Brendan Rodgers

[The Birdman]

I said back some time ago that Rodgers has had some issues to deal with ie Suarez leaving and Sturridge being made of biscuits

But there are other things that he hasnt helped himself with

Recruitment has been haphazard with no real plan, changing systems in addition to introducing new signings

Fair play to him he hit on something that worked for awhile and turned things round

My big worry is that he will revert to type and go back to the Swansea system for a few months before once again ripping it up and trying something else

Essentially we are starting again every December / January

If Rodgers truly does have final say on transfers like he says then you'd expect a raft of signings to suit the possession based 4-3-3.

But some do some don't, that's the hardest thing about all this, Rodgers found a system that got the best out of the players he had, at the same time as not using some of the bigger signings.

How the **** does that work?
I'm convinced our 'recruitment model' is the biggest problem at the club, not Rodgers.

By that I mean value assigned to a player in fees and wages, contract renewals etc...

[The_weatherman]

If Rodgers truly does have final say on transfers like he says then you'd expect a raft of signings to suit the possession based 4-3-3.

But some do some don't, that's the hardest thing about all this, Rodgers found a system that got the best out of the players he had, at the same time as not using some of the bigger signings.

How the **** does that work?
I'm convinced our 'recruitment model' is the biggest problem at the club, not Rodgers.

By that I mean value assigned to a player in fees and wages, contract renewals etc...

He has been saying it from day one that he has the final say, if he maintains that he should be judged on that.

[baitman]

As regards Rodgers having no plan B he did... and he also had a Plan C,D & E too. The problem was that for me they seemed more a bit of vague guess work than actual solutions. Hoping rather than solving. Sure we'll switch this,this and this & if that doesn't work we'll try this,this and this. I thought Rodgers simply didn't know what to do yesterday & that IMO is worrying against a very inexperienced manager. There has been just too many games this season in which he's picked wrong personnel & looked tactically naive.

I think Rafa would also bring clearer instructions to the players, it's my feeling that Rodgers tends to overthink things. Under Rafa the players had a clear role in the team and although he used them sometimes in various positions I think Rodgers has taken that to a whole new level.

when johnson was getting ready to come on pascoe was flipping through pages of the 'tika taka handbook' trying to make some last minute point.
if they dont know before the match then its not going to sink in in those ten seconds before he jogs on to the pitch for his nap.
players must be looking at pascoe and cringing with disbelief.
brendans right hand man...

[ronanm]

when johnson was getting ready to come on pascoe was flipping through pages of the 'tika taka handbook' trying to make some last minute point.
if they dont know before the match then its not going to sink in in those ten seconds before he jogs on to the pitch for his nap.
players must be looking at pascoe and cringing with disbelief.
brendans right hand man...

They shared a joke at one stage too which I wasn't too happy with. Still, sometimes all you can do is laugh.

[The Birdman]

when johnson was getting ready to come on pascoe was flipping through pages of the 'tika taka handbook' trying to make some last minute point.
if they dont know before the match then its not going to sink in in those ten seconds before he jogs on to the pitch for his nap.
players must be looking at pascoe and cringing with disbelief.
brendans right hand man...

He's showing him what his positioning is/responsibilities are for set pieces.
Every club does it, Pascoe may be clueless but you'll need to find another stick to beat him with.

[The Birdman]

He has been saying it from day one that he has the final say, if he maintains that he should be judged on that.

What else is he going to say?
"I have players I don't want and have no intention of playing forced on me?"

Just like after Sunday he said he thought Gerrard was outstanding, what else is a manager supposed to say?

How many of them come out and go yeah you're right you know, player X was **** and it's all his fault we got beat.

Pointless media dribble.

[baitman]

Brendan's major problem I'd say is his inability to recognise weakness in himself and the team.

he might be a bit less full of himself if he had a picture of Shankly or Paisley on his wall rather than one of Himself.

[Yozza]

Liverpool: What has gone wrong - and what's next?

http://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/0/football/32379464

By Neil Johnston
BBC Sport

Liverpool manager Brendan Rodgers was close to landing the Premier League title this time last year, a 3-2 win at Norwich leaving the Reds five points clear at the top of the table with three games remaining.

Fast forward 12 months and Sunday's FA Cup semi-final defeat by Aston Villa means Rodgers has become the first Anfield boss since the 1950s not to win a trophy in his first three seasons in charge.

So why have things gone so poorly after such a spirited challenge for the title last season? And as a result of this season's labours, will Rodgers still be on Merseyside next season?

