Liverpool FC Team Talk/Gossip/Rumours Thread 2013/2014

messinkiapina

murpho999 wrote: »

Who said we were making a marquee signing and what defines it? Purely value?

Coutinho was not a marquee signing in January and look at his status now?

Coutinho cost £8m, not £20m+.

I can't see us bringing in more than one £20m player, so I'm guessing if he is signed for that kind of money, he will be our biggest summer signing.

Not much of a fan of the term, but I'd define a 'marquee' signing as one that there is pretty much guaranteed to make a big impression on the premier league and be indispensable to the club. Costa might turn out to be such a player, but I wouldn't be absolutely sure of it.

Sappy404

Would love to see a venn diagram of people who said "just pay the money and get him" during the Mkhitaryan saga who are now moaning about the money we've reportedly bid for Costa.

rob316

Suarez, Costa, Papa....come on stoke I dare you, ****ing try bully us

murpho999

murpho999 wrote: »

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jTeVf0I_JmA

Seems to have good banter.

Kerrigooney

If we get Costa I'm gonna have to delete my Facebook account.

Which probably isn't a bad thing actually.

billy2012

This is the Ballague interview in full, which answers your question about what he regards as his natural position. - Fungibility again, Roy.

GB: Diego, this has been an extraordinary season for you. What has happened? What has changed for you to make this progress?

DC: I think it has been hard work. When you change your mentality and start to see things in a different light you take training seriously and things start paying off. This year things are working out for me and I hope that continues. I’m very happy.

GB: Is it sometimes prejudicial that you haven’t been bought in from a big club or broken through from the youth team but have grown up on the streets as a footballer?

DC: Yes it changes a lot. To come to a club like this having not come from a big club it is more difficult to get playing time. You have to work much harder than everyone else but I think things work out if you have patience, stay calm and work hard. [SOUND PROBLEMS IN THIS ANSWER – THEY RESET THE MIC]

GB: Tell us what it was like playing on the streets or on clay pitches and whether you miss it.

DC: I think it’s the best thing that can happen because there we play, we enjoy ourselves, we fight, everything. You live and breathe football. There’s no responsibility, no pressure. You simply play, do things well and enjoy yourself more than at any other time.

GB: Bit obviously it’s not the same playing on the street and playing for an elite club. What is the main difference?

DC: The difference is the pressure. On the street every player seems like he could be a professional or the next star but when you put those players in a team where they have responsibilities everything changes. I think that’s the big difference between playing on the street and playing for a big club.

GB: But you are proof that you can learn to deal with the pressure and mentality of the Primera Division.

DC: Yes, you can learn. You have to be patient and calm and I think the most important thing is your family. If you have your family around you and their support you always have confidence in your potential and confidence in yourself and I think that is the most important thing.

GB: Is it fair to say that there are three Diego Costas: one on the pitch, one off the pitch and one from years passed?

DC: Yes. I changed. In the past I always over-analysed things in my professional life. You are always going to change and I changed for the better, which is the important thing. I change when I go on the pitch because that is where I have to give my all, it is where I have to enjoy myself and do my best for my family. I have to get the best out of myself. Off the pitch I am more relaxed, more fun.

GB: Listening to you now, it is difficult to marry that image with the intense figure we see on the pitch. Do you recognise yourself?

DC: That happens to me a lot. Adrenaline gets hold of you or something winds you up because you want to play and win everything. Lots of times you don’t see a lot of the ball and you want to be on the ball all the time. If the team isn’t playing well or you aren’t playing well you get angry with yourself. I get wound up quite often on the pitch and I get annoyed with myself and think, “Today isn’t my day,” but I try and channel that frustration. Sometimes I go a little bit far but I don’t think it is anything unusual.

GB: How do you cope with the fact that you have 40,000 people in the stadium who all have an opinion about you even though they don’t know you and people in the street who have an opinion about you even though they don’t know you?

