Rafael "
Rafa"
Benítez
Maudes (born 16 April 1960) is the manager of
Liverpool Football Club.
Born in Madrid, Benítez played football throughout his youth and
joined the
Real Madrid academy. He
mixed his university studies with his football career at lower
division Spanish teams. He joined Real Madrid's coaching staff at
the age of 26, going on to work as the under 19 and reserve team
coach, and assistant manager for the senior team. Benítez moved
away from Real Madrid but management spells at
Real Valladolid and
Osasuna were short-lived and unsuccessful.
Benítez guided
Segunda
División side
Extremadura back to
the
Primera División in his first season in
1997, but the team was relegated the following season. He left the
club, taking a brief break from football before returning to coach
Tenerife in 2000. Benítez was appointed
coach of
Valencia and he proved himself
to be amongst the top Spanish managers by winning
La Liga in the 2001–02 season—
Don Balón and
El País named him
Manager of the
Year. In 2004, another league title and a
UEFA Cup victory were added. However, a
disagreement between Benítez and the club director over team
investment caused the Spaniard to switch to English
Premier League outfit Liverpool.
Benítez was a high-achiever in his first season as he guided
Liverpool to victory in the
UEFA
Champions League, the highest honour in European club football.
In the following three seasons he won the
FA
Cup, amongst other honours, and reached the 2007 Champions
League Final, but has remained unable to win the
Premier League, with Liverpool's best
performance under Benitez a second place finish in 2008-09.
Early career
Benítez passed through the playing ranks, as a midfielder for both,
of
Real Madrid Aficionados
in the
Tercera División and
Castilla CF in the
Segunda División. He also enrolled as
a student at INEF, the sports faculty at the
Universidad Politécnica
de Madrid and in 1982 he obtained a degree in physical
education.
In 1979, Benítez was selected to play for the Spain Universities XI
at the
World Student Games in Mexico
City and he scored a penalty in the opening game, a 10–0 win
against Cuba. In the next game, a 0–0 draw against Canada, he was
injured following a hard tackle. The injury saw him sidelined for a
year which realistically ended his chances of becoming a major
player. In 1981, Benítez joined
Tercera División side
Parla. Initially he joined Parla on loan, but
eventually signed for them permanently and helped them gain
promotion to
Segunda División
B. He also played a further three games for the Spain
Universities XI. In 1985 he signed for
Segunda División B club
Linares and under
Enrique Mateos he served as a player/coach.
Further injury problems saw him miss almost the entire 1985–86
season and he subsequently retired as a player.
Real Madrid youth coach
In 1986, at the age of twenty six, Benítez returned to
Real Madrid and joined the club’s coaching
staff. At the start of the 1986–87 season, he was appointed coach
of
Castilla B. With this team
he won two league titles in 1987 and 1989. He won a third league
title with
Real Madrid Youth B in 1990. Halfway through
the 1990–91 season he succeeded
José Antonio Camacho as the coach
of the
Real Madrid Under 19s. With this team he won the
Spain Under 19s Cup in 1991 and 1993,
beating
Barcelona in both finals. In
1993 the team completed a double when they also won the
national Under 19
league.
While at Real, Benítez also gained his
coaching certificate in 1989 and in the summer of 1990 he taught at
a football camp at the University of California, Davis
in California
.
During the 1992–93 season Benítez also worked as an assistant coach
to
Mariano García
Remón at
Real Madrid B.
After his success with the Under 19s, Benítez then succeeded García
Remón at the start of the 1993–94 season. Real Madrid B were then
playing in the
Segunda
División and on 4 September 1993 he made his debut as a Segunda
División manager with a 3–1 over
Hércules CF. In March 1994 he became
assistant manager to
Vicente del
Bosque with the senior
Real Madrid
team before returning to coach Real Madrid B for the 1994–95
season.
