EPL Talk » Football Managers

Is Rafa Headed Out the Door?

Eric Altshule — Tue, 17 Nov 2009 18:34:32 +0000

Rafa Benitez gave a bizarre interview to the Times yesterday, and Liverpool fans should be worried that the pressure may be getting the better of their leader. When a manager spends time talking about the support he is getting from the management, threatening to quit, and talking about the legacy he wants to leave behind, he sounds less like a manager worried about this weekend’s game against Man City and more like a man who wants to put this whole mess behind him.

The Benitez model of management was always about thrusting your entire stack of chips into the middle of the table. With a modestly sized stadium and owners who are not oil sheiks or Russian kleptocrats, Liverpool could never afford highly-priced players from their operational income. Instead, they needed victories in major competitions if they were going to compete with Chelsea, Manu U and Real Madrid for players. Winning the Champions League, the FA Cup, and other major competitions allowed Liverpool to finance their appetite for big names. They pulled an inside straight in 2005 when they won the Champions League, which allowed them to participate in the tournament the next year even though they finished fifth in the EPL.

However, that run of good cards may be coming to an end. This summer Benitez spent £17 million on an injured Alberto Aquilani (which Benitez portrayed as some sort of bargain price because he was injured) and £18 million on the good but hardly outstanding Glen Johnson. With his soft center in the back line, limited options on the bench and a complete reliance for goals on Fernando Torres, who has had trouble staying fit this season, things look bleak for Liverpool.

Barring a miracle, Liverpool will not qualify for the knock out stages in the CL and are faced with a difficult path to get into the top four this season. If Liverpool loses the revenue stream that comes with European football, the entire operation will have a stink of death about it. Without reinforcements, the team is growing older and improved performances seem unlikely. Without success, reinforcements cannot be bought. This is the pain spiral that hits teams with limited resources that do not husband those resources wisely.

Benitez knows this, and his consternation over this reality leaked out in that Times interview. Without European football, the options are bad for Liverpool, and the job of managing Real Madrid seems to be Benitez’s escape hatch. When he threatens to resign if Liverpool sells Torres (which nobody seems to have proposed) or talks about how “I want to leave a winning legacy,” this is clearly a man thinking about his life after Anfield.

Moreover, if Liverpool finish where they seem to be headed this season, I have a feeling the Kop will be ready to accept a new manager too. Benitez high risk strategy in player purchasing always felt tenuous to even the most passionate supporter. The Benitez era has been two miraculous Gerrard-inspired Cup finals away from resulting in a barren trophy cabinet, and the fans may be ready to see a more relaible path to success.

Hughes, We Have A Problem (Birmingham v Man City)

Phil McThomas — Mon, 02 Nov 2009 02:20:47 +0000

Is anyone else starting to get a little nervous for the Man City “project”?

I was thrilled by the way the team were playing for the first two months of the season. They were incisive, dashing, and had a swagger about them that said “we can do this”. As sure as one swallow doesn’t make a summer, a handful of early victories doesn’t define a season.

Managers get a lot of stick for events that are far beyond their control, but in this situation, I’m going to point the finger at Mark Hughes – and here’s why:

To me, the manager’s job is to prepare their team to give them the best possible chance to win. He can’t be held responsible for missed penalties, idiotic red cards, or heroics from the opponent’s goalie. But when I see a team that doesn’t seem motivated and that doesn’t seem to have a plan of attack, I’m holding the manager responsible.

The four consecutive winnable games that Man City have let pass them by goes beyond bad luck or coincidence. They’re in a rut, and it’s up to Sparky to break them out of it. He needs to figure out who is going to drive their team to victory, and how to go about doing it.

The league table pays a false compliment to City at the moment. I’m happy that they’re in the top-four, but they’ve lost all momentum and they won’t by worrying the likes of Man Utd or Chelsea. Hopefully they can regain their mojo and give the old guard a serious run for their money.

Sort it out, Hughesy!

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Phil McThomas runs the one-of-a-kind football news site over at CleverFootball.com – a bit like NewsNow, but with a giant computer brain that figures out what the hot stories of the day are. Check out the dedicated team pages – for example, all the Man City news is here. Phil also does Twitter as @soccershout – give him a follow!

Everton’s Painful Wait

Tom Mallows — Fri, 30 Oct 2009 15:52:57 +0000

David Moyes - Management is a lonely job at times

To say it was a week to forget for Evertonian’s is an understatement.
Three games, three defeats, 10 goals conceded and a casualty list befitting a small battlefield, it is no wonder Toffees fans are wearing concerned expressions at the moment.

