Liverpool FC Forum

by **tubby** » Sun Oct 10, 2010 2:37 pm

I don't understand why they would walk away if we received a points deduction this season? Unless they were planning a cash injection in the Jan window then they should really just take it and look to next season and make sure we get in a few decent players in the summer.

by **stmichael** » Sun Oct 10, 2010 2:41 pm

I'm still trying to work out why Hicks tried to replace 2 members of the board with his own people. If he could have changed the board why did he not do this when he was first blocked over refinancing plan?

by **red till i die!!** » Sun Oct 10, 2010 2:48 pm

bavlondon wrote:I don't understand why they would walk away if we received a points deduction this season? Unless they were planning a cash injection in the Jan window then they should really just take it and look to next season and make sure we get in a few decent players in the summer.

i cant understand this either.
surely they knew this scenario was a possibility given that T&t would fight tooth and nail to delay things.

if they dont want us with a 9 point deduction then thats there loss and im sure if we hit administration then other buyers will appear for the cheaper price.

its hard to know what to believe as there is a lot of media spin going on and i fear it will intensify over the next few days.

just seen that :censored:

on ssn simon jordan who feels sorry for h&g.
do one you clueless fcuking banker

by **maguskwt** » Sun Oct 10, 2010 2:50 pm

red till i die!! wrote:
bavlondon wrote:I don't understand why they would walk away if we received a points deduction this season? Unless they were planning a cash injection in the Jan window then they should really just take it and look to next season and make sure we get in a few decent players in the summer.

i cant understand this either.
surely they knew this scenario was a possibility given that T&t would fight tooth and nail to delay things.

if they dont want us with a 9 point deduction then thats there loss and im sure if we hit administration then other buyers will appear for the cheaper price.

its hard to know what to believe as there is a lot of media spin going on and i fear it will intensify over the next few days.

just seen that on ssn simon jordan who feels sorry for h&g.
do one you clueless fcuking banker

Like the red sox fan has said, it might just be posturing from NESV's part to get some kind of advantage in the courts.

by **RED BEERGOGGLES** » Sun Oct 10, 2010 2:50 pm

NANNY RED wrote:http://online.wsj.com/article....84.html

You are facing an energized, well-informed mass of Liverpool fans from around the world. We are tapped into a constant stream of information on the ownership situation. Every day, dozens of web forums buzz with the latest news. Protest marches, newspaper advertisements, boycotts and billboards are organized. Every move Hicks makes is scrutinized. And every associate of his is warned.

Refinancing is our nightmare scenario. Anybody who helps Tom Hicks refinance will become our primary target.

Yours sincerely,

E-mail sent........ Makes me proud that Girl
A piece specifically about us ...making its way onto the pages of the Wall Street Journal .....".NOWHERE TO RUN TO NOWHERE TO HIDE ...... "

by **red till i die!!** » Sun Oct 10, 2010 3:00 pm

maguskwt wrote:
red till i die!! wrote:
bavlondon wrote:I don't understand why they would walk away if we received a points deduction this season? Unless they were planning a cash injection in the Jan window then they should really just take it and look to next season and make sure we get in a few decent players in the summer.

i cant understand this either.
surely they knew this scenario was a possibility given that T&t would fight tooth and nail to delay things.

if they dont want us with a 9 point deduction then thats there loss and im sure if we hit administration then other buyers will appear for the cheaper price.

its hard to know what to believe as there is a lot of media spin going on and i fear it will intensify over the next few days.

just seen that on ssn simon jordan who feels sorry for h&g.
do one you clueless fcuking banker

Like the red sox fan has said, it might just be posturing from NESV's part to get some kind of advantage in the courts.

i understand redsoxs fans point,but i really hope broughtons case is solid enough to not need outside interference,likewise i hope the court wont be swayed in this manner either.

by **red till i die!!** » Sun Oct 10, 2010 3:06 pm

NANNY RED wrote:get emailing .

