Will Torres op prove Rafa's undoing?
It was widely observed soon after Liverpool's 2-0 victory against Manchester United nine days ago that Rafael Benitez is a lucky manager who has a knack of winning crucial games when his job is on the line.
That may have been true in the past, but if this morning's reports that Fernando Torres will require surgery on his hernia problem are correct, then Benitez's luck will surely run out before the end of the season.
It's painfully clear that the structure of the Liverpool squad has left the Spaniard exposed to long-term injuries to the talismanic duo of Torres and Steven Gerrard.
When they are injured - or forced to play half-fit, as Torres did at Craven Cottage last Saturday - then Liverpool look ordinary, and there is no getting away from that fact.
Rafa cannot afford to be without his compatriot Torres for too long. If the lethal striker is sidelined for a number of weeks or months then it won't be too long before Liverpool are searching for another manager: perhaps after Christmas, or perhaps at the end of the season.
Without wanting to labour the point, Liverpool's limitations are particularly apparent since Xabi Alonso departed for Real Madrid in the summer.
Too much mediocrity exists in the Liverpool squad to mount a challenge to United and Chelsea: and if former winger Jermaine Pennant is to be believed, it is Benitez who is making talented players look ordinary with his constant instructions and rigourous system.
And what of Alberto Aquilani? Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger said recently he had tracked the former Roma midfielder for a couple of years before deciding his injury problems were too serious to make him a sound investment.
But Benitez willingly snapped him up in August this year, only to see him ruled out by injury until very recently (and when he was finally fit, he was promptly struck down by a virus). Cue more criticism of Benitez's judgement - criticism that it seems is wholly justified.
Rafa will always be something of a folk hero for countless Liverpool fans after their memorable UEFA Champions League victory in 2004 - but you can't help feeling that the sooner they move on, the better!
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