Rafael Benítez (61) is ready for Everton, and will thus be the first manager to lead both Liverpool and Everton in 129 years.
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Benítez has signed a three-year contract with The Toffees, and will take over from Real Madrid-ready Carlo Ancelotti.
– I’m delighted to join Everton. Through this hiring process, I have been very impressed with the ambition the leaders have shown, says Benítez.
– I think this club is on its way places, and is determined to play a big part in helping this club reach its ambitions, he adds.
Benítez will start working with the Everton squad on July 5. Then the season run-up for The Toffees begins. His first Premier League game as manager will be against Southampton in August.
Nowhere in the press releases something is written about Benítez’s past in Liverpool, but in another interview the Spaniard talks about the past in Everton’s arch-rival.
– In all the clubs I have been to, I have fought for the club. Now I’m here and I want to fight for my club. I will try to win every single match. It does not matter who the opponent or rival is, he says.
And how Benítez will be received at Goodison Park remains to be seen.
When the reports that he was on his way to the club came, a banner was hung outside Everton’s stadium, with the message: “Benítez: Not welcome”. A banner was also hung near his home in Merseyside with the message “We know where you live. Do not sign », a threat being investigated by the police in Merseyside.
In 2007, as Liverpool manager, he called Everton “a small club” after a goalless Merseyside derby at Anfield. Later, however, he claimed that it was not the club he was aiming for, but David Moyes’ style of play in the match.
– In such cases, it is two-sided: You have the sporting and the cultural part. Sportingly, I think he can be a very good manager for Everton. I think he as a person and his football can be stabilizing for the club. He is good at organizing his teams defensively, while the offensive players get to do their part. And the potential Everton has in the player pool and financially is quite large, says TV 2 commentator Kasper Wikestad to VG, but adds:
– It is a problematic employment.
– Requires a lot from many
He will be the first manager in 129 years to lead the two Merseyside rivals Liverpool and Everton. Benítez was Liverpool manager between 2004 and 2010, and led the red shirts to an incredible Champions League triumph in 2005.