Brendan Rodgers is 16 days away from marking the third anniversary of his appointment as Leicester City manager. There is no sense of celebration in the air around King Power stadium, though. The team have five games to play in the next two weeks. They are, as the Northern Irishman might say, not in a good moment. Neither is Rodgers.
The 49-year-old is reeling from the 4-1 rout by Nottingham Forest at the City Ground in the FA Cup on Sunday. Tonight he takes his side to Merseyside to face a Liverpool team with a point to make after losing the reverse fixture 1-0 in December. There have been many changes at Anfield since Rodgers was sacked seven years ago and replaced by Jurgen Klopp but there are a number of individuals who remain at the club who have little time for the former manager.
He is under pressure. The flaws – both tactical and managerial – that were exposed during his time at Liverpool remain. Steve Cooper, the Forest manager, talked about Leicester’s problems at the back post and from set-pieces. Cooper said he noticed a “theme” in the Premier League side’s performances while preparing for the tie.
The other pattern that has emerged is a lack of fortitude; a loss of belief when under pressure. The most obvious example of this was the collapse against Tottenham Hotspur when two goals were conceded very late in stoppage-time to turn what looked like a victory into a 3-2 defeat. In the next Premier League game, Leicester hung on to draw 1-1 with Brighton and Hove Albion after leading going into the final 10 minutes. The meltdown against Forest was part of a trend that, if it continues at Anfield, could turn very ugly.
Defending was never Rodgers’ strength. He is a good coach but his speciality is keeping the ball and getting men forward. Leicester have been without Wesley Fofana this season after he broke his leg in August but the return of the Frenchman, who will be back in full training next week, will not solve all of the problems, which are as much philosophical as they are physical.
The loss of conviction is a knock-on effect of Rodgers’ style of management. He arrives at a club in a whirlwind of energy and exudes confidence. That transmits to the players and the response at Leicester – two fifth-place finishes in the league and the FA Cup in his two full seasons – are credit to his methods.
Early in his Liverpool career, Rodgers famously used the ‘three envelope’ strategy made famous by Sir Alex Ferguson. He told the squad he had written down the names of three players who he knew would let him down and sealed them inside to be opened at the end of the season. It was the sort of motivational ploy that irked the senior players but had more success with their younger team-mates. At Celtic, he asked the squad to write down their views of their colleagues anonymously. The answers were collated and each player was given a digest of what was said about him. These tricks tend to work once.
Unfortunately, some managers’ methods begin to turn stale, especially when things start to go wrong. In the dressing room there develops a sense of ‘we’ve heard it all before.’ At that point the man in charge has to find a way of reinvigorating his squad – effectively surprising them with unexpected motivation – or he is doomed.
The process generally takes about three years and it leaves the board with a choice: do you change the boss or the players? The cheapest choice is to replace the manager.
Fenway Sports Group reached that point with Rodgers. Even at Celtic, where he left for Leicester after an incredibly successful three-year spell, there were negative stirrings about him in both the boardroom and the dressing room. His departure did not cause the handwringing that might have been expected. Rodgers’ comments after the Forest defeat set off alarm bells across the King Power when he said that “the time could be up” for some of his squad who “think they are top players but are a long way off.” Public pronouncements like this are always a risk. He will need the team to put in a shift at Anfield tonight and at home to West Ham United on Sunday. These two games will go a long way to determining his fate. If Leicester show up and take points from these fixtures – or at least display plenty of fight against Liverpool – Rodgers will be secure for the immediate future.
West Ham are where Leicester expected to be going into the season. David Moyes’ side are vying for fourth place, a position they hold at the moment, although they could be displaced by Manchester United, Arsenal and Spurs if their rivals win their games in hand. Leicester are 10 points adrift of the European places and have been dropped by the pack of top-four hopefuls. A loss to West Ham on the back of defeat at Liverpool could prove terminal for Rodgers at the King Power.
The Leicester manager’s career has followed a pattern. When he has neared that third year in charge, diminishing returns have begun to manifest themselves.
Rodgers must break that template. And quickly. A testing few days begin tonight at Anfield.
