Liverpool Owners Deny Rumours of Potential Sale to Chinese Investors

Liverpool's owners have dismissed speculation that the Premier League club will be sold to a group of Chinese investors after rumours of an £800 million bid emerged on Sunday. 

Jonathan Northcroft of the Times reported the state-backed group China Everbright launched an £800 million takeover bid, but Fenway Sports Group chairman Tom Werner told the Liverpool Echo's James Pearce the club is "not for sale."

Billie Weiss/Boston Red Sox/Getty Images

According to Northcroft, China Everbright is interested in gaining a stakehold in the Reds as part of a potential deal that could make them "the richest club in the Premier League."

Dan Gibbs of the Daily Express cited the Liverpool Echo and provided quotes from Werner, who defined FSG's stance on selling their stake in the club:

"

We’ve said it before and I’d like to say it again: this club is not for sale. I’d say that from time to time somebody says they have made an offer to us but they are really saying that just for publicity.

People throw offers to us which we don’t think are real. We haven’t had a discussion or a negotiation with anyone because this club is not for sale.

"

Pearce's report outlined that FSG have "always been open to the idea of selling a minority stake," but China Everbright are understood to be only interested in a deal that would see them claim a majority share.

David Bond of the Financial Times reported Liverpool may not be as opposed to the deal as Werner suggests, either, after hiring help to sort through the figures understood to be on offer:

Fenway Sports Group bought the Anfield outfit for £300 million in 2010, and despite Werner's assurances to the contrary, a sale would present the opportunity to make almost 300 percent profit on their investment.

It's also a factor that manager Jurgen Klopp only arrived at the club in October, and Pearce suggested the current owners are committed to seeing through some of his reign:

China's ever-evolving grip on football appears to be extending further, having moved on from their influence in the transfer market and further into the monopoly of owning European clubs outright.

Inter Milan, Espanyol, Wolverhampton Wanderers and Aston Villa are just some of the continental clubs with majority stakes owned by Chinese investors, but Liverpool's owners insist the Reds will not join those ranks.