søndag den 9. januar 2011

Why Dalglish is the right choice opposed to Hodgson

Roy Hodgson is a good manager. His relative success at certain clubs and his durability over 35 years proves that. However, he was never the right man for Liverpool Football Club.

If that seemed obvious to many of the club’s followers in the summer, it became unavoidable with his comments and tactics, both of which smacked of low expectations and mid-table mediocrity. If he remains a good manager, he proved that he is not a particularly adaptable one. And therefore, allied to his low win percentage in his three biggest jobs and lack of trophies at any of them, he’s not a great manager. Far from it, in fact.

This is a man who said in 2002 that he doesn’t believe in innovation (although perhaps he meant change for change’s sake), and who has proudly stuck to roughly the same methods for 35 years. Those methods – including a very British 4-4-2 formation – work well at clubs full of journeymen who need to be organised into a fighting unit and snatch the occasional victory, but as shown at Blackburn and Liverpool (and also Inter Milan), rather than see his results prosper, he seems to win the exact same percentage of games even when he steps up a level or two.

Maybe he would have adapted with time, but it’s unlikely. It’s baffling how someone with so much experience could make so many ‘rookie errors’ in every area of his performance; and at 63, and not a popular appointment to start with, how much time did he have? He managed to insult the fans, popular former managers and alienate supporters (with his words and his football) to the point where 10,000 empty seats for a New Year’s Day fixture told its own story.

Scott Murray sums up Hodgson beautifully in The Guardian, and Dion Fanning once again hits the nail squarely on the head here. It almost doesn’t need me to add to either of those pieces, but as ever, there are some small details to focus on.

Upon his appointment, Hodgson claimed that he’d get more than his predecessor out of this group of players. Indeed, that was his line in the job interview. Unfortunately, those interviewing him – as non-football men – didn’t know what they were doing.

Hodgson immediately offloaded some skilful ball-players and brought in some mediocre plodders and has-beens. He left out talented individuals like Agger (at the start of the season when everyone was fit) and played his only good signing on the right of midfield, where he performed like a fish out of water. Even after ending Meireles’ torrid time out there, and seeing the Portuguese find his feet – and the team its balance – in the centre, he was inexplicably stuck out there again at home to Wolves, when the last vestiges of hope died in a quite dire display. With the players at his disposal (including five he brought in), he made a right mess.

In returning to the dugout, Kenny Dalglish doesn’t have to prove himself a tactical master; these things are more vital when all is going well, and you need to eke out something extra. Right now, so long as he is sufficiently positive in his approach, and surrounded by the right lieutenants, the key is lifting a black cloud.

Hodgson was our Eyjafjallajökull, smothering us and stopping us getting off the ground.

Reality, Not Romanticism
While it may seem to fans of other clubs that we are living in the past, this is not about romanticism. It’s about uniting the club behind one man. It’s about finding a manager that the players – for 18 months a split group – will get behind.

Last season, Benítez lost the support of some key personnel from as early as the first week of the campaign, while Hodgson never really had the support of others – and almost certainly lost the faith of some of those who were open minded until they encountered his methods. But it’s hard to see anyone objecting to Dalglish.

It’s also about exciting the Kop to produce its full motivational power, rather than finding increasing gaps around the stadium where fans (who had always turned up, even when losing) started to refuse to spend their time and money watching Liverpool play without style or ambition. You can excuse bad games and defeats – you get them in any season – but it was uninspiring, overly cautious stuff from the moment Hodgson arrived.

Let’s not feel sorry for the departed boss. He dug himself into a hole too deep to get out of. Nothing was going to work, because all faith had been lost.
It got to the point where even acknowledging and amending the error of his ways was not going to win over a public who’d seen and heard too much. Even Phil Thompson admitted that he’d not seen the team play particularly well at all this season. Last season was horribly inconsistent, and that ‘did’ for Rafa Benítez, but at least Liverpool won some games with style and something to spare, including victories against Everton and Manchester United. The team were scoring a lot more goals than now, even though it was generally a poor season. That tells you how bad this has been.

