APRIL 16
Lawrenson: 'Benitez could be off'

Evening Echo

Mark Lawrenson believes Rafael Benitez could walk away from the “everyday farce” at Liverpool even if the club win the Champions League for the second time in four seasons.

The former Anfield defender believes the breakdown in trust between the Liverpool manager and chief executive Rick Parry would make it difficult for Benitez to land the players he wants in the summer transfer market.

It was revealed in reports this week that Parry had a hand in talks with Jurgen Klinsmann last November, along with warring co-owners Tom Hicks and George Gillett.

Asked if Benitez would be there next season, Lawrenson said: “If they don’t sort the mess out soon I’d have to think he would not be, regardless of whether they win the Champions League.

“The problems off the pitch could give him an excuse to leave. If they win the Champions League there would be no shortage of takers and he probably thinks ’why should I turn up and flog my guts out for this lot when I don’t know what is going to happen next week?’

“He must come in every day and wonder what he is going to read about that he didn’t know.”

It is the nitty-gritty of buying reinforcements for a side currently fourth in the Premier League, however, which could force the hand of the former Valencia coach.

Lawrenson said: “His problem is what about the players he fancies for next year. Who says yes you can buy and who says no you can’t? It is very difficult.

“The manager and the chief executive are so important. Nowadays the manager goes to the chief executive and says ’See if you can get me ’X” and the chief executive sorts it out.

“When the owners are 4,000 miles away you are relying on the chief executive to give you every bit of information that relates to you.”

Lawrenson, who played 241 times for Liverpool in the 1980s, including the FA Cup final against Everton in 1986, admits he has been saddened by the persistent squabbling between Hicks and Gillett and believes the club would be better served by the Dubai consortium DIC who are eager to take over.

He said: “(Bob Shankly) Shanks, Bob Paisley, Joe Fagan must be turning in their graves when you consider what they did for the football club.

“It’s an everyday farce and credit goes to the manager and the players. ”Apart from Manchester United in the last two to three months the results have been excellent regardless of what has been happening off the pitch.

“The sooner someone can get Hicks and Gillett round the table and sort out who pays who off and who retains the majority in the football club and lets the Dubai people in the better.”

APRIL 16
Liverpool must end public fall-out

By Tommy Smith - Liverpool Echo

For the sake of Liverpool Football Club the in-fighting that has transformed their off-field problems into a PR disaster has
to stop.

The fall-out between the co-owners has hit the club hard, and there has been scant regard for the good name of Liverpool FC in the blur of publicity.

Almost every day there’s a new angle to the story – and the club’s current plight looks likely to get worse before it gets better.

Tom Hicks, in particular, and George Gillett have not just been washing their dirty linen in public.

They have been dragging it through the streets, too, and others have got involved in what is becoming a free for all.

Where it’s going to end I just don’t know. But what I do know is that the back-biting, ego trips and recriminations have to cease – and quickly.

Liverpool have been going for well over 100 years and is the most successful club in the British Isles.

If we’re not careful we are going to end up with a club that is scarred and we can’t let that happen.

Fans are on the players’ and manager’s side, but there are other parts of the club letting the side down.

How the manager and players have retained their high standards and produced such excellent results – the victory over Arsenal being the outstanding one – I just don’t know.

We’ve got to finish fourth and try to win the Champions League and then Rafa Benitez should be telling the owners that he wants money for certain players.

If that money is not forthcoming then there are going to be problems.

The Reds have to buy the best players and Fernando Torres is the perfect example of that.

Years ago, we missed out on signing Gordon Banks because the directors said they did not have enough money – that’s what they knew about football – and the current owners haven’t got a clue about our game, either.

We are one of the top clubs in Europe, but we appear to be miles behind other top clubs on the commercial side.

Even the shop at the ground is poor and should be replaced by a supermarket to sell other goods and bring in extra revenue.

If the owners want to make money they have to improve what goes on behind the scenes.

But first, sort out the ownership debacle and get the Anfield house in order.

Otherwise, the club will never recover from the disastrous past 12 months.

APRIL 15
Alan Hansen's column

By Alan Hansen - BBC Sport football expert

Liverpool is a club that has prided itself on being a model of togetherness on and off the pitch - so the current bout of very public boardroom in-fighting is hugely detrimental.

In the past Liverpool traded in positive news and if there was anything negative no-one ever heard about it. Sadly, there has been a lot of dirty laundry washed in public recently and it is not doing anyone any good.

