Why not? He moved mountains for Villa, and made them the team they are today.
Why not? He moved mountains for Villa, and made them the team they are today.
Str8 Pimpin'
O'Neill = awesome. Villa = fail. Hopefully he remains unemployed for a few years so he can take over from Ferguson. Well, him or Mourinho (who is apparently the heir-apparent).
Ehhhh, I don't think he achieved that much at Villa to be honest.Originally Posted by Rocket Edge
I think he's a quality manager who could bring any club with the right mentality into European football, although I'm not sure he's of the calibre to make a title chaser out of those kind of clubs. He did give them consecutive top-six finishes in the past three years, which is more than Rafa can say. I'd say O'neill and Rafa are similarish in quality - when you take into account their records in British football and the money available to them.
Bow before the mighty Javoo!
Benitez has onety season full of bad luck and injuries and suddenly everyone starts saying he's a terrible manager. He's not. He's a fantastic manager, achieved great things at both Valencia and Liverpool, and that's why the European Champions snapped him up the second we let him go.
Benitez is a totally different class to O'Neill. And I think he's a better manager than Roy Hodgson too, tbqh.
He spent untold amounts on players that he couldn't get anything out of, spent more than United have per season easily (closer to Chelsea actually) but overall just couldn't build a solid squad. I'm talking about British football, as mentioned in my earlier post, rather than European football. I'm sure he'll do well with Inter, but then I'm sure that most managers would do well with Inter in all honesty. They're an established winning side.
I think O'neill would have done just as well with Liverpool as Rafa Benitez did, that's all I'm saying. I'm not saying that O'neill would do as well as Rafa would have with Valencia or will with Inter, but I am saying that for Liverpool, Rafa didn't show much quality.
I'm not talking one season, either. How can you justify him spending quarter of a billion pound and ending up with the side he finished with? United had "oneProbably had more injuries than Liverpool did, too, what with Carrick/Evra/Fletcher playing as a back three against Fulham and all.
Admittedly Martin spent only one million per season less than Rafa did however it should be noted that his spending actually paid off.
Aston Villa
2005-06: 16th - O'neill joins at start of next season.
2006-07: 11th
2007-08: 6th
2008-09: 6th
2009-10: 6th
Liverpool
2003-04: 4th - Benitez joins at start of next season.
2004-05: 5th
2005-06: 3rd
2006-07: 3rd
2007-08: 4th
2008-09: 2nd
2009-10: 7th
Bow before the mighty Javoo!
I was going to go through this point by point and make rebuttals including points tallies, win percentages and cup records and how liverpool had to actually play injured players in some games and whatnot, but I looked at what I typed, and realised I think I can do it a lot better like this:<img src="http://i43.photobucket.com/albums/e373/photobucketamazingness/1093.gif" height=150 width=125>Admittedly Martin spent only one million per season less than Rafa did however it should be noted that his spending actually paid off.
Aston Villa
2005-06: 16th - O'neill joins at start of next season.
2006-07: 11th
2007-08: 6th
2008-09: 6th
2009-10: 6th
Liverpool
2003-04: 4th - Benitez joins at start of next season.
2004-05: 5th
2005-06: 3rd
2006-07: 3rd
2007-08: 4th
2008-09: 2nd
2009-10: 7th
I think the key difference is that Rafa used to regularly take the piss out of and beat Man United and O'Neill didn't.
In other news, the Swans absolutely smash their previous transfer fee record buying proven talent Scott Sinclair for a monstrous...£1million. WE CHAMPIONSHIP NOW
there was a picture here
That's a good buy, but unfortunately Cardiff got Jason Koumas. Check and mate.
O'neill took a side up 10 places, Rafa in the same time took his side to... exactly the same place. He got 2nd the next season which wasn't bad, but at the same time considering the club was finishing 4th before he joined it wasn't exactly a dramatic improvement. Rafa's purchases rarely paid off and when he lost a player he wanted to keep (Alonso), he couldn't adjust.I was going to go through this point by point and make rebuttals including points tallies, win percentages and cup records and how liverpool had to actually play injured players in some games and whatnot, but I looked at what I typed, and realised I think I can do it a lot better like this:<img src="http://i43.photobucket.com/albums/e373/photobucketamazingness/1093.gif" height=150 width=125>Admittedly Martin spent only one million per season less than Rafa did however it should be noted that his spending actually paid off.
Aston Villa
2005-06: 16th - O'neill joins at start of next season.
2006-07: 11th
2007-08: 6th
2008-09: 6th
2009-10: 6th
Liverpool
2003-04: 4th - Benitez joins at start of next season.
2004-05: 5th
2005-06: 3rd
2006-07: 3rd
2007-08: 4th
2008-09: 2nd
2009-10: 7th
I think the key difference is that Rafa used to regularly take the piss out of and beat Man United and O'Neill didn't.
Rafa took the piss out of Manchester United? I wasn't even aware Rafa knew how to put a joke together at all. He certainly couldn't take them. He did beat Liverpool every now and then, sure, but Aston Villa did beat us as well.
The guys at work - none of which like United (and they don't like Celtic either, so have no bias towards Martin O'neill at all) - agree with me in my theory that Martin O'neill would have done better for Liverpool than Rafa did but they also agree that Rafa is still a better manager when managing European clubs. Just not English ones.
But it's okay, Liverpool supporters are allowed to think Rafa is amazing because it seems to make them feel better. I know that many other Manchester United fans as well as myself would have preferred that Rafa continue to be in charge for many seasons to come, but it seems that we have to put up with the rivals having a manager that has the potential to win the PL now.
Bow before the mighty Javoo!
Why would losing a manager who I think is good make me feel better?
Also look you can criticise Benitez for a lot of things, but I will not hear anything said against his sense of humour. Ambulance for Robben remains one of the best jokes I have heard in football.
Ambulance for Robben? I can't find anything to do with that and Rafa. Are you confusing him with someone else? I want to hear a Rafa joke. It's like when Unne cracks out a good one, you never expect it.
Bow before the mighty Javoo!
YouTube - ‪Pepe Reina vs Chelsea Scum‬‎ go to 1:30ish
This is what he said about it:
(SPOILER)"I'm in a hurry, because I must go to the hospital to see how Robben is doing. The incident was so serious that maybe he will be in the hospital for one week. It is crazy. Reina has made a mistake because Robben was talking to him and he touched his face. Maybe he will be in the hospital for three weeks with a broken neck."
Never mind winning the CL, anyone who mocks a ponce like Robben like that is forever a hero to me.
Benitez as a cup competition manager > Benitez as a La Liga manager > Benitez as a Premiership manager
"Excuse me Miss, do you like pineapple?"
hahahahahah Phil Jagielka, that is hilarious. See, this is why we shouldn't pick Everton players for anything. Spain sure as hell didn't win the World Cup by picking Mikel sodding Arteta, after all
(I wish Heath was still here, he'd appreciate posts like this)
EDIT: Good to see Stevie G smurfing learning some Hungarians. He clearly cares a hell of a lot, which you probably couldn't say for a lot of his team mates.
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