Richard Keys has questioned Rafa Benitez's "decency and integrity" in a scathing verdict on the Spaniard's disastrous spell with Everton.
Benitez, 61, was sacked as Toffees manager on Sunday after a torrid six-and-a-half month stint which leaves the club 16th in the Premier League table.
The former Liverpool, Chelsea and Real Madrid boss was never a popular appointment due to his iconic status across Stanley Park at Anfield, where he spent six years and clinched the Champions League and FA Cup.
Benitez never came close to winning over Everton fans and owner Farhad Moshiri hopes priority managerial target Roberto Martinez will be able to steady the ship.
Keys, like many onlookers, is adamant Benitez's appointment was doomed from the outset and claims the club are fortunate to have dismissed him to stop the rot.
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The beIN Sports presenter wrote on his blog : "What was there about the eventual, inevitable, predictable outcome that Farhad Moshiri wasn’t warned about - or didn’t expect?
"What he should be grateful for is that it came to a head quickly enough for limited damage to have been caused to the club - just as it did at Real Madrid, Inter and Chelsea."
Keys has railed against Benitez on multiple occasions in the past and declared the appointment will "end in tears" shortly after he was unveiled.
The 64-year-old doubled down on this stance in another blog post in November after Everton were defeated 1-0 by Premier League new boys Brentford.
In his fresh attack on Benitez, Keys accused the ex- Newcastle manager of lacking morals by taking the job in the first place while also refusing to walk away from Everton in order to earn a lucrative payout, given he signed a three-year deal with the club.
"I’m not going to make this personal," Keys added. "The above statement is a ‘fact’. So is this - Rafa Benitez should never, ever have been anywhere near the manager’s job at Everton.
"If he had an ounce of decency or integrity he’d have felt that way himself and turned Moshiri’s offer down in the summer - not wanting to tarnish his reputation at Anfield.
"I’m told he wasn’t going to walk - that he wanted his money before he left Goodison. Ok. He was contractually due - but morally?"
Elsewhere, Keys endorsed Everton's pursuit of Belgium boss Martinez while also throwing David Moyes' name into the hat as the Scot - another former Toffees boss - continues to impress in the West Ham dugout.
