Rafa Benitez offers his support for demoted official Mike Jones

[Reece]

I don't think this necessarily makes rafa out to be a nice guy - which he most certainly isn't anyway

What makes you say that? I agree he may not be in a man management sense, but as a person I imagine him to be a particularly affable gentleman.

[badpiggy]

i think he's as ruthless and egotistical as any top manager. just because he's pleasant to the press doesn't make him a nice guy.

[Kenneth]

"There is no point crying over spilt milk"

"Make the best of a bad situation"

[DannyMan2006]

I think he's intelligent enough to know there is no chance of a replay, so he may as well come across as mr nice guy. There is no need to have a go at the ref as everyone is well aware of the incident. It is unlike the Spurs game where it may needed to be pointed out that we should have had a penalty and therefore not lost the game.

As Carra said, when you are in a bad run of form these types of things tend to go against you. I'm sure we'll pull through.

[Icon]

He's just saying you can't change history - move on.

It also shows that he is laying the blame on his players which is the right thing to do.
It would be very easy to call for a replay but that would take the responsibilty off the players over the weekend.

We lost.
Learn from it.
Move on...

[MrMichael]

He's just saying you can't change history - move on.

It also shows that he is laying the blame on his players which is the right thing to do.
It would be very easy to call for a replay but that would take the responsibilty off the players over the weekend.

We lost.
Learn from it.
Move on...

I would far rather see our manager reacting like this to such an incident than the foaming at the mouth-style of certain other premiership managers. We just weren't good enough against Sunderland and it wouldn't be right to simply blame the freak goal - hence why most of our fans haven't gone completely mental about it either. No amount of hysterics would make a blind bit of difference, its not like the FA would ever consider replaying the game, so its best to take what happened on the chin and concentrate on improving our performances.

Just because we're surrounded by a sea of c*nts doesn't mean we have to act like ones ourselves. I'm glad Rafa's maintained his, and the club's dignity, and now just hope he can get his foot out of some of our players backsides in time for the Lyon game.

[Imy]

Rafa's tried attacking the Refs a la Fergiescum and thought he'd get the decisions like what Utd do, did not work, in fact the opposite happened. Now he's trying the opposite and buttering the refs up, lets hope we now get our fair share of the decisions.

[Vermilion]

Nice one. Sort of magnifies Ferguscums outburst as being the classless rant it was.

[Mono]

Well at least someone benefitted from the goal standing

[Icon]

Well at least someone benefitted from the goal standing

Is that your team?

[wavydavy]

It's a very good psychological move from Benitez. Benitez, not only is pressuring the players to perform tonight but also somewhat softens this young referee for the decision hopefully for years to come

Excellent analysis Russ!!

[saveferris]

He is just being honest in my view. If we were good enough we would have done something about it in the remaining 85 minutes that were left in the game. Its not as if we ran the game missed chance after chance but let in this gial against the run of play.

I'd rather Rafa say we were rubbish (as most fans thought so anyway), it shows he knows there is work to be done, unlike the end of Houllier's tenure when he felt we were playing well when we were clearly not.

[Mono]

Is that your team?

For the purposes of the joke lets say yes...

actually the entire team is a joke! that of a manc colleague

[Icon]

For the purposes of the joke lets say yes...

actually the entire team is a joke! that of a manc colleague

Glad to hear it.

It's against the rules to have Mancs or Bitters in FF teams.