Stephen Pagliuca, who was unsuccessful with a bid to purchase Chelsea last year, has hinted that he could invest in Liverpool.
The Reds’ current owners Fenway Sports Group (FSG) are currently open to investment options, with the American billionaire one possible contender to succeed them at Anfield.
The 68-year-old already has a portfolio of sports clubs in which he has invested. He’s the owner of Serie A club Atalanta and NBA franchise Boston Celtics, with his wealth stemming from his co-chairperson role with Bain Capital.
Pagliuca had admitted that he considered a move for Liverpool at roughly the same time FSG bought the club in 2010 and would weigh up the finances involved before making any takeover attempt at Anfield.
He told the Financial Times (via The Mirror): “I looked at Liverpool about 15 years ago when they had that situation. I can’t talk specifically about any transactions we are working on because of confidentiality agreements but obviously we are aware of those transactions.
“The questions on those transactions in general is what price level do we think is sustainable? Obviously the Chelsea process which received a record price has probably motivated folks to try and monetise clubs that they have owned for a long time, and we are certainly in a period where values have been driven up.
“Anyone who buys a club has to assess the economic opportunity, how much money we have to put in to keep up the quality and what that will cost you. That is what we do in everything we are looking at.”
FSG chief John Henry has indicated he’d be open to fresh investment at Liverpool amid the spiralling costs of running a football club and has recently shared his optimism over an investment opportunity potentially being found.
Multiple parties are starting to hint at interest in investing in the Merseyside club, with The Telegraph reporting on Wednesday that US media giant Liberty Media could be another contender to take a minority stake at Anfield.
There will obviously need to be due diligence undertaken on any potential investors to ensure they’re the right fit for our club and will put their money where their mouth is as regards transfer activity, albeit in a manner which doesn’t jeopardise Liverpool long-term.
Encouragingly, Atalanta have remained competitive in Serie A since Pagliuca’s acquisition of the Bergamo club just over a year ago, and their owners have shown a willingness to invest in the squad, spending nearly €106m (£94m) on new signings in that time (as per Transfermarkt).
Also, his comments above about assessing the “economic opportunity” appear to suggest he isn’t someone who would recklessly rush into purchasing a stake at Anfield until he’s convinced that it’s the right move.