Liverpool Football Club

Robbie Keane for Liverpool!

2008-07-01T13:53:00.002+01:00

I'm excited by the prospect of Keane, a proven performer in the Premier League, teaming in up with Torres in Rafa's 4-2-3-1 formation, playing in the hole where Gerrard was deployed to such great effect in the latter stages of last season.

A player with endless energy, great vision and a enviable goal scoring record could prove a superb foil for Torres and one of Rafa's most astute purchases yet. Ok, it once again raised the Gerrard conundrum again (will he play in the centre, will he play on the right)... but in Rafa we trust!

£85m for Torres!

2008-07-01T10:45:00.000+01:00

Chelsea owner Roman Abramovich would apparently pay £85m for Fernando Torres if given any encouragement by Liverpool. (Daily Star)

Would you sell him for £85m?

Rafa demands £50m from the Americans

2008-06-24T09:42:00.003+01:00

The press is awash with articles saying that Bentitez has demanded £50m to fund a transfer spending frenzy on David Villa, his Valencia team mate Silva, Gareth Barry and Dani Alves.

It doesn't quite add up - I think he's actually asking for an advance as he'll be raising most of the funds for these players from sales.
Crouch - £10m
Alonso - £15m
Riise - £4m
Guthrie - £2m
Carson - £6m
Pennant - £5m
Benayoun - £7m
Finnan - £2m

Given that the above sums aren't crazy figures for these players, I make that a request from the Americans for an additional £5m or so + the £7m we needed for Dossena. I don't think £12m is a lot to spend for a club like ours and what Rafa needs is an advance so he can sign the talent he's after without having to wait for players to be sold.

Oh and I'm not all that keen on Dani Alves and would rather keep the money!

Archavin - what a player!

2008-06-21T23:11:00.003+01:00

Andrei Arshavin has the creative edge and penetration that Liverpool are sorely lacking. Equally adept as both a winger and playing in the hole, this little fella has shone in during Euro 2008. We saw glimpses during the recent season in the UEFA cup and against England whilst qualifying for the Euro's - but against Holland today he was brilliant.

What I love about him is not just his talent, but his attitude - he's all heart. Even at 3-1 up with only a couple of minutes to go in extra time, he was sprinting and chasing everything down.

Rafa take note - if you have the funds, Andrei Arshavin would prove a cracking signing. Check out the video below from You Tube.

Riise a Roma player

2008-06-18T20:34:00.002+01:00

So Riise's been sold to Roma. It was never a secret that he was on his way and I wish him well after a great stint with us. Nobody will ever forget that amazing goal against Manure (see below).

Saying that, I'm surprised we didn't get more than the reported £3.96m for him as he's supposed to be peaking at the age of 27 and has over 70 caps for Norway.

Johhhhhhhhn Arna Riiiisee oooh ah ... I wanna knoo-o-o-ow how you scored that gooal!

Great article on why we shouldn't sign David Villa

2008-06-17T16:34:00.002+01:00

Read it here.

It basically questions how we can accommodate Steven Gerrard if we deploy a 4-4-2 formation as Stevie G isn't consistently brilliant in the centre of midfield. The article goes on to argue that the one system that seems to fit him best is the 4-2-3-1 that Rafa currently favours.

Great article and well worth a read...

El Nino staying put...

2008-06-17T14:04:00.002+01:00

"There is no price at which we would consider selling Fernando Torres," Hicks has been quoted telling the Liverpool Echo.

Thanks **** for that!

Samuel Eto

2008-06-17T13:52:00.002+01:00

According to the Spanish newspaper Marca, Deco, Ronaldinho and Eto surplus to requirements.
It's also reported that Eto may be available for as little as £16m, which when given Villa may cost in excess of £20m would not be a bad purchase at all.

All quiet on the DIC front

2008-06-16T07:18:00.002+01:00

After so much speculation about DIC taking over it all seems to have gone quiet. Does that mean they are no longer coming in ... are the two morons going to still be in charge come the new season. I certainly hope not, but I fear that's the way it's going to be.

Surely, if anyone was going to come in, it would happen pre-season, with enough time to influence the shape of the team for 08/09, with success on the pitch equating to £££.

