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Benitez living a lonely life as he battles to deliver success Chelsea crave and win over fans who happily abuse the manager of their own team
By ROB DRAPER
PUBLISHED: 18:01 EST, 13 April 2013 | UPDATED: 18:01 EST, 13 April 2013
Rafa Benitez returned to his one-man flat in Esher late on Friday night lucky to get the chance to spend some FaceTime on the iPad with his daughters, Claudia and Agata, and wife Maria.
On Saturday, he was at Chelsea’s training ground in Cobham at about 8am, preparing for today’s semi-final against Manchester City.
That has been his life, with his family still in Merseyside, for the past five months.
Alone: Rafa Benitez lives in a flat in Esher by himself while his family live in Merseyside
Apart from breakfast, he eats at the training ground and he works. He watches DVDs of games, analyses statistics and oversees training.
And the truth is that Benitez is happy and more energised than at any stage in the past two years.
On Sunday he takes his side to Wembley, the first time he has competed at the national stadium, his previous FA and League Cup finals with Liverpool being played in Cardiff.
He is in the global spotlight and has the opportunity to compete for an FA Cup as well as the Europa League. It certainly beats sitting by the phone waiting for the offers to come in.
Of course, there are significant drawbacks to his life as Chelsea’s interim manager.
‘The family is something you are always missing, but it has to be like this,’ says Benitez. ‘It is not easy for any manager to be with your family, in your house and working at your nearest club. So you have to travel.
Then and now: Benitez while manager of Liverpool (left) and (right) as manager of Chelsea
‘Having the family around is always very important because they are supportive. If you have a good day you can enjoy it together. And if you have a bad day you always find something as a distraction with your children, because they are normally happy.’
For now, though, he has himself for company. ‘I don’t always sleep for too long, but I sleep well. Sometimes when you have a doubt about team selection, you talk to your pillow, but in the morning you have an idea.’
And he has needed those ideas as there have been a few bad days in his five months at Chelsea, not least when he was 2-0 down in the FA Cup quarter-finals at Old Trafford with an entire stadium — his own fans included — abusing him.
Manchester United fans provided the vitriol, but Chelsea fans added the scorn, chanting: ‘You don’t know what you’re doing!’ as he replaced Frank Lampard and Victor Moses with Eden Hazard and John Obi Mikel, substitutions that changed the tie.
‘I could hear, but I didn’t understand,’ says Benitez, nonchalantly. ‘They told me [about it] later. If I had understood, it wouldn’t have mattered, because during the games you have to concentrate on your responsibility to make decisions.’
Still, he must have allowed himself at least a wry smile at the end? ‘Yes,’ he says. ‘But sometimes you can be right and they will not realise and sometimes you can be wrong and still win.’
He is, it seems, phlegmatic about how the footballing gods toy with managers for their sport. He will never concede that the manner in which he is often portrayed, or the abuse he has received, hurts, even though it must on some level. He prefers to analyse why it is the case.
‘The problem is that life is going very fast and society is changing very fast,’ he says of how his words can be caricatured. ‘You cannot change these things. So you can see the children now with their phones and iPads. They don’t understand how it’s working but they know how to use it. That is the way everything is and it goes so fast.
‘You like to explain things, but when you explain things some people will say, “Excuse”. And if you don’t explain things you are stupid. It’s difficult [but] you have to accept that it will be like this and the only thing you can do is concentrate on your job — if you can.
Changed the game: Rafa Benitez brought on Eden Hazard and John Mikel Obi
Brilliant: Eden Hazard scored a spectacular goal as Chelsea came back to draw
‘You need to know what is going on around you because you have a responsibility, but anyway you have to concentrate on your job because you cannot change the other things.’
His direct experience of fans face to face has, naturally, been more positive; people are much braver chanting in a stadium or sitting behind a keyboard than they are in person. ‘You go to the shops and you have people saying: “Listen, carry on”. I say this and people don’t believe me, but it’s true,’ he says.
‘The game against United [the 1-0 win in the FA Cup quarter-final], we were in the traffic in London and maybe 20 or 25 people of different types came and said: “Fantastic”. We didn’t have anyone complain. It’s not a good example, because, obviously, it was a big game and a good win. But it’s not very negative, the atmosphere, I find.’
That said, the atmosphere has improved considerably since his challenge to renegade fans after the FA Cup win at Middlesbrough to support the team rather than waste energy abusing him. He had planned his words that night, but the sheer perversity of such hostility from the away fans at The Riverside during a game their team were winning confirmed his resolve to grasp the nettle.
Not happy: Benitez was unimpressed with Chelsea supporters during their game against Middlesbrough
Calculated: Benitez ranted after the game but knew exactly what he was saying
‘I was thinking about the best for the team. And I thought that the best for the team was to send a message that we have to stick together. Reflecting and thinking, at the end it was something positive for everyone, because they realised you have to support the team.
'You might think: “I don’t like the manager but still I have the priority that this is my team so I will support the team”. The majority of the fans have been positive after that. Still you have people who do not like you, but you cannot change these people.’
