season — or even sooner — have shortened, though it may be Wenger who’s looking over his shoulder more nervously than Rodgers. But the Liverpool manager’s comments in the wake of this latest Premier League defeat — the latest in a sequence, but the first to which no positive spin whatever could possibly stick — suggested he knew the question was now out there, and dropping the ball in Bulgaria ensured it’s not going away.
It’s almost offensively banal to question the manager of the year’s position — inasmuch as it’s possible to be offended by football fluff — or to suggest it’s seriously under review by his employers. It most certainly isn’t — FSG, for one thing, know they are themselves complicit to a degree, having established a Soviet-style committee for the overseeing of transfer activity. Rodgers holds the rubber stamp, although the far away look in his eye whenever Balotelli is under discussion suggests there might be another hand held firmly over his. Anyone old enough to remember a Paisley side languishing in 10th one December in the 80s might simply chuckle, though they’d surely acknowledge a vintage mid-winter charge to the summit is now as likely as Lovren scoring a hat trick of rabonas.
However, scoff as we may, this is the way of things. Rodgers is young — young enough to have his career cut down in its prime like so many before him — and his tacit acknowledgement of the change in the weather says he knows it. However calm the club remain, the storm will rage without. In football these days, the tail now wags the dog.
Whatever the failings of a collective approach to transfer policy, it will be one man alone who’s vindicated or hung out to dry. It can be the only narrative — unless the board are palpably incompetent — and while FSG can just about claim to be still riding the learning curve, they are not that. But when Rodgers has rebuilt the squad in his own image to the tune of over half a dozen new signings in a summer, then those players too must fall under scrutiny.
Taken individually, none of those players can be dismissed as an outright failure and even those perilously close could each be deemed unfortunate in some respect or other. Manquillo shows promise; for a player of his age and in at the Premier League deep end he shows aggression, tenacity and enterprise. He’s prone to error and sometimes bullied but it would be a remarkable 20-year-old import who could claim to be a fully-formed full back in the English top flight.
Markovic has shown on occasion, and in particular at the Bernabeu, the potential to be rapier-like in attack but, like Manquillo, needs nurture not pressure. And while Lallana’s quality is beyond doubt, you suspect he needs a more settled situation in which to thrive. Can and Moreno will prosper, there is little doubt. Rodgers must hope they do so under his management. You wonder how Lambert has been training to have merited so few starts given the struggles of those ahead of him. He can lumber, but has now at least a brace of deftly taken goals to his name. Remarkably, that in itself is an achievement this season. Balotelli is the signing who spawned a thousand pieces but deserves in the end to be judged in the company of a strike partner at least. When that may happen is a concern in itself. Which leaves us with Lovren.
It Must Be Lovren seemed an auspicious moniker for my fantasy football team back in August, and even now you couldn’t argue that Rodgers signed a bad player on the basis of his time with Southampton. But his deterioration has been painful to behold. There’s been the occasional rumble that he has communication difficulties with his full backs. Perhaps ‘come back’ might be the first thing he wants to say to them, as their forward movement can expose the centre halves. Rodgers’ preferred style of play may in itself lay him bare.
I suspect that Lovren, like Balotelli in attack, is becoming the lightning rod for criticism of the defence. Now the scapegoat, he could hardly be blamed for failing to stand up to Costa, a man who has simply brooked no opposition from anyone in his path. The abject dereliction of duty in the face of set pieces has been a collective failure, a breakdown of the system, and Lovren cannot be held to account alone. If he was to be the glue, Rodgers’ voice on the pitch, then Rodgers must look to himself. A considerable percentage of transfers will always fail, even Alex Ferguson’s list of no-marks would run to a page, and if the signings Rodgers made in the summer aren’t entirely without quality then, worryingly, questions must be asked of him.
The comparison to Spurs’ mass influx and subsequent clusterbomb of problems in the void left by a world beater became a wretched cliche for a time. The problem with cliches, however, is that they tend to contain a germ of inconvenient truth. Like children in need of routine in which to thrive, new signings require stability in order to find their feet. It’s been called ‘transition’ for a while now but that’s fast becoming a euphemism for turbulence, and players of potential but little more are apt to lose their way in the woods when they should be bedding down.
