If Benítez were sacked tomorrow, who could take Liverpool higher?

[spider-neil]

For a start if you have an ace first 11 and rubbish 2nd 11 you wont challenge. Injuries and suspensions will put you in shit.

 

'rubbish' second was an exaggeration I meant lesser quality and kids.

 

torres >> nemeth etc

 

you then get stability with the first 11 and you get to blood the kids, the players of lesser quality are hardly going to complain when patently superior player are starting week in week out. as I said injuries and suspensions are a gamble but rather take the gamble then fill the squad with mediocrity because you definately wont challenge.

[paulie1969]

god rested on the seventh day .rafa rests our gods on the sixth day. he has to go.get in o neill.passion pride and balls.rafa is trying to be everybody's friend havent't the ball's to leave out players.

[Rashid]

god rested on the seventh day .rafa rests our gods on the sixth day. he has to go.get in o neill.passion pride and balls.rafa is trying to be everybody's friend havent't the ball's to leave out players.

 

Rafa if anything is not afraid! He isn't afraid to leave out players or take players off if he thinks its right. That was a shit post there mate.

[Monkeywool]

god rested on the seventh day .rafa rests our gods on the sixth day. he has to go.get in o neill.passion pride and balls.rafa is trying to be everybody's friend havent't the ball's to leave out players.

 

The same O'Neill who is backed by Billionaire owners at Villa and they have been as anonymous as ever?

 

Rafa hasn't got the balls to leave out players eh?

 

Bringing Gerrard off in a derby isn't balls?

Moving on Morientes, Gonzales, Josemi, Nunez etc after 1 season isn't balls?

 

Do me a favour.

[Monkeywool]

'rubbish' second was an exaggeration I meant lesser quality and kids.

 

torres >> nemeth etc

 

you then get stability with the first 11 and you get to blood the kids, the players of lesser quality are hardly going to complain when patently superior player are starting week in week out. as I said injuries and suspensions are a gamble but rather take the gamble then fill the squad with mediocrity because you definately wont challenge.

 

Is that not Rafa does on the whole?

 

Carra, Gerrard, Torres and Reina play the majority of games and they are best players.

 

We can't afford a first 11 of world class super galactico proportions, or have you not noticed that?

[spider-neil]

Is that not Rafa does on the whole?

 

Carra, Gerrard, Torres and Reina play the majority of games and they are best players.

 

We can't afford a first 11 of world class super galactico proportions, or have you not noticed that?

 

you can if you aim to bring in two a season and 'make do' elsewhere

[Section_31]

You started your post by saying 'Brownie', so if you weren't meaning me then who were you talking about?! Seriously, read the post that I replied to mate. How could I interpret it any other way?

 

If you didn't mean to criticise then I apologise, but you were saying that what I posted 'is gross exaggeration at best and completely disingenuous at worst'.

 

As I say, if i've got the wrong end of the stick then I apologise, but I don't see what else you were getting at!

 

I think it was aimed at me, although I basically said the same as you, i.e the chavs arse and scum all having an established style and 'brand' of football regardless of how they deploy their players, and that any changes that were made were carried out over longer periods and not over 45-minutes (or less at times).

 

However, my posts were greeted with the words 'total crap' or something after which I couldn't be arsed replying.

 

It's pretty easy to suss out on the FF (very quickly) which posters are up for a propper footy debate and which are just interested in one-upmanship and proving how many champman-esque names they can throw around.

 

I'm 28 and have better things to do with my time.

[Guest TK-421]

Thrawn wouldn't take any crap on the FF. I wouldn't fucking dare with that dude around.

[Section_31]

Thrawn wouldn't take any crap on the FF. I wouldn't fucking dare with that dude around.

 

Hehe

 

* snaps fingers

 

Rukh! Kill!

[Guest TK-421]

Hehe

 

* snaps fingers

 

Rukh! Kill!

 

Rashid: Rafa should be sacked at the end of the season if he fails to "challenge"

Thrawn: Shut it, young boy

Rashid: But he should

Thrawn: *force choke*

Rashid: *cough, splutter, etc*

[zigackly]

I think it was aimed at me, although I basically said the same as you, i.e the chavs arse and scum all having an established style and 'brand' of football regardless of how they deploy their players, and that any changes that were made were carried out over longer periods and not over 45-minutes (or less at times).

