Excellent Read

[Tom R]

nothing wrong with that article apart from the Heskey bit.

[Tom R]

"Benítez, as usual, will divert attention elsewhere. He will bemoan refereeing decisions, injuries, tardiness in the transfer market and the comic capers of the American co-owners"

 

you see this bit isn't even slightly true! Did he blame the referee against Spurs, No he didn't? Nor did he blame the decision against Sunderland, nor has he blamed England for Gerrards injuries. A complete and utter lie.

 

I seriously, seriously hope England get fucked in South Africa!

 

Wasn't he hauled in front of the FA for his comment about the ref at Spurs?

[Skidfingers McGonical]

Yep. Agreed.

 

Also, if we'd won all of our league games this season, I don't think we'd be seeing all these "Benitez Out" threads, do you?

 

Imagine how silly that would be! Top of the league and unbeaten, and people are calling for his head!

 

Madness.

 

If you look back 12 months you will see those exact words from people.

[zigackly]

nothing wrong with that article apart from the Heskey bit.

 

That's a pretty big failing.

[Menc]

Liverpool can afford to sack Benítez. Compensation would be less than £5 million under the "mitigating the loss'' principle if he found employment...

 

Plucked out of thin air. I don't know why we bother with employment tribunals, Henry Winter knows all.

[Dicko]

Wasn't he hauled in front of the FA for his comment about the ref at Spurs?

 

And it was laughed out the tribunal.

[Ian Sea]

If this is coming from Gerrard and Carragher, does it add more weight to the theory that Rafa has 'lost the dressing room'? The way the team are playing recently it looks to me that he has (they may be shite but there's no fight either - which should be a bare minimum) and if that is the case, it's surely the beginning of the end.

 

Rightly or wrongly.

[goatboy59]

If Winter has made up the stuff about Purslow talking to Rafa about his man-management, he has to be strung up by Purslow, even sued, because that is quite a damaging statement.

 

There are only two papers you cannot trust? Riiiiiiiight......

[Paul]

If this is coming from Gerrard and Carragher, does it add more weight to the theory that Rafa has 'lost the dressing room'? The way the team are playing recently it looks to me that he has (they may be shite but there's no fight either - which should be a bare minimum) and if that is the case, it's surely the beginning of the end.

 

Rightly or wrongly.

 

Coming up to two years ago, I was convinced he'd lost the dressing room. We were utterly fucking abject and the players looked clueless and gutless. He then switched to 4231 and we were transformed. I'm not saying he has or he hasn't lost the players; just that one thing can often look like another. I think you only ever really tell whether a dressing room has been lost after a manager has gone.

[straight_red]

Well according to this football article on Champions League betting, we have a 73% chance of defeat against Lyons tomorrow. Isn't that cheering? To be fair, this is based on generic data for away sides winning game 3 of the group stage in the CL. Don't think those odds can really be taken into account for a crisis situation like the one facing Benitez right now, or us at all in the CL considering we practically always defy expectations. But still, we're up against it and if Benitez wants to dig himself out of the flak he needs yet more miracles.

[ratcatcher]

Bit surprised with winter over that article. He normally has good words for us. Maybe he was stuck for copy and decided to take the lazy option?

[robslappa]

I'm sick seeing this type of article, because it doesn't take much to figure out where it's come from and they should know better. If some of the players have lost faith in the Manager then they should keep it in house and get on with actually winning games for a change.

 

This isn't the first time either.

[Paul]

I'm sick seeing this type of article, because it doesn't take much to figure out where it's come from and they should know better. If some of the players have lost faith in the Manager then they should keep it in house and get on with actually winning games for a change.

 

This isn't the first time either.

 

What if they're genuinely worried about the future of the club and think a change of manager is the only way? Would you, as a true Red, keep silent if you felt to do so was not in the club's best interests? I'm not saying that's the case, mind you; I'm just hypothesising. Sometimes whistle blowing can be the courageous thing to do, rather than the snide, shit-house option it may seem to be.

[zigackly]

Bit surprised with winter over that article. He normally has good words for us. Maybe he was stuck for copy and decided to take the lazy option?

 

He's had the knife out for Rafa since the start of the season.

[Donkey's Fanny]

What if they're genuinely worried about the future of the club and think a change of manager is the only way? Would you, as a true Red, keep silent if you felt to do so was not in the club's best interests? I'm not saying that's the case, mind you; I'm just hypothesising. Sometimes whistle blowing can be the courageous thing to do, rather than the snide, shit-house option it may seem to be.

