DECEMBER 31
Expert: Benitez must take gamble

TEAMtalk

Liverpool may have to spend heavily in the January transfer window if they are to protect their future income.

That is the view of Simon Chadwick, professor of sport business at Coventry University, who believes the financial implications of the club's failure to reach the knockout stage of this season's Champions League could minor compared to those of finishing the current Premier League campaign outside the top four.

The Reds ended 2009 off the pace with Tottenham providing the closest challenge to the remaining three members of the usual suspects at the top of the division, and with manager Rafael Benitez repeatedly finding himself under pressure.

And if they cannot improve upon that situation over the second half of the season, Prof Chadwick fears for their longer-term future.

He said: "They are faltering.

"For clubs like Liverpool, Manchester United, Chelsea and Arsenal, the business model is very much founded on qualification for the knockout phase of the Champions League.

"Liverpool have failed at that first hurdle - they didn't progress to the knockout phase - but potentially, they could fail at the second hurdle too, which means they don't qualify for next season's Champions League either.

"If Liverpool do not qualify for the Champions League next season, they are on a little bit of a slippery slope and it starts to impinge upon their business model.

"They have to qualify for the Champions League next season and as a consequence of that, they have to spend some money.

"But is the money there to spend? They are either going to have to sell people to find it, or there is talk of prospective investors coming in.

"Whether those prospective investors might potentially be in place by January, which would enable Liverpool to buy, we will have to wait and see.

"But they have got to spend and they haven't got the money to spend, so they will have to sell or bring in new investors."

Prof Chadwick expects few clubs to invest heavily next month, although it tipping Manchester United to spend some of the £80million they raked in, but did not spend, by selling Cristiano Ronaldo to Real Madrid during the summer, while neighbours City have seemingly limitless funds upon which to call.

Instead, he is forecasting a rash of short-term deals as clubs jockey for position without over-committing themselves in the current economic climate.

He said: "I think by and large, the transfer window will be relatively quiet, and that comes out of concerns about money and continuing concerns about the downturn.

"In the main, I think it will be relatively quiet and if anything, the window will be characterised more by loan deals than transfers."

DECEMBER 22
No real budget for Benitez

The Irish Times

Rafael Benitez is facing another financial balancing act in the January transfer window as he attempts to revive Liverpool’s floundering season with a budget unlikely to stretch beyond loan signings and player exchanges.

The manager is desperate for additions to improve the depth and morale of a squad languishing in eighth place in the Premier League and relegated from the Champions League to the Europa League.

He is particularly keen to increase his striking options in a campaign in which injury to Fernando Torres has brought an over-reliance on David Ngog. But his spending will again be restricted to what he can raise through sales.

Offloading unwanted players in January, when managers are often reluctant to spend, increases the complications for the Spaniard.

Benitez spent only what he brought in to Anfield from transfers in the summer, albeit with Steven Gerrard, Fernando Torres, Daniel Agger and Yossi Benayoun signing new long-term contracts, as Liverpool began to reduce the €340 million debt loaded on to the club by owners Tom Hicks and George Gillett.

With their search for new investment yet to come to fruition, the manager will be in an identical predicament in the next transfer window unless the owners – who have either sold or are in the process of selling sporting franchises in the US – respond to the threat of failing to qualify for next season’s Champions League by reinvesting in the squad.

The Liverpool manager has received no indication that is the case, and therefore plans to raise funds for a forward by finding a buyer or an exchange for Ryan Babel, Andriy Voronin, Andrea Dossena and/or Philipp Degen. All four are deemed surplus to requirements at Anfield, despite Dossena starting Saturday’s abysmal defeat at Portsmouth in place of Benayoun, and will be sold should the opportunity arise. Benitez could be restricted to loan deals if the four remain in situ. Babel represents the most saleable asset.

NOVEMBER 17
Benitez: I'll quit
if Reds sell Torres

TEAMtalk

Rafael Benitez is "confident" Liverpool striker Fernando Torres will never be sold against his will - but says he would resign if he was.

But Benitez told The Times the 25-year-old would not be sold.

"I'm confident it will never happen," he said. "If it did, I'd resign."

The financial situation at Liverpool means they struggle to compete with their Premier League big-four rivals in the transfer market.

And Benitez admitted the situation had led him to make some mistakes.

