Brendan Rodgers admits he sought assurances that no director of football would be appointed alongside him before taking the reins at Liverpool.
The Reds officially unveiled their new manager on Friday, with Rodgers having been lured away from Premier League rivals Swansea.
He is the man charged with the task of returning the Merseyside outfit to the top of the domestic game and back into the UEFA Champions League elite.

Liverpool managing director Ian Ayre is adamant the Reds got the manager they wanted in Brendan Rodgers, insisting the ex-Swansea boss was the only candidate they made an offer to.
The club's search for Kenny Dalglish's successor attracted criticism from some quarters for being too wide-ranging, but Ayre was satisfied with how they dealt with filling the vacancy after Rodgers was unveiled on Friday.

As expected, the central and pretty much sole focus of the early presser at Anfield today was the unveiling of Brendan Rodgers as Liverpool's new manager. Reactions have trended positively since Rodgers gave his first official interview, and rightly so given the confidence and clarity with which he fielded a range of questions.

We're still awaiting official confirmation, and that may take a couple of days yet, but with the BBC and other generally reputable sources reporting that Brendan Rodgers has agreed to a three-year deal to manage Liverpool Football Club, the outcome of Fenway Sports Group's search to replace Kenny Dalglish seems more certain than it ever has.

Liverpool have made the first steps towards appointing Louis van Gaal as sporting director after meeting with him in Portugal last week.
There are, though, complications as to whether the Dutchman's methods match the way the Fenway Sports Group are seeking to restructure the club.
Van Gaal has been spending the summer at his house near Albufeira in the Algarve and it is understood that Ian Ayre, Liverpool's managing director, flew out to meet him last week.

Liverpool's owners have appointed the former managing director of Fenway Sports Management as their new chief commercial officer.
Billy Hogan, who worked for the marketing wing of John Henry's company, will be responsible for sponsorships, ticketing and hospitality, retail and merchandise, club memberships, club tours and friendlies as well as Liverpool FC's Soccer Schools.

According the the talkative Wigan owner Dave Whelan, Roberto Martinez has been made an offer by Liverpool to take over as manager.

Martinez broke off from his holiday in Barbados for talks with the Reds in Florida and Whelan says he now wants his manager's future resolved by next Thursday.

Liverpool Football Club has signed a three-year sponsorship extension with international tyre brand Maxxis. Having joined Liverpool in June 2009 as part of a three-year deal, under terms of the new agreement Maxxis will continue to serve as an official sponsor of the Anfield-based Premier League club until 2015.

One of the best things about football as a sport is its incomparable ability to create drama. I would love to challenge Hollywood's finest to try and script the fiction to beat the truth we've seen this season. Manchester City shifting from title losers to title winners in a matter of 60 seconds at their home ground in the final moments of their season.

Liverpool managing director Ian Ayre has dispelled fears a number of top stars could leave the club in the wake of the upheaval at Anfield.
The Reds are looking for a new manager after Kenny Dalglish was axed by the club's American owners earlier this week.
It has been suggested that Dalglish's departure could cause some unrest in the dressing room, but Ayre is confident the players will stick around after holding talks with them.

Liverpool's managing director Ian Ayre says he has spoken to the key members of the squad following the departure of Kenny Dalglish and has now dismissed any talk of high-profile exits.

I spoke to all our senior players yesterday and I don't think that will happen," said Ayre.

"Of course Kenny is an important part of the fabric of the club and always will be.

Liverpool managing director Ian Ayre insists there is no crisis at Anfield in the aftermath of Kenny Dalglish's departure.
Dalglish was axed as manager on Wednesday after 16 months in charge during his second tenure as boss.
It means Liverpool are currently without a manager and a director of football following Damien Comolli's sacking last month.

Fenway Sports Group and Liverpool FC confirmed today that Director of Communications Ian Cotton will leave the Club on 13th May 2012 by mutual consent.
Managing Director Ian Ayre said: "We would like to thank Ian for the important contribution he has made to the Club during his long career here.

So Liverpool have finally released their financials for last year and despite Liverpool Managing Director Ian Ayre's spin, these numbers do not make good reading.

Liverpool's total income last season fell by £1m to £184m, with TV and media £14m down due to Liverpool not playing in the Champions League.

