DANA POINT, Calif. —  Liverpool co-owner George Gillett says he and partner Tom Hicks have some different ideas, the first public indication by Gillett of their split.

"He is a great guy _ but he has just got a different perspective on the media," Gillett said Wednesday at the World Congress of Sports, a gathering of sports executives.

Gillett, who also owns the NHL's Montreal Canadiens, has been trying to sell his 50 percent stake in the English Premier League club, but he hasn't commented publicly on talks with a wealthy Dubai consortium.

A potential deal with Dubai International Capital collapsed Monday after Hicks invoked his power of veto under his year-old partnership arrangement with Gillett.

Hicks vowed to prevent DIC becoming an equal partner and was only willing to allow Gillett to sell 98 of his stake while planning to buy the remaining stock himself.

Responding to a question Wednesday, Gillett said he once had heard good advice, which he repeated: "Choose your partner wisely."

Hicks, who also owns baseball's Texas Rangers and the NHL's Dallas Stars, earlier this week terminated talks with DIC, which wanted the club managed by a committee.

Hicks apparently wants to be assured he will still have an influential role with Liverpool, which reached the quarterfinals of the European Champions League on Tuesday with a victory over Inter Milan. He also said he that he will seek other options for potentially buying Gillett's full stake in the club.

The duo's relationship has broken down since they bought Liverpool for $431 million in March 2007, with Gillett's name absent on January statements announcing plans to build a new stadium and the refinancing of the loan used to buy the club last year.

The vehicle used to acquire the club was Kop Football, a holding company headed by Hicks and Gillett and named after a section of the stands in Anfield.

The stadium has witnessed protests from fans _ frustrated at the turmoil _ against the American owners in recent months.

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