Liverpool fans rejoicing at the prospect of current owners Tom Hicks and George Gillett departing Anfield profit-less may need to postpone their joy after Hicks insisted his move to block John Henry's takeover was 'legal'.
Reds chairman Martin Broughton announced on Wednesday that a takeover could be completed in time for the forthcoming Merseyside derby, after Liverpool came to an agreement with New England Sports Ventures. The only people blocking the move are the club's current owners, who will go to court next week in attempt to block the sale.
Hicks and Gillett attempted to have Christian Purslow and Ian Ayre removed from the board in order to alter the majority voting in favour of the takeover, but Liverpool claim only chairman Broughton has the right to change members of the board.
"The key thing is the court case," Broughton explained. "We need to go to the court to get a declaratory judgement ... part of me taking on the role - and I was appointed by Tom and George - was that they gave a written undertaking that only I could change the board, they wrote that into the articles of the two companies Kop Football and Kop Holdings. They also gave a written undertaking to RBS that they would not frustrate any reasonable sale and this is frankly a flagrant abuse of those two written undertakings."
However, both Hicks and his spokesman have rejected Broughton's claims, insisting they are well within their rights to prompt changes at board level. The matter goes to court next week, and Hicks is confident he holds a strong legal position.
"We legally reconstructed the board and the board does not approve of the transaction. That's why there are laws and courts," he told the BBC.
Spokesman Mark Semer added on Bloomberg.com: "There were no such undertakings given to Broughton. The board has been legally reconstituted, and the new board does not approve this proposed transaction."
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