Troublemakers, crocks and has-beens: Who Liverpool FC will REALLY try to sign in January

IT'S just six weeks until the transfer window opens, so who will Liverpool buy?

Ruud van Nistelrooy? Carlton Cole? A loan deal for Roman Pavlyuchenko? All have been linked with a January switch to Anfield by the media.

And what about Tottenham's five-goal hero in the 9-1 demolition of Wigan, Jermain Defoe?

Believe it or not, some Liverpool fans actually think that's realistic...time to smell the coffee.

First, there's the evidence of two high-profile interviews in recent weeks - the 5Live Q&A with Liverpool FC managing director Christian Purslow, and the Rafa Benitez interview in The Times.

Purslow told 5Live: "We haven't tended to use January as a significant period for player trading. There may be activity, but I wouldn't say it is a key part of our plan."

And Benitez said: "If we want to have money available, then we have to sell some players. We have to sell expensive and buy as cheaply as possible."

Perhaps most tellingly, writer Tony Evans, Football Editor of The Times, added in that interview: "Manager and chief executive may face a difficult transfer window, with the priority being to lower the wage bill. Three or four players may head out of the Anfield exit door, with none of the cash heading back to Benítez..."

Some fans are speculating that club co-owners Tom Hicks and George Gillett will recognise the need for a quality striker and dip into their personal fortunes to pay for one. Maybe.

Or maybe they'll approach another manager behind Benitez's back - and we all know which they've got previous for...

Whatever happens, it's clear Liverpool are crying out for reinforcements up front with Andriy Voronin failing to recapture the form of either his early days at Anfield, or his loan spell with Hertha Berlin.

Then there's the problems with Fernando Torres' fitness and, while David Ngog has done well, it's too big an ask for a 20-year-old to lead the line on a regular basis.

So it's time for fans to lower their sights. What Liverpool need is a striker who can offer more than Voronin - that is the lowest common denominator.

And given the financial situation, the Reds are looking at a player that is not first choice at another club, maybe getting on in age, has injury problems or has a reputation for having a bad attitude.

Realistically, anyone else will be too expensive.

Whisper it, but we could do worse than look across Stanley Park for inspiration. Louis Saha was allowed to leave Manchester United on a free transfer due to his dire injury record. But Everton have nursed him into form and he has scored nine goals already this season.

Pavlyuchenko for me is a good shout - he's desperate to leave, he's a proven goalscorer and Harry Redknapp clearly doesn't fancy him. But will Spurs really want to loan him to a side they are battling with for a top-four finish?

Defoe, well that's clearly a pipe dream. As, I would suspect, is van Nistelrooy, whose wages alone are likely to be a stumbling block.

Of course, the picture may change if we manage to sell players. But that's a big if. Too many fans think it's simple, offering the 'sell him, him and him and we can buy him' logic.

Like much of the logic around football, it is fatally flawed.

Firstly, some of the Anfield deadwood is hardly likely to be top of the shopping list for other clubs. And teams that are interested will know Liverpool are desperate to sell, and will offer a low price.

Then there's the issue of whether Benitez will actually see the money generated by sales - the reason Voronin is still at the club when there was money on the table for the player from other clubs in the summer.

So, who could we sign?

Well Kevin Davies has been mentioned. Unfashionable, yes. But a proven Premier League performer, and one who can certainly hold the ball up.

And just because players are unfashionable, doesn't mean they can't do a job - remember David Speedie?

Aged 30, he signed for £675,000 in 1991. He was at Anfield for just six months but scored away to Manchester United on his debut, hit two against Everton and finished with stats of six goals in nine starts, with five substitute appearances.

A Speedie-type signing right now would suit Liverpool down to the ground.

My suggestion? What about a loan move for Amr Zaki?

The 26-year-old showed he could handle the English game and hit 10 goals while on loan to Wigan, including two against Liverpool.

But after then Latics boss Steve Bruce labelled him the most unprofessional player he had worked with, clubs have hardly been queuing up to tempt him away from the Egyptian Premier League.

But the player himself said: "Yes, I was wrong, but my mistakes were not intentional, they resulted from my trouble adapting to England. I want to get back to England to prove that I am a good player, and that I have learned from my mistakes.

"Maybe if I went back to England, I would finish my career there.''

Just a thought... 

Liverpool FC: Anfield crock crisis is the worst in a lifetime

IT'S difficult to analyse Liverpool right now without sounding like you're reeling off excuses.

One win in ten games tells its own story, but there's no doubt about it, injuries are playing their part.

When it's nearly December and the manager still hasn't had the chance to field his strongest 11, it's fair to say his hands have been tied by lady luck.

And speaking of the same old story, it was for Manchester City.

Six draws in a row is not good enough for a manager who has spent over £200million in the last year or so – a spending spree Rafa Benitez can only dream of.

It's no wonder they keep trying to tempt the Spaniard to Eastlands.

