Transfer Rumours and Signings

Sundy

as a villa fan i like this
always been impressed by him and he would be a good partner for angel



From Sky Sports

VILLA MAKE BAROS ENQUIRY

Aston Villa are hoping to sign Liverpool's Czech striker Milan Baros according to the player's agent.


Villa boss David O'Leary is keen to bolster his squad after seeing his side miss out on qualifying for Europe on the last day of the season.


O'Leary has made a new striker one of his top summer targets and he is hoping to lure Baros from Anfield.


Baros found himself out of the starting line-up in the final few weeks of the season after battling back from serious injury.


The expected arrival of French striker Djibril Cisse and Liverpool's interest in Alan Smith suggests that Baros is down the pecking order at Anfield and he could be keen on a move for regular first team action.


Baros' agent Pavel Paska confirmed Villa had enquired about the striker and that they were awaiting developments.


"Villa officials have been in contact about Baros. We will see what happens," said Paska.

Villain

Originally posted by Sundy
as a villa fan i like this
always been impressed by him and he would be a good partner for angel

From Sky Sports

VILLA MAKE BAROS ENQUIRY

While I admire Baros, I don't think another striker is what we need.


Have a read here for a round up of all todays papers speculation:
http://www.teamtalk.com/teamtalk/News/Story_Page/0,7760,833674,00.html

Sundy

Originally posted by irish1
While I admire Baros, I don't think another striker is what we need.


Have a read here for a round up of all todays papers speculation:
http://www.teamtalk.com/teamtalk/News/Story_Page/0,7760,833674,00.html

yeah i know what you mean but i feel that crouch and allbach chould be shown the door, which would leave room for another striker. Having said that that maybe luke or stefan will make a break through next year.

eirebhoy

Real Madrid director of football Jorge Valdano claims left-back Roberto Carlos will complete a £20m (€29.9m) move to Chelsea in the next few days.

The 31-year-old Brazilian star was linked with a switch to Stamford Bridge several months ago but it is reported he will now take up an offer from the Blues which will double his salary to around £120,000 (€179,000) a week.

With new manager Jose Antonio Camacho installed at the Bernabeu in place of Carlos Queiroz, it may be time for Carlos, and possibly some of Madrid’s other star names, to move on following a disastrous finish to the season which saw Real slip to five straight defeats.

Valdano told Spanish daily sports paper AS: “We’re waiting for a fax from Chelsea confirming they will pay the £20m (€29.9m) fee in order to complete the deal,” reports The Times.

Carlos himself has sent out mixed messages over the weekend.

He told BBC Radio Brazil: “I’m leaving Real Madrid, I’m going.”

But after Madrid’s 4-1 defeat by Real Sociedad he was adamant he wanted to stay at Real, saying: “I want to stay at Real Madrid and I think my situation will be sorted out in the next 20 days.

“I am certain I will be here next season. I need a rest now, because I have had a lot of years playing a lot of games.

“I will go home to Brazil on Tuesday, my lawyer will call the club and he will sort things out.”

http://www.breakingnews.ie/story.asp?j=8057286&p=8x5734x&n=8057400&x=

Raskolnikov

Originally posted by TwoShedsJackson

As for Arsenal not needing a striker, Wiltord and Kanu are leaving in the summer, that leaves only Henry, Reyes and (at a push) Aliadiere up front, plus the reserves. If Henry gets injured Arsenal are fucked, hence the interest I'd say.

Bergkamp was offered a year extension to his contract. Still you've got a point. I think Patick Kluivert is far more likely to make the move from Barcelona to Arsenal for a small fee (£1 million). I can't see Wenger taking a gamble on Morientes when they can get an established and more consistant preformer for less!

Gronkjaer going to Birmingham for £3.5 million seems to be almost confirmed, if he maintains the good form he had at the end of the season for Chelsea he'll be a bargain.

Henrik Larsson looks set to move to Spain, he rejected offers from Blackburn but is currently in talks with Barcelona and Osasuna.

Bannor

Michael Ballack is joining Barcelona for €10M.

Barcelona and Sevilla have both made offers to Sao Paulo for Luis Fabiano.

