It's 50 years to te day that Bill Shankly began his tenure at Anfield, and if anyone takes a minute to compare Liverpool's legendary manager to their current boss, it makes for a depressing assessment. One such damning comparison comes from Rory Smith in the Telegraph who splits up his article concisely into Rafaelites and Anti-Rafaelites - examining the Spaniards lovers and haters in the boadroom, dressing room and on the terraces.

"Their faith tested, their belief exposed and their dogma unravelled, Liverpool’s owners, directors, staff, players and fans find themselves for the first time in more than two years united as one, driven on to their knees in prayer.

“It is going to be a grind between now and May,” said Jamie Carragher, epitome of the concrete certainty imbued in the club over five years by manager Rafael Benítez and shattered in less than five weeks, “but we have got to stick together, get through it and, as I’m doing, pray to God that at the end of the season there will be something worthwhile for what we’ve gone through.”

Even the almighty, though, might shy away from trying to unify the fractured, battered and bruised morass at Anfield. From boardroom to stands, from dressing room to directors’ box, few managers in football divide opinion as completely as Benítez.

There are those who would back the mastermind behind the miracle of Istanbul to the hilt, the Rafaelites, and those who see the studious, perfectionist, wilful enigma as myth, a man who has never truly adapted his style to the peculiar demands of the English game in pursuit of the holiest of grails which has eluded Liverpool for 20 long years."

Elsewhere, Aston Villa's victory at Old Trafford on Saturday was another example of how unpredictable the Premier League has been this year and cemented their place as number one contenders to replace Liverpool in the top four. Unpredictability will never deter the press from making predictions and Kevin McCarra in the Guardian has stuck his neck on the line (or just chosen the form team really) and picked Martin O'Neill's side as the top contenders for the fourth place spot and elusive Champions League place.

"A vacancy has been advertised. It is to be found in every newspaper and website that carries the Premier League table. Applications are invited for the fourth of the Champions League berths. Liverpool are seeking simply an extension to their involvement, but Rafael Benítez's case has to be treated sceptically. His voice is faint, too, because it has to carry from seventh place in the table, where his team currently resides. The Spaniard's argument is not all that persuasive.

The real rising force is Aston Villa. That ascent owes much to the fact that Martin O'Neill has been at work there since 2006. Over that period, he has been constantly attempting to upgrade the squad with the significant sums provided by the owner Randy Lerner. The defence has been largely recast of late and the centre-back Richard Dunne, bought from an unappreciative Manchester City for £5m, was at the core of Villa's 1-0 victory at Old Trafford on Saturday."