Despite a torrid end to a career in England that saw
Liverpool rise to the top of European football, Rafa Benitez is a man that
commands great respect in the football world. Known for his in-depth analysis
and knowledge of the game he is a master tactician and a true gentleman in the
world of football.
Before reading any further cast whatever opinion you have of
him out of your mind and approach this for what it is, a realisation of what
Benitez has brought the game and admirable way he conducts himself in doing so.
Regardless if you are a Liverpool FC fan, a Valencia fan, or a fan from a rival
club, and intelligent fan can see that Benitez deserves the credit he has been
given.
As a Liverpool FC fan I clearly have a biased opinion and
Rafa will go down in the club's history for the 5th European title he brought
back to Anfield, and on a more personal level the tears he shed during a
Hillsborough memorial ceremony. With the truth of Hillsborough finally revealed maybe rival fans can see that being Liverpool manager is more than just football, a statement perfectly exemplified by Benitez. He is a true great for the club and many were
unhappy with the way that the love affair between Benitez and LFC came to an
end, mainly due to the ownership at the time being what can only be described
as arguably the worst in the club's glorious history. Despite leaving LFC, Rafa
stayed in Merseyside with his family and his love for, not just LFC but, the
English game is without question. He is a family man who has an enormous amount
of pride in his work. I, for one, firmly believe that given the backing from
the ownership Benitez would have continued his remarkable career with LFC. This
article, however, is not just to discuss Liverpool, it is to take a look into
Rafa's life and philosophy to try and make fans who may have prejudged him
realise that he is one of the most genuine and intelligent men in the game.
I expect many do not know his story - beginning as a young
lad who excelled in football, basketball, tennis as well as being a superb
chess and 'stratego' player. He began his path in football at Real Madrid,
joining their ranks at 13 years of age whilst continuing his education.
Progressing through the Madrid youth teams he excelled academically and in
football seeing him gain a degree in Physical Education and also being called
up to the Spanish University National team. Unfortunately for Rafa a terrible
knee injury set his football career back and he was promptly loaned out of
Madrid. After spending a few years on loan from Real Madrid, years blighted by
recurring knee problems, Rafa retired early at the age of 26. He quickly became
the Technical Director for Madrid and then went on to become u19 manager,
winning 2 league titles and a cup in 3 years. Following his first success at
youth management level, then Madrid manager Vicente Del Bosque offered Benitez
the assistant manager role. After excelling in previous roles it was clear to
see that Benitez had what it takes to be a great manager and a job offer
followed. Going solo Benitez went to Extremadura, getting them promoted to La
Liga. He then went to Tenerife, again getting them promoted to La Liga. Despite
a few setbacks, these credentials meant that Benitez got offered his first
major managing role for Spanish giants Valencia.
Rafa jumped at the chance to manage such a major team and success
was around the corner. Under Benitez, Valencia began playing a style of
football that saw them rise above the rest to win their first league title in
31 years. For those of you who don't remember this was at a time when the
Spanish league was considered the best in the world, containing the
'Galacticos' of Madrid, the great Barcelona, 'superdepor' Deportivo (a major
force back then), the rich Sevilla and Atletico Madrid. Rafa continued to win
trophies for Valencia before being offered a new challenge at the historically
rich Liverpool. Benitez was awarded the Golden Club Crest for the work he did
for Valencia by the club President in 2011. Following his time in Spain, he
became the first ever Spanish manager for LFC. Going on to take Liverpool to
the top of Europe's elite and to their highest ever Premier League finish was
just part of the story that saw Benitez gain love at Anfield.
Married with children, Benitez has dedicated his life to
football and his family. His emotions have caused people to love him, yet have
also at times cost him dearly. Perhaps his most notable outburst of emotion was
to his chairman at the time when he had just won the Club World Championship
with Inter Milan. Immediately after winning the final Benitez was visible
unhappy and publicly voiced his disapproval of lack of funds and the way the
club was being run to, essentially, his boss. Needless to say, Benitez left
Inter by mutual consent shortly afterward. Other outbursts include his rant
about Sir Alex Ferguson and the power that he had over referees and other
aspects of the game.