A draw away from home in midweek was once the bread and butter of progress in Europe, a solid step along the way. But after Ludogrets the sense of an opportunity missed was cloying. While progress remains in our hands, a confident Basel side will share that thought and will come to Anfield knowing exactly what they have to do. Rodgers may claim we control our own destiny, but could say so with greater authority if his side could control a game. Fear was the killer, and a row of bottles kicked aloft in frustration by a young manager spoke volumes. The changes he eventually made were a product not of his caution but that of his players. Evidently there’s a gulf between what he’s asking for and what he’s getting at the moment. The players appear to know it, but seem trapped within the pattern — a good start, a platform built and then eroded by an anxiety that’s endemic and from which no player seems immune. Last season was the last word in proactivity, this year’s model is cautious and reactionary, nursing a lead against a demonstrably weaker side by lying ever deeper and playing almost as if the pass back to keeper were still an option.
We, too, know what Rodgers wants; but it’s his capacity to get it that’s at issue. He’s very much the modern manager, a visionary and technician unshakable in his belief that a mode of play rooted in Spain can flourish here. But it’s a style of play that unravels without confidence and while the squad knuckles down Rodgers must find the old school motivator within him. I’m reminded of Peter Cook’s legendary creation Alan Latchley, a fictional manager and composite of every cliche there was, and aired only once on Clive Anderson Talks Back. Everything Alan stood for in management could be distilled into one word — BELIEF. There’s no way of measuring it, you can’t put a stat to it — in fact, you don’t need to, because we have none — but the legend that was Latchley was right. And Rodgers must find a way to transmit it, fast.
After two weeks at the drawing board, no one could be blamed for scratching their heads after everything the grim weather brought in South London and Bulgaria, but it’s the hot heads who set the temperature when the phones are ringing off the hook on the late night call-ins. Well, them and a legendary goalkeeper who seems intent on forgetting that in today’s game he’d never have got to be a legendary keeper. There are, it seems, supporters — and I use the word in its loosest possible sense here — who perversely would rather see their side exit at the group stage than go through, presumably fearing further embarrassment. For these people there is only their own personal disappointment; there is nothing else and they cannot see beyond it.
Even those inclined to take a longer view still point to a lack of defensive cohesion that has been a hallmark of Rodgers’ regime. Clean sheets have never been the norm, it cannot be the primary function of the attack to bail out their defence. From the outset, leadership has come and gone, leaving the impression of a side lacking in backbone. Rodgers might look here to Benitez, a man whose name he was understandably in a rush to forget as he took the reins. The Spaniard’s side, driven in its prime incarnation by the storied ‘best midfield in the world’, was packed from back to front with fighters – men, to put it bluntly. Carragher, Hyypia, Gerrard, Mascherano, Alonso, Kuyt, Torres in his prime — all were physical and vocal, not players you would wish to face. Rodgers lost Carragher earlier than he would have wished, and he now has the unhappy distinction of being the Liverpool manager charged with getting the most out of what football is left in Gerrard. He had Suarez, a leader by example in one respect — though who could have followed? — and a liability otherwise, but a freak force of nature. Now there is a slightness to his elite squad of greenhorns that opponents can simply smell.
While the callers panic, the great silent majority look on in bemusement but might reflect that all is not lost. The games are coming like a torrent now, and the season is threatening to run away like horses over the hill. Amid the tumult, it’s the easiest thing to forget that things change. It seems pat, but they do, and often quickly. I never thought I’d suggest that anyone look to Alan Pardew and Newcastle, but it’s proof that you can pull out of a tailspin. Any manager can resist change, fearful of the admission of error. Pardew has answered the question for now and his old friend Rodgers can, too. He can adapt, but he needs to listen.
Pics: David Rawcliffe
How much more promise do the undoubtedly promising Manquillo, Markovic and Moreno show than the promising Wisdom, Coutino, Suso and Flanagan?
Couldn’t agree more Kev. Promising promising promising.
Lovren was supposedly the man to sort out the defence and is yet to find his feet.
But losing Suarez, and Sturridge would cripple any team. I can’t help thinking that three or four goals from Sturridge if he’d not gotten injured, could conceivably be an additional 9 points.
Things wouldn’t seem anywhere near as bad at this point.
It can’t get much worse at this point, the only way is up
:)
We shouldn’t be in a position where we have to rely on Sturridge to score all our goals………especially after spending £120mil only months ago!
