Garry macca: rafa was wrong!
Posted: Sat Feb 19, 2005 9:54 amFormer Liverpool midfielder Gary McAllister believes Rafael Benitez was wrong to allow Stephane Henchoz to leave the club.
The Swiss international was off-loaded to Celtic by Rafa during the January transfer window, a decision which not only mystified us, but also the former Scotland skipper.
McAllister said: "I was only at Liverpool for a short period, just two seasons. But, during that time, Stephane Henchoz was an ever present in our back four and I got to know his game well.
"He was solid and consistent. He was not a spectacular player by any means. There are not many oohs and aahs from the crowd when Stephane is on the ball. But that is no bad thing for a defender.
"He just does his job well and with the minimum of fuss. He doesn't get flustered, he doesn't make bad decisions, he doesn't put a foot wrong. In fact, he is a bit of a rock. He is ice cool.
"For some reason Stephane fell out of favour at Liverpool when the new manager came in. I can't understand it. The only reason I can think of is perhaps his age counted against him. Stephane is 30 now and maybe Benitez was looking for a younger player. [ED: The 33-year old Pellegrino?] But he hasn't brought anybody else in to replace him and he has pushed Jamie Carragher into his position in central defence. It doesn't make sense to me.
"Stephane played in just about every game when we won the Treble back in 2001. Along with Sami Hyypia they formed a very solid defence for Liverpool that proved vital to our success.
"He was also helped by having Dietmar Hamann sitting in very close in front of the defence. He dropped back from midfield and formed a triangle with Stephane and Sami.
"That is similar to how Celtic play with Neil Lennon just in front of the defenders. Plus, we played with a back four under Gerard Houllier. That is how Martin O'Neill likes his team to play too. Stephane prefers that and feels comfortable with it.
"Stephane is quiet quite. But he is very much the silent assassin. At that time, I was carrying around my old legs during the week after a game. Believe me, Stephane was a guy I kept well clear of in training. He gets involved in the physical side of the game and that quality will stand him in good stead in the Old Firm game.
"When you are away on a lot of European trips and are preparing for cup finals, you get to know guys quite well. Stephane is a nice guy and will be a good lad for Celtic."
The Swiss international was off-loaded to Celtic by Rafa during the January transfer window, a decision which not only mystified us, but also the former Scotland skipper.
McAllister said: "I was only at Liverpool for a short period, just two seasons. But, during that time, Stephane Henchoz was an ever present in our back four and I got to know his game well.
"He was solid and consistent. He was not a spectacular player by any means. There are not many oohs and aahs from the crowd when Stephane is on the ball. But that is no bad thing for a defender.
"He just does his job well and with the minimum of fuss. He doesn't get flustered, he doesn't make bad decisions, he doesn't put a foot wrong. In fact, he is a bit of a rock. He is ice cool.
"For some reason Stephane fell out of favour at Liverpool when the new manager came in. I can't understand it. The only reason I can think of is perhaps his age counted against him. Stephane is 30 now and maybe Benitez was looking for a younger player. [ED: The 33-year old Pellegrino?] But he hasn't brought anybody else in to replace him and he has pushed Jamie Carragher into his position in central defence. It doesn't make sense to me.
"Stephane played in just about every game when we won the Treble back in 2001. Along with Sami Hyypia they formed a very solid defence for Liverpool that proved vital to our success.
"He was also helped by having Dietmar Hamann sitting in very close in front of the defence. He dropped back from midfield and formed a triangle with Stephane and Sami.
"That is similar to how Celtic play with Neil Lennon just in front of the defenders. Plus, we played with a back four under Gerard Houllier. That is how Martin O'Neill likes his team to play too. Stephane prefers that and feels comfortable with it.
"Stephane is quiet quite. But he is very much the silent assassin. At that time, I was carrying around my old legs during the week after a game. Believe me, Stephane was a guy I kept well clear of in training. He gets involved in the physical side of the game and that quality will stand him in good stead in the Old Firm game.
"When you are away on a lot of European trips and are preparing for cup finals, you get to know guys quite well. Stephane is a nice guy and will be a good lad for Celtic."
