Liverpool FC Forum

[112-1077774096]

Rafael Benitez will mount his own inquest into Liverpool's likely title failure.

The Reds face a home Barclays Premier League game on Tuesday night against Sunderland knowing they are seven points behind leaders Manchester United, who have a game in hand after Liverpool's disastrous defeat at Middlesbrough on Saturday.

The title race is all but over, with Liverpool having won only two of their last seven league games.

Now the recriminations will start, and boss Benitez makes it plain his own inquest will be far-reaching.

When asked on Monday at a gloomy media conference if he will look at individual players, the tactics and himself, the answer was clear: "At everybody."

Benitez accepts that confidence must be raised this week, beginning with a good performance against Sunderland to send the side into next Tuesday's Champions League last-16 second-leg clash at home to Real Madrid in the right frame of mind.

If Liverpool go out of Europe - they hold a 1-0 lead from last week's first-leg victory at the Bernabeu - their season will be effectively over.

They face a battle to finish in the top two of the league and automatically qualify for the Champions League, with Chelsea in second on goal difference and Aston Villa breathing down their necks.

"We have talked about the mistakes we made (at Middlesbrough) and the future," said Benitez. "And the immediate future is playing Sunderland, trying to get three points and then waiting to see what happens with Manchester United.

"The title was difficult before; it is more difficult now. What we have to do is take our chances, and that is something that has been the same problem the whole season."

Fernando Torres will again be missing with an ankle injury while full-back Alvaro Arbeloa is out with a hamstring problem.

Benitez said: "We have to keep going. We are disappointed so we will try to win the next game and then have a week to plan for Real Madrid.

"We can still progress in the Champions League and it still gives us the chance of a trophy.

"We must keep going in the title race, to try to win each game as it comes along.

"Now we have the opportunity against Sunderland to do things right, to be able to approach the Real Madrid second leg with confidence. We have to remain positive.

"We have learned we must be more clinical, to finish games when you have chances."

He added: "But we must not forget that our league performance is better than last season.

"But still we have to improve. Yes, we have had key players injured and maybe that could have cost us four or five points.

"In this title race that would be a massive difference. We are in a good position but we could be in a much better position."

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he can save time by just looking in the mirror

[ConnO'var]

If you tally up the votes.... its a close call sabre..... almost a clean 50-50 split from 10-6 and 5-0.
In all my time on this forum, never has any one particular issue polarized the members as the Rafa issue.

I've lost count of the number of the quarrels, spats, accusations and counter accusations, sniping, bans etc etc that has arised because of it. Not even the end of the Houllier reign brought so much drama..... it's like freakin' Dallas!

Yes, who wins is not important. What it's important (IMHO mate) is to realise that we shouldn't polarise too much, and when both sides start accussing the others or complaining, realise that we're probably exagerating.

Sometimes you see so much criticism, that much of it you don't agree it and defend Rafa from that. Since you are defending Rafa a lot of time, people may think wrongly that you are happy with dissapointing results or are not able to see mistakes.

Similarly, we have learned in the poll that most of the antis say good bye with an amigo, so being an anti, doesn't mean they hate Rafa.

Believe it or not this poll meant to show that we're not that different all of us. 

Agreed....

But if there's one thing I've learned is that language is a powerful medium when read as compared to when spoken in terms of the possibility of misinterpretation. The element that comes with human contact in a discussion often soften the meaning of the words as they are accompanied with a smile, a sarky tone, body language etc.

If you were a friend and he called you a feckin' kunt to your face..... you'd be able to decide fairly quickly on the appropriate response because of what your other senses tell you in addition to the words. In a medium like the written one which has to be used in any forum over the net..... words become more powerful as you have no other means to formulate an interpretation except with words. It's worse when language is also a barrier..... where tonality plays an equally important role.

So I guess, all I'm saying is for everyone to chill out and assume the positive slant when certain things are written..... Easier said than done though innit..

[Homebooby]

Always on the optimistic side me. I think that truly we don't know what has been going on behind closed doors for some years and I am putting my faith in the fact that Rafa has sacrificed short term gain for hopefully long term benefit of the club.

i am arguing today that his somewhat questionable choices of players and rotation is the equivalent of a bog standard manager getting tickets into the system to justify more headcount (bear with me  )

Although many on here shout about the amount of money he has had to spend etc and the apparant lack of depth he has achieved with it, others have also highlighted a lot of choices that he lost out on as well due to other reasons (parry for instance). Each year he gets the same money, same restrictions which means he isn't competitive in the market and doesn't have the autonomy to get what he targets, that is the story right?

Arguably it is fair comment to see him use his squad completely in the same way as other managers too and he has a point to prove that he doesn't have enough depth and achieves that by showing its' weaknesses and going to the source of the problem.

I've battled with the 'play your strongest team' argument as I tend to agree with that too. The only thing that I can think of here is what would the benefit of winning the league with a depleted squad and playing your top 11 guys to death? My guess is no additional money and the argument ' you did it last year, go do it again' coming back to him. You could argue that this is what has happened to Wenger and you see how they are slipping further and further away at the moment.

Optimistically, I am gonna put forward this post and prepare to be called an idiot by all and sundry. 


So an 8 for me with the whole that he Spinal Taps' himself and goes to 11.

[mistyred]

Cheers Saint i love points are they transferable?.

[redbeergoggles]

If certain posters had their way ,we the less informative members would be subjected to a continual loop of back slapping ,and how that merryground would revolve, n revolve ,n ................

[Judge]

Cheers Saint i love points are they transferable?.

only by google mate

[maguskwt]

32 pro, 6 on the fence, 28 anti

pros win....

[REDTILLDEAD]

We never wanted Keane and had to get rid. Rafa needs one more season with his 'complete control' to show us he can win it.

    yeah....right

fk off redtildead you complete and utter numpty 

What fukkin stone did you crawl from?.....you toe rag!.....since when has anything you said ever made sense?.....another nerd wearing "rose tinted glasses".

[account deleted by request]

A great vote of confidence that mate. Less than half the votes are in support of Rafa.

[dawson99]

i make it 32 for, 25 against. thats a massive gap

[account deleted by request]

i make it 32 for, 25 against. thats a massive gap

O.J.Simpson got a better split than that mate....... and everyone knew he was guilty . 

[Sabre]

i make it 32 for, 25 against. thats a massive gap

. I thought that under this bliiip there could be a chance of an interesting win over the antis.

Just ask again when we win 3 games in a row  It would be a boring poll!

Who cares really 

[dawson99]

i make it 32 for, 25 against. thats a massive gap

. I thought that under this bliiip there could be a chance of an interesting win over the antis.

Just ask again when we win 3 games in a row  It would be a boring poll!

Who cares really 

yeah, the pros become mroe pro and same with antis... all fun

[Raffmaker]

I thought all Rafas posts were now going to be consolidated!|??

worrying.

[Effes]

Look at Rafa's reign, and what he's won or nearly won.

He's a cup manager, it's plain to see.