Jordan Henderson has come to the defence of Liverpool’s owners, FSG, following the backlash suffered due to the club’s involvement in plans to form a breakaway Super League, as reported by the New York Times (via the Echo).
The Reds ultimately withdrew along with the rest of the Premier League ‘big six’ and have since agreed to a number of repercussions with UEFA.
“If you look at it, they’ve done a good job. They’ve grown the club. They’ve put money in. They’ve built a new training ground. They brought the manager in,” the England international said.
“I was worried it would tarnish it. We have all built to this point, and I didn’t want a divide. Teams not being relegated isn’t right. You have to earn your right to be in the Champions League.
“The Super League wasn’t right but the new Champions League isn’t right, either. There has been no consideration for player welfare.
“I know it is hard to hear players moaning when people are working nine-to-five, but we are giving everything when we play. You are exhausted when you come off after a game, and then you have no time to recover. It’s unacceptable. It’s screaming for injury.”
While we abhor our involvement in the European Super League plans, we can’t refute the fact that John W. Henry and co. have massively contributed to our recent successes, helping pull the club out of midtable obscurity.
A lot of work needs to be done to restore a semblance of the trust the fanbase held in the owners, particularly given that this is not the first misdemeanor we’ve observed.
Arguments that we should replace Fenway Sports Group, however, are utterly futile when considering the controversial nature of other groups, with our rivals’ owners providing a perfect example of how things could be so much worse.
Things have to change, but we’d pick FSG every day over indifference or owners from states known for human rights abuses.
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