Early coaching
The first attempts by Benítez at senior management away from the
Real Madrid fold were less than
successful. He was appointed manager of
Real Valladolid for the 1995–96 season but
was sacked after only two wins in 23 games with the club bottom of
the
Primera División. During the 1996–97
season, Benítez took charge at
Osasuna in
the
Segunda División but after
only 9 games and one win he was sacked. He did, however, meet the
fitness instructor
Pako
Ayestarán at the club, and went on to form a partnership with
him at several clubs for the next decade. In 1997, he joined
another Segunda División side,
Extremadura and this time led them to
promotion, finishing second in the table behind
Deportivo Alavés, after winning 23 out
of 42 games. Extremadura only survived one season in Primera
División, however, and were relegated in 1999 after finishing
seventeenth and losing a play-off to
Villarreal.
Benítez subsequently quit CF Extremadura and took a year out
studying in England and Italy. He also worked as a
commentator/analyst for
Eurosport,
Marca,
El Mundo and local Madrid TV. In
2000 he was appointed manager of
CD
Tenerife of the Segunda División and with a team that included
Mista,
Curro Torres and
Luis García, he gained
promotion to
La Liga by finishing third in
the league behind
Sevilla and
Real Betis.
Valencia CF
2001–04 – Twice champions of Spain and UEFA Cup triumph
In 2001 Benítez was appointed coach of
Valencia, replacing
Hector Cuper. The club had previously
approached
Javier Irureta,
Mané and
Luis Aragonés and had been turned down by
all three. However the club director Javier Subirats recognised the
potential of Benítez and campaigned for his appointment. Despite
the loss of
Gaizka Mendieta, he
inherited from Cuper a team brimming with potential.
Santiago Cañizares,
Roberto Ayala,
Rubén Baraja,
David Albelda,
Vicente and
Pablo
Aimar provided the backbone of an already formidable
side.
Valencia CF fans were soon won over by Benítez as he introduced a
more attacking style of play. He also made good use of both
Mista and
Curro Torres and Mista went on to become top
goalscorer for Valencia with 19 goals in the 2003–04 season and
Curro Torres became an established international. In 2002, these
tactics saw Benítez lead Valencia to their first
La Liga title in thirty one years, winning it by a
seven point margin over second placed
Deportivo La Coruña.
However the following season 2002–03 was a disappointing one as the
club failed to follow up on their title success, they finished only
fifth in La Liga, eighteen points behind Champions
Real Madrid. The season saw Benítez make
his debut in the
UEFA Champions League.
Valencia CF reached the quarter-finals before losing to
Internazionale.
The 2003–04 season was a different story. Valencia won La Liga with
three games to go and beat
Marseille 2–0 in the
UEFA Cup final. Despite this
success, Benítez fell out with Jesus Garcia Pitarch, the club's
director of sport, over control of new signings and the club's
failure to reinforce the squad with the players he wanted. These
differences of opinion saw Benítez resign as Valencia coach in June
2004.He famously said "I asked for a table and they bought me a
lampshade" in reference to the players he wanted the club to
sign.
Liverpool FC
2004–05 champions of Europe
One of Benítez' first tasks at Liverpool was to convince club
captain Gerrard not to move to rivals
Chelsea. He was unable, however, to convince
Michael Owen to extend his contract,
and he was sold to
Real Madrid.
Benítez signed several players from
La Liga,
most notably
Luis
García and
Xabi Alonso, both of whom
drew immediate admiration from
Kopites.
Benítez also gave new life to existing Liverpool players,
transforming
Jamie Carragher from a
utility player to one of Europe's top centre backs alongside
Sami Hyypiä.
During his first season Benítez failed to improve the club's form
in the
Premiership. Key players
missed much of the season through injury and Liverpool failed to
challenge
Chelsea and
Arsenal for the league title, finishing fifth.
However,
Benítez did reach his first English domestic cup final, losing the
Carling Cup final against
Chelsea at the Millennium
Stadium
3-2 after extra time.
In the
UEFA
Champions League it was very different, despite a poor start.
