The New England Sport Ventures group finally crossed the I’s and dotted the T’s on a deal after another day of negotiations, this time out of the High Court after Liverpool’s former owners George Gillett and Tom Hicks had their injunction against the sale dismissed.

Henry’s NESV group agreed in principle a deal to buy the club last week but had been held up by Hicks and Gillett.

However, the American duo finally admitted defeat on Friday meaning the £300million deal could go ahead.

Henry takes charge of a club who have made their worst-ever start to a Premier League season and find themselves currently entrenched in the bottom three with just one win from their last seven matches.

Liverpool (11/1 to be relegated) have looked a shadow of the side that pushed Manchester United all the way in the title race two years ago and Henry appears to have his work cut out to turn the club around.

The Reds’ first test under their new owners will come against local rivals Everton (6/4 to beat Liverpool) on Sunday, who themselves have also made a sloppy start to the season.

The Merseyside duo could both find themselves inside the bottom three by the time they kick off on Sunday – should either Wolves or West Ham win on Saturday.

It would be the first time the ‘friendly derby’ has seen the two sides both start the match in the relegation zone.

Henry has said he will tackle the club’s on and off-field problems “head on” as he looks to restore the Reds’ glory days.

“I am proud and humbled,” said Henry. “We have a lot of work to do and I cannot tell you how happy I am to have finally got the deal done.

“It’s too early to say what we’re going to do but we’re here to win, we have a tradition of winning – we (the Boston Red Sox) are the second-highest spending club in Major League Baseball and we’re here to win, we will do whatever is necessary.”

Given Liverpool’s threadbare squad Henry will be expected to invest heavily in new players if he is to give Hodgson the tools necessary to do the job he was brought in to do.

The former Fulham manager has come under increasing pressure in recent weeks given Liverpool’s poor start to the season, but hopes things will now get better.

Hodgson has admitted that the ownership saga and the instability of the club has taken its toll on the players and is now hoping the takeover will put their minds at rest ahead of Sunday’s big match.

“The fact is we have six points from seven games because we have lost games we should have done better in,” said Hodgson, when asked about how it had affected his players.

“But it would also be naive of me to think that these things don’t matter.

“We are very proud of club, very proud to work at club and when club is in a bad situation it is bound to affect you in some way.”

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James Tomkins

The Hammers currently sit rock bottom of the Premier League table, with their only point coming in a 1-1 draw at Stoke last weekend.

However, the side managed their first win away from home in 13 months with a 2-1 win over Sunderland in the Carling Cup third round on Tuesday night.

Goals from Frederic Piquionne and Victor Obinna were enough to give the Hammers the win, and Tomkins wants the players to take confidence from this victory and take it forward into their Premier League clash with Tottenham (West Ham 13/5 to win, Spurs evens, draw 23/10) at Upton Park on Saturday.

West Ham need to make their home ground a fortress if they are to climb off the bottom of the table, but face a tough challenge against a Spurs side sitting in fifth spot and looking for a Premier League top-four finish for the second season in succession (Spurs 11/4 to finish in top four).

“The lads are buzzing. It is good to get our confidence back and start on winning ways. We need to get in the habit of doing this now as in the last few games we had played well but hadn’t taken anything,” said the Hammers Academy graduate.

“We did it against Stoke on Saturday. Not many teams go there and get a draw. We were able to build on that with the victory against Sunderland.

“It would be nice to have a cup run but first it is back to Tottenham in the league on Saturday and that is a massive game.”

West Ham boss Avram Grant paid particular praise to his front two of Piquionne and Obinna after the Sunderland win. He knows that goals have been hard to come by this season and the Hammers need someone to score regularly if they are to win games on a consistent basis.

The club’s striker’s inability to get goals led to the relegation dogfight last season and all the fans around Upton Park are hoping for no repeat this campaign.

Grant claims the club is making progress and he wants his players to continue to perform “with the same style” and convert chances into goals.

Speaking about his front two, he added: “They worked very hard, they moved very well and they played well together – but all the team behind them played well..

“We passed the ball very well in the midfield so it was more easy for them to find space to score two fantastic goals.”

After the Spurs game, West Ham (8/15 to stay up) then face Fulham at Upton Park before travelling to Wolves in their next two Premier League games.

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Stiliyan Petrov

The Bulgarian star was brought to Villa Park by former manager Martin O’Neill, but was as shocked as anyone when the former boss walked out only five days before the start of the Premier League campaign.

Kevin MacDonald acted as caretaker manager for the opening weeks of the season, but the Villa board have now announced Houllier as the new permanent manager.

