• You may have to login or register before you can post and view our exclusive members only forums.
    To start viewing messages, select the forum that you want to visit from the selection below.

John W Henry: "We're not deep enough"

Forums Unread posts
Status
Not open for further replies.
King Binny

King Binny

Part of the Furniture
Honorary Member
Liverpool owner John W Henry has pinpointed a lack of strength in depth and emerging youngsters as one of the club's main problems.

The Reds are considered one of the Premier League's giants, but it has been 20 years since their last title success and they failed to qualify for the Champions League this season.

Liverpool have found themselves lagging behind the likes of Manchester United, Chelsea and Arsenal not only in terms of recent success on the pitch but revenue streams off it.

But Henry has a long-term vision for the Reds and sees strengthening in Roy Hodgson's squad as one of the main priorities.

Liverpool appointed Spurs' former director of football Damien Comolli this week to help and Henry believes the Frenchman will help the team achieve their goal.

"We're not deep enough. We don't have enough youth," he told Sky Sports News.

"If you look at Manchester United and Arsenal they have depth. They have relative young teams and that's something that he (Comolli) can help us with."

Some believe the addition of Comolli could undermine Hodgson's authority, but Henry insists the former Fulham boss wanted the position filling.

When asked if Comolli's arrival would undermine Hodgson, Henry replied: "No, not at all.

"When I first met with Roy it was really clear that he wanted someone in that position, so I really didn't talk that much with Roy over the week or so before we made the decision to bring Damien in.

"So I think he may have been surprised when I brought it up, but he's fully supportive. He knows Damien.

"I think the model really requires people of certain personalities for it to work and Roy and Damien are two personalities that will mesh well together.

"It will be a group decision. You build consensus. I think it's a very good model, but though each will be in charge of their own areas.

"We're still building a team. We're in the middle of building that. We may make some mistakes early on, but we're going to try and avoid that and we're studying every day."

Former owners Tim Hicks and George Gillett ran Liverpool into spiralling debts and Henry insists the new American regime will not fall into the same trap.

Henry, who also owns Major League Baseball team the Boston Red Sox, acknowledges investment is needed at Anfield.

He added: "We really have to invest in the club. We need more depth. We need to build the squad.

"We need stadium changes, whether we build a new ground in Stanley Park or we rebuild and refurbish Anfield. If you build a stadium there's debt involved in that. Even Arsenal had to borrow to build Emirates. You cannot sustain a club in the long term to buy players.

"You're really limited to what your revenues are. That means we have to create revenues worldwide. We have to generate revenues and that's what we're really good at.

"When we went to Boston we spent three years trying to figure out whether to build a new stadium or refurbish the new one.

"We need to move faster. Hopefully within a year, but I don't want to set a hard-fast timeline when we'll make that decision. If you're going to build a new ground that takes time."
Click to expand...
 
The Liverpool owner, John W Henry, has revealed Roy Hodgson was surprised to learn of Damien Comolli's appointment as director of football strategy.

Comolli, who held a similar role at Tottenham from 2005 to 2008, is set to work closely with Hodgson as part of a management team.

Henry today explained the Liverpool manager will need to have his targets approved before moving in the transfer market, but he is convinced Hodgson and Comolli can work well as a team.

"I really didn't talk that much with Roy over the week or so before we made the decision to bring Damien in," Henry told Sky Sports News. "I think he may have been surprised when I brought it up a couple of days before we brought in Damien. But he was fully supportive. He knows Damien.

"The model really requires people of certain personalities for it to work and Roy and Damien are two personalities who will mesh well together."

Following the takeover by New England Sports Ventures, headed up by Henry, Liverpool are expected to bolster their squad during the January transfer window.

The arrival of Comolli raised questions over what influence he will have on signings. Hodgson has said he expects to be given the final say, although Henry's strategy will allow significant input into deals from the likes of Comolli.

"It'll be a group decision," Henry added. "You build consensus. I think that's a very good model. But they'll each be in charge of their own areas."
 
We already have. £37 mill.(I think it is) of the debt to RBS have been left in place as an initial line of credit for the stadium project.
 
[quote author=Binny link=topic=42612.msg1212313#msg1212313 date=1288976624]
Liverpool owner John W Henry has pinpointed a lack of strength in depth and emerging youngsters as one of the club's main problems.
Click to expand...
[/quote]

and he says he knows nothing about football
 
[quote author=Vlads Quiff link=topic=42612.msg1212428#msg1212428 date=1289003200]
[quote author=Binny link=topic=42612.msg1212313#msg1212313 date=1288976624]
Liverpool owner John W Henry has pinpointed a lack of strength in depth and emerging youngsters as one of the club's main problems.
Click to expand...
[/quote]

and he says he knows nothing about football
[/quote]

Tbf it's obvious to anyone who isn't a liverpool manager
 
[quote author=Fabio link=topic=42612.msg1212434#msg1212434 date=1289007070]
[quote author=Vlads Quiff link=topic=42612.msg1212428#msg1212428 date=1289003200]
[quote author=Binny link=topic=42612.msg1212313#msg1212313 date=1288976624]
Liverpool owner John W Henry has pinpointed a lack of strength in depth and emerging youngsters as one of the club's main problems.
Click to expand...
[/quote]

and he says he knows nothing about football
[/quote]

Tbf it's obvious to anyone who isn't a liverpool manager
[/quote]

squad depth is difficult to acieve when you have to sell to buy
 
Pretty much every person hes talked to will tell him the same thing. Liverpool have 3 exceptional players a handful of average ones, and about 30 players who are complete dross.
 
