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Are Benitez's days numbered?
Posted 03 Nov 2009 at 05:11 PM by David Bolt
Here’s a question for you all. What record does Don Welsh currently hold for Liverpool F.C.?
Well done to you if you knew that Welsh is the only manager to have been fired by Liverpool F.C. in their 117-year history (apparently Gerard Houllier’s departure by mutual consent wasn’t just a kinder way of saying he was fired). I think he’s going to lose that record very soon.
Time is surely running out on the Rafael Benitez era at Anfield. The owners and directors simply cannot idly sit by and watch performances as abject as the last few games, Man United excepted, and think that that is in any way acceptable to a club with the history, gravitas and ambition as Liverpool F.C.
To anyone reading this who’s ready to dismiss me as jumping on a ‘Rafa out’ bandwagon or who would point out that I wasn’t calling for him to go after beating United, look at my post about a year ago, if I can call for him to be fired when we were second in the table, I can call for him to be fired now. For the record, I was calling for him to go after beating United. That result, great as it was, merely served to paper over the cracks.
Saturday was one of the most pathetic, gutless, unimaginative displays both by the team and by the manager, which Liverpool F.C. has ever produced. What makes it even worse was that wasn’t even the worst we have played this season. That dubious honour goes to the monstrosity that was the Sunderland game.
I appreciate that we are suffering badly with injuries, but every team suffers with injuries, that’s what the squad is for. Benitez utterly failed to strengthen the squad in key areas that it was obvious to anyone that if Torres or Gerrard got injured, we were done for. We failed to buy the striker we desperately needed. We failed to get any kind of attacking central midfielder. We replaced one of our main playmakers with an injured player. We blew most of our budget on a Right-Back we didn’t really need.
Under Benitez, we have gone from a club that strives for the best to one that rewards mediocrity. How else could you explain picking Voronin and Kuyt in the starting XI after appalling performances against Arsenal? The total lack of options up front means we have to persist with players that would fail to score in a brothel. Both Voronin and Kuyt were atrocious against Fulham, despite both putting in good effort, and sadly; it looks like we’ll be relying upon them again in the future.
Then there were the substitutions. I begrudgingly accept the Torres substitution, though I question the judgement of playing him in the first place if he is that injured (That’s right, we don’t have anyone else do we?), especially with Benitez saying he’d rather play an 80% fit Torres than anyone else. Why was Babel brought on though? He was out worst player against Arsenal, players can lose form but they should never lose effort. He continually moans in the press about not getting enough opportunities but never takes them when he does. It is so maddening that a player with all the talent and physical attributes can just not put it together on the pitch. To paraphrase Bull Durham he has million-dollar legs but a 5-cent brain.
The worse was yet to come. After the very harsh dismissal of Philipp Degen, who, lets face it isn’t the best player in the world but did ok I thought. Benitez responded by taking off Benayoun to give Nathan Eccleston his debut. After Carragher also went, again a harsh decision but he got away with one earlier so we probably can’t complain; he takes off Kuyt and puts on Ayala. We’re getting beat 2-1 and he decides to try and shore up the defence? That was basically the white flag being run up. Fulham had really set uot to defend and we were incapable of taking the game to them.
We went through the rest of the game in some sort of torpor; we had nothing on the pitch that would have made an attacking difference. There was no creativity whatsoever all game and Benitez quite simply, gave the game up as a loss with 15 minutes to go. That is unacceptable.
The games against Sunderland, Lyon and Fulham have served to me to confirm an opinion that, at least in my own mind, I have held about Benitez for a long time. He has no real plan B. Most managers can at least try something different to turn a game around, not Rafa.
In those games and many others, we have utterly lacked creativity and imagination. Plan A seems to be give the ball to Torres or Gerrard and let them do something with it. That’s pretty much the tactics that we used to play on the school playground when I was seven. When Gerrard is unavailable or marked out of a game and Torres is getting the shit kicked out of him by the opposition, we turn to Plan B. That seems to be hope that Benayoun or Babel have some sort of flash of inspiration or see if Kuyt pops up out of nowhere with a goal. Failing that, Plan B seems to be put one of the plethora of defenders or holding midfielders in our squad on and pray for a miracle.
Benitez has worn the expression of a man who quite simply has no idea what to try next, especially in the Lyon and Fulham games. Remember Kevin Keegan quit as England manager because he said he knew what was going wrong but didn’t know how to put it right. Sounds an awful lot like Benitez.