Despite Houllier being given the job last week, MacDonald had to take charge for Villa’s defeat to Stoke City on Monday as the Frenchman’s move has been held up due to prior commitments from his role as technical director with the French Football Federation.

Petrov is hoping the new manager can bring some stability back to the club, although it is unlikely that Houllier will be sat on the bench when Villa take on Bolton at home on Saturday as he is still unable to state a definite starting date at the club (Villa 4/5 to win, Bolton 10/3, draw 12/5 Match Betting).

That means MacDonald is set to take charge again, and Petrov has told the Birmingham Mail he thinks the caretaker boss has done a “tremendous job” at the start of this season and the entire Villa side will try to win “for him”.

“It is complicated. Complicated for the new manager, complicated for Kev as well, but there is a solution and we will see the new manager soon,” said Petrov.

“He has been at the top level for a long time. He managed Liverpool, had success and has been manager of Lyon. He has knowledge of football. He knows what he needs to do. We wait to see how we can improve.

“We try to do our best for Kev because he has been at this club for a long time and we don’t want to see him putting his head down,” he added.

MacDonald is reported to have turned down an offer from Houllier to take the role of his assistant at Villa Park when he finally starts his new role.

The Frenchman is now expected to offer the position to Gary McAllister, who he signed when in charge at Liverpool (13/8 for a Premier League top four finish) over a decade ago.

The former Leeds boss is currently holding a similar position under Gordon Strachan at Middlesbrough and the Riverside boss has admitted to Sky Sports there has “been contact” between the two clubs.

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Roy Hodgson

The Anfield boss says his immediate target, after taking over this summer from Rafael Benitez, is to improve on the club’s finish last season (Liverpool 6/4 for top four finish).

But he wants the proposed takeover to be settled as soon as possible as he believes it is unsettling the club.

Hodgson says that to get to the level of the likes of Chelsea and Manchester United, Liverpool will have to sort out their off-the-field situation.

Liverpool are up for sale, with American owners Tom Hicks and George Gillett wanting to push through a sale and fans unhappy that more money has not been spent on improving the team.

Hodgson said: “I think we will have a decent season, but whether we are really able to get our act together and take the next big step forward. That might depend on the ownership issue.”

“What I would like to see is what everyone at Liverpool would like to see – a solution to the ownership problem; that Martin Broughton finds an owner acceptable to the rest of the board, with the right intentions and who will, first and foremost, build a new stadium that increases the capacity.

“One hopes, as everyone at Liverpool hopes, this matter will be resolved sooner rather than later. Of course, the club needs new ownership. We’re not alone in that, but we’re probably the most high-profile club in the world in that situation.

“We want to make this club have a better season. That has to be the first objective, to do a bit better and then build a platform for future greatness.”

Hodgson admits that he was pleased to come through the transfer window unscathed after seeing the likes of Steven Gerrard, Pepe Reina and Fernando Torres stay with the club.

The Reds have made an unspectacular start to the season, coming through qualifying to the Europa League by beating Rabotnicki then winning 3-1 on aggregate in the play-off against Trabzonspor, while in the Premier League drawing at home to Arsenal, losing 3-0 at Manchester City and then beating West Brom at home.

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Paul Konchesky

The left-back completed his move to the club on transfer deadline day, signing a four-year contract having enhanced his reputation while at Craven Cottage.

The 29-year-old played a big part in helping Fulham finish seventh the season before last and followed that up by helping the Cottagers reach the first European final in their history.

Konchesky’s move to Liverpool appears to have been on the cards since Roy Hodgson left his post as Fulham manager to takeover at Anfield, with the Reds having been without a left-back for the majority of the summer.

Hodgson had been looking at Aston Villa’s Luke Young but decided to stick with Konchesky after working with him at Fulham.

Konchesky becomes Liverpool’s eighth summer signing after they completed the signings of Raul Meireles, Christian Poulsen, Joe Cole, Brad Jones, Milan Jovanovic, Jonjo Shelvey and Danny Wilson.

Despite the new arrivals the Reds have got off to a slow start, notching up their first win of the season with an unconvincing 1-0 victory over West Brom (4/5 to be relegated) on Sunday.

While Liverpool are already five points off current league leaders and defending champions Chelsea, Konchesky believes the current squad are capable of challenging for top honours.

“I’m very excited to be here. I can’t wait to get started and I’m really looking forward to the challenge,” he told the club’s official website.

“I want to win silverware. I believe this club is capable of doing that and hopefully we can start this year.”

