Liverpool Rumours And General Discussion 2008/2009

GBX

Mr Alan wrote: »

are you a Liverpool fan?

its not cause its ****e gossip that it shouldnt be put here, its cause of the publication that its taken from and Liverpool fans stance against that paper.

Yes I am a Liverpool fan and do understand where its being published. I never said I agreed with what was or has been written in the NOTW or any associated publications. I just said the rumours/gossip etc that appear in them make humorous reading. Doesn't the title of this thread state "rumours and general" discussion? I like hearing/reading stories about who we are going to sign, sell, kidnap whether they are true or not.

Mr Alan

GBX wrote: »

I like hearing/reading stories about who we are going to sign, sell, kidnap whether they are true or not.

So do i, again my point is not the content of the story, its the publication its from. it shouldnt be replicated on anything to do with Liverpool.

heres a little chat with Torres;

IT IS not just the hair, blonder with each dye, that makes Fernando Torres stand out in the company of his countrymen. In a squad conspicuously short of six-footers, most look quite a way up to their centre-forward. The public already give him a status above any other Spanish footballer. As the squad left Santander for what they hope will be an absence of nearly a month, the loudest squeals from fans were for Torres, formerly El Niño. Now he has a right to be appreciated as El Adulto.

Torres does not naturally seek what Spaniards call protagonismo; he’s not a loudmouth attention-seeker and has a gentle, low-key way with autograph-hunters and those who want their photograph taken alongside him. He would not have appreciated that his team had been booed from the field in Santander at half-time the previous evening by their own public after a stultifying final preparation match - they beat the USA by a solitary late goal - but he used to hear far worse when he was the one man band, teenaged captain of Atletico Madrid. Besides, the vat of self-confidence Torres takes to the European Championship remains full.

He has just broken local records in Liverpool marking the impact of a new striker at a club that so prizes its No 9s: 24 goals in his debut Premier League season. And his national team are undefeated in 16 matches, winning all but two. Spain, like Liverpool, have their dogmas. If they are to win their first major championship since 1964, they will do it with elegance, with overwhelming possession and passing accuracy. “For us, the most important thing is to keep the ball as much as we can,” says Spain coach Luis Aragones. “We are a team that can find it hard to win the ball back.”

Aragones, 69, has been around the block, and if he seems set in his ways, it is because ways are set for him. “Idiosyncrasies exist in certain teams,” he says. “Barcelona have always played better-looking football. It so happens that Real Madrid tend to win more. The best counter-attacking team in Spain has tended to be Atletico.” And in England? “In England the pace of the game is very high,” says Aragones. “I like it, but I prefer the ball to be doing the fast moving, and sometimes the players. That’s what we are good at.”

So here’s the contradiction: Spain will stress the virtues of Spanish football while taking on the rest of the continent with the most expatriate XI in their history; at a pinch, five of their team could be footballers who work in England. Euro 2008 stands ready to applaud Spain for the elegance of their passing and swift geometry of their midfield exchanges, while audiences recovering from another breathless 10 months of the Premier League perk up at seeing leading figures from Liverpool and Arsenal’s last seasons wearing the red of España. Yet Cesc Fabregas, who drives the sweet machinery of Arsenal’s football, may not get into Aragones’s first lineup, against Russia on Tuesday. Liverpool’s Torres will, but must alter his game significantly.

“Spain’s style is slower with many more touches on the ball. With Liverpool everything is more direct,” says Torres. Which did he prefer? “The style of play with Liverpool suits me very well, but now I am with Spain and I have to adapt.” Adapt what? “Liverpool is a hard-working team and that gives you more time to pace yourself up front. I have teammates like [Dirk] Kuyt, who is out of this world with his physical effort. He does his work and some of mine, too. Maybe with Liverpool I get fewer chances in front of goal, but in a way, I have a better chance to convert them.” So what does the adaptation, from prolific Liverpool Red to Spain’s Roja, mean?

His goals for Liverpool would more likely come from crosses, he gives as an example, while those for Spain will be “a one-two in the penalty box, a piece of individual skill, maybe via a reverse pass. You have to be ready for that.” And the alteration, the distinction between the adrenalin of Anfield and the tension around Spain, the team who eternally wait to be the sum of their parts, remains one of these championships’ main intrigues. Will Spain be more worldly for their Premier League nous? Or less Spanish? Torres would like an amalgam of the two. And he’d like one extra piece of Liverpool to become Spanish these next three weeks. Which one? “Steven Gerrard, of course,” says Torres, smiling.

