Liverpool hero John Aldridge has urged Everton not to appoint Rafa Benitez as new manager.

Aldridge wrote for the Sunday World: "Everton are flirting with the idea of appointing ­Rafael Benitez as their new manager, and my advice to them could not be ­ clearer – don't do it.

"The prospect of a former Liverpool manager taking over at Goodison Park will send a shiver down the spine of many Evertonians, and some of my blue nose friends are not happy about it.

"I saw former Everton keeper Neville Southall saying their fans will never accept Benitez as manager and I think he's spot on.

"Rafa will always be a Red and even though he has made Liverpool his home and I'm sure he would love the Everton job, he is not the right fit for them.

"He would stabilise Everton, get them into the top half of the table next ­season and might even get them near a Cup final, but the style of football he promotes and the way he does things is not to everyone's liking.

"When Benitez is running a club, it's his way or the highway and that's not ideal if you are not one of his men."