Having been a beaten finalist in last season’s Europa League Konchesky is eager to right the wrongs of Fulham’s defeat to Athletico Madrid (16/1 Europa League outright) and win the same competition with Liverpool (11/1) this season.

“I am really excited by that. Liverpool have a great tradition in Europe. We got to the final with Fulham last season but hopefully we can go one step further this year and win it with Liverpool,” he added.

Liverpool will fancy their chances of doing well in the Europa League this season having reached the semi-final stage of the competition in the last campaign.

However, the Reds have been drawn in a tough group after being paired with Napoli, Steaua Bucharest and Utrecht.

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Roberto Martinez

Wigan were humbled by the newly-promoted Seasiders in what was the shock result on the opening-day of the Premier League season last Saturday.

Martinez’s men will be desperate to bounce back this weekend but face the toughest of tests when champions Chelsea visit the DW Stadium for Saturday’s evening kick off.

The Wigan boss has nothing but admiration for Carlo Ancelotti’s side and is well aware how difficult a game it will be for his side, but he insists if they can perform to their best then Latics can be a match for anyone in the division.

“Chelsea in my eyes have the strongest squad in the league, but we’re ready to react from our disappointment and be competitive in a game we showed last season we’re capable of winning,” said Martinez on the club’s website.

“They’ve been working together as a squad for a number of seasons and have had tremendous results.

“Everything you look for in a successful team; experience, strength, power and quality they possess in big amounts.”

Martinez only has injury worries over Gary Caldwell and Victor Moses ahead of the game and he wants his side to put on as good a performance as possible to at least give themselves a chance of causing an upset themselves on week two of the Premier League (Wigan 6/5 to be relegated).

“We need to be perfect in everything we do, learning lessons from last weekend’s game,” he added.

“Overall last season gave us the experience of how to play against these sides. But we have to match them off the ball and work really hard. We have enough quality to create chances and score goals, but everything else needs to be perfect as well.”

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Liverpool

The Anfield boss was in charge of Fulham last season as he guided them to the final of the same competition but when asked what his priority was Hodgson confirmed the league was more important, but he is still targeting European success (Liverpool 12/1 – Premier League outright).

“If you are going to prioritise you would prioritise the league always,” explained Hodgson.

“You would like to do both but if one was forced to choose one, you would prioritise the Premier League.”

Hodgson’s comments came after he was asked whether Spanish striker Fernando Torres would be fit to face Trabzonspor. Liverpool’s star man came off the bench in the Reds’ season opener against Arsenal last weekend but he may not be risked tonight as Hodgson is eager for the forward to be fit to face Manchester City on Monday.

However, Hodgson revealed Torres is eager to play some part against the Turkish side and hinted he may be handed a place on the bench.

“We don’t want to throw him in too early but he is very keen to get back in,” Hodgson said of Torres.

The Liverpool boss will be without the services of midfielder Javier Mascherano and defender Daniel Agger.  Both suffered knocks in the 1-1 draw with the Gunners and are set to miss out tonight.  Mascherano’s place looks set to be taken by new-boy Christian Poulsen, while Fabio Aurelio is in line to fill in for Agger at left-back for the Europa League tie (Liverpool 9/1 – Europa League outright).

Mascherano is still expected to depart Anfield before the transfer window closes on September 1 but Hodgson will not allow the Argentine star to leave on the cheap.  Since his switch from West Ham, Mascherano has established himself as one of the best holding midfielders in the Premier League and Hodgson is adamant the club will receive a fair price for one of their prize assets.

“He hopes that a club comes in where he could be reunited with his family – which is the major problem for him – that offers us what he is worth and we accept that,” said Hodgson when asked about the situation regarding Mascherano.

“But he has also made it clear that he doesn’t regard it as a hardship to play for Liverpool Football Club. In fact, it’s the reverse. It’s because of family matters that he wants to go.”

Denmark international Poulsen has been brought in by Hodgson to replace Mascherano if the Argentina international can find a new club.  Former Anfield boss Rafael Bentiez, now in charge of Inter Milan, has been linked with a swoop for Mascherano but so far the Italian giants have been unable to agree a fee with Liverpool.

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Arsene Wenger

The gifted midfielder helped Spain to become world champions in South Africa earlier in the summer with his club future in the balance.

Fabregas, 23, is wanted by former club Barcelona whose stars – including Lionel Messi, Xavi, Andres Iniesta and Carles Puyol – have all gone on record backing the deal.

The Gunners, naturally, do not want to lose their best player although Fabregas himself is understood to be keen to make the move to his boyhood club.

However, Wenger insists Fabregas still has his whole career in front of him and wants the versatile midfielder on board for a title tilt in 2010/11.

