JUST over 18 months ago all Liverpool supporters were eternally grateful that John Henry and Fenway Sports Group recognized the true potential of Liverpool and rescued the club from the clutches of Hick’s & Gillett and imminent administration.
You all know the parallels they saw between the Boston Red Socks and Liverpool and since taking over Boston in 2002 they have won baseballs biggest prize, the World Series, twice, the first time since 1918!
Thankfully Liverpool’s lack of success doesn’t go that far back but their failure to win the Premier League since 1990 sometimes has us feeling that way.
From the outset it was clear that FSG’s commitment was to get Liverpool back to winning ways which in turn would further increase the value of the club they had bought in terms of sponsorship opportunities, merchandise sales, lucrative competitions such as the Champions League and television revenues. The objectives were simple: make Liverpool a dominant force in English and European football once more.
So just how well have the new owners done since October 2010? Let’s start with the financial side of things. FSG paid £300m to purchase Liverpool, effectively clearing the clubs debt. They went on to invest a further £100m+ on new players starting in January 2011. They received £50m from the sale of Torres to offset the cost but the willingness and desire to invest was clear. A heavy commitment in anyone’s book. They’ve also continued to weigh up the options of either developing Anfield or building a new stadium on the edge of Stanley Park. Again another huge financial commitment that Ian Ayre announced this week was close to being finalized. John Henry said doesn’t want to destroy the atmosphere of Anfield so it looks like redeveloping Anfield is the preferred choice. So, on the financial front the verdict has to be they have been first-class owners.
What about FSG’s strategy for the club? Some seem to be arguing that they need to lay out a plan for the club, especially now that the search for a replacement for Kenny has been underway for over a week. The reality is we want them do things the “Liverpool Way” and it seems that’s exactly what they are doing by not talking to the media until they have something positive to announce and going about their business privately and behind closed doors. They are in the process of seeking out some of the top professionals in the business to replace Comolli as Director of Football and have been casting the net far and wide in the search of a new a manager. I’m certain there have been discussions with candidates we know nothing about so isn’t it better to wait on who they select before passing judgement?
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John Barnes, ever the voice of reason is recent months, pointed out that the number of different names linked with the Liverpool mangers job has alarmed some supporters. However, Barnes is urging fans to give FSG time to put together a coherent strategy:
“It’s time to support the owners because they want to return Liverpool to a team that competes for the biggest trophies. It’s not necessary for fans to know the inner workings of any football club because we don’t know the inner workings of any business. I’m sure in the next week or two or three, it will become more apparent how we intend to move forward when a new manager is unveiled. I understand fans’ frustrations but if everyone is giving 100% then you need to be patient.”
FSG want success for Liverpool and they have made their intent clear in the level of money they have invested in the club and the calibre of new managerial candidates they are considering. Have they done a good job so far in the short time they have owned the club? I’ll let you decide but isn’t it a different, better, world that we are now only debating the team and its performance versus the ownership fears we all had only a short time ago.
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Only time will tell what happens. FSG also had to pay out a pile of cash to pay off H&G’s Stanley Park plans. They are doing things ‘the Liverpool Way’ and the press, the bloggers and many fans can’t handle it. Sad to see many of LFC’s past greats stirring the pot and treating the clubs business ‘the Liverpool Way’ so they can justify being paid by their current employers. It’s absolutely insane to see the way so many fans are working themselves into a divisive rage (i.e. the open letter from SoS) over rumors or stories fabricated by a press that is relishing the turmoil they are creating. We’ve seen stories of people turning down jobs they were never offered, of meetings that never took place, and future team plans revealed by people of no more authority than Joe the bin collector. Relax people, FSG are the owners of the Club we love, nothing they have done to this point indicates they aren’t going to do what they have said they’re going to do, restore it to it’s proper glory.
Hear Hear!!
Love it….
Excellent article based on the truth and not gossip. Only thing for me is Ian Ayre didn’t announced this week that the stadium issue was close to being finalized. He said that progress was being made. However more articles like that are most welcome!!
I dont trust them any more especially John Henry,
As I forcast on this and other sites, Martinez will get the job, they had this sorted before they sacked Dalglish, they are packing the club with people who dont even know England never mind English football matters. That said I obviously want them to succeed but if they dont there will be the same impatience shown to them as they showed to Dalglish.
They also recieved the cash from the sale of other players beside Torres.
Why do we need to be patient with the new Manager, they were not patient with the old one?.
With hope in our hearts…
Kenny is a Liverpool legend but you have to see that he was getting it all wrong tactics the press player roles lets see what happen whoever is the next manager will certainly play better football