Poll Dodge the brodge

[redhorizon2]

I don't get fans bemoaning BR's appointment and blaming FSG. Where were they at the start of the season? We found out why we came second last season and it had something to do with a south American genius. BR has been found wanting this season and we coukd possibly appoint one of three good managers.

 

[Leo]

I don't get fans bemoaning BR's appointment and blaming FSG. Where were they at the start of the season? We found out why we came second last season and it had something to do with a south American genius. BR has been found wanting this season and we coukd possibly appoint one of three good managers.

If Monday was a post.

 

[Sheik Yerbouti]

If he stays it speaks volumes of FSG and I truly believe we're fucked as a club.

 

[King Binny]

If he stays it speaks volumes of FSG and I truly believe we're fucked as a club.

I concur.

Not judging if the decisions are right but reviews are meant for a reason.

Steve McClaren - Sacked (failure to earn promotion for 2 seasons, 2014/15: from leaders in late Feb to failing to make the play offs)
Nigel Clough - Sacked (made it to play offs but missed out on promotion)
Sam Allardyce - Not extending contract (despite promotion and subsequently finishing 10th, 13th and 12th)
Slaven Bilic - Not extending contract (failure in attempt to win league for 2 yrs, missed out on CL qualification)

Carlo Ancelotti apparently going to be sacked today for failure to claim any major trophies in 2014/15.

I'm not for the 6 months/ wait till end of year option. Time is essence, as is money (next transfer window spendings).

 

[cloggypop]

Ancelotti is getting sacked because Big Sam is available.

 

[jexykrodic]

Ancelotti is getting sacked because Big Sam is available.

You're not helping. You should join the drama queens on here.

 

[gkmacca]

It can now be revealed what the three envelopes contain:

ENVELOPE 1: 'Brendan Rodgers'.
ENVELOPE 2: 'Like I said: Brendan Rodgers'.
ENVELOPE 3: 'I refer you to the answers in 1 and 2'.


Now just GO, Brendan.

 

[red_maradona]

It's dawned on me again - we lost to palace, hull and stoke. Outplayed.

Feels strange writing that out.

 

[Sheik Yerbouti]

Brendan Rodgers warned Liverpool's poor season CANNOT happen again - and that changes are coming

By Dave Maddock

If Rodgers can’t accept the changes – and they could yet include the appointment of a director of football – he will be asked to quietly step down

If Brendan Rodgers has been given firm assurances over his future, then they come with an even firmer caveat.

The Liverpool manager may have received confirmation that the club’s US owners will not hit the panic button, and their backing for him has not changed despite the 6-1 humiliation at Stoke.

Yet, along with that message, came another crucial one that will determine the direction in which the club will head as they contemplate a season of disappointment.

The word from the Americans is clear.

This season cannot happen again, so not only will there be a review, with their manager asked some brutally direct questions about his role in the failure, but there will be no sense of Rodgers being asked to simply continue in the same manner as this year.

There will be major changes, a “beyond robust” examination of the structures and cultures currently in place at Anfield - demanding alteration to ensure there is no repeat.

At present, the mood within the ownership group – made up of chairman Tom Werner, principal shareholder John Henry and director Michael Gordon – is those changes will stop short of the manager.

Gordon will direct the review and ask Rodgers to buy into not only the long-term strategy, but also deliver firm guarantees of rejoining Europe’s elite in the Champions League.

In short, they will gauge if he can meet his targets. It is here the manager’s future will be determined.

If Rodgers can’t accept the changes – and they could yet include the appointment of a director of football – he will be asked to quietly step down.

Likewise, the same message will be offered if he feels he can’t work within the club’s very closely defined transfer and wage policies which emphasise homegrown talent.

So far, all the indications are that the Ulsterman IS prepared to buy into that philosophy.

The review will get underway in earnest by the first week of June, when Rodgers is likely to travel to Boston to meet Gordon face to face, and sit down with him and Henry - and possibly Werner - to thrash out the changes.

Until then, the Americans will keep their powder dry.