 

This is assuming that the best interests of the club will be better managed by Mourinho/Capello/Lippi etc. There are no guarantees in with these guys either except that we will have to pay to get rid of Rafa and pay a lot in compensation and salary to get one of those guys in. Taking all that into account, the "best interests of the club" might come down to counting beans.

[RedBrian84]

After the season we've had so far the overriding sound we can all hear is the sound of knives being sharpened by every sports hack in the country. They've always loved to aim broadsides at Liverpool and at Rafa Benitez in particular. I believe they do it because he doesn't play the game that they want to play. He deosn't pander to the press and use them as a weapon against other managers (Allardyce and Slur take the award for the that), and his English wasn't brilliant when he arrived- understandably- and they jumped on that. I notice they don't treat Cappello in the same fashion.

 

And of course there's the issue of Benitez the person; he isn't a self-promoting, arrogant cock ike Mourinho- which seems to be acceptable to the English press- "The league is just not the same without Mourinho" they bleat, "he was a character". No, he was an absolute twat. Benitez seems to carry himself off with dignity and politeness, but that isnt what the press want here, evidently. So they concoct stories about how cold he is, and how he isolates players with his approach. Bollocks.

 

He's an easy target for the press, he always has been. Nothing surprises me about what is said about Benitez in the papers. Of course, we're having problems and it doesn't take a genius to spot that, but I try and ignore what the likes of Winter say because he's a cocky, bigoted twat, and I wouldn't piss on him if he was on fire.

[Donkey's Fanny]

Can we really buy the pandering to the press stuff? Ferguson has sworn at them for years and they are petrified of him. Managers are judged on results and I've seen the knives come out for Mourinho when his success slowed down. The press need to sell papers, nothing does that better than a sacked manager.

[torahboy]

Henry Winter just proving that beneath all his flowery prose and pretence of objectivity he is just another tabloid hack.

 

Is it really puzzling that Benitez doesn't wish to engage on a personal level with any of these journalists? Benitez is an intelligent, thoughtful, conscientious and successful football manager. English football hacks represent the antithesis of everything that Benitez embodies in his day to day work. Lazy, dumb, shallow, vindictive failures of human beings; untrustworthy and nauseatingly nationalistic, they see Rafa as a good, foreign, outlet for their envy induced ire.

 

I couldn't give a shit if Rafa was 'cold' to his players, dismissive of journalists or even offhand with the fans. It is what he does in his job that interests me. Up to now he hasn't done too badly. At the moment he's got a few problems but, as his past achievements indicate, he will find solutions and we will move on.

 

One thing's for sure, no matter what Rafa does, these journo cunts aren't going to give him a break.

[Delmar]

Like with every puzzle its easier to put it together if you have he right picture in your head when you start.

 

It also gets easier and faster if your puzzle only has one piece.

[goatboy59]

[YOUTUBE]kvs4bOMv5Xw&feature=PlayList&p=260A5E3275BFDBE7&index=30[/YOUTUBE]

[Paul]

Henry Winter just proving that beneath all his flowery prose and pretence of objectivity he is just another tabloid hack.

 

Is it really puzzling that Benitez doesn't wish to engage on a personal level with any of these journalists? Benitez is an intelligent, thoughtful, conscientious and successful football manager. English football hacks represent the antithesis of everything that Benitez embodies in his day to day work. Lazy, dumb, shallow, vindictive failures of human beings; untrustworthy and nauseatingly nationalistic, they see Rafa as a good, foreign, outlet for their envy induced ire.

 

I couldn't give a shit if Rafa was 'cold' to his players, dismissive of journalists or even offhand with the fans. It is what he does in his job that interests me. Up to now he hasn't done too badly. At the moment he's got a few problems but, as his past achievements indicate, he will find solutions and we will move on.

 

One thing's for sure, no matter what Rafa does, these journo cunts aren't going to give him a break.

 

He's not pretending to be objective at all. That piece reads very obviously like a clear opinion to me.

[Whelan]

I don't care about other managers, I care about Benitez.

 

From stupid decisions like taking Yossi off, to playing Aurelio CM in Italy the other month.

 

Nobody is asking you to care what other managers think! But that is because you didn't base your criticisms of Rafa on shortcomings that are prevalent in every other manager, which you conveniently forgot.

 

And Yossi deserved to be taken off on Saturday and he deserved the be taken off against Lyon (In my opinion) the fact that he was replaced by shite seems to cloud this judgement.

 

Wasn't he hauled in front of the FA for his comment about the ref at Spurs?

 

It was a slight comment regarding a missed penalty, he went on to say that we got what we deserved, which again, has been conveniently forgotten.

