Liverpool Banter Archive May 11 2015

11 May 2015 21:14:24
Watching the arsenal-Swansea game and can I just say what an amazing job Gary Monk has done for Swansea! What's your take on him as a manager Ed001?

{Ed001's Note - too early to judge him yet. He has a very stable and well run club there, we will only find out how good he is when they go through a difficult spell.}

11 May 2015 22:15:10
I really like Monk (not so much for us or anything, mind), but simply because the club took a chance on a player and it seems to be working out. Would be nice to see more of that sort of thing in the future.

12 May 2015 06:36:42
RDL, i'm assuming your alluding to Carragher or Gerrard taking over managing Liverpool without any previous experience managing anything?

12 May 2015 09:15:13
The man who must take all the credit is Hugh Jenkins. When hardly anyone had heard of Swansea he made an unproven Martinez manager followed by Rogers then Laudrop and now Monk. Seems he can see something that others can't

12 May 2015 09:33:12
Hard to tell as they are not expected to win every match they play and he won't get scrutinised for losing to Hull, etc.

He's doing well, especially as he lost Bony and I think Gomis is poor, but he has them 8th in the league and the only team they are ahead of who you would have expected they would finish behind is Everton.

12 May 2015 14:40:55
Not at all Brisbane. I just meant in general it's nice to see a player manager given a chance and it's even nicer that it seems to have worked out well. Personally I can't see Gerrard as a manager ever as, for me, he has the wrong sort of temperament for the job. Carra I think could perhaps be a good manager some day though, if he wanted it which it appears he doesn't.

12 May 2015 18:18:12
You don`t just become a manager after playing. it must be something you are very willing to do so. Monk was captain of Swansea hence, had the respect of the players he is currently managing which is one of the reasons he`s doing well and hopefully, he will go on to manage a bigger club because he is not only talented but hast the respect and admirationn of other managers, fans and pundits.

11 May 2015 21:58:51
I read that BaloteIIi is making no decision over his future at LFC because his agent has been informed that Rogers may not be there next season. Any truth in this Eds?

{Ed002's Note - No.}

11 May 2015 20:10:13
Just a post for banter. I know a lot of people on here are calling for Rodgers head, but are we not just being fickle and very impatient ?

Sure he is terrible in the press sometimes, he can be too pig headed at the beginning of the season with the formation he wants us to play, a few transfer disasters etc. but he's a young guy. I've heard people say on other sites they think he's one of the best young managers in Europe.

Perhaps time it what he needs, to grow as a manager. Don't forget how fergie started his Utd career and he's had some shocking transfer blunders (veron, letting pogba go for nothing etc).

I think we maybe being a bit hasty here. At the end of last season I thought our most important signing was to get Rodgers into a new contract

The guy certainly can develop players and I personally just think he needs time and to be given a bit of slack.

11 May 2015 20:18:21
3 years in todays game is not impatient Tom. its a lifetime

11 May 2015 20:29:50
A lifetime for those who want everything now without looking at the bigger picture Steph.

Red Rum

11 May 2015 20:35:45
Rodgers has made us finish as high as a guy who broke the La Liga strong hold of Barca and Real Madrid (Benitez) and as high as a very experienced French manager (Houllier).

We had over achieved last season when many hoped at the start of the season for a 4th place finish we got 2nd and this time around we've seemingly got 5th place in an extremely competitive league where money isn't our endless resource.

It's really painful in a footballing sense and frustrating but with the lack of goals this season it was an on going struggle. Rodgers seemingly fixed the rot with a formation change but I think it was always catch up between us and Man United for 4th.

If Rodgers stays then I say be supportive and as a collective support the club, if he goes we will have to be patient with whoever the new manager is when/if they come in. So either way I'll be understanding.

11 May 2015 20:44:01
I would only boot BR for not having the aura to attract big name players.
This is what Liverpool needs, a commanding figure and Rodgers still has a long way to prove this. In case Klopp was even thinking a little bit to come to us we should go all in for him. Other than that I would probably go for Rafa. The third choice is BR as there is no other manager available who I see taking us forward.
All of you who want him gone please suggest another coach who will take us forward.

11 May 2015 20:44:16
I do hear you mate, I'm as frustrated by this season as every other fan but sometimes wonder if we are expecting too much too soon.

It took fergue to his 7th season at Utd to win the league. 1st season they were 11th, then 2nd, then 11th again, then 13th, then 6th, then 2nd and then 1st. In the third season he was very nearly sacked for underperformance after finishing 2nd the season before . Sound familiar ??

He also chucked money at players to get back to the top with a few misses along the way.

Hate to use fergie as some kind of inspiration as I hate the guy, but u can't doubt what he achieved when given time and support from the club (albeit it nearly sacked once)

I do think we need stability at the club and another change of manager would be a step backwards.

11 May 2015 20:50:17
I would agree with you Red-Rum if there if there was an improvement over the course of 3 years. I simply do not see any

11 May 2015 20:54:07
3 years.

year one - had to completely change the way the team played and get rid of a lot of duds.

year two - give us the ride of our lives and went within a whisker of doing the impossible, in style.

year three - had to rethink the whole thing after a poor start and loss of a 50 odd goal partnership. Will finished where most independant observers would have expected us to.

