- Anfield Index

A brace of headers from Virgil van Dijk saw Liverpool open an 11 point lead at the top of the Premier League table with a 2-1 win over Brighton at Anfield. The Reds went into the game knowing that a victory would open a sizeable 11 point margin over Manchester City, as former Liverpool player Jonjo Shelvey's late strike condemned Pep Guardiola's men to a 2-2 draw away to Newcastle United. Lead by their talisman centre half, who nodded in …

Much has been said about Brendan Rodgers' time at Anfield. He was often lauded for his development of talent, both by the press and by himself. This week's news that Tiago Ilori is likely to move on to Reading   had me thinking, how much talent did the Northern Irishman waste or ignore during his tenure? Yes, Raheem Sterling and Luis Suarez become household names, with the latter almost single handedly winning Liverpool the league. But looking back at the …

Five Games in to the season and there are already calls for Rodgers head. 3 goals from 5 games is poor, however when you see that Liverpool have scored 2 or more goals in only 6 league games since January 2015, there is a deeper problem. The lack of creativity and general naivety from the manager is part of the reason for the poor form and fans want a change. The change many fans want is a new manager, however …

Clubs like Livepool, Man Utd or Barcelona have their own ‘way’, by which their club is meant to operate. These clubs have principles that define them; their identity empowers its players and managers to play a certain way, it strikes fear into visiting clubs, and it inspires jealousy in rival fans. Bill Shankly embodied the ‘Liverpool way’, and so when Rodgers was compared to him many laughed. It seems silly now, but the 2013/14 Liverpool did play the way its …

After Jonjo Shelvey's man of the match performance for England against San Marino on Saturday, I can't help but wonder whether Liverpool let him go a little bit too soon. When Liverpool signed 18 year old midfielder Jonjo Shelvey from Charlton Athletic in May 2010 for £1.7 million, it quickly became apparent that Liverpool had signed an extremely talented youngster. Despite his talent, it was still clear that Shelvey was somewhat a rough diamond and still had a lot of …

Evolution is inevitable. In football and in everyday life you change to adapt. So what's the difference between transition as a club and evolving? Why are some teams praised for adapting whilst others use being in transition as an excuse? Since Brendan Rodgers took the helm of Liverpool FC it feels like 'Liverpool are in transition' is one of the most overused sentences for fans and pundits alike. Many pin this on Brendan Rodgers, others like to associate the blame …