Where are they now? The final Liverpool XI of the Rafa Benitez era

He brought more success to Anfield than most. Guiding the Reds to Champions League and FA Cup glory earned Rafa Benitez his place in Liverpool history and no matter his subsequent career choices, that is where he will stay. 

Appointed in the summer of 2004 as Gerard Houllier’s replacement, success was instant and stunning for Benitez. His first season ended in that Istanbul comeback and his second culminated in that FA Cup triumph.

Another Champions League final followed in 2007 but three years later it all came to an end for the Spaniard, sacked by the club in the summer of 2010 after a disappointing 0-0 draw with Hull City rounded off his final campaign. But where are the players who started that match now?

GK: Pepe Reina 

Reina left Liverpool with 396 appearances to name and the fourth-most Premier League caps of any Spaniard.

Now in his fifth decade, Reina is not officially retired but his courting of far-right political parties and appearance as a giant penguin on the Spanish version of The Masked Singer point towards somebody winding down.

But he’s still turning out for Villarreal at the age of 40. Maybe he’ll do a Buffon and just keep going forever.

RB: Daniel Agger

The tattooed titan became a Liverpool icon during his eight years with the club.

As well as helping to run a sewage company alongside his brother, uncle and best friend, Agger has also delved into the world of football management after retirement, taking over at HB Koge in the Danish second tier in March 2021.

He was even registered as a player in August 2021, hinting at a possible return to the pitch, which unfortunately never came to fruition. He remains at the helm of HB Koge, though.

CB: Jamie Carragher 

Carragher has followed his 17-year spell at Liverpool by arguing with Gary Neville every Monday night. And he’s absolutely brilliant at it, to be fair.

🗣 "He said Man United were going to win the league before Liverpool, top pundit"@Carra23 on Gary Neville's prediction 🤣 pic.twitter.com/qd3XZVDgRo

— Football Daily (@footballdaily) June 25, 2020

CB: Sotiris Kyrgiakos 

Kyrgiakos’s first season on the red half of Merseyside coincided with Rafa’s last.

The Greek defender’s time can be summed up by wild inconsistency. One colossal defensive effort would be followed by a hideous tackle – see the six-month injury inflicted on Marouane Fellaini in February 2010.

He retired in 2014 after his final spell with Sydney Olympic and keeps a low profile these days although his Instagram shows a bloke soaking up his retirement in Greece and just having a great time. More power to him.

LB: Javier Mascherano 

A perfect enforcer in Liverpool’s midfield for three years, Mascherano became a huge fan favourite for his no-nonsense on-field persona – not least for his stunning outburst at Old Trafford in 2008 when he was sent off for protesting a Peter Crouch yellow card.

He retired in 2020. In January 2021, Mascherano took over as coach of Argentina’s Under-20s and has backed plans for a biannual World Cup. Be quiet, Javier.

CM: Lucas Leiva 

Lucas arrived at Liverpool as a 20-year-old from Gremio in 2007 and left 10 years later as an unlikely club hero.

The midfielder went on to forge similar cult hero status at Lazio before returning to Gremio last year, but a heart condition forced him into retirement in March. Still, he was 36 – very solid innings.

READ: Seven reasons why Lucas will always be loved by Liverpool fans and players

CM: Alberto Aquilani 

Nowadays, you can’t scroll through Twitter without seeing a club being torn apart for making a terrible signing. Aquilani was at the forefront of the art form after his £17million move to Anfield from Roma in 2009.

He spent just one season in Liverpool’s first team before returning to Italy. The midfielder announced his retirement from the game in 2019 and nowadays he’s the coach of Fiorentina’s under-19 squad, even winning the Coppa Italia Primavera in the summer of 2020.

AM: Steven Gerrard

A legend on the pitch and perhaps on his way to the same status off it. In just his second season as manager of Rangers, Gerrard won the SPL title, blocking Celtic from getting their 10th in a row.

He’s now an ex-Premier League manager following a largely miserable stint in charge of Aston Villa. His chances of getting the Liverpool job have faded away after an underwhelming 12 months at Villa Park.

RW: Ryan Babel 

A man who provided phenomenal entertainment both on and off the pitch. Babel scored excellent goals and caused chaos on social media, most famously photoshopping Howard Webb into a Manchester United kit and claiming a £10,000 fine in the process.

The forward is still playing at the ripe old age of 35, Yorkshire Turkish club Eyupspor being his current benefactors.

LW: Nabil El Zhar 

Remember El Zhar? No? Nor us, in all honesty.

But apparently, he spent five years at Anfield between 2006 and 2011 but appeared just 21 times in the Premier League. Last year the forward joined Qatari outfit Muaither SC.

ST: Dirk Kuyt 

After retiring in 2017, Kuyt has since offered to be Steven Gerrard’s assistant manager at Anfield. What a fitting role that would be for a man so beloved at Anfield.

In 2021 he quit as Feyenoord’s academy coach to “continue his path elsewhere” but only lasted 17 matches as head coach of ADO Den Haag.

READ: Dirk Kuyt, Liverpool’s big-game hero and embodiment of the Benitez era

READ MORE: Revisiting Rafa Benitez’s first 10 signings as Liverpool manager

TRY A QUIZ: Can you name Rafa Benitez’s 30 most-used players at Liverpool?