Rafael Benitez Discussion Thread

Chelsea where he did a 6 month stint saw him lift the UEFA Cup & qualify for CL spot when they looked like imploding..

They didn't. They looked like they would go out of the European Cup at the group phase, and the owner acted as he usually does when that is at risk. Conte was the latest to pay the price for it.

His weekly park the bus shows has won the grand total of 0 games so far. He really doesn't have to be that conservative, seriously. They have some ability and have shown what they do have, when Plan A goes wrong and the bus then has to start crossing the halfway line. Then when they get something, the bus is firmly parked back in it's original space again. Seriously, I would hate to have to watch that muck week in week out. 6 years was more than long enough.

10 years ago this weekend, I sat through a rotten, sterile, borefest at home to Stoke, like the rest of us. If they were playing til now, it would still be 0-0. After the West Ham borefest a few weeks later, the fans who turned up made their feelings about what they had to sit through, loud and clear. We fell 4 points short in the end, there they are.

Today, it's Newcastle fans who have to put up with his idea of "controlling the game". They once got Dalglish fired because his football wasn't considered fun enough, so they're mad to put up with that useless, unsuccessful, 19% possession football now imo.

bad enough having to read this crap from him but do we have to have it posted twice.

What is the "Right Environment"..?? Napoli, Inter,Real, Valencia, Liverpool...??
He spend most of his time at these clubs constantly moaning about not been given enough money to buy the players he wanted, and when he was given the money wasting huge chucks of it on players he then claimed he did not want ...
Inter sacked him partly for trying the same thing directly after they won the Super Cup...

Chelsea was always a standing job, but i have no doubt had he been given the role on a permanent basis he would have done the same, claimed that he was not being given the money to spend on players he wanted, until the Roman go rid. Hence the reason he took the role at Newcastle, no team top wanted him, he had to gamble on taking a lower club, hoping he could bring them success and in the meantime rescue his flagging managerial career

Won a trophy at every single club Rafa has managed..

Liverpool record speaks for itself prior to H&G.

Promised fresh signings at Inter, They never delivered.

Napoli,Sarri can’t thank him enough for the team he left for him to manage..

Roman loved him the fans never..

Newcastle supporters love him,Finished 10th in the PL with a championship team..

Ask Pep, Jose, Klopp to manage a team like Newcastle & they would turn them down on the spot..

Won a trophy at every single club Rafa has managed..

In the cases of Inter Milan, it was a Serie A, Coppa Italia, CL winning and a runners up in the Supercoppa Italiana squad left to him by Jose Mourinho.

Real Madrid one of two top sides in Spain and Europa, even Woy could have won titles and cups with them...

Liverpool CL win win a Gérard Houllier squad, followed be a Cup win with one of his squads nothing after that

Chelsea A steering Job, no real in put team wise

I'll give him Napoli and Valencia

Liverpool record speaks for itself prior to H&G.

What The CL win with Houllier men?... or the one real Cup he can claim to have won... The FA Cup?

Promised fresh signings at Inter, They never delivered.

Choosing to make that allegation on live TV after winning the Club World Cup, trying to turn the supporters against the owners, much like he did at Liverpool and was sacked for it

Napoli,Sarri can’t thank him enough for the team he left for him to manage..

Roman loved him the fans never..

Newcastle supporters love him,Finished 10th in the PL with a championship team..

Valencia

Benítez fell out with Jesús García Pitarch, the club's director of football, over control of new signings and the club's failure to reinforce the squad with the players he wanted.

Liverpool

Benítez still appeared to be at odds with Liverpool's owners, publicly turning down a contract extension and demanding more control over transfers

Inter

Buoyed by the Club World Cup victory, he told the European champions to back him with new signings or consider whether they wanted to keep him as coach, despite the side having won the treble only a few months earlier. Benítez's demands were dismissed out of hand by the Inter ownership, with Massimo Moratti refusing to comment on Benítez's continued employment by the club.[51][52] On 23 December, Benítez was dismissed by Inter

Chelsea

Benítez heavily criticised the Chelsea board for giving him the title of "interim manager"

Napoli

Real
Benítez's contract was terminated following allegations of unpopularity with supporters, displeasure with players


Did you notice the patterns there...?

