£50m bid for Liverpool

Liverpool were today braced for a power struggle after building magnate Steve Morgan offered to invest £50million in the underachieving club.

With a personal fortune of £350m, Morgan is determined to wrestle control of Liverpool away from chairman David Moores.

His offer is believed to involve a £50m share issue which would effectively bring to an end the Moores family's 50-year tenure as Liverpool's owners.

Morgan is understood to be prepared to underwrite the entire issue providing Moores is barred from taking part.

Moores owns 51 per cent of Liverpool and, under Morgan's plan, the effects of dilution would see his stake fall to less than a majority holding.

Liverpool are anxious to raise new money in a bid to compete with Manchester United, Chelsea and Arsenal. They recently appointed finance experts Hawkpoint Partners to assess their options.

Morgan, a vociferous critic of Moores, already owns 5 per cent of Liverpool and has made clear that he is prepared to inject more funds.

The pair are believed to have held talks three weeks ago to discuss Morgan's offer - which would require Moores's approval to go any further. A Liverpool spokesman said today: "As all this is speculation, we are not commenting."

In January Moores had to withstand a sustained verbal assault at the club's annual general meeting from Morgan - who is not a board member.

Then Morgan said: "The chairman has refused to talk to me. Money is available from me and others, but the chairman will not dilute his holding."

Moores responded by saying: "It is time to bury the hatchet, if you ( Morgan) want a meeting, we will sit down and talk it over. This is no good for this club, we must bury the hatchet. If it means diluting my shares or even selling to another Roman Abramovich, I will have to do it."

Last week, Thai prime minister Thaksin Shinawatra confirmed he did not want to buy Liverpool despite speculation that he would launch a bid.

Moores has been a staunch supporter of manager Gerard Houllier in the face of fierce criticism over the club's failure to challenge for the title.

Should Morgan's influence on the club increase, it could put the Frenchman's position in further doubt.

The pressure on Houllier eased slightly on Saturday when a 1-0 home victory over Wolves moved them up to fourth place. They face a daunting trip to Marseille in the UEFA Cup fourth round on Thursday following an unconvincing 1-1 draw in the first leg.

GRAHAM RIX has been named temporary manager of Third Division Oxford. The 44-year-old former Arsenal and England midfielder has been working at Watford as a scout.

Rix takes over from Ian Atkins, who was suspended by the club on Saturday, only hours after Bristol Rovers confirmed he would be their new manager next season.