Email to be sent to:

To: atsiamis@springfieldfinancialco.com; rdevine@springfieldfinancialco.com

Cc: thicks@hicksholdings.com; tohjr@hicksholdings.com; mhicks@hicksholdings.com; cvest@hicksholdings.com; cemmert@hicksholdings.com; ccoffman@hicksholdings.com; ian.ayre@liverpoolfc.tv; martin.broughton@ba.com; philip.nash@liverpoolfc.tv; Jennifer Stenseth Rogus (jrogus@bcmgt.com); khurley@bcmgt.com; gngillett@bcmgt.com; info@hicksholdings.com; stephen.hester@rbs.co.uk; roger.lowry@rbs.co.uk; jon.laycock@barcap.com; kopfaithful@hotmail.co.uk

Dear Sirs,

According to reports in The Sunday Times, it is claimed that US Hedge Fund Mill Financial - an arm of Springfield Financial Company, has joined forces with Tom Hicks to try and prevent the sale of Liverpool Football Club to New England Sports Ventures, by attempting to raise cash to repay the owners debts to the Royal Bank of Scotland by the 15th of October deadline.

We write to inform you that if your company assists Tom Hicks in retaining his share in Liverpool Football Club, then the only return that you will see on your investment is bad publicity and a severe backlash from Liverpool supporters worldwide, as Michael Whitman the Senior Managing Director at the Blackstone Group will testify.

http://online.wsj.com/article....84.html

You are facing an energized, well-informed mass of Liverpool fans from around the world. We are tapped into a constant stream of information on the ownership situation. Every day, dozens of web forums buzz with the latest news. Protest marches, newspaper advertisements, boycotts and billboards are organized. Every move Hicks makes is scrutinized. And every associate of his is warned.

Refinancing is our nightmare scenario. Anybody who helps Tom Hicks refinance will become our primary target.

Yours sincerely,

all sent from 4 different emails i have.
how's this for noise hicks you fcuking irritating pathetic excuse for a human.

by **maguskwt** » Sun Oct 10, 2010 3:35 pm

ESPNSoccernet:

NESV would consider buying 'Pool from RBS

New England Sports Ventures will consider buying Liverpool directly from the Royal Bank of Scotland, if the bank is forced to take control of the club on Friday.

The owners of the Boston Red Sox will back out of their £300 million deal if the club go into administration and are docked nine points - as they feel a club threatened instantly with the prospect of relegation would not be a sound business proposition.

However, if as it now appears to be in everyone's interest to avoid administration talks with RBS are sure to proceed as the Friday deadline looms when Tom Hicks and George Gillett default on their £237 million debt to the bank.

The question is whether NESV will attempt to push down the price if it has to re-open negotiations with the bank, if RBS are technically the new owners, even for as long as it takes to get the club off their hands. That might then open the door to other bidders, such as the mystery Asian group who had also put forward a credible and acceptable offer to chairman Martin Broughton.

ESPNsoccernet was told by NESV sources on Sunday: "Of course New England would walk away if, as it has been suggested, there is a possibility of the club going into administration and then are hit with a nine point deduction.

"However, it is a completely different scenario if the bank takes the club over on Friday and the proceeds to sell it straight away to New England without going into administration. Under those circumstances I am sure the deal would remain on."

ESPNsoccernet understands that after eight weeks of negotiations between NESV and the Liverpool board, the American group were convinced that the board has the right to complete the deal, and were shocked that there has been such a firm stand by Hicks and Gillett to prevent it happening.

However, my understanding is that the deal was signed on Tuesday - as first revealed by ESPNsoccernet - conditional on the Premier League's go-head (which was always a formality, and sanctioned on Friday) and the outcome of any court challenge by Hicks and Gillett.

The threat of the nine-point deduction, which Liverpool had thought could be avoided, has spooked the prospective new owners.

Liverpool are already languishing third from bottom of the Premier League and as it now stands a nine point deduction would leave them minus three points and struggling for survival.

Liverpool had thought that the West Ham example of how a parent company went into administration but the club avoided the nine point penalty would apply to them, but there is slightly different circumstances and the Premier League have indicated that the nine points deduction would be automatic.