They have made NO approach for any other manager, and will not make any enquiries, even if it means losing out on the available Jurgen Klopp.

The plan remains the same – Rodgers will continue into next season unless the review makes his position untenable.

It promises to be a pivotal month for Liverpool.

http://www.mirror.co.uk/sport/football/news/brendan-rodgers-warned-liverpools-poor-5761910

As if Rodgers is going to say no. And that indicates we're going to continue to take punts on potential rather than proven talent. Not impressed at all if this pans out.

 

[mark1975]

There's nothing wrong with building a group of young talent, if you're identifying players that have the raw attributes to make it. The problem is we've identified players who have it all to do and have then grossly overpaid for them. It's not the strategy that's the problem, it's how it's being executed.

 

[peterhague]

Grim.

 

[King Binny]

 

[C/O]

This is fucking pathetic. So underwhelmed.

 

[Mors]

'Sky sources' reporting he's going nowhere and FSG will keep him on. Better hope they bail him out with a big bag of cash then, and don't let him anywhere near the transfers. Head coach.

 

[Woland]

Look on the bright side. Maybe his plane will crash.

 

[Mystic]

The problem with BR and a DoF is that Rodgers will throw his toys out of the pan as soon as things start going bad.

 

[leftpeg]

Well, if he stays he gets my backing.

 

[Sheik Yerbouti]

The problem with BR and a DoF is that Rodgers will throw his toys out of the pan as soon as things start going bad.

Hopefully he'll refuse like he did when he took the job and resign.

 

[gkmacca]

West Ham want him. He'd be so much more suited to a club like that.

 

[LeTallecWiz]

Well, if he stays he gets my backing.

I like your boat.

 

[davud graham]

This is about how much it will cost the yanks to get rid of him more than anything else. They couldn't give a fuck. If champions league was a minimum requirement then how does he keep his job?

 

[Sheik Yerbouti]

Yep. Rodgers is only part of the problem. The fact the review will be overseen by one of the clowns on the comiteh says it all.

 

[Skullflower]

I'd take hicks and Gillette over these cunts

 

[Sheik Yerbouti]

I'd take hicks and Gillette over these cunts

Now you're just being silly

 

[peterhague]

The problem with BR and a DoF is that Rodgers will throw his toys out of the pan as soon as things start going bad.

The problem with Rodgers and a DOF is Rodgers.

 

[redhorizon2]

I concur.

Not judging if the decisions are right but reviews are meant for a reason.

Steve McClaren - Sacked (failure to earn promotion for 2 seasons, 2014/15: from leaders in late Feb to failing to make the play offs)
Nigel Clough - Sacked (made it to play offs but missed out on promotion)
Sam Allardyce - Not extending contract (despite promotion and subsequently finishing 10th, 13th and 12th)
Slaven Bilic - Not extending contract (failure in attempt to win league for 2 yrs, missed out on CL qualification)

Carlo Ancelotti apparently going to be sacked today for failure to claim any major trophies in 2014/15.

I'm not for the 6 months/ wait till end of year option. Time is essence, as is money (next transfer window spendings).

You're not Binny.

 

[redhorizon2]

Thats the difference in Goals is the number equal to the number of goals S&S scored.

 

[King Binny]

[article=http://www.telegraph.co.uk/sport/football/teams/liverpool/11629016/Liverpool-insist-Stoke-debacle-will-not-cost-Brendan-Rodgers-his-job.html]Liverpool are adamant that Sunday's horrific defeat to Stoke will not impact on Brendan Rodgers' future as he prepares for talks on how to revive the club next season.

Anfield officials have indicated Rodgers' position is unchanged regardless of the severity of after a 6-1 defeat on the final day of the Premier League campaign. The Liverpool manager suggested he would leave if the club's American owners, Fenway Sports Group, have lost faith in him, but privately it is evident Rodgers does not think that is the case.

Although he still faces a critical meeting with FSG President Mike Gordon, the suggestion from within the club is the manager's position will not be on the agenda in those talks.

