Purslow: Talks Ongoing With Investors

Liverpool's managing director
says a “small number of
potentially interested parties”
are still looking into buying the
Premier League club but have
yet to make a firm offer.
Christian Purslow also says that
any attempts by current owners
Tom Hicks and George Gillett Jr.
to refinance Liverpool's debts are
likely to be vetoed by the board.
Liverpool were put up for sale in
April and faces an October
deadline to repay its debt, which
has grown from £237 million in
April to about £280 million.
“ (The owners) haven't had an
offer yet that they like, and so I
suspect that both of them
individually and collectively are
pursuing their other alternatives
and that's their prerogative, ”
Purslow said on Liverpool's TV
channel.
But Purslow is opposed to the
owners refinancing the debt - as
are fellow board members Martin
Broughton, the chairman hired in
April to oversee the sale process,
and commercial director Ian
Ayre. They rejected an earlier
refinancing proposal by Hicks
earlier this year.
“ Any incurrence of indebtedness
by Liverpool Football Club needs
full board approval, ” Purslow
said. “The non-owner directors
have made it clear that's not
what we want to see happen …
(it's) very unlikely.”
Purslow said Liverpool is not in
danger of entering bankruptcy
protection, which happened to
Hicks' baseball team, the Texas
Rangers, before being sold in
August.
“We have cash, we are solvent.
We have banking facilities which
last beyond the end of next
season, and we are heavily
scrutinized by the Premier
League, ” Purslow said.
“Liverpool Football Club is not
going bust. We have an
extremely healthy business with
record revenues and we are
highly profitable …
“It is true that far too much of
that benefit currently services
loans, interest costs and bank
charges. Can we afford to meet
them? Just about. ”
Purslow stressed that any buyer
must reduce or eradicate the
debt, vowing “not to make the
mistake of sanctioning any
transaction that puts the club in
a worse position. ”
“There are a small number of
potentially interested parties
working seriously and privately
doing what is called due
diligence - looking at the
business in detail from a financial
and legal standpoint, ” Purslow
said.
“ My hope is that one of those
parties steps forward with a
proposal to buy the club which is
attractive to the board and which
would be good for the club … the
only thing worse than no sale is
the wrong sale. ”