Source: Telegraph
Rafael Benitez heads for busy summer of rebuilding
"My priority now is to do the deals for my staff and the players who will be important for this club in the future. We want to improve everything we possibly can," he said. [LNB]His new mandate guaranteed, Benitez will not wait to swing into action. His first act will be to tie down those players whose own futures looked uncertain. Daniel Agger, most noticeably, Pepe Reina, Alvaro Arbeloa and Dirk Kuyt have just 15 months left on their contracts. All four are expected to sign in the coming weeks. [LNB] Related ArticlesFive transfer targets for Benitez[LNB]Five high points of Benitez at Liverpool[LNB]Nil-nil back in fashion[LNB]Hicks: Benitez works to our budget[LNB]Liverpool fans convinced Benitez to stay[LNB]Something for the Weekend[LNB]Behind the scenes, too, the effects of Benitez's new-found power will be quickly felt. His trusted lieutenants, whose futures provided one of the many hitches to the labyrinthine negotiations, will all be offered new deals. [LNB]Those worries banished, the Spaniard will be able to turn his attention to engineering a squad of the quality and depth of Manchester United's. Benitez would, ideally, have liked to be in a position after five years on Merseyside where he could fine-tune rather than overhaul, but he is likely to face another hectic summer. [LNB]Humbling United and Real Madrid in the space of four days – what Benitez referred to as "a perfect week" – proved Liverpool's proximity to becoming the force he is trying to build. The defeat to Middlesbrough that immediately preceded those wins suggested he still lacks the depth to rest and rotate effectively, as well as highlighting Liverpool's well-documented struggles when faced with deep-lying, compact defences. [LNB]When asked last week, prior to the sacking of Old Trafford, what the difference was between his side and Sir Alex Ferguson's, Benitez replied simply: "About £100 million." Unless talks with one of two Kuwaiti families bear fruit in the form of new owners or new investors, he is unlikely to have that much to spend. [LNB]Indeed, his first task will be to shift much of the ballast at Melwood. The on-loan pair of Jermaine Pennant and Andrei Voronin will both leave, the former on a free and the latter to the Bundesliga. Sami Hyypia is likely to be allowed to end his 10-year spell when his contract expires to give him one last shot at first-team football. The likes of Philipp Degen and Charles Itandje will be moved on, while Benitez may even be forced to cash in on Andrea Dossena, Lucas and Ryan Babel. [LNB]His chief concern this summer, though, is a desperate need to inject native blood into the squad to meet Uefa's Champions League quotas. Four of Liverpool's squad next season must have been developed by the club, for which only two senior players, Steven Gerrard and Jamie Carragher, qualify. A further four must have been trained in England, roles currently filled by youth players, which Benitez is aware he must remedy. [LNB]Aaron Lennon, of Tottenham Hotspur, remains a target to infuse Liverpool with width and pace. Benitez tried to include him in the deal which took Robbie Keane back to White Hart Lane and, while Harry Redknapp refused the swap then, the Spaniard is believed to be considering revisiting it. [LNB]Glen Johnson, the Portsmouth right-back, could be available for £8 million. David Wheater, of Middlesbrough, and Chelsea's Michael Mancienne are also thought to be on Benitez's radar, while he is still an admirer of Gareth Barry at Aston Villa. [LNB]It is a key summer, for manager and club alike. Working with a new chief executive more amenable to his aims means he has no reason not to land his targets and finally establish the squad he needs. Benitez has the power and the control. There can be no more excuses. [LNB]Rafa's Three Musts [LNB]Rafa Must: Buy width. Despite the purchase of Albert Riera, that Liverpool have struggled to win games where they are heavy favourites is attributable to a predictability in attack. To challenge Manchester United, Benitez must remedy it. [LNB]Rafa Must: Throw off the shackles. When Liverpool attack, they can be deadly, but it is all too rare. Benitez's natural caution has cost his team points against domestic minnows. If he can fire them up for league games as he does in Europe, they have the talent to steamroller anyone. [LNB]Rafa Must: Deliver the title. Liverpool have made progress under Benitez, that much is clear. But there is only one barometer of success on Merseyside. If he is to join Dalglish, Paisley and Shankly in the Anfield pantheon, he must end two decades of hurt.ends [LNB]
