Should Rafa have congratulated Fergie

[1892-LFCWasBorn]

Did Slur congratulate us on performance when we fucking raped them 4-1 on their own ground?

 

No, the cunt still insisted that his team were better, when the whole world could see otherwise.

 

So why on earth should Rafa have congratulated him?

 

The whiskey nose cunt is the most ungraceful turd ever.

[Karl_b]

Good point Milan, the Allardyce farce will still be fresh in Rafa's mind.

 

'Rafa's a sore loser'. Good, I'm fucking glad he is.

[WaltonRed]

Faustus is spot on.

 

Demento wouldnt congratulate Rafa if it was the other way round so fuck him.

 

Roll on next season!

[andymc]

so rafa doesn't want to toe the party line and say what a great manager fergie is, so what big deal. Personally I never want us to congratulate them, when number 19 comes (next season) do you think taggart will be talking about how good a manager rafa is will he shite. If I remember rightly fergie used to have a pop at wenger in similar ways, after arsenal went unbeaten didn't he say something like united are still the better team which led to wenger saying 'everyone thinks they have the prettiest wife at home'.

[TheHitman]

I think this whole approach by the media shows they are obsessed by personality's rather than by tactics and the players conditioning etc. I doubt you would get this in Spain and Italy one of the reasons the media haven't been lapping up Jose where here he was treated as a god.

[Karl_b]

 

"I wonder what it feels like to work in a real fucking news department."

[Kevin D]

For the sake of context, what did he say and what was the question posed to him?

[Whelan]

Oh and the irony of the BBC moralising over Rafa's unwillingness to tow the party line, maybe if the Beeb had an ounce of the balls Rafa has they may call out his decision to continue refusing to speak to them, despite his contractual obligations. Spineless shower of pricks.

[sparta7]

As has been stated on many occasions also, could those people on this thread calling him "Fergie" fucking well stop it please?

[Faustus]

Ferguson plays the tune and the football world dances.

 

The sooner that spiteful bully is out of the game the better.

[05 Milan]

Our manager may not be perfect, and I know many perceive him as being too fond of the politics, but for me he's refreshingly bullshit-free compared to Ferguson, who may very well be the biggest hypocrite and bullshitter in world football. He knows what buttons to push with the press and public, and he's not scared to lie just to get some positive headlines. Like that shit the other day where he promised to "respect other teams in the relegation fight by playing his best team in the run-in. Yeah fucking right you will. Bullshitter and liar, but mostly because he knows he'll get away with it.

[Dan Vito Corleone]

I think this whole approach by the media shows they are obsessed by personality's rather than by tactics and the players conditioning etc. I doubt you would get this in Spain and Italy one of the reasons the media haven't been lapping up Jose where here he was treated as a god.

 

Absolutely spot on.

 

I qualified as a journalist, and intended for over a decade to become a sports journalist. By the time I qualified, I was sick to the back fucking teeth of the SHITE that got written. The last straw for me was a full page spread in some waste of time newspaper, probably the Mirror, that wanted Rafa sacked after just 4 months in the job. I didn't and don't want to be associated with journalism until the emphasis is back on football, and not who the bigger gobshite is.

[Bogman]

* bollocks*

 

Benitez must blank out Ferguson

Post categories: Premier League

 

Phil McNulty | 11:40 UK time, Monday, 18 May 2009

 

Sir Alex Ferguson - on the rare occasions when Manchester United have been denied the Premier League title - has traditionally written a letter of congratulation to the victorious manager.

 

And when Rafael Benitez led Liverpool to Champions League success against AC Milan in Istanbul in 2005, Ferguson was again prepared to put pen to paper.

 

It is hardly a major feat of deduction to guess that Benitez will not be moved to prose in praise of Ferguson after United equalled Liverpool's tally of 18 titles.

 

If he could not bring himself to utter verbal congratulations to Ferguson when pressed at The Hawthorns on Sunday, Benitez is unlikely to put it down in writing.

 

He was prepared to salute Manchester United but made a point of not congratulating Ferguson - putting the latest coating of acrimony on a soured relationship between the pair.

 

The problem Benitez has here is two-fold. Firstly, even though Ferguson will be supremely indifferent as to whether he receives bouquets from Liverpool's manager or not, it makes his Anfield counterpart look petty and a bitterly sore loser.

 

It also came hard on the heels of Benitez's questionable claim that United may not actually be the best team in the Premier League - they simply won more points than anyone else.

 

Secondly, and more importantly, the man who holds the trophies wins the arguments and Ferguson has beaten Benitez hands down by securing a third successive title.

 

Benitez's lack of affection for Ferguson is painfully obvious and placed in certain contexts understandable.

 

There must be a measure of sympathy after what had every appearance of collusion between Manchester United's manager and Sam Allardyce in the recent "gesturegate" row that farcically suggested Benitez had shown Blackburn Rovers a lack of respect at Anfield.

 

And he certainly should not be expected to be subservient towards Ferguson. Liverpool's manager rightly feels it is more important to fight Anfield's corner than cosy up to Old Trafford's overlord.

 

But Benitez started a dangerous game when he delivered his carefully considered - definitely not a rant - attack against Ferguson's conduct towards referees, the FA's Respect campaign and fixture lists.

 

I spoke to Benitez at Stoke 24 hours after that outspoken attack on Ferguson, and to say he was spectacularly unrepentant is a masterpiece of understatement.

 

He was even moved to suggest, with an air of real belief in his words, that Ferguson was "a little bit scared" that Liverpool were table-toppers at that time. Brave - but ill-advised.