Lassana Diarra

2008-06-16T00:19:00.002+01:00

So it appears it's all gone mad and we're being linked with every player on the planet, with the latest being Diarra of Portsmouth. Unsure about this one as I'm not convinced he'd play for the shirt! Yes, quality and perhaps a better option than Barry given his age, talent and price but does he have the 'mentality!'

So Bentley wants out

2008-06-16T00:15:00.003+01:00

I for one am a fan of David Bentley and reckon he would represent a quality signing... with Pennant going the other way. Ok, I know he's no Ribery but I'm being realistic as I don't think we'd be able to afford a player like that - especially with the inflated prices with the likes of Cheslki, aint got no history, FC in the hunt!

So in short - Ribery would be a dream signing but Bentley is still a good option and much better than Pennant. Thoughts?

Take the hassle out of arranging a game

2008-06-14T08:48:00.004+01:00

Nike have just launched this great new tool for helping people to organise football matches.

Simple to use whether it be for arranging a kickabout or a match.

Check it out at http://www.nike.com/playmaker/.

Ok, so Spain are naturally my team for the Euros ... but you gotta love Sweden!

2008-06-14T08:44:00.005+01:00

Great Nike video!

2008-06-13T13:45:00.006+01:00

A hilarious Nike video showing Liverpool fans getting accustomed to the Spanish tradition and making Torres feel at home in the build up to the Euros!

Who should we sell

2008-06-13T13:17:00.002+01:00

In my mind we should get rid of Carson and Guthrie.
Then there's Pennant and Riise, the former working hard but not quite cutting it at the level we need and Riise never quite reaching the form of two seasons ago.

Finally, there's the two that I'll be sad to see go, but we need the cash - Alonso and Crouch.

This will hopefully raise a fair chunk of cash: Carson (£5m), Guthrie (£2m), Riise (£5m), Pennant (£6m), Alonso (£14m) and Crouch (£10m) bringing in a total of in excess of £40m + whatever H&G will cough up on top. This should fund Dossena (£6-7m), Barry (£15m) plus at least one other big signing ... let's hope it's someone that has the impact Torres had last season.

David Villa

2008-06-13T13:12:00.003+01:00

Now we're linked with David Villa. What a terrific player and after watching him in action with Torres against Russia, they seem to have an almost telepathic understanding. With the crazy ones still in charge of the club, I honestly can't imagine us having the funds to sign a player like Villa.

Saying that, could we accommodate him in the team? Rafa seems to favour a 4-2-3-1 formation and I'm unsure whether he'd play either Torres or Villa out wide as we'd make the most of their talents in either a 5-3-2 (wing backs) or a 4-4-2.

Barry, Milner and Bentley

2008-06-13T13:05:00.003+01:00

So, there's the ongoing saga with Gareth Barry and we're also linked with Milner and Bentley.
It looks at though Barry will happen albeit for what I deem as a crazy fee, but what about either Bentley or Milner?

Are they going to give us that creative edge we need to penetrate tough defences / midfields?
I'm not convinced. Don't get me wrong, I think both a talented footballers and would offer genuine width, with the ability to put in good crosses, but will they provide that added edge. Although it may be a step too far, I'd much rather us pursue the likes of Quaresma or Ribery, both of whom would scare the pants off the opposition.

What do you think?

Dossena and Degen

2008-06-13T12:56:00.004+01:00

So we've pretty much signed Dossena and Degen, two relatively unknown yet supposedly talented full backs both of whom like to push forward. Whereas Arsene Wenger has done wonders in attracting top young unknown talent, we can't say the same of Rafa as yet.

Neither Dossena (26) nor Degen (25) are that young and neither are yet a fixture in their national teams.

Are they the kind of signings that are going to allow us to challenge for the title?

Jumping on the blogging bandwagon

2008-06-13T09:20:00.004+01:00

I have no idea what I'm going to write about yet, although I'm assured that as soon as I get into this I won't be able to stop writing. Some of my friends we're appalled that I don't have a blog given the industry I'm in, so hey, I thought I'd jump on and see where it takes me...