If Liverpool ever want to regain their place as a genuine force in domestic football they are going to need to replace Rafa Benitez as boss. Fact.

I realise this is a controversial theory and I realise there are many Liverpool fans who will disagree. But I honestly believe he is not the right man for the job.

Yes I know he won the Champions League but it seems to me he will never be able to build a team that is capable of winning the Premiership and, let’s face it, that’s the prize most Liverpool fans want the most.

Yet again his team has made a remarkably uninspiring start to the season and now find themselves 11 points off the pace after just nine games. They have only scored one goal away from home and that was a controversial penalty in the first match of the season.

More worryingly though, he insists on tinkering with the team on a constant basis ­ 97 consecutive games without naming the same side twice ­ and he plays formations which are weird like Sunday’s 4-2-3-1.

On top of that he insists on playing his star player out of position every single game and it can only be a matter of time before Gerrard gets fed up with being messed around on a weekly basis.

By Benitez’s own admission, this year’s team should be better than last year’s with the additions to the squad he has made. But, the simple truth is that it isn’t. And that has to be down to the manager.

On Sunday they looked ineffectual and confused against a Manchester United team that stuck to the formation they know best, with players in positions they like best.

Although he seems more than capable of success in cup competitions, Rafa gives the impression he doesn’t know how to win leagues, that is he is incapable of raising the level of performances week-in, week-out over the long haul.

And that will ultimately prove to be his downfall at Anfield.

Shame on Defoe

I’ve seen a lot of strange things in football over the years, but I have to confess I never thought I would see a professional footballer in the Premier League bite one of his opponents.

There are many different ways to vent your frustration on the pitch: verbal abuse, shirt pulling, hair grabbing, cheeky elbows or even blatant kicking.

But when Defoe was fouled by Mascherano in the Spurs vs West Ham game, the last thing I expected to see was the little striker to crawl over to the Argentinian and sink his teeth into him.

Defoe and his manager insist the whole incident has been blown out of proportion while Mascherano is stunned that his biter got away without a red card.

And the FA, after flicking through the rule book and failing to find a chapter on in-game nibbling misdemeanors, have decided not to take any further action.

So Defoe gets away with the cheekiest foul of the season and Mascherano is left hoping that the Spurs striker has taken all his rabies shots!

Goal celebrations

Over the weekend’s games there were at least three players booked for the manner in which they celebrated scoring ­ Ballack and Schevchenko of Chelsea and Mido of Spurs.

I understand referees have to be careful that players don’t do anything that could cause crowd trouble, like running over to opposing fans and making gestures.

But surely there is no crime being committed when a player runs to celebrate with his own fans. It is just an expression of joy and relief and that can’t be dangerous or inflammatory in the slightest. Yet that is exactly what the Chelsea players were booked for.

Mido’s case was a little different but equally baffling as he was booked for removing his shirt after scoring. I really, really can’t see the problem with that. Okay, it is a little pointless but why book a player for it?

I remember occasions 20 years ago when players who had scored would run and jump into the crowd to celebrate with their own fans. Did that ever lead to riots or pitch invasions? I think not.

Referees are becoming too strict with the lesser incidents in football while some of the bigger ones go completely unpunished.

A redressing of this particular balance is very much needed before players end up being required to put on an overcoat and apologise to opposing fans every time they score a goal.

Cardiff chairman resigns

Cardiff chairman Sam Hamman has resigned after six extremely interesting years in charge of the Welsh team.

On the positive side, he has left the team at the top of the Championship and heading towards possible promotion to the Premier League.

On the negative side it means former Leeds chairman Peter Ridsdale will take over as chairman of Cardiff, which has got to be scary news for the club’s fans considering the mess he left behind in Yorkshire.

However, more than any of that, Hamman’s departure means football has lost one of its most colourful characters.

As chairman of Wimbledon he helped create the famous Crazy Gang and at Cardiff he has been renowned for doing mad things like walking around the edge of the pitch during games to egg on the crowd.

He is also one of the most bizarre quote-masters in football. Here, for example, is how he describes the football Cardiff are playing this season as they have surged to the top of the league.

“Everyone’s very comfortable on the ball and almost all of them are athletic. We play what I call Oorgy football: the other team know they are going to get it, but they don’t know from whom or where from,” he said.

Football needs people like him – they make it that much interesting.

Hopefully Sam will turn up at another club soon to weave his mysterious magic and to continue with his extraordinary quotes.

Contact James on: [email protected]