3 reasons John W Henry bought Liverpool including star player and Man Utd factor
American billionaire John W Henry outlined three reasons he purchased Liverpool - admitting that Manchester United were a factor and highlighting Luis Suarez' greatness.
The businessman, 74, and Tom Werner purchased and effectively saved the football club in 2010 with their Fenway Sports Group (FSG) after previous owners George Gillett and Tom Hicks had taken them to the brink of bankruptcy. Their struggles translated to the team going through an incredibly poor run on the field due to a lack of spending.
Henry and Werner have gone on to bring the club an incredibly successful period over the last few years - ending a 30-year Premier League title drought after bringing in manager Jurgen Klopp, taking the team to three Champions League finals and winning one. And despite some Liverpool fans wanting him to sell the club due to a lack of spending when compared to their rival clubs such as Manchester City and Man Utd, Henry has insisted that the club are not for sale.
When speaking to the Boston Chamber of Commerce in 2014, a few years after purchasing the football club, Henry outlined reasons why he wanted to make the move while finding similarities between two major cities where he has invested.
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The similarities between Liverpool and Boston
John W Henry had an interest in taking over a football club and quickly fell in love with Liverpool after a visit - finding similarities with Boston where he spends much of his time having owned the Red Sox since 2002.
He said: "Liverpool has a large Irish Catholic population, it’s a seaport on a famous river, both cities are about 45 square miles in size, both have around 600,000 people, both are college towns.
"Boston had the first public library, Liverpool had the first lending library. Both cities have pioneered medical advancements during the decades and both have the largest economic powers in the world exactly 213 miles to the south by car.
"Both cities will excoriate me for comparing them, but like it or not they are kindred spirits."
Henry compared Anfield and Fenway ParkThe best rivalries in their sport with historic stadiums
Henry admitted that the club's rivalry with Manchester United was something that excited him and that he wanted to be a part of - comparing it to the Red Sox' rivalry with the New York Yankees.
"When we play our rival Manchester United the audience on television is about a billion people. That's about nine times the size of the audience for the Super Bowl. This is very similar to the relationship between the Red Sox and the Yankees."
And while the Red Sox have the oldest ballpark stadium in Major League Baseball in Fenway Park, Henry sees similarities in Anfield.
He said: "They play in the most historical cathedrals of sport. Anfield has 7,000 more seats (now 24,000) than Fenway [the Red Sox's stadium] but actually you might say its a bit cosier than Fenway."
Liverpool having 'the most exciting player in the world'
Luis SuarezAfter taking over the club, one of Henry's first signings for the club was Luis Suarez who the team signed to replace Fernando Torres.
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An instant hit, Suarez would go on to become one of the best players in world football with the billionaire owner comparing him to baseball legend and now Baseball Hall of Famer David 'Big Papi' Ortiz.
"Liverpool have a David Ortiz. His name is Luis Suarez. He leads the league in goals and he's the most exciting player in the world today."
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