Manager Rafael Benitez has a chance to lead Liverpool to their third Champions League final in four years, and yet so many headlines are about the differences between the co-owners Tom Hicks and George Gillett, with Benitez and chief executive Rick Parry now dragged into the debate.

Indeed, the results on the pitch have gone a long way to masking the differences between the owners. Make no mistake, if Liverpool were not in the last four of the Champions League, the media would be having even more of a field day at the club's expense.

It is a simple thing to say, but for the club to go forward and challenge Manchester United's domestic supremacy, this must be sorted out quickly before any long-term damage is done.

We'll come to the ramifications for Benitez later, but in my opinion the only way forward for Liverpool Football Club is a new stadium and if this goes on the back-burner because the owners cannot sort themselves out, then this is once again detrimental.

If the Americans cannot get together and go forward, and from what we see and hear there is little sign of that, then they should sell to Dubai International Capital - clearly a very interested and ambitious party with the financial muscle to build the new stadium and invest in the team.

I love Anfield and the European nights there now are something else. They are even better than the ones I used to experience, perhaps because it was expected as a matter of course back then. I love the "This Is Anfield" sign as you go down the tunnel and love looking around the place where I played and had so many great memories.

But time moves on and Liverpool are being left behind, with Manchester United getting 30,000 more fans every home game and Arsenal having a licence to print money at The Emirates. The new stadium has to be the next major step forward for Liverpool, and it cannot afford to be held back by differences at board level.

This brings us to Benitez, who has clearly and publicly been unsettled by developments behind the scenes at Anfield.

He needs to have plans in place for next season and it is difficult for him to do that with all that is going on in Anfield's corridors of power. He needs to know how much money he has to spend in the summer. He needs to know who is going to own the club to back his transfer plans.

My hope - and my belief - is that Benitez will stay because you cannot argue with his record in the Champions League. The Premiership is another story, but they have improved this season.

Liverpool need to find another signing of the quality of Fernando Torres in the wide positions, and to my mind the player who could fit the bill is Blackburn's David Bentley, although Mark Hughes will have his own ideas about that.

I said at the start of the season that Liverpool needed a 20-goal a season man in the Premier League. They have found him in Torres and yet still come up short in the league, but with a couple of quality additions they can improve again.

But the main item on the agenda now - apart from the obvious ones of playing in the Champions League semi-final against Chelsea and securing fourth place in the Premier League - is ending the boardroom strife and moving on with the new stadium.

APRIL 15
Ian St John:
Liverpool FC situation
is a "shambles"

Liverpool Daily Post

Liverpool legend Ian St John has described the current off-field situation at the club as “a shambles”.

Chief executive Rick Parry yesterday said he intended to hold clear-the-air-talks with manager Rafael Benitez after the latest twist in the Anfield boardroom saga.

That came after Benitez expressed his disappointment at co-chairman Tom Hicks’ revelation Parry had been present at the club owners’ infamous meeting with Jurgen Klinsmann last year.

It had been thought only Hicks, his now estranged business partner Tom Gillett and their sons had been present as they sounded out former Germany striker Klinsmann as an “insurance policy” should Benitez leave.

“It is a real shambles,” former Reds striker St John told BBC Radio 5 Live. “When you think about it, has it ever worked having two people running an organisation like a football club?

“One guy at the helm, fine - he carries the can. You can’t have two people doing it because if they have a disagreement what is going to happen?

“And you have Rick Parry who is supposed to be the liaison between them and Rafa and then Rafa finds out, ’Hang on, he’s hiding things from me’.

“I was amazed to tell the truth. I thought, like everyone else, the Americans had done it over there with Klinsmann and that was it.

“But when we heard that Rick Parry was over there, Rafa must feel right out on a limb here. Where is he going to get any support from?”

APRIL 14
Torres backing for Benitez

By Dan Aubrey - PA Sport

Liverpool forward Fernando Torres has backed coach Rafael Benitez to remain at the club "for a long time".

Benitez will decide on his Liverpool future once the Champions League campaign is over as club chief executive Rick Parry signalled he wants to clear the air with the Reds manager.

The Spanish coach has expressed his shock after learning that Parry was present when American co-owners Tom Hicks and George Gillett met Jurgen Klinsmann in November.

But despite the troubles behind the scenes at Anfield, Torres praised his compatriot for how he has adapted to the added strains of English football and backed him to keep his job.

