“I want to talk about facts,” Benitez starts. “I want to be clear, I do not want to play mind games too early, although they seem to want to start.”
So, we’re talking facts are we Rafa? Excellent.
Fact: “On November 1, they played Hull and Mr Ferguson had a two-match touchline ban and a £10,000 fine after confronting Mike Dean, the referee, for improper conduct.”
Lie: “During the Respect campaign – and this is a fact – Mr Ferguson was charged by the FA for improper conduct after comments made. He is the only manager in the league that cannot be punished for these things.”
So, is Ferguson the only manager in the league who’s not punished for comments he makes? Or does he get punished like everyone else? To start his rant by actually quoting an occasion Ferguson was punished by the FA for improper conduct then later go on to say he is the only manager who does not get punished by the FA for improper conduct is ridiculous.
But then, Ferguson is the only manager to criticise the decisions or performance of a referee without punishment, eh Mr. Benitez?
“I could see two games out there,” said Benitez in March last year. “There was one game before the sending-off and another one after it. He knows he made a mistake but to send a player off for this in a game as important as this is just not right.”
“Of course I am disappointed with the officials’ performance,” said Benitez in April last year. “It is not the first time this has happened to us and we are really disappointed. We can’t blame the referee for the own goal at the end, but we can for the time. It was one minute in the first half and then four minutes in the second. It’s difficult to explain.”
Sorry, I forgot Ferguson is the only manager whose comments go unpunished.
“The referee was the referee when they played against Wigan – he could not see the handball against Wigan by Rio Ferdinand, he did not give a penalty. They won the game and they won the title in this game.”
Oh right because this proves something. Wigan could have had a penalty in a game we won 2-0 and finished ahead of Chelsea who we had been ahead of all season. Conspiracy.
When United thrashed Liverpool 3-0 last season, United should have had a penalty too, according to The Liverpool Echo and the BBC. What about the penalty Hull should have had this season for a Javier Mascherano handball in the area, during the 2-2 at Anfield? We could go on and on looking at penalties given or not given but essentially it proves nothing. I’d expect some spotty 13-year-old on BBC 606 to make sniping remarks of this sort. Even the biggest Liverpool or Chelsea fan would be able to admit that United fully deserved to win the league last season and to imply that a penalty not given against us on the final day of the season has anything to do with our title is damn right childish.
“Then he was talking about the fixtures. Two years ago we were playing a lot of early kick-offs away on Saturdays when United were playing on Sundays. And we didn’t say anything.”
Two years ago, Liverpool played five early kick-offs on Saturday away from home (as did United). Sheffield United (August 19th), Everton (September 9th), Bolton (September 30th), Charlton (December 16th) and Watford (January 13th).
United played August 20th at 1.30pm then had another game three days later. Liverpool’s next game after the 19th was also three days later. United played Spurs on Saturday September 9th, not a Sunday. United played Newcastle on Sunday October 1st, which was followed by an International break meaning it had no real effect on the league. United played West Ham on Sunday December 17th. United played Villa on Saturday January 13th, not a Sunday.
So in fact, United played on a Sunday on three occasions when Liverpool had early kick offs and only one occasion did it have any bearing on the league.
“At Christmas, United played on the 29th and the rest of the teams played on the 28th. We were away against Newcastle two days after playing Bolton. They were playing about 40 hours later, they were not complaining then.” Just over a minute later, he babbled the same point again. “They cannot complain about the fixtures after they were playing on December 29 while the rest played on the 28th.”
The media didn’t make a fuss of United winning the FIFA World Club Cup which is maybe why Benitez forgot about our trip to Japan. Between the first game in December and the 29th of the same month, Liverpool played six games. In that same time period, United played seven games, and travelled to and from Japan. Of course, it was our choice to play in this competition, just as Liverpool chose to when they won the European Cup. However, with massive travelling time and another 90 minutes of football under our belts, I’m not sure how Benitez can believe his players were further disadvantaged by United having any extra day to play, in order for Setanta to show the game.
“You can see every single week how they put (referees) under pressure, we know this. We have seen it before. We have seen players sent off at Old Trafford and we do not see our opponents sent off. It is part of the game. But to complain and to always have an advantage is not fair.”
