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Rodgers: Counter-Attack, Noise & Confusion
The seduction of the beautiful game, and loyalty to our team of choice, had brought us all to the
same point: currently joint top in the nglish !remier "eague# $ar from being a unifying
occurrence, it kindled and stoked differences of opinion, reflecti%e of our di%ersity and richness of
thought perhaps not that many sa' it that 'ay# (nce more, the debate became fractious fans
'ere reading from the same book ) e*cept not all 'ere on the same page#
+ome %ie'ed the beginning of the ./0.1 +eason as enough reason to be cheerful# The cherry-
pick of results, and attendant league position, surpass concerns about ho' the cake 'as baked#
(thers remained preoccupied 'ith the incidence of a key missing ingredient# Rather than rue thescale of conflict or e*acerbate it, this dichotomised debate bet'een results and performance
should be embraced it is e*actly 'hat 'e need# To paraphrase 2ordon 2ekko: 34isagreement is
good5#
And it is good because the situation is far from straightfor'ard e*actly 'hy there has been so
much noise and confusion6 This time round, the much maligned 7nternational break offered a
'elcome pit stop an opportunity to slo' do'n, think and to try and unra%el the detail#
The World Is Not Enough
The promise of a particular brand of football, 'ith the ca%eat that it 'ould take time toimplement, sa' the fan base ) or a good portion at least ) prepare for patient restraint# A
gestation period 'as granted# 8ut 'ith such an emotional in%estment deposited, e%en the most
stoic of fans 'ould need to see a satisfying return at a not too distant juncture# Then pu99lement
struck# aybe it 'as not so much the sake of performances on the pitch ) per se but rather the
apparent dismantlement of a former ;'ork in progress
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There had been a lot of noise and confusion from the T'ittera99i set in general but to adhere to a
more specific, =uality source, none had put it more succinctly ) and poignantly ) than Ted
>nutson# 4epicting a mock mo%ie scene, in an e*cellent article, one protagonist, ?ohn @enry,
=uestions another ) 8rendan Rodgers# The =uestion relates to the disparity, in key statistics,
bet'een this season and last:
2012/13 2013/14 Contrasting Position
Shots PG: .#1 .#B .st0..th
Shots Ag PG: ..#1 ./# 1th0.1th
Possession: DE# 1#D /rd0.th
Pass: 1# # Dth0.th
FTied for /rd, 8ut Reasons $or Concern ) "i%erpool After $i%e 2ames# 8y Ted >nutsonG
The calm surface of the sea can mask po'erful undercurrents similarly, consideration of league
position alone may also ignore hidden depths# The abo%e statistics should, at least, be of interest
to "i%erpool fans# @o'e%er, just si* re-t'eets and t'o fa%ourites to date suggests it 'as not# That
is not to claim that they necessarily correlate 'ith an imminent re%ersal of fortune in the league#
There is, ho'e%er, no harm ) and e%ery ad%antage ) in terms of research profounder than a
number telling you 'hat rung of the ladder you currently stand, especially 'ith only .D per cent of
the job complete#
(f course, this all depends some'hat on ho' you decide to consume your football in the first
place# +ome people are content not to look at stats at all, 'hich is fine but so too should it be thatothers get their football fi* in a different 'ay# 7ne%itably, ho'e%er, this fosters asymmetry of
information 'ithin the fan base, in turn, promoting conflict ) people are playing off different
bases# To be fair, those 'ho do absorb statistics could not help but sense a jolt to their addled
brain the abo%e numbers do suggest retrograde steps from last season to this#
7t may be possible to resol%e one issue at least and this is =uite a clincher# Rodgers had identified
a missing link: performances ha%e not been to his o'n particular taste he intends to rectify that
situation# @e commented to that effect after the +underland game, and repeated much the same
ahead of the Ne'castle encounter:
3He
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Where do we go from here?
