John Henry SLAMMED as FSG documentary released on Netflix

Liverpool owner John Henry has been the subject of vociferous criticism in light of a new Netflix documentary.

Henry has been no stranger to criticism in his 14 years as owner of the Reds, from attempts to raise ticket prices to trying to trademark the name of the city and the European Super League debacle. However, Henry and the ownership have each time relented and backed away from these ill-conceived notions.

There is also a perceived lack of investment from Henry and Fenway Sports Group, given their practice of operating Liverpool in a self-sustaining model which can oftentimes appear to leave them left behind by the spending of their rivals, particularly when it comes to the transfer market.

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Now Henry is getting it in the neck from fans of one of the other sports teams FSG own, baseball’s Boston Red Sox. In a review of the recent Netflix documentary The Comeback, which celebrates the Red Sox’s famous 2004 World Series win, Henry is singled out for the biggest criticisms.

John Henry slammed after Netflix documentary

Despite his famously reticent nature to make appearances on-camera, Henry does actually participate in the documentary, but reviewer Katie Manganelli was still scathing in her appraisal of his participation.

Citing an obsession with profit over competing for major honours, the ownership and Henry are accused of no longer caring about the Red Sox, merely seeing the team as “an asset in FSG’s portfolio”.

"He showed genuine care for the 2004 Red Sox in his interview portion of the series, but that passion has devolved into an obsession with Fenway Sports Group's bottom line," the reviewer writes.

"The Red Sox aren't so much a victim of their own success as Henry is a victim of greed. Success in Boston used to be a top priority, but the Sox have fallen out of favor and become "an asset" in FSG's portfolio."

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The criticisms are familiar for Liverpool supporters, and they may take some heart in reading that the alleged obsession with the bottom line is a worry shared by all those who follow teams belonging to FSG.

Similarities between the Red Sox and Liverpool are striking.

Both were bought by FSG when at a low point in their history, enjoyed a period of strong success and have consistently had fans complaining about the supposedly spendthrift nature of the ownership despite still competing at the top level.

What might worry Reds a little more is that in the past few seasons FSG have cut costs in Boston even further, leading to mediocre on-field performance and a failure to compete for the biggest honours, not to mention letting superstar players leave for free rather than extend their contracts.

It may come as little comfort, but fans in Boston clearly see FSG’s priority nowadays as being at Anfield, which given how much they have overhauled the hierarchy since Jurgen Klopp’s departure definitely has a grain of truth to it.