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Rafa Benitez has set the bar very high as the manager of Real Madrid. He has lauded the quality of his team, and thrown down the gauntlet in terms of what kinds of expectations he has set for himself. During his official presentation at his new club, Benitez said that he wants to win “each game.”
“The idea is to try and win from the first game, that is what I inherited here, regardless of the competition."
He stated that Real Madrid are by far the most talented team that he has ever managed, and that this has influence his lofty expectations.
"It is the squad with most quality of my career, great players, we all know that," Benitez said. Known for his tactical brilliance, he went on to say that he will attempt a style of play for this team that “brings the best out of each player.”
“I would like to talk of idea of play. The objective is to get the best out of individual talent. Here there is so much individual talent, that if you put it to the aim of collective success, you will win a lot…The team must be competitive, capable of reaching the end of the season with chance to win trophies.”
He did qualify his ambitions with realism, however.
"The Champions League, La Liga and Copa del Rey are our objectives, as Madrid must win each game. Can we win it, sometimes yes, sometimes no, as this is football.”
He also would comment on his transfer policy at the know club, namely, how he would target players during his tenure. As manager of one of the highest spending clubs in the world, Benitez will have plenty of cash to throw around, and will be expected to do so shrewdly.
“Madrid is such an important club, that there's always look at what might happen in market…We must focus on analysing well the performance we can get from the squad, in all aspects, and from there look to other things in the future…If another player comes, then perfect, but will aim to get best out of those here."
He certainly seems to be saying all the right things. We will see if he can get all of the right results.
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