George Gillett today admitted his relationship with Liverpool co-owner Tom Hicks has been “unworkable for some time” in a revealing interview in which the Canadian businessman details the deterioration of his partnership with Texan Hicks.

Gillett, who is expected to sell his 50% stake in the club as soon as a suitable buyer is found, had not made a public statement on the takeover turmoil at Anfield since the controversial financial repackaging of the loans he and Hicks took out to buy the club last year. Gillett had initially wanted to buy the club on his own, but brought in Hicks’ financial muscle when he failed to raise the capital alone.

His son Foster, a board member, was withdrawn from the day-to-day operations at Anfield as Gillett prepared to sell his stake to Dubai International Capital, but Hicks has blocked the sale, terminating talks with the UAE-based sports empire who competed with the pair in the original sale.

Gillett told Canadian radio station Fan590 today: “This partnership has been unworkable for some time, but not because of us. We have tried to be co-operative, we have tried to be supportive but when your public persona is more important than the facts, that makes it difficult to have a rational relationship.”

Explaining that he had been willing to sell his 50% stake in the club to Hicks, but that the Texan billionaire had stalled, Gillett added: “We were very fair. We gave our partner a long period of time to try to make arrangements to buy us out. We didn’t put pressure on him but he ultimately did not get to the finish line. In the meantime, because of the things he said, the fans’ reaction has been so negative towards him - and towards us if we sold to him - it has now made that an untenable alternative for us.

“He threatened to block me selling to Dubai [International Capital] - that was certainly one of the things that made the fans upset. Lord knows DIC have the money; with oil prices going up every day, that’s not an issue. They certainly have the history and they are fans. I think they would have been very responsible owners. But making that not possible or difficult didn’t endear people to the fans.

“We get as many as 2,000 emails a week,” said Gillett of the fan uproar that has been swelling since Hicks let known they had met with Jurgen Klinnsman as a possible replacement for manager Rafa Benitez. “Ninety five per cent of them have been directed at some of the comments made by my partner. And five per cent aimed at both of us: ‘Go Home Americans!’

“The thing that angers fans the most is the prospect I might sell even one share of my stock to my partner. They do not want him to have any controlling interest in this club - they do not even want him to have any ownership in the club. As a result of that - and it’s been very difficult for my wife with the amount that I travel - we receive many phone calls in the middle of the night threatening our lives - death threats.

“A number came to the office and my son Foster and daughter-in-law Lauren have received them. It’s interesting the calls are not against my wife or myself or my son or my daughter in law, as much as they are against us selling to our partner. So we are rethinking that. Frankly I don’t think it’s fair for me to put my family in that kind of danger. So instead of thinking about selling I might think about buying.

“There are things going on - there are pieces on the chess board moving but it would not be helpful for us to comment. What I know is that the fans and the great fabled history of this club deserves better - and we are going to do whatever we can to prove that in whatever role we play.”