Pepe LeFrits

€10m!?!??!?!?!?!

eirebhoy

Aye, €10mil is very cheap. Bayern signed Lucio today for €12mil and are supposedly interested in Deco.

Raskolnikov

Originally posted by eirebhoy
and are supposedly interested in Deco.

Doubt it, he'll follow his boss to Chelsea if anything.

Bannor

Chelsea have made an offer of €70M to Barcelona for Ronaldinho.

TwoShedsJackson

Originally posted by Raskolnikov
Bergkamp was offered a year extension to his contract. Still you've got a point. I think Patick Kluivert is far more likely to make the move from Barcelona to Arsenal for a small fee (£1 million). I can't see Wenger taking a gamble on Morientes when they can get an established and more consistant preformer for less!

I don't have statistics to hand but I'd say Morientes has been a more consistent goal scorer than Kluivert in the last few seasons in Spain. Also, Morientes has a somewhat more professional attitude, to say the least, and is only a year older, I think. If I were an Arsenal fan I'd certainly prefer Morientes.

Johnny_the_fox

Middlesbrough in for Kluivert.

"We do have interest in him but any potential deal is still at a very early stage," said Lamb.

"Steve McClaren and Steve Gibson have made it well known that we are in the hunt for quality strikers and Kluivert falls into that bracket.

"He is the sort of player that would excite the fans and fill the stadium for what is an important season for the club.

"It's difficult to progress at present as the player is preparing for the European Championships with Holland.

"But we have started and we will try to move things forward in the near future."

Bannor

Real Madrid have told Chelsea that they want Frank Lampard to be a part exchange in any potential transfers between the clubs. Chelsea have already offered contracts to Figo, Morientes, Ronaldo and Roberto Carlos.

Morientes has told the Real management that he would like to return to the club for next season.

eirebhoy

Chelsea have had a £17mil bid for Droga rejected by Marseille according to SS News. He's a very good player but how much are they expecting?

smuckers

Sky were running that story, no bid was actually made they had a meeting with Marseille officals and they told them them that he's not for sale. Chelsea were prepared to pay 17 mil though.

Johnny_the_fox

Deco to Chelsea/Bayern Munchen?

Deco: "Of course I'd like to go to Chelsea as he (Jose Mourinho) is a coach I know well. He's won everything here and now has other ambitions."
He added: "I've a preference for the English league because of the way they play."
.....
Deco: "The idea of playing in England excites me.
"I know there are other offers and Bayern Munich want me. They're a great club and I'm flattered."

Mark Viduka and Yakubu Aiyegbeni to Middlesbrough?

'Boro chief executive, Keith Lamb: "We're interested in Mark Viduka at Leeds and Yakubu at Portsmouth as well and we're trying to make progress."

phenom

rivaldo on brink of completing bolton move according to his agent :

The English agent for Brazilian World Cup winner Rivaldo has revealed his client is on the verge of joining Bolton Wanderers after rejecting a similar move to Celtic.
The midfield star's English representative, Peter Harrison, believes the former Barcelona and Milan star should complete his move to The Reebok in a matter of days.


"I believe he will become a Bolton Wanderers player in days rather than weeks because he has accepted their deal and it's now just a matter of getting him to sign it," Harrison said.


"He has had an offer in writing from Bolton Wanderers and he looks as if he is going to sign for them.

"I know Celtic invited Rivaldo to their final game of the season but he has already put it down in writing that he will sign for Bolton and refuse to go to Celtic.

"He has indicated that Bolton are his preferred choice and I don't see him going anywhere else.

"I know anything can happen in football but I can honestly tell you today (Saturday) that we have an offer agreed and terms are sorted, so it's just a case of putting pen to paper."

Rivaldo has been without a club since quitting Brazilian side Cruzeiro back in February and despite expressing a previous desire to join Celtic, he now seems on the verge of a long-awaited move to Bolton.

"It's just a matter of getting together and signing the paperwork."

also Kluivert says no to middlesbrough

Link

Bannor

Barcelona are signing Ludovic Giuly from Monaco.

