Does anyone take into account the players Chelsea were missing today? Put it into perspective Liverpool were minus Sturridge and Henderson while Chelsea were without Oscar, Hazard, Luiz, Terry and Cech along with the decision to rest Cahill and Willian. Jose got a great result with a highly weakened team and yet is still abused for his defensive tactics? Rodgers can bitch all he wants but his team had 26 shots 70%+ possession yet they barely gave Chelsea a scare at all. Chelsea deserved to win the game simple as.
Brentan Rodgers
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Ask Abby y'all hustle for a week to the Chi
Yeah, I know of Herbert Chapman but not a great deal. Wenger, when you look at the bigger picture, has done some job there. He really has.
The team that Chelsea started last night wasn't better than the Liverpool team though. And in much worse form as well. Perfectly understandable tactics and perfectly played out as well. Naive and reckless from Liverpool.
I think he's embarrassed himself quite a bit in the last few weeks with comments. I've seen 3 or 4 press conferences wher
Out of interest how much control does he have over signings? He had hardly any at Swansea either did he? I'm sure they have or had a DoF who was doing most the signings. Not saying he's incapable of doing it, I'm sure he had some input but I'm unsure if he ever had complete freedom.
To his credit I think he's done a good job this season, it'll be interesting next season when I think teams will adapt to it more (and I reckon Suarez will leave) how he setsu p them, yesterday I didn't think he had a plan B. Obviously in most games he hasn't needed one but they just looked out of ideas yesterday. Gerrard insisting on shooting from 30 yards any time he got the ball didn't help anyone either, if I was the manager and my captain was doing that regardless of the season he's had I wouldn't be to happy.
His post match comments were pretty pathetic as well, just looked a bit small time. Tried taking the high ground for playing pretty football which got found out and looked a bit of a knob.
Out of interest how much control does he have over signings? He had hardly any at Swansea either did he? I'm sure they have or had a DoF who was doing most the signings. Not saying he's incapable of doing it, I'm sure he had some input but I'm unsure if he ever had complete freedom.
To his credit I think he's done a good job this season, it'll be interesting next season when I think teams will adapt to it more (and I reckon Suarez will leave) how he setsu p them, yesterday I didn't think he had a plan B. Obviously in most games he hasn't needed one but they just looked out of ideas yesterday. Gerrard insisting on shooting from 30 yards any time he got the ball didn't help anyone either, if I was the manager and my captain was doing that regardless of the season he's had I wouldn't be to happy.
His post match comments were pretty pathetic as well, just looked a bit small time. Tried taking the high ground for playing pretty football which got found out and looked a bit of a knob.
Well said.
Pressure getting to Rodgers maybe. Mourinho played the perfect hand and his players did him proud. It was up to Rodgers and his players to break down whatever system is played in front of them and they failed.
The bolded bit is interesting and something to keep an eye on in future. I know a lot of Swansea fans, being from the area, and they all say the same thing, the biggest frustration with Rodgers when he was manager was a lack of plan B.
In danger of ending up with less silverware than Moyes this season.
He's shown multiple times at Liverpool that he has a plan B.
Yet his plan B seems to bear a curious resemblance to his plan A..
Where was it yesterday then, when it mattered most?
Yes I know he's tweaked his formation regularly this season, but that's not what the criticism is about. He said it himself in his post match interview, when he went on about how he only wants his team to play one way of football. When the positive approach isn't working, you need more in your locker. Maybe slow it down, or go more direct etc. Otherwise you'll end up like Arsenal.
It's something he's going to have to deal with now as next season most teams are going to park their two buses.
You mean lumping the ball to a big striker, maybe with long hair and a northern accent?
He would have actually been useful yesterday; better than throwing on Aspas. Their strikers are too similar and there's no one there good at holding up the ball.
Anyway, we're being too critical here. Liverpool have shown they're more than capable of beating 90% of sides with their plan A.
The only criticism I'd have of Rodgers was that he loaned out Borini who is far better than Aspas.
Liverpool have been very successful at getting 1st half goals this season, meaning the opposition can't defend deep while chasing the game, that's where the pace of Sterling, Sturridge and the craft of Suarez are so effective. It will require a more patient build up next season if teams come to Anfield to frustrate them.
Ramires was also missing, as was Eto'o.
IMO Rodgers is having the same problems that Wenger had. As football coaches they're kind of purists and prefer to take an imaginary moral highground. They've convinced themselves and others around them that their way is the only way to play football and anyone who goes defensive is the antichrist. This can play huge dividends when they're winning and the good times are rolling : The media will fawn over their magnificently pretty football and how they are the most deserving winners. But once shit hits the fan they're befuddled due to a lack of alternative "dirty" tactics. That's why after Wenger's initial success this weak point was exploited time and again by more pragmatic managers like Sir Alex or Jose. The same could happen to Rodgers if he doesn't develop a plan B, C and D to counter defensive teams. Can he man up and get his hands dirty ? Especially when he has to face the grinch Jose atleast twice in a season.
