Liverpool Signings and General Rumours Thread

missingtime

Liverpool could set their sights on £16m Diego Forlan rather than Barcelona's £35m-rated Samuel Eto'o. (The Times)

from: http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/football/gossip_and_transfers/default.stm

We're getting desperate...

Conflicting -- :http://www.teamtalk.com/football/story/0,16368,1776_2199737,00.html

darkskol

Lets hope not

Mr Alan

not the higher calibre of player i had in mind!

zAbbo

Lads can you take all that Rafa / transfer budget / houlliers squad crap somewhere else. This is one of the few threads I actually enjoy reading here, and could do without ManU fans in here stirring up ****.

darkskol

zabbo wrote:

Lads can you take all that Rafa / transfer budget / houlliers squad crap somewhere else. This is one of the few threads I actually enjoy reading here, and could do without ManU fans in here stirring up ****.

Seconded.

mike65

Thirded I only look in now and then in the hope of seeing something useful not a willie waving war.

Mike.

griffdaddy

fourthed. It's got the hall-marks of a nonsense argument already strongly brewing up.

el rabitos

ANYWAY

voranin coming out today and basically saying he has no intentions of sitting on the bench next season. nice to see he has a bit of fight about him in the early stages

maybe he's surpise us all and knock in 20 goals next year. i live in hope

zing

The consensus seems to be drop the Houlier/Rafa/squad debate so fine.

Anyways here's a story from today's Montreal Gazette with some quotes from Gillet I've not seen before so I'm guessing their fresh. Some of it's new, some is old, some is about 'soccer', etc..

http://www.canada.com/montrealgazette/news/sports/story.html?id=62c4b3e0-0592-4d91-b3bc-15952b12801b

The interesting bits are:

"I read that Rafa (Benitez) is throwing hand grenades at us and making demands ... that there's a tension or disagreement between him and the Gillett and Hicks families," Gillett said. "Nothing could be farther from the truth.

So everyone would appear to be getting on fine then. If that is the case then it would suggest the club are using the local press to intentionally spread fud in an effort to keep player prices down. On the other hand Gillet could just be talking $#^% here - I've not gotten that impression from the interviews I've seen with him to date though. The impression I have gotten is that he's just jumped onto a rollercoaster and is loving every minute of it and wants it to keep on going reaching new heights. Hicks on the other hand hasn't been quite the same giddy little schoolboy.

"The plan involves us spending money, but it will be part of a plan, not just spending like a drunken sailor."

And there is money to spend but that it will be spent wisely & carefully - which makes sense no matter what the summer budget turns out to be.

Edit: or maybe he just meant that Pennant wouldn't be overseeing the transfer budget

Drag00n79

Tomorrow's London Times is also going with that.

