Good news?

[Guest Numero Veinticinco]

The payout is already decided in his contract isnt it.

 

Almost certainly. The point is that it's not activated upon resignation, but upon dismissal. Roy gets nothing if he resigns, but gets all of whatever is contractually stipulated if he is sacked.

[Wor Horse]

I know of a quality manager that's just been relieved of his duties in Italy!

 

Who?

[Dougie Do'ins]

With respect Mick, trust is something they'll have to earn.

 

I'm not impatient. I'm happy for them to take time get the right man. But if you've decided to change the manager and are actively looking, I don't think letting it be known and leaving him in situ is the smartest thing to do. Either leave him there with the carrot of turning things round to keep him going, or end it and appoint a caretaker.

Wasnt so much talking about trust mate, it was more about the optimism we all had for seeing them arrive and Cancer & Aids go.

 

If this is their way of letting us and Roy know he's on borrowed time then as Paul said, it's fucking shit. I totally agree with you. If they want him out, sack him now. Write the season off and get a caretaker in while they're looking. I'm sure Phil Tommo would gladly step in till they have their man.

 

I know things are bad enough but I can believe they've let this break on the eve of a game. I'm half expecting some more news tomorrow.

 

This just doesn't add up.

[Jack the Sipper]

Assuming the story isn't a load of speculative bollocks, I wouldn't be surprised if the source was Hodgson himself.

[cochcaer]

Not sure why anybody is having a hissy fit. So he's a lame duck, did anybody think Roy would be here next season? Do you think Hodgson is blissfully unaware the bullet is in the chamber?

 

I can't see this dragging on for long and tbh I suspect Bolton will be Roy's last game.

[Anubis]

This just doesn't add up.

 

Admittedly it does seem less than savvy from businessmen who've shown a fair bit of acumen so far.

[cochcaer]

Assuming the story isn't a load of speculative bollocks, I wouldn't be surprised if the source was Hodgson himself.

 

Maybe. Barclay is still singing his praises on Twitter and apparently publishing a piece on Royston tomorrow.

[Anubis]

Maybe. Barclay is still singing his praises on Twitter and apparently publishing a piece on Royston tomorrow.

 

This is Barclay's piece - courtesy of The Special One.

 

 

Calls for a messiah are not worthy of Anfield

 

Patrick Barclay Chief Football Commentator

 

None of the 42,529 present will ever forget it: the night in early May 2005 when the irresistible force that Liverpool can be at Anfield took on the immovable object that was José Mourinho’s Chelsea and the immovable object moved.

 

A much-disputed goal by Luis García did the trick. Liverpool proceeded to a Champions League final against AC Milan in Istanbul which they should have lost but won. When the clubs reconvened in Athens two years later, Liverpool should have won but lost.

 

And in the process a view emerged that Liverpool and Milan shared something in their DNA that entitled them perpetually to be contesting the game’s great prizes.

 

The trouble is that, in order even to take part in the Champions League, English and Italian clubs must finish at least fourth in their domestic leagues. And thus, while Milan prepare to meet Tottenham Hotspur in the round of 16 in February, Liverpool have only emptiness and aspiration; the sort of aspiration Newcastle United supporters encounter when an FA Cup draw takes place and their club is not in it.

 

How unrealistic is the Liverpool dream? I confess that, when Roy Hodgson was appointed manager in the summer, the notion of their finishing fourth and qualifying for next season’s Champions League seemed feasible. After all, a similar squad — crucially augmented by Xabi Alonso and Javier Mascherano, it must be conceded — had finished second little over a year earlier.

 

Events have made a nonsense of this and Wednesday night’s home defeat by Wolverhampton Wanderers left Hodgson’s Liverpool in the bottom half of the table, more concerned about the possibility of visiting Doncaster Rovers next season than jousting again with the likes of Milan.

 

Poor though the team were, however, nothing insulted the club’s traditions more than the chant aimed at their manager, whom the FA has considered as a potential successor to Fabio Capello. “Hodgson for England” yelled sections of a support once regarded as fundamental to the fortress-like character of Anfield. Today, when Bolton Wanderers come, the same people will belt out You’ll Never Walk Alone without a whit of irony.

 

Anfield will always be a great place to watch football. But it has been belittled in the eyes of the wider game. The neutrals privileged to be there in May 2005 will always remember the winter when Anfield went flaky, not only pointing Hodgson to the door but holding it open — let’s not forget this either — to Kenny Dalglish.

