Search
On FM Scout you can chat about Football Manager in real time since 2011. Here are 10 reasons to join!

Rodgers' Reds: Class is Permanent

The journey of Brendan Rodgers as he aims to bring Liverpool back to where they belong.
Started on 14 January 2015 by Glenn T
Latest Reply on 28 October 2015 by Maximus
Pages  
2015-05-23 01:47#213537 LLMCrumble : Bet the Villa loss hurt, but you have to keep going and you have. Your side looks to be a very strong team and I can see you going the whole season without losing soon! :P

Yeah of course it did. Hopefully you're right :)

November 2018

Liverpool had their best month of the season so far as they hit home 26 goals in 5 games while conceding 0, maintaining their hold of first place in the league table. They have also secured qualification for the knockout stages of the Champions League after taking 12 points from 5 games.




Premier League

Liverpool 5 - 0 Watford
Coutinho
Coutinho
Zivkovic
Cuello
Balotelli


Hull 0 - 5 Liverpool
Zivkovic
Zivkovic
Alaba
Balotelli
Zivkovic


Liverpool 4 - 0 Southampton
Balotelli
Balotelli
Balotelli
Papadopoulos




Champions League Group B

Liverpool 7 - 0 Trabzonspor
Skinner
Balotelli
Balotelli
Balotelli
Papadopoulos
Balotelli
Moreyra


Liverpool 5 - 0 Atletico
Sturridge
Coutinho
Gamez
Sterling
Sturridge

Liverpool November Player of the Month



Mario Balotelli has been on fire this month, picking up the Player of the Month gong once again after scoring an astonishing 9 goals in 4 appearances. The forward smashed Trabzonspor, putting 4 goals past the Turkish side and followed this up with a superb hat trick against Southampton in the Premier League. One of the best players in the world as of now, Balotelli is a hot favorite for the Ballon d'Or award at the end of the year, and with good reason too.

Manager's Thoughts

Brilliant month, simply brilliant. Splendid response from the lads after their loss to Aston Villa last month, especially our very own Super Mario who has been going crazy in front of goal. I do hope he picks up that Ballon d'Or because in my opinion no one in the world currently deserves it more. That's us done with the Champions League group stages - well, we do still have one game, but we have nothing to play for now. It's far too early to be celebrating though!

Youth Spotlight: Conor Skinner

In a brand new LFCTV series, we bring to you reports of young Liverpool players that are either already on the verge of breaking into the first team, or those who are slowly but surely making their way to that level. Our first Youth Spotlight will focus on Conor Skinner.

An exciting local prospect, Skinner is Liverpool born and bred. The 19-year-old was brought up from the academy and began playing football for the Under-18s team in 2015. He can play in a variety of positions and is comfortable on the left wing, as well as being directly behind the striker in the role of the number 10. However, where he excels most is in the heart of midfield.

Some of his strengths, noted by Under-18s team manager Neil Critchley, include his passing, technique, and general work rate. At the same time, his style of play is aggressive, ambitious, and serves to intimidate most opposition.

But what should really be noted is his physical talents. Skinner possesses great pace and stamina, easily being the fastest runner in the youth squads.



Skinner has had a fairly eventful career so far for a 19-year-old. He made his debut in professional football in 2016, coming on as a substitute for Liverpool against Paris Saint-Germain in the Champions League, although he only got to play a couple of minutes and failed to exert much of an influence on the game.

His official league debut came in League Two after agreeing to a season-long loan with fellow Merseyside club Tranmere Rovers. Skinner's first ever loan spell in his professional career ended in success as he scored 7 goals in 31 games to lift Tranmere to 4th place in League Two, a notable improvement on 9th the year before.

The start of the 2017/18 season saw Skinner pick up his first medal as he was named on the bench for Liverpool's UEFA Super Cup against Lille. He came on as a substitute but once again did not have the time to make an impression in a crushing 5-1 win for his side, although he did manage to get a medal out of the occasion.

His next loan move was to Crawley Town in League One, a club that had been rapidly on the rise in recent years, achieving double promotions from the Vanarama Conference and then League Two. In League One though, Crawley have been struggling, finishing 18th in 2016/17.



But Skinner proved to be the catalyst, establishing himself as a key member of the team shortly upon arriving. In 37 games, he would go on to score 10 goals, helping Crawley to 5th place and the right to challenge for promotion via playoffs.

If that wasn't enough, Crawley also won the playoffs, securing promotion to the Championship, with Skinner being most of the reason behind the success.

Soon after, another trophy followed, this time on international level, after he won the European Under-19 Championship with the England Under-19s squad.

A return to Liverpool marked his registration in the squad for the 2018/19 Premier League season, and so far, Skinner has managed to do well with 2 goals in 15 appearances over all competitions.

