I think it's become apparent that JH needs full justification on every pound we spend. BR failed to argue his case for bringing in Dempsey. This would suggest that we need a Sporting Director or MD (Sorry Ayre!) who is line with Rodgers and can help persuade the owners.
Agreed. They're only disappointed because they have been found out. Also, Ayre seems to be very much a yes man. We need someone who is better suited to this position who can negotiate with the owners as well as other clubs/agents/players.
I have to say that these guys have only made matters worse as their statement is so full of soundbites and niavity..... its pretty clear at this point that they really don't understand football at all as the situation they have created for the sake of a coupleof million is we are very likely to see rodgers sacked in the season as we finish lower half. Its kind of amazing how they don't seem to get that ANY incident with suarez and we could well be the lowest scoring team in the league. We took 500k off the wage bill "apparently" per MONTH. thats 6mil saved and we barely spent (well below league average) so all in all thye can't trott out a long term message then stick sahin into the positives when its clear he's half fit right now and only in for one season. unfortunately it doens't add up and fails to adress anything in my mind
Well, people were screaming for them to explain themselves and now they've tried to do that. It was a foregone conclusion that whatever they said would go down like a fart in a lift to those who have already made up their minds that the owners are useless. Call them inept, inexperienced, cynical, whatever you like, but surely no-one believes they aren't genuinely disappointed at our bad start? Don't get me wrong, I'm hugely disappointed with the performance yesterday, and the start generally, but we said they're going to need time, so we have to give it to them.
John Henry, Liverpool's owners say they will not damage the club's future with "risky spending" but have pledged their commitment to the club. So if BR says he wants a particular player who does the 'risk factor check' on the player?, no doubt the higher value choices by the manager will be seen as 'risky' and refused. Would have been more honest of him to say from now on there is a limit on seasonal spending and they will screen BR's choice of player and decide(even though they admit to not knowing jack about football)if or not hes a 'risk'.
Agreed. I know we have royally ****ed up getting rid of Carroll with no replacement but we never beat Arsenal at Anfield so I'm not gonna get too down about that. BR' will need time, we are a shadow of what we were and there wasn't going to be some miraculous turn around this year. Let's just get behind what we have got and hope to improve on 8th.
Think we will have to score a few goals somehow and hope that Dempsey is a flop at Spurs for us to feel better about the whole situation.
For me a simplar, yes we got it wrong sorry the money is there but the targets didn't work out type of thing would do but they just tired too hard. I think its time for a quick no606 poll a) these owners are liars b) these owners are incompetant c) these owners are not going to spend mroe than the club make so no europe = no spend d) these owners are trying thier best
The thing with 'c' is that it would normally get us European football, but the likes of City and Chelsea who are spending money for fun means that those 2 spots are impossible to claim. And with the likes of Utd and Arsenal getting extra income from constant CL qualification means that they are more likely to remain miles ahead of us.
Of course they could potentially but come on its hard enough for a manager to get top 4 when buying great players who's abilities at the highest level are already known but you seriously expect BR. To be able to pull off miracle signings from the bargain basement bin every time?What "we" wanted may well have been owners more sensible than City and the Chavs but I know what "I" wanted was owners who realise that to get top 4 they would have to back "their" man with at least some of the cash he's saved, the extra cash from tv revenues, the extra cash from the kit deals and sponsorship deals. They categorically did not do that. If Rodgers was fixated on Dempsey then they should have ensured he got him at what let's be honest was hardly a price that should have stretched a club aiming for top 4.Its all very well saying the long term plan is a good one. Well the last "long term" plan lasted 5 bloody minutes. How long does this "long term" plan last before they screw it up and throw it in the bin. Of course a new team and players/manager take time to bed in but do you seriously think this shower will give BR past xmas if we are still waiting for the style and system to bed in. No, they'll just use him as their next scapegoat. Meanwhile our top players will get fed up and bugger off elsewhere.The whole things been a lurch from one disaster to the next and apart from "clearing out the deadwood" (some would call it saving a fortune in wages) and securing us a few new sponsorship deals off the back of our global reputation (none of which was built up by them) they have done nothing to enhance us as a team or a club.
