Sorry about the occasional Japanese letters. Bloody Jap keyboard
Times
If Peter Crouch was looking for a shoulder to cry on, the Liverpool forward could do worse than turn to a familiar face from the opposition at Anfield this evening.
Djibril Ciss頫nows better than most how ruthless a manager Rafael Benítez can be and, as he prepares to line up against the club he left in the summer for Marseilles in their Champions League group A encounter, no doubt with a point to prove, the France striker may have some sympathy for the man who has assumed his position as Liverpool’s most neglected player.
Ciss頷as a “dead man walking” from the moment that Benítez was appointed Liverpool manager in June 2004. He had been signed by G鲡rd Houllier, the Spaniard’s predecessor, for £14.2 million only a few weeks earlier and, while Benítez maintained yesterday that he gave Ciss銥very opportunity to prove his worth, it is clear that the manager would not have plumped for the former Auxerre striker had he been given that money to spend.
Crouch at least arrived at Anfield in the knowledge that he was wanted by Benítez, who paid Southampton £7 million for his services two years ago, but, despite the manager’s protestations to the contrary, it looks increasingly as though the England striker was signed as someone to plug the gap while Liverpool searched for an investor who could provide the funds to lure to the club a forward of the calibre of Fernando Torres.
Crouch may be handed a rare start against Marseilles, but his disillusionment with a rotation policy that has often resulted in him being overlooked this season – he has played only 252 minutes so far – got short shrift from Benítez yesterday.
For a player who finished as Liverpool’s leading scorer last season with 18 goals, Crouch’s dismay is understandable, but Benítez emphasised that, as long as the striker remains at the club, he must be prepared to fight for his position.
It is debatable, however, whether BenÍtez thinks that Crouch has the self-belief and the smart money says that, if the forward has not jumped ship by the close of the transfer window at the end of January – Sven-G? Eriksson, the Manchester City manager, is an admirer – he will have by next summer.
“My idea is to take the best of every player and bring it to the team and if I can do that with Crouch I’ll do it,” Benítez said. “All the players need to prove they have character, quality and very good mentality. When I talk about mentality, I mean a winning mentality. I mean trying to fight for your position, trying to fight during every game, trying to show on the
I pitch that you’re good enough because we will play 60, 65 games over a season – and that’s enough for everybody.
“In a top side, you don’t want excuses. You want players who are ready for every game and it’s the same for all the players, not just Crouch.”
Nonetheless, Benítez did intimate that it was impossible to predict what the future held for the England striker. “After three months, six months, one year, you never know what can happen,” the manager said. “To keep players in a team for a long time is really difficult. It’s not easy to find players like [Jamie] Carragher, who spend all their career at one club and always have a winning mentality, but I don’t have a problem with him [Crouch].”
One man who would probably prefer not to see Crouch start for Liverpool is Eric Gerets. The Belgian, who took charge of Marseilles from Albert Emon a little more than a week ago, was the Galatasaray coach when Crouch scored twice in a 3-2 win against the Turkish team at Anfield 12 months ago.
Having won only once in nine French league matches this season, Marseilles are a team in disarray and should provide far easier opposition for Liverpool than FC Porto did a fortnight ago, when the Portuguese team held last season’s Champions League finalists to a 1-1 draw. But, with Ciss頯ut to show Benítez that he was wrong to sell him, Sami Hyypia, the defender, believes that his team will be in for a hard night’s work. That is what BenÍtez will hope to receive from Crouch.
How they line up
Liverpool (possible; 4-4-2): J M Reina – S Finnan, J Carragher, S Hyypia, ?Arbeloa – Y Benayoun, S Gerrard, J Mascherano, R Babel – F Torres, P Crouch.
Marseilles (probable; 4-4-2): S Mandanda – L Bonnart, G Givet, J Rodriguez, T Taiwo – L Cana, B Cheyrou, B Zenden, K Ziani – D Ciss鬠M Niang.
