...with his team accused of lacking "spark" and Rafael Benítez suggesting that Florent Malouda was seduced by money when rejecting Anfield for Stamford Bridge this summer.
Benítez stopped short of accusing Malouda of greed, but the Liverpool manager left little doubt about why he feels that the former Lyons winger moved to London rather than Merseyside last month. Malouda, having indicated that he would join Liverpool, is understood to have phoned Benítez to explain his decision after opting to join Chelsea in a £13.5 million transfer, but Benítez, unimpressed, implied yesterday that he was not prepared to match Chelsea's wage offer for a player whose attitude he had begun to question.
"We try to sign players we think are good enough for us," Benítez said. "Now in modern football it depends on the money. Some players prefer more money and it's something you cannot control. You must only pay the money you can afford and the right money for each player. We can compete with other teams in the market if we want, but we will only pay the right money for the right players.
"Malouda was one of our names, but he decided to go to Chelsea. He knows why. The lifestyle in London? I don't think so. I don't want to say why, but I know the answer."
The comments about Malouda were symptomatic of BenÍtez's willingness to engage in verbal warfare with Mourinho in a way that he has not attempted with his other rivals. A familiar dig, one that he repeated yesterday, is that "Roman Abramovich has done a fantastic job for Chelsea", implying that the billionaire owner is the biggest reason for their success, while Mourinho's claims to have mellowed were treated with disdain.
"He forgets when he starts talking about us and then sometimes he recovers his memory," BenÍtez said. "He was talking about us again in the summer. Maybe he will start thinking about his team now."
Mourinho will not take kindly to BenÍtez's interference because he resents the Spaniard's oft-repeated insinuation that Chelsea have bought success, being at great pains to point out that Liverpool and Manchester United have spent far more than the West London club this summer, with Malouda the club's only signing who cost a fee.
The Portuguese will be equally affronted by the accusation from Javier Mascherano, the Liverpool mid-field player, that Chelsea lack spark. Neither team have hit top form in winning their first two matches this season, but Mascherano believes that Chelsea should be worried before their arrival at Anfield.
"We are playing a lot better than Chelsea at the moment," he said. "I have seen some of Chelsea's games this season and they do not seem to have the same spark as in other years. There is no doubt that Liverpool are the favourites."
Chelsea should put up more of a fight than on their previous visit to Anfield in the league, last January, when their injury-ravaged team surrendered 2-0. Mourinho will welcome back John Terry for his first game of the season after a knee injury and Michael Essien is in contention after a knee problem, but Ricardo Carvalho has been ruled out with a bruised hip.
Claudio Pizarro reacted strongly yesterday to suggestions from Reading that he dived to get Kalifa Cissé sent off in Wednesday's 2-1 win at the Madjeski Stadium. "Did they see the game?" Pizarro said. "Of course he kicked me and if I hadn't pulled my leg away, I'd have broken my leg. I was lucky that I did pull my leg away, but I still have a mark there. Yes, he cut me. You could see that my sock was cut as well."