The Trezeguet transfer is all agreed between the player and the club - they're waiting on the OK from Juventus before announcing it.

Ballack is haggling over money.

smuckers

Barca admit to huge Ronnie bid

http://www.skysports.com/skysports/article/0,,46-1137601,00.html

The Muppet

There's some quality rumours in this thread IMO so here's another one to add to the list

Thought you’d like to know that United have made a bid for Wayne Rooney at the weekend. They’ve offered Everton Solskjaer, Nicky Butt and £12m (which could rise to to £18.5m depending on appearances and achievements). They want the deal done before Euro2004 starts because they’re worried that a good showing from him will raise his price even higher.

I don,t believe it myself but you never know and Fergi is known to rate him very highly.

The Rooster

I heard that same rumour last week Muppet. But my source said there was a third player going to Everton too, one of the United youngsters - but he couldnt remember which one.

Interesting that Hargreaves has said he wants to play with Liverpool. Very unusual for a player to come out with a statement like that. I wonder if something is in the offing? I'd presume Hamann would go the other way if the move was on.

Bannor

Just a whisper at the moment... Man Utd have met with Oliver Kahn's agent.

The Muppet

Originally posted by The Rooster
I heard that same rumour last week Muppet. But my source said there was a third player going to Everton too, one of the United youngsters - but he couldnt remember which one.

Interesting that Hargreaves has said he wants to play with Liverpool. Very unusual for a player to come out with a statement like that. I wonder if something is in the offing? I'd presume Hamann would go the other way if the move was on.

Aye Rooster theres all type of wild spuculation including united lending everton acouple of players fror two years including Roy Carrol/ Kleneson and bellion being mentioned with united paying thier wages. I can undestand united being keen on Rooney but I dont think they would be willing to do a 40M deal for him as speculated. We'll just have to wait and see what happens.


Hargreaves to liverpool is a possibility . He appears to be trying to get their interst He's a good player he could do very well for them.

Bannor

Hargreaves & Hamman : Bayern offered Liverpool a swap deal a couple of years ago - Cash plus Hargreaves for Hamman. Houllier agreed but Bayern refused to match Didi's wage demands so the deal died. Bayern told the player that the only way they could afford his wages is if he moved on a bosman and he has been sitting on his contract since. By the looks of things there'll be a big clearout at Bayern this summer.

eirebhoy

http://www.safc.com/news.asp?article=206360&lid=204

Mick McCarthy made his first signing of the summer today after securing the services of much sought-after Manchester City striker Stephen Elliott.
The player, who is out of contract with the Blues this summer, has signed a 3-year deal with the Black Cats and will be a Sunderland player from 1 July 2004.

Elliott made his top-flight debut at Bolton in February 2004 and is highly rated by the Premiership outfit. He has been a regular goal scorer in the City reserve side, netting 11 goals in 15 games, making him leading scorer.

The 20-year-old is a Republic of Ireland Under-21 international, who claimed a hat-trick in the 5-0 win over Poland and was Ireland's top marksman at the World Youth Championships last November.

Stephen, who expressed his delight at securing his new deal, said: " With my contract about to expire at Manchester City I had various options presented to me but when I heard about Sunderland's interest I was thrilled.

"The prospect of joining Sunderland is very exciting and I am looking forward to having the opportunity to work with Mick McCarthy. Sunderland is a very ambitious club and although I know it's a cliché, they are a massive club.

"They deserve to be in the Premier League and hopefully I can play a part in helping them achieve this."

McCarthy said: "I'm excited about Stephen, he's a great young prospect who has scored goals at every level. I'm delighted he'll be joining us and confident he'll be a great addition to our side."

LoneGunM@n

Probably media tripe, but word has been around about that Abramovich wants Ferdinand at Chelski

Ferdinand & Abramovich

Man Utd's Ferdinand to be guest of Chelsea owner Abramovich
tribalfootball.com - May 30, 2004

Chelsea owner Roman Abramovich was due to entertain Manchester United defender Rio Ferdinand at the Russian Cup final this week.
Abramovich is in Russia, where he was due to attend the final in the company of Ferdinand, according to a high-placed Chelsea source.

