Rodolfo Borrell and The Liverpool Philosophy

Many on here have questioned Rafas commitment to this club. Using the weakest squad we have had recently and a season ravaged by injury to justify their cries for Rafas head. Seeing how many clubs around us are now outpunching us in the transfer market it is only logical for Rafa to employ a different tactic to ensure long term success.

Enter the overhauled youth system. There has been a concentrated effort this year to integrate our youth and reserve teams more, with the focus being on talent development rather than winning trophies. We have stepped up our investment in finding the countries best youngsters, with the help of Rodolfo and his team, who were poached from Barcelona.

 Rafa keeps in constant contact with the youth and reserves, watching both teams. Even with the problems in the first team he hasnt lost his way, connecting the ideas from youth to first teams. Same shape, same philosophy, same football. It is allowing the youth players to step up to reserves and do themselves proud and it will allow the reserves to do them same. Thats why we use the same shape, same methods, same style of play to emulate the successfull Barcelona system where all teams use the same philosophy.

This is how committed Rafa is to this club. We may have had a bad season with the first team but all the foundations needed to make this club successfull in the long term are in place.

Think of that before you call for Rafas head next time and ask where will we be if he stays and we get some serious owners. Then we wont have to worry about lesser teams getting number 19 or 20

Interesting point Racer.

I dont want Rafas head- and i dont understand anyone who does!
Yeah sure he may not play the line-up we all want to see, make dodgy subs, etc etc.. but no-one thinks he knows more than what we do about individual players conditions.

I trust Rafa & the team to bring home number 19!

spot on. Its not just the 1st team Rafa is involved with.

Is right Racer, top post mate.

I think sometimes in a difficult season we can lose sight of the bigger picture. Hope this informs people that with the right owners Liverpool will become the best team in the world because all the ground work is done. All we need is some proper investment and a stadium to match the other European greats

Was looking forward to you making this point. Saw you refer to it earlier in another thread. For that reason, well done because it's a great point to make.

If the overhaul of staff wasn't enough to show his commitment to our youth then this surely does.

This has nothing to do with calling for Rafa's head or questioning Rafa's commitment to LFC:

How do we know that we're trying to emulate Barçelona in our academy? Just because we have one Rodolfo doesn't mean we will do what Barça have been doing for years. The truth is we don't know what he wants to do at Liverpool. We assume he will apply what he has been doing in Barça, but he may do things differently here than those he did in Spain. Premier League is not Spanish La Liga, the football style is different.

Personally I donot question Rafa's commitment, my only problem is we play crap football and losing or not winning. I seriously doubt his ability to win us the League, however I am not going to bet against him winning another Champions League before winning the league. Here in the league, you just have to get 6 or 7 points out of 9 in average.

We won't be able to get this 6 or 7 points every 3 games unless we are attacking, creating clear cut chances and not just half chances relying on Torres' accuracy only, when he's crooked we are too. Why can not we play every game like the one we played against Sunderland? Don't tell me that the players could not execute it, no! It is because the gaffer wants to play different games against different opponents and the players get lost! Misplacing passes, static movements, players do not know where their team mates are going/running, etc....

My points number7 are based on an interview that Rodolfo had with LFCTV not just random speculation on what might happen but the actual thoughts of one of the main men charged with overhauling our youth system. I have summarised the main points of his interview as I could not find the interview online

Fair enough racerx34.
Hopefully it works well in the end. At the moment, judging from the Academy's results we still have a long to catch up with his method. But this is his first year, so of course he has time in this side to make things right. A system won't be built in a season anyway.

If you had read my original post properly you would have seen it is not purely about results. We were well on course to titles this year but our most promising players have all been moved up a level to increase their development so you will find a lot of youth players have featured in the reserves. To say you will wait on results only indicates you missed the whole point of the article

I made this same point before in the thread about Juve wanting Rafa. Someone accused Rafa of being a control freak but I made the same point that it is important for him to be involved in the youth / reserve system so that they all play the same way and can adapt quickly when called upon for the first team.

Many on here have questioned Rafas commitment to this club. Using the weakest squad we have had recently and a season ravaged by injury to justify their cries for Rafas head. Seeing how many clubs around us are now outpunching us in the transfer market it is only logical for Rafa to employ a different tactic to ensure long term success.

Enter the overhauled youth system. There has been a concentrated effort this year to integrate our youth and reserve teams more, with the focus being on talent development rather than winning trophies. We have stepped up our investment in finding the countries best youngsters, with the help of Rodolfo and his team, who were poached from Barcelona.

 Rafa keeps in constant contact with the youth and reserves, watching both teams. Even with the problems in the first team he hasnt lost his way, connecting the ideas from youth to first teams. Same shape, same philosophy, same football. It is allowing the youth players to step up to reserves and do themselves proud and it will allow the reserves to do them same. Thats why we use the same shape, same methods, same style of play to emulate the successfull Barcelona system where all teams use the same philosophy.

This is how committed Rafa is to this club. We may have had a bad season with the first team but all the foundations needed to make this club successfull in the long term are in place.

Think of that before you call for Rafas head next time and ask where will we be if he stays and we get some serious owners. Then we wont have to worry about lesser teams getting number 19 or 20

You can throw in the new sports therapist in that mix too. Supposed to be one of the best.