Liverpool began their campaign with an unimpressive 2–1 aggregate
win over
Grazer in the qualifying rounds
and were minutes away from going out of the competition in the
group stages before an 87th minute goal by Gerrard defeated
Olympiacos 3–1 and saw the club progress
to the last sixteen on
goal
difference.
Bayer Leverkusen
were beaten 3–1 home and away followed by
Juventus who were beaten 2–1 on aggregate after
Benítez' bold selection of
Anthony Le
Tallec and
Scott Carson in the home
leg had, to some degree, worked.
In the semi-final Liverpool faced
José Mourinho's Chelsea, who had beaten
Liverpool twice in the
Premiership
as well as highly rated
Barcelona in a
previous round. After a goalless first leg at Stamford Bridge, a
controversial early goal from
Luis García saw Liverpool win
1–0 on aggregate and reach the final against
Milan. In a classic
final, Liverpool came from
3–0 down at half-time to level the score at 3–3 in the space of 6
minutes and eventually triumphed 3-2 on penalties, with the
assistance of
Jerzy Dudek. Benítez's
calm methodical approach at half time was said to give the players
the belief they could pull off an improbable comeback and win
Liverpool an historic fifth European Cup.
The Champions League win made him only the third manager, after
Bob Paisley and Mourinho, to win the
UEFA Cup and UEFA Champions League in successive seasons and the
second Liverpool manager (after
Joe Fagan)
to win the European Cup/UEFA Champions League in his first season
in charge. Benítez' tactics were credited as a key factor in
Liverpool reaching, and winning, the final, despite an unimpressive
squad of players.
2005–06 – FA Cup winners
For the
2005–06 season Benítez further reinforced the Liverpool
squad by signing Peter
Crouch, Mohamed Sissoko,
Pepe Reina,
Boudewijn Zenden and Daniel Agger, as well as former Liverpool
player (and fan favourite) Robbie
Fowler in the January transfer window.
It is notable that
Dudek's heroics in
the
Champions league
final were not enough for him to stay as first choice keeper,
as
Reina replaced
him in goal right away. Benítez also quickly discarded unlikely
heroes
Vladimír Šmicer and
Igor Biscan, who played key roles in the
European success but seemingly did not figure in Benítez' long-term
plans. Benítez also quickly sold two of his first signings in
English football,
Josemi and
Antonio Núñez after they failed to
establish themselves.
The improvements saw the club's
Premiership form improve considerably.
Liverpool finished third in the league, qualifying for the
UEFA Champions League and only
narrowly missed out on second place by one point. Liverpool also
won the
FA Cup beating both
Manchester United and
Chelsea, as well as a thrilling 5-3 win
against
Luton in the third round, on
the way to the final against
West
Ham Utd. History repeated itself in the final as they then went
on to lift the trophy after a penalty shoot-out, following a
dramatic 3-3 draw. Liverpool came from 2–0 down and were losing 3–2
in stoppage time when
Steven Gerrard
scored a dramatic late equalizer. This time
Pepe Reina saved three
penalties during the shoot-out to secure the silverware.
In winning the FA Cup, Rafa became the only manager in the history
of Liverpool Football Club to win major trophies in both of his
first two seasons at the club.
2006–07 – Another Champions League Final
The English Press were predicting Liverpool would challenge Chelsea
for the Premiership crown after Benítez addressed Liverpool's
perceived weaknesses in the transfer window by signing strikers
Craig Bellamy and
Dirk Kuyt as well as wingers
Jermaine Pennant and
Mark González, a belief reaffirmed after his
side won the
Community Shield with
2–1 victory over Chelsea.
Although Liverpool had qualified for the knockout stage of the UEFA
Champions League with two games to spare (a new record for the
club), and then going on to win the group with one game still left,
Benítez's future at the Liverpool was called into question after
poor away results in the league: his agent was quoted as saying he
would consider offers to manage in Italy. Benítez swiftly issued a
statement through the club's website re-affirming his desire to
remain with Liverpool for the long term.