"When we have spent big, normally it's been very good business," he said. "Torres, (Javier) Mascherano, (Pepe) Reina, (Xabi) Alonso.

"(Robbie) Keane is a good player but we had to sell him because he was not playing at the level we knew he could play.

"Ryan (Babel) was signed for the future and we are waiting for his improvement. He has to be more consistent.

"With the fringe players, we needed to take a gamble on Bosmans and one, two million-pound players.

"Some of these players have not been good enough for us.

"It is a risk you have to accept when there is not too much money about."

Benitez defended the signing of midfielder Alberto Aquilani, who was bought for £17million from Roma to replace Alonso after the Spain international joined Real Madrid in the summer, but is only now reaching fitness after injury problems.

"We can only buy one or two big, £20million players a year," Benitez said. "If we want to have money available then we have to sell some players. We have to sell expensive and buy as cheaply as possible.

"Aquilani fit would be £20-30million. We checked with doctors and they said he would be out one, maybe two months. We have lost some time, but I signed the player for five years, not five weeks."

With Liverpool seventh in the table having lost five league games already this season, many are ruling them out of the title race, while some even feel they will struggle to qualify for the Champions League next term.

"People are worried," Benitez said. "But the team will improve.

"When we have key players on the pitch we are as good as anyone. We have proved this in the past."

NOVEMBER 13
Benitez needs
a new balancing act

Comment by David Prentice - Liverpool Echo

Where did it all go wrong?” Six little words which conjure up one of football’s most colourful – and apocryphal – tales.

The Northern Irish Lothario, aka Georgie Best, was lying on a plush hotel bed, surrounded by bank notes, champagne flutes and the reigning Miss World, when the sniffy waiter uttered his immortal words.

Rafa Benitez may not have been so splendidly positioned when things started to slide in his world.

But given his obsession with all things football, the Reds boss probably wouldn’t have swapped Best’s position for the one he occupied last May, second place in the Premier League, just four points adrift of the champions.

But the question is still the same.

Where did it all go wrong? Because things have undeniably gone wrong at Anfield this season.

The obvious retort is on the treatment table.

Liverpool have been hit by the kind of injury crisis which makes an episode of Casualty look tame.

Injuries have clearly been a contributory factor, but there are others.

After all, the only absentees during the early season defeats to Tottenham and Aston Villa were Fabio Aurelio and Alberto Aquilani.

We need to dig deeper. And we don’t need to dig too far.

It’s all a question of another word which regularly followed George Best.

Balance.

In his prime, Best was one of the most supremely balanced athletes of his generation.

Liverpool also had a well proportioned sense of balance last season, with Javier Mascherano holding and Xabi Alonso picking up his pieces to instigate moves for Gerrard and Torres to exploit.

This season Liverpool have looked as balanced as Best in his latter years, lurching and stumbling from one crisis to the next.

And the reason appears clear.

As individuals, Mascherano and Lucas are talented holding midfielders.

Despite his critics, Lucas has played well this season, while Mascherano also seems to have overcome his own mini-slump.

But, like Bowie and Jagger – as a double act they don’t work.

The emphasis is overly defensive.

The glimpses we have seen of Aquilani so far have been heartening, but there’s also a fear that when he is available the balance could then tilt too far the other way, depriving Liverpool of defensive cover.

Whether they like it or not, Liverpool still haven’t replaced their X-Factor.

Steven Gerrard articulated that loss last weekend when he described his “devastation” at Xabi Alonso’s exit and added: “It’s always going to be different when you lose one of the best players in the world, and people are finally realising that’s what he is. It will take a while before Alonso’s out of our system.”

And that’s not yet . . .

OCTOBER 25
Liverpool chief stands by Benitez

TEAMtalk

Liverpool managing director Christian Purslow insists Rafael Benitez's job is safe even if the Reds do not win the Premier League this season.

He also says Anfield stars Fernando Torres and Steven Gerrard are not for sale at any price.

Purslow launched his support of Benitez as Liverpool attempted to arrest a run of four successive defeats against Manchester United this afternoon.

He said: "The most important aspect of the football club I was involved in in my first week in the job was securing Rafa for another five years. You only have to look at the Premiership era and our two major competitors in the last 10 to 12 years to see the benefits of longevity.

