Is it fair to expect Rafa to win the PL?

[alias75]

Yes as fans we all want to win number 19 and a lot of people are saying Rafa is failing by not winning the PL, but is he?

 

Hes up against Man Utd a team that has been managed by the same man for over 20 years, whose had time to build a squad of his players and has more money at his disposal to cherry pick those top players to come in when people need replacing.

 

You have Chelsea a club that have spent £100's of millions in the last 5 years and have almost a limitless amount of money they can throw at players when they need to.

 

And theres Arsenal who are managed by Wenger whose been at the club for a long time had time to build the team how he wants it, and had time to implement his ideas into the youth setup (Rafa's finished above him twice in the league anyway)

 

So the question should not be why aren't we winning the league, because the competition is very tough and actually compared to the teams above us especially Man Utd and Chelsea we're at a financial disadvantage. The question should be are we improving as a team and i think the answer to that is a clear yes.

 

 

If DIC takeover and give Rafa plenty of money then fair enough winning the title should be the benchmark to be judged on, but at the moment in the current circumstances whether we like it or not we should not expect to win the PL because at best we're the 3rd best placed team to do so.

[realtarragona]

Maybe not but it's fair to expect at least a decent challenge after five years.

[Benitez]

to win it, no. There is no god given right. And other teams aren't going to stand still and wait for us to catch up with them.

 

But to challenge - yes, it's fair to expect him to do that.

[Hassony]

If Liverpool end up with 84+ points next season than no one can have a go at Rafa

[Florist Cinema Pond Goal]

If Liverpool end up with 84+ points next season than no one can have a go at Rafa

 

What if we get 83?

[Hassony]

What if we get 83?

 

we should thrn sack him and replace him with a dream team of Kilnsman and Jamie Redknapp

[Hodgson for Chelsea]

I don't expect us to win the league next year but that is not down to Rafa.

 

People will say he's not got us further up the league than GH but I believe we are playing the right type of football and getting very consistent results. Had we beaten the mancs once this season we would have been right up there. If we'd have taken more points off Birmingham and not drawn with Reading then we would have won the damn thing.

 

Progress has been made but as you say the others wont stand still. Our team under Rafa is far superior to the best sides GH or Roy Evans built IMO. I don't see anyone (except perhaps Mr Wenger perhaps - PERHAPS) doing a better job with the funds available.

Edited May 27, 2008 by stozza

[Guest Prongsy]

Since 2004 when Rafa took over we've spent less (net) than United and Chelsea, we also started from a much worse starting point in terms of players and squad depth. Make no mistake, we're playing catch up every summer and this summer will be no different with Chelsea looking to spend more than ever before and United looking for a 50-70m raid of three players. He's done a fantastic job to win what he has.

 

I don't expect him to win the league because we're again starting from a position that's 11 points off the league and will be spending less than the two above us. We're building but I think we're going to have to have a DIC sized investment.

[sutty]

Jesus f***ing wept.

 

Another of these threads.

[Swagger]

Did anyone expect him to win the title in Spain ahead of RM and Barca?

[Guest ziggystardust]

i think the only way we can expect to win the league is if:

 

1. dic come in before august hence given rafa a large cash injection.

2. we sign our current targets (whoever they are) and have virtually no injuries all season - highly unlikely.

[Andy @ Allerton]

Yes as fans we all want to win number 19 and a lot of people are saying Rafa is failing by not winning the PL, but is he?

 

Hes up against Man Utd a team that has been managed by the same man for over 20 years, whose had time to build a squad of his players and has more money at his disposal to cherry pick those top players to come in when people need replacing.

 

You have Chelsea a club that have spent £100's of millions in the last 5 years and have almost a limitless amount of money they can throw at players when they need to.

 

And theres Arsenal who are managed by Wenger whose been at the club for a long time had time to build the team how he wants it, and had time to implement his ideas into the youth setup (Rafa's finished above him twice in the league anyway)

 

So the question should not be why aren't we winning the league, because the competition is very tough and actually compared to the teams above us especially Man Utd and Chelsea we're at a financial disadvantage. The question should be are we improving as a team and i think the answer to that is a clear yes.

If DIC takeover and give Rafa plenty of money then fair enough winning the title should be the benchmark to be judged on, but at the moment in the current circumstances whether we like it or not we should not expect to win the PL because at best we're the 3rd best placed team to do so.

 

Expecting us to win is ridiculous.

 

Expecting us to challenge and put pressure on those at the top is not.

 

If we are there or there abouts - then who knows how it turns out - but we need to be challenging right up to the final week.

 

You've got to be in it to win it

[Guest GrandpaSimpson]

We have to challenge for the title next season. Have to.

