Could Liverpool be set for new Chinese owners?

Various media outlets in the United Kingdom, including The Guardian, The Telegraph and the Independent, are reporting that Chinese company Everbright have made a $1.2 billion preliminary offer to buy Liverpool FC from American owners Fenway Sports Group.

Source: AAP

British investment and advisory firm PCP Capital Partners is said to be working with Chinese state-owned Everbright on the alleged offer.

Rumours of a bid have not been confirmed by any Liverpool officials though, with Principal owner John W Henry and chairman Tom Werner consistently stating their intentions for long-term ownership.

The Financial Times has reported that Fenway Sports Group has hired investment bank Allen and Co as financial advisors for a potential sale, but this too has been dismissed as untrue by FSG executives.

If a deal were to go through, it would be the latest in a string of recent Chinese investment in European football.

The most high-profile activity to date has been in Milan, with Chinese company Suning Holdings Group becoming majority shareholders of Internazionale in June 2016, and Silvio Berlusconi's sale of AC Milan to Chinese investors, operating through management company Sino-Europe Sports, still currently ongoing.

Premier League side West Bromwich Albion and French Ligue 2 club Auxerre have also been purchased by Chinese groups this month, while Atletico Madrid, Manchester City, Aston Villa and Wolverhampton Wanderers are the recipients of varying degrees of investment from China.