Brendan Targets 20 Point Barrier

Brendan Rodgers is within touching distance of his next hurdle on the road to safety – the 20 point barrier

With 40 points stated quite often as a manager’s safety target, Bredan admits that he would like to take his team over the 20 point barrier by the halfway stage – a figure that he thinks would be a remarkable achievement

He told the Western Mail “Our motivation now is to get over the 20-point mark during this period which would be fantastic for us.

“If come the mid-season period we were on 20 points or more that would be a terrific first part of the season for us.

“I think it’s doable. I don’t think there would be too many complaints from supporters that we are lying 12th at this stage in our first campaign and how we’ve graced it so far.

“We’ve had great charisma and quality and honour.

“I do feel then that we could really move on and improve over the second half of the season.

“My ambition for the group is always to improve and that is what we are striving to achieve.

“The Christmas period is important because you can collect points very quickly. If we can do another good job at Everton that brings us into two home games, two tough games we know, but we do have immense confidence at home.

“Whenever I’ve seen Everton they like to mix their game up,” said Rodgers.

“They like to build from behind. Phil Jagielka and Johnny Heitinga are the kind to build the game and they’ve got Leighton Baines, who is a terrific talent going forward.

“I would expect them to be different in their approach than Newcastle, but what is important is our approach and that we produce a terrific performance.

“I do think it’s very much about ourselves. We understand it will be difficult, but we feel it will be a good one for us.

“We go there looking for the win, which I feel we deserve.”