Hicks and Gillett want higher sale price than £325 million...

The Liverpool boardroom is deeply divided over whether the club should accept a stunning takeover bid from the Chinese government.

American owners George Gillett and Tom Hicks are desperate to obstruct a swift deal in order to hold out for a big a profit as possible from the sale of the club.

This has angered the other three board members - chairman Martin Broughton, managing director Christian Purslow and commercial director Ian Ayre – who want to find the most sustainable owner for the club and believe that the bid fronted by sports entrepreneur Kenny Huang is the only serious contender.

It comes amid reports that China’s foreign investment arm China Investment Corporation (CIC) is the mystery backer behind Huang and could hand Liverpool manager Roy Hodgson a formidable £150 million transfer kitty to spend on new players.

Liverpool, who have debts of £237m, are expected to change hands later this month and the Chinese appear to be in pole position to win a takeover battle that also includes the American private equity consortium the Rhone Group and Syrian businessman Yahya Kirdi.

It is believed that Kirdi has a close working relationship with Gillett’s son, which has prompted speculation that the Syrian’s involvement is being used as a stalling tactic by the Anfield co-owner.

Yet the broker for Kirdi said today that the Syrian and his investment group are negotiating directly with the Americans – not with Broughton or Barclays Capital - and want to agree on a deal that would allow the pair to “walk away with a profit” before Liverpool open their Premier League campaign on 15 August.

“We are prepared to take as long as it takes to get the deal done properly but all the participants would be pleased if we could have it in place for Liverpool’s home Premier League opener against Arsenal,” said Dan Diamond, president of Montreal-based GameDay Leadership Management Consultants.

It is Gillett and Hicks’ decision to negotiate above the heads of their fellow directors that has angered Broughton, Purslow and Ayre, who share three of the five boardroom votes.

Broughton and Barclays Capital – the investment arm of Barclays Bank – were appointed on 16 April to handle the sale of the club and are aiming to make a final decision on a preferred bidder by the end of next week.

It is not known who Broughton feels is the strongest bid but it is understood that the non-executive chairman would want a consensus in the boardroom.

A source close to the process says that Purslow and Ayre favour the Huang-led Chinese consortium, which has assets of £209 billion under management. Most of the cash is tied up in equity and bond markets, although China Daily, the English language arm of the Chinese state media, reported yesterday that CIC has spent the past fortnight selling shares that would, coincidentally, raise precisely the amount of cash required to finance a bid for Liverpool.

Huang values Liverpool at around £325m, less than half Hicks’ £800m asking price. To break even on a sale, the American owners would need to fetch a price of £362m. They paid £218m for the club in 2007 and invested a further £144m.

INDIAN billionaires Mukesh Ambani and Subrata Roy face the Chinese government in the battle to buy Liverpool

The tycoons tabled their bid for the Reds nine months after failing to buy a 51 per cent share in the Anfield outfit.

They join at least four other interested buyers including Chinese businessman Kenny Huang, who has already held talks about buying Liverpool's Ј237million debt off the Royal Bank of Scotland.

Huang, backed by the Ј209bn Chinese Investment Corporation, was favourite to replace unpopular Yank owners Tom Hicks and George Gillett.

He is said to be backing boss Roy Hodgson with a Ј150m transfer kitty.

But the Anfield auction is now wide open.

An insider said: "Some potential buyers have declared their interest but haven't tabled a bid, whereas Ambani and Roy have put their money on the table.

"At this stage Liverpool are happy to let everyone compete against each other to squeeze out the best possible deal."

Ambani, valued at around Ј12.5bn, is rated India's richest man, while fellow billionaire Roy, 62, is head of the Sahara Group which sponsored the India cricket team.

Hicks and Gillett valued Reds at Ј600m after Huang's interest emerged.

Read more: http://www.thesun.co.uk/sol/homepage/sport/football/3082238/Mukesh-Ambani-and-Subrata-Roy-back-in-hunt-to-buy-Liverpool.html#ixzz0vjiO5bpr