Liverpool FC Forum

[tonyeh]

I disagree Nan....far too many players have been majorly pi$$ed off by Rafa and his dysfunctional methods.
There was :
the fiasco over where Gerrard should be playing on the pitch;
the cr@p over Robbie Keane - on the bench, subbed after 60+ minutes every game, played out of position, dropped after he scores a couple of goals in favour of Eggnog;
playing Carra/Masch at right back;
the fiasco over handling Alonso and ultimately losing perhaps the best player at the club - consistency, I mean - in recent seasons;
insisting on playing Lucas and Kuyt - even when they are playing absolutely shocking football - at the expense of others;
farming out Nemeth - who at least knows where the goal is !! - and not playing Pacheco;

it goes on and on....

The man's methods are pure madness and the club is suffering ON the pitch as a result. The financial chaos is a separate beast completely...

Agreed.

And as far as some on here thinking that man management isn't important on a team (made up of men!), then you're talking out of your arse, to be blunt.

If you're not happy with a member of a team in regards to performance or whatever, you're SUPPOSED to discuss it with them. That's a basic management skill.

That's fuckin day 1 stuff, for christ's sake.

Doing nothing is not the way to go, under ANY circumstance. That's a recipe for disruption.

[red_guy]

FFS, Mick, when it comes to club vs. country, 99 times out of 100 the country will win out. I don't blame Riera for mouthing off about Benitez, cos I reckon Rafa is a complete autocrat. The guy believes he is the Messiah and that his opinion is beyond question - WRONG ! He has got it wrong on so many occasions this year and in the past, that I fully agree with Riera in airing his opinion. Why not ? Maybe now it's out in the press, Rafa will listen ? Or more likely, he'll give him the cold shoulder and sulk.
Rafa comes across more like a spoilt child than anything...

But its Riera thats opened his mouth here not Rafa, if hes not happy stick in a tranfer request behind closed doors ,then when you get your move come out and slate him. Hes not done himself any favours here by openly slating Rafa while hes still on the pay roll. Bit of an idiot to give this interview be honest, an hes the one making himself look like a small child, i wanna play or ill tell them what a bad man you are .

An Scott i think it was against Ureia that he was ,

I disagree Nan....far too many players have been majorly pi$$ed off by Rafa and his dysfunctional methods.
There was :
the fiasco over where Gerrard should be playing on the pitch;
the cr@p over Robbie Keane - on the bench, subbed after 60+ minutes every game, played out of position, dropped after he scores a couple of goals in favour of Eggnog;
playing Carra/Masch at right back;
the fiasco over handling Alonso and ultimately losing perhaps the best player at the club - consistency, I mean - in recent seasons;
insisting on playing Lucas and Kuyt - even when they are playing absolutely shocking football - at the expense of others;
farming out Nemeth - who at least knows where the goal is !! - and not playing Pacheco;

it goes on and on....

The man's methods are pure madness and the club is suffering ON the pitch as a result. The financial chaos is a separate beast completely...

About that Rafa thinks that he is a Messiah statement, i guess i would agree with that. There's somewhere in the "Season on a brink" that mentioned the argentinian players of Valencia used to label Rafa as GOD (not in a positive way)..i guess there's a truth to it..

[DrPepe]

I dont think Riera has lived up to his reputation this season so am not surprised he has not been getting used quite as often as in the last campaign, especially when he has been hit with a succession of niggling injuries. With some of the comments he has come up with it sounds like someone who is throwing his toys around for not getting his own way. If he is really unhappy and wants first team football then let him go to Russia on loan i say, otherwise it shows he is using the media to try and get what he wants.

I dont think he's using the media to try and get what he wants as doing so would just frustrate the manager and chances of getting selected would just become slimmer.

Think he's probably trying to let people know he's available for sale as he has given up working with Rafa.

yeh exactly that.

Riera had problems at citeh, he just didn't get on well there  - similarly he seems to have had enough at liverpool and is desperate for a move, hence his naive comments. His bs can in large be dismissed as the bitterness of an unhappy immature person.


imo this has nothing to do with rafa's man-management being "wrong". Capello, Ancelotti + Benitez appear to be amongst the biggest hard-as/ses  in the game, yet the the level-headed players like torres and the multitude of stars playing for those coaches accept that (because it works most of the time!).

Q. Who would most people call the best "man manger" coach in the business? The amenable, "arm around the shoulder" type?
A. Mourihno

Q. Why did Mourhihno get sacked fom Chelsea?
A. cos he fell out with the owner, the captain , and the important/influential members of his squad, who wouldn't then play for him. ie. he lost the dressing room. 

[stmichael]

If you're not happy with a member of a team in regards to performance or whatever, you're SUPPOSED to discuss it with them. That's a basic management skill.

That's fuckin day 1 stuff, for christ's sake.

Doing nothing is not the way to go, under ANY circumstance. That's a recipe for disruption.

Exactly, so if the manager doesn't come to you then you go to them. It's a two way thing.

Going out and bleating about it in the press achieves nothing whatsoever.

[account deleted by request]

If you're not happy with a member of a team in regards to performance or whatever, you're SUPPOSED to discuss it with them. That's a basic management skill.

That's fuckin day 1 stuff, for christ's sake.

Doing nothing is not the way to go, under ANY circumstance. That's a recipe for disruption.

Exactly, so if the manager doesn't come to you then you go to them. It's a two way thing.

Going out and bleating about it in the press achieves nothing whatsoever.

It worked for Babel! 

[DrPepe]

If you're not happy with a member of a team in regards to performance or whatever, you're SUPPOSED to discuss it with them. That's a basic management skill.

That's fuckin day 1 stuff, for christ's sake.