The message from the new masters of the Anfield universe was simple and to the point.

Not a promise to the Liverpool fans, just a vow of intent. And an unmistakable call for Fernando Torres and Pepe Reina to show they have the same love for the club that Steven Gerrard, Jamie Caragher and The Kop do.

John W Henry, the new “Principal Ownerâ€, laid it on the line. “We really don’t want a player in the club who doesn’t want to be in the club,†he said.

“Of course, the system in football is completely different to what we’re used to. In the main, players in the US fulfil their contracts. Over here players have much more say over where they are.

“But I have spoken to a number of the top players and was really heartened by the response and the intelligence of those players. They really understand what Liverpool is about, perhaps more than we do.

“I’m not going to discuss what we talked about but it was a good discussion. We reassured them of our ambitions, absolutely.

“Now it’s up to us to provide the leadership to make sure we have the right people on and off the field so that every player at LIverpool Football Club or is potentially coming to the club wants to be there.â€

Henry and his close colleague, showbiz magnate Tom Werner who is the new Liverpool chairman, understand they have taken on more than just a club, but an institution, dear to the hearts of thousands, that has fallen on hard times.

But having turned the Boston Red Sox from serial under-achievers into the best team in baseball, the vision is the same.

The days of frustration, of living in Manchester United’s shadow, are numbered. What they did in New England, the pair insisted last night, they WILL do on Merseyside.

“When we arrived in Boston they had not won in 80 years or more and we knew that was our job, to win the World Series, and more than once,†recalled Henry.

“We know coming in here that since the Premier League was created over the last 20 years we haven’t won the title and that’s what our challenge is, first and foremost. If Manchester United do win the league and go ahead of us, then we will work hard to win two.â€

Both men had another close-hand experience of the fervour at Anfield in the win over Napoli and will be back in directors box harness against Chelsea tomorrow.

Werner said: “The passion of the fans at Liverpool is so palpable, not just at Anfield but round the world.

“Part of the reason we took on this challenge was we wanted to reward those fans for the loyalty they have shown to one of the great clubs in sport.

“We understand the impatience of fans. Our intention is to build a great club from the foundations up, to find the very best people in football and on the revenue side.

“It would be crazy to promise too much, too soon. But I hope our track record is a guide that we are successful operators and we will deliver. We went to the Anfield Museum and our intention is to increase the amount of silverware there.â€

Doing that is not as easy as waving a wand.

There are a number of hurdles to overcome and the admission that Damien Comolli was recruited as Director of Football Strategy on the recommendation of baseball executive Billy Bean, currently being played by Brad Pitt in a Hollywood bio-pic about how the small-town, small budget Oakland Athletics punched above their weight, hinted at potentials problems for Roy Hodgson.

What was clear last night, though, is that Henry and Werner blame Tom Hicks, George Gillett and Rafa Benitez of the condition of Liverpool, rather than Hodgson.

“There were a number of unpleasant surprises for us,†admitted Henry. “The wage bill was high, it’s going to be high in the next years and we’re not a young team. That was disappointing.

“Roy was unfairly criticised. He didn’t build this team and it takes time for a new manager and a club to click. If you look at the history of Liverpool, new managers have not generally clicked straightaway. Stability is very important to the organisation.â€

Stability maybe key but change is essential, especially with Henry and Werner aware the gap between Liverpool and their major rivals is even bigger off the pitch than it is on it.

A groundshare with Everton seems off the agenda and while Liverpool council chiefs would like to see the proposed new 60,000-stadium at Stanley Park built, renovating Anfield may be the preferred option.

What is promised, though, is a very different commercial operation, with Liverpool’s historic Asian fan-base the key to increasing the size of the club, rather than widescale price increases at Anfield.

“There is only so much revenue we can derive out of the city of Liverpool,†said Henry. “We don’t have 12 million people in Liverpool and don’t have the wealth of London.

“If we were Chelsea or Arsenal we would concentrate on London but we can’t concentrate on Liverpool when it comes to growing revenue.

“I don’t think you get into sport to make a profit. You can hope to be wildly profitable and we’ve been at it for nine years and been profitable. But every dollar we’ve generated has gone into improving the team or the facilities.

“We hope some day that Liverpool will be much more valuable than it is today. I like the term ‘sustainable’ and that’s what’s great about the Arsenal model.

“You must not confuse stadium debt with structural debt. How did Arsenal build the Emirates? I never heard of a privately-funded stadium of any magnitude not funded by debt. It’s not possible to do that.