Liverpool have reported a loss of almost £50million for the last financial year as the scale of the club's stadium folly becomes clear.
Owners Fenway Sports Group wiped out debts of £200m when they purchased the club in October 2010.
But they were also forced to write off a further £35million related to the abandoned HKS-designed Stanley Park project of predecessors Tom Hicks and George Gillett.

So Liverpool have finally released their financials for last year and despite Liverpool Managing Director Ian Ayre's spin, these numbers do not make good reading.

Liverpool's total income last season fell by £1m to £184m, with TV and media £14m down due to Liverpool not playing in the Champions League.

Kenny Dalglish, the Liverpool manager, has accused the Football Association of showing a lack of respect to supporters craving tickets for the FA Cup final.
An allocation of just 25,000 each for Liverpool and Chelsea, allied to more travel chaos for Merseyside fans trying to get to and from London on May 5, has once more brought ticketing policies and kick-off times into focus.

Fenway Sports Group and Liverpool FC confirmed today that Head of Sports Medicine and Sports Science, Dr. Peter Brukner will leave the Club by the end of the season.
Managing Director Ian Ayre said: "We are grateful to Peter who has been the catalyst for the transformation of our Sports Medicine and Sports Science capability at the Club since he joined two years ago.

Fenway Sports Group and Liverpool FC confirmed today that Head of Sports Medicine and Sports Science, Dr Peter Brukner will leave the Club by the end of the season.

Managing Director Ian Ayre said: "We are grateful to Peter who has been the catalyst for the transformation of our Sports Medicine and Sports Science capability at the Club since he joined two years ago.

Liverpool and Tottenham Hotspur will play on July 28, 2012 at M&T Bank Stadium in Baltimore. Kick-off time is 1pm ET. Buy Liverpool v Spurs Tickets.

The game has a 1 p.m., kick-off because the Orioles host the Oakland Athletics that evening at the adjacent baseball park at Camden Yards.

Luis Suarez could be the subject of a bid from Roma this summer, according to Italian publication Il Tempo.
Suarez has been an instant hit with Liverpool supporters since he made the switch from Ajax last year but has had his desire to stay in England tested after a string of controversial incidents.

Liverpool has announced that they will face Roma in a pre-season friendly in Boston during a trip to North America this summer.
The Reds will play the Italian giants on 25th July at Fenway Park, home of the Boston Red Sox, who share owners with the Anfield club.
The match will form part of the ballpark's 100th anniversary celebrations.

The Reds managing director Ian Ayre admits Luis Suarez is likely to be offered a new contract in the close-season to stop the Uruguay striker being lured away from Anfield.

The Liverpool star striker signed a five-and-a-half year contract on his arrival in January 2011, but the Reds are keen to extend that deal following reported interest from big-spending French club Paris Saint Germain.

Jamie Carragher getting found out

Liverpool have not been great in their last two matches. They were poor in spite of victory against Cardiff and they couldn't put their chances away (again) against Arsenal. This time Robin Van Persie made sure they paid and now the Reds are a full ten points off fourth place.

In terms of slow-seeming weeks, this one couldn't have come at a worse time. Saturday's debacle at Old Trafford, the self-righteous moral crusades it inspired, and Sunday's apology avalanche from Luis Suarez, Ian Ayre, and Kenny Dalglish made for a miserable 24 hours. We were desperate for a break from all that, and then nothing happened.

Photo by ISIphotos.com

By JOHN BOSCHINI

The fallout and reaction from Luis Suarez' handshake snub of Patrice Evra continues a couple of days after the latest incident between the Liverpool striker and Manchester United fullback.

Suarez issued a brief written apology for not shaking Patrice Evra's hand prior to Liverpool's loss to Manchester United at Old Trafford on Saturday, but lingering tensions between the two camps makes it unlikely that the situation is anything close to being put in the past.

Since we have been critical of Liverpool's handling of the Luis Suarez/Patrice Evra racism row (here, here and here), it makes sense to also point that they have eventually worked out the sort of response these situations require. The club, Kenny Dalglish and Luis Suarez all issued apologies for events at Old Trafford on Saturday, [.

Finally someone in authority at Liverpool FC has stood up to Luis Suarez and told him that his actions at Old Trafford on Saturday are not acceptable.

