Liverpool Must Face Up To Reality
Managing players is one thing; but managing expectations is the toughest challenge that any football manager faces in the modern game....
Fourteen years ago, Atlético Madrid did the Spanish league and cup double, and they`ve been trying to bridge the gap between reality and expectation ever since. A couple of glorious moments in the past hides the fact that Atletico are not a top four team in Spain – and in order to sustain the illusion, the club has accumulated huge debts while a never ending managerial merry-go-round has been expected to perform miracles.Only now, it has taken a new manager – Quique Sanchez Flores – to come out and tell it exactly how it is: that everyone needs to accept the harsh reality that Atletico Madrid cannot be expected to compete on equal terms with the elite.
Perhaps someone at Anfield should come out and state publicly that, given the resources available, it is unrealistic to demand a top four finish? Analysts close to the club insist that unless a new investor sticks at least £100 million in the bank, a top six finish should be the target and anything else is a bonus. How long can a glorious history sustain the illusion that Liverpool football club has a divine right to compete on equal terms with the European elite?
The Liverpool board has performed a U-turn and the manager is now allowed to spend money raised from the sale of players in January. Is that a good thing right now? Because unless Rafa Benitez is able to raise in excess of £15 million - and getting rid of Babel doesn’t make sense when a replacement would cost more money - experience suggests that Rafa should steer clear of cheap players. Avoiding a panic buy now means, potentially, there may be more money in the summer for Benitez - or his successor - to spend wisely.
Nevertheless, the best case scenario means that the Liverpool manager will still be spending peanuts compared to the budgets of United and Arsenal; a small percentage of the riches at Manchester City and Chelsea – and even less than the £40 million that Birmingham have in their war chest.
Perhaps it is time for someone high up at Liverpool to declare what their realistic ambitions are. The manager can only hint at them, by conceding he may be powerless to keep hold of Torres or Gerrard for example. Unfortunately, such a reality check can also backfire and could be perceived as defeatism in the dressing room. But when a strong first XI fails to perform, as they did against Reading, you also have to wonder if there are players who are no longer playing for their coach. And if that is the case, one has to ask why?
Many are blaming Benitez’ personality for the team’s demise and I have always had the impression that for his methods to succeed he must constantly recycle new blood through the squad, even replacing key players with new ones eager to respond to him. A key Liverpool midfielder was once told he was not in the line up an hour before the game and also that he needed to beef up in the gym; he reacted with disbelief and despair. Is a cumulative effect at such a lack of diplomacy behind the team’s gradual failure to respond?
If so, then the board must decide: either back the manager and allow him to take drastic action, no matter how big the name it impacts upon; or deny Rafa the transfer funds and save them for his successor in the summer. I wonder if we are already witnessing the latter...
I dont know what to make of this.
He admits that rafa lacks diplomacy with players, for his methods to work players need shipping in and out constantly, even he concedes that maybe the players are not playing for the manager, and maybe he is contemplating selling the 'bad egg' in the box.
I think if benitez stays gerrard will be moved on, but i dont think they will be working together for much longer.
Managing players is one thing; but managing expectations is the toughest challenge that any football manager faces in the modern game....
Fourteen years ago, Atlético Madrid did the Spanish league and cup double, and they`ve been trying to bridge the gap between reality and expectation ever since. A couple of glorious moments in the past hides the fact that Atletico are not a top four team in Spain – and in order to sustain the illusion, the club has accumulated huge debts while a never ending managerial merry-go-round has been expected to perform miracles.Only now, it has taken a new manager – Quique Sanchez Flores – to come out and tell it exactly how it is: that everyone needs to accept the harsh reality that Atletico Madrid cannot be expected to compete on equal terms with the elite.
Perhaps someone at Anfield should come out and state publicly that, given the resources available, it is unrealistic to demand a top four finish? Analysts close to the club insist that unless a new investor sticks at least £100 million in the bank, a top six finish should be the target and anything else is a bonus. How long can a glorious history sustain the illusion that Liverpool football club has a divine right to compete on equal terms with the European elite?
The Liverpool board has performed a U-turn and the manager is now allowed to spend money raised from the sale of players in January. Is that a good thing right now? Because unless Rafa Benitez is able to raise in excess of £15 million - and getting rid of Babel doesn’t make sense when a replacement would cost more money - experience suggests that Rafa should steer clear of cheap players. Avoiding a panic buy now means, potentially, there may be more money in the summer for Benitez - or his successor - to spend wisely.
Nevertheless, the best case scenario means that the Liverpool manager will still be spending peanuts compared to the budgets of United and Arsenal; a small percentage of the riches at Manchester City and Chelsea – and even less than the £40 million that Birmingham have in their war chest.
Perhaps it is time for someone high up at Liverpool to declare what their realistic ambitions are. The manager can only hint at them, by conceding he may be powerless to keep hold of Torres or Gerrard for example. Unfortunately, such a reality check can also backfire and could be perceived as defeatism in the dressing room. But when a strong first XI fails to perform, as they did against Reading, you also have to wonder if there are players who are no longer playing for their coach. And if that is the case, one has to ask why?
Many are blaming Benitez’ personality for the team’s demise and I have always had the impression that for his methods to succeed he must constantly recycle new blood through the squad, even replacing key players with new ones eager to respond to him. A key Liverpool midfielder was once told he was not in the line up an hour before the game and also that he needed to beef up in the gym; he reacted with disbelief and despair. Is a cumulative effect at such a lack of diplomacy behind the team’s gradual failure to respond?
If so, then the board must decide: either back the manager and allow him to take drastic action, no matter how big the name it impacts upon; or deny Rafa the transfer funds and save them for his successor in the summer. I wonder if we are already witnessing the latter...
I dont know what to make of this.
He admits that rafa lacks diplomacy with players, for his methods to work players need shipping in and out constantly, even he concedes that maybe the players are not playing for the manager, and maybe he is contemplating selling the 'bad egg' in the box.
I think if benitez stays gerrard will be moved on, but i dont think they will be working together for much longer.
No one is even questioning if the player deserved such treatment, was being a dic, a fat git.
There is no real context.
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