"Rafa has coached in Spain and England and his ideas are the same," he told Spanish radio station Marca FM.

"The difference is in Spain he was a coach and here he is a manager, coach, in charge of signings, in charge of the youth teams, the man who chooses the coaches who he thinks are the right ones for the reserve team...

"(Manchester United boss Sir Alex) Ferguson or (Arsenal manager Arsene) Wenger are the examples that show that in England even when you're not winning trophies clubs give time to their coaches.

"I think that Benitez is going to be at Liverpool for a long time."

APRIL 14
Jurgen Klinsmann:
Liverpool FC officials
met him TWICE

By Tony Barrett - Liverpool Echo

The Echo today learned that Liverpool co-owner Tom Hicks held two meetings with Jurgen Klinsmann with a view to the German replacing Rafael Benitez as manager.

The first meeting was held in New York at which he was joined by co-owner George Gillett, chief executive Rick Parry and other members of the Liverpool board.

The second was held at Hicks’ holiday home in California during Thanksgiving weekend when Parry was not present.

Parry today said he was prepared to meet Benitez to discuss his involvement in talks with Klinsmann.

The 53-year-old responded to Benitez’s demands yesterday afternoon for talks to clear the air about what went on at the meeting with Klinsmann last November with an offer to sit down with him at the earliest possible opportunity.

Though he has known about the meeting with Klinsmann for several months, Benitez insisted he was surprised by revelations that Parry was also present.

The Spaniard was already aware that Hicks and co-owner George Gillett had met the German in November to discuss the possibility of him replacing Benitez as manager at Anfield.

But Benitez has admitted to friends he was shocked to see revelations from Hicks in the national media that Parry was present at that meeting and is now demanding answers.

Parry today responded to the latest crisis by telling the ECHO: “I am more than happy to sit down and talk to Rafa about this.”

Yesterday, Hicks revealed: “Rick [Parry], George and Foster Gillett participated with my son, Tom Jr, and me. Rick allowed that controversy to build without taking any responsibility.”

APRIL 13
Rafa demands Klinsmann answers

Football 365

Rafael Benitez is to demand "some answers" from the Liverpool board over their pre-Christmas plans to appoint Jurgen Klinsmann as his replacement.

The Anfield chief's future at the club appears far from secure - and speaking after Sunday's 3-1 Barclays Premier League win at home to Blackburn had cemented Liverpool in fourth place, Benitez openly addressed the issue.

Co-owners Tom Hicks and George Gillett held talks with Klinsmann, claiming soon afterwards they did so because they were unsure of Benitez's "commitment to the club".

Hicks' remarks in Sunday's press have outlined his reasons for wanting Rick Parry's resignation, and it has emerged that Parry was "instructed" to attend the talks with Klinsmann.

Benitez, however, seems unlikely to be appeased by that account of events, given his existing rift with Parry.

"Off the pitch, I am surprised at things I have read," he said.

"I need some clarification about a meeting with a lot of people that I did not know about.

"I will talk with the board about this (the Klinsmann issue) - as soon as possible, today or tomorrow.

"I need to resolve questions and I want some answers. I want to clarify things.

"I am really calm - but I want answers."

It is the allegation of Parry's involvement in the Klinsmann talks that most concerns Benitez.

"I need to talk to the board to clarify things," he stressed.

"I was surprised about a meeting with another manager. What concerned me was the people who were in the meeting."

APRIL 13
Hicks slams 'arrogant' Parry

Sky Sports

Liverpool co-owner Tom Hicks has explained his decision to call for chief executive Rick Parry's resignation, slamming his 'arrogance' and 'inability to manage an organisation'.

The Anfield club has found itself in the headlines for the wrong reasons again in recent days, as the conflict between co-owners Hicks and George Gillett escalates.

The latest twist to the boardroom wrangling came on Thursday when Hicks issued a letter to Parry calling for him to step down.

And in an interview with the Mail on Sunday, the American businessman has hit out at Parry's tenure, while outlining his plans to install a replacement as early as next month.

Hicks said: "Rick Parry has been Liverpool's CEO for 10 years and we haven't won a league championship under his leadership.

"Our commercial revenues have not kept up with other top clubs during that time, which has made it very difficult to compete for the Premier League.

"After watching him operate, I came to the conclusion it was time to ask him to resign, due to his inability to manage an organisation, his seemingly arrogant attitude to our supporters and his lack of communication with [manager] Rafa (Benitez).

