Managers pay the price

Rafael Benítez believes this week's spate of managerial resignations will become the rule and not the exception of the Premier League as the new breed of wealthy club-owners demand instant returns on their mammoth investments.

The Liverpool manager has come close to losing - and leaving - his post since Tom Hicks and George Gillett took control at Anfield and can identify with the reasons for Alan Curbishley's and Kevin Keegan's departures from West Ham and Newcastle because of his time with Valencia. Unlike Keegan and Curbishley, and in contrast to his time at the Mestalla Stadium, Benítez retains a greater degree of control over transfers at his club, although the Americans' refusal to sanction an £18m deal for Gareth Barry this summer shows there are limits to his authority.

This week's arrival of the Abu Dhabi United Group at Manchester City has placed added pressure on Benítez to qualify for the Champions League at a club that also demands a genuine challenge for the title this season. But, whether to meet financial or tournament targets, Benítez believes the short-term ambitions of the new breed of owner will inevitably lead to a managerial cull.

"If the owners of the clubs keep on spending big, big money, then they will want more and more success. But how many teams can win the title? Just one," said Benítez, whose club will be the next to fall under wealthy Arab control should Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid al-Maktoum of Dubai finally persuade Hicks and Gillett to sell. "So the rest of the teams who spend big money, the owners will realise they haven't won, so it could be more pressure and more problems for everyone. City will start the season under pressure from the first minute, but everyone knows you can't win every game. It will be a problem because four or five teams will spend big money, and only one can win.

"As a manager, you have to analyse things properly, because you aren't a fan. You can't just say what people want to hear. The Premier League is becoming more and more difficult because so many people are spending money. For us to qualify for the Champions League for five years in a row is important for a club of our stature. We want to win trophies, and to win the Premier League would be amazing. But it's not easy."

Dubai's £400m offer for Liverpool remains on the Americans' table. Last week work on a proposed new stadium on Stanley Park was postponed due to the global economic crisis raising doubts over Hicks' and Gillett's ability to refinance their takeover next year.

Benítez also suspects the growing trend for technical directors at English clubs, a system that prompted his departure from Valencia and lay behind Keegan's exit at Newcastle, will also weaken manager's positions. "I have some experience in Spain with this system, and I think the relationship has to be good. That is the key," he said.