Topic: How FSG have handled the leaving of Dalglish.

[montysmum]

In my opinion, I don't think Kenny was sacked for not achieving 4th, he was sacked due to the magnitude of our failure in getting even remotely close to 4th, and that is a differentiation that really needs to be made here if you ask me. And the scale of that failure is probably what cost him his job. As for how it was done, I think if Henry and co had intentions of removing Kenny from his post then they could have at least told him shortly after the cup final when they were in the country

I dont think not getting in the top 4 was the nail in the coffin either.  I am not even sure that the fact we finished so far down the league table was it either. 

I think it was an accumulation of things all stacking against him, but the main thing was the Suarez affair.

We are owned by two savvy and ruthless businessmen who are all to aware of the importance of media presence and PR.  The cack handed way the club handled the race charges, followed by the 'handshake' rant by Kenny brought the wrath of the sponsors to the door of JWH and TW and it didnt go down well.

The embarassing statements that had to be issued issued by Suarez, but mainly by Kenny were unprecedented and showed that the owners were not impressed by their handling of the situation.  It made Kenny into a liability in their eyes and put him in the cross hairs.

The pressure on him was lessened slightly then by our Carling Cup success and if we had been successful in the FA Cup it would have lessened further, but failure to win that, as well as our league performances on top of the Suarez issue put too many questionmarks onto him.

[oojason]

We are owned by two savvy and ruthless businessmen who are all to aware of the importance of media presence and PR.  The cack handed way the club handled the race charges, followed by the 'handshake' rant by Kenny brought the wrath of the sponsors to the door of JWH and TW and it didnt go down well.

The embarassing statements that had to be issued issued by Suarez, but mainly by Kenny were unprecedented and showed that the owners were not impressed by their handling of the situation.  It made Kenny into a liability in their eyes and put him in the cross hairs.

The pressure on him was lessened slightly then by our Carling Cup success and if we had been successful in the FA Cup it would have lessened further, but failure to win that, as well as our league performances on top of the Suarez issue put too many questionmarks onto him.

If that is so then it may go some way to explaining why it seemed Kenny was the only one at the club in the spotlight at the time (with Suarez of course - yet not briefed on events of the handshake saga) - in that they wanted to distance themselves from the issue - and make Kenny the sole sacrificial scapegoat afterwards?

If true, then it doesn't say much for our new owners at all - and may explain part of the reason as to why they are hardly ever here?

[Cooper-Man]

My opinion is this.

The owners are doomed either way. If Kenny stayed, and next season starts the way this one ended, the fans will attack the owners. They made a decision and sacked the King, and the fans are attacking them. This is a situtation that has NO correct answer.

I think the result was the correct one from the owners. I dont believe the execution was best.

We need a world class manager. I hope they make the right decision.

[aggerdid]

i think our performance in the league this season has put fsg in an awful position to be honest. like if they keep him on and we finish 7th or 8th again and then we're in an even worse position. like lets say my dad was manager and led us to 8th. me and him would have sat down and said hang on dad this isn't working out it'd be better to step down. kenny should have considered stepping down in my opinion. maybe he didn't want to step down a 2nd time but maybe his ties were too strong with the club to make the decision in the clubs best interests. if kenny stepped down fsg's reputation would not have been damaged so i think he's made a bad move personally.

i'm not in the anti kenny brigade by the way. just been mulling over in work whats gone on. personally though i knew kenny wasn't going to manage us for the next 5 or 10 years. just always presumed he'd leave of his own accord. big move by fsg but i think this will now allow us to put a long term plan in place. hopefully with rafa at the helm but its just a dream scenario

[IamSpartacus]

Mentioned this earlier:

Its not the fact that sacking Kenny was right or wrong or whether a new manager is more important now or what it means to be a supporter. No. FSG made a mistake here. Right reason but wrong time and wrong way.

