AS THEY CAME out of the tunnel on Tuesday, the Real Madrid players were welcomed by the sight of thousands of waving white flags — the only surprise was that Brendan Rodgers was not holding one of them.

That Liverpool’s second-string were only beaten 1-0 in their Champions League clash at the Santiago Bernabeu should not excuse Rodgers’ decision to throw in the towel before a ball had been kicked.

The Reds’ makeshift team come out of the game with credit despite losing to Karim Benzema’s first-half strike. They defended bravely, certainly weren’t embarrassed, and were in with a chance until the closing stages even if they failed to create a chance of real note.

But it is no surprise that they never looked like scoring given their starting XI had only notched two goals between them this season as Rodgers rested key players with an eye on Saturday’s Premier League clash against Chelsea at Anfield. In doing so, Rodgers let down the brilliant supporters in the stands who spent thousands to watch their team against the European champions and never stopped singing.

This was supposed to be what it’s all about. The five-time European champions, back in the big-time for the first time in five years, playing away against the Champions League holders.

In the stands, Liverpool fans sang Rodgers’ name loud and proud, but his starting XI drew an uncomfortable comparison with the flags in the away end: ‘Spirit of Shankly lives on’, ‘a certain style of life’. This wasn’t it. This isn’t the League Cup.

Steven Gerrard, Raheem Sterling, Jordan Henderson, Mario Balotelli and Philippe Coutinho all watched on from the bench as Fabio Borini, Lazar Markovic and Kolo Toure played on the biggest stage. In fact, the Liverpool starting line-up probably falls foul of Uefa rules requiring participants to ‘field their strongest team throughout the competition’.

Rodgers’ logical thinking is clear. He felt that Liverpool would lose to Real Madrid regardless — certainly in light of the 3-0 defeat to the Spanish side at Anfield — and is now banking on victories against Ludogorets Razgrad and Basel in their remaining Champions League Group B fixtures.

“That’s what we probably looked at,” he told ITV after the match. ”We felt we would need to win at Ludogorets and we were hoping then that it would come down to the last game against Basel at home, that hopefully will be the case. We’ve got some important games before that but at least it’s in our hands.”

That scenario would likely be enough for the Reds to reach the knockout stages of the competition, but Rodgers’ approach is ill-fitting for a club of Liverpool’s stature and history, something the Northern Irishman knows all about. He has always spoken like a man in touch with the traditions and expectations of the club, but before kick-off claimed he would be “surprised” if fans were disappointed with his team selection.

If Liverpool lose to Chelsea on Saturday, Rodgers will understandably begin to feel the heat, especially given his side’s poor start to the season which has brought just 14 points from 10 league matches and one win from four Champions League fixtures.

The irony is that having worked so hard to secure a Champions League spot last season, Rodgers essentially forfeited a match to help Liverpool’s chances of qualifying for next season’s tournament. It is also a move that risks alienating key players.

This could have been one of the biggest nights of Sterling’s career; to play on this stage is certainly the reason Gerrard decided to retire from international football, especially with a two-week break coming up after the Chelsea clash.

How will they now feel? Will they respond as Rodgers hopes in the Chelsea match?

Rodgers’ decision didn’t backfire as badly as it might have done, with many predicting a humiliating result once the line-ups were submitted, and the narrow defeat ensures that morale is not completely destroyed. But he is hardly managing the club in the Liverpool way or summoning the spirit of those great European nights from the past — and his baffling decision on Tuesday was an insult to the fans.

By Greg Stobart, Goal.com

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