Figures show that FSG ranks second from bottom in one Premier League table, and it potentially raises some concerns around the summer rebuild at Liverpool.
This feels like a critical summer for the reputation of Liverpool’s owner Fenway Sports Group.
It’s hard to gauge, of course, but you get the sense that, if FSG sold the club right now, its tenure would be viewed positively for the most part.
Yes, it has made some profound mistakes, most notably its leading role in the ill-fated Super League project, but that has been overshadowed by the on-field success Liverpool has enjoyed since FSG captured Jürgen Klopp back in 2015
The German has delivered the club’s first Premier League title after a 30-year wait, made the Reds champions of Europe for the sixth time, and won four more major trophies too. Bringing him to Anfield is John Henry’s crowning achievement.
In addition, the regime has invested heavily in improving the club’s infrastructure, adding more than 15,000 to the stadium’s capacity by expanding the Main Stand and Anfield Road and constructing an entirely new training ground.
Now, though, frustration is building in some quarters, with a sense that FSG’s under-investment (Liverpool sits in mid-table for net spend during the Klopp years) is at risk of squandering the potential of a legendary core and one of the best managers the club has ever had.
Now, though, frustration is building in some quarters, with a sense that FSG’s under-investment (Liverpool sits in mid-table for net spend during the Klopp years) is at risk of squandering the potential of a legendary core and one of the best managers the club has ever had.
The club has fallen out of the Champions League for the first time since 2016 and that could have been avoided.
If Liverpool doesn’t return to its peak and win more of the biggest prizes in his remaining years, then there will be a prevailing question of what might have been — though there is plenty of hope for dramatic improvement next season.
The challenge this summer is to prove that Reds will be right back in the hunt after a difficult period. The hope is that Liverpool can produce a transformative transfer window, much as it did in 2018, to catapult itself back to the top.