Plato Philoso!h" # E$le$ti$is%
Rafa
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%er since 2uardiola has been installed at 8ayern, the football media has been attempting to
compartmentalise his ne*t tactical phase# The +paniard had formerly been associated 'ith a
particular brand and style of football is this about to change6 The incumbent manager himself
fuelled curiosity as to 'hich cards he may be holding:
37t
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Another problem remains: if ?amie Carragher 'as still at the Club during this time, the !undit
should not ha%e been perple*ed, during his analysis, at the beginning of this season# He no' raise
more =uestions than ans'ers for sure, but that is about the si9e of this debate#
*+ou Are ,ere-
4espite the confusion about performance and tactics, there 'as nothing mysterious about our
league position# And it is absolutely %alid to look at a map that enables a ;Jou are @ere< stock-take
of your journey but ca%eats should apply# +tatisticians also pro%ide comparati%e ;Hhere Jou
(nce Here< reminders yes, 'e ha%e kind of been here before ) 'hate%er style of football applied:
3arch ., a 1-. 'in o%er !ortsmouth took us to E/ points from the last / games, and it
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of our destiny rather than in a phase that could e*emplify 'hat 'e all may ha%e forgotten to
remember#
Are 'e currently at the beginning of a contingency phase that 'ill continue e%er up'ard, or in a
sample si9e spike of good results ) a replication of the periods (ctober to arch . or
from ?anuary .. to season end6 +ince the =uestion 'ould imply predicting the future, 'e mustheed a lesson from Hilliam 2oldman: 3Nobody kno's anything#5
In.ur" Ti%e
Hhat 'e all share in common is a relationship 'ith a game that fore%er holds us spellbound, its
mysteries e%er-present, unfathomable and elusi%e# He need to respect the improbability of such
circumstances holding any definiti%e ans'ers, and, therefore, the ine%itability of different
interpretations# Hith our opinions and %ie's ) the essence of 'hich make us opposites despite
the same Club allegiance ) 'e ine%itably lock horns during 'ars of attrition# Jou get to shake
your fists, cuss and s'ear at your opponent during debate if that is your style, but it hardly ser%es
a purpose#
Truthfully, 'e need people to disagree 'ith us it keeps the narrati%e fresh and ali%e#
;4isagreement is good
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happy short term# 8ut, 'hat if you 'ant to plan long term6 Jou need other tools# A manager
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8oth $erguson and 8arcelona counterpart !ep 2uardiola are re=uired by Iefa regulations to gi%e
pre-final media conferences on $riday#
8ut the Inited spokesman pointed out that as $riday
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$erguson is 3unfathomably difficult to predict5 according to Taylor, a joyful good mood can be
turned on a si*pence 'ith a look from his 3hard, penetrati%e eyes#5
Nonetheless, there ha%e been times under his management 'hen it is not just respect 'hen 'e go
to see him# 7t is genuine an*iety#
The End o The Pre%ier 5eague Press Coneren$e
$erguson is the only manager in ngland 3'ho refuses to speak to the press after !remier "eague
games5# @is a%oids contact, if he can# According to Taylor, I$A 'ill fine him# $erguson makes
sure all his Champions "eague commitments are fulfilled# The $A and the !remier "eague 3turn a
blind eye in the domestic competitions#5
The Ne Pro$ess
$erguson talks to I$C, usually for about fi%e minutes after e%ery domestic game# The football
'riting fraternity then ha%e to 3impro%ise5 at a'ay games by gi%ing a tape recorder to the anItd press officer# +he records the ITO inter%ie' for the pressroom to 3recycle the best bits#5
The procedure is slightly different at (ld Trafford 'here the journalists 'atch ITO on the press
room TO and:
?ostle for position and hold our tape players to the tele%ision to record 'hate%er he says# 7t is an
undignified process: taping another maneegan#@e e*plains:
After a 'in o%er "eeds Inited, +ir Ale* slammed his opponent, saying he felt sorry for its