However, it would no longer be to RBS' advantage to place Liverpool into administration, so that possibility is sure to recede.

by **zarababe** » Sun Oct 10, 2010 3:56 pm

http://www.guardian.co.uk/football/2010/oct/10/liverpool-takeover-christian-purslow

The Liverpool chief executive, Christian Purslow, is confident the proposed £300m sale of the club to New England Sports Ventures will go through despite the impending threat of a nine-point deduction for going into administration.

Purslow maintained the Anfield board had "done their homework" on the American investment group, which owns the Boston Red Sox baseball team, and said that the club's £237m debt would be wiped out if the takeover, which is subject to a high court challenge from the current owners, Tom Hicks and George Gillett, goes through next week.

He also insisted Roy Hodgson's job as the club's manager was safe and that Liverpool fans would be given a voice should the new owners be able to complete their takeover.

Hicks and Gillett borrowed money from the Royal Bank of Scotland to complete their purchase of Liverpool in 2007, a debt which Purslow insists would be wiped out by an NESV buy-out.

Purslow told BBC Radio Five Live's Sportsweek programme: "My total priority has been to try to remove the debt which has been put on this club and which has been a cloud since February 2007.

"It is wrong that we should have so much of the money that comes through the turnstiles or through our commercial activity go to pay interest on loans. A bidder who has been willing with cash to rid of us of all this long-term debt is by far the largest and most important priority in evaluating bids.

"We have done our homework and NESV [is] buying this business with cash and clearing our debt which transforms our financial position overnight."

Hicks and Gillett have launched a legal challenge to the takeover, describing it as invalid and insisting that the NESV offer undervalued the club. The high court case is expected to begin on Tuesday.

If the court rules in favour of Hicks and Gillett, RBS could call in its debt as early as Friday, when repayment is due in full, and force Kop Holdings into administration. That would almost certainly result in a nine-point penalty being imposed on the club by the Premier League, which would leave them bottom of the table on minus three points.

However, Purslow said: "I'm not even contemplating administration." The chief executive said that he feels Liverpool can return to the business of winning football matches again once the deal goes through.

"Last Monday we had two very good offers to buy our business that would clear all our debts and I am completely focused on making sure that the sale completes. They (NESV) see a number of parallels with the Red Sox when they purchased them and Liverpool today, and the word that jumps off the page every time we sit with them is 'winning'.

"They see winning on the field is linked to how you perform commercially off the field. They go hand in hand. It's extremely enjoyable to make sports clubs more successful. Whether you're a poor or a rich sports fan, winning is great fun and I sense both of those things when we meet with these people.

"They approached us. They met our chairman. He was immediately struck with their seriousness and the entire senior management team of NESV came to Liverpool.

"They spent a large amount of time in the club doing their work and those are important signs of people's seriousness in the transaction business."

Purslow said he was convinced NESV, fronted by John W Henry, would supply cash for team building and, unlike Hicks and Gillett, would maintain a high-profile presence at Anfield.

"You don't spend £300m on buying a sports team for it to be a mediocre team," Purslow said. "If they buy Liverpool I would expect them to be very visible around the business. They are serious people, they're deadly serious about wanting to succeed. I can't imagine they'd be hands-off for one minute."

Purslow also insisted that if the deal went through the Liverpool fans, who have protested vociferously against the current owners, would be given a say in how the club was run.

He said: "Our fans have felt totally disenfranchised by the experience of the last three years. One thing I really liked about NESV is they are really serious about the importance of engaging with their fans.

"I've asked them to consider a scheme at our club that will give our fans a real sense of ownership, a real sense of inclusion, the kind of voice they deserve and NESV have told us they'll look at this very seriously if they complete.

"It's not been easy with the current owners – tensions have been high and so that side of things has been difficult but now that we have potential new ownership I don't want to miss the opportunity to make sure that our fans never again feel so disenfranchised.

"The most important principle is that fans need to feel that they have a means to express their views and to be listened to and the sense of ownership obviously is the most extreme example of that."

Purslow also urged Hicks and Gillett to call off their high court action and to walk away from Anfield for the good of the club. "Right now they do have an opportunity with one simple short correspondence today to allow a sale to complete and that would clear the club of all the acquisition debt and give us a massive lift before the Everton game [next Sunday]," he said. "A fresh start and real hope for our fans and players that we can get back to the top.

