Brendan Rodgers

[GingerrrFox]

He can’t sweep 15th in the form table for the past 12 rounds of matches under the carpet, that is very worrying and needs to be reversed ASAP. 
 

I think he needs to be given time and the ability to mould the squad but I look at the signings we made under Puel and compare them with the signings Brendan has made and I do also worry that he signs a lot more duffs than he does assets to the team. 
 

In the grand scheme of things and on the face of it, us finishing 5th is a top performance but when you highlight the Jekyll and Hyde season we’ve had it’s not quite as rosy. People are right to be reserved on him still. 

[foxfanazer]

I feel he has the capability of turning it around here of he's willing to change and he gets the right players in. On the other hand I feel he also has the potential to leave us in a real mess that could eventually see us going back down to the championship 

[Col city fan]

54 minutes ago, Ollie93 said:

This is what does my head in. No one is miserable about breaking into the top 6.

 

Everyone, is in fact furious that we let a 14 point lead slip. It wasn't down to injuries (which obviously haven't helped), but down to our own mental inability to win those games which we should've. 

 

Poor tactical decisions along with poor player performances have really cost us.

Great post.

Some people on here look at things in a VERY concrete way.

Your post is spot on

[nnfox]

47 minutes ago, foxfanazer said:

The danger of him talking us down in his interviews are that the likes of Ricardo and Wilf etc will want moves to more ambitious clubs. If 5th is our ceiling we can't keep hold of these kind of players 

This is a really good point.  Our owners, through Vichai and Top, have always been very ambitious and pushing the boundaries of what's possible, encouraging the fans to dream and really have taken us on a dream journey over the years.

 

Brendan, on the other hand, actively tries to play us down, virtually admitting that top 4 is out of our reach and we'll never be part of football's elite.

 

The two messages are poles apart and that tells me that Brendan doesn't really believe in the dreams of the owners and fans.  This is a problem.

[surrifox]

52 minutes ago, PrecociousFox93 said:

Yeah we definitely threw away a huge opportunity. Let’s hope this spurs the lads on (much like the Watford play off moment did) for next season. I’m pessimistic about that though. 
 

In terms of top 4 I agree - Chelsea, City, United, Liverpool will push on now. But we can definitely break the top 6, personally I see Tottenham stagnating soon if i’m honest.

Agree about Spurs - they are mired in massive debt and are looking in the bargain bin for the likes of Hojberg to take them forward .

I also don’t believe that either OGS or Lampard will be good enough or smart enough  managing top players , Lampard is starting to unravel a bit and OGS ........

 

Let’s hope I’m right 

[Silver surfer 1]

Spot on , Brendan thinks he knows more than us . He respects the old boys club too much ,his  big Charlie suits hasn’t worked for him .  If I were the owners I would really think twice before giving him a large transfer kitty.  Very nervous times ahead .  This guy is has done terribly , he just rode the wave at the beginning of gifted players carrying the team .  Like Suarez, gerrard , Sterling did for him in 2013 .

[PrecociousFox93]

1 minute ago, surrifox said:

Agree about Spurs - they are mired in massive debt and are looking in the bargain bin for the likes of Hojberg to take them forward .

I also don’t believe that either OGS or Lampard will be good enough or smart enough  managing top players , Lampard is starting to unravel a bit and OGS ........

 

Let’s hope I’m right 

I hope you are! 
 

Exactly, Spurs to me always seem to overperform based on what they have. There’s not many ‘ambitious’ signings they’ve made in the past 5years or so when you dig deep in to their transfers. Vertonghen and Alderweireld will be huge losses too.
 

Yes, no doubt that Lampard / OGS will inevitably be replaced at some point (they may well surprise us) but Chelsea and United’s financial clout sits them well above Arsenal and Spurs.

[Tielemans63]

It makes me laugh how wound up some of our fans get about our manager's media comments. I watched that video fully expecting BR to say something contentious and it's about as innocuous as it gets.

