LONDON — It says much about the new wave of Premier League owners that a hugely popular manager who feels his position is being undermined is considering his future despite continued success, while one jeered by the club's fans seems set to remain in charge.
Rafa Benitez of Liverpool and Chelsea's Avram Grant go head-to-head on Tuesday in the Champions League semifinal, first leg but the buildup to the Anfield showdown has been dominated by board room back-stabbing and dirty laundry being washed in public on the red half of Merseyside.
Under previous regimes Liverpool chairmen and directors rarely spoke. These days, the American co-owners, Tom Hicks and George Gillett, don't talk to each other but they have plenty to say in public, almost perfecting the ignominious art of verbal own goals.