Liverpool Banter Archive May 05 2015

05 May 2015 22:07:59
one of the main reasons BR has failes this season is because of our c/l and europa runs or lack of, in the c/l we should have finished 2nd behind r.madrid and went through, and then the europa league was even worse, you couldn't even say we were beaten by top teams, this is what gets me,

so we have to think how many seasons do we have to put up with this, because without suarez he can't get the team to beat the top teams or i should say BR does not know how to beat them he can't think up of any tactics and formations to get the upper hand and 3 points, again do we keep him till january like some have said, i say no never mind him talking to the press that does not win us 3 points,
if he gets kept on by the owners he should be given the full season this makes better sense than getting rid half way through it,

so for me, the fact he can't out think the top teams in our league and in europe should be enough for him to go, he has had the money to cover the loss of suarez even if we would have paid over the top to get a proper replacement it would have been worth it this season with sturridge going missing all season, suarez even made sturridge look better than he really is, BR has msmanaged the tactics, formations and the players, as some one said he bought 2 strikers in lambert and ballo but instead of using them he instead turned to sterling which has caused all this stipidness over the contract, if BR would have used his strikers that he bought then sterling would not have been used as aa striker and then he would not be thinking he is better than he actually is and would have signed a contract under 100k a week but because BR thought he knew better and made the mistake of turning to sterling instead of his strikers then he has brought all this on himself, his wrong selection just add to his other mistakes and even compound them, the clubs biggest mistake is to keep BR in charge

05 May 2015 21:30:26
Ok its nearly season over and i'm sure most agree it has been a massively disappointing campaign.

Rather that giving excuses of why everything went wrong suarez left, sturridge injured etc, is there a reason to be confident going forward into next season?

At this point i'm not optimistic, the manager is full of bullsh@t, i don't see a marquee joining us and there is no sign injuty prone sturridge will be any fitter next season than this.

So for the fans that want to give brenden another year, please give me somthing to cling onto, because i don't see a reason other than getting a new manager even with little money to spend would make me positive for nest season

05 May 2015 22:22:44
I start every season optimistic. You have to other wise what's the point?

06 May 2015 19:06:44
If you want to feel positive about Rodgers it is very simple. Players can have runs of bad form.
Managers can too but unfortunately they can't be dropped without sacking them.
This season Rodgers has been out of form.
Look at last season, look at the way the team played with swagger, with verve with confidence. Rodgers can rediscover this given a full summer of pre-season to work with the squad. Last summer was disrupted with the World Cup. The summer before wasn't. Rodgers first summer was interrupted by the Euros plus he had just signed late in the summer.

Next season we will be back.

07 May 2015 01:41:05
BR knows the deal and knows this is a results business where time is of the premium and where the only thing that buys you time is winning games and learning fast. All of which he has no idea how to do. Clearly, he has learnt nothing from getting the sack at Reading and Watford. Also, comparing BR to a player as being out of form is the poorest excuse for a reason to keep him I've ever read on these boards. Players win games, coaches lose them. That is the name of the game for a manager and if he cannot or has not learned that, he will keep getting fired. You're right that we will be back but hopefully, without Rodgers.

05 May 2015 21:02:36
So Liverpool may have interest in Theo Walcott, Heung-Min Son and Memphis Depay. Imagine having a front line of Walcott Min Memphis. That's just crying out for a cheesy Kop song.

05 May 2015 21:42:33
Honestly don't get the Walcott idea . He's just back after an injury n he's quite prone . And along with sterling very poor end product . i'd rather son Vietto and depay and hopefully a not crocked sturridge

05 May 2015 22:20:30
Walcott is crap i'd rather keep giving ibe game time than buy Walcott.

05 May 2015 23:32:47
I've on and off been a fan of walcott.

He was bought for a striker role(seemingly) way back when,and came on as a sub often,I saw glimpses of how good he was at reading the line and breaking past the last man. I was hoping to see his career progress,however adebayor and RVP relegated him to either the bench or wide right. His game for me wasn't allowed to develop. he can not cross the ball,and doesn't look up enough to be a winger.

When he's played up front in recent years I;ve still be impressed by his natural finishing if you give him time on the ball he bottles it but if he has to make a snap decision when going for goal,he finds the net much easier,and he does often back himself.