If their philosophy is to find a young up and coming manager for a minimum five years then it seems as if fan sentiment, personal emotions and naivety may have forced their decision to go with Kenny. A strategy should have been clear at this stage.
Either say, “Kenny, this is a one year contract with the aim of Champions League Qualification, with a new Manager coming in at the end of the season for you to pass on the managerial baton.”
Or,
“We give you a contract and £150m to spend over 3 years with agreed aims at the end of each season.

Everybody is clear of where they are heading and what the consequences might be.

It seems as if FSG’s pendulum has swung away from the heart and more towards the head and they made their assessment and execution. Yes the decision is a statement of intent, with success paramount but come on, this is Kenny Dalglish, a walking distilation of concentrated Liverpoolness. If you sack him guys the way you did then the you have torn up the bootroom philosophy and moved onto the Excel spreadsheet to guide you.

I understand the reason but if you give someone a contract for three years then where I come from we honour things like that. Either this should have been completed after Hodgson or three years after appointing Kenny. Like it says on the contract you signed.

What has happened is a fudge!

But according to Ian Ayre today (Independant I think) Henry is listening to a high level footballing cadre to help him formulate his footballing decisions. Who are these shadowy figures? Does anyone on RAWK have a direct dial to Boston by any chance?

We like to say, please give more time to the manager. Perhaps we need to demonstrate giving the owners more time?

No. FSG made a clear statement of intent, which doesn’t just mean we are here for success. It also means that an old era is past.

We love you Kenny. I am deeply sorry that it turned out like this but it has not brought you down in my eyes. Rather, I think you are an even greater man. Immense humility and a geniune understanding of, and empathy with the human condition.

Arise Saint Kenny.

The bootroom lights are switched off.

[DRice]

i was impressed with the decisiveness of it , as was I impressed with the transfer money january 2011 and summer 2011, the owners so far have shown me nothing to distrust them, a lot of ye are letting the heart rule the head i am afraid.

[jckliew]

Tradition is dead.......The Liverpool way is buried.
The Yanks are for CHANGE. Thats the way it goes.

As far as the way its carried out, its a kick in between the legs for us olde
supporters who still have the passion for the club.

Unfortunately for us, this club WILL become a franchaise without the soul of Shanks.

[HarleyKewell7]

Think it was a tough decision and genuinely don't believe it was taken lightly. Kenny rightly forced FSG's hand when he returned but I think it's fair to say that their plan was always a younger manager they could build a project around. I don't think Kenny was ever going to be that long-term option and the team's failings this year made the decision of sacking him possible, whether people agreed with it or not.

We've got decisiveness and we've got it very early in the summer, which was vital. Not everyone is going to be pleased with who we appoint because of what has happened to Kenny but I think it's without doubt one of our most important managerial appointments in a very long time. Not only that but I also think the club's status hinges on what happens over the next couple of years as well.

Nobody wanted to read the headlines they've read this week, even those who did feel the need for change. Kenny moving upstairs would have significantly softened the blow for a lot of people but you can completely understand why he wouldn't be interested at this moment in time, assuming an offer actually existed.

As ever, Kenny has conducted himself with the utmost dignity and honour. And I didn't expect anything different.

[red_to_the_toe]

The way I see it is that Kenny doesn't share the same ethos and logic that FSG want: decisions, signings, tactics, etc. made on statistical/informed analysis. Kenny most likely relies on his own experience and gut to make judgments on players and opposition...well because that's what he has: a wealth of winning experience. But honestly, I can see how the owners reacted to Kenny's visit and repeated statements in the past weeks that there would be only minor changes to the squad. Look at it this way: Kenny repeatedly benched players with better statistics for goals/assists (Kuyt, Maxi, Bellamy) in order to play Downing and Henderson on the wings despite consistently poor performances from them. We had 14 losses and were 17 points off 4th, and there has been little changes, criticisms, or any reaction from Kenny about it. zerThe numbers don't add up and that's what FSG rely on when they're analyzing a sport they have zero experience with. When Kenny said recently there would be no major changes to the squad, I knew it was pretty much up for him, sad as it is.