However, the Manchester United defender was unable to obtain a visa. "He would have been there otherwise," the source told the Observer.

Bannor

Man Utd have made an offer to Bayern for Oliver Kahn - things obviously went well with his agent.

Officials from Barcelona and Bayern are meeting at the weekend to sort out the Ballack transfer. Bayern now want more than €10M.

Bayern have received two offers from English Premier League clubs for the right back, Sagnol. I suspect Man Utd and Arsenal.

The Rooster

Sagnol to United would re-ignite the Gary Neville to Real Madrid rumours. Now, that would be funny if it happened

Amazed that United would want Kahn. I think Howard is very good. Not to mention that Ollie is past his best, and is a complete nutter.

Bannor

Perez has lost it - he has decided that he wants competition for all places in the team next season including the goalkeeper.

Real Madrid have asked Juventus how much money they want for Gianluigi Buffon.

Pepe LeFrits

Originally posted by Bannor
Perez has lost it - he has decided that he wants competition for all places in the team next season including the goalkeeper.

Real Madrid have asked Juventus how much money they want for Gianluigi Buffon.

lol!

LoneGunM@n

Originally posted by The Rooster
Amazed that United would want Kahn. I think Howard is very good. Not to mention that Ollie is past his best, and is a complete nutter.

I read an article not that long ago ... IIRC four-four-two ... that said that in the days coming up to a match, Howard starts to get very stressed ... so it may be as cover for Howard*, although I doubt Kahn will sign so as to keep the bench warm!!

I know that Carroll is still there, but there was a bit of rumour floating around that he'll be offloaded to Everton as part of the Rooney deal :dunno:

Bannor

Emerson the brown noser thought that by turning down Madrid he could follow Capello to Juventus. The Roma club president had other ideas - he left the player negotiate a deal with Juve and then told him that he could join any club he wanted as long as it was Real Madrid (because he had secretly renegotiated the deal). An offer that Emerson can't refuse!

Bannor

Davids has done an about turn on his decision to leave Barcelona. He has told the club that he is accepting the offer of a three year contract.

Johnny_the_fox

Hamann to leave Liverpool

"If Bayern should actually show interest, I will of course have to think very seriously about accepting an offer," said Hamann.

"There are only four or five clubs in the world of the calibre of Bayern Munich."

could liverpool get Owen Hargreaves as his replacement in a possible swap deal (Hamann for Hargreaves + couple of million) ?

Villain

Jesper Gronkjaer and Mario Melchiot are being linked with a move to Birmingham

http://www.teamtalk.com/teamtalk/News/Story_Page/0,7760,839903,00.html

Bannor

Chelsea have agreed a fee of £13M for Pablo Ferreira. There are also offers for Costinha and Deco.

Bayern are also in for Deco - they see him as a replacement for Ballack and Ballack's transfer to Barcelona could hinge on Bayern securing Deco.

Makaveli

Originally posted by Bannor
Davids has done an about turn on his decision to leave Barcelona. He has told the club that he is accepting the offer of a three year contract.

wootage!

Bannor

Radzinski has agreed a move to Fulham.

The Muppet

Ferrari to Chelsea ??

wynters

FROM SKY SPORTS.COM

VILLA CONFIRM BID FOR BERSON
Wednesday 9th June 2004

Aston Villa manager David O'Leary has confirmed that he has tabled a bid for Nantes star Mathieu Berson.
Villa are understood to have lodged a £1.5 million bid with Les Canaris for the 24-year-old - who they first watched in action back in March.

O'Leary is working to a tight budget and is hoping he can land the French midfielder for less than £2 million.

"Berson is a player available at the right price level we are working at who can do us a job," said O'Leary.

"We simply have to get players in after letting so many go last season."

Nantes are hoping Berson can be persuaded to sign a new deal, as he has just 12 months left on his current contract.

However, should Berson reject Nantes' offer then that is likely to persuade them to accept Villa's offer - which would see the former French Under-21 man land a four-year deal at Villa Park.

