[Archived] Benni Mccarthy - Gone

[Fife Rover]

Whilst I don't know what MH will make of all this, I do know what I would do if I was MH.

First off I would get Benni in for a little chat, and find out the real truth of what Benni actually said and why. Then if it appears that Benni really does want to leave I would drop him from the squad for tomorrow, and point out that he has got 3 years remaining on his contract and that he is not going anywhere at any price until I feel it right to let him go. That gets us into the close season and he is not for sale.

If he or his agent creates about this and insists on leaving, I would still oppose all offers from any source, and insist on Benni fulfilling his contract. He would have to play as well as he can in order to maintain any interest from any other club, and he could be dropped again if he showed any signs of sulking or not trying etc. He would soon realise that kind of thing gets him nowhere as no other team would be able to see his form and all the time he is not getting any younger.

He would sooner or later see sense and settle down to be a good player for Rovers again.

Alternatively Rovers could wait until the end of August and then list him as available for transfer at £15m (non negotiable).That way Benni would be in the shop window as it were and would have to play out of his skin to attract a buyer until at least January. By which time either some team would make an offer which Rovers could accept or refuse, and so on. Either way Rovers stay in control and will either have the benefit of a fully functional Benni or will have had half a season and hopefully a good goal tally from him before cashing in for a very lucrative sum, and hopefully the means to sign a very good replacement for Benni.

[gumboots]

Fife you are a very crafty gentleman. I think Mark Hughes will handle the situation in his usual apparently mild manner whilst letting Benni know in no uncertain terms what he thinks of him if it turns out he did say what he's been reported as saying. Our players all say in interview that Mark Hughes doesn't need to say much - you know when he's not pleased with you.

[elwaxo]

i for one would be sad to see benni go...but frig it.........well be ok....and i believe we can still push on without him.

[Hughesy]

Benni McCarthy will not leave Rovers in summer! FACT!

If you believe the sun, only a few days after the original interview in the telegraph then you are dafter than daft. He will stay Loyal!

[Darth Paul]

I think some sort of official response from McCarthy or the Club denying the rumours would have been a good idea, given that we have an important game today and we need the crowd to be backing the players not feeling discontent with them.

Unless he actually is going...

[Alan75]

I think some sort of official response from McCarthy or the Club denying the rumours would have been a good idea, given that we have an important game today and we need the crowd to be backing the players not feeling discontent with them.

Unless he actually is going...

I remember Souness making an announcement before a game, that Dunn leaving would be over his dead body.........and we all know what happened next.

Somehow, though, if Hughes made a similar statement I would be more inclined to believe him. Unfortunately if a player wants to go he will ie Savage / Birmingham.

What we as fans must do, is not to give Benni an excuse for wanting to leave. As long as hes wearing the shirt he should NOT be booed.

[Darth Paul]

I completely agree Alan, and won't be booing anyone, I never do. But sadly as we all know there are plenty of morons at Ewood, and boo they will, given any opportunity whatsoever.

[Bobby G]

Dont forget that Benni wanted to leave Porto for a couple years but the chairman wouldnt sell him and Benni continued to play there and didnt make much rumblings other than during the windows. Although his goal return during that time was poor at best.

[FourLaneBlue]

If we have some fans booing McCarthy while he is working on the pitch to get us into Europe then it would just show that we have some of the most moronic support in the league.

If people want to boo Benni then do so when he returns playing for someone else not when we have an important game that we need to win and not after he has scored 20+ goals this season.

That said I don't understand booing players anyway. It usually comes back to bite us on the bum.

Look at those who booed Bellamy. If Hughes goes in for him he might just remember that and choose another club instead. Players are human after all and will be affected by it.

Edited May 13, 2007 by FourLaneBlue

[doctorryan]

Well, the Radio Rovers interview said all the right things, although it was interesting how it was all edited; you didn't hear Neil's questions.