manager, since it had played badly all season and had only tried hard against his team#
7nnocuous6 Jou 'ould think so# 8ut it 'asneegan, 'ho launched himself into this tele%ised
rant,before going all >ing "ear and seeing a .-point lead crumble and run through his fingers
like dust#
The psychology# +potting a 'eakness and making the 'hole 'orld a'are that you
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Henger, 'ho $erguson has enjoyed some memorable years of sparring 'ith, 'as named by the
+cot as one such manager#
3!eople ha%e criticised their physical style of play but they stick to 'hat they do best,5 said
$erguson#
37 suppose Arsene Henger has been one of their main critics, but then he does go off on a tangent
at times# $or instance, he criticised our pitch after they lost here before Christmas and 7 'as at a
loss to understand 'hy#
37 ha%e a great admiration for Tony and the 'ry 'ay he rides the criticism le%elled at his team# 7f
anything the criticism gal%anises the players#5
Andre Oillas-8oas, only last 'eek, before his team
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$erguson described artin Atkinson as a 3disgrace5, declaring that his performance 3should not
be accepted in our game5, and 'ent on to claim that the referees< chief, >eith @ackett, 'as 3not
doing his job properly5 and picked his 3fa%ourites5 for Initedeith @ackett,
head of the refereee%in cCarra in the Guardian
+ir Ale* $erguson rebuked Cristiano Ronaldo for his red card in anchester Inited
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$erguson may ha%e been re%erting into an old di%ersionary tactic 'hen he attacked 8ennett# The
referee had 'ielded the red card 'hen Ronaldo 'as sent off in the !remier "eague defeat against
anchester City in ?anuary B#
37 ha%e tried to look at the incident and there 'as nothing conclusi%e there,5 said $erguson# 37n
fact you cannot really see anything# 8ut my take is that he 'as pro%oked and that he has fallen forit# 8ut the referee, +te%e 8ennett, sent him off at City and he 'ill ha%e lo%ed that opportunity Pat
$ratton !arkQ to send him off#
$urther e%idence comes in this tirade against the $A, after all I$C ha%e done for them, the
ungrateful so and so
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After seeing his side 'in 1-/, the BB-year-old is said to ha%e made abusi%e comments to 4ean
during a finger-jabbing outburst 'hich took place as the referee left the pitch#
The Telegraph
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And 3a source close to +ir Ale*5 e%en claimed, before the hearing:
7 don
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aG r %ra pushed the Chelsea head groundsman 'ith his chest Fas 'as admitted by r %raG
bG @e struck r +am 8ethell, a groundsman at Chelsea, on the side of his head
cG @e subse=uently, ie after the pre%ious incident had begun to calm do'n, ran back to confront
r 8ethell again Fas 'as also admitted by r %raG
dG Then became in%ol%ed in a further physical altercation 'ith r 8ethell#
-oone' C,arged
The 'orst incident Taylor e%er sa' in a press conference came in 4ecember 1 'hen Rooney
'as up on an $A charge for pushing his handin the face of Tal 8en @aim# $erguson erupted 'hen
asked about the incident:
3KHell youieron Richardson in the Carling Cup tie against
Arsenal earlier this month, 'hich earned a booking, $erguson said: 3The referee didn
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general# 7f you 'ant to deny it be my guest and go through all the / games and point at 'here 'e
are 'rong in our numbers# 7t is in the open and you can check each decision#
7n fact those fe' games 'hen the ref made mistakes that 'ent against Inited they dropped
points# And maybe that is the best indication of them all that sho's ho' important the refs can
be#
(r maybe this by 4inny 8looking at the suspicious nature of referees to suddenly stop officiating
an Inited games after criticism from $ergie:
Add that to e%erything 'e
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the press and a forensic e*amination of 'hat has happened# No =uestions about tactics or
selection and certainly no =uestions about the fans< reaction#
