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      Rafael Benitez Discussion Thread

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      Brian78
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      Re: Rafael Benitez Discussion Thread
      Reply #10373: Jan 17, 2022 02:37:38 pm
      Knew from the outset it would all go tits up!
      The f**king idiots blame the manager for not being able to achieve success overnight with a team that has been thrown together by an assortment of people over the years.

      Because of the pressures by the same f**king idiots any measure of success has proved as impossible as the target set for Rafa.
      How many years did we have to wait for our saviour?

      They are bunch of wankers, the 2 best players this season are the 2 rafa signed for a combined million

      Theyve spunked 500 million in a few seasons but its all Rafas fault....ignorant shower

      Mind you won one in 13 or something, not covered himself in glory either
      stuey
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      Re: Rafael Benitez Discussion Thread
      Reply #10374: Jan 17, 2022 02:41:19 pm
      They are bunch of wankers, the 2 best players this season are the 2 rafa signed for a combined million

      Theyve spunked 500 million in a few seasons but its all Rafas fault....ignorant shower

      Mind you won one in 13 or something, not covered himself in glory either

      All day Brian.
      racerx34
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      Re: Rafael Benitez Discussion Thread
      Reply #10375: Jan 17, 2022 02:49:37 pm
      Chelsea job. Everton job.
      Massive balls on Rafa.
      Doesn't seem to take in any of the fan hate at all.
      I suppose he'll probably maintain that injured players returning would have seen them right,
      but then we'll never know.
      Sometimes, like LFC last season with centre backs, you have to make the best of what you have.
      If the players do have an uplift in form following Rafa's departure than surely the club have bigger problems.
      AussieRed
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      Re: Rafael Benitez Discussion Thread
      Reply #10376: Jan 18, 2022 11:54:02 pm
      This is my 2nd fave photo of Rafa. First was him holding up Number 5

      But this one is awesome, just as they went 2-0 down..fkn classic!!!  :lmao: :lmao: :lmao: :lmao: :lmao: :lmao:

      Job done!  :D





      lfc across the water
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      Re: Rafael Benitez Discussion Thread
      Reply #10377: Jan 19, 2022 08:39:58 pm
      Quote from Aggerdoo
      I dont understand why he goes to clubs (since leaving us) where he is just not wanted or hated. Never seen a manager like that. Newcastle was an exception.

      Having said that, his sacking at Real Madrid was a joke. He lost 3 games only and had a 68% win rate. Pretty sure Real won a game 8-0 during his time there.

      And that wasnt enough to save him. Real were delighted to see him go. In came Zidane, and out came 3 consecutive European Cups. He meanwhile, managed to get himself relegated and wasted 3 years of his career fighting Mike Ashley.

      Most managers crave the chance to work with patient owners at stable clubs, willing to back them in the transfer market. Many of them have won major league titles in the past 18 years. Not him though. He's drawn to the clubs for the mayhem and the controversies and the confrontations, and the excuses and the protests, and eventually the sack. Every club he's turned up at, have seen the consequences of his rigid stale outdated ineffective safety first tactics on the pitch for themselves. So he gets the sack, as he has again.

      JĂŒrgen has now had 350 games in charge here. The contrast in the stats between them is stark. JĂŒrgen has more wins, more draws, less losses, more points, and a higher win %. He's also won more trophies, and had us League, European, and World Champions simultaneously. So he doesn't get payouts because he doesn't get sacked. He only does what we ask him to do.
      « Last Edit: Jan 20, 2022 07:26:12 am by lfc across the water »
      HUYTON RED
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      Re: Rafael Benitez Discussion Thread
      Reply #10378: Jan 20, 2022 07:07:07 pm
      And that wasnt enough to save him. Real were delighted to see him go. In came Zidane, and out came 3 consecutive European Cups. He meanwhile, managed to get himself relegated and wasted 3 years of his career fighting Mike Ashley.