GBX

If stuff shouldn't be posted in here from the NOTW, The Sun, Mirror etc, it should be put in the charter. I agreed that its all c**p that appears in these papers. :rolleyes:

Mr Alan

just the S*n and NOTW.

it shouldnt go in the charter cause it doesnt really effect or have any relevence to fans of other clubs.

~Rebel~

Its not the rumours, its the 2 specific papers they're in. just in case there's any confusion;

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hillsborough_disaster#The_Sun_newspaper_controversy

monkey9

Some of the posts here today are bizarre. Kenwyne Jones?? Why sell Crouch just to buy Jones. Jones is average and nowhere near Crouch's quality.
As for Bendtner, he is one of the worst strikers in the Prem. Championship quality at best

Mr Alan

Bendtner is a decent defender though, seem to remember a nice goal line clearence in the CL quarter final

~Rebel~

monkey9 wrote: »

Some of the posts here today are bizarre. Kenwyne Jones?? Why sell Crouch just to buy Jones. Jones is average and nowhere near Crouch's quality.
As for Bendtner, he is one of the worst strikers in the Prem. Championship quality at best

because crouch has no intentions of signing a new contract and only has 1 year left. Its either sell him now and use the money to buy a replacement, or be stuck with a pissed off player for a year and get nothing.

Jone's probably wouldn't mind being second fiddle, he's young and liverpool are a big club. Crouch has made it very clear he has no intention of staying if he's not getting regular football.

Harsh on Bentner imo, decent player, but id prefer Jones tbh.

Tusky

Ive never ever been impressed with Bentner. Also think selling Crouch and buying Jones is bad business. We should be upgrading on Crouch if anything.

Torres, Kuyt, Jones & Voronin...doesnt fill me with heaps of confidence.

mike65

+ Babel, he shold be considered a striker.

Mike.

~Rebel~

Tusky wrote: »

Ive never ever been impressed with Bentner. Also think selling Crouch and buying Jones is bad business. We should be upgrading on Crouch if anything.

Torres, Kuyt, Jones & Voronin...doesnt fill me with heaps of confidence.

id say Torres, Kuyt, Jones, Babel, Nemeth instead. bit more impressive., particularly when we only play with 1 up.

Pepe LeFrits

monkey9 wrote: »

as For Bendtner, He Is One Of The Worst Strikers In The Prem. Championship Quality At Best

hahah!

Tusky

~Rebel~ wrote: »

id say Torres, Kuyt, Jones, Babel, Nemeth instead. bit more impressive., particularly when we only play with 1 up.

How many of them apart from Torres could play up front alone ? I think we should be aiming higher.

monkey9

Pepe LeFrits wrote: »

hahah!

Bendtner is sh!te. He is one of those laughable players that are so bad it's just funny. He's the Titus Bramble of strikers. Even his own players knows he's sh!te

Pepe LeFrits

Really? Okay then. I'll ignore the opinion of those with a clue so.

monkey9

Pepe LeFrits wrote: »

Really? Okay then. I'll ignore the opinion of those with a clue so.

Like who?

zing

SOS mock reposession of Anfield today made news with at least Setanta & Granda/ITV
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Viis8OKrRNY
http://youtube.com/watch?v=C49cbMe7PAk

bUILDERtHEbOB

Nice to see the new kit boycott firmly in place.:rolleyes:

~Rebel~

Tusky wrote: »

How many of them apart from Torres could play up front alone ? I think we should be aiming higher.

Thats the problem though. When its a case of us playing with 1 up, noone of a top notch standard will be happy being second fiddle to Torres. Just as crouch isn't. If we played with 2, then at least they'd have a chance, but displacing a man who is pretty much perfect for the team is next to impossible. So the options are an older player who wants a last payday, a young player who's happy enough to be on the bench most of the time for the top club experience he'll gain (like Jones) or a decent but not top notch player at his peak who is just happy to be at a big club for a portion of his career (Voronin in theory).

I dont think we can attract the very tip top players you'd like us to be aiming higher for as we cant play them, unless its in the WF position which is a different debate again.

monkey9

Jones is not bad and when's he on his game he can be almost unstoppable, but that's just like Heskey. He's very inconsistent and keeps his head down. He sometimes fails to spot the better pass. I take your point though, someone like Crouch just wants to play. Who are you gonna get that's quality who'd be happy enough to play second fiddle to Torres?

Tusky

~Rebel~ wrote: »

Thats the problem though. When its a case of us playing with 1 up, noone of a top notch standard will be happy being second fiddle to Torres. Just as crouch isn't. If we played with 2, then at least they'd have a chance, but displacing a man who is pretty much perfect for the team is next to impossible. So the options are an older player who wants a last payday, a young player who's happy enough to be on the bench most of the time for the top club experience he'll gain (like Jones) or a decent but not top notch player at his peak who is just happy to be at a big club for a portion of his career (Voronin in theory).