Joins a club, and then stars demands ever more money to spend on players...Waste most of it, and demands more... Tries to put pressure on the owners, using the supporters by making public statements as to how the owners are failing to invest in players... Poor Man management skills... alienates players

A divisive and Fan manipulating figure at any of the Clubs that you have named and very much so at Liverpool

Ask Pep, Jose, Klopp to manage a team like Newcastle & they would turn them down on the spot..

Managers who have not put themselves in to a position where none of the top to mid table teams in Europa would not want to hire them. Respect managers by owners who can work within their systems

Jesus Christ are spanners still trying to twist Rafas accomplishments

How the hell can people dismiss the CL win and say it was with “GH men”

In the summer he lost one of the biggest players in the squad in Owen and also bought one of the best players the club has seen in Xabi - Rafa deserves all the credit given to him for that CL win in 05 and if you were there like a lot of us were then you might understand - to even try and twist it to remove credit it from him is someone with a clear grudge and also someone not having a clue. Sad - have a word with yourself.

Liverpool CL win win a Gérard Houllier squad, followed be a Cup win with one of his squads nothing after that

F**k off you absolute F***ing southern dickhead. So the fella gets no credit for bringing in Garcia or Alonso who had massive parts to play in us getting to Istanbul and winning the F***ing thing.

Any so-called Liverpool fan throwing this sh*t at the fella who won number 5 is a F***ing traitor and not to be trusted.

THE END!!

Jesus Christ are spanners still trying to twist Rafas accomplishments

How the hell can people dismiss the CL win and say it was with “GH men”

In the summer he lost one of the biggest players in the squad in Owen and also bought one of the best players the club has seen in Xabi - Rafa deserves all the credit given to him for that CL win in 05 and if you were there like a lot of us were then you might understand - to even try and twist it to remove credit it from him is someone with a clear grudge and also someone not having a clue. Sad - have a word with yourself.

So Rafa plays two player in a squad that was made up of mainly players the GH had bought  and the 11 players (No thanks to Rafa) pull it back to 3-3, and with Milan reeling in shock, what does your vaunted Rafa do... Tell the players to go for the jugular... No, he tell them to sit back and defend, and we let Milan back into the Game... I love the win as much as anyone, but I do not deluded myself about what happened that night...
Didi change the game for us. Said so right after the match when most was saying that it was Steve Gerrard and It was not down to "managerial brilliants" by Benitez, he believed the game had past us by... It was partly because AC sat back and partly the players on the pitch.... Rafa's management had f**k all to do with It...

Now I have always given him his due, that he has put together some wonderful teams for us... BUT give that after getting rid of nearly all of GH men  what did he win after that...? F**k all

He abused, Bullied and belittled players Babel, Riera, Benayoun, and Alonso, and that's just the ones we know of.That was part of the reason Alonso when.


You can believe that Rafa was the second coming if you wish. I don't where Liverpool red tinted glass... I see him for what he is...

So Rafa plays two player in a squad that was made up of mainly players the GH had bought  and the 11 players (No thanks to Rafa) pull it back to 3-3, and with Milan reeling in shock, what does your vaunted Rafa do... Tell the players to go for the jugular... No, he tell them to sit back and defend, and we let Milan back into the Game... I love the win as much as anyone, but I do not deluded myself about what happened that night...
Didi change the game for us. Said so right after the match when most was saying that it was Steve Gerrard and It was not down to "managerial brilliants" by Benitez, he believed the game had past us by... It was partly because AC sat back and partly the players on the pitch.... Rafa's management had f**k all to do with It...

Now I have always given him his due, that he has put together some wonderful teams for us... BUT give that after getting rid of nearly all of GH men  what did he win after that...? F**k all

He abused, Bullied and belittled players Babel, Riera, Benayoun, and Alonso, and that's just the ones we know of.That was part of the reason Alonso when.


You can believe that Rafa was the second coming if you wish. I don't where Liverpool red tinted glass... I see him for what he is...

Yep certainly a grudge there - did he sleep with your wife or something

That’s got to be the biggest pile of bitter sh*te i have read in my life , that the sort of pathetic bile you can read from those spanner’s over the park or the sh*te up the M62 ( that’s the road to Manchester as I guess you are not from the area ) .