What is surprising and extremely disappointing is that if FSG don't want Kenny making squad and formation decisions, what about the rest of the managerial and technical roles that need to be filled? How can they let someone with so much knowledge, passion, heart, and love for LFC walk away when there are so many voids and problems to fix? It's an atrocity considering just how horrible a state the club would be in if Kenny hadn't come to the rescue last season. I guess overall, this has been a disaster. We can only hope that FSG are done cutting their teeth and don't need another season to learn the ropes.

[It's Jimmy Corkhill]

It's been handled terribly.

Firstly, making him fly out there, with the rumours suggesting that he was offered a financial package twice to honourably "resign". When they forcibly sacked Kenny Dalglish, he told them to donate it to the player fund.

They own the club. Fine. Though they bailed us out of the shit, they for LFC on the cheap. Goodwill doesn't last forever, and the people of this city do not forgive and forget easily. Unless you are from here or have supported LFC for a long, long time, I genuinely don't think you can comprehend what this man means to the club and to the city.

Treating him like shite, like something expendable, is almost criminal. He is worth more than that, and whatever they do, they will never come up the the laces on his Puma's.

[No666]

People keep telling us how 'savvy' they are. I've yet to see an example of this 'savvy' apart from managing the fans with their supporter committee, which was a cute piece of PR. They came in - they clung to Hodgson and hired Comolli on the say-so of a baseball man. They sacked Hodgson months too late and turned to the only man they could, and then made his appointment permanent, while - we are now told - never really wanting to do so. He wasn't 'their' man. ('Their' ideal man appears to be young and, er, preferably with PL experience. He doesn't seem to have had to have proven himself as a winner, for example.)

They promoted Ian Ayre, the commercial director, who negated responsibility, as they did, during the Suarez crisis. They brought in and let go a new commercial director. They sacked Comolli. They sacked Kenny. They sacked the communications guy.

Exactly what in that scattergun track record makes anyone think they are 'savvy'?

[benn25]

Although I dont believe sacking kenny was right, I do feel however, that like any business model, if things are not going the way you want them, you make changes, and you make changes fast before the rot begins. Im presuming that because they are looking at the club as a 'business model' they are going off experience. If your investment is ready to drop off a cliff you sell your shares and run, in this case you clear the decks and you start again. (Not that we are about to drop off a cliff in my eyes, but who knows what their targets are. My idea of rich is going to be different to the next mans. If you get my meaning)

On the other hand, going by what others have said, it seems to me also that they want a clean break, a new slate in their vision for the club. They could put the last 18 months or so to plugging the leak until it was the right moment - evidently this is the right moment for them.  Circumstances dictated their decisions, advisors dictated their decisions. Considering how out of depth they were/are about the processes of running a football club. Now I guess they have a more indepth knowledge of the game and furthermore a concrete plan of what they want to achieve in the next 5 to 10 years.

Whoever they employ from coaches to DOC, I hope they dont end up with egg on their faces.

May i also add that their world is cutthroat. They have no emotional ties. Its just another money machine. Us as fans, our decisions, our opinions about the club is all emotional. Heart rules head in most cases. With them, its head rules heart probably 99% of the time.

[Lord Roger Hunt]

Despite their instincts telling them not to, FSG tried 'The Liverpool  Way' for 18 months - and it failed, miserably, costing them a shed load of money in the process.

No more, it's 'their club' (literally, not emotionally), and they'll now run it the way they believe it should be run. Sure, the fans will moan and shout a lot but they'll reason that that will all disappear if they can land the PL.

If not, no worries, they'll sell the club, right off the loss and run back to the USA.

