Brendan Rodgers claimed there was a conspiracy to oust him from the Liverpool manager’s job after the pressure on his reign eased with a 3-2 win over Aston Villa. Daniel Sturridge scored twice, the injury-plagued striker’s first goals since March, after James Milner opened the scoring on 66 seconds against his former club to give Liverpool a first win in five Premier League matches. There were nervous moments for Rodgers when Rudy Gestede twice reduced the arrears for Tim Sherwood’s struggling side but, after seeing his side move within five points of leaders Manchester United, the Liverpool manager condemned the “hysteria” he believes has been deliberately stirred in recent weeks.

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“I was never worried about the players,” said Rodgers on an improved display. “They have been absolutely brilliant this group here and they have worked very, very hard. I am pretty confident that there is a group of people that don’t want me to be here as manager. In all competitions this season we have lost less games than Manchester City, Chelsea and Arsenal.

“The hysteria around ourselves is interesting to note. Myself and the players stay very calm and work very hard, and they got their rewards.”

The Liverpool manager refused to identify who he believes is behind an alleged campaign to force him out of Anfield. However, he is believed to be aggrieved with the number of former Liverpool players turned media pundits who have criticised his team’s poor form and results in recent weeks. Jamie Carragher, Graeme Souness and Jamie Redknapp have all been critical in their roles for Sky, though, when pressed, Rodgers would only say: “I am talking about people outside of here.”

He added: “I think it is pretty clear. Sometimes we haven’t lost games and the hysteria around it is pretty clear. There is maybe something else going on from behind. I will continue working with the players – they have been absolutely first class – and we still have top class players to come back in.

“The players and the supporters were fantastic today, we gave them something to sing about. We are five points off the top with a lot of progress still to come.”