something-red wrote:They won't sack him unless something terrible goes wrong.

Brendan Rodgers Exclusive: Inside Liverpool FC with Bleacher Report UK

Bleacher Report UK has teamed up with Liverpool FC and Warrior to take you inside one of the world's most storied and successful football clubs.

Each day this week we'll be bringing you exclusive insight from a member of Liverpool's staff.

Friday's interview subject—the culmination of our series—is Liverpool manager Brendan Rodgers.


Bleacher Report: Can you walk us through your typical day on the training ground?

Brendan Rodgers: That’s a difficult one to start off with, because in football there is very rarely a "typical day"—there are always issues and challenges that arise from nowhere, and as manager you have to be ready to deal with them.

There is routine, in as much as a schedule that is followed and carefully planned. I've always been one to arrive early for work; preparation is a big part of how I work and I like to be in my office going through plans for the upcoming training sessions or meetings I have.

I have a senior staff meeting every day, with key personnel who interface with the players—coaches, the medical staff, our analyst department. This is a useful exercise as it means we are all across what is happening and they are aware of my expectations.


More often than not training will start at Melwood at 10.30am. I am present and engaged in every session, so I will always be on the training ground with them. The afternoon tends to be dominated by meetings with coaching staff and analysts and we focus on our next game—what our plans are, any issues we expect to face etc.

Beyond that, it will depend if there is a game on somewhere that I will watch—be it in person or matches I've asked to be recorded. This includes scouting our upcoming opponents and potential transfer targets. My days tend to be packed, but I wouldn't have it any other way. I enjoy my work and it is a privilege to do what I do.



B/R: How much influence do you have on the make-up of Liverpool training sessions? Do they follow a regular pattern during the season, or are you always reacting to things you see in matches and preparing for the game ahead?

BR: I dictate entirely how the team is prepared and I am a hands-on coach; I love to be out there with the players taking the sessions. I’m blessed to be supported by some brilliant staff, who are all experts in their field and dedicated to what they do.

As I've mentioned previously, I meet regularly with my staff to ensure they are aware of what I want but also to make sure they have the chance to influence the process and use all of their knowledge to help prepare the group.


We do have a pattern here in terms of the training schedule, which is designed specifically to produce elite performance. It is all about getting the players to their maximum for match days. I have a four-day build-up training-wise to matches and that encompasses recovery as well as tactical work and making sure they are in good physical shape.

In terms of reacting to things we see as the season unfolds, as a staff we are constantly analysing performance and identifying areas where we can improve. That work is also done on the training field.



B/R: How important is the analysis of statistics in the decisions you make as a manager?

BR: It’s a big part of the modern game and it’s important as a modern manager to embrace areas that can help your team and players improve. However, statistics and numbers are no good unless you have good people to analyse and then interpret their meaning and importance.

Even more important than that is then having the staff that can take the data and ensure it’s presented in a way that improves individuals and teams. I have tremendous professionals in that area supporting me and the team, and we do use them at the appropriate time as part of our preparation.




B/R: When it comes to selecting your starting XI, who are the people at Liverpool you consult first and how do you inform your players?

BR: My senior staff members are integral to all the decision-making and it’s the reason the quality of people you have around you as a manager is so vital. There are various factors that influence that process; fitness, form and the tactical approach to your opponent are all areas I review on a daily basis.

Of course, as manager, the selection of the team is very much one of the biggest responsibilities I personally take, but I come to that decision thanks to advice and support of the people around me.



B/R: How has the role of Liverpool manager changed since the days of Bob Paisley and Bill Shankly?

BR: I think football management has obviously changed and evolved in terms of practices and methods, but I would say the values we strive to hold are the same as great men like Bill Shankly and Bob Paisley. Particularly at a club like Liverpool, where our core values are so important to us, it’s vital for the man sat in my chair to embrace what the place stands for.

I have looked to do that by bringing back former players, who have this club running through their veins and care about its future as well as its past.

But when you break it down, I face the same challenges that Bill Shankly and Bob Paisley did: carrying the expectations of a worldwide institution and its incredible supporters who want Liverpool to be among the elite at home and in Europe.




B/R: Is dealing with stress an issue for you? How do you relieve the natural worry that must come with making big decisions? Do you have an escape mechanism?

BR: I don’t see the job as stressful, I really don’t. Of course, there is pressure and expectation, but I wouldn't necessarily equate that with stress. There are hard-working people in Liverpool and up and down the country who encounter real stress, by worrying about how to pay the bills and feed and clothe their children.

That’s stress and I don’t think it’s fair to tally what they go through with the problems of being a football manager.

