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Rafael Benítez

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Rafael Benítez
Personal information
Full name Rafael Benítez Maudes
Height 5 ft 10 in (1.78 m)
Position(s) Midfielder[1]
Team information
Current team
 Liverpool (manager)

Template:Spanish name 2 Rafael "Rafa" Benítez Maudes (born 16 April 1960) is a Spanish football manager. He has been managing English club Liverpool since June 2004.

Born in Madrid, Benítez played football throughout his youth and joined the Real Madrid academy. He mixed his university studies with his football career at lower division Spanish teams but injury caused him to prematurely retire. He joined Real Madrid's coaching staff at the age of 26, going on to work as the under 19 and reserve teams coach, and assistant manager for the senior team. Benítez moved away from Real Madrid but management spells at Real Valladolid and CA Osasuna were short-lived and unsuccessful.

A move to Segunda División side CF Extremadura in 1997 was much more fruitful and Benítez guided the team back to the Primera División in his first season. The team were relegated the following season and he left the club, taking a brief break from football before returning to coach CD Tenerife in 2000. In 2001 Benítez was appointed coach of Valencia CF and he proved himself to be amongst the top Spanish managers by winning La Liga in the 2001–02 season. Both Don Balón and El País recognised his achievements and he was named Manager of the Year. He proved his mettle in both Spanish and European competition in 2004 by winning the league for a second time and Valencia's first UEFA Cup, making him the most successful Valencia manager in history after just three seasons. However, a disagreement between Benítez and the club director over team investment caused the Spaniard to switch to English Premier League outfit Liverpool.

Benítez was a high-achiever in his first season as he guided Liverpool to victory in the UEFA Champions League, the highest honour in European club football. This made him only the third manager, after Bob Paisley and José Mourinho, to win the UEFA Cup and UEFA Champions League in successive seasons and the second Liverpool manager, after Joe Fagan, to win the European Cup/UEFA Champions League in his first season in charge. Additionally, in 2005 he won the European Super Cup and was runner up in the Football League Cup. In 2006 he led the team to victory in the FA Cup and the FA Community Shield. Benítez reached the Champions League final again in 2007 but remained unable to finish in the top two of the Premier League, placing third in consecutive seasons.

Personal life

Rafael Benítez Maudes was born on April 16, 1960, into a middle-class Madrid family. His father, Francisco Benítez, worked as a hotelier. His mother is Rosario Maudes. Rosario was a big football fan and supported Real Madrid, while his father supported Atletico Madrid. Francisco died in December 2005 while Benítez was in Japan for the FIFA Club World Championship. He is the second of three children. His older brother, also called Francisco, was born in 1959, while his younger sister, called Rosario, was born several years later. Both studied veterinary science and Rosario later became a vet. In 1998, Benítez married his wife, Maria de Montserrat, a Doctor of Law, born in Ourense. They have two daughters, Claudia, who was born in Madrid in 1999, and Ágata who was born in Valencia in 2002.[2]

Early career

Playing career

The young Benitez attended several schools throughout Madrid and played for various school teams. Among his school friends and team mates was Ricardo Gallego. He also showed his early potential as a coach when at the age of thirteen he began training a children’s football team. At the age of twelve Benítez joined the Real Madrid cantera. He progressed through the ranks, playing as a midfielder for both Real Madrid Aficionados in the Tercera División and Castilla CF, in the Segunda División. He also enrolled as a student at INEF, the sports faculty at the Universidad Politécnica de Madrid and in 1982 he obtained a degree in Physical Education.

