by ethanr » Sun Mar 11, 2012 1:32 am
I think it's a really, really tough question. I've thought about this the last couple weeks, and for me it's a bit of a struggle between head and heart. I'm not one to jump at early conclusions and lose patience easily, I would have been ok with Roy sticking around for the second half of last season if I'm perfectly honest.
I love Kenny. He's a great person, and I will always have the utmost respect and appreciation for what he's done for the club. Nobody represents what LFC stands for better then he does. There's no classier manager then him, and I love how he sticks up for and loves the club as much as anybody. What he did at the end of last season, I don't believe anybody else could have done. He means a lot to us as fans and to the players as well.
I don't care about the signings. I don't know who made those signings, there are very few people who actually know who decided who we would buy. That's something that happens. All the players we signed looked like really good players, and I don't think many of us (if any of us) were complaining when we made those signings. We felt they could contribute in a positive way, so all of us would have been in the wrong. What does bother me about Kenny is his reluctance to drop certain players, or play different people. Maxi seems to play really well, at least enough to earn some more playing time. Others like Adam and Hendo are still playing every week, and Downing was in that boat for the longest time as well. Everybody can see how poor they've been, and yet they continue to start or play every game. He seems to have made some poor tactical decisions as well. Now obviously we don't know what's going on inside the camp. Maybe Maxi has a huge attitude problem. It's hard for us to judge certain things when we aren't directly involved (I know some like to think they are).
Another thing is the "lift" that everybody talks about that Kenny has brought. That was definitely true. It was true. Anybody who watched us play Sunderland today, if you can honestly tell yourself all 11 players were there 100% wanting to win more then anything in the world, to do it for the club, the fans, and Kenny... Then you're fooling yourselves. Our heads are down right now, and that's Kenny's job to pick them up. It's what he's best at, and right now it's not happening, and it worries me. If he can get the boys turned around like he did at the end of last season then we'd be in business and one of the hardest clubs to beat. But right now it looks like we will have a poor finish to the season, and possibly end up mid table.
With that said, I love Kenny and if he's here for 10 more years or 10 more days I will stand behind him 100% without question. I'll be sad the day he goes because I absolutely love Kenny, but there will be a point when the management will have to take a step back and ask, "Is this what we signed up for?" If our club continues to perform like they have, FSG will worry about the money they're investing. They're here to make money, so if that's not happening because our club isn't performing like they expected then they may back out, and we may end up with another half-ass owner like we've had in the past. Regardless, I feel he'll always be good for the club, and if he's no longer manager I hope he sticks around and has some roll at the club, maybe as an ambassador or promoter of the club.
DESPITE THE FACT I LIVE IN CALIFORNIA...