Doing nothing is not the way to go, under ANY circumstance. That's a recipe for disruption.

Exactly, so if the manager doesn't come to you then you go to them. It's a two way thing.

Going out and bleating about it in the press achieves nothing whatsoever.

It worked for Babel! 

i was gonna mention him as a good example - Babel specifically said recently that he has talked to benitez and sorted things 

[stmichael]

If you're not happy with a member of a team in regards to performance or whatever, you're SUPPOSED to discuss it with them. That's a basic management skill.

That's fuckin day 1 stuff, for christ's sake.

Doing nothing is not the way to go, under ANY circumstance. That's a recipe for disruption.

Exactly, so if the manager doesn't come to you then you go to them. It's a two way thing.

Going out and bleating about it in the press achieves nothing whatsoever.

It worked for Babel! 

maybe riera should join twitter

[account deleted by request]

I was thinking more of his moaning on Twitter and this :-

Unhappy Babel hints at Reds exit
(AFP) – Nov 24, 2009

LONDON — Dutch winger Ryan Babel has reportedly threatened to walk out on Liverpool unless he gets more first-team football, adding to the sense of crisis gathering around Anfield in what has been a frustrating season to date.

Babel, an 11.5-million-pound signing from Ajax two years ago, is unhappy with the number of matches he has started and has risked incurring the wrath of manager Rafael Benitez by criticising the manager's communication skills.

"I have tried to talk to the manager but it isn't of any use," he was quoted as saying . "I couldn't really do anything with the feedback Benitez gave me.

"We have agreed to look at my situation in the winter. If there's no improvement then, I have to be honest, I want to be somewhere else.

"I don't play a lot so I can't be happy and I can't cheer out loud. Sometimes I wonder how long I can sustain it but I will fight for my position - what else can I do?"

Babel, who has not travelled to Hungary for Liverpool's must-win Champions League match with Debrecen because of an ankle injury, added: "Isn't it unbelievable that in my first year I got chosen as Talent of the Year? And a season later I hardly play and without getting a proper chance."

The Dutchman suspects that his relationship with Benitez may have been affected by his decision to play for Holland at last year's Olympics in Beijing, which the manager opposed.

"I don't know if it has anything to do with my little trip to the Olympics. I know the manager wanted me to stay.

"Every time me or my agent (Willie Haatrecht) have a chat with him he stresses I can't leave and he believes in me. We have to trust he is telling the truth. Saying it is different to showing it."

Babel insists he can still be a star for Liverpool, although the Anfield faithful may take issue with his assertion that he has already shown that "plenty of times".

He added: "I know I could be further in my career but if nobody helps you, if they don't make it easier for you, then it is difficult."

[Sabre]

Fúcking Riera, he's an anti

[Roger Red Hat]

Riera is a good player. When he plays on his game he'd of got into any Liverpool team in the last 30 years. He has the talent but for some reason rafa is strangling him and he is inconsistant. If this is down to man management then rafa needs to pack his bags cos we'll end up losing more than Riera at the end of the season if he keeps treating his lads like he seems to be.

[bigmick]

The Riera situation does highlight the fact that regardless of how compelling the evidence is to the contrary, some people will simply not see that there is an issue with the manager. It struck me while watching the Barcelona match last night, that while the top clubs are fighting it out for Champions Leagues, titles, FA Cups, already have cups in the bag etc etc we are battling a losing battle for fourth and have as our only hope of a trophy, the Euro Championship cup thingy.

We have to overturn a 1-0 first leg deficit to the mighty Lille, our own players are saying we play rubbish football and are now queueing up to say they want to leave as they can't get on with the manager. We stumble from one crisis to the next, and the rest of the football World moves on. Still, still, they back him and won't hear a word against him. I've asked the question before just how bad would things have to get before some people will begin to have more than severe doubts and I never get an answer so I won't bother asking it again. Already you've got people saying that if Rafa were let go and such and such was made the manager they would stop supporting the club. It beggars belief it really does.

Is there anybody who thinks that the debacle of this season would be much improved upon next season if Rafa were to stay in charge? If there is, how prey tell? Why not just say thanks a lot fella, you gave it your best shot and just move on. It's hard to in the words of the song walk on with hope in your hearts if you haven't got any, and we haven't at the moment. Lets cut our losses and move on, we tried it, it didn't work so lets get someone in and give them a shot. Lets face it, it can hardly be any worse. I cannot concieve of a situation where any manager with our group of players could do a worse job than the one that has been done this season.

[stmichael]

Riera is a good player. When he plays on his game he'd of got into any Liverpool team in the last 30 years.

[DrPepe]

Riera is a good player. When he plays on his game he'd of got into any Liverpool team in the last 30 years. He has the talent but for some reason rafa is strangling him and he is inconsistant. If this is down to man management then rafa needs to pack his bags cos we'll end up losing more than Riera at the end of the season if he keeps treating his lads like he seems to be.

riera is 27 and has been with us , what? a season and a half ?

Yet the moment he criticises Rafa then suddenly he becomes potentially one of our best wingers in 30 years?  


Riera the journeyman obviously has some kind of love-hate relationship with bad man managers (perhaps a father-psychosis from childhood?) because he didn't last at mayorca (44 games), bordeaux (53), espanyol (72) or  citeh (15) either....

[Greavesie]

If Rafa cant keep the players that he signs happy then he should buggar off. Thats the be all and end all in my eyes

I was suprised to see that Robbie Fowler said that 'if we need a new manager then so be it'. He must be getting annoyed n all

[stmichael]

In all seriousness though Saint, at least Babel said he went to talked to Rafa about his issues on several occasions. They may have got nowhere but at least he inititated it. It seems Riera just expects Rafa to come to him and tell him all his problems.