Brendan Rodgers (Liverpool -> Celtic -> Leicester)

Would Mignolet have gone walk-about at the Citeh for Aguero, like Reina did?

Reina's got a CV full of howlers, let's not rewrite history eh.

Would Migs have saved those Pens vs West ham in the FA cup final? We could go on and on and on about this and still end up no where.

End of the day, Reina for me is the better keeper overall, but he did have a damn good defensive unit in front of him. Would he have made the difference last season? I believe he could have made some vital saves but I think we would've still conceded close to what we did last season.

How did Benitez manage the balance between attack & defend? We finished 2nd whilst participating in the champions league?.

Do you have the stats for that season goals scored & conceded mate?.

For me that Benitez side was more defensive but much stronger - I still think that side is the one that deserved to come closest to winning the title - I made the same point in the Rafa thread.

P38 W25 D11 L2 GF77 GA27 GD+50

I'm not sure why we are talking about keepers in the Brendan Rodgers thread but I'll throw my $.02 in.....

I wouldn't want Reina or Migs if we had the option.

Migs isn't good enough, Reina probably isn't anymore either truth be told. Sometimes we get too sentimental (it's happening with Stevie and it will happen with Rafa if Brendan gets the boot) and think that one of our past heroes can still single handedly help us to turn things around.

We need a keeper that is in his prime NOW. And hey...even that doesn't guarantee success....look at Bayern tonight. Best keeper in the world and Aguero gets a hat trick to bring City back from 2-1 down.

Still...Migs just isn't cutting it but unfortunately Rodgers put himself in an awful position by having Jones as our only real backup. We should have bought a keeper to challenge Migs in the off season, the fact that we didn't needs to be laid at someone's feet.

I'm not sure why we are talking about keepers in the Brendan Rodgers thread but I'll throw my $.02 in.....

I wouldn't want Reina or Migs if we had the option.

Migs isn't good enough, Reina probably isn't anymore either truth be told. Sometimes we get too sentimental (it's happening with Stevie and it will happen with Rafa if Brendan gets the boot) and think that one of our past heroes can still single handedly help us to turn things around.

We need a keeper that is in his prime NOW. And hey...even that doesn't guarantee success....look at Bayern tonight. Best keeper in the world and Aguero gets a hat trick to bring City back from 2-1 down.

Still...Migs just isn't cutting it but unfortunately Rodgers put himself in an awful position by having Jones as our only real backup. We should have bought a keeper to challenge Migs in the off season, the fact that we didn't needs to be laid at someone's feet.

I agree mate.

Better chatting about goalkeepers than whether Brendan deserves the sack mate. Better to leave that till after tomorrow nights game.

I agree mate.

Better chatting about goalkeepers than whether Brendan deserves the sack mate. Better to leave that till after tomorrow nights game.

I actually think we are going to win handily tomorrow...if for no other reason than the forum will be in a complete uproar between the Brendan backers (I told you so!!!)  and the detractors (He still isn't good enough).

I'm not sure why we are talking about keepers in the Brendan Rodgers thread but I'll throw my $.02 in.....

I wouldn't want Reina or Migs if we had the option.

Migs isn't good enough, Reina probably isn't anymore either truth be told. Sometimes we get too sentimental (it's happening with Stevie and it will happen with Rafa if Brendan gets the boot) and think that one of our past heroes can still single handedly help us to turn things around.

We need a keeper that is in his prime NOW. And hey...even that doesn't guarantee success....look at Bayern tonight. Best keeper in the world and Aguero gets a hat trick to bring City back from 2-1 down.

Still...Migs just isn't cutting it but unfortunately Rodgers put himself in an awful position by having Jones as our only real backup. We should have bought a keeper to challenge Migs in the off season, the fact that we didn't needs to be laid at someone's feet.

That's an absolutely massive match from Aguero. He made his mark when his club was in crisis.

Some of our players need to look at that and follow his example.

Yeah,I thought we might have had a chance of getting Bergovic when they bought that young goalkeeper Butland(? )

As you know I was delighted when we got Mignolet, not so pleased now unfortunately.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7lTtjODgbZo

Brucie knows best

EDIT Better for overseas posters

He was paid to say that. 

“It (buying new players) is not something I am looking at,’ Rodgers said. “After the weekend, the focus was not to dwell on that. We have to learn from that and try and get a result here.

“I just need to get us back to a level of confidence that allows you to perform. Losing can be the making of you. You learn from it. That is what we are aiming to do.

“When you don’t have so much coaching time, it is mostly psychological what you are trying to achieve. If we focus on that too much there is no way we could play to our level.