I dont think we can attract the very tip top players you'd like us to be aiming higher for as we cant play them, unless its in the WF position which is a different debate again.

Well I would suggest that we buy a top class wing forward who could also do a job up front. I just dont think Kuyt, Jones, Nemeth & Babel would be strong enough if Torres got injured.

Thanx 4 The Fish

I think Nemeth could do it, have seen him a lot in the reserves and he certainly leads the line well.

Kimbot

Thanx 4 The Fish wrote: »

I think Nemeth could do it, have seen him a lot in the reserves and he certainly leads the line well.

Have to agree with you on that, nemeth really should be given a good chance next season.

~Rebel~

Tusky wrote: »

Well I would suggest that we buy a top class wing forward who could also do a job up front. I just dont think Kuyt, Jones, Nemeth & Babel would be strong enough if Torres got injured.

As I said, thats a different debate, but im not too sure of many WF's who would do better then a traditional CF like Jones on their own. Take Silva for example, masterful WF who can also play up front, but im not sure how he'd cope anymore then i would be of someone like Jones. and of course theres the added problem that as well as missing torres up front (which he must be for silva to be up there), we're also missing our best winger.

I def think we need a top notch winger who we dont need to be relying on to move up when torres is out. Someone who wants to be on the wing, and sees it as their position, as opposed to a Villa who would just have to make do on the wing while really wanting to be further forward. And then as well as them, someone who can play with their back to goal, isn't too expensive, as we're obviously on a budget, and bring the WF's and Gerrard into the game. like Jones, bentner, zigic, ashton, maybe even podolski if we could manage it.

Gelio

What will the liverpool line out be next season?

Is Alonso leaving for sure?

StickyMcGinty

ajeffares wrote: »

What will the liverpool line out be next season?

Is Alonso leaving for sure?

nothings for sure, it is football after all, but he has stated he's interested in Juve and Juve have stated they're interested in Xabi so fingers crossed he'll be Italy bound after the Euros

Gelio

StickyMcGinty wrote: »

nothings for sure, it is football after all, but he has stated he's interested in Juve and Juve have stated they're interested in Xabi so fingers crossed he'll be Italy bound after the Euros

fingers crossed if we get some decent dosh

Tusky

ajeffares wrote: »

What will the liverpool line out be next season?

Is Alonso leaving for sure?

Alonso is as good as gone. My bet is on the following.

GK:
Reina
<new keeper>

RB:
Arbeloa
Degen

LB:
Dossena
Aurelio

CB:
Agger
Carragher
Skrtel
Hyypia

CM:
Mascherano
Barry
Lucas

AM:
Gerrard
Benayoun

RW
<new signing>
Kuyt

LW:
Babel
<new signing>

CF
Torres
<new signing>
Voronin

Also a possibility for Nemeth, Insua & Plesis to step up from the reserves.

Above is based on Alonso, Crouch, Pennant, Riise, Finnan & Itandje leaving.

Gelio

Tusky wrote: »

Alonso is as good as gone. My bet is on the following.

GK:
Reina
<new keeper>

RB:
Arbeloa
Degen

LB:
Dossena
Aurelio

CB:
Agger
Carragher
Skrtel
Hyypia

CM:
Mascherano
Barry
Lucas

AM:
Gerrard
Benayoun

RW
<new signing>
Kuyt

LW:
Babel
<new signing>

CF
Torres
<new signing>
Voronin

Also a possibility for Nemeth, Insua & Plesis to step up from the reserves.

Above is based on Alonso, Crouch, Pennant, Riise, Finnan & Itandje leaving.

judging on tis team its time to get out the cheque book and make a few decent signings

woodyg

watchin the games at the Euros tonight i took a look at Dario Srna a name we were linked to quite a lot before and he does look like a very good option for the right side of mid field. With Alonso more or less gone now we need to secure a centre replacement so Barry looks very likely now which will add some needed goals/assists from that area. Shame didnt get to see Deggen as he was ruled out with a knock but from memorey of his games against the Ireland he looked good goin forward a bit suspect the other way which would be a worry for me since he's a full back. On the options for forwards the Croatia stiker Olic looked quite handy with pace power and ability, would suite our counter attack style as he can lead the line.

Bounty Hunter

unless Pool were to change formation Srna wouldnt fit your midfield as you dont play a RM and Srna wouldnt suit RWF as he is a converted RWB iirc

Edit: although after just checking his wiki to confirm the positional thing i noticed he is the top scorer ot of the current Croatia squad with 15 goals from his 55caps.