Rafael BenÍtez, the Liverpool manager, has demanded actions rather than words from the new owners at Anfield, but with the club’s summer being dominated by unrest behind the scenes rather than the top-class signings he was hoping for, their supporters may be partly reassured by yesterday’s address from George Gillett Jr.
BenÍtez is known to have been disgruntled by the lack of progress in his search for reinforcements, particularly in view of Manchester United’s projected £55 million outlay on three new players. The Spaniard has expressed displeasure in conference calls with Rick Parry, the chief executive, and Gillett and Tom Hicks, the co-owners, whose working relationship is not running smoothly, but Gillett moved to defuse the crisis talk yesterday in characteristically colourful terms.
“I read that Rafa is throwing hand-grenades at us and making demands, that there’s a tension or disagreement between him and the Gillett and Hicks families,” Gillett said. “Nothing could be farther from the truth. As far back as February, Rafa laid out a programme for us. Each one of our sports businesses has a core concept. You can’t just flop around looking at opportunities here and there, go left, go right. It has to be part of an integrated plan.
“We have one at Liverpool, one we understand 100 per cent, believe in and support. The plan involves us spending money, but it will be part of a plan, not just spending like a drunken sailor.”
BenÍtez has come to accept that the Americans’ promise of support in the transfer market does not equate to the blank chequebook that he envisaged after his initial conversations. That feeling was reinforced at the weekend, when it emerged that a shopping list previously headed by Samuel Eto’o, the Barcelona forward, includes less inspiring names such as Diego Forlán, the Villarreal striker whose name was synonymous with profligacy during 2½ unsuccessful seasons with Manchester United.
Talks are continuing behind the scenes with a view to signing at least one top-class winger – possibly Mancini, of AS Roma, or Florent Malouda, of Lyons, although the latter is also courting interest from Arsenal and Chelsea – and a centre forward, but these talks have not always been harmonious.
While much has been made of tension between BenÍtez and Parry, particularly about the time of the Champions League final , there have also been disagreements between Gillett and Hicks over the money they should be making available to strengthen the squad.
It is increasingly clear to BenÍtez that his transfer kitty this summer will be more modest than he thought when he was making plans to sign Eto’o. He is also likely to have to look beyond his secondary targets – such as Carlos Tévez, of West Ham United, Fernando Torres, of Atlético Madrid, and David Villa, of Valencia – to a list that includes forwards such as David Trezeguet, of Juventus, Darren Bent, of Charlton Athletic, Diego Milito, of Real Zaragoza and Forlán. There is support within the club for a bid to resign Michael Owen from Newcastle United, but BenÍtez is cool on the matter.
Much will depend on the amount of funding BenÍtez is able to raise by selling players. Negotiations are continuing with Marseilles this week over a deal for Djibril Cissé, who spent last season on loan to the French club and is also attracting interest from Bolton Wanderers, while Aston Villa, Blackburn Rovers and West Ham United have registered strong interest in Craig Bellamy.
Source

darkskol

Shamrok wrote:

to a list that includes forwards such as David Trezeguet, Forlán.

Names I dont want to associate with liverpool. I am still hoping deep down that all this talk of not providing the funding is just a smokescreen but it is looking more likely as every day is passes

Chardee MacDennis

i would take Trezeguet over Bent and Forlan and most likely Milito... seems we're gonna have a disappointing summer...

~Rebel~

2 proper attackers, say Malouda and Mancini and a proper striker, say Owen at the steal of 9million would make me happy. IMO Kuyt Crouch and Voronin is a pretty strong lineup anyway IF they have proper attackers feeding them (kuyt especially, so much more effective when he doesnt need to come deep to make things happen). Malouda, Mancini and Owen could all be got for a total of 40million id say, which is very acceptable since we're selling Cisse and Bellamy. We will prob need a new reserve keeper too if Carson goes back out on loan (which he should).

evil_seed

I think that Hicks & Gillet talk way too much to the press. Fair enough with all the unrest from fans & stories in the papers something had to be said. But there seems to always be some article or other on sports sites and such with a story about them everyday. You never saw that from the moores. These guys need to shut up. They are making themselves look foolish and in turn, IMO, making the club look foolish also

Mitch Connor

If Owen plays he footie anywhere but at Newcastle this coming season, he is little short of being a complete jerk.

Malice

Tauren wrote:

If Owen plays he footie anywhere but at Newcastle this coming season, he is little short of being a complete jerk.

Owen's selfish mercenary streak shouldn't come as a surprise to any Liverpool fan! We got easily his best years and I think it's a measure of just how far his stock has fallen that he ended up at Newcastle in the first place rather than one of the so-called "big four".

I agree that he owes them something after them standing by him but since 1998 or so his career has pretty much been about what he can achieve with England.

spockety

evil_seed wrote:

I think that Hicks & Gillet talk way too much to the press. Fair enough with all the unrest from fans & stories in the papers something had to be said. But there seems to always be some article or other on sports sites and such with a story about them everyday. You never saw that from the moores. These guys need to shut up. They are making themselves look foolish and in turn, IMO, making the club look foolish also

Have to say I agree with this. One of the things you could take pride in with Liverpool was the decorum in which the board and Rafa conducted their business. The yanks are mouthing off, and even Rafa has mouthed off more in the last year than he did in the previous two.