I went to a lot of the Houlier era games and at the end the atmosphere in the ground was like a morgue.
When Rafa came in things changed a lot and for the better and the Kop was buzzing. 3 semi finals of the CL two finals Fa  Cup and League cup finals we are only just now getting back to that sort of level of success.
I see Rafa for what he is to me and I remember being in Everton Valley absolutely cram packed with REDS all the way down to
 Lime Street it was one of the greatest nights in my life even better than the night before because I was with 500,000 Liverpool supporters celebrating our club getting back to the very top of European football. Its just plain wrong to sully those wonderful memories .

Its just plain wrong to sully those wonderful memories .

It's plain weird as well.

I've said it before but we've got some right weirdos following the club at the moment.

Suck the enjoyment out of anything.

It's plain weird as well.

I've said it before but we've got some right weirdos following the club at the moment.

Suck the enjoyment out of anything.

It really saddens me that people keep pulling the mans legacy apart he deserves better and if you cant say anything good say nothing at all.
I wonder if the origin of the posters who despise him has to do with his treatment of Robbie Keane.

F**k off you absolute f**king southern dickhead. So the fella gets no credit for bringing in Garcia or Alonso who had massive parts to play in us getting to Istanbul and winning the f**king thing.

Any so-called Liverpool fan throwing this sh*t at the fella who won number 5 is a f**king traitor and not to be trusted.

THE END!!

You Sound like a bexit bitcher with the "f**king traitor" bollocks and as for spell out " THE END!!" a little news for you.... That does not mean that you have won the topic

And yes I have given him credit for Alonso and Garica and thier parts in getting us to the finals, but you seem to forget that others, Houllier signs played thier parts too

In the group stages it was goal from Cissé, Baroš,Sinama Pongolle, Mellor, and Gerrard that saw us through to the knock out stages with them we do not progress

And yes Garcia scores a plenty in the knock out stages, but players like Riise, Hamann, Hyypiä, Baroš all playing thier part
As much as you would like to make it about Rafa's Management of Liverpool It simple is no so

The more players Rafa bought in the further away we got from win anything, dispute the team being better, that's the simple truth

Yep certainly a grudge there - did he sleep with your wife or something

That’s got to be the biggest pile of bitter sh*te i have read in my life , that the sort of pathetic bile you can read from those spanner’s over the park or the sh*te up the M62 ( that’s the road to Manchester as I guess you are not from the area ) .

Love the way you argue the facts... 10/10 

It's plain weird as well.

I've said it before but we've got some right weirdos following the club at the moment.

Suck the enjoyment out of anything.

Now I understand and respect where Walton is coming from on this, not sure where you are coming from...

But I believe that no one should tell another supporter how to support the Club, or which manager they should rate or not... The fact that i do not rate Rafa as highly as someone else does not make me a "Spanner" or a "weirdo"...

It just makes me someone who does not rate Rafa

Love the way you argue the facts... 10/10 

Do you want facts

Here is one

Rafa was the manager when Liverpool won the CL - GH wasn’t , it’s F***ing irrelevant who signed who , under GH they didn’t win the CL so Rafa managed to improve those players and add in further signings to take the club - through the group stage , into the KO and then onto the final and he was the manager when they won the Final. That’s the only fact that matters - Rafa was the manager who managed to get Dudek , Traore , Biscan , le Tallec etc some truely poor players - playing well enough to win the biggest prize in club football , he managed it when we lost a player early in the first half , he was manager when we went down 3 nil , he was manager when they got back to 3-3 , he was manager when they won on penalties and he was manager when they lifted the trophy. That is the only facts that matter - anything is else is pure bitterness and truely embrassing from a Liverpool fan - Next you will be trying to take the shine of Kennys double because it was with Joe’s players. Proper spanner

Rafa was manager when we won CL in 2005 , just like Joe was in 84 and Bob in 77,78 and 81 - no one can ever take that away from them.

