Against Swansea we had a few patches in which we looked like the team of last season, this without the influence of Suarez or Sturddige, yet, most believe that our success was nailed down to Suarez and had nowt to do with Rodgers, so much so that you'd like him to be let go tomorrow.
This season is no where near over but it will be soon if Rodgers doesn't make the brave call and stop playing Lucas and Gerrard together in midfield. Personally, neither would be starting in midfield if it were me but that's another story.
I like Rodgers and I like his philosophy, to an extent. I would prefer to see a double pivot in front of a back four with no recognised defensive midfielder as I think the box to box physical midfielders we currently have (Henderson and Can) would provide adequate cover. Also, I think this would bring the best out of Lovren considering this is the way that he excelled (behind Wanyama and Schneiderlin) at Southampton. Partnered with Sakho, we could finally begin to see why we spent what we did.
Next, we currently have the best crop of young attacking midfielders in the league in Coutinho, Sterling, Markovic and Lallana (with Shaqiri and Ibe possible to come in this month) and it's crazy to think that we aren't getting the best out of these lads and letting them work together yo develop and understanding that could be with us for years and years. Just imagine 3 of them in free roles behind a mobile striker in the mould of Sturridge or Lacazette. I'd be very surprised if they couldn't create 2-3 good chances each every game and if one is having an off game we could replace them with another from the bench for extra creativity. It's incredible how blessed we are in this department.
Moreno is a very good young player who has bundles of attacking quality but is seeming to be struggling slightly with the defensive side of the English game right now. Ironically, Manquillo is quite the opposite. Give these young Spanish lads time, their confidence is building and they will both be top drawer. Those two, with Flanagan and Wisdom to come in for cover gives me loads of confidence in our fullback positions moving forward.
Our problems are obvious for me. We need a goal keeper and a striker. I love Sturridge and think he's world class when fit. Obviously his fitness is the problem and Icardi, Lacazette or someone mobile would be perfect as a backup to Sturridge with Origi coming in next summer.
Mignolet is a good shot stopper and there is a reason we brought him in from Sunderland. He's still young (for a keeper) and should stick around if he's willing to play second fiddle and provide competition to whoever we bring in.
As for the system, I think the 343 limits our attacking prowess and gives us another centre back that we just don't need. I believe 4321 or 451 is the way forward and we do not need wholesale changes. If we give this young team time together and entrust our faith in them we could see a remarkable return as early as next season.
Coutinho on his day is one of the top 5 players in the league and those days seem to be becoming more consistent.
Brendan has the right philosophy for the most part, he needs time and needs to believe in what he did last season. If he can make those brave calls then he should be the one to carry us forward but to jump on his back and demand him to be let go now is silly. Who would replace him right now? Give him the season and reevaluate then.
In my opinion, the future is very red.
