TalkSport pundit Simon Jordan has offered his view on Rafael Benitez and his future at Everton given his relationship with the supporters.
The appointment of Benitez at Goodison Park is certainly one that raised a few eyebrows in the football community considering his history with rivals Liverpool and some comments that he made about the Toffees during his time at Anfield, with the point even being raised during his first press conference with the club.
And speaking about the issue on TalkSport, Jordan felt that given the animosity between the two sides, which has reached some rather disturbing places recently, the Spaniard will have to hit the ground running in order to keep things somewhat peaceful, and may need help from those above him to make it happen:
“If he’s given the tools and everything that he wants, he’ll be the perfect manager for Farhad Moshiri. If he isn’t given the tools, or doesn’t get precisely what he wants, there’ll be a challenge with him and the board.
“And if he doesn’t get the team together relatively quickly, because of the relationship with the town that he loves, Liverpool, there will be a short shrift mentality from a segment of the Everton fans.
“But that will be the case, I suspect – it’ll only be amplified with Benitez because of his connections with Liverpool – it will be the case with every manager. If he comes out the door and wins one game in the first six, they’re gonna be on his back in the same way they’d be on any other manager’s back, they’ll just have this added spice of ‘hang on a second, it’s Benitez, Liverpool, and all that went with it.’”
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It certainly is an interesting dynamic to have at the club, and Benitez could use the animosity to his advantage in the transfer window. If Benitez doesn’t get off to a good start at the club and the pressure is put on him by the fans, the board might not want to go through hiring another manager again because of the feeling amongst the supporters.
So he could use that to demand funds from the board in order to try and buy the players that he will need in order to come out of the blocks firing.
The chances are that there might still be some animosity levels when he walks out at Goodison Park for the first time, and he will need all the help he can get in order to get those fans on board.
In other news: ‘There’s a clear consensus’ – Journalist drops ‘transfer priority’ for Benitez at Everton