Rafael Benitez

[Romey 1878]

16 minutes ago, Newty82 said:

It's not about who came on, it's about who went off. Richie was absolutely the right player to come on. But Rondon stayed on?

Then the next one is about who comes on...Gray comes off for Iwobi. Why not Gbamin come on? Or Holgate? At this point we were 2-1 up. 13 minutes to go. Iwobi and Rondon have been our worst players in recent weeks. They've been shadows.

Rafa was starting to win me over and in some ways he still is. But his response to this is critical. It'll be interesting because from what I remember in the past of Rafa, he's very good at blaming others when things don't go to plan and becomes very confrontational. One of the reasons I wasn't keen.

All game they went right through the middle of us, so when Gray came off the sensible thing really was to shore us up in the middle of the park and get an extra body in there. I can't get my head around how a manager that is supposedly right on it when it comes to tactics got that so wrong.

[Wiggytop]

He’s made a statement that Gordon doesn’t have the stamina for 90 mins, which is probably right atm, but how the hell can he say that and do nothing about the lump of turd masquerading as a CF who has the mobility of a container ship gets 90 mins week in week out

 

[Palfy]

7 hours ago, Hafnia said:

Frankly, I'll be happy if Newcastle make a generous offer and steal Benitez. It won't be an easy transition, but it's clear this is not going well. And let's not blame it on the lack of spend - which was a ready-made excuse for poor performance from the outset.

How bizarre, and no we won’t blame it on the lack of spend he’s done better than most in that department bar Rondon without money, how about we blame it on the 5 managers before him the 2 DoF and a lot of injuries to a very weak squad, now doesn’t that seem more plausible as to what’s happening on the pitch. If Gray and Townsend are anything to go by give him another 2 million and we could replace the need to play say Iwobi Coleman Godfrey and a couple of others. Am I fucked off with what’s happening you bet do I blame him do I fuck, give him at least 18 months not 8 games and I believe he will give us a team to be proud of that won’t break the bank and all in it will be playing for the shirt.  

[Romey 1878]

How on earth has that come out as a quote from Haf?! It proper threw me at first.

[Palfy]

38 minutes ago, Romey 1878 said:

How on earth has that come out as a quote from Haf?! It proper threw me at first.

Don’t know didn’t notice that at the time very strange, Haf have you been eating Pasties lately and turned Cornish

[Btay]

8 hours ago, Romey 1878 said:

All game they went right through the middle of us, so when Gray came off the sensible thing really was to shore us up in the middle of the park and get an extra body in there. I can't get my head around how a manager that is supposedly right on it when it comes to tactics got that so wrong.

I’ve just watched the game and couldn’t agree more. Rafa was always bringing Richarlison into the game around 60 mins if we weren’t in the clear. Rondon shouldn’t have stayed on then. 

The game was screaming for another midfielder at 75 minutes. We could have played a pacey front 3 and hit them on the counter. Instead they totally ripped us apart.

[Cornish Steve]

11 hours ago, Hafnia said:

 

Looks like the gobshites on the pitch may have found another fallguy to hide behind eh.

 

The same players were heroes, apparently, when we almost beat United.

[Hafnia]

4 minutes ago, Cornish Steve said:

The same players were heroes, apparently, when we almost beat United.

Yep. Credit where it's due but fans don't forget the nature of how they have folded in the past.  

Such a flakey group of players. 

 

[Hafnia]

2 hours ago, Romey 1878 said:

How on earth has that come out as a quote from Haf?! It proper threw me at first.

Frankly isn't my sort of word.

[Btay]

11 hours ago, Cornish Steve said:

The same players were heroes, apparently, when we almost beat United.

Seriously though it shows how much of an issue our depth & consistency is. 

[Makis]

Not too fussed but I don't think things would improve with a new gaffer. Moshirin obviously doesn't want anyone too exciting, he was burned with Silva. It would be another so-called safe pair of hands to kill time before the stadium is built. With nothing else changing there's no reason to believe on-pitch would improve either.

[StevO]

Talk Sport trying to make a story this afternoon asking wouldn’t it suit everyone if he went back to Newcastle. 
Only if they gave us about £150m to let him go!

[London Blue]

If anyone can sort our defensive woes out Benitez can. 

We do need a new rightback and a either get Keane to rediscover his mojo, and lead Godfrey through this tough period, get Mason Holgate to switch on or get a new centre back in. 

I do think that when we have DCL back we will carry more of a threat, and he can hold the ball up giving us a chance to build attacks and stop the ball comming straight back at us.

I would love to see a midfield 3 like we had against Burnley when Gomes came on, we looked so much more comftable. 

[Romey 1878]

https://www.footballinsider247.com/sources-newcastle-line-up-new-benitez-move-after-surprise-twist/

[Romey 1878]

12 hours ago, London Blue said:

If anyone can sort our defensive woes out Benitez can.  