Although the team's league results improved, their defence of the
FA Cup lasted just one game as they were
knocked out by Arsenal at Anfield; and four days later they were
knocked out of the League Cup, also by Arsenal losing 6–3 at
Anfield, Liverpool's heaviest home defeat since 1913. At the end of
the league campaign, Liverpool were on 68 points, beating Arsenal
to third place on goal difference but their poor away form had
prevented the title challenge many were expecting - they did not
win away in the League until December.
Liverpool's 2006–07 Champions League campaign proved more fruitful.
They were then drawn against defending champions
Barcelona in the first round of the knockout
stages.
Benítez's side did not have ideal
preparations with a reported altercation between Liverpool players
Craig Bellamy and John Arne Riise days before the winning the
first leg 2–1 at Camp Nou
. This
was seen as a major test of Benítez's man-management at the time
and he subsequently fined both players.
Remarkably, Riise and
Bellamy combined to score the second goal of a 2–1 victory in the
first leg and Liverpool held Barca to just one goal in a 0–1 loss
in the return at Anfield
, thus
progressing on the away goals
rule.
After beating
PSV 4–0 on aggregate in
the
quarter-finals,
Liverpool draw Chelsea in the semi finals. In the first leg,
Liverpool lost 1–0 at Chelsea, but won the return leg 1–0, and then
ultimately winning 4–1 in a penalty shoot-out after extra time.
After the game, Liverpool's new co-owner
George Gillett said:
"Rafa has
been tremendous ... We knew of him but I don't think we
realized how good he was, and not just as a coach. Not
only was he a brilliant coach but he is a very sharp, savvy
businessman. He knows what he wants and how to get
it. The more we have seen of him the more impressed we
have become." During the penalty shoot out, Rafa was noted for
sitting down cross-legged in his technical area. He later explained
that it was because fans behind the dug-out were complaining that
they could not see.
Liverpool contended with
Milan for their
sixth European Cup in Athens, Greece on 23 May 2007, in a repeat of
the 2005 final but lost 2–1. Following the defeat Benítez insisted
his club's new owners had to back him in the transfer market in
order for Liverpool to progress. It was reported Benítez did not
feel he had the complete support of the new owners, a thought that
was compounded by Liverpool's initial lack of activity in the
transfer window, although the club played these rumours down.
2007–08 – Cash flow and crisis
Benítez in 2007.
Benítez moved on several players in the summer, including
fan-favourites
Robbie Fowler,
Luis García and
Jerzy Dudek as well as
Djibril Cissé and
Craig Bellamy, who was notably phased out of
the first team following his altercation with Riise. Benítez also
lost his long-time right-hand man, Ayestarán, who quit after a
reported disagreement, which Benitez admitted "hurt" him and
arguably Liverpool's titles hopes.
Liverpool's new owners
Tom Hicks and
George Gillett provided
Benítez with transfer funds for the new season to attempt to bridge
the gap to Premiership rivals Manchester United and Chelsea.
Benítez broke Liverpool's transfer record when signing Spanish
striker
Fernando Torres from
Atlético Madrid as well as
signing young Dutch forward
Ryan Babel,
attacking midfielder
Yossi Benayoun,
Brazilian player of the year
Lucas
Leiva and
Andriy Voronin. Benítez
also had one eye on the future, investing in a number of young
foreign players including Hungarian starlet
Krisztian Nemeth and Dani Pacheco from
Barcelona.
Liverpool made a good start to the new league season and topped the
Premier League table for the first time under Benítez after a
comprehensive 6–0 win over
Derby
County. Despite this, poor results in the Champions League and
a disagreement over future transfers lead to a public falling-out
with the club's owners, played out in the media at the end of
November. It was suggested that Benítez's position was now under
serious threat. The resulting coverage resulted in an overwhelming
show of support by fans in support of Benítez which culminated in a
fans' march in support of Benítez ahead of the critical Champions
League home tie with
Porto, which they won
4–1.It has since emerged that at the time
Jürgen Klinsmann was offered the
Liverpool job, before accepting the post of Bayern Munich manager.
