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It has been a stick, dripping with satisfaction, to beat the manager with. As Liverpool FC’s season has declined, Brendan Rodgers’ supposed words have come back to nibble at him.

“Judge me in three years.”

There is no actual written record of Rodgers saying that and has possibly been attributed wrongly to the Reds boss. The vast canyon that is the Internet has no quote directly from the Northern Irishman, but has still become an accepted truth.

Such are the pitfalls of the world wide web. On the three-year anniversary of his arrival at Liverpool, he is very much being judged.

Whether he said it or not, it is still a convenient opportunity to assess just how the Reds have fared during his time at Anfield. After all, club owners Fenway Sports Group will be doing so soon – just as they have at the end of his previous two years.

Here are the facts surrounding Rodgers’ three years in charge – and what has been good and bad about his reign.

Games: 155

Wins: 81

Draws: 34

Lost: 40

Goals scored: 282

Goals conceded: 188

Highest league finish: 2

Lowest league finish: 7

Win percentage: 52%

League points per game: 1.82

Rodgers' record at Liverpool All competitions in May

What Rodgers has done well

A (MAINLY) BETTER BRAND OF FOOTBALL

Hard to believe after the manner in which this season finished, but Liverpool had become a side attractive to watch – particularly in 2013-14. Granted, an on-fire Steven Gerrard supplying Luis Suarez and Daniel Sturridge can do that to most sides, but it was Rodgers who created the system in which they flourished.

But it was an improvement that begun towards the tail end of Rodgers’ first season in charge, firing six past Newcastle and three against Fulham – both on the road, and both without Suarez. The fluidity found at the end of 2012-13 would be the platform to build upon for the following season.

He helped create a side that was entertaining to watch – on the front foot, at least – and believed in attacking, adventurous play.. Wins over Arsenal, Everton, Tottenham and Manchester City should not be dismissed.

This season’s lack of that sort of play is a major source of criticism, and understandably so, although the team did show flashes of what they had previously done under Rodgers with the wins against Spurs and Manchester City, amongst others.

BRINGING IN THE YOUNGSTERS

In the final game of Kenny Dalglish’s reign – ironically enough, against Rodgers’ Swansea – the average age of the starting line-up was over 26 years old. That is almost three years older than the average age of their Premier League line-ups this season. Most of Liverpool’s biggest and best performers – Philippe Coutinho, Jordan Henderson, Raheem Sterling – are still under 25, with the likes of Jordon Ibe and Emre Can earmarked for bright futures at the club.

Rodgers has to take some credit for that. He has created a reputation for bringing through young players, improving them and turning them into first-team stars. That, in essence, was one of the reasons he was given the job – and he’s fulfilled the role well. His team, in theory, should be a vibrant, dynamic, young one. If it performs to full potential, it can be.

THE TITLE CHALLENGE

As time moves on, the success of last season weighs more and more heavily on the shoulders of Suarez. His 31 goals, and the general phenomenon he became at Anfield, was a vital part of the Reds’ unexpected title challenge – but he was not the sole reason.

History has not been kind to Rodgers in this respect. It is forgotten how his tactical tweaks helped the club surge up the table; so, too, how he did the thing plenty said was impossible and get the best out of both Suarez and Sturridge.

It was Liverpool’s closest tilt at the Premier League title, the most thrilling ride experienced in a generation. That he failed to replicate it this season is something working against him.

FLEXIBILITY

Rodgers is a manager who, over his three years at the club, has shown he can learn from mistakes. In his time at the club, he’s sent out his team to a number of formations; the 4-4-2 diamond and 3-4-3, in particular, have brought success.

The Ulsterman has proven himself to be a ‘modern’ manager, one who can adapt to new challenges in creative and intelligent ways. He has also shuffled around his squad, turning Can into centre-back and Markovic into a wing-back, to help his side win points. He’s proven he can pull the side from the depths of despair and make them function once more.

IN PICTURES: Brendan Rodgers' three-year reign

What Rodgers has done wrong

FLEXIBILITY

The ability to change can be both a blessing and a curse, it seems. Rodgers has sometimes been too keen, and too quick, to change things – both in terms of personnel and style.

Players have been used and then relegated either to the bench or out of the squad completely. Formations have changed twice, or even thrice, into a game – taking away responsibility from the players and placing it firmly in his hands.

Too much has changed. It means Liverpool enter this summer with no real knowledge of what sort of team they are. Not a bad thing, necessarily, but the lack of strategy will be felt when looking to sign players.

After three years, the squad should be more settled.

ADAPTING TO BIG-MONEY SIGNINGS

£10m on Fabio Borini has returned two league goals. £16m on Mario Balotelli has returned one. £20m on Lovren, meanwhile, has given little else but bulging veins and heads cemented into hands – Rodgers included.

The club’s record with big-money signings – or, indeed, signings in general – have not been good. Of course, any criticism of the transfer policy comes with the caveat of the transfer committee. However, in May 2014, Rodgers did say he would have the final say on all signings this summer.

No matter the truth about how they get to the club, the fact is they haven’t performed once Rodgers gets his hands on them. It means the club will face another summer of squad upheaval.

THE DEFENCE

There is no disguising the fact Liverpool’s defence has been, at times, shambolic during his reign.

In 2012-13, he made the Reds the fifth-best defence in the league, conceding just 43 goals. Not a bad return on the surface, but it was still a season which saw Liverpool conceded two or more goals in 17 of their 38 league games. Their sixteen clean sheets were impressive, but they would often struggle – and, indeed, fall apart – in games.

So it proved again last season, conceding two or more in 16 games. The mitigation, in defence of the defence, was always the style of play; Liverpool’s free-flowing style, yielding 101 goals, was always going to have an adverse effect on the back four.

But there are no excuses, and no hiding place, this season. Despite spending £32m on Dejan Lovren and Alberto Moreno, Liverpool’s defence retained that incredible talent of having their thumb firmly on the self-destruct button. Only 13 games saw them concede two or more this time, but that included 10 goals in two games at Arsenal and Manchester United.

They had looked solid enough when moving to three at the back and kept 14 clean sheets overall, but conceding nine goals in their final two games laid bare how the underlying problems remain.

MENTAL STRENGTH

Liverpool have become a team of wimps, according to Mark Lawrenson in his Sunday ECHO column. The supporters at Stoke, who stood there as the goals flew past Simon Mignolet, were not as kind – nor as polite – as that assessment.

In big games, games of high importance, Liverpool crumble. They did so in the games against Chelsea and Crystal Palace last season – although, it should be pointed out, they did beat Spurs and City in high-pressure scenarios – and this season has been littered with disappointments.

The defeats to Manchester United, Arsenal and Aston Villa, all in the space of a month, did untold damage.

Perhaps it is a by-product of the style of football sought for. Perhaps it is because the squad is filled with inexperienced youngsters and a couple of ageing, stagnant squad members. Whatever the reason, it is indisputable: the Reds lack mental toughness and the ability to respond to setbacks.

It used to be a real asset of Rodgers. Indeed, in his first two seasons, his side lost consecutive league games just one – away to City and Chelsea in the space of 72 hours. This season’s form, however, has enough ‘L-L’ to pass as a Welsh village.