But never mind City, what about Liverpool?

Well call it an excuse if you like, but back to this injury jinx - it's ridiculous now and I can't remember anything to rival it in my lifetime.

The mindset against City looked good. We were up and at them, in their faces and looked like scoring - Liverpool certainly didn't start the game like a team short of confidence.

And if it hadn't been for a superb save by Shay Given from Martin Skrtel's bullet header, the Reds could have been ahead inside three minutes.

As it was, Daniel Agger was injured in the same incident and left the field with a gash to the head that needed five stitches.

Disruption number one.

Then Ryan Babel ran into a combination of Steven Gerrard and a shocking studs-up tackle from Nigel De Jong and was also forced out of action.

Disruption number two.

So that meant with around 15 minutes on the clock, Liverpool had just one substitution to call upon - leaving little scope for Benitez to change things around.

Not surprisingly, the enforced changes seemed to affect the flow of the game, particularly for Liverpool, who seemed to revert from going for the throat to keeping it tight.

Nevertheless, David Ngog again shone in an often isolated role up front. And while there were some moments of frustration for the Frenchman, he was key to both goals – winning the free kick which Steven Gerrard expertly delivered into the box for Skrtel to prod home, and firing in the deflected cross/shot for Yossi Benayoun to equalise.

It's credit to the 20-year-old striker that he's quickly shrugged off the over the top media storm after his dive against Birmingham to display such confidence.

While Ngog was key to both goals at the right end of the pitch, Skrtel – who had earlier ended his 65-game goal drought for the Reds – was key to both goals at the wrong end.

I can't profess to know how Liverpool set up their marking on corners. But zonal or not, someone has to pick up the opposition team's tallest player. And the nearest man (although admittedly, not very near) was Skrtel.

Meanwhile, 6ft 4ins Sotiris Kyrgiakos, who replaced the concussed Agger, was closest to a chubby-looking Carlos Tevez, who is 5ft 7ins.

As for City's second goal, I've only seen the incident 'live' at the match, but I can't fathom how Skrtel managed to lose the ball for the second goal as he appeared to be in control and comfortably able to shepherd it out or, at worst, hoof it into the Centenary Stand.

But suddenly he lost possession and two passes later, an offside Stephen Ireland had made it 2-1.

Typically, there's been some over the top reaction to the result, which in the circumstances, doesn't seem a bad one.

Yes, we are crying out for a win, and we were a decent header from Lucas Leiva away from getting one.

But drawing with a team that earlier in the season battered Arsenal can't be all that bad, can it?

There was also frustration spilling over from some fans about Benitez bringing on Fabio Aurelio for Benayoun.

One fan in front of me on the Kop described it as "one of the worst decisions ever." Er, really?

The "problem" with the decision was that it meant Alberto Aquilani wouldn't be making an appearance – and that Benayoun was one of the more dangerous players on the pitch.

Spouting bile from the stands is easy. Managing a football team isn't.

And just the tiniest bit of after thought can explain why it's a perfectly reasonable decision.

Benayoun had returned to the side two to three weeks early remember after the 'miracle' horse placenta cure.

And had it not been for Babel's ankle injury, the Israeli would surely not have been clocking up an hour at this stage of his comeback.

So if he was feeling tired, or worse, feeling his previous injury, why not substitute him?

And Aurelio, as well as on paper at least offering a threat from his set-piece delivery, also sured up the left side and provided support for Emiliano Insua who, at that stage of the match, was being targeted by the City attack.

I also believe we would have seen Aquilani if it had not been for the enforced first-half substitutions.

So, worst decision ever? Don't think so.

So now on to Debrecen in the Champions League - a team thumped by Lyon and Fiorentina.

Hopefully, Benayoun, Albert Riera and Glen Johnson can add strength to the starting line up for a game that really is a must-win.

Then we just have to pray for a Lyon win in Florence.

RECENT POSTS: 
LFC memories: Istanbul 
LFC memories: First time on the Kop
A lesson for Ngog: Make sure you dive properly next time

Liverpool FC: Memories of Istanbul 2005

CHUM CIGAR: Jon Jones cuddles up to Tony Barrett after victory in Istanbul

Another one from the vaults, a piece about the Champions League final in Istanbul in 2005 for a Daily Post pull out remembering that famous night in May....

FROM the moment we touched down in Turkey the omens were bad.

The excitement of being told how brilliant the pre-match partying in Taksim Square was by mates who had already arrived was swept aside by the disappointment of realising our coach from the airport wasn’t going there.

Instead, apparently on police advice, we were dropped off near the harbour in Istanbul. Good start.

A quick scout around revealed nothing to do, so it was time to take the bull by the horns – forget the coach, forget the easy way, we were going to Taksim Square (below) under our own steam. 