As expected, managers are queuing up to say what a travesty the removal of Roy is, with Gérard Houllier saying that it’s now “brutal” and that managers are in the firing line after “losing a couple of games”. The trouble is, in the league, Hodgson lost nine and won only seven, as well as overseeing the worst domestic cup defeat since before Shankly’s time.

Hodgson was appointed under previous owners, by a since-deposed chief executive who began to think himself a football guru. Hodgson made the mistake of trusting that chief executive with regard to player assessments, and between them they messed up the summer’s transfer business. Hodgson seemed to side with Purslow rather than the fans.

Some of the criticism of Hodgson was daft, such as the outrage when he smiled when passing Alex Ferguson on his way to a seat at the JJB last weekend. And some of it got far too personal, as did the attacks on the owners from a few lunatics for not yet having sacked him. Ludicrous stuff.
But when Hodgson should have been putting Liverpool FC before his friendship with Ferguson back in the autumn – when Torres was first called a cheat by the United manager, and then linked with a move to United – he failed to do so. Sometimes diplomacy ends up upsetting someone regardless, because sitting on the fence can imply acceptance of a situation that needs to be spoken out against. (If you refuse to say that your wife is pretty when someone asks, you’ve just insulted her.)

Arsene Wenger said that Hodgson is a ‘great manager’, but how many Arsenal fans would have wanted him to replace the Frenchman this summer if the Gunners had performed badly last season? Seriously, can anyone see that as a sensible approach?

And before people get too snotty and say Arsenal were/are light years ahead of Liverpool, remember that Benítez won a trophy more recently than Wenger, finished in the top two far more recently, reached a Champions League Final more recently, and did so at a club far less stable behind the scenes.
And that’s coming from a huge fan of Wenger, too … Which is precisely the reason why I couldn’t see Arsenal ever appointing someone like Hodgson, or wanting to change from their sensible continental approach ‘for the sake of it’. The knee-jerking at Liverpool was in the summer, in terms of the direction of the club, rather than from the fans or NESV. The knee-jerking was in thinking that because things had gone stale under Benítez, everything about him (or Spanish football) was wrong. Instead of choosing Manuel Pellegrini, the board consciously and deliberately went ‘English’. English manager, more English players. I said in the summer that this was a daft way to go about things.

A lot of mocking supporters of rival clubs seem to think that Liverpool have become the new Newcastle by appointing Kenny Dalglish, after the enmity shown towards Roy Hodgson from the Kop.



The problem was, Liverpool became the new Newcastle in the summer, by doing the classic ‘baby out with the bath water’ 180º u-turn. Undoing that was never going to be straightforward. Hodgson’s position became untenable – the atmosphere surrounding the club was getting unbearable – and in order to buy some time ahead of a permanent summer appointment, there needed to be the best possible kind of release of the building pressure.

Dalglish oversaw arguably the finest football Liverpool (or any other British team) have ever produced, winning the title three times in his five and a half years; and then, by spending money in line with (but not in excess of) Manchester United – see Pay As You Play for evidence – took the title to Blackburn in 1995. It was a long time ago, but it involved some absolutely fantastic signings, and a winning mentality. Even his short-lived time at Newcastle left them with Didi Hamann (sold for a big profit to Liverpool, whom he served with distinction), Shay Given, Gary Speed and Nolberto Solano. (Jon Dahl Tomasson, just a kid at the time, went on to prove what a great player he is over the next decade; it was just too early for him.)

Speaking on LFC TV, The Times’ Tony Barrett mentioned how Fernando Torres was nervous to simply kick a ball in the street with Kenny (following some promotional interviews the legends were doing), such is the awe in which he is held. If Kenny has the right people around him, then that respect, allied to the deep understanding of the game he possesses, can overcome any possibly issues of rustiness.