Edited May 13, 2007 by doctorryan

[The Dart]

Benni Mac is 29, if he goes I cant see it for less than £10m.

But obviously, like every other Rovers supporter I wish he would stay.

Please stay Benedict Saul "Benni" McCarthy.

[spencey7]

Well, the Radio Rovers interview said all the right things, although it was interesting how it was all edited; you didn't hear Neil's questions.

I missed that interview - What did it say?

[mark]

hughes on benni: "It is not a situation I am worried about", "I am as confident as I can be he will be here next season"

Now that sounds very encouraging - but the snippets are cherry picked....

http://home.skysports.com/list.aspx?hlid=4...+off+Benni+talk

Edited May 13, 2007 by mark

[Rover Down Under]

I posted this about the Spurs game:

Yes Roberts wasn't that great but I reserve my greatest critiscism for Benni. I am going to nickname him the penis...

--- He gets in the box, shoots, hits the spot then goes limp, turns over and goes to sleep. ---

It's like "I've scored a goal, earnt my cash, job done, goodnight..." Hughes should just take him off as soon as he scores cos you just know he isn't going to do very much for the rest of the game. Trouble is he's scored 20 odd goals this season and everyone thinks he's great, me too, but it could have been 30 or 40. He's only had one game where he's scored more than once and I think that was a penalty anyway.

This was BEFORE I read THAT interview where I quote:

"Blackburn gave me my chance and even though it was not a big transfer fee, I trust that I have already paid them back with my commitment and goals this season."

I'm probably the only Rovers fan who is not in awe of Benni. Yes he can score goals but if we have someone who is not giving 110% 100% of the time which is what I feel about him then is he really worth it? I think he has so many goals because of brilliant service from Peders, Bentley and Tugay and his goal / game ratio is almost the same as the other strikers:

Pl / Goal

Benni 46/23 = 0.5

Nonda 23/8 = 0.35

Derbs 14/8 = 0.57

Roberts 11/5 = 0.45

If we lose him I won't be as upset as losing Bellers (who I think we should get back!). If he goes to Chelsea he will do a Bellers at 'pool - not even get in the first team consistently and not even break double figures. I think this is why Nonda was signed cos Hughes knows we are losing him. I'm probably the only one who thinks Nonda CAN cut it in the PL as well. He just needs to match the pace - a problem every newcomer to the PL has, Benni just overcame it faster - and some consistent starts. However, if we got Bellers back he might be bench-warming again. I shudder to think of Bellers and Derbs upfront...I wouldn't want to be an opposition defender with their pace. In tougher games we can have Roberts or Nonda hold up the ball for one of them.

Expecting major flaming...

[neekoy]

Good to see you are expecting it

I posted this before so I will pose the Q it to you -

Name another striker you could purchase for 3 million pound that would have returned what Benni has OVER THE SEASON

Roberts, Derbs and Nonda simply would NOT have scored at the rate you have stated over 46 games

Without Benni we would have been fighting for our premiership survival

Edited May 14, 2007 by neekoy

[philipl]

Was there any booing of McCarthy yesterday? The Reading fans were incensed by his goal standing after Nonda's clash with their keeper but it seems that the Rovers fans got behind our man.

From the BBC- Blackburn boss Mark Hughes on Benni McCarthy:

"I am as confident as I can be he will be here next season.

"I keep trying to emphasise we are not a selling club. If we allowed Benni McCarthy to leave we would be weaker.

"He has had a fantastic season and it could not have gone better for him."

In his interview for Radio Rovers, Benni talked about playing more beautiful football for us next season.