“The New York Yankees are $3.5billion in debt but I never heard a Yankees fan complain because they spent $1.5bn on the new stadium. I don’t think Arsenal fans complained because they borrowed money to build the Emirates. It’s a separate issue and the fans will understand that.â€

They will, although only if the team deliver on the pitch. Werner added: “In five years we want to be able to be able to show you a consistent, successful, winning club.

“Liverpool has untapped potential globally and we’re focused on increasing revenue so that we can compete with ManchesterUnited and Chelsea.

“We don’t want to come in and say ‘we will win the Premier League by X’ but we want to show both immediate progress and to build a foundation. That is what we will do.â€
Click to expand...
 
New Liverpool owner John W Henry has told players who are not happy at the club to get out. "If a player has a contract in the US they fulfil it, here it seems they are much more say-so about where they are," he said.
 
Were-not-deep-enough-We-dont-have-enough-youth-Is-that-what-Linda-told-you-last-night.jpg
 
[quote author=Sheik Yerbouti link=topic=42612.msg1212472#msg1212472 date=1289035389]
New Liverpool owner John W Henry has told players who are not happy at the club to get out. "If a player has a contract in the US they fulfil it, here it seems they are much more say-so about where they are," he said.


[/quote]

I think as long as he backs any team building and departures with hard cash I agree.
Although I think it may be a little naive to think we are only going to get people who want to play for Liverpool. We have had loads of those over the last six years and they don't seem to have lasted long.
I for one am fed up with us walking on eggshells as regards our top players, well, I think it's player now to be honest.
I can't see Reina wanting to go now , and I think he will stay and fight for the cause under the new owners. It's too late for Gerrard to make an impact anywhere else. Which leaves Torres.
I don't know if Nando's mind is somewhere else already, he is still building his fitness up, it's a confidence thing, he is fed up of playing up front on his own with minimal support, the weight of expectation is to much of a burden, or he is on a really shit run of form due to a combination of things.
I would really like him to state his short to mid term intentions now so we know where we are and respect his decision one way or the other.
To have just one forward worth talking about and him not performing at his best is a big big problem and it is costing us dearly.

regards
 
[quote author=Vlads Quiff link=topic=42612.msg1212487#msg1212487 date=1289038194]
[quote author=Sheik Yerbouti link=topic=42612.msg1212472#msg1212472 date=1289035389]
New Liverpool owner John W Henry has told players who are not happy at the club to get out. "If a player has a contract in the US they fulfil it, here it seems they are much more say-so about where they are," he said.


[/quote]

I think as long as he backs any team building and departures with hard cash I agree.
Although I think it may be a little naive to think we are only going to get people who want to play for Liverpool. We have had loads of those over the last six years and they don't seem to have lasted long.
I for one am fed up with us walking on eggshells as regards our top players, well, I think it's player now to be honest.
I can't see Reina wanting to go now , and I think he will stay and fight for the cause under the new owners. It's too late for Gerrard to make an impact anywhere else. Which leaves Torres.
I don't know if Nando's mind is somewhere else already, he is still building his fitness up, it's a confidence thing, he is fed up of playing up front on his own with minimal support, the weight of expectation is to much of a burden, or he is on a really shit run of form due to a combination of things.
I would really like him to state his short to mid term intentions now so we know where we are and respect his decision one way or the other.
To have just one forward worth talking about and him not performing at his best is a big big problem and it is costing us dearly.

regards
[/quote]

I agree about Torres's form, Vlad, but let's be fair: he did make a clear and unambivalent statement in the summer that he wanted to stay and play for Liverpool. Why should he make another statement now? There are no reports in the press about him, his agent or his friends agitating for a move: all the speculation is generated by other clubs and the papers themselves, plus a load of armchair psychologists blathering on about his 'body language'. Well, to me Torres just looks like an incredibly frustrated striker whose form and confidence are at rock-bottom, playing in a team that is creating very few chances for him. If we play better, he'll play better - and then his body language will improve. The only statement I need him to make is to start scoring lots of goals again.
 
[quote author=spider-neil link=topic=42612.msg1212435#msg1212435 date=1289007500]
[quote author=Fabio link=topic=42612.msg1212434#msg1212434 date=1289007070]
[quote author=Vlads Quiff link=topic=42612.msg1212428#msg1212428 date=1289003200]
[quote author=Binny link=topic=42612.msg1212313#msg1212313 date=1288976624]
Liverpool owner John W Henry has pinpointed a lack of strength in depth and emerging youngsters as one of the club's main problems.
Click to expand...
[/quote]

and he says he knows nothing about football
[/quote]

Tbf it's obvious to anyone who isn't a liverpool manager
[/quote]

squad depth is difficult to acieve when you have to sell to buy
[/quote]

Or if mediocrity wasn't bought in the first place....

NO NEIL!!! We're not going to the dark place again..
 
Status
Not open for further replies.
Back
Top Bottom