The Benitez Thread

[Muzchap 8,966]

Find it funny that under previous managers, when something goes wrong, you have people who blame the manager, players for not performing and taking responsibility and other factors. Now, if anything goes wrong, all the blame is on Benitez and nothing elsewhere...

I know it's easy to pick a target - Torres / Rafa...

Sure no one person is to blame, BUT the Manager should be the primary motivator, the glue that holds the team together...

I just don't see that from Rafa, I didn't also see it from RDM to be fair... We need a big personality (not to be confused with a fat bloke) - somebody who can gel this team together and get them playing as a team...

I really don't see Rafa doing that!

This IMHO has been our worst season ever, so many chances to win something and ALL but gone... Sure we've had worse seasons, but there was never the expectation. We've gone from a team of winners, to a collection of Losers...

The only plus point is that I hope Roman gets this through his thick Russian skull - that the manager merry-go-round has finally exploded in his face and he is 'Proper' fucked now!!! So he needs to learn patience...

I would prefer a young, hungry manager - I still say Adkins - back to back promotions, excellent playing style and a decent bloke. He would instil a great work ethic and wouldn't play players for their Egos - just on performance... Look at his squad - probably assembled for less than Hazard cost.... Same with Swansea... Skill means fuck all without graft, desire and commitment!!!

AND THAT COMES FROM THE MANAGER DOWN!

[Muzchap 8,966]

Double morale.. It's OK for players -who earn millions- to play shit and disgrace the shirt ,but somehow it all comes down to people blaming the manager. Are you really so naive? Do you think that hiring Mourinho will fix our problems? Mourinho is a man with big ego and more often than not needs huge investments to implement his way of play, a luxury we can't allow ourselves on regular basis due to FFP. I appreciate what he has done but having him as a manager is a short term fix, when time passes we will be back in the same situation, cursing Mourinho for taking this job again and ruining his legacy at Chelsea. Think about that.. The problem is in the squad, we lack depth on paper and width on the pitch.. long term Chelsea players have way too much power and should be sold or disciplined. They have been good to us, but like-wise the club has been good to them. Regardless, they can't cross the line and disrespect a manager, like they have done many times in the past... Moreover if they can't live up to their glory-days and put in sub par performances.

I give credit to Rafa for what he has done to us so far and refuse to show disrespect. Coming from his past, he is a very easy target for people, who can't see beyond their nose tips. This blind hatred towards him is the reason he should not be our manager on permanent basis, nothing to do with his actual managerial abilities. Just hope our next gaffer will last longer and will be able to 'please' our panel of experts.

I'm not blinded by his past - I'm blinded by his failures as a Chelsea manager... We looked clueless again - yes the players are to blame as well, but he had a shit game plan that Swansea saw through. We actually played better 1st leg...

He is not a tactical genius. He is a self serving wanker who should never have been appointed - he's in this for his CV and fuck all else... How can the players respect an Interim manager! A huge amount of blame should be levied at Roman too!

We're at clusterfuck stage and only have ourselves to blame....

[bushman 2,043]

I wish it was that simple

We only play down the middle - remember Arsenal a few seasons ago? That's us now!!!

Easy to defend against...

Even @Seb must agree the problem is that the opposition sits deep, no space, so our centre backs push on into the small amount of space 'halfway line' - as all players in front are marked, hardly ANY options, so the centre backs either 'dither' and lose the ball or try a crazy pass that gets cut out, or our attacking player cannot control, giving possession to the opposition to counter attack...

That has happened SO many times I want to scream!!! Then Mata / Hazard / Oscar drop deeper and deeper and try tricks in midfield, instead of attacking third, lose possession and opposition counters...

That is why we need to stretch play, use the full width of the pitch, have wingers on the touch line - opens space and pulls the opposition defensive shape.

I know Moses missing hurts, but can anyone seriously say Marin would have been worse than Oscar? I just don't get it... RB is supposed to be a tactical genius, if I can see these problems as a 'developer' - with NO football qualifications, except Sunday league and Uni player. Then why can't he?

It's just a shambles!!! What the fuck they are doing in training only God knows... And I'm not sure I even believe in him anymore....

As I said so many times here. Current Chelsea team lacks players. There is hardly anyone on the bench to help. Believe me Marin is not the one to rely on. Him being injured might be the biggest obstacle. Is he good enough ? I doubt it. To stretch play, I agree. But my question, whom to use ? Moses gone...& all.