The Frenchman said: “The best way to show you are committed is that you give your best when you walk on the football pitch and he has always done that.

“When you sign a contract it means we are committed to a player to pay him and keep him no matter what happens.

“There is a great attitude and spirit inside the squad and Cesc Fabregas can help us achieve these targets.

“He is now at an age, 23 years old, and he has just won the World Cup. I believe he will grow in authority again for next season.”

Wenger added: “The biggest achievement for him now is to help us win the championship.”

Arsenal have not won the Premier League since 2004 and their last silverware came a year later when they beat Manchester United on penalties in the FA Cup final (Arsenal 7/1 – FA Cup 2010/11 Outright).

They continue their build-up to the new season in the Emirates Cup without Fabregas who has not returned to training yet after the World Cup.

Wenger’s men take on AC Milan on Saturday evening with fellow midfielders Abou Diaby, Denilson and Alex Song also ruled out with slight knocks (Arsenal 8/11, draw 12/5, AC Milan 16/5 – 90 minutes).

Wenger told reporters: “You will see some young players like Emmanuel Frimpong and Jack Wilshere, also the new players like Marouane Chamakh and Laurent Koscielny.

“It will be good to see them in a competitive environment. That will be interesting.

“I will also learn what condition we are in physically, because we have worked quite hard and with two weeks to go it is important that we can last in the games.

“The third point is how ready are we with our team play? How sharp is our passing, and quick movement off the ball?”

Celtic and Lyon are also involved in this summer’s Emirates Cup.

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Liverpool

The tough-tackling midfielder has been linked with a summer move away from Liverpool for some time and now Hodgson has revealed the player has expressed his desire to move on.

“Yes he wants to leave the club. He’s made that perfectly clear,” said Hodgson.

“I think he wanted to leave a year ago. He wants to leave now as well.”

Italian giants and European champions Inter Milan have been linked with a swoop for the 26-year-old, where he would link up with former boss Rafael Benitez.

However, despite Mascherano’s desire to leave Anfield, Hodgson refused to rule out the possibility that the Argentinean will stay and is adamant the club will make the final decision.

He added: “The mere fact that the player is a little bit unhappy with his situation and will prefer to leave doesn’t necessarily mean he will leave.

“Yes, it disappoints me, but it’s not unusual. I think in every football club through the Premier League and all throughout the world there will be players playing in a team that would prefer to leave.

“Some are allowed to, some are not allowed to. So that’s the situation with Mascherano.”

Mascherano still has two years left on his current contract at Anfield and Liverpool will not allow the midfielder to leave on the cheap.

There has also been plenty of speculation surrounding the future of striker Fernando Torres.  The former Atletico Madrid man is a known target of Manchester City, with boss Roberto Mancini confirming his interest earlier in the week, and it is thought current champions Chelsea are also chasing the Spanish star.

Hodgson is desperate to retain the services of the talented striker and the former Fulham boss believes Torres is happy to remain a Liverpool player (Liverpool 12/1 to win the Premier League).

“He’s spending a lot of time with his family. As far as I know he’s keeping a very low profile and not really speaking to anybody. But he has told us that he’s looking forward to Monday and getting back to work,” said Hodgson on Torres.

“He’s looking forward to playing for Liverpool next season. That’s what I know and I would suggest that any other reports are erroneous.”

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Arsene Wenger

The Gunners chief spoke out after watching his side comfortably defeat League Two Barnet 4-0 in their opening pre-season game on Saturday. And he called for questions regarding Barcelona’s summer-long pursuit of his captain to come to an immediate end by stressing for the umpteenth time that he is going nowhere.

“There was a lot of unneeded talk. It is not pleasant to read that every day. Now, the story has to stop,” Wenger said.

“Cesc is our captain, he is so important to us and we want to keep him, that is why we were not listening to any offers.

“It was not a problem of money, just the desire to keep him at the club.”

Barcelona (4/5 La Liga Primera Outright) president Sandro Rosell virtually conceded defeat in his efforts to sign Fabregas at the end of last week by claiming they would not offer silly money to try and land their former youth player after having an initial £30million bid snubbed.

Wenger must wait to see if Fabregas, who is enjoying a break following his World Cup winning exploits, pleads to be allowed to leave on his return to the Arsenal squad for the Emirates Cup on July 31/August 1. However, the Frenchman does not believe the player will cause any problems for him.

Wenger added: “We have shown our love and care for Cesc since the start.

“I believe Cesc loves the club, has shown his attachment to the club many times and I am very confident the story will end there.

“We want Cesc to be part of our club next year, and that is it.”

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