What makes it more galling for Blues fans is its predictability and familiarity. This time last year they were actually three points worse off, without a win on home soil and dumped out of Europe and the League Cup. This had come off the back of a frustrating summer where Moyes was hamstrung in the transfer market and had to be content with a clutch of last minute deadline-day signings.

Fast forward to the summer of 2009 and things began to take a familiar path.

Once again Moyes struggled to make an impact in the transfer market with much of the transfer talk involving the protracted departure of Joleon Lescott. This disrupted and fractured summer no doubt affected the side as they crashed 6-1 on the opening day to a rampant Arsenal.
Ironically, part of the recovery process last year, which culminated in a second consecutive fifth place finish and a FA Cup Final appearance, was injuries to all of David Moyes’ first choice strikers. Tim Cahill and record signing Mauroane Fellaini were pushed further forward and all of a sudden results started to return.

A brief upturn this year saw European progression and a six-game unbeaten run, but Everton’s injury curse struck again and any momentum has screeched to a shuddering halt.
It was interesting to hear Rafael Benitez’s comments in the build up to the Manchester United game last week regarding the injury ‘crisis’ at Anfield , particularly to key players Steven Gerrard and Fernando Torres – ‘the worst he had ever known’ he said.

Well across Stanley Park Everton fans feel Rafa’s gripes are trivial compared to what they have had to deal with. They have been without star midfielder Mikel Arteta since February with a serious knee injury. Phil Jagielka suffered a similar injury in April and is yet to return. Twenty goal striker Yakubu ruptured an achilles last November and has only just comeback while young striker Victor Anichebe has also been sidelined for eight months.

But the Blues had shown they could cope with these setbacks last season as they defiantly marched onto Wembley in May. But with a squad already at breaking point Moyes knew he needed to increase quantity as well as quality in pre-season. He didn’t, and Everton are paying the price.

The knee curse struck again when captain Phil Neville was sidelined for three months in August. Steven Pienaar has been out for the past month after being caught late on the, you’ve guessed it, knee, down at Portsmouth, while injury-plagued forward James Vaughan once again had to go under the surgeon’s knife.

It has proved one injury too many and with an entire XI out against Benfica, their lack of squad depth was ruthlessly exposed as they were taken apart by the dominant Portuguese at the Stadium of Light last Thursday.

So what lies ahead for Everton?

Well they have to play the waiting game.

The inspirational Arteta and reliable Jagielka – the duo most Toffees fans would say have been missed most – are not set to return till the end of November and with matches coming thick and fast, those who remain will have to soldier on.

But having already been dispatched out of the Carling Cup, that sobering defeat in Lisbon and lying a lowly 14th in the league. Will Everton’s pre-season ambitions be irreversibly damaged by the time they return?

Patience Pays Off At Anfield But Will Other Contenders Follow Suit?

Josh Allen — Tue, 27 Oct 2009 13:43:36 +0000

Here’s an interesting little fact for you: the two longest serving managers in Premier League history also happen to be in charge of the two most successful teams in Premier League history. So why is it then that fans and chairmen are so quick to jump on the back of a struggling manager and demand change?

This weekend saw a Liverpool side, missing its captain and shorn of form and confidence, defeat rivals and champions Manchester United 2-0, to relieve the pressure on Red’s boss Rafael Benitez. But should Benitez have even been under such pressure to begin with? After all, Liverpool are a far tougher prospect now than they were when he took over five years ago.

Last season they finished in their best position since 2002, with their highest points tally since the Premier League began and yet four defeats in a row (two League, two European) were enough to put their manager’s neck very much on the line.

Fortunately for Benitez (and Liverpool fans, if he goes on to turn their season around), the pressure on the Spaniard has now been alleviated and in one fell swoop, Liverpool’s title odds fell from 18.0 to 12.0.

The simple fact is, had the club’s American owners panicked and had a new manager take over at Anfield, Liverpool’s prospects of success would have been seriously hampered in the short term, with no guarantee of silverware any further down the line.

It takes time to stamp a mark on a football club and very rarely does a change in manager lead to instant success. Another fact for you – only one man in Premier League history has won the title in his first season in charge and that was the self proclaimed ‘Special One’, who also enjoyed the advantage of a sizeable transfer budget.