 

My impression is that, although disgruntled Liverpool fans have a huge variety of alternatives to Hodgson in mind, most want Dalglish in at least temporary charge (the more delusional imagine that Pep Guardiola or some such luminary will beat a path to Anfield at the end of the season).

 

Some want Rafael Benítez — free after his dismissal by Inter Milan and still regarded by many as the club’s best manager since Dalglish reeled away, suffering terrible symptoms of stress, in 1991 — back straight away. But essentially there is a yearning for an icon.

 

Remind you of any other club? It would do if they yearned for Kevin Keegan rather than Dalglish. Sections of Liverpool’s support have come to resemble their Newcastle equivalents in times of disappointment: angry rather than sad, but still bereft. And now ready to welcome a messiah. Newcastle fans, weighing the respective merits of Keegan and Dalglish at St James’ Park, might even joke that they’ve picked the wrong one.

 

I am in no position to mock Anfield. Not after having counselled that the Hodgson effect, most recently noted in carrying Fulham to their highest ever league position and a Europa League final, would work on Liverpool by Christmas. But what is the point of making things worse by weakening your own manager? It can only eat into the players’ commitment.

 

Liverpool fans used to know that instinctively. When they sang it, they meant it. The spirit of Bill Shankly, whose idea it was to play You’ll Never Walk Alone before every home match, permeated Anfield.

 

It was there that night in May 2005. The team sent out to do battle with Frank Lampard, John Terry, Didier Drogba and Claude Makélelé featured Djimi Traoré and Igor Biscan and I do not recall anyone decrying them for having been promoted above their level (a common, and rather impudent, accusation made against Hodgson now) or chanting for alternatives.

 

Perhaps Wednesday was just part of the cycle of change and decay. The traditional supporter, seldom more knowledgeable than at Anfield (and those of the view that Hodgson should never have been appointed are more than entitled to claim vindication), is surrounded by the products of instant networking and facile punditry and sometimes the beautiful noise becomes a cacophony of disrespect.

 

Six months ago Hodgson was, by near-universal acclaim, an excellent manager, the toast of not only pundits but his peers. He is the same man. But the Liverpool he thought he was joining has changed.

[Wor Horse]

I reckon it's Roy pushing all this.

 

Wanting to get sacked so he doesn't have to quit.

[Guest Numero Veinticinco]

Events have made a nonsense of this and Wednesday night’s home defeat by Wolverhampton Wanderers left Hodgson’s Liverpool in the bottom half of the table, more concerned about the possibility of visiting Doncaster Rovers next season than jousting again with the likes of Milan.

 

Fuck off, Gnarles. You must think we're crazy.

[ctkeepercoach]

What a shit article. Can't believe he makes a living spewing that drivel.

[Jack the Sipper]

Maybe. Barclay is still singing his praises on Twitter and apparently publishing a piece on Royston tomorrow.

 

If the story is true, it would make more sense for me that Hodgson (knowing they want him out) would leak it as a parting shot to the owners (which would seem to be working if the responses on here are typical), than NESV, the consumate PR people, acting in such a cack-handed manner.

 

Then again, if the story is true, and if it was leaked by NESV, I still don't see how they have created a situation by leaking because, again, Hodgson (and the players presumably) would've known beforehand that they want him out pronto.

[MLB]

Fucking hell, I really hate this patronising shit about how we were once the best fans in the world but somehow aren't any more because we're not standing by Roy. Do people like Barclay really think that we're basing this soleley on half a season of poor results? The man has been a mediocre manager all his career. Inspect his record for fuck's sake. He has never won anything of any significance, and has been jibbed off by every big club he's ever managed. We want to get rid of him because there is NO chance of him ever bringing us the level of success that we crave, not because we are fickle "modern fans", so fuck off you clueless, ignorant, shit-stirring Captain Picard looking CUNT.

[Anubis]

What a shit article. Can't believe he makes a living spewing that drivel.

 

Little bit of a dig at Kenny with the stress comment as well.

[ctkeepercoach]

Little bit of a dig at Kenny with the stress comment as well.

 

saw that too.

[cochcaer]

Little bit of a dig at Kenny with the stress comment as well.

 

I thought that too, a shitehouse dig. In comparing Dalglish to Keegan it seems to slip his mind that Kenny has taken teams to titles.

[Anubis]

Today, when Bolton Wanderers come, the same people will belt out You’ll Never Walk Alone without a whit of irony.

