Brendan Rodgers would not name names but that did not dilute his point. Rather than slipping away quietly at the end of a difficult week, his message was clear.
Having been pilloried for much of the past month, with his work being dissected on a daily basis, Liverpool’s manager felt the time was right to remind people of his abilities and, more than anything, highlight the campaign he feels is being waged against him.
‘There has been a frenzy, there is no doubt about it, to get me out of here,’ said Rodgers. ‘There is no question about that. Whether that’s a Liverpool hysteria or big club hysteria I am not so sure. The scrutiny here is obviously greater, for me, than any club.
‘But it is a huge club. As a manager you know that and deal with it. It’s not about proving people wrong. I think I’ve shown in the early stages of my management — without being arrogant — that with a talented group of players I can compete at the top end.
‘There are very short memories in football. The team was eighth when I got here. We built a team to excite people throughout European football that should have won the league. Then all the good work gets forgotten. The focus has not been on what we have missed but to get me out of the club.’
It was some claim, and, given he has had to contend with frequent stories about Jurgen Klopp and Carlo Ancelotti being linked with his position, he was well within his rights to make it. But a frenzy? There have been no banners on the Kop asking for his removal, no chants asking for him to go. Yes, some former players — notably Mark Lawrenson — have said a change should be made but others, like John Barnes, have lent their support.
Rodgers’ point about being deprived of key players is also valid, particularly when you see the difference a fit Daniel Sturridge, scorer of two wonderful goals, made here. He is wrong, though, if he thinks the criticism has come in isolation. There have been a number of results over the past 12 months that have ensured his future has been the subject of much discussion and it will take a sequence of sustained improvement to make the noise subside.
With a trip to Goodison Park next, the focus on Rodgers and Liverpool will not go away but if this outpouring is a sign that he has the bit between the teeth, then it will have served a purpose.
‘I’m fine,’ he insisted. ‘You know what comes from leadership and being a manager and the scrutiny. I’ve never got too carried away when we’ve won, and not too disappointed when we lost. I have a hunger to succeed. There have been a lot of things going against us, but we stick together.’
After James Milner opened the scoring with just over a minute gone it should have been a cruise but Liverpool’s brittle state allowed Villa to get back into the game with two goals from Rudy Gestede, the second a fine header.
‘Collectively we’re not gelling,’ said Villa manager Tim Sherwood. ‘We’re doing it in spasms and it’s not good enough.’ – Daily Mail