After a taxi journey the Dukes of Hazzard would have been proud of – and a mad but prophetic rant by a local kid who screamed ‘3-3’ at us while we waited at the lights - we arrived. 

It didn’t disappoint. There were Reds quite literally everywhere, the beer was flowing the sun was out – this was more like it.

Fast forward a few hours and it was time to head for the ground.

With our coach by now long departed from the other side of the city there was only one thing for it – brave the taxis again.

With cigars in hand just in case we won, we were on our way - but not for long.

We’d split into two groups and, unfortunately for the others, their cab was in a even sorrier state than ours.  It soon came to a standstill, steam billowing from the bonnet with a certain John Aldridge seen laughing his head off in another cab that passed by.
But we soon had our own problems...

A Mercedes carrying two sharp-suited Turks seemed intent on running our cab off the road and our driver was soon jabbering away in Turkish to our new found friends while leaning out of the window and paying no attention to the road.

Next thing, he’d pulled over. The suits wanted ticket-holding Reds with them so they could get past the police and soak up the atmosphere near to the ground. Fine by us, so long as they paid for the cab!

Pay they did, and after a bizarre journey to the middle of nowhere a stadium emerged – whose idea was it to hold the final here?!

With one road in and one road out it was hardly ideal – even former Red Veggard Heggem was caught short by the epic journey and had to resort to relieving himself on the cliffside in front of hundreds of cheering fans.

So to the game, and I was unlucky enough to be positioned in front of a younger version of Victor Meldrew.

Despite thousands of fans standing on their seats to watch the opening ceremony, this cretin insisted I stayed off mine, even pushing me off to make his point.

It almost came to blows before a mate tactfully mentioned they probably didn’t have Sky Sports in a Turkish prison!

Three-nil down at half time, the consensus was a consolation goal and avoiding a total embarrassment was the best we could hope for.

Thankfully we were wrong. Very wrong. And come the final penalty save from Jerzy Dudek who did I find myself hugging as I tried to protect my cigar in a mass of ecstatic Reds. Yep - the young Victor Meldrew! I don't believe it!

Memories of a Liverpool FC fan: First time on the Kop

BIT of an old one, but thought it was worth posting: my thoughts and memories about the Kop (and Istanbul) for Stephen F Kelly's book, The Kop: Liverpool's Twelfth Man, which you can buy here

MY first memory of standing on the Kop was a midweek League Cup tie against Crewe Alexandra – we won 5-1.

I’d actually “sneaked” to the match as there was no-one in my family who was really into footy like me - and my mum and dad didn’t like the idea of me going without an adult. But I just had to go - and it didn’t disappoint. I can still remember getting to the top of the steps of the Kop and seeing the inside of Anfield  for the first time “for real”. It was great, I had butterflies in my stomach – I can still picture the Annie Road - without the second tier and a Wonderfuel Gas advert on the top of the stand.

From there on I was hooked, and I got to as many games as money would allow. Myself and a couple of friends from school in Huyton stood in the same spot on the Kop for years and we’d see the same felllas week in, week out. We were soon up to speed on the rules, too – how to avoid the crush barriers, how to be aware of the fellas just out of the alehouse who’d soon be dying for the toilet and wouldn’t think twice of aiming their piss down a rolled up Echo and into your pocket!

We followed the same routine before every Saturday home game– visiting my mate’s grandad near the ground beforehand and avoiding his dodgy scones (the same ones were put on a plate week after week!!).

Then there was my “nan sweets” – a bag of éclairs my nan gave me before every game which I dished out to my mates at half time.

Back then everyone would pile in the ground hours before kick-off - I stood on the Kop as early as 12.30 for some of the big Saturday games (which were all 3pm kick offs then).

But it was all part of it – booing the opposition players as they come out for a first look at the pitch, studying the warm-ups, baiting the away fans and so on…

We used to dare each other to shout things – if you got it wrong you could almost hear thousands of people scowling down at you at once. I got it right once, someone threw a bog roll at Nottingham Forest keeper Steve Sutton (a bit of a thing at the time) and on my own I shouted “wipe yer arse Stevie”. He did, and I’m sure he gave us a little wink. I was buzzing – and everyone was grinning at me – for that moment I was the funniest lad on the Kop.

The Kop also influenced my love life. My comprehensive school crush asked me to take her the match but her dad didn’t want her standing on the Kop. So we watched from the Anfield Road. As the Kop cheered every home player’s name, I sulked. It wasn’t right sitting there. “What’s up?” she said, “What’s different about the Kop?” “Well they cheer the players' names for a start,” I said. “We can do that here” she said before proceeding to cheer at the announcement of the much-maligned Barry Venison. “Ar, ey love, you don’t like him do yer? Where’d you get her from lad?” boomed a burly bloke in front. The shame - that was it, the next date was the Kop, no matter what her old fella said!

