Benitez Calls For Focus

Liverpool manager Rafael Benitez says his side must not dwell on their defeat to Portsmouth and focus on the next game.

The Reds slumped to a 2-0 defeat on Saturday thanks to goals from Nadir Belhadj and Frederic Piquionne either side of Javier Mascherano's sending off, which led to Benitez launching a bizarre rant at referee Lee Mason.

The Spanish tactician continually described Mason as 'perfect' in the aftermath of the defeat which leaves Liverpool eight points behind fourth-placed Aston Villa in the table.

Wolves go to Anfield on Boxing Day and Benitez insists the squad must shift their focus and prepare for the next game.

"We have to start working this week, preparing the next game," he said.

"You have to change your targets and think about one game at a time. That is the only way. We know we have to work harder now."

After the game, Benitez said: "The referee was perfect. He didn't make any mistakes. He was perfect in giving fouls to (Fernando) Torres, he was perfect in everything. He was perfect."

He did, however, credit Avram Grant's Portsmouth for putting the 10 men under pressure at Fratton Park.

"The 10 players were working very hard," he added.

"Credit to them, they were in the game. They (Portsmouth) were playing counter-attack and with the pace up front it's not easy."

Benitez will have summer signing Alberto Aquilani back for the remaining Christmas period after the midfielder missed the Pompey trip with a calf problem.

"He has a kick in his calf and he didn't train properly," he remarked.

"He is not serious so he will be okay for next week but he couldn't be here."

We Are Failing Liverpool, Says Daniel Agger

Daniel Agger has admitted the current Liverpool squad is letting the club down.

The Denmark defender was part of the side that lost 2-0 to Portsmouth on Saturday, a result that saw the club slip to eighth in the Premier League table. Agger has called on the players to take responsibility for their poor performances.

"We are extremely disappointed and we know that it simply isn't good enough for this club," he said. "We have got to change this. It didn't happen against Portsmouth but we can't let it go on any further."

Agger says only a run of victories can halt the slide. "Why is this happening? It's a bit of everything I suppose but we have got to try to get some confidence from somewhere soon," he added. "You get that by winning games but we are not doing that.

"It's a fight every game for this club. Every game we need to focus and need to make sure we get three points. It's a question of sticking together and we need to do that now more than ever."

Liverpool Should Take Chance To Cash In On Steven Gerrard

It is all very well, in discussing Liverpool’s woes, to invoke the spirit of Shankly. But how do you define it? You can make a start by listening to 73 minutes and 30 seconds of the great man giving his thoughts to John Roberts, the journalist with whom he collaborated on his autobiography two years after retiring as manager in 1974.

Order the CD — The Amazing Bill Shankly — for £9.99 and I doubt that you will find a better distillation of the spirit that was to make Anfield a fortress than this, delivered in Shankly’s machine-gun Ayrshire tones:

“Now I want one thing. I want loyalty. I don’t want anybody to be carrying stories about anybody else. If somebody comes to me with a story — I warn you about this — whoever you’re telling it about won’t be the one who goes. It’ll be you.

“You’ll go — out! I don’t care if you’ve been here 15 year [sic]. I want everybody to be loyal to each other. And to do everything you do for Liverpool Football Club. And we’ll all get together. And that will make strength . . . And maybe one day we’ll get players as well!”

The last bit may or may not have been a joke (as in “people say football’s more important than life and death . . .”) but everything else was as clear and inspiring as on the day he had addressed the staff and players of a run-down Liverpool in 1959.

This was how Shankly persuaded players with big egos such as Emlyn Hughes and Kevin Keegan to muck in with more modest souls such as Ian Callaghan, Ron Yeats and Chris Lawler and produce the institution that his erstwhile assistant and successor, Bob Paisley, developed into the most successful in Europe.

On Saturday morning I listened to Shankly and on Saturday night I heard Rafael Benítez, who has the job Shankly took half a century ago, respond to the 2-0 defeat away to Portsmouth with this gobbet of cheap sarcasm: “The referee was perfect.” Liverpool have become the opposite of Shankly’s raw material. They have got some players all right — some of the world’s best in their positions, in the cases of Fernando Torres, Steven Gerrard and arguably Javier Mascherano and Pepe Reina — but a fading spirit.

To envisage their qualifying for next season’s Champions League now is difficult and, although the time has come for change, the obvious course of replacing Benítez as manager should be neglected, at least for the time being, in favour of imagining what a successor to him could be offered. The cupboard is bare. There is only what lies on the table. Or lies eighth in the table , a point above Fulham, who have a match in hand.

This is because the strategy of surrounding Gerrard with players he respects is failing and the Benítez regime is going down with it.

Because the American owners’ priority is repaying loans, there is little money for more new players to provide for either Benítez or a new manager. It must be raised through sales and here Liverpool are fortunate, for the unthinkable is becoming the inevitable. Gerrard will turn 30 in May. He is approaching his sell-by date and, if Liverpool are truly to face at least 18 months out of the Champions League with no plausible prospect of a return after that, he will probably be among the first to admit it.

Already Mascherano wants to go; talk of Barcelona has turned his head. No one, surely, would blame Torres for wanting to stay at the top level. And in these circumstances Gerrard, too, could leave with no hard feelings on either side, which would not have been the case when he almost joined José Mourinho’s Chelsea.