What I do is a privilege and I enjoy my work. The reason I worked so hard all my life to get into a position such as this is because I want to be making big decisions and managing at the very highest level.

Of course, there are times when you have to switch off, but that’s part and parcel of managing yourself and I've never really found that a problem.



B/R: What are the qualities you're most looking for in an aspiring professional—both as a footballer and a personality?

BR: I think my history as a coach shows I like players who are gifted technically and have courage when it comes to being in possession of a football. That is a key quality for me; can you be brave on the pitch, not in terms of 50/50 tackles, but having the ball and looking to play in areas others wouldn't?

I would say you can’t divorce the two—ability and personality. It all comes as part of the package.

A player's character is a crucial factor I look into before committing to signing them. They also need to show a willingness to learn, regardless of age and experience; that’s very important to me.


B/R: How would you to like Liverpool fans to remember you when you eventually hand over to another manager at the club?
BR: That’s a very difficult question to answer, as I think someone’s legacy is best judged by other people, rather than yourself. I suppose, in general terms, I hope when my time as Liverpool manager is over, I’m remembered as someone who improved the team and left the club in a better position than I inherited it.

I hope they enjoy the style of football the team plays and recognise we approach games to win them but win them in a way that entertains and makes them proud as Liverpool supporters.

But I suppose most importantly is that people recognise I did my best every day I was here to make Liverpool the best it possibly can be, while upholding the football values that this great club was built on. I am blessed and privileged to lead this club and I will cherish that for every second and minute I’m here.

Rewind a year and Brendan Rodgers endured some belittling for his “new age” management, his aphorisms seeing him depicted as the David Brent of the dugout. Not now. People now see the substance to Rodgers’ style, his subtle and successful man management of Luis Suárez, his expert coaching of Jordan Henderson, his belief in youth seen in Jon Flanagan’s prominence and the exhilarating nature of Liverpool’s football. It is time to reappraise Rodgers and praise him.

Sayings that most annoyed listeners elicit a different reaction now that Rodgers’ managerial principles manifest themselves fully in players pushing for significant honours. When Rodgers remarked that he “started coaching for one reason and that was to make a difference for people, not just as footballers but as human beings’’ there were a few gasps.

It sounded rather grandiose from a coach whose main achievement had been only a promotion with Swansea City. Now it makes sense, capturing Rodgers’ ability to mould characters as well as players. He has turned Suárez from a toxic asset into a valued commodity respected even by rival fans.

Liverpool’s No 7 may transgress again but all around have noted the Uruguayan’s maturing, his desire to channel that edgy hunger properly. Through explanation and encouragement, Rodgers assists that change.

Quietly, Rodgers also challenges Suárez to become part of English footballing history for the right reasons, for breaking goalscoring records, not codes of conduct.

When Rodgers observed that “we play with 11 men while other teams play with 10 men and a goalkeeper” it sounded arrogant. Now those words encapsulate his footballing philosophy, a way of playing in keeping with Liverpool’s pass-and-move tradition, and bringing the best out of Suárez.

It is not all Suárez by the way. During Suárez’s suspension, Daniel Sturridge was voted Premier League Player of the Month for August while Rodgers scooped the managerial award. Liverpool currently deliver without the injured Sturridge and Steven Gerrard. Rodgers simply tweaks his team or brings in well-prepared understudies to maintain the momentum. They know what he wants. “Brendan has a brand; he’ll pass,’’ says Burnley’s Sean Dyche, who worked with Rodgers at Watford and admires his strength of footballing beliefs.

A careful plan is being put into operation at Anfield. Rodgers buys those such as Philippe Coutinho who suit his obsession with possession, inflicting on opponents “death by football”. There were doubts whether the slight Brazilian would cope with the physicality of the Premier League. Coutinho certainly looks at home now. Rodgers chose well. Joe Allen begins to justify the £15 million outlay.

Liverpool’s manager has made mistakes, and concerns remain over Fabio Borini and Iago Aspas while Nuri Sahin’s loan did not work out. Rodgers is fortunate to have good owners in John W Henry and Tom Werner.

As well as the flowing football, Rodgers’ players perform with a strong work ethic, the type instilled in him by his late father, who had him painting and decorating at a young age. “My father would work from dawn to dusk to ensure his young family had everything and I think you can see his philosophies in my team,’’ Rodgers said during his time at Swansea.

He sees the club as a family with everyone standing together. The team spirit engendered by Rodgers was demonstrated when Suárez squared the ball for Raheem Sterling to score against Cardiff City and the youngster immediately running to thank him.

Still those early maxims of Rodgers need revisiting. Bemusement followed his pronouncement that “the problem with being a manager is it’s like trying to build an aircraft while it’s flying’’. Now that Rodgers’ ideas are becoming reality on the pitch such statements will soon be staples in coach-education departments.

