I don't know what the ultimate decision with Rodgers will or should be, but there are some worrying signs (and I am one of Rodgers biggest fans).
What was seen as one of his biggest strengths the last couple of years, player development and especially young player development, has been sorely lacking from Rodgers this season. Markovic, Can, and Manquillo have been grossly mishandled. Whether it is being played out of position or falling out of favor with no obvious signs of drop in form, all three players have either stagnated or declined in their form over the course of the year. Even Moreno has shown no discernible signs of improvement from the beginning of the season until present. That is four young players brought in last year with the idea that all would be long term contributors for LFC and yet as we move into the off-season, im not sure any of the four legitimately will be in the immediate plans for the start of next season.
In fact, the only player who has shown any development this season would be Coutinho, and that development is almost solely linked to his ability to score from distance.
What is even more disturbing, is that looking back, some of the signs were there. Rodgers badly mishandled the departures of Agger and Reina. He mishandled the loan of Sahin, and but for an injury to Brad Jones was solidly on his way to mishandling Mignolet. But for some solid intervention by Ms. Mignolet (and why didnt the coaches catch this) we wouldn't even have had our mid-season renaissance.
Blaming the transfer committee for the summer signings seems very convenient. Rodgers himself has said multiple times that he has full veto over any player proposed by the committee. The fact that we signed so many players that don't seemingly fit Rodgers style means a) Rodgers doesnt know what style he actually wants to play; b) Rodgers isnt able to evaluate whether an individual player is right for his style of play, or c) Rodgers doesnt actually have veto power or he lacks the fortitude to try and use it. If the problem is either a) or b), giving Rodgers more authority over transactions is surely not the solution.
Today was simply more of the same hubris that we have seen from Rodgers at times. If he was trying to make a statement to his superiors at FSG, I think his players made an even louder statement about their support of the manager. Going back to a back four, when the 3-5-2 turned our season around is indefensible, as is continuing to play Can at RB when he has shown no ability to play there. It is clear that Rodgers has been unable to motivate these players to raise their level of play for big games. Surely in professional sports, being able to get the most out of players, especially in must win games, is one of the biggest roles of a manger.