"I reached my decision a few weeks ago but waited until after the games against Everton and Arsenal. It is important to try to have a new CEO in place by May so we can begin working with Rafa on player transfers."

But Parry has strongly defended his work on Merseyside, saying: "I stand by my track record in English football and as chief executive of Liverpool Football club.

"It would be inappropriate for me to comment in detail on these allegations - that should be a matter for the Liverpool board.

"In fact, I would welcome an opportunity to discuss these matters with our co-owners and board colleagues.

"This continuous airing of issues in the media is clearly not helpful at this crucial stage of our season."

APRIL 12
David Moores:
I'm shell-shocked at the damage
being done to Liverpool Football Club

By Tony Barrett - Liverpool Echo

A heartbroken David Moores today called on Liverpool's warring co-owners to sort out their differences for the good of the club – or else stand aside and let someone else take over.

In his first interview since selling the club to Tom Hicks and George Gillett in February 2007, Moores told the ECHO how:

* He was left disgusted by the treatment of chief executive Rick Parry by Tom Hicks

* He believes Hicks and Gillett must either find common ground or walk away

* He feels let down by the “unacceptable” way the club has been run since he relinquished ownership

* He will do everything he can to get the club back on an even keel after so much turmoil.

Moores, who continues to act as honorary life president at Anfield and who maintains a place on the Liverpool board, said: “It's heartbreaking. I'm almost lost for words about the damage that's being done to the club at the present time.

“As a fan, and as someone who loves the club, it is totally unacceptable to see this being played out in the public arena.

“This is most certainly not what the club is about. In fact, I can't ever remember, even going back to when I was a supporter as a kid, stuff being played out in public like we have seen in the last six months.

“It is embarrassing and it is not an acceptable way of doing things.

“I've never known anything like it and I'm just absolutely shell-shocked.”

As far as Moores is concerned, one of the most upsetting things of all is the way the success Liverpool enjoyed on the pitch in beating Arsenal to make it through to the semi-finals of the Champions League has been almost forgotten amidst the off-field turmoil which has erupted since Hicks called on Parry to resign.

“The most heartbreaking thing about all of this is that we were on such a high after the Arsenal game on Tuesday night and then this comes along and completely takes over the great things the players and the manager did,” he said.

“The wonderful success they had that night has been completely diminished, it is completely gone, because of all of this being brought out into the open.

“All I can say is I feel very sorry that it has come to this, that how great it was on the night has been taken over by something which should have been dealt with in a far more delicate way and certainly not in public.

“It certainly doesn't help the team, because they're not getting all the praise they should be getting because of other things are taking priority.

“Everyone should be going on about how well they performed and how brilliant Rafa's tactics were. I mean, for goodness sake, three Champions League semi-finals in just four years is an unbelievable achievement.

“But the gloss has been taken off it and you should never do that.”

When Moores stepped down as owner, he welcomed Hicks and Gillett to the club but has become increasingly concerned at their apparent inability to act as “custodians” as they had promised and also their seeming lack of willingness to put the club ahead of their own personal interests.

And he today called on them to resolve their differences or leave the way clear for someone else to own the club who can provide the unity and stability it needs.

He said: “I didn't know Hicks very well, I knew George a lot better.

“George came across as a bubbly, enthusiastic man who loves his sport and is knowledgeable about it.

“But he didn't have the money to do the deal without bringing someone else on board.

“It was really right at the end that I met Tom Hicks so I didn't really get a chance to get to know him but I took George's word for it.

“It was in total good faith. I believed these fellas, I believed everything they said to me and they said it all again to the fans via the media and you can judge for yourselves whether they kept their promises.

“I am surprised because I thought that the pair of them, from what they said to me and to the fans through the media, that they appreciated the heritage and the values of the club.

“They talked about putting the money in and the new stadium and having no debt on the club. At the time I think we all felt it would be a good deal but it's not all materialised.

“I do feel let down. With everything that's going on, I have to feel let down.

“This is not how I foresaw it and I'm sure it's not how the fans foresaw it.

“If I could have afforded to take the club forward I would have done, but I couldn't. I didn't have the sort of money you need for a new stadium and £30-40m a year for new players.

“So I had no option. I would love to still be in charge but I would have held the club back.

“That's why I am asking these two gentlemen to think of the club, not their own kudos.

“The fans, the manager and the team all deserve better than this.