Rodgers is different. He is no Big Sam. He quotes Latin proverbs to his players. Addressing the media, Rodger is one of the most tactile managers I have met. He has always been quotable but now people appreciate the content properly. Discussing how he likes to train players, Rodgers once said: “You train dogs. I like to educate players.” Cue some hilarity. But he does educate players. Ask Henderson.

When Rodgers arrived at Melwood last year, the new manager sat down with the struggling midfielder. “We had conversations on what I needed to do to improve my game,’’ recalls Henderson. They also talked about whether the player should try a new start at Fulham. “I don’t want to go,’’ Henderson told Rodgers. “I want to fight for my place.’’ Impressed, Rodgers replied that if Henderson listened, learnt and improved, he would give him a chance. “He helped me to do better, always talking to me,’’ adds Henderson, now an integral part of the team.

Rodgers has put behind him that unfortunate documentary Being: Liverpool. He came over slightly oddly in the programme, leading to the Brent comparison. It is hard now to imagine Rodgers writing names in three envelopes of the players he felt “will let us down this year”.

Management is not a game show. Still only 40, Rodgers has acquired some gravitas. Now that his team are the talk of the town, Rodgers sounds increasingly like a spokesman for a managerial generation, addressing major issues. His words carry increasing weight. He berates the negative coaching that can inhibit English talent, questioning the point of St George’s Park if the philosophy isn’t right, demanding the removal of “fear” in nurturing youngsters.

Rodgers spoke powerfully in support of Malky Mackay, a former colleague at Watford. He spoke for all in football when calling to account Cardiff’s owner, Vincent Tan, as “a business guy who knows absolutely nothing about football”. Football Association and Premier League leaders would earn respect if they echoed Rodgers’ principled stance. He was embraced by an emotional, grateful Mackay after Saturday’s game at Anfield. Mackay will not forget that backing.

Rodgers is rising up to become a heavyweight of the managerial game. Harry Redknapp so respects him that he was going to ask Rodgers to help with the coaching at Euro 2012 if Redknapp got the England job. Jose Mourinho lauds his protégé. Rodgers himself is generous with advice, helping Dyche out last month.

Watford fans may disagree, following his sudden departure from Vicarage Road, but Rodgers is a man of principle. When Swansea defeated his old Reading side in the Championship play-off at Wembley in 2011, Rodgers was quick to console Brian McDermott and Sir John Madejski. Rodgers’ handling of this year’s Hillsborough developments and tributes further showed his substance as a man. Liverpool are in very good hands.

Red Alert wrote:Is it a fine or a suspension?

Think he'll be getting a new contract soon.

Brendan Rodgers signed a three-year deal, with the option of a fourth, when he became manager of Liverpool.

Brendan Rodgers has yet to hear whether Liverpool's owner, Fenway Sports Group, want to extend his Anfield reign into a fourth season having entered the final 18 months of his contract.

The Liverpool manager signed a three-year deal with the option of a fourth when he joined the club from Swansea City in 2012, albeit with the option belonging to FSG. Rodgers' Anfield overhaul was illustrated emphatically on Saturday when Liverpool enhanced their Champions League qualification prospects with a 5-1 destruction of Arsenal and FSG are expected to offer a contract extension this summer.But there have been no discussions so far as Rodgers concentrates on returning Liverpool to the European elite for the first time since 2009–10.

Asked if there had been any developments on his contract, the Liverpool manager said on Monday: "Nothing whatsoever. I have, after this year, one more year to go. I have always said I am very happy here and we're just over halfway through that contract and it is not something that comes into my thinking. If I was to never get offered one, I would give my life to the last day of that contract. In the meantime, until anyone says otherwise or wants to reward the staff or myself for our work, then we keep working as normal and see where it takes us." Rodgers does not anticipate talks soon and confirmed he is unable to trigger the option of a fourth year as manager. "The option is for the club for the fourth year, but in all fairness there is a point next year where the club has to let me know whether they want to keep me on or not," he added.

"I have regular contact with the owners and it is never mentioned. I talk more about players. My ambition is more for the club so I want the players tied up so we can keep the best players and get players in. The club knows my feelings in that I love it here and hopefully – if I can progress and be good and everyone is happy – stay here. If it's not to be for the owners and they want a different direction at the end of it, I will have done my best."

Jordan Henderson is one of the players Liverpool will look to reward with a new contract when his current deal reaches its final two years in the summer, Rodgers confirmed. "He will certainly be one," the manager said. "The way he is working we would want to secure his services. He still has his best years ahead of him and you can see his growth and development. He will want to get better and I'm sure it is in the interests of the club to tie him down."

