Benitez never asked for complete control

Liverpool manager has denied control rumours during negotiations over a new contract at Anfield: “Anyone that has just a year left on his contract does not have anything at all and I have only got a year and a half left”.

Benitez told The Guardian: “When people, either within the club or from outside it, realise that the manager only has that much time left then he is dead.I’ve got ten or 12 assistants whose contracts are up in June. How can a manager lead a project properly if the continuity of his staff is not secure for two or three years? I would like to clear one thing up – I never asked for complete control”.