Benitez sparks another bout of verbal jousting over Malouda (The Times)
http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/sport/football/premier_league/article2280396.eceJosĂŠ Mourinho may claim to have mellowed over the summer, but his new-found calm has been tested before Chelseaâs visit to Liverpool tomorrow, with his team accused of lacking âsparkâ and Rafael BenĂtez suggesting that Florent Malouda was seduced by money when rejecting Anfield for Stamford Bridge this summer.
BenĂtez stopped short of accusing Malouda of greed, but the Liverpool manager left little doubt about why he feels that the former Lyons winger moved to London rather than Merseyside last month. Malouda, having indicated that he would join Liverpool, is understood to have phoned BenĂtez to explain his decision after opting to join Chelsea in a ÂŁ13.5 million transfer, but BenĂtez, unimpressed, implied yesterday that he was not prepared to match Chelseaâs wage offer for a player whose attitude he had begun to question.
âWe try to sign players we think are good enough for us,â BenĂtez said. âNow in modern football it depends on the money. Some players prefer more money and itâs something you cannot control. You must only pay the money you can afford and the right money for each player. We can compete with other teams in the market if we want, but we will only pay the right money for the right players.
âMalouda was one of our names, but he decided to go to Chelsea. He knows why. The lifestyle in London? I donât think so. I donât want to say why, but I know the answer.â The comments about Malouda were symptomatic of BenĂtezâs willingness to engage in verbal warfare with Mourinho in a way that he has not attempted with his other rivals. A familiar dig, one that he repeated yesterday, is that âRoman Abramovich has done a fantastic job for Chelseaâ, implying that the billionaire owner is the biggest reason for their success, while Mourinhoâs claims to have mellowed were treated with disdain.
âHe forgets when he starts talking about us and then sometimes he recovers his memory,â BenĂtez said. âHe was talking about us again in the summer. Maybe he will start thinking about his team now.â
Mourinho will not take kindly to BenĂtezâs interference because he resents the Spaniardâs oft-repeated insinuation that Chelsea have bought success, being at great pains to point out that Liverpool and Manchester United have spent far more than the West London club this summer, with Malouda the clubâs only signing who cost a fee.
The Portuguese will be equally affronted by the accusation from Javier Mascherano, the Liverpool mid-field player, that Chelsea lack spark. Neither team have hit top form in winning their first two matches this season, but Mascherano believes that Chelsea should be worried before their arrival at Anfield.
âWe are playing a lot better than Chelsea at the moment,â he said. âI have seen some of Chelseaâs games this season and they do not seem to have the same spark as in other years. There is no doubt that Liverpool are the favourites.â
Chelsea should put up more of a fight than on their previous visit to Anfield in the league, last January, when their injury-ravaged team surrendered 2-0. Mourinho will welcome back John Terry for his first game of the season after a knee injury and Michael Essien is in contention after a knee problem, but Ricardo Carvalho has been ruled out with a bruised hip.
Not too sure why Benitez gets so involved in all the verbal stuff - he only ever does it with Mourinho. Fairly sure all his comments this time will have done is to provoke Malouda in to performing well.
Not too sure about the wisdom of this Rafa, or even what point you are trying to make.