In 1979 Benítez was selected to play for the Spain Universities XI at the World Student Games in Mexico City and he scored a penalty in the opening game, a 4–0 win against Cuba. In the next game, a 0–0 draw against Canada, he was injured following a hard tackle. The injury saw him sidelined for a year which realistically ended his chances of becoming a major player. In 1981 Benítez joined Tercera División side AD Parla. Initially he joined Parla on loan, but eventually signed for them permanently and helped them gain promotion to Segunda División B. He also played a further three games for the Spain Universities XI. In 1985 he signed for Segunda División B club Linares CF and under Enrique Mateos he served as a player/coach. Further injury problems saw him miss almost the entire 1985–86 season and he subsequently retired as a player.[3]

Real Madrid youth coach

In 1986, at the age of twenty six, Benítez returned to Real Madrid and joined the club’s coaching staff. At the start of the 1986-87 season he was appointed coach of Castilla B. With this team he won two league titles in 1987 and 1989. He won a third league title with Real Madrid Youth B in 1990. Halfway through the 1990-91 season he succeeded José Antonio Camacho as the coach of the Real Madrid U-19s. With this team he won the Spain U-19 Cup in 1991 and 1993, beating FC Barcelona in both finals. In 1993 the team completed a double when they also won the national U-19 league. While at Real, Benítez also gained his coaching certificate in 1989 and in the summer of 1990 he taught at a football camp at UC Davis in California.

During the 1992-93 season Benítez also worked as an assistant coach to Mariano García Remón at Real Madrid B. After his success with the U-19s, Benítez then succeeded García Remón at the start of the 1993-94 season. Real Madrid B were then playing in the Segunda División and on September 4 1993 he made his debut as a Segunda División manager with a 3-1 over Hércules CF. In March 1994 he became assistant manager to Vicente Del Bosque with the senior Real Madrid team before returning to coach Real Madrid B for the 1994-95 season.[4]

Promotion specialist

The first attempts by Benítez at senior management away from the Real Madrid fold were less than successful. He was appointed manager of Real Valladolid for the 1995–96 season but was sacked after only two wins in 23 games with the club bottom of the Primera División. During the 1996–97 season, Benítez took charge at CA Osasuna in the Segunda División but after only 9 games and one win he was sacked. He did, however, meet the fitness instructor Pako Ayestaran at the club, and went on to form a partnership with him at several clubs for the next decade. In 1997, he joined another Segunda División side, CF Extremadura and this time led them to promotion, finishing second in the table behind Deportivo Alavés, after winning 23 out of 42 games. CF Extremadura only survived one season in Primera División, however, and were relegated in 1999 after finishing seventeenth and losing a play-off to Villarreal CF.

Benítez subsequently quit CF Extremadura and took a year out studying in England and Italy. He also worked as a commentator/analyst for Eurosport, Marca, El Mundo and local Madrid TV. In 2000 he was appointed manager of CD Tenerife of the Segunda División and with a team that included Mista, Curro Torres and Luis García, he gained promotion to La Liga by finishing third in the league behind Sevilla FC and Real Betis.

Valencia CF

2001–02 - Champions of Spain

In 2001 Benítez was appointed coach of Valencia CF, replacing Hector Cuper. The club had previously approached Javier Irureta, Mané and Luis Aragonés and had been turned down by all three. However the club director Javier Subirats recognised the potential of Benítez and campaigned for his appointment. Despite the loss of both Gaizka Mendieta and Claudio López, he inherited from Cuper a team brimming with potential. Santiago Cañizares, Roberto Ayala, Rubén Baraja, David Albelda and Pablo Aimar provided the backbone of an already formidable but underachieving side.

Valencia CF fans were soon won over by Benítez as he introduced a more attacking style of play. He also made good use of both Mista and Curro Torres and Mista went on to become top goalscorer for Valencia CF with 19 goals in the 2003–04 season and Curro Torres became an established international. In 2002, these tactics saw Benítez lead Valencia CF to their first La Liga title in thirty one years, winning it by a seven point margin over second placed Deportivo de La Coruña.

However the following season 2002–03 was a disappointing one as the club failed to follow up on their title success, they finished only fifth in La Liga, eighteen points behind Champions Real Madrid. The season saw Benítez make his debut in the UEFA Champions League. Valencia CF reached the quarter-finals before losing to Inter Milan.

