So Brendan Rodgers is back in the Premier League after being appointed Leicester’s new manager on Tuesday.
A matter of hours later the former Swansea, Liverpool and Celtic boss saw his new club register a 2-1 win over Brighton at the King Power Stadium, prompting many to label their first win since New Year’s Day as the ‘Brendan Rodgers effect’ even though Mike Stowell was in charge of the Foxes for that game.
Rodgers waves to the Leicester faithful during their victory over Brighton
Rodgers has had an up and down career as a manager, enjoying success at Swansea and Celtic but he fell just short of winning the Premier League with Liverpool in the 2013/14 season and has spells at Reading and Watford beforehand which didn’t go entirely to plan so these are interesting times ahead for Leicester and everyone connected with the club.
And talkSPORT.com has spoken to five journalists who support Leicester to ask what they think of the new gaffer.
Jason Bourne (talkSPORT)
“Leicester are an ambitious football club. The owners have said that they want to be playing European football on a regular basis – they had a taste of playing in the Champions League a couple of seasons ago.
“Of all the candidates Leicester could have got, Brendan Rodgers looks a good fit for the club. He’s had success at Swansea, it didn’t work out with winning the Premier League at Liverpool but he did a good job up there, and with Celtic he won many trophies so he couldn’t have done a lot more up there.
“He’s also got a track-record of young players and Claude Puel blooded the likes of Harvey Barnes, Ben Chilwell, Demarai Gray and others into the side so he would seem the right fit.”
Rodgers has a number of young English players at his disposal including Ben Chilwell and James Maddison
Jordan Halford (Sky Sports)
“Rodgers would have been my first choice. He’s the polar opposite to Puel in terms of his character, the way he deals with the press and how he addresses the players.
“He’s got a bit of blue sky thinking, he’s ambitious and a bit of a dreamer which I quite like. He’s a perfect fit when you think about the ambition of the board and the players we’ve got. I would go as far as saying he’s the best coach from the UK out there.
“There’s kind of a running joke about Rodgers and his demeanour but I think it overlooks the fact that he really is a top coach and it’ll be interesting to see what type of football he gets Leicester to play.”
Can Rodgers bring some success back to the King Power Stadium?
Joshua Jones (The Sun)
“Rodgers is a good appointment. Not terrible, not sensational, but good. And this is an appointment Leicester simply cannot afford to get wrong.
“He was the best of the bunch with Neil Lennon, Sean Dyche, Sam Allardyce, David Wagner and that man Nigel Pearson all linked. The only one that I maybe would have preferred was Rafa Benitez but that was a tall ask.
“This is an exciting job but it needs a big character to lead the dressing room and I’m confident Brendan Rodgers is the man to do that.”
Read Jones’ full comment piece on Rodgers’ appointment here
James Sharpe (Daily Mail)
“Brendan Rodgers is an appointment that matches the ambitions of Leicester City. To have moved so fast to get him to leave Celtic mid-season, on the verge of a historic treble-treble, is a huge statement. It shows they mean business.
“I was one of the ever-increasing minority that thought Claude Puel did a decent job of overhauling an ageing Leicester squad. The group of players Rodgers now inherits is packed with bright young talent: James Maddison, Ben Chilwell, Harry Maguire, Ricardo Pereira, Harvey Barnes.
“I am eager to see Rodgers develop them. His style of play should help get the best out of them. He should also have the standing and personality to command a strong dressing room with a few big, influential characters. He has already given a much-needed lift to the atmosphere in the stands — without even having taken charge of a game. All he did was wave!
“Leicester have European ambitions. Once Rodgers irons out the young inconsistencies there is no reason why they cannot challenge for it. The squad still needs depth up front and Rodgers will know he cannot rely on Jamie Vardy forever. He will need backing in the summer transfer window. Leicester will do that.
“Exciting times ahead.”
Leicester fans will be hoping Rodgers gets financial backing in the transfer window
Jake Watson (talkSPORT, Love Sport)
“Puel’s appointment was a bit of a random one, a bit of a rebound girlfriend! We needed to move an old guard, dominant dressing room out and Puel was the perfect guy to do that.
“When a manager comes in I don’t want to know what the end story is going to be. We knew when Claude Puel came in that he wasn’t going to be there in two years time but with Brendan Rodgers we don’t know how this ends.
“Rodgers was dealt a pretty poor hand at Liverpool with the summer transfer window when they sold Luis Suarez but he did well at Celtic. People knock it but he achieved and won anything he could possibly do there so I think he comes back with a point to prove.
“For the first time probably since we hired Sven Goran Eriksson in 2010 I am genuinely excited about an appointment at Leicester City.”
This story was originally published by talkSPORT
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