Rafa to feel the love at Anfield

Happier at home ... Rafa Benitez is beloved at Anfield. Source: Kirsty Wigglesworth / AP

It is the bond that ensured he was instantly rejected. On Monday morning (EST) it will be highlighted.

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The boos, the chants against him and the banners demanding him to leave will be in the minority. For the first time in four months when Rafa Benitez emerges onto the pitch there will be applause. 

Not from his own club's fans. They will sing Jose Mourinho's name they might even chant that Benitez is "just a fat Spanish waiter," but the Liverpool fans will welcome him back to Anfield.

It is unlikely to be just a polite welcome for a former manager.

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"If he hadn't already been given the nickname 'God' by the Valencia players, and had it confirmed by our dressing room, he'd have been given it by the Liverpool fans," Jamie Carragher said of Benitez's impact at Liverpool.

A Champions League title, an FA Cup, their highest ever finish in the Premier League and memorable wins over Barcelona, Real Madrid and Manchester United all built the bond. But it was cast in stone from his battles with Chelsea and Jose Mourinho.

In the six years Benitez spent at Liverpool he faced Chelsea in the Champions League five years in a row, with the highlight being the three semi-finals where he twice knocked the Blues out. As is often the case familiarity breeds contempt but Bentiez was only too happy to add to it.

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"We don't need to give away flags for our fans to wave – our supporters are always there with their hearts, and that is all we need. It's the passion of the fans that helps to win matches – not flags," he said dismissively of the plastic flags Chelsea give their fans for big matches.

The Anfield faithful loved him for it. But the Chelsea fans despised him from then and as a result made it mission impossible before he had even walked in the door.

He would have known what to expect when he was appointed at Chelsea. When Andre Villas Boas was sacked in March 2012 the Spaniard was rumoured to be a target of Roman Abramovich before Chelsea fans made their feelings clear that he would not be welcomed.

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With this in mind it seems odd that he would take the job. Whilst having been out of work for two seasons would have been a major factor, the biggest was perhaps his self-belief.

"Mourinho was more brash and brazen in his arrogance, prepared to announce his special status to the world, but Rafa is just as certain of his own ability," Carragher said of his former boss.

Despite knowing the reaction that awaited him, Benitez's confidence would have made him sure he would be successful at Chelsea and as a result the fans would soon forget the past when the wins and trophies rolled in. Most outside of Stamford Bridge thought the same.

		P	W	D	L	GD	Pts
1	Man United	33	26	3	4	40	81
2	Man City	32	20	8	4	31	68
3	Chelsea	32	18	7	7	31	61
4	Arsenal	33	17	9	7	29	60
5	Tottenham	32	17	7	8	15	58
6	Everton	33	14	14	5	14	56
7	Liverpool	33	13	11	9	19	50
8	West Brom	32	13	5	14	-1	44
9	Swansea	32	10	11	11	1	41
10	Fulham	33	10	10	13	-7	40
11	West Ham	33	10	9	14	-9	39
12	Southampton	33	9	11	13	-7	38
13	Newcastle	33	10	6	17	-17	36
14	Norwich	33	7	14	12	-21	35
15	Sunderland	33	8	10	15	-8	34
16	Stoke	33	7	13	13	-13	34
17	Aston Villa	33	8	10	15	-24	34
18	Wigan	32	8	7	17	-21	31
19	QPR	33	4	12	17	-25	24
20	Reading	33	5	9	19	-27	24

This was never really put to the test with no manager in the Abramovich era winning less games than Bentiez did in his first 27 matches in charge.

While the start was far from the winning one he had hoped for it was not the only problem that he confronted. Reports of training ground bust-ups were rife and far too common to simply be dismissed as rumour. The feeling was that the majority of the Chelsea squad were no more enamoured with the manager than the fans.

The problem according to Rafa was clear.

"Chelsea gave me the title of interim manager, which is a massive mistake. I'm the manager," he said after confirming he would depart at the end of the season.

It raises the question as to why the title matters? Surely players will respond the same regardless of whether the manager is on a long term contract or not.

History at Chelsea suggests otherwise, with a manager needing as much power as possible when dealing with a notoriously strong willed playing group.

But they are not alone.

When Sir Alex Ferguson announced his retirement in 2001, which he later abandoned, he found his players to be less responsive. If the legendary Scot found this to be the case it is likely to have been so for Benitez at Chelsea.

While his impact may not have been the one he hoped for it is difficult to argue that Benitez has not improved Chelsea tactically, especially defensively. The side that were so vulnerable to being overrun in wide areas are now much more diligent when they don't have the ball.

Most suspected he would improve them defensively as this was the hallmark of his Liverpool and Valencia sides but this has not come at the cost of their attacking thrust.

Only Arsenal and Manchester United have scored more goals in the Premier League and worrying for Liverpool only themselves and United have scored more away from home.

Despite the weekend's loss to Manchester City in the FA Cup semi-final he has also astutely rotated his squad through their taxing schedule of six games in 17 days ensuring they were fresh enough to remain in the top four and to move within touching distance of another European triumph.

A top four finish and a European Cup may give some Chelsea fans better memories of his time at the club but it will never shake their steadfast belief that Benitez should not be at the club.

The iconic clashes between the two clubs during his six years at Liverpool created too much controversy and bad blood for him to ever be accepted. Benitez even went as far as to state that he would never take the Chelsea job when he was at Liverpool.

On Monday morning Benitez will come face to face with the past that Liverpool fans will want to honour but also with the one that Chelsea fans will never forget.

Follow me on Twitter @beaubusch  

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