Benítez won 56% of games, to Houllier’s 50%.
Benítez averaged 72 points a season, the 4th-highest in Premier League history out of those who have managed for more than two seasons; Houllier averaged 65, ranking 9th, behind Roy Evans, his predecessor. Benítez easily has the highest Liverpool average since Kenny Dalglish, and unlike Houllier, improved on his predecessor’s tally.
Houllier’s best season was 2nd, with 80 points; Benítez’s 2nd, with 86 points. (Houllier’s best season also happened to be the one of which he missed almost half, due to a serious heart complaint; results picked up as soon as he fell ill, perhaps due to a “do it for the boss” reaction, which gradually wore off. In fairness, it was his team, but Phil Thompson was doing the legwork.)
Benítez made it to three Champions League semi-finals and two finals, to Houllier’s none. But Houllier did win more League Cups

Do you want facts

Here is one

Rafa was the manager when Liverpool won the CL - GH wasn’t , it’s f**king irrelevant who signed who , under GH they didn’t win the CL so Rafa managed to improve those players and add in further signings to take the club - through the group stage , into the KO and then onto the final and he was the manager when they won the Final. That’s the only fact that matters - Rafa was the manager who managed to get Dudek , Traore , Biscan , le Tallec etc some truely poor players - playing well enough to win the biggest prize in club football , he managed it when we lost a player early in the first half , he was manager when we went down 3 nil , he was manager when they got back to 3-3 , he was manager when they won on penalties and he was manager when they lifted the trophy. That is the only facts that matter - anything is else is pure bitterness and truely embrassing from a Liverpool fan - Next you will be trying to take the shine of Kennys double because it was with Joe’s players. Proper spanner

Rafa was manager when we won CL in 2005 , just like Joe was in 84 and Bob in 77,78 and 81 - no one can ever take that away from them.

Yes to all of the above for being factual except for the embolden part, again simple not true

Yes to all of the above for being factual except for the embolden part, again simple not true

So how come you don’t tbink the same about Kenny in 86 ? It was mainly Joes squad he won with - are you going to be as disrespectful to his achievements as you are to Rafas ? Surely you won’t be hypocritical

So how come you don’t tbink the same about Kenny in 86 ? It was mainly Joes squad he won with - are you going to be as disrespectful to his achievements as you are to Rafas ? Surely you won’t be hypocritical

It is more about some of you believing that Rafa was one of the greatest Liverpool managers and then trying to ram that down the throats of for people like me who don't believe he was...

Your buying to the "it was all Hick & Gillette's fault" when it was just as much Rafa as it was Hicks & Gillette, yes celebrate what he achieved for the Club, but also see his faults...

As I have all ways given him credit for was he put together some great teams for us, but had he concerted on the football side of things and forget about trying to get ever larger amounts of money to spend and bought Quality over Quantity both he and the club may have won much thorphies  than he actually did...

You mention that you thought it was bitterness, tbh, in one way that has an element of truth. for with the teams we had we should have won more, and did not purely down to both Rafa's overly defensive style of football, and his constant obsession with money from Hicks & Gillette
 
Said what I feel... Have to go eat... enjoy the rest of your evening

Benítez won 56% of games, to Houllier’s 50%.
Benítez averaged 72 points a season, the 4th-highest in Premier League history out of those who have managed for more than two seasons; Houllier averaged 65, ranking 9th, behind Roy Evans, his predecessor. Benítez easily has the highest Liverpool average since Kenny Dalglish, and unlike Houllier, improved on his predecessor’s tally.
Houllier’s best season was 2nd, with 80 points; Benítez’s 2nd, with 86 points. (Houllier’s best season also happened to be the one of which he missed almost half, due to a serious heart complaint; results picked up as soon as he fell ill, perhaps due to a “do it for the boss” reaction, which gradually wore off. In fairness, it was his team, but Phil Thompson was doing the legwork.)
Benítez made it to three Champions League semi-finals and two finals, to Houllier’s none. But Houllier did win more League Cups

Sorry just before i go eat, wanted to comment on this.... Was funny because when they (The Club) said that they were parting with Houllier I was quite hopping that they would give the job to Phil Thompson, he did really well when Houllier was in Hospital, and played Fowler when Houllier won't

It is more about some of you believing that Rafa was one of the greatest Liverpool managers and then trying to ram that down the throats of for people like me who don't believe he was...

