Bye bye Rafael Benitez
- Thread starter arc101
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I really don't understand the respect these two get for their "sportsmanship", Torres especially, Gerrard has been seen through in the last couple of years I think. Phenomenal player and doesn't resort to Drogba-esque pantomime dives, but he looks for the foul a lot and seems to have pioneered a new type of diving where he dives to the ground without appealing to the ref, so if the penalty is given he can claim it was from the foul, and if not he can say he just lost his balance. The entire team specialise in sneaky kicks and shirt grabs though, Skrtel and Carragher being the worst offenders.D_987 said:
Why can't everyone be incompetent cheats like my team? http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ERVJTJTBXbs
Are you refering to my past comments or just this one? Because I don't see anything wrong with them, sure there has been some mistakes but hey I'm only human.D_987 said:
You're not wrong, here - his signings have been mixed, at best, but the key is he's brought success to Liverpool. Consistently excellent form in the Champions League (excluding this year, of course) and an FA Cup (sorry) coupled with the best-ever points total for a second place team. Whatever you think of the man (admittedly his moves in the press have been rather dickish, but what do you expect from someone with a beard like that?) he's given them some level of success, which is probably the only reason he hasn't been sacked already. I'm no fan of Liverpool - as you say, they aren't the most sportsmanlike of teams - but the man has done wonders for them in relation to how they were at the end of Houllier's reign.pigeon_of_doom said:
Of course, as a fan of a smaller club that had a turbulent spell in the Conference just 7 short years ago, I'm bound to be a little more in favour of a "stability = success" ethos but that's just me. I'll admit he is struggling though, and a big club like Liverpool won't have it much longer.
This is the off-topic section, you know. As in, everything except gaming.Mr Smile said:
He has enjoyed a gigantic amount of luck to win his major trophies in England, both of them thanks to goalkeeping heroics in penalty shootouts. And since the FA Cup there's been nothing except the Community Shield. Sure, he's kept them in the Champion's League, had another shot at the Champions League and a good effort at the title last season, and they are improving as a team but it still looks like their title aspirations are going to have to wait another year. I think he's made something in the mould of an old fashioned cup team, good at dramatic come backs in games that matter but they don't have the winning mentality a team like Chelsea or Man U usually demonstrate. When he won La Liga with Valencia, he'd inherited a fantastic team that, to be fair, he did get the most out of but I can't see him building a Liverpool side capable of that kind of run. Even last season, his season was plagued by too many draws (and were fortunate not to lose some of those) and they don't look like replicating that form (or degree of luck) this season.GuerrillaClock said:
I just wonder what kind of team a manager like Hiddink could make made with Benitez's resources over these last five years. I don't think Benitez's record with signings is atrocious, but the decent players he buys rarely develop into much more than they were before. Sure, some of his defenders like Arbeloa, Aurelio and Insua have come along nicely but he hasn't produced any great players from his midrange signings except possibly Benayoun.
And please, if you have no interest in football, can you restrain yourself from informing all of us of your indifference as it's irrelevant and unnecessary. There's been a reasonable discussion taking place so far and it'd be a shame to see it get derailed into bickering about football topic's suitability for gaming forums.
And yes, I do have a tendency to waffle when talking about football.
As a Liverpool fan, I dont what to think of this seaon, after the massive close run on last year, this is terrible, dont know whether he should be fired, most of it can be donw to the players, they just look like they cant be arsed anymore.
On the subject of last nights game, whats the greek for "stay on your feet you long haired tosser"?
In an ideal world anyway
On the subject of last nights game, whats the greek for "stay on your feet you long haired tosser"?
If he leaves, I know who I want in, Mr Mourinho, OH JOSE!!!!arc101 said:
In an ideal world anyway
They're definitely in a tough patch at the moment, but sacking Benitez wouldn't really achieve much. Doesn't help that Gerrard and Torres have had some injuries lately, both of them have won many matches for liverpool almost by themselves. As well as that they simply don't have the spending power that Chelsea, Man Utd, Man City do. Doesn't help that the owners seem to be in the news more than the team.
Yeah, we obviously don't take lessons from the masters. Immature but fairly funny video of dives. [http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NOSVVrj0WZo]wooty said:
I has here one cookie for you.MA7743W said:
Also, if we had any players who aren't broken? Might help.
He is still the one that chooses the eleven on the pitch and gives them instructions and bears responsibility for their actions on the pitch. If the players fail to perform to a satisfactory level then it is the manager's job to change that, either through talks, tactical changes, public humiliation or whatever manner he has at his disposal. Benitez has consistently shown a questionable ability to bring in players to his eleven that drastically improve his team, inability to crush smaller sides (although perfectly capable of good performances against big teams), and some clueless press management. He is culpable for the failures, and the triumphs of his players.SirBryghtside said:
It's hardly a shocking business practise. If the leader of a team of his choosing, which is altered several times over five years, continues to fail to meet the expectations of the superiors, then leadership replacement is inevitable.
Rafa's made some unwise decisions regarding the transfer market, and that will probably be the end of his career in Liverpool. I think we can all be in agreement that letting Alonso go was not the best course of action, of course I haven't seen Aquilani play yet, but now it's too late for Liverpool to achieve anything at all, really.
On topic; I believe Rafa deserves to sit at least to over January to see if he can manage to acquire some top class players, so there might be some hope for the title challenge in the 10/11 season.
However, the Premiership this year is between United and Chelsea.
Go United!
On topic; I believe Rafa deserves to sit at least to over January to see if he can manage to acquire some top class players, so there might be some hope for the title challenge in the 10/11 season.
However, the Premiership this year is between United and Chelsea.
Go United!
Far too early to sack the guy, especially as I don't think that Liverpool could (in current predicament) entice someone of similar/better ability to take the reins.
Also, not sure if this has been said yet but can the club actually afford to lose the 20-odd million it'd cost to sack him?
Also, not sure if this has been said yet but can the club actually afford to lose the 20-odd million it'd cost to sack him?
You sure? A big club like Liverpool? It has good players but Rafael has made them stagnant and mediocre, we need a new injection of passion and a new style, a new plan of action. Also, he has spent too much money on the wrong players. Bye Bye Benitez!Cgull said:
Just to make sure I don't get accused of anything before I respond, I'd like to mention I'm a Brighton fan (hence name) and hold no allegiance to any Premier League team in the slightest.arc101 said:
*exhales*
I think Benitez is doing the best he can with the players at his disposal as, from a neutral perpective, I don't see that Liverpool actually has that many players of the standard required to win any trophies this year. Yes, Torres and Gerrard are world class with Reina not far behind but after that the quality of players seems to tail off quite alarmingly (N'gog, Lucas et al). Considering this, as well as the start to the season that Liverpool have had (effectively ruling the league out early on) I can't see why a big name manager would want to jump in and take the helm.
Of course the end of the season is another matter entirely. Can see someone else there at the start of 10/11 if they're promised funds and an endless supply of cookies.