[rushie9]

if KK is not in their initial plan, dont offer him a contract then after KK care taker period to be honest, they should hv use those time to search for someone SUIT their only needs ...

otherwise, whatever it happen .. either good or bad with us in the league / in the cup, FSG will find it hard to handle KK and settle us fans

[Cassiel]

Despite their instincts telling them not to, FSG tried 'The Liverpool  Way' for 18 months - and it failed, miserably, costing them a shed load of money in the process.

No more, it's 'their club' (literally, not emotionally), and they'll now run it the way they believe it should be run. Sure, the fans will moan and shout a lot but they'll reason that that will all disappear if they can land the PL.

If not, no worries, they'll sell the club, right off the loss and run back to the USA.

I think this probably sums the situation more succinctly than anything else I've read on here.

[Red_Isle_Chap]

Despite their instincts telling them not to, FSG tried 'The Liverpool  Way' for 18 months - and it failed, miserably, costing them a shed load of money in the process.

No more, it's 'their club' (literally, not emotionally), and they'll now run it the way they believe it should be run. Sure, the fans will moan and shout a lot but they'll reason that that will all disappear if they can land the PL.

If not, no worries, they'll sell the club, right off the loss and run back to the USA.

i do hate it when i think you're right you know.

(reckon you're spot on there mate)

[TSC]

I dont think not getting in the top 4 was the nail in the coffin either.  I am not even sure that the fact we finished so far down the league table was it either. 

I think it was an accumulation of things all stacking against him, but the main thing was the Suarez affair.

We are owned by two savvy and ruthless businessmen who are all to aware of the importance of media presence and PR.  The cack handed way the club handled the race charges, followed by the 'handshake' rant by Kenny brought the wrath of the sponsors to the door of JWH and TW and it didnt go down well.

The embarassing statements that had to be issued issued by Suarez, but mainly by Kenny were unprecedented and showed that the owners were not impressed by their handling of the situation.  It made Kenny into a liability in their eyes and put him in the cross hairs.

The pressure on him was lessened slightly then by our Carling Cup success and if we had been successful in the FA Cup it would have lessened further, but failure to win that, as well as our league performances on top of the Suarez issue put too many questionmarks onto him.

Re the Suarez issue why was Dalglish left to handle it all alone though?  You'd have thought the owners would've taken ownership at the outset instead of staying in the US saying or doing nowt, considering they were concerned about the commercial image of the club.  The club in general fucked up re the general handling, and as ultimate owners that means them.

[beadlehand]

I think the handling of Kenny Dalglish has been absolutely ruthless. I think the Suarez situation was his undoing and unfortunately an FA cup win still wouldn't have been enough.

Sad times really.

[PowderKeg]

Despite their instincts telling them not to, FSG tried 'The Liverpool  Way' for 18 months - and it failed, miserably, costing them a shed load of money in the process.

No more, it's 'their club' (literally, not emotionally), and they'll now run it the way they believe it should be run. Sure, the fans will moan and shout a lot but they'll reason that that will all disappear if they can land the PL.

If not, no worries, they'll sell the club, right off the loss and run back to the USA.

Agreed. Although I'm not sure they are going to sell the club quite so quickly...say what you will, they bought it on the cheap and the brand is still strong enough to withstand a few poor seasons.

[cowtownred]

People keep telling us how 'savvy' they are. I've yet to see an example of this 'savvy' apart from managing the fans with their supporter committee, which was a cute piece of PR. They came in - they clung to Hodgson and hired Comolli on the say-so of a baseball man. They sacked Hodgson months too late and turned to the only man they could, and then made his appointment permanent, while - we are now told - never really wanting to do so. He wasn't 'their' man. ('Their' ideal man appears to be young and, er, preferably with PL experience. He doesn't seem to have had to have proven himself as a winner, for example.)

They promoted Ian Ayre, the commercial director, who negated responsibility, as they did, during the Suarez crisis. They brought in and let go a new commercial director. They sacked Comolli. They sacked Kenny. They sacked the communications guy.

Exactly what in that scattergun track record makes anyone think they are 'savvy'?

My feelings exactly mate.