Then, you continue Rafa has no qualifications. Perhaps, you should think this one over ? It´s an embarrassment to post it here.

[SinineUltra 1,170]

I'm not blinded by his past - I'm blinded by his failures as a Chelsea manager... We looked clueless again - yes the players are to blame as well, but he had a shit game plan that Swansea saw through. We actually played better 1st leg...

He is not a tactical genius. He is a self serving wanker who should never have been appointed - he's in this for his CV and fuck all else... How can the players respect an Interim manager! A huge amount of blame should be levied at Roman too!

We're at clusterfuck stage and only have ourselves to blame....

I agree that some of Rafa's decisions and tactics are weird and seem incorrect, but in the end of the day you can have the best tactics but if players can't be bothered it's not going to happen, is it? Whether a manager is permanent or interim should NOT make a difference. They are all there for the same aim and manager is more important than the players, they should know better. I blame Roman for not seeing this kind of reception towards Rafa, it was obvious that not many can close an eye regarding the past and be open minded about this.

[MetsajCFC 1,255]

It's not Rafa's fault that our bench is how it is. He isn't in control of the transfers, there's only one man in charge and we all know who it is. People moaning that we've got 4 defenders on the bench while we got to win the game by 2 goals, who on earth was he supposed to put there? Some youth team strikers? Give me a break.

Face the facts, Rafa hasn't had a fair chance at the job, he never will be because of all the fans who are blindfolded and can only think one thought: "Sack Rafa, sack another manager, get Mourinho" - it has worked wonders so many times past years, right? We need to have more balance in the squad. At the moment we're strong when it comes to attacking midfielders, on paper anyway. We lack cover for every position you can think of, and when I say cover I mean suitable one. McEachran or Turnbull or Bertrand or Marin are nowhere near the level you'd expect even a subsitute to be in a club like Chelsea. We depend on handful of players, namely Juan Mata, who seems to be burning out. He is just out of energy and needs to rest. We sorely miss Moses aswell.

Sometimes when I happen to read RedCafe or RAWK forums I honestly admire how people there can remain civilized or atleast show support to their team or players regardless of the situation. A lot we can learn from them, take it as you may.

It's not Rafa, it's the players. Millionaires who are used to slacking without punishment - it's always the manager. Just for the record, Lampard was awful last night, on the basis of that he shouldn't get a new contract and realistically thinking we need a change. Abramovich sees that and I support that. Rather let a great player go than keep him rotting on the bench, he ain't getting any younger and Chelsea need to clear out player power and turn a new page in their book.

[bushman 2,043]

Finally, someone posts the truth. Exactly what I have been saying for weeks.

The team have no other players on the bench to do the job. Continued, repetitious postings as to Rafa is no good, he is not qualified, the biggest dribble so far here, should end, I feel.

Take a look the team, then judge accordingly.

[termninja 5,290]

The argument of "who would you bring" simply does not cut. If Roman was really worried with who he is gonna replace with, Robbie would still be here.

The way things are going (basically the fact the players and Rafa have no connection), we can find second tier managers that would do a better job.

Dont read too much on it though, I am just a pissed off fan. Dont know if I would have the same reaction on a professional level. You are being way more sensible than I am...

And what? We sack Rafa, bring some average guy and then what? Sack him also when we realize that he is actually average? We are already being made fun of, and for fuck's sake, we are 3rd in the league atm, and managers ain't friggin' socks! We have the 2nd best attack and 2nd best defense in the league! We are still in the FA Cup, and it wasn't Rafa's fault that we are out of the CL...even our defeat to Swansea, it was mostly due to 2 individual errors, we haven't been that bad in that game.

And yes, we do not have a team that has enough quality to compete for the 1st place in the league. Our midfield isn't good, and our striking department isn't good. That's like 2/4 areas of the team that ain't on the level they should be.

And on the other side, Hazard, Oscar, Azpi, Moses...came recently, still very young... Ba came like half a month ago...they've done well, but let's not forget how much time they've spent with the club and their current age. I still can't believe how some of them have adapted and done so far, but they can only do so much...they are yet to show their best to us, and some of them are yet to learn English well.

I'm surprised with the expectation our fans are having considering managerial changes, our young team, lack of a deadly striker, improvised double pivot...and the sheer number of games we've played so far!