The journalists fly on the same plane as the Inited team on uropean trips# This is a standard
procedure, a curtain is dra'n and they don
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The ?igotr"
Chris Ro'land, in Conspiracies, !aranoia, 7nnocence and 2uiltylists a couple of e*amples of
$erguson
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@e 'rote to Rafa 8enite9 after "i%erpooleen
The responsibility#
37t is too early to say 'hich camp 8rendan 'ill fit into, he seems to ha%e fully bought into the idea
of the club and he is enthused and seemingly inspired by 'here he is and 'hat he is doing# The
press conference for the blogs and fan sites also sho'ed a man e*cited to talk about the game and
more than happy to engage 'ith the supporters# Hithout 'ishing to make predictions, he has
started 'ell, although the results ha%e been disappointing, but something he said stood out for
me#
3This is part of 'hat makes this, 'hen 'e ha%e success, 'hen 7 dri%e in through the gates, the guy
in security is a part of that successK not just the players on the field# He 'ill all feel a part of the
success, because of the one club#5 8rendan Rodgers
3The socialism 7 belie%e in is e%eryone 'orking for each other, e%eryone ha%ing a share of the
re'ards# 7t
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the background plus the pressure and obsession of managing a club of this stature# 7t is one thing
to manage a club 'ho are just happy to be in the !remier "eague, it is =uite another to sit in the
office that has housed 8ill, 8ob, ?oe, >enny and Rafa a great opportunity, but also a massi%e
responsibility#
Changing the Con%ersation by +i +teers
The non-conformist culture of "i%erpool instincti%ely creates a di%ide 'ith the media# 7t isnnight
is nonsensical# +uggesting he starts shouting %erbal %olleys at rookie journalists or starts spouting
casual stereotypes about the Helsh, 2ermans or 7talians is also ridiculous# He can ask the
=uestion, ho'e%er, that if and 'hen Rodgers does start to bring some success to the club, should
he start abusing the po'er, authority and influence that comes 'ith success6 +caring the press
into asking 'eak =uestions# 8an them altogether6 ake all official "$C ne's ) pre and post
match ) to tra%el through the "$CTO filter6 >eeping the pressure up on referees he belie%es are
making regular, repetiti%e errors# 4efending his players, often irrationally, out of principle6 (r do
'e 'ant to keep the current 8uck Rodgers6 The positi%e, enthusiastic communicator# As honest
as he can be, supporti%e of those 'ho deser%e it and critical of those 'ho need a kick up the
backside# 7 suppose my honest ans'er is, if he 'ins as many trophies as Ale* $erguson, 7 don
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The yth of Rodgers< 7nfle*ibility
On the terraces of Aneld and inside pubs all across the world,across cyberspace, Twitter and even here on The Tomkins
Times, an increasingly fractious debate is taking place.
Is Brendan odgers the man that will take !iverpool back upthe "remier !eague table into the elite of club football# Or is hea promising young manager who has landed a big $ob that he isnot ready for#
And how long should we give him in order to nd out#
In truth, the opinions of the fans take a back seat to theopinions of one multi%millionaire investor. It is &ohn 'enry(sdecision to take. But I would argue that the opinions of fansdoes hold some importance in the future of Brendan odgers(reign at Aneld.
After all ) take a look towards west !ondon, and we can see ourformer manager afa Benite*. +ome uestions arise- is thehostility of the helsea fanbase adversely a/ecting the club(sresults# Are the helsea fans mis$udged and ill%informed intheir opinion of their current manager# 0ill this a/ect hislikelihood of continuing in the $ob ne1t season# I believe theanswer to all these uestions is 2yes(.
That is an e1treme e1ample, but it is likely that the attitudeand opinions of a club(s fanbase ) as a group ) hasramications for a manager(s $ob security and the results thathe delivers on the pitch. +o the debate about Brendan odgersthat is taking place amongst fans is an important one.