 

 

We don't want Hodgson to walk alone. We want him to take Mike Kelly with him as well.

[Jennings]

Six months ago Hodgson was, by near-universal acclaim, an excellent manager, the toast of not only pundits but his peers.

Not true. A lot of us were very underwhelmed at the appointment

 

He is the same man. But the Liverpool he thought he was joining has changed.

Wrong again. Results, performance and playing style are what has changed.

 

 

Don't get me wrong I don't condone the singing of "Hodgson for England". I don't like it. But this is not about "Liverpool has changed".

[stevienando]

I have come to the conclusion that Patrick Barclay is in fact the same person as mypost.

[caracaracara]

Fuck Barclay - he clearly dislikes us.

 

Who the fuck was acclaiming him as an excellent manager? based on what criteria. Has he won anything of note? No is the answer. Got Fulham to their highest ever placing. So fuckin' what it is Fulham. It was 9th place in just over half a season.

 

Let's ignore the fact that in his first full season with all his own players bought in the close season he ended up 12th the following season. Yeah let's not let FACTS get in the way of a good story fuckwit.

[Phoenix]

Dont know whther this was actually posted:

 

Roy Hodgson’s apology too late to save his Liverpool career

 

Tony Barrett

 

Roy Hodgson has apologised to Liverpool fans for questioning their support, but his contrition has come too late to safeguard his future as manager after the club’s owner, Fenway Sports Group (FSG), determined that he is not the man to take the club forward.

 

Though Hodgson is only six months into the three-year contract he signed last summer, he will be ousted as soon as a high-calibre replacement can be identified and recruited.

 

The 63-year-old has made it clear that he will not tender his resignation despite presiding over Liverpool’s worst start to a season for 57 years and his relationship with the club’s supporters breaking down, so FSG will effectively take the decision out of his hands by actively targeting his successor.

 

Should the right man become available Hodgson’s departure will be confirmed before the end of the season, although FSG will continue to bide its time in a bid to ensure that the problems facing the club are not exacerbated by any short-term decisions, as was the case last summer after the removal of Rafael Benítez.

 

Hodgson was in damage-limitation mode yesterday, apologising to supporters for his assertion that they had failed to back him. But his remorse appeared to cut little ice, with an online petition calling for his immediate dismissal attracting more than 11,000 signatories and demanding “a manager of greater quality”.

 

Liverpool’s 1-0 defeat at home to Wolverhampton Wanderers on Wednesday was a setback too far for both fans and owners in a season in which embarrassing results have become a regular occurrence.

 

Hodgson attempted to build bridges before today’s home match against Bolton Wanderers. “It is a cliché but we do need time, patience and support, and the support from our fans at this club is of vital importance because that is what has made the club great through the years,” he said yesterday.

 

“We need that support and we need them [the supporters] to get behind us because things aren’t going well.”

[Son of L8]

Fucking hell... Yes, thats right Patrick, its all the nasty scousers' fault for not worshipping the ground Roy walks on.

 

Barclay is just another of the lame Ingerlunder press hacks who helped usher the gentle giant of English football into the job and is trying to defend his own shockingly poor judgement. Well he was right, the "Hodgson Effect" HAS worked on Liverpool by Christmas. Its put us in danger of relegation with a goal-difference away from home of -10. Two of the three sides in the relegation zone have a better away record than we do, and the other one just beat us at Anfield.

 

How these cunts manage to make a living writing about football is beyond me.

[Phoenix]

Telegrpah-#Rory Smith

 

Liverpool actively considering replacing Roy Hodgson should right candidate become available

Liverpool’s owners are convinced Roy Hodgson is not the man to lead the club forward in the long-term and are actively considering replacing him midway through the season, should the right candidate become available.

 

 

Link to this video

By Rory Smith 11:00PM GMT 31 Dec 2010

Rory's Twitter

Comment

Fenway Sports Group, who bought Liverpool in October, had hoped to allow Hodgson to continue until the end of the season before reviewing his position, but their concerns over his relationship with the club’s fans and the team’s seemingly endless on-pitch troubles are now so great they are reconsidering their plans.

The group’s principal backers, Tom Werner and John W Henry, would prefer to make their first appointment a permanent one – seemingly ruling out a return for Kenny Dalglish, the fans’ clear choice, as caretaker – and they are believed to be examaining the credentials of a number of candidates.