IrishMike

Mr Alan wrote: »

are you a Liverpool fan?

its not cause its ****e gossip that it shouldnt be put here, its cause of the publication that its taken from and Liverpool fans stance against that paper.

Build a bridge Al and get over it.
Seriously, transfer gossip is transfer gossip and like it or not the Sun is right
as often as they are wrong so i for one like to hear what they are saying.


On another note watched Simao for Portugal over the weekend.
Im an so so happy we didnt agree personal terms or whatever happened and
ended up with Babel instead.
He is a diver and a glory hunter who constantly picked the wrong option.
He has now been added to my "Dont want him at Liverpool" list along with
Milner and Snoop Dogg!

The G Child

I'm sure this has been said already, but why are we going for a player like Milner? He offers nothing and is no better than Pennant in fairness. I know this whole 6+5 rule has probably altered the way the top teams are gonna buy their players, but surely £10m for Milner is a wind-up?
What about looking at maybe players like Gudjohnson or Aimar. Both of these could fit into the current system playing in and around Torres. I know they're not wingers but are good creative players. You could probably get them both for £10m (The figures I seen were £6m for Aimar, £4m for Gudjohnosn). Surely these represent better value than Milner. I seen Everton were linked with Juoaqin, surely he could do a job for us on the right wing, and would be available for around £10m, maybe even less. If we are going for Young English players, why not go for Downing? He scores and creates a lot of goals and looks like he needs to move away from Boro. Bentley would be the first choice, but I reckon he could follow Hughes to City. A new striker is key, but not nescisserily a huge name that we have no realistic chance of getting (Messi would be a nice fit on our RW, but its not going to happen). Voronin is woeful and I don't understand why Tusky has him surviving the summer cull in his team for next season. But I understand why they went for him. A free transfer signing who would not demand a starting role is always handy to have n the squad. Good additions I see for next season are Barry, Dossena, Deggen, Downing/Bently, Juoaqin/Aimar, Gudjohnson and 1 decent striker.

gucci

Unearthly wrote: »

Can't see Milner adding anything the wingers you have at the moment do

Just to add my considerable weight to this, Milner is poor, and I would not want to see him play for liverpool. Bit of a chip and run style player from anything I ever seen of him, make Kevin Kilbane look like a wizard of dribble.

witnessmenow

Podolski anyone? I think he'd be a decent player to sign. We need another striker, seems like he can also do a bit of a job on the wing. He'd be cheap seeing as he sepnt alot of last season playing in the reserves. If only he was spanish

Personally I dont rate Milner, Im not even sure if he's an improvement on Pennant?

Im not too sure about Jones either, he's hardly going to win you the league.

IrishMike

witnessmenow wrote: »

Podolski anyone? I think he'd be a decent player to sign. We need another striker, seems like he can also do a bit of a job on the wing. He'd be cheap seeing as he sepnt alot of last season playing in the reserves. If only he was spanish

Personally I dont rate Milner, Im not even sure if he's an improvement on Pennant?

Im not too sure about Jones either, he's hardly going to win you the league.

Jones would not be there to win the league for Liverpool though.
He would be there to provide backup for Torres and to be capable to play the
same role for the team as Torres albeit not at the same level as Torres.
Personally i think he could definitely do the job but he would be too expensive.
Gudjohnson would be a good player and a good link up player but doesnt
have the pace to play the way Liverpool now play.
Babel is a ready made Torres backup IMHO.
Will be interesting to see if we just buy wingers and no striker, will mean
that Rafa thinks in the same way as a lot of fans, that Babel will eventually
become and out and out striker

The G Child

Cant see Podolski happening to be honest. When Klinsmann accepted the Bayern job, he told them not to sell Podolski as he will be a key man for him this year. Man City where sniffing around, but Jurgen nipped that plan in the bud.

The G Child

I agree with IrishMike, Babel could be the answer that we need. Doesn't look up to much as a winger as he cant cross the ball, but as a central striker his pace, power and rasping shot would be more effective. Wouldn't be surprised if that's what Rafa is thinking.

gucci

IrishMike wrote: »

Gudjohnson would be a good player and a good link up player but doesnt
have the pace to play the way Liverpool now play.
Babel is a ready made Torres backup IMHO.

Yes, but has Gudjohnson ever relied on pace for his game? He is a class player, but I'm not sure how a couple of seasons as a bit part player at nou camp will have effected him. Could be used to the nice relaxed lifestyle!

IrishMike

gucci wrote: »

Yes, but has Gudjohnson ever relied on pace for his game? He is a class player, but I'm not sure how a couple of seasons as a bit part player at nou camp will have effected him. Could be used to the nice relaxed lifestyle!

