Liverpool manager Rafa Benitez's summer spending plans - and even the future of star players such as Fernando Torres - will not be made any more certain by new doubts over the finances of co-owner Tom Hicks's American sporting empire.
Hicks played down the significance of his Hicks Sports Group failing to make an interest payment on £350million of loans at the end of last month, but reports in the United States claim the crisis dates back many months to when US regulators made a damning assessment of HSG's ability to meet its obligations.
The Hicks camp insist what is happening in the US has no bearing on his stake in Liverpool, but it is inconceivable that the news will have made the Royal Bank of Scotland and Wachovia any more willing to refinance the £350m loan facility they set up with Hicks and cochairman George Gillett to help them buy and run the club.
The American owners attended Liverpool's 4-4 draw with Arsenal last week, but the primary purpose of their visit is believed to have been further talks with RBS about extending the agreement beyond July.
The ongoing uncertainty off the pitch could lead to RBS and Wachovia taking financial control of the club in a bid to claw back as much of their money as possible.
Hicks played down the significance of his Hicks Sports Group failing to make an interest payment on £350million of loans at the end of last month, but reports in the United States claim the crisis dates back many months to when US regulators made a damning assessment of HSG's ability to meet its obligations.
The Hicks camp insist what is happening in the US has no bearing on his stake in Liverpool, but it is inconceivable that the news will have made the Royal Bank of Scotland and Wachovia any more willing to refinance the £350m loan facility they set up with Hicks and cochairman George Gillett to help them buy and run the club.
The American owners attended Liverpool's 4-4 draw with Arsenal last week, but the primary purpose of their visit is believed to have been further talks with RBS about extending the agreement beyond July.
The ongoing uncertainty off the pitch could lead to RBS and Wachovia taking financial control of the club in a bid to claw back as much of their money as possible.
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