The Liverpool manager also claimed Henderson, who will play with a cast on a wrist he fractured against Arsenal, should be part of Roy Hodgson's first-choice midfield for England at this summer's World Cup. "For me you had England's midfield three on the pitch on Saturday with Jordan, Stevie controlling and Jack Wilshere," Rodgers explained. "Stevie playmaking from behind and two attacking players who can run, get forward, get into the box and can press. Wilshere is a wonderful player. He is probably not to his fitness level yet but he is a big talent who can play either side and between lines. Jordan, tactically, is improving so much, and Stevie is in the zone just behind. It would be hard to pick a better three than that."

Brendan Rodgers says Liverpool are title contenders after win at Fulham

(why the feacking headline is so, media )


Brendan Rodgers warned the trio of clubs at the top of the Premier League that Liverpool are mounting a challenge for the title after his side moved to within four points of the leaders with a stoppage-time victory against Fulham on Wednesday night.

While Arsenal were dropping points and missed the chance to go back to the top after their goalless draw at the Emirates against Manchester United and Manchester City's match with Sunderland fell victim to the high winds buffeting the north-west, Liverpool, initially unsettled by the home side's energetic and industrious approach, twice equalised and rallied at the end to fuel hopes of securing a first league championship since 1990.

Steven Gerrard, later described as "peerless" by his manager, thumped a late penalty past Fulham's substitute goalkeeper David Stockdale to bolster Liverpool's title aspirations, with both City and Chelsea still to visit Anfield. José Mourinho's side stay top, just seven points ahead of fifth-placed Tottenham Hotspur, who chalked up a 4-0 win at Newcastle.

"We're going to keep pushing," said Rodgers. "We've shown enough times we're a very good side. We're chasing and there are other teams still ahead of us, so we'll need some of them to drop points, but we know we still have City and Chelsea to play at home.

"This was a very important win for us, coming after the game at the weekend when we'd been outstanding [in beating Arsenal 5-1]. We had to show different qualities tonight: character, togetherness as a group, as we kept pushing to the end.

"We've defended poorly at times this season, mistakes and individual errors that have cost us, but we're a very aggressive and offensive team going forward and we showed that again. There's still a long way to go, 12 games, but you've seen the development of the team in terms of character and focus out there. We had to dig deep. There's great character there and the belief in what we're doing is very high."

Rodgers, albeit reluctantly, reflected on Mourinho's metaphor about Chelsea being "little horses" in the title race alongside more heavyweight contenders in City and Arsenal. "I don't do all that horse stuff, José is very good at all that sort of thing," said Rodgers. "May be we're the chihuahuas that run in between the horses' legs. I don't know. But I do know we're just about improving with each match. I'm certain, in the first four or five months I was here, we'd have lost this game. But we've built spirit and camaraderie that saw us fight to the very end."

Gerrard's penalty, awarded after Sascha Riether fouled Daniel Sturridge, secured the win with the Liverpool captain having earlier produced a wondrous pass to set up the forward for the first equaliser. "Steven is peerless in many aspects of football," added Rodgers. "He was brilliant against Arsenal, dictating the game, and his pass for the first goal here was the penetration he has shown all his life. Then there was his composure at the end. He's studied the goalkeeper, which way he dives, so that professionalism is there. There's no better person to take a penalty right at the end to win you the game."

Red revival has roots in philosophy of Brendan Rodgers

Anfield manager is enjoying a remarkable revival, while David Moyes struggles with a difficult inheritance at Old Trafford, writes Oliver Kay

This time last year Brendan Rodgers was struggling to explain a 2-0 defeat at home by West Bromwich Albion that left Liverpool ninth in the Barclays Premier League, 29 points behind Manchester United. “There might not be any trophies to show for this season and we might not finish in the top four,” he said, “but we have taken strides”.

A few days later Liverpool lost 2-0 to Zenit St Petersburg in the first leg of a Europa League tie, their fifth match without victory in a sequence that began with an embarrassing FA Cup fourth-round defeat by Oldham Athletic. “It’s not over by any means,” Rodgers said at a time when his public

pronouncements, combining folksy philosophy with what seemed like unrelenting, misplaced optimism, were attracting comparisons in some quarters with the contrasting figures of David Brent and Comical Ali.

A year on, Rodgers’ team are just four points off the top of the table, 11 points ahead of United, scoring goals at a remarkable rate and not only playing some wonderfully fluent football but, as they showed in coming from behind twice to beat Fulham on Wednesday, demonstrating the kind of belief that Liverpool teams have shown only at their highest peaks during the Premier League era.

