THERE are plenty of things you can justifiably criticise Brendan Rodgers for, as there are plenty of things you can criticise any manager for — even the very best and the most successful.
Every manager buys bad players. Every manager makes the wrong decision. Every manager bends the truth. Most of them are in some way annoying. Such is life. As the famous John Lydgate quote goes: “You can please some of the people all of the time, you can please all of the people some of the time, but you can’t please all of the people all of the time.”
Rodgers’ performance as manager this season – and the track record of the transfer committee he is part of – rightly attract scrutiny. But some of the minutiae of his management that ends up under the microscope for some isn’t so easily explained. Does it matter where he lives, who he lives with or who is landlord is? What he wears? What he says and how he says it? What his family do? What his teeth are like?
Some will say yes, some will say no. For the record, I think sometimes he says too much when a straight bat is required. But we all have opinions. Ultimately he’s employed as a football manager with the task of getting results. Realistic results in competitions skewed by many factors. But everything else is examined anyway. It fills newspapers. It creates discussion. And it is interpreted how you wish depending on where your bias lies.
With that in mind, perhaps the furore from some in the wake of an interview Andy Carroll has done with The Times today shouldn’t come as any real surprise. But really – an ex-player bombed out by a manager after failing to convince following a big money move, they’re never the most complimentary of people are they?
Yet – admittedly something witnessed through the twisted prism of Twitter – it seems for some an ex-player bombed out by a manager saying some pretty unremarkable things is good reason to be deeply concerned about Rodgers’ suitability to manage the club.
Carroll, he of 58 Liverpool appearances and 11 goals, saw fit to criticise Rodgers on the eve of his playing return to Anfield. The West Ham striker was farmed out initially on loan in August 2012.
He told The Times: “What he was saying to me and what was actually happening [were different things]. He was telling me one thing to my face, then I’d leave the training ground and he would ring me and tell me a completely different thing.”
Carroll claims he was told he would play “every week” up front with Luis Suarez only to be told over the phone when he got home that Fulham and West Ham were interested and the manager thought it was best he should leave.
The top-knot Geordie also cites an example when he claims he was told he would start at Hearts but ultimately didn’t even make the bench.
A fairly crucial line in Rory Smith’s piece reads: “The accusations regarding his treatment by Rodgers have not been substantiated by the Northern Irishman.” There are two sides to every story and on this we’ve heard only one.
I’m not surprised that Carroll was pissed off that — in his eyes — he wasn’t given a fair crack of the whip. Even in public, Rodgers’ opinion on the player seemed to shift. But that happens. What is said in public and what happens behind the scenes are two distinct things. And perhaps it was as simple as an opinion changing. That should happen. It’s allowed. If it didn’t Jordan Henderson would no longer be a Liverpool captain in waiting. It’s called management. I’m not surprised that Rodgers has “lied”. The question is why Carroll being pissed off and Rodgers ‘lying’ are considered such a big issue.
Managers lie. All the time; it’s the nature of the beast. And not just in football. Has every manager you have worked for been 100 per cent honest 100 per cent of the time? Was that the case for everyone they worked with?
It’s a fact of life that if you ask a big group of people to work together relationships will differ. When Rafa Benitez had supposedly “lost the dressing room” a journalist who covers Liverpool – and spoke regularly to first team players – said he asked one what the players thought of the manager at that time. The answer was along the lines of “some like him, some hate him, some aren’t bothered either way”.
I wouldn’t mind betting that reflects the situation at a big percentage of dressing rooms at all levels of the game.
Nobody needs reminding of the track records of Alex Ferguson or Jose Mourinho, yet – surprise surprise – they have been accused of lying. Roy Keane anyone?
Rafa Benitez said: “Football is one big lie. There are lots of things you can’t say in public. I know when one of my players has had a bad game, but I’ll never admit it to the press. I consider it my right and my duty to talk to the player who has underperformed in private and tell him where he went wrong and how to avoid making the same mistakes again. Otherwise, what is a coach for?”
Arsene Wenger has admitted lying to the press, even the late, great Bill Shankly, when asked how he would like to be remembered replied: “That I’ve been basically honest in a game in which it is sometimes difficult to be honest. Sometimes you’ve got to tell a little white lie to get over a little troublesome period of time.”
Returning to Carroll, Rodgers is unlikely to spill the beans on his side of the story anytime soon – and why would he? Anyone who works in PR will tell you that in doing so he would validate it – give it credence, present the image of a man who is riled by it. At the very least, in doing so he would give media outlets the world over the chance to run Carroll’s quotes all over again. No smoke without fire… And at the risk of stating the obvious, Carroll is a West Ham player. His story matters little.
