Liverpool FC Forum

teamleader1 wrote:Agree, excellent post

But blind faith until the end of the season might have us 3 seasons behind Utd & Chelsea!

Redman in wales wrote:just read a really good post on raw, which kinda sums up how a lot of reds are feeling at the moment

credit to Zeus for this one:

I love Rafa Benitez, I really do. I think he has done a hell of a lot for this club, despite what the media have said about him the last five plus years since he’s been in the job. However I must admit I am finding that my affection for him is turning into more anger recently. I think this is mainly down to frustration, with the current season and the decisions Rafa has been making this season and the past.

I think it is important fans support the manager and team, especially at games, as that is what ‘supporters’ should do. By contrast I also think it is essential that fans, the ones who care deeply about the club and spend a hell lot of their time and money on it, are honest about their feelings and what they do and don’t like about what is happening at the club. There is no point in showing blind faith in managers, players or anyone involved at the club as that does no one any favours as we should all have the same goal – What is best for Liverpool Football Club.

I think there is no doubt that when Rafa has all his first eleven on the pitch we will give any team a ****** good game and if we could keep it fit for the majority of the season, challenge for the title - as we showed last season. However it is clear that there seems to be a big gap in certain parts of the squad between the first choice players and the backup. Now this can be argued that this is simply down to lack of money, however after spending 220+ million on players and having five+ years in the job I think a lot fans find this hard to swallow.

But this topic is not really about how well Benitez has (or hasn’t) invested into the club with the resources he has had available, we have enough of those topics on here. It is more down to the other aspect of Benitez’s job which money and resources aren’t a factor.

For example, I don’t think it is down to a lack of resources the fact we are out of the title, the Champions League and League Cup - before December. I also don’t think resources influence the fact Benitez:

- Will insist on playing Kuyt, every game, regardless of his form.

- Continue to play a Lucas / Mascherano combination, one which the majority of fans don’t think has enough quality on the ball.

- Is reluctant to make a substitution before 60 minutes.

- We are arguably the most vulnerable team at defending set plays and have been for the last two seasons.

- The team are extremely poor at attacking set plays, in particular corners, something we have been poor for over five years.

- The fact behind Torres, the options upfront are either poor (Voronin / Babel) or young (Ngog) and not good enough to be back up at Liverpool Football Club.

Now I could go on, but I don’t want to look like I am bashing Rafa for the sake of bashing him, as that is easy to do when we have had a poor start to the season. It is important we should not forget all the good Benitez has brought to the club:

- Signing Torres, Reina, Mascherano, Alonso, Agger and Joihnson. All top players.

- Winning the Champions League, The FA Cup, The Community Shield, The Super Cup and taking the team to their best challenge in Premier League history.

Given he has ‘tweedle dee’ and ‘tweedle dumb’ as owners and got little help from Parry along the way – these are superb achievements.
However let’s be honest I could probably write a similar list of poor signings, baffling decisions, odd substitutions, random team selections, playing players in the wrong position, zonal marking, poor league positions etc. Which suggests he hasn’t exactly been setting the world alight before this season and the current problems in the team and at the club aren’t exactly ’one-offs’ and down to a poor run of injuries.

My heart is currently saying I want to back Benitez to the full. He is the right man to do this job, as he loves the club and has done a lot for it. Yet my head is saying if I judge him overall I would say that he isn’t getting enough oiut of the current set of players and the club would be better off with some who picks the right teams, sorts out the set plays, players the players in the right position, signs another striker and picks players on form rather than reputation etc etc.

I am totally confused and I don’t like the fact that I am turning against Rafa. This happened with Houiller, where I would support him, yet by the end of his reign I was showing blind faith rather than believing in his methods and that he was the right man to take the club further.

Is anyone else feeling the way I do? As I can’t choose between my head and my heart. I guess I’ll just keep showing faith in Benitez until the end of the season and then judge him again. But It is hard to justify Benitez at times and see reasoning in his decisions and methods, but I’ll keep trying while he’s at the club, despite how hard he makes it at times.

bigmick wrote:People have bought into this idea that it's all about the tiniest details, a misplaced pass here, an extra couple of centimetres in a jump there. To an extent it is, but it's also about a manager inspiring a bunch of players (good word that, "inspiring") to perform over and above their abilities.