Such a revelation damaged Benítez' relations with the Americans and
he was constantly linked to Real Madrid. However, Benitez insisted
his future was at Liverpool and signalled his long-term intentions
by appointing
Sammy Lee as
his new assistant.
Benítez was unable to win any trophies, Liverpool's domestic
campaign faltering in the winter months - including a shock FA Cup
exit at home to
Barnsley - and his
side this time lost to Chelsea in the Champions League semi-finals.
Despite the lack of silverware, the main talking points were off
the pitch, with Benítez in the middle of a power struggle between
the Liverpool board
2008–09 – League runner-up
Benítez was reportedly close to quitting Liverpool in the summer of
2008 over the Liverpool board's failure to back him in his bid to
purchase
Gareth Barry from
Aston Villa. Benítez had reportedly
intended to sell
Xabi Alonso to fund the
purchase of Barry, a decision that did not meet with unanimous
approval from The Kop. Benítez did however address what were seen
as the weak areas of Liverpool's squad through the purchase
Robbie Keane,
Andrea Dossena and
Albert Riera, amongst others. Liverpool made an
impressive start to the 2008–09 season including Benítez' first
ever league win against Manchester United at Anfield on the 13
September and ending Chelsea's 86 match unbeaten run in the league
at Stamford Bridge.
Liverpool's early season form won Benítez the Barclays Premier
League
Manager of the Month award. Benítez also broke
Bill Shankly's record of 65 European matches as
Liverpool manager and matched
Bob
Paisley's European record of 39 wins after a win over
Marseille. Liverpool finished the
calendar year top of the Premier League for the first time since
1996, despite Benítez requiring an operation to remove kidney
stones in December. Benítez was not present at the Emirates Stadium
for Liverpool's 1–1 draw with Arsenal, although he did pass
instructions over the phone to assistant Sammy Lee, who also took
charge for the next two matches, with Benítez watching from the
stands.
Poor results on the pitch in the New Year, including losing in the
FA Cup to local rivals Everton, and an attack on Manchester United
boss Sir Alex Ferguson in the media lead some pundits and
opposition supporters to suggest Benítez was "cracking up" under
the pressure of a title bid. Benítez still appeared to be at odds
with Liverpool's owners, publicly turning down a contract extension
and demanding more control over transfers. It is believed that
Benítez prioritised the signing of Barry over Keane during the
Summer, but Liverpool Chief Executive Rick Parry instead chose to
first pay £20 million for Keane and then pulled the plug on the
Barry deal, causing tension between the two. In the January
transfer window, Robbie Keane was sold back to Tottenham with some
analysts claiming he was a "pawn in a power struggle" between
Benítez and the club's owners..
In March it was announced that Parry would stand down at the end of
the season, although he insisted this was not related to any
disputes with Benítez.
Nevertheless, on 18 March 2009 Benítez signed a new five-year deal
with the club. Benitez said "My heart is with Liverpool, so I'm
delighted to sign this new deal, I love the club, the fans and the
city and with a club and supporters like this, I could never say no
to staying." Prior to this, at one point rumours of Benítez
quitting or possibly being sacked became so great that bookmakers
had to suspend betting on the subject.
A fine end of season run included a 5-0 aggregate win over Real
Madrid in the Champions League First Knockout Round and a first
league win at Old Trafford for Benítez, beating Manchester United
4-1, during which Liverpool fans ironically chanted that Rafa was
"cracking up", in reference to Manchester United chants earlier in
the season. Liverpool were also involved in two successive 4-4
draws, first against Chelsea in the Champions League Quarter Final,
losing 7-5 on aggregate, and then against Arsenal in the League.
These high-scoring games late in the season were in contrast to a
succession of low-scoring draws at home to lesser teams earlier in
the season that Benítez admitted cost his side the chance of the
title. With 10 wins in their last 11 games, Liverpool finished the
season on a high, finishing second in the league for the first time
under Benítez, four points off champions Manchester United.
