According to various media outlets, Brendan Rodgers will remain as Liverpool manager following a review of last season with Tom Werner, the club chairman, and Mike Gordon, the president of Fenway Sports Group. The question for Liverpool fans is whether that is a good move or not?
Pressure had been building on the club to remove Rodgers after a disappointing season that culminated in a 6-1 loss at Stoke City, Liverpool’s heaviest defeat in 52 years. Liverpool failed to win a trophy for the third year of his reign and failure to qualify for the Champions League, despite spending £117 million in new players.
The talks have been described as “good and productive” but Liverpool have not divulged what the plan for improvement entails. The club’s transfer committee has been heavily criticised for a series of poor signings and a failure to acquire leading targets in recent windows but Rodgers had stated his support for the FSG model prior to the review. There may yet be changes or additions to Liverpool’s backroom staff but the manager himself has received FSG’s backing to lead a necessary improvement at Anfield next season.
FSG’s transfer philosophy had been to acquire promising young, developing talent, who will develop into players in the future. That is all well and good, but that doesn’t help Rodgers or Liverpool now. I expect to see a change in that philosophy with the arrival of James Milner and Danny Ings on free transfers, plus Aston Villa striker Christian Benteke. T
That does not mean that Liverpool will give up on signing talented young players with Inter Milan midfielder Mateo Kovacic and Southampton defender Nathaniel Clyne both strongly linked with a move to Anfield this summer.
But the big question is still whether Brendan Rodgers should still be Liverpool manager? A look at his CV shows that as a manager he has only won 45% of the games he has ever coached, and has never won anything at a manager.
Compared to the CV of Jurgen Klopp, Carlo Ancelotti and Antonio Conte, Rodgers does not come close to matching their track record.
But none of them are available this summer, and that might be Rodger’s saving grace. FSG could find nobody better to replace him.
But if Liverpool get off to a slow start this season, and are not at least challenging for a top four position by Christmas, I expect to see Rodgers get fired with Klopp or Ancelotti replacing him next summer.
