Red Watch: Rafa Benitez must be targeting quality not quantity

May 13 2009 by Andy Proudfoot, Liverpool Daily Post

AS THE footballing fates prepare to light the funeral pyre of our Premier League hopes, a consensus appears to be growing that, with some skilful activity in the transfer market, next season might, just might, be the season when our 19th title belatedly arrives in the Anfield roll-of-honour.

Whereas only those of us of the Red persuasion seemed to fancy us at the start of this season, more and more commentators appear to be willing to stick their neck out and predict that it will be Liverpool, rather than the Stamford Bridge sixth-formers or the Arsenal newts, who will challenge the recent domination of the Hellhounds of Hogwarts.

Certainly the recent transformation of the previously cautious Reds into carefree, free-scoring hedonists provides plenty of evidence to build a convincing case that this team has reached a new stage in its development, one which needs just a tweak on the tiller to steer it to true glory.

There are others, of course, who point to the summer of 2002, when Houllier’s Liverpool seemed poised to build on second place and mount a serious title challenge, only for the transfer pixies to sprinkle not gold dust on Anfield, but dump a large amount of horse manure in the shape of Diouf, Diao and Cheyrou. That was the end of that and, ultimately, Houllier.

So if we are to take that final step next season, Rafa had better think long and hard about who he adds to the mix in the close season; and let’s face it, his record isn’t brilliant is it?

Encouragingly, he has been making noises recently about looking for quality rather than quantity, having apparently realised that 62 professionals might just be enough to get us through the season.

The thing is that quality costs, which means that the manager is going to have to supplement whatever he can squeeze out of our credit-crunched Americans through unloading a few of the aforementioned bloated complement.

But surely, surely this cannot include Alonso? Despite Rafa’s protests, rumours of his departure persist, not surprisingly since he was being carted round Europe like Carla Bruni last summer.

If Benitez is tempted by the big bucks bound to be waived in his direction for the midfield maestro, then he would do well to contemplate a fans’ mutiny that would make Fletcher Christian look like Alan Carr.

No, there must be plenty in the queue ahead of Xabi, even if we might have to sell five or six to raise a similar amount.