TEAMtalk guest Rich Kitto explains why Brendan Rodgers can restore credibility to Liverpool and why he must be afforded time and patience.

'Patience is a virtue' - William Langland, 1377.

It appears certain now that Brendan Rodgers, the man currently in charge of Swansea, is set to spread his wings for a new challenge at Liverpool.

But, in what is arguably one of the most crucial periods in the Reds' history, will it be flight or fight for the man from Northern Ireland?

Twelve days ago it seemed any sort of deal that would bring Rodgers to Liverpool was a dead duck after the public announcement that he had turned away an official approach to hold talks.

But if a week is a long time in politics, then it's even longer in football and Rodgers now faces the biggest challenge of his fledgling career.

However, I believe this is an extremely shrewd move by Liverpool's US-based owners.

Employed by Chelsea as youth-team coach under Jose Mourinho, who he remains close friends with to this day, Rodgers could not have had many better mentors in modern-day football. But whilst Mourinho has been criticised over the years for his type of restrictive football - particularly with the Blues - the same certainly cannot be said of Rodgers' Swansea side.

By instructing his men to retain possession at all costs, Rodgers let the ball (and more importantly the opposition) do all the hard work.

Last season, Swansea were rather incredibly amongst the top 10 teams in Europe for possession football, and only Manchester City completed more passes than them in the Premier League.

Liverpool fans will know this all too well after succumbing 1-0 to the Whites at the Liberty Stadium on the final day of the season, and dropping two points to them at home earlier in the year - where the opposition had the higher percentage of possession, something very rarely seen at Anfield.

In fact, such was the excellence of their performance in Liverpool that day, the home crowd stood in applause for the away team after the final whistle as recognition of what they had seen.

And for so long such a philosophy has also been the Liverpool way.

Minds are instantly cast back to the infamous 'Pass and Move (is the Liverpool Groove)' song back in 1996 which reached No. 4 in the charts (a position Liverpool fans would love to see the club in now).

Liverpool's decision to move for Rodgers comes, of course, following the decision to axe Kenny Dalglish, and he tried to instill similar passing beliefs at Anfield.

This was the basis upon which I recently based the argument that the Scot deserved another season in charge. And, although in the eyes of a portion of supporters and past players this opinion has not changed, thoughts must be on the here and now for Liverpool fans. History is exactly that.

Despite the murmurs and disillusioned shouts, Liverpool were never in a position to attract the likes of Guardiola, Capello, Deschamps, De Boer, Klopp or even Villas-Boas. It is just not an attractive proposition at the moment for those managers, who are regularly amongst the leading candidates for all the biggest jobs in world football.

The Reds are still a club in huge transition, as they were two years ago, and can realistically only point to their global brand and heritage as potential draws.

It is believed that Dalglish's dreadful handling of the Luiz Suarez case was one of the major reasons for his dismissal - as above all else, Liverpool simply cannot afford to damage the image of the club.

Without a doubt Liverpool remain one of the best supported, and most recognisable, clubs worldwide. In a city that eats, sleeps and consumes the sport in every way possible, their fan base in this country is understandably amongst the most vociferous in the land, with great expectations carried over season on season. So there will be those fans that are disappointed that the name Rodgers is not globally recognised, that he doesn't carry any 'major' awards on his CV, and that the owners do not recognise the stature of the club. But this simply has to be forgotten.

This is a new era for Liverpool FC. For the time being forget the success of the 70s, the great players of the 80s, and the European victories in the 00s. The last two years have been amongst the worst in the history of the club for a variety of reasons, and right here right now Liverpool need stability, and this is why, I believe, Rodgers deserves time.

Liverpool are not, and certainly don't want to become, the type of club that dismisses managers every six months to a year. That is simply not the Liverpool way. Rodgers needs the opportunity to assess, evaluate and shape the club as he - not a director of football - desires.

Though next season will not only pose a challenge for Livepool due to the inner wranglings of the club, as exclaimed by Robbie Fowler: "It's going to be really difficult. It's a massive challenge. Because the top four are going to bring in new players too and that gulf increases again. I have to say it; right now the 2012/2013 season looks like it's going to be another difficult one for Liverpool fans."

At the end of the day, why not give him the chance? What more is there to lose? He's young, British, aspirational, plays football the right way, knows how to get the best out of his players, and understands the modern game.

He's a gamble, yes, but I strongly believe Rodgers will be a fantastic appointment for Liverpool.

Reds fans will eventually be looking for history to repeat itself once again with domestic and European success, but, for the time being, if Rodgers can eradicate the pain of the last two years then he will have done very well indeed.