Of course, Liverpool never put the referees under any pressure to send any players off. Unless we recall last season when Steven Gerrard kicked his leg out in an attempt to win a penalty (as Ronaldo does and gets called a diver for doing so) whilst running side by side with Everton defender Hibbert. Mark Clattenburg clearly had a yellow card in his hand, ready to book Hibbert. Then Liverpool captain ran over and had a go at the ref, causing Clatternburg to change his mind and send the Evertonian off. If United do it, it’s not fair, according to Mr. Benitez, but should we just sweep it under the carpet when his own team are guilty of the exact same thing?
Some people are defending Benitez’s behaviour, making out he hasn’t lost the plot. He’s not shaking, so he’s not mad, right? Wrong. To show up at a press conference the day before your game and read from a list a load of incidents involving United is crazy. But even if you don’t think he’s crazy, it’s fairly obvious he’s not talking ‘facts’ at all. 1. Ferguson does get punished for improper conduct. 2. Liverpool didn’t play ‘a lot’ of early games on a Saturday when United were playing on a Sunday. 3. Quoting one off penalty decisions from last season, given these decisions get made wrongly for and against clubs on a weekly basis, is not the behaviour of a rational person. 4. Liverpool have seen their opposition players sent off after they put the referee under pressure.
Mr. Benitez, hypocrite? Fool? Mad man? I’ll go for all three.
FACT – Fat Spanish Waiter Has Lost The Plot
Fantastic! Well done Rafa – about time someone stood up and ‘said it like it is’!
I have no idea why Utd and Funguson are treated differently to other teams, but it’s about time it changed. The days when Utd generated bigger TV audiences worldwide (and thus indirectly more funds for the FA) are over. Not that that should ever have allowed them to be treated preferentially, anyway – its always taken 2 teams to play each match!!!
On top of this, the spirit in which Liverpool play the game, the way they treat & respect refs and their opposition is VASTLY different to that of Utd. No wonder the 2nd best team in red have a devil on their badge!
Of course, many will say, “well what about Mascherano’s sending off for dissent against Utd last season”? The fact is that his sending off in that game is Liverpool’s ONLY sending off in the Premiership since Alonso’s controversial two yellow cards against Arsenal in March 2006 (and you’ll never guess who the referee was in that game – aye! One Msr S Bennet)!
Think about that for a minute – 1 sending off in 104 Premiership games. In that time Utd have had at least 4, plus are averaging 8 yellow cards a season more than LFC – DESPITE the refereeing leniency that they seem to benefit from.
Funguson is always banging on about the referees and the FA in order to maintain this preferential treatment – he knows they get it – but, of course, he now he knows they NEED to keep hold of it more than ever.
I wonder how much respect Utd’s players and staff would shown Steve Bennet if he’d allowed Ronaldo or Rooney to be treated the same way that Torres was – being kicked all around the park? Funguson would have had an apoplectic fit! Indeed, Ferdinand & Vidic must have thought it was Christmas Day, that day.
Some of the Utd sites have today come out with the predictable “Benitez Starting to Crack” & “Fergie the Master of Mind Games”-type articles, but just look at the two teams’ recent form:
Liverpool’s last 4 results (1 game at Home, 3 Away) have been: 1-1; 3-0; 5-1; 2-0 against Arsenal, Bolton, Newcastle & Preston, respectively. W 3 D 1 L 0 GF 11 GA 2. That’s against 5th, 11th & 14th in the Premiership, & 7th in the Championship.
Utd’s last 4 results (1 game at Home, 3 Away) have been: 1-0; 1-0; 3-0; 0-1 against Stoke, Middlesborough, Southampton & Derby, respectively. W 3 D 0 L 1 GF 5 GA 1. BUT that’s against 18th & 17th in the Premiership, 23rd & 18th in the Championship!!
On that sort of form, are Utd necessarily going to win both of their games in hand – and which manager do you think will be feeling the pressure more?
I always welcomed it because I thought that the ‘Respect’ campaign would benefit Liverpool over most other teams – but especially over Utd – PROVIDING it was applied fairly & evenly. However, it doesn’t necessarily appear to have started that way. Maybe, just maybe, Rafa’s calculated outburst might just be the impetus for the officials to start acting and thus allow every club to operate on that ‘level playing field’.