Rafa Benitez

[kurtangle01]

well lets not go all diouf 10 mill and diao 5 mill crazy

it's at least an improvement

pennant=diao

diouf=bellamy
tis true
lol!

[Morph]

anyone who thinks pennant has shown enough quality to be anywhere near the liverpool team has no concept of what bein a liverpool player should be.

The Buys Rafa has made this season apart from Kuyt have houiller's summer of 2002 written all over them.

Why apart from Kuyt, so you can conveniently make a comparison that wouldn't stand otherwise?

[Morph]

He's had over two years and 80 million to spend.

Get your head out of the sand.

And as for that, what a crock of **** I don't know the stats of prem managers but I think i'm safe in saying that the only prem managers to win the title in their first 2 years are Wenger and Mourinho.

Mourinho has an endless pot of cash so comparison is pointless
And Wenger came in at an opportune time when there was a lack of stiff competition, but did put a good end of season run together, closing something like a 12 point gap?

If not for money bags Chelsea last season, we could conceivably have won the league.

The fact is 80 million while it sounds a lot, buys you **** all in the grand scheme of things, and isn't enough to completely rebuild a side, hell double that probably only just comes close.

now stop making silly arse comments

[desertscouser]

I woke up this morning still fuming at yesterday's pathetic display. This isn't one result we're talking about here, we've now been humiliated far too many times this season. I cannot remember a season where Liverpool football club, after 12 games have been beaten 4 times in the league by 2 or more goals. It's disgusting. Losing to Everton 3-0? What about our worst performance at Old Trafford for many years, capitulating to a feeble 2-0 defeat. The alarm bells rang then for me but after yesterday I am more than concerned that Rafa doesn't have a clue what he's doing in the premiership.

The Champions League victory has given him the time that previous managers may not have had but performances like yesterday make Istanbul seem a very distant memory.

[The_weatherman]

The Buys Rafa has made this season apart from Kuyt have houiller's summer of 2002 written all over them.

I wouldn´t go that far, however isn´t this the just the case that whenever we need to step up a level the funds simplya aren´t there. If Rafa had just bought Alves and Kuyt we would be short of players wouldn´t we. I always come back at the board when playing the blame game. Only consolation is that now we a big squad so hopefully next summer we can just buy two very good players instead of four or five hopefuls.

[woodsie]

First post...wish it could be more positive. I think against Sheffield United the tone for the season was set, we played for ten minutes after they scored, apart from that sat back against a team of ****e journeymen. We should be trying to tear the arse out of teams like that. Something is seriously wrong, I have been watching Liverpool for more than 40 years and cannot remember a side playing with less heart than the away performances this year, there is no apparent difference to some of the performances under GH. I don't know what the underlying problem is but I do know that we are not going away and imposing ourself on games. That there seems to be a lack of pace in the side and that there is not a lot of running off the ball into space. Gerrard is having some kind of crisis and not imposing himself on games doesn't matter where he is playing at the moment he isn't cutting the mustard, and on yesterday's evidence should not be captain.
Do we need some change on the coaching staff? Try and bring someone in who can motivate and build up the players. At the moment their confidence seems to have been destroyed and I'm not sure Rafa is the person to restore it.

[anfieldanfield]

And as for that, what a crock of **** I don't know the stats of prem managers but I think i'm safe in saying that the only prem managers to win the title in their first 2 years are Wenger and Mourinho.

Mourinho has an endless pot of cash so comparison is pointless
And Wenger came in at an opportune time when there was a lack of stiff competition, but did put a good end of season run together, closing something like a 12 point gap?

If not for money bags Chelsea last season, we could conceivably have won the league.

The fact is 80 million while it sounds a lot, buys you **** all in the grand scheme of things, and isn't enough to completely rebuild a side, hell double that probably only just comes close.

now stop making silly arse comments

I stopped reading here.

80 million is more than enough to challenge for the title.

Arsenal have spent far less and are a much better side than us, Man Utd have only spent marginally more the past three summers and they're top of the table.

We spent much more than Man Utd this summer.

[red g]

Why apart from Kuyt, so you can conveniently make a comparison that wouldn't stand otherwise?

Ok it looks like one outstanding buy in a sea of mediocrity!! Better?

[Shaggy]

I woke up this morning still fuming at yesterday's pathetic display. This isn't one result we're talking about here, we've now been humiliated far too many times this season. I cannot remember a season where Liverpool football club, after 12 games have been beaten 4 times in the league by 2 or more goals. It's disgusting. Losing to Everton 3-0? What about our worst performance at Old Trafford for many years, capitulating to a feeble 2-0 defeat. The alarm bells rang then for me but after yesterday I am more than concerned that Rafa doesn't have a clue what he's doing in the premiership.