Do people think we should win just because we are Lfc, we don`t have the quality of players the top 4 have, and last year when we had, we nearly won it ?

11 May 2015 20:53:28
Personally i don't care what Rodgers comes out with in his press conference and neither did any other poster until ed002 highlighted his "foot in mouth syndrome" and everyone jumped on the bandwagon. that's their choice I guess. I do think that what his team does on the pitch is another different matter. We should have been in the top 4 this season at the expense of Utd. For that there is no excuse. Suarez was sold, he spent the cash and cocked it up. He has to go, but who takes over? I honestly can't suggest one manager that it is possible for Liverpool to get that will make the difference. That is FSG's job and their advisors. They only need to get one thing right and the rest falls into place.

11 May 2015 21:01:59
No red rum we can all see the big picture mate in three seasons we have not had one full good season we have had two part seasons were played well then blew it and his signings have been poor to say the least Lambert to play in a side that's counter attacking team just never made sense Allen Borini Baloteli my word they are just not good enough to wear LFC shit and am afraid Rogers no good enough to manage LFC he is no fergie and that's a fact

11 May 2015 21:05:56
Fergie got very lucky with the crop of you he had scholes gigs becks ect from the youth team

Ibe sterling sinclair flanno I see some resembles

11 May 2015 21:06:08
Begball makes a fair point, I just hope a decision is made early in the summer so we can plan for the new season.

11 May 2015 21:03:20
What do u think ed1 mate please if your about. I know you've been a big advocate for getting shot

I think if given time and it pays off we will have a great manager for many years. Wouldn't go as far as saying for life as I know of his desire to go to Spain at some point

{Ed001's Note - he has taken the club backwards, why give him more time? So he can completely destroy it? He is not and never will be a manager, he is out of his depth, completely and utterly out of his depth. He has had 3 years and has shown no progress whatsoever. He is not strong enough, not smart enough and is too indecisive. When everyone can see a way of playing is failing miserably, he insists on persisting with it for far too long. He is too busy spouting meaningless mumbo jumbo to boost the player's confidence, instead of actually analysing the performance properly. It is all very well being positive, but if you are so busy being positive you aren't spotting the negatives then those negatives will persist and get worse. He doesn't spot the negatives until after everyone else is screaming about them, that is not good enough. A manager should spot them before they become a problem and work on negating them before the opposition can target them. Instead we have a man who just carries on with the same thing week after week, long after it has become ineffective.}

11 May 2015 21:35:42
The only one I see being fickle (i.e. statements/opinions that change frequently) is Rodgers who before the season started said he expected us to challenge for the title, in January said we were never going to challenge for the title but were going to fight for top 4 and then a few weeks back said we were never expected to get top 4.

Granted what managers say to the press is generally pointless drivel, but it's harsh to call fans fickle when the manager changes his tune constantly based upon circumstances. As for impatient, 3 years seems plenty of time to have an informed opinion.

11 May 2015 23:34:19
We are not fickle nor negative. Many of us just refuse to buy his BS and media Mumbai jumbo as theEd put it in the media. I don't care what I am told. Why? because I have my own eyes to see what is going on and make dorm an opinion based on that. It's called the Eye Test in American sports. If what you are saying does not mesh with what I am seeing, then you have failed the Eye Test. BR does not pass that test because he talks a whole lot of rubbish and drivel in the media about how nothing is ever his fault, Suarez left and Studge was injured (like he did not know these events would happen), buys a whole bunch of players we don't need and plays them out of position and complains they are not good enuff. Then he trashes the owners for not providing cash for star players yet he doesn't or can't buy them when they provide said cash. Utter Rubbish! He's had three years and still nothing but deflection and buck passing with no trophies and 215m wasted. How long do you want him to get as the Ed asked? Till we go broke or into administration? He has failed and needs to go. If I had another three years and 80m to give a manager next season, it should certainly NOT be given to this guy.

11 May 2015 22:39:56
Thanks Ed, of course I respect your opinion and hope you only see this as a healthy debate .

But I come back to my point about him being an inexperienced manager but a good coach. I thought we progressed remarkably well last season when we finished 2nd. Yes we were terrible defensively but we were something else going forwards , so exciting to watch. A big step forward from the previous 3 / 4 seasons.

We certainly have gone backwards this season but a lot of that has got to do with Suarez leaving and Sturridge being injured. Without a doubt he blew the money we had to spend in the short term (I say short term as I have hope for Lallana & markovic in the longer term). But how much of that was entirely his fault ?

Would he not learn from these mistakes and mature as a manager because of it ?

I can honesty see both sides of the argument but come back to a very good point made earlier by someone else . Who else could we get that would be an improvement ?? Sorry but I certainly don't agree with Benitez being our saviour !