I agree with this. He's grown a lot as a manager since Swansea (where his plan A was significantly difference to his plan A at Liverpool). He definitely has more than one string to his bow.
Lets not forget you can only have 11 on the field
If e'too started who's to say he would have scored the goal Ba did? Anyway I don't think any Liverpool fan would debate that they have a stronger squad than Chelsea if we're discussing who can better cope with injuries/suspensions.
Much better managers than Rodgers have lost to a Mourinho side parking the bus. It can happen to anyone, nothing to see here.
I think that yesterday's problems are as much to do with his players' lack of composure as Rodgers' lack of nous.
Lets not forget you can only have 11 on the field
If e'too started who's to say he would have scored the goal Ba did? Anyway I don't think any Liverpool fan would debate that they have a stronger squad than Chelsea if we're discussing who can better cope with injuries/suspensions.
True. I still reckon Eto'o is Jose's first choice and will play in midweek (?)
Listening to Five Live for the first half was tough yesterday. A couple of real Scouse apologists on there.
I can't remember who said it but they were talking about how Liverpool have benefitted from not being in the UCL and he came up with the amazing logic that:
"It hasn't helped Liverpool in this game because most of the Liverpool players have played 40 games already this year whereas most of the Chelsea players are fresh and hardly any of then had played over 25 games."
Completely ignoring the fact that Chelsea had a second string out there because of the Champions League and Liverpool were playing their first team who have had a weeks rest between every game for the last 6 weeks.
I can't remember who said it but they were talking about how Liverpool have benefitted from not being in the UCL and he came up with the amazing logic that:
"It hasn't helped Liverpool in this game because most of the Liverpool players have played 40 games already this year whereas most of the Chelsea players are fresh and hardly any of then had played over 25 games."
Completely ignoring the fact that Chelsea had a second string out there because of the Champions League and Liverpool were playing their first team who have had a weeks rest between every game for the last 6 weeks.
Rodgers was unfortunate to lose too. I mean let's be honest, it was more than likely going to be 0-0. They lost because Gerrard slipped. Rodgers wasn't outwitted or anything I don't think. The players just couldn't break Chelsea down.
Rodgers has done an incredible job getting them where they are, particularly in utilising their current squad and getting rid of players like Downing/Adam/Carroll, who many managers would have given a couple of seasons to "prove themselves", even though it was abundantly clear that they were not right for the way he wanted to play from the word go (similar to us with Fellaini going into this Summer). Particular credit needs to go to his managing of Gerrard, who I thought was nearly past it 2 seasons ago, Henderson who looked a mediocre player at best, Sturridge who looked no better than Defoe and Sterling whose career could have plummeted after a poor second half to last season.
I just think Rodgers is in for an incredibly difficult season next year. I mean when you think of the various factors that have gone in their favour this season it is quite staggering. They have currently played 38 games this season against top flight opponents, compared to for instance Chelsea's 51 games. Their lack of injuries, particularly since Xmas has also been very fortunate, particularly in key attacking areas: how many times have they had to rely on the unbelievably poor players on their bench (Aspas, Alberto, Moses, Cissokho) coming on to change a game? They have also been unbelievably fortunate all season when looking at refereeing decisions at key times. Even yesterday when they lost they should have conceded a penalty that again wasn't given. Likewise last week at City they were incredibly fortunate, as well as a few incidents in the previous couple of months (most notably Villa and Stoke). They have deserved the most penalties this season because of their attacking play (although 3-4 were given fortunately), but the lack of penalties against them has been pretty staggering, given their style of defending. Skrtel particularly should have conceded 5-6 alone.
To me it's been a perfect storm of opponent naivety/surprise, copious amounts of rest between games, lack of injuries/having to rely on very poor squad players, fortunate decisions and obviously great attacking Football centered around a group of 4-5 players all having the best seasons of their career at once in Sturridge, Suarez, Sterling, Coutinho and Henderson. Can you imagine where we'd be this season if Rooney, RVP, Mata, Valencia and Carrick all had their best seasons to date? We'd be on course for a League record.
I think they'll win the League this season, mainly because I've never seen so much go for a team and them not win the trophy. It's so reminiscent of their Champions League win or Chelsea's that you have to believe their name is on the trophy. However I still think they are miles away from having a squad that will compete consistently. In my opinion it will be the most impressive League win in over 10-15 years and Rodgers should be applauded hugely for it... In fact he should be praised even if they finish second or third.