2003–04 - La Liga/UEFA Cup double

The 2003–04 season was a different story. Valencia CF won La Liga with three games to go and beat Olympique de Marseille 2–0 in the UEFA Cup final. Despite this success, Benítez fell out with Jesus Garcia Pitarch, the club's director of sport, over control of new signings and the club's failure to reinforce the squad with the players he wanted. These differences of opinion saw Benítez resign as Valencia CF coach in June 2004. He famously said "I asked for a table and they bought me a lampshade" in reference to the players he wanted the club to sign.

Liverpool

2004–05 - Champions of Europe

Liverpool were quick to take advantage of the disharmony at Valencia CF and Benítez was appointed manager of the English Premiership club on June 16, 2004, replacing Gérard Houllier. Arriving at Liverpool, he found himself in a very similar position to the one he had found at Valencia CF. The club had a talented but underperforming squad that included, among others, Steven Gerrard, Jamie Carragher, Dietmar Hamann, Harry Kewell, Steve Finnan and Sami Hyypiä.

Benítez had barely arrived at Liverpool when Michael Owen was sold to Real Madrid. He subsequently signed several players from La Liga, most notably Luis García, Fernando Morientes and Xabi Alonso. During his first season Benítez failed to improve the club's form in the Premiership. Key players such as Steven Gerrard, Milan Baroš, Djibril Cissé, Xabi Alonso and Dietmar Hamann missed much of the season through injury and Liverpool failed to challenge Chelsea and Arsenal for the league title. They eventually finished fifth. However, they did reach the Carling Cup final against Chelsea at the Millennium Stadium but Liverpool lost 3–2 after extra time.

In the UEFA Champions League it was very different, despite a poor start. Liverpool began their campaign with an unimpressive 2–1 aggregate win over Grazer AK in the qualifying rounds and were minutes away from going out of the competition in the group stages before an 87th minute goal by Gerrard defeated Olympiakos 3–1 and saw the club progress to the last sixteen. Bayer Leverkusen were beaten 3–1 home and away followed by Juventus who were beaten 2–1 on aggregate.

In the semi-final Liverpool faced Chelsea, runaway leaders in the Premiership and favourites to win after overcoming the highly rated FC Barcelona in a previous round. Chelsea had already beaten Liverpool in the League Cup final and twice in the Premiership. After a goalless leg at Stamford Bridge, an early goal from Luis García saw Liverpool win 1–0 on aggregate and reach the final against AC Milan. In a classic final, Liverpool came from 3–0 down at half-time to level the score at 3–3, in the space of just under 6 minutes, (although Liverpool's third goal was shrouded in controversy after Steven Gerrard appeared to have gone down in the penalty area after minimal contact) and eventually won on penalties with the assistance of Jerzy Dudek, giving Liverpool an historic fifth European Cup. Benitez' calm methodical approach at half time was said to give the player's the belief they could pull off an improbable comeback.

2005–06 - FA Cup winners

For the 2005–06 season Benítez further reinforced the Liverpool squad by signing Peter Crouch, Mohamed Sissoko, José "Pepe" Reina, Boudewijn Zenden and Daniel Agger, as well as former Liverpool player (and fan favourite) Robbie Fowler in the January transfer window.

It is notable that Dudek's heroics in the Champions league final were not enough for him to stay as first choice keeper, as Reina replaced him in goal right away. Benitez also quickly discarded unlikely heroes Vladimír Šmicer and Igor Biscan, who played key roles in the European success but seemingly did not figure in Benítez' long-term plans. Benitez also quickly sold two of his first signings in English football, Josemi and Antonio Núñez after they failed to establish themselves. This is an example of what some may see as Benítez' ruthlessness.

