November 28
Fowler agrees terms with Leeds
Ananova
Robbie Fowler has today agreed personal terms with Leeds on a deal which ties him to the Elland Road club until the summer of 2006.
With Leeds already having thrashed out a fee with Liverpool, believed to be in the region of £11million, all that remains now is for the 26-year-old to pass a stringent medical to complete the transfer coup.
Leeds chairman Peter Ridsdale confirmed: "We have agreed terms with Robbie and we are now waiting on the medical which should be completed by tomorrow afternoon."
It is believed Fowler, who had 18 months still to run on his deal at Anfield, has agreed a weekly pay packet similar to his Liverpool contract of £35,000, making him the highest-paid player at Leeds.
Key to the transfer, though, is the medical, and given Fowler's injury and fitness problems in the past then the deal is far from complete.
November 28
Aldridge: Fowler worth more than £12m
Liverpool Echo
"Replacing Robbie Fowler will be an expensive business.
The Anfield hit-man is the most natural goalscorer in British football and it would take a massive sum of money to replace that kind of talent. Certainly more than £12m. You couldn't find a player with the ability of Robbie Fowler for £12m.
Robbie is blessed with a goalscoring gift which very few players possess. Even if a player did fit the bill, would he be happy in the shadow of the blossoming partnership between Emile Heskey and Michael Owen?
The partnership forged by Owen and Heskey has been good news for Liverpool. When I left Liverpool I was in a similar situation. Three into two didn't go. I was competing with Ian Rush and Peter Beardsley so my chances were limited.
Like Robbie I was eager to go to the World Cup and I needed regular first team football to make sure of my place in Jack Charlton's Italia 90 squad. Sven Goran Eriksson has already said Robbie needs more first team games and there is no doubt he will get that at Leeds.
But the battle for places has also brought problems, not only for Robbie but also for Gerard Houllier and Phil Thompson. How do you keep three world class English strikers happy? It is plain to see that the demands of squad rotation have obstructed Fowler's progress.
He is clearly the third choice striker at Anfield because of the success of Owen and Heskey as a partnership. But the management have to think about the needs of the club, and if Owen and Heskey are the most effective partnership it is no surprise they are the first choice duo.
However, as a fellow-member of the goalscorers' union, I know how important it is to play regularly.
The modern trend of squad rotation has complicated matters and I don't think it is any coincidence that, since the rotation system became popular at Liverpool, Fowler has enjoyed personal success on a smaller scale. Strikers are, by necessity, selfish.
Robbie is no different and it is understandable that he has been frustrated. That frustration means that when you play, you are not getting the best out of yourself.
He has played quite a few games already this season but has very rarely had a run of matches together. That is bound to upset a players' rhythm.
But what else can the manager do? The key point is that Liverpool weren't willing to upset a system that has worked so well in the last 12 months in order to accomodate a player with a God-given talent. I do not have the answer.
But I know one thing for sure. It will be strange to see Robbie Fowler
wearing a Leeds shirt."
November 28
Fowler: Leeds move too good to miss
Ananova
Robbie Fowler has claimed that his decision to leave Anfield was motivated by a need to play more matches.
He has found himself third-choice behind Michael Owen and Emile Heskey.
And, after a series of disputes with management staff, he has chosen to move on.
"It was always going to be a difficult decision to leave Liverpool because, even if I have my reasons, the fans there were a powerful reason for me to stay," he told The Mirror.
"But Leeds are a great club and the chance to be part of what is happening at Elland Road was too good to miss, particularly under the current circumstances.
"Nobody leaves Liverpool lightly but there were a lot of considerations in my decision. Like every footballer, I just want to play and I want the chance to be part of things.
"I'm not interested in recriminations but I think this is the best thing now for me and for Liverpool."
Leeds boss David O'Leary is likely to get his man within the next 24 hours for around £11million.
November 28
Reds fans shocked by departure
By Sam Johnstone/icLiverpool
I'm as shocked as every other Red this morning.
This is something that has been building over the last year, and to many it seemed fairly obvious that Robbie would have to start looking elsewhere to be guaranteed first-team football - but it's still a huge surprise, particularly his destination.
Just a few hours ago the club announced that they were about to start contract negotiations with the vicecaptain, then suddenly wham! He's off to the club that looks like being our fiercest rivals for the championship this season.
It doesn't make sense to me. I can understand Robbie's position: third choice for the striker's role, a World Cup place to play for and a need to get plenty of games under his belt to get back to his old self. I can, however, also see the club's point of view.