It now remains to be seen how those conversations go to establish how Rodgers can fix what has gone so horribly wrong since last August. He will still have plenty of explaining to do for finishing in a poor sixth and having missed all the pre-season targets.

Rodgers has already held preliminary conversations with Gordon in the last seven days, although that was prior to the debacle at the Britannia Stadium. The Northern Irishman felt emboldened enough to state he was "150 per cent" sure he would remain in charge before the weekend.
Such was the ineptitude of the display in Stoke, however, he accepted after the game that his position would be questioned.

Liverpool's principal owner John W Henry has effectively deferred all the major strategic decisions at Anfield to Gordon over recent years. The strong working relationship Rodgers enjoys with Gordon will give him the confidence he will have the opportunity to correct the errors of the last eight months.

Liverpool accept something must change at the club ahead of next season – precisely what will be established in what is being described as a "thorough and robust" review. It would seem, however, plenty has already been pre-determined. They need new players and have already started the recruitment process, with Rodgers central to those discussions.

Danny Ings and James Milner should be the first new arrivals, both seeing out their contracts at Burnley and Manchester City respectively.

Despite suggestions that a director of football will be appointed, the club is also ruling that out – as they are major changes to the much-criticised transfer committee. That means the only visible alterations of note could be to Rodgers' backroom team, which in essence would be cosmetic.

There is no doubt there remains a degree of sympathy for Rodgers for the problems he has encountered this season, but equally the speed with which performances have deteriorated since a home defeat by Manchester United in March have put him in an extremely vulnerable position as he seeks more time.

If he needs to retain the trust of the club's owners, it is a case a regaining it from the supporters, especially those who witnessed the first-half capitulation on Sunday. It was Liverpool's worst defeat since a 7-2 loss to Spurs in 1963, but it was the timing of it – the culmination of a miserable series of results and performances – that has corroded faith in the current Anfield set-up.

Rodgers has plenty of mitigating factors at his disposal. He has alluded to the loss of Luis Suarez and Daniel Sturridge throughout the campaign, and recently spoke about the "distractions" he has had to contend with.

This was a reference to the ongoing saga surrounding Raheem Sterling's contract. Rodgers has also had to deal with the imminent departure of Steven Gerrard – although that was ultimately presented as a mutual decision after Liverpool delayed attempts to keep their captain – while the introduction and assimilation of so many new signings last summer has had a detrimental impact on performances. Rodgers shares the responsibility for those deals with other members of the recruitment team.

Where opinion will be divided is whether Rodgers has managed to get the best out of those at his disposal, regardless of the loss of his strikers.

Liverpool defeated the recently deposed champions Manchester City by playing an exciting brand of football, but the same group of players saw their FA Cup run end having been outplayed against Aston Villa, a side fighting against relegation.

They also took just one point from a possible 12 against Hull City, Crystal Palace, West Bromwich Albion and Stoke City. Had they won those games they would have finished fourth. Even QPR were only beaten by a last-minute winner from Steven Gerrard. Liverpool's end of season form was more akin to the days prior to Rodgers' appointment at the end of Kenny Dalglish's second period in charge, with many referencing the worst performances under Roy Hodgson.

It remains to be seen whether Liverpool's steadfast defence of Rodgers extends beyond his meeting with Gordon. He suggested last week that this meeting was no different to any yearly appraisal. That is clearly not the case, given such conversations are far more desirable when you have just finished second – coming as close as any manager in 25 years to winning the title – than when you have come sixth with a team that has just delivered the club's worst result in 52 years.[/article]

 

[Jack D Rips]

Yeah that would be great. The club would be wiped out in 6 months, and we wouldn't have to worry about it anymore

 

[King Binny]

Ben Smith ‏@BenSmithBBC 49s49 seconds ago
For all those asking, the latest noises coming out of Anfield suggest Brendan Rodgers' position is not under threat #LFC
Take that as you wish. There was a time when Kenny Dalglish was given similar backing. But FSG have, so far, been consistent with Rodgers

[article=http://www.telegraph.co.uk/sport/football/teams/liverpool/11629050/Brendan-Rodgers-is-hamstrung-by-Liverpool-acting-like-mid-table-club.html]It is as if time itself is enjoying a joke at Liverpool’s expense. As the debris was being cleared on the club’s worst defeat in 52 years, the tenth anniversary of the club’s Champions League ‘miracle’ in Istanbul was celebrated.