With Brendan Rodgers now at the helm at LFC, I personally
was desperate to see Rafa given another shot at managing the club. With owners
who could offer him stability rather than the turbulence he received before I feel
that he could have thrived. Despite some poor signings such as Robbie Keane and
Aquilani he also brought world class players to the club: Reina, Alonso,
Torres, Mascherano, Johnson to name a few. One of the best performances I have
seen LFC play is when the mighty Real Madrid, captained by the World's Best
Player Fabio Cannavaro at the time, got hammered 4-0 with Torres and co giving
them the run-around. Benitez' philosophy and style of football was admirable
and his tactical genius got the better of many world-class managers - Ferguson,
Mourinho and Wenger.
Even now Liverpool are reaping the benefits of Benitez' work.
Not many people give him credit for the youth setup at Liverpool - as many
simply do not know. The likes of Kelly, Spearing, Sterling, Suso, Morgan, Coady,
Wisdom, Shelvey, Pacheco and so on have gone on to make first team appearances
and some are now firm fixtures in the senior squad. Before Benitez, Liverpool's
reserve and youth setup was nowhere near the standard it now is.
After coming in 3rd place in the Nextgen series Champions League
(youth CL) it is evident that LFC youth teams have a lot of talent and a lot of
this is due to the work that Benitez put in to change the structure of the club
top-to-bottom.
As an intelligent fan I can put aside my hatred and say that
manager's such as Wenger, Mourinho and Ferguson are world class and I have a
lot of respect for them. They have experienced the highs and lows of football,
much like Benitez. Rafa deserves enormous credit and gratitude for all that he
has done for football, be it for Valencia, Liverpool, Inter Milan or the
charity work he does through the Montse-Benitez Foundation.
What professionals
have to say about him:
Gerrard - "Rafa is obsessed with football 24 hours a
day, seven days a week", "he is a great man and a great friend"
Hamann - "in my mind he is pure managerial genius"
Bellamy - "I have learnt more from Rafa Benitez than
any other coach I have worked with"
Records that speak
more than what I can say:
2005-06
Liverpool became the first British club to 'keep' the
European Champions League trophy after winning it for the 5th time in Istanbul
2005.
Liverpool then became the 3rd team and 1st British side to
win the Super Cup 3 times
Gerrard became the first Liverpool player in history to
score in 5 successive European matches
Liverpool set a new club record of 11 consecutive clean
sheets (Oct-Dec 2005)
Liverpool win 10 league games in a row for the 1st time in
15 years
2006-07
Benitez became the first manager to lift a trophy in each of
his first 2 seasons after the FA Cup win in 2006
Liverpool went unbeaten in 30 successive home games
Pepe Reina kept more clean sheets in his first 50 league
games (28) than any other keeper in Liverpool's history
Liverpool reached their second champions league final in 3
seasons
2007-08
Liverpool beat Besiktas 8-0 to record the highest ever
Champions League win
Benitez won 81 of his first 150 league games in charge, only
Kenny Dalglish (87) won more as an LFC manager
Torres scored 24 league goals - the most by any LFC player
in their debut season
Pepe Reina won Golden Glove award for the 3rd successive
season
Liverpool scored 119 goals - more than any team in England
2008-09
Liverpool inflicted Real Madrid's biggest ever Champions
League defeat at Anfield
Benitez' 100th league win as manager in his 181st game. The
3rd quickest ever by a LFC manager and 50 games quicker than Alex Ferguson
Liverpool got the highest number of points by any team which
failed to win the league (38 game seasons)
2009-10
Liverpool unbeaten in 31 home league games
Torres broke club record by scoring his 50th league goals in
his first 72 games
Reina set a new record of 79 clean sheets in his first 150
games
For Valencia:
La Liga (2) - 01-02 and 03-04
Uefa Cup - 03-04
Valencia's highest ever win ratio: 53.50%
Most trophies by any coach in Valencia's history
