Archive for the ‘Liverpool FC’ Category

Why sacking Rafa Benitez opens a wound that won’t heel

Thursday, June 3rd, 2010

There are many sound reasons for the sacking of Rafael Benitez:

I’m past caring. Like Paul Tomkins I’m ambivalent – this last season has been tough. And after defending Gerard Houllier’s bunker to the end (in a fashion that would have made Peter Mandelson proud), reluctant to make the same mistake.

But Rafa’s departure has cut a wound in me that will not heel. Because the club, from top to bottom, has not behaved as it should – as it promised. It has treated a dedicated, hard-working, loyal servant in a shabby, underhand manner. In doing so, it has ripped at the bonds of affection I have for the club.

Supporting LFC isn’t a leisure activity for me.  I’m not sure I even like football. I’m not from Liverpool. I may never live there. For most of the life I remember it’s been a top 8 side rather than title-challengers. I’ve been the glory hunter with the worst sense of timing ever!

Instead, supporting Liverpool Football Club for me has always been an ideological endeavour. I support it for its values:

  • Respecting the past but creating new traditions
  • Maintaining principles based around Shankly’s ‘football socialism’
  • Remaining loyal and discreet.
  • Respecting each other, and servants of the club for more than winning silverware

These principles are no longer alive at LFC. Even though many of the fans still hold them dear there are too many in positions of influence and power who do not. For all his failings, David Moores ensured a respectful send-off to Evans and Houllier. Both were dispatched with succession in mind. This board apparently leaked discussions with Benitez whilst he was on holiday. Statements given to fans are now apparently untrue. And he was deprived a dignified send-off. Senior executives, having been brought in to achieve one task and failed at that, have moved on to more sexy tasks: negotiating with prospective staff, briefing journalists, opening up direct lines of communication with players.

This is not the first time the current leadership of LFC has disgraced itself. It is not the first time it has made a mockery of that ephemeral concept, the Liverpool Way. But for me, and perhaps for them too, Benitez’s departure is a new low. And if we can’t treat our own with respect, who are we?

I’ve seen in the Labour Party what happens to people when their levels of pragmatism and compromise are pushed to breaking-point; it’s painful. I make no grand statements for what I will or will not do next season. And I hope to be careful not to act out of spite less it cheapen the memories and be disrespectful to those who remain, loyal to the Liverpool Way. But win or lose, it won’t mean the same. And you can’t place a value on that.

Why Rafa Benitez will never be a media darling

Friday, March 26th, 2010

Rafa Benitez will never be a darling in the eyes of the media. He could win the double twice on consecutive seasons and pundits would find reasons to criticise. Why? Because he works hard not to be human.

My Benitez revelation came stood at a bar, feeling smug about a recent up-turn in the fortunes of my own business. I was reflecting on Sir Clive Woodward’s maxim that when things go badly you should go and get piased and when things go well you should organise an early morning autopsy to discover why. The scientific approach (and the large number of Scousers in the pub) helped me draw the parallel.

I was then that I realised both how hard it was to follow success with self-criticism but also how it ran counter-intuitive with the grain of human emotion.

And that’s why Liverpool fans can never expect Rafa to be loved – or even admired – by the media. Like Sir Clive the best he can hope for is a ‘lucky professor’ tag.

Watching lots of historic games of football – and the characteristics of current Valencia manager Unai Emery -I had been wondering: does Benitez’s lack of obvious passion during a match matter? Most definitely – but only as far as gaining media approval. And if that’ a clincher for Liverpool fans, it’s also a litmus test for whether or not you are a proper Liverpool fan.

It’s the lack of hope that’s getting me down

Tuesday, March 9th, 2010

Football moves on so quickly that it’s extremely rare not to have anything to look forward to. But this season has been so grim, so lacking in hope that the only thing to look forward to is it having ended. And it’s been so bad that even after that, pre-season won’t provide anything to get excited about.

I can stand losing games. Even nine of them. It’s the good goals, the sharp tackles, the strength in adversity that I remember. Being robbed by bad referees, luck opponents, even beach balls has it’s own romanticism.

I can stand having bad years – we all do – and progress isn’t ever linear. As long as there’s some chink of light. Back in the early 1990s it was the emergence of Robbie Fowler. Pre Rafa it was Steven Gerrard carrying the team – a super-human effort that yielded more than we deserved.

Any even in bad years there’s always the cup competitions. You don’t need to win the cup necessarily, just win some high profile games in auspicious circumstances and have a memorable trip as a fan or a buzzing Anfield night under lights.

This year there’s been nothing. The good wins (Manchester United and Spurs at home) have only ever felt like a comma in a harrowing read. Great players haven’t performed and squad players have been diminished to mice. Recoveries from injury have only been accompanied by more injuries. The end of a tough run of games has been met only by slip-ups in 3 point bankers (eg. Wigan away).

And at the end of this 10 month torture of pulling nails against a blackboard, pre-season will see other sides spend lots of money as we struggle to not get weaker. And all the time supposed Liverpool ’supporters’ will churn out the views of media pundits who support other teams an enjoy the ratings uplift from any article that criticises LFC.

All around me I see Arsenal fans who know that they are not good enough ad likely to fall short at the end of the season. But even after five barren years they get close enough to still have hope. How I envy them now.

It doesn’t take much to give me hope. I’d rather believe in the tiny glimmers than require a mountain of hard fact for the scales of cynicism to fall from my eyes. But we’re dangling off a cliff with nothing to hold on to. At least if we’re knocked out of the cup this week, we won’t have to endure another couple of games.

So thanks for asking how I feel this morning. You didn’t really want to know, did you?