That's a bold claim, LB, when we were generally solid defending set-pieces before he arrived and now we're back to looking like conceding from every set-piece we face.

[Romey 1878]

12 hours ago, London Blue said:

I would love to see a midfield 3 like we had against Burnley when Gomes came on, we looked so much more comftable. 

This I agree with. We need a 3 in there until Doucoure is back. Gomes is back in training but not sure if it's full training with the team.

[Tonsta]

Surprised not to see a thread for Walter Smith on here, or i not looking in the right place?

[Romey 1878]

4 minutes ago, Tonsta said:

Surprised not to see a thread for Walter Smith on here, or i not looking in the right place?

It's been talked about in here - 

 

[London Blue]

2 hours ago, Romey 1878 said:

That's a bold claim, LB, when we were generally solid defending set-pieces before he arrived and now we're back to looking like conceding from every set-piece we face.

He has a great track record of making good defenses, this year we are playing a different system, and have Godfrey recovering from long Covid.

Time will show if my faith is well placed.

[Tonsta]

Thanks Rom

[Btay]

10 hours ago, Romey 1878 said:

That's a bold claim, LB, when we were generally solid defending set-pieces before he arrived and now we're back to looking like conceding from every set-piece we face.

Bit of that might due to Carlo having 3 centre backs in the back line most games and even 4 at other times. Still agree though, it’s almost like it was under Martinez/Silva - it’s disappointing to play low possession style of football and then concede from set plays.

[Shukes]

I didn’t feel Rafa was the saviour after a bright start, and I’m certainly not goi f to write him off after a bad result.

He still gets a good half a season and a transfer window to try and change things around. 
Saturday was a disaster. But before that I was starting to feel optimistic. One game doesn’t change that.

[Matt]

52 minutes ago, Shukes said:

I didn’t feel Rafa was the saviour after a bright start, and I’m certainly not goi f to write him off after a bad result.

He still gets a good half a season and a transfer window to try and change things around. 
Saturday was a disaster. But before that I was starting to feel optimistic. One game doesn’t change that.

Bit harsh. As much as I'm not taken with him, I want him to succeed. Half a season after a walkout is nowhere near enough time. Like with any manager (bar one) he'll get 18 months to show progress and 4 windows. Otherwise we become Watford behind the scenes. 

[Palfy]

The team is poor it hasn’t improved in the last 6 years for all the money spent, and what small improvements that may have been made have been bettered by others, yet we sit here and hold judgement against a manager who has been given the poorest squad to work with that I can remember and no money, any criticism needs to be directed at the owners and directors who have presided over this shit fest and not a manager who’s had 9 games in charge. Honestly most of you should be baking cakes in the WI you bunch of fannies

[Sibdane]

The good start just papered over the cracks for a little bit. We have a shit squad, and that's where we are. 

[Cornish Steve]

10 minutes ago, Sibdane said:

The good start just papered over the cracks for a little bit. We have a shit squad, and that's where we are. 

It's pretty much the same squad as won last season at Anfield. Do we expect the same result this season?

[Sibdane]

1 hour ago, Cornish Steve said:

It's pretty much the same squad as won last season at Anfield. Do we expect the same result this season?

We also had a shit squad last season. What's your point? Results don't carry over into seasons, and one result from last year doesn't change the fact that we have a weak squad and no depth this year. 

 

EDIT: Let me answer your question: No, I don't expect a result. I also didn't expect one last year. It was a bonus, and I think anyone in their right mind can see that Liverpool has a far superior squad than us.

 

 

[Cornish Steve]

9 hours ago, Sibdane said:

We also had a shit squad last season. What's your point?

 

 

Let's put aside emotions and personal opinions on managers for a moment and concentrate on facts. Here are the scores from the beginning of last season:

Spurs 0-1 Everton
Everton 5-2 West Brom
Crystal Palace 1-2 Everton
Everton 4-2 Brighton
Everton 2-2 Liverpool
Southampton 2-0 Everton
Newcastle 2-1 Everton
Everton 1-3 Man United
Fulham 2-3 Everton

We played three top teams (Spurs, Liverpool, United), against which our record was 1-1-1. By 9 games, we had 16 points. GD was +3. The points totals per three games was 9-4-3. Clearly we started strongly and faded rather quickly.

Here are the scores from the beginning of this season:

Everton 3-1 Southampton
Leeds 2-2 Everton
Brighton 0-2 Everton
Everton 3-1 Burnley
Aston Villa 3-0 Everton
Everton 2-0 Norwich
Man United 1-1 Everton
Everton 0-1 West Ham
Everton 2-5 Watford

We've played just one top team (United, so our record is 0-1-0. By 9 games, we have 14 points. GD is +1. Points totals per three games is 7-6-1. Once again, we started strongly and have faded quickly.