0hen I look at the current managerial situation at helsea, Icannot help but think that the fans of our rival club are beingunfair. I can(t help but think they are not looking coolly andrationally at the 3facts4 5couldn(t resist6 about their latestmanager.
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But it is easy for me to note that, whilst lookingon dispassionately from the outside ) as someone who doesnot really care about the success of helsea 7. In fact, what Ihave written there is somewhat of an understatement. Thisobservation spurred me on to look at Brendan odgers again )and ask the uestion, as coolly and dispassionately as I couldpossibly muster-
3Are we being fair to Brendan odgers#4
Myth Busting
This article is looking to focus on one particular myth that hasarisen around odgers. learly much of what will follow is opento debate, but I think I can make a strong case for it ) and, in
doing so, add something worthwhile to The 8reat odgers9ebate Of :;6.
In pubs, in my o?ce and online, and specically on thiswebsite, I(ve seen a myth emerge about odgers which I thinkneeds to be uestioned. It seems to be a widely and stronglyheld opinion from many !iverpool fans that Brendan odgers isin@e1ible ) tactically, and in terms of personnel ) that he is adogmatic idealist who sees only one way to play the game,with pragmatism cast aside in the name of establishing a
system.
This strongly established myth has it that odgers is onlyinterested in a certain kind of player in each position, castingaside anyone who doesn(t t the mould ) and that he issacricing precious "remier !eague points by continuallysetting up the team in a manner for which they are not yetready to play.
+upporters of odgers argue that he needs time to implement
the system, and the improved results will follow. ritics look onenviously at more pragmatic managers at other clubs,suggesting we would have been in closer contention for the all%important top four place if only we had appointed a manager ofless idealistic nature. They uestion the value of a system atall, when there are other managers out there that can simplytake the current suad and get the best out of it.
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All of this is built upon the myth of odgers The [email protected] The 9ogmatic.
But are we being fair to him# Is this myth actually true#
The rest of this post is for Subscribers only.
A Certain Kind of Player?
I saw a very elouent post on The Tomkins Times, following theOldham loss, outlining a commonly held opinion about odgersand his players-
Rodgers has a picture in his mind of what a football playerlooks like; how a footballer player plays, and what skill set afootballer has. In this world, if you do not t his mindset you
are not a footballer If we have to wait until he acuiresplayers that t his vision of a footballer, we may never getthere.!
This was posted by a very intelligent and well%informed regularposter, who we all know well, called &e/. This is how it workswith me and &e/ ) he posts something, I agree with it and Irecommend it.
'owever, I could not agree with this comment.
9oes odgers really have an in@e1ible view of e1actly what aplayer looks like in each position# And is he ruthlessly movingon anyone who doesn(t t that mould# The departure of Andyarroll, &ay +pearing and harlie Adam would appear tosuggest as much ) especially as Andy arroll was moved onwith a replacement yet to be secured.
'owever ) let(s look more closely at this.
Andy arroll was indeed loaned out, but !uis +uare* was not.harlie Adam and &ay +pearing were moved on but !ucas !eivawas not. 0as that because Andy arroll did not suit his system,and !uis +uare* did#
Or was that because, as with any new manager with money tospend in the transfer market 5;.C million, and counting, sofar from odgers6, he simply wanted to move on the weakest
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players and keep the best ones# Dspecially as a managerunder pressure to cut the wage bill.
0e can argue until we are blue in the face about the uality ofharlie Adam and Andy arroll ) but there is no doubt
whatsoever that neither of them were the best player in theirposition at the club. And I think it is fair to say that the targetswe had in mind ) &oe Allen and, at the time, lint 9empsey )were not inferior players picked simply on the basis that theywere more of a 3odgers mould4 of player.
0e actually 5and eventually>6 ended up with 9aniel +turridge.'ands up who wants to swap him for Andy arroll# Dven oncurrent form, would anyone like to swap &oe Allen for harlieAdam# The system of play is surely only one of many factors )
it appears to me we(ve simply upgraded.
