Houllier arrived here with a cv. Won trophies. Rafa came with a cv ... 2 spanish titles overturning barca and madrid. Won trophies. Klopp came with a cv ... 2 german titles and a cl final. Up until this year nobody had won outside munich since klopp. Klopp won the lot.
Hodgson ... no real cv to manage us. Failed. Rodgers had no cv to manage us and failed.
Houllier had done practically bugger all as a manager before coming here other than earning a couple of promotions (similar to Rodgers) and winning one League Title with PSG over ten years before becoming our manager.
He had a terrible time as the French national manager as well. Even failing to qualify for the 94 World Cup under his time there. He did alright the French youth team when the likes of Henry, Anelka and Trezeguet were up top and then he arrived here. And then was part of the national team again as they won the 98 World Cup but he wasn't the manager.
But he got the club very quickly. Having spent time here as a student probably helped there.
Hodgson, on the other hand, had won trophies at various clubs - though all long before he joined us. But he didn't get the club at all. Saying Old Trafford creates as good an atmopshere as Anfield in his very first press confernece probably didn't get him off to a good start. He was also replacing somebody that a lot of fans didn't want to see leave - that's something our next manager doesn't have to face because although we don't want Jürgen to go, it's his choice that he is leaving rather than him being sacked like Rafa.
And speaking of Rafa, his managerial CV wasn't one that was glittering up until his Valencia days. It was a fairly average record. His time at Valencia was remarkable, similar to Jürgen's time at Dortmund and that was what attracted the club to him but he got the club almost instantly.
Souness is another who turned up on the back of being successful at his previous club (actually won more League Titles than either Rafa or Jürgen albeit in a lesser league) but despite playing for us for years, he didn't seem to get the club as a manager. Was he the right man for the job at the time, having had success with Rangers and being a former Liverpool captain? He probably was. But it didn't work out for him.
Which just kind of backs up my point. If the manager gets the club, regardless of what they've done previously, then they have a much better chance of success.
And it may not be the 60s or 70s or 80s anymore, it doesn't change the type of person who fits the club. A passionate person who understands what the people of Liverpool want. We don't want flash harry who are full of front and bullshit, we want somebody is honest with us, somebody is prepared to take on anybody who is against us and above all else somebody who shows us the respect we will show them.
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