Outside our school at 12 I’d told her – it was Spurs, the last game of the season and bound to be a sell-out. One o’clock she turned up – we didn’t get in and a tout wanted 70 quid for a ticket. That was it, back to Huyton, not a word to her, other than to snub her offer of watching a video at hers. And that was that – we never went out again – she’d got between me and the Kop!

I always remember a derby on the Kop when it was still standing. Just as the game kicked off I spotted a Bluenose I knew. “What you doing here?” I shouted, to which he responded by chanting “EVER-TON” and raising his arms in triumph.

With that we took the lead, David Burrows, I think it was, banging one in after just a few seconds. 1-0! I’ll never forget his face – the shock – it was priceless – how to silence a Bluenose in one easy step!

Since those days, I’ve sat in every stand at Anfield but I still find myself studying the Kop when You’ll Never Walk Alone kicks off – it’s not the same anywhere else in the ground – I’m not sure half of them even know the words in the Main Stand...

I make sure I’m back on the Kop for the big European nights and, for me, Chelsea in 2005 was the best ever. That’s the loudest crowd I’d ever been a part of in 17 years of going to Anfield. It was unbelievable – everyone sung, everyone stood and everyone was everyone else’s best mate – I was hugging strangers left, right and centre on the final whistle like I’d known these people all my life! No-one wanted to leave – we were in the European Cup final – the stadium announcer had to tell us all to get off in the end, almost half an hour after the final whistle.

Istanbul was just as impressive – It was like a home game, we had that many fans there. Out of everyone I could have sat in front of I sat in front of the biggest pain in the arse in the world. Nearly 40,000 Liverpool fans were standing on their seats before the game, waving flags, showing off their banners, but this man wanted me to get down off my seat, emphasising his point by pushing me off at one point. Needless to say it was close to a scrap, but my mate sensibly advised they wouldn’t let me watch the game in a Turkish prison!

Then 3-0 down, 3-3, win on penalties, the rest is history...but as we celebrated and created a huge pile of Reds I found myself hugging a stranger again, both our faces contorted with delight – then I realised, it’s only the man who wanted me to get down off my seat! It didn't matter though, at that moment I would have hugged anyone!

A lesson for Ngog: Make sure you dive properly next time

SILLY David Ngog, eh?

Silly for diving and cheating his way to a penalty that saved face for an increasingly desperate-looking Liverpool against Birmingham City.

And even sillier, apparently, for not diving the "right" way.

So now calls for him to be banned, castrated, hung...he's scum, a cheat, a poison to the game.

So not an over the top reaction or anything.

"King Con" screamed one tabloid, "Cheat" boomed another.

You'd think no-one has ever dived in a football match before.

Only they have, haven't they? There's Didier Drogba for starters, a man mountain who has made tumbling over at the slightest touch an art form. Then there's Wayne Rooney, Cristiano Ronaldo, Eduardo, and, dare I say it, Steven Gerrard. 

Ngog though, has dived once. Once.

So to be tearing into the 20-year-old like he'd used the steps of Soho Square as a toilet is a tad extreme.

Had he stayed on his feet he would have probably been sliced in half by Lee Carsley, a Championship clogger who should count himself lucky to be in the top flight.

So his mistake was to fling himself floorwards, right? He should have hurdled the challenge and landed on his feet.

No, even better. He should have left his leg trailing, made sure there was contact, then gone over.

I've seen lots of people saying that today - welcome to the flawed logic of football - it's still cheating. So if you're jumping on your high horse about David Ngog, you should have been saddling up for Darren Bent at the weekend.

Yet Bent, who left his leg trailing to win a penalty for Sunderland against Spurs, was actually praised for his actions by Alan Shearer on Match of the Day.

And he certainly hasn't been on the end of the stick Ngog is getting from journalists, fans, ex-players and former officials from across the land.

Carsley was quick to take the high ground with Ngog: "I’m sure he has got a family, well if I went home having done that, I’d be embarrassed. You’re supposed to be teaching your kids an example and that is just an embarrassing case of cheating."

Yes, the same Carsley who has made flying into challenges his dubious 'trademark'. The same Carsley who jumped into a above-the-knee, studs up challenge on Chris Iwelumo earlier this year that saw the Wolves striker leave the field on a stretcher.

Maybe Ngog had seen the video? And I wonder what Carsley's family thought after that tackle? People in glass houses...

Speaking of which, Graham Poll. 

"What an absolute disgrace David Ngog was in committing one of the most blatant dives I have ever seen," ex-ref Poll told the Daily Mail.

"Referee Peter Walton should have a serious look at himself as he really must detect such obvious simulation and punish it.

"Watching the game on television I immediately called it as a dive - not being clever, just that it was so obvious." 

As obvious as showing the same player three yellow cards in one game perhaps?

Back to the N'Gog incident, Carsley was nowhere near the ball. At the very least he would have obstructed N'Gog's run. So is the furore over the spot kick really that justified?

