In six months, the Benitez era will seem like a golden age

[Yozza]

A fairly balanced article for once, despite the source:

http://www.independent.ie/sport/soccer/in-six-months-the-benitez-era-will-seem-like-a-golden-age-2173371.html

In six months, the Benitez era will seem like a golden age

In the dressing room and on the balance sheet, Liverpool have fallen over the edge, writes Dion Fanning

Sunday May 09 2010

I f Liverpool thought this season was bad, the summer may have them looking back wistfully. The release of their latest financial figures might shake some sense into those who think that Rafael Benitez's possible departure will make things better. Liverpool, as the figures show, are in great peril. In six months, the Benitez era will seem like a golden age.

The idea that Jose Mourinho can be parachuted in to save the club should crash up against the reality of these numbers. For the second successive year, the auditors, KPMG, expressed "material uncertainty" about Liverpool's ability to continue as a going concern.

The new chairman Martin Broughton has had to appear before the Premier League to give a guarantee, which had to be backed up by the banks, that Liverpool will be able to fulfil their fixtures next season (anyone who saw Liverpool's performance in Portsmouth this season may question if that guarantee was given last season). Yet some people cling to the view that Liverpool need simply to sign a new full-back. There is no quick-fix for Liverpool. There may be no slow-fix either.

This weekend, it does not seem as inevitable that Benitez will leave. At this stage, the decay has affected him so profoundly that it would be no bad thing for him to go. At the very least, his departure would allow those who criticise his management to understand slowly what he was up against. Alan Curbishley won't be able to do much better.

On Friday, an internet campaign launched by a Liverpool forum resulted in journalists receiving hundreds of emails from supporters backing Benitez. It is customary for their loyalty to be applauded slightly patronisingly at this point before asking at what other club would a manager be backed in this way?

Benitez earned their loyalty by providing as magical a night as any Liverpool fan has experienced in Istanbul, defying Chelsea in the semi-final and challenging for the title last season. He earned their loyalty by being misunderstood, as Liverpool people feel they are, and he earned their devotion by rumbling Tom Hicks and George Gillett.

So when they chant his name or send an email, they are not displaying blind devotion. They are acknowledging the complications of managing a club that has no future until things change and recognising that Benitez has, imperfectly, managed until this season somehow to keep Liverpool competitive.

Once Liverpool's players started spinning about the race for fourth and once Benitez started talking about how the value of the club had increased during his time at Anfield, then things were destined to unravel. That was not Benitez's racket. At his best, he felt no need to point to his record because he didn't respect the people who were looking it up.

They were wrong about everything: wrong about his transfer record, wrong about rotation, wrong about how often he rested Torres. Yet they never shut up and they wore Benitez down. The reasons Rafael Benitez is no longer the right manager for Liverpool are exactly the same as the reasons he was such a successful manager of Liverpool. His stubbornness allowed him to ignore the voices that told him he should buy Michael Owen or play Steven Gerrard in his "favoured" central midfield position.

Then he became distracted and demented by the financial position and gaining control. His attempt to sell Xabi Alonso was a disaster -- not because Alonso was in sparkling form and it made no sense -- but because his return to form was achieved not by coaxing the best from him but by instilling a sense of resentment that made his departure inevitable.

One of the key tenets of Benitez's philosophy is that he does not get close to the players. There is nothing wrong with that but it works best if the manager does not hold resentments if the players react to that distance, as Alonso did. The sadness in the fracturing of the relationship with the player once known as 'Son of Rafa' was compounded when, having taken the biggest risk of his career at Liverpool, Benitez barely saw any of the transfer fee.

Instead, he was forced to gamble on a fragile player like Alberto Aquilani and the pressure was on once it quickly became apparent that the title would not be achieved as many had expected. Benitez had been exhausted by the battles he had to fight. He was contaminated by the bull**** coming down the line and the players appear to have had enough.

Just as his success masked the dysfunction of the regime he was employed by, his failures have hidden them too. Benitez took on Hicks and Gillett and paid the price: not the loss of his job but the loss of his vision of what the team should be. Like all obsessives, he is always at risk of losing touch with reality.