Modern Thinking
Two years spent at the Academy working with the ex-Barcelona FC gurus Borrell and Segura – where the tactics are far more modern than any Hodgson was implementing – will have brought Dalglish up to date, as will his conversations with Rafa Benítez, of whom Dalglish was a fan.

Indeed, anyone who has been following the youth team since Rafa overhauled the Academy in 2009 will know how much talent there is below the first team squad, and how progressive the approach is. On Saturday, the Reds tore apart a talented Crystal Palace side (top of their Southern league group, I believe, and victors over Arsenal 3-0) in the most one-sided game I’ve seen all season. It ended 3-1 to the Reds, but could have been a cricket score.

It was a beautiful exhibition of football – 4-2-3-1, passing and movement not so different from that of Barcelona – which revolved around the Spaniard wunderkind Suso (the side’s Messi), drifting in from wide areas. (Not saying Suso – who, thanks to Benítez chose Liverpool over Real Madrid – is, or ever will be, as good as Messi, just that, at this level, against boys up to 18 months older, he was on a different planet. Also, see this video clip from last year when, aged just 16, he was showing his talent against senior sides in pre-season friendlies.)

While Hodgson was happy to play some kids in his ‘B’ team, he rarely even picked the likes of Kelly and Pacheco for the bench in the Premier League, even though they are a year older than when they made their debuts last season. Dalglish is very much in touch with the up-and-coming talent on the books, and can link each section of the club. The comparisons with Keegan’s return at Newcastle are especially daft because while Keegan – an inferior manager – was noted for not even following football during his time out of the game, Dalglish has been following it closely.

And while Liverpool lost to Manchester United in Dalglish’s return, it was courtesy of a Howard Webb gift (Agger stuck out a leg but quickly withdrew it) and a moment of madness from Gerrard that left the Reds with ten men. (However committed Gerrard is in big games, he has to learn to stop diving in like that.)

The pleasing thing was that, as I’d expected, Dalglish set up in a modern 4-2-3-1, as opposed to Hodgson’s rigid 4-4-2. The Reds pressed higher up the pitch, even with just ten men, and showed greater movement. The side looked balanced, and everyone was looking to pass the ball. Agger strode confidently out from the back, and although Reina was the busier keeper, Liverpool came out of the game with their pride intact.

So, if Dalglish is a case of ‘going back to the past’, then it was mostly reminiscent of the Liverpool of 2008/09 that won 25 of its 38 league games and lost only two (as opposed to Hodgson’s antiquated, inhibited approach).
Above all else, Dalglish knows what Liverpool fans expect to see. When the Reds were 2-0 down at Manchester City earlier in the season, Hodgson didn’t make a change until the 80th minute, and in other games he left his substitutions very late (because he has never really had a Plan B). At Old Trafford, Kenny made two positive substitutions on 60 minutes.

Will it last beyond the summer? Quite possibly not. But if it goes better than expected, and the right people are brought in around him (Steve Clarke?) – as well as getting on well with Damien Comolli – then the Reds could do worse. After all, and much to our great pain, we’ve just spent the past six months witnessing just that.

lørdag den 8. januar 2011

Finally Hodgson has left, but stil a lot of work to do.

First of all, Liverpool has to get back on track. To be fair, Liverpool should be aiming for a top 6 position, champions league simply isent in the cards this season, Tottenham and Chelsea are 11 and 10 point ahead, and even with a game in hand, is just to far away now.

For the rest of the season there must be 6 goals, that liverpool FC must work hard on to achive:

  • Liverpool must finish in at top 6
  • Liverpool must formulate a styles and strategi of how they want to play the game.
  • Liverpool must identify a new manager, who are capable of implementing the new style of play. Also a manager that the players will respect due to the achivements that he allready has on the CV
  • Liverpool must invest in the squad, thereby sending a signal both the the squad and to the competitors, that Liverpool are once again a force to be reckoned with
  • Liverpool must go all out in the efforts to win the UEFA League.
  • Liverpool must turn the negative spiral. In the recent years there has been to much negativity concerning Liverpool.We all have to unite, and support the club. The fans on the stands, the players on the field, the management on and of the field, and the owners. Liverpool is a special club. There are no other club like Liverpool, it is time to show why.
In regards to finishing in top 6, Liverpool "only" has to win the 2 games in hand, and Liverpool will actuallybe number 6, dependent on the goaldifference.