Dear John, Thank you for your letter. I'm sure you're as open to discussion as you always avowed to be so I'm happy to respond and I trust you'll take my words in the spirit they were intended. We all love our club and love is the magic ingredient. I'm sure you were as disappointed as anyone by the incompetence which led to us having only two strikers. Indeed, before you showed up our wonderful media and some fans slaughtered Rafa for leaving us with only three strikers. Luckily Brendan Rodgers appears to have been elected Media Darling of the Season and is getting a very easy ride never accorded to Rafa or Kenny so you can relax, for now. Ironically they did the same for Roy Hodgson so don't get too cosy on it. Once they turn, and they will, you'll wish you were safe back in Kansas. I'm sure as an employer of some substance you're aware that being "disappointed" is no excuse for incompetence. We can be disappointed because we're fans. You should be ashamed. You kindly point out the youngsters you've bought. Well done. Such an achievement deserves a tick but don't brag because see those kids in the team? Sterling? Shelvey? Flano? Robinson? Kelly? Rafa and Kenny gave us them and they've all proved themselves. Your buys have yet to, so bragging is perhaps a little premature. You've a long way to go. You didn't really "successfully retain Daniel Agger," did you? You didn't receive a big offer is all. You'd have let him go. C'mon, man up and state your case. Dressing it up as something else makes it look like you're trying to pull the collective plonker of the fans, which is just a silly strategy. You may appreciate their faith and belief in the club but it seems the fans had far more faith and belief in Andy Carroll and having a Plan B, something your new managerial appointment seems to have a problem with. He's not one for Plan Bs, is he? As you folks like to say, "My way or the highway." For 90 minutes. No matter what. Ten men, 2 goals down, keep passing. I can't think of many managers with the faith - some might foolishly call it misplaced arrogance - that a system can be so infallible. I'm sure it's not that the new guy just doesn't have the chops to adapt when it's not working. If we have a few duff results then at least his principles and integrity are intact, which will stand him in good stead as he progresses his career. We appreciate this is a "work in progress." As you're very new to the world of football you can be forgiven for being ignorant of the fact that every squad is a work in progress, a project. It's the nature of the game, John. Rafa had a work in progress. Kenny had a work in progress, which was showing some very healthy signs but clearly the progress Tom Werner said he'd been happy to see, as you both sipped winners' Champagne in the Wembley dressing room, wasn't progressive enough. Cups can have that effect and detract from the important goal of Champions' league qualification and the cash it generates. Arsenal have been battered by the media over their lack of silverware but there they are every season picking up EUFA's cheque. Or should I say 'check'? Their shareholders are very happy. I'm sure you've valued Brendan's input highly. Then again, you probably valued the input from your guru, Billy Beane, when he advised you to hire the Mr. Moneyball of European football, Damian Comolli. When you lent him your platinum American Express card you can't have imagined he'd have gone out and been such a loose cannon, while you sunned yourself on a yacht somewhere. Perhaps you should've been more hands-on? perhaps you were. We shall never know unless you write us another letter to explain all that. But at the time there was rumour we could've ended up with Darren bent for £24m so investing some of the massive Torres cash (thanks, Rafa) in the most promising young striker in the league at the end of the transfer window was a bold, brave and ultimately brilliant move, though it took Kenny and Steve Clarke a while to settle him. That can happen in the league. You can't judge players by one season. I'm sure you've learned that in baseball, too. Expectations to deliver immediately are unrealistic, which is why we haven't given you a hard time about not having won the league yet. Thank you for reiterating it but It would take time for any manager to instill his philosophy into a squad, though you may remember Kenny came in with a mix of Rafa's squad and a few bad buys from Hodgson and got the form of 2nd. But Kenny's not your average Johnny-cum-lately manager, as we've known for many, many years. It would've taken him at least three years to get to where he saw a three-year contract taking us. But that's history now and we've started again. Again. With a bloke who has no record of success whatsoever so the media can't say he only won the Champions' League with the previous bloke's squad or only won the league by inheriting a successful club. Let the critics snipe but that's what I call faith and belief. I'm sure you never acted that way in the stock market, which was probably very wise but then you probably know a lot more about the stock market than football.. Maximum value is a popular term nowadays. Some might translate it as 'tight-fisted squad erosion' but that's silly anti-Glazer talk and we'll have none of that Manc nonsense here. We're not them. We can get rid of shyte owners when we need to, unlike them. (TBC)
