King Kenny lifts Liverpool from the brink

Kenny Dalglish has resurrected the fortunes of Liverpool. (FILE)

Published Wednesday, October 12, 2011

By Staff

Liverpool's top brass admitted that they have come back from the brink one year to the day they nearly went bust.

The Phoenix-like rise of Liverpool has been largely attributed to the return of Kop legend Kenny Dalglish.

Liverpool prepare to take on bitter rivals Manchester United at Anfield this weekend, in the same week they mark the one-year anniversary of their takeover by Fenway Sports Group (FSG).

Victory for Dalglish's side would lift Liverpool to within three points of United in the Premier League table.

FSG has helped remove the club from the clutches of unpopular former owners Tom Hicks and George Gillett, who nearly took the club into administration according to

Liverpool's managing director Ian Ayre.

"Certainly the bank had the power to call in the debt and at the time there wasn't anyone ready to take on that debt. So I guess the answer is yes, the club could have gone into administration," Ayre stated in quotes carried in the British press.

"Based on where we were and based on the circumstances at the time, that (administration) was a very real threat. That was the case in the final hours. That was one of the other routes we could have gone down.

"We really were on the edge. What you had was a domino effect of things. Debt was going up and the cost of servicing the debt was beyond what we felt was reasonable.

"Obviously we had a very negative reaction from the fan base which was starting to hurt the commercial revenue. The debt servicing became even harder because the revenues became smaller. If you can't invest in the team, as we've seen, the fallout is no European football etc."

With debts reported to be rising above £450 million by the day, it seems unthinkable that they managed to recover to a position where they were able to spend in the region of £50 million on players during the summer.

Ayre, though, can see a bright future for the club - insisting the ship is finally pointing in the right direction.

"It was a disaster that we have recovered from. We are now where we should be and heading in a better direction and in a better shape and set up as a business to perform and deliver," Ayre insisted.

"If you really think where we were 12 months ago, it couldn't be more different. We've managed to get it back that quickly, when it could have had a lot more lasting damage - where we are today, I don't think we could even hoped to be this far ahead 12 months ago."

It is a far cry from wave of optimism sweeping across Anfield and there is a genuine feeling Liverpool could become genuine challengers for Manchester United.

Ayre insisted King Kenny's appointment in January has been the major factor in the change in fortunes.

He said: "Bringing everyone together has been the catalyst and the appointment of Kenny was the heart of that — and still is.

"Even after we'd got Fenway Sports Group in, there was still a period of 'What's next?' And what the appointment of Kenny did was give everyone something to focus on.

"It's what the fans wanted, it was right. The players galvanised around him. The owners weren't lucky, they were smart in his appointment."