Posted: Fri Oct 05, 2007 1:38 pm
Smeg wrote:AB's Red Army wrote:"rafa upsetting the players by leaving them out when its clear that mash can do a better job than leto, lmao get real you idiot."
1. I'm interested to how is it that you know that players are upset leaving them out? It's a well known fact that Benitez uses a rotation system, this was pointed out to the players when we signed them and those who were there before Benitez arrived.
2. What does Mascherano have to do with Sebastian Leto? Mascherano is a holding midfielder, Leto is a winger. I fail to see what the correspondence between the two is.
Mascherano has been poor since he's come back from the International break.
I take it you're speaking from experience A.B.?
No?
Didn't think so.
Experience of playing at even the lowest levels of the game can help you learn things. For a start...
At the start of this season, my sunday league team manager told me I wouldn't play every game this season as he's going to rotate the squad, we have 18 regulars.
We started the season with a 3-1 loss. We were awful. We then won 6 games on the bounce with our lowest victory being a 4-1 win. We beat top of the league, third and bottom in the period. Myself scoring 4 goals.
You then come to the seventh game and your manager says, right, these aren't the best team in the league, we're going to give one of the other lads a game today... straight away you're off at being left out for an inferior player. I can tell you now, last week I felt like packing in playing when he said that... but I could live with it if they go out and win, I was just hoping the text would come to say we won.
What really grates players and fans is when they don't win.
We drew 1-1. I was left out after scoring 4 in 6 and 3 man of the matches for a player who was weak and not suited to the type of game. When I got the text, I was absoloutely livid. It really me off to be quite honest that I'd been left out, especially after a decent run of form for both myself and the team.
Can you imagine how these players feel when this happens professionally? I'd go absoloutely mental myself if i'd scored a hatrick, took the then was on the bench the next game for someone who isn't half the player, the fact that we then don't win would probably drive me insane.
These lads are human, they have human emotions no matter how much they get paid. Its demoralising when things like that happen. Ask anyone with any experience what so ever.
Fair points raised, no argument there.
My point though Stu is that the majority of these players should be accustomed to this by now. Most of them have been playing under Benitez for more than one season to understand how the system works.
Would I be upset if I were in your situation for example? Sure I would. It's only human as you pointed out.
At the same time you have someone like Peter Crouch, who was a fking nobody a couple of seasons ago playing for Southampton and Portsmouth. Benitez brought him in to all of our amusment, sticked by him through the roughest patches and proved to be useful in certain of our games.
Now here we are two seasons later and he's having a dig at Rafa's rotation at every opportune moment it seems.
Personally I think this is down to his ego. I think the ''success'' he had with England has gone to his head, and now he believes that he's better than he really is. He now believes that he should play in every game, when in reality he should be grateful to even be on a Liverpool bench.
I understand if the new players get upset with the rotation [although it would surprise me if the manager didn't explain this to them before they were signed] but I would find it strange for players who have been here for a while to feel that disappointed regarding being left out.
At the end of the season the vast majority play a fair number of games.
Perhaps because I haven't been in a similar position even in a sunday league as you have, my understanding of this particular issue is biased if you will.
I don't know really.
In regards to rotation, I think there are some faults to it like there are with most things. However I personally don't put the blame alone on rotation and Benitez.
Not to say that they aren't part of it, but I've really been disappointed with the lack of effort that we as a team have put in the last several games.