2009–10
During the summer transfer window of 2009
Xabi Alonso, one of the key members of Benítez's
squad, was sold to Real Madrid following a lengthy pursuit in a
deal reportedly worth £30 million. Alonso admitted Benitez'
attempts to sell him the previous summer were a deciding factor in
his move . Alonso was immediately replaced in the squad by the
Italian
Alberto Aquilani, signed
from AS Roma, who was recovering from a long-term injury. Despite
the capture of England right-back
Glen Johnson from
Portsmouth, who made an encouraging start to the season after a
£18.5 million move, the money gained from the sale of Alonso and
other fringe players was less than Benítez' expenditure. This
prompted discontent amongst considerable sections of the club's
fanbase who believed Benitez was not being backed sufficiently in
the transfer market. After injuries to several of Liverpool's
central defenders, Benitez signed Greek defender
Sotirios Kyrgiakos from AEK Athens for a
reported fee of £1.5 million, the modest sum serving as a further
indication of the lack of transfer funds at the Liverpool manager's
disposal.
Liverpool made a disappointing start to the new season, losing two
of their first three league games. Benítez' decision to sell Alonso
and replace him in the side with Brazilian
Lucas, with Aquilani having arrived at the club
injured, was called into question. Benítez defended his decisions,
arguing Liverpool's slow start was due to key players such as
Gerrard being below par. A series of high-scoring league wins in
September was followed by four consecutive losses away to
Fiorentina, Chelsea,
Sunderland (courtesy of a freak goal deflected off a
beachball) and at home to
Lyon -
Liverpool's worst run in 22 years. A 2-0 victory over Manchester
United at Anfield provided Benitez with brief respite before
further loses away to Arsenal, in the League Cup and
Fulham. This was followed by a 1-1 draw in Lyon
leaving the club poised to exit the
UEFA Champions League in the group
stage. With only one game won in ten fixtures the media questioned
Benítez' future at the club, particularly if he were to fail to
qualify for the Champions League..
It suggested this Liverpool team was missing Benítez'
characteristic defensive rigidness and lacked the necessary depth
to cope with injuries to key players such as Gerrard, Torres and
Johnson. Benítez' decision making was called into question with his
decision to withdraw
Yossi Benayoun
for
Andriy Voronin near the end of
the Lyon game, when the game was still 1-1 was greeted by a chorus
of boos from the Kop, a rare vocal objection by Liverpool fans. He
received further criticism for withdrawing Fernando Torres in the
Fulham clash, despite the Spanish striker carrying an
injury.Despite this criticism, victory over Manchester United in
October gave Benítez his 114th win out of 200 Premier League games,
a record only bettered by Kenny Dalglish as Liverpool
manager.
On November 24, Liverpool won their must-win game away to Debrecen
but were eliminated from the Champions League after Fiorentina
defeated Lyon 1–0. Benítez told Sky Sports after the game that he
had 100% belief in Liverpool to finish in the top four of the
Premier League, and win the Europa Cup too. He said "our job was to
win - we won. There are many positives. We cannot control the other
game though." Liverpool's chief executive also ensured that Benítez
would not be losing his job.
Relations with other managers
Benítez has had confrontations with both
José Mourinho (
Chelsea manager, 2004–2007) and Sir
Alex Ferguson (
Manchester United manager, 1986–)
during his time in English football. Benítez made a number of
suggestions during Mourinho's tenure as manager that
Roman Abramovich's money had brought
Chelsea success, and the pair refused to shake hands after some
matches (although Mourinho declared the feud to be over after a
league game in 2006). When Mourinho exited Chelsea in 2007, Benítez
said "You know my relationship with him, it is better that I do not
say anything"; declining to comment as Ferguson and
Arsenal manager
Arsène Wenger had. On 9 January 2009, he
delivered a controversial appraisal of certain aspects of Sir Alex
Ferguson's tenure, accusing Ferguson and Manchester United of being
nervous because Liverpool were at the top of the
league, then accused the Manchester United
manager of not being punished for breaking
F.A. rules, suggesting he was "the
only manager in the league that cannot be punished for these
things", referring to Ferguson not being punished following an F.A.
charge for comments he made about officials
Martin Atkinson and
Keith Hackett, following an F.A. Cup tie with
Portsmouth.
