Brendan Rodgers

[DannyMan2006]

League is weak again IMO. Any team that goes on a run will shoot up the table, just like we did last year. Players coming back will help us, but the way the team is set up I can't see any progression lasting unless Sturridge stays fit & sharp all season long.

His replacement in a front two is basically Fabio Borini who is nowhere near the required level. Lambert & Balotelli is too static. So basically with Sturridge out we need to play one up. But we do that and we look totally lost.

Sturridge & one of Balotelli (ideal) or Lambert would be good enough. What we needed in the summer was another Sturridge if we're sticking with two up, as well as Mario & Lambert.

[Pablo]

Sakho and Lovren cost £38m. Thirty eight million quid. I like Sakho but overall Agger and Skrtel were better. I'm concerned that Brendan is absolutely brilliant in setting a team up to pass, move, and rip teams to shreds but has no idea how to organise a team defensively.

When he was Swansea manager they were very solid at the back, comfortable in possession, but lacked goals up front. So I think that proves he can set a team up to defend well.

I think at Liverpool he was keen to honour the traditions of Liverpool and play an expansive attacking style of football, which he has done unbelievably well. As a result though the defence has suffered.

I think now his big challenge, post Suarez, is finding that happy medium. For me that back five needs better protection from the midfield. The current setup leaves a suspect defence (and keeper!) horribly exposed at times.

[npinn001]

Agree Rodgers needs to do something. Ultimately though I think he is the right man and I cant believe people are questioning it. Just look at the football we played last season.

I think that he'll get us playing soon.
The other positive, is if you look at it game for game, we are no worse off than ladt season.

City away - we lost.
Spurs home - we won.
Villa home - we lost.

Saints home - we lost last season but we won this.
West ham away - we won last season but lost this.

At least as a platform we arent worse off.

(Waits to get shot down)

[G]

I haven't seen a single person here question whether he should be our manager. Obviously there'll be bell ends a plenty on twitter and the like.

[ronanm]

Agree Rodgers needs to do something. Ultimately though I think he is the right man and I cant believe people are questioning it. Just look at the football we played last season.

I think that he'll get us playing soon.
The other positive, is if you look at it game for game, we are no worse off than ladt season.

City away - we lost.
Spurs home - we won.
Villa home - we lost. drew

Saints home - we lost last season but we won this.
West ham away - we won last season but lost this.

At least as a platform we arent worse off.

(Waits to get shot down)

[Exiled_red]

When he was Swansea manager they were very solid at the back, comfortable in possession, but lacked goals up front. So I think that proves he can set a team up to defend well.

I think at Liverpool he was keen to honour the traditions of Liverpool and play an expansive attacking style of football, which he has done unbelievably well. As a result though the defence has suffered.

I think now his big challenge, post Suarez, is finding that happy medium. For me that back five needs better protection from the midfield. The current setup leaves a suspect defence (and keeper!) horribly exposed at times.

Were they really? I thought someone posted a stat at the back end of last season that showed we (last season) were conceding goals at almost exactly the same rate - in terms of goals per games as Swansea did in his time there.

I am not sure how perspectives affect the perception of these things e.g. Liverpool conceding 50 goals in a PL season is bad, whereas Swansea conceding 50 goals in a PL season may be considered quite good. The difference is (with all due respect to Swansea) due to our position we should have players who can do better than that.

[Pablo]

I do vaguely remember seeing that stat, so maybe my perception is wrong.

Anyone got any idea why we are starting games so slow this season? We were so fast out of the blocks last season, but this season it's the opposite. WTF!

Football sometimes just makes no sense.

[Doc_Piptorious]

I do vaguely remember seeing that stat, so maybe my perception is wrong.

Anyone got any idea why we are starting games so slow this season? We were so fast out of the blocks last season, but this season it's the opposite. WTF!

Football sometimes just makes no sense.

We were not all that fast out of the blocks at the start of last season.

We had quite a few games early on where we just about got a one nil and had a fair share of luck and/or quality keeping to thank for preserving slim leads.

This season we are getting punished for the same kind of disjointed performances that we put in early on last season.

