Liverpool FC's Hallowe'en horror show: Where do we go from here?

The results this season, 8 defeats in 16 meaningful games, speak for themselves. Never mind standing still, on current evidence it seems as though we're going backwards and at quite a rate.

How do you stem that slide? Getting rid of the manager? Maybe.

At half six last night, still stuck in Putney traffic, I was in no doubt at all. Now having calmed down a touch and had a think about the wider issues, I'm not so sure.

If you could guarantee me a Guus Hiddink or similar would be allowed to come in and steady the ship then fine.

That's not going to happen though is it.

No manager worth his salt is going to touch a club in as much off-field turmoil as us.

In reality, we'd probably end up with a Kenny Dalglish/Sammy Lee director of footy/head coach combo that might sound nice in principle but would in all likelihood end up with precious memories we have of former greats being tarnished under the hysteria of the modern game/'fan'.

I'm not going to start telling you Rafa Benitez has had no money because he has and quite a bit of it has been badly spent.

He had just under the 40odd million he raised last summer by selling Alonso & co and gambled it on a full back and a midfielder who wouldn't be fit for months, a risky strategy that has come back to bit him in the arse when our striking options were/are so threadbare.

Ultimately every manager has to work within a budget and cut his cloth accordingly but it does appear that Benitez has had the goalposts moved on him on several occasions in this department.

By all accounts, when Aquilani signed in July he indicated there was enough in the pot to bring a striker in as well. Towards the end of this summer Benitez had a £3m deal lined up for that excuse of a Ukrainian ponytail lined up but was told he wouldn't even have that to re-invest so hung on to him just to have an extra body in the squad.

Even today the BBC tabloid round-up says how Babel may be sold to fund Reina's new deal.

The point is we are operating, and arguably have been for the last few years, with the budget of a club who should be finishing 5th/6th.

Benitez has gambled on spreading the budget on the first XI and hoping for the best with the rest of the squad, a policy that clearly comes unstuck when you're riven with injuries/viruses (don't think I've ever seen a more inexperienced bench than yesterday). There is an argument to say he's actually been over-achieving with the tools he's had at his disposal.

The bottom line is he's made a lot of mistakes and will probably continue to do so. But none of those mistakes are comparable in significance to the one made in selling the club to the Yanks.

What people have to decide is who they feel is doing most harm to the club. There are times when I feel it is virtually a dead-heat between the manager and the owners but ultimately I think it's the latter who have to go first.

Benitez's line in today's papers about 'not having to win trophies to be successful' is an abomination but the fish rots from the head down and the quote echoes some of those made by his Texan boss

"You don't even have to win a championship every year to draw the fans. You just have to show you're really trying."

"This business has to do with fan affinity and brand devotion. It doesn't necessarily have to do with winning."

Hicks quotes

There are those who castigate supporters who have mobilised against the Americans, in particular Spirit of Shankly, as Benitez sycophants, gunning for the owners primarily because they tried to replace their precious Spaniard with Jurgen Klinsmann two years ago.

In actual fact there are plenty in that camp who do not think the sun shines out of Rafa Benitez's backside.

There are even some who don't think he's a very good manager but these people are trying to do something (anything) about the cancer that threatens the very existence of our club and deserve better than accusations of just being the manager's cheerleaders.

I'm still angry about yesterday and, terrible though it sounds, there's a part of me that would like to see us beaten in France so those substitutions aren't seen to have paid off - what I want more than anything though is to be able to enjoy the kind of buzz we all felt last Sunday for longer than just a few days and a Hicks and Gillett-less LFC needs to be one of the first steps to that happening.

Yanks Out