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Sir Alex Ferguson defends Rafael Benitez
By Mark Ogden in Riyadh
Last Updated: 1:39am GMT 24/01/2008
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Sir Alex Ferguson, who once declared that his primary objective at Manchester United was to "knock Liverpool off their f***ing perch", has thrown his support behind Anfield manager Rafael Benitez by urging the club's American owners, Tom Hicks and George Gillett, to show the "class" befitting the five-times European champions in their treatment of the Spaniard.
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Football fans' forum Benitez's position at Anfield appears increasingly weak due to his deteriorating relationship with Hicks and Gillett. Bitter in-fighting has resulted in supporters openly calling for Hicks and Gillett to be driven out of the club.
Mounted: Patrice Evra on a camel in Saudi Arabia this weekHicks' revelation this month that he had discussed the manager's job with Jurgen Klinsmann further undermined Benitez, and Ferguson, who has confounded the sceptics by forging a strong working relationship with United's American owners, the Glazer family, claims that Benitez has been let down badly.
Ferguson, speaking at United's training base in Saudi Arabia, said that admitting the Klinsmann talks had been "a bad piece of business on Liverpool's part". He added: "That sort of thing can be very upsetting for a manager. As a manager, there are quite a few moments in every week when you are very much on your own and people don't want to knock on your door because they think you're busy all the time, but you can be sitting there twiddling your thumbs.
"You can fill your time by phoning other managers and doing other things, but there is a lot of time spent on your own and, in moments like that, Rafa must feel very alone. How you react depends on what kind of person you are and Rafa seems quite a stubborn character who can put aside emotion, whereas Martin Jol seemed to be more affected by it when a similar thing happened to him at Spurs.
"But I've been very fortunate at United because I have had good directors - people like Bobby Charlton and Martin Edwards - who always supported me very well. At big clubs, however, it is paramount that the board shows its class. Twenty years ago, Liverpool was a closely knit and well-run club and, when Peter Robinson was the secretary at Anfield, it was a tightly run ship."
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Liverpool's off-field turmoil has coincided with the problems on the pitch that have left them 14 points adrift of Premier League leaders United and outside the top four. Ferguson points out that boardroom difficulties rarely contribute to a winning team.
He said: "Obviously results matter and they matter to me and they also matter to the likes of Arsene Wenger. But Wenger always had great support from David Dein at Arsenal and I've had great support, too, ever since I came here. So there is unity there and you should allow a manager to get on with his job."
With United, Arsenal and Chelsea increasingly pulling away from Liverpool in the race for honours, Benitez's team appear more likely to face a fight for fourth rather than challenge for the title.
And Ferguson has warned the tensions at Anfield will play into the hands of Liverpool's rivals by discouraging leading players from signing for them. He said: "The important thing is that big clubs should be seen to be big clubs. Most players want to play for Manchester United, Chelsea, Arsenal or Liverpool, but when they see a club they think is topsy-turvy, with a divide between the managers and the directors, then they might think twice.
"One thing for sure is that Rafa has brought in a lot of his players because of his Spanish connections. Now, if an English manager was to come into Liverpool, that connection is gone."
Ferguson added: "I think Liverpool will be concentrating now on trying to win the European Cup rather than the league. I say that because there are three clubs ahead of them in the title race rather than just one.
"It's a long way to Arsenal, Chelsea and ourselves. If it was just one club in front of them, you still couldn't write Liverpool off. But it is very difficult to think three teams could ever drop that number of points and be caught."
Have your say
By Mark Ogden in Riyadh
Last Updated: 1:39am GMT 24/01/2008
Have your say Read commentsSir Alex Ferguson, who once declared that his primary objective at Manchester United was to "knock Liverpool off their f***ing perch", has thrown his support behind Anfield manager Rafael Benitez by urging the club's American owners, Tom Hicks and George Gillett, to show the "class" befitting the five-times European champions in their treatment of the Spaniard.
Michael Henderson: Too late to reclaim the Kop
Manchester United homepage | Liverpool homepage
Football fans' forum Benitez's position at Anfield appears increasingly weak due to his deteriorating relationship with Hicks and Gillett. Bitter in-fighting has resulted in supporters openly calling for Hicks and Gillett to be driven out of the club.
Mounted: Patrice Evra on a camel in Saudi Arabia this weekHicks' revelation this month that he had discussed the manager's job with Jurgen Klinsmann further undermined Benitez, and Ferguson, who has confounded the sceptics by forging a strong working relationship with United's American owners, the Glazer family, claims that Benitez has been let down badly.Ferguson, speaking at United's training base in Saudi Arabia, said that admitting the Klinsmann talks had been "a bad piece of business on Liverpool's part". He added: "That sort of thing can be very upsetting for a manager. As a manager, there are quite a few moments in every week when you are very much on your own and people don't want to knock on your door because they think you're busy all the time, but you can be sitting there twiddling your thumbs.
"You can fill your time by phoning other managers and doing other things, but there is a lot of time spent on your own and, in moments like that, Rafa must feel very alone. How you react depends on what kind of person you are and Rafa seems quite a stubborn character who can put aside emotion, whereas Martin Jol seemed to be more affected by it when a similar thing happened to him at Spurs.
"But I've been very fortunate at United because I have had good directors - people like Bobby Charlton and Martin Edwards - who always supported me very well. At big clubs, however, it is paramount that the board shows its class. Twenty years ago, Liverpool was a closely knit and well-run club and, when Peter Robinson was the secretary at Anfield, it was a tightly run ship."
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Liverpool's off-field turmoil has coincided with the problems on the pitch that have left them 14 points adrift of Premier League leaders United and outside the top four. Ferguson points out that boardroom difficulties rarely contribute to a winning team.
He said: "Obviously results matter and they matter to me and they also matter to the likes of Arsene Wenger. But Wenger always had great support from David Dein at Arsenal and I've had great support, too, ever since I came here. So there is unity there and you should allow a manager to get on with his job."
With United, Arsenal and Chelsea increasingly pulling away from Liverpool in the race for honours, Benitez's team appear more likely to face a fight for fourth rather than challenge for the title.
And Ferguson has warned the tensions at Anfield will play into the hands of Liverpool's rivals by discouraging leading players from signing for them. He said: "The important thing is that big clubs should be seen to be big clubs. Most players want to play for Manchester United, Chelsea, Arsenal or Liverpool, but when they see a club they think is topsy-turvy, with a divide between the managers and the directors, then they might think twice.
"One thing for sure is that Rafa has brought in a lot of his players because of his Spanish connections. Now, if an English manager was to come into Liverpool, that connection is gone."
Ferguson added: "I think Liverpool will be concentrating now on trying to win the European Cup rather than the league. I say that because there are three clubs ahead of them in the title race rather than just one.
"It's a long way to Arsenal, Chelsea and ourselves. If it was just one club in front of them, you still couldn't write Liverpool off. But it is very difficult to think three teams could ever drop that number of points and be caught."
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