NEW LIVERPOOL MANAGER Brendan Rodgers has warned the club’s success-starved fans it could take some time before his purist principles reap rewards.
Rodgers is already hard at work laying the foundations for his Anfield revolution after the former Swansea City coach took charge of the Merseyside giants last week.
The 39-year-old’s Swansea team earned plaudits for their smooth passing style and high-tempo pressing game and Rodgers plans to implement similar tactics with Liverpool. Swansea flourished in Rodgers’ two seasons in charge, winning promotion from the Championship and comfortably surviving in the Premier League, but the Northern Irishman knows it will take time and investment in new players to recreate that kind of success on a grander scale at Anfield.
“For me it is going to take time for how I want to play and the philosophy I want to introduce,” Rodger said. ”The principles of your game are based on the players you have and there is no doubt I’ll have a look at that and see if there is anyone I need to bring in to improve that.
“We want to play winning football, effective football. But I know what we need to play that way and win that way. It is about results and the progress of the team but we will make our first steps and hopefully that will improve over the next few years.
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“What we need to do is improve the team and the quality of the team and hopefully over the next couple of years we will be ready to challenge and ready to compete.”
In contrast to Swansea, Liverpool often looked a lethargic outfit under Kenny Dalglish and Rodgers will first ask his players to meet his work ethic before focusing on changing their playing style.
“I have conditions to work in. I create a framework and the players come in and adhere to it,” the Reds boss said. ”I hear people talking about working hard but for me it is an obligation — it’s not a choice.
“We all work hard in our everyday lives as people and for players it is no different. It is quite simple. You come in and do a hard day’s work. You make sure in training and on match days you come in and you can take your top off and wring it out and it will be soaking wet.”
Holy grail
Although Liverpool won the League Cup this season to end a six-year trophy drought, it is success in the Premier League that remains the holy grail at a club who were last crowned English champions in 1990.
Rodgers knows Liverpool, who finished 37 points behind champions Manchester City this season, are some way from emulating the club’s golden era. But the former Watford and Reading boss is keen to use Liverpool’s past triumphs as one of the driving forces in turning things around.
“This is the heartland of football folklore,” he said. ”You can go back to the likes of (John) Toshack, (Ian) St John through to Dalglish, (Ian) Rush, (Mark) Lawrenson and (Alan) Hansen, the modern greats of (Steven) Gerrard and (Jamie) Carragher, to the management of (Bill) Shankly and (Bob) Paisley.
“For me the attraction is to defend the principles of this great club — which are about offensive, creative football with tactical discipline — and to retain the values of the club.
“The tradition of this football club is about players playing the game in a stylish, relentless way with consistency at the very top.”
Liverpool revolution will take time, says Rodgers
NEW LIVERPOOL MANAGER Brendan Rodgers has warned the club’s success-starved fans it could take some time before his purist principles reap rewards.
Rodgers is already hard at work laying the foundations for his Anfield revolution after the former Swansea City coach took charge of the Merseyside giants last week.
The 39-year-old’s Swansea team earned plaudits for their smooth passing style and high-tempo pressing game and Rodgers plans to implement similar tactics with Liverpool. Swansea flourished in Rodgers’ two seasons in charge, winning promotion from the Championship and comfortably surviving in the Premier League, but the Northern Irishman knows it will take time and investment in new players to recreate that kind of success on a grander scale at Anfield.
“For me it is going to take time for how I want to play and the philosophy I want to introduce,” Rodger said. ”The principles of your game are based on the players you have and there is no doubt I’ll have a look at that and see if there is anyone I need to bring in to improve that.
“What we need to do is improve the team and the quality of the team and hopefully over the next couple of years we will be ready to challenge and ready to compete.”
In contrast to Swansea, Liverpool often looked a lethargic outfit under Kenny Dalglish and Rodgers will first ask his players to meet his work ethic before focusing on changing their playing style.
“I have conditions to work in. I create a framework and the players come in and adhere to it,” the Reds boss said. ”I hear people talking about working hard but for me it is an obligation — it’s not a choice.
“We all work hard in our everyday lives as people and for players it is no different. It is quite simple. You come in and do a hard day’s work. You make sure in training and on match days you come in and you can take your top off and wring it out and it will be soaking wet.”
Holy grail
Although Liverpool won the League Cup this season to end a six-year trophy drought, it is success in the Premier League that remains the holy grail at a club who were last crowned English champions in 1990.
Rodgers knows Liverpool, who finished 37 points behind champions Manchester City this season, are some way from emulating the club’s golden era. But the former Watford and Reading boss is keen to use Liverpool’s past triumphs as one of the driving forces in turning things around.
“This is the heartland of football folklore,” he said. ”You can go back to the likes of (John) Toshack, (Ian) St John through to Dalglish, (Ian) Rush, (Mark) Lawrenson and (Alan) Hansen, the modern greats of (Steven) Gerrard and (Jamie) Carragher, to the management of (Bill) Shankly and (Bob) Paisley.
“The tradition of this football club is about players playing the game in a stylish, relentless way with consistency at the very top.”
- © AFP, 2012
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