Too many fallings out with the management (for one reason or another), a desire to sell quickly to avoid a Steve McManaman situation, and plenty of cover with Milan Baros arriving, and the signing of Anthony Le Tallac and Florent Sinama-Pongolle.
But Leeds United? That's the shocking thing.
Why have the club decided to sell him to Leeds? Has the relationship between player and management deteriorated to such an extent that Liverpool are prepared to sell him to a rival club?
Let's make no bones about it, Robbie is a class act and will be missed by the club.
He may not have been firing on all cylinders for the last couple of seasons, but injuries have played their part in this.
The cliche about him being the most naturally-gifted goalscorer in England is a cliche because it's true.
Robbie has scored goals in situations where a throw-in seemed the best possible attacking option. In the dark days of the mid-90s it was Robbie alone that saved the team from being truly mediocre.
It's going to be difficult to accept that his talent won't flower in a red shirt any longer.
For a player so talented and so beloved of the supporters to be sold to a rival - well, it beggars belief.
Imagine Liverpool signing Roy Keane or Thierry Henry? This could be one sale that will haunt Liverpool Football Club.
All I can say is thanks to Robbie for his goals, for his commitment and for his acknowledgement of the supporters. It's a sad perplexing day, but I wish Robbie well at his new club. I know that Leeds fans will be rubbing their hands with glee.
November 28
Why God's face no longer fitted
By Andy Hunter/icLiverpool
Not since the Industrial Revolution has so much wealth been transported along the Leeds-Liverpool Canal.
Now only time will tell whether the sale of Robbie Fowler along the now sleeping waterway will engineer a transformation in the title fortunes of his past and, baring a medical, present clubs.
But there is no doubt the departure of the 'Toxteth Terror' or 'God', however Fowler was fittingly described, heralds the end of an era for Liverpool and their fans.
The thought of Fowler, the sixth greatest goalscorer in Liverpool's history, sporting anything other than red would once have been unthinkable. Ever since he exploded onto the scene against Fulham in the Coca Cola Cup in 1993 Kopites instantly took the natural successor to the legendary Ian Rush to their hearts.
Fowler was one of them. A local lad but a world class star who the fans could easily identify with in a rapidly-emerging era of distant, millionaires blotting the landscape.
Unfortunately for his legion of Anfield admirers, a procession of injuries and the new broom Gerard Houllier had to take to the club strained that relationship to the point were a move, as the player indicated last night, was best for all concerned.
Despite the unforgettable start to Fowler's Liverpool career Houllier, as he famously remarked as he began plotting the Reds historic treble season last year, had never really seen the England international play during his time in charge. Now he never will.
A knee ligament injury that Fowler admitted nearly brought his career to an abrupt end meant he was playing catchup to the regular strike partnership of Michael Owen and Emile Heskey by the time he eventually regained full fitness.
And, once he did return, his failure to force his way into the starting line-up in major European games and cup finals placed his Anfield career in continual doubt - confirmed lately by the absence of a concrete contract offer, even though the likes of Owen, Jamie Carragher, Steven Gerrard, Dietmar Hamann and Stephane Henchoz have all pledged their long-term futures to the club.
Off the field problems didn't help matters with strict disciplinarian Houllier, even though Fowler was often the victim in his jealous home town. Often the stubborn individual, as his prolonged training ground row with Phil Thompson showed in August, it was clear the striker's face didn't fit.
Peace may often have been brokered, with the club and the player making the right noises about how they wanted him to stay and how he wanted to stay, but few were ever convinced it would be of the lasting kind.
Fowler's departure from Anfield has been the longest running soap opera since Coronation Street. But the fact that there is genuine shock now that he heads for the exit door demonstrates what an impact he has had on a club where his name is, or should that be was, the one that received the loudest acclaim.
Sure there have been the first noises of discontent expressed about him this season, but the fear that exists over his sale to a team who can challenge Liverpool for the Premiership title illustrates the belief he may recapture former glories at the Reds expense.
He still might, and it is somehow appropriate that the top marksman's final goals for the club arrived in the form of a hat-trick, but on the opposite side of the coin how many deals has Houllier got wrong in the last two years?
The reverberations from the sale of Fowler will be deafening until another class act arrives to fill his boots. But thanks to the position the club now found themselves in on the back of last season's glory and this season's rise to the Premiership summit, the treasured number nine shirt should not be vacant for long.
However it speaks volumes for Fowler's legacy that Liverpool still have the most in-form striker in Europe in their ranks but a massive act to follow. . .
November 28
No need to phone the Samaritans
Liverpoool Echo
The unthinkable has happened. Liverpool fans must accept
and get over it.
Robbie Fowler is on his way to Leeds. The prodigal son is finally cutting loose in a move which will sadden the player and the club, but which will do both more good than harm.