His potential is there for all to see, but even so, it remains to be seen if Skinner can cement a place in the star-studded Liverpool first team in the years to come.
great update glenn, I like the new youth series you've done.

conor skinner does loo quite promising aswell
1
Wow! What a month!
1
2015-05-23 18:05#213577 The Motivated One : great update glenn, I like the new youth series you've done.

conor skinner does loo quite promising aswell

Thanks for the kind words :)

2015-05-23 18:15#213580 LLMCrumble : Wow! What a month!

What a month, yes! :P
Glenn T's avatar Group Glenn T
9 yearsEdited

December 2018

In a busy December, Liverpool contested 9 fixtures, winning the Club World Cup in convincing fashion, while also wrapping up the last of their Champions League group stage matches with a 1-1 draw to Fiorentina. Draws to West Bromwich and Chelsea in the Premier League, however, ensure that Liverpool will be two points behind league leaders Manchester United even if they win the two games that they have in hand.




Premier League

West Ham 0 - 1 Liverpool
Clyne


West Brom 0 - 0 Liverpool


Liverpool 5 - 0 Everton
Miranda
Joseph
Bravo
Zivkovic
Coutinho


Chelsea 2 - 2 Liverpool
Zivkovic
Zivkovic




Champions League Group B

Fiorentina 1 - 1 Liverpool
Sturridge




Club World Cup Semi Final

San Jose 0 - 2 Liverpool
Sturridge
Zivkovic

Club World Cup Final

Boca Juniors 0 - 7 Liverpool
Sterling
Balotelli
Balotelli
Coutinho
Balotelli
Coutinho
Henderson


Capital One Cup Quarter Final

Liverpool 3 - 0 Nott Forest
Zivkovic
Sturridge
Alaba

Liverpool December Player of the Month



Left-back David Alaba becomes the first player to win the Player of the Month this season apart from Mario Balotelli and Richairo Zivkovic, after turning in a couple of excellent performances throughout December. The former Bayern man has always displayed consistency since joining Liverpool in 2016, but is having by far his best season at the club, with 7 assists in his 15 league appearances.

Injury Report



Eder Alvarez Balanta - 3 weeks (damaged foot)

Liverpool center-back Balanta will be sitting on the sidelines for 3 weeks after suffering an injury to his foot, meaning his solid defensive partnership with fellow defender Samuel Umtiti will have to be broken up for awhile.

Manager's Thoughts

It's always nice to win a trophy and we've done just that with the Club World Cup, but it's disappointing to drop points to West Bromwich and Chelsea. Now United are out of our grasp and we will have to be relying on them to slip up. December isn't my favorite month at all considering the amount of games we have to play, but January is going to be even worst and I will have to keep a close eye on squad fatigue.
What a win to Everton and another solid month but a huge slip to West Brom!
1
What a stacked CL group! Impressive two wins by Trabzonspor.

Keep the good job up! :D I'm really enjoying the story :)
1
2015-05-23 20:33#213591 LLMCrumble : What a win to Everton and another solid month but a huge slip to West Brom!

Hopefully we'll stop getting stupid results like these :(

2015-05-23 22:42#213604 ClockDk : What a stacked CL group! Impressive two wins by Trabzonspor.

Keep the good job up! :D I'm really enjoying the story :)

Thanks mate that means a lot!

The World's Second Best




Liverpool forward Mario Balotelli is officially the second best football player in the world, after finishing runner-up to Barcelona's Lionel Messi in the 2018 FIFA Ballon d'Or.

31-year-old Messi has had a spectacular year, leading Barca to their first La Liga title in three years while also lifting his first ever World Cup with Argentina in the summer. With 510 voting points, the world-famous striker has laid claim to his 7th Ballon d'Or.

Coming in third is Carlos Tevez of Juventus, who has only gotten better with age. The 34-year-old hit home 27 goals in 48 appearances in 2018, earning 159 voting points to rank in the top three of the prestigious FIFA award for the first time in his professional career.

Balotelli ranks second with 236 points, with a magnificent number of 36 goals and 28 assists in 58 games throughout 2018. Last season, he finished as Liverpool's highest league goalscorer, and came close to winning the Premier League's Golden Boot with 26 goals, while at the same time leading his side's quintuple charge.



Aside from Liverpool's very own Super Mario, goalkeeper Jeronimo Rulli has also received his due recognition after an impressive first few months on Merseyside.

The former Real Sociedad man has kept 12 clean sheets in 15 league games, conceding exactly 5 goals in 5 months.

As a result, Rulli has been named in goal for the 2018 FIFA World XI alongside Balotelli, ahead of Chelsea's Thibaut Courtois, who is left on the World XI bench.

However, there are no other Liverpool players in the team, although former Red forward Luis Suarez is another name on the star-studded bench.



Balotelli jetted out to Switzerland to attend the FIFA awards event and had a few words to say to LFCTV upon returning to Liverpool.

"Messi is a good player, a very good player. To prove that, all you have to do is look at what he has done for Barcelona and Argentina.

