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DECEMBER 24
Groundshare set for final rejection
By Scott Mcleod - Liverpool Echo
Everton and Liverpool met once again to discuss the Stanley Park
ground-share issue last night.
It is believed to have been a final gathering before providing a
definitive answer next week.
The clubs are expected to announce the ground-share is off the agenda once
and for all.
Goodison chief executive Keith Wyness, his Liverpool opposite number Rick
Parry and representatives from the North West Development Agency are
believed to have attended last night's meeting.
It followed last month's summit with Sports Minister Richard Caborn in
London.
The NWDA are keen to invest money in a ground development if it will be
home to both clubs.
But that now looks doomed because Liverpool's Stanley Park plans are so
far advanced and Everton are unwilling to contemplate anything less than a
clear 50/50 split on ownership of the ground.
If there is no further government intervention there will be no further
meetings.
That will allow Liverpool to press ahead with their plans for the £120m
Stanley Park development and leave Everton free to explore the possibility
of re-developing Goodison or finding a new home elsewhere.
Wyness (right) has confirmed there are no suitable sites for a new home
currently available.
But the club is working with city council over the Goodison site, with
talks taking place over the possibility of the club acquiring more land
around the ground in order to extend to a potential 50,000 capacity.
Wyness revealed: "I think that without doubt the footprint would have to
be expanded for us to do a sensible redevelopment, if we were to stay in
this area.
"It is something I am giving a lot of attention to in terms of feasibility
and looking at what can be done.
"There are a lot of things beginning to coincide which lead us to the
conclusion that something will have to be done, either here or on a new
site. It is inescapable for everybody.
"It has been coming for a long time. It is a question of whether it will
be done here or elsewhere."
DECEMBER 2
Ground share
talks deadlocked
By Andy Kelly - Daily Post
Everton chairman Bill Kenwright last night ruled out the possibility of
his club renting their ground from Liverpool after talks about the
possibility of a Merseyside ground share ended in deadlock.
It now appears the issue will be decided once and for all by the end of
December, though it is widely expected that no deal can be reached.
Mr Kenwright joined LFC chief executive Rick Parry, Sports Minister
Richard Caborn, Walton MP Peter Kilfoyle and Regional Development Agency
chairman Bryan Gray in London yesterday to discuss the shared stadium at
the request of the Government.
While the obstacles to such an arrangement continue to look
insurmountable, the clubs have agreed to make a final decision before the
new year.
Everton chief executive Keith Wyness said: "All parties have agreed we
will have one last look at the option of a ground share with a view to
finalising our thoughts by the end of the year.
"It was an exploratory meeting and the ground share option is one of
several under review by the club."
Liverpool already have planning permission for a new 60,000-capacity
stadium in nearby Stanley Park but costs have gone up by £30m to around
£110m.
The club has applied for a grant from the North West Development Agency
(NWDA) but it is thought that will only be available for a shared ground.
It is understood Liverpool might be happy to allow Everton to share the
ground under a rental arrangement, but that is regarded as unacceptable by
Everton fans and their own chairman.
After leaving the talks last night, Mr Kenwright said: "Everton are not
interested in the slightest in renting from Liverpool. We're not
interested in sharing their stadium, we are discussing a joint stadium.
Those talks are ongoing."
Sources at Westminster said Mr Caborn - a long-time supporter of clubs
sharing grounds wherever possible - had helped to "focus minds" at
yesterday's meeting.
However, his role had been to offer advice to the two Merseyside clubs
rather than to dangle carrots of Government help if they decided to go
ahead.
The Sports Minister himself said: "It was a very interesting meeting. A
number of things have been explored and it is now down to the clubs to
make a decision on what they want to do.
"I am very hopeful they will do that before the end of the year."
DECEMBER 1
Mersey duo
near ground decision
Sporting Life
Liverpool and Everton will decide by the end of this month whether the
two clubs can share a ground - but the obstacles to such an arrangement
continue to look insurmountable.
Officials from the clubs met sports minister Richard Caborn in London on
Wednesday morning to discuss the possibilities, and agreed to make a final
decision before the new year.
The talks ended in deadlock, however, without a satisfactory solution
being found.
Everton chief executive Keith Wyness said: "All parties have agreed we
will have one last look at the option of a groundshare with a view to
finalising our thoughts by the end of the year.
"It was an exploratory meeting and the groundshare option is one of
several under review by the club."
Liverpool already have planning permission for a new 60,000-capacity
stadium in nearby Stanley Park but are around £30million short of meeting
the £110million cost and are due to announce debts of £21million at their
annual general meeting tomorrow.
They have applied for a grant from the North West Development Agency
(NWDA) but that is only available for a shared ground.