 

Sadly for Benitez, it also came after the sort of lifeless goalless draw that was to eventually become a significant factor in Benitez losing a title he simply had to win once he decided to throw down the gauntlet to Ferguson.

 

It was also provoked by what was, by Ferguson's standards, a fairly routine jab about the possibility of Liverpool getting nervous in the closing stages of the title race.

 

 

Benitez would not have enjoyed congratulating Ferguson. He would have hated it, but he should have swallowed hard and done it. It would have been the gracious thing to do and would have avoided the headlines that greeted him on Monday.

 

The latest outbreak of rancour also removed some focus from Liverpool's own outstanding development in the last three months, which can rightly bring huge satisfaction for Benitez and be the source of genuine optimism for next season.

 

Benitez is famously single-minded tactically and applies tunnel vision to his pursuit of success - he must now apply those same qualities to his relationship with Ferguson.

 

He must put an end to what is in danger of becoming an unhealthy sideshow, a sideshow that is currently benefiting only one man. And that man is not Benitez.

 

Benitez must blank everything Ferguson says and does from his mind and concentrate every fibre solely on Liverpool. He must somehow ensure that Manchester United become almost meaningless to him rather than developing an obsession with Old Trafford.

 

Easier said than done, but there is no mileage in taking on the master at his own game.

 

Ferguson is football's streetfighter, preying on any sign of vulnerablity and Benitez's original verbal jousting appeared to concentrate the minds of all at Manchester United at a crucial point in the season.

 

Benitez has assembled a team, if not quite a squad, that is capable of building on their progression this season and making a serious attempt to win the Premier League next season.

 

Liverpool can have no guarantees because Ferguson will have carefully noted their development, but if they maintain the positive attacking approach sparked by the 4-0 thrashing of Real Madrid in the Champions League and keep Steven Gerrard and Fernando Torres fit, they will be even more dangerous opponents for United next season.

 

This is the best way for Benitez to fight Ferguson - and the only way in which he can win his arguments with the all-conquering Scot.

[RedinSweden]

Our manager may not be perfect, and I know many perceive him as being too fond of the politics, but for me he's refreshingly bullshit-free compared to Ferguson, who may very well be the biggest hypocrite and bullshitter in world football. He knows what buttons to push with the press and public, and he's not scared to lie just to get some positive headlines. Like that shit the other day where he promised to "respect other teams in the relegation fight by playing his best team in the run-in. Yeah fucking right you will. Bullshitter and liar, but mostly because he knows he'll get away with it.

 

He said that because he knew it would go to the wire. It will be interesting to see what sort of respect he shows next week in his team for the Hull match. Roughly the same respect he showed to Everton (and for that matter his own supporters that travelled to Wembley) in the cup.

[Glen C]

So if we win the league next season and I congratulate the team, but not Rafa, nobody would blink?

 

;-)

 

Bit different as we are fans of the club, players and manager and you don't see rafa as your rival. At least i hope you don't :-). But i'd expect fergie to congratulate the team(even though he wouldn't), but wouldn't expect him to praise rafa.

[Preston Red]

That miserable bastard Ferguson is nothing that a good heart attack wouldn't sort out.

 

Just a mild one though. So he can see us win the title next year and shove them fuckers back under the duvet to sniff our farts.

 

Now I have that out of the way, there's is no way on this earth I would ever take Rafa seriously again if he congratulated Radiation Man. After all the grief he's had this season from the media, the last thing he needs is some prick with a mic saying "Can we have a well done and can we see your bum Sir Alex, from Rafa Benitez?"

 

I think I'd have said "Get the fuck outta my face, gobshite!"

 

Happen thats a good thing I ain't the Liverpool manager. I'd be skint from FA misconduct charges :)

[Anubis]

Phil McNulty can fuck off and concentrate on Everton .

[Whelan]

Phil McNulty can fuck off and concentrate on Everton .

 

Yeah right, like Evertonians concentrate on Everton!!!

[bossy]

He congratulated the club, end of. Slur even reckons Stevie shouldn't have won the player of the year thing. Gin soak hates us so fuck him.

[Dan Vito Corleone]

Yeah right, like Evertonians concentrate on Everton!!!

 

You raise a valid point.

[JMARKH]

No because Ferguson is a cunt.

Edited May 18, 2009 by JMARKH

[Kopite]

Can't say i've ever noticed with McNulty to be fair. He does a lot of stuff on the BBC and tends to be really objective in his views.

 

Spppppppppppppp.

[Ponz]

Rafa has always been a tactics/analysis man who is reluctant to get drawn on personalities and personal qualities. Even the public praise he offers his own individual players seldom rises above the lukewarm. That he would congratulate United as a collective rather than Ferguson individually is perfect understandable in light of this worldview. The media's "outrage" at his supposed lack of graciousness is really annoyance over his refusal to participate in their tedious personality-driven soap opera. It's no different to Sky's ridiculous obsession with his failure to smile when we score.

[Red Nick]

136 people with not class and style then.

 

The old TLW would have been to say well done the best team won.

 

I remember Dave Sexton saying the Cream rose to the top when we beat Manu for the title whenever he was their manager.

[Whelan]

136 people with not class and style then.

 

The old TLW would have been to say well done the best team won.

 

I remember Dave Sexton saying the Cream rose to the top when we beat Manu for the title whenever he was their manager.

 

Says the man whose avatar shows a women pissing on a fire hydrant!