Management style
Benítez has developed a reputation in English football as a
ruthless tactician, with Liverpool captain
Steven Gerrard admitting he longed for a
"well done" from Benítez after good performances. Benítez'
ruthlessness can be seen in the way he disposed of all but Gerrard
and
Jamie Carragher from his
Champions League winning squad within four seasons, with penalty
shoot-out hero
Jerzy Dudek made back-up
goalkeeper the very season after the European triumph.
Benítez has preferred a 4-2-3-1 formation during his time at
Valencia and Liverpool. Benítez has often been praised for his
tactical acumen, particularly in European ties, setting his team up
to exploit opposition weaknesses. His calm demeanor and tactical
changes at half time of the 2005 European cup final were said to
give players belief they could battle back from 3-0 down, although
he had to correct his plans when it was pointed out to him his new
formation would require 12 players on the pitch. Benítez often
plays key players out of position to suit a formation - notably
converting both Steven Gerrard (in the 2005/06 season) and
Dirk Kuyt into right-wingers.
Benítez brought two Continental management traits to English
football,
squad rotation and
zonal marking. Despite heavy criticism
from the English press of his squad rotation, Benítez persisted,
with the reward of a Champions League and FA Cup triumph in his
first two seasons. Benítez argued he needed to rotate his small
squad to ensure key players were fit for the latter stages of these
knockout competitions. It is notable that in recent seasons Benítez
has rotated his squad less, contributing to better league runs but
no Cup success.
The tactic of zonal marking, not used by any other Premier League
manager for set pieces, is often derided by pundits when Liverpool
concede from set-pieces. Benítez stands by his tactic, pointing out
teams who
man-mark
concede just as many, if not more, goals from set pieces.
Benítez has been criticised by some sections of the Liverpool
support for failing to develop any local players, none having made
the progression from the
Academy to the first
team under his management while promising youngsters such as
Stephen Warnock,
Danny Guthrie and
Adam
Hammill have been sold. Benítez instigated a host of backroom
changes at the end of the 2008/09 season to improve the club's
youth development, including the appointment of club legend
Kenny Dalglish in a senior role at
the Academy.
Personal life
Bentiez's father, Francisco Benítez, worked as an hotelier. Rafael
Benítez mother is Rosario Maudes. Rosario was a big football fan
and supported Real Madrid, while his father supported Atlético
Madrid. Francisco died in December 2005 while Benítez was in Japan
for the FIFA Club World Championship.
Rafael Benítez married Maria de Montserrat in 1998. They have two
daughters, Claudia, who was born in Madrid in 1999, and Ágata who
was born in Valencia in 2002.
Statistics
Manager
| Team |
Nat |
From |
To |
Record |
| G |
W |
D |
L |
Win % |
| Tenerife |
|
19 July 2000 |
30 June 2001
|
| Valencia |
|
1 July 2001 |
16 June 2004
|
| Liverpool |
|
16 June 2004 |
Present
|
| Total |
518 |
287 |
120 |
111 |
|
Honours
Player
Parla
Manager
Real Madrid U-19s
Extremadura
Tenerife
Valencia
Liverpool
Individual awards
See also
References
- Rafa Benítez: Paco Lloret (2005)
-
http://www.guardian.co.uk/football/2004/jun/29/newsstory.sport2
-
http://www.guardian.co.uk/football/2007/mar/07/sport.comment1
-
http://www.mirror.co.uk/news/top-stories/2005/11/09/benitez-uncovered-inside-the-dressing-room-on-that-amazing-night-in-istanbul-115875-16348116/
-
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/sport/football/article-561134/This-team-best-says-Liverpool-boss-Benitez.html
-
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/sport/football/article-551648/Pako-betrayed-hurts--Benitez-lifts-lid-assistants-Anfield-exit.html
- Rafael Benítez calls temporary truce as fans plan
show of solidarity | Liverpool - Times Online
- ESPNsoccernet - England - Jolly: The long goodbye
for Rafa?