These three players might raise more than £100 million if sold at a time of Liverpool’s choosing and even today you can build a competitive squad for that. So long as you have a manager who can build a spirit; Aston Villa and Fulham, among others, have proved it.

The argument for keeping Gerrard is fiercely emotional. He has a great talent and a genuine love of the club and, when you think of deeds on which Roy Of The Rovers might have been modelled — the late goals against Olympiacos and West Ham United in the FA Cup Final, the start of the fightback to win the 2005 Champions League final against Milan (even, if to listen so some accounts of his heroism that night you might think he had also scored the goals ascribed to Xabi Alonso and Vladimir Smicer, made Jamie Carragher’s vital tackle on Andriy Shevchenko and deputised for Jerzy Dudek during the penalty shoot-out) — the notion of his wearing another shirt is hard to countenance.

But Liverpool can no longer afford such a captain. They can no longer afford a prima donna whose unquestioned brilliance increasingly seems to embarrass and constrain some of those around him.

Shankly would remember Johnny Haynes. He was one of the greatest English midfield players and he spent his entire career with Fulham. He was a better passer than Gerrard and, though nowhere near as quick, scored as many goals.

Yet in all the time he was with Fulham they never had a side as good as today’s because at Fulham today there is something — just something — of the spirit of Shankly.

Alberto Aquilani Purchase Exposes Rafael Benitez's Transfer Market Folly

By a cruel irony, the midfielder who could have saved Liverpool from their recent defeat at Anfield by Arsenal, and so much else, was watching from the stand, while his supposed deputy struggled on the field as a substitute. Xabi Alonso, the Spanish international sold expensively last summer to Real Madrid, had been the inspiration of the Liverpool midfield, much admired by the local hero, Steven Gerrard. He clashed, however, with Rafael Benitez, his fellow Spaniard, Liverpool's increasingly controversial manager, and Benitez rashly sold him. In his place he signed, for another large fee, the Italian international midfielder Alberto Aquilani and has surely lived to regret it.

Whether or not a fully fit Aquilani, who arrived from Roma, could have emulated Alonso, with his superb through passing, and long-range shooting, who can say? The fact is that given his dire record of constant injury, seemingly ignored by Benitez, it was never likely. And this season, all too predictably, Aquilani has been a casualty for weeks on end, eventually and recently brought back, far short of proper match practice. He is beyond doubt a talented player, but surely a manager as experienced as Benitez must have seen the risk he was taking.

For me, however, Benitez's reputation has long been inflated. Far from emerging from Liverpool's amazing three-goal recovery in that European Cup Final against AC Milan, in Istanbul, as a hero, I felt it was largely his fault, letting Kaka run wild and free in the first half, that his team went 3-0 down.

Plainly, he need not worry about the sack since, having recently given him a massive new contract, it would cost Liverpool £20 million to get rid of him! Nor was Aquilani's the only transfer to perplex one. What, last summer, possessed him to buy that swift striker Robbie Keane, again at vast expense, from Spurs, when he had plenty of talent up front? It didn't work and in no time at all, Keane was back at White Hart Lane. One must say, though, that when beaten at Anfield by an Arsenal team galvanised by Arsene Wenger's half time team tirade, Liverpool should certainly have had a first-half penalty, when William Gallas brought down Gerrard.

Liverpool Manager Rafael Benitez: No Problem With Jamie Carragher Contract Talks

Liverpool manager Rafael Benitez has quashed speculation that the Reds are having problems with regard to offering a new contract for defender Jamie Carragher.

There were suggestions that the Kop hero - who turns 32 next month - might not be offered a new contact when his current deal runs out in 2011, but the Spaniard insists otherwise.

"I read an interview with him yesterday and I was surprised because he didn't ask for a new contract," Benitez told the club's official website.

"He has 18 months still on his contract. He is clever and knows we analyse things differently when players are over 30 years old. But we are really pleased with him. I don't see any problem if he continues to play at the same level.

"He is someone who trains at 100 per cent. That is very good for the mentality of the team. He is also someone who can set an example.

"I have a fantastic relationship with him and his agent. Everything is okay so we don't have any problems."

Javier Mascherano To Spend Suspension Recovering From Knee Injury

The Liverpool midfielder Javier Mascherano will be able to use his four-match suspension over the festive period to recover from a knee problem. The Argentina captain sustained an injury in the tackle on Tal Ben Haim which earned him a red card in the 2-0 defeat at Portsmouth on Saturday.

As he has already served a ban this season, Mascherano will be forced to sit out four matches, meaning he will miss fixtures against Wolves, Aston Villa, the FA Cup third-round tie at Reading and the league meeting with Tottenham on 10 January.

However, the club believes his injury would have sidelined him for at least that long any way. "The player had a scan which confirmed the medical team's initial diagnosis that he suffered a medial ligament sprain in his left knee," a club spokesman said. "He is expected to be sidelined for two to three weeks."

Rafa Benitez Still Confident Of Champions League Qualication

Manager Rafael Benitez insists Saturday’s miserable 2-0 defeat at bottom club Portsmouth hasn’t shaken his belief that Liverpool will qualify for next season’s Champions League.