[John am Rhein]

The 'expected' level should be consistently qualifying for the European Cup. We're already there.

[Extraordinary Swindle]

Rafa Benitez:

We will try to do our best and the key for me is to not talk about the title. They key is to be near the top, to be contenders. If we stay close then I think we are capable of doing it.

[AE]

We have to challenge for the title next season. Have to.

 

Or what?

We sack rafa, give his replacement £2.50 and ask him to rebuild the squad again?

[Guest Ant]

It has been fair to expect Rafa to challenge for the league for quite some time now.

[Woodsyla]

It has been fair to expect Rafa to challenge for the league for quite some time now.

Maybe in your tiny mind that you appear out of most of the time but back in the real world it is not fair to expect anyone other than Man United or Chelsea to compete for the title. Over 38 games the best squads will always win. It was not reasonable to expect Wenger to win the league, he won it, he continues to put together title challenges against the odds. It's not unreasonsable to hope that Rafa can do the same if we make a few crucial tweaks this summer but it's not a level playing field so we can't expect it.

[Guest Ant]

Maybe in your tiny mind that you appear out of most of the time but back in the real world it is not fair to expect anyone other than Man United or Chelsea to compete for the title. Over 38 games the best squads will always win. It was not reasonable to expect Wenger to win the league, he won it, he continues to put together title challenges against the odds. It's not unreasonsable to hope that Rafa can do the same if we make a few crucial tweaks this summer but it's not a level playing field so we can't expect it.

 

Is sutty or RP here?

 

He is being arrogant.

 

Ban him

 

___

 

Back on topic, we finished above Arsenal spending more money over the past few years, yet Arsene had the better of us this season.

[theredfella]

Or what?

We sack rafa, give his replacement £2.50 and ask him to rebuild the squad again?

 

Not necessarily, any new man would get a world class spine in place, far exceeding that that Houllier and Rafa inherited.

 

Should we need a new manager next year, he'll have much, much less of a rebuilding job to do.

[Woodsyla]

Is sutty or RP here?

 

He is being arrogant.

 

Ban him

 

___

 

Back on topic, we finished above Arsenal spending more money over the past few years, yet Arsene had the better of us this season.

Well done Arsene, did he get the better of Man United or Chelsea, you know, the teams in the title race ?

 

Wenger has done amazingly to get anywhere near those two, with his budget he has no right, the same is true of Rafa and every other manager in the league. Man Utd and Chelsea have the two largest and best squads in the league, therefore they will be the favourites for the league every year until that changes. Therefore it is unreasonable to expect any other manager to win the title.

[Guest Ant]

Well done Arsene, did he get the better of Man United or Chelsea, you know, the teams in the title race ?

 

Wenger has done amazingly to get anywhere near those two, with his budget he has no right, the same is true of Rafa and every other manager in the league. Man Utd and Chelsea have the two largest and best squads in the league, therefore they will be the favourites for the league every year until that changes. Therefore it is unreasonable to expect any other manager to win the title.

 

I have always stated Rafa needs to CHALLENGE for the title.

 

I would have settled for a season like Arsenals.

[Woodsyla]

Not necessarily, any new man would get a world class spine in place, far exceeding that that Houllier and Rafa inherited.

 

Should we need a new manager next year, he'll have much, much less of a rebuilding job to do.

You think, Mourinho has left Chelsea and Drogba is now leaving, Lampard could also go. Much as Torres and Gerrard love the club, if Rafa gets sacked and the next fella doesn't get a huge pot of money then they will both be off to play for a 'top' side. If we don't spend money we wont win the league, it doesn't matter who the boss is. Sacking Rafa is pointless.

[Hassony]

Not necessarily, any new man would get a world class spine in place, far exceeding that that Houllier and Rafa inherited.

 

Should we need a new manager next year, he'll have much, much less of a rebuilding job to do.

 

What if he doesn't fancy Kuyt, Babel, Mascherano, Skrtel, Reina and wants to bring in his players instead?

[Gooner Spy]

Well done Arsene, did he get the better of Man United or Chelsea, you know, the teams in the title race ?

 

Wenger has done amazingly to get anywhere near those two, with his budget he has no right, the same is true of Rafa and every other manager in the league. Man Utd and Chelsea have the two largest and best squads in the league, therefore they will be the favourites for the league every year until that changes. Therefore it is unreasonable to expect any other manager to win the title.

 

I agree to a point, I have never gone into a season expecting to win anything. I expect to push as close as we can in the league, and to have a stab at the other cup competitions as well. The rest is down to a bit of fortune along the way, a comoddity we lacked big time this season.

 

It certainly isnt a level playing field, but the cannier managers, of which Benitez and Wenger certainly are, should be able to bridge the gap to a large extent.