We´re not just here to cash in, say Liverpool

Liverpool insist they are not just in Asia to cash in on the lucrative commercial opportunities the region offers, but to give their fanatical fans a chance to see them in the flesh.

The Reds arrived here Monday, minus Steven Gerrard who is embroiled in a court case back home, to play Thailand on Wednesday before jetting to Singapore for the second leg of their Southeast Asian visit.

Clubs in the past, notably Real Madrid, have been criticised for planning worldwide tours purely for the financial reward.

But Liverpool commercial director Ian Ayre insists his team wants to leave behind a legacy.

“We have a duty to contribute to these football markets and to our supporters over here,” he said on the club website.

“We have in place a strong legacy programme encompassing many different initiatives and which can be broken down into different areas.

“For example, we have a knowledge transfer programme at which Rafa will meet coaches from Thailand and Singapore, I will be meeting representatives from the local businesses and the medical team will also be having sessions.

“We will be running a kids programme with open training sessions to try and show people what we do and how we do it.

“The important thing is that when our plane lands back in Liverpool there will still be things going on in our name over here which we can continue to support.”

Like Manchester United, who are also touring Asia, Liverpool has a huge fan base in a region which provides lucrative television revenues from screening live English Premier League matches.

Ayre said it had been tough picking which countries to tour.

“It’s always difficult deciding where to go on tour because we have so many fans all over the world,” he said.

“But we feel by choosing Thailand and Singapore we are capturing most of Southeast Asia and making it possible for fans from other countries to come and see the team.

“Both countries are traditional hot-beds of support for Liverpool and I know from speaking to our partners out here how excited everyone has been waiting for us to arrive.”

Manchester United have visited Malaysia and are also due in South Korea and China. Their first-ever visit to Indonesia was cancelled last week twin bomb blasts in Jakarta last Friday.