You simply can't ignore the off field problems.
The sh1t really hit the fan just before the Man Utd game, and just after a massive blow against reading, where we were robbed by no less than 3 penalty claims going against us (that simply would not happen to Man U or Chelsea, just look at how many penalties torres has won this season...0. No way he wouldn't have one some in a chelsea or man u shirt).
At 3-1, Rafa was then forced to compound that blow by taking off our best players, because he knew he WOULD be sacked without CL progression.
It's easy to say it doesn't affect players, but also ludicrous. Look at Birmingham, Man City, Spurs...where they affected at all? In that context Rafa did an awesome job to get 76 points, CL semis, and with title winning form from Feb onwards, without a doubt.
It can't be rotation either, simply because that run of draws ending with the West Ham defeat (another game of bad decisions) was actually Rafa keeping a pretty steady team. The only rotations were in defence, where we had exceptional injuries at that time.
With stability off the field, and the likelihood of Carra never having to play next to a slow or inexperienced defender next season, and with Hyppia and Skrtel able to give him a rest, as well as Benayoun for Gerrard in some games, we could be laughing.
76 points is a fantastic total in ANY league, but we've got to have patience with Rafa, as he's expected to BEAT the best two teams in the World, on a lower budget, with a much lower wage ceiling. Since Feb, we have rotated as much as we did in our worst month, yet because we are once again building on a high defensive line, only with better options in attack, we have been lethal.
Keep that form up for a whole season, and we could get damn close even without any new signings.