"Liverpool Football Club is on a long-term journey and that journey is to be the most successful club, firstly in our country and secondly in the world and you don't do that by worrying about short-term results. You do that by having long-term plans centring on the people and the strategy. Rafa Benitez is absolutely central to that plan.

"The core of the team which won 86 points last season remains intact with some excellent additions so I have every reason to believe we can perform at that level this season over the season."

To the direct question of whether he would guarantee Benitez's position was safe even if the club did not win the league he said: "Yes I would."

Purslow, who was speaking on BBC Radio Five Live's Sportsweek programme, also insisted Spanish striker Torres had no clauses in his contract which allowed him to leave Anfield if they did not qualify for the Champions League.

He said: "Fernando signed an extension to his contract this summer. He has a five-year contract. He is a crucial leader in our team. He loves Liverpool Football Club. He has been fantastic around the place. Fernando Torres and Liverpool Football Club go together and I believe they will go together for the length of his career."

To the question that he was not for sale at any price, Purslow replied: "Correct."

The same, he insisted, went for Gerrard, while he said Argentina midfielder Javier Mascherano, whose future has been the subject of speculation, was also happy at the club.

Purslow said: "He is the leading central holding player in world football. It is inevitable that big clubs will covet players of that quality.

"We also had another central midfielder (Xabi Alonso) coveted by a world team in the summer who left us.

"We sat down with Javier at the time and he reasserted his total commitment to Liverpool. He has had a lot going on with the Argentina (World Cup) qualification situation which is now behind him. He is a hugely important player for us. He is a leader and this week in the aftermath of Lyon he has been a powerful figure."

Purslow also revealed Liverpool were four weeks into a process of raising new equity in the club which could take six months.

He insisted, however, that it did not mean controversial American owners Tom Hicks and George Gillett were prepared to sell.

Purslow said: "There has been a huge amount of interest in the club from some extremely wealthy and expert investors but it will take three to six months to pull that together.

"It means there will be new investment into the football club. Mr Hicks and Mr Gillett have no plans to sell their shares. We will be issuing new equity to new investors, broadening our ownership."

OCTOBER 22
Where has it all gone
wrong for Benitez?

Irish Independent

"We have had too many problems all at once," bemoaned Rafael Benitez after his side lost to Lyon yet the troubles engulfing Anfield have not come from the ether.

A lengthening injury list may seem the most immediate root cause, but that is just a symptom of a greater malaise which has brought Liverpool to the brink.

JULY 28, 2008 and FEBRUARY 2, 2009
THE ROBBIE KEANE FIASCO

"Last season, we beat Manchester United without Fernando Torres and Steven Gerrard." Such has been Benitez's most familiar refrain when the depth of his squad has been questioned. What he is choosing to forget is that they did, at least, have Xabi Alonso and Robbie Keane.

The Irishman (below) wasn't a success at Anfield and few tears were shed when he was sold back to Tottenham in February. That he has not been replaced, though, is indicative of the decline in Liverpool's strength in depth. Two years ago Liverpool had four front-line strikers. Now they have just one, and for that Benitez must take responsibility.

MARCH 11, 2009
ALBERTO AQUILANI INJURED

Few Liverpool fans will have noticed when midfielder Alberto Aquilani failed to finish his side's penalty shoot-out Champions League exit at the hands of Arsenal. Benitez, though, almost certainly did. Having been priced out of a move for David Silva, Aquilani became his favoured purchase should Xabi Alonso leave. With every misdiagnosis at Roma, though, Liverpool's season suffered. Aquilani was supposed to return at the end of September but may not be fully fit until Christmas.

APRIL 21, 2009
LIVERPOOL 4 ARSENAL 4

Andrei Arshavin's four goals, Liverpool's attacking intent and the de facto end of the title race may have attracted the attention at the time, but of greater long-term consequence was the obliteration of Liverpool's reputation for resilience.

Benitez cast off his side's shackles in the final months of last season as he looked to catch United and overcome the superiority of their goal difference. They have taken the same approach this season but they do not seem comfortable in their new skin. Their defence, in fact, looks as though it is yet to forget Arshavin's Anfield show.

AUGUST 4, 2009
ALONSO GOES

The Basque midfielder's relationship with Benitez fell apart when the manager wanted him to travel to Milan for a Champions League game rather than attend the birth of his first child, Alonso has tacitly admitted the new 50pc tax rate was a more immediate concern.