Liverpool, out of the top four and with their most glorious footballer Fernando Torres agonising over his future, have more chance of sinking further next season than they do of reclaiming a Champions League place.

Torres is not bigger than the club, the old cliché that may yet be used by the accountants this summer after he makes an impact on the balance sheet, but there is a strong case to be made that it stands or falls with him right now. For many reasons, Torres is no ordinary footballer. He is loyal and curious about his surroundings. His talent ensured he would be a favourite at Liverpool, but his heart quickly bound him to Anfield. His disillusionment, not about last season, but about the future, is likely to see him leave in the summer. Even if the banks were to allow Liverpool to replace him, he is irreplaceable.

Broughton has announced that Liverpool do not need to sell him to service their debts but when £85m has been paid in interest since 2007, the needs of the money men can sometimes become insatiable.

Torres will have his choices and he may decide, despite their failure to qualify for the Champions League, that Manchester City are the best option. Certainly, they can offer a challenge in the future that Liverpool cannot. If they could persuade Torres then it would be a spectacular announcement of their intentions which could speak even louder than qualification for the Champions League.

Liverpool are being squeezed by teams who have been allowed to build and clubs that have not been so badly run. Tottenham's progress has been through shrewd investment and the acquisition of a squad that Liverpool can only envy. Peter Crouch might have stayed at Liverpool if he had been offered a contract that would have made his time on the bench bearable. Instead, he ended up at Spurs, along with Robbie Keane, who played no more time at Tottenham than he did at Liverpool but nobody seemed to notice before he headed off to Glasgow.

City and Spurs are ready to replace Liverpool. They have energy, ambition and new ideas. Liverpool are just trying to make it through the night. They have been ripped from their community by the decision of David Moores to sell the club to Hicks and Gillett. The desire of supporters to see the club return to ownership they understand has now been replaced by the pressing urgency to find somebody to rescue them.

There was a time when Moores and Rick Parry (who received a pay-off of £3m, the latest accounts revealed) searched the world looking for new investment. Moores could have borrowed on the club to build a new stadium instead of selling to the Americans, who were borrowing on the club to buy it, and Liverpool would be in a better position today. Instead, he made a rash decision and a poor business one for him and for Liverpool.

Those were the good days when the world felt it could trust people like Hicks and Gillett. Because there were so many of them, they must be doing something right.

Last week's accounts showed Liverpool's loss was 34 per cent worse than 2008's figure as £40.1m went on servicing the club's £351.4m debt to Royal Bank of Scotland and US firm Wachovia. These loans have been extended until the sale but the club is now, according to KPMG, "dependent on short-term facility extensions". They are living hand to mouth. And yet they claim that Torres doesn't need to be sold. They do not need to sell him, much as a wino doesn't need a bed for the night.

It is worth noting that the accounts were taken in a good year for Liverpool, a run in the Champions League and second in the league. Next year, if there is a next year, things will be worse.

But still they blame the manager. Benitez is said to be torn about his departure. A number of senior players would be happy to see him go and a number would prefer if he stayed. His management style is undoubtedly wearing on players but Liverpool aren't faced with too many alternatives.

Few managers will be tempted in the summer to join a club which may not still have owners and has no money. Martin O'Neill is the only candidate who appeals, especially if he feels he has done as much as he can at Aston Villa. Liverpool may not end up like Leeds but there is every indication they could end up like Newcastle, who, unlike Liverpool, had a stadium that gave them the revenue to compete. Liverpool have nothing, not even freedom, as that isn't afforded to the indebted.

The days of standing on the edge of the abyss are over, Liverpool have fallen over the edge. Benitez seems reluctant not to fall with them. He staked his reputation on the club and he found that even when it plummeted, he didn't want to give it all up.

He has been promised riches and finances at Juventus but still he hesitates. He is bound by something more. He is a flawed hero but history will see his management as no less heroic for the reality that it was doomed.

Sunday Independent

[Leyton388]

David moores, Parry, hicks and gillet need hanging!

