If you believe everything you read, the Anfield manager should be given the boot. But this Reds fan thinks the Premier League title is just around the corner and is backing him to the hilt.
'What riles me up the most is the way rumours develop like this - the Press are telling Liverpool fans they should have had enough of Rafa. But the truth is, we haven't'
Even the merest whiff of support for the sacking of Rafael Benitez is lunacy of the highest order.
Once again the mouth-foaming, pitchfork-wielding tabloids have risen against Rafa - a tactical genius - who, after the decade-long wrist-slitting dirge that was Graeme Souness, Roy Evans and Gerrard Houllier, won us the Champions League.
Of course, if he did get the sack, the newspapers would swiftly change tack and ask why on earth such a great manager was given the boot.
Personally, I cannot see why Rafa would be under any pressure. The seismic waves of the huge foul-up from owners George Gillett and Tom Hicks in large part rocked the boat - not only outraging the manager, but the players and fans too. What we have now is a Liverpool that is even more galvanized than before the Yanks showed up.
If Rafa is given more time and robust financial backing he will win the Premier League within the next two years. Benitez’s side already has a glorious spine, with Daniel Agger, Javier Mascherano and Fernando Torres only just flirting with their prime.
It is clearly capable of success - as the European Cup final in Istanbul showed - and it has a great record at Anfield where the only team to take to us was Manchester United. Everton should be very worried indeed about their weekend visit.
What riles me up the most is the way rumours develop like this - the Press are telling Liverpool fans they should have had enough of Rafa. But the truth is, we haven't. He is a forensic tactician with huge love for the club. Rather than being kicked out, I can see Benitez having a job for life at Anfield.
The Press have been stirring the pot constantly this season, and not just at Liverpool. More recently at Upton Park, West Ham fans were told that they should be kicking up a stink over Alan Curbishley despite the fact that they entered the Everton game a full 20 points ahead of their tally at the same time last season and have been dealt an avalanche of injuries.
Newcastle fans have been told what to think too, with the media claiming that they should be at the end of their tether with Kevin Keegan, despite the Toon Army seeming as happy as ever.
This is akin to a crazed 1950’s Communist witch-hunt. Hardly any manager has been overlooked in the media’s quest for sackings - Gareth Southgate, David Moyes (for patiently undertaking new contract negotiations), Avram Grant, Steve Coppell and Gary Megson have all had an accusing spotlight passed over their performances this season.
Maybe they should leave it to the clubs and their own fans to decide if they need a change.
Are Liverpool right to keep Rafa in charge, or is his time up at Anfield? Comment below or write your own article for Sportingo.