Brendan Rodgers Discussion Thread

John Dahl Tomasson has Blackburn 18th in the Championship and 7 wins in his last 22 games in all comps. No thanks.

 

Being honest though, if we are winning trophies, I honestly couldn’t care less about the football. Yes it’s great to see free flowing attacking football, and if that’s comes hand in hand with trophies then even better. Ultimately though, it’s about delivering success here, and that gets measures against the trophies won. The football under Strachan was pretty dire, but when he was delivering league titles and getting us the last 16 I wasn’t bothering a bit. If the football is bad though, you absolutely need to be winning trophies. Just like Rodgers will need to deliver the league title this season. How we get there, I couldn’t care.

 

I'm not convinced he can change this by and large this season we have been pretty poor. I had a genuine hope last night he would change the shape and maybe go 352 but to then stay with the same shape and drop Nawrocki whilst Bernabei kept his place I thought was strange. Then his first set of subs in the game Welsh for Nawrocki and Kuhn for Abada fair enough Welsh was injured but why are we going like for like we could clearly see it wasn't working which was only compounded when 5 mins later he brings Kyogo on to play up top with Idah.

He's gone from speaking about needing quality to now speaking about tempo and pace of passing but to watch us you would have to wonder what we're doing in training. In the last 3 games we've scored 4 goals 2 pens and 2 massive deflections.

At this point based off what we've seen so far I honestly struggle to see any positives in his supposed style of play. The next game is huge for me we need to make last night count for something and now kick on with better performances this limping on from week to week wont wash anymore

 

Yeah if we get over the line it really doesn't matter how we do it, but I think since it was announced he was coming back there's been a lot of head in the sand stuff about his last time in charge, just pointing to the trophy count and nothign else, he literally had no challenge in the league last time, the huns were putting like 70 points on the board, it's sheer arrogance from some to assume he was going to skoosh it now because he did then.

The way we're playing now won't win us the league imo, he has to do something to turn it around massively, and quick, because they're not going to be allowed to drop many points.

 

His major issue for me is we rely so much on our wingers for creativity and all have inadequacies..

Not writing off Kuhn but was disappointing to say the least last night..
Palma is inconsistent and is going through a bad spell of form, although in general he's been good. But definitely thinks he's better than he is.
Maeda, his obvious attributes make his flaws even more glaring.
Abada looks like he'd rather be anywhere else just now.
Yang, think there's a player there but has looked miles off it at times.
Forrest is done.
Vata probably won't see much of him and will leave in the summer.

Not even sure who I'd want to start on Sun.. Rodgers needs to find the right blend or we'll win nothing this season.

 

Last nights win has papered over the cracks and nothing else.

We look * terrible, players are clearly not working with the system and like I said in the match threat if we had drew or lose last night I would have wanted him gone.

Still don’t see him as the right person to take us forward either.

 

posted it for a laugh man gotta cheer myself up after watching Brodgball last night

 

Most likely still got the best squad in the league and he should be doing better at getting a tune out of them. Some players need to get the finger out and the board are * too but he defo should be doing better.

 

He's beat Hibs now at least.

 

I am now at the stage where I now think that we don't have the better squad. Yes big CCV and Hatate are missing but we are playing players who shouldn't be anywhere near a Cetic strip such as Bernabei, Palma, Abada. Scales has done well lately but he was practically out the door and our most recent signing Kuhn doesn't look much although I'm willing to give him time to see if he comes good. Then we have Taylor who tries his best but still falls short of the standards we need and, to top it all off, we are managed by a man who's brand of football is turgid and has taken all the goodness out of watching us.

 

IMO, Rangers have the better full backs and keeper. That's it.

 

We've gotten the better of them twice now this season. We're the better starting 11.

But I wouldn't be swapping too many of our players for them. Maybe Tav, Sterling and either Matondo/Sima due to pace and power.

Our squad should be winning this league with comfortable results most weeks. The issue is we've not got the tactics/energy to break teams down when they sit in deep.

 

Rodgers knows he needs help. He's asked @Blochairnbhoy to help out as a motivational speaker.