 

However, my posts were greeted with the words 'total crap' or something after which I couldn't be arsed replying.

 

It's pretty easy to suss out on the FF (very quickly) which posters are up for a propper footy debate and which are just interested in one-upmanship and proving how many champman-esque names they can throw around.

 

I'm 28 and have better things to do with my time.

 

No personal gripe with you either mate, so please accept my apology if I've caused offence. I do use blunt language, but it's not intended personally. I haven't noticed you having any particular agenda against Rafa or to be sticking the knife in, but I did disagree with what you seemed to be saying.

 

I get angry when I perceive people to have disrespect for the manager, and the argument that other managers never change their team or style is often used as a stick against him, sometimes unfairly so because of course other managers change their tactics and personnel. I'm not saying you were doing that though, and even if you were there's no reason my opinion is better or worse than yours, but I do feel strongly about supporting the manager.

 

I'm probably responding more to a culmination of posts by a number of people rather than anyone in particular. I'm not trying to personally attack anyone, but in retrospect I've possibly been a bit harsh in this thread in a few posts.

 

I do feel I'm amenable to debate, but I don't think a completely black or white stance helps anyone to have a debate. It's certainly not an attempt at one-upmanship on my part, I don't have any big ego about what I post and if someone can show me I'm wrong then I'm happy to admit it and will change my stance.

 

I've got a few years on you by the way, not that age means anything in a debate.

[Section_31]

No personal gripe with you either mate, so please accept my apology if I've caused offence. I do use blunt language, but it's not intended personally. I haven't noticed you having any particular agenda against Rafa or to be sticking the knife in, but I did disagree with what you seemed to be saying.

 

I get angry when I perceive people to have disrespect for the manager, and the argument that other managers never change their team or style is often used as a stick against him, sometimes unfairly so because of course other managers change their tactics and personnel. I'm not saying you were doing that though, and even if you were there's no reason my opinion is better or worse than yours, but I do feel strongly about supporting the manager.

 

I'm probably responding more to a culmination of posts by a number of people rather than anyone in particular. I'm not trying to personally attack anyone, but in retrospect I've possibly been a bit harsh in this thread in a few posts.

 

I do feel I'm amenable to debate, but I don't think a completely black or white stance helps anyone to have a debate. It's certainly not an attempt at one-upmanship on my part, I don't have any big ego about what I post and if someone can show me I'm wrong then I'm happy to admit it and will change my stance.

 

I've got a few years on you by the way, not that age means anything in a debate.

 

Fair enough mate, there are so many people who dip in and out of the ff these days and drop casual insults that it's hard to remember who is genuinely just a pssionate fan suffering from rightious anger and who is just a kid trying to piss people off.

 

I'm a fan of Rafa and have said so many times, but I will point out what I perceive to be mistakes when I see them, as long as the man isn't personally abused and is afforded the respect he deserves then discussing his football decisions is fair game!

[zigackly]

Cheers, and you're 100% right in that last post ;)

[MLB]

I expect that we'd go for Mourinho or O'Neil.

[Monkeywool]

you can if you aim to bring in two a season and 'make do' elsewhere

 

I am confused, that seems like the exact policy Rafa is doing, so why do you have an issue with him again?

[Moschops II]

I expect that we'd go for Mourinho or O'Neil.

 

I'd agree with that, but I think O'Neill would knock us back.

[Monkeywool]

As I said previously, he is with a billionaire owner at Villa yet still is the same sort of level as they were and he was at Leicester all those years back. I don't think he is the man.

[Section_31]

As I said previously, he is with a billionaire owner at Villa yet still is the same sort of level as they were and he was at Leicester all those years back. I don't think he is the man.

 

Deffo agree, O'neil's overrated, he always has been, he's basically good at getting the best out of limited players but that's about all, he's at his level now.

[Moschops II]

As I said previously, he is with a billionaire owner at Villa yet still is the same sort of level as they were and he was at Leicester all those years back. I don't think he is the man.

 

Neither do I. But for the record, Villa had just finished 16th when he arrived, and they're now 6th and level on points with us.

[Monkeywool]

Neither do I. But for the record, Villa had just finished 16th when he arrived, and they're now 6th and level on points with us.

 

It's where I always expect Villa to be though, throughout which managers they have had, so it's not anything special I reckons.

[fin-bat]

It's where I always expect Villa to be though, throughout which managers they have had, so it's not anything special I reckons.

