No Gray Areas - Liverpool should keep Roy
In each Liverpool game there is a lot at stake at present. The fans will be up for their FA Cup tie with Manchester United but Premier League results are ultimately what will count for Roy Hodgson this season.
Joe Cole's late winner against Bolton was important for the Reds and could have given them renewed confidence. Nevertheless, the manager is under immense pressure despite only being four months into the job.
There's a lot more wrong with Liverpool than what is happening on the pitch. By the end of Rafael Benitez's reign they were practically a Spanish-speaking club with plenty of Spaniards in influential positions which made communication difficult.
Roy Hodgson's main problem is that he was not appointed by the current owners of the club. It's the same problem that Mark Hughes faced at Manchester City and Sam Allardyce at Blackburn. As witnessed with those two, it can prove fatal.
The American owners would probably prefer to install their own manager. They will want their man in charge and they won't care too much about the club's admirable tradition of not sacking managers too hastily.
It's well documented that Premier League owners can be quick to pull the trigger on managers these days but clubs need continuity, especially one with such proud heritage as Liverpool.
The owners should back the manager and let the team play their way out of trouble. Whichever way you look at it, Roy Hodgson needs his team to start winning soon.
Andy Gray is now on Twitter so follow him for his exclusive tips and his take on the biggest stories in football each week.
Published: 6 Jan 2011
Anonymous (January 5, 2011 9:47 PM) said:
Have you been watching the Blackburn game?!
farhan (January 5, 2011 9:50 PM) said:
sack this idiot before its to late please sack him
Wizdom (January 5, 2011 9:50 PM) said:
Andy Gray should never be permitted to voice an oppinion on Liverpool Football Club! Bitter-twisted Blue nose!
Him saying Hodgson should stay is proof indeed that he should be sacked immediately!
3-1 at Blackburn! It must be the final straw!
Aussie RED (January 5, 2011 9:54 PM) said:
Andy you don't have a clue mate, Roy is rubbish and losing 3-1 to Blackburn is the final straw. Roy out tonight - bring back Rafa !
Woy out NOW (January 5, 2011 9:55 PM) said:
Blackburn 3 - Pool 1 , every poor display by Pool. Enough said. Woy, walk out alone!
Jeppe (January 5, 2011 9:56 PM) said:
Ehhhh.... What planet are you from Gray????
rock (January 5, 2011 9:57 PM) said:
Andy Gray is the biggest blue nose loser.
Get rid of Roy Hodgson NOW!!!!!!!!!!!
what a disgrace... and while you are at it, thrwo Christian Purslow out the door as well...
what a disastrous appointment
Woy out now (January 5, 2011 9:58 PM) said:
Blackburn 3 - Pool 1.
Pool was outplayed by Blackburn. VERY poor display again.
Woy, walk out alone ASAP!!!
nigel (January 5, 2011 9:59 PM) said:
just read that and im in shock mainly spanish speaking club so rafa was not fluent in english, he speaks better english that the cockney media darling, the simple facts are roy is out of his depth put him and us out of his misery sack im now not tomorrow now, fergie will get him a job at another club and organise the lma to give him another award. funny when rafa lost a game its was rotation or because he didnt play torres, its still rafas fault lets have an even playing field here and look at the facts if any other manager performed as badly as hodgson the media hounds would be calling for blood but because its uncle woy fergies lil helper its some spanish geezers fault, wake up he's crap simples
John (January 5, 2011 10:01 PM) said:
I am not sure the reasoning behind giving roy a chance. The guy is out of depth.
Chelsea won the EPL scoring 105 and conceding 32. Liverpool finished 7th scoring 65 and conceding 35. Man U conceded 28 (best defense in the league last season). Liverpool had the 3rd best defensive record in the league.
Why did Roy spent the little money we had on Konchesky, Poulsen, Jones? It makes no logical sense and this very basic analysis tells me die doesnt have a clue. You ll have thought the fact that Chelsea scored 105 and Liverpool scored 65, Any decent manager ll have spent all the money available on attackers. Not Roy....
banjodrengen (January 5, 2011 10:01 PM) said:
What a bunch of nonsense!
