It was yet another week-to-forget for the red half of Merseyside.
Liverpool suffered another defeat on Thursday after Eden Hazard’s late goal gave French club Lille a 1-nil advantage in their Europa League round of sixteen tie. But the bigger downfall came earlier in the week when the team lost 1-nil to Wigan at the DW Stadium on Monday.
That was the club’s ninth league defeat of the campaign, and it puts a big dent on Benitez’s plans to salvage Champions League qualification for next season. The Reds now sit in sixth place with nine matches to play – one point behind Manchester City, who have two games in hand, and three points ahead of Aston Villa, who have three games in hand. Wigan chairman Dave Whelan said after Monday’s match that he felt “really, really sorry” for Liverpool supporters – and when you get an expression of pity from a club sitting in fifteenth place, that’s saying something.
Managing a fourth place or higher finish in the league must be Liverpool’s only priority at this point, as the Europa League is nothing more than a bitter reminder of the failure to get past the Champions League group stages.
And after another disappointing week for the club, UK papers have been rife with speculation over who will replace Benitez, should the Spaniard get the sack. Aston Villa’s Martin O’Neill and Birmingham’s Alex McLeish are the names being thrown around at the moment, but Liverpool might have to hold onto Benitez even if they don’t want to.
The club is still in a tough financial position, and Benitez just signed a lucrative new contract in March of last year. So, if the club were to fire him, they would be looking at a reported $22 million in compensation. With debt climbing as high as $350 million, that is a large chunk of change that Liverpool don’t have to spare.
However, for those Liverpudlians who have already lost patience with Benitez, there may be hope yet. Juventus are apparently courting Benitez, and should the Italians win his services, Liverpool would be free to look for a new manager without breaking the bank. Benitez has repeatedly voiced his frustration at the lack of transfer funds available to him, and with no visible financial improvements on the horizon under George Gillett and Tom Hicks, his departure might not be so far-fetched.
At this time last season, the club were in the middle of a tense battle with bitter rivals Manchester United for the Premier League title and were fighting to progress in the Champions League knock-out rounds. This time around, all hope for any meaningful silverware has already been lost. But with debt spiraling and European football moving out of reach, the Anfield faithful have bigger problems to worry about.
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