{Ed001's Note - the manager had money to spend and chose to waste it, so there can be no excuses regarding no Studger and Suarez. He chose to scrap the deal for Remy, dithered on Bony and other players, and then tried to force Borini out of the club when he wanted to fight for his place. He was the one that was so desperate for Origi, even though he knew any deal would be contingent on him staying on loan this season. Sorry but the Suarez and Sturridge stuff is an excuse for his ineptitude in the market. When you spend over £100m in one window and you still can't sort the team out, then you should be sacked.

What sign has he shown that he is learning anything? Everything I see shows that he is making more mistakes, that he is getting worse rather than better.

An improvement would be any manager who does not waste money on a huge amount of players when we only needed 3 or 4. A manager who targets players for the positions we have gaps in, rather than signing players for the positions we were already overloaded in. Any manager who can't find a centre back pairing from 10 centre backs that works, to the point where you end up putting in a midfielder has a problem. A manager that sends out a right back on loan, flogs another one on the cheap and has to then sign a far worse one on loan for a significant fee has no sense whatsoever. And don't get me started on alienating players that want to play for us, while persisting in making inane idiotic comments about a lazy useless player that he then keeps throwing on the pitch with no plan about how to use him.

Sorry but Rodgers has shown no tactical awareness, no sense of any kind of forward planning, no ability to manage the staff at his disposal and no sign of learning from his innumerable mistakes. It is time to look elsewhere, to someone who can actually formulate a plan and act on it, but with the sense to know when it is time to change it, rather than persisting well after it is obvious that other teams have worked it out.}

12 May 2015 04:14:52
Im not that great at articulating what i think, but Edd, you must have been in my brain because your last 2 posts are truly spot on!
This buy is taking our club no where. There would have to be atleast 10 times in the last 3 years where he has said something stupid where he shouls have been sacked on the spot! All the supposed dead wood players that were at the club when he took over have been replaced with worse dead wood ten fold. When he first took over, he stated that he should only be judged on his team when he brings in HIS OWN PLAYERS. Well. Be judged you are now buddy. The tipping point has been and gone. Get rid!

12 May 2015 07:20:44
I don't think we've gone backwards in 3 years. We've improved without doubt.

{Ed001's Note - in what way? Do we have a better squad with more balance? If so why are so many players having to play out of position each week? Are we playing better football? If so why are we so woefully poor in almost every game this season, at times it is like we have Hodgson back in charge some of the dross being served. Are we going to win any trophies? In what way have we improved? Other than in keeping Sly in soundbites from the manager....}

12 May 2015 08:15:35
But no one was saying any of this at the end of last season, that's what I mean by being fickle

I still come back to, yes I agree he has flaws, but who is available that is any better ? The only guy I would want is klopp

I just don't want another season of 'transition'. I believe Rodgers should get one more season. I believe him when he said that this season will make him a better manager

12 May 2015 08:44:42
I hope FSG have picked up on the same things you have said Ed001.

12 May 2015 18:36:17
Those referring to last season (or at least the 2nd half of it) as to why we should keep BR is the very reason people at other clubs belittle us and our club as constantly living in the past in order to justify today`s acceptance of failure and mediocrity. BR is a failure and needs to go.

11 May 2015 19:54:55
So Rodgers reads a letter from the players mums to everyone before a big game. Genius, or crazy?

11 May 2015 20:06:25
Well considering we've ballsed up every "big" game this year I'd say crazy. Or just an idiot!

11 May 2015 20:55:30
That was last season was it not?

11 May 2015 20:58:35
well it was last season which got us on the 11 win streak. think a bit before you type

{Ed002's Note - You might want to google "flake".}

11 May 2015 21:32:30
Kanasani I don't see that a put when he did this, and I won't get drawn into a slanging match, as a great man once said " a conversation with you will only lower my IQ"

11 May 2015 19:51:10
I believe Rodgers cannot attract top quality signings, players want to play for good managers and many top players do not rate him.
For me, for where liverpool are, we need a quality proven manager. Brendan would be good taking over from a manager who left Liverpool as a great team (Fergi leaving United)
So with that in mind, I have to look at experienced managers who would be available in the summer and atleast enquire of the possibility of their service if I was the Owner of LFC. I would atleast approach Klopp for example and simply ask what he would think of becoming Liverpool manager, there's no harm in enquiring. We should always look to improve, if that's the manager, the players, the stadium, if you can improve it we should and if Klopp would come, call a taxi for Brendan because it's a no brainier if he was up for being manager of LFC. It's obvious he could attract better and sign better players, which are team desperately needs. Imagine Klopp with 100m, the players he would sign. Do a better job than Brendan for sure?

11 May 2015 22:12:39
Klopp would attract players. But how would he get on with no money, no goal scorer and no world class player? We are in a hell of a worse state than Dortmund

11 May 2015 23:50:08
Dortmund was in a crap hole compared to us and you can google that to find out. We have a better squad than them and better owners at that time. We will have some money to spend, not much, but some and if the owners are going to sanction a budget for any manager, it should be to a new one because the incumbent has overstayed his welcome, failed miserably and needs to go because he can't attract top players because he has never worked with any bar Suarez and Gerrard who were there before he came.

