Feeling towards G&H

[captainfog]

Just wondered what the general feeling is. There has been a lot of wailing and gnashing of teeth recently....is it really as bad as all that?

[AFII]

I will judge them after the January window and which type of loan they will take but it don't look any good right now.

The stadium have already been put back a year.

[spud_gun]

total and utter ambivalence.

[Red_Al_77]

I think they are typical businessmen to be honest. They borrow to buy and sell when they can make maximum profit. The product itself is of little interest, it's the profit margin that they are concerned with. They have little ready equity compared to other high profile owners. I have never liked them and made my opinions known since they bought the club. I have seen nothing yet to suggest they have been good for the club. Too much talk and a lot of broken promises. Even the buying of Torres is questionable in terms of whether we couldn't have afforded it without them. Our net spending is no different.

[Bender]

Liverpool FC owners pledge: We will not sell club
Dec 26 2007 by David Bartlett, Liverpool Daily Post




LIVERPOOL FC owners Tom Hicks and George Gillett have told friends they have no “interest whatsoever” in selling their shares in the club.

They made their stance plain to friends and business associates after it was reported at the weekend that Dubai International Capital, who were bid rivals at the time Hicks and Gillett bought the club, were poised to take over because the Americans were allegedly having problems re-financing the debt taken out to buy Liverpool.

Last night, a source familiar with the situation said the report, which also claimed Rafael Benitez had been given until the end of the season before he was fired, was “utter nonsense”.

The source said that, early next month,Hicks and Gillett hoped to refinance the debt when they bought Liverpool in February.

They are also going to finalise their stadium design choice “between two world-class alternatives” before Saturday, January 12, said the source.

It comes after Hicks and Gillett were forced to scrap a futuristic stadium design because costs had soared.

The pair are also playing down the reported rise in stadium costs. It had been reported that the cost of the stadium had risen to £450m from £300m.

The source said stadium project costs crept up from a low £300m figure to mid-£300m number. It was only after that the owners told the architects to “value engineer” the scheme back down to the £300m mark. Last night, a source told the Daily Post: “Hicks and Gillett expect to close their new financ- ing in early January, and to finalise their stadium design choice between two world-class alternatives before January 12.Š

“They have no interest whatsoever in selling any shares, and Rafa and the owners have smoothed over a minor miscom- munication that the media blew way out of proportion.”

Dallas architects HKS, who were behind the spec- tacular proposals revealed in July, have been told to make their plan cheaper and probably less impres- sive. That stadium had the capacity to be expanded to 76,000.

And Manchester-based AFL, which was behind a previous proposal rejected by Hicks and Gillett because it was “obsolete”, was told to improve on its scheme for Stanley Park.

Both revised plans would have a capacity of around 70,000.

It is understood Hicks and Gillett are expected to re-finance the £220m loan used to buy the club.

The new £350m loan with the Royal Bank of Scotland would include £60m to get work on the new stadium started and £25m to cover the cost of last summer’s signings.

Despite this, stadium plans are apparently proceeding according to a revised schedule (that would see the new ground open in time for the 2011/12 season) in terms of the planning, design and initial construction.

[Red_Al_77]

Liverpool FC owners pledge: We will not sell club
Dec 26 2007 by David Bartlett, Liverpool Daily Post




LIVERPOOL FC owners Tom Hicks and George Gillett have told friends they have no “interest whatsoever” in selling their shares in the club.

They made their stance plain to friends and business associates after it was reported at the weekend that Dubai International Capital, who were bid rivals at the time Hicks and Gillett bought the club, were poised to take over because the Americans were allegedly having problems re-financing the debt taken out to buy Liverpool.

Last night, a source familiar with the situation said the report, which also claimed Rafael Benitez had been given until the end of the season before he was fired, was “utter nonsense”.

The source said that, early next month,Hicks and Gillett hoped to refinance the debt when they bought Liverpool in February.