But I'm going to put my neck on the line and say they won't finish in the top 4 next season, unless they spend well over £100m in the Summer.
I don't think you can blame Rodgers that much for yesterday, and in the context of the whole season he's been brilliant. In those games you need a little break and it just didn't go for them. Gonna get games like that every season.
He's shown throughout the season a great ability to adapt his tactics to suit the occasion. Using lots of different formations and players in different roles. When a team parks the bus there isn't a great deal you can do to counter it, other than start lumping it into the box and hope for the best.
Liverpool don't have a massive squad with the luxury of having £30 million players on the bench like Chelsea who can change the game. So I personally think it's still the best tactic for them to continue their quick passing game as it's what they are best at. The players just played shit at the end of the day. The tactics weren't as responsible as the individual errors which ultimately cost them the game.
He's shown throughout the season a great ability to adapt his tactics to suit the occasion. Using lots of different formations and players in different roles. When a team parks the bus there isn't a great deal you can do to counter it, other than start lumping it into the box and hope for the best.
Liverpool don't have a massive squad with the luxury of having £30 million players on the bench like Chelsea who can change the game. So I personally think it's still the best tactic for them to continue their quick passing game as it's what they are best at. The players just played shit at the end of the day. The tactics weren't as responsible as the individual errors which ultimately cost them the game.
Yeah, I don't think it had anything to do with a lack of plan B. They simply aren't that good. They've been punching way above their weight all season long and sometimes they're bound to have a bad day, especially against a well-organised Mourinho side.
Rodgers can be criticised for not having a word with Gerrard though. He should have told him to stop shooting from every direction.
I hope Rodgers carries that naivety to next season. He will be in for a shock in CL. They conceded 46 goals in the PL this season which is the second highest in the top 7 apart from Spurs. This "you score one, I'll score more" mentality will see them crashing out of the CL.
Isn't that what all teams try to do in football?
In fairness they should be in as 3rd seeds so they should crash out based on there being 2 superior teams in the group.
Personally I think they'll be one of the 3rd seed teams that everyone wants to avoid, they've scored the most goals in the top European leagues or something stupid. A team like Bayern last season or Real Madrid this season would tear them apart on the break with their pace and their individual ability to beat men in a one on one situation but they'll fare well against a lot of teams in the competition.
We showed this season it's possible to go quite far without really breaking a sweat, although we did ride our luck against Shaktar and Olympiakos at times.
It's hard to play against a team that 'parks the bus' as they say. We all know Pep Guardiola is a very tactful manager yet he couldnt get round this tactic in the champions league twice (Inter vs. Barca and Chelsea vs. Barca). When a team sets up defensively, it takes some luck to break through
The 4th seed might see them crashing out of the CL if they get some bad luck in the draw. Gung ho attacking has worked just fine for Real and Dortmund.
There's nothing 'gung ho' about the way Dortmund attack - it's not caution to the winds, it's part of a well-thought out strategy which they consistently apply. Their whole game is high energy - attack fast and direct, defend fast and direct. That's not the same was what Liverpool are doing at the moment, which is throwing caution to the wind because they are confident their superb and in-form strike force can out-score the opposition even if they do let a few in.
As for Madrid, they have been gung ho at times this season, but against comfortably inferior teams, and on the defensive foundation of Ramos, Pepe and Alonso, which is a good grade or two above Agger, Skrtel and Henderson.
But as you saw against Bayern, Madrid's manager and players are experienced enough to effectively adapt their game plan for a tough opponent. Which is exactly what Rodgers failed to do against Chelsea.
Rodgers did exactly the right thing against Chelsea. Individual player errors are not the managers fault. It's such stupid logic to assume that because a team didn't win the manager made the wrong choices.
Rodgers played exactly how his team should have played based on his players and how Chelsea set up. Yes, they didn't win but that was because Gerrard fell over and players missed chances. The way Rodgers set them up was just fine.
Liverpool had 26 shots and 8 on target, they created enough to win the game but individual errors cost them. That is not Brendan Rodgers's fault.
Did he?
They never actually looked like scoring. He should've done more to get Chelsea to come out of their shell.
At the end of the day they only needed a draw anyway so a less gung-ho approach would've worked fine.
They didn't concede because they were gung ho. They conceded before Steven Gerrard fell over.
26 shots, 8 on target suggests they had opportunities to score.
Most of you won't remember 1989 when they were sitting comfortably 1-0 down at Anfield to Arsenal. They were all going " two more minutes lads " to each other and the rest is history. 'twas a marvellous night 
Gerrard fell over as what appeared to be last man back, suggesting they were all going forward.
At least half of those shots were Gerrard from outside the box doing his Superman impression trying to save the day.
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