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roger bennett ‏@rogbennett 41m
Tom Werner on transfer window “We haven’t shut the window. We will all know more shortly,” points to iPhone, "I’m waiting for this to ring”

         

Getting boring at this stage

Andy Hunter
The Guardian, Tuesday 10 September 2013 22.30 BST

Liverpool's principal owner, John W Henry, has said the finances are there to redevelop Anfield
Liverpool's principal owner, John W Henry, has said the finance is there for Fenway Sports Group to redevelop Anfield. Photograph: Tom Jenkins for the Guardian.

John W Henry, Liverpool's principal owner, has said there will be no repeat of the stalled stadium projects of Tom Hicks and George Gillett because Fenway Sports Group has the financial backing to redevelop Anfield.

Liverpool announced last October that plans for a new stadium on Stanley Park had been scrapped in favour of refurbishing the club's historic home into a 60,000-capacity stadium, costing approximately £154m. Henry insists "good progress" has been made by Liverpool city council in purchasing the few remaining privately owned properties around Anfield, although a planning application will be submitted only once those deals are complete.

Tom Werner, the Liverpool chairman, held further talks with council officials during a visit to Merseyside last week and the club hope a breakthrough is close in the long-running, controversial stadium saga. FSG's predecessors, Hicks and Gillett, prolonged the delay during their near-ruinous tenure by scrapping stadium designs and then failing to secure funding for their preferred project. But Henry insists the finances are in place for FSG to redevelop Anfield, believed to be via the club's own banking facilities, and there will be no detrimental effect on Brendan Rodgers's transfer budget once work begins.

Henry said: "They [Hicks and Gillett] were talking about going out and borrowing an enormous amount of money for an enormous facility. That's not what we are doing here. One of their problems is that they weren't able to get financing.

"When this [project] happens, that won't be the problem. We just need certainty with regard to these properties. The number of properties is being reduced. The city council is doing everything they can and that's all we can ask. Not just the city council but Your Housing [a social housing developer] and everyone associated with this are all on the same page. The regeneration as well; we're all on the same page."

No plans have been unveiled for the refurbished Anfield, although it is understood to involve a new main stand and Anfield Road end being built behind the existing structures to minimise the impact on revenue. Asked if the work would have an effect on team rebuilding, Henry responded: "No, because it will pay for itself. It's actually a positive. It's one of the reasons we are doing it. It still provides excess cash. This is the direction that makes financial sense for the club in the long term." Liverpool initially hoped to apply for planning permission this spring but a handful of home owners have not agreed a deal with the city council and Your Housing.

"That's why we are where we are," confirmed Henry. Compulsory purchase orders remain an option, should the impasse continue, but legal disputes would add to the stadium delay and FSG want a resolution soon.

"We are making good progress," added Henry. "We have a lot of different groups working very well together and having everybody on the same page is the key to a big project like this happening and pretty much everyone is on the same page. The obstacles are not completely out of the way but we seem to be moving in that direction. The obstacles are being overcome. We don't have all the houses but we are making progress."

Liverpool's principal owner insisted he could not place a timeframe on a planning application for Anfield. He said: "We've always said you have to have certainty with regards to the properties because of the height of the stands and all the issues regarding that. That has been the biggest issue. We need certainty on that."

Nowhere closer so

Tom Werner exclusive interview: Liverpool's chairman on Suarez, Rodgers, the ghosts of Anfield.. and Danny DeVito

Mirror chief sports writer Oliver Holt visits the Reds' co-owner in Boston to discuss their three years in charge, and the future

Liverpool chairman Tom Werner knows a decent soap opera when he sees one.

When he was a television *executive, he was behind one of the best programmes ever made.

As he sat in his private box at Fenway Park - home of baseball's Boston Red Sox - this week, Werner smiled about making the pilot episode of hit 1980s sitcom Taxi.

It launched the career of Danny DeVito, from behind a raised, caged office as a dispatcher in a fictional New York yellow-cab garage.

“Danny’s such a big personality that everyone thought he was a giant when he was ranting and raving in those early scenes,” Werner said.

“It was only when he came down into the garage midway through the show that everyone *realised he was not actually a giant at all.”