They are also going to finalise their stadium design choice “between two world-class alternatives” before Saturday, January 12, said the source.

It comes after Hicks and Gillett were forced to scrap a futuristic stadium design because costs had soared.

The pair are also playing down the reported rise in stadium costs. It had been reported that the cost of the stadium had risen to £450m from £300m.

The source said stadium project costs crept up from a low £300m figure to mid-£300m number. It was only after that the owners told the architects to “value engineer” the scheme back down to the £300m mark. Last night, a source told the Daily Post: “Hicks and Gillett expect to close their new financ- ing in early January, and to finalise their stadium design choice between two world-class alternatives before January 12.Š

“They have no interest whatsoever in selling any shares, and Rafa and the owners have smoothed over a minor miscom- munication that the media blew way out of proportion.”

Dallas architects HKS, who were behind the spec- tacular proposals revealed in July, have been told to make their plan cheaper and probably less impres- sive. That stadium had the capacity to be expanded to 76,000.

And Manchester-based AFL, which was behind a previous proposal rejected by Hicks and Gillett because it was “obsolete”, was told to improve on its scheme for Stanley Park.

Both revised plans would have a capacity of around 70,000.

It is understood Hicks and Gillett are expected to re-finance the £220m loan used to buy the club.

The new £350m loan with the Royal Bank of Scotland would include £60m to get work on the new stadium started and £25m to cover the cost of last summer’s signings.

Despite this, stadium plans are apparently proceeding according to a revised schedule (that would see the new ground open in time for the 2011/12 season) in terms of the planning, design and initial construction.

Says it all for me

[Shanks65]

Think I'm in the majority when I say, lets wait and see.

If they sack Rafa, re-finance against the club, and build us a copy of the City of Manchester Stadium, I'll join the queue to knock their teeth out.

However:

If they back Rafa with reasonable funds, let Rafa keep Mascher, build us a stadium worthy of our club, and stop making promises they can't keep, then I will praise them.

Lets see what happens, and pray they do the right things. The greatest club in the world is at their mercy and there's nothing we can do about it.

[AFII]

They have not payed a single pound out of their own pockets yet and now when the banks want a £40m cash security then they are having problems to put up the cash they need.

Wouldn't surprise me if they will sell a few players to get the cash security they need and that is why they missed out on their self imposed deadline and waits until after the January window.

[Bender]

Think I'm in the majority when I say, lets wait and see.

If they sack Rafa, re-finance against the club, and build us a copy of the City of Manchester Stadium, I'll join the queue to knock their teeth out.

However:

If they back Rafa with reasonable funds, let Rafa keep Mascher, build us a stadium worthy of our club, and stop making promises they can't keep, then I will praise them.

Lets see what happens, and pray they do the right things. The greatest club in the world is at their mercy and there's nothing we can do about it.

Go for it donkey

[captainfog]

Says it all for me

that is my worry. Moores could have borrowed money to sign players. No improvement. I am waiting till start of next season before damning them though.

[Shanks65]

Go for it donkey

I'll **** 'em up mate. Big time

[Bender]

that is my worry. Moores could have borrowed money to sign players. No improvement. I am waiting till start of next season before damning them though.

if there is a a continued sense of bad support for the cowboys from fans and ex players,media etc then they WILL be forced out

[Bender]

I'll **** 'em up mate. Big time

[BobTheCharmer]

I think they're doing a good job to be honest. Keeping Rafa on his toes is no bad thing imo.

I now just wish they'd be allowed to get on with things albeit in a quieter way. I never used to give a **** who ran the club, owners for me should work away in the background. Now they seem to court limelight like the players or is it just the media interest is far greater these days?

I just want, 1)some decent players, 2) a decent kit each season, 3) a ****, haven't been for 4 days.

[Red_hot]

I just want, 1)some decent players, 2) a decent kit each season, 3) a ****, haven't been for 4 days.

Try eating some liqourice (sp?)