Skip to main content

Caution needed in analyses of Liverpool

I am not sure I agree with this analysis of Liverpool published in The Athletic over the weekned and I am not sure many Liverpool fans will either, but it is at least worth thinking about.

An extract states: 'In the long term, perhaps football has reached a point where it is impossible for any Liverpool owner to deliver what the fans want unless there is a bottomless pit of money and the club is run on terms that some of FSG’s fiercest critics claim to despise.

To consistently compete with Manchester City, Liverpool would have to essentially become City, the only club at the moment capable of threatening the theory that the Premier League is no longer possible to dominate (four titles in 10 seasons isn’t a bad start).

By comparison, Liverpool currently operate like a deluxe Sevilla: the system only works when they sell well. Success came because of the buys of Virgil van Dijk and Alisson but the funding was only in place for those deals because of the outrageous fee involved in the sale of Philippe Coutinho, as well as the overachievement of reaching the first of their most recent Champions League finals soon after.'

My comment would be that the Premier League is very competitive at the top level and Liverpool have been beset by injuries this season.  The 'individualistic fallacy' occurs when you try to generalise from a particular sequence of events.   I wasn't convinced last year that Liverpool were about to go on a series of title runs, but there is no reason why they shouldn't be in contention next season, particularly if fans come back in numbers.

RedBird, who own Toulouse FC, have acquired a 10 per cent stake in Liverpool's parent company Fenway Sports Group: https://www.liverpoolecho.co.uk/sport/football/football-news/redbird-capital-fsg-liverpool-mean-19928875

Labels:

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Threat of financial calamity removed from Baggies

West Bromwich Albion had effectively been in decline ever since the club was sold to a Chinese consortium in August 2016, paying a figure north of £200m to buy former owner Jeremy Peace’s stake. Controlling shareholder Guochuan Lai’s ownership was fairly disastrous for the club, but his unloved tenure finally came to an end after Bilkul Football WBA, a company ultimately owned by Florida-based entrepreneur Shilen Patel and his father Dr Kiran Patel, acquired an 87.8% shareholding in West Bromwich Albion Group Limited, the parent company of West Bromwich Albion Football Club. This change in ownership was urgently required, due to the numerous financial problems facing West Brom, including growing high-interest debt and serious cash flow concerns, following years of no investment from the former owner. Indeed, West Brom’s auditors had already rung the alarm bell in the 2021/22 accounts when they cast doubt on the club’s ability to continue as a going concern without making player s...
1 comment
Read more

Fulham requires big funding from owner

After lengthy delays, Fulham’s shiny, new Riverside Stand has finally opened, creating “a unique Thameside destination with first class facilities for supporters and partners on match days, as well as for the wider community year-round”. This ambitious project has increased Craven Cottage’s capacity by around 4,000 to 29,600, while it has also taken advantage of the club’s fantastic location and wealthy catchment area by including two Michelin star restaurants, a rooftop swimming pool, corporate hospitality and event space, all benefiting from views of the Thames. Chief executive Alistair Mackintosh observed, “Fulham is the sort of club that can have a business class or first class and have fans that turn left on a plane.” Indeed, there is also an exclusive members club – with a football season ticket as an optional extra. It’s fair to say that “the times they are a-changing”, as this is a long way from the traditional pie and a pint. However, in a world where clubs face the tw...
Post a Comment
Read more

A poor financial record, but new hope at Everton

I recently saw an amusing video online in which a group of Everton fans were rebuked in jest for being hopeful.  Football fans in general tend to swing between excessive optimism and excessive pessimism, but for many it seems that moaning is in their bloodstream (Spurs fans probably take the trophy).  However, Everton fans have had plenty to moan about on and off the pitch.   Let’s hope that a new era is about to begin for this grand old club. Everton’s 2023/24 financial results covered a fairly momentous season, when they ended up 15th in the Premier League, though they would finished three places higher if they had not received an 8-point deduction for breaching the Premier League’s Profitability and Sustainability Regulations (PSR). It was a worrying time for Everton fans, as the club faced a “perfect storm” of issues, including large financial losses, an ever increasing debt burden, a challenging stadium build and the tortuous sale of the club. There were eve...
Post a Comment
Read more