Down Under Rover should look at these statistics- EPL players scoring more than 20 goals in all competitions this season are:

(Player Team League Cup EuropeTotal)

1 Drogba Chelsea 20 6 6 32

2 McCarthy Blackburn Rovers 18 3 3 24 (4 pen)

3 Ronaldo Manchester United 17 3 3 23 (5 pen)

4 Rooney Manchester United 14 5 4 23

5 Berbatov Tottenham Hotspur 12 4 7 23

6 Keane Tottenham Hotspur 11 6 5 22 (4 pen)

7 Lampard Chelsea 11 9 1 21 (4 pen)

All the other players in that list have cost mega-transfer fees. Of course, there is the nightmare Cup Final still to come.

Edited May 14, 2007 by philipl

[LeChuck]

Name another striker you could purchase for 3 million pound that would...

I was thinking about something the other day, so I'd like to pose a similar question to yours Neekoy.

If you could pick any striker in the league to be on the end of a great cross, can you think of anyone better than McCarthy in the entire league? The only person that comes close is Drogba, but he does miss a hell of a lot of chances. I'm not suggesting McCarthy is better, Drogba has far more to his game, but in terms of finishing I can't think of anyone better in the league.

[Rover Down Under]

Good to see you are expecting it

I posted this before so I will pose the Q it to you -

Name another striker you could purchase for 3 million pound that would have returned what Benni has OVER THE SEASON

Darren Bent 2.5m, with the same service Benni has had.

I'm not denying Benni's scoring or the fact he was a very economical signing I'm trying to highlight his undeniable weakness - that he switches off after he has scored.

If Alan Shearer had that attitude do you think we would have been Champions 12 years ago (today to be precise)?

Edited May 14, 2007 by Rover Down Under

[cn174]

Darren Bent 2.5m, with the same service Benni has had.

But we wouldn't be able to get Darren Bent for £2.5m though!

[neekoy]

Darren Bent 2.5m, with the same service Benni has had.

I'm not denying Benni's scoring or the fact he was a very economical signing I'm trying to highlight his undeniable weakness - that he switches off after he has scored.

If Alan Shearer had that attitude do you think we would have been Champions 12 years ago (today to be precise)?

The first thing is that Benni is no Shearer, and never will he be.

Secondly you are talking about two completely different era's of Rovers history, we played different, we had a completely different midfield servicing the forward line and we spent millions to win the Premiership.

If we had spent as much in today's money as we did back then, I would have us at least in the top four if not three.

Once again though Benni is not Shearer, and it unfair to compare him so, 31 goals in 35 games will never be repeated by another Rovers player.

EDIT: Granted we could have signed Bent two years ago for 2.5, but certainly not at the same time Benni came on the market

Edited May 14, 2007 by neekoy

[philipl]

Charlton signed Bent for £2.5m rising to £3m from Ipswich some time ago. Pardew is rumoured to have rejected a £7m offer as inadequate this January.

[cletus]

It said on Talksport radio this morning that Benny McCarthy has finished the season as the premiership striker with the best goals per shots ratio.

Edited May 14, 2007 by cletus

[Roost]

Charlton signed Bent for £2.5m rising to £3m from Ipswich some time ago. Pardew is rumoured to have rejected a £7m offer as inadequate this January.

At 2.5 million they were fleeced. Bent is nothing but an average striker. I have seen nothing of his play at Charlton to make me think any different.

If Benni goes, he goes. Lets just make sure that we keep Hughes. As he has proved, he is one of a few managers that can make a player perform beyond his own expectations.

Thanks for a great season Rovers - I have loved every minute.

One Love - BRFC

Edited May 14, 2007 by padihampedro

[LeftWinger]

At 2.5 million they were fleeced. Bent is nothing but an average striker. I have seen nothing of his play at Charlton to make me think any different.

That's crazy talk! 38 goals in 77 starts for the club proves you well and truly wrong. Didn't they turn down 18m in January? They'll get at least 7m for him this summer too! 2.5 million wasted obviously

[Bobby G]

Bent is a good English striker, but very overrated just like most English players are when they burst through the scene.

Kevin Phillips was one, now we have Bent. 18 million you must be joking! They are good but NOT that good and will never make it internationally.