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Rafa Ice Cold with Alex.

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Pesam

Pesam

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Should Rafa have been more magnanimous about Fergie/United winning the league when he was interviewed on SKY before the WBA game.

It is derigueur for all managers to praise the champions and repeat the mantra "the best team always wins the league".

It could be deemed churlish of Rafa not to praise United but actually for once I'm glad he didn't. Firstly, it would have been IMO incorrect to say that the best team won the league this season, the best team does NOT always win it (United were better than Blackburn and Leeds when they lost out to those 2 teams). I think we were the best team but they were more consistent and suffered fewer injuries to pivotal players.

Secondly, the question was phrased in a deliberate way so as to force Rafa to concede United were "better" rather than a simple request for Rafa to congratulate United for coming top.

Over that last few years I have started a few threads congratulating United on their league success as I deemed it justifiable and deserved but this year I think they have ridden their luck and I don't see any need to congratulate them and certainly not in terms of "they were better than us".

United fans had better enjoy their success this season because it will be their last title for as long as Rafa is our manager and I won't expect Slur Alex to congratulate us on being the better team next season despite us winning the league by March.

Am I in denial (and so to Rafa) and should he have been a better loser?
 
Honestly?
Rafa could have done the chicken dance in response to the 'congratulations' question for all I care.

Ultimately it means nothing to me whether he gets down on his knees in reverence at Fergie or ignores him completely. They won the league. We came second.
Lots to learn and move forward with, whether Rafa said congrats or not isn't important.

It's only words......
 
I would have a standard response regards to any questions about those fuckers:

"I am only willing to discuss Liverpool FC today"

That's all Rafa needs to do. Congratulate them my arse.
 
It's funny - I don't recall the media seeking out Ginsoak, or Wenger, to praise whomever beat them to the title in the past. It's stirring by some hacks. And in Benitez's case, after being branded a 'disgrace' not only to the profession of managers but also the tradition of Liverpool Football Club (over something that clearly didn't happen), why the hell should he genuflect and kiss the ring? If you're talking about being more generous, how about congratulating your rival manager for pushing you so close, instead of spending your first few minutes as the winning manager sneering about how he only beat your team earlier in the season with four long balls? Was that gracious? Don't make me sick.
 
when we win it next season it'll be interesting to hear what slur alex says.

come on rafa lets concentrate on the transfer window and go out next season with a plan - no more tinkering with formations, we know what works now buy the best players we can to fit this system.
 
[quote author=Pesam link=topic=33576.msg869440#msg869440 date=1242638049]
Secondly, the question was phrased in a deliberate way so as to force Rafa to concede United were "better" rather than a simple request for Rafa to congratulate United for coming top.
[/quote]

That's what fcuked me off. He had already congratulated their club for winning, so why should he pay reverence to Fergie, in particular, and start proclaiming them the team of the century? :🙂

He's already thinking about next season and the psychological impact it would have on our team, if he lay down and said "Yeah, they've been the best all along". Then next year, when he walks into our dressing room, hows he going to convince our players he believes we can win the title. It's a nonsense. He didn't sound bitter, just firm and focused in his belief that we had best team this year.. and fair play to him, he's OUR manager, and should think that.
 
[quote author=gkmacca link=topic=33576.msg869452#msg869452 date=1242638706]
It's stirring by some hacks.
[/quote]

Is true. The league is over, there's no World Cup or Euros and a lot of pages to fill at the back. So expect plenty of similar bollocks over the next few weeks.
 
[quote author=gkmacca link=topic=33576.msg869452#msg869452 date=1242638706]
It's funny - I don't recall the media seeking out Ginsoak, or Wenger, to praise whomever beat them to the title in the past. It's stirring by some hacks. And in Benitez's case, after being branded a 'disgrace' not only to the profession of managers but also the tradition of Liverpool Football Club (over something that clearly didn't happen), why the hell should he genuflect and kiss the ring? If you're talking about being more generous, how about congratulating your rival manager for pushing you so close, instead of spending your first few minutes as the winning manager sneering about how he only beat your team earlier in the season with four long balls? Was that gracious? Don't make me sick.
[/quote]

Well, we've not been on the same page recently, but we totally agree here.
 
