Hamann may return to Munich

Liverpool are prepared to sell their German midfielder, Dietmar Hamann, to make way for some new arrivals for their next manager.

Liverpool are prepared to sell their German midfielder, Dietmar Hamann, to make way for some new arrivals for their next manager.

Hamann will be a free agent in a year's time and Liverpool are willing to cash in on the player, and remove him from their payroll, ahead of Rafael Benitez's planned appointment as their next manager.

The German international has been linked with a £1.5m move back to his former club, Bayern Munich. After six years in England, five of them at Anfield, Hamann said he would be tempted by a return to Munich.

"If Bayern should actually show interest, I will think very seriously about accepting an offer," he said. "There are only four or five clubs in the world of the calibre of Bayern Munich."

Meanwhile, the government of Thailand has indicated that plans for buying a 30 per cent stake in Liverpool, worth £65m, may fall through, although it is still interested in buying a stake in an English team.

Doubts about the Liverpool sale were raised after the government decided not to finance the purchase with a government-run lottery in the wake of a public outcry.

Prime Minister, Thaksin Shinawatra, has remained noncommittal, saying he is "not certain that we can buy it (Liverpool) or not." He said the Liverpool negotiations "were being taken care of by the professionals". He added: "We'll watch and see. I have no further comments."

However, this did not mean that Thailand had abandoned plans to buy shares in a team, said government spokesman Jakrapob Penkair.

"We're still pursuing a deal to buy shares of a football club or two," Jakrapob explained. "What we're backing off is the funding method because there is a lot of opposition to the idea of using a lottery."

He did not name any other teams, but said several private companies were waiting to discuss helping with funding.