"There's no doubt he's one of the best players of all time and I definitely think he's as good as, or maybe even better than football legends like Maradona and Pele.

"But the best in the world? At this point of time? No, no, no. That has to be me. And hopefully I can prove that next year."
Super Mario, the skies the limit for him

Liverpool: January Transfer Rumors




With the opening of the January transfer window, the rumor mill is churning and today we bring you all the latest news and happenings concerning the Liverpool camp.

Reds boss Brendan Rodgers will not look to spend excessively this window as he already believes that he has enough players at his disposal. However, he has sent scouts to look at two specific youngsters.

19-year-old Andres Bascon hails from the renowned La Masia, Barcelona's youth academy, and the defender is gaining prominence on both club and international level.

Besides winning 16 caps for Spain Under-21s, the boyhood Barca fan has also made huge strides in Barcelona B and is considered to be the greatest talent among the reserves.

Of course, Barcelona are not looking to sell, but Rodgers is very keen on adding the teenager to his squad and could tempt Bascon with offers of first team football.

Another young player on the Northern Irishman's radar is French goalkeeper Pierre-Francois Costantini.

The 17-year-old is capped at Under-19 level and has already established himself in the senior team at Bastia despite having just came through the ranks from the academy two years ago. Currently, Costantini has made 8 appearances in Ligue 1.

Bastia will naturally refuse to let go of their current first-choice goalkeeper, but Costantini himself is desperate for a move to England to further his career.

Liverpool holding midfielder Lucas Romero is wanted by Paris Saint-Germain, a long-term suitor of the Argentine. Romero would prefer to stay, but Liverpool might be tempted to cash in, as the 24-year-old has not been in the best of form this season.


Paris Saint-Germain have been chasing Lucas Romero for a long time

Manchester City endured a torrid start to the season, but are starting to get back on their feet, rising to 7th place in December following the sacking of Slaven Bilic and the appointment of Rafa Benitez. The Arab-owned club already spent a total of £75 million in the summer on six new players, but are desperate for more quality to lift them further up the league table.

One key target that Benitez has identified is Liverpool vice-captain Jordan Henderson. The 28-year-old has proven himself as one of the best midfielders in Europe and City would be able to pry him from the hands of their fellow Premier League club if they offer big money.

Real Madrid are plotting a double swoop for Raheem Sterling and Richairo Zivkovic.

Sterling was unsettled at Anfield a few months ago along with Philippe Coutinho after an apparent bust-up with Rodgers over the treatment of Mamadou Sakho, who has since left to join Juventus.


Sterling is happy to stay but might be enticed toward the prospect of a new challenge in Spain

He is now happy to stay on Merseyside, but Real have been interested in acquiring his services for a long time, and the England international, who has an impressive number of 18 assists this season, might be enticed toward the prospect of a new challenge in Spain after 8 years at Liverpool and winning a multitude of trophies.

Likewise, Zivkovic is not believed to be desiring to leave, but the striker, currently Liverpool's top scorer in the Premier League with 20 goals in 21 games, could still have his head turned by Real.

Dortmund were interested in James Ward-Prowse back in August but now Juventus and Roma have both joined in the chase for the central midfielder, although their efforts will be futile as the player in question has pledged loyalty to his current club.

Reds icon Daniel Sturridge, a man who has won the love of the Kop after several dazzling trophy-laden seasons, will be offloaded this month.


Daniel Sturridge has effectively been replaced by Richairo Zivkovic and is not wanted by Liverpool

Sturridge damaged his cruciate ligaments in 2017, sidelining himself for 8 months. As a result, Zivkovic burst onto the scene and the 29-year-old has been relegated to being a bench warmer even after his complete recovery.

The forward still has the goods, with 9 goals scored in 13 games across all competitions so far in 2018/19, and is angling for a move to a side that guarantees more first team football. Unfortunately, his wage demands of around £150k per week will be a stumbling block for Liverpool to sell.

A long period of sitting on the bench is starting to frustrate Jordon Ibe, and the winger is set to be on his way out of Liverpool after discussing his future at the club with Rodgers.

Ibe has not managed to get a single minute of game time in the Premier League this season and has only made 4 appearances, two of those coming in the League Cup and another two in the Champions League.

The Wycombe Wanderers youth product wants to experience playing football abroad, with Sevilla and Wolfsburg both likely destinations.
good to see sturridge struggle for opportunities cause ive never liked him :), Zivkovic though looks great
2015-05-25 18:26#213741 The Motivated One : good to see sturridge struggle for opportunities cause ive never liked him :), Zivkovic though looks great

He carried our team for about 3 seasons but I have to say Zivkovic is a much much better option now ^_^

You are reading "Rodgers' Reds: Class is Permanent".

FMS Chat

Stam
hey, just wanted to let you know that we have a fb style chat for our members. login or sign up to start chatting.