“We need to make sure the training ground is a happy place to be. We have lost more than we would have liked. But the next game is an opportunity. You try to affect the players in a positive way.

“Sometimes it just takes a game, an action to change a season for you. We have to believe that can happen. We haven’t been anywhere near our levels. But you can never give up.

“We have to believe that the honesty of the group will get us the results and that is what we will keep working towards.”

http://www.footballfancast.com/football-news/liverpool-boss-wont-buy-new-players-in-january-despite-poor-season

“It (buying new players) is not something I am looking at,’ Rodgers said. “After the weekend, the focus was not to dwell on that. We have to learn from that and try and get a result here.

“I just need to get us back to a level of confidence that allows you to perform. Losing can be the making of you. You learn from it. That is what we are aiming to do.

“When you don’t have so much coaching time, it is mostly psychological what you are trying to achieve. If we focus on that too much there is no way we could play to our level.

“We need to make sure the training ground is a happy place to be. We have lost more than we would have liked. But the next game is an opportunity. You try to affect the players in a positive way.

“Sometimes it just takes a game, an action to change a season for you. We have to believe that can happen. We haven’t been anywhere near our levels. But you can never give up.

“We have to believe that the honesty of the group will get us the results and that is what we will keep working towards.”

http://www.footballfancast.com/football-news/liverpool-boss-wont-buy-new-players-in-january-despite-poor-season

Sounds bit confused there to me and certainly, as you highlight, suggests not much will be done in Jan.

“It (buying new players) is not something I am looking at,’ Rodgers said. “

Wouldn't read too much in to that to be honest, Brendan says all sorts of things that don't come true.

We won't be signing Balotelli, Mignolet was bought to provide competition for Reina etc..

He is in the middle of a sh*t storm and I don't think anyone would begrudge him a good win tonight and take some of the pressure off before the weekends game.
As much as we can debate his decisions tactics I really don't like it when the press start sharpening their knives.
The great thing about football is your as good as your next game and tonight would be a great way to start a good run

He is in the middle of a sh*t storm and I don't think anyone would begrudge him a good win tonight and take some of the pressure off before the weekends game.
As much as we can debate his decisions tactics I really don't like it when the press start sharpening their knives.
The great thing about football is your as good as your next game and tonight would be a great way to start a good run

sh*t storm created by himself Walton + he has given the media the ammunition to fire at him.

Should take a leaf out if Kenny's book dealing with the media.

 

He's hardly going to say "Roll on January so I can replace some of these sh!thouses" is he? Equally, he probably hasn't been told if there's any money available yet. Obviously, he hasn't been told that he'll be here even if there is, so he'd make himself look a bit of a plonker if he started going on about players.

I don't think he sounds "confused" at all BTW, I actually think the opposite. It's high time stopped getting technical and started talking about passion, pride, desire, will etc. I've a hunch that tonight's team selection will see a return to those values.

Wouldn't read too much in to that to be honest, Brendan says all sorts of things that don't come true.

We won't be signing Balotelli, Mignolet was bought to provide competition for Reina etc..

That's true mate, don't call him a bullshitter though or you might upset the sensitive

He's hardly going to say "Roll on January so I can replace some of these sh!thouses" is he? Equally, he probably hasn't been told if there's any money available yet. Obviously, he hasn't been told that he'll be here even if there is, so he'd make himself look a bit of a plonker if he started going on about players.

I don't think he sounds "confused" at all BTW, I actually think the opposite. It's high time stopped getting technical and started talking about passion, pride, desire, will etc. I've a hunch that tonight's team selection will see a return to those values.

Just excuses Mick.

"On the one hand we need to make the training ground a happy place."(psychological difference)
"On the other we don't have time to work on psychology, we have to get back to playing our level." (physical difference)

He doesn't know how to designate his time or his players time effectively.

"After the weekend the focus was not to dwell on it."
"We must learn from the weekend."

"Losing can be the making of you."
"We've lost more than we would like."

So losing isn't the making of us at all! Let's stop the experiment of losing to try and make us and try the other, more tested and true strategy of winning.

As for "tonight's team selection will see a return to those values....", just sounds again like a ready made excuse. Why wait until tonight to change things, things will change tonight, if they do, because he's running out of ideas Mick and no other reason. They should have changed long before now.

