Rafa Benitez has explained what he meant when he referred to Everton as a "small club" - and the Spaniard has also admitted he is open to a return to the city and wouldn't rule out working at Goodison Park in the future.
Benitez was a guest on Sky Sports' Monday Night Football alongside his former Reds defender Jamie Carragher.
Speaking on the show, the ex-Liverpool boss explained he wants to return to England eventually with his family currently based on Merseyside.
Carragher asked Benitez whether the role of Everton manager would interest him or whether it would be a problem, having managed the Blues bitter rivals Liverpool.
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The 59-year-old said: "Obviously I have connections to Liverpool but at the same time, we are involved in the city, we have a lot of friends in the city, so we don’t have problems with the fans or the city.
"Obviously we are closer to Liverpool but I am a professional so in the future, you never know. I want to stay in England, I want to stay close to my family."
In 2007, following a goalless draw in the Merseyside derby at Anfield, Benitez hit out at David Moyes' Everton branding them a "small club".
Speaking at the time, he said: "I was really disappointed because one team wanted to win the game and one team didn't want to lose it.
"Everton put eight or nine men behind the ball and defended deep but that's what small clubs do.
"When a team comes to Anfield and only want a point what else can you call them but a small club?"
Benitez has now admitted the comment was a mistake that was misinterpreted.
"I made a mistake when I said it was a small club," the Madrid-born coach told. "What I wanted to say was they are a small team because in this game I remember they had one chance.
"Liverpool fans they were happy and the Evertonians were upset. But I didn't want to say they were a small club I wanted to say they were a small team.
"Some Evertonians they come to me and say about what I did for the city, we have the charity, and all these things, so I have a very good connection with the city, not just the Liverpool fans. At the moment, I cannot come back to the Premier League because I am happy in China and it’s a big project.
"We have a new training ground with 14 pitches, it’s a great project. In the future you never know because I'm a professional. I love Liverpool, I love Liverpool fans, but at the same time I want to do my passion, which is to get a job and continue working."
After parting ways with Newcastle United in the summer, Benitez became manager of Chinese outfit Dalian Yifang.