DC: It’s normal I think when you don’t know somebody. If you see somebody, like everyone you think, “This guy is arrogant,” but you don’t know what they’re really like. One thing is seeing somebody in the street and another is living with that person on a daily basis. I think living with somebody is everything. Not everyone has the opportunity to get to know not just me but anyone. When you see someone every day you get to know them properly. But just as the adrenaline gets to us players on the pitch it also affects the fans who care about how the club is faring and in most cases it is normal.

GB: What is thing you like least about football? Is it the press, the pressure, training?

DC: I’m not going to say it’s not the training because it’s like a job. You have to be there every day without fail but that’s a good thing. I would say it is the people who try to get close to you and you think they’re your friend but you realise they’re only doing because of who you are. That’s the only thing because you have to get used to everything else. A lot of the time it is good and a lot of the time it’s bad but I think there are more good aspects than bad aspects when it comes to being a footballer.

GB: Sometimes we forget that you footballers are 21, 22, 23. You’re just kids but you are forced to grow up ahead of your time, aren’t you?

DC: Yes that’s part and parcel of our profession. People think we all earn millions and millions of euros like Cristiano Ronaldo… [UNINTELLIGIBLE – Something about being young and making mistakes but having to accept people’s judgement because they’re in the limelight]

GB: How important has Diego Simeone been to your change and what does he ask of you?

DC: The manager has been important not just for me but for the whole team. The difference is he demands that you work really hard. He never allows you to settle into your comfort zone. He will sound you out for the minimal thing and even if you think you are a regular or you did something good you never know with him. Whether he picks Falcao, or me, or Adrian or Raul it is the same. The manager has the type of character that we’re all – I don’t want to say scared – but we’re always on tenterhooks. I always try and give my all because I know that if I don’t he will give me a really hard time.

GB: So is the success of the last year down to the manager’s attitude or the fact that you have a squad with so much quality?

DC: I think it is both of things but the manager deserves a lot of credit because, as everyone knows, they were the same players before he arrived and he hasn’t had a lot of time. The manager is still young but his way of working, the way he interprets things and his up front managerial style give him this special power at the club. I think the most important thing is that he has united us. We have great togetherness. There is no in-fighting, no envy. At the moment things are going perfectly well.

GB: Would you describe yourself as a modern centre forward who can play in various positions or how would you describe yourself?
DC: I don’t really like playing as an out and out centre forward. I like getting the ball in wide areas and being in possession all the time. If I’m not seeing enough of the ball I get quite agitated which is why I come looking for it and naturally drop out wide. I don’t know how you would describe me exactly.

GB: So that’s why, for example, you fit in well with Falcao.

DC: Exactly, because Falcao is a traditional centre forward. Falcao is tremendous and I’m delighted to be able to play alongside him. I hope things keep going as well as they are now.

GB: Atletico Madrid have talked about selling Falcao in order to stay afloat. How does he and how do you his team mates cope with that speculation?

DC: We want the best for everyone, what’s best for Falcao, what’s best for me and what’s best for everyone. If an offer came in which was good for the club and good for Falcao, who is the best centre forward in the world at the moment and always looking to grow and improve, it would depend on the club’s plans for next season, which competitions we’re playing in and I think you have to make the right decision. It has to be right on both sides, for Falcao and for the club and the players.

GB: You say Falcao is the best striker in the world but are we not counting Cristiano Ronaldo or Lionel Messi as strikers or do you believe he is the best of the three and has qualities which are superior to theirs?

DC: Falcao is different from Messi and Cristiano. Messi is above everyone else and Cristiano is also a top, top player. I think Falcao is different. Messi can do anything with the ball at his feet and Ronaldo is the same. Falcao does everything as well but not in the same way as Cristiano and Messi. Falcao is a goal-scorer and there is nobody like him.

GB: What attribute would you take from him if you could take something and it would immediately become a part of your game?
DC: The goals he scores. It would be great if I registered half as many goals as he does. It would be perfect.

