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Liverpool Echo
Liverpool Echo
Sport
Dave Powell

Saudi Arabian government speak out on potential Liverpool takeover

The sports minister of Saudi Arabia has stated that the Saudi Arabian government would "definitely support" private sector bids for Liverpool and Manchester United.

Speaking to BBC Sport, Prince Abdulaziz bin Turki Al Faisal said that there was a lot of "interest and appetite" in the two clubs, both of which have seen their owners open themselves up to either part investment or a full sale over the past two weeks.

Liverpool owners Fenway Sports Group expanded their search for investment through an equity sale to a willingness to listen to offers for the club a fortnight ago. It was a move followed by the Glazer family at United on Tuesday.

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The ECHO understands that FSG have a price point of $4bn in mind to begin a conversation with agreeable parties, while United's owners are understood to be wanting as much as $7bn for the club, which has seen its share price surge since the revelations about the Glazers' intentions emerged.

Numerous potential bidders have been linked with Liverpool over the past fortnight, from US private equity firms to Indian billionaires, although no firm proposals are believed to have been presented to FSG, for whom Mike Gordon is acting as the lead on sourcing investment and managing an interest in a full takeover.

"From the private sector, I can't speak on their behalf, but there is a lot of interest and appetite and there's a lot of passion about football," said Al Faisal.

"It's the most-watched league in Saudi and the region and you have a lot of fans of the Premier League. We will definitely support it if any [Saudi] private sector comes in, because we know that's going to reflect positively on sports within the kingdom.

"But if there's an investor willing to do so and the numbers add up, why not?"

Saudi ownership has already arrived in the Premier League through the controversial sale of Newcastle United to the Saudi Arabian Public Investment Fund, a sovereign wealth fund worth some £300bn.

But questions around the ethics of the deal given Saudi's questionable human rights record, its view on LGBTQ issues and women's rights.

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