Although, in absentia, he has been cast as a mixture of Graeme Souness and Bobby Charlton, there is no question that Gerrard and Torres are missing his metronomic passing.

JULY 19, 2009
A FAR EASTERN ADVENTURE

Liverpool's necessary attempt to maximise their brand came at a heavy price. The club's Spanish contingent were rushed back after the Confederations Cup despite missing pre-season, while Martin Skrtel and Daniel Agger picked up injuries. Liverpool's season may have fallen apart before it had begun.

JULY 25, 2009
OWNERS REFINANCE

Tom Hicks and George Gillett sealed the refinancing of the £350m loan with RBS and Wachovia, as expected, in July, securing an extra year to repay the loans. £60m has already been paid back, and the owners are searching for outside investment to help inject more capital.

However, suspicions still remain around Anfield that the refinancing hamstrung Benitez in the transfer market.

He has since admitted he wanted a fourth signing in the summer, while it is believed he decided not to cash in on Andrea Dossena and Andrei Voronin to raise funds in case he was not given the money to reinvest.

When Gillett inadvisably asserted to a fan that Benitez take responsibility for the quality of the squad, his point was fair. The Spaniard could easily hit back, though, that if he is not given the requisite financial backing, there is a limit to what he can do.

AUGUST 20
Rafa delighted with Kyrgiakos deal

By James Carroll - LFC Official Website

Rafa Benitez believes Sotirios Kyrgiakos will prove to be a 'very good signing' for Liverpool.

The Greek centre-back has put pen to paper on a two-year deal with the option of a further year to complete his transfer from AEK Athens.  (Photo: LFC Official Website)

Speaking to Liverpoolfc.tv, Benitez revealed the reasoning behind his decision to swoop for Kyrgiakos

"He is a tough defender who is strong and good in the air. He has a strong character and we were looking for these things," said the Reds boss.

"He can score goals and will be a threat from corners and free-kicks. He's very strong in defence but he will need time as always to settle into the Premier League. He will be a very good signing for us.

"We knew the player when he was with Rangers and we've been watching videos of him at Frankfurt and the national team. Our scout department had a lot of information.

"We've talked about the things he's done before and the things he'll have to do for us. It was good. He knows what we want and he's ready to work."

Benitez feels the acquisition of Kyrgiakos will be of benefit to young defenders such as Martin Kelly and Daniel Ayala - with the manager confident his starlets can learn from the experienced 30-year-old.

He said: "It will be positive. I was talking with Ayala about this. When the young players see someone with experience it is positive because they can learn from them.

"It also means they have more time. If they have to play some games they can but they are not under pressure."

AUGUST 19
Benitez rules out player exits

By Stephen Darwin - Goal.com

Liverpool manager Rafael Benitez has ruled out the prospect of further player sales at the club.

The likes of Xabi Alonso, Sami Hyypia and Alvaro Arbeloa have all left the Reds this summer, despite the club finishing second in the Premier League last season.

Recent speculation has linked striker Andriy Voronin with a switch to Hertha Berlin and Albert Riera with Barcelona, but Benitez has moved to dismiss reports that any Liverpool player will be leaving.

"Nobody will be sold because we need all our players. We can't afford to lose anyone else," the 49-year-old is quoted as saying by The Press Association.

"The Premier League is very difficult and we have to keep everyone we have at the moment."

Reports have suggested that the former Valencia boss has had his transfer budget restricted to around £2 million.

It would appear, however, that the club are hot on the heels of Greek international defender Sotirios Kyrgiakos of AEK Athens.

AUGUST 5
Rafa: Aquilani should excite fans

By Jimmy Rice - LFC Official Website

Rafa Benitez believes Alberto Aquilani would be an exciting addition to his title-chasing squad.

Roma have given permission for Liverpool to discuss terms with the 25-year-old, who has yet to take a medical at Melwood.

In an exclusive interview with Liverpoolfc.tv, the boss revealed how Aquilani could fit into his side.

"Roma have allowed us to talk with him, so that's good and positive. He is a player with the quality we are looking for," said Benitez.

"He can play a little bit higher than Javier Mascherano - maybe between him and Steven Gerrard.

"He has good passing - the final ball is good - and he also works. If he can settle down properly in England he can be a very good addition.