“We should now be focusing on continuity, stability and working our socks off towards enjoying what will hopefully be a super night in Moscow.

“But when things are played out like they are at present it virtually makes the club a laughing stock and that's not acceptable.

“How can they be acting as custodians when they are split down the middle?”

He added: “It needs to be resolved as quickly as possible. The two owners don't agree on a way forward and unity is essential.

“They have got to stop thinking of themselves and start thinking of the club, its values, its traditions and its heritage.

“They have to do what is best for the club and get it sorted as quickly as possible because what is happening at the moment is not doing it any good.

“I think the damage can be repaired but those two gentlemen have got to come to a quick agreement about the way forward.

“You would have to say if they can't do it then they will have to stand aside and let someone else do it.

“I can't say what these two gentlemen will do. Will they sell? I don't know.”

Having seen Liverpool suffer greatly in recent weeks as the battle between the two owners continues to rage, Moores today committed himself to doing everything in his power to get the club back on an even keel.

“We have got to keep the ship going and I will try my best, and I'm sure Rick will, that we will go on and try to get success at the end of the season, try to get off the politics and concentrate on what's happening on then pitch.

“You look at the fans and as everyone keeps saying they are like a 12th man.

“They were unbelievable again the other night and they deserve better than what's going on at present.

“All I can promise them is that I will do my damnedest to make certain that the club comes through this and we get back to concentrating on what happens on the pitch not off it.

“It is not my club anymore but I will do everything I can and I would like to give a huge vote of thanks to the fans for the wonderful support they have given the manager and the team.

“European nights at Anfield are something you wouldn't see anywhere else. They are unique, unbelievable and the fans make it that way.”

APRIL 12
Parry reveals Reds 'nightmare'

TEAMtalk

Liverpool chief executive Rick Parry has described working under Tom Hicks as a "nightmare" and has admitted he has feared the sack for months.

Parry believes his role in ensuring that most of the refinanced loans taken out for the purchase of the club by Hicks and George Gillett were secured against the Americans' holding company and not the club caused the breakdown in their relationship.

"David (former chairman David Moores) and I thought we would be out on our ears in December," Parry told the Independent.

"We thought they might fire us. They didn't, to be fair, though what we did has not been forgotten.

"It's been a nightmare throughout, a dreadful year."

Hicks wrote to Parry this week to demand his resignation, but Gillett has underlined his support for the chief executive.

"Rick Parry retains our full support," Gillett said on Friday. "Any decision to remove him would need the approval of the full Liverpool board which, it should be remembered, consists of six people - myself, Foster (Gillett's son), David Moores, Rick himself, Tom Hicks and Tom junior.

"We have not seen the document in question and we were not party to it. We are not able to comment on the detail because we have not seen it.

"But I would reiterate that Rick retains our full support."

APRIL 11
Gillett: Hicks can't sack Parry

By Tony Barrett - Liverpool Echo

Geogre Gillett today publicly backed Rick Parry after co-owner Tom Hicks called on Liverpool’s chief executive to resign.

Hicks sent Parry a letter demanding he ends his nine-year tenure at Anfield, but Gillett told the ECHO he did not support the ultimatum.

Gillett also revealed that he had no idea his co- owner was planning an audacious attempt to force Parry out.

"Rick Parry retains our full support," he said.

"Any decision to remove him would need the approval of the full Liverpool board which, it should be remembered, consists of six people – myself, Foster, David Moores, Rick himself, Tom Hicks and Tom junior.

"We have not seen the document in question and we were not party to it.

"We are not able to comment on the detail because we have not seen it. But I would reiterate that Rick retains our full support."

The civil war which continues to rage inside the Liverpool boardroom reached new levels of ferocity yesterday when Hicks’ letter calling on Parry to quit arrived at Anfield.

In the document, Hicks outlined his reasons for wanting the club’s chief executive of nine years standing gone.

Among them are claims that team manager Rafa Benitez has told him that Parry has allowed big name signings to slip through the net because of a lack of communication.

Hicks also accused Parry of failing to maximise Liverpool’s commercial potential in the same way that the likes of Man United, Chelsea and Arsenal have.

Parry only learned of the letter’s existence after leaving a hearing at FA headquarters in London yesterday afternoon, by which time its contents had been leaked to Sky Sports News.

Today, he was seeing the letter for the first time when he arrived at his office at Anfield.

In a statement, Parry insisted he has no plans to quit the club.