Javier Mascherano was sent off as they crashed to a seventh league reverse of the campaign.

Liverpool now find themselves seventh in the Premier League, eight points off fourth placed Aston Villa, ahead of the hectic festive period.

Benitez is confident they will re-ignite their push for a top four finish when they entertain Wolves on Boxing Day before travelling to Villa three days later.

“We always knew the battle for fourth would be difficult but we know we can play well,” Benitez said.

“We know we have the quality, it’s just a question of belief. When the players have a run of games together we will improve.

“It’s tough when you have just lost and really disappointing, but if you analyse the game against Portsmouth carefully in the first half we had plenty of possession and were in control of the game.

“We started the game with real intensity but made a mistake for their first goal and paid for it. We have to defend better.”

Benitez was fuming at referee Lee Mason’s decision to send off Mascherano for his tackle on Tal Ben Haim just before the break. The Argentinean came off second best in the challenge and damaged medial knee ligaments.

“After the sending off everything changed,” Benitez said.

“I have my opinion about the sending off, it’s very clear. But the referee was perfect. He didn’t make any mistakes.

“Now Javier is injured and I will say again the referee didn’t make any mistakes. He was perfect. I have seen the replay, for me it is not a sending off, but anyway, perfect.

“With only 10 players in the second half it was always going to be difficult.

“We had to go forward and leave spaces which meant they could play on the counter attack. It was really difficult for us.

“We were making some mistakes with our passing and were anxious.

“Everybody has to be disappointed but we have to stick together and be ready for the next game. We must try to get three points and see what happens after that.”

Benitez revealed Alberto Aquilani missed the trip to the south east with a calf injury. The Italian is still waiting to make his first league start following his £20million summer move from Roma.

“Aquilani couldn’t train on Friday but it is not serious so he will be okay for next week,” he added.

Liverpool have confirmed Mascherano will serve a four-match ban after his sending-off at Fratton Park.

The Argentina captain was shown a straight red card by referee Mason and now faces his second suspension of the season.

Mascherano will miss the forthcoming fixtures against Wolves, Aston Villa, the FA Cup third round tie at Reading and the league clash with Tottenham on January 10.

However, his participation in at least some of those games would have been in doubt anyway as he had to be helped off the field having been shown the red card and is believed to have sustained medial knee ligament damage.

The absence of the Argentinian, who was just starting to rediscover his form, will be a huge blow to Benitez.

Rafa Benitez Isolated By Liverpool Fans

Two thousand Liverpool fans who left home in the early hours and braved icy roads or frozen rails to follow their team delivered a damning silent verdict.

Followers of almost any other club would have booed and chanted for the manager’s head. But they are slow to turn on their own on Merseyside.

So at the start of the second half, with their side a goal down to the league’s bottom team, they sang: “You’ll never walk alone.” It was a defiant show of faith by supporters who know what support means.

But then, long before the finish of a half in which Liverpool were ill-disciplined and wretchedly short of quality, hundreds of those same supporters quietly slouched away.

“Walk o-on, walk o-on” became walk out. There were no angry shouts but the empty seats they left behind were far more eloquent.

Rafa Benitez might have convinced himself Liverpool were in control before Javier Mascherano’s sending off and that the red card was unfair, but should not convince anyone else.

Against a team who have lost six home games, Benitez’s tactics were sterile and cautious, as they often are. A full-back, the bleakly ungifted Andrea Dossena, was stationed on the left of a midfield that had two holding players: Mascherano and Lucas. On the right, Dirk Kuyt toiled earnestly but with no invention.

Ah, but never mind, Fernando Torres was the lone out-and-out striker and good old Stevie G was buzzing around off him, so everything would be all right, wouldn’t it? No. Portsmouth’s Avram Grant had a strategy.

When he was Chelsea manager, Grant did not lose any of his five games against Benitez and engineered a Champions League semi-final victory.

This time, Grant devoted much of the preparation to telling Portsmouth they were good enough to get at Liverpool. He showed them recordings of positive moments in their defeat by Chelsea.

Then he told Michael Brown to nullify Gerrard and leave Torres so outnumbered that he became frustrated.

And although Liverpool had plenty of possession, they looked blunt long before they were torn open by the string of passes which led to the first goal and long before Mascherano was dismissed.

Then in the second half, Glen Johnson’s cavalier enthusiasm for attacking meant Jamie Carragher had to fill in at right-back so often he was not able to properly supplement the flailing Daniel Agger in the middle.

Left-back Emiliano Insua looked worse than Dossena – and there can be no crueller criticism. It was Carragher’s 600th appearance and one felt sorry for him as he looked in vain for forward options.

But above all else, one felt sympathy for those stoic but forlorn Liverpool supporters. They deserve so much better than what Benitez’s assortment of average players were able to produce.

Ben Haim Makes Torres Claim

Tal Ben Haim has accused Fernando Torres of leading with his elbow when challenging him in Portsmouth's win over Liverpool on Saturday.

The Israeli centre-half enjoyed a fine game in helping his side keep a clean sheet but was in the wars, as first Javier Mascherano was red carded for a crunching tackle on him, before Torres appeared to catch him with an elbow.