Well this will sound like one of those "my best mates dog slept with rafas poodle and he said that..." but someone who I know is currently the manager of a youth team in a lower league team and he was interviewed at the beginning of the year for the liverpool youth team job. Whilst on the interview rafa came in the room and basically took over telling him exactly how he wants everything done all the way through from youth to first team.

My friend who was interviewed basically put across how passionate rafa was about where he wants the club to go. Something about counter attacking being a major factor too but cant remember what he said about that to be honest.

Well this will sound like one of those "my best mates dog slept with rafas poodle and he said that..." but someone who I know is currently the manager of a youth team in a lower league team and he was interviewed at the beginning of the year for the liverpool youth team job. Whilst on the interview rafa came in the room and basically took over telling him exactly how he wants everything done all the way through from youth to first team.

My friend who was interviewed basically put across how passionate rafa was about where he wants the club to go. Something about counter attacking being a major factor too but cant remember what he said about that to be honest.

Did he give your friend any tips on growing a goatee? 

Well this will sound like one of those "my best mates dog slept with rafas poodle and he said that..." but someone who I know is currently the manager of a youth team in a lower league team and he was interviewed at the beginning of the year for the liverpool youth team job. Whilst on the interview rafa came in the room and basically took over telling him exactly how he wants everything done all the way through from youth to first team.

My friend who was interviewed basically put across how passionate rafa was about where he wants the club to go. Something about counter attacking being a major factor too but cant remember what he said about that to be honest.

Damn you! Of course your now expected to go back to your mate, with pen and paper, and interview him yourself for more info on how he wants things run!

On another note, this is a very good point, if we can't compete financially, then this is the next best option, ideally we could do both, but for obvious reasons we can't.

Hopefully see some results soon.

He's had 6 years to build foundations
Also the "ravaged by injury" concept is a fallacy - our injuries have been no worse than those around us

He's had 6 years to build foundations
Also the "ravaged by injury" concept is a fallacy - our injuries have been no worse than those around us

dont know the exact figures but id be pretty confident that we have had a rougher season as far as key players go.

dont know the exact figures but id be pretty confident that we have had a rougher season as far as key players go.

Off the top of my head
Rooney, Rio, Vidic, VDS, Brown, Hardgreaves, Giggs, Owen
Essien, A.Cole, J.Cole, Bosingwa, carvalho
Van Persie, Fabregas, Gallas, Varmelen, Ramsey, Eduardo, Rosicky, Arshavin, Diaby, Walcott
(Agger, Skrtel, Johnson, Aqui, Torres, Aurelli0.....

Off the top of my head
Rooney, Rio, Vidic, VDS, Brown, Hardgreaves, Giggs, Owen
Essien, A.Cole, J.Cole, Bosingwa, carvalho
Van Persie, Fabregas, Gallas, Varmelen, Ramsey, Eduardo, Rosicky, Arshavin, Diaby, Walcott
(Agger, Skrtel, Johnson, Aqui, Torres, Aurelli0.....

ill pick me legs up shall I?

My points number7 are based on an interview that Rodolfo had with LFCTV

Do you have a link to that? It'd be interesting to watch/read. I tried to find it the other day but i didn't have time.

I must admit i think this academy restructuring and transfer activity does look promising and its certainly an area we could improve on. Would be good if Rafa's vision works out and we get a conveyer belt of talent like the La Masia.

Source: Liverpoolfc.tv
Rafa Benitez believes there are already signs that our new-look Academy is producing exciting talent.


The gaffer instigated big changes down in Kirkby last summer, with the likes of Frank McParland, Kenny Dalglish, Pep Segura and Rodolfo Borrell being drafted in.

One player they are nurturing is 15-year-old left-back Jack Robinson, who was invited to train with the first team last week.

Benitez is hopeful the teenager and several other Academy scholars will soon be ready to train regularly alongside the likes of Jamie Carragher and Steven Gerrard.

"Jack was okay," the boss told Liverpoolfc.tv. "He was a little bit shy at first, a little bit quiet. But the senior players were helping and supporting him. The first training session is never easy but little by little he was better.

"We have to go one step at a time, they have to progress through different teams, but it's always important to meet someone and give the others the message that they can progress if they're doing well. It's a good message for the others now because they have extra motivation.

"We didn't have too many players of the level we were expecting but now the atmosphere is really good and we have more players with quality.

"They have some players in each group and the other day I got a report with different names and different players - but still they are young so they have to keep working very hard if they want to be in the Reserves and then the first team."


Asked what changes had been made at the Academy since last summer, Benitez added: "When I talk with them it's clear they're doing a very good job and all the staff are working very hard to improve and change things. We are really pleased with them.

"We are trying for a different approach in training sessions. The mentality and the way they have to behave is more or less the same because it already wasn't bad.

"The technical plan and how to push the players is now a little bit better."

Off the top of my head
Rooney, Rio, Vidic, VDS, Brown, Hardgreaves, Giggs, Owen
Essien, A.Cole, J.Cole, Bosingwa, carvalho
Van Persie, Fabregas, Gallas, Varmelen, Ramsey, Eduardo, Rosicky, Arshavin, Diaby, Walcott
(Agger, Skrtel, Johnson, Aqui, Torres, Aurelli0.....

(Gerrard, Yossi, Riera) before Riera's outburst obviously.

I mean they must have been injured, they were having horse placenta rubbed all over them.

It's worth noting too at one point in the season, we had 11 first team players ruled out through injury, so I can't really call the injury situation a falacy.