It's a shame he did what he did, because Ngog had earlier scored a cracking goal. And the skill to beat two players before the penalty incident wasn't bad either.

Add that to the cool-as-you-like finish to seal the 2-0 victory over Manchester United and Ngog - a regular in the 'flops' column of people who like to list Rafa Benitez's signings - is looking a snip at £1.5million.

The stats say so too. Opta posted this yesterday: "33.3% - David Ngog and Fernando Torres have exactly the same conversion rate in the Premier League this season. Understudy."

Four goals from four starts and five sub appearances this season is not to be sniffed at.

Now we just have to hope that his character is as strong as his goalscoring ability.

Because one thing's for sure, he won't be allowed to forget his dive in a hurry, especially in a slow news week in the run up to internationals.

Liverpool FC's off-field crisis Part II: Fans' questions answered

AN estimated 5,000 Liverpool fans took to the streets of Anfield for a protest match against club co-owners Tom Hicks and George Gillett before the Reds defeated Manchester United at Anfield last month.

The show of strength against the American tycoons was the latest in a series of demonstrations against Hicks and Gillett organised by Spirit of Shankly - the UK's first football supporters' union.

But Liverpool fans are not united on the subject of ousting the owners and many have questioned the motives - and tactics - of SOS.

Some fans even think the latest protest was an attempt to mask the current on-the-field disappointments, despite action against Hicks and Gillett dating back over 12 months.

Here, in the second part of an in-depth interview, PAUL GARDNER, Community Liaison and Regeneration Officer for SOS, answers questions from fans about the union, the owners, and the hopes for whoever next takes charge in the Anfield boardroom. (Read part one here) 

WELL RED: Some Liverpool fans have suggested laying the blame for the club's situation solely at the door of Hicks and Gillett is wrong. Would you agree that the previous boardroom regime of David Moores and Rick Parry hold some responsibility for the club's current off-field plight?

PAUL GARDNER: Definitely. Moores and Parry held us back with poor sponsorship deals, no new stadium, and then they sold us out for more money when a simple Google search would have shown what Hicks' so-called expertise at managing sports teams was like. Questions have been put to them since, and noted in one of our recent leaflets handed out at the Burnley home game.

We have heard nothing back from them. It helps our cause if they came out and said 'Sorry, lads, we got it wrong when we sold to Hicks and Gillett' - but they won’t do that. Some anger and action has to be aimed at them, but it’s the current owners that are currently doing the damage at our club so we cannot take our eye off the ball.

WR: Another criticism levelled at SOS is that it is failing to recognise that football clubs need to be run as a business - what would you say to this?

PG: We agree that football needs to be run as a business, SOS has never said otherwise. Our membership spans the globe - we recognise the global market in football and its importance to the game. But we still have to take into account that despite being a business we are still a football club that exists to win trophies. The business is currently running to the detriment of that. Winning trophies and doing well in the Champions League will help the business, but without the right support we will struggle to achieve that.

There have been many criticisms falsely aimed at Spirit of Shankly. Our presence on the likes of Facebook has allowed us to talk to fans and address some of these issues. If you are unsure about us or have concerns, our website is there to address anything you need to know.

WR: What are the hopes of SOS for Liverpool FC's next owner? Some fans say the union is merely begging for a sugar daddy to 'bail the club out' - what would you say to this?

PG: We want an owner who will run Liverpool FC in a way that is expected of them by the fans and according to the traditions of the 'Liverpool Way'. We have never called for the club to be bailed out by a sugar daddy as this would go against our aims. A sugar daddy's business model would not be financially sound for a business - you have the risk of problems again in the future. Take away the debt on the club and we are very close to being a well-run club. We do not need a sugar daddy.

Spirit of Shankly's main hope would be for the fans to be the next owner of Liverpool FC and it is something that SOS and Share Liverpool are working on all the time.

WR: A banner was held up at the Carling Cup game at Elland Road saying 'We are the new Leeds'. Is it the union's fear that this the direction the club is heading and if so, why?

PG: If we fail to qualify for the knockout stages of the Champions League, and fail to qualify for the Champions League next year, the club's business model will have to change accordingly. That model, as confirmed by Gillett, is based on the last six years and a relatively limited run in the Champions League. We had no net spend in the summer despite earning over £20million every year under Rafa Benitez through the Champions League so what will happen without that money?

Would we have to sell to keep players rather than the 'sell to buy' system we have been undertaking the last few years? That is when becoming a 'Leeds' becomes more of a possibility. Leeds then and Liverpool now might have their differences but both involved business models which relied on Champions League football. Without that who knows where we could end up?

The money from the Robbie Keane sale was kept to pay off interest payments. Then we all thought we had about £20m at least to spend in the summer on players but that didn't happen after RBS asked for £60m from Hicks and Gillett as part of the refinancing deal.

