Liverpool have been blessed with some incredible managers over the years. From Bob Paisley to Bill Shankley, Kenny Dalglish to Rafa Benitez, so many coaches have left their indelible mark on the most successful football club in the history of English football.
Brendan Rodgers came oh-so close to adding his name to the list, nearly sealing Liverpool’s maiden top-flight title in its modern Premier League format, but falling at the final hurdle in 2013/14.
Cue the gloom. Liverpool had struggled in the years before and looked set for more misery after Luis Suarez left for Barcelona and Steven Gerrard trudged solemnly toward retirement from the European scene, but then Jurgen Klopp came along.
He fashioned something incredible from the ashes of Rodgers’ reign, led Anfield to the Champions League, and then the Premier League, and then more. He put the club back on their perch.
Now he’s gone, and fear returned when the uncertainty of a new chapter beckoned. But Arne Slot has proved the perfect appointment, winning the Premier League in his first season after few gave the Reds a shot.
The great shame is that Gerrard left before Klopp came, the two legends agonisingly unaligned in their Merseyside careers. He’d have been perfect for the German’s football, but maybe more so for Slot.
Why Gerrard would have been perfect for Slot
Gerrard was the complete player. Recognised by all the greats as one of the best to do it, he stayed loyal to his boyhood club through a long and distinguished career.
The architect of Istanbul, maybe the greatest night in Liverpool’s history, the Three Lions star featured 710 times for the Reds, scoring 186 goals and supplying 155 assists.
1.
Ian Callaghan
852
2.
Jamie Carragher
737
3.
Steven Gerrard
710
4.
Emelyn Hughes
664
5.
Ray Clemence
663
He’s irreplaceable, but Liverpool have searched for his successor ever since. Dominik Szoboszlai was billed as the man after joining from RB Leipzig for £60m in 2023, hailed for having “such similarities to Steven Gerrard” by pundit Stephen Warnock.
But the Hungarian, while a talented Premier League champion, hasn’t quite found the deadliness in the final third that Gerrard provided. He has the energy and athleticism, to be sure, but he’s no Gerrard.
It’s a pointless exercise, but imagining Gerrard in Slot’s squad is quite a thing. He’d lead by example and galvanise the players around him, adding a dimension from the middle.
The powerful star’s style of play is certainly something that others have tried to replicate, and there’s one Liverpool target at present who could actually prove to be the next version, should he sign for Slot’s side this summer.
Liverpool eyeing Szoboszlai rival
According to Fabrizio Romano, Liverpool have been sending scouts to watch Aston Villa’s Morgan Rogers in action, though face stern competition from Chelsea. Villa, it’s probably obvious, don’t want to sell.
Rogers, 22, has been one of Unai Emery’s standout performers this season, with recent interest from Manchester United revealing he is valued at a whopping £68m.
However, pundit Gabby Agbonlahor believes Rogers is worth £100m, with scouts reporting to Villan chiefs that he is of the mould of Jude Bellingham and Yaya Toure.
What Morgan Rogers would bring to Liverpool
Villa signed Rogers from Middlesbrough for £15m in February 2024 and he has since featured 66 times, scoring 17 goals and laying on 14 further assists.
He made a bright start to life in the Premier League across the second half of 2023/24 but has gone from strength to strength this season, racking up 27 goal involvements from 50 outings.
Not just a source for goals, the three-cap England international has created 13 big chances in the top flight this term, also averaging 1.8 dribbles and winning 4.6 duels per game, as per Sofascore.
A dynamic attacker capable of great things across multiple roles, Rogers is from a similar cloth to a young and rising Gerrard, whose powerful attacking midfield role saw him drift into left midfield at times.
Attacking midfield
24
7
5
Right winger
11
1
4
Left winger
9
5
2
Centre-forward
2
0
0
Fabio Capello infamously said in 2008: ‘We are killing Gerrard by playing him left midfield,’ as he tried to organise too many pegs into too few holes for the Three Lions, but the Liverpool man had proved himself capable for his club in an unconventional berth.
Rogers, it’s probably safe to say, plays with more natural security in the position, with his electric, barrelling runs proving too much for defenders. The Athletic’s Jacob Tanswell has called him a “machine” who has been “made with brick,” such is his ability to brush opponents aside when carrying the ball forward.
Like Gerrard, though, the £75k-per-week talent is playing centrally with the greatest regularity, owing to his robustness and quality when shuttling to and fro, to and fro, all fleet feet and confidence and strength.
Already proving himself to be a more clinical player than Szoboszlai while providing a similar kind of energy, the 6 foot 2 Villa star isn’t likely to be a priority for a Liverpool side searching for a new striker, fresh left-back and maybe a centre-back too, but if the chance presents itself, FSG may well green-light a stunning swoop.
Regardless of whether the Midlands side qualify for the Champions League this season, it’s understood that they are going to need to sell several stars to comply with the Premier League’s PSR rules.
With rumours emerging that the £50m-rated Harvey Elliott could be sold this summer after a frustrating individual campaign that has yet to provide a single start in the top flight, this is certainly one to keep an eye on.
Rogers’ profile seems perfect for Slot-ball, carrying the Gerrard-esque quality that could complete Liverpool’s midfield and take them to the next level.
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