2021/22 Rafael Benitez

[DayL08]

Benitez is doing the right things off the pitch that we’ve wanted for ages. Weeding out the players who are more interested in themselves than the team and buying younger players who can progress.

Sacking yet another manager is not the answer. But he needs to start making better on field decisions starting next game.

5 at the back has to go. Get a back 4 who do not venture forward and keep their shape if that’s what he prefers. You play the 4 of DCL, Richarlison, Gray, Gordon when fit and Doucoure.

Then it’s Allan or whoever else he thinks can be most disciplined sitting in front of the back 4. Davies did well in that position for a couple of months under Ancelotti though it would be preferable if we got someone on loan who was much better

 

[MikeH72]

I’m not particularly interested in short term samples like 12 games, or in hypothetical managers. Yes I’m sure that we could have hired someone different, results may have been different also (for better or for worse), but as soon as Benitez is appointed I don’t understand this obsession with trying to get him fired. Everyone knew this would be a multi year turn around job with fundamental issues to fix at the club.

Let’s be honest if he’d come in and Mina DCL and Richarlison had been available to him more often than not, we’d probably have a handful more points but the key underlying issues at Everton would be exactly the same and still require fixing

Recruitment, medical department, player mentality, club structure and accountabilities. These are the big ticket items that take a long time to fix. Against that backdrop I’m not particularly outraged by a 12 game run or think in any way it warrants a managerial sacking. We’ll continue to be completely pants until someone fixes these big ticket items. To Benitez’s credit he’s actually having a go at them. Let’s at least see how he does?

I really don’t see what people are worried about. If the poor form continues he’ll get fired which is what people want. If the squad is as good as people think and other managers so competent then finishing ahead of three of Norwich Newcastle Burnley Watford shouldn’t be a problem.

I think the reason people are getting so het up is that they just want Benitez out regardless and they know that if he wins a few more league games then any chance of relegation will be fairly much gone and their opportunity for this to happen is gone until next season. As the squad changes we might even be better next season and he therefore won’t get fired for a while. That’s why there’s so much screaming about individual results, about Rondon, about oddly selected samples of specific games. Anything to add to the noise to try and get him fired now. That’s why some seem to have their nose out of shape he hasn’t gone out of the cup tonight.

I’d have more respect for posters if they just said that they don’t want Benitez no matter what. I’d disagree with it but I’d accept it lots easily. But screaming for a manager to be fired when we’re 15th (with a game in hand), he had 1.7 mill to spend in the summer, inherited a rubbish squad, and we’ve had our best strikers missing for a lot of the season just seems silly. Even more stupid is claiming he must be fired for losing to Brentford or Palace, two teams between them have beaten Arsenal and City, and taken points off Liverpool and Chelsea. Arguments like this just look narrow and petty against the backdrop of trying to turn around 7 years of complete mismanagement.

I don’t want Benitez no matter what. Because his presence at the club causes this bickering and infighting in the fanbase. That was always going to be the case. If results improve then this problem will only get worse as posters like yourself and others will just antagonise anyone that doesn’t want him even further and cause people to bite back and double down on their stance.

It was always going to turn out this way, there was always a sizeable portion of the fanbase that would never ever accept him or give him the benefit of the doubt. He is not helping himself either by engaging in pettiness with players and journalists, and his stubbornness and refusal to change his tactics to spite the fans that are screaming that it’s not working. He is pontificating at this point, the continued 5 at the back and 2 in midfield is a “I’m the manager and I’m right” stance and it’s a direct address to the fans imo. We don’t need this political crap, we need points on the board desperately.

 

[DayL08]

And it's not the 1980s. Why are Evertonians so convinced that football is ever going to get back to what it was then?

37 years ago is the incident the poster is on about.

This is exactly right. Kendall would not have been Kendall without time. He hardly ripped up any trees after leaving us the first time

In the 80s you could turn it around quickly and win trophies. That isn’t going to happen anymore with the financial power of United, City and Chelsea.

 

[BirkenheadBlue]

Please do feel free to say who we should have as manager.
Ps. Pep isn’t available.

Not really my job, but even without going too far afield, or showing much creativity (there may well be better options for those with a wider knowledge like, oh I dunno, a DoF), I’d have had Potter in the summer ahead of Benitez. Doubt he’s available to us after the very public demolition job being done by Benny boy

 

[Eggs]

This is exactly right. Kendall would not have been Kendall without time. He hardly ripped up any trees after leaving us the first time

In the 80s you could turn it around quickly and win trophies. That isn’t going to happen anymore with the financial power of United, City and Chelsea.

….you wouldn’t mention them in the same post if you’re an Evertonian.

Infiltrator alert.

 

[bluelife]

Really do think it’s a shame the way he is being treated.