He is in the middle of a sh*t storm and I don't think anyone would begrudge him a good win tonight and take some of the pressure off before the weekends game.
As much as we can debate his decisions tactics I really don't like it when the press start sharpening their knives.
The great thing about football is your as good as your next game and tonight would be a great way to start a good run

 

Can't believe you've said that with a straight face re 'the press sharpening their knives'. The White Ants are out now in full force eating away from within and in some quarters have been far worse than the media.

In times like these EVERYONE has to stick together and stop laying the blame. Shame on people turning on Brendan as if he is not under enough pressure, great idea for the "fans" to add to it! Get behind the f**king manager, get behind the f**king team and stop f**king crying.

You'll probably find some weren't behind the manager from the get go mate, due to Kenny's departure and instead have waited patiently while biting their lip last season for a cropper to come up like this.

Rodgers is making a lot of mistakes this season, between team selection, tactics and Summer signing that don't fit. He doesn't appear to be learning from his mistakes and he needs to wake up starting tonight!

I said it earlier mick that no one at the club works in a vacuum.
There are things that happen that can have knock on effects.
For me, blaming the manager, the owners or a particular player is the lazy option, because everyone contributes in one way or another.
For me it's a modern phenomenon which has come about with first the rise of the management class, particularly in public services, and from there spread to politicians.
Pointing the finger and looking for someone to blame solves nothing, and actually creates more problems.
Personally, I thought it was brave of BR to take it on the chin after sundays match. He knew what was coming and sought to protect his players, so fair play to him for that.
At least the forum poll showed that the majority are firmly behind the manager, although no doubt one or two are also clutching knives.
Continuity is important, and the end of the season is the time for post mortems, should the owners decide it is necessary.

Yep, can't say I disagree with a word of that. Changing a manager mid season (unless you're in danger of relegation and want a quick fix) is bonkers IMHO. Even for those who hanker after an alternative manager with particular preference to who it is it's bonkers, as nine times out of ten the bloke they want isn't available mid season anyhow.

"Losing can be the making of you."
"We've lost more than we would like."

I liked them ones
If you went through quotes from Wenger, LVG etc, reckon you'd find whoppers too.
Manager's don't half talk sh*te to the media a lot of the time.

You'll probably find some weren't behind the manager from the get go mate, due to Kenny's departure and instead have waited patiently while biting their lip last season for a cropper to come up like this.

They didn't wait patiently at all - even when we were doing well they were finding things to criticise about his appearance or the fact he had a "dossier" or the way he interacted with the media.

Just excuses Mick.

"On the one hand we need to make the training ground a happy place."(psychological difference)
"On the other we don't have time to work on psychology, we have to get back to playing our level." (physical difference)

He doesn't know how to designate his time or his players time effectively.

"After the weekend the focus was not to dwell on it."
"We must learn from the weekend."

"Losing can be the making of you."
"We've lost more than we would like."

So losing isn't the making of us at all! Let's stop the experiment of losing to try and make us and try the other, more tested and true strategy of winning.

As for "tonight's team selection will see a return to those values....", just sounds again like a ready made excuse. Why wait until tonight to change things, things will change tonight, if they do, because he's running out of ideas Mick and no other reason. They should have changed long before now.

Unsurprisingly mate I don't agree with any of what you say really. Neither do I agree with "excuses" being thrown in. I'll deal with that in a sec', but first of all the "contradictions" and "confusion".

"After the weekend the focus was not to dwell on it" but to "learn from our mistakes". I agree with both statements. We will have learnt from the weekend (or I hope we have anyway) that unless you compete, battle, work and scrap at least as hard as the other team, you will lose lots of football matches. We will have learnt that if you allow your head to drop, you will lose lots of football matches. That doesn't mean we have to stay in the doldrums though and get on the happy pills, it means we have it out there and then in the dressing room and move on. If I'm p!ssed off with someone at work I let them know in no uncertain terms, but then it's done and forgotten about. Just don't f*cking do it again is the most important message. S@int I think it was said that before the dawn is the darkest moment (or something like that, he likes his wordy quotes  ) and I think/hope that may the case here. To my mind for too long this season we've hidden behind the "I can't fault the players" bollocks or some technical angle, when in actual fact it's often simple workrate and will to win which has let us down. Get that right tonight has to be the aim and the message.

As for "losing can be the making of you" and "we've lost more than we like", lets look at that. The second bit surely nobody can argue with, because we have. The other part though is an attempt to see some positive in a pretty bleak situation, and to an extent I agree with him. Losing ought to hurt, a lot, and should make your desire to avoid it happening again even greater. I don't think there's too much to see here really, this is probably just another attempt to find an issue in something harmless mate if I'm honest.

