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| Managing Director Ian Ayre, Manager Brendan Rodgers and Chairman Tom Werner |
After a dismal league campaign in the 2011/12 season, which
saw controversy, cup finals and the dethroning of a king, Liverpool are looking
to the future after appointing Brendan Rodgers as the right man to take them
forward.
Kenny Dalglish’s second spell as Liverpool manager lasted
just one and a half seasons and in that time the Scotsman took his beloved team
to two Wembley finals, winning the club’s first trophy since 2006. Despite
giving the Anfield faithful a taste of the glory days, success in the Carling
Cup proved to be too little for the club’s American owners, Fenway Sports Group
(FSG). A defeat to Chelsea in the FA Cup final dashed Liverpool’s hopes of
completing a domestic cup double and a string of poor results and an 8th
place finish in the league proved to be the deciding factor in FSG’s decision
to bring in a new manager.
The virtues of Liverpool’s ideal candidate for the vacant
managerial job were made clear immediately. The owners wanted to bring in a
talented, young manager and Swansea’s Brendan Rodgers was seen as the ideal
candidate. The 39 year old, who has worked under Jose Mourinho at Chelsea, took
Swansea from the Championship to an 11th place finish in the Premier
League last season. Rodgers signed a three year deal with Liverpool and was
promised time to build his own team, implementing his personal fashion of
tactics. The Northern Irishman’s impressive strategies and modern style of
play, were enough to land him one of the most prestigious jobs in football.
Rodgers travelled to Holland and Spain, two of the world’s most attractive
footballing nations, to study their tactics and train as a coach. He is now
known for favouring the ‘Tiki-Taka’ pass and move style of play that the Spanish
national team is famous for and was able to input those tactics on his Swansea
side last season. The Welsh team impressed in their debut season in the Premier
League and as a result, Rodgers was snapped up in a shrewd appointment by the
Anfield owners.
Liverpool fans have been longing for attractive football to
be played at Anfield and after a clear out of the dead wood and a rebuild of
the current squad, Rodgers is the man to bring such a change. Players such as
Charlie Adam, Stewart Downing and Andy Carroll, who flopped in their first season
on Merseyside, could be in for a nervy summer transfer window, as Rodgers will
be looking to bring in creative midfielders and speedy wingers to help creative
his style of play.
Critics would say the choice to make Rodgers manager of
Liverpool is a risk, but sometimes risks need to be taken in order to progress.
The employment of ‘B-Rod’, or ‘King Brenny’ as some Kopites are wittily
referring to Rodgers by, is certainly part of FSG’s long term vision for the
club and time is undoubtedly needed as a key ingredient for this recipe of the
future.
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