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When Brendan Rodgers took over the managerial reins at Liverpool in the summer of 2012, the club was a long way off of the lofty standards they have had throughout their history. They had just had their worst points haul in the Premier League era under Kenny Dalglish in the 2011/12 season, and to appoint a relatively young manager whose biggest test was at a relatively modest Swansea City was a huge risk that Liverpool’s owners, Fenway Sports Group, were ready to take. But halfway through his three year deal, Rodgers has won even the most ardent of cynics over, and has got his side playing a sumptuous brand of attacking football.
It has obviously not been smooth sailing, but Rodgers is slowly putting together the pieces of the jigsaw that he and FSG share as a vision in taking Liverpool forward. Liverpool managers have to daily walk past photos of Shankly, Paisley and Fagan, impossible acts to follow, but in less than two seasons in charge, Brendan Rodgers has made an impact on the club.
Against Arsenal on Saturday, in a game that was touted as among the biggest for the club in the last 4 years, Liverpool were absolutely delightful to watch. The way they hunted in packs, the way they didn’t let Arsenal settle into any rhythm, and just the explosiveness on the counter attack was a treat to watch.
The mentality has changed at Liverpool. There is more belief now than there has been in the last four years, and the desire to win is now stronger than it was in the few preceding years.
For the likes of Jordan Henderson and Jon Flanagan, this has been a season where they have come of age, and much of the credit for that must go to the astute man management of Rodgers. In his 20 months in charge, Rodgers has already shown that man-management is the most important facet of his, as a manager.
There have been several instances where this has come to the fore. Be it coming down hard on Luis Suarez for losing his calm against Branislav Ivanovic, or the substitution of Daniel Sturridge against Everton, Rodgers has made it clear that in his Liverpool side, one doesn’t put personal glory before collective success.
Admittedly, Liverpool don’t possess the strongest first eleven in the league, nor do they have the squad depth of a Manchester City or a Chelsea, but what this Liverpool side possesses in abundance is self-belief, and a desire to work for each other. Against Arsenal, Liverpool were tireless in their pressing, ensuring that the likes of Mesut Ozil and Santi Cazorla had a match to forget. This Liverpool side possesses that hunger which has still kept them as outsiders in the race for the Premier League title.
In the transfer market too, Rodgers has had a better time than his predecessor, Kenny Dalglish. The January window of 2013, where he snapped up Daniel Sturridge and Philippe Coutinho was instrumental in the way Liverpool have shaped up this season. Some might fault Rodgers for not going for a player or two, in the just concluded transfer window where the Reds failed in their pursuit of Ukraine’s Yevhen Konoplyanka, but there they were dealing with a near-impossible owner.
Masterminding Liverpool’s way back to the top
But, quite possibly, where Brendan Rodgers has made the biggest impact is in the case of Luis Suarez. When someone has the hunger and desire for the game that Suarez does, sometimes it is bound to go out of bounds. But this season, Suarez has channelized his energy to the game. He has taken his game to another level altogether, and along with Daniel Sturridge, has been instrumental in all the success that Liverpool have enjoyed this season.
With Sturridge too, the story is similar. For a player who was once on the fringes at Chelsea, Sturridge is now well and truly on top of his game, and his finishing has simply been sublime.
Off the field as well, the club seems to be in good health, with the likes of Vauxhall, Garuda Indonesia and Dunkin Donuts being signed up as commercial partners. Also, the redevelopment of Anfield can only mean better things for the club.
In 20 months since his appointment as manager, Brendan Rodgers has done brilliant work. He has built the foundations of a strong team, which has the ability to play a wonderful brand of football. Rodgers has ensured that there is youth and desire in all areas of the team. It is a squad that is far from the finished article, but it will only get better as time progresses, and with proper strengthening in certain key areas. But it is a squad with immense potential. Jordan Henderson is 23, Jon Flanagan is 21, Philippe Coutinho is 21, and Raheem Sterling isn’t out of his teens yet.
If they achieve their aim of finishing in the top 4 this season, a return to the European elite along with the new commercial deals could well be the catalysts for the renaissance of Liverpool FC. That aim is far from achieved, but Liverpool have the opportunity to achieve big things this season, and Brendan Rodgers’s men could well be looking at the Golden Sky at the end of what was a particularly tumultuous storm.
