Reds fans back Benitez in JMU city poll

In pictures

By Chris Shaw, Joe Tedford & Paul Byrne

JMU Journalism TV

Supporters voted in favour of Benitez; JMU Journalism TV: Liverpool fans speak about the under-fire boss

Struggling Rafael Benitez still has the backing of more than half of Liverpool fans to remain as manager, but a large proportion of supporters now want to see him leave the club.

An exclusive poll conducted by JMU Journalism concluded that, although more people voted in favour of Benitez staying than going, the manager seems to be gradually losing support.

National newspapers and fan sites have run their own polls recently, though online voting is notoriously unreliable and can become hijacked by supporters of rival teams. JMU Journalism decided to find out what Liverpool fans really think by doing it the old-fashioned way. Our team of reporters went out on the streets of the city on Tuesday and Wednesday this week, asking only true Reds for their opinions in the two days leading up to Liverpool's 2-0 win over Tottenham at Anfield.

As scrutiny of his future continues amidst calls for his sacking, we asked 355 Reds' supporters across

Liverpool what they thought, in a survey which was reported as a newsflash on the BBC Sport website.

Around 53% were happy for Benitez to stay in charge but

35% believed it was time for his reign to come to an end,

a figure which would have been far lower a mere six

months ago. A further 12% were undecided either way,

with many pointing to the mega-million pound pay-offs the

club would be obligated to give the manager and his

backroom staff if he is sacked.

Pressure has mounted on Benitez in recent months, with

Liverpool’s disastrous season leaving the club with a huge

challenge to retain their place in the top four. The recent FA

Cup defeat to Championship side Reading was the final

straw for some fans.

Ex-players and pundits were quick to criticise Benitez after that loss, with the likes of Ronnie Whelan, Ian St John and Danny Murphy calling for the Liverpool board to act.

According to our poll, the man most fans would like to see replace Benitez at Anfield is ex-Chelsea boss Jose Mourinho, who is currently managing in Italy with Inter Milan.

Mourinho often had a fraught relationship with Liverpool during his time in England, but a large number of fans who want Benitez to leave would like to see the self-styled 'Special One' take over. Given the precarious financial position at the club, it is unlikely that Liverpool could afford to bring him to Anfield.

A common suggestion is that Kenny Dalglish could step in if Liverpool do sack Benitez, taking charge for a second time, and fans ranked him their second choice behind Mourinho in the poll.

Other popular names put forward included another ex-Chelsea manager, Guus Hiddink, Aston Villa boss Martin O’Neill, recently unemployed Mark Hughes, and Birmingham City's Alex McLeish. Everton boss David Moyes even managed to pick up a couple of nominations from unhappy Reds fans.

The Liverpool board have been adamant in recent weeks that Benitez’s position will not be under review any time soon, but with the run of poor results showing no sign of ending, pressure on the Spaniard has reached an all-time high.

Benitez has vowed to keep battling to turn the season around and is confident that he will see out the remaining four years on his contract. But losing the support of the fans precipitated Gerard Houllier's departure from LFC in 2004, and Benitez must keep Reds supporters on side to have any chance of still being in charge beyond the end of this season.

Additional reporting by: Sheena McStravick; Ayden Feeney; Tom Broughton; John Piper; Chris Bradley; Anthony Webster; Claire Bennett; Scott Partridge; Jon Birchall; Adam Hicks; Liam Deveney; Richard Butterworth; Adam Smith; Daniel Jackson, Ryan Edwards, James Hamling & John Mathews.

JMU Journalism 09/10 stories

Comments

  1. The JMU Journalism news team presents a selection of comments gathered on the streets of Liverpool during our exclusive LFC fans' poll (January 19th & 20th, 2010):

    (Posted on 2010-01-20 18:35:00 by JMU JOURNALISM POLL REACTION)

  2. “Don’t succumb to the lazy London press. You should believe in a man who works hard. He has one hand behind his back financially when compared to Manchester United or Chelsea."

    (Posted on 2010-01-20 18:28:00 by Tom Smity, 33, Orrell Park)

  3. “Being practical, we can’t afford to pay up the rest of his contract and it’s only one bad season that he’s had.”

    (Posted on 2010-01-20 18:26:00 by Eve Tiller, 63, Childwall)

  4. “He hasn’t had enough support from the fans... he can do better with time."

    (Posted on 2010-01-20 18:23:00 by Steven Hand, 28, Liverpool)

  5. “I don’t know really. I want him out, I suppose, but I don’t want the club to lose out by having to pay him off to get rid of him.”

    (Posted on 2010-01-20 18:21:00 by Nathan Tunstall, 16, Litherland)

  6. "I don’t think he is a bad manager... he has done well for the club."

    (Posted on 2010-01-20 18:19:00 by Nick Topping, 17, Warrington)

  7. “He is genuinely inept and he makes a lot of stupid decisions. He doesn’t learn from any of his mistakes."

    (Posted on 2010-01-20 18:17:00 by John Sudbury , 19, Croxteth)

  8. “I don’t think he is appearing too successful. His system is apparently not working and he's not playing his strongest team.”

    (Posted on 2010-01-20 18:15:00 by Chris Hargreaves, 42, Halewood)

  9. "It would be nice to have Dalglish but its the money. I mean we can't afford to sack Rafa Benitez, can we?"

    (Posted on 2010-01-20 18:11:00 by Dave Spencer, 43, Croxteth)

  10. "He should stay until the end of the season. The owners need to go."

    (Posted on 2010-01-20 18:09:00 by Cole Brian, 57, Wallasey)

  11. "He's a great manager but he's got no money to spend. I don't think anyone else can do any better."