11 May 2015 19:09:43
Its proved now that we were interested in Depay despite Bodgers press conference.

Top players are attracted by

1 A top club playing in the CL.

2 Top wages paid for by playing in CL

3 A top ex player/coach/manager who has played or managed in the CL

With Stevie leaving its obvious where that leaves us. Signing 2nd tier players or gambling in youth.
Hoping our Top coach can turn these into CL players

Our club which I have supported for 40 years is finished as a European force.

Its sad but ttrue

11 May 2015 19:42:32
Im sure you will agree then, that since tge 90's we have bought second tier players and made them world class, how many championships has rafa and houllier won as players?

Whats needed is the right people in the right place working to the right system which everyone buys into not, di marias and falcoas on massive wages.

11 May 2015 19:50:07
It's not a gamble in academy talent!! Maybe check out our u21s sometime, some excellent players!

11 May 2015 21:03:24
Some excellent players in attacking positions sure, Ojo,Kent,Wilson,Brannagan,Sinclair.

In defence not so much. 2 games in a row they have conceded 4 times. Today they were 3-0 up at halftime. I think we over estimate our academy a wee bit

11 May 2015 18:50:18
So the eds get more grief today!

Lads we are very fortunate to get real inside information which we should be grateful for.

For years I've been coming onto this website and 99% of the time anything that is happening at our club is found on here before anywhere else.

The eds are kind enough to share with us this information, you may not like it and it may not happen in the end but nevertheless they share with us.

So please lads if you don't like what you are told then go and read the papers instead, otherwise its going to be a long summer.

11 May 2015 23:55:06
If you're going to come to this sight and insult the Eds then don't bother showing up here, period.

11 May 2015 17:45:58
I don't usually do the he is not good enough for us malarkey, but I fail to see the reasoning behind the potential signing of Ings. We have borini, lambert, origi, balotelli and sturridge on the books not to mention a couple of real prospects in the reserves. Surely we either consolidate and sell off who we don't need or want and buy a real quality striker. The likes of jackson martinez is available and coming to the end of his contract, surely he is a higher quality option if Rodgers just wants to fill the team with surplus strikers.

I really despair at lfc transfer policy, its supposed to be looking at the long term future of the club, but without the success on field NOW what kind of future will it be. Mid table mediocrity?

11 May 2015 17:39:29
I can't believe there are people on this site still asking about players coming in!
1st we have to sell players to make way and then we have to wait and see if Rodgers will still be with us next season. Not to mention we will not be playing champions league football so that in itself eliminates allot of options. let's take the cases of Higuain and Benzema, although they may well be available I can only see them joining us as a last option.

11 May 2015 18:51:19
Why would we not be asking? The current crop hasn't cut it. No one has denied that we need to sell to buy, but there needs to be change so we can actually win something, rather than qualifying for the champions league and then being knocked out with nothing to shout about apart from a home draw to a champions league debutant.

11 May 2015 20:17:23
The need for change should be the manager or the way we go about our transfer dealings. Until that happens I don't see how players coming in will change much, especially when players who can make an immediate impact are right now pretty much out of reach

11 May 2015 20:19:19
The double edged sword to your point of view though Steph1, is that If the club were to wait too long for exits then other teams at home and abroad will be tempting the clubs targets elsewhere.

I don't think our generous owners (and no mistake our owners have been very kind with finances) will splash over the top this summer, especially not like the last one where we sold a huge commodity and tried to strengthen all over the pitch.

I think players in Ings and Milner's position for example seem like very attractive targets because of their contract situations.

We have a fair few players who's contracts are coming to an end and also we will try and sell a few who are not seen as the long term successful attractions that maybe the club had hoped for upon their signing.

So maybe it's getting the right balance of timing and finances. But I do appreciate the point you raised.

11 May 2015 20:43:12
thanks Ollie. Altough Ings and Milner would be welcome additions if they happen, I'm afraid though that we are going to have to wait for the likes of Benzema or Higuain, simply because we don't have the cash to spend. I agree about the balance you are mentioning but I believe it is only achievable with the right manager who will bring success on the field

11 May 2015 16:19:56
I think we can get the jist of what the editors know and what can be sensibly answered at this stage. When asked before about Rodgers, that will be totally dependent on how they club re-evaluate their on field strategy come the summer, and one cannot simply expect anything to happen until then. Klopp, De Boer, Alan Curbishley or whoever your tickle may be, let's put it to one side for the summer. The same goes with players, sure they get scouted but officially no business will be conducted until June. Maybe instead, we can gauge what everyone's preferred option as a coach would be and what they could bring to the table, instead of the tedious on-going questions of chances from 1-10 etc. The same goes for players, Ed002 has kindly done a detailed overview on players Liverpool have shown varying degrees of interest in and the players simply made up on Twitter with a fancy last name and a Milli Vanilli haircut. let's try and avoid asking the Ed's silly and obvious questions and maybe bring back the old fashioned debates amongst fans. In my job, I personally see my arse when I get asked things all the time, I tell my staff to use their common sense and work things out for themselves.

