Real Madrid v Liverpool:A RETURN to Real Madrid as first-team coach figures at some point on Rafael Benitez's career map but the Liverpool manager, his contract unsigned and his employers irritated as a result, has insisted his future at Anfield must not be determined on the outcome of the Champions League tie against the club he supported as a child.
Benitez revisits the Bernabeu Stadium tonight where he served 16 years as a player, youth-team coach and assistant manager, with Europe again appearing Liverpool’s most likely salvation given the seven-point gap that Manchester United have established at the top of the Premier League.
The Spaniard will make a late decision on Steven Gerrard’s availability to face Real Madrid, the captain having taken part in a light training session at the stadium last night, and will take advice from Liverpool’s medical team and influential midfielder before finalising his plans.
Gerrard is needed to lead from the front if they are going to have any chance against a Madrid side in rampant form, having won their last nine La Liga games in succession.
A senior Madrid official went as far as to say Liverpool would be hammered by the Spanish champions. Gerrard is clearly needed, but Benitez privately insisted that he would wait until lunchtime before making a final decision.
The Spaniard said: “Steven was not fit to face Manchester City on Sunday, but we will now wait to see how he does in two training sessions before making a decision about this game.
“It will not be a gamble. If the doctor says he is okay, then it is not a risk. Steven is more mature now, he would not make a decision that would be considered a risk.
“He will be involved in light training sessions, we will not try to hide anything. We will make a decision when we are sure.
“Gerrard knows he must give something to the team, and if he cannot do that he will know he is not ready. I can trust Steven on that.”
Victory over two legs would enhance Benitez’s reputation at the expense of a club that still covets his services. Defeat, however, will only intensify the scrutiny on his long-term position, particularly given his reluctance to commit to a new deal at Anfield almost four months after negotiations began.
“I don’t think this game is important for my contract. It is an important game for us as a club, that’s it,” said the Liverpool manager. “You know the situation and we have to wait. We have a lot of important games coming up. You have to judge a manager on his career, not one or two games. That is my idea. If you have to decide on a manager on the basis of one or two games that is not the best decision.”
Benitez refused to be drawn on whether he would consider any offer to return to Real and preferred to discuss an opponent in resurgent form, but one that has not reached the quarter-finals since 2004. “They have 11 good players and are very dangerous so it is more important to focus on them than other things,” he said.
“They are my friends here and I have good memories. The delegate on the door is the same delegate as when I was here as a player and a coach. But I am a professional so I want to win with my team. It is just about winning a Champions League game against a top side in Europe.”
Jamie Carragher, who would captain the side in Gerrard’s absence, insisted Liverpool could cope. “When we won the Champions League in 2005 there were plenty of games when Steven Gerrard didn’t play but obviously we are a better team with him in it,” said the defender. Carragher’s concern tonight will be curtailing Raul, the leading goalscorer in Champions League history.
“To play for Real Madrid so long, a club where there is constant pressure and criticism like at Liverpool, shows outstanding quality and character,” said Carragher. “When you think of Real Madrid now you think of Raul, in the same way as you think of Steven Gerrard when you mention Liverpool. It will be a privilege to be on the same pitch as him.”
The tie presents Juande Ramos, the Real coach, with an opportunity to repair a reputation damaged by his inglorious 12-month spell at Tottenham Hotspur, although his standing remains elevated in Spain. Real are tonight seeking a 10th successive victory under a coach who is only under contract at the Bernabeu until the summer.
“I don’t think I have to prove anything,” insisted Ramos. “I have been coaching for a long time and people know what I have done as a coach. I am just happy that things are going well for Real Madrid.”
Such is the confidence in the Real ranks that Ramos claimed his pre-match instructions will barely touch on the threat posed by opponents who have reached two Champions League finals plus one semi-final in four seasons under Benitez. He said: “When I talk to my players, I don’t talk that much about Liverpool – I talk about Real Madrid. I don’t know anything about how they’ll line up. The only thing I know for sure is that Liverpool will play with 11 players.”