Here, former Liverpool players, an ex-manager, fans and pundits tell BBC Sport what's gone wrong - and what should happen next.

Who's to blame for Liverpool's trophy-less season?

Five-time Liverpool title-winner Mark Lawrenson: "When you have young players then you are going to have highs and lows. No-one was moaning when they were on a 13-match unbeaten league run between December and March. The absence of Daniel Sturridge to injury has hurt them. Look at Chelsea. They haven't looked the same without Diego Costa. I'm not saying Sturridge is the same as Costa, but it's a similar situation."

Former Liverpool manager Roy Evans: "There's been a massive transformation - eight players or more came in last summer. It's been a tough season. They lost Luis Suarez and tried to replace him with lots of players but not many have come to the fore."
Gareth Roberts, editor of the Anfield Wrap website: "You have got to say it's both the players and the manager. You can't lay everything at the manager's door. When things go wrong at Liverpool, or any other big club, fans immediately point fingers at the manager."

Liverpool 1995 League Cup winner John Scales: "Liverpool are way short of where they want to be and where the team wants to be. There are lessons to be learned. Obviously signing the likes of Rickie Lambert and Mario Balotelli hasn't worked. It's a new era with Jamie Carragher gone and Steven Gerrard about to go. There are lessons to be learned. It's another transition for the club. The club needs to take stock this summer."

Is Rodgers the right man to lead Liverpool forward?

Mark Lawrenson: "Liverpool have been struggling for a striker all season. I don't see it as a 'Liverpool haven't won anything for three years so let's get rid of the manager' situation. But next season is so important for the manager and Liverpool."

Roy Evans: "I think he is trying to do all the right things. I'd stick with him. There will be cries for his head but I hope they give him time."

John Scales: "I rate Brendan highly. I've been super impressed with him and I do think he is learning all the time."

Gareth Roberts: "Rodgers has had three years - that's a long time in modern football. Brendan has done a lot of good things. Liverpool were so close to winning the title last season, playing the best football since the 1988 side. Brendan is a talented coach but is he someone who will lead and inspire Liverpool? Maybe there is a bit of a question mark."

Have Liverpool moved forward under Rodgers?

Gareth Roberts: "He has taken the club forward from when he arrived. We have reached two cup semi-finals and continually challenged for the top four. Last season a lot of things fell into place. It's a bit harsh to say we have gone backwards. It's not as black and white as that."

Mark Lawrenson: "It looks as though they are going to miss out on the top four but there are positives in the shape of Jordon Ibe, Raheem Sterling, Jordan Henderson and Philippe Coutinho."

Who is available who could do a better job?

Gareth Roberts: "Maybe the owners are ruthless. There was certainly no romance when it came to letting Kenny Dalglish go - and he won a trophy. The people with the power might ask who is better than Brendan Rodgers? They may say Jurgen Klopp. I'm not calling Rodgers out, he's done a lot of good things."

Has Rodgers handled Steven Gerrard well this season?

John Scales: "It's done. There's no point in analysing it. Steven Gerrard has been an icon, a brilliant and unbelievable player for Liverpool. I do think Gerrard has been affected greatly by it. This long goodbye has taken its toll both mentally and emotionally."

Roy Evans: "I'm not really privy to it. Stevie packed in playing for his country so he could prolong playing for Liverpool. But he was left out against Real Madrid and Manchester United. It's not all about Stevie though, and Stevie will be the first to say that."

Gareth Roberts: "I think this has been a real struggle for Rodgers. He has, to me, felt like he has had to continually prove himself. He's needed Gerrard on-side almost like an unofficial No 2."

What do Liverpool need to do this summer?

Mark Lawrenson: "I'd say to Fabio Borini and Mario Balotelli 'thanks but no thanks' and get another striker. It doesn't need a complete rebuilding job, probably three or four players."

Roy Evans: "They have to try and bring in a bit of quality, three or four, not as many as last summer. The trouble is if they don't qualify for the Champions League, will those quality players still want to come?"

What do the pundits say?

Former England midfielder Jermaine Jenas: "A lot of Liverpool fans seem unsure as to whether they want Brendan Rodgers to stay as manager. As far as I'm concerned I think he's a fantastic manager and has done a good job. It's just that the loss of Luis Suarez has been too much for them to handle."

Former England defender Martin Keown: "Liverpool looked confused against Aston Villa. You can make too many tactical changes in a match. We didn't see Philippe Coutinho run with the ball anywhere near as much as we should have. I'm not sure Brendan Rodgers got the best out of his side."