Had this been the Walcott from 2010-12 getting regular games (either wing or forward) I;d have gone for him,but now as a 26 year old relegated to about 2nd/3rd choice striker,and injured. i'd have to say avoid him.


Btw I realise the original post was tongue in cheek and like the idea of the song as it's one of my karaoke favourites,just thought i'd give my thoughts on walcott. i'm bored

06 May 2015 01:31:30
Haha - nice one barneysbob. Very good!

06 May 2015 13:43:20
Walcott Min Memphis might be the funniest line i've read on here ever, congrats for top banter, and humbug to those just replying to say Walcott isn't good enough!

05 May 2015 20:05:02
Please can we sign son from leverkuse!!!!! In my humble opinion he looks like the finisher we so badly need!!ice cool once in the box!!good link play and could work well wil studge or on his own!! Really think for 10 to 15 mil this lad could be excellent for us!!the opinions of any of the eds good or bad would as always be greatly appreciated!! Keep the good work up guys!

{Ed001's Note - I love him as a player, I wanted us to sign him years ago. I think he would be a star for us.}

05 May 2015 20:55:09
Ed001, have you noticed that every time you mention a player that you would like us to sign everyone on here goes crazy for them?😂

{Ed001's Note - the club never does though! The closest I can think of to us signing a player I wanted was Hendo and that was not really mentioned on here. I was asked about him on the United site, as Fergie wanted to sign him and was having him watched. I said then I liked him and wouldn't mind us signing him. Maybe that is what I should stick to doing in future and we might actually sign some players I want!}

05 May 2015 21:13:03
Not to mention short sales ed1 . He's a lovely player . 15 mill seems very low considering he's only there a year??

{Ed001's Note - I would be surprised if we got him for that.}

06 May 2015 09:08:09
Hey eds 01?Who would be better in your opinion depay or Son?

Thanks and keep up the good work!

{Ed001's Note - Son makes more sense to me. He is playing in a league that is closer in style to our own, he would also come with huge marketing potential and he is closer to the finished product than Depay. Depay would be yet another young prospect.}

06 May 2015 11:25:42
Leverkusen piad like 9-10m for son so i'd at least double that.

06 May 2015 12:57:26
Ed01 son for me to I , like you, wnted us to sign son 2 years ago, we were interested in papadopulis aswell. Besides yourself , jan molby picked son on lfc tv at that time.

06 May 2015 15:47:24
If we could get Depay and Son for virtually the price of Sterling, that would be fantastic business. Not opposed to keeping Sterling, mind you, but I think he'll see this is a leaping board to a 'bigger' club. Off-load the majority of our defenders (Johnson, Enrique, Coates, Manquillo), use Wisdom, Flanagan, McLaughlin, Stewart and Ilori to round out the squad. Any money left after selling Balotelli, Borini, Aspas and Luis Alberto should go into a defensive midfielder. Origi is coming in. Keep Lucas, Lambert, Lovren. At that point, FSG would only need to invest in a striker -- Lacazette or Vietto for me.

05 May 2015 19:08:57
In the interest of fairness let's hear from the fans who think BR should continue as our manager and let's have your reasons/ arguments for keeping him in charge.
I would really like to hear the other points of view as there are so many lists of reasons on why he should be sacked

05 May 2015 20:52:52
If you can guarantee a significantly better replacement who will have a significant improvement in results then he goes.
But I don't think anyone can make that guarantee. I judge Rodgers on 1 thing - results. That judgement reflects my expectations. At the beginning of the season I was asked what I thought was a good season. My instinctive reply was "if we get top 4 again that would be a superb effort". That was based on losing our best player, losing confidence, signing too many average players and them not having time to integrate with the World Cup.
We are close to 4th, it is still possible.

I don't judge Rodgers on:
-His teeth, his private life, what he says to the media, contract negotiations, his personality, which subs he brings on, when he brings them on, which tactics he uses or any other extraneous nonsense. I'm not a coach, I have no coaching experience or qualifications so I am in no position to judge someone with experience and qualifications.

Transfers are an issue. They have been an issue since the final (crazy) days of King Kenny v1.0 when he started buying the likes of David Speedie etc. Generally we overpay for players and sell them for buttons. They are very complex these days and involve many people.
We have to sort this out whoever the manager is. I believe it is possible to sort this out without sacking the manager.
I have no great love for Rodgers and will not shed a tear if he goes but I don't think his record is that bad and I doubt anyone else would make a significant difference without other changes in the way the club is run.