John smith will be turning in his grave! Here is a nice piece on what a great chairman he was. My god how we need him today!

Liverpool's forgotten heroes: Sir John Smith

Ask most Liverpool fans about Sir John Smith and I’m sure the majority response would be one of confusion. This is a sad state of affairs considering Smith is the most influential Chairman in Liverpool’s history. His contribution to the club is unmatched at boardroom level, and without him, it is doubtful Liverpool would have achieved such an amazing level of success.

Affectionately known as ‘the dapper Chairman’, Sir John Smith ran Liverpool FC for 17 years from 1973 until 1990, playing an integral part in Liverpool’s unparalleled success over that period. During his tenure, Liverpool won four European cups and eleven championship titles – a feat that has never been (and will never be) matched in the English League.

A strong believer in continuity, Smith ended the club's policy of changing the chairman every three years. In his time, changes on the board were rare and shares in the club were never quoted on the Stock Exchange. Liverpool has always been a family club, and John Smith strongly believed in this ideal and fought to ensure it remained that way.

Smith's major strength was his savvy business acumen, which had been developed as Deputy Chairman of an electronics firm and as a brewery Sales Director. He ruled with an iron hand but would always seek advice when it was warranted, as by his own admission, his knowledge of football was that of an enthusiast, not an expert.

Working with former Chief Executive Peter Robinson, Smith ran a tight ship, and during his time, Liverpool’s exemplary business practices became the envy of many other football clubs. Smith was also a staunch defender of the "Boot Room" system of promotion from within, which created continuity of success under Bob Paisley, Joe Fagan and Kenny Dalglish.

Smith was a strong proponent of another of the club’s defining philosophies: the idea that no manager or player was bigger than the club. This is something synonymous with Liverpool FC but, once again, this ideal is slowly being eroded in the modern game, with player power increasingly having a negative impact on the game.

Smith was a man of values and integrity, something sadly missing in the commercial depravity of modern football. Like most Liverpool Chairmen, he preferred to stay out of the media spotlight, something that tallies well with the humble spirit of the club.

An influential and effective leader for Liverpool, Smith never shirked difficult decisions, and this was illustrated in his handling of the Heysel stadium disaster in 1985. Within days of the tragedy, Smith acted decisively by announcing that the club would be withdrawing from the following season's Uefa Cup.

He ensured that the club behaved with sensitivity and responsibility towards the victims and the guilty, but also recognized that the stadium was substandard and possibly contributed to the collapse of the stand.

He commented at the time that "The ground was not good enough for an ordinary match, let alone a final".And he was undoubtedly right.

Smith also defended Liverpool’s traveling fans, who were under fire across the world. He issued a statement saying that the Heysel troublemakers were actually National Front supporters, probably from London, and that a shot had been fired before the worst part of the riot.

This was a view backed by Liberal Councillor Peter Millea, who was at the match. He told the Liverpool Echo that he distinctly made out a contingent of skinheads wearing Union Jack T-shirts and speaking with cockney accents.

The suspension of Liverpool from European competition brought considerable financial pressures, but Smith overcame these by co-opting experts onto the board – another example of his crucial business prowess.

John Smith’s greatest contribution to Liverpool FC is arguably his role in bringing Kenny Dalglish to the club. This one piece of business laid the foundation for 13 years of non-stop success, with Dalglish being the creative catalyst for the most successful period in Liverpool’s history.

It was no secret that Liverpool wanted Dalglish, and John Smith took a leading role in trying to acquire the Scotsman’s services. Just 72 hours before the 1977 Scottish season began, John Smith and then Liverpool Manager Bob Paisley travelled up to Glasgow with one intention: sign Kenny Dalglish.

In order to keep their anonymity, they checked into a hotel as a pair of brothers, though this was not enough to fool one inquisitive fan, who recognized Paisley and asked for an autograph!

Smith and Paisley watched Dalglish play for Celtic against Dunfermline Athletic in a pre-season friendly the same afternoon, and although there were rumours that the Liverpool manager had been seen in the stands, there was no solid evidence to back it up.

