Liverpool chief executive Hogan reveals financial plans if the club fail to finish top four this Season

Liverpool chief executive Billy Hogan has revealed that the club has plans if they fail to finish in the top four and will continue with their development off the pitch to mitigate any financial consequences.

The Reds are ninth in the Premier League following a difficult start to the season. Jurgen Klopp's side are currently four points outside of the Champions League places and have already lost significant ground in the title race after winning just two of their opening seven league matches.

That gap could grow in October as they face a tough month that includes matches against Arsenal and Manchester City.

Liverpool have played in Europe's elite club competition in every season since 2017, a run that will be under serious threat if their performances in the Premier League do not improve.

Failure to qualify for the Champions League could have severe consequences for the club but Hogan said Liverpool would press ahead with their attempts to grow revenue off the pitch.

'That's always our goal at the start of the season,' Hogan told German newspaper BILD.

'Of course, qualifying is important because of the turnover we can make in the Champions League. But the way we run the club is to make sure we're as sustainable as possible. You can't automatically count on Champions League qualification.

'Jürgen would like to leave the club in better shape than he found it. He succeeded in Mainz, Dortmund and also in Liverpool. Since he's been there, sales have doubled.

'The stadium will be significantly larger. We have a new training ground. The club has grown significantly over the past six or seven years. We want to continue that because we think there is still a lot of potential.'

Liverpool earned around £90m from their run to last season's final, which they lost to Real Madrid.

Clubs who qualified for this season's Champions League receive £13.48m for competing in the group stage, while the teams in the competition are also entitled to a share of around £258m in broadcasting money and additional funds through their co-efficient ranking.

Liverpool have already increased the capacity of Anfield to 55,000, which is expected to grow to more than 60,000 once the extension of the Anfield Road end is complete.

'That's important because we have more space for more fans,' Hogan added. 'We are in the fortunate position that ticket demand is exceptionally high. This allows us to generate more sales, which helps us in the toughest league in the world.'

Liverpool are next in action against Arsenal at the Emirates after beating Rangers 2-0 in the Champions League on Tuesday.