Time for The Shed to lay off Benitez

Principles are wonderful things, and you have to admire Chelsea fans for sticking to theirs as they continue to chant Roberto Di Matteo’s name and make Rafa Benitez feel unwelcome in west London; but after their team won so impressively and so convincingly against Aston Villa maybe this is the time to bend them just a little.

Benitez may never be considered popular in the Shed or be loved in the Matthew Harding End where he is still seen as a symbol of Liverpool and of the intense rivalry that existed between the two clubs in the past; but how much evidence does anyone need that the Spaniard is now having a seriously positive effect on his current side and deserves at the very least a chance to work in peace?

There is no doubting that Roberto Di Matteo was harshly treated by owner Roman Abramovich in the way he was sacked just months after winning the Champions League; but pragmatism plays such an important part in modern football that even the highly principled have to learn to bite their lip from time to time.