For the first time in his managerial career, Rafa Benítez is facing a step backwards, remarkable considering this is the second time in seven months he's been asked to leave a job. From Valencia to Liverpool to Inter Milan, Benítez had always managed to move on to the next big thing, but after a clear failure with the reigning European champions, the 50-year-old Spaniard's career is has to be reset. The next move for him may be humbling one, though it's unclear where the former Europe, Spain champion will land.
SB Nation Soccer Round Table: Rafa Benitez’s Post-Inter Milan Future
Despite that uncertainty, three SB Nation Soccer writers break out their crystal balls:
Jesse Chula - While rumors currently ping from one end of the Internet to the other, my money is planted firmly on the ace of spades that Rafa will return to England. No, not Liverpool. That would make about as much sense as Jose Mourinho heading back to Inter Milan or Roy Hodgson retreating back to Fulham - a sort of, 'everyone go back from whence you came' ideal that just wouldn't work. So as the top teams in the Premier League are comfy with current managers, Rafa's most likely to undertake a mid-table or Blackburn-type job in hopes he can rebuild a once top of the table club (Blackburn themselves) into just that again. Little known fact of the day: Blackburn recently fired Sam Allardyce and have only appointed Steve Kean as caretaker manager seemingly waiting for a big name manager to become available.
After all, Benitez was most successful in England. The pudgy one lifted the European Cup, the FA Cup, the League Cup, the UEFA Super Cup and came ever so close to winning the league with Liverpool during his six year stint in Old Blighty. If Benitez wants a quick return to the insanity of life as a football manager, more specifically, a Premier League manager, Blackburn Rovers, with their new, ambitious owners might just fit the bill. However, keep a watchful eye on Alan Pardew up North. If Pardew fails quickly at Newcastle United, with their massive support and big club mentality, Benitez might fancy the nearly impossibly feat of pleasing a nation of Geordies.
Kevin McCauley - At this point in his career, Rafa still has some options, despite the incredible damage that has been done to his reputation. One of those options is to go the route of Juande Ramos or Eric Gerets and chase the money, moving to Russia or the Middle East. If Rafa’s sick of high pressure jobs with the European media breathing down his neck and he just wants to take care of his family, it’s not a bad option. The opposite option is to take the first job he gets offered in the English Premier League, regardless of the team’s current stature. Can you imagine what would happen if Benitez took the Blackburn job? If Rafa actually enjoys the media attention in England, he will probably have some options. The final option is to do what’s best for football reasons and wait for a good job in Spain to open up. Quique Sanchez Flores is probably on his last legs at Atletico Madrid if things don’t improve swiftly right after the winter break, and despite just hiring Gregorio Manzano, Sevilla can’t be too enamored with the results. Chances are, one of those two jobs will be available by June. Both would be excellent fits for Benitez.
Right now, Rafa is getting a pretty sick paycheck from two teams to do absolutely nothing, so I don’t see why there’s any incentive for him to do a Gerets, unless he’s got MC Hammer-esque taste. I also think that he’s got too much pride to take over a team of Blackburn’s stature. Therefore, I think the most likely scenario is that Rafa sits on a beach with a beer and his cell phone on, waiting for the call from Atleti or Sevilla. If he manages to get fired from one of those jobs in less than a year, maybe the career of Rafa Benitez as a top European club manager will finally be over.
Richard Farley - Not to contradict my own opening, but is it possible that Rafa doesn’t see the need to reassess his career? Remember the defiance with which he spoke from the dais in Abu Dhabi. This man either legitimately believes he was making progress with Inter or feels undermined. Regardless, he doesn’t seem to think Inter’s drop in Serie A was his doing.
Think about how hard your head has to be to believe that. While I'm sure some of that blind allegiance to self is what's enabled Benítez to become a successful manager, it's also the type of approach that will lead him to sit back and wait for another big club to come knocking. He'll sit in his house in Liverpool, take a vacation in Portugal, spend some time in the States, all along thinking Chelsea's not doing so well. They'll call. Bayern hate Van Gaal. What about a Spaniard in Munich? And if Mourinho doesn't win Spain this year? Yes, Benítez is that special kind of delusional that would want to try and follow in Mourinho's footsteps. Again.
Once Benítez finishes his football sojourn. I see a television studio. I see punditry, at least in the short term, something that will allow him to second-guess and look erudite. It will also allow him to rebuild his image. When people constantly see him in a new role, allowing them to dissociate Benítez from his Inter failing, it will be much easier to remember he won Europe - that he was the last man to lead a team outside Los Dos to win Spain.
Atlético makes the most sense, and you can almost picture Benítez in Seville. But I can also see him behind a desk, comically trying to act casual, waiting to tell Spanish television viewers how many ways Mourinho’s screwing up. His tie uncomfortably, intentionally off to the side, tucked inside his jacket. A thin layer of flop sweat glistening his brow. Maybe this is more Sky than Spanish television - whatever. I just want to see it!
And after six months, perhaps a year of doing that, Benítez will either have his big job or be willing to swallow his pride.
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