Share

Tweet

Share

Share

Email

Comments

Even when Liverpool were absolutely flying last season there was a throng of local supporters who were dubious about the ability of Brendan Rodgers.

The argument was that, while Liverpool were playing fast and fluid football, this was as much down to them possessing the almost peerless talents of Luis Suarez as the clever tactics of Brendan Rodgers.

This doesn’t do justice to a very good coach, but the start of this Suarez-less season has seen a very clunky cluster of perfomances from Liverpool.

Our latest concern about the boss is his handling of Mario Balotelli. Strikers, more than any other players, are what we call ‘confidence’ footballers. When they get a few goals that confidence soars and they feel unstoppable.

But when the goals dry up they can go into their shell and spiral downwards, a la Torres. We believe that Balotelli, more than most, needs to feel the love. Behind closed doors it’s fine to ruin him from time to time, if he’s not doing what the coach wants. Sure, give him a playful slap even.

But, in public, we believe that the best managers defend their players to the hilt. Rodgers was wrong to comment on Balotelli’s signing and form in the way that he did this week. The Guardian quotes him as saying:

Mario was the one right at the very end who was available for that. I said when he came in that it was a calculated risk and it’s something I have to work on to try to make it work for the team.

We had attempts for other strikers that didn’t materialise for one reason or another so it left us right at the end of the window with a decision on whether just to go with what we had, when experience told us we were too light, or take a calculated risk on a player who has quality and then could we get it out of him consistently?

“In terms of his behaviour he is consciously trying to work hard at what we demand here, the intensity and work rate,” said Rodgers. “I think in terms of goals, he needs to improve. It is as simple as that. At this moment he has not hit the numbers he will have wanted. I encourage the strikers to get into the framework of the goal, wide players to come in and get into the framework of the goal and to break the lines. The quality of our service [against Basel] wasn’t up to the standard it should be. You also have to make and create goals yourself and he didn’t do that. But we win and lose as a team, and against Basel we were not good enough.”

TALK ABOUT MAKING A GUY FEEL SPECIAL

We think that Balotelli was a good signing – a brilliant finisher and powerful number 9 who needs time to adapt but also requires much better service than he has enjoyed hitherto.

Rodgers can be as scathing as he likes about the player behind closed doors. But this is either a very risky or very insensitive move. Balotelli has only just signed and he’s being publicly dressed down for not immediately clicking in a team that isn’t clicking.

At best, it’s a really bold form of reverse psychology and, heckers, maybe Mario will respond positively. If he does, then surely Brendan is, after all, a freaking genius .

But if Rodgers is a great coach then surely he can do something special with raw material of this quality.

Liverpool fans: was Rodgers right to talk about Balotelli in this manner to the media?