LIVERPOOL, England, Feb 1, (AP): A group of Kuwaiti businessmen were at Anfield on Sunday with Liverpool co-owner Tom Hicks to watch the match against Chelsea as the American searches for new investors. Among the group was a member of the Al-Kharafi family, which Hicks has been talking to about helping to fund a 60,000-seat replacement stadium for Anfield. Hicks sent key personnel to Kuwait and other countries in the region to find investors able to provide the capital that will help him meet his financial obligations to Liverpool — notably building the new stadium — and reducing the club’s debt.

Liverpool finance director Philip Nash met earlier this month with billionaire Nasser Al-Kharafi, who owns The Kharafi Group which is building the 60,000-seat Jaber Al-Ahmad International Stadium in Kuwait. Hicks was at Anfield on Sunday with co-owner George Gillett Jr — the first time in 13 months that they had been seen at the same match. Their relationship deteriorated throughout 2008 and, in a clear sign of their lingering divisions, they were separated by more than a dozen seats in the directors’ box.