The style of play, and this is my opinion, we have to go back to the style of play that made us great. I have always identified Liverpool with a shortpassing style of play, which is fairly direct, strong technical players, who likes possesion, and who can create chances themselves.That is why I love players like Xabi Alonso, Agger, Torres, Xavi, Eden Hazard and so on.

At this point in time, I only see two potential managers, who has the name, can implement the style of play the fans wants to see, and who understands a massive club. The names are, Frank Rijkaard and Manuel Pellegrini.
Many has forget that Barcelona was actually in a crisis when Frank Rijkaard took over. They havent won the league or in europe in a number of years. Frank Rijkaard started this golden period for Barcelona (Guardiola has since perfected it). Frank Rijkaard understands the pressure of a big club, understands the politics. His style of play, is a short passing technical game and he has the name that every player in Liverpool knows and respects.
Manual Pellegrini was manager for Villareal in a number of years, taking them from a unknown club, to a wellrespected club. Qualified for europe each year and created a very good team for small investments. Was put in charge of Real Madrid, and took them to the higest point tally ever, but failed the win the championship (finishing 2 after Barcelona) and also failed in the champions league.

The new owners has said, that there are money to invest in the squad, if they right players are availble. I agree, there is no need to buy players, just to buy players. So instead I will concentrate on the positions where I think we need to stregten the squad.

Defence: We need a new left back, and a central defender. First of all, lets bring back Insua. I know he had his short comings, but he is still young and will learn. Still we would have to buy a new left back. I also think that we need a new central defender. Carragher is not getting younger, and I am not sure that Skrtel is good enough. Danny Wilson is very young and would properly benefit from going on loan.

Midfield. I think we need a holding midfielder and a left midfielder. I dont see Gerard as a central midfielder. I see him as a attacking midfielder/supporting striker. Lucas and Christian Poulsen arent bad players, they are just noy good enough to start the games. Therefor a holding midfielder, who can create the games from behind, along with Mereilles who is a box to box midfielder, and Gerrard behind Torres. A left midfielder is also needed. One who can challenge on the left, and create the chances from the left. (Would love if it was Eden Hazard).

Attack: We need a new striker, but it is important, that he can cover as a supporting striker as well. I dont see Liverpool playing with two strikers, due to Steven Gerrard. And if we want a good striker, he would also want to play on a regular basis. Therefor, it is important that it is a player, who can play both the supporting striker and on top. That will also leave cover for injuries for Torres and Gerrard.

To win the UEFA league, is not something that you just do, but if we all unite and stand together. The team is good enough to win it.

fredag den 7. januar 2011

Phil Thomson calls for change in management

LIVERPOOL legend Phil Thompson today said that a parting of the ways between Liverpool and Roy Hodgson is the only way forward.

Former Assistant Manager Thompson said he hoped the Reds could a strike a deal with Hodgson which allowed him to leave the club with dignity after trying his best in the face of an array of problems. Said Thompson: “I hate knee jerk reactions – this is not that – and I take no pleasure in saying this. “But these are unprecedented times – we are wallowing in mediocrity.”

This is an awful time for Liverpool Football Club and everyone involved with it.I well remember how it was for those few weeks before Gerard Houllier and I left in 2004 - and at times it was really unbearable.

Of course I can’t speak for Gerard but I took the criticism of him at that time quite personally and I felt a lot of his uncertainty too.

So much flak over the team’s performances and results were aimed at Gerard - but I felt we were all in it together.

You could not help but be affected by what was going on and the mood was very difficult during those final days.

From the gate man at Melwood to the people at reception, to the technical staff and the players - it hung over all of us.