We haven't been as good as we should have under Robbie, and I do believe Roman never planned on keeping him at the club unless he had done more miracles again. Our defending was just bad and somehow we were battling hard for a win in almost each game.

On the other hand, Rafa did good with Valencia, did good with Liverpool and used 4-2-3-1 formation along with Torres there really well. He was easily available to bring so when we looked at this from a neutral side, it wasn't such a bad signing. Don't forget that we won't get our usual millions from the CL and with chances of not qualifying for the CL this season, it wasn't an easy choice for the board to make.

All this said, I hate that we sacked RDM and I hate that we brought Rafa, it shouldn't have been done...I'm just trying to show you the situation from some different angles.

I understand the love for Chelsea and I understand the passion. I understand that emotions can hit us hard when Blues ain't doing well, but there is no reason for us to go into to ,,Sack his ass!" ,,This is disgrace" mode. Although, bringing Benitez, Liverpool "legend" if I may call him that for our own legend who won us 1st CL in our history and our 2nd double is rather disgraceful indeed. But we ain't helping the club by sticking it up their arse, putting pressure all around and disrupting a already disrupted harmony.

I am not here every day, watching every game because of my love for our chairman, board, fans, Ivanovic, some other player or manager. I am here because of the club. It is the club I love the most above everything, and at the moment, my judgement is that things ain't that bad as some of you make then out to be.

Some top clubs would kill to be in our situation...

[Tomo 21,733]

We started this season investing in young players, letting experience go, 1 forward who we never played and serious unbalance in our team, the best we could have hoped for this season is 3rd with some positive signs for the future, so far so good in both counts.

If Rafa had this record with one of our 03-09 squads then yes he will deserve every bit of criticism he is receiving, but AVB and RDM aside, every manager we have had under Roman has started with better and more balanced squads.

[Mufassir08 2,400]

The thing that people need to realize is that if we sack rafa who will we replace him with?I dont think there is anybody available,we are stuck with him till the summer what we can do is sign a deep lying playmaker and a striker and 40% of our problems will improve.Btw when we sacked RDM i dont know why we did not go for laurent blanc.

[Jase 43,479]

I know it's easy to pick a target - Torres / Rafa...

Sure no one person is to blame, BUT the Manager should be the primary motivator, the glue that holds the team together...

I just don't see that from Rafa, I didn't also see it from RDM to be fair... We need a big personality (not to be confused with a fat bloke) - somebody who can gel this team together and get them playing as a team...

I really don't see Rafa doing that!

This IMHO has been our worst season ever, so many chances to win something and ALL but gone... Sure we've had worse seasons, but there was never the expectation. We've gone from a team of winners, to a collection of Losers...

The only plus point is that I hope Roman gets this through his thick Russian skull - that the manager merry-go-round has finally exploded in his face and he is 'Proper' fucked now!!! So he needs to learn patience...

I would prefer a young, hungry manager - I still say Adkins - back to back promotions, excellent playing style and a decent bloke. He would instil a great work ethic and wouldn't play players for their Egos - just on performance... Look at his squad - probably assembled for less than Hazard cost.... Same with Swansea... Skill means fuck all without graft, desire and commitment!!!

AND THAT COMES FROM THE MANAGER DOWN!

If that is the case, then why were there complains about the players not performing and taking responsibility under say Ancelotti previously? I agree with you saying the manager is the person that holds the team together but the effort and commitment must come from both parties - manager and players. The manager can train the players all day long, drill them into executing this tactic, that tactic etc in training but ultimately, it's the players who go out there and perform what the manager does. They can only do as much as because it's completely out of their hands once players step onto the field. Not denying Benitez isn't without his faults either but I find it amusing that everyone is just blaming him when something goes wrong and no one else(perhaps only the board) yet in the past, people did almost the opposite. Some blame managers. Some blame players. The players should be shouldering some of the responsibility/blame as well. There's no excuse going from beating Everton away to losing at home against QPR. Thrashed Southampton, then lost to Swansea thanks to 2 blunders by Ivanovic. Ran riot at Stoke and then let a 2-goal lead slip at home to Southampton. There's just no consistency in our results right now and we have had chances to win some of those games but the players didn't take them. Is it Benitez's fault then? No. Same thing happened under RDM as well and that is why we had some poor results under him as well. Did anyone blame RDM then?

[Bosnian Blue 2,471]

Only a few people claimed the team wasnt good enough when the season started, and even fewer said the same after our win at White Hart Lane. Even though ultimately I disagree and think this team could do way much better with a proper manager, I have to reckon Tomo was one of them.

