Benitez heaps praise on Grant

When Rafael Benitez and Jose Mourinho were preparing for European battle the last thing you got from either camp was pleasantries.

So Liverpool manager Benitez praising his Chelsea counterpart ahead of a Champions League semi-final is not something you expect.

Such was the animosity between Benitez and then Chelsea boss Jose Mourinho, the multitude of clashes between the clubs in recent seasons were played out to the accompaniment of mind games, barbed insults and posturing.

But this time around, the third occasion in four seasons the English giants have clashed at this stage of the tournament, Benitez has given Chelsea chief Avram Grant his backing in the face of merciless criticism.

The pair clash head on at Anfield on Tuesday in the first leg, with the second showdown at Stamford Bridge on April 30. The prize is a meeting with Barcelona or Manchester United in Moscow on May 21.

By now the atmosphere would have been red-hot between Mourinho and Benitez, their pre-match media exchanges anything but cordial.

But Benitez, given the chance to stick the knife in on Grant, chose to support the under-fire Israeli.

Benitez said: “When you analyse Chelsea’s season then you must agree that Avram Grant has done a good job.

“They were in the final of the Carling Cup, they are in the race for title still and in the Champions League semi-final, so he must be doing a good job.

“He has good players and he is doing his job really well. I understand why he is under pressure, but that is nothing unusual for a top side.

“Everybody wants you to win every game and every trophy. That is not easy, but the statistics show he is doing a good job.”

Whatever happened to the Mourinho showboating or Benitez’s calculated put-downs?

Nobody is expecting anything but a ferocious battle between the sides in the coming weeks, but at least it has started with everyone on good terms, well almost!

Benitez has faced Chelsea 18 times since he arrived in England ahead of the 2004-05 season, Mourinho joining the west Londoners at roughly the same time.

And the clubs have faced each other in the Premier League, Europe, FA Cup, Carling Cup and Community Shield since then.

All but two of these games were with Mourinho in the opposition dug-out. This season’s league draw at Stamford Bridge and Liverpool’s Carling Cup defeat there have been under Grant.

It is remarkable that these two bitter rivals have met so often over four seasons.

The overall record in those 18 games sees eight Chelsea wins and five to Liverpool.

Mourinho always held the upper hand in Premier League exchanges, winning five and losing just one of eight clashes. In domestic cups it was two wins each.

But in the Champions League, and that is what riled Mourinho most, Benitez was superior. Chelsea have won just one such encounter, Liverpool two an there have been three draws.

But the fact is that Chelsea have lost twice in the semi-finals to Liverpool, and that is what really hurts.

There have not been too many goals either between the clubs, just 32 in those 18 games, Chelsea having scored six more than the Anfield men. So nobody is expecting a goal fest this time around.

Benitez decided to rest several stars at Fulham, but skipper Steven Gerrard will be back, no doubt, to lead from the front at Anfield. The fact that he has scored six in 11 ties this term says it all about his influence.

Only Cristiano Ronaldo has scored more goals in this season’s competition.

But Benitez is cagey about the players he uses around Gerrard, and he is prone to surprise decisions. Peter Crouch playing against Arsenal last time around is just one.

And he is intent on keeping his squad on their toes.

He said: “The message for my players who are not in the side regularly is that they must always be ready. They could well be needed for the Champions League.

“I always use the example of Vladimir Smicer. He was not in the team and only on the bench in Istanbul.

“But he was always ready and he came on to score a very important goal in that final with AC Milan.

“The same thing happened for Peter Crouch when he played well and scored at Arsenal in the league. It meant he played against Arsenal in the Champions League later that week.

“He is fit, and yes there is a contract issue. But if he scores goals and plays well then the whole thing will be easier to resolve in the long term.”