Ian Rush urges Liverpool fans to back Rafael Benitez

22 October 2009 09:37
Tuesday's 2-1 Champions League defeat by Lyon at Anfield meant Liverpool had lost four games in a row for the first time since 1987 and left the five-time European champions struggling to qualify for the knockout phase. It is 19 years since Liverpool last won the English title and pressure is building on Benitez, in charge at Anfield since 2004. But former Wales striker Rush, a key member of the Liverpool side that dominated English football during the 1980s, said: "Right now is the time when you need to get behind the manager, and the players as well. "I'm sure the supporters will do on Sunday but then it's up to the players to respond. The manager can only pick a team. It's up to the players to respond on the pitch. "Okay, we lost against Lyon but we can still qualify for the second phase of the Champions League. It's when you can't do that, then you maybe start looking (at the manager)," Rush added. A boost for Benitez was that England defender Glen Johnson, who missed the Lyon match, is set to return against United, who lost 2-1 at Anfield last season in a match where neither Gerrard nor Torres started. Despite Liverpool's recent run of results, Benitez's position does not appear under immediate threat if only because of the boardroom spat between the club's feuding American co-owners Tom Hicks and George Gillett. Hicks has been a strong supporter of Benitez, who signed a new four-year contract in March, while Gillett has criticised the former Valencia manager's spending this season.

Source: Telegraph