Everyone is entitled to an opinion, it’s what makes it all so interesting. Mine is that I’ll reserve judgement on Carroll’s interview offering an insight into life under Rodgers at Anfield.
Was Carroll always the model pro while at Liverpool? Did he perform as he always should have on and off the pitch? In truth we don’t know because that information has remained behind closed doors and tight lips.
Was Carroll mistreated? Was Rodgers out of order? Or did situations simply change? Did the manager think he’d have to stick with him so he bigged him up accordingly? Did he then change his mind because he thought he could get him out of the door and someone else in?
It’s that kind of context Carroll’s story misses. Without it, it’s just a scorned player pissed off about a boss he didn’t like. And that never happens does it?
– “Houllier did what he had to do – I’m not the first person to be treated like a disposable commodity.” – Robbie Fowler
– “Training changed as soon as Houllier arrived … there was no enjoyment allowed. It was fucking miserable.” – Robbie Fowler
– “I didn’t want to be prized out and in the end I was. It hurt a lot when I left. You don’t sell someone who has scored 31 goals a season. Dalglish has never given me a reason for doing so and I was very bitter for some time.” – John Aldridge
Pics: David Rawcliffe-Propaganda
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When Carroll was in Singapore for pre-season training, he broke the night curfew and went to the clubs. He threaten the security with abuse if they continued stopping him.
All other players just proceeded to their rooms.
Yeah there was loads of different story’s at the time regarding Andy but never any evidence to back it up. I remember KD constantly having to defend the player from the press who wanted to create story’s of a geordie with a drink problem that didn’t exist.
Didn’t exist? How can you be so sure?
I think KD and his staff would have picked up on it when the player turned up for training. I can’t be completely sure but nor can anyone claiming the rumours are true.
In this case, yes mate because it’s not something he does behind closed doors. Quite a few of his managers have made reference to it (if we include England in that). Although a dangerous comment, I too believe in ‘no smoke’….
My mate ran a bar in ‘Cheshire Set’ land. We occasionally went over there and so did Carroll a couple of times. It’s not one of these Sterling has 25 kids urban myths. Personally, I’ve no sympathy for him. Although I think it’s obscene I rarely complain about players wages as life is simply that you’re paid what you’re worth. Sad but true. That said, the higher your wage the more responsibility comes with it. A man earning £280k a month has to give his all to his employers. If not, then he can’t expect to be treated with respect by his employers. You reap what you sow!
I agree that what Carroll says doesn’t amount to a hill of beans but it’s part of a pattern of players who’ve left on bad terms, citing or hinting at Rodgers as the reason. Reina, Agger, Carroll and perhaps even Gerrard. If you’re going to sell a player just sell him, why create bad blood?
It could well be that Carroll’s situation changed as Gareth says, but for it to happen with several players is suspicious and hints at poor man-management. If other players see their teammates being bombed out acrimoniously then it’s hard to see them trusting the manager.
That said, this will invariably be used as a handy stick with which to beat Rodgers and as such isn’t helpful considering the team is playing a lot better recently
Gerrard has had nothing but good things to say about Rodgers.
Whoever the manager was this yr had to tell Gerrard he was no longer first choice.
Can’t imagine why there would be bad blood . All he did was kick under achievers and past their best players out of multi million pound jobs. Funny that.
I think of footballers the way I think of IT contractors. If the word comes down from on high that budgets are tight and you might need to get rid of some contractors, you don’t rush and tell them to start looking, you tell them everything’s great and they’re valuable and you need them because you don’t want them to have mentally left the building when there’s still a job to do. When the time comes, you thank them for their service and show them the door. This is no different. Even if BR wanted Andy Carroll out, he needed him onside until he was ready to let him go so he ‘managed’ him to get what he wanted for the good of the club, the team, and himself. Why should it be any different because he’s a footballer? Strikes me as Andy Carroll needs to grow up a bit and understand that his role as a ‘contract footballer’ is “subject to occasional review, and can be terminated at any time at the employer’s discretion”.
Well said!
Agree with Swinefever. In any area of management in any industry, a manager will usually tell a team some of the truth but not the whole truth. And subordinates will form an opinion regardless if it is correct. And in regards to Paul’s comments above, most egos will be dented if they realise they are surplus to requirement. Rodgers and FSG cleared the playing squad of as many of the old high earning contracts that they could and replaced with lower earning younger players. Liverpool always moved players on before the decline set in.
We have differing opinions of my manager at work, some like the way he operates, some tolerate, some are looking elsewhere for opportunities. Football is no different.
Andy Carroll was a waste of space and remains a waste of space. All this carping isn’t worth a damn. He’s been playing in a team that’s built around him and he’s still just ordinary. He had more chances at LFC than he deserved and he can’t have any complaints that he was turfed out. No player likes being told he’s not part of the manager’s plans and they’ll bitch about it.