We’ve been making the same mistakes week in week out as if the manager didn’t pay attention to our problems. From that basis I no longer believe he can nurture all that promising talents. This team lack inspiration and Brendan simply fails to inspire. #RodgersOut #YNWA
Do you really not see the irony in saying #RodgersOut and following it up with #YNWA?
Who do you have lined up as a replacement that’ll come in tomorrow and reach the clubs objectives not only this season but for the next 5-10 years?
That’s not really a reason for not removing somebody. In anycase, what evidence is there that sticking with one manager for the long term is the way to go in the modern age?
Ferguson was a freak and Wenger appeared to lose the winning formula when he lost his original defence.
Very good piece. Fighting to get out of this mess should be the main thing from now til Christmas. I liked your short summary of them types that would rather see us out of Europe rather than see us try and defy the odds against a Bayern or Madrid. That mob don’t get football.
Yup i have actually read SO CALLED LFC FANS from wh knows what country f origin (i cant beleive they are scousers???) saying they rather we lose so that rodgers can be replaced? Where DO these plastic twits come from and why have they decided to support this legendary club?
These fans come from all over the world, mate – including from Liverpool.
Don’t be so naive to think that all Scousers are intelligent supporters, and conversely, foreign supporters are all muppets.
In fact, most of the muppets on the call-in shows baying for the manager’s head, are from England.
So, what I’m saying is – get off your ‘First World’ high horse!
And you vignesh what do you see yourself as? English? asian? scouser? how do you know all the people calling in are FROM england? They could be just people residing in england temporarily, does that make them English? I agree with you some of the best “liverpool” fans are from halfway across the world, why they choose to support us, instead of their home town sporting teams, i have no idea. I wuld admire them much more if they did actually support some down and out never heard of club in india or malaysia.And just because im not part of the ridiculous “Rodgers out, YNWA” brigade does not make me being on a high horse.
Andrew, I’m from India.
Agreed that people calling the talk shows could be people of other descent than English. But seeing that the population of England is more skewed towards English, than foreigners, without additional information, the best we can say is that more such calls are made by English than foreigners. To say otherwise, seems bigoted.
I don’t support an Indian club, because the sport in our country is not at the cutting edge of world football. Naturally I’m attracted to European football as it is close to the best in the world. To even come out with an opinion that, people will be more respected if they support their hometown clubs is ridiculous.
PS – Cheers for not being in the Rodgers out brigade. I’m with you on that. But that’s not why I said you are on a high horse. You are on the high horse because of your easy willingness to lump asinine supporter views onto foreign supporters. Stupidity is equally prevalent in the world. Ergo asinine views will also be equally found among foreign supporters and Scousers. On that note, I hope you do get off your high horse! ;)
There was a Scouse caller on 606 on Tuesday evening who claimed to be a season ticker holder who was unequivocal that he wants us to lose to Basel. Idiots all over.
I don’t think I’ve ever wanted us to lose. The only time I’ve been close was the Blackburn game in the early 90s, but even then…it’s getting like the England cricket team post Pietersen!
Spot on.
Thank you Vignesh.
Thanks for the response vignesh but I still dont get the high horse part? In my original post i was (more than anything else) ASKING where these fans come from, and merely stating my opinion i would be surprised if they are scousers (which as you said they may very well be.) Nowhere was I demeaning any foreign fans or stating my opinion as FACT. I merely said I would respect fans more for supporting their hometown clubs, whether or not they play cutting edge football or not. I was supporting LFC when we were in div TWO. There were fine cutting edge teams back then too but i didnt run off to support them. I cannot see the connect for supporting a team 5000 miles away other than to have some silly bragging rights to friends etc.
And since your from india, let me ask you, what is the progress on ridding yourselves of the Caste System? you want to talk about high horses and superiority complexes my friend, lets start there.
Have a great day.
Andrew, I know that what you state is your opinion and not fact. A misinformed opinion, but ‘your’ opinion nonetheless. However, it’s laughable you say these things and follow it up nonchalantly with a ‘no offence meant’ line. I won’t even get started on your caste system remark, because of its ignorance.
I will however try to shed some light on why people support foreign clubs, as it seems relevant to a football fan site on some level.