11 May 2015 16:42:19
Don't disagree with that really, but if Utd can announce a £30m deal for Depay why do we have to wait until June?

11 May 2015 17:05:11
Because we have ffp issues meaning after June we can spend what we've sold

{Ed002's Note - That is not really how it works.}

11 May 2015 18:23:23
Based on my knowledge, which I do not claim is 100% correct, I don't believe what you have said holds true.

If we sign any player, we will acquire them as an asset rather than an expense.

So on an accruals basis, the amortisation of said player will be over the length of his contract, which regardless of whether we agree a deal now or in June (ie post year end), will not come into play until the initiation of any contract a player may sign.

11 May 2015 18:35:15
I thought the window opened in July?

11 May 2015 14:57:41
Ed002 I don't really see the reason in the arsey response to my previous question of Kevin prince and Sidney Sam being released. It was a genuine question and I didn't see the need in with your response. This page is there for fans to ask questions like this as you and the other editors are in the "Know" so when a fan asks a real question about a real situation I don't expect to have a response like that

{Ed002's Note - You may want to think again about why the page is here. Liverpool do not have a team of transfer negotiators roaming Europe to pounce on any random players who may become available in the summer. These players have been released for the rest of this season (2 games) rather than from their contracts at this time. In the summer there will be discussions between the club and the player representatives over their being sold or released completely from the contracts that they have with the club. I cannot believe how naively people are over transfers - complaining about what Rodgers has done and then craving a knee jerk reaction by the club to every player who might be available.}

11 May 2015 16:40:35
These players have been 'sacked' why would you want them to come to us?

{Ed002's Note - Not quite. I think it lost a little in translation.}

11 May 2015 17:10:40
If hey were even suspended for the rest of the season as it seems to be the case, why would we want them? Boating is an arrogant brat who is worse than Balo so why would we replace a nut job with a bigger one?

11 May 2015 18:12:57
The word desperation springs to mind regarding fans wanting these 2 players.

Red Rum

12 May 2015 00:01:36
True that, Rum!

11 May 2015 14:11:09
I can't reply in the original thread (the one about Higuain and Benzema) so I'll post this here. I don't view Higuain and Benzema as unrealistic at all because in all probability, they'll be available. Firstly, Napoli might not make CL, so it is not impossible to imagine Higuain moving on from Napoli. Also, if I remember right, there's a post on the Real page which said that Benzema would/could be made available to raise funds or something like that. So they are certainly not unrealistic targets (I'm sure you can back me up to some extent here Ed002).

Furthermore, Lacazette coming to Liverpool is unrealistic, and you'll know why if you went through the posts and the info that Ed002 has repeatedly given us on Lacazette's situation.

That was my rationale for the post on the strikers.

11 May 2015 16:10:39
Benzema has said we are not big enough for him and if Higuain was made available by Napoli there would be many other clubs that would consider him. And he would cost alot, he cost Napoli a lot and their owner will want a lot of money on top of that me thinks! Ings & maybe Heung Min!

11 May 2015 13:08:58
Eds any chance of Sidney Sam or Kevin Prince Boateng. or insight into that situation at Schalke! Crazy stuff both players seemed to have a lot of quality at one point.

{Ed002's Note - it is going to be a really long summer if I am going to be asked this nonsense.}

11 May 2015 19:28:17
Ed any chance of some deadwood as we haven't got as much money as everyone else and the referees are all against us. Sack Rodgers!

11 May 2015 11:01:24
A lot of people saying Rodgers isn't getting long term if he's sacked now. Long term in this business means three years. I think that's pretty long term with the results we are getting and the amount that was spent.

I honestly want to know why we didn't try to get (not saying we would have but a bid would have been nice) fabregas. He cost the same amount as lallana who hasn't workd out and don't know if he ever will.

And again why we never tired for bony who would have cost almost same as ballo (who everyone knew was a wreck)

And let's not even start on the fact that we sold agger and bought lovern

Arsene wenger was right second season running but no one is willing to learn from what he says. You buy to many players and you ruin the balance of the team. We needed 4 to 5 players and fill the gap with you set up.

List of player we bought that for one reason or another did not play in first team or did not look like they should be in first team:

Balloteli
Lovern
Markovic (20 million seriously?)
Manquillo
Lambert

This is about 70 million of spending?

I used to be a fan of rodgers and was patient and he seemed to be turning it round after christmas but it looks like he has lost the dressing room and is short of idea.

Rodegrs out for me.

11 May 2015 11:37:52
Don't think we needed Fabregas. I'm hopefull lallana will come good as he was great a Southampton, same applies for lovren. Manquillo was pointless when we had players of that calibre. Marko looks like we over paid for and we didn't need him as we had Ibe. Given time I'm sure he'll be a great player ( though that may not be with us) balo was high risk but has looked decent as a sub, no doubt bony would have been the better choice though.

