Benitez slams liverpool flops - Fighting for their futures
Posted: Wed Feb 16, 2005 1:24 pmJust found thi article on the bbc website. All I'll say is about bl#ody time. Benitez has finally come out with what the majority of fans have been saying all season.
Benitez rounds on Liverpool flops
Liverpool manager Rafael Benitez has launched a stinging public attack on his players in the aftermath of the disappointing defeat at Birmingham.
Benitez's side lost the chance to make ground on Everton in the fight for a Champions League place in a 2-0 defeat.
And he told the Liverpool Echo: "I have come here to work hard and I expect everyone else to do the same.
"We must accept the Birmingham game was bad and not the kind of performance we want in future."
Benitez added: "I don't want to spend time here without trophies. It's not enough for me to see my side play well in one or two games. I want consistency and that means everyone working harder.
"I told the players this week that when I decided to join this club I took it on as a challenge. I have not come to Liverpool to earn money.
"We all have to accept responsibility and do everything we possibly can to make a strong team, not only in the future but from now."
Benitez added: "After the Birmingham game I felt very disappointed and it was the same the day after. I watched the video of the match and analysed what happened.
"On Monday we spoke to the players and told them we must change our mentality. You can't have a team which always plays good sometimes and bad others.
I don't want to spend time here without trophies
"What makes it worse is we went into the Birmingham game knowing Everton had lost earlier, so we had a chance to close the gap."
Benitez also insists players cannot use midweek internationals as an excuse for lack-lustre performances.
He said: "When the players go to their national teams, I think a lot of them lose their concentration.
"We have seen this before with the breaks. When they come back, we lose a game and I think it's a dangerous time for us.
"It shouldn't be like this. If you want to win trophies and play for a big club, you have to play important games all the time. Whether it's for the national team or Champions League, you have to reach a level and stay at it.
"We have accepted it was bad last weekend and now we must try to be positive about the future.
"There are eleven games left, five of which are at home against teams around us and fighting for fourth and fifth."
In my opinion, too many managers these days stick up for their players to the extreme, even when they have been sh#te, blaming too many games, tiredness etc. Sometimes you just have to be brutally honest.
Maybe this will give our players a kick up the backside. The next two games are going to define our season.
Benitez rounds on Liverpool flops
Liverpool manager Rafael Benitez has launched a stinging public attack on his players in the aftermath of the disappointing defeat at Birmingham.
Benitez's side lost the chance to make ground on Everton in the fight for a Champions League place in a 2-0 defeat.
And he told the Liverpool Echo: "I have come here to work hard and I expect everyone else to do the same.
"We must accept the Birmingham game was bad and not the kind of performance we want in future."
Benitez added: "I don't want to spend time here without trophies. It's not enough for me to see my side play well in one or two games. I want consistency and that means everyone working harder.
"I told the players this week that when I decided to join this club I took it on as a challenge. I have not come to Liverpool to earn money.
"We all have to accept responsibility and do everything we possibly can to make a strong team, not only in the future but from now."
Benitez added: "After the Birmingham game I felt very disappointed and it was the same the day after. I watched the video of the match and analysed what happened.
"On Monday we spoke to the players and told them we must change our mentality. You can't have a team which always plays good sometimes and bad others.
I don't want to spend time here without trophies
"What makes it worse is we went into the Birmingham game knowing Everton had lost earlier, so we had a chance to close the gap."
Benitez also insists players cannot use midweek internationals as an excuse for lack-lustre performances.
He said: "When the players go to their national teams, I think a lot of them lose their concentration.
"We have seen this before with the breaks. When they come back, we lose a game and I think it's a dangerous time for us.
"It shouldn't be like this. If you want to win trophies and play for a big club, you have to play important games all the time. Whether it's for the national team or Champions League, you have to reach a level and stay at it.
"We have accepted it was bad last weekend and now we must try to be positive about the future.
"There are eleven games left, five of which are at home against teams around us and fighting for fourth and fifth."
In my opinion, too many managers these days stick up for their players to the extreme, even when they have been sh#te, blaming too many games, tiredness etc. Sometimes you just have to be brutally honest.
Maybe this will give our players a kick up the backside. The next two games are going to define our season.