"I think the signing should excite the fans. He won the U19 European Championship with his country, and U21 too. He has some trophies - including the Italian Cup.

"I always remember one game - England versus Italy U21s at Wembley, and he was man of the match in a 3-0 win."

The Reds concluded their discussions with Roma over permission to talk to the player once the sale of Xabi Alonso to Real Madrid was agreed.

AUGUST 5
Liverpool agree fee for Aquilani

BBC Sport Online

Liverpool have confirmed they have agreed a fee with Roma for Italian midfielder Alberto Aquilani.

The transfer is reported to be worth £20m and is subject to a medical being completed later in the week.

"Alberto has a winning mentality and great experience in both Serie A and the Champions League," said Liverpool manager Rafa Benitez.

The move comes just hours after the Reds sold Spanish midfielder Xabi Alonso to Real Madrid for £30m.

Aquilani, 25, has played 11 times for Italy and has been with Roma, the club he supported as a child, since he was 16, making his debut as an 18-year-old under now England boss Fabio Capello.

"Aquilani has long been recognised as a top class talent in Italy, captaining his country at both Under 19 and Under 21 levels before establishing himself in the senior national side," said Benitez.

A statement on the Liverpool website added: "Liverpool concluded their discussions with Roma once the sale of Xabi Alonso to Real Madrid was finally agreed."

The midfielder has not played since March due to an injury to his right ankle, which he had surgery on in May.

This restricted him to just 14 appearances for Roma last season.

Aquilani is set to be Liverpool's second major signing of the close season after England right back Glen Johnson joined from Portsmouth for an undisclosed fee in June.

Earlier on Wednesday, Benitez had stated that Liverpool would seek "the best replacement" for Spanish international Alonso after he completed his move to the Bernabeu.

"As soon as he told us that he wanted to leave we started working, looking for players," said Benitez.

The Reds had also been linked with Wigan's Lee Catermole and Valencia's David Silva.

Last summer a move for then Aston Villa midfielder Gareth Barry - now at Manchester City following a £12m summer transfer - fell through after Benitez was unable to sell Alonso to raise the sufficient funds for the deal.

AUGUST 4
Real agree £30m
deal for Xabi Alonso

Liverpool Daily Post

Liverpool FC’s Xabi Alonso is set to sign for Real Madrid tomorrow after the clubs agreed a fee believed to be £30m for the Spain midfielder.

The end of a summer-long saga over the 27-year-old’s future ended on Tuesday when Liverpool FC issued a short statement effectively bringing to a close his spell on Merseyside.

The statement read: "Liverpool Football Club this evening confirmed they had reached agreement for the sale of Xabi Alonso to Real Madrid, subject only to a medical. The terms of the deal will remain confidential and undisclosed."

But although Liverpool FC will not reveal the details of the deal, privately sources were maintaining that manager Rafael Benitez had got his own way over the fee.

It is believed that Madrid made another attempt to end the deadlock on Tuesday with an offer of £30m that will rise to £34m depending on Alonso’s success over the first two years of what is believed to be a five-year contract.

Alonso had trained with his Liverpool FC colleagues on Tuesday at the club’s Melwood complex.

But as the Liverpool FC party headed for John Lennon airport and a charter flight to Norway for Wednesday’s friendly with Lyn Oslo, Alonso was heading back to Spain.

Real Madrid issued a statement of their own, confirming he will have a medical on Wednesday.

Assuming all goes well, he will join his former Liverpool FC team-mates Alvaro Arbeloa - who moved to Real last week for £3.5million - and goalkeeper Jerzy Dudek at the Bernabeu.

Alonso and Dudek were part of the famous night in Istanbul when Liverpool FC lifted the European Cup after a penalty shoot-out victory over AC Milan.

Now only Steven Gerrard and Jamie Carragher remain at the club from the 18 players on the team sheet in Istanbul that night.

Alonso’s departure has been a long and painful experience for Liverpool FC fans, who had taken the Basque midfielder to their hearts.

Benitez tried to sell him last summer in the complexities of his unsuccessful fight to sign Gareth Barry from Aston Villa.

Alonso did not want to go then, and has always felt that he was being forced out of the club to finance the Barry deal.

This summer it was Benitez who did not want to lose the player, who is believed to have told his manager on the final day of last season that he wanted to return to Spain.

