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Liverpool owners Fenway Sports Group are in the process of potentially completing a takeover of Malaga.
Kopites might find themselves keeping track of the Spanish second tier if a deal goes through.
Liverpool’s owners Fenway Sports Group (FSG) could be about to add another team to their already impressive portfolio. Alongside MLB icons the Boston Red Sox, NHL side the Pittsburgh Penguins, NASCAR’s RFK Racing and Boston Common Golf of the recently formed TGL League could be another football team.
FSG have made it clear they’re exploring purchasing a new outfit. It was the reason why famed former Reds sporting director Michael Edwards returned to the business. He wanted more responsibility and a new challenge rather than returning to a post that solely focused on Liverpool. He had already become among the best in his role at his job, signing the likes of Virgil van Dijk, Mo Salah and Alisson Becker to help the Reds win six major trophies including the Premier League and Champions League.
Edwards was instead appointed FSG’s CEO of football. Clearly, his responsibilities were going to be more than on Merseyside. FSG did look at buying Bordeaux after they were relegated to the fourth tier of French football amid financial problems but opted against it.
However, Malaga is now on their radar. It might be a surprise to many that the Andalusia-based side find themselves outside of La Liga. Not since 2018 have Malaga graced Spain’s top tier and they did drop to the third tier in 2023.
Many will remember them almost knocking out Jurgen Klopp’s Borussia Dortmund in the 2013 Champions League quarter-finals with a team that consisted of Isco, Joaquin, Júlio Baptista and Roque Santa Cruz. But it has been a long 12 years since. Despite 51 per cent of the club being owned by Qatari Sheikh Abdullah bin Nasser Al Thani, spending has long dried up.
So why would FSG be interested? Well, it’s clear that Malaga is somewhat of a sleeping giant. The city in the Costa de Sol is the sixth largest by population in Spain. They have staunch fans, with gates still more than 20,000 when in the third division. The price tag is reported to be around £83 million, although the valuation would increase markedly if Los Albicelestes return to La Liga.
However, FSG buying Malaga would help get around the rule. Any talents below the age of 18 in Spain - and even within the EU - could be nurtured in the La Rosaleda side’s academy, while Liverpool would get the first pick on any prospects coming through in Andalusia. For example, if another player of the ilk of Huijsen was coming through, Edwards and the rest of the operation would be well abreast.
Of course, that is something that Malaga fans may take exception to, especially in the longer term if they were ever to push for Europe. Yet given the current situation, they will crave more financial stability which FSG would undoubtedly provide.
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