05 May 2015 21:04:54
See the Tomkins article on RAWK

{Ed001's Note - or paid propaganda as normal from Tomkins.}

05 May 2015 21:37:38
It is based on his transfer price index research ed, nothing to do with the club. Or do you mean the subscribers ?
And what's with the Sky Bet ad ??

{Ed001's Note - no, I mean he writes articles which are slanted in a way he is asked to do. It has everything to do with who he answers to, not the subscribers.

No idea what Sky Bet you are referring to? I don't see the same ads as you when I am on the sites, so I can't tell what is coming up. If there is something that is a pain let me know and I will get rid. Or do you mean the one that comes up full page? We had to do something as the ads are not making even close to enough to run things even without having any tax out here to worry about! In fact we are having to sell what we have and move back now so had to take on some extra ads, but I didn't realise they were Sly Bet ones.}

05 May 2015 21:51:19
If Brendan promised the title and a decent champions league run I would definitely keep him :)
Oh wait hold on.

05 May 2015 22:01:47
You don't judge him by. What he says to the media what subs he brings on and when he brings them on and what tactics he uses.that is a managers job those are the things he has to get right surely!!.

05 May 2015 22:05:57
Tomkins isn't wrong per se, but if you truly believe the manager is more or less irrelevant and it's wage bill that matters more, why pay a manager millions of pounds? Would it not make more sense to hire someone cheaper and put those millions towards wage bill? Or I guess an alternative way of looking at it- could it not be construed that the PL teams with the highest paid manager also finish in a certain logical order over time?

05 May 2015 22:20:38
Ron, "4th would be a superb effort" is one thing if you had the level of competition between the top teams that we had last year. Except there hasn't been. The PL this season has been utter tripe apart from Chelsea. The fact that we're still in with a shout of 4th despite being awful at the start of the season and again in the last few weeks is testament to that. Both Manchester clubs have attempted to hand us a top 4 spot at times this season and we've just handed it back to them.

I appreciate we lost one of the best players in world football, but if you add £100+m in players to a squad that wasn't exactly poor in the first place and can't finish 4th in a season where there has been literally one consistently strong team, then you just haven't done well enough.

05 May 2015 23:26:17
SR: I made the comment about 4th at the start of the season, at the first game as it happens.

DJA5 : all those things are irrelevant if the results are good. They only seem to become important when results are lacking. I'm not a coach, how can I judge a manager's tactics when I have only a keen interest and hundreds of matches watched to back me up.

General point: most are judging Rodgers based on where we finished 12 months ago. I believe that was a false position created by Suarez's amazing form.

05 May 2015 23:01:57
RDL, it is based on the value of each team's starting XI, as an average cost of all 38 of a club's XI in the league season using his TPI model to provide a current value for every player. Quite simply, one of the three richest will win the league.
We should have done better this season but it was Rodgers' performance last year that raised expectations - Tomkins adds against the odds.
Ir gives context, at least, to the challenge that is faced.

06 May 2015 03:27:38
You say we should judge BR on results. Well, let's do that. Based on the nearly winning the PL last season, the amount invested this season, the poor level of the PL and the promises he made to the owners, BR has failed miserably at his task of us challenging for the PL and the CL and the RESULTS bear that out. We had a poor start to the season due to his blunders and arrogance, his tactics are aweful, his player management were honoree duos and badly managed the SG and Raheem sagas because he can't keep his gob shot. We are out of the FA Cup, CL and EL without a whimper and his constant system changes and playing players out of position for reasons best known to him, only set us even further behind the eight ball. Hence, results faltered greatly and this is a results business and based on the facts and numbers on the ground, he has failed and considering his overall record since he arrived which include no trophies, he is a failure and should be shown the door. There, fixed it for you, Ron

06 May 2015 03:42:58
I get what it is, Juicer, but Tomkins has discovered a correlation, not a causation. I could line up all sorts of things that somewhat accurately predict league placement- amount paid for agent fees, managerial salary, size of overall club staff, etc, etc. What they all have in common is pretty well something that should be obvious to the point of not needing to be said- money is good, not having money is bad. The point being that that is specifically why we need the best manager available we can get and the best everything we can get- we can't afford to screw up.