So right now I am pretty certain it will be similar behind the scenes at Melwood and Anfield - but in truth probably far worse.

We had had success before those days and had known good times.
But Roy Hodgson has been at the club for barely six months and it has seemingly come to this. So this is different. Very different indeed.

We are witnessing unprecedented things in unprecedented times at Anfield.
We have never before known such overwhelming calls for the manager to go from so many supporters and with such volume.

I don’t like it because at Liverpool we like to think we handle these things differently and we don’t go around calling for the manager’s head like this. But these as I say are unparallelled times for the club.

The fans are emotional and angry and you have to understand that and take it into account.

Over recent years these supporters have been through some terribly worrying times with the ownership issues and the debts.

Finally, they have seen an end to the Hicks and Gillett era and the debts wiped away - but instead there are now big problems on the pitch.
This is a proud and successful club with the best supporters in the world - and they are understandably hurting.

I have to be honest and admit that the only way I see for us to get out of here now is for a dignified parting of the ways.

Roy Hodgson has done his very best but he has had a lot of problems to deal with and sometimes you just have to admit that the club and the issues are just too big for you to handle. And that something has to happen.

If Roy and the club can strike a deal that lets him go with his head up and allows Liverpool FC to move on, then sad as I am to say it, I believe that would be in the best interests of everybody concerned.

Roy did come in under the previous owners and he did inherit a depleted squad lacking talent and commitment.

He hasn’t had a Chief Executive Officer to work with in recent months and at times it cannot have been easy for him. Early on he had to deal with the Mascherano situation, trying to keep a player who wanted to go and who eventually forced his way and got his wish.

But that said Roy has got some things fundamentally wrong with tactics and personnel, particularly away from home. The truth is we have not seen one fantastic performance from Liverpool all season. And we have seen some abject ones.

We are wallowing in mediocrity and the owners, who to their credit have taken their time and listened to lots of people to try and grow to understand the club, must surely know this is not what Liverpool FC is all about. Quite the opposite.

They’ll be talking to the right people about how to handle things I hope - and for me two of the best people they could listen to are Commercial Director Ian Ayre and Kenny Dalglish.

I hate knee jerk reactions - this isn’t that - and take no pleasure saying so.
But it is time for a parting of the ways between Roy Hodgson and Liverpool. One that happens with a degree of dignity for everyone’s sake.


Read More http://www.liverpoolecho.co.uk/liverpool-fc/liverpool-fc-news/2011/01/07/phil-thompson-time-to-end-roy-hodgson-s-liverpool-fc-reign-now-100252-27944794/3/#ixzz1AL2t8000