The improvements saw the club's Premiership form improve considerably. Liverpool finished third in the league, qualifying for the UEFA Champions League and only narrowly missed out on second place by 1 point. Liverpool also won the FA Cup beating both Manchester United and Chelsea on the way to the final against West Ham Utd. History repeated itself in the final as they then went on to lift the trophy after a penalty shoot-out, following a dramatic 3-3 draw. Liverpool came from 2–0 down and were losing 3–2 in stoppage time when Steven Gerrard scored a dramatic late equalizer. This time Pepe Reina saved three penalties during the shoot-out to secure the silverware.

In winning the FA Cup 'Rafa' became the only manager in the history of Liverpool Football Club to win major trophies in both of his first two seasons at the club.

2006–07 - Another Champions League Final

The English Press were predicting Liverpool would challenge Chelsea for the Premiership crown after Benitez addressed Liverpool's perceived weaknesses in the transfer window by signing strikers Craig Bellamy and Dirk Kuyt as well as wingers Jermaine Pennant and Mark Gonzalez, a belief reaffirmed after his side won the Community Shield with 2-1 victory over Chelsea.

Although Liverpool had qualified for the knockout stage of the UEFA Champions League with two games to spare (a new record for the club), and then going on to win the group with one game still left, Benitez's future at the Liverpool was called into question after poor away results in the league: his agent was quoted as saying he would consider offers to manage in Italy.[5] Benitez swiftly issued a statement through the club's website re-affirming his desire to remain with Liverpool for the long term.[6]

Although the team's league results improved, their defence of the FA Cup lasted just one game as they were knocked out by Arsenal at Anfield; and four days later they were knocked out of the League Cup, also by Arsenal losing 6–3 at Anfield, Liverpool's heaviest home defeat since 1913. However this was soon forgotten when Liverpool beat Chelsea 2–0 at Anfield, Benitez's first league victory over Jose Mourinho's side. At the end of the league campaign, Liverpool were on 68 points, beating Arsenal to third place on goal difference but their poor away form had prevented the title challenge many were expecting - they did not win away in the League until December.

Liverpool's 2006–07 Champions League campaign proved successful. After winning their Group, they were then drawn against defending champions FC Barcelona in the first round of the knockout stages. Benitez' side did not have ideal preparations with a reported altercation between Liverpool players Craig Bellamy and John Arne Riise days before the winning the first leg 2-1 at Camp Nou.[7] This was seen as a major test of Benitez' man-management at the time and he subsequently fined both players.[8] Remarkably, Riise and Bellamy combined to score the second goal of a 2–1 victory in the first leg and Liverpool held Barca to just one goal in a 0–1 loss in the return at Anfield, thus progressing on the away goals rule. In preparation for the second game, Barca's Dutch coach Frank Rijkaard described Liverpool's style of play: "The style Liverpool have - quite physical and tactically disciplined - once you have seen a couple of their games you know how they play."[9]

After beating PSV Eindhoven 4-0 on aggregate in the quarter-finals, Liverpool draw Chelsea in the semi finals. In the first leg, Liverpool lost 1–0 at Chelsea, but won the return leg 1–0, and then ultimately winning 4–1 in a penalty shoot-out after extra time. After the game, Liverpool's new co-owner George Gillett said: "Rafa has been tremendous ... We knew of him but I don't think we realized how good he was, and not just as a coach. Not only was he a brilliant coach but he is a very sharp, savvy businessman. He knows what he wants and how to get it. The more we have seen of him the more impressed we have become."[10] During the penalty shoot out, Rafa was noted for sitting down cross-legged in his technical area. He later explained that it was because fans behind the dug-out were complaining that they could not see.

Liverpool contended with AC Milan for their sixth European Cup in Athens, Greece on May 23, 2007, in a repeat of the 2005 final but lost 2–1, after two goals by Filippo Inzaghi. Following the defeat Benitez insisted his club's new owners had to back him in the transfer market in order for Liverpool to progress.[11] It was reported Benitez did not feel he had the complete support of the new owners, a thought that was compounded by Liverpool's initial lack of activity in the transfer window, although the club played these rumours down.[12]

2007–08 - Cash flow and crisis

Benítez in 2007.