05 May 2015 18:16:54
I just think fans forget where we are as a football club these days. It's not the 80's anymore, managers will not crawl over broken glass to be manager of LFC.
We are ranked 41 or 42 in Europe.
We struggle to get into the top 4 domestically.
We haven't won our domestic title for a quarter of a century.
We have the 5th biggest wage bill domestically, that is not going to change anytime soon.
We have generous owners but FFP restricts us from any more major spending.
We have no world class players.
Our fans display banners above the stadium wanting our manager sacked less than 12 months after our best title challenge in 25 years.

Why do people think Klopp, De Boer, Emery or Bielsa will be desperate to be our manager?

Does anyone remember the debacle last time we were looking? Managers were falling over themselves to rule themselves out of the running.

If Rodgers gets sacked I can see everyone expecting Klopp and it ending up as a straight fight between Rafa, Moyes and Fat Sam.

05 May 2015 18:44:02
Nobody here thinks those managers are desperate to become LFC managers, it's more in hope that the fans here want a Klopp or a De Boer, and a major reason for that is that Brendan Rodgers has failed almost all his objectives, keeps talking when there is absolutely no need to, keeps blaming everyone else while embarrassingly patting his own "football genius" back, etc.

05 May 2015 18:45:11
If Rodgers were to go I don't see the replacement being a step up anyway so he might as well stay.

He wouldn't be half as bad if he kept his trap shut once in a while.

05 May 2015 18:46:20
Ron

We may be ranked 41 or 42 in the world by UEFA but if you look at some of the teams above us, you will see that it means shit.

We are still one of the biggest clubs in the world thankfully down to what we did achieve.

Also we are in a totally different state now than we where 3 years ago, our squad isn't actually that bad just need a better coach to move us on to the next level.

How we haven't got top 4 this season underlines Rodgers inability to coach the team. It's been there for the taking and he's let it slip.

Not saying managers will be crawling over broken glass but nevertheless I think we've a better chance of a top manager than we did 3 years ago.

{Ed002's Note - You are missing the point - Liverpool are ranked there by performance. And dropping.}

05 May 2015 19:02:34
I understand that ed due to our poor performances in Europe over the last 5 years , but my point being is olympiacos and braga are ranked higher than us but surely we are a more attractive club to manage over them.

{Ed002's Note - The rankings are not based on how "attractive" clubs are, they are based on success and performance, and right now the likes of Braga and Olympiakos are doing better than Liverpool.}

05 May 2015 20:12:38
There is an interesting article by Paul Tomkins on Liverpool's position and expectations. Everyone should have a read, including the eds.
I would copy and paste the link but unfortunately it contains a sweary word. But the link is on RAWK, so please have a look.

{Ed001's Note - no thank you, I don't have any interest in paid propaganda.}

05 May 2015 20:14:05
Ron: so what are you saying? stick with Rodgers? be happy we have him? and be greatfull we can manage to grasp 5/6th above Southampton! every stat you named in your post points to change of manager as this one is not up to a*constant* top 4 challenge! I don't know where you come up with the *BEST* title challenge in 25 years? you don't know what your talking about! last year Chelsea/ United and Arsenal where all really poor by normal standards. City had new manager champs league and some really poor results yet we still blew it! 2009 was our best crack fella! we was strong all over the park we had Europe to contend with along with a very strong Utd side and Chelsea too! Moyes Everton finishe 5th that year ( bit like your Rodgers today) and Rafa had us in the top 5 in Europe! Last but not least FSG have spent big and got burned ( Carroll) but are you telling me markovic any better than Downing? give king Kenny his due he played wingers on the wing ;-)

05 May 2015 20:15:11
So if that is correct rankings all you Rafa hater's since he left we have fallen 40 places from number 1 so was boring football ( as you people claim he gave us) better or worse ranked 41st or first

05 May 2015 20:22:57
Big Sam and Moses don't be silly can I have some of what your smoking

05 May 2015 20:28:46
SM, either of FDB or Klopp would be a HUGE step up from BR because they have actually won things and have eithercoached and/or as in De Boer, played a t big clubs so your point is ludicrous at best. We need a better manager to manage this squad BR built and wasted money on and yet can`t get them to play consistency over a season of playing well because he messes up for half a season b4 getting somewhat right. We need a full time manager and not one who dithers and blithers about for half the time. On that level, any coach is better than BR because elsewhere, he would have been fired for pissing away half a season and screwing up on the field and talking utter rubbish off it, in the media

05 May 2015 20:55:28
Scouse Jon;

Name a title challenge in the last 25 years when we had it in our own hands with 3 games to go. I can't remember it happening.
Therefore it would be the best title challenge in 25 years regardless if how poor others were.

