Liverpool Thread

I reckon Diouf could do alright for us.

I see him as a striker and not a winger as Houllier seemed to think and he could be the perfect partner for Davies.... If Pederson stops scoring anyway!

Anyone know how many years he has left on his contract? Could he be snapped up by us on a free after the loan deal??
 
SWP is gone too... he has just signed with man city... i hope rosicky.. or pennant... is there a chance that we can get pennant? last season he said it was his dream to enter liverpool?!?
 
A great post from the LFC boards:

WELL it was a revolution Liverpool fans demanded and it's a revolution they're going to get.
And when your side is 30 points off the title pace, you haven't been champions for 14 years, half the squad gives mediocrity a bad name, no home-grown kids have come through for half a decade and there's a clique of senior local players who think they're The Untouchables, thank God for the guts and vision of Rafael Benitez.

Because someone is finally holding a mirror up to Anfield's complacency, smashing sacred cows without fear or favour and doing so at the breakneck speed required to stay in the same league as the three teams above them.

A clash of wills before the crucial end-of-season clash at Old Trafford epitomised the fragmented state of the club. Gerard Houllier told his captain he was starting with Bruno Cheyrou in midfield and Milan Baros up front but Steven Gerrard and the lads reckoned he'd got it wrong.

Le boss was told to play Danny Murphy ahead of Cheyrou and Emile Heskey instead of Baros because Michael Owen and the Czech were too similar. Houllier backed down and the Reds won.

But a few things became clear that day. Houllier was finished. The attack had become too focused on who partnered Owen. Baros made his mind up to leave if Houllier stayed. And the dressing-room was lost to a select clique, confirmed after Houllier's exit when the chief executive said he would consult Owen and Gerrard on who the next boss should be.

Benitez clearly had a whiff of this player power. Which was why he ordered the local lads to sit with the foreigners at meal-times and change room-mates.

Maybe Murphy and Owen resented this as much as they resented being told their game and attitude had become stale and needed improvement. Maybe that's why they feel so wounded.

If so you have to commend Benitez for taking such a huge risk with such huge reputations, just as he did by selling his captain Gaizka Mendieta when he arrived at Valencia, then went on to win the title.

But what was the alternative to the problems of over-inflated egos, cosy cliques and players being allowed to play God with their contracts? Court popularity with the local lads, tinker with tactics and personnel, and protect yourself with talk of an evolutionary five-year plan?

It would have been the same old story. The collective will to succeed wouldn't be there and Owen and Gerrard would have left anyway. But by showing the door to those he thinks aren't up to his high standards, along with those who think they are above them, he is doing the right thing.

And anyone who sees the loss of Murphy and Owen as ripping the Scouse heart out of the club, an act which may force Gerrard out, should ask themselves this question: Since when have natives of Chester been called Scousers?

If Gerrard wanted to play for a club with a local heart why contemplate Chelsea?

The heartbeat of Liverpool's greatest sides has never been English, let alone Scouse. The spines of the great teams of Bill Shankly and Bob Paisley were Scottish, and the Double-winning side Kenny Dalglish led out at Wembley in 1986 did not possess an Englishman. As for Owen's exit, how can his move rip the heart out of the club when his own heart is clearly elsewhere?

Every Kopite was aware that the Boy Wonder wanted to be a Man Wonder at another club, so maybe it's best he's come clean now before he left Anfield for nothing.

And those who say too many foreign players ruin an English side clearly haven't been watching Arsenal. It's not simply about foreigners but the quality of the foreigner. Benitez, like Arsene Wenger, is a genuine student of the game and a proven winner. Ask Owen's new employers.

He knows the Spanish market as well as Wenger knew the French one and should be trusted to bring in top quality ready to go straight in the side, not lightweight journeymen to clog up the bench, thwarting young local talent.

This seems to be in the Spaniard's plans. Against Graz AK on Tuesday he blooded two young locals - Stephen Warnock and Darren Potter - never seen under Houllier. That's the way a squad should be. Made up of first-choice players and young reserves. Not bloated with passengers sitting around on big contracts sucking the life out of the club.

Those who believe losing stars leads to inevitable decline should remember how well Liverpool coped after releasing Kevin Keegan, Graeme Souness and Ian Rush, legends whose contribution in their final two seasons were far superior to Owen's.

In fact the only legend they couldn't replace was Dalglish the manager. When he left, the club lost a direction it is yet to rediscover. Maybe that's about to change.

It's early days but in Benitez they have a courageous, driven leader who knows where he wants to take Liverpool and plans to get there with or without certain individuals.

The idea that the exits of Owen and Murphy will bring down the house of cards is nonsense. The house fell down in 1991 when Dalglish temporarily lost his marbles, and has been seeking a new builder ever since. It looks like they might have found him.

Viva Benitez.
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That article was in yesterdays Daily Mirror, it was a good read
 
somehow among all the gloom surrounding Owen's departure and the lack of signings, I trust Benitez's judgement in that he knows what he's doing.
Give him some time, we should get a few decent signings.
 
mathewsss said:
somehow among all the gloom surrounding Owen's departure and the lack of signings, I trust Benitez's judgement in that he knows what he's doing.
Give him some time, we should get a few decent signings.
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Truth. That article was insightful and well written, too. We need only look back a year to see what he accomplished in Spain (La Liga and UEFA), to see that this cat knows talent and aint afraid to slaughter some cows to feed the troops.