Ben Haim admitted he had to stay calm to protect the lead against Rafa Benitez's men and boost his side's hopes of Premier League survival.

"I thought he came with the elbow," he conceded.

The former Chelsea player insists Avram Grant's men had the last laugh by earning their valuable win.

"At the end of the day this challenge and other challenges are not important," he said.

"In the game there are many challenges that you could say maybe it's yellow or maybe it's red. It's part of the game and you need to continue playing.

"I don't pay much attention to that stuff because after that immediately you have to be focused and you don't want to make stupid challenges to get yourself sent off and leave your team-mates a man down. You need to control yourself. It was good for me to be like that."

Ben Haim was also involved in the tackle that led to Mascherano getting a straight red card in the first half, which Benitez felt changed the game.

"I thought that it was a good decision by the referee," he said.

"Especially as I moved the ball when he came. It's part of the game so you have to take it."

Ian Rush: Liverpool Should Buy Real Madrid Striker Ruud Van Nistelrooy In January

Liverpool legend Ian Rush believes that the club must bolster their strike force by bringing in Ruud van Nistelrooy from Real Madrid in January.

The Reds have been found lacking in the attacking department, with no proven hitman to replace or partner Fernando Torres up front apart from the inexperienced David Ngog.

While Ryan Babel and Dirk Kuyt both have the capability to play as a forward, Rafael Benitez has preferred to play them primarily on the flanks.

With the exit of Robbie Keane last season, Rush now insists that the Merseysiders will have to strengthen their front line with someone like Van Nistelrooy.

The 33-year-old is widely expected to leave Los Blancos in the upcoming transfer window.

"Sometimes Torres needs a break, and if Rafa has only one wish in the transfer window, I hope it’s a top-class striker," Rush told The Mirror.

"I would love to see him bring in someone like Van Nistelrooy, a proven goalscorer with experience at the highest level."

The Dutchman had a sensational five-year spell with Manchester United, scoring 150 goals in all competitions.

And despite the fact 'RVN' is a former Old Trafford hero, Rush believes that the fans will have no trouble taking to the striker.

He said: "World-class predators like him don’t become available every day of the week, and it doesn’t bother me where he’s played before - all it would take is a couple of goals and the supporters would take to him in a flash."

Liverpool's Fernando Torres Is £60m Chelsea Target

Fernando Torres is a £60million target for Chelsea.

There is a growing belief among Europe's richest and most powerful clubs that a season of Liverpool failure will force Torres - and his advisers - to review the player's career.

Torres has publicly insisted he is committed to the Anfield cause and does not want to create any issues that could destabilise Rafa Benitez's managerial authority.

But the Liverpool hierarchy is aware that if their struggling team fails to qualify for the Champions League, hanging on to Torres could become a major issue.

And Torres will quickly be made aware of alternatives homes where he can play at the highest level of the club game.

Chelsea manager Carlo Ancelotti is a huge admirer of Torres and the 25 -year-old Spaniard is the man the Blues boss wants to bolster his strike force.

Ancelotti has been repeatedly linked with a £45m move for Atletico Madrid's 21-year-old Argentine Sergio Aguero.

But the Italian boss stressed after the 3-3 draw with Everton eight days ago that "100 per cent" he will not be involved in any player recruitment during the January transfer window.

Unless he's forced into a strategic review, that suggests Ancelotti will seek to strengthen his squad next summer - and Torres will be at the top of his wanted list.

Last summer Benitez rejected an approach from Manchester City before the cash-rich Eastlands club could get a £50m offer off the ground.

Benitez has acknowledged: "Fernando is one of the best strikers in the game and, at his age, can only get better.

"Every major side would want him in their team."

Chelsea accept their much derided attempt to break even by 2010 has now been put on the back burner. Any attempt to lure Torres to Stamford Bridge will force owner Roman Abramovich into the kind of investment he was committed to around five years ago.

Any bid for Torres will shatter the Chelsea club record of £32m paid to AC Milan for Andrey Schevchenko.

Despite the stuttering form displayed by his team Torres has emerged as an Anfield hero in the 29 months since his £26.5m recruitment from Atletico Madrid.

Boss Benitez has worked on finding the best attacking set-up to bring the best out of his master marksman. The likes of Robbie Keane and Fernando Morientes were tried and discarded while Dirk Kuyt has ended up operating as a wide attacker.

In effect, Liverpool's most effective strike force comes when skipper Steven Gerrard operates in a withdrawn role behind Torres.

The acclaimed duo has immense professional respect for each other. In troubled times they have been the players who have consistently met the exacting standards expected at the club.

The potential loss of Torres would spark a massive outcry on Merseyside. The striker signed a new contract worth £5.5m a-year in May.

He still had four years remaining on the contract he signed on his arrival from Atletico but Liverpool felt the new, extended deal reflected the player's status as "one of the world's top strikers."

The current agreement runs to 2013 with an option for the deal to be extended to 2014.

One obstacle to Chelsea's chances is the ongoing Gael Kakuta affair.

Chelsea have appealed against a two-transfer-window ban imposed after they were found guilty of enticing the youngster to break his contract with FC Lens.