Then there’s the other issue, an issue that has been frustrating for LFC fans for years. Benitez wants to win the Champions League rather than the Premier League that the fans so badly crave. That is why Kuyt and Benayoun were withdrawn from a league game that was going badly, but was not completely lost, so they were ready to go against Lyon.
Ronnie Whelan, who won six league titles with Liverpool, has accused Benítez of giving up on the championship. Whelan claimed the Spaniard is concentrating only on the Champions League to further his career.
”It’s all gone wrong with the manager. He’s shown exactly where his priorities lie,” said Whelan, speaking on RTE television in Ireland. “He wants to be the man who wins the European Cup so he can get a job anywhere in Europe. But, for me, his days have got to be numbered at Liverpool."
Its not even as though this policy is working. We had a poor result against Debrecen followed by two damaging defeats. Even though Lyon beat us with a late goal, we can’t honestly say it wasn’t coming. Lyon were all over us at the time and there was only ever going to be one winner.
I am appalled at the way Torres is being handled currently. He is injured. He should be allowed to recover properly before his injury becomes more serious. Look at Aquilani, made to play injured last season and had to have a major operation which has stalled his Liverpool career. Benitez is playing him because he refused to sign anyone else. He pretty much refused to sign Michael Owen, who would have cost nothing, took a huge wage cut and happily have been a good squad member because other people told him to sign him and once again he wants to prove one of his points. His stubbornness is getting in the way of the club progressing.
I don’t like his tactics; I think he’s far too negative; we went into full retreat mode second half against Lyon, when we had them on the rack. Our failure to press home the advantage meant that Lyon suddenly gained confidence and outplayed us for the rest of the game and they were deserving of their win, a result that makes progression from the group stages, a very tough task.
I also don’t like the way he never seems to take responsibility for his mistakes. He blames everyone and everything but never hold his hands up. He has assembled a squad full of players not good enough for a team with title aspirations. He has had money to spend, not as much as other managers, but that just means you have to be smarter with your purchases. Wasting £7m on Andrea Dossena is just not good enough.
"Virtually no one.'' That was Jamie Carragher’s response when asked whether Liverpool had anyone to replace Fernando Torres for the Lyon game.
I think that says it all.
Well done to you if you knew that Welsh is the only manager to have been fired by Liverpool F.C. in their 117-year history (apparently Gerard Houllier’s departure by mutual consent wasn’t just a kinder way of saying he was fired). I think he’s going to lose that record very soon.
Time is surely running out on the Rafael Benitez era at Anfield. The owners and directors simply cannot idly sit by and watch performances as abject as the last few games, Man United excepted, and think that that is in any way acceptable to a club with the history, gravitas and ambition as Liverpool F.C.
To anyone reading this who’s ready to dismiss me as jumping on a ‘Rafa out’ bandwagon or who would point out that I wasn’t calling for him to go after beating United, look at my post about a year ago, if I can call for him to be fired when we were second in the table, I can call for him to be fired now. For the record, I was calling for him to go after beating United. That result, great as it was, merely served to paper over the cracks.
Saturday was one of the most pathetic, gutless, unimaginative displays both by the team and by the manager, which Liverpool F.C. has ever produced. What makes it even worse was that wasn’t even the worst we have played this season. That dubious honour goes to the monstrosity that was the Sunderland game.
I appreciate that we are suffering badly with injuries, but every team suffers with injuries, that’s what the squad is for. Benitez utterly failed to strengthen the squad in key areas that it was obvious to anyone that if Torres or Gerrard got injured, we were done for. We failed to buy the striker we desperately needed. We failed to get any kind of attacking central midfielder. We replaced one of our main playmakers with an injured player. We blew most of our budget on a Right-Back we didn’t really need.
Under Benitez, we have gone from a club that strives for the best to one that rewards mediocrity. How else could you explain picking Voronin and Kuyt in the starting XI after appalling performances against Arsenal? The total lack of options up front means we have to persist with players that would fail to score in a brothel. Both Voronin and Kuyt were atrocious against Fulham, despite both putting in good effort, and sadly; it looks like we’ll be relying upon them again in the future.
Then there were the substitutions. I begrudgingly accept the Torres substitution, though I question the judgement of playing him in the first place if he is that injured (That’s right, we don’t have anyone else do we?), especially with Benitez saying he’d rather play an 80% fit Torres than anyone else. Why was Babel brought on though? He was out worst player against Arsenal, players can lose form but they should never lose effort. He continually moans in the press about not getting enough opportunities but never takes them when he does. It is so maddening that a player with all the talent and physical attributes can just not put it together on the pitch. To paraphrase Bull Durham he has million-dollar legs but a 5-cent brain.