Despite my lack of sympathy for Carroll, I do think if BR wasn’t as straight as he should have been with players it may have been due to his youth and inexperience as a manger. Now that he has got his feet well and truly under the table, he’ll probably have little hesitation in telling a player (even the club’s record signing) that he’s surplus to requirements, without pussy-footing around.
Everyone is entitled to their opinion, and mines is that this is crap, how can you justify a man who lies and has mistreated more than one player, if it was just Carroll you can say he’s bitter about leaving, but numerous? Come on now, nobody wants somebody who behaves that way in charge of their club, you can not justify rodgers actions by picking on carrol’s misdemeanours, take everything into consideration before that, he gave an explanation as to why he didn’t perform at lfc, and it seems valid, but not even giving a player a chance isn’t valid in my case, take note, nuri sahin, assaidi, kuyt who was the work horse, suarez carried rodgers last season, fair enough, everyone lies, but he lied to the boy about his future and lively hood, it’s wrong to do so, I’d like to see on of your’ll manager lie to you, and see you walk away with a smile, regardless of carrol’s performance, what rodgers did was wrong, don’t try to blindly defend it because you support the team, rodgers is a crap manager, he makes statements then retracts them, against Chelsea he says the better team should have won, well the better team did win, you can’t drop every loss or draw to the opponents goalie, cause they are part of the better team, and yours just wasn’t good enough to cut it, people need to start thinking logically about this and not letting their emotions get in the way, I call a spade a spade, rodgers just lost all my support. Forever a red, but I do not like that manager one bit…
Andy Carroll’s unsubstantiated comments to some journo looking to make a stir with a click-bait story the night before a game say everything about Carroll and his lack of character and very little about Brendan Rodgers.
Carroll no doubt remembers very selectively what he chooses to remember. It’s a fact that footballers are commodities to be bought and sold for the highest possible price. And it’s fairly obvious that those who have left during Brendan’s time have all done so because there was some type of attitude problem. Carroll is a major ego with a loose lifestyle and a discipline problem. Why would any manager want to keep a player like that when there’s a good chance to sell him and bring in another player who fits better into the dressing room and the manager’s style of play?
This will likely be a story that will sputter and die out quickly. LFC is back on the rise, and solid LFC fans should not let superficial stuff like this from a disgruntled former player distract them from what really matters.
I just don’t get it:
“What he was saying to me and what was actually happening [were different things]. He was telling me one thing to my face, then I’d leave the training ground and he would ring me and tell me a completely different thing.”
So he rang him and told him what was happening, maybe he changed his mind, maybe he told him what he though he wanted to hear to motivate him in training, but by Carrolls own admission he rang him and told him afterwards….so hardly lying and doing stuff behind his back or why would he have called him?
Changing his mind about starting a single game isn’t much, but why do you choose to ignore that part about an employee meeting regarding staying at the club and being part of the squad to “fuck it, you’re off, and I’m going to freeze you out”. If Rodgers changes his mind that fast over something so large, it’s no wonder why he fucked up this season’s signings and favouritism for clearly shit performers.
This rings very true, not that I care one iota about Carroll and his lazy sicknote arse, let alone him now talking to the s*n. We all know Rodgers is a salesman, he’ll say what he thinks you want to hear, even contradicting himself, particularly so when he first got the job. Just listen to his bollox in the Wrap’s interview and look at what he was saying in pressers at the same period.
Now he’s all but got the Gerrard monkey off his back, he’ll gradually exert his own authority at the club without having to watch what he says and to whom. The club’s big issue is FSG refusal to pay top players top wages hindering signing first 11 improvers, and this very bizarre fucking up of season after season not buying players for key positions, which unfortunately tend to be at the goal scoring end, when the writing on the wall has been staring at them in larger letters than the new training privacy fence they need to get installed.
The give away lie from Andy. That he’ll play “every game”
Why make big issue carroll gone didnt fit in with rodgers plans as for big signing you can drag dalglish into it he signed him alright for kenny but not rogers let sleeping dogs lie i think sat proved he was right to let carroll n townsend go a case of sour grapes on carrolls behalf keep up good wrk brendan ynwa
The only reason I would say it is an issue is because there will be players who lose respect, or better yet, confidence in the manager and what he says. If they don’t respect you then will they fully commit to your ideas, instructions, visions of the future. Clearly Raheem Sterling hasn’t and Brendan’s had him since a pup. If he has no trust in Rodgers’ vision is it because he’s witnessed oscillating truths in his time that he doesn’t believe in anymore? Are the wavering words of the manager complicit in this? I don’t know, but if I worked for a boss who I believe told colleagues opposite things and messed them about I wouldn’t emotionally be fully committed to any projects they outlined.