"That's in their gift and would enable them to leave with some dignity and some peace rather than precipitating a messy dispute. I hope they'll think about that."

When asked about Hodgson's contract, which had been reported to include an exit clause, Purslow said: "There is nothing in Roy's contract which is not totally standard under the LMA [League Managers' Association] guidelines." Pressed if Hodgson would be part of the set-up if the takeover is completed Purslow replied: "Absolutely."

Purslow, however, was unclear whether it would mean a new stadium for the club.

"We've shown NESV all the plans around the stadium that we have planning permission for in Stanley Park," said Purslow.

"They know we believe this is the way forward and have been very impressed by that. It's been a key ingredient in attracting them to Liverpool.

"A bit too much has been made that when they bought the Red Sox they refurbished the existing stadium. In fact the same ownership group [with] two previous teams built new stadiums in Baltimore and San Diego.

"It's simple, given that a new owner will be paying for a new stadium it is entirely reasonable and their prerogative that when they get here they want to pull up the carpets, fine-tune the detail that we are proposing and make their final decision. They want to increase the capacity of Liverpool Football Club

by **zarababe** » Sun Oct 10, 2010 4:20 pm

Email sent: used my own words:

-------------------------
Dear Sirs,

According to reports in The Sunday Times, it is claimed that US Hedge Fund Mill Financial - an arm of Springfield Financial Company, has joined forces with Tom Hicks to try and prevent the sale of Liverpool Football Club to New England Sports Ventures, by attempting to raise cash to repay the owners debts to the Royal Bank of Scotland by the 15th of October deadline.

We write to inform you that this individual has broken may promises both to the club and to the current lender, who we believe is on the verge of calling in the debt, if a sale is not agreed by the 15th. We also understand that George Gillette, Hicks is partner has defaulted on a loan of £75m.. It beggars belief therefore why anyone would want to refinance a deal for a club, whose stature is huge, but in the current market, is not worth more than £300m.

Why any responsible lender would endorse the quick rich strategy of this individual and his associates in a market where the club is likely to lose it's value not gain it, with further debt heaped upon it and any good returns ploughed back in to the repayment of interest, does no0t sound like a good investment decision.

I and many millions of Liverpool Supporters urge you to close your doors to this unsavoury characters and his associates and ask you to consider you're status and reputation, as a responsible lender and steer clear from this one please - I'm afraid Mr Hicks has no reputation to defend, you do I'm sure.

I refer you to some links to help you understand what is going on :

http://www.guardian.co.uk/footbal....purslow

http://www.liverpoolfc.tv/ click on Liverpool Chairman Broughton interview on sale drama - clip.

http://www.liverpoolecho.co.uk/liverpo....7427765

Your's sincerely

Zara Choudhary

by **NANNY RED** » Sun Oct 10, 2010 4:27 pm

metalhead wrote:CYBER TERRORISTS.. TO JIHAD

Told you before were SCAL QUIEDA :laugh:

ha ha THAT FAT hICKS HATES US THEM LOT THAT MAKE THE NOISE, WELL WERE MAKING NOISE AND WE WILL CARRY ON MAKING IT UNTIL WE GET OUR CLUB BACK, Youve well outstayed your welcome this is OUR HOUSE NOW FECK OFF AND GO HOME, So we can put the kettle back on and get back to talking footie .

by **Igor Zidane** » Sun Oct 10, 2010 4:38 pm

Full transcript of christian purslow interview on FIVE LIVE this morning .

Take us through how you set up this deal with NESV

Yes, they approached us. There’s nothing particularly unusual about that. As has been widely known, the company has been for sale since Easter and NESV, with their advisors, approached us like many have done. But unlike many others, their approach was serious from the first minute, they have done their work and ended up making a binding offer for the club.

Do you get the feeling a deal has potential from the first minute?

Yes, I think you do. They met our Chairman and he was immediately struck with their seriousness. I’m a great believer that actions speak louder than words and the entire senior management team at NESV came to Liverpool, spent a large amount of time in the club doing their work, and those are important signs of people’s seriousness in the transaction business.