[Skidfingers McGonical]

What if they're genuinely worried about the future of the club and think a change of manager is the only way? Would you, as a true Red, keep silent if you felt to do so was not in the club's best interests? I'm not saying that's the case, mind you; I'm just hypothesising. Sometimes whistle blowing can be the courageous thing to do, rather than the snide, shit-house option it may seem to be.

 

My concern is that the same thing happened with Houllier, it could just be a lot of impatience and frustration that they are sharing, but if it isn't, it's bang out of order as their is a code of practice (ok I know not everybody at the club has stuck to this over the last few years) but it should be kept in house.

 

I remember a lot of people being in uproar when the press hounded out Martin Jol, for they way they got personal towards him. Now they are doing it to our manager and it seems ok this time round.

 

It stinks the amount of personal abuse and age old theories behind Rafa's man management, a lot of it personally comes across as regurgitated shit, and in relation to Winter's article and Collymore's comments, it is coming from one place for me and that is our captain.

 

Now I know Carragher has been linked to the rumours, however I don't feel he would speak to anyone in the press and let slip what is going on in the dressing room. It is all if's and buts, however if Gerrard is leaking all these stories I would strip him of the captaincy, no club captain should be acting in the way Brutus did to Caesar.

 

How about Gerrard come out with fighting talk like Carragher, our captain is being less vocal publicly in terms of our poor form, and the fact Torres has played through his current injury and Gerrard seems to have rested and shown less fight. I wouldn't be surprised to see all the Gerrard to *insert another club* rumours start and him become a wounded soldier in the summer with a woe is me attitude.

 

It could also be that Gerrard has lost respect as a captain, just a theory of course people, and maybe him being around sulking (if he is of course) he is dragging the morale down.

 

Now before people start having a pop at me for dare questioning Gerrard, I know Rafa has his faults, but so does Gerrard and he seems to be getting away without any stick for washing the dity linen in public.

 

What Gerrard and Carragher need to do is come out with a statement each rallying support for the manager, in fact Carragher has done it enough this season, so the Captain of Liverpool Football Club should come out and give an interview and show support to the manager. It is a time for a show of unity to bring us out of this slump and get working as a team and fight together from within. And there is no better palce to start than with the captain.

[robslappa]

What if they're genuinely worried about the future of the club and think a change of manager is the only way? Would you, as a true Red, keep silent if you felt to do so was not in the club's best interests? I'm not saying that's the case, mind you; I'm just hypothesising. Sometimes whistle blowing can be the courageous thing to do, rather than the snide, shit-house option it may seem to be.

 

I'd probably agree with that if this was the exception rather than the rule.

 

It's not just the players, it's the Manager, Parry when he was here, the two owners. All of them leak things to the press in what seems to be a constant of rumours. I'm tired of it all.

 

They all seem to profess to have the clubs interests at heart, yet they air their grievances through their mates in the press whenever it suits them. We play Lyon tomorrow night and Steven Gerrard's ghost writer is in the press the day before laying all our woes at the door of Benitez. It's not on.

 

I'm not happy with Benitez, not by any strech of the imagination and if he went tomorrow I really couldn't care less but I expect better from the senior players at the club.

[zigackly]

What Gerrard and Carragher need to do is come out with a statement each rallying support for the manager, in fact Carragher has done it enough this season, so the Captain of Liverpool Football Club should come out and give an interview and show support to the manager. It is a time for a show of unity to bring us out of this slump and get working as a team and fight together from within. And there is no better palce to start than with the captain.

 

You mean something like this, from less than a month ago?

 

"There is so much more to come from us and a hell of a lot of football still to play between now and May, and we're up for the challenges that lie ahead."

 

"It will come down to who wants it the most and who is prepared to dig deepest. When the manager demands a reaction from us he gets it, and that's going to come in the games between now and the next Champions League match too."

 

"Momentum is vitally important in football. When you start to win consistently and go onto the pitch expecting to, it all becomes easier."

 

"You cannot ever think that you can't improve. No-one at Liverpool will ever be allowed to think that way because it's not the way the manager operates."

 

"You might have played well – a defender keeping a clean sheet, a midfielder with a couple of assists or a striker with a hat-trick – but the manager will always find room for improvement."

 

"There's no relaxing under Rafa because he sets his standards so high. That's the Liverpool way and talking to players from previous eras, that's the same message they used to get to. You can always do better – collectively and as individuals. If you think you're on top of your game you can still improve. That's what we get drummed into us every single day and it really does help."