DIC placed formal bid for Liverpool

The English Liverpool ownership split has become so contentious that co-owner George Gillett is debating whether to join a plan to buy out fellow owner Tom Hicks.

Gillett can buy out Hicks or get with Hicks on a refinancing plan to help the club. The co-owners have almost finished off a deal for a GBP 350 million loan that would cover the GBP 218.9 million they borrowed to take over the club a year ago.

According to the Observer the duo now received a formal offer of about GBP 500 million for their shares in the club by Dubai International Capital (DIC), the investment branch of the Dubai government, which has been trying to get a toehold in the club.

DIC, which missed the deadlines in Feb. 2007, initially were interested in buying Hicks' 50 percent share. However, it is claimed DIC now made an offer for the complete buy-out of the American owners.

The takeover bid arrives at a particularly difficult moment for Hicks and Gillett, who have drawn the ire of supporters for entering into a public dispute with Rafa Benítez over transfer funding and Hicks' admission that they talked to Jürgen Klinsmann about replacing the manager.

But Gillett might prefer Hicks to DIC, despite the problems the co-owners have had of late. The pair has an option to purchase the other's stake in the club, although Gillett would need help to achieve that goal.

The Royal Bank of Scotland has indicated that it expects the refinancing deal to be concluded this week. The arrangement fee could be as high as GBP 40 million, with annual interest payments of up to GBP 30 million depending on the percentage of personal equity injected into the deal.

Gillett could press Hicks to sell next week by refusing the refinancing package.

Source: euFootball.BIZ © Copyright 2006 - All rights reserved.