So why is it then that so many clubs see chopping and changing as the way forward? It certainly didn’t help Newcastle United, whose fans saw four different men try and fail to keep the Magpies in the Premier League last season. It also hasn’t helped Tottenham, who took a backwards step after sacking their manager of three years, Martin Jol in 2007. Indeed, were it not for Harry Redknapp, they too may have been playing Championship football this season.

So next time you call for your manager’s head, sit back, take stock and ask yourself if hiring a new man really is the best way to make progress or if a little patience is all that is needed.

This weekend saw a Liverpool side, missing its captain and shorn of form and confidence, defeat rivals and champions Manchester United 2-0, to relieve the pressure on Reds’ boss Rafael Benitez. But should Benitez have even been under such pressure to begin with? After all, Liverpool are a far tougher prospect now than they were when he took over five years ago.

Fortunately for Benitez (and Liverpool fans, if he goes on to turn their season around), the pressure on the Spaniard has now been alleviated and in one fell swoop, Liverpool’s Premier League title betting odds fell from 18.0 to 12.0.

The simple fact is, had the club’s American owners panicked and had a new manager taken over at Anfield, Liverpool’s prospects of success would have been seriously hampered in the short term, with no guarantee of silverware any further down the line.

It takes time to stamp a mark on a football club and very rarely does a change in manager lead to instant success. Another fact for you: only one man in Premier League history has won the title in his first season in charge and that was the self proclaimed ‘Special One’, who also enjoyed the advantage of a sizeable transfer budget.

So next time you call for your manager’s head, sit back, take stock and ask yourself if hiring a new man really is the best way to make progress or if a little patience is all that is needed.

Ferguson Rages At Ben Foster

Brian Louie — Wed, 07 Oct 2009 08:24:20 +0000

The fallout of Manchester United’s 2-2 draw with Sunderland extended to the dressing room, as reports suggest Alex Ferguson and goalkeeper Ben Foster had a bit of an argument. Foster made a poor decision coming out to catch Andy Reid’s chipped ball for Kenwyne Jones, resulting in the Black Cats’ second goal. He should have punched the ball clear instead of catching it, but honestly, is that really the reason the Red Devils dropped two points on Saturday?

The Gaffer wrote earlier about Ferguson’s reaction to a perceived lack of fitness and poor game-handling on the part of ref Alan Wiley, which the Manchester United gaffer may have to pay for. The same Alan Wiley he was yukking it up with on the sidelines after seeing his side go up a goal against Manchester City in the sixth minute of added time. Sometimes you end up on the better side of luck. And despite Ferguson’s protestations, his side were lucky to draw against Sunderland.

Sorry, but one moment of brilliance from Dimitar Berbatov doesn’t dismiss the fact that you only drew that game because of an unfortunate Sunderland own goal. Manchester United should have put this game away, especially after Kieran Richardson’s sending off. They very well may have scored on their own anyway, but it doesn’t excuse the fact that Ferguson is merely drawing attention away from his team’s poor performance, while playing his mind games with the FA. He may have to pay a fine or even suffer a ban, but it’ll be worth whatever bugs are in the referee’s heads in their upcoming games.

And it works . . . to an extent. All the talk in the papers have been about Ferguson’s comments on Wiley, and now his supposed tiff with Ben Foster. While it’s been discussed, Manchester United’s poor performance hasn’t been touched upon as much as it would normally would have. Sir Alex knows what he’s doing, and although we can all see it coming a mile down the road, we all turn our heads like sheep.

But he has to be fretting on when Edwin van der Sar will be ready between the sticks, and what to do about the lack of creativity in attack. Sunderland approached the Red Devils well, but they’re hardly Chelsea or even Manchester City. We may be looking at a more competitive league this year, but there’s some sparkle missing from Old Trafford. Ryan Giggs continues to amaze at his age, while Paul Scholes merely ages. Berbatov, despite his superb goal, has yet to show his Tottenham form. Either way, the talking points for a team that Ferguson envisions shouldn’t revolve around a bunch of players that were around in the last decade, or waiting for someone to get hot.

As for Ben Foster, he’s merely on Fergie’s shit-list, which doesn’t bode well for him. We all remember the nasty cut on David Beckham’s face that ruined his boy-band looks for a week or two . He soon left, as did Roy Keane and Ruud van Nistelrooy when they were deemed useless in Ferguson’s mind. And he was perhaps right in most instances in letting highly-valued players leave before the beginning of their downfall. Unfortunately, Foster doesn’t fit into that category. He merely plays the part of victim in Ferguson’s typical bullying charade.

[Guardian, EPLTalk, Daily Mail]