All Posts on Rafael Benitez

Rafael Benitez

A master of the tactical game and of winning pressure one-off games, Rafael Benitez has the pedigree to be a great manager. Made his name with Valencia before moving to England to manage Liverpool and has led them to 2 Champions League finals in 3 years. That’s more than Arsene Wenger, Jose Mourinho and SAF, so that’s saying a lot.

Valencia won La Liga under him, but Liverpool have been off the pace in the league so far as Rafa in my opinion still has to get his tactics in line with the demands of the Premiership.

Man in a corner shop nails Liverpool impressions

This guy is superb. Quite why he is making a name for himself as a guy in a hoodie standing in front of a box of Cornflakes and not on the TV we don’t know. He reels off some excellent impressions of Rafa Benitez, Steven “Yeerrrm” Gerrard, Jamie Carragher, Michael Owen and Peter Crouch. The…

Juventus want Rafa and co from Liverpool

Juventus are rumoured to be interested in poaching Rafael Benitez from Liverpool, even though the Spaniard has repeatedly stated his desire to stay for a long time at Anfield if the owners give him the requisite backing.

Liverpool owners want Rafa to prove his worth

Rafa Benitez has done an admirable job at Liverpool since taking over. He hasn’t been brilliant – that would be Jose Mourinho’s 3-year stint at Chelsea – but in his own way he has given Liverpool respect and bit by bit transformed them into formidable opponents in Europe. That he hasn’t enjoyed similar success in…

Julian Dicks cost Liverpool more than Robbie Keane did

Julian Dicks: expensive in his day

Soccerlens is a big fan of statistics, as Scott the Red’s in-depth rundown of last season’s Premier League data showed. In fact, statistics show that 83 per cent of all Soccerlens writers are fans of statistics. So when we heard that statistical evidence had been uncovered which proved that Julian Dicks was more expensive than…

Liverpool fightback proves they mean business this time

The confident comeback kids

Liverpool’s 2-3 win over Manchester City yesterday was without doubt one of the finest games in Premier League history. The Reds pulled off the sort of comeback they had previously reserved for 1990s clashes with Newcastle United and Champions League finals! Granted Liverpool’s revival was given added impetus when City had Pablo Zabaleta dismissed, but…

Liverpool’s best formation and form

Soccerlens reader and forum member deridder8 wrote a very interesting article in the forum today – here’s an extract: … After 6 games with 4 wins and 2 draws, I’m still not very convinced about Liverpool’s form this season. It hasn’t been fantastic; they are not winning games like champions. They are SCRAPPING the wins….

Egg and chips – por favor grasos

not again...

It infuriates me when people are judged on their appearance. Just because Rafa Benitez is a tubby mess, this does not give opposing supporters the right to abuse him. The Aston Villa supporters went well over the top with their ‘Fat Spanish Waiter’ banner. Admittedly, he is carrying a few stone overweight, and he’s certainly…

Rafa’s army for Liverpool’s Premier League domination

Rafa’s army for Liverpool’s Premier League domination

While going out and buying the world’s best players is a great way to get the glory you desire, there’s nothing like overseeing the development of a player from a youngster with high potential to a world-class star. There are several sides in the Premier League with talent-laden academies, but it’s certainly hard to argue…

Don’t blame Rafa, blame Liverpool’s ‘stars’

If a team does poorly, or as is the case in modern-day football, fails to entertain, the blame falls on the manager. That sounds right until you consider that if those bloody millionaires running aimlessly on the pitch had followed instructions, and if the opposition had turned around and grabbed their ankles as asked, the…

Liverpool appoint Mrs Redknapp as assistant manager

Liverpool appoint Mrs Redknapp as assistant manager

‘Onest ‘Arry Redknapp appears to be feeling the pinch of the credit crunch. Obviously Lord Stevens’ enquiry into bung-taking in football found no evidence he was anything other than an upstanding member of the football community, but in a summer in which Portsmouth’s transfers have been limited, possibly he has struggled with an income below…


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