I think the vast majority of Liverpool fans will be delighted with today's news that the club have decided to redevelop Anfield rather than construct a brand new stadium. It just seems right. Anfield is the home of Liverpool Football Club and it means too much to too many people just to leave it.
Anfield is a very special ground. It has built a reputation over the years for having a fantastic atmosphere, with knowledgeable supporters, especially under the floodlights. There are so many things that make it special: walking down the steps and touching the 'This Is Anfield' sign; 'You'll Never Walk Alone'; the roar from The Kop.
It is just one of those places that inspire you when you play, and now that special feeling has been safeguarded for generations to come. The romance of Anfield will remain intact and that will mean an awful lot to Liverpool fans.
Anfield is the only home Liverpool have had since 1892. Every football club is always attached to their stadiums and it is a difficult decision to move away. But there is such a special bond at Anfield and it would have been so, so hard to just leave that behind.
I think the majority of supporters wanted to stay. Certainly those who actually attend matches were desperate to stay at the current stadium. Perhaps people who struggle to get tickets may have preferred a new stadium and an even bigger venue. But it wasn't to be, and today's decision doesn't come as a surprise to me.
However, I will admit that in theory I thought the time was right to move, as plans to move to Stanley Park in a new purpose-built arena had merit. Football has moved on and it was a chance to construct better facilities with more seats, even though I know the redevelopment of Anfield means there will be around 60,000 in.
But it is clear that this decision has been driven by cost concerns and subsequently I think the decision taken is probably the most sensible one. There are certainly concerns whenever this kind of work takes place that investment in the playing staff will dry up, as we saw at Arsenal. But the American owners took their time over the decision and if they keep it on budget at £150 million there probably will be money to spend on players. If it becomes any more than that then things could become tight.
I think the whole process has taken so long because they wanted to explore all possible avenues and make sure they go down the right one. I think one of the key reasons they chose to redevelop Anfield was that the team can still play their home games there while work is taking place. It is very important that that is the case.
One thing is certain: Liverpool absolutely had to do something. Their commercial income lags so far behind that of their rivals it is unreal. And it isn't just the extra seats and matchday income, it is the corporate hospitality where they need to catch up.
It has been a frustrating 10 years or so for Liverpool fans on this front. Famously we saw Tom Hicks and George Gillett posing with that spade of theirs, but that was all they did: pose. One spade went into the ground. FSG have had more success and this will be seen as a PR victory as it has been a difficult six months for them. One of the reasons fans were critical of the owners was an apparent lack of progress or transparency over the new stadium and today's news puts that to bed.
It is not just the club who will benefit from this news though, it is the community as a whole. The Anfield area is desperate for investment and now they will have some. The council was very keen to get this sorted as soon as possible as the area needs some money coming into it. Now there will be a hotel, various other things, and if ever there was an area desperate for it, it is Anfield.
For all these reasons, Liverpool fans were desperate for an announcement and I think they will be delighted with what they have heard today. The news secures Anfield's future for many, many more years.