How Rafa Lost Liverpool The Title

Roger Hunt wrote:

Luis wrote: Obviously, Benitez has taken a lot of criticism today and after the game last night. I was there BTW and to be honest from start to finish everything looked completely wrong, we looked like a team that's resigned to defeat, the atmosphere was stone dead, but the team Rafa put out should have won that game 4 or 5-0, lets be honest here, if we had won by that scoreline then everyone would be praising Benitez to the high heavens, when people saw Torres, Gerrard, Alonso, Masch, Pennant, Kewell, no one was having a go at playing the supposed 4-5-1, because we had players on that pitch that get paid more than the entire wigan side put together and we completely and utterly bottled it. Right from the word go we looked like a team playing against Ac Milan away, we passed it back, back, back, around the midfield a bit, then back again, we lacked any creation at all even with Pennant and Kewell on.

What annoys me is people ringing in these radio shows saying 'Benitez isn't playing our best players' Wrong. Benitez is playing our best players Gerrard and Torres, but sadly when you look elsewhere on the pitch all you get is average players and that's why we can't win the league yet. Having said that, I will criticise Benitez because at the end of the day, he's spent 70 odd million pounds in his time here and I don't think hes spent well, I have to say, would Kuyt, Crouch or Voronin get into the United team? not in a million years, would Nani, Anderson or Evra get in ours? you bet your life they would.

Good post Luis.

As you say, the players have to take their share of criticism.

I'd also add that you've chosen to compare 3 of Benitez questionable signings against 3 of Fergie's better ones. I personally wouldn't give Carrick or Hargreaves a place in our team. Rooney is undoubtedly a class striker but they paid top dollar for him. The only really great signings pound for pound have been Ronaldo (who took 2 seasons to come good) and Vidic (who we wanted to sign but didn't have the money). And Voronin was on a free so hardly a waste of money.

My 2 criticisms of Rafa in the transfer market in the last couple of years are 1) signing Kuyt instead of Berbatov and) signing Babel instead of Malouda (although even that may turn out to be the right decision in the long run).

My biggest criticism of that formation is that Pennant shouldn't be playing if Crouch isnt. He won't cut in and score goals. If we are trying to play 4-5-1/ 4-3-3 then it should be Babel or Gerrard in the AMR position - even Benayoun would be better.

Fey wrote:The problem is that Liverpool is not a good brand!

They remain the smallest big team in Europe. The real good players wont go there..cause of the image problem!

Liverpool wont get picked in Pro Evo games by foreigners, they are too much cult!

And to become a nr1 they have to become populair with the mass!

Fey wrote:The problem is that Liverpool is not a good brand!

They remain the smallest big team in Europe. The real good players wont go there..cause of the image problem!

Liverpool wont get picked in Pro Evo games by foreigners, they are too much cult!

And to become a nr1 they have to become populair with the mass!

Rosy wrote:A Liverpool fan phoned into Talk Sport to say that the problem is all down to Alonso. They're hitting out in all directions. I didn't see all the game last night but enough to see Steven Gerrard turn in an England style performance (missed an easy chance and sloppy pass gave away a goal). Keep it up I say

DD wrote:Benitez is stubborn with his line-ups and sometimes unnecesarry rotation. Not to mention hit & miss in the attacking department but who are they going to replace him with? Sanchez? Dowie?

Benitez is still one of the very best club managers around (top 5 at least) and one the most tactical around.


You can be angry all you want, but who are you going to replace him with when its time to let go?

I'm not convinced you can get better.

Rosy wrote:A Liverpool fan phoned into Talk Sport to say that the problem is all down to Alonso. They're hitting out in all directions. I didn't see all the game last night but enough to see Steven Gerrard turn in an England style performance (missed an easy chance and sloppy pass gave away a goal). Keep it up I say

johan il quattordici wrote:If Liverpool *were* to part company with Rafa and had the choice: Van Gaal or the Druggie known as Daum .. 9.5/10 they would choose Van Gaal.

Dont forget Van Gaal is better than Scolari and Capello. He did beat both in one year

Imagine him on MOTD https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DvaikMS8lTw

COTR wrote:@ dd

Just to add quickly. It is the vast majority of non liverpool fans who are debating rafa being sacked. I personally know how lucky we are to have him and know we will be in very safe hands for as long as he remains in charge. Benitez will get it right. He has done before and he will do again. The competition is extra tough at the top of the EPl so sacking benitez would make no sense at all. Thankfully I am totally confident all the major people who run the club share this view

DD wrote:Benitez is stubborn with his line-ups and sometimes unnecesarry rotation. Not to mention hit & miss in the attacking department but who are they going to replace him with? Sanchez? Dowie?

Benitez is still one of the very best club managers around (top 5 at least) and one the most tactical around.


You can be angry all you want, but who are you going to replace him with when its time to let go?

I'm not convinced you can get better.

Honourable C*nt wrote:Aye, Lard - I get the impression that it's really divided amongst Livepool Fans, just like Spurs fans were polarised back in September over Jol.

I heard that there were a group of Anfield-goers who were ready to lauch their own "Sack Rafa" banner in respoonse to the "Save Rafa one" the week before.

I said from the start that he won't be in charge of 'pool next season. To me, I was speaking with one of my best mates who supports them, and we both get the impression that Benitez doesn't really want Gerrard their, and that he'd have actually preferred it if Gerrard had jumped ship to Chelsea in either 2004 or '05.

Crouching Tiger wrote:He's had the resources available to build a good team, even before the Americans arrived. He spent a lot, and bought a lot of flops along with a hell of a lot of "squad players" who shouldn't be anywhere near the first team.

How many more seasons can we say we need just a little more quality? He's had his chance to build a quality team and he's not done a great job.

I don't think he should be sacked, but if by the end of the season there hasn't been notable improvement, then finding a new boss should be on the agenda.