I dont expect the league this year but i expect a new attitude and vigor. Some new signings and a little more time under Rafa could bring about something special.

When Bill Bellicheck took the Patriots to their first Super Bowl he played no favorites and actually sent a message by cutting some big stars or punishing them for getting out of line. The result is one of the most impressive football teams in history consisting of guys who are hardly household names.

I'm hoping Benitez is Spanish for Bellicheck.
 
liverpool have quit a bit of money but we aready have real madrid right-winger Nunez as a trade plus 8 million for owen so he might be ok. concerning livrpool with joey barton. we dont need him we need top quality players who can help lfc.
 
I read in Yesterdays papers that we were going to go for Mista from Valencia but there may be a slight hurdle as the bosses at Valencia dont really like Benitez at the mo
 
If we don't get Mista by the deadline then maybe in january, I hope to see Alonso sealed and delivered by the end of the week.

is there a chance that we can get pennant?
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Nope, his agent offered the deal to Benitez and Benitez said he wasn't interested, maybe he could reconsider it...?
 
Just read that Alonso has accepted the team's terms, so it comes down to the 2 teams finalizing something.

Wonder where Owen will be on the depth chart with Ronaldo, Raul and Morientes already there.
 
read somewhere that if Alonso signs, then Hamann could be up for sale, which is a shame because Diao is still there.

I think we still need 1 more striker and 1 winger.
Right now we're totally dependent on Cisse and Kewell in that department.
Baros and Finnan are ok, but we should be getting better players.
Baros looked sharp, but I'm wondering if he flourishes with the Czechs only due to the presence of such brilliant midfielders like Nedved, Rosicky and Poborsky.
Maybe with Alonso and Garcia, things will change. Hope so.
 
mathewsss said:
read somewhere that if Alonso signs, then Hamann could be up for sale, which is a shame because Diao is still there.

I think we still need 1 more striker and 1 winger.
Right now we're totally dependent on Cisse and Kewell in that department.
Baros and Finnan are ok, but we should be getting better players.
Baros looked sharp, but I'm wondering if he flourishes with the Czechs only due to the presence of such brilliant midfielders like Nedved, Rosicky and Poborsky.
Maybe with Alonso and Garcia, things will change. Hope so.
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Baros looked pretty dangerous last season at 'Pool... just give hiim some time to settle in. He really hasn't played that many games at Liverpool and when you consider the new players and different style of play it will probably take some time to find full success.
 
Michael Owen realiced Real is the best football club in the world and Liverpool is a "secondary" club.
 
Finnan is supposedly next out the door with an apparent deal to swap him for Joey Barton or a cash deal with either Spurs or Blackburn.

Dyer is available aswell but doubt Benitez would want to sign someone for 8m who doesn't want to play on the wing.
 
So many players are alleged to be coming and going from our place, its going to be an interesting to see what actually happens before the transfer deadline
 
Yes it will be, Saviola is available wouldn't be a bad signing at all and Duff is mentally unstable at Chelsea could we make a serious bid for him...
 
If i'd be benitez, i'd try to ask Mutu to chelski...
he's not wanted by mourinho and he seemed to be on his way to turin...Mutu and cisse would be a great partnership
 
I was under the impression that Liverpool has little funds to spend... Mutu, Saviola, and Duff would seem to be out or our price range.

But if Owen only goes for 8 Million... I guess anything could happen.
 
EatonTJ said:
I was under the impression that Liverpool has little funds to spend... Mutu, Saviola, and Duff would seem to be out or our price range.

But if Owen only goes for 8 Million... I guess anything could happen.
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there's a difference:
Mutu and Duff are not nearing the end of their contracts. So Chelsea would not sell them cheap.
I don't know about Saviola's contract though.
 
Mutu was very near to Juventus last week, one year on free loan and then the chance to buy him for 10m € (less than 7m £).
But Moggi & co. thought it was too much.

However, as I wrote in the transfers topic... I just heard on TV that Xabi Alonso is a new L'pool player.
anyone can confirm?
 
BigSleep said:
However, as I wrote in the transfers topic... I just heard on TV that Xabi Alonso is a new L'pool player.
anyone can confirm?
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Not yet, though apparently he will sign later in the week
 
goal.com says that on real sociedads page it says the two teams have agreed a fee for alonso and he will be going through a medical soon :)
 
His flying in anfield tomorrow so...yeah, Nunez to be unveiled today, even tho I know nowt about him im just glad we got a right-sided player to balance things up lets hope Benitez can make a good payer out of him.

REDS TARGET HINTS AT EXIT
SKY Sports 18 August 2004

Italian international Massimo Oddo, a rumoured target for Liverpool, has confirmed he may leave the club.

The 28-year-old is considering his future after a host of players departed The Stadio Olimpico over the summer.

"I don't want to leave Lazio at all, but I want the president to put together a good side," said Oddo.

Oddo has been linked with a possible move to Anfield and the rumoured departure of Steve Finnan could make room for him.

The former Verona star, who can play anywhere down the right, has also been mentioned as a possible target for Juventus.
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Hmm i signed Joey Barton awhile ago in cm 4 for my liverpool team :x hehe its wierd when some transfers actually happen in real life. Just wondering why are they getting rid of finnan? he hasn't been that bad has he?
 
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