10 Liverpool Players Who Fell Out With The Manager
3. Djibril Cisse
Its worth remembering that while Djibril Cisses first season spent at Liverpool was working under the guidance of Rafa Benitez, he wasnt actually signed by the Spaniard. The Frenchman would pick up a horrendous broken leg during his debut season at the club, restricting him to just 25 appearances in all competitions, although the following season he played in nearly 60 games, scoring 19 times including a goal in the FA Cup final. It wouldnt stop Benitez from attempting to wield the axe on his Anfield career, however, much to the £14 million mans outrage.
''I have a coach who doesnt want me. Benitez doesnt use me, so Ive taken a step backwards. He doesnt like me. You cant please everyone. But I dont think I could stand another season like the one ive just had. - Djibril Cisse, May 2006.
Benitez subsequently offered Cisse zero sympathy for a situation which found him slipping down the pecking order, blaming his work ethic.
''At Auxerre, he didnt have any responsibility for defending or the tactics of the team; he could do his own thing. At a big club like Liverpool, he needs to learn that he has to work for his team-mates. He has to understand the difference between a club that plays to win games and a club that plays to win trophies. - Rafa Benitez, May 2006.
Three months later, the Frenchman was once again taking to the media to share the latest titbits in the Benitez feud, having been irked by the Spaniards recent claims that he was a troublemaker.
''Im a troublemaker? So why did Harry Kewell dedicate his goal to me in the World Cup? How can I be a troublemaker if someone like that thought of me ahead of his family, his children and his wife? Everybody likes me, I am not scared to say that. I have kept my cool. The manager put me on the bench five times, six times, he put me right side, then left side and I never moaned. Now he has asked me to leave. It is too much. It is too easy to make it look like I want to go, but he should be man enough to admit that he wants me to leave.' - Djibril Cisse, August 2006.
Recent Journalism & New Media graduate. Insatiable thirst for all things football, and hopes to break into the field of sports journalism in the near future.
Have made a significantly insignificant playing career out of receiving several slaps around the head for not passing the ball.