Referee: K Plautz (Austria).
Times
If Peter Crouch was looking for a shoulder to cry on, the Liverpool forward could do worse than turn to a familiar face from the opposition at Anfield this evening.
Djibril Ciss頫nows better than most how ruthless a manager Rafael Benítez can be and, as he prepares to line up against the club he left in the summer for Marseilles in their Champions League group A encounter, no doubt with a point to prove, the France striker may have some sympathy for the man who has assumed his position as Liverpool’s most neglected player.
Ciss頷as a “dead man walking” from the moment that Benítez was appointed Liverpool manager in June 2004. He had been signed by G鲡rd Houllier, the Spaniard’s predecessor, for £14.2 million only a few weeks earlier and, while Benítez maintained yesterday that he gave Ciss銥very opportunity to prove his worth, it is clear that the manager would not have plumped for the former Auxerre striker had he been given that money to spend.
Crouch at least arrived at Anfield in the knowledge that he was wanted by Benítez, who paid Southampton £7 million for his services two years ago, but, despite the manager’s protestations to the contrary, it looks increasingly as though the England striker was signed as someone to plug the gap while Liverpool searched for an investor who could provide the funds to lure to the club a forward of the calibre of Fernando Torres.
Crouch may be handed a rare start against Marseilles, but his disillusionment with a rotation policy that has often resulted in him being overlooked this season – he has played only 252 minutes so far – got short shrift from Benítez yesterday.
For a player who finished as Liverpool’s leading scorer last season with 18 goals, Crouch’s dismay is understandable, but Benítez emphasised that, as long as the striker remains at the club, he must be prepared to fight for his position.
It is debatable, however, whether BenÍtez thinks that Crouch has the self-belief and the smart money says that, if the forward has not jumped ship by the close of the transfer window at the end of January – Sven-G? Eriksson, the Manchester City manager, is an admirer – he will have by next summer.
“My idea is to take the best of every player and bring it to the team and if I can do that with Crouch I’ll do it,” Benítez said. “All the players need to prove they have character, quality and very good mentality. When I talk about mentality, I mean a winning mentality. I mean trying to fight for your position, trying to fight during every game, trying to show on the
I pitch that you’re good enough because we will play 60, 65 games over a season – and that’s enough for everybody.
“In a top side, you don’t want excuses. You want players who are ready for every game and it’s the same for all the players, not just Crouch.”
Nonetheless, Benítez did intimate that it was impossible to predict what the future held for the England striker. “After three months, six months, one year, you never know what can happen,” the manager said. “To keep players in a team for a long time is really difficult. It’s not easy to find players like [Jamie] Carragher, who spend all their career at one club and always have a winning mentality, but I don’t have a problem with him [Crouch].”
One man who would probably prefer not to see Crouch start for Liverpool is Eric Gerets. The Belgian, who took charge of Marseilles from Albert Emon a little more than a week ago, was the Galatasaray coach when Crouch scored twice in a 3-2 win against the Turkish team at Anfield 12 months ago.
Having won only once in nine French league matches this season, Marseilles are a team in disarray and should provide far easier opposition for Liverpool than FC Porto did a fortnight ago, when the Portuguese team held last season’s Champions League finalists to a 1-1 draw. But, with Ciss頯ut to show Benítez that he was wrong to sell him, Sami Hyypia, the defender, believes that his team will be in for a hard night’s work. That is what BenÍtez will hope to receive from Crouch.
How they line up
Liverpool (possible; 4-4-2): J M Reina – S Finnan, J Carragher, S Hyypia, ?Arbeloa – Y Benayoun, S Gerrard, J Mascherano, R Babel – F Torres, P Crouch.
Marseilles (probable; 4-4-2): S Mandanda – L Bonnart, G Givet, J Rodriguez, T Taiwo – L Cana, B Cheyrou, B Zenden, K Ziani – D Ciss鬠M Niang.
Referee: K Plautz (Austria).
Comment