Rafa Benítez (now unemployed)

[loki679]

 

“When I met Rafa I realised maybe for the first time just how important a coach is. He’s not just someone who sticks 11 people on the pitch and chooses a system.

 

 

'Let's play' 

[TRon]

every little anecdote is like a kick in the balls and a knife to the heart at the same time

 

It really is. I wish I hadn't opened the thread now.

[hakka]

Just love reading what pros say about Rafa.

 

Then a little  :'( as we had him, and instead of backing him we decided to spunk £40m on Joelinton and bring in Steve Bruce.

[geordie_b]

 

From that to "lets play"

 

 

From that to "How was the bacon?"

[samptime29]

 

From that to "lets play"

 

 

From that to "How was the bacon?"

 

[geordie john]

Torres on Rafa:

 

“The vast majority of footballers stop learning once they become professionals,” he states. “And that is their big mistake. I’ve been lucky enough to have coach like Rafa Benítez who tries to make you better every single day. There’s no doubt I’ve improved a lot.”

 

Torres is the embodiment of practice makes perfect; if the devil is the details so too are the goals. “Things that you would never even have thought about, Rafa does,” he says. “Things that you thought weren’t important are. You might think ‘that’s ridiculous’ but the thing is the proof is there in front of you. You try it and you see that it’s true. It really works.

 

“When I met Rafa I realised maybe for the first time just how important a coach is. He’s not just someone who sticks 11 people on the pitch and chooses a system. He has to get the very best out of every player and every player is different. Some players have to be pushed and piqued, others have to be looked after,” he says. “When I’ve scored two goals or three goals, he tells me I’ve played badly, that I didn’t help out at the back…”

 

The question is inevitable: isn’t that tiresome? Plenty of players have been burnt by Benítez. “It depends,” Torres replies. “You can think, ‘forget it’ or you can think, ‘next time I’m going to work twice as hard, I’m going to do the things he tells me to do and then we’ll see what he says’.” There is a grin. “But if you do that he still has things to say! ‘In that corner, you let your man go and he had a shot…’ He always demands more.  Maybe there are players who get sunk by that but personally it helps me.”

 

Nor is it all about motivation; in fact, says Torres, it is more about method. “People say things like: ‘he’s got to improve his shooting’ but that doesn’t mean anything. You have to look deeper than that; you have to focus on how you get into the position to shoot, your arrival point, the position of your body. To say ‘he’s got to shoot better’ is banal, so general as to be meaningless. How do you find the space? How do you get into that position? How do you finish? In what way?

 

“Rafa talks to me a lot about the position of my body. If you’re turned fractionally more to the right or left you might get a millisecond’s advantage; if when you receive the ball you shift you weight you can get away easier. The way you position yourself against the centre-backs, focus on their position and judge their movements as well as your own is vital. One of the most important things I’ve learnt with Rafa is how to play closer to the opposition’s penalty area – how to get in behind the defenders as a solo striker. I don’t have to come back and look for the ball; I fix my position by the centre-backs more than by the ball or the build up.

 

“Rafa always analyses the centre backs I’m facing and the goalkeeping coach tells me about the goalkeepers. In a game it’s a matter of tenths of a second and that information can help. You might be told: ‘The goalkeeper always dives one way and if you’re patient you can wait and go round him the other side, the goalkeeper comes out a long way and you can chip him…’ Those small details really helped, especially in the first year when I didn’t know the players, whether centre-back was quick or slow, whether he comes across to the wings to cover and leaves space behind or whether he sticks.”

 

https://www.fourfourtwo.com/us/features/fernando-torres-how-rafa-made-me-great

 

 

 

.....weeps quietly......

[Guest]

But the players are happier now.

[BirtleyMag]

Just sickening reading how much detail Rafa went into and that we decided to bin him off for Bruce.

 

It’s no coincidence that players like Schar, Sean Longstaff and even Dummett have regressed massively this season.

[Mattoon]

[prefabtoon]

Cant we get Rafa back while he is sitting on his arse, he could learn bruce some football tactics. dont know where bruce got his from. 

[mrmojorisin75]

if anyone has more of these please post them mind, i love reading them as much as it depresses me

 

we could have had the man for a decade, think where we'd have been

[Kanj]

Give Rafa the same money and freedom to use as they did Bruce and prior managers and the reported amount this summer and we’d be European spots without any bit of doubt in my mind.

 

Ashley could have just literally disappeared from dealing with NUFC as well and just let it handle itself. 