The squad is largely unchanged, although our principal contributors so far have been Gray and Townsend, so you could argue we're now stronger than last season. Clearly, so far, there is no improvement - and the recent trend (losing two games at home, including a thrashing by Watford of all teams) looks ominous.

Last season, we went on to beat Liverpool away. I'll be amazed if we manage that this season and worry it could be similar to their game against United. They have a point to prove against Benitez.

As I mentioned before the first game was played, Benitez can't really lose: If we do well, he's a hero. If we do poorly, it's because the squad is poor. But this is not a justifiable conclusion. His squad is no worse than Ancelotti managed last year.

I'm positively surprised by Benitez' initial style of play. I was concerned it would be hyper-defensive, not dissimilar to Crooked Sam's. On the other hand, I see traits that have plagued Benitez during his career: Questionable game strategy, inappropriate substitutions, and stubbornly playing favorites.

After the home loss to Watford, I would expect our defense to be the principal focus against Wolves. Also, I would expect Rondon and Iwobi to be firmly rooted to the bench. If they're not, it's safe to conclude that favorites will play no matter what. I would also expect to see full use of substitutes instead of just watching as momentum falters.

[Sibdane]

1 hour ago, Cornish Steve said:

Let's put aside emotions and personal opinions on managers for a moment and concentrate on facts. Here are the scores from the beginning of last season:

Spurs 0-1 Everton
Everton 5-2 West Brom
Crystal Palace 1-2 Everton
Everton 4-2 Brighton
Everton 2-2 Liverpool
Southampton 2-0 Everton
Newcastle 2-1 Everton
Everton 1-3 Man United
Fulham 2-3 Everton

We played three top teams (Spurs, Liverpool, United), against which our record was 1-1-1. By 9 games, we had 16 points. GD was +3. The points totals per three games was 9-4-3. Clearly we started strongly and faded rather quickly.

Here are the scores from the beginning of this season:

Everton 3-1 Southampton
Leeds 2-2 Everton
Brighton 0-2 Everton
Everton 3-1 Burnley
Aston Villa 3-0 Everton
Everton 2-0 Norwich
Man United 1-1 Everton
Everton 0-1 West Ham
Everton 2-5 Watford

We've played just one top team (United, so our record is 0-1-0. By 9 games, we have 14 points. GD is +1. Points totals per three games is 7-6-1. Once again, we started strongly and have faded quickly.

The squad is largely unchanged, although our principal contributors so far have been Gray and Townsend, so you could argue we're now stronger than last season. Clearly, so far, there is no improvement - and the recent trend (losing two games at home, including a thrashing by Watford of all teams) looks ominous.

Last season, we went on to beat Liverpool away. I'll be amazed if we manage that this season and worry it could be similar to their game against United. They have a point to prove against Benitez.

As I mentioned before the first game was played, Benitez can't really lose: If we do well, he's a hero. If we do poorly, it's because the squad is poor. But this is not a justifiable conclusion. His squad is no worse than Ancelotti managed last year.

I'm positively surprised by Benitez' initial style of play. I was concerned it would be hyper-defensive, not dissimilar to Crooked Sam's. On the other hand, I see traits that have plagued Benitez during his career: Questionable game strategy, inappropriate substitutions, and stubbornly playing favorites.

After the home loss to Watford, I would expect our defense to be the principal focus against Wolves. Also, I would expect Rondon and Iwobi to be firmly rooted to the bench. If they're not, it's safe to conclude that favorites will play no matter what. I would also expect to see full use of substitutes instead of just watching as momentum falters.

That's a great analysis Steve, but I'll ask again: what's your point? My point is that we have a weak squad and have had one for awhile, including last year. Last year, we had James and Gylfi against Liverpool, so you could also argue we're weaker without them this year. That's not an argument I'm making, I'm just saying someone could. 

As far as "personal opinions and emotions" go, I have no attachment to Benitez or Ancelotti. I'm merely making an observation that we have a shit squad. I not even sure why you said that tbh. 

[Palfy]

2 hours ago, Cornish Steve said:

The squad is largely unchanged, although our principal contributors so far have been Gray and Townsend, so you could argue we're now stronger than last season. Clearly, so far, there is no improvement - and the recent trend (losing two games at home, including a thrashing by Watford of all teams) looks ominous.

In those games you mentioned the starting 11 consisted of DCL who scored 6 and has been missing for a big chunk of the last 9, and Richarlison who’s missed a few, so you wouldn’t say we’ve missed their goals and work rate. You are trying to fabricate a like for like from last season that just doesn’t exist. I think with DCL and not Rondon up front and Richarlison on instead of Iwobi we would be in a better position than we are now, obviously I can’t prove that it’s only conjecture on my part.