Tough talk: Liverpool boss Rafael Benitez wants some cash to spendLiverpool chief executive Rick Parry has moved to head off a public row between Rafael Benitez and the club's new American owners, insisting they will back him in the transfer market this summer. A frustrated Benitez told George Gillett and Tom Hicks it was time for the talking to stop and the spending to start following the 2-1 Champions League Final defeat by AC Milan last week. Gillett responded yesterday by expressing doubt that Liverpool will be in a position to challenge Manchester United, Chelsea and Arsenal for the Premiership title next season. But Parry tried to allay fears over Benitez's future at Anfield. "The commitment of the owners is absolutely clear," said Parry. "They are going to provide backing to Rafa - they have made that clear to him this week - so we will be moving forward very positively.
"They think he is a fantastic coach and they want to provide him with the backing." Parry also responded to fresh criticism of the behaviour of Liverpool fans in Athens from UEFA's head of communications, William Gaillard. Parry said: "To have a stadium with no counting system and no turnstiles in this day and age is simply unforgivable. We produced a report for UEFA a week before the Final predicting, sadly, all of the things that did go wrong."