05 May 2015 21:02:48
Anyone who can't win a trophy with Ajax in the Dutch League wants shooting, and Dortmund are the 2nd or 3rd biggest club in Germany and this season has been a huge fall from grace; more so than Liverpool.

{Ed001's Note - Dortmund were on the verge of going out of business when Klopp took over. He returned them to the top. They have a huge fanbase, but financially they are not in good shape, Bayer and Wolfsburg have far more money.}

05 May 2015 21:12:05
Redohio, if BR would have been fired for talking rubbish and wasting money by any other club, then why hasn't he been fired by LFC? Either you are wrong or there is something wrong with our owners (and advisors?) for not sacking him already. Perhaps this needs addressing also.
I don't think there is a surplus of suitable managers as the the original post suggests. I would love for Caragher one day to manage the club I know that's just a dream and he might not be cut out for it. What's the general consensus on his potential as a manager Eds or is it too early to say.

05 May 2015 21:59:15
To answer another point/accusation:

I am not happy with mediocrity, but I never saw Rodgers as a quick fix. I don't think there are any short cuts to success anymore, FFP has put the lid on that. I always looked at any new manager after Kenny as a long term appointment. I believe we over achieved last season undoubtedly due to our match winner having a rich vein of form. Even with Suarez I never expected a season as close to the title this year.
Rodgers is a young manager, he will continue to make mistakes and he will continue to improve. I think we should stick with him because last season proved he can get the team playing with flair and skill and can get results.

05 May 2015 22:13:02
Dortmund won back to back Bundesligas in 95 and 96, the CL and World Club Champions in 97, another Bundesliga in 02. They nearly went bankrupt in 04. Klopp took over in 08. He has done very well, but let's be clear, he has returned them to their former status. They average over 80k crowds, and are 11th in 2015 Deloitte Money Football League (the second placed German club behind Munich). They've always been a massive club. They don't have four richer domestic rivals, put it that way.

{Ed001's Note - sorry but they have big crowds but the money mainly comes from good management by selling for big money, not through being a rich club as Bayern, Wolfsburg and Leverkusen have more spending power. Wolfsburg have VW backing them, Bayer have, well Bayer, backing them. Bayern are just a behemoth.}

05 May 2015 19:20:43
Ed

I am we'll aware of how the rankings are made up, but when some one is using our uefa ranking as a reason why no top manager would want to manage us then I don't see how it is overly relevant.

05 May 2015 20:11:41
Think Ed 002 has missed the original point. it was about 'attracting' a top manager, not about qualifying for europe. If Braga and Olympiakos had to qualify against Man Utd, Man city, Chelsea, Arsenal etc etc, you would never hear of them. No manager worth his salt would manage them over us and we are among the greatest sides in the world. As usual, statistics are misleading. A top manager could make his name and a legacy with us if he was good enough. He wouldn't be able to do that at most of the sides 'rated' higher in uefa rankings.

{Ed002's Note - They are doing better than Liverpool - you are making yourself look stupid.}

05 May 2015 23:59:34
FFP. Boring, more excuses

06 May 2015 03:48:51
Higgins, BR should b fired for his failures on and off the pitch and not just for talking rubbish as I said in my post. The reason he was not fired before then was as the Ed02 said which was that they were not going to do anything drastic and were well aware of his failure and that instead of knee jerk reactions, they would do a whole revamp and appraisal of the club from top to bottom including a review of BR's position. Same was done with KK after he messed up the Suarez saga. They let him finish the season and let him go. Hence had they done what many of us thought they should have done, BR would be out of a job and you and I would have gotten over it. They did not and have been proven right because it gave us confirmation of what we already knew that is, BR is a failure and should be shown the door.

05 May 2015 17:06:39
Is there a dof at arsenal ed?

{Ed002's Note - No.}

05 May 2015 14:31:12
Hello to all the EDS and fellow REDS

With banners over Anfield and fans shouting for BR to go, I tried to sit down and pass an objective comment on our manager.
As much as I like Rodgers and some of his ideas I regret to say that objectively speaking he must resign.

