gkmacca

In an ideal world I'd agree with you, but if it's this world and Hodgson is the most likely candidate, I don't think supporting Kenny is 'experimenting'. (But it must be awful to have mancs above your bed!)

Oh well, better than saying nowt, I suppose, but an odd thing to do. What's he expect the House to do about 'noting Rafa's departure'? Perhaps Nick Clegg will express his wish that Rafa will return in two years, while being shouted down by Dennis Skinner: ''E's gone, ya daft bugger, get over it!' At least we know his heart's in the right place.

No, the paper (and reporter) has a similar relationship to the club as the Echo has with LFC, so I wouldn't dismiss it. As I said above, they don't just print any old canard the club demands, because they know they'll soon lose the trust of the local readers, and they don't antagonise the club, so it's a similar balance that we see in the city. That's why it's quite an odd report, bearing in mind what we expect to happen soon.

It must be hard on Montse - she's now got kids who speak Scouse and they've got to go to school in Italy. Bizarre.

Well, it seems slightly odder than that. Imagine the Echo dealing with the equivalent story at LFC - it wouldn't just try to cheer fans up whilst risking being accused in a couple of days of deliberately misleading them and/or not knowing what's really going on. Local papers with strong links to the local club are very protective of that balance between accurate reporting and 'supportive' reporting. I'm not saying the reaction on here isn't the most plausible, I'm just saying the story sounds rather strange.

Fashanu serving the red wine chilled and the white wine warm! What a buffoon! But for old times' sake: [YOUTUBE]xLuaqNoxjro[/YOUTUBE]

Er, my overwhelming pedantry obliges me to point out that there should be a comma in the second paragraph after 'club'.

That bloke Paul Warburton has very good Fulham contacts - he's their Tony Barrett - so this is interesting, although, as has been noted, it could well just be a polite way of suggesting that the formal approach has yet to be made. All the same, it's an odd thing to write if Warburton knows that the real story is different.

When I posted it the other thread wasn't there. It took ages to process. Not my fault.

A touching gesture from a good man who I hope will always be welcomed back warmly, not only to the club but also the city. Liverpool Echo - Liverpool FC - News - Ex-Liverpool FC manager Rafa Benitez donates £96,000 to Hillsborough Family Support Group

It's classic Dunk though: to cover himself for his great 'rich sheik' prediction, he's introduced another 'mystery' bidder, the identity of whom he doesn't know, but he does know that the bidder is 'very rich'. Phew, I was worried for a while there that we might end up getting bought by me! No. It's a wealthy person! Hoorah!

It shows he spends ages reading other forums because his latest 'broadcast' begins by him explaining his use of green screen to pose in front of the This Is Anfield sign. He then waffles on about how his enemies are now visiting his site to insult him and slow down his server! For a supposedly super-confident bloke untroubled by his 'many critics' he sure seems paranoid.

Absolutely right.

To be fair to him he said this: ""If I get injured with Liverpool in the next eight games and miss the World Cup I will get on with it. I want to be fit for every game and, of course, I am desperate to go to South Africa, but I would not ease up on Liverpool for England because of it. "I would never take it easy. That's nonsense. I will go full throttle for both." Stevie: I'll go full throttle - Liverpool FC

Well that bloke's wearing a syrup.

It's hard to judge what's happening because we don't have access to what the board knows - or doesn't know - about the prospect of a new owner. If they know a new owner is imminent, but don't know the intentions of the new owner as to the identity of the manager, it makes no sense to hire an outsider without being able to guarantee him he'll still have a job under the new owner. So it's surely more likely that they either (a) don't know when the club will be sold and are just concentrating on finding a new manager for the foreseeable future, or (b) they do know who the new owners will be and they also know who the new owners want as manager. The sad thing is, given their track record, it wouldn't come as a surprise if they haven't thought any of this through properly and are just making it up as they go along.

He was asked just now in a press conference about the club. He just said the media should note that he's already stated he won't discuss anything about LFC, and reporters should 'show me some respect' because 'I'm focussing on a big game for me country'.

I have to say I really hate the Englishman. Everything about him. I bet he doesn't even play golf. Bring the Scotsman back!

You're alone, without a dream in your heart, without a love of your own. That's why you have the time to pester us.

Doesn't his club have a massive forum of its own?

He's also just been offered double his wages by Fulham, and the 'Woy for England' story has resurfaced, so maybe it's not as certain as it seemed.

Once again: how do we know who has 'taken a step forward'? It's usual for such people to do so quietly behind the scenes, not trumpet it like Sven did (which wouldn't have gone down well at all). Top managers don't normally stick their hand up in the air and shout 'Oooh, please sir, me sir!' They get their agents to make discreet contact with a club, or, more often, they wait for the club to contact their agent.

There is only one man who can make Steven see sense: If leaving me is easy...

Some of these reporters are desperate to see players leave. The Mail has just published a report that says Kuyt wishes Rafa luck but notes he's under contract to Liverpool and owes the club a lot. Then they've stuck a picture of him there with the caption 'Yes, I'm leaving'! Pathetic. Rafa Benitez returns to Liverpool with £33m offer for Dirk Kuyt and Javier Mascherano | Mail Online

I quite agree with the logic that suggests caution about someone returning to management after a long time out. But then again, there can be (not always, but sometimes) big surprises. I remember when Kenny left, Tommy Smith was interviewed on TV about who might take over, and the interviewer, thinking about the 'keep it in the family' ethos, mentioned Keegan. Smith collapsed with laughter, saying he had no interest in today's football and spent all of his time on the golf course in Spain. Then Keegan came back and had his great spell with the barcodes - something that still surprises me a bit even now. So there are exceptions to the rule. The right attitude, the right backroom staff, the right luck...who knows? The point is it's a gamble. It's not absolutely silly and it's certainly not absolutely sensible. Here and now we just can't be sure.