The worse was yet to come. After the very harsh dismissal of Philipp Degen, who, lets face it isn’t the best player in the world but did ok I thought. Benitez responded by taking off Benayoun to give Nathan Eccleston his debut. After Carragher also went, again a harsh decision but he got away with one earlier so we probably can’t complain; he takes off Kuyt and puts on Ayala. We’re getting beat 2-1 and he decides to try and shore up the defence? That was basically the white flag being run up. Fulham had really set uot to defend and we were incapable of taking the game to them.
We went through the rest of the game in some sort of torpor; we had nothing on the pitch that would have made an attacking difference. There was no creativity whatsoever all game and Benitez quite simply, gave the game up as a loss with 15 minutes to go. That is unacceptable.
The games against Sunderland, Lyon and Fulham have served to me to confirm an opinion that, at least in my own mind, I have held about Benitez for a long time. He has no real plan B. Most managers can at least try something different to turn a game around, not Rafa.
In those games and many others, we have utterly lacked creativity and imagination. Plan A seems to be give the ball to Torres or Gerrard and let them do something with it. That’s pretty much the tactics that we used to play on the school playground when I was seven. When Gerrard is unavailable or marked out of a game and Torres is getting the shit kicked out of him by the opposition, we turn to Plan B. That seems to be hope that Benayoun or Babel have some sort of flash of inspiration or see if Kuyt pops up out of nowhere with a goal. Failing that, Plan B seems to be put one of the plethora of defenders or holding midfielders in our squad on and pray for a miracle.
Benitez has worn the expression of a man who quite simply has no idea what to try next, especially in the Lyon and Fulham games. Remember Kevin Keegan quit as England manager because he said he knew what was going wrong but didn’t know how to put it right. Sounds an awful lot like Benitez.
Then there’s the other issue, an issue that has been frustrating for LFC fans for years. Benitez wants to win the Champions League rather than the Premier League that the fans so badly crave. That is why Kuyt and Benayoun were withdrawn from a league game that was going badly, but was not completely lost, so they were ready to go against Lyon.
Ronnie Whelan, who won six league titles with Liverpool, has accused Benítez of giving up on the championship. Whelan claimed the Spaniard is concentrating only on the Champions League to further his career.
”It’s all gone wrong with the manager. He’s shown exactly where his priorities lie,” said Whelan, speaking on RTE television in Ireland. “He wants to be the man who wins the European Cup so he can get a job anywhere in Europe. But, for me, his days have got to be numbered at Liverpool."
Its not even as though this policy is working. We had a poor result against Debrecen followed by two damaging defeats. Even though Lyon beat us with a late goal, we can’t honestly say it wasn’t coming. Lyon were all over us at the time and there was only ever going to be one winner.
I am appalled at the way Torres is being handled currently. He is injured. He should be allowed to recover properly before his injury becomes more serious. Look at Aquilani, made to play injured last season and had to have a major operation which has stalled his Liverpool career. Benitez is playing him because he refused to sign anyone else. He pretty much refused to sign Michael Owen, who would have cost nothing, took a huge wage cut and happily have been a good squad member because other people told him to sign him and once again he wants to prove one of his points. His stubbornness is getting in the way of the club progressing.
I don’t like his tactics; I think he’s far too negative; we went into full retreat mode second half against Lyon, when we had them on the rack. Our failure to press home the advantage meant that Lyon suddenly gained confidence and outplayed us for the rest of the game and they were deserving of their win, a result that makes progression from the group stages, a very tough task.
I also don’t like the way he never seems to take responsibility for his mistakes. He blames everyone and everything but never hold his hands up. He has assembled a squad full of players not good enough for a team with title aspirations. He has had money to spend, not as much as other managers, but that just means you have to be smarter with your purchases. Wasting £7m on Andrea Dossena is just not good enough.
"Virtually no one.'' That was Jamie Carragher’s response when asked whether Liverpool had anyone to replace Fernando Torres for the Lyon game.
I think that says it all.
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I agree with you. Benitez needs to go. I've been saying this since the 2007/2008 season. And if you recall the good ole days of 07-08, you'll remember that Liverpool had such an annoying rotation policy that kept their team behind from others. That's the minute I decided that Benitez simply has to leave. He has to, there's no other alternative.