11 May 2015 13:29:26
Balotelli was always going to be a gamble, and it haven´t payed off.

Lovren played with 2 great CDM infront of him, and Fonte next to him, which made him look good.

We can´t judge Markovic this season, as he has to adapt to a more physical league meanwhile being played out of position. It doesn´t help that BR keeps subbing him, when he finally shows some glimpses of his capabilities - We didn´t need this signing.

Manquillo hasn´t done anything wrong, but I suspect that BR favours an attacking fullback, a role that Manquillo doesn´t fit, but I would rather play him than Johnson, as Johnson is poor at both defending and attacking. I really hope that either Brendan moves on or Manquillo moves on, because he isn´t progressing.

Lambert doesn´t suit Rodgers plan A, and I would believe that he was bought as a plan B, yet he hasn´t been used against teams that has parked the bus.

All in all, the right players (position wise) weren´t bought, and the players that we needed haven´t been used properly. According to rumours, LFC had known for a year that Suarez would be sold in the summer, yet they weren´t able to get a replacement.

Improvements that are needed:

- Planning transfers - Which positions do we need to fill in, and which player would represent most value? I do believe that a commitee are complicating things at times. A model where a Sporting director and a Coach are agreeing which players will benefit the team would be better than 5-6 people having to comprimise, and choosing a player that in the end isn´t optimal for the team.

- Loaning of academy players - Personally I would like to see them in the first team, but it´s not always possible, and some players need to move on in order to progress. Sheyi, Sinclair, Ibe, Paez etc. have been loaned to clubs where they haven´t been used properly. If they´re loaned to a club where they can develop, then it could save some money in the transfer window.

- Using Academy players in the first team - I have heard Rumours that we are in for Ntep, but why not use Sheyi, Kent or Wilson? They´re free and want to prove themselves.

- Tactically - At the moment Brendan has a system, I don´t know what it is, and it clearly doesn´t work. Obviously he is trying to make his system work, but that is not what suits the players and their strength. eg. players being played out of position.
If Brendan want´s to keep being at the club, then he needs to look at the individual player and their strengths and how these are being used in the best way. Hammering square pegs into round holes will never work, same goes for footballers, Henderson and Can will never be optimal as rightbacks. In other words, he needs to be more diverse in his tactical approach.

- Passion - I think that Suarez (and Gerrard) showed so much winning mentallity and passion which affected the other players, had a huge impact on our performances. Suarez went to FCB, and mentally Gerrards was gone when he signed for Galaxy. Next season we will be left with Brendan, taking notes throughout the game, or use the "tighten up" gesture. Carragher is LFC through and through, and he knows the importance of LFC, and I think he would instill a winning mentallity into the players mind. He has also helped the academy players and newcomers, giving them advice on certain issues. I´m not saying he should be manager or a player, but he would bring something useful to the club. Having him at the sideline yelling his lungs out would be more inspiring than Rodgers taking notes.

11 May 2015 13:44:55
I think the club would have first decided if fabregas would be possible, then ask his reps if he would want to come. It's not as simple as chucking a bid in to test the water.

11 May 2015 14:39:53
We DID try to get Bony and Swansea were willing to sell BUT The Politician at Melwood dithered and stopped the deal only to allow the Balo deal to go thru. Ed01 provided this information months ago hence, if you are looking at who is the reason we are where we are, look to BR because the buck stops with him even tho, he is ever willing to pass it on to every man, woman and child alive. Three years is long term in today's game and if you can't get it done after that, time to go.

11 May 2015 10:30:04
EDs asking your opinion of quality players across top European leagues that are confirmed or highly likely to be relegated.

We have a history of picking up relegated teams better players, like Wright and Saunders from Derby, Cater from Milwall, not sure if Clough joined after Forest were relegated? I'm sure more inbetween then and now, looking like Ings could be the most recent to that list.

Are there any gems you see jumping ship that would make good signings for Liverpool? Without CL football, FFP and signings preferred over academy thought it could be an avenue we revisit?

{Ed002's Note - No.}

11 May 2015 10:49:46
Obviously no idea regarding interest from the club, but Ings, Austin and Trippier are all good players. Green would be a decent back up keeper if B.Jones were to leave.

11 May 2015 11:28:11
you've just had a pop at Rodgers for not giving youngsters a chance and you're saying here that Austin, Ings, Trippier and Green would be good options for us?

Why Austin or Ings when you have Sinclair, and Ibe? Why Trippier when you have McLaughlin and Wisdom? Why Green when you have Ward and Vigouroux?

Thats the problem right there. We are constantly buying average players when we have youngsters capable of doing a similar if not better job. What we need to do is move on the average players we have, bring in some quality to improve the first team and let our youngsters make up the rest of the squad.

Red Rum

11 May 2015 12:22:18
I answered a question Red Rum regarding who from the teams going down could be good signings. I woldn't even bother with a back up keeper now Mingolet has really picked up. However if the club decided we need one, Green would be a cheap option.

Regarding the other 3, Trippier and Austin wouldn't come in as squad players, they'd replace Balotelli and Johnson in the starting line up. Also, I want Wisdom to be used as a centre back anyway and McLaughlin is injury prone so get used to the fact we will be signing a right back if Manquillo and Johnson leave.

