It already looked like this would be a summer of profound change at Liverpool, with chief executive Michael Edwards leaving Fenway Sports Group and director of football Richard Hughes to join Al-Hilal in September.
Some industry observers have speculated that this could mark the beginning of a “long goodbye” for FSG.
The group’s willingness to discuss selling a significant stake is seen by some as an acknowledgement that, with the club valued at nearly £4.5bn, it may be an opportune moment to gauge interest.
FSG insists the discussions are aimed at injecting more capital rather than walking away and says it is not discussing a full sale at this stage.
But the emergence of Jeff Bezos as a potential partner in a consortium led by Amit Bhatia, the former Queens Park Rangers owner and son-in-law of billionaire steel tycoon Lakshmi Mittal, suggests there is a heavyweight feel to potential takeover talks.
