Benitez on attack over cup criticism
Your support helps us to tell the story
From reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it's investigating the financials of Elon Musk's pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, 'The A Word', which shines a light on the American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to parse out the facts from the messaging.
At such a critical moment in US history, we need reporters on the ground. Your donation allows us to keep sending journalists to speak to both sides of the story.
The Independent is trusted by Americans across the entire political spectrum. And unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock Americans out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. We believe quality journalism should be available to everyone, paid for by those who can afford it.
Your support makes all the difference.Remorse was nowhere to be seen at Liverpool yesterday where the manager Rafael Benitez met criticism of his Carling Cup selection with a response of equal ferocity, the Spaniard dismissing the competition's worth and calling for a sense of perspective at a club that has not claimed the championship for 16 years.
Benitez has endured troubled weeks in England before, notably after the third round FA Cup exit at Burnley in his first season and following a Carling Cup defeat by Crystal Palace last term, only to win the argument convincingly with silverware in May. Yet having lost in both domestic cup competitions to Arsenal inside four days and criticised his board for a lack of investment in young players, this has been an exceptionally trying week for Benitez.
"I have a responsibility," he explained. "I picked a team I thought would win us the game but I also thought about the future. The future of this club is not about the semi-finals of the Carling Cup, it is about winning the Premier League and the Champions' League.
"We won the Champions' League and so we were able to buy [Jose] Reina, [Mohamed] Sissoko, [Peter] Crouch and [Bolo] Zenden. No one talks about us reaching the Carling Cup final two years ago, they only talk about winning the Champions' League in Istanbul."
Join our commenting forum
Join thought-provoking conversations, follow other Independent readers and see their replies
Comments