Saturday, December 13, 2008

Benitez Won't Allow Dissent


Liverpool manager Rafa Benitez has laid down the law to his title-chasing squad and warned he will not allow egos to derail the pursuit of silverware.

Benitez adopted the hardline stance after insisting he would not tolerate dissenting voices within his own dressing room and ordering anyone agitating behind the scenes to stop “disrespecting their team-mates”.

Liverpool’s emergence as genuine Premier League title contenders has coincided with Benitez cutting back dramatically on the number of changes he has been making to his starting line-ups compared to previous seasons.

His decision to ditch a policy of rotation has resulted in players such as Ryan Babel, Daniel Agger and Yossi Benayoun all going public on their frustrations, while £20.3million striker Robbie Keane found himself sitting out at Ewood Park last week.

Victory at Blackburn was the first time in a month that Liverpool had scored three goals in a game and Benitez is unlikely to see the need to alter his team too much against Hull today with Dirk Kuyt having recovered from a hamstring problem.

That would mean no place again for Keane or Agger, while Babel faces an anxious wait after back-to-back starts following his antics in trying to negotiate a loan move back to Ajax.

It promises to be a fresh test of their patience, with talks on a new deal for Agger proving a problem and Tottenham waiting in the wings should Keane get itchy feet.

Benitez highlighted the fortunes of Vladimir Smicer, who made just two starts in 2004-05 but ended up scoring in the Champions League final success over AC Milan, as why his players need to be patient.

“Rotation has been a topic of conversation for a long time, and the players all know they will get chances in the team,” said Benitez. “They will all get opportunities, and the chances are they will be involved in important games.

“Just look at what happened with Vladimir Smicer. He was hardly getting a look-in, then suddenly he was playing in the Champions League final and scoring one of the goals that helped us win it.

“We will have a lot of games, and injuries are bound to kick in, so everyone will be involved. You can be sure of that. Harmony in the squad is vital, the atmosphere in the camp is very good and positive. It isn’t always easy keeping a large squad happy, but all I would say to the players is that they must respect the rules.”

“They have to accept there is a right way of doing things, and that means having respect for your team-mates and what we’re trying to do.

“Don’t show disrespect to your colleagues. That’s a very important principle.”

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