Goals from Casemiro and a deflection from Marcus Rashford put the Red Devils 2-0 up at half-time . Rafa Benitez spent six years at Liverpool before a shorter stint as Everton manager (PA) Rafa Benitez has admitted that he has split loyalties ahead of the Merseyside derby, refusing to. "I will remember Liverpool fondly as a success but not the situation I've found myself in. Yes, I would have if I were not present at the delivery. While Premier League Team A vs Premier League Team B is meant to be the main attraction of the Sky Sports show . Among those Bentez sold was Craig Bellamy, who was notably phased out of the first team following an altercation with John Arne Riise in the buildup to Liverpool's remarkable victory over Barcelona in the Camp Nou en route to the Champions League final. Liverpool actually failed to find a buyer for Riera before Benitez left the club in the summer of 2010, but he was sold by successor Roy Hodgson to Olympiacos that July in a 5m deal. Classy timing'.". Bentez still appeared to be at odds with Liverpool's owners, publicly turning down a contract extension and demanding more control over transfers. [127], Bentez has had confrontations with both Jos Mourinho (Chelsea manager from 2004 to 2007) and Manchester United's Sir Alex Ferguson during his time in English football. Yet he scored just one Premier League goal in the second half of the season and was sold to Aston Villa in. [131] In his 2013 autobiography, Ferguson said that "Benitez bought badly and made the feud personal". Gillett declared himself delighted with the manager of his new investment, as Bentez overcame his domestic difficulties to lead Liverpool to another Champions League final. Benitez picked up 13 points from his nine Premier League matches in charge on Everton's own turf - the same amount of points as Lampard has picked up. Ill get 800,000, great, but I cant spend it today and Ill be five months without an experienced reserve goalkeeper. "Rafa is a top manager and he's proven that. Cisse admitted, after joining Marseille on loan, that he did hold a grudge against Benitez for forcing him out. Yet he would return to Spurs just seven months later, and at an 8m loss, having quickly fallen out of favour under Benitez. I couldn't say at the time, but I knew this was my last season at Liverpool and I wanted a special end. Which Liverpool player do you wish Rafa Benitez had never sold? "It is good for Liverpool that Benitez has gone, but it was too late for me. [92] Benitez didn't take part in the lap of honour after the match, but many fans showed their appreciation for his efforts during the season, a notable contrast to the hostile reception he received before. [110], Newcastle ended the season with a six match unbeaten run, including a 51 final day win over third-place Tottenham Hotspur. My objective is to go to the World Cup and for this I have to play. "[14], One of Bentez's first tasks at Liverpool was to convince club captain Steven Gerrard not to move to Chelsea. ", "Rafael Benitez's Istanbul memories | Tactics, Gerrard switch and trophy lift", "Motion expert says Garcia's shot did cross the line", "Top 20 sporting moments of the decade: Liverpool's 'Miracle of Istanbul', "Benitez Uncovered: Inside The Dressing Room On That Amazing Night In Istanbul", "Rafa's Boys: How Successful Was Benitez in the Transfer Market? The 61-year-old also won La Liga with Valencia and has collected trophies at Inter Milan, Napoli, and Newcastle United. "Right now the only market open is the Russian one, I have offers from two teams and, looking at my situation, that has made me reflect a lot.". [30], Liverpool made a good start to the 200708 season, topping the Premier League table for the first time under Bentez after a comprehensive 60 win over Derby County. But once Benitez had decided to sacrifice Alonso to bring in Barry, the writing was on the wall. There's some speculation about what might have been said at half-time to spark a much better second half - collectively, and from certain individuals. [44] Bentez defended his decisions, arguing Liverpool's slow start was due to key players such as Steven Gerrard being below par.[45]. He started to get up to go but I told him to wait for a second. 4y Dave Usher. This means that we may include adverts from us and third parties based on our knowledge of you. [citation needed], However, Liverpool's poor results in the New Year led to a sharper focus on Bentez, who had missed Liverpool's draw at Arsenal in December due to an operation to remove kidney stones. John Barnes is more worried about Manchester United coming to Liverpool on Sunday than he has been in recent times. And Babel has since described his relationship with his first Reds manager as weird, repeating pointing the finger of blame at Benitez for the fact he was unable to push on on Merseyside. Rafa Benitez believes Real Madrid's Santiago Bernabeu stadium could be key to who wins their Champions League clash with Liverpool. Rafa Benitez News: Latest updates after Everton sacking - Mail Online I've got two or three possibilities already and things are starting to move behind the scenes.". Only then will I be better than I am now. [61] Buoyed by the Club World Cup victory, he told the European champions to back him with new signings or consider whether they wanted to keep him as coach, despite the side having won the treble only a few months earlier. Liverpool came from 20 down and were losing 32 in stoppage time when Steven Gerrard scored a dramatic late equalizer. The former Reds captain says in his new autobiography that tactically the Spaniard was . The young Dutchman enjoyed an impressive first season at Anfield under Benitez, but would later find himself often out of favour under the Spaniard as his starting opportunities in the following years. It was as if the fans' reaction worked against me. Signed in an 8m from Espanyol in the summer of 2008, he featured regularly in his first season with the club as Liverpool fell narrowly short in the Premier League title-race. Also added was England defender Glen Johnson for a 17.5million fee. [6], In 1986, at the age of 26, Bentez returned to Real Madrid to join the club's coaching staff. I didnt know what to do, I didnt want to leave! [19], In a classic final, dubbed the Miracle of Istanbul, Liverpool came from 30 down at half time to level the score at 33 in the space of just six minutes, eventually triumphing 32 on penalties with the assistance of goalkeeper Jerzy