A few hours after the Anfield giants moved to the top of the Premier League with their win over Crystal Palace, though, Werner’s mind was on a present-day soap opera.

This one’s name is Luis Suarez and Werner, like most people in football, is captivated by how it is turning out...

Werner on... Luis Suarez

Werner had watched the Palace game that morning at the home of his friend and Liverpool principal owner, John W Henry, in the Boston suburb of Brookline.

It has not been an easy three years, turning a great English institution away from the chaos into which it had been plunged by previous owners Tom Hicks and George Gillett.

But it is impossible to shake the feeling now that the club is moving steadily forward in the struggle to reclaim old glories.

Amid it all, of course, striker Suarez, not long returned from his 10-game ban for biting Branislav Ivanovic, was a central figure and Werner was hooked on the storyline.

As he sat in his Fenway suite, less than an hour before Boston’s play-off game against the Tampa Bay Rays, guests began to stream in.

None of them wanted to talk about baseball.

They were full of Liverpool and, in particular, Suarez, who had scored in the 3-1 win.

“I got a kick out of the fact that Luis came out on to the pitch before kick-off with his baby and his daughter,” Werner, 63, said.

“He shook hands with all the officials and the other players carrying his baby. That is the side of Luis I know, the loving parent.

“There was interest in him from other clubs throughout the summer but it was important for us to try to keep him.

“He is one of the great players of the world and we felt that we would be a stronger club with him than without him.

“That does not mean I don’t respect his intense desire to play in the Champions League. But it would be a very happy day next May if and when we get to the Champions League by finishing in the top four and he is part of it.

“It is our intention to keep him for a while.

“Our intention is to build a winning club and he is integral to that. The past is the past and I have great affection for him personally.

“I give Brendan Rodgers an enormous amount of credit for making sure Luis knew how needed he was at Liverpool.

“Brendan made it plain to him how much he was going to be embraced by the fans, and the supporters have been terrific.”

The day before this interview, Liverpool had announced that Kenny Dalglish would be joining the board in a non-executive role.

The move heightened the feeling that the club is becoming whole again after the period of turbulence under Hicks and Gillett.

Werner said he would not hesitate to ask Dalglish’s advice and “tap into his wisdom” and was, of course, full of praise for Rodgers, the Scot's successor in the dugout...

Werner on... Brendan Rodgers

"I think Brendan has made remarkable progress," Werner said. "He's a great strategist and has shown strong leadership. When we hired him, we were confident we were getting one of the brightest managerial talents in the game and he is proving his worth.

"He's dedicated to improving the club as a whole and shares our vision of developing a club that is built for sustained success.

"He has shown a willingness to use young players and at the same time, demonstrated the ability to get the best out of our established stars.

“Brendan is respected by the players. They feel he is a good strategist and a good leader and his philosophy has been embraced by everyone.

“We are all moving in the same direction and Brendan is very much the leader.

"We're pleased with the progress we're seeing on the pitch but our goal is to create sustainable, long-term success at Liverpool and to consistently compete for silverware, so we're not getting carried away with a few good months.

"The club is definitely moving in the right direction under Brendan and as owners we're very optimistic and excited about the future."

Werner, who remains an understated man despite his showbiz connections – John Travolta was among his guests at Fenway on Saturday - tried to play down Liverpool’s superb start to the season.

“It is certainly promising,” he said. “We have a softer schedule at the start of this year than we did last year but all you can do is win the games you are supposed to win.

“The team has played brilliantly at times. It is not unfair to say that Suarez and Daniel Sturridge are as powerful a striking force as any in the league.

“They both scored brilliant goals today and I am excited about the future but I don’t want to be accused of wearing rose-coloured spectacles.”

For just a moment, though, he threw circumspection to one side and thought back to Liverpool’s win over Manchester United at the start of last month.

“There is nothing like a goal scored at Anfield,” he said. “You almost feel like the whole place is levitating.

“To have been there when we beat Man U this season, it was one of the great afternoons of my life.”

Werner on... Liverpool vs Red Sox

Even as Liverpool’s stock rises again in English football, there are a few who fear they are the poor relation to the Boston Red Sox in the priorities of their owners.