The Champions League victory has given him the time that previous managers may not have had but performances like yesterday make Istanbul seem a very distant memory.

This sounds ridiculously over-dramatic but I couldn’t sleep last night. On the rare occasions I did doze off, my dreams were some bizarre mixture of us losing every single game we played 3-0, and my cats being attacked by packs of wild Arctic Wolves (courtesy of Planet Earth).

I am as depressed as I’ve ever been football-wise, and I include Houllier’s dark days in that. Expectations are higher now.

We have played Everton, Chelsea, United and Arsenal away this season and the score is Liverpool 0, ******s 9. Add Bolton to the list and it’s 0-11. Nil ****ing eleven.

[Harv]

Bottom line: he needs to change his tactics if we are ever going to win the league.

Away from home we are far too negative. true, we have more quality than every team bar Chavski

Of course it doesn't help that 3/4 of the squad isn't of the caliber/consistency required of a title winning team. But Rafa bought most of them didn't he. complete and utter bollocks, the only suspect players Rafa has BOUGHT have been Pennant and Josemi.

The worst is the lack of fight, and confidence. Rafa's goes on about "mentality", where is it. ask Gerrard....he our "captain"

In the Cups he's the man, but they jury is out in the league. He still hasn't clocked the Premiership has he? he cracked it last season in december to april

I think we can all agree that rotation isn't a problem, if you are rotating quality with quality, but we haven't got the resources for that.

I don't see our underachievement ending in the League without investment. If Rafa's forced to sign mediocre players because of lack of funds we'll end up nowhere.

I'm tired of seeing the mancs and arse playing great football, and the chavs over-powering the league while we do neither and we meekly surrender away from home regularly. It's just not right.

[JermainePennant]

with a username like yours i wouldn't expect you t be anything other than pro-pennant but i think you have to look at the facts mate and realise that he just isn't good enough.

he played against the chavs at the start of the season and was found wanting. he then came on at old toilet did nothing and again today. they are just a couple of the reasons that he's not getting a place in the side.

as for his confidence...that's got nothing to do with his lack of effort. he could still try and work hard. sadly he's not since he's been here and probably never will. i never rated him when he was at arsenal and i rate him even less now.

As I have said I dont think he isnt trying hard it is just the way he plays.I didnt see the chelsea game but I saw the highlights and he put a great cross in for crouch.Against manu I think it is unfair to judge him as when he came on the whole team were rubbish and I thought he did well against arsenal and I think he will start the next game.

Where are the facts that say pennant isnt good enough?I see a player that has everything to be a great winger who has joined a new club and is playing in a team playing crap with no confidence and is in and out of the side.Even though he has had a bad start he has contributed as much as anyone else and I think he has as many assists as gerrad.

[Morph]

I stopped reading here.

80 million is more than enough to challenge for the title.

Arsenal have spent far less and are a much better side than us, Man Utd have only spent marginally more the past three summers and they're top of the table.

We spent much more than Man Utd this summer.

Right...

80 million isn't enough to challenge for the title in this day and age, go and speak to any Newcastle fan.

Arsene Wenger has been working with his team for ten years, and it took him till the 01/02 season to build them a capable team to win the title for the second time. We can argue he won it in his second season, but the Prem was totally different then. Like i said Rafa might even have won it last season if not for Chelski.

Man U already had the makings of a capable team for the last 3 years, and they can afford to spend big money on the likes of Rooney and Carrick, so whether we spent more money than them or not this summer in the grand scheme of things, they still only need to buy one or two players a season. We are still rebuilding and anyone who can't see that is frankly quite stupid.

[Morph]

Ok it looks like one outstanding buy in a sea of mediocrity!! Better?

Yes that would be fair atm

[Neil Young]

These are my thoughts:

Rafael Benitez is a top manager. His record proves it. He may fail in England but it's too soon to say he will. It's certainly too soon to say he has.

As a top manager, he is able to adjust what he is doing. He can learn. His record in Spain proved that. Two failures in his first two jobs. A season of success followed by a season of failure at his third. Success at his fourth and fifth clubs. It's called a learning curve - he climbed it steadily.

His methods haven't cracked the Premiership yet but there is no reason to believe they won't when he has learned what he needs to learn, adapted accordingly and made the appropriate adjustments.

Is he capable of adapting to fit the circumstances? I think so. I think he's a pragmatist above all else. When he buys players and they fail, he ships them out. That's not the sign of someone with a big ego - that's the sign of someone who will do what it takes to win.

It's been disappointing so far this season but the idea that anyone would do better is easily said and impossible to prove (or disprove). It's just empty talk.