The thing about FSG's ownership thus far is that both the supporters and skeptics have enough ammunition to argue their feelings. I'm definitely a supporter, but I get the skeptics, especially after being burnt so hard before by the previous owners.
They saved us from Hicks and Gillett, we've already won more trophies under them than we did under H&G, they've shown progress in alternative sources of revenue such as the Warrior deal and having a bigger cut on merchandise. They've said the right things about wanting to be here long term, rebuilding the club into one that can compete and win multiple championships. Any worry about them simply pocketing profits can be counterargued by the fact that they are at the heart of it a sports investment group, and what they claim they wish to do with Liverpool they have indeed done already with the Boston Red Sox. Our 22 year Premier League title drought and three year CL drought is nothing compared to the Red Sox who had went 86 years without a World Series title. They've won two now since FSG's purchase of the club in 2002.
But there's also the unceremonious firing of Dalglish, lack of progress on a stadium, the poor handling of the Suarez affair, the appearance of wavering when it came to a new appointment, and the appearance of investment inconsistency... 20m for Downing last year but unwilling to increase a bid on deadline day by 1-2m to get Dempsey? And even if you believe their ambitions are genuine, do they even have the means to do it? MLB baseball and European club football are two totally different animals. And frankly, you also get the sense that they really didn't quite know what they were getting themselves into when they bought the club. The lack of depth in the squad, the absurd wages, the difficulty it was going to take to make progress on the stadium. They had to take an enormous hit on the H&G stadium plans, 50m for a piece of paper. There's reasons to be skeptical.
And even if you support wholeheartedly their project and understand it's going to take time, a complete revamping of the wage bill, more value-for-dollar, more investments in youth and less in players that can help immediately. It's difficult to buy into this with patience while we seemingly grow further apart from our competition.
It certainly hasn't been perfect. But for me, so long as they're willing to genuinely push towards their goal, I'm willing to show them the patience. Sure, they've made mistakes along the way and they'll make even more. But the ends they're pushing towards: a financially sustainable model, a young, deep and talented squad that can compete on multiple fronts, a philosophy rooted in playing progressive and attractive football... that's everything we could possibly want. It's something to believe in, something to hope for after nearly falling into administration. And even if it's not going to be as easy as snapping fingers and making it happen, and possibly may take a few years yet, I'm going to support it. There's hope in this.