Rafael Benitez has taken aim at Liverpool's Managing Director Christian Purslow, blaming him for the English Premier League club's woes.
Benitez, now boss at Italian giants Inter Milan, led Liverpool to second position in the 2008/09 season but left the club after a disappointing seventh-place finish last term.
Benitez blames Purslow's appointment in June 2009 for Liverpool's declining fortunes over the past year, and said the sweeping changes he implemented upset everybody at the club.
The 50-year-old Spaniard offered a baffling appraisal of Purslow's influence on the Anfield club, but left no doubt as to how damaging he felt his tenure has been.
"We have a saying in Spanish, which is: 'White liquid in a bottle has to be milk'. What does this mean? It means that after 86 points and finishing second in the league, what changed?" Benitez said.
"The Americans, they chose a new managing director and everything changed. So, what changed?"
"The managing director is involved in all the decisions: new lawyer, new chief of press, new manager, nine new players, new medical staff, new fitness coaches - they changed everything."
"At the beginning, they changed the managing director who was talking with some players, and they changed everything that we were doing in the past."
"So, if you want to ask again what was going on, it's simple: they changed something and, at the end, they changed everything."
Benitez, who won the Champions League with Liverpool in 2005, said he was saddened by their 2-0 defeat against Everton on Sunday - a result which leaves them second from bottom and battling to get out of the relegation zone.
"I prefer not to talk too much about Liverpool," he said.
"I prefer not to talk about this because I feel really sorry for the fans. I was watching the fans and I was really sad after the defeat the other day."
Benitez said his side was looking forward to the Champions League Group A clash with Tottenham at the San Siro, but added they would be wary of the English side's attacking prowess.
"I expect a difficult match against a team that is mentally strong, who push high up the pitch and are good on the counter attack," he said.
"We're going to have to play very well if we want to win."