People engage with and support initiatives, groups, agendas, parties or any collective body because they identify with it what it stands for or produces in some way. This applies to sports teams as well as music bands and even social groups. Locational proximity is only one such way in which people can identify with a group, but is definitely not the only way. Supporting something that is in a different country to you is definitely not a question of bragging rights (I chuckled at that)
Maybe 50 years ago, being close to your supported club was an important requisite. For example, you couldn’t really engage with Real Madrid (the best team in the world at that point) living in Liverpool, could you? You would be lucky to be able to watch two games a season. Now, not so much. Now, I’m sure we will be able to find quite a few Scouse kids who support Real Madrid or Barcelona.
Let me pose you this – Why do you feel that local supporters have affinity / reason to support a sports team than foreign ones? Other than being able to attend more home games. More specifically, why do you feel that a local supporter will identify with LFC more than a foreign one?
I have to say fans like these smacks of THIRD WRLD MENTALITY. N offense intended, but its fact. This is why third world is in chaos. They are forever starting things, never finishing it, never maintaining it. Like a baby with a new toy, excited for a few hours then trhow it away, and look for something new. Maintaining a club on the path of success is HARD, same as mainting a successful country or economy. It just doesnt happen, it take vision, hard work ethic, short term goals, long term goals, keeping people happy players fans onwers and so on. This is HARD work. thats why thrid world countries just rip up the blueprint every few years and decide oh lets build a new bridge….needless to say the bridge never gets finished, and they start on something else. No staying power. Many many of these internet LFC fans are like these, NO STAMINA, just want success success without any of the hard work that goes into getting it.
You should stick to supporting Liverpool Andrew, which you seem to do very well. But your completely ignorant views on the third world and your passive aggressive intolerance towards supporters from elsewhere are on display rather unnecessarily for this forum.
Nope im just shocked at the lynch mob mentality of the anti rodgers brigade and i wonder if they are actually from liverpool. Reading some of the posts below my responding to my post im beginning to think they might be indeed. What luis suarez did WAS racist, and i bet you lot supported him so chris paul, may i suggest you get off your hypocritical morally reprehensible and utterly ridiculous high horses haha:)
You might want to explain your world view to the people of Detroit, or the good citizens of the former mining communities in this country, Andrew. Good luck with that.
My world view is that we cant run liverpool like a third world country:) Pretty simple concept as shanks would say, but I dont think i have to defend my worldview to the racist hypocritical internet lynchmob:)
Incredibly uncomfortable reading this shit. Underlying racism and xenophobia barely masked. Ignorance on an unparalleled scaled comparing to anything else written on this site.
Andrew, perhaps you’d be better off supporting the BNP and not Liverpool Football Club. Rangers and Chelsea also have a number of vile right wing groups who follow them – you might feel more at home at Ibrox or Stamford Bridge.
Interesting that the’third world’ contributors are far more articulate in what is presumably a second language than their denigrators.
I used to work with a man who was fluent in six languages but whose accent when speaking English was ridiculed by a couple of blokes who couldn’t write their own names in joined up writing. But having said that, many inarticulate people are very clever. Being under-educated does not equal stupid, or vice versa. We have a government of Old Etonians as proof of that.
When Liverpool toured last year, they drew huge crowds who had never seen them on the flesh. In Melbourne they had 95,000 at s game against an Australian club side, who, in my view, provided the definitive rendition of YNWA. These people, and those in Thailand, have every right to comment on TAW, and their opinions are as valid as 50-year Kopites.
Yeah chris and it was uncomfortable reading your post full of underlying hatred, self righteous fanatical anger and lynchmob mentality. My grandmother was in fact black, black so i dont think the BNP would want me their. You on the other hand might fit right in.
I have been a supporter since 1954, and spent my first 4 years standing in the boys pen watching second division football, catching 3 buses on my own because all my mates were Evertonians or Manu fans who couldn’t understand how anybody would want to watch Bury or Leyton Orient or Scunthorpe every fortnight. If that make me a passive, then I plead guilty. But I
think I have earned the right to call it as I see it. And even when we finished 12th in the first season in the second division, I don’t recall EVER thinking we couldn’t win, or a manager picking a team to reduce a loss.