[Hammo]

14 minutes ago, nnfox said:

This is a really good point.  Our owners, through Vichai and Top, have always been very ambitious and pushing the boundaries of what's possible, encouraging the fans to dream and really have taken us on a dream journey over the years.

 

Brendan, on the other hand, actively tries to play us down, virtually admitting that top 4 is out of our reach and we'll never be part of football's elite.

 

The two messages are poles apart and that tells me that Brendan doesn't really believe in the dreams of the owners and fans.  This is a problem.

A forensic analysis of Rodgers’ interviews throughout the season would indicate a man who is happy to take the credit when things go right but not the blame when things go wrong.

 

There is nothing wrong with self-confidence but a touch of humility and honesty would not go amiss. Or, better still, an open acknowledgement of flaws and weaknesses in the side that need to be addressed and corrected, starting with our wretchedly low number of shots on target in almost every game this year.

[filbertway]

I think if we're backing Rodgers - then we've got to stick with that for the whole of next season, we've got to properly back him.

 

None of this, if we continue the poor form into October then he goes. If we believe in him then we believe in him. Even if we continue to play and get the same results as we have done since late December. One thing I can't stand is backing a manager in the summer then sacking them if the form is poor at the start of the season. You've let him spend money and shape the squad in his way.

 

We've seen his strengths and his weaknesses now - we know what to expect next season. When it's good it's really good and Brendan can't get enough adulation, when it's not good, it's not his fault. Him and Congerton being in charge of a very important window terrifies me based on what we've been told. It's like going out with a new girl and your mates and their exes all telling you about the massive red flags and you just go "naah she's changed - she's not like that". 

 

All I ask is that if Brendan is in charge going into next season and it's not going well that the fans and club back him. (Unless we're cut adrift in the bottom 3 and looking in serious danger of relegation).

[Sharpe's Fox]

I think Brendan is still a top manager despite us bottling the Champions League this year. What concerns me most i think is a lack of ambition in the transfer market. Too many players brought in by him are tidy footballers but ineffectual. I think that we have a squad that aren’t effective in changing games and it comes from him.

Edited 27 July 2020 by Sharpe's Fox

[Cadno'r Cymoedd]

It's quite incredible that we are still talking about our best formations, me included, after a season and a bit with Rodgers. Yes, we were disrupted by injuries and then the suspension of Caglar right at the end. But one of BR's biggest failings is he doesn't really have a fixed idea of how to play using our strengths when everyone is fit. Pèrez and Maddison out of position for example. Ranieri was decisive when we lost against Arsenal in the 15/16 with de Laet and Schlupp at the back. He saw we needed to change our set up and worked hard with the right players, Simpson and Fuchs, to get them to play their best in that. I don't see that with BR at all.

[Ricey]

4 minutes ago, Sharpe's Fox said:

I think Brendan is still a top manager despite us bottling the Champions League this year. What concerns me most i think is a lack of ambition in the transfer market. Too many players brought in by him are tidy footballers but ineffectual. I think that we have a squad that aren’t effective in changing games and it comes from him.

I agree but I was encouraged by his comments yesterday about needing better creative players around Vardy. We are far too reliant on Maddison and Tielemans to create, which makes us really easy to stop. Too many players that are terrible with their final ball or shot.

 

Just one wide player that can beat a man AND consistently be a threat in and around the box could totally change us as a team.

[Tielemans63]

24 minutes ago, nnfox said:

This is a really good point.  Our owners, through Vichai and Top, have always been very ambitious and pushing the boundaries of what's possible, encouraging the fans to dream and really have taken us on a dream journey over the years.

 

Brendan, on the other hand, actively tries to play us down, virtually admitting that top 4 is out of our reach and we'll never be part of football's elite.

 

The two messages are poles apart and that tells me that Brendan doesn't really believe in the dreams of the owners and fans.  This is a problem.

I think he was trying to take some of the pressure off an injury-ravaged squad. It's not rocket science.

