First of all, i’m not a man of facts and stats. But passion, common sense and dedication all come naturally to me. The loss in any match is heart breaking and can lead to alot of abuse from other teams and the media, a loss in a derby doubles that abbuse, especially the mersey side one. So why is it that when Reds all across the globe are either angry and venting to other reds, or in shock and feeling like we are bound for relugation, that Roy Hodgson had a quick smirk on his face at the final whistle?
I bring up Rafa, knowing this will stir many supporters up, but not with that sole intent in mind… Roy has asked for 10 matches to be judged, but even with the next two (if he is given them), I dont think my confidence in him will be changed. It’s been written in the past few weeks many times, but again, after the loss to Manchester United and having Ferguson accuse Torres of cheating, Roy didnt flinch and would rather keep his friendship with Fergie than stand up for his star man up-front and get passionate about his players. A draw and a loss in our previous two matches and Roy has found positives in the matches and is content. While we sink lower and lower.. the smile for me has shown me that Roy does not understand the importance of his position and the pressure that is on him constantly to deliver results and bring the supporters spirits up!
Many people do not like Rafa, and I have to agree that his last season was not a convincing one, but wouldn’t a manager who stands up to his opponents, supports every member of his team, and show the same passion and love for the club as the fans, have more support in a hard time? Maybe 7th was not acceptable for his level of managing, but is 19th much better?
People are telling me that where we lack in the premiership, we will shine in Europe. We nearly didnt make to Europe this season and its not looking good to even be in top flight in England at the moment! Rafa may not have been the best manager in the country, but looking at many stats, he was one of the best at liverpool. In 7 games at Inter Milan, he sits in 2nd place with 14 points. I think its not that he wasnt doing his job properly, the problem was Hicks and Gillett! We the fans never gave up and Rafa didnt either. He stood tall and wanted to show his commitment, and he got sacked in a “mutual agreement”. Rafa has come out and said liverpool is his home, and he follows the club very closely still, he says he wants to come back. Until he does, we do have other managers and staff members to pick from to replace Mr. Hodgson, but Rafa has what it takes to bring the best of our boys in red.
Currently, Antoine’s poll shows 91.45% (417 voters) of voters want Roy out while the other 8.55% (39 voters) say give him two more games. May be why #RoyOut is spreading quickly on Twitter.
In Roy’s deffence i must say, he is very confident with his interviews and does not bring pressure on himself or the team. He selects his words very carefully and with wisdom, can make any bad situation a little lesss painful. He has many years of experiance and has done very well with Fulham and some of his past clubs, but this job might be his limit. He has deffended himself saying in over 30 years of managing football teams, he has won many matches and his tactics have worked all along. But he may be stuck with certain ways of play that dont work, not every team is the same and liverpool isnt. We are better, and we need better players to complement who we have now, and a new manager to bring the best out of the athletes.
I respect Roy and do wish him to stay in top flight football until he decides he is done with football, but maybe not in liverpool, Hodgson, Benitez, O’Neil, and Danglish.. just four men who may have what it takes, but I think only two have earned their spot, one may have highest odds for the “replacement”and one has run his course..
Brandon O’Shea, The Passionate Red.
Follow me on Twitter @Brandon_OShea