Wednesday, March 17, 2010

Alan Hansen: Whoever Invests In Liverpool Had Better Have Deep Pockets


Whatever the outcome of the proposed investment in Liverpool, somebody has to come in and save them because it is clearly crunch time in terms of the club's history.

The mere fact that Fernando Torres chose to speak about the need for "four or five top-class" players to be signed by the club will be a worry for Liverpool supporters because, in a perfect world, he would have said nothing and simply got on with the job.

But it isn't just about signing new players. The most important thing for the club is the building of a new stadium with a greater capacity to generate greater revenue. Without this, it becomes so much more difficult for Liverpool to compete with all of their rivals.

It would be fantastic for Liverpool if they could tempt a figure with a bottomless pit of money to invest at Anfield, like Sheikh Mansour bin Zayed al-Nahyan has at Manchester City. That would solve all of Liverpool's problems at a stroke.

That is the dream scenario, but if it doesn't happen, the new investors will have to throw some serious money at the club merely to get Liverpool on a level footing with the rest.

On the pitch, things are not looking great because it looks as though they are going to miss out on Champions League qualification.

To qualify, they are going to have to win 95 per cent of their remaining games this season and they don't look capable of doing that.

If they fail, that's when the problems could really start. I don't know about the intentions of Torres or Steven Gerrard, but if you are in the top 100 players in the world, you want to play in the Champions League because it is the only place to be.

If Liverpool are not in the Champions League, will they accept missing out as a one-off or fear it happening season after season? Should either of them decide to leave, it would leave an enormous hole that would be impossible to fill.

All Liverpool can do is hope that, if they miss out on the Champions League place, either Tottenham or Aston Villa claim fourth because once Manchester City get a taste for it, they will spend the money on new players which will make it harder and harder for Liverpool to compete.

The fact that we are even talking about Liverpool battling it out for fourth spot, 12 months and a day since they won 4-1 at Manchester United, shows just how far they have fallen.

A year ago, you would say that Liverpool's best XI could beat anybody, but you cannot say that this season.

I really expected Liverpool to challenge for the title on the basis of their performances in the closing weeks of last season, but they have not kicked on and performances have patently been not good enough.

So this is the problem facing whoever comes in with new investment. It is a big task of anybody to expect them to find the money for a new ground and a new team.

It has been 20 years since Liverpool won the league. If it goes another five years and the club slips into mediocrity, then you are not only asking for trouble, you are likely to get it.

That is why the next few months are so crucial. If the new investment arrives, then the club will have to either back manager Rafael Benítez to the hilt in the summer or he will have to go. At the moment, you would have to say that the outcome of that one is 50-50.

Results speak for themselves and, too often this season, they haven't been good enough.

Prior to the 2-0 win against United at Anfield in October, there was a sense that the fans were on the verge of turning.

The same was said after the defeat at Wigan last Monday, so this week's games against Lille on Thursday and United on Sunday are absolutely crucial for Benítez and for Liverpool.

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