It was at Stamford Bridge that the atmosphere appeared to hurt the players most and, since the Middlesbrough game, the team have won six consecutive home games. ‘I couldn’t say at this time that it was hurting the players [at Stamford Bridge], but you could see that the form at home was not the best and then it has improved a lot.’
Still, there are benefits to the Chelsea job, not just monetary ones. His owner is a considerable improvement on his previous Premier League experience. He relates the difference between talking to Roman Abramovich — ‘We didn’t have any problem in sharing our ideas about football, talking about the team and players and not just Chelsea players’ — to his time at Liverpool with George Gillett and Tom Hicks.
Totally different: Benitez has enjoyed talking football with Roman Abramovich (below), in contrast to his relationship with Tom Hicks and George Gillett
‘Hicks and Gillett would say: “We will give you money and we will go to the draft”. And I would say: “It’s not a draft! We have to sign players right now!” Another conversation with them was: “Why can you be relegated?” They didn’t understand you could be relegated. It was incredible. It’s a big difference.’
Benitez claims never to have regretted accepting the short-term invitation to take charge. ‘I was pretty sure it was the right decision,’ he says. ‘We had to come and show our level and be professionals.’
In fact, there is something close to affection now for the club that was once defined as his implacable foe. He will be sorry to leave. ‘Always when you start something and you can see things are improving and going well, when you can see players getting better… when you have to go it is not easy [to leave],’ he says.
‘Always you will miss something if you have to go, because you are trying to improve players who are people. You talk with them and work with them every day. You will miss them.’
Hounded: Some Chelsea fans have not relented in their dislike of the Spanish manager
Still, other challenges lie ahead. Clearly, he would prefer the challenges of a club in the mould of Chelsea, but he is open to stepping down a level. ‘I wouldn’t have any problem if it was the right project,’ he says. ‘It is not about ego for me. It is not about me saying: “I have to have a big club”. It’s whether I can get a good club where I can do things.’
For now, there is Chelsea and an FA Cup semi-final to win. How he will be judged at Chelsea remains in the balance. Lose and fail to qualify for the Champions League and he will have clearly failed. Win a trophy — two even — and finish in the top four and it will be hard for his critics to sneer. And given the circumstances, the latter outcome might well rank alongside his Champions League and FA Cup wins at Liverpool or his La Liga successes at Valencia?
‘For sure, I will be proud. I’m already really pleased with the way we are doing things and managing this special situation,’ he says. However, he pauses to add a note of caution: ‘I will let you know at the end of the season if we achieve it.’
Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/sport/foo...#ixzz2QOTqBGgt
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PUBLISHED: 18:01 EST, 13 April 2013 | UPDATED: 18:01 EST, 13 April 2013
Rafa Benitez returned to his one-man flat in Esher late on Friday night lucky to get the chance to spend some FaceTime on the iPad with his daughters, Claudia and Agata, and wife Maria.
On Saturday, he was at Chelsea’s training ground in Cobham at about 8am, preparing for today’s semi-final against Manchester City.
That has been his life, with his family still in Merseyside, for the past five months.
Alone: Rafa Benitez lives in a flat in Esher by himself while his family live in MerseysideApart from breakfast, he eats at the training ground and he works. He watches DVDs of games, analyses statistics and oversees training.
And the truth is that Benitez is happy and more energised than at any stage in the past two years.
On Sunday he takes his side to Wembley, the first time he has competed at the national stadium, his previous FA and League Cup finals with Liverpool being played in Cardiff.
He is in the global spotlight and has the opportunity to compete for an FA Cup as well as the Europa League. It certainly beats sitting by the phone waiting for the offers to come in.
Of course, there are significant drawbacks to his life as Chelsea’s interim manager.
‘The family is something you are always missing, but it has to be like this,’ says Benitez. ‘It is not easy for any manager to be with your family, in your house and working at your nearest club. So you have to travel.
Then and now: Benitez while manager of Liverpool (left) and (right) as manager of Chelsea
‘Having the family around is always very important because they are supportive. If you have a good day you can enjoy it together. And if you have a bad day you always find something as a distraction with your children, because they are normally happy.’
For now, though, he has himself for company. ‘I don’t always sleep for too long, but I sleep well. Sometimes when you have a doubt about team selection, you talk to your pillow, but in the morning you have an idea.’
And he has needed those ideas as there have been a few bad days in his five months at Chelsea, not least when he was 2-0 down in the FA Cup quarter-finals at Old Trafford with an entire stadium — his own fans included — abusing him.
Manchester United fans provided the vitriol, but Chelsea fans added the scorn, chanting: ‘You don’t know what you’re doing!’ as he replaced Frank Lampard and Victor Moses with Eden Hazard and John Obi Mikel, substitutions that changed the tie.
‘I could hear, but I didn’t understand,’ says Benitez, nonchalantly. ‘They told me [about it] later. If I had understood, it wouldn’t have mattered, because during the games you have to concentrate on your responsibility to make decisions.’