Certainly haven't impressed me with their decision making so far.

[beadlehand]

We sill see ho 'savvy' they are when the new manager is appointed.

[Disintegration]

Sacked at the end of the season for justifiable reasons (retaining him would've also been justifiable), done quickly and without dragging it on and on. I think they've handled this part fine on the surface. Whether a quality replacement comes in is another matter, but we shall see.

[Cassiel]

My feelings exactly mate.

Certainly haven't impressed me with their decision making so far.

I can;t speak for them, but they're the sort of people who would say they are as only as savvy as the people they appoint. Right now i don't think they're that impressed with their own decision making either, which is why they've swept away just about everyone and are more or less starting again.

[Johnny Foreigner]

Coming forward as Donald Trumps now..

Unfortunately, it looks more and more as the club is being treated as a litle side operation, and a little hobby where they thought the could bring the lovely linda over from time to time and collect some trophies..

This calling round to potential managers makes us look like absolute clowns..

I believe this whole farce started with the appointment of the glorified scout comolli... When kenny took over, it was a relatively likely scenario that he would be a temporary solution.. The job should have been started last summer and getting some proper footballing resources in and starting to prepare for rebuilding the club..

Instead we're making cold calls to potential managers and ian ayre's making his ego interviews..

[mulfella]

Despite their instincts telling them not to, FSG tried 'The Liverpool  Way' for 18 months - and it failed, miserably, costing them a shed load of money in the process.

No more, it's 'their club' (literally, not emotionally), and they'll now run it the way they believe it should be run. Sure, the fans will moan and shout a lot but they'll reason that that will all disappear if they can land the PL.

If not, no worries, they'll sell the club, right off the loss and run back to the USA.

Thats probably about right.

The question is, have they really learned from their mistakes.

I can;t speak for them, but they're the sort of people who would say they are as only as savvy as the people they appoint. Right now i don't think they're that impressed with their own decision making either, which is why they've swept away just about everyone and are more or less starting again.

Quite - its Round 2 now.

[No666]

Quite - its Round 2 now.

Or you could say it's half-time and we're three-nil down but we don't have any talent in the dugout to make the necessary changes.

[mulfella]

Or you could say it's half-time and we're three-nil down but we don't have any talent in the dugout to make the necessary changes.

Of course. This is what we are about to find out.

I totally understand your position but, perhaps foolishly, I remain hopeful.

[Carlos: Very Kickable]

It's been handled terribly.

Firstly, making him fly out there, with the rumours suggesting that he was offered a financial package twice to honourably "resign". When they forcibly sacked Kenny Dalglish, he told them to donate it to the player fund.

They own the club. Fine. Though they bailed us out of the shit, they for LFC on the cheap. Goodwill doesn't last forever, and the people of this city do not forgive and forget easily. Unless you are from here or have supported LFC for a long, long time, I genuinely don't think you can comprehend what this man means to the club and to the city.

Treating him like shite, like something expendable, is almost criminal. He is worth more than that, and whatever they do, they will never come up the the laces on his Puma's.

They didn't make him fly out there.
Offering him two resignation packages is not 'treating him like shite' - and in fact Kenny said himself things were handled respectfully*.
If you were the owners, how would YOU have handled it?


*Before you tell me what Kenny "really" means or what Kenny "really" thinks - unless you are Paul Dlahglish you should back up what you say with some evidence otherwise it's just your opinion.

[KopMcGinty]

Well the revelation that it was happening regardless of the FA cup final result  has me reconsidering.  I don't think this was a wise thing for them (ayre as the owners mouthpiece counts as them) to come out with.  That one sentence is a PR disaster for a club that "exists to win trophies."

The fact that many many 'fans' have said the same thing about 4th place vs a cup win is irrelevant and I find this the single most worrying thing about the whole sorry situation.  In a season where we couldn't win either of the two big prizes we did bloody well in the two we had a shot at.  While I feel winning the FA cup would indeed have been papering over the cracks to an extent, winning 2/2 competition you had any hope of still = the sack is disturbing and frankly Kenny is better off out of it.