Alan Smith on the Sky Sports coverage of the West Brom game had a go at Rafa, saying that he should publicly congratulate Sir Alex and Manchester United. Because, said Smith, "everybody knows that United are by far the greatest team in the land."

Excuse me but I thought that commentators are not supposed to express this degree of partiality?

Again on Match of the Day 2 we had Lee Dixon and co. urging Rafa to congratulate the sainted Sir Alex, and to rub salt in the wound, showing a combined Liverpool/United team with only two Liverpool players in it (Gerrard and Torres) and including the likes of Fletcher.

I sincerely hope that Rafa never goes down on one knee and pays respects to the Great One. I trust Rafa will remain defiant.
 
It was particularly ironic on MOTD to hear them complaining Rafa wasn't gracious enough when the man they seemed to think deserved it hasn't had the grace to speak to anyone from their broadcasting company for years and years.
 
Why does Rafa have to congratulate Ferguson? It's his perogative right? The media can go fuck themselves.
 
Look at the BBC headline..

Benitez refuses to LAUD Ferguson..

I mean Jesus christ.. he's congratulated United the club.. what more do they want.. him to forget all the slanderous things that have been said and bow to "the master". :🙂
 
[quote author=ibromurph link=topic=33576.msg869485#msg869485 date=1242640191]
Look at the BBC headline..

Benitez refuses to LAUD Ferguson..

I mean Jesus christ.. he's congratulated United the club.. what more do they want.. him to forget all the slanderous things that have been said and bow to "the master". :🙂
[/quote]

He has been more than gracious. he actually akcnowledged their win without even mentioning their boring, cynical approach to most games. Their ever present helping hand from various referees and their constant wining about every referee decision that did not go their way and rather ending up in numoerous appeals for the decision to be "looked at again" by FA.
 
I would have been horrified if, when we were managed by Bob Paisley, somebody told me that in years to come a Liverpool manager would not congratulate the newly crowned champions - this was always the "Liverpool way", regular winners but losing with grace and style.

However Fergie has single handedly redefined the managers rule book by being such an; ill-tempered, bad loser with regular bouts of rudeness and arrogance thrown in for good measure. Rafa is playing Fergie at his own game and will ultimately usurp Slur Alex. The days of the gentleman-manager are long gone and there's a Dog-Eat-Dog mentality now and nobody has done more to engender this than Ginsoak so I agree with the majority here and think Rafa was totally correct not to salute the arch enemy.
 
[quote author=ibromurph link=topic=33576.msg869485#msg869485 date=1242640191]
Look at the BBC headline..

Benitez refuses to LAUD Ferguson..

I mean Jesus christ.. he's congratulated United the club.. what more do they want.. him to forget all the slanderous things that have been said and bow to "the master". :🙂
[/quote]

The media will never give Benitez a break. IF Rafa says something, the media will say that he did it 'grudgingly'.
 
It's curious when you compare the media treatment of Rafa to that of Houllier. Rafa is actually a much more easygoing and cheerful bloke in normal circumstances, but because he's 'focussed' during matches (oh, the shame of it!) and guarded in post match interviews he's branded as 'aloof' and 'arrogant' and 'moody'. Ged, on the other hand, was often happy to turn on the charm in front of the cameras and then switching it off behind the scenes (I bet the local hacks prefer the press conferences now to how they were). The likes of Geoff Shreeves know full well how complicit Sky is in distorting Rafa's image, but they happily keep on doing it.
 