    (Posted on 2010-01-20 18:08:00 by Paul Nelson, 31, Aigburth)

  12. "We need to get rid of half the players. They are the problem."

    (Posted on 2010-01-20 18:07:00 by Eddy Smith, 64, Anfield)

  13. "He's a bad manager. Some of the signings he's made have been terrible. He's sold too many players as well."

    (Posted on 2010-01-20 18:05:00 by Jim Mather, 43, Anfield)

  14. "The players should get paid less... they don't work hard enough. I don't think Rafa's to blame."

    (Posted on 2010-01-20 18:04:00 by Maria Glover, 45, Melling)

  15. "Yes, he should have been away long ago. He's wasted too much time already and a new approach is needed."

    (Posted on 2010-01-20 18:01:00 by Philip Jones, 58, Childwall)

  16. "He shouldn't go. He's a top manager and he'll get it right in time."

    (Posted on 2010-01-20 17:57:00 by George Broughton, 50, Ellesmere Port)

  17. "With the history and tradition of Liverpool, I'm sure they could get a top manager like Mourinho to replace him. We've had a bad season."

    (Posted on 2010-01-20 17:56:00 by Connor McGee, 21, County Down)

  18. "He's had his time and he's taken us as far as he can."

    (Posted on 2010-01-20 17:53:00 by Richard Arnold, 37, Bromborough)

  19. "No he shouldn't go, not right now anyway, changing would only make things worse. Player for player our starting 11 is better than it was five years ago. If we don't finish fourth then maybe we should look to move on."

    (Posted on 2010-01-20 17:52:00 by Mark Roberts, 20, Wirral)

  20. “I say get rid. I want King Kenny to come back – we need a strong Scotsman to lead us again, like Shankly did.”

    (Posted on 2010-01-20 04:13:00 by Tracy Morrison, 43, Crosby)

  21. “I don’t see a way back for Benitez now. He can’t seem to motivate his team and his tactical decisions only seem to catch his own team unaware.”

    (Posted on 2010-01-20 04:12:00 by David Beattie, 21, Crosby)

  22. “We stuck with him through the good times, we are currently going through a bad time, so fans should stick by him.”

    (Posted on 2010-01-20 04:10:00 by Paul Williams, 52, Anfield)

  23. “He’s made too many mistakes and it’s time for him to move on.”

    (Posted on 2010-01-20 04:10:00 by Christian Williams, 21, Kensington)

  24. "Yes, he should go. He hasn't delivered this season."

    (Posted on 2010-01-20 04:08:00 by Paul Porter, 37, Aigburth)

  25. “I don’t know if Rafa should go, I think the owners should go.”

    (Posted on 2010-01-20 04:07:00 by Mick Jones, 48, Wirral)

  26. “He’s a good manager, the only thing he needs is the support of the fans.”

    (Posted on 2010-01-20 04:05:00 by Billy Wilkinson, 40, Dublin)

  27. "No. Stupid to do it now. Who is going to take over? Sammy Lee?"

    (Posted on 2010-01-20 04:03:00 by Phil Roberts, 47, Childwall)

  28. "They should stick with the manager and show some faith. It worked for Alex Ferguson."

    (Posted on 2010-01-20 04:02:00 by Daryl Williams, 20, Childwall)

  29. "He doesn't seem able to motivate the players and I think they have lost faith in him."

    (Posted on 2010-01-20 04:01:00 by Jay Brown, 47, Skelmersdale)

  30. "Under the circumstances he's done a good job."

    (Posted on 2010-01-20 03:59:00 by Andrew Loughlan, 27, West Derby)

  31. "It would cost £15-16m to get rid of him, and we all know that the Americans haven't got that money. So therefore we wouldn't have anyone to take his place if we got rid of him because it would be another £15-16m along with a bounty that the person would want. I believe Rafa is a good coach. He's made bad decisions lately, but he's been good to us over the years."

    (Posted on 2010-01-20 03:54:00 by Steven Norris, 55, Anfield)

  32. “I think Liverpool are doing rubbish at the moment, but you can’t have it good all the time. Liverpool fans should be more supportive.”

    (Posted on 2010-01-20 03:51:00 by Kayleigh King, 25, Liverpool)

  33. “Sacking the manager won’t solve anything.”

    (Posted on 2010-01-20 03:48:00 by Phil Smith, 34, New Brighton)

  34. “It’s not that easy to get rid of him. We have no money for severance or players so we need to give him a chance to turn things around.”

    (Posted on 2010-01-20 03:47:00 by Kevin Rea, 50, Formby)

  35. “He’s had the money and he’s only bought two world class players. Get Kenwyne Jones.”

    (Posted on 2010-01-20 03:45:00 by Gary Spruin, 28, Liverpool)

  36. “It’s all media hype. They just don’t want Liverpool to get back on top. ”

    (Posted on 2010-01-20 03:44:00 by Margaret Donnelly, 60, Liverpool)

  37. “He is the best manager in the world.”

    (Posted on 2010-01-20 03:43:00 by Ryan Forrest, 20, Aigburth)

  38. “All we need is a good British manager.”

    (Posted on 2010-01-20 03:42:00 by John Kelly, 66, Liverpool)

  39. “I think he needs to go but who would come in? I think if Gerrard goes then we need to get rid of him.”

    (Posted on 2010-01-20 03:41:00 by Dennis Coil, 40, Kirkby)

  40. “I’ve supported Liverpool since 1946. It took us four to five years to get rid of Houllier and this idiot has spent over £200m on rubbish. He is the worst manager that we have ever had.”

    (Posted on 2010-01-20 03:40:00 by Foster Gerrard, 73, Knotty Ash)

Comments closed

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