Benítez released several players in the summer, including fan-favourites Robbie Fowler, Luis García and Jerzy Dudek as well as Djibril Cissé and Craig Bellamy. Benitez also tried to sign left-back Gabriel Heinze from Manchester United, however on August 21, 2007 an FA panel ruled that Manchester United were under no obligation to sell Heinze to a rival club.[13]

Liverpool's new owners Tom Hicks and George Gillett provided Benítez with transfer funds for the new season to attempt to bridge the gap to Premiership rivals Manchester United and Chelsea. Benítez broke Liverpool's transfer record when signing Spanish striker Fernando Torres from Atletico Madrid as well as signing Ajax's young Dutch forward Ryan Babel, West Ham attacking midfielder Yossi Benayoun, Brazilian player of the year Lucas Leiva and Andriy Voronin on Bosman. During the pre-season he also invested in a number of young foreign players such as Bulgarian under-21 goalkeeper Nikolay Mihaylov, Australian Dean Bouzanis Hungarian starlets Krisztian Nemeth, Andras Simon, Peter Gulacsi and signed young players Dani Pacheco and Gerardo Bruna from Barcelona and Real Madrid respectively.

Liverpool made a good start to the new league season and remained unbeaten at the end of November, having topped the Premier League table for the first time under Benitez after a comprehensive 6–0 win over Derby County. Despite this, poor results in the Champions League and a disagreement over future transfers lead to a public falling-out with the club's owners, played out in the media at the end of November. It was suggested that Benitez's position was now under serious threat. The resulting coverage resulted in an overwhelming show of support by fans in support of Benitez which culminated in a fans' march in support of Benitez ahead of the critical Champions League home tie with Porto, which they won 4–1.[14] It has since emerged that at the time Jürgen Klinsmann was offered the Liverpool job before accepting the post of Bayern Munich manager while Benitez was constantly linked to Real Madrid.[15]

Benitez was unable to win any trophies, Liverpool's domestic campaign faltering in the winter months - including a shock FA Cup exit at home to Barnsley - and his side this time lost to Chelsea in the Champions League semi-finals. Despite the lack of silverware, the main talking points were off the pitch, with Benitez in the middle of a power struggle between the Liverpool board.[16]

2008–09

Benitez was reportedly close to quitting Liverpool in the summer of 2008 over the Liverpool's boards failure to back him in his bid to purchase Gareth Barry from Aston Villa.[17] Benitez had reportedly intended to sell Xabi Alonso to fund the purchase of Barry, a decision that did not meet with unanimous approval from The Kop.[18] Benitez did however address what were seen as the weak areas of Liverpool's squad through the purchase Robbie Keane, Andrea Dossena and Albert Riera, amongst others. It is believed that Benitez prioritised the signing of Barry over Keane, but Liverpool chief executive Rick Parry instead chose to first pay £20million for Keane and then pulled the plug on the Barry deal, causing tension between the two that would resurface later in the season.[19]

Despite the off-field difficulties, Liverpool made an impressive start to the 2008–09 season recording the best-ever start made by Liverpool in the Barclays Premier League.[citation needed] Benitez recorded his first ever league win against Manchester United at Anfield on the 13 September and went on to beat Chelsea at Stamford Bridge on the 25 October, to end Chelsea's unbeaten run of 86 home league games.[20] It was announced on the 7 November 2008 that Benitez had begun negotiations for a new contract with club owners Tom Hicks and George Gillette.[21] Both owners have announced, that they have full confidence in Benitez and are delighted with the club's progress with him as manager.[citation needed] On 14 November, Benitez was awarded the Barclays Premier League Manager of the Month award, for Liverpool's four consecutive league victories.