Even Rafa said after signing Glen Johnson that he had money for one more major signing, regardless of player sales. But after RBS took the money he didn't have that. Without Champions League football, or if RBS ask for more money back, what will happen? Who will be sold to allow Hicks and Gillett to keep hold of the club? The banner said 'LFC - The Next Leeds?' We are not saying it will happen, but there is a strong possibility it could happen.

WR: SOS say the Americans have lied over the building of the new stadium, but some fans say that, due to the credit crunch, it would be the wrong time to build a ground. What is your response?

PG: The simplest thing for us to say is for them to take a look at our YouTube recordings of Gillett talking about the stadium here, here and here.

In that one meeting he says he didn't say the '60 days' comment, that it was Hicks - even though there is video proof of him saying it at the press conference when they took over the club.

He says in the same meeting that the credit crunch started at two different times. They use it as an excuse. The credit crunch doesn't have an exact start date - it is a gradual process but was widely accepted as starting in 2008, not a year earlier when they bought the club.

Also, if they kept to their promise of not putting debt on the club like the Glazers did at Manchester United, then the stadium would have been paid for out of their own pockets - the credit crunch would have had no affect on their ability to deliver a stadium. If anything, it would have made it better for them as it might have reduced the price of the stadium.

WR: One problem for fans is understanding the complex accounting arguments. Some fans simply say our debts aren't as bad as other top four clubs, others get much more technical and say that LFC would not be liable for the parent company set up by Hicks & Gillett (Kop Holdings) should it go bust. Could you clear this up?


PG: Other clubs' positions do not make our position any better. As far as we are aware most, if not all, of the debt is now on Liverpool FC after the refinancing. Even if that is not the case then it still does not affect the severity of the situation. Liverpool FC is the only asset of Kop Holdings.

When we met with Christian Purslow (LFC managing director) we asked the question of how much debt is on Liverpool Football Club and Purslow told us £245million. It was specifically asked if there was more debt elsewhere, not on the club directly, and he confirmed the £245m figure again.

Also look back to April of this year. Southampton Leisure Holdings owned Southampton Football Club, its only asset. They tried to use that explanation to say it was the holding company in administration and not the football club. It was seen as a grey area, like it could be with Liverpool, but we all know that Southampton got relegated and started this season with a points deduction. If it was Liverpool it would not make a difference in the eyes of the FA and the Premier League.

WR: SOS critics say fans have no say in who the owners are and will be in the future and argue this situation will never change. What makes the union confident it can engineer a change?

PG: You just need to look at our record in what we have achieved through negotiations with the club. We have regular contact with Ian Ayre (commercial director) and will be having more contact with Christian Purslow over issues to do with the club (more on our site).

We asked for a decrease or freeze in season ticket prices and there was a price freeze (or a reduction if you count the reduction in VAT).

The club scrapped the Priority Ticket Scheme at the end of last season and only part introduced the new scheme with no loyalty involved. We received hundreds of complaints which we passed on to the club. Shortly after a loyalty scheme for the new All Red membership scheme was announced. We are a professional organisation and Purslow and Ayre respect our views - we can make a difference.

Why should we sit back and just see what happens? We have to at least try and save our club. They say fortune favours the brave. We are Liverpool. If anyone can do it, then we can.

WR: Everyone associates SOS with the campaign to oust Hicks and Gillett from the club, but it is also about a lot more than that isn't it? Could you tell us about that?

PG: We were set up originally with the aim of getting Hicks and Gillett out of the club but we have 15 elected committee members who cover many areas.

We have organised cheap coach travel to all domestic games and into Europe last season. We have also negotiated discounts with travel agents for away games in Europe this season, set up free coaching camps for children and arranged fundraising events for the Michael Shields Campaign.

We are there to provide for all fans regardless of where you are based or how much you go the match - Spirit of Shankly is an organisation to provide for the fans, from the fans.

WR: Spirit of Shankly support the Share Liverpool proposal - the idea of fan ownership of Liverpool FC. Could you tell us the latest on it?

PG: We do support the Share Liverpool proposal because our ultimate aim is to have fan ownership of the club. We have been unhappy at the speed of how things have been moving but we are working hard with Share Liverpool to make this idea become reality.

WR: One fan has suggested a truce, putting forward the idea that SOS and Hicks and Gillett could agree some aims for the club then the co-owners would be allowed some breathing space to achieve those aims. The fan's idea is that if they failed to meet the agreement after a year, it could lead to stronger support for SOS? What's your take on this?

PG: This fan is welcome to join the union, and to raise the idea at the next mass meeting. But there is too much at stake to sit back and do nothing. It would need our members' support which I'm pretty sure it wouldn't get. We gave them the benefit of the doubt already when they bought the club so they definitely don't deserve it again. Purslow and Ayre have got a job to do that is made difficult by the owners. Going easy on them is not going to make the situation any better.