Next year we will see what ginsoak has to say when we win the title, i bet he wont give Rafa any credit i think ginsoak should go and fuck himself better still go and fuck big Sam the only other manager that he seems to like, fucking wankers saying that tho if we don't win it next season all this hard work will have been in vain. 8)
 
What the fuck is the fuss, Rafa congratulated Utd.

He has no need to do anymore and certainly not congratulate the hate filled jock piss head.
 
The man who is supposed to deserve Rafa's gracious respect:

Sir Alex Ferguson has taunted Liverpool ahead of their Champions League final against Milan, claiming there is "no way" they can win, and promising to toast their failure with a bottle of wine he was given by coach Carlo Ancelotti.

"I told Carlo at the end of our semi-final that there is no way he can now not win this competition," said Ferguson. "Carlo gave me a magnificent bottle of wine. But I immediately told him there is no point in giving such a wonderful gift if he then fails in the final. In fact, I told him I would only drink his wine once I see him lifting the Champions Cup."

http://www.buzzle.com/articles/136929.html


Arrogance is one thing. You cannot forgive contempt, which is what he showed Sam Allardyce last weekend. When Liverpool scored their second goal he signalled as if the game was ­finished. I do not think Sam deserved that. Sam has worked so hard for the LMA [League Managers Association] and he's had a weakened team. I just thought it showed contempt.

"In my experience no Liverpool manager has ever done that. It was beyond the pale."


http://www.guardian.co.uk/football/2009/apr/17/sam-allardyce-rafael-benitez-ferguson


"They won 4-1 here which was a travesty of a result because I didn't think it was a 4-1 result. I know it's hard to defend a 4-1 defeat but I actually thought we played quite well in the game. But there you are, we lost four goals to long kicks, long passes and we didn't recover, we lost the next game.

http://www.4thegame.com/club/liverpool-fc/news/236311/fergie_pays_liverpool_tribute.html

The only thing this desperately petty little man deserves is a smack in the mouth.
 
What do the press want from rafa?
Do they want him to chow down in Fergie's lap?

The they were congratulated on there success, but he failed to bow down to Fergie!!

Who gives a fuck the press are always hanging of the coat tails of untied and previously chelsea, that's some impartiality from the press well done to them!
 
I never remember Ferguson congratulating us when we were in our pomp and he could only dream of FA Cup finals to save his job.

The best team over 38 games wins the league, they've done that. There's nothing in the rules to say we have fawn over them just because Sky and the BBC do that.
 
I don't remember him doing so but, even if he did, a pound to a penny says he didn't congratulate Rafa personally.
 
He sent Rafa a letter, saying well done.

But that was when he knew that we were nowhere near them quality wise. Now that we are right back up there though, he'll take any chance that he can, to talk about us and our Manager.
 
[quote author=Portly link=topic=33576.msg869468#msg869468 date=1242639593]
Alan Smith on the Sky Sports coverage of the West Brom game had a go at Rafa, saying that he should publicly congratulate Sir Alex and Manchester United. Because, said Smith, "everybody knows that United are by far the greatest team in the land."

Excuse me but I thought that commentators are not supposed to express this degree of partiality?

Again on Match of the Day 2 we had Lee Dixon and co. urging Rafa to congratulate the sainted Sir Alex, and to rub salt in the wound, showing a combined Liverpool/United team with only two Liverpool players in it (Gerrard and Torres) and including the likes of Fletcher.

I sincerely hope that Rafa never goes down on one knee and pays respects to the Great One. I trust Rafa will remain defiant.
[/quote]

Agree 100%, especially about Alan Smith, a whiny cheating streak of diarrhoea whose "goal" in 1989 should not have stood and who never misses a chance to diss LFC. I'd take his advice on what anyone associated with LFC "should" do like I'd take a turkey's advice about Christmas.
 
[quote author=Pesam link=topic=33576.msg869440#msg869440 date=1242638049]
Should Rafa have been more magnanimous about Fergie/United winning the league when he was interviewed on SKY before the WBA game.