He said: "It is my intention to remain focused on the job of serving Liverpool Football Club to the best of my abilities at this very important time of our season."

Parry will be taking legal advice on the matter and today told the ECHO of his disappointment that this speculation about his own future has taken the gloss away from Liverpool successfully making it through to the semi-finals of the Champions League on Tuesday night.

He said: "The manager, the players and the supporters will no doubt find it offensive that I am the story when we should be celebrating another great European night at Anfield."

Parry added today: "The club will be fine – no individual is bigger than the club.

"But, obviously, we need leadership at the top and at the moment there is a severe lack of unity."

Hicks cannot sack Parry without having the support of the majority of Liverpool’s board and while the chief executive continues to retain the support of the board – apart from the Dallas-based millionaire and his son – he is highly unlikely to be forced out.

Meanwhile, DIC remain interested in buying Liverpool but have put their bid to acquire the club on ice until the ongoing hostilities in the Anfield boardroom are brought to a halt.

The Rick Parry story

A boyhood Liverpool fan educated at Ellesmere Port grammar school and Liverpool university, joined Liverpool chartered accountants Arthur Young McClelland Moores in 1976.

Qualified in 1979 and spent several years in the leisure industry as a financial controller, before rejoining Arthur Young in 1983 as management consultant.

Joined Ernst & Young as a senior management consultant where he caught the eye of Premier League officials.

Prepared Manchester's bid for the 1992 Olympic Games in 1985 and later advised the Birmingham Olympic Games Council on financial matters.

Spent six months on a major assignment for The Football League before assuming the role of Chief Executive to the Manchester Phoenix Initiative, a major urban regeneration project which culminated in the establishment of the Central Manchester Development Corporation.

When Manchester secured the British nomination to bid for the 1996 Olympic Games, Parry was seconded to the bid committee as full-time Director supervising, amongst other responsibilities, the planning of a £750 million Olympic Centre.

Appointed Premier League chief executive in 1992 and negotiated a record-breaking TV deal of £214m over five years.

Oversaw the development of The Premier League into one of the top professional football competitions in the world. During his last year at Lancaster Gate he brokered the biggest TV deal in the history of UK sport, in excess of £700 million for Premier League broadcasting rights.

Appointed Liverpool chief executive at Liverpool in July 1998.

APRIL 10
Rick Parry rejects demand
from co-owner Tom Hicks to quit

By Tony Barrett and John Thompson - Liverpool Echo

Dubai International Capital was today reported to have 'abandoned' its bid to buy Liverpool Football Club - for the time being at least.

And in another twist to the Anfield saga co-owner Tom Hicks has reportedly demanded the resignation of chief executive Rick Parry.

It is understood the demand for Parry to quit came in a letter which arrived at Anfield today.

However, Parry is in London at a Premier League meeting and though aware of the letter and its contents has not yet seen it.

Parry said in a statement released this afternoon, "I remain focused on the job of serving Liverpool Football Club".

Meanwhile, DIC chief executive Sameer Al Ansari has admitted to a business magazine in Arabia that while the Dubai based consortium would "still love to own" Liverpool and will "continue to be interested" in the club, no deal will be possible until current owners Hicks and George Gillett sort out their own differences.

However it is understood by the Echo that Ansari's comments are designed to reflect the ongoing impasse and present state of play - including the clear need for a solution between the warring Americans - rather than indicate DIC are losing interest in owning Liverpool.

They are not. The Dubains remain intent on rescuing the club and taking over as soon as can be possible.

"You have two partners who do not see eye to eye. And we decided that we pull out completely. Let them sort out their problems," Ansari said on an Arabian business website..

DIC was prepared to pay in the region of £510m for the club, thereby allowing Hicks and Gillett to walk away with a profit of around £40m each.

Hicks, though, refused to sell his stake and is currently trying to raise the necessary capital to buy out his co-owner.

But with Gillett privately insistent he will not sell to Hicks at any price there is an impasse which shows no immediate sign of being sorted out.

With this being the case DIC have now decided to walk away, although Al Ansari has not ruled out coming back in with another offer should Hicks and Gillett sort out their differnces.

He added: "We will continue to be interested and would love to own the club but we are not going to put ourselves in a difficult situation where we make the investment but we have no control over the destiny of the club and we cannot influence the success of the club.

"Unfortunately, the terms that have been put on the table do not allow us to do that.

Thor Zakariassen ©