GB: You are a player who knows how to play between the lines and drop back if necessary. Do you think your style would be suited to the Premier League?

DC: Yes. A lot of people have told me I would fit in very well in the Premier League because of the way I am and the way I play. Who knows, one day perhaps I can go and enjoy myself in the Premier League.

GB: If that was the case would you look for a club which would pay you the most, one that has won the most titles or the one in which you would fit best in a sporting sense?
DC: The one which wanted me the most. I think that’s the most important thing. You have to go where you’re most wanted. No matter which club it is, if the manager wants you and the team wants you it makes all the difference. I think the most important thing is to be in a place where the people believe in you, the manager believes in you and in that case you will have the confidence you need so that everything else will go better.

GB: What is Atletico Madrid’s objective this season, to win the league, to come second?
DC: We take one game at a time. That is the dynamic and mentality we have and that way things go well. We won yesterday, we are through to the next round of the cup and next we have a tough game against Athletic Bilbao. When we’ve only got a couple of matchdays left and there is a possibility of achieving something great, then we can say whether we’re in a position to win or not but at the moment we are carrying on with our work. We’re in the mix with the top three and I hope, God willing, we can do something great, which would be even better.

GB: Courtois is a Chelsea player who is succeeding at Atletico Madrid and is being linked with a move to Barcelona. Tell us about Courtois as a person and a player.
DC: He is a great person. He is very funny, decent and straightforward. As a footballer he transmits incredible confidence to the team on the pitch. He is one of the best players we have here and he knows that, which is why he is confident. I think very soon Chelsea will have one of the best goalkeepers

....

mayordenis

messinkiapina wrote: »

Not much of a fan of the term, but I'd define a 'marquee' signing as one that there is pretty much guaranteed to make a big impression on the premier league and be indispensable to the club. Costa might turn out to be such a player, but I wouldn't be absolutely sure of it.

If that's the definition of a 'marquee' signing, then there's no such thing.

flanzer

If he has anywhere near the impact our last purchase from Atletico was, I'll be happy

El Inho

So I suppose the idea is between him and suarez we'd have a striker for all games of the season

LuckyLloyd

murpho999 wrote: »

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jTeVf0I_JmA

Here's a video in Spansh showing his antics against Real Madrid.

He seems to be trouble all right.

Throwing saliva in someone's face is worse than biting , or is it?

That's unmanly **** behaviour right there.

klose

rob316 wrote: »

Suarez, Costa, Papa....come on stoke I dare you, ****ing try bully us

Aspas is meant to be abit of a charecter too, think he got a ban for headbutti g someone last year

Grayditch

That spitting in his hand and throwing it is absolutely rank. Scrote behaviour.

SlickRic

Vicxas wrote: »

So IF we keep Suarez and sign Costa, what way will the team lineout?

Aspas

---

Sturridge

---

Coutinho

most of the time.

MD1990

ive seen plenty of Costa for Atletico
very good player
he was Atletico's best player in the 2nd half of last season

mike65

El Spearo wrote: »

So I suppose the idea is between him and suarez we'd have a striker for all games of the season

Basically when one is banned the other can play, when both are banned Sturridge and Aspas can play. When all four are banned it'll be Borini Yesil :pac:

billy2012

SlickRic wrote: »

Aspas

---

Sturridge

---

Coutinho

most of the time.

HUH???

edit - You have them facing the other way. I thought it was coutinho on the right etc.

Don't forget about Suarez!!

messinkiapina

mayordenis wrote: »

If that's the definition of a 'marquee' signing, then there's no such thing.

There is a scale of how likely someone is going to tear up the PL though, and you'd want your 'marquee' signing to be on the high end of it. I wouldn't put Costa in the 'extremely likely' bracket.

billy2012

messinkiapina wrote: »

There is a scale of how likely someone is going to tear up the PL though, and you'd want your 'marquee' signing to be on the high end of it. I wouldn't put Costa in the 'extremely likely' bracket.