[gkmacca]

Tradition is dead.......The Liverpool way is buried.
The Yanks are for CHANGE. Thats the way it goes.

As far as the way its carried out, its a kick in between the legs for us olde
supporters who still have the passion for the club.

Unfortunately for us, this club WILL become a franchaise without the soul of Shanks.

Yes. In fact, I'd dislike FSG less if they behaved with more honesty and spoke like the hard-headed businessmen they are. All of this 'Liverpool family' crap that Henry trots out after acting like the worst member of the Borgia family makes me want to throw up. I'd rather he stay in Boston, shut up and chat to his accountants.

[jDJ]

I think they should have probably flown in to the UK to deliver the news but apart from that I don't think they've done anything wrong.

The truth of the matter is, they sacked our greatest living legend.  It was always going to be perceived as dirty work.  They haven't sacked him whilst he was on holiday via their managing director, they haven't spent months briefing the press against him, they haven't let him battle on for years without sufficient funds but still made him solely responsible for the results, they haven't reneged on agreements about money to spend and they haven't engaged in dialogue with senior players who were disillusioned with him.

They employed him, probably against their better judgment, they gave him an almost unprecedented amount of funds and they set him a target which he failed to achieve.  They haven't sacked him because we didn't finish 4th, they've sacked him because we weren't even close to finishing 4th.  In fact, he presided over a team which effectively gave up trying to finish 4th in early March.

I think it was the wrong decision and Kenny deserved another full season.  We should have evaluated at the end of next year but I wish people would stop acting as if they've just p1ssed all over a legend.  They came to the conclusion he was no longer the best choice for first team manager and offered him another role within the club.  It's a sad day for Dalglish and I feel for him, but I don't blame the Americans for coming to a different conclusion than me.  It was a tough choice to make and I don't think it's one they took lightly.

The owners should be judged by what they do over the next month rather than what they did at the beginning of this week.  I'd much rather have proactive owners than ones who don't really care either way about success.

[gkmacca]

They certainly briefed the press. I know that for a fact.

[redbyrdz]

Have I put this together right?

Henry wanted to wait with all this for a bit, probably until he had people in place. But Kenny, who knew what was coming, thought "Fuck that, I'm not having the missus holiday cut short again, come on Steve, we're going over there now." and flew over to Boston. There they offered him money to resign. Hahahahah. He told them where they could stick it, and that if they wanted rid, they would have to get rid.

[walshys_mullet]

I always thought that if he was to go, it would be on his own terms. he'd either get another season or decide this circus isnt worth it, think of his health and say enough is enough, mkae his decision and leave with the respect he already has anyway.

To be sacked is still sticking in my guts.

[scoreinaminute]

I think they should have probably flown in to the UK to deliver the news but apart from that I don't think they've done anything wrong.

We're talking about the club's biggest and best ever player and a legend in the world of football, not just in Liverpool. To not fly over to audit the season on Merseyside and then sack him in Boston to me only accentuates how out of touch these guys still are with what it takes to run our club. They talk about their respect for KK but in the end they didn't have enough respect to come and deliver the bullet at Anfield. Gutless!

[CHOPPER]

I always thought that if he was to go, it would be on his own terms. he'd either get another season or decide this circus isnt worth it, think of his health and say enough is enough, mkae his decision and leave with the respect he already has anyway.

To be sacked is still sticking in my guts.

Fucking furious is how I feel. "They've sacked Kenny Dalglish"....I ask everyone to say that to themselves a couple of times and let those words sink in.

We hold bannners aloft displaying our loyalty to him, we sing songs about him and what he has done for us, he has held our hands through the darkest of times, grown men actually weep and become dumbstruck in front of him......and we have gone and fucking sacked him!