If Liverpool fans have any other questions for Paul, you can email him at: community@spiritofshankly.com

Liverpool FC's off-field crisis: Spirit of Shankly answer fans' questions

SINCE my recent post about the Spirit of Shankly march before the win over Manchester United, several fans have raised questions about the ongoing protests against Liverpool's co-owners, Tom Hicks and George Gillett.

Spirit of Shankly (SOS) is a Liverpool supporters' union - the first of its type in the UK - whose ultimate aim is supporter ownership of Liverpool FC.

I put the questions asked by fans to PAUL GARDNER, Community Liaison and Regeneration Officer for SOS.

WELL RED: One of the main criticisms being levelled at Spirit of Shankly is that marching before games is pointless and counter-productive, that it is somehow taking away from the support of the team and is also unlikely to unsettle Hicks and Gillett. What are your views on this?

PAUL GARDNER: With arranging any protest there is always a fine line in finding a balance. Any protest has to be achievable in both the support it can get and needs, and the outcome it has.

Many different ideas have been considered by SOS and we can say that the majority of protests, if not all we have held, have been very successful. A march was not everyone's first choice of protest before the United game this season, but we supported the majority of our members’ views that chants were not to be taken into the ground while the game is on.

This view is taken because they want to support the team whilst in the ground. Having a march outside the ground does not affect in any way the ability to support the team. In fact, if you compare the results after both of our two big marches (both wins against Manchester United) then you could say the march helps to get people even more motivated to support the team once in the ground.

On the point of unsettling Hicks and Gillett, yes, Hicks and Gillett probably wouldn't haven't heard the chanting directly but the other way of getting at them  is finding out where they are whenever they are over here, as shown when SOS confronted Gillett prior to the Hull game at Melwood and the Academy. Some fans also made their feelings known to Gillett after the reserve game against Sunderland the week before the United game.

The march is about gaining media interest and spreading the word about what Hicks and Gillett are doing to our club. It is not only about putting pressure on the owners but informing fans, whether they are watching on the path of the march or across the world reading or watching via the media.

There were massive amounts of positive coverage of the march including a clip on one of the biggest national news programmes. With around 5,000 on the march (more than the previous march) and with the coverage it received we can say it was a success on all levels.

The club will also be aware of our protests that day with 600 beach balls thrown around the ground and on to the pitch before the game, all with messages for the owners written on them.

We need to keep on coming up with ideas for protests that maximise the pressure on the owners. We have regular mass meetings were our members vote on  issues including what type of protests they support. If people have ideas to put forward they can e-mail: directaction@spiritofshankly.com

WR: Fans against the protests have also suggested it could put off potential new investors/owners - what would you say to them?

PG: This is something Christian Purslow (Liverpool FC managing director) has suggested to us as well. We can understand people's thoughts on this. You have to look at both sides of the argument and try and judge what is best for the club.

Protesting will get a message across to potential investors and owners. It shows we understand when someone is damaging our club for their own benefit. If those type of investors are put off then it is for the better.

The key thing to remember is protests are not against Liverpool Football Club - they are against Tom Hicks and George Gillett. New deals with Standard Chartered, 188Bet and Halliwell Jones show investors realise this. The protests are not having a damaging effect.

Fans have to realise that every ticket, shirt or hot dog bought at Anfield is paying towards interest repayments to allow Hicks and Gillett to own the club. Spending £2.5million net in the last two seasons shows that they are not willing or able to invest back into the team regardless of our earnings at the moment so it is important that we keep putting pressure on them.

The problem for new investors and owners is the valuation that Hicks and Gillett have put on the club - no investor will invest at the wrong price. We can help by making life uncomfortable for Hicks and Gillett and make them get out sooner with a lower price that a suitable owner is willing to pay.

WR: The use of the word 'Yanks' on the SOS website and in banners/literature etc has been highlighted by some critics who accuse the union of being xenophobic. What's your response?

PG: Yanks is a shortened version of Yankees and is a playful colloquial term for Americans used in Commonwealth countries since World War 2. It was not meant to be derogatory and having American members of SOS illustrates this. It was used as a shorter term in banners and chants to help relay the message about the owners.

Recently, we have been working on a new campaign called 'Tom and George - You're not welcome here'  along with banners such as 'Tom and George - You Tell Lie$' so it further highlights how we are not intending to be xenophobic in our pursuit to get the owners out. Our quarrels are with Hicks and Gillett as individuals and not as a nationality.

Also, if using the term 'Yanks' was really deemed to be xenophobic why are possibly the most successful baseball team in America called the New York Yankees? Surely if it was so offensive they would be called something else?


WR: Some fans want to see more direct action against Hicks and Gillett. They have suggested boycotts of games, club merchandise and so on. Have you looked at these options?

PG: At present we do not think they are realistic. Club merchandise is sold around the world. You would need to stop millions of people buying merchandise.