(cont.) You have improved the commercial side but Tom Hicks managed to do that so I wouldn't stick it at the top of your football CV just yet. I understand some Sox fans weren't too happy with you improving the commercial side there with branding an everything nailed down or not but I'm sure baseball commerce a different discipline entirely and those fans just don't like any corporate invasion whatsoever. Probably anti-globalisation crusties, if you ask me. Throw them some beads and incense and they'll be fine. It would've been very difficult to have the club in an unhealthier position than when you took over, given that the patient was almost dead. And every regime makes errors. You hired Comolli. Ha, just joshing, you big galump. Not your fault. Not even an error, really. let's call it a foul ball, eh? You clearly saw giving Kenny a three-year contract as an error. I can see, even if the media won't, that either giving Kenny a three-year contract and the "faith and belief" you guys are all about was an error, or bottling it like kneejerk Chicken Lickens at the first hint of short-term media criticism was an error. We're well aware of your errors but please feel free to note them down and update us as we progress. Spending is certainly not about talent. And talent is not about spending. I know! It seems so obvious, really. But again you're making out like you've brought some glorious new strategy to developing youth. You need to watch that. Have you met Rodolfo Borrell yet? Much thought and investment had already been done with our Academy before that exec at your HQ emailed you to inform you there was a place called Liverpool. That was under kenny's watchful eye. But don';t you worry about all that, just sit back and watch Raheem Sterling go. Of course "imbued with the club's traditions" is a phrase I'm sure you've been well-prepped in. It describes Kenny perfectly. I'm not sure you can really say you have the system you need. Want, yes; need would depend on its ability to deliver, which has yet to be proven. We'll know at the end of the season, when the short term media and fans will judge, as they did last season. I've no doubt you'd like longer. Indeed it seems all we hear nowadays is how Rodgers needs time and patience. Is that because he has no record to speak of so deserves less expectation than a guy who's actually won things? Perhaps you could fill us in with your next letter. Wed all like long: Kenny, Rafa, Roy, Harry Damian Comolli, Andy Carroll...need I go on? Brendan is a lucky man to have your love, loyal and genuine as it is. I'm glad you have a clear vision because I'm sure Kenny had a clear vision of a three-year plan but that vision was clearly thrown away. But your glasses probably have some special vision properties, like x-ray but for football. I admire your determination to fight inflated transfer fees by giving away Andy Carroll. Fight the good fight, comrades. You won't overpay for players. Of course it's difficult to say what overspending is until a player either delivers long-term or doesn't. Shifting them out after one season doesn't seem like an attempt to eke out value at all. But that's me and my ignorance of the stock market thing again. You say "most of all" you want to win. I don't think that's quite correct. Another error on the play, hahaha. We won a trophy last season. You said if we'd won two Kenny would still have been sacked, which makes Tom Werner in the Wembley dressing room look like a big fat liar. As Chelsea won the Champions' League, getting 4th wouldn't have been any different to 17th - I know, you're probably very shocked at that but that's football for you - so winning stuff doesn't seem quite as important to you as cash from CL qualification. But as you're so in tune with where the club was and what it really needed I don't need to tell you how the club needed to win silverware, the squad needed to feel like winners and Arsenal have won **** all in seven years, despite CL qualification every season. Still, Arsenal now appear to be adapting their strict adherence to the Barca method and looked much more effective trampling all over us this weekend. So there's a slot as the media's whipping boys up for grabs and once the Rodgers novelty wears off I expect us to "win" that place. It'll be ace to hear them say, "Liverpool haven't won anything since...erm...er..." then tail off as they realise their error. Wen you say "the kind of footballers our supporters want to see" which supporters did you have in mind? The fans who were filled with faith and belief just by seeing Dalglish in the dugout, or the emerging TV markets who'd like more Barca, please? I enjoyed seeing rafa getting us to Istanbul. You may not have realised but the media gave him a terrible time over his buys. You can judge that for yourself as out first XI is still half full of them - Reina, Agger, Skrtel, Lucas, Johnson and now even Sterling and Shelvey, two of Rafa's final gifts to us, are developing nicely, thankfully without having been branded a waste of money for not delivering within a season. Well, Lucas certainly was branded like a heifer but we all know who thsoe muppets were. They lecture now about patience, like mighty gusts of hypocritical fart-wind. I also enjoyed