And You Thought The Glazers Are Bad? -
04-18-2008, 04:10 AM
The circus which is going on with Liverpool makes the Glazer's takeover realtively smooth
Seriously, the Glazer's have taken a backseat and let the FOOTBALL folks run the club.
What the hell is Hicks doing? One minute he wants Benitez axed, next minute he's offering Benitez an extension [Long live KRAP!!!].
Now repayment of loans. This lil tidbit is quite an interesting read. I don't think it will cost Liverpool to sell there players, but getting a loan to buy players? ouch.
Quote:
Fernando Torres future under threat as banks keep watchful eye on Liverpool
Liverpool must repay £31.5 million to banking institutions in little more than a year or risk having to sell Fernando Torres and Ryan Babel.
The Times has learnt that Liverpool borrowed the money to sign Torres, the Spain forward who has scored 30 goals this season and has already become a firm favourite on the Kop, from Atlético Madrid last summer. The club then refinanced that debt on January 25, at the same time as they secured a £350 million refinancing package.
Liverpool entered into an 18-month loan agreement with interest of 9 per cent — £2.8 million a year — with a letter of credit to pay back the £31.5 million at the end of the period.
Should Liverpool be unable to pay back or refinance the loan, banks could force the sale of Torres and Babel, who was also included in the smaller refinancing package.
It is unusual for Barclays Premier League clubs to buy players in this way. Deals are normally funded using television income. Liverpool have to pay £30 million a year in interest payments on the £350 million loan, the terms of which end in July 2009. There was no official comment from the club last night.
The revelations came on a day when the turmoil at Anfield reached a nadir after Tom Hicks attempted to strengthen his grip on the club during an interview in which he demonised his enemies inside and outside Anfield. However, the Liverpool co-owner has only six weeks to raise the funds he needs if he is to achieve his goal of buying the club outright.
Having continued his assault on Rick Parry by calling his tenure as chief executive “a disaster”, Hicks admitted that his joint-ownership venture with George Gillett Jr had proved unworkable, but he is looking for the funds that would help him to buy Gillett’s 50 per cent stake and to “fix the entire financial structure of the club” while overseeing the construction of a new 70,000-capacity stadium in Stanley Park.
Gillett responded last night with a strongly worded statement in which he accused his co-owner of destabilising the club. “I am saddened at this latest outburst from Tom Hicks,” he said. “If Tom wanted a serious discussion on the issues to help the club move forward, he should bring his views to the board.
“Here we are, a few days away from a vital Champions League semi-final match and Tom has once again created turmoil with his public comments. Tom should stop. He knows that Rick Parry has my support and that airing his comments in this way will not change my position.
“Tom needs to understand that I will not sell my shares to him.”
Hicks was typically bullish about his prospects of raising the money — or, perhaps more realistically, finding the financial backing — but while he continues to explore his options with Merrill Lynch, his latest financial adviser, the clock is ticking.
Hicks has denied rumours in the City that he is under pressure to refinance his Hicks Sports Group, which holds his stakes in various sports franchises in the United States, but a deadline is looming to buy Gillett’s stake, which is the subject of a rival bid from Dubai International Capital (DIC), the private-equity investment arm of the Dubai Government.
Under the terms of their takeover 14 months ago, Hicks has pre-emption rights on Gillett’s stake in Liverpool and vice versa. That option is understood to expire 90 days after he was informed of DIC’s £200 million offer to Gillett, which was made on February 27. That period would expire on May 27, six days after the Champions League final in Moscow.
Hicks, though, maintains that he will be in charge of Liverpool for the long term, which would be bad news for Parry. “What has happened under Rick has been a disaster,” Hicks told Sky Sports News. “We have fallen so far behind the other clubs. We have still got the top brand in the world of football, but that’s no good if you don’t know how to commercialise it. Rick needs to resign. You have to be able to work with the manager and Rick has proved he can’t do that.”
Parry, who responded with a rigorous defence of his record, will not resign and is under no pressure to do so, given that only two of the club’s six directors want him to go.
Hicks said that, if he succeeds in buying Liverpool outright, he will offer Benítez a one-year extension to his contract, which expires in 2010, but, despite his newfound alliance with the manager, he remains unpopular with supporters.
i always thought that the glazers wern't as bad as everyone said.
they came before the big rush of other league clubs to be taken over, and although they needed big loans; they have still put the extra money required into the club. Plus we are making steady profits which are starting to reduce the effects of the loan repayments.
anyone remember there were articles about SAF having a meeting where he put forth a two year plan to the Glazers for United's success. Wasn't this like two or three years ago?