That was ‘plassie’: effing autocorrect aided by the effing ‘casino’ scroll bisecting the frigging screen…
yeah, spent many years in the second division and used to go into the boys pen, then it was just 9p i think and would climb over the railings into the KOP and even back then we would get many as 25-30000 for a second div game, such was the support for LFC. Was at last game we played in the second div at Plymouth Argyle, met Bill shanks first time. took some time for us to get to the top but Shanks EVENTUALLY got us there. EVENTUALLY is the key word and even shanks went 10 years without a trophy. Shanks would want us to stand with rodgers. Heres another thing, why was paisely so successful in europe unlike shanks? Because paisely knew when to select “reserve” teams to grind out draws and rest players. All this malarky about brendon not playing his best team is just NONSENSE from european hypocrites and fakers like platini. We didnt betray NOTHING. Milan under ancelotti himself in the late 80s 90s did similar things. Wot rubbish. The only thing i will say against bren is his stubbornness to drop gerrard, mignolet and his transfers work not upto par, but then hes on a committee so theres blame to go around on that one as well.
He didn’t go 10 years without titles with us . Got promoted after 3 years and won div 1 two years later. Regular titles throughout the sixties, including FA cup. But none of our previous managers had teams collapse like we have seen this season. And do you seriously defend turning out a weakened team in the CL when all we have yearned for has been the CL since Rafa? Shankly and Paisley would spit on someone who said LFC could not win ANY game. But that was the clear implication against RM. It said ‘We can’t win so I’ll
save them for Chelsea. ‘ Absolutely disrespecting our history.
If Shanks were managing in the modern game he’d do exactly the same thing. I’ve got absolutely no doubt about that.
It’s amazing that having made the changes for Madrid that some people had been crying for – omitting Gerrard, Lovern, etc. and bringing in Lucas and Toure – the same crowd criticized Rodgers for “disrespecting” the club. Complete nonsense.
Prioritising Chelsea and the EPL in those circumstances made perfect sense and I’ve got no doubt that, had he been managing in the modern game, Shanks would have done *exactly* the same thing.
“This is our bread and butter.” Remember that?
That ‘weakened team’, put in one of the better performances of the season to be fair. Every single one of our managers in my lifetime (I’m past 40) has hit rough patches like this and worse. We got to see the bigger picture here. He’s had to deal with things beyond his control, which are new challenges for him. Yes, he’s still learning and he needs time and he deserves better support from us fans. Some of the nonsense I’ve been seeing lately from so called supporters has been nothing short of embarrassing.
No idea what your talking about kevin as usual just isolating things out of cntext and promoting them as fact. Every single coach in the histry of football has done that so i guess madrid milan every one of them have disrespected their own traditions.
Suarez was a leader. No doubt about that. He was so obviously delighted when given the armband against Spurs last season, he thrived on the responsibility and, for my money, should have kept the armband. But, alas, things don’t seem to work like that at Liverpool these days.
We miss him profoundly, but it took Brendan to get the best out of him. We now need new leaders, because a waining Gerrard is proving unable to inspire, probably too focused on his own game, and was never able to do it on his own, as the article makes clear. Great teams need a group of leaders: Souness, Hansen and Dalglish. Average teams revolve around one leader: United and Bryan Robson.
Errrr, what?
You can tell a lot about a manager in times of adversity and what we’re seeing from Rodgers doesn’t bode well.
He seems to not just be hanging individuals out to dry, but doing so in the most sly, underhanded way – eg directing the entire post RM (H) press conference narrative to be about Balotelli and not the shocking lack of defensive coaching for 2 of the goals; yesterday singling Mignolet out for blame and not the manager who bought him and then failed to buy decent competition for Mignolet; last week ‘defending’ Steven Gerrard by bringing his name up without prompt in the pre-Palace pressie.
The list goes on. Rodgers seems happy for individual players to take the lions share of blame for poor results/performances and then arrogantly dismisses the notion that he might need a defensive coach to come in.
All of this fosters a poor team spirit. When a group of workers see their leader shirk or/or shift responsibility the way Rodgers has, it makes it impossible for them to respect that leader and cannot be conducive to a good team morale and I think that’s been borne out by recent limp, lifeless performances.
QPR, Chelsea and Palace’s players all looked like they would run through a brick wall for their manager in their games against us recently. Our players, by contrast, look like they wouldn’t even open a door for Rodgers. And for that I think he only has himself to blame.
I think the players are still putting in the effort. It’s a lack of goals and silly mistakes at the back that has been costing us points. Any team would suffer under those circumstances, and their confidence in their ability to win out games has been hit badly. They’re not without blame though. They need to stand up and be counted now.