      While also bringing through players that became mainstays of the team like Casemiro!! Christ you don't half talk sh*t at times.
      HUYTON RED
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      Re: Rafael Benitez Discussion Thread
      Reply #10379: May 15, 2022 02:02:39 am
      HUYTON RED
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      Re: Rafael Benitez Discussion Thread
      Reply #10380: Feb 19, 2023 01:16:53 pm
      Interview from the Guardian:

      Rafael Benítez: ‘When I see Ancelotti, we don’t talk about Istanbul much


      If I say Istanbul, he says Athens.” Rafa BenĂ­tez smiles. It is almost 18 years since Liverpool’s comeback against Milan in the 2005 Champions League final, but everywhere he goes, everyone he speaks to, it is always there. Well, almost everyone. “When I see Carlo Ancelotti we don’t talk about it much,” the former Liverpool manager says. “He doesn’t like talking about it and I don’t like talking about the final two years later. In Athens we were better and didn’t win; in Istanbul they had a great team and didn’t. That’s football.” 

       For BenĂ­tez, it is the moment and it helped form Ancelotti, who often cites that night as a lesson. “Experience is a rank,” BenĂ­tez says, a recurring theme soon revealing itself: the defence of a generation. Two years later, Ancelotti’s Milan team defeated Liverpool in the final. The Italian then won Madrid’s 10th European Cup, rescued by a 94th-minute goal, in 2014. And he travels to Anfield on Tuesday for the first leg of their last-16 tie defending probably the most extraordinary Champions League campaign there has been, a collection of ridiculous comebacks last season that lacked only an Istanbul at the end.

      “One thing that’s not up for discussion is that Istanbul was the best European Cup final in history in emotional terms and probably will be for many years,” BenĂ­tez says. “All those things. The atmosphere, the fans singing. [Gennaro] Gattuso: did he touch the cup? The turnaround. The amount of times I have been asked about half-time. That can never be repeated. And for both of us, it was an experience. I’m a better coach for it; a better coach now than I was years ago.”   

      There is a warmth as BenĂ­tez talks about Ancelotti, one year his senior and with a career path that crossed his, coaching at Madrid, Everton and Napoli. There is also a warmth for the clubs that meet this week and that made the greatest impact on him. There is an analysis to be made too, of course: there always is with him, coach by vocation, a man unable to sit still, a picture drawn up of the game he anticipates. It is only nine months since Liverpool and Madrid met in the final, but things look different now, especially at Anfield. Why? Context, BenĂ­tez says first: everything has to be analysed in context.     

      “This is a Liverpool team with injuries, not getting the results expected,” BenĂ­tez says. “Players like [Roberto] Firmino or [Diogo] Jota, who connected with [Mohamed] Salah, have been missing. The departures, especially [Sadio] ManĂ©, change the structure. Signings should compensate for that but Darwin NĂșñez or [Cody] Gakpo are different – especially NĂșñez, who moves into space more. No one expected Firmino and Jota to get injured at once and maybe that obliges you to accelerate a process.

      “Sometimes that’s good: I had RaĂșl at 17 and he went straight into the first team at Real Madrid. But there are other players who need time to mature. The demands are there though. They have to perform now and sometimes that pressure is too great, which can affect everything.

      “JĂŒrgen is still a great coach, but if you take away a series of important elements like [Virgil] van Dijk who gives you defensive solidity or ManĂ© then add the absence of Firmino and Jota, that’s going to be felt. The midfield has had to take on greater responsibility, a more central role. [Stefan] Bajcetic is playing very well and there are players who bring a freshness but you want veterans for them to develop alongside – like the transition with [Toni] Kroos and [Luka] Modric at Madrid. [Dani] Ceballos and [Federico] Valverde are fundamental too and maybe Liverpool lack those players having the time to develop.

      “At the same time Arsenal, [Manchester] City, [Manchester] United are growing, your objectives become harder to meet, and that can create nerves, doubts, a lack of confidence. Players start to commit errors and that brings insecurity. When you lose Van Dijk who was the player upon whom the defence was sustained, you start to doubt and when you start to doubt 
”

      So how do you fix that? “The only way to solve that problem is a good game, a good result. I think Everton was a key game that could be the starting point, the beginning of growth.

      “Klopp is a great coach who will recover the team and no one can question Ancelotti,” Benítez says. For a while, though, it appeared that they could question him. It is remarkable to think that, past 60, coaching at Everton, Ancelotti seemed lost to the European elite where his career had unfolded. A chance phone call about something else entirely brought him back to Madrid. Now he is a European champion with a record no one can match and even Brazil want him.

