Source: Telegraph
Liverpool need new owners and new ground to deliver title, says Roy Hodgson
As Hodgson was unveiled at the start of July, chairman Martin Broughton revealed his hope that the club, which was put up for sale by Tom Hicks and George Gillett in April, would be taken over by the end of August.[LNB]Rumours of potential investors sweep Merseyside on a regular basis but a sale is no closer and the club remains in limbo with the Oct 6 deadline for further refinancing on the club's loans looming.[LNB] Related ArticlesHodgson reducing bloated squadLiverpool now in 'bad debts' divisionHodgson pessimistic over Kuyt injuryReina: Mascherano loss is 'big problem'Kuyt targets Utrecht game for Liverpool returnRBS ready to force Liverpool saleHodgson says that what he knows about high finance 'could be written on the back of a postage stamp' and maintains that he is not preoccupied by the ownership issue.[LNB]But despite the financial climate, he says he is still sure that Liverpool need a new ground, with the club earning less than 40% of the £108.8 million match-day income of Manchester United, whose commercial revenue they almost matched, in 2008/09.[LNB]Asked whether it was pessimistic to dismiss Liverpool's title ambitions under the current regime, Hodgson replied: 'I don't think that's pessimistic. I think people are realistic. The problems with the ownership are well-documented and I can't wave a magic wand and make them go away.[LNB]'Everyone at Liverpool would like to see a solution to the ownership problem. That Martin Broughton finds an owner acceptable to the rest of the board, with the right intentions and who will first and foremost build a new stadium that increases the capacity.[LNB]'I am very confident the boys here won't let the fans and club down. Whether or not we will really get our act together as we'd like to take the next big step, that might depend on the ownership issue being settled and it will also depend on time.'[LNB]
