LONDON - Liverpool owner John Henry has denied that the English Premier League giants are up for sale despite seeking fresh investment in the club.
The American’s Fenway Sports Group (FSG) had said in November that it would “consider new shareholders if it was in the best interests of Liverpool as a club”.
That sparked speculation that the Reds were on the market alongside rivals Manchester United.
“I know there has been a lot of conversation and quotes about LFC (Liverpool Football Club), but I keep to the facts,” Henry told the Boston Sports Journal in an interview published online on Monday.
“We merely formalised an ongoing process. Will we be in England forever? No. Are we selling LFC? No. Are we talking with investors about LFC? Yes.
“Will something happen there? I believe so, but it won’t be a sale. Have we sold anything in the past 20-plus years?“
FSG – which also owns baseball giants the Boston Red Sox – paid £300 million (S$482.3 million) for Liverpool 13 years ago, after Americans Tom Hicks and George Gillett left the club on the brink of administration.
Under its ownership, Liverpool have been restored to the top of the English and European game – winning the 2019 Champions League and lifting the club’s first Premier League crown for 30 years in 2020.
Forbes now values Liverpool at around US$4.45 billion (S$5.95 billion).
However, FSG has been criticised by fans for a lack of investment in new players this season. Liverpool sit eighth in the Premier League, 19 points adrift of leaders Arsenal, and are already out of both domestic Cup competitions.
Despite that slump in form, manager Jurgen Klopp has publicly backed the club’s owners.
“We are here in a good position. I know that sounds strange because we didn’t play our best football but in general we are in good hands,” he said in January.
“We really know about the responsibility we have and we really try absolutely everything to try to bring us back on track and not worry too much.”
United, meanwhile, are expected to fetch a world-record price for a football club should a sale of the Red Devils be completed in the coming months.
British billionaire Jim Ratcliffe and Qatari banker Sheikh Jassim Bin Hamad Al Thani have publicly revealed their interest in United with bids expected to reach around US$6 billion.
Chelsea currently hold the record sale for a football club after a consortium led by LA Dodgers co-owner Todd Boehly and private equity group Clearlake Capital won a bidding war by paying £2.5 billion – plus committing another £1.75 billion in investment – for the Blues in May. AFP