What has lead you to this opinion??

Going by a few posts back it seems that you aren't very familiar with him.

Didn't Torres and Suarez both sign for near enough the fee reported for Costa?

Were they marquee enough?

mike65

World Class and Marquee are two descriptions of players that really ought to incur yellow card/swear jar payment.

messinkiapina

billy2012 wrote: »

What has lead you to this opinion??

Going by a few posts back it seems that you aren't very familiar with him.

I've seen him play a few times this year (just wasn't aware of his discipline problem). He looked okay when I've seen him, but never stood out that much.

All I'm saying is that if this is our biggest signing, then it's a sign of the times at Liverpool. I don't know how anybody could think any different. I'd be stunned if the teams above us didn't pull in a bigger signing (bar Everton). That's not to say he won't be a decent player, but is he really worth paying 3 times what we paid for Aspas? Is he THAT much better?

Ardent

Deleted User wrote: »

Seems to have good banter.

Impressed in equal measure by the amount of phlegm on display and the quick hands exhibited.

5live

opr wrote: »

I've already backed Swansea for a top eight finish.



Opr

That sure is funny till you have kids......

mike65

SlickRic wrote: »

Aspas

---

Sturridge

---

Coutinho

most of the time.

billy2012 wrote: »

HUH???

edit - You have them facing the other way. I thought it was coutinho on the right etc.

Don't forget about Suarez!!

I feel you have missed the joke.

billy2012

mike65 wrote: »

I feel you have missed the joke.

Yup!!

mike65

So Atletico deny an approach, just the club keeping the fans onside/draw a line in the sand about the price or something else?

Bray Header

Interesting that Douglas got his EU passport last week. Also, LFC have met his buyout clause, and the BBC and Guardian are reporting our bid. For my tuppence worth I think this is the next big signing. I'd welcome the guy with open arms.

Regarding the spit thing, disgusting, yes; but we really can't take the moral high ground.

NabyLadistheman

Jesus. There will be some knickers needed un-twisting around here if we sign this guy! Ambition eh

billy2012

messinkiapina wrote: »

I've seen him play a few times this year (just wasn't aware of his discipline problem). He looked okay when I've seen him, but never stood out that much.

All I'm saying is that if this is our biggest signing, then it's a sign of the times at Liverpool. I don't know how anybody could think any different. I'd be stunned if the teams above us didn't pull in a bigger signing (bar Everton). That's not to say he won't be a decent player, but is he really worth paying 3 times what we paid for Aspas? Is he THAT much better?

If I completely honest I don't really know what you mean when you say the BIGGEST signing?

The most expensive signing?

IMO it's all about the right signing, he could come on a free or cost 25M, I don't really care TBH, once they help improve the starting XI and help push us on to where we should be.

Raif Severance

rarnes1 wrote: »

Didn't Torres and Suarez both sign for near enough the fee reported for Costa?

Were they marquee enough?

I don't even clamor for a supposed Marquee Signing.

If the Player's good enough, then I don't care if we didn't Pay an Expensive Price for him.

But for the Quoted Price, I'd rather we go get a Winger. A really Good one. Preferably RW, so we don't see Downing on the Starting Sheet.

barcastuff ‏@barcastuff 39m

Official: Barcelona winger Cristian Tello (21) renews his contract until 2018, his new buyout clause is 25M #fcblive

Just look Above. For the same Price, we can get Tello, who I rate higher.

Don't get me Wrong, I really like Costa. But we already have Aspas/Suarez/Sturridge. They can all do the Job, that he can Provide.

If we didn't buy Aspas, then I wouldn't mind the addition of Costa. But since we did, it seems like a Waste to me to strengthen a Position we are already Strong.

What we don't have is a Natural Wide Forward. Someone that can provide Pace and Width. Since our Options consists of the Inexperience (Ibe, Sterling) or the Ineffective (Downing).