Look at the Mancs this season. They've lost Ronaldo who love him or hate him was a fecking unbelieveable player for them. They've lost Tevez who was absolutely top quality. They replaced them with Antonio Valencia from Wigan, and Michael Owen on a free. They've had Ferdinand injured all season, Hargreaves injured for years, Scholes and Neville well past their best, Van Der Sar injured for most of the season, Vidic injured and well off colour, Berbatov not really firing, Anderson and Nani not really doing it etc etc etc etc. We gave them a good hiding at Anfield, and here they are right up there with Chelsea. Are they a great team? Are they feck. Are they miles better than us? Ditto.

The main difference it seems to me is that they are performing above and beyond their capabilities and we are performing well below ours. It's not about details in this situation, it's about inspiration. We ain't got none I'm afraid and the therefore it's the bloke who's job it is to inspire the players who is most at fault.

kalos wrote:With the team it is down to burdening themselves with weight of expectation to a large degree in my opinion.

Is anyone else sick at the beginning of every season reading about half a dozen so players bleating on about how we have a "great chance" and "no excuses" this coming season.

When in the 70's , 80's did you ever here such posturing ? Answer - Never. The guys got on with the business of winning football matches.

What seems to have happned here is that the team thought they were going to win the league in 09-10 because of a purple patch last year and then form day 1 and defeat 1 at Tottentham have been tentaive and afraid of losing again - this has cost us repeatedly as they play with no "freedom" like they did at the end of last season.

The team need to forget about talking titles -I for one do NOT want any LFC player to even give an interview about the prospects for 2010-11 - just go and play football and bring home what should belong here.

JohnBull wrote:We must be up to "Plan Z" by now and no doubt we'll start back on "Plan A" next week.

How did we get too plan Z when we have been led to believe we don't have a plan B

lakes10 wrote:not many fans will suport him if we only have 6 win in 20 games.

Do you know what Lake's ,for someone who claims to have a huge inside knowledge of the inner sanctum of Anfield ,due to his vast circle of acquaintances ...... your understanding of the term support is vague to say the least and this statement provides the proof ,if indeed any were needed .

I think what is most baffling to you and your ilk ,is you cannot see any tangible reason why fans continue to back Rafa ,and that in itself is galling to you ,so on this occasion allow me the opportunity to voice my personal feeling on the matter ,and that is as follows : While Rafa is at the helm of this seriously rocking ship ,I will back him to the hilt because I believe him to be the man to steer us back on course ,and if them vile Yankees  happen to win this particular battle and oust Benitez
then I will expect this club to go into freefall, and then you Lake's can delight and enthral us with inside stories of administration and how Klinsman is  losing the dressing room           or maybe how Mourinho has walked after only two weeks as Liverpool manager due to not being allocated sufficient funds by the owners   

redbeergoggles wrote:

lakes10 wrote:not many fans will suport him if we only have 6 win in 20 games.

Do you know what Lake's ,for someone who claims to have a huge inside knowledge of the inner sanctum of Anfield ,due to his vast circle of acquaintances ...... your understanding of the term support is vague to say the least and this statement provides the proof ,if indeed any were needed .

I think what is most baffling to you and your ilk ,is you cannot see any tangible reason why fans continue to back Rafa ,and that in itself is galling to you ,so on this occasion allow me the opportunity to voice my personal feeling on the matter ,and that is as follows : While Rafa is at the helm of this seriously rocking ship ,I will back him to the hilt because I believe him to be the man to steer us back on course ,and if them vile Yankees  happen to win this particular battle and oust Benitez
then I will expect this club to go into freefall, and then you Lake's can delight and enthral us with inside stories of administration and how Klinsman is  losing the dressing room           or maybe how Mourinho has walked after only two weeks as Liverpool manager due to not being allocated sufficient funds by the owners   

redbeergoggles wrote:I'm getting fed up now Red , Its been a depressing place even to view and not post lately, might be time to abdicate ,you never know maybe there exists out there a place were supporters actually post about supporting the club , it seems in cyberspace we our becoming a dying breed Red,  maybe I should leave it to the more impatient among us ,to drench the forum with their Rafa out threads ,lets face it our proud history of being the  most knowledgeable fans in football is safe in their hands (Isn't it ? ) ....