Rafa Benitez has sent a blunt message to the Everton fans that ‘they can’t complain’ if his players are giving their all ahead of their home clash against Liverpool tonight, as he told his pre-match press conference.
It was suggested to Benitez that the atmosphere at Goodison Park might work against his Everton players ahead of Liverpool’s visit, but he stated ‘hopefully not’ because they know ‘we need them’.
Everton go into tonight’s match without a win in their last seven league outings, whilst the Reds can go top with all three points and other results going their way.
It’s not an ideal situation for Benitez to be in for obvious reasons and another defeat tonight, then you wouldn’t want to be the Spaniard stood out on that touchline.
Nonetheless, ahead of the Merseyside derby, Benitez was pretty blunt about what the Everton fans can or can’t complain about regarding the team.
“Hopefully not (on the atmosphere working against his players v Liverpool),” said Benitez. “I think the fans are intelligent and they know that we need them.
“The fans are crucial and the main thing for us is, if they are behind the team, then you could see the atmosphere in the first game. They were behind the team, the players were reacting and they appreciate that.
“I think they will realise how important they are to the players. You can complain if the players aren’t playing well and you can say they have to play better. Or if the tactics aren’t good enough, you can complain about that.
“But, at the same time, they can’t complain about the commitment of the players, the desire and the effort. I think they will realise how important they are for the team, it’s a derby, I am sure they will be behind the team.”
The problem facing Benitez is that he has walked into a mess and a club that was stagnating well before he arrived.
He hasn’t seemingly helped or improved issues, aside from their strong start to the season, and that is putting pressure on his shoulders.
Given that he is a Champions League winner with Liverpool and he is now set to face his former club, it’s going to be interesting to see how both sets of fans react to him during the game.
Liverpool supporters might just want to rub salt into the wound by singing his name if they are winning tonight, which won’t go down too well with the home support.
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