It is understood Liverpool would only be happy to allow Everton to share
the ground under a rental arrangement, but that is regarded as
unacceptable by Toffees fans who would want a 50% ownership share as a
minimum requirement.
Caborn hopes the matter will now be resolved one way or the other.
He said: "It was a very interesting meeting. A number of things have been
explored and it is now down to the clubs to make a decision on what they
want to do.
"I am very hopeful that they will do that before the end of the year."
Wednesday's talks involved Caborn, Wyness, Everton chairman Bill
Kenwright, Liverpool chief executive Rick Parry, NWDA head Bryan Gray and
Liverpool Walton MP Peter Kilfoyle.
NOVEMBER 26
Benitez against
share move
The Guardian
Liverpool manager Rafael Benitez this afternoon declared his opposition
to ground-sharing with Everton, just hours after sports minister Richard
Carborn announced he will raise the issue with both clubs.
Caborn will hold talks next Wednesday with officials from the Merseyside
clubs about the prospect of them sharing a new stadium in the city, but
Benitez said: "It is not for me and I do not believe Liverpool or Everton
fans want it."
Liverpool have planning permission to build a new 60,000-capacity stadium
in Stanley Park. Originally estimated to cost £80million, it has risen to
£110million, which has already halted talks between the club and
third-largest shareholder Steve Morgan over a possible takeover.
Caborn has become involved because regional and local authorities want to
explore the opportunity of building a shared stadium in time for 2008 when
Liverpool will be the European city of culture. Benitez, however, is
against such an idea, and claims it has been vetoed in many Spanish cities
with two top teams.
"In my experience of these things, it does not work," said the former
Valencia boss. "In Valencia there was talk about Levante and Valencia
sharing the same stadium; in Seville it is the same. But always it is a
problem.
"In Italy you see the pitches are always bad when this happens. You train
more on it and play more games on it and for the supporters you can lose
your identity.
"It is very difficult to see. Part of the good atmosphere in matches, and
derbies, comes from having your own stadium and if you can that is what
you should do.
"When I first decided to come here I was aware of the new ground plans; my
first idea to come here was because I knew the club and what was important
to their history for the board, chairman, chief executive and the players.
"I still hope that after five years in a new stadium we will be playing
well and doing well. Sharing is not for me and not for our supporters -
and I would think Everton supporters either." "People say it works in
Milan, but the pitch is always bad, if you see it a lot of games cause a
bad pitch. If it is not really needed then you should always do something
different."
"My experience in Spain, from Madrid to Valencia to Barcelona, when you
have two big teams with a lot of supporters they have an identity and
prefer to play in their own stadiums."
"And when you see grounds that are shared, the pitch is never the best.
Nowhere has it been mentioned do you find supporters agreeing, always they
do not want it because they have their own identity."
NOVEMBER 26
Liverpool
rule out sharing ground
BBC Sport Online
Liverpool have moved swiftly to reject any suggestion they would
consider sharing their new stadium with Everton.
The Reds have always said they will not allow their neighbours to move
into the new ground even if overheads mount - amid reports it is now
costing £100m.
But the Department of Culture, Media and Sport claimed a meeting between
the two clubs and Sports Minister Richard Caborn was set up.
Liverpool spokesman Ian Cotton said: "Our position remains unchanged."
A Department of Culture, Media and Sport spokesman had suggested that
Caborn - receptive to the idea of ground shares - had been invited to
discuss the issue with the two Merseyside clubs at a meeting next
Wednesday.
Caborn has influence with the Regional Development Agency, which could
provide some funds and Liverpool City Council is also keen to promote
sharing.
"Mr Caborn has had a request to convene a meeting.
"He is more than willing to talk through the issues. He is generally
behind the concept of ground-sharing and has supported the recent
agreement between Leicester City and Leicester Tigers."
The cost of Liverpool's proposed new 60,000-seat stadium has risen from an
original £80m to more than £100m, according to reports.
But Rick Parry, the Anfield chief executive, has said his club would pull
out of building their new ground if costs spiralled, rather than share
with Everton.
Everton previously had plans to build their own new ground at King's Dock
but that was shelved due to cost.
Keith Wyness, the Everton chief executive, appeared to confirm that a
meeting would be taking place.
He told the Liverpool Echo newspaper on Friday: "It is another one in a
series of meetings related to that subject.
"We will be attending with an open mind to listen to any ideas that are
put forward."
But Liverpool spokesman Cotton added: "We have asked the North West
Development Agency to consider our grant application on the basis of our
single club use of a new stadium. This is a point we have made repeatedly
to the NWDA.
"This application isn't just about a new stadium. It is about a project
which will act as a major catalyst for the regeneration of the whole of
North Liverpool.
"It will bring proven benefits to the whole of the local community and it
is time there were signs of real progress on delivering these."