Liverpool Make Shock Move For Moses

Liverpool have joined the race for Crystal Palace ace Victor Moses.

The 19-year-old midfielder is in blistering form and scored against Barnsley on Saturday with a wonderful overhead kick.

Spurs, Hoffenheim and Barcelona are keen on Moses but the Reds reckon they can land him for £5million.

The foreign clubs have already made their intentions known to Crystal Palace manager Neil Warnock but they are set to be disappointed.

It is understood Moses does not want to leave England so early in his career, while Tottenham are keeping tabs on the youngster.

Warnock admits he is fighting a losing battle to keep Moses at Selhurst Park - but he will hold out for as much money as possible to help the cash-strapped Eagles recoup some cash.

Tottenham seemed to be in pole position to land Moses but Harry Redknapp claims he needs to sell before he can buy. He may have trouble shipping out the right players, meaning Spurs are now behind Liverpool in the chase for Moses.

Money is also tight at Anfield but Rafael Benitez is confident he can raise £5million to capture Moses.

He has been told there is a limited amount of money to spend in January and the Spaniard is set to launch his bid for the starlet as he is keen to build for the future on Merseyside.

Gary Lineker: 12 Months Of Tears, Rants... And Possibly The Worst £20m Ever Spent On A Player

What was your football highlight of 2009? Being a Leicester City fan, nothing could top promotion back to the Championship for me but elsewhere we had 12 months of tears and laughter, cheating, rants and the world's first £80million player.

It's a time to look back and reflect on the best and worst of what has happened. Stars like Lionel Messi, Cristiano Ronaldo, Didier Drogba and Fernando Torres have graced 2009 but my player of the year is Wayne Rooney, who has grown from world-class talent to the talismanic leader of Manchester United and England.

United were always going to be weakened by Ronaldo going to Real Madrid but the way Rooney has thrived on the extra responsibility has been stunning. He has to be the chief goalscorer and shirt-seller at Old Trafford now. And so far he hasn't put a foot wrong.

It struck me how special he is when I went to Stamford Bridge earlier this season to see Chelsea play United. There were outstanding players on both teams but even in that company Rooney stood head and shoulders above the rest.

Besides winning a third Premier League title in a row, he scored 29 times for club and country in 2009, a great record for a player who offers more than just goals.

If he delivers at the World Cup, we'll be talking about him as the greatest English player of all-time alongside Tom Finney and Bobby Charlton.

Talking of England, Fabio Capello gets my vote as manager of the year, for getting to the World Cup without any palpitations and putting us in a position where we could win it. That is a huge turnaround for a team that didn't qualify for Euro 2008.

Capello has brought discipline to the set-up and given the players confidence. It might be a surprise that Premier League stars can lack self-belief but that was the case with England pre-Capello.

The highlight was the 5-1 win against Croatia in September. Significantly, Steve Gerrard and Frank Lampard scored twice each - at one stage people didn't think they could play in the same team.

The year was mind-boggling for the money spent on transfers. Manchester City spent £135m, Real Madrid beat that on just two players, Ronaldo and Kaka.

The best business was done in January, however, when Tottenham paid £15m to Portsmouth for Jermain Defoe. Always a good striker, Defoe has become lethal in the last 12 months, improving tremendously in his penalty box awareness. The buy of the year in my view. He's worked with former Arsenal and England striker Ian Wright and that shows he is prepared to listen and learn.

Defoe is at the stage now where I would love to see him play with Wayne as the No 1 strike partnership for England. My instinct says that they would be brilliant together. Over to you, Fabio.

Alberto Aquilani cost more than Defoe - but you wouldn't have realised it from his appearances this season. At a reported £20m, he's got to be the worst buy. He was meant to replace Alonso but spent the first three months injured and hasn't been pushed into the team by Rafa Benitez now that he is fit. It suggests the Liverpool boss is not confident about his ability to fit into the English game.

Benitez came up with the best soundbite of the year. But, although funny, it ended up rebounding on Liverpool. His line, 'I want to talk about facts', while ranting about Sir Alex Ferguson in January was great entertainment.

But the timing was strange - Liverpool were top of the table and Benitez didn't have to say anything at all. The next day his side were held by Stoke and never recovered the title initiative.

At least Liverpool had a reasonable season, Newcastle's relegation was a huge shock. The turmoil off the field finally cost them on it.

Best goal of the year came last weekend by Wigan's Maynor Figueroa against Stoke. To score from inside your own half is not easy – even Pele managed to miss from there. Figueroa's shot could not have been struck more sweetly.

We have all the Premier League games on a Saturday coming in on a live feed at the BBC. One of the biggest reactions from those of us watching in 2009 wasn't for a goal but for Jimmy Bullard's goal celebration against Manchester City.

His impression of a finger-wagging Hull boss Phil Brown had everyone bursting out with spontaneous laughter and applause. As Alan Shearer said later, it wasn't just the best goal celebration of the year but maybe of all-time.

On the negative side, Thierry Henry became the biggest villain of the year when his handball sent France rather than the Republic of Ireland to the World Cup. The striker has built a fantastic reputation and it was shattered in a moment.

I just wish the culture in football would have allowed the referee to ask him outright if he'd handled. I am sure Henry would have been honest if put on the spot and all the bitter recriminations since could have been avoided.