Still, he must have allowed himself at least a wry smile at the end? ‘Yes,’ he says. ‘But sometimes you can be right and they will not realise and sometimes you can be wrong and still win.’
He is, it seems, phlegmatic about how the footballing gods toy with managers for their sport. He will never concede that the manner in which he is often portrayed, or the abuse he has received, hurts, even though it must on some level. He prefers to analyse why it is the case.
‘The problem is that life is going very fast and society is changing very fast,’ he says of how his words can be caricatured. ‘You cannot change these things. So you can see the children now with their phones and iPads. They don’t understand how it’s working but they know how to use it. That is the way everything is and it goes so fast.
‘You like to explain things, but when you explain things some people will say, “Excuse”. And if you don’t explain things you are stupid. It’s difficult [but] you have to accept that it will be like this and the only thing you can do is concentrate on your job — if you can.
Changed the game: Rafa Benitez brought on Eden Hazard and John Mikel ObiBrilliant: Eden Hazard scored a spectacular goal as Chelsea came back to draw‘You need to know what is going on around you because you have a responsibility, but anyway you have to concentrate on your job because you cannot change the other things.’
His direct experience of fans face to face has, naturally, been more positive; people are much braver chanting in a stadium or sitting behind a keyboard than they are in person. ‘You go to the shops and you have people saying: “Listen, carry on”. I say this and people don’t believe me, but it’s true,’ he says.
‘The game against United [the 1-0 win in the FA Cup quarter-final], we were in the traffic in London and maybe 20 or 25 people of different types came and said: “Fantastic”. We didn’t have anyone complain. It’s not a good example, because, obviously, it was a big game and a good win. But it’s not very negative, the atmosphere, I find.’
That said, the atmosphere has improved considerably since his challenge to renegade fans after the FA Cup win at Middlesbrough to support the team rather than waste energy abusing him. He had planned his words that night, but the sheer perversity of such hostility from the away fans at The Riverside during a game their team were winning confirmed his resolve to grasp the nettle.
Not happy: Benitez was unimpressed with Chelsea supporters during their game against MiddlesbroughCalculated: Benitez ranted after the game but knew exactly what he was saying‘I was thinking about the best for the team. And I thought that the best for the team was to send a message that we have to stick together. Reflecting and thinking, at the end it was something positive for everyone, because they realised you have to support the team.
'You might think: “I don’t like the manager but still I have the priority that this is my team so I will support the team”. The majority of the fans have been positive after that. Still you have people who do not like you, but you cannot change these people.’
It was at Stamford Bridge that the atmosphere appeared to hurt the players most and, since the Middlesbrough game, the team have won six consecutive home games. ‘I couldn’t say at this time that it was hurting the players [at Stamford Bridge], but you could see that the form at home was not the best and then it has improved a lot.’
Still, there are benefits to the Chelsea job, not just monetary ones. His owner is a considerable improvement on his previous Premier League experience. He relates the difference between talking to Roman Abramovich — ‘We didn’t have any problem in sharing our ideas about football, talking about the team and players and not just Chelsea players’ — to his time at Liverpool with George Gillett and Tom Hicks.
Totally different: Benitez has enjoyed talking football with Roman Abramovich (below), in contrast to his relationship with Tom Hicks and George Gillett‘Hicks and Gillett would say: “We will give you money and we will go to the draft”. And I would say: “It’s not a draft! We have to sign players right now!” Another conversation with them was: “Why can you be relegated?” They didn’t understand you could be relegated. It was incredible. It’s a big difference.’
Benitez claims never to have regretted accepting the short-term invitation to take charge. ‘I was pretty sure it was the right decision,’ he says. ‘We had to come and show our level and be professionals.’
In fact, there is something close to affection now for the club that was once defined as his implacable foe. He will be sorry to leave. ‘Always when you start something and you can see things are improving and going well, when you can see players getting better… when you have to go it is not easy [to leave],’ he says.
‘Always you will miss something if you have to go, because you are trying to improve players who are people. You talk with them and work with them every day. You will miss them.’
Hounded: Some Chelsea fans have not relented in their dislike of the Spanish managerStill, other challenges lie ahead. Clearly, he would prefer the challenges of a club in the mould of Chelsea, but he is open to stepping down a level. ‘I wouldn’t have any problem if it was the right project,’ he says. ‘It is not about ego for me. It is not about me saying: “I have to have a big club”. It’s whether I can get a good club where I can do things.’
For now, there is Chelsea and an FA Cup semi-final to win. How he will be judged at Chelsea remains in the balance. Lose and fail to qualify for the Champions League and he will have clearly failed. Win a trophy — two even — and finish in the top four and it will be hard for his critics to sneer. And given the circumstances, the latter outcome might well rank alongside his Champions League and FA Cup wins at Liverpool or his La Liga successes at Valencia?
‘For sure, I will be proud. I’m already really pleased with the way we are doing things and managing this special situation,’ he says. However, he pauses to add a note of caution: ‘I will let you know at the end of the season if we achieve it.’
Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/sport/foo...#ixzz2QOTqBGgt
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