[Exiled_red]

In his defence:

A world class striker leaves - nobody able to replace him, either don't want to come to us or we can't afford him.

Our second best striker is made of glass and hardly contributed.

The squad needed strengthening for the extra CL games, many bought are young and need time to settle in. The average age of the squad is I believe the second youngest in the PL.

The demise of Gerrard has been quicker than suspected and nobody has risen to fill the gap.

Injuries to Allen, Sakho, Lucas, Sturridge, Lallana and suspensions to Can, Sktyl etc have also not helped.

All in all a season of disappointment but due to the changes expected.

I was hoping to slip into 4th but injuries and suspensions have killed that off.

I'm somewhat torn in what in my position. I believe that had we had someone capable of getting us a few more goals, a striker who could have got us 10-12 PL goals on top of what we have so far and we would have been in a similar position to Arsenal, Man Utd and Man City. We wouldn't have been guaranteed a top 4 spot but we would have at least been in the fight until the end of the season. The injury to Sturridge has been really unforutnate as had he been fit we would probably have expected him to get us ~20 PL goals and who knows where that might have put us.

The problem is that in the summer we bought 2 strikers (Balotelli and Lambert) either of whom should be capable of playing the role and getting us the 10-12 goals that could have made such a difference. Why have neither of those two or Borini been given an extended run in the side. You can make the arguement that they don't suit the style of play we want (Although I don't know what that is anymore), but to get us out of a jam and hopefully qualify for the CL they have to be better than what we have been doing. Maybe you can make the arguement that Balotelli has a bad attitude, but is he still has talent and he looked more of a goal threat than most in his role on Sunday. The manager has to be able to work with players with different mindsets, and Balotelli's problems were well known before we signed him so surely Brendan most have thought he could work with him in the summer or we shouldn't have signed him.

I honestly believe that playing one of Balotelli/Lambert/Borini up front with Sterling and Coutinho around them we could have done better than we have been doing, even if it's not what we want long term the manager should be able to get it to work in the short term.

The impact the players we brought in last summer has been minimal, only Can and Moreno have made any kind of significant positive impact, we have swelled the numbers in the squad to the point where we should be able to cope with a the odd injury or suspensions in most areas of the pitch.

My frustration comes from the belief that if we have a good season next year it will probably be because we have kept Sturridge and Lucas fit, rather than what the manager / transfer committee have done to address issues in the summer.

[vonk]

What else is he going to say?
"I have players I don't want and have no intention of playing forced on me?"

Just like after Sunday he said he thought Gerrard was outstanding, what else is a manager supposed to say?

How many of them come out and go yeah you're right you know, player X was **** and it's all his fault we got beat.

Pointless media dribble.

A most intelligent post. I sometimes wonder what fans expect managers to say to the media. Like any company, they are the front and centre voice to the media, so they will always trot out the company line.

[MrMichael]

A most intelligent post. I sometimes wonder what fans expect managers to say to the media. Like any company, they are the front and centre voice to the media, so they will always trot out the company line.

What's more, any time Rodgers does answer a question with something a bit more interesting than media-friendly guff he gets pelters on here for "not keeping it in house" and "talking too much". I really think he cannot win with some sections of our fanbase unless we literally win every single game (and even then some people would maintain being "unsure" about him), which is obviously not at all realistic.

For the record I think calls for Rodgers to be sacked are crazy. There are certainly issues within the squad as a whole, and also in his management, but I genuinely believe we can be extremely successful with him at the helm and am 100% behind him getting another season.

I also think the Klopp thing is hilarious, massive success with Dortmund in the past sure, but after he losing their best player/striker last summer they were in the relegation zone at Xmas - if that had happened to us this season (in very similar circumstances) many of our fans would have been burning Rodgers effigies outside Anfield until he was summarily dismissed.

[Tee]

We got the 3 year itch

[ChrisDR1968]

Anyone else feel yesterday's defeat was a watershed moment for Rodgers?

If FSG decide to keep him next season I can only assume they won't be releasing much money to him as they'll need a large pot of it for the new manager they bring in during the summer of 2016.

Next season could well be a go through the motions season with a lame duck manager in charge of the team

[DannyMan2006]

Whoever we have as boss they won't be making the signings. It's more important we sign the right players this summer than anything else. But with Rodgers it's difficult to actually know the formation so how do you sign players?

[DannyMan2006]

We got the 3 year itch

The biggest issue was we were starting to believe again, then we bottle three big games and its natural to start asking questions after the state of how the season started.