It is in these moments that the firing squad is summoned. When something goes wrong for Fenway Sports Group or when they feel aggrieved, someone always pays.
Miss out on qualification for the Champions League? Marching orders for Kenny Dalglish and Brendan Rodgers. Expensive signings not working? Jettison Damian Comolli. Up roar over plans to introduce £77 tickets to Anfield? Accelerate the departure of Chief Executive Ian Ayre.
Receive flak for taking advantage of the furlough scheme? Don't renew the contract of Ayre's successor Peter Moore. FSG have possessed a ruthless streak, a statement to which other former employees at the club would attest.
Many will wonder what this means for Billy Hogan, Liverpool's current Chief Executive, but to hold him accountable for the mess around the European Super League but would be a travesty. No. This time there is nobody else to sack. This one is on John W Henry.
He did, at least, acknowledge the gross errors of his ways on Wednesday. In a video lasting a little more than two minutes, Henry sought to address the wound he inflicted on supporters. He did his best to appear contrite but this was the equivalent of taking a fire extinguisher to a bush fire.
'I hope you'll understand that even when we make mistakes, we're trying to work in your club's best interests,' he said. 'In this endeavour I've let you down. I alone am responsible for the unnecessary negativity brought forward over the past couple of days. It's something I won't forget.'
It's not something Liverpool fans will forget either. A walk around Anfield on Wednesday morning showed as much. In flags draped along the railings of the Paisley Gates behind The Kop, the messaging gave notice to the depth of feeling.
'Our club, our history… enough is enough! FSG Out!' one read; 'Our game ruined by greed,' screamed another. There were quotes from Bill Shankly etched onto pieces of cardboard, messages imploring FSG to listen to Jurgen Klopp.
The irony about this situation for Henry is that he finds himself standing firmly in the spotlight. He is not a man who enjoys being front and centre and a little story about when FSG bought the club for £293million will give you an idea.
It was Saturday, October 16, 2010. The local national newspaper reporters had been summoned to Anfield and were told to wait in the old Director's lounge. An audience with Henry and Tom Werner – the men at the front of what was then New England Sports Ventures – had been arranged.
As we waited, eyes fixed on the door that led out to the main reception, almost unnoticed another door at the side of the room opened. From there, Henry emerged with no fuss or fanfare. That's exactly how he likes it. He'd prefer to be on the sidelines, away from all the attention.
To stand next to Henry, you would mistake him for a University academic. He's never been involved at Liverpool to show off or have his ego massaged. He has been involved in some brilliant things (Klopp's appointment, the renovation of the Main Stand) but he's also been in for the bottom line.
FSG are venture capitalists. For Henry, for Werner and for Mike Gordon, who is responsible for the day-to-day running of Liverpool and works closely with Klopp, economics are always front and centre and the pandemic has cost the club more than £120million in lost revenue.
It is why FSG sold a 10 per cent stake in their company to RedBird Capital for £543million earlier this month, a move that was designed to help them consolidate. Speculation suggests Gerry Cardinale, the US tycoon behind RedBird, will one day have a leading role to play at Anfield.
Will it be at Henry's expense? Nobody knows. What is certain, however, is the firing squad can stand at ease. The man culpable for this shambles is the man who usually gives the order to fire.