By James Giblin
Disappointment is a feeling that every Liverpool fan feels at one time or another. But surely, no one lives in the world of hurt that I do. As a fan I take everything to heart; from losing the title in 2008-09, to losing a throw-in against Everton in the Derby a few weeks ago.
Being born in 1991, I missed out on watching Liverpool winning the league. In fact, since the year of my birth Liverpool have not won the league. In the words of Rafael Benitez, “I’m not playing mind games, I’m just talking about facts”.
Still, something has changed about watching Liverpool recently. Although we sit in a poor position, smack bang in the middle of the league table, I can’t help but feel excited about the future.
Brendan Rodgers is the key to Liverpool F.C’s future success. His footballing ideology is one that has been the key ingredient to all successful football teams. Efficiency. Chelsea won the Champions league on it last year, the Germans are the masters of it and Barcelona eat and breath it.
It is no coincidence that Rodgers ran a tight ship at Swansea. It was no coincidence that Joe Allen and Leon Britton were among the top passers of Europe last season. They were part and parcel of the design that Rodgers put in place at the Liberty Stadium.
Brendan has also been keen to give the youngsters a chance. This has worked wonders so far for Liverpool. Can anyone imagine the position Liverpool would be in without Suso, Sterling and Wisdom? It would more than certainly be lower down the league table.
His prioritisation of the Premier League has been refreshing. For too long we have had managers that find cup competitions as important as the league. For some teams, like Wigan or Stoke, cup competitions are a way of gaining European status (Europa League qualification) which is an excellent way for them to sign better players. For Liverpool, it is a hindrance. We can already sign players at that level through reputation, so focusing on gaining Champions League qualification is paramount to revenue and a better class of player.
Brendan Rodgers is in charge of steering a rocking ship to safety and he is doing it in the correct way. He IS the man for the job.