1. Lack of experience cost us the league title last season.
2. Extremely poor transfer dealings hindered team development instead of helping the squad.
3. Not knowing your best first 11 is not acceptable at this level.
4. Being tactically naive has cost us losing matches where we should have won.
5. BR is a poor judge of players to buy. He is the manager and the buck stops with him.
6. Transfer of Loic Remy is typical of BR. What happened and why?
7. Will FSG risk financing such a poor performer in the transfer market?
8. Unnecessary and silly public statements and excuses only result in alienating as well as aggravating the fans.
9. Will prospective signings come to sign for BR? Other better known managers carry more weight in the market and have a much wider network of contacts than BR.
10. Too many of our signings, much talked about at the time, ended up being loaned out. Why spend money on players to then loan them out.
11. There is a flatness to our team that I had never seen before.

Personally I am a great supporter of continuity but there must come a time when past performances must be judged.
Suarez made others around him perform to a higher level and made BR look better than he was/is (with respect to BR)Good players often do that.

I may have missed other important points as well. Opinions are invited and appreciated.
(hoping for a miracle in the last 3 games)

YNWA

05 May 2015 15:52:09
Your post makes very valid points. The theme of sports today is the "what have you done for me , lately?" and by that, what has BR really done for us, lately? We have severely under-achieved this year due to his overall inwptitude and incompetence. He buys player he wants, then doesn`t know how or where to use them, gets fed up with them and wants to buy more. WTF is that? and while that`s going on, we are wasting half a season dithering and floundering because we have a manager who has no idea what he is doing nor what or how he wants the players HE bought, to play in a team HE built. His mismangemnet of certain players is just clueless at best and thank Jesus, FSG is there because had he had his way, Lucas, Sahko and Hendo would not be here. Those are our three best players and he wanted them gone. Now, he wants to take credit for their great form. Give me a break! I like continuity and stability as well BUT not at the detriment of the club`s future, on the field and financially and continuity at being mediocre is not continuity. it is stupidity and insanity. Hence, BR should be shown the door because even after 3 yrs and over 200m spent, he still doesn`t know his best team nor his best system or tactics. Time to bring someone in who actually knows what he is doing.

05 May 2015 16:20:04
Hi IR,

i'm an unhappy fan too at the moment and can't argue with many of your points.

I would say this about two of your biggest ones though:

1. Lack of experience cost us the league title last season.

Remind me where we finished the last 5 seasons before this? let's be fair to the guy he oversaw the rise from 7th/8th mediocrity to a title challenge we had no right to take part in. If you say his tactical inexperience cost us points in some games that we may have won with another manager, it would be very harsh to not also point out that we picked up plenty of points that we may not have done without BR.

2. Extremely poor transfer dealings hindered team development instead of helping the squad.

This one annoys me. Yes, many of the signings haven't been what we needed. We needed players that would hit the ground running and that just hasn't happened. But its very easy to say that now. If you think back to last Summer, the majority of people in the game were saying that Balotelli was a smart move at £16m because even if it doesn't work he still has resale value. So how is it now a dumb move when it hasn't worked out? It was a calculated gamble that hasn't paid off.
Equally, i know i wasn't the only one on here who though Lovren was the answer to our defensive problems. He and Lallana both had absolutely amazing seasons and you can't blame BR for expecting them to carry that on, having already shown they can do it in the premier league. Hindsight is a very exact science, but BR didn't have the benefit of it last Summer any more than we did.
Hopefully those players can still come good (Though i think Balo is a no hoper!)

In all, i take a lot of your points. This season has not been good enough. But at least we have been in the conversation for Champions League til the very end. Before BR those hopes were usually pretty much over by Christmas, and no amount of manager changing did the trick. This seems to have been easily forgotten!

Don't get me wrong I'd snap your hand off if a great manager wanted to come but any new manager needs to be an obvious step up, BR's not perfect but the team is in a better place than before he took over and i'd hate to change for the sake of it.

05 May 2015 16:48:18
IranRed kindly decide which side you are. If by fluke we reach 4th this year, you will again slate fans who criticize BR. I have read your posts many times on this site.

