Jamie Carragher is ready to sit back with popcorn and watch Rafael Benitez’s return to the Premier League as he signs a deal with Everton.
Speaking to talkSPORT, as relayed by Liverpool Echo, Jamie Carragher has admitted that he is looking forward to Rafael Benitez’s return to the Premier League. The Spaniard’s appointment at Goodison Park has already caused a furore among a section of the Everton fans due to the manager’s legacy at Anfield.
Carragher, though, admits he is excited about Benitez’s return to the Premier League. “It is one of those ones where I will just sit back with a popcorn and watch it all unfold,” reacted the former Liverpool defender, who had played 326 competitive matches under the leadership of the Spaniard, winning the UEFA Champions League in 2005.
At the start of last month, Carragher had even propagated the idea of Everton hiring Rafael Benitez in a column for Telegraph.
“Of the names instantly linked with Everton as the Ancelotti news broke, who is more qualified than my former Liverpool boss Rafa Benitez Rafa is available, settled in the area and I am sure he is ready if Moshiri is prepared to consider one of the more shocking managerial appointments in Merseyside football history.
“At the very least, Benitez should be under consideration as Moshiri begins yet another managerial quest. And not for the first time, before the owner decides the right candidate, he has to be clear of the football direction he wants to take,” he wrote.
Not every Everton fan has been as welcoming as Carragher, though. In fact, the Merseyside Police were investigating a threatening banner that read, “We know where you live. Don’t sign”.
To do this to someone’s family, outside the family home, is an absolute disgrace.
A step too far completely. We’re better than this as a fanbase ? pic.twitter.com/Z7Wrcr7T8i
— The Bobble (@ElBobble) June 28, 2021
A statement from the Police said: “We can confirm police are investigating reports of a threatening banner at a location in Caldy today, Monday 28 June. At around 7am, it was reported that a banner made from bed sheets had been placed over a wall and bushes on a residential driveway, with wording which is thought to target football manager Rafa Benitez.”
Although most of the fan groups have been quick to condemn such banners that pose a threat to the security and well-being of the new Everton manager, the appointment is destined to further fuel the animosity between the two sets of fans.
The upcoming Merseyside derby in the Premier League is scheduled around the start of December, at Goodison Park.