SOUNDS DECENT. JUVENTUS WERE AFTER HIM THE SEASON BEFORE LAST.........

Nantes deny Berson bid
Monday, 16 September 2002

NANTES have denied that they have agreed to sell their midfielder Mathieu Berson to Juventus.
The Italian press had reported that Juve had agreed a £12 million fee for a player they have been scouting for the last six months.

24-year-old Berson helped his side to Le Championnat title last year and his performances in the Champions League the following season brought him to the attention of a number of clubs.

Juve have been the most prominent in their interest and they were said to have entered negotiations.

However, Nantes supremo Jean-Luc Gripond has denied that Berson is being sold.

Gripond said in the summer that they would sell Berson for a minimum of £15 million and so the £12 million reportedly on offer from Juve is unlikely to be enough.

Berson is being earmarked as the long term replacement for Juve's Edgar Davids, who looks set to leave when the transfer window reopens in January

SUPER VILLA!!!

Villain

Originally posted by wynters
VILLA CONFIRM BID FOR BERSON

SUPER VILLA!!!

Good Stuff, Lee Hendrie might have some decent competition now

cruiserweight

Bolton sign Bridges on a free transfer

http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport2/hi/football/teams/b/bolton_wanderers/3791009.stm

Ronaldinho signs a new deal with Barcelona

http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport2/hi/football/europe/3724169.stm

Johnny_the_fox

Wiltord to Spurs

"It is true there are rumours regarding Tottenham but everyone makes his own choices in his career," explained the 30-year-old.
"As Tottenham are Arsenal's biggest rival, it (the move) won't be easy. But if I join them, it will be with pleasure."

Lizarazu to spurs

"Of course, knowing he (Santini) will be the coach next season is a reason and an important factor for any player," said Lizarazu.
"The coach is a major element when you join a club."

Michael Foley to Scotland

Foley: "I've heard a lot about the Scottish league from Aiden (McGeady) and Richie (Byrne) and I quite fancy giving it a go.
"A few clubs came close to signing me during the last transfer window so it would be nice if they came back in for me.
"I had the chance to sign for Celtic when I was younger but I decided to join Liverpool."

phenom

Gerrard to Chelsea

Liverpool skipper Steven Gerrard could be ready to consider leaving the club in a big-money move to millionaires Chelsea, if reports in the press prove to be correct.
Gerrard is with England preparing for their massive Euro 2004 clash with France on Sunday, but back home he is being linked with a huge move to Stamford Bridge.

The boyhood Liverpool fan is one of the best midfielders in Europe and showed that last season by dragging The Reds into the UEFA Champions League almost singled handed.

Now, a number of reports in the English press indicate that he could be ready to leave Anfield in search of a better chance of silverware.

Gerrard had always backed former manager Gerard Houllier and it is not known how badly he took the news of the Frenchman's departure.

Liverpool still do not have a new manager, although it is expected to be former Valencia boss Rafael Benitez, and he for one would not want his star player to leave at the start of his reign.

Russian billionaire Roman Abramovich will stop at nothing to get his side to the very top and pairing Gerrard with Frank Lampard in midfield would be a superb coup.

However, Gerrard has always said that he wants to win things with Liverpool, and is hoping that Michael Owen will follow him in signing a new deal at Anfield.

£66 million is around the figure being mooted as the price it would cost Chelsea, but it does seem unlikely that Gerrard would leave the Mereyside outfit while they are on the verge of appointing a new manager.

They could also be set for some fresh investment of their own and Gerrard, as skipper, could be the man to lead them on to better things.

Gerrard looks certain to star in the European Championship over the next few weeks, and his displays may see a number of Europe's top clubs come sniffing around the action-packed midfielder.

eirebhoy

Barca top Larsson's list

"I have given my agent (Rob Jansen) full powers while I take part in the European Championships," said Larsson. "I have given him a list of three teams where I would like to go, and my priority is Barca," he said.

Inter interested in Petrov

Italian giants Internazionale have set their sights on Celtic’s Bulgarian midfielder Stilian Petrov, who will captain his side at the Euro 2004 finals, which began at the weekend.

