Brendan Rodgers lays into Liverpool's 'soft' defenders for making Oldham rookie 'look like Didier Drogba'
Liverpool crashed out of FA Cup at the weekend
Related articles
Brendan Rodgers, the Liverpool manager, has launched a strong attack on his own players as the fall-out from the club's FA Cup exit to Oldham Athletic continues, accusing his centre halves Martin Skrtel and Sebastian Coates of making Oldham forward Matt Smith, who is fresh out of university football, "look like Didier Drogba."
Liverpool have been poorly equipped for physical challenges this season and Rodgers declared they were simply "too soft" at Boundary Park.
"The boy Smith hadn't scored a goal at home in two years and he's come up against two big units we have at centre-half [Skrtel and Coates]." said Rodgers, whose side are at Arsenal tomorrow night. "He is a boy who has come out of university football and he looks like Didier Drogba. We have seen it before with [Christian] Benteke, who after our game against Aston Villa has disappeared.
"Going to places like Oldham, you know what you're going to get. It's not a Premier League game. It's a game where you have to roll your sleeves up and fight and as I said, it was too soft. That's the resilience and steel we need to have and we have to do it consistently. One or two were too soft, it's as simple as that."
Latest in Sport
Sport blogs
Brits on fire in the wet at Le Mans!
Wow - what a weekend for British Motorcycle racing!
by Luke Wilkins
22 May 2013 05:00 AM
iBet: Bale and Rooney transfer specials
The dust is barely settling on the Premier League season and the bookies are looking to persuade us ...
by Gareth Purnell
22 May 2013 02:01 AM
A changing of the guards in English football: From Sir Alex Ferguson to Jose Mourinho
The guard has changed at Old Trafford for the first time in 26 years. Meanwhile, down the road, the ...
by The Sports Lawyer
21 May 2013 10:01 PM
-
Exclusive: Championship clubs set to push for safe-standing trials
-
Sergio Garcia at centre of racism row as dispute with Tiger Woods continues
-
Gaël Clichy: Roberto Mancini must take share of blame for dismissal
-
Phil Neville in frame for role at Stoke City
-
Andy Carroll stalls on £15m move to West Ham in hope Newcastle step in
- 1 Gay couple beaten in park urge MPs to moderate language on gay marriage
- 2 Swedes set up 'ultimate Viking movie'
- 3 After woman sells virginity for $780,000, here are the results of our prostitution survey
- 4 China agrees to impose carbon targets by 2016
- 5 Far-right French historian, 78-year-old Dominique Venner, commits suicide in Notre Dame in protest against gay marriage
Get your summer started with British Military Fitness
BMF is the UK’s biggest and best loved outdoor fitness classes
Visit York
Find out what The Independent's resident travel expert has to say about one of the most beautiful small cities in the world
Enter the latest Independent competitions
Win anything from gadgets to five-star holidays on our competitions and offers page.
Business videos from commercial thought leaders
Watch the best in the business world give their insights into the world of business.
Day In a Page
How to say ‘I’m a sellout’
Why clubs are keen to take a stand



Comments