Masche: Benitez ‘took me out of a pit’

Javier Mascherano acknowledged Rafa Benitez’s influence on his career but the two speak less now they’re on opposite sides of the Barcelona-Real Madrid divide.

Benitez and Mascherano were together at Liverpool after the Coach took the Argentina international from an unhappy spell at West Ham.

“He took me out of a pit 20 metres underground and to the top,” Marca reports Mascherano telling Spanish magazine Panenka.

“We can’t keep in touch since we’re not on the same team. He’s a great person and a teaching Coach, and you can learn a lot from him if you really want to.

“Our relationship hasn’t changed but it’s now an uncomfortable situation. I spoke to him last year when he coached Napoli but now it’s logical we speak less because of the circumstances. But I appreciate everything he did.

“Someday I’ll leave Barca or he’ll leave Madrid and everything will be back to normal. We still talk but not with the same regularity.”

Tags Javier Mascherano Liverpool Rafa Benitez
La Liga - Club News