And the only reason why Liverpool finished second place last season was because other teams were underachieving. Chelsea had the worst W-D-L record in 08/09 than any other season since 2003. Arsenal were Arsenal, just that. They never had the desire to keep up a good work throughout the full season's length. So what's left is Manchester United getting away with a first place spot, and Liverpool day-dreaming about winning a league they knew they stood no chance for, realistically.
How things could've been so differently right now if Benitez did the following:
1. As you said. He could've gotten Owen for free. But he's arrogant in his decision making.
2. Imagine if he kept Robbie Keane.
He would've had a Keane - Torres - Owen strikeforce, probably the best in the league.
Plus Gerrard and Benayoun to complement him.
And imagine if they didnt sell Alonso. In fact, Alonso himself may have been convinced to stay in the club if he had seen a serious looking squad out there that has powerful players like Owen, Keane, Torres and Gerrard all in one boat.Posted 03 Nov 2009 at 06:32 PM by moqool 
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The only way I see Benitez leaving Liverpool being a positive is if they can get Jose Mourinho as a coach. Probably the only coach I can think of that could do as good or better job than Benitez. Although I just can't think of any other coach that could have possibly won the champions league with this team.
Posted 03 Nov 2009 at 09:50 PM by lond2345
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Glen Johnson
The only reason that Glen Johnson was purchased was because of the UEFA Home Grown rule for the Champions League. Liverpool doesn't have many players that qualify for the required 8 players and Johnson both qualifies and is good enough to start for 'Pool.
I agree that from a pure "team" perspective, he wasn't needed, especially not at that price, but with Rafa and staff all but ignoring Liverpool's youth system, financial steps had to be taken to field a viable team in the Champions League, albeit at the cost of buying the players needed to win the League.Posted 04 Nov 2009 at 11:27 AM by andypalmer
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money issues
It is sad to see Liverpool sinking right now and I hope the they can make it to port before collapsing. I read somewhere (can't find it now) that even if Liverpool did want to get rid of Rafa they basically can't afford it with his buy out clause. This January would you rather have the little money available go to new players or paying out the rest of a contract.
The focus on Europe might be coming from the head office too. Can sell more T shirts outside the UK with a nice European champions brand, over the winning of a needed EPL championship.Posted 04 Nov 2009 at 12:21 PM by Santa Footy
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All i'll say is go look up Rafa's win record.
Equal with Paisley 57% and second only to Dalglish with 60%+ if my memory serves me right, which would make him Liverpool's second (equal) most successful manager EVER.
Lastly Rafa v Fergie their first 200 league games.
Fergie 89 wins
Rafa 114 wins
Yes you may be consistent in wanting him out but actually try basing it on facts.
Just to throw one out there. Liverpool have had the fifth biggest budget since Rafa joined-so theoretically they should be finishing fifth.
Their final position for the last five seasons
2nd
4th
3rd
3rd
5th
Oh and a FA Cup win to go along with the two Champions League Finals (one win, one defeat).
Looks to me like aside from consistently punching above your weight, you've actually improved. Strange that.
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As for your "article", no money for players go talk to Hicks and Gillete. Rafa was promised an amount and wasn't told that it included any new contracts given-thus reducing it dramatically.
New RB-what would you do if the 6+5 rule comes in?
Voronin-has a goal every 2.2 games rate in Germany, that is virtually world class. Why he hasn't produced here, who knows.
Two men down and he brings on defenders-how about it's easier to keep the goal difference respectable with nine behind the ball. Insead of chasing a lost cause, knackering your players AND denting their already fragile confidence with an even heavier defeat when you get caught on the counter attack-REPEATEDLY!
"Benitez wants to win the Champions League rather than the Premier League"
Sorry but i'm calling BS on that-which one pays the money? Which one is gonna pay the debt the Yanks got you into? Benitez has already won it-he has NOTHING to prove in the CL. He wants the Premiership but knows that won't keep the wolves from the door or Barca away from Torres.
"He pretty much refused to sign Michael Owen,"
You want him back after all the crap he pulled before he left for Real Madrid-claiming he was going to sign, then wasn't, then was. Then it was only for a club that would win the CL-well we all know how well that went don't we.
"He has had money to spend, not as much as other managers, but that just means you have to be smarter with your purchases."
You mean like Reina-6M, or maybe Benayoun-5M or what about Insua 1.5M or shock horror Torres-cost 20M worth at least 50-60M. Oh and don't forget the 20M he made on Alonso, especially off the back of a so-so season.
"Wasting £7m on Andrea Dossena is just not good enough. "
If he gets back less than 5M, you could argue it was a waste-but he is going to get some money back.