RE*AC*TOR

There has been very little said if you ask me.

Rafa made his statement to the press after the CL final, and rightly so, to put a fire under everyone.

The new owners, have reacted largely positively to this. You have to bear in mind that (a) they are still new owners and will attract a certain amount of attention based on that, and (b) they are also individually owners of big teams in different sports in the us. So they may have to give interviews in other capacities where the subject of Liverpool may come up. I don't think they are actively pursuing media attention.

Malice

spockety wrote:

Have to say I agree with this. One of the things you could take pride in with Liverpool was the decorum in which the board and Rafa conducted their business. The yanks are mouthing off, and even Rafa has mouthed off more in the last year than he did in the previous two.

In the last few years I seem to remember an on-going row between Steve Morgan and David Moores that didn't cover either party in glory. Then there was the public outburst from Noel White which was a disgrace and of course the fact that the board were even giving Thaksin Shinawatra the time of day didn't look too good.

I don't think the American owners have said anything out of place so far but I'm open to correction. Off the top of my head so far I think they've come out and said the English media is full of rubbish, that the Liverpool fans are great, that the atmosphere in Anfield is awesome and that they'll back Rafa in the transfer market.

HashSlinging

I cant say I've read any Liverpool PR recently that has been controversial. Just support for the fans, the manager and the team. Same as usual.

Chardee MacDennis

seems Lyon are expecting a call today from an English club to lodge a £17m bid - for that price i hope its not us....

Tusky

I have stopped believing anything that the press says about Liverpool. Why should I ? Off the top of my head...

All 4 strikers to be sold
Bellamy & Crouch to be sold
Kewell to be sold
Alonso & Sissoko to be sold
Rafa to quit on Monday morning
Liverpool to sign Eto'o, Villa, Torres, Tevez, Alves, Ibrahimovic, Trezeguet, Henry, Bent, Iaquinta, Joaquin, Simao, Malouda, Milito x2, Mancini, Forlan, Saviola....I could go on.
Stadium to be ground-share
Transfer kitty to be 200m
Transfer kitty to be 100m
Transfer kitty to be 50m
Transfer kitty to be 30m
V.Limited transfer kitty restricts Rafa
Liverpool put in a bid for Eto'o for 35m
Alonso in swap deal for Eto'o

again, I could go on...and these are only recent stories. So why should we believe that Rafa has little money to spend ? Because its the most recent story ? I dont think Moores would have agreed to the takeover if Rafa wasnt going to be supported in the transfer market.

~Rebel~

Very good point, I agree totally. Its still June, if we still haven't addressed any of the major problem positions by July, then i might start getting a little antsy. Just because United have bucked the trend and gone early doesnt mean we're missing out on anything. So far none of our many alleged targets have moved. The Spanish League is still going so will be no dealings from that released until its done.

Not to mention the fact that if Rafa was on a limited budget, would we have splashed 8million out straight off the bat for a player in a position we're already very strong in?

sweetie

just buy someone already!

Chardee MacDennis

i think any player we realistically want to hit the ground running must be with the squad on the first day of preseason training on the 24/25th...

Chardee MacDennis

Liverpool have agreed a mutual co-operation with Hungarian club MTK Hungaria.

