Class post, sad story, says it all really.
I think that's what does it for me, and has utterly cemented my hatred for the media in this country - it's not the criticism, it's the fucking disrespect. The cheap jokes, the pathetic jibes and name calling. The total bullshit about, for example, him being a sore loser - all of this shit true only in the media, none of it, NONE, from Rafa himself.
Like, number of times I've heard Rafa blame others for bad results, or make shit excuses = 0
Number of times I've heard him even point to other factors or mention refs = rarely.
Number of times I've heard fans say stuff like 'I'm sick of his excuses' = so many that it is almost beyond belief.
Sadly, as an OOT, the last two seasons have seriously tarnished my romantic image of the LFC and it's 'knowledgable' fans, an image that thankfully this site always helps repair with it's selection of awesome Auld' Arses, passionate supporters from all around the world, and a new generation of dyed in the wool scousers (or even desperate to be scouse wools
) who show me regularly that the flame Shankly lit still hasn't gone out. It may be guttering, but it's still burning. For which I'm very thankful, because to me and others like me this isn't something we're born into, but something that has sucked us in and kept us trapped, and the force that sucked us in goes a long way beyond football, though football is of course right at the heart of it.
It's something that Rafa gets, gets completely. It's something that even a decent man like Houllier did not get in the same way, and it's something we have no real chance of replacing. It's also that which makes me so livid at the disrespect he gets shown from all too many fans.