Ings would probably only be a back up but you do still need senior squad players. You can't just have 11 players and a youth academy.

I'm not sure why you're trying to paint me as a hipocrite just for answering a question. It's no wonder Eds refuse to answer questions most of the time now.

11 May 2015 13:17:42
I don't see what trippier brings at all

Maybe I;ve been watching the wrong games? He's been ripped apart defensively at times,and caught in posession and up the field,no different to what we have

11 May 2015 14:52:20
EMS, those players you mentioned aren't good enuff, simple. Ings went ten hours without scoring. That won't fly here. Austin was the only guy scoring goals for a team we all knew would go down. His stats mean nothing because he would not last the pressure here. Trippier? No comment. Might as well buy Kelly back and play him at RB. It is decisions or suggestions like that that will keep us in the doldrums for years. If you can't buy who will really improve you, then buy NOBODY.

11 May 2015 17:08:41
None of the four players are good enough

Green is good enough for the bench but not worthy of a salary and Ward/Vigoroux would deserve the spot ahead of purchasing another backup.

RB - we have plenty of right backs the past few years. Either sign a proper top class one or go with our own.

Ings - not good enough to start so why bother. Origi is already coming in so we need someone who is better than Origi/Ings.

Austin - a decent finisher, he can kick the ball very hard and he can head the ball. I would see him as a better fit for West Ham, Stoke, etc. His movement outside of the box and link up play wouldn't be good enough for the level we want to play at. We have to sign players that actually have a chance of being as good as we want to be (challenging for titles).

11 May 2015 07:48:27
Hi Eds,

First time poster from South Africa but avid reader for several years.
Would like to know if Rodgers mandate for this season was to win a trophy and be in the top 4? If so do you think the owners would still keep him around considering non of his set objectives were met?

great site, keep on the good work.

{Ed001's Note - as Ed002 has mentioned numerous times, he made promises to the owners to get them to spend. Those promises included winning the Prem and progressing in Europe. I don't expect him to be our manager next season.}

11 May 2015 08:04:46
Hope you are right Ed001. Brendan had his chance, was given plenty of time to prove he was the right man, but he failed and deserves the sack. If FSG can convince someone like Klopp to take over with a long term project in mind, i'm sure he would at least consider LFC as we have a very young team that will only get better with time and does not require major rebuild.

11 May 2015 08:59:17
For reasons I outlined several weeks ago I cannot see him being sacked (unfortunately). I see a situation where he will be forced to resign instead by having a DoF forced on him whether he wants one or not.

11 May 2015 09:25:16
Indian buzzer 3 seasons won't appeal as long term to head coach Jurgen klopp!

And eds the after a season were we nearly won the title and losing our best player, the owners had no real ambition to reinvest in our squad, Brendan had to convince them! Wow. lol

11 May 2015 09:32:42
Long term project in mind? But isn't that what Rogers said was required. You will give Klopp time for a long term project not Rogers. There is no doubt that a lot of Rogers signings will come good and improve next season, so you want another manager to come in and get all the credit next season

11 May 2015 09:44:27
In the cold light of day and leaving all emotion aside , in my opinion there isn't a cat in hell's chance of Mr Rodgers being our manager next season .

Sometimes people forget that we have hard-nosed , American business men as owners , there is not the remotest chance that they will accept what has happened this season and Brendan knows it .

11 May 2015 12:01:20
3 years is a long time in management. After wenger BR is on of the longest serving current managers in the league. If he had a shoe string budget and was trying to develop youth you could argue he may deserve more time. That's not the case. He's spent over 200 million and yet the team is going backwards. He still doesn't even know his best team and will want to ship out half his current purchases on loan ( like he did last year) so can make room for a new batch of players wiling to be played out of position or sit on the bench.

11 May 2015 12:26:22
Who do you think will be manager Ritters?

Rafa, Fat Sam or Moyes?

11 May 2015 12:22:59
If this is true Ritters, why is he still here? We went out of Europe a while ago, we've been out of the title race longer, now top four is gone. Three opportunities, none taken. Why wait until June?
As ruthless as FSG might be, the cost of sacking and then hiring plus all staff related must be eight figures, I've read it's £10m just to sack him.
Our debt is big already, our summer budget small without CL. Rodgers and his current squad, less the obvious Gerrard, Johnson and maybe Balotelli etc will get them top 6. Knowing what the top four will spend massively and the cost to compete, the possibility of selling up within 2 years (2017 has been mentioned) would you as the owner throw another £10m++ for probably a similar result or stick and save it?

Maybe the EDs would suggest with that in mind what they would do? Would Klopp guarentee any higher then 5th/6th? Would you bet £10m-£20m to find out knowing you might walk away in 18 months? Winning a domestic cup, will that make the club more desirable? cause top four isn't that likely.

