Brendan Rodgers Taking Risk with Long-Term Liverpool Logic Post-Luis Suarez
Speaking after another far-from-convincing performance in a dramatic 3-2 win at QPR on Sunday, Brendan Rodgers admitted "We are going to take the short-term hit at the moment knowing that in the long term the club will be better for it," as per The Guardian.
It's not the first time the manager has made such a statement, doing so in September 2012 shortly after his appointment at the club in an interview with several Liverpool FC fans' websites, as per This Is Anfield.
"I knew there was going to be a bit of pain in the short-term, but hopefully for the long-term gain this is what we’d have to go through," Rodgers said then.
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The departure of Luis Suarez this summer means Liverpool are back in "transition" according to the boss, as he told The Liverpool Echo recently.
Planning for the future is an admirable policy, but it's also an extremely risky one, too—the reasons for which are numerous.
Transfer Policy
This summer, and indeed the previous summer, Liverpool focused on signing players with potential to improve and develop. Young players such as 19-year-old Divock Origi, 20-year-olds Emre Can, Lazar Markovic and Javier Manquillo, 22-year-old Alberto Moreno, even Mario Balotelli at just 24, were brought in this summer.
Dejan Lovren, 25, and Adam Lallana, 26, are the only two of the nine summer signings who can be considered anywhere near their prime years.
So Liverpool embarked on their first season back in the Champions League in five years, having sold one of the best players in the world and acquired only two players remotely considered to be in the prime; neither of whom play in Suarez's position and one who has never played in European competitions before. Talk about risky business.
Player Development
Signing so many talented youngsters is commendable, but what if they don't develop the way you foresee? There are hundreds of examples of young players who didn't develop the way they were expected to.
Yes, the only way of potentially signing a new Raheem Sterling—signed at age 15 for a fee which could rise to £5 million and therefore represent an absolute bargain—is to take a chance on youngsters, but failing to sign proven quality in the meantime places the immediate future in jeopardy.
Playing Catch-up?
The fact that next season's Champions League entrants will earn over double what those involved this year will earn due to the new BT Sport TV rights agreement means that qualifying for the top four this season is imperative.
The current deal is worth £400 million, the new deal worth £900 million, as per The Guardian.
Such a change means the imbalance between those in Europe's elite competition and those not will become even greater.
What if, by the time Rodgers' aforementioned "long term" comes around, Liverpool are too far behind already? We then go back to playing catch-up with those ahead of us, having thrown away the opportunity to resolidify our place among England's top four and Europe's elite.
Liverpool and FSG's transfer policy of signing young players is admirable, but it needs to be complimented by signing proven quality players who can influence the first XI now, not in two or three years' time—by that time, Liverpool could be out of the Champions League and those players then eager to move on to a team in it.
Bill Shankly and Bob Paisley would always sign a player to improve the first XI for the following season—even if they'd just won the title the year before.
It may pain Liverpool fans to see how Chelsea have signed Cesc Fabregas and Diego Costa, aged 27 and 26 respectively, absolutely in their prime and making an immediate impact for their new side.
The failure to sign a true replacement for Suarez—and seemingly placing all the reliance upon an injury-prone Daniel Sturridge—combined with failing to acquire a commanding centre-back, a robust holding midfielder or a commanding goalkeeper, has left Liverpool looking devoid of leaders and lacking organisation on the pitch.
Of course, Rodgers' side may sneak fourth place this season and remain in the Champions League next season. The new signings will be developed for another year and the short-term pain Rodgers speaks of could then prove worthwhile.
But the alternative is that the youngsters fail to shine this season, Liverpool return to playing catch-up and by the time they've developed, it's too little, too late.
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