-
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/sport/football/2300641/Sammy-Lee-back-as-Liverpool-assistant-coach.html
-
http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/football/teams/l/liverpool/7344027.stm
-
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/sport/football/leagues/premierleague/liverpool/4786443/Liverpool-have-six-games-to-save-their-season.html
-
http://www.liverpoolecho.co.uk/liverpool-fc/liverpool-fc-news/2009/09/03/xabi-alonso-i-decided-to-leave-liverpool-fc-after-club-s-move-for-gareth-barry-100252-24596192/
-
http://www.liverpoolecho.co.uk/liverpool-fc/liverpool-fc-columnists/john-aldridge-column/2009/08/22/john-aldridge-funding-woe-sure-to-frustrate-rafa-benitez-100252-24501697/
-
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/sport/football/leagues/premierleague/liverpool/6088914/Five-key-areas-for-Liverpool-manager-Rafael-Benitez-to-address.html
-
http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/football/teams/l/liverpool/8227473.stm
-
http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/football/teams/l/liverpool/8312783.stm
-
http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/football/europe/8314194.stm
-
http://www.mirrorfootball.co.uk/news/Fulham-3-1-Liverpool-match-report-The-Daily-Mirror-verdict-article208369.html
-
http://www.teamtalk.com/football/story/0,16368,2483_5669331,00.html
-
http://www.sport.co.uk/news/Football/29279/Benitez_and_Brown_leading_sack_race.aspx
-
http://www.goal.com/en-india/news/2638/english-angle/2009/09/30/1531569/liverpool-comment-jovetic-shows-genius-but-rafas-rigid
-
http://www.liverpoolecho.co.uk/liverpool-fc/liverpool-fc-news/2009/11/02/rafa-benitez-s-days-are-numbered-insists-legend-ronnie-whelan-liverpool-fc-latest-100252-25071088/
-
http://www.bbc.co.uk/blogs/philmcnulty/2009/10/benitez_faces_biggest_test.html
-
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/sport/football/leagues/premierleague/liverpool/5286966/Steven-Gerrard-lavishes-praise-on-Rafael-Benitezs-winning-mentality.html
-
http://www.mirrorfootball.co.uk/opinion/blogs/mirror-football-blog/Was-Rafa-Benitez-right-to-sell-all-but-TWO-of-Liverpool-s-2005-Champions-League-winning-squad-article97701.html
-
http://www.liverpoolfc.tv/mediawatch/drilldown/MW13524080919-1536.htm
-
http://www.independent.co.uk/sport/football/premier-league/carragher-hails-tactician-benitez-527940.html
-
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/sport/columnists/henrywinter/2316518/Gerrard-Benitez-made-mistakes.html
-
http://www.liverpoolecho.co.uk/liverpool-fc/liverpool-fc-news/2008/09/06/jamie-carragher-what-really-happened-at-half-time-in-istanbul-100252-21683921/
-
http://www.guardian.co.uk/sport/blog/2006/sep/26/thecultofpermanentrotation
-
http://www.fifa.com/worldfootball/clubfootball/news/newsid=929739.html
-
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/sport/football/leagues/premierleague/liverpool/5131199/Liverpools-demise-against-Chelsea-the-fault-of-Rafael-Benitezs-zonal-marking.html
-
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/sport/football/article-1210128/JAMIE-REDKNAPPS-WEEKEND-WATCH-Rafa-Benitez-sort-Liverpool-out.html
- http://www.rte.ie/sport/soccer/2009/0414/benitezr.html
-
http://www.liverpoolecho.co.uk/liverpool-fc/liverpool-fc-news/2009/07/04/kenny-dalglish-rejoins-liverpool-fc-100252-24069334/
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