 

I just think it's all people channeling their anger. If Brendan talks the club up and says we should be in the CL then he gets accused of being arrogant and above his station. People would be hammering him for putting additional pressure on the squad. Similarly, I think if you were to look at Premier League manager's interviews over a season you won't hear many of them admitting their own shortcomings publically, it doesn't make sense to do that does it? Look at the much-venerated Chris Wilder, he regularly criticises his players publically. When he does it, it's because he's brilliant and honest but when Brendan does it it's because he's arrogant and doesn't take responsibility. 

 

I don't see Brendan as any more or less arrogant than any other PL manager. 

[foxfanazer]

1 minute ago, Paddy. said:

I think he was trying to take some of the pressure off an injury-ravaged squad. It's not rocket science.

 

I just think it's all people channeling their anger. If Brendan talks the club up and says we should be in the CL then he gets accused of being arrogant and above his station. People would be hammering him for putting additional pressure on the squad. Similarly, I think if you were to look at Premier League manager's interviews over a season you won't hear many of them admitting their own shortcomings publically, it doesn't make sense to do that does it? Look at the much-venerated Chris Wilder, he regularly criticises his players publically. When he does it, it's because he's brilliant and honest but when Brendan does it it's because he's arrogant and doesn't take responsibility. 

 

I don't see Brendan as any more or less arrogant than any other PL manager. 

Maybe the players should feel under more pressure. Seems a very relaxed, just happy to be here kind of attitude at the moment 

[That_Dude]

1 hour ago, AKCJ said:

Look around you.

 

There are plenty of Leicester fans that are utterly miserable because we couldn't hold Man United off.

You're straw manning.

 

It's not about MU and never was. After the restart we had one job, get the points from bottom teams and live off that comfortable points lead, no matter the results against MU, Chelsea or Spurs. It really wasn't a hard task, even with injuries.

[Tom12345]

It is hard to take for fans losing out CL not because we lost to United or Spurs the last two games, but because we lost to so many lower table teams playing crappy boring conservative football. Yes, we dont have the same resources as Man Utd but we do have one of the best young squads outside of the “Top Four” and we lost to many of the bottom half teams because we were set up wrongly.

[Tielemans63]

6 minutes ago, foxfanazer said:

Maybe the players should feel under more pressure. Seems a very relaxed, just happy to be here kind of attitude at the moment 

I disagree. I don't buy this whole 'they're too relaxed, they're not that bothered' argument. Surely the pressure is the reason we didn't make CL? I think BR has tried to create a more relaxed environment to try to relieve that pressure. As I said in my previous post, I really think his recent comments were designed to ease the pressure on the players and not to talk the club down.

Edited 27 July 2020 by Paddy.

[Matt]

Genuinely is there a lot of difference in style of play and leadership between Puel and Rodgers?

 

I’m trying to see it from all views but I can’t see it, I really can’t. Rodgers is ever so slightly more positive and attacking in his play from time to time but there’s not a lot in it, I even enjoyed the odd game under Puel when we attacked once in a blue moon but as people did then people do now to use stats to skewe points and paper over cracks.

 

We’ve finished 5th, not a bad season and take nothing away from us we’ve done what we had to in order to finish there but let’s be honest it’s been an average league with teams the you ‘expect’ should be up there off the pace for a large chunk of it, we capitalised in the first half of the season you have to ask in any other season would we have finished 5th, it’s a hypothetical question and this isn’t ‘any other season’ but I’d say no and I don’t think we will next season but that’ll probably be blamed on our participation in the Europa League no doubt.

 

Although I’ve been frustrated with our drop in form, our ‘bottling’ of top 4, this isn’t my issue, my issue is style of play as was with Puel.

[foxfanazer]

5 minutes ago, Paddy. said:

I disagree. I don't buy this whole 'they're too relaxed, they're not that bothered' argument. Surely the pressure is the reason we didn't make CL? I think BR has tried to create a more relaxed environment to try to relieve that pressure. As I said in my previous post, I really think his recent comments were designed to ease the pressure on the players and not to talk the club down.