These rumours filtered back to Dalglish, but on hearing nothing he simply changed after the game and left the ground. It was only much later that evening, when he was called to Parkhead for a meeting that he would learn the truth.

John Smith and Bob Paisley had already been at Parkhead for some hours negotiating what turned out to be one of the most important deals in the club's history. An initial £300,000 was offered but legendary Celtic Manager Jock Stein rejected it as ‘paltry’, despite it being only £50,000 short of the British transfer record Everton paid Birmingham City for Bob Latchford.

In private talks prior to negotiation, the Liverpool party had agreed to keep adding 10%, with £400,000 being the final offer. That figure was reached, but Stein once again rejected the offer, but for some reason suggested that a further 10% may tip the scales.

A simple nod of heads sealed the deal; Stein had lost his man, and he would remain silent on the matter after the deal, only ever stating that Liverpool got a better player than Kevin Keegan (Dalglish’s predecessor) and still made a profit.

Negotiations had taken all day finally concluding at midnight but neither Bob Paisley nor John Smith were in any mood to leave until their target had agreed the transfer. Personal terms were much easier to settle. Dalglish was located at his father-in-law's pub and called Parkhead. Within minutes, John Smith, Bob Paisley and Kenny Dalglish were shaking hands on a deal.

Smith was delighted with the deal, enthusing that "There's never been a better bit of business than that”.

And no Liverpool fan would ever argue with that statement.

John Smith also recommended the appointment of Kenny Dalglish as successor to Joe Fagan, whose spirit had been broken by the Heysel disaster.

With Dalglish as Liverpool Manager, the club’s success continued, with the league and Cup double achieved in 1985-86, and two more titles in 1988 and 1990 before John Smith retired.

After resigning as chairman, Sir John Smith continued as a Liverpool director and retained his interest in lawn tennis, for which he had chaired a government inquiry, which reported in 1980. His wide interest in sport was also reflected in the fact that he was chairman of the Sports Council from 1985 to 1989.

Football has changed dramatically (and for the worse) since Smith ran the club, with ignorant publicity hounds like Peter Kenyon and Freddy Shepherd indicative of the new breed of shallow, media hungry football Chairmen.

Indeed, current Liverpool Chairmen Tom Hicks and George Gillett could take a leaf out of Smith’s book and learn how to conduct themselves in the proper manner. Their public war of words with Rafael Benitez (Coupled with Hicks' comments about Jurgen Klinnsman) brought shame on the club, and Smith is probably turning in his grave at such a gross lack of professionalism.

Ultimately, Sir John Smith was a model of integrity and a credit to Liverpool FC. Like Bill Shankly and Bob Paisley, he was ‘old school’ and represented everything that was good about the club. His achievements deserve respect and his contribution to the club should never be forgotten.

[hertsred]

We should go for Roy Hodgson, he overachieves with washed players from other clubs. That's where we're going to be if the Yanks don't sell.

[JHP]

We should go for Roy Hodgson, he overachieves with washed players from other clubs. That's where we're going to be if the Yanks don't sell.

I think you're missing the point a little. Unless the ownership / finances are sorted the manager is almost irrelevant.

Instead of looking for alternatives just hope Rafa stays.

[Armchairkopite]

I think you're missing the point a little. Unless the ownership / finances are sorted the manager is almost irrelevant.

Instead of looking for alternatives just hope Rafa stays.

He has been juggling for a whileand knows the club inside and out.

It would be complete and utter madness to get rid of Rafa now.

I look at it like Rafa is the fans 'man on the inside' so to speak, he is keeping the ship steady and wont be pushed around. The board and owners know that they must be very careful with Rafa because of his relationship with the fans.

If someone else was to be brought in the decision will be made by the owners.

Can you imagine them salivating right now at the thoughts of putting some whipping boy in charge of the club, I can see it now 'the new manager decided to sell Gerrard and Torres so he could rebuild the team'

[Phoenix07]

I think you're missing the point a little. Unless the ownership / finances are sorted the manager is almost irrelevant.

Instead of looking for alternatives just hope Rafa stays.

Isn't that just stripping responsibility away from the manager?