Talking of getting money back-can i have a refund for that dross masquerading as an "article".Posted 04 Nov 2009 at 10:59 PM by cbrown89
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RAFA SHOULD STAY ON
i must say that the reds need to be abit patient and not just wish to get wins against anybody in the EPL.dAYS are gone when u could meet sunderland and give them three nil or even fulham and wallop them five nil.The league is even more competetive now and they should just find money from somewhere and beef up the team with quality players not mediocre type like benitez has been wasting money on-if thats difficult then they should just sacrifice him and bring in HARRY MAGIC REDKNAPP.but then white hart lane has to be lively as they always keep on containing the heavy spenders like CFC,MU,LFC AND MCFC.Posted 06 Nov 2009 at 07:42 AM by shaddy
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WHO WANTS ACCOMMODATION FOR THE BIG SOCCER FIESTA NEXT YEAR?I AM CURRENTLY IN CAPE TOWN AND HAVE A 16BED VILLA WHCH CAN SLEEP 45.GET ME ON shaddy@alvillaromantica.com and lets promote soccer worldwide.
Posted 06 Nov 2009 at 07:45 AM by shaddy
Updated 06 Nov 2009 at 07:46 AM by shaddy (SPELLING) -
Congratulations cbrown89, you are the first Liverpool fan I've ever heard of who wants to win the Champions League more than the League title.
If the 6+5 rule was really on Benitez's mind, then why was Jack Hobbs (an Englishman who had shown some promise) sold and then replaced with a Greek player who cost twice the price what we got for Hobbs and isn't as good?
Why was Adam Hammill, a player that Benitez had publicly said impressed him on loan at Barnsley last season, sold if we wanted the squad to go more English?
P.S. Who the hell do you think will pay 5m for Dossena? Especially if they've ever seen him play?Posted 08 Nov 2009 at 03:31 PM by David Bolt
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Yet again showing your in-extraordinarily inability to do any research.
I AM NOT A LIVERPOOL FAN.
I also never said i want to win the Champions League, rather than the League but please feel free to show me where i did.
Hobbs-"shown some promise" i think the key word is shown. Would he be the finished article today, tomorrow, next year or never? Why was he replaced-because H&G left 2M in the kitty for a fourth choice center back-and Rafa wanted one that could play today. Same as most fans want success today, same as most of the media (and the sheep who believe the shite they write) wants a mangers head after five bad games-despite a more accurate picture showing that Rafa is actually more succesful than old red nose.
Hammill-again was he good enough, would he have ever been? From Barnsley is a BIG step up to Anfield.
Dossena-see Rolando Bianchi.
Though if you are after wasting money i'd go have a word with Harry Redknapp he seems to be quite adept at it. What was it Bournemouth, they now of point deductions and administration, West Ham have debts reportedly in the region of £100M, Portsmouth-we've all seen what a mess he left them in. Southampton, another administration case. Now Tottenham well there goes £60M+ in transfer fees.
The common theme-REDKNAPP and you're sitting there whining on about a possible £2.5M loss on a player. What about the increase in value of Reina, Insua, Agger, Skrtel, Torres, Mascherano, Lucas or the profit made on Alonso.
Oh sorry i forgot it wouldn't make good dross.... oops i meant type.Posted 08 Nov 2009 at 07:00 PM by cbrown89
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Hobbs had already made some appearances in the first team before being sent out on loan. If he was still here, he'd be the 4th choice centre-back and get a few games here or there, like Kyrgiakos is doing and it would have been the perfect chance to give him a proper chance to see if he could be a long-term option, as he was a very highly rated prospect. The signing of Kyrgiakos was basically a panic buy as he finally realised he had only Ayala as cover with Hyypia having left in the summer. Hobbs staying would have been a better option. With Hammill, we'll never know if he could have made it, but surely spending so much time on his development and not even giving him a chance, when players such as Nabil El Zhar have made appearances is a waste. By the way, he played very well in the Carling Cup game against Man United a few weeks ago.
Your statements about Harry Redknapp are making a pretty huge, not to mention totally unfair, leap to blame the financial woes of the clubs you mentioned, on Redknapp. He's responsible for clubs he left many years earlier like Bournemouth? Wouldn't you say West Ham's financial troubles owe more to the collapse of the Icelandic banks than Redknapp's transfer dealings? Maybe the extravagances of the Bjorgolfur Gudmundsson regime such as the £80k a week Lucas Neill contact are more to blame?Posted 10 Nov 2009 at 04:40 PM by David Bolt
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