FOR several years Johnny Cash has been the crooner of choice of the Anfield crowd.
But perhaps it’s now time they switched to Ol’ Blue Eyes.
Because, like it or loathe it, Rafa Benitez is going to do it HIS way.
Frustrated fans, a complaining Press corps or a £20m striker giving him hurt looks down the touchline, is not going to change the self-confident Spaniard’s way of thinking.
Benitez was at his most bloody-minded on Saturday.
Few queried the 4-2-3-1 formation which saw Robbie Keane left forlornly looking on; after all it was the same system which had yielded a 3-1 away win seven days previously.
But as the Reds struggled against a refreshingly inventive Hull side, his search for “solutions” defied popular thinking.
Benitez’s explanations afterwards – especially in introducing midfielder Lucas ahead of striker Keane – were eloquent and intriguing.
Regardless of the level of tactical planning which went into the switches, however, they didn’t work.
But we’ve been here before with Benitez.
The Spaniard’s Liverpool successes – already considerable – have all come in the face of adversity.
The Miracle of Istanbul, an FA Cup final which looked all but lost until Steven Gerrard’s amazing intervention – a Champions League campaign which started disastrously and ended on the brink of a third final in four years.
All have featured Benitez’s maverick thinking.
This current campaign isn’t anything like as fraught as those famous fightbacks.
But the frustration comes in that it could be so much better.
There is a real worry now that big wins over Manchester United and Chelsea are being undermined by home draws against Stoke, Fulham, West Ham and now Hull.
Title winning teams don’t draw three successive home games, moaned the after-match phone-in ‘experts’.
Perhaps. But, title winning teams do possess the character which allows them to recover from losing positions, as Liverpool have now done a remarkable eight times in all competitions this season, six of them victories.
Liverpool’s position could be better. But it could be so much worse.
In truth the Reds got lucky on Saturday. Yes, really.
While another frustrated full-house bemoaned the loss of two more points, a more reflective analysis might have realised it could have been much, much grimmer.
Bernard Mendy was enjoying the kind of afternoon which threatened to give full-back Andrea Dossena twisted blood.
Then Paul McShane suffered concussion and the winger was pressed into full-back duties, instantly reducing his effectiveness and allowing the Italian to breath a huge sigh of relief.
Liverpool pulled back a 2-0 deficit with the help of a couple of judicious shoves on Michael Turner in front of The Kop. Each time referee Alan Wiley was admiring the quality of the Liverpool moves rather than the fouls.
Then the awful official ignored a Javier Mascherano handball inside the penalty area.
But Liverpool rode their luck, finally settled and for an hour were usually the team most likely to make the breakthrough.
The biggest talking point afterwards was Benitez’s decision to chase that winning goal without Keane.
The Irishman looked crushed and demoralised at being ignored.
But the biggest concern for the striker is that by far Benitez’s preferred formation is 4-2-3-1.
If Fernando Torres is fit, he will always be the one; Albert Riera, Ryan Babel, Dirk Kuyt and Yossi Benayoun will jostle for the wide roles. . . but the identity of the man in the middle of that attacking triangle is the first name on Liverpool’s teamsheet every week.
If Robbie Keane is going to challenge for Steven Gerrard’s place in the team, he will lose every time.
The only respite for Keane would be a switch to a more unfamiliar 4-4-2.
As ever, Benitez will have solutions – possibly solutions we haven’t even thought of yet.
And difficult thought it may be, Reds fans must keep faith with him.
Despite Saturday’s disappointment, Liverpool are still very much in the title race . . . with Fernando Torres and Marin Skrtel still to return.
“If you want to win titles you have to keep calm,” said Benitez.
All we can do is sit back, and let him do it his way.
But perhaps it’s now time they switched to Ol’ Blue Eyes.
Because, like it or loathe it, Rafa Benitez is going to do it HIS way.
Frustrated fans, a complaining Press corps or a £20m striker giving him hurt looks down the touchline, is not going to change the self-confident Spaniard’s way of thinking.
Benitez was at his most bloody-minded on Saturday.
Few queried the 4-2-3-1 formation which saw Robbie Keane left forlornly looking on; after all it was the same system which had yielded a 3-1 away win seven days previously.
But as the Reds struggled against a refreshingly inventive Hull side, his search for “solutions” defied popular thinking.
Benitez’s explanations afterwards – especially in introducing midfielder Lucas ahead of striker Keane – were eloquent and intriguing.
Regardless of the level of tactical planning which went into the switches, however, they didn’t work.
But we’ve been here before with Benitez.
The Spaniard’s Liverpool successes – already considerable – have all come in the face of adversity.
The Miracle of Istanbul, an FA Cup final which looked all but lost until Steven Gerrard’s amazing intervention – a Champions League campaign which started disastrously and ended on the brink of a third final in four years.
All have featured Benitez’s maverick thinking.
This current campaign isn’t anything like as fraught as those famous fightbacks.
But the frustration comes in that it could be so much better.
There is a real worry now that big wins over Manchester United and Chelsea are being undermined by home draws against Stoke, Fulham, West Ham and now Hull.
Title winning teams don’t draw three successive home games, moaned the after-match phone-in ‘experts’.
Perhaps. But, title winning teams do possess the character which allows them to recover from losing positions, as Liverpool have now done a remarkable eight times in all competitions this season, six of them victories.
Liverpool’s position could be better. But it could be so much worse.
In truth the Reds got lucky on Saturday. Yes, really.
While another frustrated full-house bemoaned the loss of two more points, a more reflective analysis might have realised it could have been much, much grimmer.
Bernard Mendy was enjoying the kind of afternoon which threatened to give full-back Andrea Dossena twisted blood.
Then Paul McShane suffered concussion and the winger was pressed into full-back duties, instantly reducing his effectiveness and allowing the Italian to breath a huge sigh of relief.
Liverpool pulled back a 2-0 deficit with the help of a couple of judicious shoves on Michael Turner in front of The Kop. Each time referee Alan Wiley was admiring the quality of the Liverpool moves rather than the fouls.
Then the awful official ignored a Javier Mascherano handball inside the penalty area.
But Liverpool rode their luck, finally settled and for an hour were usually the team most likely to make the breakthrough.
The biggest talking point afterwards was Benitez’s decision to chase that winning goal without Keane.
The Irishman looked crushed and demoralised at being ignored.
But the biggest concern for the striker is that by far Benitez’s preferred formation is 4-2-3-1.
If Fernando Torres is fit, he will always be the one; Albert Riera, Ryan Babel, Dirk Kuyt and Yossi Benayoun will jostle for the wide roles. . . but the identity of the man in the middle of that attacking triangle is the first name on Liverpool’s teamsheet every week.
If Robbie Keane is going to challenge for Steven Gerrard’s place in the team, he will lose every time.
The only respite for Keane would be a switch to a more unfamiliar 4-4-2.
As ever, Benitez will have solutions – possibly solutions we haven’t even thought of yet.
And difficult thought it may be, Reds fans must keep faith with him.
Despite Saturday’s disappointment, Liverpool are still very much in the title race . . . with Fernando Torres and Marin Skrtel still to return.
“If you want to win titles you have to keep calm,” said Benitez.
All we can do is sit back, and let him do it his way.
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