Anfield Red

Rafa Benitez has been offered a pay off to quit as Liverpool Manager, it has emerged this evening.

5 years ago today, Liverpool went 3-0 down at half time to AC Milan in the Champion’s Leage Final, only to get the game back to 3-3 and eventually win on penalties. Watch the highlights of the greatest ever comeback in a European Cup tie here!

It is looking more and more likely that Rafa Benitez is leaving Liverpool, after finally having enough of the lies from the club’s current owners. Benitez signed a 5 year deal last year; but has now said he does not know what the future holds for him.

Before we even consider delving into the weekend match against Chelsea and the conundrum that lies before us, there’s a certain second leg semi-final to be played against Atletico Madrid. Sure, it’s not the Champions League semi-final we were all hoping for; but it’s a bloody European semi-final, and you can’t complain too much about the prospect of playing for silverware this late in the campaign.

Four years without silverware for a club with as much quality as ours is enough to make anyone go crazy. As Carra mentioned prior to tonight’s match, “From the moment we went into the [Europa League], I was absolutely desperate to win it.” As funny as that may sound, the 2001 Uefa Cup was one of those magical moments that still resonates with supporters around the world.

The absence of Torres and the return of Aguero (from suspension) for Madrid will make this tie even more difficult. But if there’s one thing we have on our side tonight it would be Anfield and past success in matches where our back was up against the wall.

Rafa may not be able to sign big names in the summer unless he sells first, but that isn’t stopping him from going after players for the future of the club. Liverpool announced the £1.7 million initial fee for Charlton midfielder Jonjo Shelvey on Tuesday, marking Benitez’s first move of the summer.

The attacking midfielder has been tapped by his former coach as a future replacement for Steven Gerrard. Whilst that kind of high praise will only get you so far, it’s fair to say Shelvey comes to Liverpool with a some fantastic credentials.

Besides being the youngest player to ever play for Charlton at the age of 16, Shelvey has also logged 48 appearances for his now-former club. He’s also a critical part of England’s U-17 squad, meaning he’s got a future on the world’s biggest stage.

Steven Gerrard’s two goals over the weekend capped a brilliant performance by the Reds that saw them keep their Champions League hopes alive (if only slightly) for another week. Gerrard managed to bag a brace that doomed Burnley to relegation.

After the match, Stevie G discussed the loss of Torres and the blow it had to Liverpool’s chances. Even still, he knows the club has the ability to cope with the loss and finish the campaign on a high note — especially with the second leg of the Europa League semi-final looming on the horizon this week.

“I won’t lie. Sometimes when you lose your top striker, it can damage belief and affect your confidence,” said Gerrard. “But this was much better,” he said after Sunday’s match. “It was important we scored a few goals against Burnley and won convincingly.”

“We are now going to pile everything into Thursday’s game, which can’t come quickly enough,” said Gerrard. “The players are up for it and we have to leave every bit of sweat and blood out on that pitch on Thursday. Let’s hope we don’t have to score a lot of goals and we can win it with two. But if they score we have to score three; we’ll have to adapt during the game and do whatever it takes to win.

It’s great to see this bit of news after Sunday’s clinical victory over Burnley. It comes via the club’s official site:

Ian Rush has re-signed for Liverpool, with the Reds legend becoming the Club’s new Soccer Schools Ambassador.

Rush, still Liverpool’s record goalscorer with 346 strikes in 660 games and now a qualified UEFA pro licence holder, will also work with the Club’s commercial team to help develop and support partnerships with other global sponsors and brands.

Ian Ayre, Liverpool FC Commercial Director, said: “Rushie is one of the best known names in world football and I’m delighted he’s agreed to work with us. We’ve invested heavily in the redevelopment of our Soccer Schools business and with his help intend to roll out a global franchising opportunity within the next 12 months.

“We are already in discussion with a number of interested organisations around the world and Ian will work closely with our dedicated team of executives in developing these Soccer Schools opportunities.”

Take a look around the European football landscape at this very moment and you’ll notice there’s something truly “off” about this year’s Uefa competitions. As opposed to years past, neither Chelsea, Arsenal or Manchester United are playing in the Champions League semi-finals. That honour went to a true melting pot of international clubs.

But the tables have turned in the Europa League with two of the four remaining teams coming from England. Liverpool supporters, along with those from Fulham, make up the country’s last remaining hope to bring home silverware from a European competition this season.

After a marathon journey to get to Madrid, Rafa Benitez and the squad will be put to the task of dealing with an Atletico Madrid squad that has been one of the most intriguing stories of the season. One one hand the club is a massive 44 points off the league leaders in La Liga. That vast depth between clubs would normally signal a poor season for most clubs; but that’s not the case this year.

Quite possibly one of the funniest things I’ve seen recently, Liverpoolfc.tv put Dirk Kuyt to the task of associating a Scouse word with every letter of the alphabet. The idea sounds funny even before you have an opportunity to listen to Kuyt’s responses.

The Dutch winger has been at the club since 2006, so he’s as good a teacher as anyone on the squad. Granted, I guess they could’ve had Stevie or Carra run through this bit, but I’m pretty sure it wouldn’t have been near as funny.

It might sound silly but one of my absolute favorite things is listening to our international players speak about not just their love for the club, but for the city and culture as well. Being Scouse is something that people should take pride in. Listening to players like Jan Mølby, who was born in Denmark, speak in a semi-Scouse accent is still something I really love to hear. It means he’s grasped how truly special it is to be a part of such a special place.

Rafa Benitez has named his team to face West Ham at Anfield; with David N’Gog replacing the injured Fernando Torres upfront.