Liverpool FC Forum

by **adayinthelife** » Fri Nov 12, 2004 9:47 pm

He was still paid 4m and I doubt he was on 80k a week so I assume he was given a large wad to keep him quiet.

by **JBG** » Fri Nov 12, 2004 10:00 pm

adayinthelife wrote:He was still paid 4m and I doubt he was on 80k a week so I assume he was given a large wad to keep him quiet.

There was probably a bit of "keep your mouth shut" money alright. :laugh:

by **Dalglish** » Sat Nov 13, 2004 12:00 am

Some very sensible posts from JBG and others. Good to know there are still a few LFC fans left who, whilst agreeing it was time for a change don't disrespect a former servant of Liverpool football Club by cheap shots and insensitive ill thought out comments ......... Walk on

by **JBG** » Sat Nov 13, 2004 12:04 am

You know I was a big critic of Gerrard Houllier last year but even when I criticised Houllier I insisted that he was a good man and that I liked him. I really wanted him to be a big success at Liverpool and had he won the league for us I would have been the first to congradulate him.

However, maybe Gerard himself will look back at his spell at Liverpool in years to come and acknowledge that he made mistakes and despite trying his very best, his best just wasn't good enough.

It was the correct decision to let Houllier go but its sad to see so much bitterness from many Pool fans.

by **Dalglish** » Sat Nov 13, 2004 12:11 am

Couldn't agree more JBG, I am all for constructive criticism and enjoy the banter and serious discussion but the rules appear to change once a player or a manager decides to leave or is sacked. I sensed and read it over Owen , Murphy, Heskey and more than anyone Houllier who after all brought a measure of success to Liverpool FC. What he didn't do was self evident and it cost him his job, what he DID do was give me some of the best memories I have of watching LFC and for that alone I thank him.

They say there's no loyalty on football anymore and i suppose when you see the power that players have these days thats true but I am always saddened when that disloyalty spreads to fans and is demonstrated in their unsavoury and disparaging comments about Gerard Houlier. Comments like "Good Ridddance" and "Shut the door when you leave" are cheap at best and in my opinion not the Liverpool Way .....

by **JBG** » Sat Nov 13, 2004 12:16 am

There's an awful lot of hype about Benitez and a feel good factor around at the moment but I'll wager that if things don't work our we'll get the same reaction as Gerard Houllier got.

by **LFC #1** » Sat Nov 13, 2004 12:18 am

great points there JBG and Ian, being a young fan Houllier was manager in my proudest moments as an LFC fan. It was unfortunate that his last two season here were poor by most people's admission, and in the end the decison to get rid of him had to be made.

however depsite Houllier leavibng on a somewhat sour note, I will always have respect for what he did at this club in his first 3 seasons in charge.

by **Dalglish** » Sat Nov 13, 2004 12:29 am

John Barnes' Granny wrote:There's an awful lot of hype about Benitez and a feel good factor around at the moment but I'll wager that if things don't work our we'll get the same reaction as Gerard Houllier got.

There is nothing as fickle as football fans.....except maybe Players, Agents , chairmen and the media !

by **JBG** » Sat Nov 13, 2004 12:34 am

This is not a criticism of Houllier but I personally think that Benitez has a harder job now than Houllier had.

Sure, there were a lot of bad eggs at Melwood that Houllier needed to sort out and a lot of the training facilities etc were antiquated which he modernised, but the gulf between us and the others is wider now than it was at the end of Evans' era.

The incredible spending power of Chelsea has changed everything, and with Arsenal's hugely ambitious new stadium, and the continuous power of Man UTD's wallet, we are a lot further behind in buying power than we were in 2000, for example.

I know we spent a lot of cash last summer but something tells me that we might see a big hole in next years books to account for that.

Benitez has an incredible record, but if he turns us into Championship contenders, he'll have done a good job.

by **Dalglish** » Sat Nov 13, 2004 12:41 am

I think his experience of competing with clubs in Spain with clubs with much larger spending powers willl stand him in good stead for the challenge........

by **A.B.** » Sat Nov 13, 2004 12:44 am

I think his experience of competing with clubs in Spain with clubs with much larger spending powers willl stand him in good stead for the challenge

I'm glad you mentioned that. You see Valencia promised Benitez money so he can buy players he needed but that did not happen. [That is one of the reasons why Benitez left Valencia]. The only thing Benitez could do is work with the players he had, and that he did. He turned them into champions.

by **Dalglish** » Sat Nov 13, 2004 12:51 am

Very true reagrding the lack of funds at Valencia...........He also lost a couple of big names immediately ion his arrival at Valencia (Akin to losing Owen at LFC) but he pushed on and Valencia went on to win the league. I'm not expecting history to repeat itself this season but you can sense there is a Rafalotion going on at Anfield ..I'm lucky enough to se it with my own eyes most weeks

Still much work to do but the signs are there ....

by **A.B.** » Sat Nov 13, 2004 12:54 am

"Impossible is nothing". I think with Benitez we can challenge the Premiership next year. Imo this year is a pre-season for next year's season if you know what I mean. What we do this year will help us next year.

by **JBG** » Sat Nov 13, 2004 12:54 am

However, to add some balance to the arguement, it must be remembered that Benitez inherited a very good side from Hector Cuper, a side that got to 2 Champions League finals.

His job at Liverpool is arguably more difficult, as in many respects, he is having to start from scratch.

Some of Cuper's star performers like Gerrard (not Stevie, the Spanish one!), Mendieta and Claudio Lopez moved on and Benitez spent the money Valencia received from them well, but he inherited a rock solid defence and kinetic midfield from Cuper.

He has some very good players at his disposal at Liverpool but if truth be told the squad he inherited in the summer was weak by Champions League standards, and it will take a lot of work to get it up to scratch.

Another factor which must be remembered about Benitez' tenure at Valencia is that Barcelona, one of Spain's big two, suffered a total collapse in 2001 until early 2004.

by **Dalglish** » Sat Nov 13, 2004 1:00 am

It's true that Valencia were a force in Europe when Benitez took over and it speaks volumes for the manager that he invested wisely with transfer funds.........His acquisition of Alonso for Liverpool will prove to be pivotal in my opinion. The Midfield at lFc needs some fine tuning and games under their belt, the forward line is something that needas adressing but (And I think many may be surprised by this) I believe defence is where our greatest weakness lies. Hyppia has had a poor season by his own standards, Josemi has faded after a good start and Traore , although vastly improves isn't assured of a regualr start. Only Carra is solid but even he alone can't stop Liverpool conceding in almost every game they play ......In all but 2 Prem games this season we have conceded which makes it harder to win games having to score at least twice with an inexperienced and injured forward line ........

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