Andy Kelly considers the massive pressures which are forcing Liverpool and Everton football clubs closer to the once unimaginable possibility of sharing a ground, Daily Post
NEWS that the leader of Liverpool City Council now believes a shared stadium between Liverpool and Everton is more likely to happen than not will send a shiver down the spine of many Merseyside football fans today.
To share a stadium with their closest rivals, to have a red or a blue sitting in their seat every other week, is something the majority do not even want to contemplate.
There will be talk of season ticket burning and of "never going back" to the clubs they currently live and breathe.
A shared stadium may make economic and practical sense, but it is too big a price for many fans founded on their own club's unique pride and traditions.
Surveys conducted when the Daily Post first revealed the possibility of groundshare last year produced a clear majority against such a move.
But while no-one should underestimate the power of supporters - particularly at clubs with such historically close links to their communities - there are other, potentially stronger forces at work in modern football.
Money of course is chief among them and there is no doubt that it is financial realities which are providing the impetus for groundshare.
Neither Liverpool nor Everton currently has a Roman Abramovich to bankroll their Premiership aspirations.
Liverpool do not yet even appear to have a Thaksin Shinawatra or a Steve Morgan to help them fulfil their lofty title ambitions.
The Thai Prime Minister's £60m deal appears dead in the water after an adverse reaction in his home country.
And the Liverpool board appeared to baulk at the terms being offered by property magnate and shareholder Steve Morgan for a similar level of investment.
Many feel it is still the Anfield club holding most of the cards in the negotiations over a ground-share. Their finances are clearly in a better shape than Everton's and their plans for a new 60,000-seat stadium on Stanley Park are already at an advanced stage. City planners should consider them within weeks.
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