According to a report in the Sunday Times, Liverpool owners Fenway Sports Group have “doubts” over the abilities of Brendan Rodgers as Liverpool sinks deeper into uncertainty.

Just months after Rodgers completed a second-place finish and narrowly missed out on the Premier League title in what appeared to be the beginning of a long-term plan coming to fruition, Rodgers and Liverpool now sit just ninth in the table and could be eliminated from the Champions League midweek.

With the club unsure of the direction it now wishes to take, the Times report states they have contacted former Chelsea and Tottenham manager Andre Villas-Boas and asked him to “outline his coaching philosophy and methods” for the ownership group.

Villas-Boas is in his first season with Zenit St. Petersburg in the Russian league, and has the club top of the table by a solid seven point margin over CSKA Moscow.

The 37-year-old Portuguese manager was one of many recent victims of the Roman Abramovich axe at Stamford Bridge, pulled in March of 2012 and unable to complete a full two seasons at the helm. That set the stage for Roberto Di Matteo to lead the Blues to Champions League victory at the end of the season, famously unable to win the permanent position despite the run.

AVB then went to Spurs, where he never fully gained a foothold and was eventually undone by the loss of Gareth Bale and the injection of a large group of new players that he was unable to juggle, and thus could not achieve consistent results.

Liverpool are in a precarious position. Brendan Rodgers is loved by the fans, having taken them from a dark place in 2012 and instituting a plan clearly meant to work long-term rather than provide immediate results. The eventual execution saw them take the Premier League by storm last year, and Rodgers was dubbed a hero. But with the club now consumed by turmoil following the departure of Luis Suarez, their Irish manager has been unable to produce goals in his absence.

The club spent furiously this summer to replace Suarez, but much like AVB at Spurs a few years ago, Rodgers has been unable to find his best lineup following the sale of the club’s most impactful player. Liverpool currently sit 15 points off league leaders Chelsea, although they remain just four points back of the final Champions League place.