05 May 2015 20:44:29
Balotelli a calculated gamble ! did you see his stats from his last jaunt in the premier league poor very poor so what made Rogers think he could make Mario play better than the far superior managers who had Mario before him (apart from his own ego ) this was never calculated gamble this was no goer a waste of 16 million that could of been kept towards a world class striker along with the Ilori money Allen money Borini money lambert money Loveren money ? And as for were we finished as Iranred said we had a world class player who made other players give an extra 10% but Rogers tactics cost us big time as for were we finished the year before he came we were in a mess after roy and Kenny tried to steady the ship so Rogers is not a master tactician

05 May 2015 20:47:34
Joe this summer going to be the best chance for change of manager, could be our only chance? we have to at least go out and try. Your point on lovren ballo lallana is valid but that does not disguise the fact his transfers have been poor to say the least!

05 May 2015 20:48:01
4th will change NOTHING for me personally because as you said, BR and us, would have fluked it due to Utd as well as us, have been average this year. Imagine: Utd could still make CL footie after losing 3 in a row at the business end of the season. 3 yrs ago, that would NEVER happen because they would finish 6th for sure. It is because the teams behind them keep screwing up and have done all season, overall. BR is still clueless, incompetent and a failure regardless because 4th was NOT what he promised the owners neither was it what they gave him over 100m for.

05 May 2015 12:36:38
Good afternoon Eds

I'm repeating subjects I no but is there any developments please on Montoya and Kovacic at this stage as reports seem to be growing?

{Ed002's Note - Nothing happened overnight.}

05 May 2015 12:05:18
I've been reading the posts and I agree we should have bought better quality player's I also think we needed quantity because last season our bench was not good enough, but overall I think we have not done that bad as we lost one of the best striker's in the world we never replaced him and our other main striker has been injured all season so to be in with a shot of getting 4th after all this and the way we have played in most games I think we haven't done that bad, yes it could have been a lot better if we had bought better players

05 May 2015 12:23:57
The reason why things seem worse is because we should have pissed top 4 this season and got CL football.

Instead we are going to be in the Europa league and Rodgers has spent all the money.

05 May 2015 12:39:14
Well yes, if we had bought better than of course we would have been better this season.

I think the main issues are what ed002 touched on. Markovich and Moreno, totalling near £40m, was extremely risky business considering other clubs (Chelsea) could have purchased the two for around half of what we payed but turned it down. It was a case of buying for the sake of buying which we may come to regret this summer when the funds will be considerably less.

What really grinds with me is why BR agreed to the transfers of Lambert and Balotelli, at least as back up strikers, if he didn't have any confidence in their ability to play that role and instead hands it to Sterling who was never a goal scorer.

Oh well. I guess we have to start from scratch just like we did in 2003 after the horrendous transfer window of Diouf, Diao, Cheyrou in the summer of 2002.

05 May 2015 14:24:52
I have no issue with most of the players bought this year. I think most will be very good( far better than last years gambles) The issue is we didn't strengthen in the right places and over paid for 'potential' talent. If you're going to pay such a high price for potential you may as well spend that extra 25% to get proven players that make a difference in a season when we knew our best player was going.

05 May 2015 14:48:43
I think what's so annoying is how obviously badly and/or inconsistent our team setup has been all season.

If we'd played either a
1) midfield diamond with Lucas/Hendo/Coutinho and Sterling behind Balo/Borini or
2) 4-3-3 with Lucas/Hendo/Coutinho and Sterling/Lambert/Llalana up front

With Can/Gerard/Ibe/Markovic as subs. I reckon we would have easily cracked top 4 and been a lot more consistent.

05 May 2015 16:02:32
Team set-up, players bought and how much was paid are all Dear BR questions, I`m afraid. The fact that he bought Balo, Fabio and Lambo YET had to convert Raheem to a striker is enuff evidence that this guy is incompetent and will run our club financially, into the ground with that type of incompetence. He has no idea of what he wants, how he wants his team to play consistently nor how to deal in the TW. Once he`s given money, he has this "kid in the candy store" attitude of buy, buy, buy and when he no longer likes the players bought, he chucks them on the bench or wants to sell them and wants more money to go shopping again. These are players with families and not cothing items you dump after finding out you don`t like or want them anymore. That needs to stop and based on his spending record, he will NEVER change hence, FSG should takeaway the credit card and give it to someone with some sense and cut this guy off.

