There is a deafening silence from the Liverpool owners on Rafael Benítez’s future, a situation that the manager admitted yesterday he can’t control, but at least he is rid of the spectre of Jürgen Klinsmann, who has agreed to take over as Bayern Munich coach in July.
Rumours had been rife throughout the football community about contact between Liverpool and the German — who is said to have links to George Gillett Jr, one of the club’s co-owners — and there were reports last night that Klinsmann was offered the manager’s job at Anfield before deciding to join Bayern, where he takes over from Ottmar Hitzfeld.
Benítez had been considered by Bayern for that position — as had José Mourinho, the former Chelsea manager — but his preference has always been to stay at Liverpool. However, his long-term future at Anfield looks bleak unless he can somehow repair a damaged relationship with the club’s board.
He must establish a better working relationship not only with the owners, but with Rick Parry, the chief executive, who is to liaise ever more closely with the manager in a revised structure that will result in Gillett and Tom Hicks appointing another senior executive to oversee other projects, most notably the club’s proposed new stadium in Stanley Park.
Despite invitations to do so, Hicks and Gillett have offered nothing approaching a vote of confidence in Benítez since he antagonised them in a damaging dispute over transfer policy. But Benítez, who completed a £6.5 million deal to sign Martin Skrtel, the Slovakia defender, from Zenit St Petersburg yesterday, believes that the only way to win their backing is to keep his head down and win matches, starting away to Middlesbrough this afternoon.
“If I can prepare the team properly for Middlesbrough and Luton [in an FA Cup third-round replay on Tuesday] and we keep winning each week, it will be easier to find an answer to these questions,” he said.
Rumours had been rife throughout the football community about contact between Liverpool and the German — who is said to have links to George Gillett Jr, one of the club’s co-owners — and there were reports last night that Klinsmann was offered the manager’s job at Anfield before deciding to join Bayern, where he takes over from Ottmar Hitzfeld.
Benítez had been considered by Bayern for that position — as had José Mourinho, the former Chelsea manager — but his preference has always been to stay at Liverpool. However, his long-term future at Anfield looks bleak unless he can somehow repair a damaged relationship with the club’s board.
He must establish a better working relationship not only with the owners, but with Rick Parry, the chief executive, who is to liaise ever more closely with the manager in a revised structure that will result in Gillett and Tom Hicks appointing another senior executive to oversee other projects, most notably the club’s proposed new stadium in Stanley Park.
Despite invitations to do so, Hicks and Gillett have offered nothing approaching a vote of confidence in Benítez since he antagonised them in a damaging dispute over transfer policy. But Benítez, who completed a £6.5 million deal to sign Martin Skrtel, the Slovakia defender, from Zenit St Petersburg yesterday, believes that the only way to win their backing is to keep his head down and win matches, starting away to Middlesbrough this afternoon.
“If I can prepare the team properly for Middlesbrough and Luton [in an FA Cup third-round replay on Tuesday] and we keep winning each week, it will be easier to find an answer to these questions,” he said.
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