[BCCC]

We hold bannners aloft displaying our loyalty to him, we sing songs about him and what he has done for us, he has held our hands through the darkest of times, grown men actually weep and become dumbstruck in front of him......and they have gone and fucking sacked him!

corrected that.

[redoneusa]

I don't agree. If it was January, I might. They obviously decided to clear out, and in a football club there is no great time to do that, but the start of the summer break is a better time than any.

Our season was awful. Worst league position in decades, worst home record in half a century. The second half of our season was the worst set of results I have seen in my lifetime as a Liverpool supporter. The one trophy we won, we did so only after 120 minutes and penalties against a lower league side. So for Kenny to say that he "wouldn't swap [the League Cup] for anything as I know how much it meant to our fans", well I fucking well would. In fact, I would swap it for a Europa Cup, or an FA Cup, or Champions League qualification, much less winning the League.

When you come down to it, the supporters who disagree with Kenny's firing do so on the basis of who he is and what he had done quite a while ago. As a manager, he has to take responsibility for the team's position, and he doesn't get to mitigate that responsibility by pointing to his record from two decades ago (not that he did, to be fair, but a lot of fans did). Nor has he the excuse that Rafa Benitez had, of being hamstrung by corporate hijackers. FSG said they would clear the debt and they did. They said they would make funds available for players, and they did, in spades.

What they got in return was an annus horribilis of pitiful PR and appalling results. I think they had to act, and now was probably the time to do it. I feel for Kenny but to be brutally honest, the Kenny I heard talking over the last six months, and especially in the last month, wasn't the Kenny I remembered.

And this idea that The Liverpool Way has somehow had its death knell sounded by FSG is utter bollocks. Where was the Liverpool Way when Souness was driving the club into the ground? Or when Houllier was parachuted into Roy Evans' lap? Believe me, if The Liverpool Way could survive the Hicks and Gillette all hat and no boots show, it can survive anything. There is only one constant in a proper football club and that's the supporters. In twenty years' time, Henry and Werner will be gone, as well as a succession of managers and players but I will hopefully still be supporting and probably my kid too, and maybe even his kid.

It would have been nice if Kenny was given another year but football isn't always nice. These FSG boys are in it to win. There's a very good reason for that, too. If we get winning, we get more support and more income, and that breeds more winning and more support and more income and on it goes. People may not like that but a quick glance up at the Etihad shows you what you need to win things in football these days.

To sum up, FSG gave Comolli and Kenny a bunch of money and waited to see how they fared. Not very well, is the answer. You can understand them cutting their losses now and giving someone else a go.

Well, yes the did provide plenty of money. But where Champions league qualification is the only measure of success the money the provided gets you close of your lucky.

Truth is no matter how you stack up the numbers, the money provided (not insignificant I grant you) is still not a great deal.

Especially given the age of the squad, the age of the younger signings and the state of the squad when he took over.

Let's be frank about it - since the signings of Carroll, Downing and others we have spent hardly anything. Of your truly gunning for the Champions league you need to bring at least another 100mil to the table.

Certainly not the 30mil that has been suggested is in the LFC war chest.

[Regi]

I’ve been trying to get my head around this since yesterday without knowing very much of anything beyond rumours and speculation. The one thing that I’m certain about now, more than ever, is that football has changed irreversibly. It’s an obvious point and that change can probably be defined in hundreds of ways, but it has changed.  And since yesterday, all I’ve been thinking is that I and people like me were stupid to ever hold onto the naïve, almost certainly delusional notion that this change hadn’t really affected us, not really, not as much as other clubs. We were still Liverpool. Once Kenny returned to the dugout in January 2011, everything was going to be ok. Why wouldn’t it? This is a man you trust. I wasn’t happy with some of the results this season either, but he still believed that he could build on it and it’s bloody difficult to doubt Kenny Dalglish.

