Benitez: It’s time for us to talk

[Slim]

Schuster will be the next Madrid coach apparently.

Anyway is Capello really doing that bad a job? They could still win the league.

[bazza76]

I cant understand why he would want to go there, apart from the fact he is from Madrid and used to work there.
I mean, look at their track record with recent managers, they have had a succession of world class PROVEN managers, and sacked them all ruthlessly. Not getting much of a chance to get their feet on the ground.
why would it be any different with Rafa?you could argue, it would take his squad a while to settle due to squad rotation, and by that time he could be already out the door. The President buys the players there also, Rafa is not a fan of this method.
Here he has total control, I cant see Rafa leaving in the summer at all, unless G & H turn out to be far less ambitious than they first claimed, which isnt going to happen.
Im not worried at all about these Real Madrid rumours. not this season anyway.

[thesilverfoxlfc]

He wont go until he has done what he wants at Liverpool. The new owners are ambitions and will want him one of the best managers in the world if not the best, and the best players at the club. The new owners will give him what he wants thats for sure.

Real can wait for him as he knows he could have the job whenever he wants.

[anfieldanfield]

Hello........................?

Can anyone hear me..........................?

[Maestro]

Jesus man - take it easy on the smilies, will you?

[Red Chilli]

It would be a foolish decsion in my opinion to leave LFC now, for Real Madrid.
I've said it before, Real Madrid is a job to take near the end of your career.

[DannyMan2006]

I cant understand why he would want to go there, apart from the fact he is from Madrid and used to work there.
I mean, look at their track record with recent managers, they have had a succession of world class PROVEN managers, and sacked them all ruthlessly. Not getting much of a chance to get their feet on the ground.
why would it be any different with Rafa?you could argue, it would take his squad a while to settle due to squad rotation, and by that time he could be already out the door. The President buys the players there also, Rafa is not a fan of this method.
Here he has total control, I cant see Rafa leaving in the summer at all, unless G & H turn out to be far less ambitious than they first claimed, which isnt going to happen.
Im not worried at all about these Real Madrid rumours. not this season anyway.

Well Bazza, good points made, but have a look at this scenario:

You are manager of Valencia. They are a great club with great fans and they all love you there. They have just been taken over by a new board who are loaded with cash and things couldnt get any better. You are very happy in this job.

However you have a decision to make.

Liverpool FC havejust offered you the managers job. It is a job described as a poisoned chalice and they regularly chop and change managers. They are however loaded with cash and are the biggest club in the world. They are also your hometown club, you played for them when you were younger and were also given a job by them and coached their youth team. They are the team you love, they have already offered you the job and this may be your last chance to take it.

What do you do?

Personally Id take the Liverpool job.

This is all hypothetical but Im sure you see why its not an easy decision for Rafa. As already said though I think he'll stay and Schuster will take the Madrid job, so Im not worried.

[Abro100]

Any manager who goes to madrid is a fool really, the same with capello.
I doubt benitez would go, i assume he is happy here, he just bought a 4mil house.
Its natural to want to talk of the new owners of a buisness if you are the manager, its human nature to feel 'unsecure' or unsure (for want of a better word) of ideas if you have only talked once and got half an hour. Am sure he wants to see what budget he will get, wage structure etc marketing plans etc etc
Benitez is all about planning for the future as weve seen, and at the moment it is hard for him to officially do it.

[bazza76]

Well Bazza, good points made, but have a look at this scenario:

You are manager of Valencia. They are a great club with great fans and they all love you there. They have just been taken over by a new board who are loaded with cash and things couldnt get any better. You are very happy in this job.

However you have a decision to make.

Liverpool FC havejust offered you the managers job. It is a job described as a poisoned chalice and they regularly chop and change managers. They are however loaded with cash and are the biggest club in the world. They are also your hometown club, you played for them when you were younger and were also given a job by them and coached their youth team. They are the team you love, they have already offered you the job and this may be your last chance to take it.

What do you do?

Personally Id take the Liverpool job.

This is all hypothetical but Im sure you see why its not an easy decision for Rafa. As already said though I think he'll stay and Schuster will take the Madrid job, so Im not worried.

I understand what your saying, and its all obviously valid.
but its not as if Real are going to have the same manager fro the next 20 years. Rafa will have a chance almost every season to join Real. IMO he would be making a huge mistake to join them now. the door will always be open for him at Real.

[Marky]

I assumed this was no longer an issue?
Strange

[Mumsafan]

Does it unnerve you in the slightest that Madrid are still prowling?

No. Not at all.

[Diego]

I understand what your saying, and its all obviously valid.
but its not as if Real are going to have the same manager fro the next 20 years. Rafa will have a chance almost every season to join Real. IMO he would be making a huge mistake to join them now. the door will always be open for him at Real.

especially since he said that managers in spain tend to be only 3-4 years at each club and there is little job security, so he'll have the opportunity time and time again...

[BillobShaisley]

Raffa only took the LFC job in the first place because there were promises of new investment. As much as we'd give up testicles to be floor sweeper at Anfield, not everyone on the planet has that same blind devotion. And if he has any blind devotion, Raffa's is to Real Madrid.

Luckily for us, the Real job comes with a certain amount of baggage attached which is the only reason we've been able to hold on to Raffa.

Now the proverbial Christmas' and Birthdays have finaly arrived, I think Raffa wants to make sure he's got the shiny new bike he was assured 3 years ago before recommitting. If the board assume that Raffa will snub Real's offer blindly, we could be in trouble.

Having said all that, I'm not too worried, but that is not because I have blind faith, its because I believe Raffa will get the right answers to the questions he'll ask. Those questions will be about transfer kitty, wage allowance, stadium and assurances of empowerment and control over the team and possibly youth structures/policies.

So I dont believe he will go but its very possible he could, if we get big headed and make too many arrogant assumptions which don't acknowledge that Raffa probably has a higher reputation than LFC at this moment in time!

[Manofthebog]

Who's Raffa?

[Parm]

Well well well, we haven't had a game for a while and nothing is really happening is it? How odd that a journalist should come up with the old Rafa to Madrid line.


YAWN

I was thinking along the same lines today. These stories keep doing the rounds, if it's not rafa, then it's Maureen, not him, then Wenger. These stories will keep doing the rounds. Not much else on for the journo's to gossip about-transfer window shut, done speculating on Terry and Lampard contracts and Maureen was so last week....

I for one dont think Rafa will go to Real for a long time. He will go eventually but not until his work here is complete and he has only scratched the surface with us.