!ets also look at the current starting eleven in the "remier!eague for evidence of odgers( in@e1ibility.
7irstly, it strikes me that it is a shifting starting eleven ) we(veseen 9owning dropped and reinstated, we(ve seen &ose Dnriueplayed as left%back and, inventively, as a surprisingly e/ectivewide forward. 0e(ve seen +uso given a four game run, andthen placed back on the bench, and we(ve seen +helvey given
a short run, only to be dropped for going @ying in studs upagainst Dvans. +o odgers then in@e1ibly benched him right#Eope ) he then started four matches in a row later in theseason, including a performance that was instrumental in thecomeback against 0est 'am, before being placed back uponthe bench once more.
0e saw a number of players tried in the most advanced centralmideld role ) +ahin, +helvey, and most recently 'enderson.Dually, +helvey has also been played as a wide forward and,
indeed, a centre forward.
Fy point is not to debate the success or failure of thesepersonnel changes. It is to point out that odgers is "e#ibleinhis team selections. 'e has been open%minded about players,in terms of whether they should be selected at all ) and wherethey have been placed on the pitch.
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In terms of 9owning and Dnriue ) he has uestioned theirability to add to the group at all. And then reserved his thinkingon the basis of their performances.
If you remain sceptical, consider this ) there is only one player
who has been on the pitch for every minute of "remier !eagueaction so far this season- +teven 8errard.
Is +teven 8errard the archetypal Brendan odgers player# Is henaturally a short%passing, fast%pressing and possessionorientated 2tactically%minded( central midelder#
I know conspiracy theories abound that odgers picks him forpolitical reasons. To that, I would reply with a uestion- are weall entirely certain that odgers isn(t picking 8errard, despite
not tting his supposedly in@e1ible vision, on the basis thatkeeping 8errard in the team is more e/ective ) in terms of on%pitch results ) than keeping wholeheartedly to his systeminstead#
Is this not pragmatism at work#
One area where odgers deserves credit is his ability to bringout players( abilities to play within a di/erent kind offramework which they are used to.
&amie 3hoof it up the pitch4 arragher is now our mostaccurate passer of the ball. ead that sentence again ) andimagine if someone had told you that would be the case lastseason. 0ould you believe it was possible#
9oes odgers( coaching and tactical ideas make the playersany less e/ective#
Our captain(s ve goals and eight assists suggest not. 7rom arelatively deep position, that(s a goal or assist every
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pressing game at all on the basis that he doesn(t feel he hasthe right personnel to do so.
Talking Tactics
All this might not impress an ardent critic. 'e might argue thatodgers is indeed @e1ible with his use of players ) but theoverall system remains the same. 'e might argue that odgersis tting suare pegs in round holes ) and, therefore, it doesn(tmatter which players he selects.
The system remains ill%suited to the suad ) and that this isimpacting negatively results.
Before I present my counter%argument ) let(s clear upsomething important here. Any conversation on tactics issub$ective. This is unavoidable ) some things are facts 53weplayed with three centre%backs6, but much of what we seehappening on the football pitch is in the eye of the beholder.I(ve tried to base most of what I am saying here on what I haveseen this season, and also counter%referenced with Fihail(se1pert tactical analysis.
ather than get drawn into the ualityof odgers( tacticaldecisions, in my role as 3myth%buster4, I want to remain
focused on the "e#ibilityof odgers The Tactician.odgers( poor start to the season has been well documented.Fany people en$oyed some of the performances ) particularlythe 3should%have%won4 game against Fanchester ity ) and wedid indeed see an in%form &oe Allen spreading the ball patiently,and a focus on short%passing when in possession as you mighthave e1pected from the former +wansea manager.
'owever, we also only took two points from ve games ) andwere sat inside the relegation *one. 0e were pretty, but
ine/ective. 5In our rst game against Arsenal, we were uglyand ine/ective ) but that(s another story>6.