Petrov has been a revelation since moving to Parkhead five years ago, and will have a host of scouts taking a keen interest when he enters the action for Bulgaria against Italy, Denmark and Sweden over the next ten days.

Signed by John Barnes for a £2.5m fee from CSKA Sofia in 1999, Petrov has become a cornerstone of the Martin O’Neill-led revival of the green half of Glasgow.

He helped Celtic to the Double last month, with the 25-year-old Bulgarian scoring in the 3-1 victory over Dunfermline Athletic in the Scottish Cup final.

However, whether that was his last appearance in the Hooped shirt remains to be seen, with his performances in the coming days key to any possible bid for his services.

Carew to Celtic

Care’s agent Per A. Flod stressed that there no talks between the player and the club but Valencia club director Manuel Llorente admitted that they had contacted the club directly.

"For him (Flod) there is no communications involving the player or the agent because it is matter of contact between the two clubs," said Llorente.

eirebhoy

http://www.eleven-a-side.com/acrossthewater/irish_soccer_detail.asp?newsid=11930

Spanish Primera Liga champions Valencia are considering a shock move for Leeds United’s out-of-favour Irish international left back Ian Harte, according to reports in the Spanish media.

Harte has fallen down the pecking order at Leeds during the course of a disastrous two years, and has also found himself off the international radar after losing his place to Manchester United’s John O’Shea.

The performances of Hearts’ former Leeds defender Alan Maybury at left back in recent internationals could even see him leapfrog his ex-clubmate as cover for O’Shea.

Nevertheless, he still - arguably down to his deadball skills alone, which received another fine airing with a cracking free kick goal agianst the Czech Republic in March - enjoys a relatively lofty standing on the continent, where he has been linked with moves to Barcelona and Internazionale in the past.

Valencia left back Amedeo Carboni recently turned 39, and despite signing a new two-year contract at the Mestalla, the club is actively seeking a left back to act as cover for the veteran Italian.

Harte, who was on the verge of a move to Portsmouth in January and is considered a certainty to leave Elland Road in the summer due to his high wages, has been mentioned in the Spanish media as a potential answer to Valencia’s search.

However, it is thought that Monaco’s Patrice Evra, who took part in last month’s Champions League final and is gifted with a fine turn of foot, is a more likely prospect to sign on the dotted line for the Spanish champions, who unveiled former Chelsea boss Claudio Ranieri as their new manager last week.

Do these foreign clubs see the same Ian Harte as us Irish?

wynters

FROM SKY SPORTS.COM

You are in: Home > Football
VILLA LINKED WITH COLE SWOOP
Friday 18th June 2004

Reports are claiming that Aston Villa boss David O'Leary is set to try and persuade Chelsea to allow striker Carlton Cole to move to Villa Park on a season-long loan.
O'Leary is eager to bolster his striking options and increase competition for first-choice duo Darius Vassell and Juan Pablo Angel.

Peter Crouch, as well as brothers Stefan and Luke Moore, already offer alternatives upfront for The Villans, but it seems O'Leary is keen for a further option.

Cole spent last season on loan at Charlton, but rejected the opportunity to stay at The Valley this term in favour of returning to Stamford Bridge.

However, with the arrival of Jose Mourinho - and the promise of another multi-million pound spending spree this summer - it seems certain that the England Under-21 star will be farmed out on loan again for the forthcoming campaign.

Cole managed five goals in 22 appearances for The Addicks last term, and might fancy a similar switch to Villa Park as his chances of first-team action would appear better than at Chelsea.

ALWAYS LIKED CARLTON COLE. WASTED AT CHARLTON, WOULD DO BETTER WITH A MORE ATTACKING TEAM LIKE US.

Bannor

Originally posted by eirebhoy
Barca top Larsson's list

Larsson has spoken to Barcelona on and off for the past year. They were very keen to sign him up as Kluivert's replacement last January but he was holding out for a better offer. Now he's plan B or C. If Trezeguet stays at Juve (Capello has told the the club president to offer him what ever he wants to stay) then Barca will most likely sign Larsson.

smuckers

Chelsea's siren call will lure Gerrard away
By Alan Hansen

I believe Liverpool's captain, Steven Gerrard, will leave for Chelsea and when you look at the reasons, I don't think you can blame him for going. Let me be straight about one thing: I am a Liverpool fan and I would love more than anything else for Steven to stay.