Boycotting a match has been talked about a lot. It would definitely have an effect seeing an empty Anfield, but for every person giving up their ticket there would be someone else willing to buy one, so the number of people you need to boycott the match becomes much bigger.

With season tickets and the auto cup scheme it means most of the ticket revenue will already be in the club's hands. Also, there is the issue you raised in the question about does a march affect the ability to support the team. People have different opinions on what direction to go with a protest and rightly so. Boycotting a match was discussed at the last mass meeting and the majority voted against it.

WR: Some fans have highlighted what they see as good things achieved by Hicks and Gillett - the Standard Chartered sponsorship deal, Benitez's new contract, the manager being given control of the academy and transfer deals. Would you acknowledge these things have been steps in the right direction by the co-owners?

PG: I don't think it is a step in the right direction by the co-owners, but a right step in the right direction by Christian Purslow and Ian Ayre (LFC commercial director). The co-owners have pretty much left the running of the club to them two. All Hicks' and Gillett's names mean on club documents now is that there is £245m worth of debt on the club. So these deals are great, but when the money received from them is going straight to Royal Bank of Scotland and not to strengthening the team it means there are still major problems.

On the point of Standard Chartered, look at the deals Manchester United, Chelsea and Arsenal have been getting for the past five years and then compare that to the Carlsberg deal we kept renewing under Rick Parry.

What has been delivered recently with the new sponsorship deals is great and would be even better if it didn't just go to servicing debt. But the opportunities for such a deal were there beforehand. David Moores and Parry missed out on them - Purslow and Ayre are simply taking us up to the level we should be at rather than of the owners' making.

WR: Is there anything that Hicks and Gillett could do to reverse SOS's stance on their ownership of the club, or is it an 'out at all costs' approach?

PG: It is a simple 'out at all costs' approach. People may see that as one tracked and narrow minded, but you have to look at what has happened during their ownership to see why this is important.

When Hicks and Gillett  bought the club we trusted Moores and Parry when they said they were the best option to take the club forward. We then believed Hicks and Gillett when they said there would be no debt on the club like the Glazers' takeover at Manchester United, that there would be a spade in the ground in 60 days and that Rafa would be given money to buy anyone he wants (remember 'Snoogy Doogy'?).

If they did manage to pay off the debt, or rather by us going the match and buying merchandise we were able to pay it off for them, why should we ever trust them? They have lied to us many times before, damaged the club massively and continue to do so. Take a look at the recordings on our YouTube side and on our website of a meeting with Gillett - he still continues to lie to us on issues which have been proved countless times before.

Hicks is struggling with his other sports teams and is hated by Texas Rangers fans as he was by Corinthians fans when he did similar things to what he has done with Liverpool.

Hicks, as part of a group, Hicks, Muse, Tate & Furst, bought a winning team with Brazilian football team Corinthians in 1999. Similar to with Liverpool reaching the Champions League Final in 2007, Corinthians won the World Club Championship in the same year Hicks bought them.

He promised them a new stadium, but didn't deliver it. He went against the traditions of the club and failed to deliver on any of his promises. Hicks retired from the group owning Corinthians before they sold to MSI in 2003. Legal battles between MSI and Hicks group went on until 2007 and in 2007 Corinthians got relegated for the first time in their history.

Here's an article from December 2000 about Corinithians - the similarities with Liverpool are uncanny.

Then look at the Texas Rangers - they are still looking at closing the museum there to create more room for corporate events. More on this here

They have had plenty of opportunities to learn the right way how to run a sports team and they still can't get it right - we have no reason to ever trust them. 

WR: It has been widely reported that Hicks and Gillett's ownership of LFC could be diluted by the introduction of new owners. What are the union's views on this?

PG: We have to judge this as it happens. A reduction in the shareholding of Hicks and Gillett would be great, but only if the other owners are suitable custodians. We can thank Hicks and Gillett for making us learn that the hard way. One of Spirit of Shankly's constant aims is to hold whoever owns the football club to account. 

WR: People who oppose the views of Spirit of Shankly in respect of Hicks and Gillett are suggesting the issues with the owners are being used as a smokescreen to cover up what they perceive to be the real problem, the manager Rafa Benitez. What would you say to this?

PG: Spirit of Shankly will not get drawn into whether Rafa Benitez is the right person to manage Liverpool Football Club. It’s not what we were set up for. We do however support the position of manager and the owners are undermining that position constantly - the lack of support in the transfer market with a net spend of around £2.5m in the last two seasons highlights this.

I would go as far as to say the issues about Rafa Benitez are a smokescreen for the owners. We have the fifth most expensive squad and fifth highest wage bill in the league but are still expected to win the title. If you expect a manager to achieve something you need to give him the necessary support for it and that isn't being given at the moment. We were outbid for two players in the summer by Sunderland. As long as that is happening then whoever is manager of Liverpool Football Club will struggle to win the league. 

Part two tomorrow