Marvin

Yesterday Jamie Redknapp said that Arseanl players were tired because they had not been rotated as much as Man U players at which point Keys pointed out that Benitez had been heavily criticised for rotating and said "so is that different then?". At which point Redknapp looked shamefaced and muttered err.. well you can rotate yeah"

That is they would sack Parry? Does rafa know this?

There is so much mud slinging and spin about at the moment that anything we read about Hicks Gillett or Parry should be taken with a big pinch of salt. This revelation is so damaging to Hicks that it is entirely possible it came from the Gillett camp to drive a wedge between Hicks and Benitez

They could start selecting the team and formations

He needs to watch out though. That knock he took in the face could have ruined his good looks

And shame on those who were all but calling for his head earlier in the season

I think Rafa is very much better in this respect. One thing that use to really get up my nose was that if we won Ged always seemed to make out like he knew exactly what was going to happen and it was a tactical masterstroke on his part. If we played badly he would often try to make out that it was somehow a great performance by quoting lots of statistics for shots on targets etc. Rafa always emphasises the whole team aspect both in success and failure. I think Rafa both as man and as a manager is head and shoulders above Houllier.

I absolutely agree he was great manager who brought us a lot of success. I just never warmed to him as a man and that I think is due to his failure to accept responsibilty and to make excuses. Some of his post match comments in the last couple of years were embarrassing

Never liked him. Seemed to want to take the credit for success but was always keen to shift the blame elsewhere when things went wrong.

Carlos Bently is rubbish - no youtube videos

"After all the Manchester United manager requested that referee by name " Is that true? I thought he didn't want Bennett. If that is true then my hatred of the ginsoaked whisky crazed lunatic has reached the level where I am thinking of even more disgussting diseases he could succumb to.

Someone suggested on the LFC phone in programme last night that Masch's first yellow might not have been for the tackle on Scholes but for swearing at the referee. Not sure about this but Looking at the incident again Masch certainly certainly starts swearing and gesticulating as soon as the whistle is blown for a free kick and well before Bennet produces the yellow card. Don't think this really changes much except it does make it more self inflicted I suppose but then it shows even more inconsistency from the ref as other obvious abuse was unpunished.

Only speculating here but maybe he thought he was going to abuse the ref and Masch said all he was going to do was ask the question.

Ah but he would - it was destiny. Dierdrie Barlow married the pope and Ken Barlow replaced Dr Who or something

Can we just concentrate on the next game. Too much mockering going on here.

His performance this week was outstanding on A Question of Sport

Don't understand why the club doesn't employ an ex player or someone to rebut this sort of shoite. A sort of Alistair Campbell type rottweiller to lay into these idiots

Dodgy lasagne? It is West Ham after all

yeah someway below the Carling Cup perhaps

How many people had doubts about Rafa before the problems with the US owners emerged? Not too many. Hopefully if the DIC sale goes ahead the new owners will give Rafa time and support and we will see just how good a manager he is.

That story is so weird I have decided to believe it.

Doesn't make sense though does it? A man who is clever enough, hard working enough knowledgeable enough to achieve success in the most prestigious club competition in the world yet whne it comes to the domestic league just can't work out what he should do.

On the whole Rafa has made some excellent buys given the money at his disposal. Having said that it would be a fair criticism to say that he has not bought enough players with pace and I think he has now recognised that with his more recent purchases. Agreed its not just the youth system but Rafa is clearly trying to emulate the Wenger model by buying young players with potential of varying ages. Whether this will be successful only time will tell. I think rafa should get that time.

Ok but that does not really answer my point which is that if the players are not good enough then is it really fair to blame the manager if he has not had enough money (unlike Mourinho/Ferguson) to buy players who are good enough now or enough time (unlike Wenger) to bring such players through the youth system.

You have said several times in other threads that we have good enough players and that it is the manager who is holding us back. Now your saying our players are way behind Arsenal's.