There will be many Liverpool fans seeking advice from the Samaritans today, failing to understand why or how 'God could leave them. It s a sad day but a necessary one.
Liverpool have no choice but to let him go. As the ECHO reported yesterday, only 18 months remained on his current deal and there was no indication he was going to sign another one.
What could the Reds do? Allow time to tick and the unsettling stories to continue until he left for nothing?
When Leeds finally proved the speculation wasnt just 'scaremongering or 'Press lies or 'a deliberate attempt to undermine Liverpool as some disbelieving Kopites groaned, Fowlers days at Anfield were numbered.
Ultimately, he knew he had to go.
That said, the destination is surprising. Leeds are a title threat and no doubt the line about Fowler coming back to haunt Liverpool will be trotted out over the next few months.
However, if he hadn t joined Leeds now hed have stayed put and joined them on a Bosman next year. Liverpool have taken a calculated gamble in taking ?12m from their nearest rivals rather than seeing Fowler sign for Leeds in 18 months without David OLeary spending a penny.
Fowler s departure will end three years of rumours and negative headlines. Some of it was fair, some of it not.
From the moment Gerard Houllier joined Liverpool in 1998 the subject of Fowler became as much a burden as source of goalscoring pleasure. Often this was due to bad luck. At other times it was because a self destructive streak which added to his charm as the working class kid who became a football genius without compromising his roots.
Crucially, the number nine was badly injured when Houllier arrived, denying him the chance to make an instant impression. This is where the story of his departure really begins. Astute judges felt the cruciate knee injury took a yard from Fowlers game.
By the time he recovered, Houllier knew of Fowler more by reputation than form. The Liverpool boss was told time and time again about the extraordinary finishing ability of the player but wanted to see it for himself. It irritated the boss. He wanted to see the evidence.
The injury-interrupted performances could not convince Houllier that those who suggested Fowler was at the same level as someone like Michael Owen were basing their judgement on anything other than nostalgia.
There were times when Houllier was impressed. He could see the spark and eulogised about his talent. But the consistency wasn t there and when it came to the big games the French boss would always stick with a partnership he trusted more.
Contrary to myth, there is no rotation. Check out the line-ups for the big games. The first choice is always Owen and Emile Heskey, whose arrival in 1999 cast a further shadow over Fowlers future.
Trust is a key word here too. We can list the number of off-the-field incidents.
When a strict disciplinarian like Houllier warns you, you don t usually get more than one chance. His dedicated fan club probably bought Fowler far more time than others would have been given.
Fowler was a regular in the last chance saloon and although he became an easy target for rumour-mongerers, he has been the first to admit himself hes not always conducted himself as professionally as he ought to have been. How many apologies would he have to make?
By the time a new round of contract talks were due, the determination to keep him wasn t the same as it was to keep Owen. And Fowlers determination to stay ebbed away amid doubts about his role at the club and how highly he is rated. Rightly or wrongly, he felt undermined. Owen s value is 50m.
Fowler is to be sold for 12m. That tells you everything you need to know about how differently the players are rated.
Regardless of events off the park, even on the pitch things havent exactly gone well over the last three years. His brilliance has been in fits and starts. His supporters will say lack of first team action is the explanation for that. His performances at Leeds will either confirm or disprove that theory.
Fowler will always be remembered fondly at Anfield. Quite rightly, his name has entered Merseyside folklore for his goalscoring exploits.
But as all those who disagree with this decision to sell him prepare to put pen to paper and flood the phone lines, consider this.
His best years were between 1993 and 1997, when he was phenomenal. For those prime years he was one of the best strikers Liverpool have ever had. He was peerless.
In the three years since Houllier s arrival, however, hes not been the same player. Being good or even great is one thing. Being the best is another.
He s had extraordinary backing from The Kop, but its been one struggle after another since his cruciate knee injury and even fervent fans will tell you a lot of his support has come from a will to see him back to his best rather than evidence it s actually happening in front of them.
He may get back to his highest level and if so, Leeds have scooped a bargain but Liverpool could afford to wait no longer.
No-one is or ever will be bigger than Liverpool Football Club. The Reds will definitely replace him. Czech Milan Baros is NOT a direct replacement for Fowler. Players such as David Trezeguet, Nuno Gomes and Kevin Phillips will head the Liverpool wanted list over the next few weeks.
All that remains is to wish Robbie all the best. He will always be respected at Liverpool and a unique welcome awaits him when he returns to Anfield in a white shirt.
Leeds may have the player by the end of the day, but The Kop will always have Fowlers heart.
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