Others only say it to defend the interim and blame the board.

[bushman 2,043]

Of course, one has to blame the board. What are they doing there ? Have they not foresee Moses, Mikel going to Africa ?

Are they not seeing how depleted is the squad at the moment ?

[Bosnian Blue 2,471]

Of course, one has to blame the board. What are they doing there ? Have they not foresee Moses, Mikel going to Africa ?

Are they not seeing how depleted is the squad at the moment ?

Finally we agree on something. The board must be blamed, but Roman aswell. They have well and truly fucked up this season and possibly even future.

[Tomo 21,733]

Finally we agree on something. The board must be blamed, but Roman aswell. They have well and truly fucked up this season and possibly even future.

Bit extreme. The future is as good as it's ever been.

[Bosnian Blue 2,471]

Yeah maybe I've overreacted, but something must be done 'in order to keep the club running in the right direction'. I think we all know what that is.

[Tomo 21,733]

Yeah maybe I've overreacted, but something must be done 'in order to keep the club running in the right direction'. I think we all know what that is.

Give Torres more service

[Kojo 4,676]

It's not Rafa's fault that our bench is how it is. He isn't in control of the transfers, there's only one man in charge and we all know who it is. People moaning that we've got 4 defenders on the bench while we got to win the game by 2 goals, who on earth was he supposed to put there? Some youth team strikers? Give me a break.

Face the facts, Rafa hasn't had a fair chance at the job, he never will be because of all the fans who are blindfolded and can only think one thought: "Sack Rafa, sack another manager, get Mourinho" - it has worked wonders so many times past years, right? We need to have more balance in the squad. At the moment we're strong when it comes to attacking midfielders, on paper anyway. We lack cover for every position you can think of, and when I say cover I mean suitable one. McEachran or Turnbull or Bertrand or Marin are nowhere near the level you'd expect even a subsitute to be in a club like Chelsea. We depend on handful of players, namely Juan Mata, who seems to be burning out. He is just out of energy and needs to rest. We sorely miss Moses aswell.

Sometimes when I happen to read RedCafe or RAWK forums I honestly admire how people there can remain civilized or atleast show support to their team or players regardless of the situation. A lot we can learn from them, take it as you may.

It's not Rafa, it's the players. Millionaires who are used to slacking without punishment - it's always the manager. Just for the record, Lampard was awful last night, on the basis of that he shouldn't get a new contract and realistically thinking we need a change. Abramovich sees that and I support that. Rather let a great player go than keep him rotting on the bench, he ain't getting any younger and Chelsea need to clear out player power and turn a new page in their book.

Despite you looking at it than more than one way, unlike most people, you're still being far too soft on Rafa. Benitez has to be blamed for Swansea, he got it all wrong, where was Marin? we needed width and where is he?. He's a good player and he never plays, instead our attackers where all heavily marked and we couldn't play a short passing game. We need midfielders and we aren't signing one, we've only signed Demba Ba and that's it, it really isn't good enough.

You can't just blame it all on the players, it doesn't work like that, and since when has it?. Different manager players play different, it's evident that the manager has control, if Benitez can't motivate them or anything then it's him who is the fault not the players. You might not like that but it's the way it works now, I don't like it here, but if there's any blame then blame the board.

Di Matteo had a bad month, looking at it again he didn't deserve the sack, but it was clear Roman didn't want him in the first place, now the board have gotten themselves into huge trouble as they can't sack Rafa as there are no replacements.

[bushman 2,043]

Finally we agree on something. The board must be blamed, but Roman aswell. They have well and truly fucked up this season and possibly even future.

Stick around, there is more to come we will agree on.

Would you believe, somewhere I even read it was not Roman´s decision to hire Rafa ?

As for the rest of this season, we need to hold the fort for some 25 games, end up in top 4 places & fuck it.

I do not even care about FA Cup or European league. Just rest the players & win games in PL. In the summer, may Roman be still generous enough to buy more players. For the winner of CL, currently the club is not in very good shape, I feel.

Just one thing, I would like to add here.

If I were in Roman´s shoes, I would fire half of those dimwits on the board.

Definitely hire Jose & give him a free hand in transfers & two years to win major trophies.

He is the best at it. Even better that Pep, I feel. At least, he will implement much nicer & desired style of football.