US pair set for Liverpool takeover

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Liverpool have agreed a deal with American businessmen George Gillett and Tom Hicks, who are set to complete their takeover of the club early next week.

Gillett and Hicks flew to England earlier this week for a secret meeting with senior Liverpool officials and agreement looks only days away.

Hicks and Gillett will split the £470m takeover on a 50-50 basis with £215m of that earmarked for a new stadium.

Gillett owns National Hockey League side Montreal Canadiens while Hicks owns rival NHL franchise Dallas Stars as well as the Texas Rangers baseball team.

The alliance between the American franchise owners was revealed as Liverpool’s former suitor, Dubai International Capital (DIC) withdrew their takeover offer for the club.

Liverpool chief executive Rick Parry spent yesterday denying claims that chairman David Moores had rejected DIC because a deal with Gillett and Hicks would bring him more of a return on his investment.

“We had a duty as directors to consider a very interesting bid from George Gillett,” said Parry.

“The price is not the factor in David Moores’ mind. He is not after cash for himself, absolutely not, but he felt compelled to consider the rival bid. The DIC response was to give the club 12 hours to make a decision but the chairman was not prepared to have the club bullied like that.

“The only thing David is concerned about is the club being in the right hands for the future.”