Gray and Keys: Rodgers key game

Sport360 staff 07:28 26/09/2015
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  • Under-fire: Rodgers.

    With speculation growing over Brendan Rodger’s future at Liverpool he faces a crucial game against Aston Villa on Saturday, but will a victory be enough to save his job?

    Andy Gray and Richard Keys, who front beIN Sports’ coverage of the EPL give their thoughts and discuss the weekend’s other games.

    Andy Gray: Sometimes when a manager is under pressure he survives because there is nobody of any quality out there to replace him.

    Unfortunately for Brendan Rodgers, two of the best managers in the business, in Carlo Ancelotti and Jurgen Klopp are currently unemployed and have already been linked with the job.

    Look, there is a possibility that the owners of Liverpool, and let’s not forget they are Americans so they do not understand the passion and history behind this team, are not ambitious and are happy to have a club that gets young players in and sells them on for a profit with the occasional success.

    That’s not the Liverpool way but they can’t keep big name players anymore. We have seen that with Luis Suarez and Raheem Sterling. Philippe Coutinho could be the next out the door.

    Having given Rodgers £300m to spend you would think the owners are looking for some glory but they are no closer to silverware than they were three years ago. Great managers can cope with losing their best players.

    We have seen it at Arsenal when Thierry Henry left and Man United and Chelsea have both stayed competitive after top players have gone elsewhere. Not so at Liverpool. Rodgers hasn’t coped with the loss of Suarez and Sterling and I have to say the signing of Mario Balotelli did him a huge amount of damage.

    Saying he would make that guy a better player when many better than him had tried and failed was ridiculous and he was left looking naive. There is absolutely no question that what we are seeing at the moment is nowhere near good enough for the fans.

    And that’s why I think Liverpool have probably, indirectly, had conversations with Ancelotti and Klopp to see what their options are if they got rid of Rodgers and the only way he is going to save himself is by beating Villa and then putting together a run of five or six wins.

    If he loses today I can’t see him surviving and then we will see if it’s Klopp or Ancelotti but it won’t be easy to get those guys to take the job. These are two managers used to dealing with top players and playing in the Champions League. They won’t have that at Liverpool so they will have to be happy with a rebuilding job and they will need financial support to do that.

    I would go for Ancelotti because he already has Premier League experience but either could do a good job. As for today, the players will be suffering from the pressure just as much as Rodgers so it is going to be tough for them and Villa will know that and try and put them on the back foot from the off. However, I think Liverpool will win 1-0

    Richard Keys: Last week I said Rodgers needed both a performance and a result against Norwich and he got neither. The game against Carlisle was catastrophic in football terms and I think Liverpool have already decided they need to make a change.

    I watched his press conference on Friday when he looked a little red-eyed and tired and delivered the line, “I am a better manager than when I came here” which sounded a bit like a come-and-get-me message. I think he knows he has gone.

    Brendan is a really nice guy but the club was ultimately too much for him. I think he has confused himself with his psychobabble about zone this and zone that. A lot of what he says just doesn’t make any sense and if I was a player listening to him every week it wouldn’t be long before I was confused and bored.

    Like Andy, I don’t think Liverpool are any further forward than when they wrongfully sacked Kenny Dalglish. In fact, arguably, they are worse. His signings have been a disaster; a story of complete failure, apart from perhaps Coutinho who will probably be out the door before too much longer. Balotelli sums up his era…dreadful.

    Disappointing: Balotelli.

    Rodgers arrived as a small fish in a very big pond and for me he was always that. He got away with it for a while but not any more.

    Even if Liverpool beat Villa today I can’t see things changing enough over the next four to six games to save his job. Klopp might be a bit of a gamble in the Premier League but Ancelotti is a superb manager and has EPL experience so he would be my choice.

    As for Saturday I can see Villa getting something against a very nervous Liverpool side. 1-1.

    Newcastle v Chelsea

    AG: There won’t be any respite for Steve McClaren here. Newcastle look short of ideas, belief and leadership and Chelsea will be resurgent after beating Arsenal last week. 0-2.

    RK: I have run out of things to say about Newcastle because they are so bad. Chelsea will walk this. 0-2.

    Tottenham v Man City

    AG: Tough one to call but Spurs look like they are finally getting their act together. City were disappointing against West Ham last week but they are a difficult side to beat. 1-1.

    RK: Finally, we are beginning to see what Tottenham are trying to do with this young side. On the face of it City should win but look what happened last week. 1-1.

    Leicester v Arsenal

    AG: Every time Leicester look like they are going to lose they manage to come up with something to get themselves back into the game. However, Arsenal tend not to be beaten by the lesser teams and I think their quality will show. 1-3.

    RK: There is no team I enjoy watching more than Leicester. Their attitude is incredible but I think Arsenal, if they can keep 11 players on the pitch, are too good for them. 1-2.

    Man United v Sunderland

    AG: Home banker. Sunderland look shot to me. United aren’t playing that well but there is no way there will lose this. 3-0.

    RK: I can’t see Sunderland getting a shot on goal, never mind a result. I agree, 3-0.

    Southampton v Swansea

    AG: Southampton were good against United last week and were a bit unlucky to lose. I also like Swansea and find it hard to separate two quality sides. 1-1.

    RK: Southampton should have beaten United last week and if they play as well as they did then they will beat Swansea who ran out of steam a bit last week. 2-1.

    Stoke v Bournemouth

    AG: Mark Hughes would have been furious with his team when they threw away a 2-0 lead against Leicester and I think they will respond. 2-0.

    Fuming: Hughes.

    RK: Stoke should have won last week and it won’t happen again against Bournemouth. 2-1.

    West Ham v Norwich

    AG: For West Ham to go to the Emirates, Anfield and the Etihad and come away with three wins is incredible. I can’t see any other team doing that and I think they will enjoy another victory. 2-1.

    RK: The Hammers beat City last week by digging in and playing competitive football but they tend to relax a bit at home and Norwich will take advantage of that. 1-2.

    Watford v Crystal Palace

    AG: Watford have started to gel and I have been impressed with what Quique Sanchez Flores has done there but Palace are good enough on the road to pull off a 1-0 smash and grab victory.

    RK: Palace were awful last week at Tottenham but I think they will have a bit too much for Watford who didn’t have much to beat at Newcastle last week. 1-2.

    West Brom v Everton

    AG: This hasn’t been the most exciting fixture over the past couple of seasons but I think we might see a half decent game here. The Baggies are defensively astute but Everton, on their day, can be potent up front. 2-2.

    RK: Tony Pulis has had 14 clean sheets since he went to West Brom and I can’t see Everton preventing it becoming 15. 1-0.

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