      “Ancelotti is a good coach wherever you put him,” Benítez says. “If you put him in at Brazil, with the tools they have, his ability and capacity to manage a group, he’ll do well. Of course he will be good for them. You say ‘disappeared’ before, but if you have coaches with experience – Ancelotti, Klopp, [Manuel] Pellegrini, [Luciano] Spalletti – and you give them the tools, they get results. Young coaches: maybe 5% can do it but others need time. That’s natural. Ancelotti has shown repeatedly that experience is a rank, a quality. There are so many good coaches we don’t value because they’re not in big leagues or [talked about] on social media.”

      Coaches like you? There is something in what BenĂ­tez says that feels as if it applies to him too, some sense that he has slipped from those conversations or the public eye, no longer seen as one of those managers linked to the biggest clubs: a little like Ancelotti a couple of years ago. Their shared club offers an example: Everton have not exactly improved since their departures. Does he feel like that? Yes, he does.   

       points off relegation with two games in hand having spent ÂŁ1.7m,” BenĂ­tez says, referring to his pre-season outlay. The spending started to become far more generous shortly before he was sacked and a year later, despite an outlay of more than ÂŁ100m, the club were in the relegation zone. “Where we had never been,” BenĂ­tez says. “They had signed 11 players. People said: ‘Yeah, but the errors of the past 
’ What errors of the past? Eleven signings is a new team. So, the feeling is that what was done is not valued enough because there isn’t a proper analysis.

      “You have the image of Istanbul, say, but there’s loads of work to get there. People say it was lucky. It’s not lucky. We had beaten Juventus, we had beaten Chelsea, we beat Milan, who were the best team around. You don’t win all those games through luck: you win through work, ability, tactical analysis, etc.

      “The problem is that everything moves on fast, [people say] you have to get a modern, attacking coach. I have the latest software and I analyse every game. I look at players and I learn every day. I am up to date with big data. Experienced coaches have more chance of being successful. Young coaches can succeed of course – I did at Valencia – but older coaches have more because they’re learning all the time. I am better than 10 years ago.”

      Talk returns to the Champions League and to the accusations faced by Juventus and Manchester City. Benítez suggests that financial fair play has offered control and protection but has to be looked at and “done differently so that the teams at the bottom can get closer to the teams at the top, “rather than having that distance growing all the time”. That, he suggests, creates a race and he adds: “If you go very fast with the car, OK, but if the police get a radar they can catch you. We have to let justice follow its path; we don’t have all the details.”

      City will of course be among the favourites, while the winner between Liverpool and Real, his former clubs, will be there too. Who then does Benítez see winning it? “I like Napoli,” he says. “People talk about Madrid, the usual teams. But Napoli are confident, playing well, strong in the league, so that’s not so much of a distraction, and the further they progress the more they will grow. And why not? I’m not saying they will win it, but why not?” Why indeed? After all, anything is possible and Rafa Benítez knows that better than anyone. Except Ancelotti.

      https://www.theguardian.com/football/2023/feb/19/rafael-benitez-when-i-see-ancelotti-we-dont-talk-about-istanbul-much
           
      PastorGeek
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      Re: Rafael Benitez Discussion Thread
      Reply #10381: Feb 28, 2023 06:20:14 pm
      dunlop liddell shankly
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      Re: Rafael Benitez Discussion Thread
      Reply #10382: Jun 20, 2023 12:46:36 pm
      Rafa For Celta
      Rafael Benitez has been out of work since being let go by Everton, but it appears he is not only ready to plunge back into management, but return to his native Spain for the first time since being sacked by Real Madrid.

      According to Relevo, Benitez is in talks with Celta Vigo to become their new manager. Os Celeste are looking to replace the outgoing Carlos Carvalhal with a manager possessing a reputation, and Benitez certainly has a long and storied career.

      The Madrid outlet claim negotiations have quickened and could even be settled as soon within the coming hours, although days are more likely. RadioMarca have claimed that the Galician side are also speaking to Marcelino Garcia Toral, while Albacete manager Ruben Albes and Andoni Iraola were linked too, before the latter was appointed by Bournemouth.

