The End for Rafa? 拉法该下课了吗？

Liverpool’s manager Rafa Benitez is under fire 被批评 again this week following his team’s 3-1 defeat by Fulham.

It was Liverpool’s second loss in a week, having been dumped out of 被踢出局 the League Cup competition by Arsenal on Wednesday.

Liverpool have now lost six games in seven matches in all competitions, and the future of the manager is now under a great deal of scrutiny 仔细观察.

One ex-Liverpool player, Ronnie Whelan, has been quoted 被引用 in the British press as saying Rafa’s "days are numbered".

The phrase days are numbered means that somebody has only a short time to live, but in this case it means that Benitez may soon be facing the sack 解雇.

Whelan went on to criticise Benitez’s judgement and priorities 优先考虑的事情, saying that Rafa is only concerned with winning in the Champions’ League.

"He wants to win the European Cup so he can get a job in Europe," said Whelan.

Whelan said that the team selected by Benitez for the Fulham game demonstrated that his main priority is Europe.

"When I saw the team I thought he's not bothered 不在乎 about this game. He's putting all his eggs in one basket," said Whelan.

To put all your eggs in one basket means to put all your resources into just one possibility of success, and if you lose that one chance, you will lose everything.

However, the Fulham manager Roy Hodgson warned against writing off 排除 Liverpool just yet.

"They [Liverpool] have some very good players and are unlucky at the moment that their talisman 王牌 Steven Gerrard isn't playing and Torres isn't 100% fit and has to be nursed through 逐渐恢复健康 the games," said Hodgson.

Hodgson went on to say that it is still far too early in the season to be able to predict who will win it.

"I remember not so long ago Manchester United were lingering 徘徊 in the middle of the table almost halfway through the season and went on to win it," he said.

Speaking after the match, Benitez himself said that he and his players need to consider where they went wrong and how to improve their performances,

"Today the main thing for me is 'how can you lose control of a game you are controlling everything of in the first half? That is something we have to analyse 分析," said Benitez.