05 May 2015 11:41:23
A question for Ed001 if he's around:
I know that despite how much you and most of us love Suso for his wonderful ability, you said that the club (the playing staff I guess) have concerns that his size/lack of strength and pace will prevent him from being a starting midfielder for Liverpool in the future. My question is, is Cazorla that much stronger or quicker for him to have the influence he does at Arsenal? Cazorla, like Suso, seems to be able to play across the midfield; what is it about him that enables him to play regularly for Arsenal while there are doubts over Suso?
Thanks in advance!
Jos

{Ed001's Note - well Suso will struggle to have an influence for us, considering we let him go in the summer, but I understand what you mean. You could also point to David Silva, who also lacks pace, power and strength but is still one of the best players in the league. The trouble is that we are not looking at their strengths and trying to find ways to play to those. Instead we are looking at their weaknesses and worrying about how opponents will play to them.

Other players in other teams do not have those same issues. Wenger mostly concentrates on the strengths of his players and doesn't worry too much about the opposition, at least he did over the last few years. This year he has made a few concessions, but even those concessions, in using a proper defensive midfielder, are to allow the creative players to create and play to their strengths. We simply don't have the right attitude to do that within the club.

I have never understood how a club that spends so much on Joe Allen could then worry about the physicality of young players! Allen is not fast, strong or powerful, he offers little physicality at all, so why do worry when a young player is similarly lacking?}

05 May 2015 14:30:57
Thanks for your reply Ed and sorry about my silly mistake!
It is a shame that that is our mentality. Yet more reason big changes need to be made to the coaching side of the club, considering the quality we have all the way down to our youth players.
Jos

05 May 2015 16:10:24
Great read, Ed1 barca have the exact type of players and do the exact same thing. they have players similar to the mould of Suso in Xavi, Iniesta, Pedro, Messi, Neymar and so on YET these players flourish under what you just stated as in, focusing on their strengths (technical ability, ball possession, raw skill, pace, movement etc)and let the opposition worry about them. I rmember a game where japan played cameroon and the Japan coach Phillipe Trousier was asked afJapan win, how he was able to counter the physicality the ameroonians had, he said, " We have to focus on our ball movement, pace, quick passing and constant movement because that is what you do when you are 5 foot 5` and weigh 100 pounds, soaking wet". I never forgot that quote

05 May 2015 08:42:30
Hey ED(s), but of an unusual question here, but do liverpool or any other english clubs for that matter shown any interest in asian players like Japanese or korean. I know the answers probably no but there does seem to be some talent out there.

{Ed001's Note - you do realise Man Utd just sold a Japanese player in the summer and that there have been quite a few Korean players in the Prem right? So not unusual, just odd as that should have told you that they do.}

05 May 2015 12:17:53
Ki Sung-yueng has played well for Swansea this year as a prime example.

05 May 2015 00:59:49
Hi.
Is there any chance of our owners selling the club.
As I honestly think that's where the root of the problem is
They have a model in mind that is similarito ajax. Buy low sell high with constant turnover.
I don't think we will ever build a team that will challenge.
We should have given kenny more time.
made Suarez see out his contract .Reinforced around him.
I believe that would be a team to constantly Chalenge for the title.

{Ed002's Note - The owners are not the problem. Suarez cost Dalglish his job. Why would you want to keep a player who desparately wanted to leave the club?}

05 May 2015 07:53:42
But we buy high sell low haha

05 May 2015 12:27:00
He was desperate to leave a year before. Didn't prevent him from being a level above everyone else in PL.

{Ed001's Note - only to get a move away, if we had then blocked the move again do you really think it would have been a good idea? People really need to grow up and think about the crap they are spouting. This is idiotic and embarrassing now.}

05 May 2015 16:22:00
We bought for 23m and sold for reportedly 75m. How is that buying hig and selling low?

05 May 2015 20:08:35
People need to really stop with this idea that the owners are to blame because they like players with resale value, apparently.

The problem is rodgers. Nothing more. We have all the right players at the club to succeed, and then all the ones rodgers has squandered money on for no reason.

06 May 2015 04:01:29
If the owners picked the players to buy and the tactics, maybe such BR apologists would have a leg to stand on but unfortunately for them, the owners don't. The owners have backed the manager an yet some want to blame them for BR's inherent blunders and failures. Memo to all: the owners are not and will never be the problem when it comes to BR's failures.