11 May 2015 12:40:41
Does anyone actually know what FSG remit was?
Ed01.
Obviously we've regressed somewhat but I can't help but think it's been a systematic failure across the board from top to bottom over a period of time leading to a car crash.
I can't totally blame Rodgers as he's doing his best to how he envisions it, he just falls short in a lot of areas for all his intelligence.
Coaching staff.
Achteburg - why the fuck is he still at the club? Mignolet bird has done a better job
Number two - Pascoe. Ok so we know Rodgers asked Clarke to not jump the gun and leave as he wanted to work with him but it turns out the club forced him and Rodgers then had to go with Pascoe, no doubt he's a nice fella but does he pocess a winning mentality, bit of steal? what's he ever won?
Mike Marsh - Obviously Rodgers wanted to have someone local maybe to relate to the history but all in all it is a naieve choice, he's distinctly average footballer and I can't imagine him inspiring the current crop.

So now we look at the day to day running of the club, I may be wrong here but it looks from an outside point of view it's very relaxed and not that efficient in terms of future planning.
Loans aren't thought through well enough, departures and signing as we know are fucking awful. It's just the way we go about it that worries not the actual player it leads to obtaining or missing out on.

Coming back to Brendan.
Positives :-
Ability to work with kids and embrace their talent whilst installing belief and confidence to try things.
Negatives :-
Naievity - he's failed multiple times here
1. Constantly having to correct himself in terms of what he's said the previous week, it's embarrassing and cringeworthy, makes the club a laughing stock. I'm not sure if it's his own personal ego or just blatant lack of braincells.
2. Has a real nasty tendency to hang players out to dry and not lay the blame at his door when it comes to his ridiculous in game manangement.
Is this just a trait a manager with no experience at big club level ?
Neil

11 May 2015 17:40:56
If a new manager can play the players in their right positions, play a coherent system that we all know works and handles transfers with a clear strategy, that manager is already better than BR so those saying we can't get anyone better are just being as disingenuous as the guy they are defending. Also if you take FSG's silence on BR and his future as a sign that he will be kept then you are fooling yourselves and have not been paying attention to the Eds comments. When we had KK, they fired him at the end of the season BUT had decided to do that SIX months prior to actually sacking him so because they have said nothing about him, does not mean they will not fire his lying and conniving ass. He has had a longterm period of three years and has failed, miserably. How much longer does he want without actually earning it by winning trophies? Till we are in administration? Exactly, he deserves no more time and I would rather we give another manager three years to see what he can do than give this guy another three years to sink us further into the abyss

11 May 2015 00:50:11
Hi Eds. When did you change the Liverpool Banter page to the Liverpool Bashing page????? Thanks for whatever reply I get.

{Ed001's Note - when Rodgers decided playing good, exciting, attacking football that won was no longer necessary.}

11 May 2015 09:29:05
The way we played was not.sustainable for the whole season and it was helped by sturridge & [the other one]

We had no striker, and things the first team.I've seen.for Liverpool without atleast one worldclass player in it.

11 May 2015 09:44:41
Maybe that decision was forced on him. No Sturrige for most of the season, Markovich not playing as expected, Sterling running around like a headless chicken, Lucas out injured again, only now Lovren playing like he did last season Gerrards legs gone, Lallana out injured again etc etc. I for one would give him another season because I don't think we are that far off when the whole squad is fit and we can then play with the intensity that we showed last year

11 May 2015 10:04:50
get over yourself lfc18.

Sturridge, Coutinho, Sterling, Lallana, Henerson are among the best in the league, you just have a completley incompetent manager who is absolutley clueless without a 50 goal strikeforce. FFS chelsea Just won the league without that.

11 May 2015 11:14:19
Coutinho maybe considered among the best if he produces more consistently but the others mentioned there will never be, they are all English for a start.

11 May 2015 16:05:42
muok, i can't take your post seriously.

Lallana has 5 goals and 4 assists in half the game time of Coutinho (8 goals 7 assists)

Henderson has 7 goals and 15 assists (only Fabregas in the entire league has more assists in all competitions) and that's him playing with the shackles of covering ground for Gerrards gone legs.

Sterling is 20 years old and has 11 goals and 10 assists this season which is a very good return for a player played in 5 different positions all season.

Sturridge has broken history records scoring goals for liverpool, and only the most ungrateful excuses of "fans" will not see how Sturridge is actually a sensational striker and his record without Suarez is better than with Suarez and very easy to find.

So if you have something other than jokes to reply to these facts please don't bother because under Roy Hodgson even Germany wouldn't get to the knock out stages! He is that negative and useless with his "tactics"

11 May 2015 18:03:51
"The system was not sustainable". Another BR apologist, I presume. We know the system the players thrive under and if the manager cannot get the players fit and ready to play that system then he needs to either get another system that gets wins or should be sacked. We have very good players in this squad who have shined despite BR and his tactical incompetence so our squad is good enuff. BR knew Studge was a sick note and that Suarez was going but he used the money to get Balo and Lambo and yet he and his acolytes use these events as excuses for his failures. No wonder BR spouts his disingenuous drivel in the media because clearly people are buying it. He has failed and should be gone, period.