And only the other day Rodgers said he takes full responsibility. You must have missed that bit.
Saying you’re taking full responsibility and actually taking full responsibility are two very different things.
Rodgers has been happy to dicuss individual players’ poor form at length (Mignolet, Lovren, Gerrard, Balotelli, etc). It’s an old politician’s trick, highlighing the poor job a political rival is doing by merely mentioning their name (even in a positive manner) and thus ensuring the (poor) job they’re doing gets extra focus.
Why reduce the team to individuals at all? It’s what cowardly managers do (Hodgson also did it with Torres, Johnson and Agger) whereas good managers don’t (Ferguson never did it, Rafa neither, even when the team had stopped playing for him in ’09/’10)
By simply singling out players Rodgers is ensuring attention is focused on them and if those players are clearly not playing well then that attention is going to be negative, regardless of whatever mealymouthed praise Rodgers gives them.
Also, Rodgers seems to put every goal conceded down to ‘individual errors’, when the man on the moon knows the defense needs coaching. ‘Individual errors’ are caused by those individuals not having a clue where they’re supposed to be, who they’re supposed to be marking and – in general – what the fuck they’re supposed to be doing.
The current adversity is a big test of Rodgers character and in my opinion he’s failing it specactularly
‘Any man can rise above adversity. If you want to see a man’s real character, give him power.’ Abraham Lincoln.
I admit that I am a trenchant critic of Rodgers, and find him hard to support. But I don’t want to see him fail because it means Liverpool would fail. However, I see glaring inadequacies in his football management that I don’t think he can correct, and while I can understand the ‘give him time’ comments, I heard no such cries raised for poor bloody Roy or, unforgivably, Kenny Dalglish. Kenny Mark 3 had his faults but bagging individual players and an entire team dropping heads was not among them.
That was Kenny Mark 2, of course.
I’m not sure it’s ‘offensively banal’ to question the managers position just now. He’s not making a lot of sense with many of his decisions and also in the things he’s saying. Judging by those elements he appears to be a man who doesn’t know how to fix the current mess. Obviously time will tell but I just can’t see it.
I have to admit I am baffled by what is going on at the club. As a duffle coated kid I was one of those who sat atop the walls of Melwood with my mates watching Shanks drill his troops. The soap opera bullshit that has followed BR’s time at Anfield, from the “documentary” to the envelopes, his portrait hanging on his wall at home, his love life and finally his landlord all add to an increasingly odd and embarrassing barrage of crap from the media, and I often wonder if the poor sod is having a meltdown. Sincerely, I hope he pulls through. Should he continue to have faith in the usual suspects, then let’s hope they return the faith and at least put in a shift. Shankly had no qualms about moving players on, not matter how adored they where. Is the man using the team to prove a point? That would destroy my faith in him as the fans, old and new, whether from Liverpool or abroad, don’t deserve to be ignored or dismissed as saps. Players are very well compensated these days, but when their talents wane they have to accept the inevitable. The fans pay the wages, we all know. Conducting some Shakespearean tragedy on the pitch is ridiculous. A couple of Rafa one nils would calm us all down after the euphoria that was the brilliant Suarez. We should be at least thankful for that, after all who would want to support any other team than LFC?
Ultimately the team recovering is all I want, and how that happens is neither here nor there. Football
is not the sport I grew up loving, because the corporate boxes took it over. But I’ve learned to accept that.
In the end, I just don’t like Brendan Rogers character and never will. But then I didn’t like Fergies character, and i didn’t like Cloughies character, but I understood that they knew what they were doing. And their skills demanded respect if not affection. I don’t feel that about Rodgers, and think his management is poor and his behaviour (damning players individually, making it known he didn’t want players) is petty and lacking dignity. If he turns the current situation around I’ll be more than happy to acknowledge his success, but I’ll never see him as the type of man I want managing my club, the club of Shankly, Paisley, Fagan and Dalglish.
and yet the club of Rush dalglish fowler all legends support rodgers 100%. I guess I will stand with them.
you get a manager to organise the defence and midfield and you buy talent to create the magic and score the goals.
Rodgers has zero history of creating strong defences or midfields. If he hasn’t done it in two and a quarter seasons for us, he aint gonna suddenly do it now. Lets be honest, he doesn’t really know how.