If anyone finds it (I looked for a good 15 minutes) I'll be using it crucially in my next Terrace Talk blog article.
^ finding it is massively important
Quality of Posts > Quantity of Posts
There is a reason I bleed red. United until I die.
ALEX FERGUSON has told the Glazers of his two-year plan to put Manchester United back at the Premiership summit.
Boss Fergie had a meeting with prospective chairman Joel Glazer at the club’s Carrington training ground last week.
And during it he spelled out exactly how he is going to form a side that will dominate the game as they did in the 90s.
The new club owners are impressed with Ferguson’s plans.
Far from putting pressure on him for immediate results, they have faith in what the manager is doing.
Suggestions that Ferguson will be sacked if he does not deliver straight away were dismissed on both sides of the Atlantic yesterday.
Indeed a United source said: “It is laughable to say that Alex Ferguson has been given an ultimatum.
“He has demonstrated over the decades that he does not need any encouragement to strive for success.”
As revealed in SunSport in the wake of United’s FA Cup final defeat, Ferguson has decided to retire in two years when he is 65.
And in a revealing insight into Ferguson’s thinking, he has explained just how his team will grow into the best again in that time.
Ferguson said: “There is no question we have been trying to create a new team. Anyone who has been watching us can see that.
“We’ve signed Cristiano Ronaldo and we’ve signed Wayne Rooney, who have given the team youth.
“We’ve got Darren Fletcher coming through too and he has been fantastic for us. He’s going to be a great player for us in the midfield.”
Ferguson has told the Glazers that Ronaldo and Rooney are going to be sensations as they mature.
Already the pair have taken football by storm with their skill, drive and goals. Ferguson said: “Ronaldo is 20, Rooney is 19. Those two are going to be fantastic players.”
Ferguson knows he has an ageing midfield but believes the signing of Ronaldo and the advent of Fletcher, 21, is already creating a platform for the future.
He also still has faith in the experience of his old guard to oversee the transition and still deliver success.
Ferguson said: “The next part which we are trying to address is the midfield area
“We are not going to keep Roy Keane forever and Paul Scholes is 30, although I think Scholesy can play on for a bit yet.
“Ryan Giggs is 31 but I think he can play — he’s signed a new contract and is a fit lad — he can play for two or three years yet.”
Ferguson has already addressed the goalkeeping problem by getting the vastly-experienced Edwin van der Saar in for two years.
He still has faith in Tim Howard and believes that in those two years he will develop to become his No 1 again when Van der Saar leaves.
The problem last season was the lack of goals and his misfiring strikers.
But with £20million to spend this summer, Ferguson is looking to deal with that. However, the future of Dutch hitman Ruud van Nistelrooy remains in doubt.
England striker Michael Owen is the man Ferguson would ideally want at Old Trafford.
As revealed in today’s SunSport, the Glazers would also like David Beckham to be part of Ferguson’s thinking.
That would prove slightly more troublesome given the way their relationship broke down before he was sold to Real Madrid two summers ago.
Despite the tinkering that needs to be done, Ferguson is convinced his empire is not crumbling. And he has told the Glazers that he has complete faith in the character of his players.
At times that was questionable last season as they finished potless.
But Ferguson is convinced they can bounce back. He said: “I have great confidence in my players.
“We’re proud of the character of the team here — we’ve proved that time and time again.”
The Glazers are desperate for Ferguson to stay and see out his plans. That is why they have also told him to name his price on a new contract.
He may be facing one of the biggest challenges since winning his first Premiership at United in 1993.
Chelsea’s title win and Arsenal’s FA Cup success over them has left them playing catch-up.
Likewise their failure in Europe at the second round stage for a second season running is not good enough for a club of United’s size.
But neither Ferguson, nor now the Glazers, doubt that United can climb back to the top again.
Thanks to Janinho for the Sig and Papercut for the Avatar
Last edited by funkdoctorspock : 04-18-2008 at 10:01 PM.
Reason: Kindly do not use other forums as a source for information. Either direct or don't use it.
And You Thought The Glazers Are Bad?
And You Thought The Glazers Are Bad? -
04-18-2008, 04:10 AM
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