Daily Mail

I LOVE RAFA — DESPITE HIM SUBBING ME!

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THE new year starts for me with a home game against Newcastle on Monday and that means a reunion with Rafa Benitez. Rafa played a huge role in helping shape my career. There were a lot of eyebrows raised when he signed me in 2005 (right). Liverpool had just won the Champions League and he could have gone out to buy the best striker in Europe but he showed a tremendous amount of faith in me. Working with him was an education and an experience. I quickly discovered he is very single-minded and there were times when he was difficult. He gets lots of criticism but he doesn’t care what people think. He is a football obsessive, someone who even surpassed Jamie Carragher for his love of football. He can’t ever switch off. Carra used to watch everything — every match, every programme — but Rafa took it to new heights. I remember him coming to training one day and saying to Jermaine Pennant: ‘Did you watch the game?’, about a Champions League tie ie the previous evening

Jermaine was sat next to me, e, putting on his boots and just t said: ‘What match?’

It blew Rafa’s mind. If ever r there were two opposite characters - in football, there they y were. Rafa was stood, openmouthe­d, clearly thinking: ‘What is going on?’

There were so many stories. In 2005-06, Stevie Gerrard was the PFA Player of the Year. He scored 23 goals from right midfield and was just incredible butt I’ll never forget Rafa trying to teach Steviei howh to t use his left foot! He just always wanted to improve people. Maybe Stevie didn’t use his left foot a lot but he was hitting 30-yard balls with the outside of his right. He’ll always find a weakness in anyone and I think that’s why in the past big players have clashed with him. I scored against Reading once by going around the keeper. I used Robbie Fowler as a decoy but after the game Rafa was fuming at me because I hadn’t passed. It was always his way to pull you up. YYou’d think to yourself: syourself: ‘How can I possibly bpossibly get a bit of praise ffrom this man?’ We beat Birmingham 77-0 in the FA Cup and I’I’d scored two before hhalf-time. During the bbreak I said to him: ‘PPlease keep me on.’ I knknew he was going to mmake changes but I was dedesperat­e to score a hahat-trick for Liverpool. So I went out for the secondd hhalflf . . . andd was substitute­d in the 56th minute. But I loved working with him. He gave me the opportunit­y to play for such a fantastic club. He’s a top, top manager and he got Newcastle promoted under difficult circumstan­ces and I’m sure they will stay up. I always wish him the best when I see him — I just won’t do it on New Year’s Day.

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