Hogdson has outstayed his welcome at Anfield. The players have no faith in him and he just keeps up talking crap in the press and blaiming everybody else but himself for the poor showings on the pitch.
If he would at least man up and take some responsibility I might back him, but the man is delusional and clearly rates himself to high.
Even if he manages to turn it around, I believe it already to be to late, as he has alienated the fans to much.
Sack this senil old fool!
Anonymous (January 5, 2011 10:16 PM) said:
Nonsense, absolute nonsense. Hodgson is never a Liverpool manager. Stop your Benitez obsession.
helen (January 5, 2011 10:22 PM) said:
Is it difficult seeing your mate mess it up Andy?
costasy (January 5, 2011 10:24 PM) said:
What more can we really say!?! Another humiliating and embarrassing night and performance for this historic club and as long as the new owners keep on help this dwarf manager there is no bright light on the horizon for LFC! Will the new owners finally decide to make the right decision for this club and its fans? Will this dwarf manager decides that he is not made up this club?
ibrahim (January 5, 2011 10:31 PM) said:
how long wil it take us 2 get out of this mess?it is very obvious now that when ever we ar playing away 4rm home we should not expect any favourable result no matter hw poor is our opponent and when we ar visited by any team our best result is just one point or we lose we hardly get 3 point on our own pitch.my suggestion is we should let ds man out of anfield look 4 a better coach because he does not hv charisma of managing a big team like liverpool.
corballyred (January 5, 2011 10:32 PM) said:
No surprise to hear an Evertonian say that Andy, I'd say your loving this.
Voland (January 5, 2011 10:42 PM) said:
You must be joking. Big mistake to fire Rafa, even bigger mistake to appoint Roy, now it's time to get him out before he causes more damage.
Voland (January 5, 2011 10:42 PM) said:
You must be joking. Big mistake to fire Rafa, even bigger mistake to appoint Roy, now it's time to get him out before he causes more damage.
Ledrok (January 6, 2011 1:08 AM) said:
You don't have the guts to take a managerial job yourself so why are you an expert on this? You have no credibility to constantly slate managers like you do. Don't comment on things you don't understand Gray. You've never done it.
Sappy404 (January 6, 2011 12:23 PM) said:
Andy, Roy's main problem is that Liverpool have 25 points after 20 games. If the new owners wanted their own man in charge for the sake of it, they'd have done it by now. We're not all talking about Hodgson losing his job all of a sudden because the owners have just now decided they want a new manager, we're talking about it because of Liverpool's awful performances and results this season.
Allardyce and Hughes are different because their respective clubs were doing quite well at the time of their sacking. Liverpool, on the other hand, are in a crisis right now with 9 defeats from 20 games. IF Hodgson gets sacked it's because of these poor results and not because the owners are conspiring against him.
And it's not because of the inherited squad (Kean won 3-1 with an inherited squad, Coyle and Ancelotti did quite well in their bedding-in period with theirs), or because of Rafa Benitez (do you genuinely think Benitez would have been worse?) or because of Spanish speakers (Roy Hodgson speaks 5 languages and has managed abroad previously with some success) either. The manager MUST take responsibility for these results, even after 6 months. I'm sorry to see it happen because I believe Hodgson is still an excellent manager, but it's simply not working at Liverpool
Pete Davies (January 6, 2011 7:34 PM) said:
Roy Hodgson has single handedly destroyed our beloved club and these so called expert's are still calling for him to be given more time.
Something is seriously wrong if you ask me, why as Roy Hodgson not been sacked today ?. Now they are telling us that will not make any decisions before Sunday, It's a complete and utter joke.
They promised that they would listen to the fan's but they lied, they haven't even got the decency to communicate with us and tell us what's going on.
I can see big trouble coming very soon if they carry on like this.
Patience is wearing very thin among Liverpool supporter's, we cannot take much more of this.