+o, what happened ne1t# odgers showed a pragmatic side tohim.
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'ow did we start the ne1t run of 1tures# 0ith two deepmidelders and with one full back 5generally 0isdom6 asked tostay back as well. Hsually the wide player in front of that fullback, at the time generally +uso, was also tasked with ballretention and holding possession ) rather than getting intoforward positions.
This was a tactical change. Brendan odgers talked about theneed of a new tactical set%up in interviews. And we saw onetake shape on the pitch.
0e then saw a lot of draws, and ve clean sheets in followingten games. 0e were unbeaten in the ne1t eight matches ) withour points per game raising to
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Oldham also put our deeper players under pressure, and wefell to lower league opposition. A pattern has formed.
$%&I'( )lease note this article was written before the game atthe %mirates, hence the e#clusion of any analysis of that
performance. I didn*t see the match in full, I missed most ofthe rst half +dammit- so I cannot really comment on thetactical conte#t until I*ve re/watched the match.0
Fany people seem to assume this pattern is due to in@e1ibilityon odgers part. Let, clearly, we can see that odgers is notin@e1ible ) and has faced adversity in the league previouslyduring his short spell as !iverpool manager, and successfullyad$usted his approach accordingly.
7urther evidence of @e1ibility can be found with his in%gamechanges. Against 0igan, he successfully improved theperformance in the game by @ipping the mideld triangle.Against Dverton, he brought on an e1tra centre back 5oates6to change the tactical dynamic. I only caught the last =;minutes of that game ) Dverton didn(t get a chance, we weredenied a clear winner by the referee. Against FanchesterHnited at Old Tra/ord, !ucas was removed and +turridge wasbrought on, and we saw improvement once again.
And yet, my purpose is not to argue the uality of his decisions) after all, perhaps he should have set the team up better tobegin with.
It is to prove that odgers( in@e1ibility from a tactical point ofview is largely a myth.
Fany are assuming that, because ) right now ) !iverpoolstruggling with being pressed at the back is a result ofin@e1ibility on the part of the manager. But we do not know
what the future holds ) all we know, from the evidence above,suggests that odgers is willing to make changes to his tacticalsystem in order to improve results.
Rodgers the Inexible Man or Myth?
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I personally believe that odgers has shown a hell of a lot morepragmatism than has been previously recognised ) and thatsome people are holding rm to an idea that is more myth thantruth.
Rodgers: 8lueprint for a 8right Red $uture8rendan Rodgers impressed, speaking calmly and steadily ) if ob%iously a little ner%ously at first
) in a fairly brief press conference, 'hich 'as handled to a%oid ans'ering certain leading
=uestions# There 'as no comment on the notion of there being an agreement not to go back to
+'ansea for players, no real comment on backroom staff, and so on# And there
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7n a 'ay 7
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Hhen it comes to tiny players ) and +'ansea had se%eral ) then Raheem +terling must be licking
his lips# @e still needs a lot of 'orking on, but the system should suit him do'n to the ground#
Hith stature still in mind, +pearing 'on
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Aged 1 and B, this is not a case of the 'ise master and the young apprentice neither are yet at
the age considered a footballerenny 4alglish
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e%ery other game5 rule about top strikers on its head by a%eraging a goale'erygame, 'ith B or
E in a campaign# At other times in football history, in a season has seemed a big deal#
(ne thing usually considered necessary for greatness is longe%ity, although there are plenty of
e*ceptions to this rule# $or e*ample, $ernando Torres spent less time at "i%erpool than mile
@eskey sometimes it
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him Falthough there 'as the e%ergreen 4rogba, plus an o%ert pressure to play TorresG, so it
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enough to ha%e 'itnessed something that, unlike the "eague Cup successes of ., / and
.D Ffor e*ampleG, 'e 'ill still be mar%elling at in years to come#
After all, as much as sil%er'are is the aim of the game, it
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&When "ou al( through a stor%)
(ou do not choose to wal& through the wild torrent of powerful and unpredictable forces that
are unleashed in a storm. (ou do not choose ad'ersity. The situation is one you find yourself in,
forced upon you, and caused by e!ternal circumstances that you do not control. (ou would
rather be anywhere else than here today. #ut you ha'e no choice. There is nowhere to hide. This
is the harsh reality of your life, right here, and right now.