Liverpool’s progress under Rodgers is a reminder of the difference a year can make and, as such, it could bring some crumbs of unlikely comfort for David Moyes, whose problems during an arduous first season at United have been compounded — symbolically, as well as competitively — by the resurgence of their rivals from Merseyside.

The difference is that, this time last year, Rodgers had at least made clear what he was trying to do at Liverpool. On the day he was interviewed by Fenway Sports Group, he produced a 180-page document of what he called “my culture, philosophy and gameplan . . . a shortcut of how I work, the kind of players I want tactically and the personality traits of those players”.

Liverpool have evolved into a faster and, at times, more direct team than was implied by the “death by football” approach that Rodgers preached initially, but the philosophy can be seen in the way that they pass the ball, press their opponents and in the enlightened mood that has enabled Jordan Henderson, Raheem Sterling, Daniel Sturridge and most notably Luis Suárez to flourish.

What is the Moyes philosophy at United, though? What is the vision? When Moyes was appointed last May, Sir Alex Ferguson, having handpicked his successor, spoke of “a work ethic”, “integrity”, “a serious football man”, “perseverance”, “these are the qualities he’s going to need”. Moyes has these human values by the bucketload — and he certainly is having to show them — but much of his appeal to Ferguson seems to be based on personality rather than the type of philosophy preached by Pep Guardiola, Roberto Martínez, Rodgers and so many of the new wave of coaches.

When Rodgers took over at Liverpool, he pledged to modify their approach. In 2011/12, under Kenny Dalglish, they dominated matches and delivered more crosses than any other team in the Premier League, an average of 29 per game, and had an average of 17.6 shots per match, which was only marginally lower than United’s figure, but, possibly in part due to the nature of the chances, proved highly erratic in front of goal.

Surprisingly, perhaps, Liverpool average less possession under Rodgers this season than under Dalglish two seasons ago but have moved towards a quicker, high-octane approach that sees them top of the Opta charts for through-balls and dribbling and second, behind Crystal Palace, for tackling as well as, rather more pertinently, second for goals scored and fourth in the Premier League table.

Significantly, Liverpool have gone from the top of the crossing charts to the bottom, from 29 crosses per game two seasons ago to 21 per game last term and only 18 per game this campaign. Guess who is now at the top with 29 crosses per game? That’s right. High-class wing play has always been fundamental to United’s philosophy, but it has been little in evidence over the past few years, let alone months, as Antonio Valencia, Ashley Young and Nani have all struggled to find consistency.

In the 2-2 draw with Fulham at Old Trafford last weekend, United crossed the ball 82 times, the highest such figure in the Premier League since Opta’s records began in 2006. In some ways it was, as Moyes said, a “travesty” that they drew, but it was a flawed performance damned, unwittingly, by Dan Burn, the young Fulham defender, when he said that he had not headed so many balls since playing non-League football for Darlington.

Some say that Moyes is merely reproducing the type of football his Everton team played. If anything, this is an insult to his latter-day Everton team, who tended to show more resilience and indeed more purpose in just about everything they did. Moyes’s Everton always had — if not a “philosophy” as Rodgers advocates — a clear identity. His United team, so far, has shown alarmingly little of that.

-Recorded his 50th league win in just 93 games – a record bettered by only 2 Liverpool managers of the previous 57 years, Dalglish and Shankly.

-Rafa Benitez won 81 of his first 150 league games in charge. Only Kenny Dalglish (87) won more as Liverpool manager.

-Recorded his 100th league win as manager in his 181st game. It was the 3rd quickest ever by a Liverpool manager and 50 games faster than Alex Ferguson.

Red Alert wrote:Rafa:

-Recorded his 50th league win in just 93 games – a record bettered by only 2 Liverpool managers of the previous 57 years, Dalglish and Shankly.

-Rafa Benitez won 81 of his first 150 league games in charge. Only Kenny Dalglish (87) won more as Liverpool manager.

-Recorded his 100th league win as manager in his 181st game. It was the 3rd quickest ever by a Liverpool manager and 50 games faster than Alex Ferguson.

He's also had to rebuild Liverpool, too. Yeah, he wasn't 8th but he didn't exactly inherit the best team either. Both managers had to rebuild. Rodgers inherited a team in a better position off the pitch too. Again, FSG have been huge to Brendan with their generous support both on and off the pitch, as well as in the market; Benitez didn't have that under Moores (imagine if he sold the club to the Sheikh...........what if eh) or G+H.  

Again, Rodgers has done well in his last 18 months here, but let's not kid ourselves and compare him to Rafa to make him look like the better manager out of the two.