Most sadly of all, we lost one of my greatest role models and inspirations in football this year when Sir Bobby Robson died in July after a long battle against cancer.

It was so fitting that his funeral service in Durham turned into the greatest football gathering of the year, where I was able to catch up with former Italia 90 team-mates Peter Beardsley and Paul Gascoigne and two of my former team-mates from Barcelona, Jose Alexanco and Txiki Begiristain.

Bobby's passing meant 2009 was a bittersweet year for football. Rooney could make 2010 really special.

Liverpool's Tom Hicks Tells Jurgen Klinsmann: You Will Never Manage Reds

Liverpool co-owner Tom Hicks has told Jurgen Klinsmann he will NEVER manage Liverpool.

The Anfield hierarchy have been stunned by the German's recent attempts to undermine Rafa Benitez and offer himself up as the perfect replacement.

Klinsmann, who was sounded out about succeeding Benitez two years ago when the Spaniard was embroiled in a dispute with the club's two American owners, gave a damning assessment of Liverpool's team on a Champions League television show.

He followed that up with a newspaper interview in Germany in which he claimed he could be Anfield-bound next summer.

And when Sunday Mirror Sport asked Hicks whether Klinsmann would ever be considered as a future Liverpool manager, his reply was an emphatic: "Never."

Hicks added: "I don't know what his (Klinsmann's) motives are."

Benitez, who is less than 12 months into a five-year contract, has been told he has the full support of Liverpool's owners despite an early Champions League exit and seven Premier League defeats this season.

Klinsmann, 45, forged himself a reputation as one of the game's best up-and-coming coaches when he took Germany to the 2006 World Cup semi-finals.

He was an advocate of attacking football and his personality and communication skills helped him become a popular global figure.

The following year, with Benitez's future in doubt following a power struggle with Liverpool's then chief executive Rick Parry, he was approached by Gillett as a possible replacement.

Klinsmann met with Gillett, Hicks and Parry in the United States but, once the crisis at Anfield had ended, he was appointed coach of Bayern Munich.

His reign in Bavaria lasted less than a season and Benitez has since viewed his attempts to undermine him at Liverpool with as much amusement as derision given the way he was dumped by Bayern.

Reds Need To Revise Targets - Rafa

Liverpool boss Rafael Benitez tellingly spoke of the need to "change your targets" after Saturday's 2-0 defeat at Portsmouth.

The Spaniard may well have been talking about shifting focus to the Boxing Day clash against Wolves but following the performance at Fratton Park, the comment could easily apply to Liverpool's season.

Goals from Nadir Belhadj and Frederic Piquionne, either side of Javier Mascherano's dismissal, made Liverpool look every inch the Europa League team they currently are.

This came days after Benitez offered guarantees of a top-four finish in the Premier League with the right approach.

"We have to start working this week, preparing the next game," he said.

"You have to change your targets and think about one game at a time. That is the only way. We know we have to work harder now."

Anfield legend Alan Hansen, in his role as a BBC pundit, suggested the pressure was on Benitez to deliver and that the club would not make any knee-jerk reaction during the season.

Hansen was also critical of Liverpool's performance at Pompey, regardless of referee Lee Mason's decision to dismiss Mascherano for a lunge at Tal Ben Haim.

Last season Benitez's outburst aimed at Manchester United and Sir Alex Ferguson, when he kept repeating "facts", was criticised as counter-productive - this time he continually described Mason as "perfect".

For a flavour of his reaction, Benitez said: "The referee was perfect. He didn't make any mistakes. He was perfect in giving fouls to (Fernando) Torres, he was perfect in everything. He was perfect."

Benitez, however, did claim the sending off just before half-time changed the game.

"The 10 players were working very hard," he said.

"Credit to them, they were in the game. They (Portsmouth) were playing counter-attack and with the pace up front it's not easy."

Belhadj's goal came after a poor header from former Pompey right-back Glen Johnson, while Piquionne span around Jamie Carragher before finishing, ruining the Liverpool centre-back's 600th appearance for the club.

"You have to be disappointed when you concede goals," Benitez added.

At least Benitez has £20million summer signing Alberto Aquilani back for the Christmas period after missing the Pompey trip with a calf problem.

"He has a kick in his calf and he didn't train properly," Benitez said.

"He is not serious so he will be okay for next week but he couldn't be here."

Javier Mascherano Will Serve Four-Game Ban After Portsmouth Dismissal

Liverpool's Javier Mascherano is shown a red card by the referee Lee Mason at Portsmouth, an offence that has landed the Argentina captain a four-match ban.

Liverpool have confirmed that Javier Mascherano will serve a four-match ban after his sending-off at Fratton Park. The Argentina captain was shown a straight red card by the referee Lee Mason and now faces a second suspension of the season.

Mascherano will miss the fixtures against Wolverhampton Wanderers, Aston Villa, the FA Cup third-round tie at Reading and the league match against Tottenham Hotspur on 10 January.

However, his participation in at least some of those games would have been in doubt anyway as he had to be helped off the field having been show the red card and is believed to have sustained medial knee-ligament damage.