They will not sack Hodgson, though, without knowing their preferred replacement is available and willing to move, raising the possibility that the 63-year-old will continue in control for the foreseeable future despite failing to win over either the club’s owners or the Anfield crowd.

FSG – who appointed Theo Epstein as General Manager of the Boston Red Sox at the age of 28 – hope to attract a young, ambitious coach to revitalise the club after two years of regression under Hodgson and his predecessor, Rafael Benitez.

In charge of a club where risky appointments have, for more than half a century, been frowned upon – Jose Mourinho was disregarded in 2004 because of his penchant for self-publicity – FSG are certain that only breaking with that tradition will jolt Liverpool back to life.

 

The likes of Frank Rijkaard, the former Barcelona manager, Andre Villas Boas, of Porto, Borussia Dortmund coach Jurgen Klopp and Didier Deschamps, of Marseille, would all fit those criteria, though only Rijkaard – at 48, the oldest of the contenders – is currently available. Owen Coyle, too, would be both difficult and expensive to entice away from Bolton mid-season.

Though Hodgson moved to stem the growing tide of anger among Liverpool’s supporters for his perceived criticism of the Anfield crowd during Wednesday’s 1-0 defeat to Wolves – more than 9,000 people have signed an online petition calling for his dismissal – his contrition is unlikely to quell FSG’s fears that his relationship with the fans is beyond repair.

“I certainly regret if I have offended them in any way,” said the Liverpool manager. “It was in no way meant to be an offensive comment on my part. I went on to say that, while describing my situation as not being able to win the fans over with performances, I was taking responsibility and fully understood and empathised with them.

“There is no way I would want to do that and there is no way that would be justified because everyone knows the support from Liverpool’s fans is the best in the country. I am also fully aware that to get the best out of that support, you have to give them something to look forward to supporting.”

It is that problem which is at the root of his employers’ growing discontent with Hodgson’s reign. Henry and Werner are thought to feel that the former Fulham manager is unlikely to elicit the best from Liverpool squad, while his failure to address the team’s myriad problems in his six months in charge has frustrated the owners.

They cannot doubt, though, that Hodgson himself is suffering, describing the aftermath of the Wolves game as one of the loneliest periods of his long career.

“Lonely is not the wrong word to use because to be quite honest, you do not want company any way,” he said. “You want to be left alone with your thoughts – which are not pleasant thoughts – but you do not have the desire to do anything but sit around with those thoughts.

“It is a lonely job being a manager of a top club. You cannot expect people to help you too much. The staff are very good and supportive, and the players, too, but your family is very important at times like these. They try to encourage you that life isn’t all doom and gloom. That is what you have to cling on to.”

Such problems, Hodgson admits, seem a world away from the triumphalism of his final season at Fulham, the achievements of which earned him the Liverpool job, as well as the LMA Manager of the Year award.

He said: “It seems a long time ago, doesn’t it? It has been an uphill struggle for me here. I have had a lot of situations to deal with. There have been these very big setbacks which have thrown me into the firing line. I accept it as being part of a big club and taking a job of this stature.

“Coming to Liverpool for me was a pinnacle. It was a reward for the work I had put in not just at Fulham but in the years before. It was a recognition of my competence and you hope you can keep flying forward. [but] I saw a quote from Benjamin Disraeli when he became Prime Minister saying he had climbed to the top of the greasy pole. That is what we do as managers.”

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[Guest San Don]

Dont know whther this was actually posted:

 

Roy Hodgson’s apology too late to save his Liverpool career

 

Tony Barrett

 

Roy Hodgson has apologised to Liverpool fans for questioning their support, but his contrition has come too late to safeguard his future as manager after the club’s owner, Fenway Sports Group (FSG), determined that he is not the man to take the club forward.

 

Though Hodgson is only six months into the three-year contract he signed last summer, he will be ousted as soon as a high-calibre replacement can be identified and recruited.

 

The 63-year-old has made it clear that he will not tender his resignation despite presiding over Liverpool’s worst start to a season for 57 years and his relationship with the club’s supporters breaking down, so FSG will effectively take the decision out of his hands by actively targeting his successor.

 

Should the right man become available Hodgson’s departure will be confirmed before the end of the season, although FSG will continue to bide its time in a bid to ensure that the problems facing the club are not exacerbated by any short-term decisions, as was the case last summer after the removal of Rafael Benítez.

 

Hodgson was in damage-limitation mode yesterday, apologising to supporters for his assertion that they had failed to back him. But his remorse appeared to cut little ice, with an online petition calling for his immediate dismissal attracting more than 11,000 signatories and demanding “a manager of greater quality”.

