Henry: Liverpool lacked depth

Liverpool owner John W Henry has criticised Tom Hicks and George Gillett for leaving a huge wage bill and a thin squad in their wake.

Henry’s Fenway Sports Group (FSG) acquired the English Premier League side in October, after the Liverpool board approved the 300-million-pound sale against the wishes of Hicks and Gillett.

Henry has launched an attack on the former owners, saying he was shocked at the glaring disparity between Liverpool’s expenditure and the quality of its roster after taking over from the unpopular American pair.

“The worst surprise was the lack of depth in the squad,” Henry told Four Four Two magazine.

“Our biggest concern in taking on this responsibility was this issue and it was a bigger issue than we feared.”

“There was a huge multi-year payroll for a squad that had very little quality depth.”

Henry has since presided over the 50-million-pound transfer of Fernando Torres to Chelsea, money that was used to secure strikers Andy Carroll from Newcastle United and Luiz Suarez from Ajax.

The American, who also owns Major League Baseball’s Boston Red Sox, is confident he will oversee the first Premier League title at Anfield since the 1989-90 campaign.

“Our number one priority is to win the Premier League title,” Henry said.

“That is what we take with us each day to work as the force that drives us to excel.”

“If we can accomplish that we will have put ourselves in a position to be successful on all fronts, including Europe.”

“Success is winning championships. It is nothing less than that. And when you win a championship ? and we will ? success isn’t measured or accomplished by winning once.”

The spending is expected to continue in the off-season, with the likes of Stewart Downing, Ashley Young and Charlie Adam all believed to be on Henry’s shopping list.