The absence of the Argentinian, who was just starting to rediscover his form, will be a huge blow to the manager, Rafael Benítez.

It means the Liverpool manager must decide whether to drop Steven Gerrard back from his attacking role just behind Fernando Torres or play the £20m summer signing Alberto Aquilani, whom he has been holding back because of concerns about his fitness.

Liverpool Boss Rafael Benitez Is Tipped For The Chop After Defeat At Portsmouth

Liverpool boss Rafael Benitez is now 9/1 to lose his job before the turn of the year, thanks to his side's 2-0 defeat at Portsmouth on Saturday.

Manager Benitez, who this week "guaranteed" that his side will finish fourth in the Premier League, is a front-runner to be fired, after five years in the hot seat at Anfield.

Bookmakers William Hill are also offering 13/8 that Liverpool will finish in the top four and 4/9 that they will not after their 2-0 defeat at bottom-of-the-table Pompey.

"Rafa's guarantee has a hollow ring to it after the defeat by Portsmouth," William Hill spokesman Graham Sharpe told sportinglife.com.

"We are now offering just 7/1 that Liverpool finish in the bottom half of the table," he added.

Match Report: Portsmouth 2 - 0 Liverpool

Liverpool boss Rafael Benitez suffered a disastrous trip to Portsmouth after Javier Mascherano was dismissed during a miserable defeat at Fratton Park.

Pompey's victory, with the goals coming from Nadir Belhadj and Frederic Piquionne, will ignite hope of survival in the Barclays Premier League.

However, Liverpool chances of finishing in the top four are uncertain - they missed a chance to record back-to-back league wins for the first time since September.

It means Avram Grant maintains his unbeaten record against Benitez after recording two wins and two draws during his time at Chelsea in the 2008 season.

Back then he ended the Spaniard's Champions League hopes at the semi-final stage - this time he has dented their chances of even qualifying for the competition.

Benitez was furious with Lee Mason, who sent two Liverpool players off during the defeat to Fulham earlier in the season, for his straight red for Mascherano, who will now miss four games through suspension.

The defeat also meant there was no celebration to mark Jamie Carragher's 600th appearance for Liverpool - until Belhadj's strike he would not have enjoyed an easier 30 minutes in his previous 599.

In truth, both sides needed time to find their a footing in a game played under tricky conditions. The match was able to go ahead due to the pitch being covered during the week, although there were traces of snow on the shaded areas of the turf meaning passing was sometimes hindered.

Benitez was boosted by the return of Fernando Torres after the Spain striker rested his troublesome groin in the midweek win over Wigan - but he was limited to half-chances.

Torres had a sight of goal early on but Hermann Hreidarsson was back in time - his sliced clearance could have gone anywhere but ended up in Asmir Begovic's hands.

Torres then got closer midway through the half after collecting a pass from Andrea Dossena and curling just over the bar, then he was inches from Steven Gerrard's cross.

Dossena's selection was a curious decision, especially with Yossi Benayoun relegated to the bench and Ryan Babel back after an ankle complaint.

And any plans Benitez had of his changes ensuring a simple victory were blown away just after the half-hour mark when Pompey took the lead.

Belhadj started the move himself by nutmegging Emiliano Insua to set up the attack. When the ball was cleared, Kevin-Prince Boateng forced Pepe Reina into a save with a powerful volley, former Pompey full-back Glen Johnson cleared the ball only as far as Belhadj and the Algerian lashed in at the near post.

Belhadj has been out of favour under Grant, this was his first game since October and resulted in his first goal of the campaign.

Daniel Agger should have levelled before the break. Gerrard's free-kick found him unmarked but the centre-back headed over from close range.

To make matters worse, then came Mascherano's dismissal.

The Argentina midfielder recklessly crashed into Tal Ben Haim, although his feet did not leave the ground. Nevertheless, Mason consulted the fourth official before giving a straight red card.

It was a decision that infuriated Benitez, who had chants of "you're getting sacked in the morning" aimed at him from home fans.

Benitez made his move eight minutes after the break, introducing Benayoun for Dossena to the delight of Liverpool fans, many of whom had set off at unsociable hours for the lunchtime kick-off.

Michael Brown made himself busy in midfield, winding up his opponents. When Torres snapped and fouled the Pompey skipper it earned the striker a yellow card, then the striker may have been fortunate to stay on the pitch when he led with his arm in a challenge on Ben Haim.

Johnson also earned a booking for tripping Jamie O'Hara when the on-loan Tottenham midfielder robbed him deep in Liverpool territory.

Begovic needed to be at his sharpest to deny Gerrard after the England midfielder's shot struck Brown and Hreidarsson. The Pompey goalkeeper was falling the wrong way but managed to palm the ball away.

Piquionne doubled the lead with eight minutes remaining, latching onto Boateng's cross, spinning around Carragher and finishing crisply.

Rafa Benitez: Javier Mascherano Dismissal Cost Liverpool FC Dear At Portsmouth

Liverpool boss Rafael Benitez believes the first-half dismissal of Javier Mascherano signalled the beginning of the end for his side as they fell to a 2-0 loss at Portsmouth today.

The Argentinian midfielder saw red shortly before the interval after recklessly crashing into Tal Ben Haim, although his feet did not leave the ground.