 

I think we should do this for a few games

Hart
Johnston Welsh Nawrocki Taylor
O'Riley McGregor
Kuhn Kyogo Palma
Idah
​

Take Scales out and see what the other guys do, he infuriates me the way he turns on a ball to pass it as it's too slow and too blatant you know where he will pass a ball, he's not slick enough on a ball. Welsh and Nawrocki are quicker and more aggressive with their forward passing than Scales.

Sit O'Riley and McGregor deep, defend with those 2 and the two centre-backs, occasionally let one of the two get a bit more forward. That would let the full-backs more free to get up the park and near their winger even so Palma could push in and be like a 5 behind Idah.

Then see how that front 4 works, swap around Kyogo for Idah and Palma in the hole and Abada or Maeda.

We're conceding too many goals I think considering we are rarely attacked and it's cause the current midfield doesn't seem to leave anyone back, when we are countered it's always like 2 centre-backs and 1 full-back wide open. We should be keeping a midfielder between the centre-backs most of the time so if someone attacks us down a wing on the counter the centre-back can come out knowing he has cover.

The way we are playing now we are letting the 3 in midfield go too far up the park and yet they're not really doing anything because we attack from the wings every time so they are going high up in midfield for no reason as they barely touch the ball anyway and just leaves us wide open at the back.

If we have 10 men pinned in I want to see us set up like

Hart



Welsh --------------------Nawrocki
McGregor


O'Riley --------
Johnston--------------------------------------Taylor
Kuhn ------------------------Kyogo-----Palma-------

Idah
​

I'd prefer McGregor deep between the centre-backs, O'Riley more central drifting about areas McGregor could feed him with Kyogo and Idah higher and 2 wide players on each side of him.

I'd also want Taylor wider than Palma, i'd want Palma picking the ball up on the corner of the box off Taylor or O'Riley or McGregor, not out wide with Taylor inside. Palma should be more of a goal threat allowed to come inside, not going down the outside to cross in which seems useless to us now.

Currently i'd say Palma plays too wide, Taylor too much inside, McGregor too high, the full-backs too deep, the centre-backs are too exposed, the right winger gets little to no support as I feel we prioritise playing down the left so the right back is playing in a way he can cover the defence when we are countered, rather than making up a 3 at the back with a deeper midfielder we pretty much leave 2 and then the right-back is probably meant to be the 3rd defender but it never works and the right-back is often just passanger in attack and defence. Never further forward enough to support the winger or back or tight enough so that the defence can slide over and allow say Scales to shut down a winger coming down the left, when we are countered our centre-back have to stay narrow and back off because usually they are that massively exposed if they come out wide then we'd be wide open if another runner was going down the right or through midfield where as if McGregor was deep then Scales can run wide left and McGregor fills in his position and it's then down to the full-backs and O'Riley to track back in midfield but at least we always have a proper 3 people back to defend instead of 2.

 

Prior to Blackburn I wouldn’t have minded him to be honest.

 

He'd never do it as he's ego could never allow it as it would be accepting he's ideas are failing

But I'd go three at the back with Nawrocki, Scales, Lagerbielke.

* the full backs as they are wasted spots right now, they've been offering * all nearly all season.

Hart
Nawrocki Lagerbielke Scales
O'Riley McGregor
Kuhn Palma Maeda
Kyogo Idah
​

Obviously never happen but would be only fair to let Kuhn settle and get little more game time.

Plus if we are persisting with Rodgers idea of retaining 60+% possession might as well try and force that be possession that is retained further up field.

 

There must be a decent coach out there that can take us to the end of the season. New manager bounce? I’d sack Rodgers now if we can identify one, though our speed of movement ain’t the norm.

 

I don’t think formation or personnel changes will make any difference.

The problem for me is the over reliance on wingers.

The simple change I would make is instruct the team to play incisive balls forward without worrying too much about possession and avoid going wide until space opens up.

If you go through the middle teams will narrow up and open space for wingers to exploit instead of receiving the ball against a set 11 and expected to dribble past them.

Bringing the fullbacks in like Ange used to do wouldn’t be the worst idea either.