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Well, that went well, didn't it? Aside from the handful of people who only read the post's title before calling me a dick because they thought I'd said something not so nice to somebody else over the internet, it turned out that the vast majority of people weren't all that interested in coming up with positives about Roy Hodgson. Or perhaps they simply couldn't come up with anything especially good to say about him, because at the end of the day I think most of us around here agree that there is very little--if anything--that has been good about his time with the club and that the sooner he moves on to manage another club or do commentary for Sky or hand out Werther's to his grandkids the better.
He may have come in with the reputation of being a fundamentally nice man, and on a personal level it's entirely likely that's what he is, but he just doesn't seem to fit Liverpool Football Club. And at the end of the day he has committed perhaps the worst sin a Liverpool manager ever could: he has appeared to put himself, his image and reputation and prior connections, ahead of the good of the club and its supporters.
So asking people to list one positive for every negative about his tenure to date didn't go over quite as planned, which is both fine and something I sympathise with entirely (and I did agree with the vast majority of negatives people listed), but the language was at times a touch less civil than one might hope. Disliking the man and his actions is one thing, and perhaps even an occasional curse directed at him on matchdays is to be excused, but there's really no benefit in going quite as over the top as some did the other day to try and prove to others that, by god, you hate the man even more than they do. You don't like him, you want him to go, I get it--and I agree with you. There's still no need to drag his family into it or aim an unending stream of obscenities in his general direction from a blog's comment section.
With all that said and out of the way--and as much as any other purpose this post serves, I do believe that some of that needed to be stated for the record--there were still some entertaining positives and negatives submitted, and I wanted to take the time to highlight a couple of the attempts to approach the exercise in the spirit it was intended, as well as a few others that where just plain funny:
+ He convinced Gerrard and Torres to stay over summer, and Cole to sign. How he did it I know not, and neither do I know whether they stayed because of him, or because of any other assurances that the chairman/board or anyone else might or might not have given. Anyway, give him the benefit of the doubt - he had some part in it. (Red2death)
- He wants to buy Carlton Cole. He thinks Carlton Cole is a good striker. Carlton. Cole. Jesus Christ on a bike. (a guy who put his email in the name field, but if he wants to claim the comment, etc., etc.)
+ I think he's managed to take a large amount of criticism and keep moving forward, for better or worse. At its peak, the criticism seemed suffocating, and I honestly don't know how he's done it. He has his focus and his point of view, and I typically disagree with it, but I'll be damned if I don't find myself marveling at how he's still convinced he's the man for the job. (Ed)
- His best days are well behind him, but he refuses to acknowledge that and continues to set the team up using tactics that are more suited to a mid-table club, resulting in embarrassing results like the defeat at Stoke. (Galahad)
+ His transfer dealings. I was happy and still am happy that he swapped Yossi for Joe. I think Joe is a much more dynamic player who creates and scores goals. Also, he has that little bit more flair than Yossi. Also, happy that he brought in Raul. Now playing in the center of the park, we can really see how good he is. (Rhymenoceros)
- His transfer dealings. Poulsen - Konchesky In. Mascherano - Insua Out. 'Nuff Said. (Rhymenoceros redux)
+ He doesn't wear a ridiculous red scarf like houillier used too. If you give me a week I'm sure I'll think of another. (Davetree)
- He separates himself from the team when things go bad, says "they", "I"... but when things go well, he says "we", "us." (Marcus)
+ er...hang on a minute..I suppose he's thick skinned? is that a positive? (Willy)
- He's yet to be sacked. (Jerod)
There were lots more negatives, of course, though I think McrRed might have summed up my feelings about his time at the club best when he said, "Before he came I liked the guy. When he came I really wanted to like the guy. REALLY. But he just makes it sooo easy to dislike him." So there you go.
Venting can be useful--and is even encouraged within reason--but let's try to keep it at least a little bit civil, boys and girls. Doing otherwise won't get him gone any sooner, and it'll just make it a lot harder for everybody to have an (occasionally) intelligent conversation.