As for "excuses", I don't think Brendan made any when he said "as the manager it's my responsibility". I think it was the opposite of him making excuses. I don't make excuses either. In terms of us winning the league this season or next we signed the wrong players. In terms of us being higher up the league this season we have played the wrong players too often, and IMHO played the wrong tactics. Who's fault is that? Lots of peoples, but definitely Brendan is chief amongst them. Why don't I want to get rid then (or criticise his choice of breakfast cereal if I haven't got the bollocks to admit it)? Because I've seen what a great job he CAN do, I can remember six months ago. I also remember that in the two and a half seasons he's been here we've been a really good side for 70% of that. I think we will be again under him, AND I don't think you should change a manager mid season OR give the w@nkers in the press any ammunition.

Brendan Rodgers hits back at criticism of ‘weak’ Liverpool

Brendan Rodgers has countered Jamie Carragher’s withering criticism of Liverpool by insisting his team does possess character and will prove it when attempting to preserve their Champions League status against Ludogorets.

Liverpool visit the Bulgarian champions on the back of four successive defeats and requiring a first win in four Champions League games to keep qualification in their own hands. Lucas Leiva and Kolo Touré, two players who impressed at Real Madrid only to return to the bench for the following Premier League game against Chelsea, are expected to return to the starting lineup in Sofia with Rickie Lambert leading the attack in the absence of the injured pair Mario Balotelli and Daniel Sturridge.

Sunday’s 3-1 defeat at Crystal Palace prompted condemnation from former Liverpool vice-captain turned Sky television pundit Carragher, who described the performance as the latest example of Rodgers’ men being bullied, weak and showing no leadership on the pitch this season.

The Liverpool manager, however, said: “We hear criticism of the team but this team has character, it showed it last season. It has shown it’s got resilience. Okay, we concede more than we would like at times but you can’t question the character. That can’t be criticised. We have players who’ve shown they have spirit but when you don’t get victories it affects confidence and you don’t perform quite as good. My job is to keep instilling that confidence.”

On the specific point of being bullied at Palace, Rodgers added: “It’s a comment that’s been made of course. It’s something that happens when you’re paid to be critics, well not critics, but to assess the team. When you lose games what I’ve learnt is that people will say they want and that’s what comes. Whether criticism is deserved or not you won’t like it but you just have to ignore it. I have a team full of characters, of fully committed people and hopefully that’s something that will improve. We have to stand up and show that we can get a result and tough it out, and that’s what we will definitely do.”

Rodgers has long advocated style over substance at Liverpool but admits the result is all that matters against Ludogorets as the team fights to remain in the Champions League. “I think that has been the case for a number of weeks now,” he admitted. “The philosophy is important and we know how we want to work but you need to get results. We would take a scrappy win. Listen, you can’t play perfect football. It is going to be tough here. We want to get a result.”

Liverpool have lost their last three Champions League games and have never suffered four consecutive European defeats in the same season. By contrast, Georgi Dermendzhiev’s side sit second in the Bulgarian league and have won nine of 13 fixtures on home soil this term, not that they will have the true comforts of home with their Champions League games switched to the capital’s Vasil Levski Stadium.

Rodgers’ team required a 93rd-minute penalty from Steven Gerrard to overcome Ludogorets in the opening game in Group B but the captain’s role is again under scrutiny following a poor display at Selhurst Park on Sunday and Carragher’s subsequent comments about a lack of leadership.

However, the Liverpool manager, who may switch Gerrard to a more offensive position against the Bulgarians with Lucas in the holding role, has issued a staunch defence of the team’s figurehead. “It’s simple, I judge Steven on merit,” said Rodgers. “The spotlight he is under is incredible. I think people expect him to be the player he was 10 years ago and that is simply not the case.

“He has been adapted to a playmaking role, so the player who scored 15 goals a season is not there anymore but it is hugely unfair that he gets judged on that level.

“He is the best player I have ever worked with in terms of football mentality and the loyalty he has shown this football club. I have shown in my time I do not deal on sentiment. I do not pick him on sentiment.

“He is in at 8.30am every day to prepare for training. I judge him on that and the influence on other players. Of course he is coming to the latter part of his career but he is still invaluable to me. It’s an easy situation to manage because he is a top-class player who accepts what is best for Liverpool. He is a unique case at a time when modern football is very much about the player’s interests in that every decision he makes is in the interests of Liverpool. He can still contribute at a high level and it is my job to manage how that is.”

http://www.theguardian.com/football/2014/nov/25/brendan-rodgers-liverpool-champions-league-ludogorets?CMP=twt_gu