On 26 November 2008, with the Champions League group stage game against Olympique Marseille, Benitez broke Bill Shankly's record of 65 European matches as Liverpool manager and matched Bob Paisley's European record of 39 wins.[22]

An operation to remove kidney stones in December meant Benitez was not present at the Emirates Stadium for Liverpool's 1-1 draw with Arsenal, although he did pass instructions over the phone to assistant Sammy Lee, who also took charge for the next two matches, with Benitez watching from the stands. Liverpool finished the calendar year top of the Premier League for the first time since 1996.

However, Benitez still appeared to be at odds with Liverpool's owners, publicly turning down a contract extension and demanding more control over transfers. In the January transfer window, Robbie Keane was resold to Tottenham with some analysts claiming he was a "pawn in a power struggle" between Benitez and the club's owners [23]. Combined with poor results on the pitch, including losing in the FA Cup to local rivals Everton, and a pre-meditated attack on Manchester United boss Sir Alex Ferguson, some opposition supporters and journalists began to ponder if Benitez was "cracking up" under the pressure of launching a title bid - a claim Benitez denied[24]. Benitez' supporters argued that his actions were deflecting attention away from his under performing players and club captain Steven Gerrard, who was charged with assault and affray following an incident in a nightclub.[25]

Relations with other managers

Benitez has had confrontations with both Jose Mourinho (Chelsea manager, 2004–2007) and Sir Alex Ferguson (Manchester United manager, 1986–) during his time in English football. Benitez made a number of suggestions during Mourinho's tenure as manager that Roman Abramovich's money had brought Chelsea success, and the pair refused to shake hands after some matches (although Mourinho declared the feud to be over after a league game in 2006). When Mourinho exited Chelsea in 2007, Benitez said "You know my relationship with him, it is better that I do not say anything"; declining to comment as Ferguson and Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger had.[26][27]

On 9 January 2009 Benitez attacked Ferguson by claiming he was "the only manager who will not be punished" for verbally attacking referees and citing a long lists of 'facts' against Ferguson and United. The comments came after he was asked for a response to Ferguson's comments about nerves ruining Liverpool's 2008–09 title bid. Benitez took out a piece of paper during the press conference, and proceeded to criticize Ferguson for complaints over fixtures, and speculate that it may have been Manchester United who had reason to be nervous, with Liverpool top of the league.[28] Benitez's claims have been disputed,[29] and Ferguson responded to them by saying that "There was a lot of venom in what he has said" and that he was being "ridiculous".[30] BBC journalist Phil McNulty said the following weekend had gone "just about perfect from both a psychological and footballing perspective" for Ferguson after Liverpool drew with Stoke City, and Manchester United defeated Chelsea with a "damaging" 3–0 victory.[31][32] Benitez then, a few days later, addressed issues about Manchester United authority David Gill also being involved on the senior management team at the FA, claiming that United could have major decisions turned in their favour.

Statistics

Manager

Team Nat From To Record
G W D L Win %
Real Valladolid Spain
Osasuna Spain
Extremadura Spain
Tenerife Spain
Valencia Spain 1 July 2001 16 June 2004 163 87 43 33 53.37
Liverpool England 16 June 2004 Present 278 156 64 58 56.12
As of 22 February 2009