 

So where do you expect Spurs, Newcastle, Everton, West Ham, Blackburn and ManCity to be then ? Give us a imaginative league table, where everyone is in their right place, with Villa being 6th. Only then we can say if somebody is doing a good job with given resources or not :whistle:

[spider-neil]

I am confused, that seems like the exact policy Rafa is doing, so why do you have an issue with him again?

 

I don't have many issues with rafa (I want him to stay) my point was he had shipped out too many too quickly in an attempt to bring up the quality of the squad whereas if he had help on to some of gh's 'cloggers' a little longer he could have attempted to bring up the quality of the first 11 and gambled his quality players would stay injury free. I know people keep bring up the alves non signing but for me that in case in point, bringing in two strikers and a winger and releasing a striker who finished the season on 19 goals.

 

rafa could have focused on the first team and had a steeper drop in quality with the second team and imho we'd have been better for it, but at least now rafa has the platform to buy those cherry picked first teamers (that's if he isn't sacked).

[Monkeywool]

So where do you expect Spurs, Newcastle, Everton, West Ham, Blackburn and ManCity to be then ? Give us a imaginative league table, where everyone is in their right place, with Villa being 6th. Only then we can say if somebody is doing a good job with given resources or not :whistle:

 

Near Villa :whistle:

[TheHitman]

There is no quick fix in my view surely only Geordie's think if you change the manager in a few months you'll be playing sexy winning football. If you look at Barca and Arsenal who most would acknowledge play the most attractive football this has been done by having a long term plan to recruit the best young players from across the world Messi Dos Santos Bojan were all recruited when they were barely out of diapers. Fabregas(another barca kid) Flamini, Clichy, Eboue, Walcott have and are all being given time to learn the Arsenal way also.

 

The Barca setup is an interesting one their recruitment of players and the youth setup are totally independent of the manager and although i have a lot of respect for Rijkaard looking at it from the outside he seems to be the figurehead but without full control. I cant help but think this is the option that our present owners or dic will take ie similar to the path Spurs and Chelsea are going down. As far as the new owners coming into the game see it a manager like Ferguson or Wenger has to much say.

 

People seem quick to compare Citeh and Villa and state this as a case of oh look at Sven and O'Neil are genius on the basis of what they have achieved in a short period of time. While they are both good managers with good track records both managers haven't had the distraction of a European campaign at the same time whilst managing Villa and Citeh this season. Look over the years at teams who finished high in the table qualified for Europe and then struggled the next season Ipswich, Spurs, Wigan, Bolton, Boro the list is endless.

 

Reluctantly i have to give Moyes a bit of credit as on the face of it he's doing well but lets not forget he is the third longest serving manager who finished 7th one season and then followed that by finishing fourth from bottom.

 

It's nearly impossible to compare managers in different jobs with different expectations of success. I would be up for Rafa seeing out his contract until it expires in 2010 then review the situation. I'm sure when the careers of Rafa O'Neil Moyes Sven etc are finished and reviewed Rafa will certainly be deemed far superior lets not forget form is temporary class is permanent.

[Rashid]

I think Hicks realised early on that the fans love Rafa so tried to sort out the issues with Rafa right away whereas Gillett probably still wanted him out. I don't know what's going as we speak whether DIC are going to allow Hicks a minority shareholding or not but obviously as Bascombe said last weekend, (and many of you dismissed it as bollocks) Hicks and Rafa have formed an alliance within the club.

 

"After the meeting we had then, everything was clarified and I have had the support of Tom Hicks," said Benitez.

 

"Almost every week - not every day, but before or after a game - he contacts me.

 

"He sends e-mails saying: 'Come on', 'Well done' and 'You can do it'. Very positive. I e-mail him back saying 'Thank you'.

 

"After Barnsley he said 'Come on, keep focused on the Champions League'. He is very supportive.

 

"My relationship with Tom is good and I don't have a problem.

 

"It was a misunderstanding before and I think he understands all the things I was telling him before.

 

"I am a fighter, I have always been a fighter so when we had the problems I was fighting. When everything was much better I was really focused.

 

"I don't have any concerns. I am trying to concentrate on football.

 

"To win the Champions League is difficult. Against top sides you can play really well and lose.

 

"It's important to finish in the top four and progress as much as you can in the Champions League."