Rafa Benitez does not need a pat on the back for Liverpool’s Champions League mauling of Madrid, but a good, hard shake.
For if ever a result prompted further questions it was The Reds’ 4-0 demolition of Europe’s footballing aristocrats.
The Liverpool manager is undoubtedly a pragmatic man and not one to be swept up in jubilant celebrations when the situation calls for cold, hard calculation.
So while the masses packed into Anfield to witness the destruction of Madrid took the party from the Kop and into the pubs around Liverpool, the Spaniard was hopefully contemplating an intriguing puzzle.
What do Stoke, West Ham, Fulham and Hull have that the mighty Real Madrid lack?
This is not such a facetious question when you consider that Benitez’s side have seen their title challenge effectively disappear with a series of lifeless displays against Premier League also-rans, but managed to pummel one of Europe’s giants to within an inch of their footballing life.
The Liverpool manager has contributed more than his fair share to the annals of the club’s history with some glorious European nights, but Tuesday’s demolition of Madrid was almost worth a chapter in its own right.
It would be all too easy to dismiss the Spanish side as a spent force and question their commitment after Liverpool took the lead.
But let’s put the result in context. This was their greatest ever defeat in this competition and if it were not for the brilliance of keeper Iker Casillas, Liverpool could conceivably have been approaching double figures.
So it is certainly not churlish to wonder out loud how the side that put Madrid to the sword can stumble against sides, some of whom could be plying their trade in The Championship next season.
Liverpool’s principle weapons on Tuesday were the rampant Steven Gerrard and the returning Fernando Torres. On last night’s evidence, Madrid, who struggled to create a chance of note before the tie was dead and buried, can only dream of that sort of firepower.
All too often this season, The Reds have been deprived of their attacking duo and no matter how strong your squad, those two are simply irreplaceable.
But to put Liverpool’s failings in The Premier League down to injury and absence would be to paper over some cavernous cracks.
After all, both Torres and Gerrard were on the pitch when The Reds failed to take maximum points from home games against Stoke and Wigan.
So while it would take a brave man to bet against Benitez reclaiming the Champions League title he won in 2005, last night’s display simply gives rise to more questions about the club’s failings on the domestic scene.
The Reds manager has a clinical approach to his trade that would be the envy of most scientists.
He treats his squad like a machine with many settings that can be manipulated to suit any occasion.
This is not a weakness, as many suggest, but a phenomenal asset. Benitez does not tinker, he crafts a side capable of combating the strengths of opponents.
But the daily grind of The Premier League, perhaps does not require this sort of attention. Benitez’s strengths undoubtedly lie in Europe where his tactical nous comes into his own, but does he have the tools to motivate his players when the enormity of the situation does not do the work for him?
Does he have these bare essentials to get every ounce out of every player when lesser sides arrive at Anfield?
Nobody should undermine Benitez’s achievements and those few Liverpool fans who habitually call for his head for failing to deliver on the domestic scene would do well to remember where they were before he arrived. There were no glorious Champions League victories under Gerard Houllier.
But if the Liverpool manager has aspirations of claiming the trophy he craves, he would do well to ask himself what Stoke, West Ham, Fulham and Hull have that the mighty Real Madrid do not? Because the answer holds the key to Liverpool celebrating their first league title in nearly 20 years.