SEPTEMBER 28
Parry's
warning over new stadium
By Paul Eaton - LFC Official Website
Rick Parry has spoken of his delight after the Reds were granted
planning approval for a new stadium - but he's warned the Reds will pull
out of the project if costs spiral out of control.
Liverpool yesterday overcame a "significant hurdle" in their bid to build
a new stadium on Stanley Park when Deputy Prime Minister John Prescott
decided against calling the scheme in for further scrutiny.
It means the city council's decision to grant planning permission will
stand and that Liverpool could start building work sometime next year.
But Parry has warned the club will never spend more than it can afford to
pay back and that there is still work to be done before the building
begins.
He said: "It is good news for LFC and good news for the local community
who want to see something happen. We are still confident of funding the
project, but that is a separate issue entirely. The next step is to secure
the funding, finalise the designs and then get on site by spring next
year.
"You need to have a real project to attract funding and getting planning
permission from the city council was a significant step in that respect
and this is another.
"There is a higher cost involved, as is often the case with projects of
this nature, but we are not commenting on what those costs are at this
stage.
"We are confident of securing the funding but equally, as we have always
said, we will only proceeed providing it is a viable project. We will not
bankrupt ourselves or over-extend the club.
"It is not just a case of whether we can find the money, it is about
whether we can pay it back."
SEPTEMBER 27
Anfield go-ahead
By Neil Hodgson - Liverpool Echo
Liverpool's new £80m football stadium was given the green light today.
Deputy Prime Minister John Prescott will not call the massive scheme in
for scrutiny - meaning work can begin.
Council chiefs approved Liverpool Football Club's plans at the end of
July, and if Mr Prescott's department had decided to examine the scheme it
would have led to costly delays.
The Deputy Prime Minister's announcement today was the news councillors,
Liverpool Football Club and fans had been praying for.
Liverpool council leader Mike Storey said: "This is brilliant news for the
city of Liverpool and is about more than a football stadium."
He said it will mean new jobs, homes and investment.
A massive public consultation exercise two years ago found that more than
80% of residents were in favour of Liverpool's plans to move their ground
from their current Anfield Road site to the car park end of nearby Stanley
Park.
The site of the club's existing stadium will be redeveloped to improve the
Anfield community.
Alan Blundell of Walton Breck Road Residents' Association presented a
1,700-name petition in favour of the development this year.
He said people had to realise that if Liverpool, the area's biggest
employer, was forced to look elsewhere for a new ground, the effect could
be devastating.
"It's not just the stadium, it's what it brings to the area as well."
Opponents, led by former Lib Dem Anfield councillor Joe Kenny, argued that
Liverpool's plans would devastate the historic park. He was unavailable
for comment today.
Speaking today as he arrived in Athens - where the Reds meet Olympiakos in
a Champions League clash tomorrow - chief executive Rick Parry said: "It
is extremely good news. It's a big step and it is not necessarily the last
legal hurdle but it is a big significant hurdle that's been overcome.'
He added: "We are not expecting any further challenges.
"We will progress on schedule with the stadium coplete in 2007.
"We hope to begin the building work next spring, fingers crossed. There
can still be applications for judicial review, but as far as I am
concerned it is all systems go."
Cllr Storey added: "This massive project will lead to new jobs and homes
and new investment and will help create the kind of facilities which
Anfield has so desperately needed."
A council spokesman said today work could begin any time.
Liverpool's local rivals Everton will also be considering their next move
after today ' s announcement.
They are keen to strike a ground- share partnership with Liverpool to
eliminate running costs for their Goodison Park ground after plans for
their own new arena on Kings Dock collapsed two years ago.
No-one from Liverpool FC was available for comment today.
AUGUST 4
The new Anfield
By Patra Mann - Liverpool Echo
This
could be the new Anfield.
This design shows what the new stadium will look like if the scheme goes
ahead.
City planners approved the scheme last Friday by a vote of six to two
after an eight-hour meeting.
The final decision is with deputy prime minister John Prescott's office.
He has one month in which he can call in the plan for a public inquiry.
Liverpool FC hope to start building work in Stanley Park at the start of
next year.
The new stadium will have 60,000 seats, a museum and visitor centre and
there will be a series of improvements to Stanley Park as part of a wider
regeneration of the Anfield area.
Liverpool FC are putting £90m into the scheme, with the new ground located
300 yards from the current site on the eastern end of Stanley Park, next
to Arkles Lane.
The old site will become Anfield Plaza with a mixed-use public area
surrounded by a residential development, offices, cafes, bars, restaurants
and a hotel.
Chief executive Rick Parry said: "The last thing that anyone would have
wanted is to have more uncertainty. We want to get on with it."
Protesters are planning to mount a legal challenge to the new stadium amid
fears the extra 15,000 seats will trigger traffic chaos.
