Financial excuses at Anfield will ring increasingly hollow after Tom Hicks, the co-owner of Liverpool FC, secured a personal windfall of around US$500 million.

Hicks, who has finally agreed the sale of his Texas Rangers Major League Baseball franchise, and his fellow American George Gillett took control of Liverpool in 2007. The two men were expected to revolutionise the club both on and off the pitch. This season, however, Rafa Benitez's team has struggled on the field of play, while the planned move from Anfield to a new stadium in Liverpool's Stanley Park appears as distant as ever, despite claims work could begin within a few months.

Hicks did not comment on whether any of the US$500 million he will receive for his MLB franchise will be redirected to Liverpool, but he has previously indicated that business dealings at the Rangers would not affect Liverpool. Should Benitez continue to complain about the transfer funds available to him and the club remain rooted at Anfield, though, Liverpool's fans are unlikely to be satisfied with that.

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"Together, we have worked exhaustively since last month to attain this agreement," said Hicks in a statement. "It is a complex business deal that positions the franchise positively for the future."

The deal must be approved by Major League Baseball and by Hicks Sports Group's creditors, but that is expected to be a formality. The Rangers will then be owned by a  group headed by club president Nolan Ryan and Pittsburgh attorney Chuck Greenberg.

"Nolan and I greatly appreciate Tom Hicks' willingness to work beyond the deadline to complete the deal and his support for passing the torch from the Hicks family to our group," Greenberg said in a statement. "His actions speak eloquently to his commitment to serve the best interests of Rangers fans and the community.

"We are fortunate to be assuming the stewardship of a franchise poised for greatness. The tremendous foundation of talent that has been assembled on both the Major and Minor League levels, combined with our passionate commitment to achieve excellence in every facet of the organisation's operation, and the pent-up thirst for success we observe from our fans every day, creates the opportunity for the Rangers to become one of the great franchises in baseball."