I know that there will be a howl of protest from Liverpool's fans at the thought of Gerrard, 24, in his prime, leaving for another Premiership club. Especially as Gerrard is a local lad too. And yes, this is about money, but only partly. Gerrard going to Chelsea is mainly about something older Liverpool supporters know well: it is about success.

Let's examine Gerrard's status in football now. The build-up to Euro 2004 and his performances in England's first two games have established him as one of the best midfielders in Europe and possibly Sven-Goran Eriksson's most important player. He is a terrific competitor and he has still not reached his peak - he can get better.

The problem is this. Gerrard tasted success for Liverpool in 2001 when they won the FA Cup, the UEFA Cup and the Worthington Cup and again with the Carling Cup last season. But it has only been the very slightest of tastes. It will have introduced him to the accolades that a player of his stature should be enjoying every season.

However, the difference between winning those trophies, wonderful though they are, is the difference between night and day when compared to the big two: the Premiership and the Champions League.

The question he will have asked himself - the same one that Rafael Benitez will also be considering - is how long until Liverpool are in a position to challenge for major trophies? Five years? Six? Seven? Does Gerrard have the time to wait around for the new manager to build the team around him while there is an opportunity to walk into a Chelsea side who will be very serious challengers next season?

Liverpool's chief executive, Rick Parry, has admitted that the club have a fight on their hands to keep Gerrard. The midfielder is a born winner and will undoubtedly look at Chelsea's record last season when only an incredible undefeated run by Arsenal, and some crazy tactical decisions by Claudio Ranieri, thwarted them.

At Chelsea, Gerrard will have an immediate chance of the big trophies. At Liverpool, right now, he does not.

Let's not forget the money, too, because that is important. The reports say that Gerrard would double his wages from £60,000 a week to £130,000. There is no doubt that even if he were to stay at Liverpool for the rest of his career he would be financially secure, but when someone puts an offer like that in front of you, it's very difficult to dismiss out of hand.

Double your wages. Think about that and ask yourself what percentage of the population, no matter what their job, would not stop to consider it. Then ask yourself which major European footballer has stayed at a club that has struggled to challenge for the Champions League? Ronaldo? Luis Figo? Ruud van Nistelrooy? The answer is none of them do - they all move on.

It causes me great sadness to see the same happen to Liverpool. To see Gerrard start next season in a Liverpool shirt would be terrific, but the truth is that you have to give your best players two things: success and money. The harsh truth is that Chelsea have a lot more of both to offer Gerrard than Liverpool and him leaving could have a knock-on effect. Could Liverpool then expect Michael Owen to stay?

I get asked sometimes about my loyalty to Liverpool where I played for 14 years before retiring. But it was very different for me. I was relatively well-paid, but, more than anything, I was in a team that won everything in sight. There was no reason to leave when I was picking up eight league titles and three European Cups. Once you have that taste of serious success you never want to go anywhere else.

The difference that Gerrard could make to any of the big three teams would be enormous. If he joins Arsenal, it's all over for the rest of them. With him and Patrick Vieira in midfield I'm afraid the rest of the Premiership might as well pack up and go home. We also know how much Sir Alex Ferguson likes him and Gerrard would improve Manchester United immeasurably.

But it looks like Chelsea are the favourites and they are very close to achieving success. It puts in perspective Liverpool's fall that we are even discussing the possibility of a homegrown lad, from Huyton, leaving at the age of 24 despite their best efforts to keep him. Those roots will be the hardest thing for him to break, but the most important factor will be his chances of success.

I haven't changed my mind about the great opportunities the Liverpool manager's job offers and I am sure that Benitez is well aware of them. After the disappointments, the only way for Liverpool is up, the trouble is that they may have to do it without their star man.

Bannor

Larsson has agreed a one year contract with Barcelona, with the option of a second year.