On Mario Balotelli:
Questions were coming from left, right and centre about Balotelli, with the Liverpool manager at one point questioning the reporters: “Is this the Mario Balotelli press conference?” When asked about if there will be any punishment on Balotelli, Rodgers replied: “Any action [against Balotelli] will be kept between ourselves. We just had a conversation about the culture in this country and club.”
Rodgers also got questioned on Balotelli’s future, he responded: “You have to accept that criticism is part of the game, but the boy [Mario Balotelli] is trying very, very hard. He is working hard on the training field. As long as he’s doing his best that’s all I can ask for, wether his best will be good enough remains to be seen. But that goes for all the players.”
Rodgers, when asked about ‘the Mario Balotelli show’, said: “It’s no problem for me. I select the players on how well they work in training and the best teams to win games. ‘The Mario Balotelli Show’ is no different to me. He’s like any other player.”
“For me, as a manger, it is no problem. I like players who are different. But as long as they don’t see themselves as an individual. They have to be part of the team. He’s working hard and doing his best right now.”
“Mario is treated like any other player. We’re very much about the team. My only concentration is on winning games.”
Rodgers took a mini hit at the defence by saying: “Was Mario playing centre-half? He’s been a wee bit of a victim. Last night should have been a great night despite the result.”
On Rickie Lambert:
Rodgers was questioned about Lambert and wether he was happy in his role as a bench warmer. Brendan answered: “I think Rickie has always been very clear of his position. He knew he wasn’t gonna be a starter. He’s a great guy, he recognises the role he has. And obviously he’s playing that role in training.”
“Lambert didn’t play last night because we needed something different last night – speed and mobility – so we put Raheem up front.”
On Sterling:
Rodgers when asked about Sterling playing up front: “Raheem has played as a striker [when he was a youngster] so he understands the position well. If we feel it helps the team, I can look at it.” After Rodgers gave us a little hint that Sterling could have more chances up front (Rodgers: “I will consider Raheem as a striker in the future.”). The Northern Irishman praised Lallana afterwards.
On the team:
Rodgers: “Our performance needs to be better as a team, not just the defence. We need to be more competitive and aggressive. We all pride ourselves on clean sheets. Large number of our goals we have conceded have been soft. That’s something we need to improve on, but as a team.”
On Hull:
After the Balotelli mess, Rodgers talked about Hull. “Steve Bruce has done an excellent job at Hull, they’ve got real depth to their squad. They come here on the back of a good result. Steve Bruce has done well. They are hard to break down. It’ll be difficult for us. They caused Arsenal problems, but Anfield is a special place for us to play and we go into home games to win with confidence.”
Max
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