Brendan Rodgers Backed by Liverpool Owners Amid Rumours of Squad Cull

Liverpool's "long-term plan will not be ripped up" in the aftermath of the club's FA Cup semi-final defeat to Aston Villa, with Brendan Rodgers' Anfield future safe despite a disappointing season.

Chris Bascombe of The Telegraph indicated the Northern Irishman has the "continued support" of the club's owners.

He suggested the Fenway Sports Group has "no appetite to make Rodgers a scapegoat for [a] campaign that looks like it will end up as a disappointing one," and the manager will receive the "opportunity to correct what has gone wrong over the past eight months." If Sami Mokbel and Dominic King of the Daily Mail are to be believed, this could start with up to 10 players leaving.

Matt Dunham/Associated Press

B/R UK's tweet sums up the reported situation:

Perhaps the most prominent potential departure story right now is that of Raheem Sterling, who is linked with a move to Juventus, per Mokbel and King. The rapid forward is yet to sign a new contract at the club and has been the subject of fierce speculation in recent times. His future will undoubtedly make Rodgers sweat.

Captain Steven Gerrard has already signed a contract with MLS side Los Angeles Galaxy and will leave Liverpool without a fairytale FA Cup finale on his May 30 birthday. Mokbel and King suggest defenders Glen Johnson and Kolo Toure are likely to follow him through the door after less-than-impactful seasons.

Clint Hughes/Associated Press

Worryingly for Reds fans, the aforementioned report suggested Martin Skrtel's "future is also unclear" due to interest from Bundesliga club Wolfsburg.

The Slovakian centre-back has been key to Rodgers' defensive line this season, taking on a leading role on the 3-4-2-1 formation the manager recently ditched. Skrtel's aggression makes him quick to compete for every ball and a difficult marker to shake off.

On-loan right-back Javier Manquillo is expected to head back to Atletico Madrid after failing to start a Premier League match since the turn of 2015, as recorded by WhoScored.com. Second-choice goalkeeper Brad Jones will also be sacrificed so Rodgers can find top-class competition for Simon Mignolet, per Mokbel and King.

Moving up the pitch, Mario Balotelli, Rickie Lambert and Fabio Borini will be less than hopeful of remaining on Merseyside next season. Balotelli's £16 million move has proved to be the risk many expected, with him failing to notch more than one goal in any competition this season, as noted by WhoScored.com.

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Lambert needs considerable playing time to remain sharp and has struggled to find his consistency from the bench. He was a leader at Southampton last year but has been rendered largely useless after just five starts in the Premier League during his debut campaign with the Reds, per WhoScored.com.

The England international is likely to prove tempting to middling clubs in the division, such as Aston Villa, who tried to buy him in January.

Borini has failed to establish himself since returning from his loan spell at Sunderland, and despite Rodgers trying to offload him in the summer, the Italian forward has managed to hang around for another year.

Bleacher Report's Sam Tighe recently discussed a few names who could fill in any new squad places:

While it appears all change at Liverpool, Rodgers is likely to still be the man in charge next season. The boss desperately needs to land a trophy next year, particularly if Liverpool don't achieve qualification for Champions League football in the coming weeks.

The defeat to Villa summed up a team that has fallen short at the vital moments throughout the campaign.

Axing Rodgers could potentially undo much of the side's hard work—remember, the manager's formation switch thrust Liverpool up the table in December—particularly as many young players are still to hit their strides at the club.