      Benitez would represent a rapid departure from the football that Celta have pursued in recent years. Carvalhal and Chacho Coudet have followed in a long line of coaches that prioritise pressing and open teams, whereas Benitez traditionally has been far more conservative with his choices.
      https://www.football-espana.net/2023/06/20/former-real-madrid-and-liverpool-manager-rafael-benitez-in-talks-for-shock-return-to-la-liga
      waltonl4
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      Re: Rafael Benitez Discussion Thread
      Reply #10383: Jun 20, 2023 06:34:47 pm
      still love the man what ever he does  wish him success
      dunlop liddell shankly
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      Re: Rafael Benitez Discussion Thread
      Reply #10384: Jun 24, 2023 02:55:08 pm
      Rafa Confirmed As Celta Manager
      Former Liverpool and Newcastle manager Rafael Benitez is returning to management after being named Celta Vigo boss.

      The 63-year-old Spaniard has been out of the game since being sacked by Everton in January 2022.

      Benitez, who also had a spell as interim boss at Chelsea, has agreed a three-year-deal at the La Liga club.

      He replaces Carlos Carvalhal, who left at the end of the season after helping Celta avoid relegation.

      Celta finished three points above the drop zone in 13th place, having beaten champions Barcelona on the final day to guarantee safety.

      The club said former Inter Milan, Real Madrid and Napoli manager Benitez "has extensive experience on the bench with a career that is difficult to match".

      Benitez won the 2005 Champions League and 2006 FA Cup with Liverpool and the 2013 Europa League during his interim spell at Chelsea. He also guided Newcastle to promotion from the Championship.
      https://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/football/65966383
      HUYTON RED
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      Re: Rafael Benitez Discussion Thread
      Reply #10385: Aug 06, 2023 04:30:54 pm
       â€œConfidence” tests and ‘rib-crushing’ Istanbul hug: What it was like working with Rafa Benitez

       A sports journalist who spent a year with Steven Gerrard has recounted the tales he experienced along the way, including a post-match moment with the Liverpool manager in Istanbul.

      Ned Boulting worked on a Sky One documentary titled ‘Steven Gerrard: A Year in My Life’ back in 2006 during what was perhaps the former skipper’s greatest period in a Liverpool shirt. 

       The production involved Gerrard being followed by a camera crew throughout the 2005/06 season, with staff members and teammates all involved in giving an insight into the former No. 8’s life.

      Speaking to This Is Anfield, Boulting recalled his encounters with Rafa Benitez, a man he spent a lot of time in the company of during the process.

      “The character from that squad that I got to know the best, by some distance, was Rafa Benitez,” Boulting explained.

      “Rafa was someone who loved an off-the-record briefing, so sometimes we’d finish filming and three-quarters of an hour later he still hadn’t left the room.

      "He was slagging off, sometimes Gerrard, he’d be slagging off players, he’d be saying this, that and the other behind their backs, but he was just testing you.

      “He was just floating these little things out there to see what you did with these nuggets of information. Whether or not you broke his confidence.”

      Boulting also revealed that he was the first person to receive a hug from Benitez following Liverpool’s penalty shootout win over AC Milan in Istanbul.

      “I was standing right next to the Liverpool dugout effectively and Benitez, within seconds, turned around to hug somebody, anybody. It didn’t matter who it was and it happened to be me,” Boulting continued. 

       â€œI almost got my ribs crushed by Rafa Benitez in that moment where it all came right for him!”

      It is a fascinating story about a man who very rarely showed outward emotion during his time on the touchline at Anfield.

      https://www.thisisanfield.com/2023/08/confidence-tests-and-rib-crushing-istanbul-hug-what-it-was-like-working-with-rafa-benitez/
      HScRed1
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      Re: Rafael Benitez Discussion Thread
      Reply #10386: Nov 24, 2023 12:16:01 pm
      Has had a torrid time since starting at Celta, wonder if it’s time to probably retire from management.
      Gill95
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      Re: Rafael Benitez Discussion Thread
      Reply #10387: Nov 24, 2023 12:55:20 pm
      Has had a torrid time since starting at Celta, wonder if it’s time to probably retire from management.
      Theyve been unlucky in past matches though, red card in almost all games, last minute penalty getting chalked off against Sevilla, Aspas missing penalty when the game was 3-3 in 80th minute against Bilbao ,90th minute outside box goal against Girona, few minutes after their own goal was VAR'd. I think theyll bounce back this season.

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