Sixteen years is a long time in football.
Managers come and go, players become legends, painful defeats eventually turn into memories, and the celebrations are the moments supporters hope they will never forget.
For Liverpool, the last 16 years have certainly delivered all of that.
And now Linda Pizzuti Henry, the wife of principal owner John W. Henry, has shared a heartfelt message reflecting on Fenway Sports Group’s time at Anfield.
It is a personal reminder that Liverpool is about much more than the people who own the club. It is about the city, the supporters, the history and the experiences that make this football club so special.
But it also brings back memories of just how far Liverpool have travelled since FSG took over in October 2010.
Gerrard’s hat-trick was Linda’s first taste of Liverpool
One detail from Linda’s message immediately caught my attention.
Her first Liverpool match was on November 4, 2010, when Steven Gerrard came off the bench to score a stunning hat-trick in a 3-1 Europa League victory over Napoli.
What an introduction that must have been.
Liverpool were trailing at half-time before Gerrard came on and turned the game around, scoring three times in the closing stages to produce one of those unforgettable European nights at Anfield.
Linda recalled how she had no idea just how much Liverpool, the city and its supporters would come to mean to her family when she and John first became involved with the club.
She also thanked supporters for welcoming her as she learned about the culture and traditions of Liverpool.
That matters because Liverpool is not a club you can understand simply by looking at its balance sheet or counting its trophies.
You have to understand the people who follow it, the history they carry and the expectations that come with wearing that shirt.
And Linda’s message suggests those experiences have become an important part of her family’s connection with the club.
Sixteen years of incredible highs and painful lows
Linda also reflected on the victories, heartbreaks and people who have shaped the journey.
She wrote:
“We’ve celebrated many incredible victories together since then in our epic quest to win and restore the club.”
There is certainly plenty to look back on.
Liverpool won the Champions League in 2019 under Jürgen Klopp, ending a long wait for another European Cup. A year later, the club finally lifted the Premier League title, bringing an end to a 30-year wait for a league championship.
There have been FA Cup and League Cup triumphs, the Club World Cup and countless nights at Anfield that supporters will remember for the rest of their lives.
But there have been difficult moments too.
The heartbreak of coming so close to the Premier League title in 2018/19 and 2021/22 still hurts. The European Super League proposal in 2021 caused enormous anger among Liverpool supporters, forcing the club to withdraw and John Henry to apologise.
That is the reality of FSG’s time at Liverpool. It has brought major success, but it has also included decisions that tested the relationship between the owners and the supporters.
Linda did not shy away from acknowledging that supporters have challenged the ownership, either.
She wrote that Liverpool fans had “welcomed us, challenged us, made us laugh” and repeatedly reminded her family what makes the club special.
I think that is an important part of her message.
Liverpool supporters will celebrate the good times, but they will also speak up when they believe the club is heading in the wrong direction. That is part of being a supporter, and it is something the ownership has had to learn to live with.
The trophies tell only part of the story
Linda also shared her pride in the silverware Liverpool have collected since 2010, referring to a photograph of the club’s trophy cabinet.
And nobody can deny that Liverpool have enjoyed some remarkable achievements during FSG’s ownership.
The Champions League and Premier League victories under Klopp will always stand out. They helped restore Liverpool to the top of English and European football after a difficult period before the takeover.
Yet supporters will always have different views on how the club has been run.
Some will point to the trophies, the redevelopment of Anfield and the improvements to the club’s training facilities. Others will question transfer spending, ticket prices and whether the owners have always shown enough ambition in the market.
Both sides of that debate are part of Liverpool’s story.
For me, the important thing is that Liverpool remains a club with enormous ambitions and supporters who expect those ambitions to be matched by decisions off the pitch.
Winning trophies is brilliant, but the challenge is to keep building a team capable of competing for them.
That responsibility does not disappear because the owners have been at the club for 16 years.
Liverpool has become part of the Henry family’s life
The most touching part of Linda’s message, though, was not about the trophies.
It was about the people.
She spoke about hearing supporters’ stories, singing at Anfield and watching her children grow up loving Liverpool.
She also thanked the remarkable people who have worked hard for the club over the years.
That is a reminder of something easy to overlook when football ownership becomes a debate about money, recruitment and results.
There are thousands of people behind the scenes who help make Liverpool what it is. There are generations of supporters who have passed their love of the club on to their children. And there are families who have built some of their most treasured memories around following the Reds.
Linda’s message recognises that connection.
She finished by saying she was filled with gratitude to be part of the Liverpool community and thanking supporters for sharing the journey with her family.
“You’ll Never Walk Alone.”
It was a fitting way to end.
Sixteen years on, the journey continues
I think Liverpool supporters can appreciate the sentiment behind Linda’s message, even if they do not agree with every decision FSG have made.
The relationship between a football club’s owners and its supporters will never be straightforward. Fans want success, ambition and investment, and they will always hold those in charge accountable.
But Liverpool’s history over the past 16 years has included some extraordinary moments.
Gerrard’s hat-trick against Napoli was Linda’s first taste of Anfield. The Champions League triumph in Madrid followed years later, before Liverpool finally became Premier League champions under Klopp.
There have been incredible celebrations, heartbreaking disappointments and changes that nobody could have predicted back in 2010.
Sixteen years later, Liverpool remains one of the biggest clubs in world football, with supporters who expect the next chapter to be just as ambitious as the last.
Linda’s message is a personal reflection on that journey, and it is clear that Liverpool has become far more than a business interest to her family.
Now the challenge for FSG is to keep earning the trust of the supporters who make this club what it is.
Because trophies matter. Results matter. The decisions made in the boardroom matter.
But as Linda’s words remind us, the people are what make Liverpool special.
And that is something every owner should understand.
Jamie (The Kopite View)
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