My Day With “Crisis”-Hit Benítez by Paul Tomkins

[Kennys_spell]

When the CL money stays in the hands of the big 4 and the one interloper (Everton) falls at the first fence, the points tallies at the top get stronger and the bottom teams get weaker. United got 58 points from the bottom ten sides last season! Compare that to 20 years, it will be considerably less.

 

Rafa and Gerard have 3 of Liverpool's highest points tallies but no league titles. The game has moved on. Comparing Ferguson 87-92 with Rafa 04-09 is almost completely bogus.

 

I agree - it was easier for Ferguson but Benitez doesn't get the kudos for his achievement. Not even from a large proportion of our own fans.

[Catch22]

When the CL money stays in the hands of the big 4 and the one interloper (Everton) falls at the first fence, the points tallies at the top get stronger and the bottom teams get weaker. United got 58 points from the bottom ten sides last season! Compare that to 20 years, it will be considerably less.

 

Rafa and Gerard have 3 of Liverpool's highest points tallies but no league titles. The game has moved on. Comparing Ferguson 87-92 with Rafa 04-09 is almost completely bogus.

 

 

 

That is a very fair point.

 

Growing inequality has made it much easier for the big teams to win points as they have so much more cash.

That is entirely correct & means that the 1st 200 game idea isn't too valuable.

 

However there is also even more inequality within the top clubs & also Bosman has caused salaries to explode.

Which is why Rafa's performance is such an overachievement & the title is completely unrealistic on 4th (now 5th) highest budget.

 

Too many on this Board want their cake & to eat it in their criticisms of Benitez (hilariously we have gone from "Too many squad players,not enough on the 1st team" to "Too much on the 1st team, not enough on the squad" in a blink of an eye).

 

He has got us overachieving both domestically & in Europe for the 1st time in a generation.

[goatboy59]

I think he does get credit, but any slide backwards isn't going to be shrugged off, or palmed off completely onto the Yanks.

 

Also, the big clubs cleared a way for Ferguson by 1993 and that's something else that Rafa won't get either. I don't subscribe to "win the league or fuck off" as some have said on here, but we did challenge and we haven't been so weakened that we can't expect another one. United have lost Ronaldo and Tevez, replacing them with inferior players.

 

Beat them on Saturday and a lot of the recent debates become alarmist claptrap. Lose, and it'll get worse.

 

No pressure then!

[goatboy59]

That is a very fair point.

 

Growing inequality has made it much easier for the big teams to win points as they have so much more cash.

That is entirely correct & means that the 1st 200 game idea isn't too valuable.

 

However there is also even more inequality within the top clubs & also Bosman has caused salaries to explode.

Which is why Rafa's performance is such an overachievement & the title is completely unrealistic on 4th (now 5th) highest budget.

 

Too many on this Board want their cake & to eat it in their criticisms of Benitez (hilariously we have gone from "Too many squad players,not enough on the 1st team" to "Too much on the 1st team, not enough on the squad" in a blink of an eye).

 

He has got us overachieving both domestically & in Europe for the 1st time in a generation.

The wage bill, you say? Would you care to expand on that, I don't think you've mentioned it before ;)

 

Fans can change their minds in the 'blink of an eye', true, but it's also possible that in many things we're looking for balance. We used to say Rafa rotated too much, now we say he doesn't do it enough. Fickle fans, or just that we want our man to get the right balance?

 

It's extraordinarily difficult, but y'know it's the Liverpool manager's job. If it were a piece of cake, any twonk could do it.

[Code]

Sorry, don't understand the point you're making there - what relevance does us having lost to Chelsea, Sunderland and Lyon since that have?

 

Well I`ve obviously no read the piece yet, not tha Tomkins would ever do it, but the questions asked a few weeks ago compared to now could have been a bit different and maybe even half critical dont you think?

[zigackly]

Well I`ve obviously no read the piece yet, not tha Tomkins would ever do it, but the questions asked a few weeks ago compared to now could have been a bit different and maybe even half critical dont you think?

 

Perhaps you should read it. He was not there to do an interview, it was an off-the-record meeting.

[Delmar]

Well I`ve obviously no read the piece yet, not tha Tomkins would ever do it, but the questions asked a few weeks ago compared to now could have been a bit different and maybe even half critical dont you think?

 

If you bother to read it at some stage, you may find out when the actual meeting took place.

[Anubis]

Hey Code, this flight of yours - which airport will you be using?