Why are John Henry and Tom Werner the right people to deal with?

It’s not for me to do a commercial for them, they will speak for themselves if and when this transaction completes. Yes, there are important ingredients and speaking personally my total priority in the last year or so has been to try and find a way to reduce or remove the debt which has been put on this club and which has been a cloud since February 07. I think it’s wrong that a football club – it’s not like another business – should have so much of the money that comes through the turnstiles or through our commercial activity go to paying interest on loans, particularly loans that were used to buy a business. For me, a bidder who was willing with cash to rid of all this long term debt is by far the largest and most important priority in evaluating bids. I know our fans have been very concerned in the past that this wasn’t known when the last sale was done, but I can assure you we’ve done our homework and NESV are buying this business with cash and clearing us of this debt which transforms our financial position overnight.

Why do they want to buy Liverpool?

I think it’s a combination of business and maybe emotion. They are a very successful company. They have a number of sporting interests and its been well documented that they purchased the Boston Red Sox nearly ten years ago. I think they see a number of parallels of when they purchased the Red Sox with Liverpool today. The word that jumps off the page every time we sit with them is winning. I think they see obviously that winning on the field is very linked to how you perform commercially off the field. They go hand in hand. It’s extremely enjoyable to make sports clubs more successful. Whether you are a poor or a rich sports fan, winning is great fun and I sense both of those things when we meet with these people.

If go into administration will NESV pull out...

I’m not even contemplating administration and nobody should be. Last Monday we had two very good offers to buy our business that would clear all our debts and I’m completely focused on making sure the sale completes.

So come what may, NESV would carry on with their purchase even if points are docked...

I have not discussed that possibility with them. I am completely focused on the sale.

Why are you so sure administration won’t happen?

We are focused this week on making sure the sale of the club, for a very attractive price, completes and that is our complete focus.

Are NESV a company who will provide large amounts of money for signing new players?

I think it’s simple. They want to win. They are not going to be making hostages to fortune and are certainly not going to be giving numbers into the public domain, but a couple of things have come out of our discussions. The first and most important is, again, they see a parallel to their experience in baseball and while I think many of those comparisons might not work, I think it’s difficult to argue that investment in players is a key component to success in most professional sports. That is the approach they took with Boston and is the approach I am sure they will take with Liverpool. You don’t spend 300 million pounds on buying a sports team for it to be a mediocre team.

Will they be owners who want to attend a lot of matches?

I think so. Again, if you have made such a serious investment and taken so much time, if they buy Liverpool I would expect them to be very visible around the business. They are serious people, they are deadly serious about wanting to succeed and I can’t imagine they will be hands off for one minute.

How do you go about repairing the damage which has been done by Gillett and Hicks?

I think one area is that our fans have felt totally disenfranchised by the experience of the last three years. One thing I really like about NESV is they’re really serious about the importance of engaging with their fans and when you look at their approach to their business in America that’s something they take seriously. I’ve asked them to consider a scheme at our club which will give our fans a real sense of ownership, a real sense of inclusion, the kind of voice that frankly they deserve. NESV have told us they will look at this very seriously if they complete.

It’s not been easy with the current owners, tensions have been high and so that side of things has been difficult. But now that we have potential new ownership I don’t want to miss the opportunity to make sure our fans never again feel so disenfranchised. It’s the way forward for professional football in England.

You say you want to give the fans a voice and a sense of ownership – what do you mean?

No more than that. There are various ways to do this and I’m sure they’ll all be considered seriously after a transaction. One or two clubs have gone down that line already. I was very impressed with what Arsenal recently announced. The most important principle is that fans need to feel they have a means to express their views and to be listened to. A sense of ownership obviously is the most extreme example of that, but there are many forms and many shapes to these ideas. The important point is one of principle, engaging with our fans – particularly Liverpool fans – and, remember, that’s all I am. That’s a very important ingredient.

How do you feel about what Hicks and Gillett have done to Liverpool?