[Bimpy474]

Unfortunately Ashley can't have another name mentioned more than him, that was happening with Rafa. Call it envy jealousy or whatever, he's a pathetic petty ignorant prat who'd rather ruin something than let it succeed, if it's not him getting the praise.

[mrmojorisin75]

Unfortunately Ashley can't have another name mentioned more than him, that was happening with Rafa. Call it envy jealousy or whatever, he's a pathetic petty ignorant prat who'd rather ruin something than let it succeed, if it's not him getting the praise.

 

i find this weird mind, seeing as he became a billionaire while also being a hermit that no one knew existed

[Bimpy474]

Unfortunately Ashley can't have another name mentioned more than him, that was happening with Rafa. Call it envy jealousy or whatever, he's a pathetic petty ignorant prat who'd rather ruin something than let it succeed, if it's not him getting the praise.

 

i find this weird mind, seeing as he became a billionaire while also being a hermit that no one knew existed

 

Well that's the mystery with him isn't it. We often hear and even i said and thought it, about him being thick skinned, when he's clearly not with some of the petulant responses he gives to criticism. He carries on regardless but we can all see now how much of a man baby he is, you chuck Rafa into the mix being loved by the fans and I'm certain that grated him.

 

It was past that though, Rafa was loved for what he did in the community, and showed he knew how much the club meant to the people and the area. Something Ashley could never understand, purely through ignorance and his only love, money. Why bother with the people and the area when you're making money, same as when he buys a business, he couldn't care less what happens to the employees.

 

Ashley is a walking contradiction in my opinion, makes lots of money but when you look at some of his decisions you're baffled as to why. He makes money from the club but he could make so much more by spending a little more, that's not even from his own pocket.

 

The man is a mentalist, an utter shite stain who we're lumbered with in purgatory, well until the fat mess decides to sell. When he's bored with us or as i suspect, when he starts to lose money (relegation and staying down would do it i think).

[AyeDubbleYoo]

More power I would say, he knew Rafa was more powerful, whereas McClaren, Pardew, Bruce are easily controllable and can placate fans

 

Yeah, he just doesn’t want anyone pushing to make Newcastle better. Survival on the minimum possible money is what he wants.

 

If Rafa had been less ambitious he would actually be the perfect manager, keep a cheap squad of players in the PL guaranteed.

[stlouismag]

Then a little  :'( as we had him, and instead of backing him we decided to spunk £40m on Joelinton and pay £4m to bring in Steve Bruce.

 

Never forget. I know it's chump change in today's game, but Christ we paid another club to get him.  :jesuswept:

[themanupstairs]

It's still the most epic of come-downs going from the elite Rafa Benitez to the way below average Steve fucking Bruce. In all my 30 years supporting this club I don't think I've ever experienced such a rollercoaster of emotions as going from elation in the Fulham game to abject depression the day Bruce signed.

 

 

[Yorkie]

Bobby to Souness was an outrageous downgrade. At least that was a legitimate football decision though, rather than whatever the Bruce appointment was.

[AyeDubbleYoo]

I was mentally preparing over the last few months of Rafa, but it still hurts to this day. TBF though, we already knew the club was pointless.

[Happinesstan]

I was mentally preparing over the last few months of Rafa, but it still hurts to this day. TBF though, we already knew the club was pointless.

 

The only thing I wasn't mentally prepared for, was the 3 years Rafa was here.

[AyeDubbleYoo]

True.

[themanupstairs]

Bobby to Souness was an outrageous downgrade. At least that was a legitimate football decision though, rather than whatever the Bruce appointment was.

 

That was a hell of a downgrade but at least under Shepherd we knew there was some kind of ambition (where's NE5?). Rafa breathed life back into the lifeless corpse that was NUFC.

 

Sadnesstan has got it spot on actually...it was the combination of misery under McLaren, euphoria with Rafa then back down to the current status quo that's got me all fucked up. In more than the 10 years I've been on this board I never logged out. Now I barely even look.

[LV]

I still log onto this board every day, it’s the only thing keeping me connected to the club.

 

One day people, one day..

[Mag_in_NZ]

Watching Local Hero last night ands at the end (when the music is playing) I couldn't get my head around how we've gone from Rafa (Local Hero) to "How's the Bacon" (Local Zero)……

 

and the comic now have Gabby Agbonlahor saying what a great manager The Baconator is...…surely they are just trolling