watching us batter Utd, Chelsea, City and Arsenal under Kenny. And I was especially delighted for Steve Clarke, having had as much time as Brendan at West Brom, to have given us one of "the worst 90 minutes of our lives," as Brendan likes to say. Perhaps we can learn a thing or two from him. I would respectfully request that you desist from using the phrase "The Liverpool Way" in the near future. You really haven't been here long enough to know what that is. It certainly isn't written down in a boardroom rulebook. And as I'm one of those "long-term supporters" you cite - my first game was in 1968 - I think I know as much about The Liverpool Way as you know about the stock market. Oh, and finally, good luck with the Sox. I hear it's all gone to ****e. But it's not your fault the success there was short-term and long-term isn't happening. Your dedication will see you through. Just remember your secret to success: faith, belief and hiring managers with no proven track record but who once worked with a guy who had one. Oh, and lastly finally, if you're really going to let Brendan sign Michael Owen to replace the fan's favourite that was Big Andy I'd suggest you get better PR consultants than advised you over the Suarez/Evra affair. Because you won't have known **** like it. Kind regards MFG
I understand your frustrations but what else can we do? Carry on the negativity into each and every match we play until January? We, the fans have to play a part. It feels so tense at Anfield these days. We have to make use of what we got, just like Kenny did when he first took over. I still maintain that the worst decision for the club was getting rid of Rafa. H&G were terrible but we had a manager who could guide us through. Since then, we have made nothing but terrible decisions. Now is the time some stability and I believe the owners now have a young manager who can see us through the next decade.
Henry's letter translated: dear Liverpool, sorry we screwed up during the transfer window... we were just practicing a knee-jerk reaction to last season when we went silly spending money on trash.
In fairness Saint this has little to do with our bad start in my mind. I made my feelings about them quite clear a long time ago. People on here said...they will spend...they will back Rodgers as he's their man...and so I've kept my thoughts/suspicions to myself during the last month of the window and gave them that chance to prove me wrong (and I honestly did want them to prove me wrong). Unfortunately they've proved me right. They've forced BR to slash the squad/wage bill with the promise to him that they'll get him adequate replacements. Surprise surprise the devious little ****s then proceed to whip the rug from under his feet at the last minute for the sake of what is in relative terms a pittance. Oh and then guess what...its someone elses fault again
More words. I'll assume it's heart felt to move that pointless argument to the side. It was not a clarification of the questions fans have been asking. We yet again have to make assumptions. For Example: Does never putting club in debt (lets just put the blame game to the side; that's history) to buy players mean they will somehow after every year provide fans representatives a breakdown of income vs expenses. Is there a breakdown of this in the annual statement of accounts (Dave?) I assume that's why they shifted the financial year date to match the season. Will we be able to see how much "profit" doesn't make it back into the transfer market. If this is not the case will they back those sentiments along with the "we're not in it for the money " into some document that can be seen by fan reps? We wouldn't need an open letter if we had a proper CEO: someone that can be asked specific questions & give specific answers. When will this happen? Can they clarify that it was for economic reasons a veto was used against the football expert they have just employed & what standards the "non football experts" use to calculate a players worth vs price available? Or was it simply always the case that BR was told; "you can have Dempsey as long as he costs no more than x" as soon as that price was passed it was game over. If that's the case what action will be taken in future to make sure we are left room to seek alternative solutions if the top of the target list surpasses the maximum funds available. Put it another way: can they publish the exact communication channels & processes that will be put in place to make sure it's not repeated? Due to the imbalance in players out/in and the meagre size of the squad can they clarify what the football priorities are this year? Will we stop using certain players in the Euro or domestic cups for example to bolster our league effort. That way us fans won't get angry if we appear to be giving up in these competitions. Will they also clarify that the manager has their backing no matter what our league placement short of a relegation fight? Will they put in place the promised working group that includes fans so we have a greater channel of communication. Flashy open letters, tweets and blogs on fan sights are all well & good but do not provide an adequate replacement for the above? If it exists can it be enhanced? So nice letter but short (shorter than this post lol) concise answers would be much much better.