3"ife is ne%er made unbearable by circumstances, but only by lack of meaning and purpose#5
Oiktor $rankl
;Jou
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hearing many fairy tales that use a ourney into this /dar&ness0 of the woods, where the hero
must o'ercome their fears as part of their 1uest.
3The 'oods are just trees# The trees are just 'ood#5 +tephen +ondheim
Hhen the "i%erpool team returned to the dressing room at half time in 7stanbul they 'ere at thecentre of the ;perfect storm
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3emember that the dar&est hour is ust before the dawn.(ou may be at your lowest ebb, but the
sun will soon rise and shine again. There is a light at the end of the tunnel. And with that light
the dar&ness, along with all its uncertainty and imagined horrors, will be gone.
3@ope is faith holding out its hand in the dark#5 2eorge 7les
Chris Ro'land 'as at the Ataturk on ;that night
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(ou will 1uestion your beliefs. (ou will ha'e your doubts. (our dreams will be treated as
lightweight, worthless and inconse1uential, and you0ll see them brushed aside and
dismissed.#ut do not gi'e in. 2old on to them. 7e'er let them go.
3Jou may face many defeats in your life, but ne%er let yourself be defeated#5 aya Angelou
?amie Carragher 'as at the %ery centre of the storm in the Ataturk# Hhen +micer
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-f hope is the pilot flame that flic&ers in your heart then imagination is the spar& which re*
ignites that flame. When all seems lost, you still ha'e the ability to imagine. (ou may ha'e to
li'e in this present, but your imagination allows you to tra'el to a future that does not yet e!ist.
When you ha'e hope you see, you feel, you thin&, and you act differently.
(ou may be down but you are not defeated. That spar& of imagination ignites the flame of hope.
That flame burns the fuel of will power to get bac& on your feet and ust ta&e one step.
3@ope is an ability too belie%e the future 'ill be unspecifiably different from, and unspecifiably
freer than, the past#5 Richard Rorty
$arlo Ancelotti was also in the Atartur& stadium that night in "ay 899:, in his role as the A$
"ilan coach. What impact did the defiance of +i'erpool fans ha'e on him? -n August 89;8 he
was as&ed which club has the best fans.
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Jouin'ent yourself e'ery time you choose.
34on
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4oes Rodgers Need To 8e A 2enius6As "i%erpool fans 'e
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isolation, tooG are about as good as 'e ha%e any right to e*pect, and better than any time since
finishing nd in # 7f he hasnuyt and a*i
Rodrigue9 could ha%e helped see out another season, but then maybe there
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on the 'age bill for Coutinho a fe' months later# The only reason >olo Toure arri%ed at / 'as
that his 'age demands 'ere relati%ely lo' he 'asn
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aybe he
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the aura of someone 'ho doesn
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(%erall 7 still remain some'hat ambi%alent about 8rendan Rodgers# 7 al'ays used to think that
ambi%alence 'as a synonym of indifference, but e%en though the end position might be similarly
neutral, it
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Part Two
Hhat follo's is an e*amination of 'hat 7 see as the pros and cons of Rodgers< management so far,
deli%ered, 7 hope, 'ithout prejudice#
The second half of this post is for Subscribers only.
7
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they are playing 'ell# 2errard, in particular, has come to life in the past couple of months# As
noted earlier, there has been a conscious effort to not o%er-train these players, and it
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should enable progress back into the top si*# There ha%e been signs of the manager altering things
early in games, but often after the same 'eekly game-plan has backfired#
To date, Rodgers hasn
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$inally, 7