Purslow: Friend or Foe?

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On January 21st, supporters union, Spirit of Shankly, met with Christian Purslow, managing director of Liverpool FC. Unfortunately, the minutes of this meeting could not be agreed and this has resulted in two different sets of minutes being published today on the Spirit of Shankly website, I would encourage you all to visit and read these minutes:

http://www.spiritofshankly.com/news/Minutes-from-Christian-Purslow-and-SOS-Meeting.html.

Christian Purslow’s appointment looked like a positive step by the club. He was welcomed by both Hicks & Gillett, so he could be a possible bridge between the two, plus he was a season ticket holder, therefore viewed as being quite sympathetic to the fans’ concerns and in the absence of actual fan representation at board room level, a stated aim of SOS, better than no voice at all. His failure to agree the minutes of this meeting and his subsequent version reveal this may not be the case.

Whether it is described as a “key priority” or Purslow’s “project and task”, it is purely semantics, he must find £100m worth of new investment, which will go straight to reducing debt. This, in itself, raises the question: Does Purslow work for Liverpool FC or RBS? None of this investment will go where it is really needed, the playing side. The few positives from this are, mainly, the dilution of Hicks’ & Gillett’s shareholding plus a lengthier refinancing deal negotiated on better terms (hopefully). However, we, the fans, are unlikely to see any benefit in the short term to this new investment.

One major difference between the two sets of minutes is that Purslow’s dislike of Hicks & Gillett, quite apparent in SOS’ minutes, is missing in his own account of the meeting. This is understandable. Who would put into print their dislike for their current employer, if they wished to stay in their job?

An issue everyone agrees on is the need for a new stadium. Personally, I would love to see Anfield redeveloped but realistically, a new build is the only only viable option. Sadly, I do not think we are closer to this goal than we were 3 years ago.

Purslow’s minutes conclude with an attempt to dissuade Spirit of Shankly from further direct action against the owners. Hopefully, this will fall on deaf ears. SOS speak for me and I expect, the majority of Liverpool fans. I urge you all to continue the protests but also to persist with dialogue with the club. They, the owners, know they are not wanted in our club. Make sure they do not forget it.

Sometimes, when a business or organisation turns bad, becomes unproductive, and unprofitable, you need to start at the top and cleanse as you move down. Hicks and Gillett may not be 100% of our trouble, but they are not running the club as it should be run and need to be removed. When that tumour on our club has been excised, if problems persist, we can then look at other issues people perceive to be responsible.

YNWA

Julian

Julian@empireofthekop.com

5 Comments

  1. All we can be is hope for the best..Time to be Optimistic folks..hope Mr. C Purslow’s efforts to bring in new investors materilizes… Reports suggest that LFC are working on some 5 year plans all of which if adhered to sound sensible..but should be religiously carried out..
    Rafa is also said to be keen on signing a few strikers on a free transfer like Jovanovic and Chamakh..lets see how that pans out..
    and some certain departers should bring in money for bringing in players..which i belive will be at most 1-2 summing up a total expenditure of 20-25m like last summer (IF hicks keeps his promise!!)..all this should augur well for the club as we don’t need wholesale changes in the team at the moment…
    Wish Mr.Purslow all the best in his endeavours..(HOPE PURSELOW..brings A PURSE-HEAVY investor to our club,who passionately loves our club and is more actively involved..)

  2. Lets not be mistaken, paying off the debt is going in the right direction. By paying off the debt we are getting closer to our new stadium, and with our new stadium we will double our profits, which will ensure money going on the playing side and signing players. So all in all getting 100m to pay off almost half of the debt is a good idea to me. It’s like paying your credit card if you don’t pay your credit card off in full and just making the min. payments all you are doing is spinning your tires and going nowhere. I like to think Purslow is a friend and not a foe, great article Julian.

  3. I seem to remember in the good ol’ days in the 70s and 80s that LFC had a reputation for conducting their business in private and projecting a united persona to the media and fans. I would like to know why fans feel that this approach should be thrown out. Is it a mad scramble for a few seconds of fame on the internet ? A misguided view that fans sitting in a boardroom can magically transform the finances of the club ?. I’m not sure I know the answer. What I do know is that this populist fan revolt has begun way too late. Where were the fans protesting at the inept management under Parry and Moores ?. A nightmare combination of poor commercial sense and lethargy that leaves us in the same stadium we had 20 years ago (bar a cosmetic change to the Centenary Stand), poor sponsorship income and no clear strategy for growth. SOS and other fan groups were silent and only raised their voices to express discontent about the new owners. The oh so sophisticated ‘Yanks Out’is hardly the basis for a business case. My view ? Support rafa, support the team and let Purslow do what he can to rescue a quite terrible situation. Publishing minutes of internal meetings, questioning the MD…hardly in the spirit of shankly methinks

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