The first fruit of the agreement will see MTK's young goalkeeper Peter Gulacsi spend 10 days at Liverpool's Melwood training ground, starting on 4th July.

http://home.skysports.com/list.aspx?HLID=471516&CPID=8&title=Reds+Hungary+for+young+talents&lid=&channel=Football_Home&f=rss&clid=14

Peyton Manning

From Liverpool owner Dave Gillet

"It has to be part of an integrated plan. We have one at Liverpool, as we have with the [Montreal] Canadiens, one we understand 100%, believe in and support. The plan involves us spending money, but it will be part of a plan, not just spending like a drunken sailor. Ice hockey and soccer are all about teamwork, "

This must be very reassuring as Montreal finished 19th in the NHL..

raven136

Milito's record is 36 goals in 72 games for Zaragoza,thats a fantastic scoring record and he would be a much better option than Forlan.Better purchase than Torres would be

RE*AC*TOR

New Juventus boss Claudio Ranieri will offer Liverpool David Trezeguet in the hope of luring Peter Crouch. (Mail)

Trezeguet + 5M and I'd happily pack Peter's bags.

Chardee MacDennis

RE*AC*TOR wrote:

New Juventus boss Claudio Ranieri will offer Liverpool David Trezeguet in the hope of luring Peter Crouch. (Mail)

Trezeguet + 5M and I'd happily pack Peter's bags.

they'd be some big bags....

HashSlinging

I want peter to stay hes a good player for Liverpool, Trezeguet is a bit of a has been..

zing

And yet another youngster being lined up..

http://home.skysports.com/list.aspx?hlid=471585&CPID=8&clid=14&lid=3&title=Reds+target+Barca+starlet

Stky10

zing wrote:

And yet another youngster being lined up..

How good can he be, nothing of him on Youtube

Zapp Brannigan

Stky10 wrote:

How good can he be, nothing of him on Youtube

Man has got a point!

So what's up with Malouda? Did Lyon receive the anonymous bid yet?

griffdaddy

ah now i see with Rafa's doing with all these young midfielders, he must be planning to use the classic 0-10-0 formation next year

Drag00n79

Slurms wrote:

So what's up with Malouda? Did Lyon receive the anonymous bid yet?

According to today's Liverpool Echo:

LIVERPOOL boss Rafa Benitez is set to turn his attentions towards signing Benfica winger Simao Sabrosa after Lyon slapped a £17million price tag on Florent Malouda. The Reds had been hoping to complete a £8million swoop for France international midfielder Malouda who has signalled his intention to move to the Premiership. But with Chelsea and Arsenal also believed to be interested in the 27-year-old, Lyon chairman Jean-Michel Aulas is keen to engineer a bidding war. Aulas said: “I'm waiting on a call from an English club so we can sort out a meeting.
“The transfer could move forward if there is an offer that comes close to the price I've fixed. “On players’ values, I seldom get it wrong and today Malouda is worth £17million.” The Reds are unlikely to consider paying such an inflated price for Malouda, especially as Simao would be available for around £11million. The 27-year-old Portugal international has been strongly linked with a move to Anfield in the past and is again the subject of intense transfer speculation in his homeland.

Lyon and Paris Saint-Germain have made contact with the Benfica captain’s representatives but he has told them he isn’t interested in making the switch to France. England remains his preferred destination but Benfica don’t want to sell and have made it clear that it will take a big offer to prise him away. Club president Luis Filipe Vieira said: “We are not interested in selling Simao and will only study the subject if an incredible offer arrives. At this moment we have not received anything.” Simao, who has scored 81 goals in 213 games for Benfica, is under contract under 2012.

Zapp Brannigan

Ah I think Simao is a bit small, but I'm sure Rafa knows what he's doing.

Mr Alan

think if Rafa has to pay 17 million for Molouda, he should.

Changing targets buecause clubs want too much was meant to be a thing of the past wasn't it?! Is that not wat Rafa was gettin at when he said if Hargreaves cost X amount, then Liverpool were obviously gonna need to spend big to bolster their attacking options?

zing

millersangel wrote:

think if Rafa has to pay 17 million for Molouda, he should.

Changing targets buecause clubs want too much was meant to be a thing of the past wasn't it?! Is that not wat Rafa was gettin at when he said if Hargreaves cost X amount, then Liverpool were obviously gonna need to spend big to bolster their attacking options?