With Liverpool joint top of the Premier League and the Red Sox taking a run at the World Series, it is a notion that Tom Werner and others in the hierarchy at the Fenway Sports Group - such as chief commercial officer Billy Hogan - poured scorn upon.

“It’s a funny question,” Werner said, “because it’s like when somebody says, ‘Do you like a certain child more than you like another child?’

“We are very honoured and proud of our stewardship of Liverpool Football Club. It is one of the great iconic clubs in all of sport.

“I’m just trying to do my best, as is John Henry, to bring more silverware to that amazing trophy cabinet at Anfield.

“It’s funny because when we make an acquisition at the Red Sox, people say it means that maybe we don’t have enough money to make an acquisition at Liverpool.

“But I think we have proven that while we don’t have the resources that Chelsea and Manchester City have, we feel that we are growing the club and we feel there is great synergy between some of our properties.

“And I feel like the more we grow the club commercially, the more we can spend on improving our performance on the pitch. It’s important for Liverpool fans to feel that we are fighting very hard for Financial Fair Play because I think that is a healthy improvement, if it has some teeth in it.

“I was very involved in representing Liverpool in that discussion at club level and it is important because the club needs to be self-sustaining. One of the things about FFP is it means you don’t have to overspend to win.”

Like many others, Werner sees comparisons between the Red Sox and Liverpool, their fan bases and their histories.

“It starts when you walk on the pitch at Anfield – this is something that is similar to Fenway Park – because you do feel a little bit the ghosts of previous players,” he said.

“When I am at Anfield, I do feel a sense that we are on the right trajectory and there is a certain hopefulness that wasn’t there three years ago.”

Hogan, who splits his time between Fenway and Anfield, is equally optimistic.

“Each property stands on its own,” he said. “We are all involved in sport to win, so you want to see every property doing well.

“Hopefully now you are seeing the fruits of three years’ effort.”

Linda was looking hot today.

Wonder will any cheques be signed or will it be we came, tried but didnt get anywhere..........

Liverpool Football Club today announced that solid progress continues to be made as it filed its financial results for the year to May 31, 2013.


Since Fenway Sports Group (FSG) completed its takeover of Liverpool FC in October 2010, revenue has steadily increased year on year and external debt has decreased overall by nearly £200million. During this reporting period, FSG injected £46.8million to fully repay a historic stadium loan facility.

Managing director Ian Ayre said: "These results demonstrate that the financial health of the club continues to make good progress as we continue our journey to transform the club on and off the pitch.

"Over the past four or five years, revenue has been consistently increasing from around £170million in 2009 to over £200million today, and external debt has decreased significantly to less than £50million.

"With a hugely supportive ownership group, we have taken a measured approach to bring back financial stability to this great club by ensuring it is properly structured on and off the pitch.

"During the period, we signed six new players including Daniel Sturridge, Philippe Coutinho and Joe Allen, and we extended seven players' contracts which included Daniel Agger, Martin Skrtel, Martin Kelly, Lucas Leiva and Raheem Sterling - adding depth and strength to the squad while continuing to develop young talent. In addition, nine players were transferred out and eight players were loaned out."

Despite the club dropping three places to 12th in Deloitte's Football Money League, Liverpool remains the highest ranked club that is not in the Champions League. Its commercial revenue now accounts for 47 per cent of the total revenue, which is bettered by only the Money League's top six.

Ayre added: "These financial results are now up to 18 months old and we have continued to make further progress since this reporting period. Our strong links remain with our existing partners, signing new deals with Standard Chartered, Garuda Indonesia and Carlsberg, and we have recently announced five new partnerships which endorses the global appeal of the LFC brand.

"We continue to invest in our digital and TV platforms and recently announced nine new television partnerships, allowing millions of fans across the world to watch Liverpool games and receive exclusive content.

"We have also seen good progress being made regarding a proposed stadium expansion at Anfield. Any final decision continues to be based on certainty; however, since the partnership was established between Liverpool City Council, Your Housing Group and LFC only 16 months ago, we regard the progress as extremely positive.

"Given where Liverpool Football Club was only a few years ago, the progress that has been made since FSG acquired the club has brought back much-needed stability with an ambitious vision which everyone is focused on.

"I'd like to thank everyone involved in running the club - our owners, fans, partners, players and staff - for all the hard work and dedication."