Match Day Thread PL: Liverpool v AFC Bournemouth

prob fair there.

lots of guys could have done what he's done given the resources he actually has gotten

 

Hit the nail on the head. He is just average.

The question is does LFC deserve more than an average manager? It is also about expectations. If the expectations are to be among the top 4, then what we have in Rodgers is not good enough. He has been with us 3 years and in that time he hasn't shown he can deliver.

 

Does he? He's still persisting with a 4-2-3-1, he's happy to continue picking underperforming players i.e. Lallana and Lovren and alienate better ones like Sakho, he still refuses to improve the midfield by not buying a natural DM (Milner is a start but nowhere near what we really need). Shifting Coutinho out wide on the right to accomodate Lallana centrally was the most ridiculous decision ever.

To be honest, I don't see any difference between last season and this season with the exception that he has more power over recruitment, and now exercising that power by being quick to drop younger, committee bought players.

 

He's spent over £300m on this squad and the same fundamental issues remain. Not to mention a clear lack in philosophy or real identity. We went from patient possession play, to all out attack now to a mish mash of possession with a lot of long balls up top.

Now I do think the squad is packed with a lot of talent but with the exception of Gomez and Clyne, the players, most of these players are committee signings.

Rodgers doesn't understand the continental set up - you have director of football who with the committee to bring in players. So if he wants total control, he needs to go to a smaller English club because they're the only teams that still give full autonomy - unless your name is Arsene Wenger.

 

Wasn't exactly awe inspiring performance was it? Although it was a reasonably entertaining match.

I thought their goal should have stood and Couts was interfering with play for our goal.

It was harsh on Bmouth.

Positives were we defended well during long spells and all the players were willing to chip in with tackle. We also attacked well for the final 15 mins of the first half too. Lovren looked much better.

Negatives are we need to get better at ball retention - Bmouth bossing us for the whole second half? Come on.

We need to be more ruthless in front of goal as well. Couts again missed an easy chance - that goes in and the rest of the match is fairly easy - instead we were under pressure the whole time.

Our first 11 has to be the most average I've seen since I've been a fan but hopefully it can scrape 5th.

It does have industry at least and if we can get Benteke firing and Sturridge back then things will look a lot better.

Still not sure about Rodgers.

 

I am fully sure about Rodgers and have made myself quite clear on the topic.

 

I think that bit's an exaggeration tbh. Also it's not always about the starting 11. The squad has depth.

 

Ha Bow - and I thought I was negative!

I think the squad has some fantastic players. The first XI CAN be very good once everyone is fully fit and Rodgers picks the best XI.

But we know Rodgers won't do it.

 

We live in hope that he might

To come back to your earlier point about the committee I just don't understand how you can continue to claim that all our best signings have been down to them. The simple fact is "the committee" was put in place from above. It was put in place because Rodgers wasted money in the first summer he was here, yet our ratio of good to bad signings has not improved since. You talk as if Rodgers and "the committee" are separate entities when the fact is they are supposed to be working together. This isn't a question of Rodgers picks a couple and "the committee" picks a couple. If the system isn't working well enough then why aren't you looking at those who put the system in place? If, as you suggest Rodgers is working separate to the committee why would the owners not have sacked him? If, as you say the manager IS tactically inept then why did FSG bring him in AND keep him on? If ALL your theories are true then any vitriol should surely be aimed further up the ladder.

It's easy (some would say lazy) to lay everything at Rodgers door just as it's easy/lazy to scapegoat one player for the problems we saw last year. Rodgers deserves many of the criticisms thrown his way and IMO is lucky to have another chance but he has been given that chance by the owners and they know what goes on behind the scenes more than we do. This leads to two conclusions....either the owners are thick as pig **** and keep falling for Rodgers waffle OR they accepted that, as poor as he was last year he wasn't the ONLY person at fault.

 

the fact is the people in this committee have been at the club the whole time... hunter etc came in before rodgers no?

its patently obvious ayre is the MD and gordon the main man who owns the money... ergo........ every single singing has been singed off on.

if rodgers is saying i want x and then the scouts are saying heres a young lad to look at and rodgers agrees on some level then every buy is sanctioned

This is not a rodgers went and bought lallana and the committe was disgusted or the committee made him bpick between balotelli and e'tto..... so rodgers picked one then sabotaged it.

this is all bull

Rodgers is in there on every singing.

 

Pretty much all of the respectable local journalists have practically confirmed which signings were put forward by Rodgers or the committee. Not being biased at all - it's how it is.

For what it's worth - I like Allen and Gomez (Rodgers signing) and I didn't agree with Balotelli (committee signing).

 

And you're right - the manager and committee should be working together but they're not. Rodgers has preferred targets which has he pushed for ever since he finished second. The most successful structure is giving the committee complete power over recruitment and the 'manager' focusing purely on coaching and developing what he's been given.

At the moment, we have a complete mesh of two different structures/

Do you think Rodgers would be quick to drop the likes of Lallana and Lovren if they weren't his preferred signings, as he did with Sakho, Markovic, Moreno?

Some will disagree but I have my opinion - Rodgers shows a lot of favouritism to certain players and quickly dismisses others. And there's a clear trend (in my eyes at least) as to which players those are.

 

ehhh yeah they are.

rodgers never denied he's not got everyone he wanted.

and there is no clubs outside of real and barca where managers get no say at all in who turns up.

Technical directors should be hiring first team coaches to suit the clubs philosophy and the players signed to match.. with managers agreement on each.

Picking a player requires careful thought and an eye... not everyone has them

 

I really, really don't understand this "favourites" accusation. I'm sure he pushes the players who he thinks will work well for him, and in a sense that is favouritism, but the word is used as though he blindly picks players because he likes their hair or something.
This is patent nonsense.
Rodgers wants to succeed every bit as much as anyone on here, his reasons may be different but the need is the same. We want success because it's our club- he wants it because it's his job, career and reputation on the line.
You may think he's inept, but that's a different argument- and a well-worn one on here- but to suggest he picks players for any reason other than he thinks they're the best for the job is wholly illogical.

 

That's fair enough mate.

But personally, I've seen so much evidence of Rodgers protecting certain players and giving them more opportunities than others.

It's what cost us last season and I hope it doesn't cost us this season.

 

Also, Clyne was picked by Rodgers - that was a very good signing.

 

Perhaps that's true, but we can't know the reasons for it. It only makes any sense if those reasons are footballing ones, whether we appreciate them or not. He has a huge vested interest in our success so why would he pick for any other reason than to try and achieve that? As I said, we may disagree with his choices and his method, and think he's poor, but the motivation for his choices must surely be sincere?

 

I think they are sincere and of course, he's doing what he thinks is best for the team.

Unfortunately, his thoughts and actions are hindering us more than anything else which is why he needs to go.

 

I'm thinking that all our summer signings were, apart from Bogdan who was chosen by the budget.

 

Fair enough- like I said initially, a different argument.
If we accept that he's doing what he thinks is best, and it just ain't good enough, then yes- he needs to go. Provided, of course, that we then bring in an improvement- and despite opinions on here, that is always a risk. Prior success at a different club, and probably a different league, is no more a guarantee with a manager than it is with a player.

Anyway, we go round in circles- Rodgers job is safe for the moment it seems, and probably for the rest of the season if the first half isn't an unmitigated disaster, so we just have to get on with it.