Brendan Rodgers may be inclined to nick an image from that night as he assesses his own situation. At full-time on Sunday, he must have felt like he was 3-0 down at half time to a side including Pirlo, Kaka, Maldini and Shevchenko.

Just like that momentous evening in the Ataturk, Rodgers must also believe a comeback is possible.

It was another day of introspection at Anfield – they seem to average one a week in modern times – but Liverpool remain adamant the upcoming internal review into the events of this season will not focus on Rodgers’ position.

“Not on the agenda,” is the official line on it.

Something may be about to change at the club – it really has to – but according to the club, not the manager, not the recruitment staff and not with the introduction of a director of football. One wonders what exactly the review will entail. The seating arrangements and ticket prices for next year’s club end-of-season awards, perhaps?

There will be a degree of incredulity at the suggestion the status quo remains intact from those who witnessed the first-half humiliation in the Britannia Stadium. The cynical view is this is pure story management – an attempt to steer the focus away from any pre-determined desire to dismiss Rodgers.
He may be safe going into his assessment of the season, but will the sirens go off during the course of the conversation and the ground shift as he leaves the room?

That said, given Rodgers has already had a preliminary chat and his working relationship with Fenway Sports Group President Michael Gordon is strong, his “150 per cent” sureness can be understood.

If his conviction proves justified, attention will turn swiftly to Fenway Sports Group and Gordon himself. Without the hint of any inaugural address, he slipped into the FSG presidency at the start of the season. We must stop seeing John W Henry as the all-consuming influence on Anfield affairs. So long as Rodgers has the trust of Gordon, he is safe.

There is one caveat, however. Rodgers must still be aligned to the club’s ‘model’.

Herein lies the crux of the issue. It is all about ‘the model’ at Anfield, with the employees signing up to it. It is referred to so often one often wonders if Anfield has been ambushed by an offspring of the church of scientology, or if staff gather to worship before it like the black monolith in “2001: A Space Odyssey”.

There are numerous elements to ‘the model’, but the main one is about "being smart". "Smartness" defines everything, particularly in recruitment. Upon buying Liverpool five years ago it was suggested to John Henry that rather than spending £40 million on well-established, proven world-class international footballers, it might be wiser to find these players before they become world-class. That is when they are cheaper.

It is not known whether anyone shouted "Eureka!" when this idea was proposed. Certainly no one seems to have piped up that everyone else had been trying to do the same thing, with varying degrees of success, since the first transfer fee was dispatched by carrier pigeon. Nor has anyone pointed out that, in all probability, all the best young players are already owned by Chelsea and have been turfed out on loan across Europe.

More worryingly, it does not seem to have occurred to anyone that if you have £115 million to spend and opt to target younger, cheaper players instead of expensive world-class ones, you are electing to operate in the same transfer zone as mid-table rather than elite clubs. The risk of becoming a mid-table team is just as likely as that of plucking the bargain gems that escaped the attention of the established Champions League clubs. Liverpool’s performance at Stoke suggested that this team is heading only one way unless they sign five top-class players.

It rather feels like Liverpool have become a multi-million pound laboratory experiment, big on theory but light on success. Liverpool fans want ready-made winners. FSG want to create them.

That is why those casually dropping the names of Jürgen Klopp and Carlo Ancelotti into chatroom and social-media conversations are demanding FSG abandon everything they have been doing for the last five years.

The last three Liverpool managerial appointments came from Fulham (before FSG took over), the legends’ lounge and Swansea City.

If Rodgers does not mount the greatest Liverpool comeback since Turkey in 2005, the repercussions for his career will be grave. But regardless of what happens to him, it is Liverpool and their owners who must prove their way will revive the status of the club, or ensure that only the reminders of former glories are left for supporters to cling on to.[/article]