Season has been poor so far but if this was another manager, people would still be behind him and giving him another window. Sack him now and we begin the merry-go-round again. Keep him and he might just be building the team of hard working talent we have craved. We will only know after this window.

 

[DayL08]

….you wouldn’t mention them in the same post if you’re an Evertonian.

Infiltrator alert.

Stop being so childish. Just because somebody has a different point of you.

I’ve been reading your transfer updates for years. Pity they stopped

 

[Cow kecks]

Clueless.

5th
two mid-table finishes
last 16 in Europe
2 cup SF

...in three seasons spending about as much net as Allardyce did.

You're a cartoon character now.

I liked him, decent man who had us playing the best football I'd seen from us for donkeys year's in that 1st season, if he'd had the money available that others have had since I reckon we would be in a much better place now. Of the managers we've had since not one of them have been anywhere as good as that 1st season. People on here will say he done nothing after that season but at this moment I would love a couple of semi-final runs, a lot of them say it was all big Rom who was his saviour but conveniently forget who brought him here. At this moment in time I would give anything to have Bobby here instead of Benitez and I also think Moshiri would be a lot better off in the pocket.

Clueless.

5th
two mid-table finishes
last 16 in Europe
2 cup SF

...in three seasons spending about as much net as Allardyce did.

You're a cartoon character now.

 

[little elfin]

Any manager can replace him in term of footballing
Every team play better football than us
Even Hull's manager lol

 

[Eggsyblueskin]

Benitez is doing the right things off the pitch that we’ve wanted for ages. Weeding out the players who are more interested in themselves than the team and buying younger players who can progress.

Sacking yet another manager is not the answer. But he needs to start making better on field decisions starting next game.

5 at the back has to go. Get a back 4 who do not venture forward and keep their shape if that’s what he prefers. You play the 4 of DCL, Richarlison, Gray, Gordon when fit and Doucoure.

Then it’s Allan or whoever else he thinks can be most disciplined sitting in front of the back 4. Davies did well in that position for a couple of months under Ancelotti though it would be preferable if we got someone on loan who was much better

You insist Benitez must stay then go on to list a raft of corrections he needs to make to his team.
Surely that’s the point , that in six months he has failed to make those improvements and has instead ploughed on with a negative and increasingly dysfunctional style of play.
Without doubt the best football yesterday was played by Hull, we relied on the individual brilliance of Gray and a cracking Townsend strike.
Sadly it appears he is going nowhere and neither are we at present.

 

[Howard's Beard]

To be serious for a second here: I really don't want us to sack another manager. Especially not after we e just sacked our DoF and bought in a bunch of what are apparently the managers choices. It's a miserable situation to be in and one that the dreadful leadership at the club, primarily our clueless owner, is responsible for.

I honestly don't give a damn that Benítez used to manage the RS. He wasn't my first choice for manager because I think he's past it, but I was prepared to get behind him and hopefully see some stability at this club. But at a certain point, you're just falling victim to the fallacy of sunk costs. We're getting worse under this manager. His team selections are baffling, he refuses to learn from mistakes, our defence is appalling (despite that being his specialty), and he's alienating players and fans alike.

Look, maybe he turns it all around tomorrow and we win the next ten games. But I don't see it coming. I don't see any signs of improvement at all. It's miserable football executed poorly. It's the worst I can recall us playing in at least 15 years. Does anyone really see this getting any better before his position becomes entirely untenable and he gets sacked anyway?

 

[Kev The Rat]

Made Hull look like Man City yesterday.

 

[DayL08]

You insist Benitez must stay then go on to list a raft of corrections he needs to make to his team.
Surely that’s the point , that in six months he has failed to make those improvements and has instead ploughed on with a negative and increasingly dysfunctional style of play.
Without doubt the best football yesterday was played by Hull, we relied on the individual brilliance of Gray and a cracking Townsend strike.
Sadly it appears he is going nowhere and neither are we at present.

I’d give him the season and the Summer to sort the team out but that is only if he starts to make some positive changes.

If he remains stubborn and doesn’t then obviously he has to go.

 

[MACCA75]

Really do think it’s a shame the way he is being treated.

Season has been poor so far but if this was another manager, people would still be behind him and giving him another window. Sack him now and we begin the merry-go-round again. Keep him and he might just be building the team of hard working talent we have craved. We will only know after this window.

5 at the back. No possession. Rondon, Townsend, maybe Longstaff. He’s building his dire Newcastle team. If you can’t see that yet, then you never will.

Btw they were getting worse not better when he left.

 

[CielosGrises]

Some credit to Benitez for the form of Gray and Gordon and a decent squad player in Townsend - even Doucoure earlier in the season.

The defence and midfield are swiss-cheese now though and he seems too stubborn to change it.

To be honest, a 2-3 away win a cup game would be fine - I'm just concerned we haven't got the resilience at the back to avoid relegation at the moment - what is he going to do about it ?