Five moments that shaped Brendan Rodgers’s Liverpool reign

1) The Gerrard slip

After a stunning run of results which included emphatic wins against Arsenal, Everton, Tottenham Hotspur, Manchester United and a dramatic victory over Manchester City, Liverpool were on the cusp of a first Premier League title. All that stood in their way was Chelsea. Avoid defeat, and Liverpool would seemingly dismiss the challenge of Crystal Palace and Newcastle United to finally end their 24-year wait to be crowned English champions again. However, Steven Gerrard’s cruel slip allowed Demba Ba to break Kopite hearts and the rest is history. The former Liverpool captain will forever be the poster boy for their title collapse, but Brendan Rodgers got his tactics wrong on the day. The manager was naive in his approach to a must-not-lose game as Liverpool were caught up in the emotion of the moment.

2) Suarez exit and shambolic signings

The £75m sale of Luis Suarez to Barcelona was a blow, but crucially, it shouldn’t have been a critical one. Allowed to reinvest the transfer fee and more on new players, Rodgers signed Lovren, Adam Lallana, Rickie Lambert, Lazar Markovic, Emre Can, Divock Origi, Alberto Moreno and Mario Balotelli in deals worth more than £120m. Three have already left the club, whilst only Can and Moreno started their 1-1 draw with Everton on Sunday. That says it all, really.

3) Weakened side v Real Madrid

Perhaps the moment the tide began to turn against Rodgers can pinpointed to his decision to field a weakened team at Real Madridin November 2014. Liverpool were back at Europe’s top table for the first time in five seasons, and despite a disappointing start, had a fighting chance of reaching the Champions League knockout stage. So, the decision to rest big-name players including captain Gerrard was baffling. It contradicted Liverpool’s values, particularly as the fixture saw Europe’s third most-successful club take on the 10-time European Cup winners. It left many former Liverpool players questioning the manager.

4) Manchester United defeat

The tea and toast were soon the talk of Merseyside again when Liverpool’s impressive run came to an end. Rodgers left Gerrard on the bench for his final appearance against bitter rivals United. When the manager turned to his loyal skipper at half-time following Juan Mata’s first-half opener, Gerrard was frustrated that he was sent off for a reckless stamp inside two minutes. It wasn’t a surprise. Rodgers must accept a small portion of the blame for the incident, although Gerrard should have known better. The result effectively ended Liverpool’s season as the Reds never really picked up again, losing heavily at Arsenal a week later.

5) 6-1 humiliation at Stoke City

Rodgers did achieve some records at Liverpool, although not all favourable. Liverpool suffered their heaviest Premier League defeat on the final day of the 2014/15 season in what many thought would result in his dismissal. To compound matters, their 6-1 defeat marked Gerrard’s final Liverpool appearance. While some will rightly argue it was nothing more than a dead rubber, their biggest loss since 1963 suggested the manager was losing the dressing room.