Brendan Rodgers Must Ring Champions League Changes Then Stick by Top Performers
Liverpool take on Ludogorets in a key Champions League fixture on Wednesday night, knowing that they realistically need to take a positive result to keep alive their hopes of reaching the knock-out stages of the competition.
A point or better against the Bulgarians—and hoping for Real Madrid to beat Basel—and then a win over the Swiss side in the final game will see Liverpool reach the last 16 despite hugely uneven form in the first half of the campaign.
If they are to have hope of taking points from their game at Ludogorets, though, Brendan Rodgers needs to have the strength of character to cull those from the team who have been way below the required level of late—and, unlike after the Real Madrid match, stick with those who impress this time.
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Senior Underperformers
Liverpool have lost four games in a row in all competitions; the list of stand-out performers is not a long one right now.
At the other end of the scale, there are obvious candidates to be deservedly dropped. Defenders Glen Johnson and Dejan Lovren have wavered somewhere between mistake-ridden and hugely inconsistent from game to game, somehow retaining their places on a regular basis.
Midfielder Steven Gerrard has been unable to offer any protection to the back line, and while he isn't getting any help from those around him either, he certainly needs to be reconsidered for the particular role he operates in at present. Jordan Henderson missed the weekend game through injury but has been well below his own best form this season, too.
That's the club captain and vice-captain, both underperforming.
In attack, Raheem Sterling hasn't been able to find his rhythm, Mario Balotelli has yet to score a league goal and Lazar Markovic has shown scant sign of why he was signed for such a big fee so far.
Even the first-choice goalkeeper, Simon Mignolet, must be under pressure due to his consistently poor distribution and lack of really commanding performances, despite some impressive isolated saves. It would be a big call indeed, though, for Rodgers to promote back-up Brad Jones to No. 1.
Problem with Post-Madrid
Playing away at the Santiago Bernabeu in early November, Rodgers made a whole host of changes to his usual starting XI, bringing in the likes of Kolo Toure, Emre Can, Markovic, Fabio Borini and Lucas Leiva for rare starts.
Some of them performed particularly well, not least of all Can and Toure—but the latter was simply replaced in the next teamsheet again, with Lovren re-entering the scene.
Had the Croatian (and others) been in good form, there would have been a case for acknowledging that the Real game was a one-off, a chance for a rest, before the established XI took its place on the field once more. But he wasn't. The majority of the team hasn't been.
If a player comes into the side, plays well and is immediately removed again, where is the encouragement and the motivation to play well? Why do the squad members train, wait for their chance and perform on the day...if they know they will simply be left to one side again afterwards, a mere pawn for the manager to make a 90-minute point with?
It didn't work out for Rodgers or Liverpool—the Reds have lost both matches since, at home to Chelsea and away to Crystal Palace, after initially leading in both those fixtures.
Candidates to Come In
Toure and Can must be two players in prime position to take to the field if changes are made against Ludogorets. Javier Manquillo played well against Palace so should retain his place at right-back, while Johnson simply has to go. Alberto Moreno has made mistakes at times, but he is a far more progressive, impactful and reliable option than Johnson.
Lucas, Joe Allen and Philippe Coutinho will all be hoping to get their chance in midfield, though which of them plays could depend largely on whether Rodgers opts to go 4-3-3, diamond midfield or change things completely.
And, in attack, Lambert will hope for another start after 90 minutes and his first goal at the weekend. He needs more service than he got in the second half, but goals and confidence make as much difference to forwards as wins do for the team morale overall.
The No. 9 needs to start this match again, quite probably with Borini as his partner. Between them they lack star quality, but they might have enough endurance, work rate and reason to prove they should be starting to get the Reds the points they desperately need on the night.
After that, it's down to Rodgers to manage the game from the sidelines better than he, his coaches and the players have managed over the past month.
It's just three wins in the last 13 in all competitions for Liverpool right now. If that doesn't point to the manager that his regular starters are out of form, nothing will.
For that reason, if he makes changes and they get the win against Ludogorets, he must keep faith with them this time once league action resumes against Stoke City next weekend.
Mediocrity must not be put up with any longer. Those who haven't performed this season need to see both good performances ahead of them to encourage an improvement in themselves, as well as the fact that their place in the team is not guaranteed by name, wage slip or transfer fee alone.
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