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Outside of Manchester, most genuine fans have considerable respect for Liverpool Football Club. But the club has been going through a troubled period off the pitch which, whatever anyone says to the contrary, can have implications for what happens on the pitch. It's difficult to make sense of what is an increasingly tangled story so I have decided to divide it into three parts: (1) Last week's fractious annual meeting and its aftermath; (2) Who is bidding for the club and (3) The question of a ground share with rivals Everton.
PART 1: FINANCES
Liverpool made record losses of £21.9m in the financial year ending 31 July 2004. This was largely due to their failure to qualify for last season's Champions League and the cost of terminating the contracts of former manager Gérard Houlier and several players. Much of the hostility was directed at chairman David Moores for the way in which he is seen to have frustrated the efforts of Steve Morgan, the third largest shareholder, in his efforts to increase his stake in the club. Indeed, it was Morgan's second wife, Didy, who stole the show at the annual meeting with an emotional appeal to the board. Morgan promised the meeting that they 'could have the money in the bank by Christmas', allowing manager Rafa Benitez to invest in new signings in the transfer window. Chairman David Moores cut a somewhat despairing figure, declaring that he would considering resignation after an 'unbearable' year. Indeed, at one point, Moores seemed on the brink of resignation at the meeting itself, stopped only by a dig in the ribs by one of his fellow directors. The club subsequently rallied round Moores, captain Steven Gerrad saying that he was 'one of the main reasons' why he had spurned the advances of Chelsea in the summmer. What really stopped Morgan in his tracks, however, was the news that there was another offer on the table apart from his. So where has this alternative offer come from?
PART 2 - THE MYSTERY OFFER
The club has denied that the new offer is connected to either the L4 group or the Kraft family, owners of the Superbowl champions New England Patriots and the New England Revolution soccer franchise. As it so happens, Revolution are currently coached by Steve Nicol, a former Liverpool player. L4 is the consortium put together by two US-based entertainment executives who have roots on Merseyside. One possibility would be that L4 and the Kraft family have come together in some way. Mike Jefferies, one of the men behind L4, made a somewhat opaque statement in which he said that 'We are working with Keith Harris of Seymour Pierce. He is conducting discussions with Liverpool through Hawkpoint. I can confirm L4 group exists with the purpose being to conduct ongoing discussions with the owners of Liverpool Footbal Club. There are a number of different constituent elements, both individuals and entities, that we believe all have a direct connection with the culture and heritage of the club, as well as the experience, resources and appetite to get the club back to where we believe it deserves to be.' He would not disclose the identities of those involved, but it would be reasonable to assume that they are residents of the United States.
PART 3 - THE GROUND SHARE
One of the reasons why Liverpool needs new investment is the cost of the 60,000 capacity Stanley Park stadium that has now risen to £115m (and will probably rise again before it is built). The government would like a ground share with Everton. Last week, sports minister Richard Caborn hosted a meeting in London attended by Rick Parry, Liverpool's chief executive; Bill Kenwright, Everton's chairman; Sir David Henshaw, chief executive of Liverpool City Council; and Bryan Gray, chairman of the North West Development Agency. If the two clubs agreed to share, £30m of public money could be made available to help with the cost of construction. Ground sharing between rival clubs is not unknown in Europe, not least in Milan. Everton's management have always been better disposed to the idea than Liverpool. However, while it may appear to be a 'rational' solution from a government perspective, ground sharing has very little appeal to football fans, especially the passionate fans of Merseyside. However, if work sarts on the stadium and it runs into financial problems, don't rule it out as an eventual possibility, even though it would ruin the atmosphere at Liverpool derbies.
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