From that point on, Madrid waged a persistent war to sign the player as they assembled a new squad under president Florentino Perez.

With the Alonso deal, Perez will have spent around £220m in two months on Cristiano Ronaldo, Kaka, Raul Albiol, Esteban Granero, Arbeloa, Alvaro Negredo and Karim Benzema.

That haul is Madrid’s response to Barcelona’s historic treble of Champions League, La Liga and Spanish Cup.

But although Perez did not consider Alonso to be a player who ’will sell shirts’, the Spain international has been almost as difficult to prise away from his club as Ronaldo.

Alonso was signed from Real Sociedad in August 2004 for £10.5million and scored 19 goals in 210 games, none more memorable than in Istanbul when he followed up to net when his penalty was initially saved in the Champions League final.

He also won the FA Cup, European Super Cup and the Community Shield while at Anfield.

In what used to be a very Spanish side, Liverpool FC will now have only Jose Reina, Fernando Torres and Albert Riera in their first-choice XI.

The deal looked on the cards when Liverpool FC and Real officials met in the team hotel ahead of Sunday’s friendly in Barcelona against Espanyol.

But Liverpool FC have since made it clear the meeting was to make sure Madrid understood that the fee was non-negotiable.

Perez had previously claimed that it was far too high, but the club’s coaching and backroom staff impressed upon him that Alonso was the key piece of a jigsaw, a holding player to create the platform for Ronaldo and Kaka to produce the attacking quality Madrid need to make a serious bid to take back the league and European Cup from Barcelona.

Now Benitez has the cash to spend on his own squad and is believed to want to close a deal to bring in midfielder Alberto Aquilani as Alonso’s replacement.

Cash-strapped Roma are willing to sell for around £15million and the player is understood to be happy with a five-year contract worth around 4million euros a year.

It is believed that the player has agreed personal terms already, but negotiations could not be completed until Alonso was sold.

Benitez is also known to be considering moves for either David Silva or David Villa from Valencia.

But that could well push his budget to the limit unless he can offload the likes of Andriy Voronin.

JULY 9
Glen Johnson:
Liverpool FC was
the only club for me

Liverpool Daily Post

Liverpool FC new boy Glen Johnson today revealed how he was given the inside track on his new club by a pair of former Reds.
                      Rafael Benitez with his latest signing - Glen Johnson.
                      (Photo: PA)
The England right back said he spoke to Peter Crouch and Jermaine Pennant - who he played with for Portsmouth - about the move and received nothing but positive reports.

"Peter and Jermaine said it's a fantastic club but they didn't need to say that - I knew. They told me I'd enjoy every minute of it," he said, speaking to the Liverpool club website.

Johnson added that Liverpool's reputation in world football meant no other club could compete for his signature.

The right-back was the subject of reported interest from other clubs - but claims there was no contest once Rafa Benitez offered him the chance to join 'one of the biggest clubs in the world'.

"I had a spell at Chelsea before and there were good and bad times but when a club like Liverpool comes in for you it is not a hard decision," Johnson said.

"It's a fantastic club - one of the biggest in the world. It's got a great history and I wanted to be a part of that.

"The hairs on the back of your neck stand up when you come to Anfield and hear You'll Never Walk Alone even when you don't play for Liverpool, so I cannot begin to imagine how it is going to feel when I put the kit on for the first time."

Johnson said his top priority in a Liverpool shirt will be helping the club win a first league title since 1990.

"We've got some fantastic players and I wanted to come here and help Liverpool win the league," added the 24-year-old.

"The boys did fantastically well last year. Hopefully we can now get a few more points and steal it from Manchester United.

"We want to go as far as we can in every competition but all the lads want to win the Premier League and that would be a great start."

Johnson was voted the Premier League's best right-back by the PFA last term but the England man insists there is even more to come.

"I can definitely improve - every player can. I want to improve every aspect of my game," he said.

"Rafa has told me he wants more of the same form I showed last year, but he also wants me to improve. We will be working hard together to do that.

"I am here to do my best."

Johnson reported to training at Melwood for the first time on Wednesday where he was introduced to his new teammates.

"Yesterday was my first day and all the lads and staff made me feel really welcome, so it's good times," he said.

"I knew Stevie and Carra from before but yesterday I met about 60 players! I was shaking the same hands about four times introducing myself! It's a lot to take in at once, and obviously the lads were messing about and laughing about that. But everyone's made me feel really welcome and it's great to be here."