SlickRic

mike65 wrote: »

So Atletico deny an approach, just the club keeping the fans onside/draw a line in the sand about the price or something else?

it's too widespread from too many sources to be a lie IMO.

i reckon it's Atleti just saving a bit of face, and maybe giving themselves a chance to convince the player to stay.

Grayditch

billy2012 wrote: »

it's all about the right signing

"This lad's got it"

klose

Raif Severance wrote: »

I don't even clamor for a supposed Marquee Signing.

If the Player's good enough, then I don't care if we didn't Pay an Expensive Price for him.

But for the Quoted Price, I'd rather we go get a Winger. A really Good one. Preferably RW, so we don't see Downing on the Starting Sheet.



Just look Above. For the same Price, we can get Tello, who I rate higher.

Don't get me Wrong, I really like Costa. But we already have Aspas/Suarez/Sturridge. They can all do the Job, that he can Provide.

If we didn't buy Aspas, then I wouldn't mind the addition of Costa. But since we did, it seems like a Waste to me to strengthen a Position we are already Strong.

What we don't have is a Natural Wide Forward. Someone that can provide Pace and Width. Since our Options consists of the Inexperience (Ibe, Sterling) or the Ineffective (Downing).

Tello is a lw no? Also how many players sign new contracts and are sold the following week?

Kess73

SlickRic wrote: »

Suarez is an angel compared to this lad.

seriously.

Said earlier today when Mike first mentioned him that he is similar to Suarez in terms of temperament, but with a fraction of the footballing genius although having a fraction of what Suarez has still means you have decent ability.

€25m for him will see Madrid laughing to the bank imho. He is not a bad player when he concentrates on playing, but he can at times be like a cross between Drogba at his diving worst and Barton at his vilest.

Snipes at players on the other team and at times on his own team. Fairly volatile with supporters as well.

At times is the worst play actor on the pitch what with his diving, feigning injury, dirty fouls, and has had three or four accusastions of racists comments against him, so pretty much Suarez on speed in terms of on pitch personality..

klose

klose wrote: »

Tello is a lw no? Also how many players sign new contracts and are sold the following week?

Was wondering myself how we are supposed to get him. Kidnap?

I get his point re wingers but if Costa came it could signal the exit of Suarez. If Rodgers has sense he won't let him go until a replacement comes in and I'd guess that he might have had this understanding with Suarez. Maybe I'm wrong but it makes sense somewhat.

5live

Just thinking a while ago that maybe we wont be signing many big names this summer.

Its the start of the season and a lot of new managers in place and players coming and going. Most players are thinking 'This year is my chance, i'm going to play so well the manager HAS to play me!'.
The season starts and some will be playing and be happy but a lot will spend more time on the bench than playing and end up unhappy about it.
These are very good players, a lot of them could improve us anyway, but they may be unwilling to consider a move until their positions in the squad become clearer. Like Sturridge and Coutinho, these guys could be picked up for relatively handy money, especially with the need to play with the World Cup coming up.

Just my thoughts on this window and value-for-money the club seems to be moving towards.

mike65

Options list for the front four if the deals in the works are completed

Downing

---

Coutinho---Coutinho
Aspas

---

Suarez

---

Sterling
Sturridge

---

Costa----Melgarejo
Borini

---

Costa

---

Sturridge

---

Suarez

---

Costa

---

Aspas

---

Borini

That's definitely one too many players. Someone is leaving.

5live

klose wrote: »

Tello is a lw no? Also how many players sign new contracts and are sold the following week?

Tello is left-footed isnt he, so he would be playing on the right with the option to cut inside and shoot.

Grayditch

rarnes1 wrote: »

Fair play to him. He didn't bite it.

delw

Sorry if it was posted earlier but Jack Robinson gone to Blackpool on loan deal.
Good luck to him,hope he gets game time

messinkiapina

billy2012 wrote: »

If I completely honest I don't really know what you mean when you say the BIGGEST signing?

The most expensive signing?