But a 14 point gap with 9 games to play shouldn't make them crumble should IT. We didn't need to beat the likes of Arsenal, Spurs or United etc. We had bread and butter games that would've comfortably seen us secure top 4. Whichever one of us is correct it points to a very weak mentality

[Ric Flair]

I am worried about the nose dive in form since late December, it's been a prolonged bad spell with a break in between and we cannot simply brush it under the carpet that because we finished 5th it's an achievement. 

 

Momentum is everything in football and quite simply if we don't regroup and learn from these mistakes, as well as invest in a few new players then it's going to be hard to stand by him.

 

I really hope we do improve, but the manner in which we have capitulated as well as choke in virtually every high profile game this season could make it almost impossible for him to turn this around. It's devastating to see, even with his reputation as always falling short in England. 

 

We need to dust ourselves down and have the strength of mind to recover, we have to hit the ground running next season. It's going to be a quick turnaround and there's no room for moping around. It seems the majority of the players like playing under Rodgers so he really needs to find his magic touch again, his recent deflection of shouldering any of the blame is infuriating but most managers would do the same. They believe in themselves and are stubborn, i've no problem with that if he backs it up and sorts this horrendous slump out. 

 

The cost of sacking him doesn't even bare thinking about, couple that with the missed tens of millions from the Champions League and it's a cruel blow. Finances aren't as good as they could have been and the pandemic will put an even bigger strain on things. Quite simply we have to hope he is the right man for the job in the next few years and he delivers.

 

Expectation has got to be top 7 and Europe again, thats a modest expectation really but its by no means a remote certainty right now.

 

I'm nervous for what players we bring in, I was hoping we'd have made more of a serious attempt to sign players in January and that certainly cost us. Let's see what he and Lee can do this summer, we need a new winger, defender and striker as a minimum. 

 

I also want to see us invest heavily in some real talent in the 16-18 age group for our academy and the fringes of our first team.

 

Massive few months ahead for Rodgers, time he earnt his £10m a year. No pressure Brendan hahaha.

[Steve_Guppy_Left_Foot]

What does my head in more than anything, I've said it before but yesterday it was so plain to see that for the first time this season we actually had URGENCY in the last 20 minutes, we were clearly trying, mixing it up putting Wes up front and a bit of hoof ball to try and get a result. My problem is why did we have to be a goal down in our last game with 20 minutes to go before we decided knocking it around the back whilst losing isn't maybe the best or most effective way to go about getting a result? There have been so many times this season we've been losing and knocking it around the back in injury time like we're 4-0 up and taking the mick. Think that's a big reason for missing out on top 4, the absolute total lack of urgency or instruction to mix up our play style at all seemingly under any circumstances, apart from when we're losing in our very last game of the season, THEN we'll launch a few balls up and actually try. Baffling. 

[Ric Flair]

1 minute ago, foxfanazer said:

But a 14 point gap with 9 games to play shouldn't make them crumble should IT. We didn't need to beat the likes of Arsenal, Spurs or United etc. We had bread and butter games that would've comfortably seen us secure top 4. Whichever one of us is correct it points to a very weak mentality

It wasn't a 14 point gap with 9 to play, it was 8. Although we've finished 4 points behind them so we've dropped 13 more points than them over 9 games which is disgusting.

[Jazzy_Jeff]

The fact is we’ve improved under him having hardly spent anything.

 

If we are to join the elite it will take time. The infrastructure is there and the new training facilities will only improve us further.

 

We do have an exciting young squad which with a few additions will make us challengers for the top 4/6 next season 

 

Nothing wrong with him managing expectations as the last thing a young squad needs is the feeling that they’ve already made it 

[Ric Flair]

2 minutes ago, Jazzy_Jeff said:

The fact is we’ve improved under him having hardly spent anything.

 

If we are to join the elite it will take time. The infrastructure is there and the new training facilities will only improve us further.

 

We do have an exciting young squad which with a few additions will make us challengers for the top 4/6 next season 

 

Nothing wrong with him managing expectations as the last thing a young squad needs is the feeling that they’ve already made it 

This half a season nose dive is a huge concern though, any improvements have been absent since Christmas and unless he can kick start us again it's irrelevant.