Dudek. GAMEWEEK 7 - DISCUSSION, RANT & INFO THREAD. []419HbFo[] - 419 I'm a total fan of his tactical methods, and have read a lot about it. Rafael Bentez - Wikipedia "I'm the king of the exiles here so, as far as I'm concerned, it's finished for me at Liverpool," he said. [9], Valencia fans also were soon won over by Bentez after he introduced a more attacking style of play than his predecessor, Cper. Such a revelation damaged Bentez's relations with the Americans, with constant rumours linking the Spaniard with a move back to Real Madrid. [144], Bentez instigated a host of backroom changes at the end of the 200809 season to improve the club's youth development, including the appointment of club legend Kenny Dalglish in a senior role at the academy. So (journalists) put some words in my mouth saying that the person who was responsible for me not being included in the Spain squad was Rafa. The 37-year-old, who retired at the end of an unsuccessful Ashes tour of England in 2015, said he would consider returning in any capacity to help out Cricket Australia (CA)."I would do anything to 419HbFo help the Australian cricket team," he told Australia's Daily Telegraph newspaper on Sunday. Liverpools hero in Istanbul for the 2005 Champions League final, Jerzy Dudeks reward was to be relegated to the clubs back-up goalkeeper just months later following the arrival of Pepe Reina. Liverpool host Real on Tuesday night in the first leg of their. Bentez stands by his tactic, pointing out that teams who man-mark concede just as many, if not more, goals from set pieces. "It was for the Champions League quarter-final squad against Inter," Alonso said. That exchange took place just days into his Liverpool career and involved Benitez asking him to write down his misdemeanours and faults. It says plenty about the dysfunction at the club that days later, Benitez has gone. Mr Benitez relinquishes his position as team manager after six years and the Board of Directors would. From the latest transfers and match reports to training ground gossip and the running of the game, bridgeviews.co.uk offers a different perspective. [49] The club subsequently exited the UEFA Europa League at the hands of Atltico Madrid. Im still trying to come to terms with the disappointment of whats just happened and now you tell me you want to get rid of me. Another altercation between Bellamy and Benitez would take place in the Spaniards office after the Welshman was fined for taking a penalty against Birmingham City when Robbie Fowler had been the designated taker. The Reds moved to six points adrift of fourth place after a 2-0 victory over Newcastle United. Not quite fitting into the Reds favoured system, failing to forge a successful partnership with Fernando Torres and not being suited to lead the line when the Spaniard was injured all contributed to his premature departure. He also won the FA Cup in 2006 and reached the 2007 Champions League Final, but was unable to win the Premier League, with Liverpool's best league performance under Bentez a second-place finish in 200809. 'He was around 10m': Rafa Benitez says he nearly signed Brazil legend for Liverpool Charles Jones 4 days ago Speaking on the Official Liverpool FC Podcast, Rafa Benitez has been. It was either his way or no way. It was, in my opinion, a weird relationship (with Benitez) because when he signed me I looked at him as the big uncle who wanted to give me a chance and help me succeed," he told the Guardian. He told me I was a better player as a substitute instead of starting in the team. [58], By December 2010, Inter had slumped to sixth in Serie A, 13 points adrift of the top (although Inter played two games less), having suffered consecutive defeats against arch rivals Milan (which ended a 46 match unbeaten home record),[59] Chievo and Lazio, as well as losing at Tottenham Hotspur in the Champions League, leading to speculation that Bentez's position was under threat. They stopped me from being free. Leaving for Celtic in January, he was not happy with how Benitez had treated him at all. Bentez, however, did reach his first English domestic cup final, losing the League Cup final against Chelsea at the Millennium Stadium 32 after extra time.[17]. - Heart stops when I see the draw for the semi finals of the league and we drew Cardiff. Ralf Rangnick may yet be right about Liverpool and Man United as Jurgen Klopp sends subtle transfer warning, Manchester United are having a better season that Liverpool, that cannot be questioned, but Theo Squires wonders whether there has been a long-term power shift, Roberto Firmino's agent breaks silence on 'unbelievably emotional' Liverpool exit, Roberto Firmino refused to hold talks with other clubs before deciding his Liverpool future, according to his agent, Liverpool predicted line-up for Manchester United as Jurgen Klopp makes two huge calls, How Liverpool could line up against Manchester United at Anfield on Sunday afternoon in the Premier League, John Barnes makes 'worried' Liverpool v Manchester United admission and Mohamed Salah goals point. Footballers love seeing a bit of confrontation on the training ground! I would be against myself if I made such a decision. "I was furious with him, absolutely fuming, and in my head I could hear a devilish voice saying punch him in the face punch him in the face and hell let you go to Germany. On 21 August 2010, Bentez won his first trophy as manager, the Italian Super Cup, after they defeated Roma 31. In 2000, he was appointed manager of Tenerife of the Segunda Divisin and with a team that included Mista, Curro Torres and Luis Garca, he gained promotion to La Liga by finishing third in the league behind Sevilla and Real Betis. "No-one's shown me any respect and Rafael Bentez, since his arrival, has treated me as if I was the dumbest of the dumb. On two occasions early last season, against Fulham and Lyon, the fans booed when I was subbed. If you want to go and speak to other clubs, thats fine'. It was a privilege for me to play for such a great club in front of great fans. Half time: Liverpool 0-0 Wolves - redandwhitekop.com "We have not had any talk about why it is. He had to protect his interests, but it was hard to be on the receiving end of it., Knowing he would leave Liverpool at the end of his contract in 2007, Dudek at the time said Benitez had treated him like a slave.. But I want Liverpool fans to know the truth and for them to know I made up my mind to leave a long time ago because of Benitez.