JULY 7
Kenny Dalglish return to Liverpool FC
is great but comes a decade too late

Comment by Mark Lawrenson - Liverpool Daily Post

Kenny Dalglish’s return to Anfield will be terrific for everyone associated with Liverpool FC, the only thing is it should have been done 10 years ago.

Dalglish can offer so much in so many different ways for Liverpool and if you’re looking for a blueprint of the kind of job description he can fill at Anfield then look no further than the ambassadorial role Sir Bobby Charlton fulfils for Manchester United.

Basically, Dalglish is ‘Mr Liverpool’ and I can’t see where the club can go wrong with this appointment.

While he won’t be working with the first team squad on a regular basis, his talents can be put to use in many various capacities.

If you want to send somebody scouting to South America or off to Asia for a promotional trip or you need a father figure to mentor the youngsters coming through Liverpool’s Academy then Dalglish is your man.

What you find very quickly with him is that he’s an honest, trustworthy man.

He’ll look after the kids coming through the gates at Kirkby and Melwood but he’ll give it to them straight.

He’s not going to tell anybody that they’re going to be this or that or give any guarantees that they’ll become a star in Benitez’s team but he’ll let them know that they’ll be well looked after.

Dalglish’s return is of course part of a major overhaul of the club’s Academy that Benitez is trying to implement.

It’s obvious that he is unhappy with the way Liverpool’s youth system has been run in recent years but I just hope that with all these changes there aren’t too many problems if in two years or so Benitez decides to walk away from Anfield.

Benitez has brought in so many of his own people when it comes to coaches and backroom staff, you have to hope that they won’t all quit en masse if he ever goes himself. You’ve got to get the balance right in that respect, bringing back Dalglish is the ideal remedy.

He’s somebody all football people of all ages respect whether it’s the older fans who remember what a great Liverpool player he was, those who knew him as an all-conquering manager or even the youngsters who have had the tales of his exploits passed down to them.

I don’t think there will be any issues whatsoever though when it comes to Benitez working alongside a former Liverpool manager – and a highly-successful one at that.

We all know that Benitez likes to be in control of as many aspects of the club as possible but he knows that Dalglish is not after his job. If he had been worried about this in the slightest, the appointment would not have been made.

Mark Lawrenson was talking to CHRISTOPHER BEESLEY

JULY 3
Kenny Dalglish rejoins Liverpool FC

By David Prentice - Liverpool Echo

Kenny Dalglish said he was “very excited, but a bit nervous” after his return to Liverpool was officially confirmed today.

The Anfield legend will assume a senior role at the Liverpool Academy and will also act as a club ambassador. He will work with the commercial side of the business around the world.

The return of King Kenny to Anfield was exclusively revealed by the Echo on April 18, but the confirmation will delight Liverpool fans.

And the former Reds player and manager was equally overjoyed.

He said: "I spoke to Rafa a few months ago and things have progressed from there.

"Now that it has come to fruition I am very excited, but also a bit nervous.

"For the boss to put his trust in me is a great compliment and I am coming back as a very lucky person. When you leave a club you don't often have a chance to return, so I am fortunate for being given such a fantastic opportunity.

"Rafa has made a very brave decision to revamp the Academy. There are lots of positive things happening here and there is a real feel-good factor around the place. It's fantastic for me to be a part of that.

"People who come to the Academy should be delighted that Rafa is taking such an interest in the development of the young players.

"Everyone knows the most important team at the club is the first team and hopefully we can start producing players to challenge for a place in Rafa's plans. It won't happen overnight but I'm looking forward to working with Frank McParland and the rest of the Academy staff to do the best job I can.”

Of his with the Liverpool commercial team, he added: "There's a lot of work to be done and I will do whatever is asked of me. I'm just so pleased to be back."

Liverpool manager Benitez was also delighted to have his successful predecessor back at Anfield.

The Reds boss said: "I am really pleased to have Kenny as a part of the staff. We were looking for someone who has a knowledge and a passion for the club and Kenny is the perfect choice.

"He will help at the Academy with the development of players and will also have an ambassadorial role at the club. If you're looking for somebody to go around the world on behalf of Liverpool Football Club then I don't know anybody better than Kenny.

Thor Zakariassen ©