I’m sorry, I don’t personalise it at all. I do feel right now that they do have an opportunity. One simple and short correspondence today can allow a sale to complete and that would clear the club of all the acquisition debt and give us a massive lift before the Everton game. A really fresh start, frankly, and a real hope for our fans and our players that we can get back to the top. That’s in their gift and that might enable them to leave with some dignity and some peace rather than precipitating a messy dispute. I hope they’ll think about that.

Unlikely, though...

I don’t know.

How do you reflect on recent results for Liverpool?

It’s been a disappointing start to the season, there’s no doubt about that. We just haven’t been able to get any rhythm yet. I must say there have been some important mitigating factors. It’s been a very unusual start to the season. We had a large number of our players back very late, we had three international breaks already and of course we’ve changed our manager and have some new players so those three together mean Roy just hasn’t had the time with the players to do the week in week out stuff that is his trademark. He’ll have that now. I think we also have to keep some perspective, we are five points behind Arsenal who are in the Champions League spots. I would ask people to be patient and supportive. These are trademark qualities of Liverpool, both our fans and our management, and I urge people to provide those.

Does Roy have a clause in his contract for a new owner to replace him if they wanted?

The first thing I would say is it’s absolutely wrong to discuss anybody’s contract in public on radio on a Sunday morning. In case you think I’m trying to avoid the question I must say there is nothing in Roy’s contract that is not totally standard under the LMA guidelines.

Do you believe Hodgson will be part of the new set-up when NESV take over?

Absolutely.

What will happen with the new ground when the new people come in?

A key part of their interest in Liverpool has been to try and improve the experience of our fans on match day. We all know that for far too long too many of our fans have been unable to get in to watch the team on match day. We’ve shown NESV all the plans around the stadium that we have full planning permission for in Stanley Park, they know how strongly we as a management team believe this is the way forward. They have been very impressed by that and I think it was a key ingredient of attracting them to Liverpool. I think a bit too much has been made this week of when they bought the Red Sox in Boston they refurbished the existing stadium; in fact the very same ownership group in two previous teams built new stadia in Baltimore and San Diego. Given that a new owner will be paying for a new stadium, it’s entirely reasonable and their prerogative to, when they get here, pull up the carpets and look in fine-tune detail at what we’re proposing and make their final decision. One thing is crystal clear, they want to increase the capacity of Liverpool FC.

Henry Winter: Have you met such an unappealing character as Tom Hicks before?

It’s nice to talk to you Henry and I fully understand the question but I’m not going to discuss or entertain personal questions.

Henry Winter: But you love LFC and he clearly doesn’t...

I do love Liverpool FC and I think there have been times when our current owners have loved the football club, but I’d rather speak for myself. I do and I have a wonderful set of colleagues at Liverpool who do as well, all of whom would like the cloud to be lifted over our club. That cloud is one of uncertainty, our business being more talked about than our football and the biggest cloud of all which is debt which is draining our club of resources that should be on the pitch. Yes, I came here to try and lift that cloud and my executive colleagues and my Chairman have really stepped up to try and lift that cloud this week and I really hope we’re successful in doing so.

So you definitely believe the club will not go into administration...

I’m not in the prediction business but what I’ve told you is my focus this week is making sure a tremendous sale completes, as we sought to do last Monday.

And you’re pretty confident the deal with NESV will go through...

Yes, I am.

by **dundreamin** » Sun Oct 10, 2010 5:13 pm

so hicks said were a noise he can deal with. Well mr p.ricks we haven't even started yet.you have now personally offended me,and you are going to get your fat f.ucking :censored:

kicked. I would seriously advise you not to enter the UK. :angry:

by **7_Kewell** » Sun Oct 10, 2010 5:45 pm

i've been on holiday for a few weeks and have missed a lot of the action on and off the pitch.

However, is anyone surprised that Hicks and Gillett are fighting tooth and nail to keep control? Broughton, Ayre and Purslow have f**ked them good and proper :nod

Neither of our current owners can stop this going through. The only people who CAN stop this is RBS.

I've said it once, i'll say it again, i trust Broughton and he'll deserve a medal if he pulls this out of the bag

by **NANNY RED** » Sun Oct 10, 2010 5:48 pm

Well i will be there on Teusday , anyone who can make it get yourself there

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