Your buying to the "it was all Hick & Gillette's fault" when it was just as much Rafa as it was Hicks & Gillette, yes celebrate what he achieved for the Club, but also see his faults...

As I have all ways given him credit for was he put together some great teams for us, but had he concerted on the football side of things and forget about trying to get ever larger amounts of money to spend and bought Quality over Quantity both he and the club may have won much thorphies  than he actually did...

You mention that you thought it was bitterness, tbh, in one way that has an element of truth. for with the teams we had we should have won more, and did not purely down to both Rafa's overly defensive style of football, and his constant obsession with money from Hicks & Gillette
 
Said what I feel... Have to go eat... enjoy the rest of your evening

I didn’t say any of that tripe you’re going on about - I just find it quite sad and pathetic that supposed Liverpool fans attempt to take the gloss of a manager who gave us one of our best nights in our history - he deserves to be along the greats for that win - simple.

Rafa wanted and needed backing - the team did need more than what the two cowboys gave him - the list of players we could have had with the right backing was a long one and Rafa was right to fight against two guys who were ruining our club.

Rafa should be remembered for the acheivements he gained - a CL , if people want to focus on the negative then yes I believe it’s bitterness that you would see from the sh*te over the park and down the road - not from Liverpool fans. Rafa won us three trophies and got us to a number of other finals - with the right backing he would have achieved more but we have moved on now - for 90% of the fans ( 100% of the match going ones and ones that live on or near the city ) will remember him for that night - the other bitter sad acts will concentrate on the missed chances to reinforce their bitterness

According to official UEFA rankings Liverpool FC are back in top position in the list of European Clubs after their fine start to the European campaign this season.
The UEFA coefficient data ranks teams based on results and standard of opposition in European competitions over 5 seasons. (or since Rafa arrived).
1 Liverpool FC (114.077)
2 Chelsea FC (110.077)
3 Barcelona (109.403)
4 AC Milan (109.306)
5 Arsenal (101.077)
6 Sevilla (100.403)
7 Man Utd (99.077)
8 Bayern Munich (93.664)
9 Lyon (90.576)
10 Inter Milan (87.306)
Liverpool also have the highest ranking for this present season with (18.1775 points) closely followed by Bayern Munich, who handed out a 5-0 demolition at Sporting Lisbon tonight.
Everton are ranked 54th, 5 places behind Bolton and 16 places behind Middlesbrough.
the above from 2009
You can say you don't like Rafa although without ever meeting him I find this a bit bizzare.
If you are going to attack his record then you have to do the same with managers before and after his tenure.
I would like those people attacking Rafa to be honest and admit what is behind their attacks because you simply cant attack his record it is tight up there with the best.

I didn’t say any of that tripe you’re going on about - I just find it quite sad and pathetic that supposed Liverpool fans attempt to take the gloss of a manager who gave us one of our best nights in our history - he deserves to be along the greats for that win - simple.

Rafa wanted and needed backing - the team did need more than what the two cowboys gave him - the list of players we could have had with the right backing was a long one and Rafa was right to fight against two guys who were ruining our club.

Rafa should be remembered for the acheivements he gained - a CL , if people want to focus on the negative then yes I believe it’s bitterness that you would see from the sh*te over the park and down the road - not from Liverpool fans. Rafa won us three trophies and got us to a number of other finals - with the right backing he would have achieved more but we have moved on now - for 90% of the fans ( 100% of the match going ones and ones that live on or near the city ) will remember him for that night - the other bitter sad acts will concentrate on the missed chances to reinforce their bitterness

Try reading my post....
The only thing i attributed to you was the fact you mentioned "Bitterness" in your post

As for the supported Liverpool fan bit, you or no one else can tell me how i should support My team, Liverpool FC...

And putting the word "simple" does not validate any claim that you make...

If you want, No, Need to believe all the hype about Rafa, then it is your prerogative, just done try selling it to me...

Oh yes!! please note that despite all the insult you choose to level at me I did not return any at you.... My point... I can disagree and debate something with someone without feeling that by insult someone scores me more point or makes my case any stronger. In my mind if you have to resort to claiming someone should go support another tine , or they are not a real fan, you have already lost the debate....