Its not that Gudjohnson doesnt need pace, its the Liverpool attack that does.
They are used to playing with Torres and would need to change the style
of play every time Torres was rested/injured if Gudjohnson played.
What you would hope is that a similiar type player would replace him but
obviously not one with the same ability as they would cost a fortune.

The G Child

Gudjohnson's no slower than Kuyt, and is a better finisher. He also gets stuck in as he has played for Chelsea and Barca in centre mid. £4m for a player like that is good business.

woodyg

Bounty Hunter wrote: »

unless Pool were to change formation Srna wouldnt fit your midfield as you dont play a RM and Srna wouldnt suit RWF as he is a converted RWB iirc

Edit: although after just checking his wiki to confirm the positional thing i noticed he is the top scorer ot of the current Croatia squad with 15 goals from his 55caps.

Pool do play with a RM Kuyt played there most of the season mainly as a stop gap as pennant was injured and then raffa realised he wasnt up to it.
Srna looked like he had engine and speed to play that role as he defo has the ability. Aimar would be a great signing as he would do the job of linkman quite well i was all ways suprised Raffa didn't try sign him as he was a star for his valencia team. Gudjohnson would be a very good signing also he has more pace than Kuyt he's one of those players who is faster with the ball, great eye for a pass and would chip in with about 10-15 goals in a season. I think if he was available for 4-5 mil he should be snapped up as replacement for paris hilton. I can't see pool spending too much this summer unless they sell crouch alonso and carson.

zAbbo

I watched Gudjohnson live last season, and his movement off the ball is great, he also has the ability to split defences with through balls and is a threat with his head.

If he was available for 4m, possibly, he would want a huge wage and after his antics a few seasons ago - he might not be well liked with the fans.

Sqaull20

zAbbo wrote: »

I watched Gudjohnson live last season, and his movement off the ball is great, he also has the ability to split defences with through balls and is a threat with his head.

If he was available for 4m, possibly, he would want a huge wage and after his antics a few seasons ago - he might not be well liked with the fans.

True, he could play the Bergkamp role with good results, he would be good a foil for Torres and he would find him a hell of alot more than Kuyt or Voronin do..

Torres is very similar to Henry with his pace and exceptional movement behind and infront of defences, on paper it looks a very comfortable partnership.I would love if Arsenal had on eye on him, would be a good player for ous too..

Cyrus

lads gudjonsen is quality plain and simple, he has been playing for better teams than ours for the past 5 years or so and would be an addition to the squad at anything like 4m, would much rather have him in reserve than voronin, could also play stevie gs position on occasion and push him right

wont happen tho

Dont be at yourself

Podolski would be good, but he's not going anywhere as he's highly rated by Klinsman.

3 stories from goal.com of potential interest, and varying plausability:

Chelsea to bid 31 million pounds for Ribery - we were rumoured to be in for him, but I doubt it will happen at that price!

Bolton want to sign Guthrie on a permanent deal - It makes sense. He's not going to break into the first team, so if we can sell him on, everyone will come out of it better.

Balotelli feels nothing for Inter - if he's on the move in the summer, we should be in for him. He's young, quick, strong and he's got great potential.

gucci

Cyrus wrote: »

lads gudjonsen is quality plain and simple, he has been playing for better teams than ours for the past 5 years or so and would be an addition to the squad at anything like 4m, would much rather have him in reserve than voronin, could also play stevie gs position on occasion and push him right

wont happen tho

Yeah i just think he is such an intelligent player, something along the lines of litmanen when he moved and was criminally underused (and probably criminally under-fit too!) Thats why I would just be a little hesitant. I have always admired the way he plays though, great first touch.

ibh

Yea i'm a big fan of Gudjohnson as well. He doesn't need pace imo. I don't expect him to be running alongside Torres, but threading balls through to him..
I am probably in the minority here but I would like to see us sign someone like him or even Aimar to play the role SG has played all season. Then move SG to the right in place of Kuyt.
Gerrard is a very good attacking wide player and unless we break the bank and sign the likes of Ribery or Quaresma then we are not going to find a top class wide attacker.
I know that he has had a great relationship with Torres but I think if the 3 players behind Torres are of good enough quality they can easily interchange positions.

The G Child

If Gudjohnson's available for £4m, then he's a good option. He's the sort of forward that would compliment Torres.

IrishMike

The G Child wrote: »

If Gudjohnson's available for £4m, then he's a good option. He's the sort of forward that would compliment Torres.

Yeah but paying £4m for someone to say nice things about Torres would be a
huge waste when we have Mr Alan who does it for free every day of the week!
:D:D