torsdag den 6. januar 2011

The Hodgson situation

Over the past few weeks, I’ve read many misguided comments about Liverpool fans’ with regard to the ‘Hodgson Situation.’ Some members of the press have even gone as far as implying that the fans, some of whom have wanted Hodgson out for a few months now, are stupid and do not know what they are talking about.
Aside from the unacceptable results and performances, Hodgson’s off the pitch performances have arguably been worse than those on the field.
According to Dave Kidd of the UK based Sunday newspaper, The People, Liverpool FC fans have created the ‘Hodgson Situation’ by expecting too much and that we all ‘want success yesterday.’ In my eyes this is a massive insult to us as a group of supporters. As Dave Kidd, and plenty of other ‘experts’ know very well, we’ve had plenty of success ‘yesterday.’
Last season we finished 7th and subsequently a change of management was made. Whether the decision to dismiss Rafael Benitez was right or wrong is an issue that is still debated strongly to this day, but what we do know is a lot of the fans felt undoubtedly underwhelmed by the choice of replacement. Yet, despite Hodgson claiming otherwise, once it was officially announced everyone fell in line with ‘The Liverpool Way’ and let him make his own first impressions rather than acting on our own preconceptions without giving the new man a chance.
And to be absolutely fair, I feel Hodgson’s reign started well. Being kind, other than a couple of choice signings and some unpopular decisions regarding outgoing players, we had started positively in Europe and gave Arsenal a good game on the opening day of the Premier League season. Yet Hodgson’s suitability for the Liverpool job came under question as dire and negative performances, combined with a woeful away record, saw the reds record their worst start to a league campaign for around half a decade.
Aside from the unacceptable results and performances, Hodgson’s off the pitch performances have arguably been worse than those on the field.
His early interviews when taking up the post were encouraging. He seemed to be embracing the idea that he was privileged to be our manager. Yet his public comments became increasingly frustrating, including needlessly talking up the opposition before matches, and also our dire performances after embarrassing defeats, as well as ignoring fierce attacks on the character of one of our best players, and shortly afterwards agreeing that selling him to his attacker is not far from impossible.
In contrary to the belief from a large section of the media, we didn’t expect Hodgson to have us challenging for the league straight away. Nor did we think a return to the top four was ours for the taking. In reality, it was very much the the opposite. Upon the announcement he was to be our new manager, there was plenty of talk of him ‘steadying the ship,’ which was as much a welcome idea as the season before was an unwelcome surprise. However, what we ended up with was a manager who I feel, more often than not, set out to ‘not lose’ games and in the process has all but alienated some of our more attacking players with ancient tactics or, better yet, bluntly refused to use them in their true roles. Along this rocky path he has blamed everyone, including the fans, the players, the previous manager and even the freak weather for our misfortunes, leaving himself out of the equation.
At this point last season, Benitez’ record had certain sections of the media calling for his head. Yet the same journalists this time around, despite the situation being arguably worse, feel that Liverpool fans are being rash in their wishes. The previous manager was dismissed for finishing 7th, bearing in mind he had shown us what he was capable of in the seasons before. On the flip side, Hodgson’s record up to now has us finishing much worse off than last season, with only a mid table finish and a Europa League final appearance with his previous club to back up his recent credentials.
I know a lot of our fans, myself included, have felt abnormal wanting a Liverpool manager to be sacked so early in to the season. The feeling is something that we have never really experienced before, at the very least as a majority. You see fans of other football clubs baying for blood midway through the season after a run of unsavoury results, yet while we have had managers who had arguably ran their course and became unsuitable for our club, there has never been this level of public discontent before. Yet we are portrayed as impatient and demanding as the usual suspects seen calling for a manager’s head when things aren’t going right.
So to those journalists and experts who feel Hodgson is bearing the brunt of a new found impatience amongst Liverpool fans, bear in mind that we have experienced success ‘yesterday,’ and we know full well that it doesn’t come without intense preparation and forward thinking. And we also know, as Roy Hodgson has stated himself after periods of sustained pressure, that there isn’t a magic wand that will instantly make things happen. Preparation like this can take a long time to establish amongst a group of players. Yet we know that such inspiration doesn’t come from men who feel it is ‘naive’ to think they can beat every team they come up against. If you don’t feel you can win any given match, surely managing a club as big as Liverpool Football Club is not for you.

The above article was published on http://www.anfield-online.co.uk/opinion/2011/the-hodgson-situation/

Finally - Liverpool owners slam results - but...

Sky Sports claims the club’s owners have yet to decide on Hodgson’s future but have admitted ‘results have been very discouraging’

Unfortunately the owners have yet not decided to sack Roy Hodgson.

The only reason why they havent sacked him yet, must be that they havent decided on appointing a caretaker manager or trying to appoint a long term solution.

I am not sure how many more proves the owners want.
  • Out of the League cup
  • Manager who blames the fans
  • Manager who takes no action to change the result. He just passive waits, and thinks that the result will change as long as he dont
  • All ready lost 9 games in the league
  • 1 away win
  • Declining numbers of spectators
  • changing top players to below average players
  • And much more

No matter what, things can hardly get worse, so sack him, and sack him today.