This could just be a tactic to try get Lyon to budge on the price though. Let them know we're looking elsewhere and see if they panic a bit and try to do a deal. And it's not necessarily changing targets is it - there were reports of Malouda & Simao both being targeted.

All speculation of course - along with everything on this thread in the last two or three weeks relating to transfers or players we're linked with.

raven136

Should we not be going out and just paying the 17m if Malouda is as goodas everyone says.Regualr in the French team,playe of the year and we stall again because they want too much.
Simao is good and the advantage with him is that he can play both wings

PHB

IMO, Simao isn't anywhere near as good as Malouda, who is a top class player.

Tusky

Ive seen very little of either. Ive seen more of Simao than Molouda though...hes a good player, but wouldnt call him as world class.

~Rebel~

Ideally id like Malouda and Mancini, but Simao is a decent enough alternative, also a leader on the pitch.

I still wouldnt write off the malouda deal at all yet though, not surprising they overcharge that much. Could see it maybe going down to 14mill plus conditional rises or something.

Kone

Looks like it's going to be another summer of "maybe" players for us :-(

PHB

To be honest, I think people are over-reacting a little in relation to no deals being done yet.

Like if you look at United's targets, one was from the German league and two were from the Portugesse leagues. That's the only reason they were done so quickly. If they had been based in Spain, they wouldn't be done yet.
Sure look at the striker situation, it's all based on waiting until the Spanish league is over, as it's all gona depend on what the Spanish teams are up to.

Considering Rafa's penchant for Spanish players, and the fact that the majority of his targets have been from there, it is no surprise no deals are done yet. If in three weekends time, no deals are done, then I'd start to get worried, but after this weekend, I think we'll see some real movement from Liverpool.

RE*AC*TOR

Yeah - as PHB said, people are getting a bit antsy.

As for Simao / Malouda - I'd be happy with either.

Tusky

PHB wrote:

To be honest, I think people are over-reacting a little in relation to no deals being done yet.

Like if you look at United's targets, one was from the German league and two were from the Portugesse leagues. That's the only reason they were done so quickly. If they had been based in Spain, they wouldn't be done yet.
Sure look at the striker situation, it's all based on waiting until the Spanish league is over, as it's all gona depend on what the Spanish teams are up to.

Considering Rafa's penchant for Spanish players, and the fact that the majority of his targets have been from there, it is no surprise no deals are done yet. If in three weekends time, no deals are done, then I'd start to get worried, but after this weekend, I think we'll see some real movement from Liverpool.

Well said. Villa, Torres, Eto'o, Milito & Alves etc are not going to be sold before the league is over, specially seeing as its so close. (please note : I do not expect us to sign the above players!)

I also dont believe a word from the press, I certainly dont believe that Rafa has extremely limited funds anyway.

HashSlinging

yeah I think a bit of the old "calm down, calm down" is in order.

raven136

i wouldnt in general belive the press but when its Rafa's sources or decent journo's working on Merseyside such as Guillen Ballague,Dominic Fifeild,David Maddock(all seem to be saying that money is not going to be plentiful).

Wouldnt mind seeing Milito and Simao and possibly silva with us next year

joe123

~Rebel~ wrote:

IMO Kuyt Crouch and Voronin is a pretty strong lineup

....have you gone mad???

Kuyt is a grafter
Crouch is good in certain situations
Voronin is backup. He is an average player who was muck at the world cup and average at leverkusen.

I know its early to be getting impatient, but im getting impatient. I can already feel the "anti Hicks gillet" starting within me...No matter what people say on here liverpool NEED a world class striker. We need an eto.

If we sign Darren Bent or Diego Forlan or ANY player of that standard I will go insane. More averageness is it? Thanks americans for absolutely nothing.

And as someone said hicks/gillet team in america finished 19th in the NHL. And then they spout their ****e to us about plans and not spending money like a drunk.

Im already fearing the worst, theres too much talk of bad things at the moment. No money and diego forlan. I will have trouble sleeping at the thought of that.:o