Here is a question that has been asked numerous times this week but is never easy to answer – how can players move on when a club doesn’t have a manager?
While many thought the period between Rafa Benitez leaving and his replacement being appointed would see a lull in Liverpool’s news agenda, the futures of Yossi Benayoun and Javier Mascherano have dictated otherwise.
As you will have noted, the Israeli midfielder will, barring an unexpected twist, become a Chelsea player in the not too distant future, while Mascherano – as one of his advisors revealed – is debating whether to join Benitez at Inter Milan.
Inevitably, certain supporters have looked at the picture which is unfolding and decided, rightly or wrongly, that Benitez’s sudden departure will be the catalyst for a mass exodus of talent from Anfield.
The assumption is that players are looking at the lie of the land now that Benitez is no longer around and are deciding it is time to follow suit; maybe, fans will be wondering, Albert Riera’s ‘sinking ship’ analogy wasn’t so far off the mark, after all.
Now the scene which is about to be painted is not an attempt to make it appear that everything in the Anfield garden is rosy; clearly it isn’t and we would not dream of conveniently ignoring certain issues, particularly regarding finance.
But where Benayoun and Mascherano are concerned, it is important to make a few key points to get a better understanding of why these players will be packing up and leaving regardless of who jumps into the hot seat.
Let’s start with Benayoun. He’s been a good servant for Liverpool in the three years he has been on Merseyside and 2009 was his annus mirabilis, the peak being that headed goal in the Santiago Bernabeu against Real Madrid.
In recent months, though, it became clear he was getting itchy feet; whether Benitez had remained or not, Benayoun was going to depart; the pair had fallen out and the only thing that wasn’t known was which club it would be to.
Benayoun is not someone who regularly courts the media and limits his interviews to a handful every season; though he is always convivial and happy to talk in passing, he does not want to be quoted all the time.
So when he stopped after the defeat against Chelsea on May 2, it was clear that he had something he wanted to get off his chest and, without warning, he volunteered the following words.
“Personally I don’t know whether I will be here or if I won’t,” he said. “A lot of things can happen. We will have to wait and see. Liverpool is a great club and I enjoy it. But a lot of things are happening in this moment and we will have to see.”
Players do not make such statements unless they are pretty sure they will be on the move and it’s fair to assume that Benayoun’s advisors had encouraged him to keep his options open.
Similar sentiments apply to Mascherano. He enjoyed a terrific second half of the season, filled two positions with aplomb but, for someone who enjoys kissing the Liver Bird on his chest which was encouraging to fans, something didn’t sit right.
That, of course, was the lucrative contract he had been offered remaining unsigned; Pepe Reina may have wasted little time inking his extension but, after getting to a certain point, Mascherano got cold feet.
Some claim his representatives were treated shabbily, others argue his demands were unreasonable; whatever, the paperwork will almost certainly remain unsigned.
If Benayoun wants to join Chelsea and Mascherano wants to join Inter, thank them for their service, wish them well and then move on; if Liverpool are going to progress again, they need men who are single-minded in their love for the club.
What will be interesting to see is whether all the funds that will be brought in from those deals will be given to Benitez’s successor – but that is for another time.
Now it is a case of taking stock and deciding who wants to stick around for what might be a bumpy ride – only the committed need apply.
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