Blackburn Rovers v Liverpool:UNDER-PRESSURE Liverpool manager Roy Hodgson remains positive about his and the club's future, insisting he is doing his best to justify his appointment.
Despite a much-needed injury-time victory over Bolton on Saturday speculation still persists that the 63-year-old’s days are numbered at Anfield. After taking over in October – three months after Hodgson’s appointment by the previous regime – owners New England Sports Ventures are believed to be exploring options for a change of manager.
Ralf Rangnick, who resigned as coach of Hoffenheim at the weekend after a difference of opinion with the club’s owner, is the latest to be added to a list of potential successors.
After Saturday’s win Hodgson bemoaned the “negativity” of the conjecture about his position at the club but stressed he was able to rise above it.
“When you get the job you climb up to the top of a greasy pole – we all do that – but at least you are on the pole and you have been given the chance,” said the Reds boss, who has had to endure the Kop calling for him to be replaced by Liverpool legend Kenny Dalglish and faced sarcastic chants of “Hodgson for England”.
“I am on an exceptionally lofty pole because the club is one of the biggest in the world and that is why when you get the job here you are so pleased you are chosen.
“I will be doing my best during the time I am working here to justify my selection and trying to get the team playing the sort of football we played against Bolton. But it was not just against Bolton, I can give you six or seven games where we have played as well as that.
“I can also, with no attempt at modesty, point out we have played 10 difficult games in Europe without even using the bulk of our first-team players and we have reached the last 32 of the Europa League. I still see a lot of things positively and my glass is absolutely half full rather than half empty at the moment.”
Hodgson has laid down several markers since his appointment in July, the first of which was for him to be judged after 10 games and then to ensure the team was in the top half of the table by the halfway stage of the campaign.
After 10 matches the team had just 12 points following a woeful start and although they rallied briefly, back-to-back defeats to Newcastle and at home to Wolves heaped the pressure back on Hodgson. Even the win over Bolton failed to quell speculation about his situation but the former Fulham boss is targeting an improvement in 2011 after admitting their current league position was exactly where he expected them to be.
“Once you go outside of the top five clubs we are all guilty of the same thing – a good performance followed by a poor one,” said Hodgson, who takes his side to Blackburn tonight as Liverpool’s fixture-packed January continues.
“A lot of the negativity has been somewhat unfounded and I said very early in the season, probably after seven games when we were in the bottom three, that if we can get to 19 games and find ourselves in the top half of the table that would be the best we could hope for.
“That is what we have achieved so far and I am hoping in the second half of the season we will kick on, especially if there is the possibility to add a player or two in the transfer window.”