Now he’s been essentially thrown on the scrapheap like some obsolete piece of equipment, and you know, maybe he is obsolete. Maybe Directors of Football and profit margins and performance indicators and all the rest of that big business stuff was double-Dutch to a football man like him. Maybe it was never going to work on that basis, but it’s hard not to feel a bit obsolete yourself when you realise that someone who has given so much to this club and is held in such esteem by its supporters is so easily expendable. I mean, we’re all expendable now, aren’t we? Money is money, wherever it comes from. I probably have no right to say this because I’m not from Liverpool, but I’ll say it anyway: there are people this very second in far-flung corners of the world who are hearing the name Liverpool F.C. for the first time and – just like that – they are now of equal importance to lifelong Reds who have spent every spare penny sustaining a football club so that one day a group of foreign businessmen might go, hmmm, that seems like an interesting investment.  To some, Kenny had to go because of results, but he seems to represent the passing of something far deeper than that and, all pragmatism aside, forgive me if I don’t embrace that passing with open arms, not right now at least.

So how have they handled it? About as well as they could have. How do you tell a child that there’s no Santa Claus? The bells and whistles were necessary, they might not have been able to show their faces around Anfield ever again had they not officially recognised the man’s contribution to the club. And maybe when it’s all said and done, they’ll be proven right. A few years down the line, Liverpool might have a new stadium and a few Premier League trophies in the cabinet, perhaps a Champions League or two as well. Maybe FSG will be viewed as the paragon of good ownership and the decision taken yesterday will be seen as a pivotal moment in the history of the club. But if all that does come to pass, I can’t help but wonder how much it will really mean to the likes of me. And if it doesn’t, which has to be more likely at this point, then the question must be asked: what exactly will we have left?

Only had the pleasure of reading this now.
Resonates on every level.
Football has slipped from the grasp of supporters almost completely.
If you feel alienated, there's another new fan waiting to take your place in the financial food chain somewhere in the world.
The only happy supporters are those who are following clubs that either have a lot of money to spend relative to their status, or that have accepted their place in the status quo and are happy trying to maintain it.
One is the only way to win anything and the other is the only way to accept not winning anything

[horne]

one of the things that is pissing me off is the way its justified by a simple...didnt make fourth...now fuck off...
imagine fsg having fergie for his first 18 months...playing by the same rules...they would have made one all mighty fuck up ....and as others have said...they know what theyre doing you know...theyre wealthy successfull business men who know it all...they have other sports business' and theyre winners you know?...sorry...theyre human...they make mistakes like everyone else but theyve rode their luck and have been getting away with it upto now...and good luck to them...however...this is a completely different field to what theyre used to and believe me...they wont get it right all the time...
remember hicks and gillette were successfull in their own right and look what happened there...
Now i know they are completely different and i shouldnt even talk about them in the same breath as the other two cowboys but the point being that success isnt guaranteed even though theyve had it before.
kenny bought players who didnt gel straight away..took time to settle in...and had bad luck along the way...from a leadership point of view...i thought kenny played a blinder...took all the pressure off the lads and took it all on the chin himself when he could have been justified in blaming others if he was that type of shyster...but thats just the sign of a fantastic leader of men!...thats the sought of guy you want in that sought of position because in the longterm,youre going to get that back and get more out the squad...everyone in it together, no one left isolated and no prima donna stuff etc
towards the end of the season those players struggling to settle suddenly started showing chinks of form and anyone with a half a footballing brain could see that next season...with the odd couple of real quality additions, you could see how we were going to improve vastly....so money ball and stats would say...were shite because we didnt finnish in the top four...but footballin nouse would say...hang on...were onto something good here...so pissed off with the  way this has been handled...i also think theres more to it tha just not finnishing fourth...maybe it is the whole protect the brand and keep the pearly white teeth smile thing going on...slimey that if it is..
selling youre granny to make a buck that for me
tail wagging the dog isnt it....why cant we grow some balls and dicate rather than be dictated to?...our history has had controversies along the way but what shone through was the success built the brand and not the other way round...why change now?