You talk of giving Benitez more time, but how long do you feel he should be given?

Look at the players Arsenal have been using to threaten to win the league this season. Many of them have been brought in during the same period Benitez has been at Liverpool, and aside from Toure the regulars only arrived one year before Rafa came to Liverpool.

This suggests to me that five years is enough time to assemble a squad capable of *challenging* in the League. If Liverpool are off the pace this time next year, then Benitez should be shown the door.

Posted by: Dickie | January 30, 2008 11:38 PM

Right now I'm saying until the end of the season, Dickie. If, heaven forbid, we shouldn't qualify for the Champions League I think that would have to be curtains for him. That kind of financial blow at the end of a season which began with a record spending spree would, in all probability, leave the Yanks no choice.

But he has to have until at least then. Our only real hopes of glory are in the Champions League and the FA Cup - two tournaments Rafa does know how to win. A new man would not come in now and win us the title and certainly wouldn't be able to guarantee success in the cups.

Rafa, whatever you think, is the best option we have between now and the end of this campaign. Thereafter? Who knows...

Posted by: Adam Pies | January 30, 2008 11:47 PM

I don't want to say I told you so, but I have written about the possibility of Rafa being the problem before.

Think about what Rafa has done since he's been here. He's won the Champions League and FA Cup, and thats about all that really matters. So far he's brought in some horrible players (Morientes, Cisse, Gonzalez) and some fairly successful players (Torres, perhaps Babel). But as the squad has become more and more what he says he wants, we've gotten worse and worse. I'm going to go ahead and say that Rafa does not know how to win the Premier League. While he excelled in the Spanish leagues and Champions League, he's simply not cut out to win here.

Though most of you probably don't know this, the National Football League in America has had a team go 18-0 this year, which is better than any other team in history. While they have talented players, their coach (Bill Bellicheck) is a genius about the game, and takes completely useless players from other teams and makes them useful.

My point is this is what Liverpool needs. We need a manager who can adjust to the strengths of his players, instead of forcing them to play under their strategy. With some young talents on our squad like Babel and Lucas we need to bring in a manager who can see how they play, and put them in a position where they can play their best.

Posted by: Nathan | January 31, 2008 5:49 AM

Liverpool is always known to very leanient towards their management structure, however if a problem can be pointed out, that should be corrected as soon as possible before further damaged is caused to the club's morale. Rafa has the neccesary resources available to him, in that he has the calibre of players who could win the league. He however chooses not to utilize his resources effectively. Torres is an excellent player but he needs "a Crouch" to take some pressure of him and Rafa chooses not to utilize Crouch who is an excellent player in his own right. I feel Rafa does not have it to step up to the Jose's, the Ferguson's or the Wenger's in this highly demanding league. My feeling is that Rafa should be replaced by someone who could restore this Liverpool FC to it's previous glory days as soon as possible as "procrastination is the thief of time"

Posted by: Jerome | January 31, 2008 10:02 AM

While he keeps picking Kuyt & Kewell, his exit seems to becoming ever nearer !!!!!

Posted by: Deano | January 31, 2008 12:16 PM

Rafa has to abolish his rotation policy.He must have the best 11 on the field.He has spent enough money on flops.Kuyt is a joke,can't pass a ball, can't dribble,most of the time gets in the way of his players,yet gets a start ahead of Babel.Rafa talks about confidence in his players,but he is taking that away by rotating the players.If the best 11 is on the field at all times,the understanding will grow,and they will have confidence in each other.Riise,Kuyt and Voronin should be sold.Le Tallec should be brought back with Nabil El Zhar.These two are very exciting players,why pay millions for flops.Rafa wake up,or you'll be gone.Over 3 years in charge and going backwards.

Posted by: FBI SAM | January 31, 2008 1:44 PM

I agree with Nathan I do not believe that he is cut out to win the premiership. However, I think the loss of Pako is now really showing up. I am not sure that Rafa has the man management skills required to motivate this team which, on paper should not only be in the top four but also challenging them as well.

However, the most baffling decision that Rafa has been making lately is the inability to play crouch. Even with his rotation policy, crouch surely should be playing more. He may not possess pace (neither does Kuyt) but he will cause problems and does have good touch and skill, something that has deserted Kuyt at the moment. Lets not forget he scored in his last two games and strikers thrive on confidence.

I want to see Rafa turn this around, but only until the end of the season and if he is not convincing (meaning we qualify in fourth quite comfortably) then we should look elsewhere for manager and preferably owners as well. Not since the days of Houlliers 11 game without a win have I felt so resigned and empty at watching my beloved reds play.

Posted by: kazza | January 31, 2008 2:12 PM