I'm sorry, but Gillett, Hicks, Rafa, have all taken us for mugs, and it's time they all moved on.

Plus, I don't see why people aren't confident of a sale in a few months as Broughton has stated. He wouldn't touch us unless he was damn sure he could do the job. He has far bigger fish to fry than Liverpool, rather than mess around with our political rubbish.

People are just too scared to get rid of Rafa for what we might bring in. Really, people need to realise that Broughton will get this club sold soon, and he's not just here for a laugh. Then we can decide what to do with Rafa, but seeing the fear of sacking Rafa is astonishing given the shambles we've put up with this year. I do wonder if we had finished 12th this year, whether we would be saying the manager issue is irrelevant. Scary mentality from Liverpool supporters.

[Vermilion]

I think you're missing the point a little. Unless the ownership / finances are sorted the manager is almost irrelevant.

Instead of looking for alternatives just hope Rafa stays.

Aye, and those who are always banging on about him having to go off the back of this season need to take a long hard look at themselves, it's such an idiotic thing to hang a clubs future on...one season..

[Phoenix07]

Aye, and those who are always banging on about him having to go off the back of this season need to take a long hard look at themselves, it's such an idiotic thing to hang a clubs future on...one season..

So it's acceptable to have 10 months of shambolic football, lets not forget 3/4's of dire football last year albeit picking up points, and yet people are living off 3 months of good fooball last year.

Rafa has become bigger than the club.

[Vermilion]

So it's acceptable to have 10 months of shambolic football, lets not forget 3/4's of dire football last year albeit picking up points, and yet people are living off 3 months of good fooball last year.

Rafa has become bigger than the club.

Nonsense.

[Phoenix07]

Nonsense.

Is it?

[Vermilion]

Is it?

imo yes, you see what you see, i see what i see...that's how football is.

[JHP]

So it's acceptable to have 10 months of shambolic football, lets not forget 3/4's of dire football last year albeit picking up points, and yet people are living off 3 months of good fooball last year.

Rafa has become bigger than the club.

Do you find you tend to walk into things a lot - I just wonder whether you actions are as myopic as your reasoning?

[Phoenix07]

Do you find you tend to walk into things a lot - I just wonder whether you actions are as myopic as your reasoning?

I want this club to win, I don't want it to be turning to every excuse it can find. I fail to understand how the manager is not held accountable for this season. It's been 10 months! I see politics being played by everyone at Liverpool, so much so that there is a genuine chance that Gerrard, Torres and Mascherano may leave, regardless of whether the manager is there or not. I'm fed up of seeing fans underestimate our new chairman, believing that G&H will still be here and appoint someone like Klinsmann or McLeish, without realising his reputation and when he says a sale is a matter of months, then that's what it will be.
It's time for Liverpool Football Club to stop being spineless. The fans are divided on the manager, the players are just headless chickens at the moment with no idea what is happening despite being briefed by Purslow last month. I see fans crying out for huge investment, yet ridicule Man City and Chelsea, and Real Madrid for splashing money at the problems. A bit hypocritical. I hate seeing our manager snipe at his superiors all the damn time, and now, as we've seen, leaks about him actually turning down meetings. People calling his bluff perhaps. I don't know, but it's all politics with us.

The only thing the club is united on is getting rid of the owners, but it does not mean that the players and manager should be deemed irrelevant in the shambles for this season. No one at the club has class bar Kenny Dalglish. Everyone else can go as far as I'm concerned, and we can start anew. People are too afraid of change, which is what has held us back. Last season, I honestly believed the mentality of the club had changed, and everyone was pulling in the same direction. That seems a long time ago now.

[elrichio86]

The simple fact is that until the leeches are gone, we cant radically overhaul the squad, or pay for a decent replacement for Rafa.

Whether you want Rafa to stay or not, he's the best option we've got at the moment.

[Phoenix07]

The simple fact is that until the leeches are gone, we cant radically overhaul the squad, or pay for a decent replacement for Rafa.

Whether you want Rafa to stay or not, he's the best option we've got at the moment.