Alan YSB Hansen
“There’s no doubting the fact we’ll begin 2009-10 with a better chance of winning the league than at any time in recent history,” Hansen said. “During the last few months of 2008-09 we started to hammer home our authority against the lesser sides and the team has proved they are capable of going on great runs and scoring a lot of goals. It’s just getting the knack of knowing how to win the Premier League now because there is certainly a way of winning it. Manchester United have proved they’ve got that knack and now Liverpool have got to prove we’ve got it too. Liverpool have got the big things in place to do that; it’s now just taking care of the small things that you also need to win a championship. What a message it would send out to everybody if, the year after they’ve finally made it 18-18, we respond by going ahead of them again. Get things right this summer and I believe Rafa Benitez’s Liverpool can do exactly that.”
Then the news hits that Liverpool have made a pre-tax loss of £42.6 million, with its net debt rising to £299.5 million, as well as paying £36.5 million in interest last year alone. Liverpool’s owners have until July 24 to refinance their credit deals and are trying to secure at least another six-month extension, which would give them breathing space. There is an acceptance within Anfield that the club are not generating enough money to cover the interest payments of Kop Football Ltd, the club’s holding company, which means their new stadium, which saw pre-construction work halted indefinitely last September, is even less likely to happen.
Mark YSB Lawrenson
“One or two of the top clubs are already doing the business, and buying players,” Lawrenson said. “If Liverpool have to wait they’re already going to be behind the likes of Manchester United and Chelsea. If Manchester United, Arsenal, Chelsea or Manchester City are after the same players as Liverpool it’s going to be extremely difficult,” said Lawrenson. We’re already hearing that Chelsea have a new manager and Abramovich might bankroll Ancelotti with money to spend, Manchester United will be buying players, Arsenal will also be in the market and Man City will be busier than anyone. The great problem is that it looks at the moment as if Liverpool are going to have to sell quite a few players just to get the two or three very high profile match-winners in.”
Man Utd News 24/7
wanker
“Liverpool have got the big things in place to do that; it’s now just taking care of the small things that you also need to win a championship.”
Small things? Like a competant manager and a strong first XI that doesn’t rely on two players…
deluded morons
Let them chase the dream – spend big, no growth, big crumble!
They’ll be playing Leeds in the Blue Sq in 5 years time!
you can’t buy class, I’m not a bindipper or a manc, but look at the number of games Torres and Gerrard have actually played together, then talk. Thats definately not a 2-man team. They convincingly beat you 2-1 at Anfield with Torres and Gerrard both out, or at least one of them.
Although I am hoping that we(Arsenal) are the ones challenging you lot. Dippers had their joy for the season, coming 2nd. They can’t ask for more.
This is interesting!
http://transferleague.co.uk/
pat, the game at anfield i think can be put down to our defence having a collective shocker, as they were the only 2 decent chances they had on goal in the whole game if i remember correctly?!
and i completely agree with you, i hope you do challenge us for the title next year, as the title should be about the two best footballing teams battling it out for honours. i just hope that wenger is being his stubborn old self in the transfer market!
Scott, Talking about debt though, our situation is far worse. We’ve recorded record operating profit but the debt continues to rise and there’s no visibility into when/how it’ll be paid, if ever. With GBP taking a pounding in the market, it makes it worse. It’s not at the forefront of issues at the moment but I wouldn’t be surprised if/when it does. It’s been a good 3 years, thanks to the success on the field. What happens if we go trophyless for a couple of years and the TV revenues go down? The level of interest payments that we have to make makes the thought of that scenario scary.
Pat – Fulham beat us too, so what? How well a team does against United shouldn’t be a measure of how good they area, although that generally seems to be the marker for most fans. I guess we should take it as a compliment.
@Pat
You made a £33 million profit last year so why has’nt Wenger bought players? Because he’s stuborn.
You may have spent less money on transfers but you pay as much as us in wages.
Your fans and shareolders were right to have a go at Wenger.
Liverpool is in no shape whatsoever to try and match it with the likes of Chelsea and Manchester City, let alone United. Liverpool’s biggest problem, aside from its over-reliance on the Gerrard-Torres partnership, is its lack of overall quality and squad depth, which Rafa himself acknowedged was an issue that had to be dealt with if Liverpool are to mount a serious challenge to United. Yet how can they, when they’re so financially hamstrung that they have to ponder selling some of the squad (Alonso’s name keeps popping up as one example) in order to help finance some much needed purchases. Depth is what the team needs, yet they look like they’ll have to gut it further in order to bring in one or two reasonable players. Where does that then leave them – worse off then last year?
I’ve said all along that Liverpool overreached this year and should have been able to take the championship given how much help they were given not only by the refs, but by the number of handicaps put in United’s way – horrible schedule to the first half of the EPL season, two ridiculous tournaments to set them back, drain the players, and give the other teams a 4 – 5 game leg up, late-season catch up games in midweek that sapped the players of energy, season-long injuries to key players like Hargreaves and Brown, Ronaldo having to find form, fitness, and rhythm again after his ankle operation, Roony missing a number of games again due to injuries – on and on it went, yet United still won by four points. And all Rafa could do was look through his blinkers and moan of what might have been had Gerrard and Torres been able to play a few more games together!
As Arsenal did this year, Liverpool will back next season and will be lucky to make it into the top four. I said that even before news of the club’s financial woes came to light. With so little money, apparently, to spend, Rafa may well find his team vying with the likes of Tottenham, Aston Villa, and Everton just to try and get a UEFA cup spot next year.
you`ll never walk a loan…
@pat
convincingly at anfield? an own goal and a babel bobble? get over it! first time they beat us in ages and ppl suddenly develop memory loss!
“you`ll never walk a loan…” good one…
“What happens if we go trophyless for a couple of years and the TV revenues go down? The level of interest payments that we have to make makes the thought of that scenario scary.”
That’ll be the time for the Glazers to sell. Unlike the owners at Anfield, the Glazers won’t have any trouble selling UTD AND they’ll make a handsome profit. The AON deal indicates how highly UTD is regarded in the business world – ‘Pool and the rest are simply not in the race. Liverpool’s biggest problem is not the high level of debt, or the interest being paid, it’s that no one wants to buy the club at the sale price being mentioned. Once the owners put a realistic price on the club, then the club’s troubles will be over.
I revel in Liverpools financial meltdown.I’m not so stupid as to think our debt isn’t enormous but our is more serviceable due to our stadium capacity and,I hate to use the word,marketability.
I was checking out thier message boards today and they are already talking about getting docked 10 points and being kicked out of europe…
Oh happy days,oh happy days…..
we should help the dippers out buy buying Alonso for 09/10… or maybe we should just wait for the bankruptcy sale.
I’ll take Gerrard of their hands!