Only Regime Change Can Bring Faith Back In Liverpool

When Tom Hicks and George
Gillett first stepped into Anfield
there was a feeling of great
optimism among the fans of
Liverpool Football Club.
Just under two years earlier
Liverpool had won the European
Cup for the first time in 21 years
and there was to be another
Champions League final
appearance just three months
after the American duo arrived
on Merseyside.
Liverpool were not quite strong
enough to compete for the title,
but with the recent success in
Europe and funds supposedly
coming in to the club from the
new owners, there was a belief
Liverpool could well be on track
to win number 19.
Three-and-a-half years on and a
much bleaker picture can be
painted of the goings on at
Anfield.
The European success hasn’t
been sustained, with the club
having to settle for a place in the
Europa League rather than with
the cream of the crop in Europe ’s
elite club competition.
On the domestic front Liverpool
are looking considerably further
from the league title than they
did in 2007, with the prediction
of Champions League
qualification appearing to be
somewhat optimistic.
Gone are the days of exciting
signings and squad building.
Now all Liverpool fans hope for is
for at least some investment to
be made in the squad during the
transfer window, with the last
two years seeing the club make a
profit on their dealings in the
summer and January markets.
Three years ago Liverpool fans
discussed European away trips,
new signings and potential title
success. Now the pubs around
Anfield are rife with talk of
refinancing deals, debt and the
club’s financial structure.
Perhaps the only thing around
Anfield that hasn ’t changed is
Stanley Park – the proposed site
for the new 60,000-seater
stadium that would be
Liverpool ’s new home. The site,
other than some cosmetic
improvements by the council,
remains in exactly the same state
as it was on the day Hicks and
Gillett arrived.
As every refinancing package has
fallen through, as every potential
bidder for the club has
disappeared and as success on
the pitch has become more and
more limited, supporters have
started to lose their faith in
modern day football.
A club whose fans are regarded
by many as the best in the world
has betrayed them to the point
where they begin to question
their love for the team which has
sent them on an emotional
rollercoaster from the first time
they stepped foot onto the Kop
or watched from their televisions
around the world.
If the club’s debts are called in by
the Royal Bank of Scotland then
the club may finally be able to
move on with new owners, find
the investment needed in the
squad and the stadium, and
ultimately bring success back to
Anfield.
But Hicks and Gillett have done
incredible amounts of damage to
Liverpool supporters ’ faith in the
club, and only when some true
custodians are found and most
importantly, when the Liverpool
way of doing things is restored,
will the club be able to move on
with every supporter behind it.