[frank the tank]

I think our season rests on if Sturridge and Balotelli can form a sucessful partnership......and quickly do so. Stick with the diamond then with Sterling behind them both and more or less the same 3 midfielders in every league game and we should be okay. At least it should get us some sort of consistency anyway..... we have some tricky games but if we beat everton this saturday with a good performance, then suddenly we can start ticking on again. Chelsea have started the season well but

Our next set of league fixtures are Everton at home, WBA at home, QPR away, Hull and home and Newcastle away. If we click, sort out the silly errors, Rodgers uses the players in the right manner (bring Gerrard off in games we are winning would be a nice start) then there is no reason we can't get max points. Games away to Basel and home to Madrid are thrown in there but we follow up both of those matches with a home game...........

We have focked up our start to the season. Stevie Wonder can see that. But there is no point in worrying about that now. For the players, it is all about taking positive energy and focusing on the things that they can influence - like getting to every 50-50 ball before an everton player on Saturday. Inch by inch we can dig our way out of this.

On first glance, the table is depressing to look at. However, we are only 2 points behind Man City. And nobody is saying that their season is over.

[BigChief]

Agree Rodgers needs to do something. Ultimately though I think he is the right man and I cant believe people are questioning it. Just look at the football we played last season.

I think that he'll get us playing soon.
The other positive, is if you look at it game for game, we are no worse off than ladt season.

City away - we lost.
Spurs home - we won.
Villa home - we lost.

Saints home - we lost last season but we won this.
West ham away - we won last season but lost this.

At least as a platform we arent worse off.

(Waits to get shot down)

Not getting shot down at all. Those are quite correct stats which I've been telling myself too.

We're currently on a deficit of -1 point from last season's equivalent games. That's not bad considering we don't have SAS. Or even the real Coutinho back yet.

[Lecter]

My lad joined a new team this season. He's the only one to have played organised football before. They got battered 11 nil in their first game. watching all the new lads running around attracted to the ball like a moth to a light bulb reminded me of LFC. Embarrassing.

At least this shows some effort to "press" the ball

[Lecter]

I think our season rests on if Sturridge and Balotelli can form a sucessful partnership......and quickly do so. Stick with the diamond then with Sterling behind them both and more or less the same 3 midfielders in every league game and we should be okay. At least it should get us some sort of consistency anyway..... we have some tricky games but if we beat everton this saturday with a good performance, then suddenly we can start ticking on again. Chelsea have started the season well but

Our next set of league fixtures are Everton at home, WBA at home, QPR away, Hull and home and Newcastle away. If we click, sort out the silly errors, Rodgers uses the players in the right manner (bring Gerrard off in games we are winning would be a nice start) then there is no reason we can't get max points. Games away to Basel and home to Madrid are thrown in there but we follow up both of those matches with a home game...........

We have focked up our start to the season. Stevie Wonder can see that. But there is no point in worrying about that now. For the players, it is all about taking positive energy and focusing on the things that they can influence - like getting to every 50-50 ball before an everton player on Saturday. Inch by inch we can dig our way out of this.

On first glance, the table is depressing to look at. However, we are only 2 points behind Man City. And nobody is saying that their season is over.

Personally I think its rests on us getting our pressing game and high tempo game back

Without that we will continue to struggle

[danperkins]

We will improve but we need to do it sooner rather than later. Agree what Lec is saying about the pressing.. it's non existent. Last season we had players buzzing around not giving opposition time to breath. This season it's slow, lethargic stand offish & teams seem pretty comfortable against us.

We're only 3 points off 4th spot and need to keep that in sight & we've played some good teams. After the Everton game we have a favourable run of games although very few gimmes in this league it seems. A loss to Everton would be pretty grim.. 4 losses in 6 games would be a big concern although everyone bar maybe Chelsea seem to be slipping up.

[dom9]

I've not really read the bickering in this thread. I'm not interested. But here are my worthless thoughts added to the mix.

I have a feeling that two games per week is a bigger challenge than anybody expected. Last year we had the luxury of having all week to prepare for the opposition. For the tactics to be honed, the players drilled and prepared, and the line up to be adjusted. The players excelled.

This year, we have the post game rest day. Perhaps a second rest day for the sprinters (see Brendan's comments post Sturridge injury), and then one day of prep on the training pitch - if there is no travelling). Just taking this into account represents a seismic shift in how the manager, the staff and the players have to work.

Add to that the loss of the best player in the league, and the second highest goalscorer last season, throw in a bunch of new players who are adjusting, and you have a transitional period.

Brendan has shown over time that he can learn fast and get it right. I think he can do so again. How long that takes is anybody's guess though, and I've said it before - it'll probably get worse before it gets better.

[dom9]

Or you can oversimplify it all and say that he's pissed a guzillian pounds on dross.