The Rafa Benitez Appreciation Thread

[bazza76]

thanks for the memories....

you going to another site then

[Tinkerbitch]

......momo, riise, voronin and pennant

Alonso, Reina, Agger, Torres

[Imy]

Alonso, Reina, Agger, Torres

i Think you may just lose this one, Rafa has bought more duds then successes

[Tinkerbitch]

i Think you may just lose this one, Rafa has bought more duds then successes

As have a lot of other managers, including Ferguson and Mourhino with unlimited funds. He has bought with limited funds, the only manager who is better a picking up "bargain" buys is Wenger.
The point is, he could afford to buy one excellent player per season and he did. No one seriously believes that Nunez, Josemi etc were anything but stop gaps.

[tomasjj]

Rafa is boss, and knows a gazillion of gazillions more about football than those who spat their dummy out cause they only saw one striker in last nights lineup and thereby concluced it was a defensive lineup...

[Tinkerbitch]

Rafa is boss, and knows a gazillion of gazillions more about football than those who spat their dummy out cause they only saw one striker in last nights lineup and thereby concluced it was a defensive lineup...

Now that will upset people on here, the appointed manager of LFC knows more than the posters on est? You'll be telling me the world's round next.

[Neil Young]

Now that will upset people on here, the appointed manager of LFC knows more than the posters on est? You'll be telling me the world's round next.

[Nerd]Actually it's not round; it's an oblate spheroid.[/Nerd]

[AFII]

Rafa is boss, and knows a gazillion of gazillions more about football than those who spat their dummy out cause they only saw one striker in last nights lineup and thereby concluced it was a defensive lineup...

If G&H are serious about us challenging for the title then they need to back Rafa in the transfer market, their is no other easier or cheaper way if they want success now or in the next two, three years until our young players are ready.

Rafa should sell a few players like Riise, Carson, Sissoko, Kuyt, Voronin and Crouch to raise some of the money. He should get around £40m for them. Then G&H need to back Rafa with the rest of the money he needs.

Sell the "deadwood" and replace them with quality.

[Tinkerbitch]

[Nerd]Actually it's not round; it's an oblate spheroid.[/Nerd]

I thought an oblate spheroid was something that went wrong with the more mature man. Are you sure you're not getting confused dear?

[Neil Young]

I thought an oblate spheroid was something that went wrong with the more mature man. Are you sure you're not getting confused dear?

[Dhav]

Rafa is boss, and knows a gazillion of gazillions more about football than those who spat their dummy out cause they only saw one striker in last nights lineup and thereby concluced it was a defensive lineup...

Playing one striker and the two holding midfielders at home was not to my mind a defensive line-up but I do think in hindsight it was not the right way to go. We played with two orthodox wingers who (in Pennant's case especially) were looking to get crosses in the box. But when they were doing so there was only ever one player in there, or may be none at all. Now if you're going to play that way, surely it makes sense to have two targets to aim at rather than one? I don't doubt that the idea was to have Gerrard breaking in to the box from deep (being harder to track/mark as a result), but if that's the case why was Pennant as usual floating balls to the far post rather than trying to get to the by-line and pull the ball back for an on-rushing Gerrard?

Gerrard seemed to have a floating role in behind Torres, you could see him popping up on the left, on the right. Thing is he was everywhere but nowhere. Didn't influence the game at all, didn't give Torres much support. If anything he was more of an outlet for the rest of the midfield than a back-up/support for Torres. I'm not convinced that Gerrard can play in the hole behind a main central striker. It failed in Athens and it failed last night.

Last night was crying out for Babel. Someone as direct as him could have made the difference against them I think.

I put last night down to tactics that were in hindsight probably wrong for the game (although they were not necessarily defensive) and poor execution from the players.

Having said that, I stand behind Rafa 100% and it infuriates me no end on the drive back from the game last night listening to muppets on the phone-in calling for Rafa's head. Giving us a bad name. We're supporters, we're meant to support. Sadly, but as someone on the radio said last night, it seems to be mainly the OOTs doing it. I dont recall hearing a scouser ever come on the radio and say they want Rafa out.

Support the manager ffS, dont get on his back when he needs us the most.

[Steve101]

Now that will upset people on here, the appointed manager of LFC knows more than the posters on est? You'll be telling me the world's round next.

nice one!!!

[Alan Key]

I wish him all the best at his next club. A good man.

[Red_hot]

Now that will upset people on here, the appointed manager of LFC knows more than the posters on est? You'll be telling me the world's round next.

****ing hallelujah!

[The Glove]

Im here for Rafa if he needs me.