Liverpool have been forced to publish a piece of positive spin on the official club website to try and steer the club away from Steven Gerrard’s negative and petulant public rant.
In the last few hours, Steve Hunter on the official site has published an interview with Rafa, which is clearly a hastily arranged and blatantly transparent attempt to take the edge of Gerrard’s public whining.
To recap: Earlier this week, Gerrard undermined Benitez and his team-mates with a pathetic, self-serving diatribe about how another Champions League win wouldn’t matter and how he’s running out of time to win the premiership.
As a result of ‘Stevie Me’s’ ill-advised piffle, the press went into overdrive, spinning his comments negatively and filling the back-pages with all kinds of negative speculatory drivel.
At time when this kind of attention is the LAST thing the club needs, the Liverpool spin-machine has been forced into action in an attempt to limit the damage of Gerrard’s comments.
In the interview on the official site, Rafael Benitez revealed the following: "Steven's commitment to this club is 100 per cent. He was trying to show he was disappointed with our position in the league”.
If his commitment is 100%, why have the club wheeled Benitez out to reiterate this in public?! Surely it should be self-evident?
Benitez added: "I was talking with him before our last training session and he's really pleased with our position in the Champions League. It would be fantastic if we could win the Champions League this season”.
Pure spin! Gerrard’s original comments were negative, with a completely different meaning to the tripe Benitez (i.e. the club) is feeding us. Re the Champions League, Gerrard stated:
"The only way we can fulfill [our] ambitions is in the Champions League. And I am not going to pretend that even winning that trophy - and we are a long way away from it at the moment - will make up for the disappointment of the league campaign."
Benitez tried even harder to put a positive spin on it: "I was talking with him [Gerrard] and for Steven to play in this competition is amazing and the most important trophy that he has won is the Champions League in Istanbul".
It is so obvious that the club is behind this statement! Anyone can see that, otherwise why release it in the first place? Benitez had already responded to Gerrard's comments, albeit with pessimistic appeasement rather than positivity.
It is clear that the club can see that Gerrard’s comments were negative and completely ill-advised.
The main issue here that, instead of focusing on preparing for this weekend’s league game, Rafa is forced to deflect Gerrard’s defeatist ravings and deal with a massive increase in negative press speculation.
If Gerrard really had the club’s best interests at heart, he would have realized the negative feeding frenzy his comments would generate. But of course, Gerrard is selfish and arrogant and only think about how things affect HIM.
Again, I ask the questions: What possible good has come from Gerrard’s comments?! Was there any need for him to go public with his feelings?
The thing the Gerrard apologists are forgetting is this: The possibility that there is a modicum of truth in what he said is irrelevant - the captain of the club should be more aware of the ramifications of comments he makes to the media. He should also know that the press will inevitably twist everything and spin his comments to fit the media agenda of the day.
The fact Gerrard came out with his comments in a time of intense turmoil for the club means he is either supremely ignorant or, as is more likely to be the case, he just doesn’t care about what happens and actually *wants* to whip up a media frenzy.
In any event, the fact that the club have to waste time *yet again* trying to appease the press is just another sad indictment of the negative impact Gerrard is continuing to have on the club.
This season has been littered with pointless, ill-advised public comments from Gerrard, including the following:
1. Stabbing John Terry in the back by publicly putting himself forward for theEngland
2. Publicly moaning after his substitution v Everton and vowing to talk to Rafa about it, after which Bobby Robson was moved to write an article berating Gerrard’s selfishness.
3. Admitting in public that England (i.e. the pursuit of his own personal fame) is more important that Liverpool.
4. Back-tracking over hisEngland
5. Blaming off-field problems for poor performances
6. Failing to back Rafa in public during his spat with Hicks and Gillette, despite emphatically backing Steve McClaren in public only days earlier.
7. Xenophobic public comments about foreigners ‘taking over’ the premiership
In the last few hours, Steve Hunter on the official site has published an interview with Rafa, which is clearly a hastily arranged and blatantly transparent attempt to take the edge of Gerrard’s public whining.
To recap: Earlier this week, Gerrard undermined Benitez and his team-mates with a pathetic, self-serving diatribe about how another Champions League win wouldn’t matter and how he’s running out of time to win the premiership.
As a result of ‘Stevie Me’s’ ill-advised piffle, the press went into overdrive, spinning his comments negatively and filling the back-pages with all kinds of negative speculatory drivel.
At time when this kind of attention is the LAST thing the club needs, the Liverpool spin-machine has been forced into action in an attempt to limit the damage of Gerrard’s comments.
In the interview on the official site, Rafael Benitez revealed the following: "Steven's commitment to this club is 100 per cent. He was trying to show he was disappointed with our position in the league”.
If his commitment is 100%, why have the club wheeled Benitez out to reiterate this in public?! Surely it should be self-evident?
Benitez added: "I was talking with him before our last training session and he's really pleased with our position in the Champions League. It would be fantastic if we could win the Champions League this season”.
Pure spin! Gerrard’s original comments were negative, with a completely different meaning to the tripe Benitez (i.e. the club) is feeding us. Re the Champions League, Gerrard stated:
"The only way we can fulfill [our] ambitions is in the Champions League. And I am not going to pretend that even winning that trophy - and we are a long way away from it at the moment - will make up for the disappointment of the league campaign."
Benitez tried even harder to put a positive spin on it: "I was talking with him [Gerrard] and for Steven to play in this competition is amazing and the most important trophy that he has won is the Champions League in Istanbul".
It is so obvious that the club is behind this statement! Anyone can see that, otherwise why release it in the first place? Benitez had already responded to Gerrard's comments, albeit with pessimistic appeasement rather than positivity.
It is clear that the club can see that Gerrard’s comments were negative and completely ill-advised.
The main issue here that, instead of focusing on preparing for this weekend’s league game, Rafa is forced to deflect Gerrard’s defeatist ravings and deal with a massive increase in negative press speculation.
If Gerrard really had the club’s best interests at heart, he would have realized the negative feeding frenzy his comments would generate. But of course, Gerrard is selfish and arrogant and only think about how things affect HIM.
Again, I ask the questions: What possible good has come from Gerrard’s comments?! Was there any need for him to go public with his feelings?
The thing the Gerrard apologists are forgetting is this: The possibility that there is a modicum of truth in what he said is irrelevant - the captain of the club should be more aware of the ramifications of comments he makes to the media. He should also know that the press will inevitably twist everything and spin his comments to fit the media agenda of the day.
The fact Gerrard came out with his comments in a time of intense turmoil for the club means he is either supremely ignorant or, as is more likely to be the case, he just doesn’t care about what happens and actually *wants* to whip up a media frenzy.
In any event, the fact that the club have to waste time *yet again* trying to appease the press is just another sad indictment of the negative impact Gerrard is continuing to have on the club.
This season has been littered with pointless, ill-advised public comments from Gerrard, including the following:
1. Stabbing John Terry in the back by publicly putting himself forward for the
2. Publicly moaning after his substitution v Everton and vowing to talk to Rafa about it, after which Bobby Robson was moved to write an article berating Gerrard’s selfishness.
3. Admitting in public that England (i.e. the pursuit of his own personal fame) is more important that Liverpool.
4. Back-tracking over his
5. Blaming off-field problems for poor performances
6. Failing to back Rafa in public during his spat with Hicks and Gillette, despite emphatically backing Steve McClaren in public only days earlier.
7. Xenophobic public comments about foreigners ‘taking over’ the premiership
Aaaagh!
When will it end?!
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