 

Liverpool’s 1-0 defeat at home to Wolverhampton Wanderers on Wednesday was a setback too far for both fans and owners in a season in which embarrassing results have become a regular occurrence.

 

Hodgson attempted to build bridges before today’s home match against Bolton Wanderers. “It is a cliché but we do need time, patience and support, and the support from our fans at this club is of vital importance because that is what has made the club great through the years,” he said yesterday.

 

“We need that support and we need them [the supporters] to get behind us because things aren’t going well.”

 

If this article is the official line of the club then, Im speechless.

 

What is the point in keeping him on until a more suitable manager can be found? What's the point?

 

He's gonna think well fuck that and the players are gonna think I cant be arsed.

[Anubis]

This was posted by Shreddy on the other thread.

 

Roy Hodgson's Liverpool woe: in his own words | Football | guardian.co.uk

 

 

Roy Hodgson's Liverpool woe: in his own words | Football | guardian.co.uk

 

 

'Two defeats in a row – one against a team you are expected to beat – that is a time to be lonely and hurt'

 

The Liverpool manager Roy Hodgson says it has been an 'uphill struggle' at Anfield The Liverpool manager, Roy Hodgson, says it has been an 'uphill struggle' at Anfield. Photograph: Clive Brunskill/Getty Images

 

Roy Hodgson became manager of Liverpool 183 days ago. On the day he got the job he said: 'I always knew Liverpool fans were special. The motto "You'll never walk alone" is really lived by the fans. It's a club where you feel you're not alone.' Today those words came back to haunt him.

 

"After the defeat by Wolves I thought I did quite a good job to disguise the hurt, the sadness and, to some extent, the anger that I was feeling. To take stick from the crowd and then to stand up in a press conference and say I understood and sympathised with them ... It is always going to be the case as a manager that when things are going wrong you are going to get that flak, that stick. It is unfortunate for me that fans should think I went into a press conference with a view to attacking them because nothing could be further from the truth.

 

"Two or three weeks ago we were on a good roll and playing some good football and everything looked so bright and positive. A very good performance at Tottenham, which should have encouraged people, has now become just another defeat. Then we had the last two defeats, against Newcastle and Wolves, which have hurt us very badly and hurt me very badly. It has swung things round enormously and put us in the situation where we find ourselves today. I cannot emphasise enough that it hurts me deeply. It hurts my professional pride. It hurts all the things I believe in to find myself in the situation I am in but I have to accept it. I feel very bad and very down.

 

"I have the experience but it has been an uphill struggle since I came here. Maybe that was the point I was trying to make [about the famous Anfield support] which has been interpreted as a crack against the fans. I have had a lot of situations to deal with and worked very hard to put together a team that knows what it is doing and can produce winning football. Along the way there have been some very big setbacks which have thrown me into the limelight and the firing line. I accept it as part of taking a job of this stature.

 

"Last night I saw a quote from Benjamin Disraeli when he became prime minster: 'I have achieved my goal and climbed to the top of the greasy pole.' That is really what we do. That is how I feel. Coming to Liverpool for me was a pinnacle; to some extent it was a reward for the work I had put in, not just at Fulham but in the years before. It was a recognition of my competence. You come here hoping you will keep flying forward but, yes, I did know it would be difficult. If we can between now and the end of the season get the results everybody wants, people will respect us more for the hardship we have gone through. It is a cliché but we coaches do need time, patience and support. Support at this club is of vital importance because that is what has made it great through the years – the feeling that Liverpool is a bit special and that people get together when things are not going well.

 

"It would be nice to have people around you who could help you a bit more but it doesn't really work that way. It is a lonely job being the manager of a top club. You can't expect people to help you too much. The staff are very good and supportive – and so too are the players – but your family is the most important during these times. They try to encourage you that life isn't all doom and gloom and there might be a bright spot somewhere along the way. That is what you have to cling on to.

 

"Two defeats in a row – and one of them at home against a team you are expected to beat – that is a time when you are going to be very hurt and upset about everything. Lonely is not the wrong word to use because, to be quite honest, you don't want company anyway. You want to be left alone with your thoughts. They are not pleasant thoughts but you don't have the desire to do anything other than sit around with them."

 

 

 

I cringed when I read that. I see he's still insisting his outburst on Wednesday made no reference to the fans, even though it directly referenced the fans.