Edited October 23, 2009 by Anubis

[The Acolyte]

Phew. Thank God that's been fixed.

 

How many of the kids Houllier brought can match what Rafa's bought. Ok they've probably had the same amount of first team opportunity but I don't recall big shouts for Houlliers kids to get first team chances unlike Rafa's

[diego]

I know what a meme is. I've done semiotics 101, too.

 

So how come you have the vocabulary of a demented fish-wife?

[goatboy59]

How many of the kids Houllier brought can match what Rafa's bought. Ok they've probably had the same amount of first team opportunity but I don't recall big shouts for Houlliers kids to get first team chances unlike Rafa's

He's got a cheek decrying Houllier's chaff and you know it.

[goatboy59]

Just on SSN now; "we will talk about the four point gap on Monday". Nice.

 

Could have mentioned we were in danger of going 13 behind in March, that's pressure too, but never mind.

[ottawa_lfc]

Brendan's quick capsule review:

 

"A load of fucking shit"

 

Tompkins makes Pravda look like a cross between Private Eye, The Onion and The Independent

 

In fairness though, that is his job. He exists to give the club's point of view and to raise positive issues and ideas. Once you read it from that perspective and stop expecting him to have a go at people in the club, it's fine.

 

But sweet Jesus, he is long winded.

[Roy Hobbs]

Tomkins II

 

LOL. exactly my thoughts.

[Roy Hobbs]

So Tompkins is 'biased'!

What lack of bias do the Daily Mail sports team, Mark Lawrenson, David Maddox, Stan (Wanker) Collymore & half the gutter press of the UK display?

 

The article's too long?-go and buy the rag we don't mention, it'll suit you fine, or a Jack & Jill reading book.

 

The content (not the style it is written in) shows a view of Rafa a lot of us have, althought I fully accept that the vocal minority is growing at a rate of knots at present.

 

Red Nick, Antynwa, Code...they're all just so much more knowledgable and 'on the money' than Mr Benitez aren't they (ahem).

 

Rafa has got more conviction, love of the club, and sense than 50% on this forum at present.

Some people should be careful what they wish for, it might come true, and you frequently in this life don't know what you had until it's gone.

Some of the sub 25 year old posters on this site will eventually learn that.

 

I have no idea of their ages but I wholeheartely agree with the sentiment of your post.

[The 5th Benitel]

Well I`ve obviously no read the piece yet, not tha Tomkins would ever do it, but the questions asked a few weeks ago compared to now could have been a bit different and maybe even half critical dont you think?

 

 

 

He mentions the booing of the Benayoun sub so it must have been written this week.

 

Are you getting a plane to come here for the match?

[PaulMcC]

I've finally brought myself to read it.

 

This sounds worrying:

 

an independent expert had told the club that he would be fit for the end of August, but that ended up being pushed back and back. It was frustrating, but Rafa was very happy with what he was now seeing in training – the lad has vision and technique – even if he obviously still has to adapt to the pace of the English game.

[PaulMcC]

I actually think it's a decent article.

 

Surprised by it.

[jackofdk]

Fucking boring this. And I'm of course referring to the response to the article written by the smug looking baldy one. Why are people so obsessed with him, if they hate his writing style? Don't fucking read it, then. I almost never do, but made an exception to the rule because of the nature of this article.

 

However long winded and self indulgent the article might be, it is still a very interesting glimpse into Melwood and - more importantly - Rafa's mind.

[Monster Masch]

I enjoyed it, it was unusual.

[Little Sammy]

Always trying to paper over the cracks. Wonder how much he's paid by the club to spout such rose-tinted drivel, especially when he writes on the OS?

[Ezekiel 25:17]

[Guest ShoePiss]

Always trying to paper over the cracks. Wonder how much he's paid by the club to spout such rose-tinted drivel, especially when he writes on the OS?

 

I don't think he's paid anything by the club, for him I'd guess it's good publicity for his books and now his pay website...

 

The snidey remarks could be as he used to be a regular poster on a number of forums and now has kind of risen to the lofty heights of book releases, lfc.tv articles and four hour, yes four hour interviews with Rafa...did I mention the interview Tomkins had with Rafa was FOUR hours long? It was a really long interview Paul had with Rafa...

 

If it wasn't that people would simply not bother to read his articles (which is what I do on the whole). I did read this one though, I liked it.

[Ezekiel 25:17]

 

RB: we are flying no ??

[05 Milan]

I'd rep you for that if I could, Zeke.