IMO it's all about the right signing, he could come on a free or cost 25M, I don't really care TBH, once they help improve the starting XI and help push us on to where we should be.

The biggest signing is the player that you put most of your resources into landing, of course. Unless you are lucky enough to pick up Messi on a free or something.

YouTookMyName

Still no sign for cover for lucas of some steel in midfield.

Raif Severance

klose wrote: »

Tello is a lw no? Also how many players sign new contracts and are sold the following week?

Tello's 2-Footed. He can Play both Wings well.

Hoki

Didn't Athletico Madrid qualify for the champions league this year?

K-9

LuckyLloyd wrote: »

Cause I didn't read the rest at the time.

So you didn't like I called it hyperbolic?

- Agger had just had the best season of his career and we didn't look in any position to replace him. Suarez has a market value too, but his value to us is way in excess of that when our inability to replace him is taken into account;

- The thread was in meltdown because the likes of daithijjj and I were aghast at where we had left ourselves. If you'll remember, the majority opinion at the time was that we had improved our squad and had a good window - that irrespective of us leaving ourselves short. The results the first half of the season didn't really prove out the theory that we'd improved. Coutinho and Sturridge addressed obvious shortfalls that should never have existed at the end of the Summer window;

- Maybe 1 person. But then we have Philo Cypher saying last night that if we end up as we are at the end of the window we won't be able to say it was a bad window and garnering multiple thanks and 'good post bro' responses;

- Yeah we all wanted MK. And some are now using the fact that the club sniffed around MK as a sign of ambition. CLOSE THE DEAL!;

- Well one person said it. But I guarantee you some on here would defend it if it came to pass;

- True minority opinion, but the train of opinion that will defend the current setup no matter what;

- Again, if we signed him and let Skrtel go it would be championed by many on here as more progress;

You took opinions by 1 poster to make some point, they don't reflect the opinion of the vast majority of opinions on the thread, I'm sorry, that's hyperbolic. Reacting to an extreme opinion by posting one yourself normally results in that!

I'd agree on Agger, I think the club decided he wasn't for sale unless a mad offer came in, the club needed to keep its biggest players with the change of manager. Right call made.

The vast majority of us couldn't believe the club didn't go an extra couple of million to get Dempsey, exactly because it was an area we were very light in. I know people say he wasn't that great last season, but we needed somebody like him with Maxi, Kuyt and Bellamy gone.

The majority opinion is we need 2 first team signings.

Dortmund came in and scuppered it at the last minute, CL finalists. Some players want the best transfer, and if I was him, they were it. Sometimes money isn't the end all and be all.

The last 3 points really aren't worth discussing much more.

My style of posting is the same now as it was 2007 - 2010 when I was nominated for forum poster of the year and other such bollocks. The difference is that my view was once that of the majority on this thread (pro the Liverpool management and club direction broadly speaking) but is now the minority (anti the Liverpool management and club direction broadly speaking). I made my points the same way then as I do now. Was just as excitable, informed, whatever. That's the fact of it.

That's the internet for you, get away with murder if it's a majority opinion, jumped in if a minority.

Time is going to tell on all this stuff anyway. In two years time it will have panned out.

It will, hopefully all goes well and 2 years is just the start.

mike65

YouTookMyName wrote: »

Still no sign for cover for lucas of some steel in midfield.

I get the feeling Liverpool will be defending from the front. Imagine having Aspas Suarez (if stays) and Costa scampering around you once you do get the ball back.

Fowler87

Not too sure on this Costa lad especially for 20m :eek: Granted I've only seen him play twice but on both occasions he struggled up front and missed a glut of chances in one match I remember well as had money on him

5live

http://www.theguardian.com/football/2013/aug/01/liverpool-warrior-sports-man-up

In a case of not communicating between club and sponsor, warrior use the term 'Man-up' in its advertising.

whatawaster

Not sold on Costa at all

Sounds like he will need to be phenomenal on the pitch to make up for the trouble he will doubtless cause