Part 1 - English Premier League: Why Should Liverpool stick or twist with Hodgson?
In the summer break that preceded the 2010-2011 English Premier League season, Tottenham’s manager Harry Redknapp came out and described the fickle nature of the football fans. His dig was aimed at Manchester City but at the core
of his rant lay a very important message. A message that was aimed at the volatile temperament of football fans across the world and especially in England. Club football is a dangerous game to play, when things go right they go mighty well but when they go
bad, s***t really hits the fan.
Redknapp’s interview centered around the phrase “there is only one Saddam Hussein”, he used the late Iraqi dictator’s name in context to management. He hypothetically visualized a club which would have Mr. Hussein as the first
team manager. Redknapp went on to say that the fans really don’t care about what kind of manager they have or where he gets his funding from if the club is winning things and doing well. Over the years, Redknapp’s so called theory of fan fickleness has been
proven right by several examples across the board. One just has to look across London to see how fans react to success.
Liverpool’s fortunes have not been as bright as Tottenham’s over the past five or so years. Despite the fact that they made it to two UEFA Champions League finals over the past ten years, currently the Reds find themselves in the
relegation zone. If Liverpool do indeed find themselves in the bottom three come May, 2011, the Kop will be preparing for Championship football rather than Premier League football. Liverpool’s demise has come about for a lot of reasons, bad management, bad
owners, under-performing players and most importantly more emphasis on their history than on the present situation.
The club has been recently bought by the owners of Boston Red Sox, yes the same Red Sox in U.S.A’s baseball league. In doing so, the club has bid farewell to the notorious duo of George Gillet and Tom Hicks, who will forever be
remembered in history books as major players in the purple match of the footballing dynasty that is, Liverpool F.C. However, Liverpool’s present manager, Roy Hodgson has been under fire ever since the start of the season.
The Reds are currently ranked 18th out of a total number of 20 teams in the English Premier League table. Such abysmal form and results that have followed it have propelled fans to condemn their new manager, who was
appointed over the summer. Reports have come out suggesting that Liverpool’s faithful fans are in favor of Hodgson’s dismissal as the first team manager, just months after the ex-Inter Milan manager took over. Further rumors suggest that fans are supporting
Kenny Dalglish to take over from Roy in-case the Englishman is relieved from his duties as Liverpool’s manager. With the new owners in, it might be a fantastic time for Liverpool to completely start anew and build for the next two or three seasons, rather
than focus on immediate success in the presently on-going Premier League season.
There are several reasons as to why Liverpool should stick with Hodgson. Firstly, Hodgson’s record as a manager is quite impressive. He was in-charge at Fulham last season, where he took the London club to an unexpected UEFA Europa
League final. It was a marvelous achievement with a side which lacked any sort of financial muscle and had relatively average players in their starting lineup. Secondly, Hodgson has always been a slow starter. Only seven games have been played in the current
English league season. Two of Liverpool’s seven league matches have been against giants like Manchester United and Liverpool; one has been against the newly emerging boys, Manchester City.
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