The Seven Year Itch | FSG - A Review
In October of 2010, Fenway Sports Group purchased Liverpool FC for £300 million. In his first statement as owner, John Henry claimed,
'We're here to win and we'll do whatever is necessary.'Fast-forward almost seven years later, and fans are still divided as to whether FSG have been good owners for the club, and whether the club has progressed, regressed, or simply remained stationary for this period. Under FSG, Liverpool FC have had four managers: Roy Hodgson (sacked January 2011), Kenny …
The Boston VVD Party
A few weeks ago I wrote a piece for Anfield Index, urging the club to be step up the quality of its transfer targets. No more, I claimed, should we shop at the local grocers when we can afford to stroll the aisles at Harrods. After all, we’ve entered the porches of the elite now and are allowed to move away from the discount section.
Because the title involved the acronym ‘FSG’ the comments were crammed with people either defending …
Deja Vu All Over Again: Liverpool's Summer Madness
Ah, the Summer of 2014… World Cup fans on Copa Cabana beach were lining up in front of a poster of Luis Suarez and Liverpool were lining up new signings for our return to the Champions League.
The moment Giorgio Chiellini pulled down his shirt to reveal a Suarez shaped bite mark on his shoulder we all knew El Pistolero would be among the outgoings. Though Suarez could never truly be replaced, surely the club would do whatever it took …
Pressure Growing on FSG?
The transfer window isn't officially open but the daggers are already out for Liverpool owners Fenway Sports Group. Three weeks. That’s all it took for the mood to go from euphoric after a fourth placed finish in the Premier League meant the club were just two positive results away from a place in the Champions League group stages.
There was a bit of relief thrown in there for good measure after it looked as though the Reds may come undone …
No Van Dijk: What Next?
Only a few days ago I, like many Liverpool fans, was both happy and assured knowing that next season Virgil Van Dijk would be lining up alongside Joel Matip for Liverpool in the Champions League. How wrong we were.
The approach was too good to believe. Liverpool had stumped up £50 million, for a centre-back? Utter madness. But pleasing madness nonetheless. A little haranguing over the contract had concerns bubbling, but that tension was soon eased when reports came in that …
FSG: Shape Up or Ship Out
It's happened again... it's happened agai-ai-ain... Tottenham Hotspur, it's happened again!So goes the now famous Arsenal song that was aimed at Spurs fans every season for two decades, when the day arrived each year, and it was confirmed that, yet again, their North London rivals wouldn't finish above them in the Premier League - what became known as St. Totteringham's Day. Clearly, that song was rendered irrelevant the season just gone when Spurs finished some eleven points …
Can Klopp Bring LFC Back To The Future?
As an English literature teacher, it can be a challenge to keep creating engaging writing tasks to present my students with. I've been doing the job for two decades, you see, but I try to be original in as many aspects of my life as possible and so the natural inclination is to eschew clichéd ideas and predictable decisions. This is basically why none of the young men who've graced my classroom over those years have ever been asked to …
Liverpool FC - It's Time to Spend
A popular and insightful article in the Financial Times revealed that English teams struggle in the Champions League due to the competitive nature of the Premier League. Teams such as Real Madrid, Barcelona and Bayern Munich all spend on average, 25pc or more of time during a game leading by two goals or more; almost 10pc more than Manchester City, the side deemed the most 'dominant' during Premier League games. This particular article drew two main conclusions, one being that …
Just How Attractive Is Jürgen Klopp?
It's been an odd couple of days for those of us obsessed with the state of affairs at Liverpool Football Club. For one cohort, the aftermath of Manchester United's Europa League victory was the perfect opportunity for the kind of moaning and masochistic self-flagellation that seems to be de rigeur amongst them. They truly seem to hate themselves and the rest of the world, this lot. It was all over now, you see. The Mancs would beat us to all the …
FSG: No More Shortcuts!
The Small Faces once sang about the joy of resting in the afterglow. I’ve had similar thoughts this week, safe in the knowledge that a) my weekends no longer contain 90-95 minutes of intense panic and worry and b) Liverpool have had an enormous door opened to them and been ushered into the green room of European football.
Personally, I like a break from football. At my age it’s good to recalibrate and take stock before stiffening up the sinews …