Former Everton captain Phil Neville feels Brendan Rodgers' excuses at Liverpool are wearing thin. Some of the reasons the Northern Irishman has cited for their demise include the lack of experience in the Reds squad, as well as their on-going involvement in Europe, but Neville has rejected such claims.
He told Match of the Day: "I don't understand the excuses made about Liverpool's season being disrupted by playing in Europe. It's actually a lot easier competing in the Champions League than the Europa League.
"This is especially the case in terms of preparation and recovery, as you can be travelling a lot further away while playing in the Europa League as opposed to the Champions League.
"For me there's more than enough experience in that side too. I keep hearing that this Liverpool side is a young one but the average age of the team against Crystal Palace was 26, and for a Premier League side that isn't young at all.
"A lot of these players have played in Europe as well, so should have the experience required to get themselves a win in these kind of games (against Crystal Palace)."
Neville has also not been impressed with the impact Rodgers' summer signings have made at the club, with £16million man Mario Balotelli in particular being singled out for notable criticism.
"As a manager you live and die by your signings and at the moment I don't think his (Rodgers) signings have been good enough."