Ayre issued this statement on the Liverpool web site:

"We are extremely disappointed Luis Suarez did not shake hands with Patrice Evra before yesterday's game.

Luis Suarez is sorry. Kenny Dalglish is apologetic. Managing director Ian Ayre has condemned Suarez's actions. All this for the handshake that never was? The Suarez-Evra case was big enough before Saturday's match between Manchester United and...
This is a content summary. Visit http://www.

From the official website:

"I have spoken with the manager since the game at Old Trafford and I realise I got things wrong. I've not only let him down, but also the Club and what it stands for and I'm sorry. I made a mistake and I regret what happened. I should have shaken Patrice Evra's hand before the game and I want to apologise for my actions.

There's been a story going around about how Liverpool bought £20 million underachiever Stewart Downing because the club's American owners were so impressed by the blatantly doctored viral video above produced by Aston Villa two summers ago. This, of course, is a ridiculous tale and beyond stupid and something no one could ever believe.

It has certainly been an eventful week for Liverpool FC and it is far from over just yet as the club prepares for one of the biggest games of its season when Manchester United takes the pitch at Anfield in the FA Cup tomorrow afternoon.

On the pitch, Liverpool have already taken care of another Manchester team earlier in the week, knocking league leaders City out of the Carling Cup 3-2 on aggregate to progress to the final at Wembley.

While German giants Bayern Munich are busy calming down fans who are angered that the club's commitment to unveil a major new signing today was simply a promotion for a new app, Liverpool managing director Ian Ayre is making sure that the Kop's transfer expectations remain low, to begin with.

English media has heavily linked Liverpool with the likes of Real Madrid's Esteban Granero, Groningen's David Texeira, Rangers' Nikica Jelavic, and Udinese's Mauricio Isla.

Liverpool say they expect to earn a staggering £300m through their new six-year deal with the US sportswear company Warrior Sports, and have denied accusations that underachievement on the pitch led to the collapse of their current kit deal with Adidas.
Warrior, owned by New Balance, will become the club's kit supplier from June having agreed a £25m-a-year deal to enter the football industry for the first time.

Liverpool FC announced plans to open its first ever international football Academy in the Egyptian capital of Cairo.
The groundbreaking venture, a first for Liverpool FC in the Middle East, was officially unveiled by Reds legend Ian Rush at a ceremony attended by media from all over the region.
The Academy, when it officially opens early next month, will have a permanent base in Madinaty, a new 33 million square metre ultra-modern extension city being built within New Cairo, with a supporting soccer school in nearby Al Rehab designed to help identify the best young footballing talent in Cairo.

It's been a strange week here on the Liverpool Offside there's not been a whole lot of actual news since Saturday's draw with Stoke, but there's been an influx of folks whose keyboards were custom-made by Nigel Tufnel and have a vendetta against either Kenny Dalglish, people talking sense, or chickens, and often times there's been a frightening combination of the three.

Liverpool managing director Ian Ayre insists any perception that Liverpool's handling of the Luis Suarez affair means they take a soft stance on racism is "totally and utterly rubbish".
The Reds have come in for criticism in recent weeks for the way they have behaved during Luis Suarez's unsuccessful defence against allegations he racially abused Manchester United's Patrice Evra.

Liverpool has received the full support of their multi-million pound shirt sponsor, Standard Chartered, in the aftermath of the recent race-row controversies which engulfed the club.
Anti-racism organisations, especially Football Against Racism in Europe's executive director, Piara Power, claimed Liverpool's reputation and ‘brand' has been severely damaged in the light of the Luis Suárez affair.

Goal: Liverpool chief executive Ian Ayre calls on club to work with Manchester United to ensure FA Cup match will be 'a great day'

Following further controversy on Friday night, the Anfield boss is after an amicable showing and has reiterated the importance of taking a tough stance on racism

View the full story here: Goal

A news article on 2012-01-10 08:18:00 from: Goal

This news item has been reproduced from today's media.

Goal: Liverpool chief executive Ian Ayre calls on club to work with Manchester United to ensure FA Cup match will be 'a great day'

Following further controversy on Friday night, the Anfield boss is after an amicable showing and has reiterated the importance of taking a tough stance on racism

View the full story here: Goal

A news article on 2012-01-10 08:18:00 from: Goal

This news item has been reproduced from today's media.