RAFA: MERRY CHRISTMAS TO YOU ALL

Rafael Benitez 25 December 2006
	Wherever you are celebrating this festive season, I’d like to take this opportunity to thank you for your loyal support during 2006 and wish you all a very Merry Christmas.
Being manager of Liverpool Football Club continues to be a great honour for me and I can assure you that I, along with my staff and my players, am still driven by total determination and hunger to bring more trophies to Anfield. Over the past twelve months we have brought two more pieces of silverware back to the club after beating West Ham in an incredible FA Cup final back in May and then lifting the Community Shield in August. We know this club is all about winning trophies and making the fans happy and that is why we are all so pleased to have again enjoyed a successful year. The job now is to ensure we keep moving forward and to keep improving as a team and as a squad. I remain convinced we have a better set of players now than this time twelve months ago, but we know there is still work to do to reach the level we are aiming for. We have brought in a number of new players during the year and I am confident they will all have an important role to play in our quest for honours in the future. At the same time, a number of players left us during 2006 and I continue to wish them all the best with their new clubs. As you will all know, there is much talk about the future of the club with reports that an investment deal is looming. I have remained focused solely on football and on my team while all the talk has been going on, but I am sure David Moores and Rick Parry will make the right decision in the best interests of the club and I look forward to being a part of what I am sure is going to be a very bright future at Liverpool. As always, you will have a massive role to play in that future. I’ve said it before and I will say it again; you are the best fans in the world and I can promise you all that we’ll be working as hard as possible to bring you more of the success you truly deserve. I hope you all have a great Christmas and a fantastic 2007. Best wishes. Rafa.