The People report that Rafael Benitez is well and truly fighting his corner, following criticism that he’s fast becoming a failure at Anfield. The Liverpool manager presided over arguably his most humiliating day in charge of the club on Saturday, when the Reds were beaten 2-1 at home to Barnsley.

“If you analyse the last few years since I came to the club we have won four trophies and been in seven finals, including two in the Champions League.

“How many other managers have done the same in their first three or four years at a club? People can talk about being successful but nobody is winning trophies every year.

“To do that is really difficult so I think we are in a really good position with a very young squad, so I have a lot of confidence in the team for the future.”

The question remains whether Rafa will have the opportunity to turn things around at Anfield in the future. He’s enduring his toughest season as manager of Liverpool and won’t be able to reflect on former glories forever.