Liverpool were already trailing to a Nadir Belhadj goal when they were reduced to 10 men and Frederic Piquionne added another late on to complete the scoring.

Benitez said: “If you analyse the first half we were doing well, even with their goal but then came the Mascherano incident.

“We were a good team in the first half and the sending off changed everything.

“We had some chances, we should have scored, we were controlling the game and everything changed with Mascherano.

“Now we have to hope we can win our next game.”

Pompey’s victory will ignite hope of survival in the Barclays Premier League.

The result also means Avram Grant maintains his unbeaten record against Benitez after posting two wins and two draws during his time at Chelsea in the 2008 season.

Grant was thrilled to claim the scalp of Liverpool having narrowly missed out to leaders Chelsea in midweek.

“Today we played like a team,” he said.

“From game to game we are playing better and today we deserved the win.

“We played on Wednesday against a team in first place at home, and we showed ourselves if we can do things well at the bottom of the table we can still surprise the other team, and today it went well.”

Pompey midfielder Michael Brown added: “We’ve been playing well in general. It was a fantastic result for us.

“It’s a matter of getting some points and three points is fantastic against a strong Liverpool team with a lot of talent. It’s an enjoyable day for us.”

Rafa Benitez Putting Faith In Liverpool FC Defender Glen Johnson

There is an irony attached to Rafa Benitez’s signing of Glen Johnson, if you are willing to believe the chatter in some parts.

It goes like this. The manager who is more preoccupied with defending and making sure the back of his team is in order actually weakened his rearguard by selling a player who could occupy a number of positions for someone who struggles to do his main job.

Nothing, of course, could be further from the truth. Yet ever since he played for England in Ukraine on October 10, Johnson has found his positional sense and ability to help Liverpool keep clean sheets called into question.

Never was that more apparent than after last Sunday’s alarming 2-1 defeat at home to Arsenal as Johnson put through his own net to give Arsene Wenger’s side a route back into the game before having his pocket picked by Arshavin for their winner.

Every player, at some point in their career, experiences a 45 minute spell when nothing goes right, but for there to be suggestions that Johnson has struggled since swapping Portsmouth for Liverpool in the summer would be grossly unfair.

Fast, skilful and decisive in the tackle, Johnson has made an assured start to life on Merseyside; yes, there has been the odd lapse, but ask Benitez about the man he bought to replace Alvaro Arbeloa and you are left in doubt about the manager’s views.

Having shaken off the problem which forced him to miss Wednesday’s 2-1 win over Wigan, Johnson will take his place alongside Jamie Carragher, Daniel Agger and Fabio Aurelio at a ground he knows well.

An FA Cup-winner during his time on the south coast, Johnson is sure to get a good reception at Fratton Park, but all Benitez is bothered about is the 25-year-old making a key contribution to another Liverpool win.

“When we looked at Glen, we knew we were signing an attacking full-back,” Benitez explained. “Everybody knows he is really good going forward but, at the same time, we know he can improve in defence.

“It’s too early to talk about how he has done for us so far, but we have seen him take good positions on the pitch and he does well in certain situations; sometimes he makes a mistake, but generally he is doing very well.

“But he has an attacking mentality and that is good. He is improving and he will keep improving; it is all a question of time, but, clearly, we know he is going to be a good player for Liverpool.

“Last Sunday was just a bit of bad luck. First the cross took a deflection off Fabio then another off Carra and it was really difficult for him to get out of the way; but the main thing always for me is the reaction.

“This week we have watched Glen and he has been very good. He has a good mentality and he is keen to learn; at this moment he is showing that he can become a key player for us for a long time. He just needs to keep improving the little details.”

What will help him achieve that aim is if Benitez can get Carragher, Agger and Aurelio alongside Johnson on a regular basis – it is no surprise Liverpool have conceded more goals this season than usual, given how much shuffling the manager has had to do.

Agger and Aurelio may have had more injuries than most, but Johnson has suffered his fair share and Benitez is hoping the former Chelsea and West Ham can put those niggles behind him to play one week after another.

“The injuries have been very important,” said Benitez. “Glen has had problems, but we have also had other problems with too many players having injuries at the same time and they (the back four) haven’t been able to play together regularly for a while.

“But if we can change that, I think it will be much easier because the understanding between defenders is very important. Glen was Portsmouth’s best player last season and I’m sure he will get a good reception.”

Johnson was in opposition back in February when Liverpool staged one of their most dramatic comebacks of the season, scoring twice in the last five minutes to snatch a 3-2 win when it seemed like they were going to return empty-handed.

“We showed there last year that we have got a very good mentality,” said Benitez. “We were able to win a lot of games at the end and we have shown we can do it; the mentality we are looking for now is this one.

“When you have some problems you have to show character and I think the players are ready. Hopefully we can play well and we will not need to win in the last minute, but if we have to that’s fine, too. We have got to keep the momentum going.

“We needed to win on Wednesday and that was the main thing. We had a situation with which I was furious – it should have been a free-kick when Pepe Reina was trying to catch the ball but the referee allowed them to play on and they hit the bar.

“I was really disappointed because it would have meant us having to score another goal when we were nervous. But still the performance was good.”