Liverpool face nine-point deduction if no sale agreed by October 15
Published:Liverpool are well and truly into a disaster recovery situation with the prospect of a nine point penalty if their parent company goes into administration next week. p>
Tom Hicks and George Gillett are fighting the proposed takeover from New England Sports Ventures because the deal would see them lose the capital they’ve invested in the club.
But the situation is sure to anger Liverpool fans even further with a points penalty sure to affect their season.
Liverpool are currently 12/1 to be relegated but that will be cut if the penalty is imposed.
Football League rules say a point’s deduction can be used if the club’s management are the cause of the parent holding going into solvency.
Kop Holdings is the parent company that was set-up by Gillett and Hicks when they took control of Liverpool in 2007, and the company faces a bill for £282m from Royal Bank of Scotland on Friday October 15th.
Liverpool football club has been used to service Kop Holding’s debts and it would be hard for Gillett and Hicks to argue that the running of the club had not affected the holding company.
The high court will next week judge whether the club can be sold to NESV despite the objection of the clubs owners.
Regardless of the result, an appeal will be likely which would certainly not be resolved before the October 15th deadline.
RBS will then have to make the decision whether to waive the demand for repayment until the legal issue is resolved or call in the debt and place the parent company into administration.
It would then be up to the Premier League to decide whether or not to dock Liverpool points.
Roy Hodgson may see his tenure as Liverpool boss end with a new board in place and he is 7/2 to be the next manager to leave. See the full Barclays Premier League betting odds market here.