Liverpool still have two tournaments that they could win, the uefa league and the FA cup. sacking Roy Hodgson at least gives Liverpool a chance to beat United come sunday.


 

onsdag den 5. januar 2011

Is Agger out of order?

Agger said: "If I'm not playing in the Liverpool team on a regular basis then I am ready to move on."
“I have only just returned from three months out injured so I am in no position at the moment to say I must be in the side for every game.

“But once I have made a few appearances and regained full fitness, I would expect to be starting games. If I'm not playing, I can't see a reason for staying.”

The defender made his first appearance since recovering from a calf inujry against Bolton recently but he expectes to be in Liverpool’s starting eleven more often than not.

I dont think Agger is out off order. First of all, Hodgson has done nothing to ensure that he wants to keep Agger, with reports that he has been offered to other clubs. And I think that Aggers claim for a regular place in the first team is solid, and he is aware that he needs to get his fitness sorted.

Yesterday Joe Cole showed his support to Roy Hodgson, but Hodgson doesent return the favour.

Liverpool midfielder Joe Cole's injury-time winner at the weekend may have eased the pressure on Roy Hodgson but the manager has told the England international he still has plenty to prove.
The 29-year-old came off the bench with eight minutes to go against Bolton on Saturday and tapped home in added time to snatch a 2-1 victory. It was Cole's first Barclays Premier League goal for the club having made 10 appearances since joining in the summer.
Injury saw the former Chelsea player lose his place in the side in November and he has yet to win it back. And although his goal earned Hodgson, whose position has come under increased scrutiny in recent weeks, some breathing space, Cole has been urged to start delivering on a more regular basis.

Once again Roy Hodgson shows his lack of support to Joe Cole. We can all agree that Joe hasent brougth his A-game, but Hodgson should, as he does with Torres, Carragher and Gerrard, show his support for Joe, because he is a class player.

tirsdag den 4. januar 2011

How long must we wait. Sack Roy Hodgson now

“I’m hoping that one day I will get a chance to stamp a little bit more of my authority and philosophy on the team by choosing some more of the players,” he said.
“Although it’s not often mentioned I’ve not been that active in the transfer market since I’ve been here.
“The players here have done exceptionally well for me in accepting a new manager, but they are the ones you have watched for the past few years.” Quote Roy Hodgson

I can only agree that a manager needs time to really put his personal stamp on the team.  So yes teams can suffer when appointing a new manager. But one thing is to loose matches you really shouldent have lost, another thing is to create a philosophy and style of play, that clearly does not work.
Let me remind you that in Rafa´s first season, he largely played with a team inheriated by Gerard Houllier.
Roy  Hodgson often claims, (done it again today) that it is not his Liverpool team. That he inheriated the team from former manager Rafa Benitez, and that the team is not good enough. To some extend his is right. But the team consist of 9 new player, compared to last season. Fair enough, some of the players made the agreement with the former management, but Roy Hodgson could have vetoed every one of them. And the two players who have performed the worst, are Christian Poulsen and Poul Konchesky, which are your signings, in a total cost of 8 mio £ (almost what Tottenham paid for Rafael van der Vart).
Of the new players, only Raul Meirelles have been performing on a high level, (when RH allowes him to play central), while everyone could have expected more from Joe Cole, Christian Poulsen and Milan Jovanovic. I wont critizise Poul Konchesky, because he has performed precisely as expected. His level of performance just arent higher. Brad Jones, well no one really belived that he would knock of Reina? In Jonjo Shelvey and danny Wilson, I firmly believe that Liverpool have bought a pair of gems, but they are still young and needs time.
But how come that Joe Cole (England international), Christian Poulsen (Denmark international and Captain) or Milan Jovanovic  (Serbia international) havent performed. Well actually no one has really performed this season, maybe except of Pepe Reina. When it comes down to it, the finger is pointed at Roy Hodgson.
No one believed at the start of the season, that we would be champions. But most believed that the team was, and are, good enough to at least come close to finishing in top 4.
So Roy your time is up.