Benitez gives the all clear for midfielder’s departure

While the English press are today suggesting that Liverpool are reticent to part with Xabi Alonso, our friends in Spain are convinced that a deal with Real Madrid will go through in the next 48 hours.

Marca report that Rafa Benitez has given his blessing to a €30m deal, provided it is sorted before training resumes on Thursday. AS concur that a transfer to the La Liga side is imminent, and even go as far as publishing a (possibly-completely-fabricated) heart-to-heart between the manager and player:

Benitez: “I want you to resolve your situation as soon as possible, for better or for worse. Ideally, the transfer will be resolved in 48 hours. I need time to find a replacement. “

Apparently, Madrid have had no response from a €27m faxed bid earlier in the week, but it is understood an improved offer of a little over €30m will settle things.

AS report that Liverpool are under pressure to raise funds to pay a €69m debt on the refinancing deal that Billy Bob Gillett and Hank Hicks organised when they took charge of the club, and therefore may be selling Alonso out of necessity.

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The future looks bleak for the Irish broadcaster

Head to the Sign-up page on Setanta’s official site, and try clicking ‘Subscribe Now’.

The resulting deadlink suggests the ailing broadcaster is about to collapse - an outcome that was feared last week.

New reports today, however, suggest that Setanta could possibly avoid oblivion by changing its focus from targeting retail customers to supplying content for other networks. Such an outcome may save some jobs, but it would also help Sky edge a little closer to holding the kind of monopoly they enjoyed a few years ago.

Could a Big Four side really go down the pan?

As the Tesco Value teabags and “one square of loo roll per visit rule” at Spoiler towers demonstrates, the nation remains in the grip of a financial apocalypse.

Throughout the crunchy credit crisis, the Premier League has tried its best to remain impervious to global economics, by continuing to spend big, charge extortionate amounts for tickets and encourage potentially destabilising foreign investment. This week, however, cracks are starting to show in the supposedly invulnerable entity, whose members seem to believe they can buck the trend of a recession.

On Tuesday, The Guardian revealed that the Premier League is cumulatively £3.1bn in debt. Just over £2bn of those outstanding bank overdrafts, loans and other borrowings are attributable to the Big Four alone.

We have also learned that wages have spiralled to over £1bn for the first time, suggesting one too many clubs are operating with an unstable business model. Such a unevenly balanced ratio of wages to turnover could become a club’s undoing, particularly in light of the fact that ‘guaranteed’ income from ailing broadcaster Setanta may be about to dry up.

Perhaps the most telling sign of the fool’s paradise that is the Premiership, however, is the news that reached us this morning concerning Liverpool’s financial crisis.

In a set

Irish TV network is on the brink of collapse

Since they lost half of their Premier League live rights for the 2010-2011 season, Setanta Sports have been teetering closer and closer towards administration.

The Ireland-based TV network have been unable to pay a £3m bill to the Scottish Premier League, which doesn’t put them in a particularly good position to pay the impending £40m bill coming from the English Premier League. They must now rely on hefty investment from third parties or a takeover bid to stop them collapsing.

If Setanta were to become insolvent, a fire sale of all their TV rights would probably occur, meaning their grossly overvalued contracts (including the £425m one for England and FA Cup games) could fall into the hands of rivals for knock-down prices.

A surprise lifeline may actually come from big-dog rivals Sky, who have been asked to provide a £50m interest free loan in exchange for Setanta becoming part of the Sky Sports package.It may sound like a bizarre request, but it is actually in Sky’s interest to keep their weak competitor afloat, rather than letting a huge shark like ESPN into the tank. It is The Spoiler’s understanding that BSkyB will do just about anything

Chelsea chief exec tells other clubs to get their houses in order

In what may be a vague attempt at entering into some Fergie-style PR mind games, Peter Kenyon today told clubs such as Tottenham, Newcastle, Everton and Aston Villa to get their act together:

“It should be more about them getting their houses in order rather than us coming down to their level.”

According to the most recent financial data available (from the 2006/07 season), Cheslea had a debt of £738m, their operating expenses had increased by £35m on the previous year, and they were only being stabilised by an interest-free loan of £538m from a kindly Russian gentleman. At their current rate of inflating wages, it would be ambitious for the club to break even in the next five years.

Of course, Roman Abramovich is no fool, and being able to support such a huge debt is testament to Chelsea’s long-term financial strength, but it seems a little rich for Kenyon to tell other clubs to get their houses in order when theirs relies solely on a man who would think nothing of writing off a £700m loss…

Spanish striker could be working for a bank next year

According to The Times, Liverpool will be forced to sell Fernando Torres and Ryan Babel if they do not stump up £31.5m owed to creditors.

Usually, Premier League clubs fund purchases through television income, but Liverpool made the unusual step of borrowing the money from banking institutions to pay for their star striker and the tricky Dutchman. The club refinanced the £31.5m debt in January, at the same time as they secured a £350m refinancing package. Liverpool will have to pay £30m a year in interest alone on the huge loan, the terms of which end next July. If they fail to repay the smaller loan by the end of the 18-month agreement, the Reds will have no choice but to sell Torres and Babel.