Reds: Rafa rejected Real
14 Jan 2007 - 12:36:29
Liverpool chief executive Rick Parry has revealed that manager Rafael Benitez turned down the advances of Real Madrid to remain at Anfield in the summer.
The Spaniard - who represented the club as a player and was briefly assistant to coach Vicente Del Bosque - was earmarked by Real president Ramon Calderon as the man to boost the Bernabeu club's flagging fortunes.
But Parry has revealed Benitez turned down the chance to return to Spain out of loyalty to Liverpool.
"In the summer, Rafa rejected the chance to move to Real, which was a big, big temptation for him," Parry told BBC Five Live.
"It was all pretty serious. Real is his club, he was there as a player and as a coach too and it would always be an opportunity he would have to consider.
"But he enjoys being at Liverpool and he believed in the direction we are taking and he is passionate about that too."
Meanwhile, Parry has also revealed that the Reds are hoping to make moves into the transfer market during the January window in a bid to to boost the squad.
He added: "You have to have priorities and ours are to invest in the first team, which we have done with substantial sums in the past three years.
"We may sign players before the transfer widow shuts. We are working hard on a few things at the moment and we will reveal everything once it is all sorted out."