Honours

Player

AD Parla

Manager

Real Madrid U-19s

CF Extremadura

CD Tenerife

Valencia CF

Liverpool

Individual Awards

See also

References

  1. ^ Rafael Benitez Profile, Background and History
  2. ^ Rafa Benítez: Paco Lloret (2005)
  3. ^ Rafa Benítez: Paco Lloret (2005)
  4. ^ Rafa Benítez: Paco Lloret (2005)
  5. ^ "Liverpool dismiss Benitez report". BBC. 2006-11-09. Retrieved 2008-11-07.
  6. ^ "Rafa: My agent was misquoted". Liverpool F.C. TV. 2006-11-11. Retrieved 2008-11-07.
  7. ^ "Bellamy faces uncertain future as Liverpool reel from golf club attack". The Guardian. 2007-02-19. Retrieved 2007-02-22.
  8. ^ "Bellamy fined £80,000 and facing axe over Riise bust-up". Daily Mail. 2007-02-19. Retrieved 2008-11-07.
  9. ^ "Benitez lauds Liverpool's display". BBC. 2007-03-07. Retrieved 2008-11-07.
  10. ^ "Gillett Blown Away By Rafa Brilliance". Liverpool F.C. TV.
  11. ^ "We must spend big, says Benitez". BBC. 2007-05-24. Retrieved 2008-11-07.
  12. ^ "Parry plays down Benitez reports". BBC. 2007-05-27. Retrieved 2008-11-07.
  13. ^ Heinze loses bid for Anfield move
  14. ^ Rafael Benítez calls temporary truce as fans plan show of solidarity | Liverpool - Times Online
  15. ^ ESPNsoccernet - England - Jolly: The long goodbye for Rafa?
  16. ^ http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/football/teams/l/liverpool/7344027.stm
  17. ^ Edwards, John (16 August 2008). "Furious Benitez threatens to quit Anfield over Barry bid fiasco". Daily Mail. Retrieved 9 January 2009.
  18. ^ Barrett, Tony (19 August 2008). "Revealed: Anfield's Inner Turmoil". Liverpool Echo. Retrieved 9 January 2009.
  19. ^ http://www.mirror.co.uk/sport-old/football/2008/08/22/liverpool-boss-rafa-benitez-and-chief-exec-rick-parry-call-a-truce-115875-20707104
  20. ^ "Liverpool end Chelsea run". EuroSport - Yahoo!. 27 October 2008. Retrieved 9 January 2009.
  21. ^ "Rafa Set For New Reds Deal". EuroSport - Yahoo!. 7 November 2008. Retrieved 9 January 2009.
  22. ^ Burt, Jason (27 November 2008). "Gerrard to the rescue again on nervy night". The Independent. Retrieved 9 January 2009.
  23. ^ http://www.mirror.co.uk/sport/columnists/reade/2009/01/31/never-walk-alone-liverpool-chiefs-are-pulling-in-different-directions-115875-21084536/
  24. ^ http://www.mirror.co.uk/sport/football/2009/01/31/rafa-benitez-insists-he-s-not-cracking-up-115875-21085465/
  25. ^ Barrett, Tony (3 January 2009). "Steven Gerrard to lead Liverpool's FA Cup push". Liverpool Echo. Retrieved 9 January 2009.
  26. ^ "Mourinho accepts Ballack red card". BBC Sport. 2006-09-17. Retrieved 2009-01-09.
  27. ^ "Ferguson pays tribute to Mourinho". BBC Sport. 2007-09-27. Retrieved 2009-01-09.
  28. ^ "Benitez lays into rival Ferguson". BBC Sport. 2009-01-09. Retrieved 2009-01-09.
  29. ^ "Rafael Benitez's outburst made up of half-truth and disinformation". The Telegraph. 2009-01-11. Retrieved 2009-01-12. {{cite web}}: Italic or bold markup not allowed in: |publisher= (help)
  30. ^ "Ferguson hits back in Benitez row". BBC Sport. 2009-01-12. Retrieved 2009-01-12.
  31. ^ Phil McNulty (2009-01-12). "Ferguson takes first round of long campaign". BBC Sport. Retrieved 2009-01-12.
  32. ^ "Title hopes damaged, says Scolari". BBC Sport. 2009-01-11. Retrieved 2009-01-12.
Wikimedia Commons has media related to Rafael Benítez.

Biographies

Statistics

Valencia CF

Awards

Awards and achievements
Preceded by UEFA Cup Winning Coach
2003–04 		Succeeded by
UEFA Champions League Winning Coach
2004–05 		Succeeded by
Preceded by FA Cup Winning Coach
2005–06 		Succeeded by
Sporting positions
Preceded by Valencia CF Head Coach
2001–2004 		Succeeded by


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