Swansea, the foundation was created for him. Elsewhere he just got fired. We all got seduced last season but still conceded massively but didn’t care. Now it’s getting worse because there’s more pressure on the defence and midfield with the lack of presence up top and he’s being badly found out even with his signings.
As for signings if you think everyone’s role is to attack you had better pick your players well cos you’re going to concede an awful lot in the PL. Quite amazed at the cluster fuck of the summer first team signings. Bad choices for the CF and CB, how key can you get.
So where was this post last year? Go away plastic:)
Understandably, there will be some form of debate or argument with regards to local fans versus the OTTs, even on TAW. I have seen many a debate on other sites for a long time now. Unfortunately, the little voice heard from a few posters tarnishes the notion of Liverpool fans being the most knowledgeable fans in the world. To me, it must be just ignorance because I believe that the ‘ultras’ (advocates of hatred, racism and god forbids, violence – all or chosen attribute) is just not Liverpool. The impression that one could gather from these type of posts is usually local fans are better fans than the OTTs. I am not going to debate that, just to give some insights, just in case.
LFC was ‘sold’ to the world, just like the Beatles and the Tango and the cheese and what people learn to like. Since the 70s, the third world was exposed to the English League via newspapers and television. I still recall “The Road to Wembley” in black and white. And some of the fans believe LFC ignored the opportunity to tap into the third world market earlier, or we would be better off now. But the few later owners saw the opportunity and grabbed it, and LFC, undeniably has become a product in the modern world of football.
Just Google for the shots of the fans in the different stadium when LFC went for a tour in Indonesia, Malaysia and Thailand. Many fans crossed borders to go watch the team that they loved. Many local fans spent around one-tenth of the average monthly wages to go watch their heroes (although Suarez did not come). And many still spent and are spending a big chunk of their wages to buy merchandises. And the lucky ones who get to go on the pilgrimage to Anfield spent around 3 month average salary on the trip. Why do I bring up the monetary issue? It is because I have been given an impression that a lot of the local fans are pissed off towards the OTTs because of the raising cost to go watch a home game nowadays. They also slate the OTTs for taking photos during the game, not singing songs in the corporate boxes, etc, but can you really blame them for being overly excited?
Not that they are complaining, but it is not easy being a fan thousands of miles away. Mid week games are at 3.30AM, on a working day. The rights to broadcast of the BPL has been taken by corporate and fans need to pay a fee of around 1/20th of their monthly salary, every month. The Internet costs and arm and a leg too. Then there is the having to face the fans of the chelseas and the manures every day. So, it is not surprising that some fans in the third world see the local fans are having it easy. But they never ever say that they are the better fans than the locals.
If ever there were such a thing as the ‘ultras’ faction in LFC, they should learn from past mistakes. They could either go on a tour to a third world country with the team once, and get to see things first hand or maybe tag along Ian Rush when he goes there so very often. Or maybe just do something that would allow them to have a team that only opens the stadium gates to locals. Have local owners and local players too. Allow only reporters from the local media. Don’t televise the games, because some fans from a thousand miles away might just have an idea of supporting the team.
I really can’t stand it when some feel they are within their rights to accuse others of being “fake”/”plastic” fans. I understand that some behaviour is an embarrasment to everyone (Imagine how some Man United fans felt when they saw that plane with the “Moyes out” slogan.). But can any sit down and claim they aren’t concerned by the way the team is playing? Brendan Rodgers doesn’t get a pass from criticism for the fiasco we are witnessing. He’s ultimately responsible for it. Only he can fix it and at the moment i cant see him fixing the problems that apperant all over the place.
The team shouldn’t be so poor and i honestly felt we had a solid shot at top six. We are worried. It is indeed quite rash to fire Rodgers (Some would argue it was just as rash to hire him) but on the recent run of performances can you really blame some supporters for being concerned? Its Rodgets job to fix it and a decent run of results can change things but the are certain flaws to his “philosophy” that he NEEDS to address if he intends on progressing and thats the main concern for me:How sure are we that he can evolve into a solid manager? When we signed i was horrified….Last season I was entertained,but unconvinced and this season im still unconvinced. FSG has to give him time,they hired him knowing this could happen,its only fair that they give him. I just can’t get rid of this niggling feeling that last season was a one off.