It is derigueur for all managers to praise the champions and repeat the mantra "the best team always wins the league".

It could be deemed churlish of Rafa not to praise United but actually for once I'm glad he didn't. Firstly, it would have been IMO incorrect to say that the best team won the league this season, the best team does NOT always win it (United were better than Blackburn and Leeds when they lost out to those 2 teams). I think we were the best team but they were more consistent and suffered fewer injuries to pivotal players.

Secondly, the question was phrased in a deliberate way so as to force Rafa to concede United were "better" rather than a simple request for Rafa to congratulate United for coming top.

Over that last few years I have started a few threads congratulating United on their league success as I deemed it justifiable and deserved but this year I think they have ridden their luck and I don't see any need to congratulate them and certainly not in terms of "they were better than us".

United fans had better enjoy their success this season because it will be their last title for as long as Rafa is our manager and I won't expect Slur Alex to congratulate us on being the better team next season despite us winning the league by March.

Am I in denial (and so to Rafa) and should he have been a better loser?
[/quote]

Rafa should have said 'Fuck United'
 
[quote author=St.Benitez link=topic=33576.msg869669#msg869669 date=1242652118]
He sent Rafa a letter, saying well done.


[/quote]

Ish. What he did was to send Rafa a letter explaining to Rafa how Rafa won it tactically! How pompous was that? He thinks he's some sort of feudal lord, the way he writes to everyone 'welcoming' them to the league or advising then on this or that. There's so much stuff that ought to be investigated. Take his 'concern' for the daughter of then-ref Phillip Don. It's quite a well-known story, but hasn't been publicised. The daughter used to receive hand-written birthday cards, gifts and christmas presents from Ginsoak - during the period when her Dad was still refereeing Manc games. . She also used to get free tickets for the Director's box at Old Trafford whenever she wanted them, and was a guest at the 1994 FA Cup Final. Then there was Don's son, a promising young international triathlete, who used to travel up to OT to train and receive physiotherapy during the summer holidays (even though his family lived in North London). No proof, m'lud, that the ref was anything other than impartial in matches...but, you know: why? Ginsoak is a megalomaniac who seems able to scare broadcasters and reporters with the threat of bans. It's very dodgy stuff IMHO.
 
it hurts to know you lost out in the prem title race because a rival team benefited from questionable ref decisions,besides alex showed disrespect by unnecessarily stoking up mind games at crucial times. he's done it to keegan,wenger and tried it with mourinho but had his nose burnt. when you consider all these,it would be hard to accept you lost fairly.
 
[quote author=gkmacca link=topic=33576.msg869684#msg869684 date=1242653448]
[quote author=St.Benitez link=topic=33576.msg869669#msg869669 date=1242652118]
He sent Rafa a letter, saying well done.


[/quote]

Ish. What he did was to send Rafa a letter explaining to Rafa how Rafa won it tactically! How pompous was that? He thinks he's some sort of feudal lord, the way he writes to everyone 'welcoming' them to the league or advising then on this or that. There's so much stuff that ought to be investigated. Take his 'concern' for the daughter of then-ref Phillip Don. It's quite a well-known story, but hasn't been publicised. The daughter used to receive hand-written birthday cards, gifts and christmas presents from Ginsoak - during the period when her Dad was still refereeing Manc games. . She also used to get free tickets for the Director's box at Old Trafford whenever she wanted them, and was a guest at the 1994 FA Cup Final. Then there was Don's son, a promising young international triathlete, who used to travel up to OT to train and receive physiotherapy during the summer holidays (even though his family lived in North London). No proof, m'lud, that the ref was anything other than impartial in matches...but, you know: why? Ginsoak is a megalomaniac who seems able to scare broadcasters and reporters with the threat of bans. It's very dodgy stuff IMHO.
[/quote]

Didn't Rafa frame the letter and put it on his wall or something? ;D
 
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