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MONDAY 3 |
Alonso 'reassured' by Real talks
Xabi Alonso admits he is "reassured" to know that Liverpool
and Real Madrid are "talking seriously" about his summer
switch to the Bernebeu.
Alonso has been linked with Madrid for most of the summer
but the Spanish giants have so far been unwilling to meet
Liverpool's asking price for the Euro 2008 winner, which is
believed to be in the region of £30million.
Liverpool managing director Christian Purslow met with
Madrid executive director Jose Angel Sanchez in Barcelona on
Sunday to discuss Alonso, with the Reds in the city for a
friendly against Espanyol.
Alonso, who has handed in a formal transfer request, was
unaware of the meeting but was quoted as telling Spanish
newspaper AS: "It's reassuring to know that Madrid and
Liverpool are talking seriously now.
"I decided a long time ago to stay on the margin of
everything that was happening. My stance has been clear, as
you all know. I'm a professional and I must wait for an
agreement to be reached, but I hope it is resolved soon, for
better or for worse."
Meanwhile, Purslow confirmed to AS that he had spoken with
Sanchez but that no agreement had been reached, saying:
"This (meeting) has only served to put our positions on the
table. We need to continue talking."
(TEAMtalk)
Riera looks for positives
Albert Riera tried to take some positives from last night's
friendly.
The Reds were comfortably beaten 3-0 by Espanyol but Riera
said the game was all about improving fitness not the
result.
"I think this kind of match is all about being ready for the
start of the season," said the winger.
"It was a fantastic game for them and they played better
than us. They have trained for around 10 days more than us
and I think you saw this clearly. When you are in
pre-season, 10 days is a lot.
"Some of us came back from our national teams a little bit
later and have only had 10 or 12 days' training. We need a
little bit more before the start of the season, but we will
be ready.
"Of course we are disappointed because we lost. Even if it's
a friendly match, you always want to win, but as I said, it
is all about being ready for the very first game."
(LFC Online)
Agger struggling with injury
Liverpool boss Rafa Benitez admits Dan Agger's preseason has
been plagued by injury.
Benitez said: "He had an injury before and we decided not to
take him to Switzerland. He has a problem again and we do
not want to take any risks in this game.
"He wanted to come to Spain, but it was not necessary
because we will have two more games before the start of the
season and it was better for him to stay at Melwood."
(tribalfootball.com) |
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SUNDAY 2 |
Benitez reiterates Alonso stance
Liverpool manager Rafael Benitez insists he wants Xabi
Alonso
to stay at Anfield.
Reports in Spain have indicated Real Madrid are as keen as
ever to sign the midfielder.
But Benitez said on Sunday night: "He is our player and we
want him
to stay."
(Sporting Life)
Rafa: We did not do enough
Rafa Benitez spoke of his disappointment after Liverpool
crashed to a 3-0 defeat to Espanyol in Spain on Sunday
evening.
Ben Sahar struck twice in the second half to add to an early
goal from Luis Garcia as the 'Periquitos' celebrated the
opening of their new Estadi Cornella-El Prat in style.
"The game was very important for them," Benitez told
Liverpoolfc.tv. "For us it was a friendly game, but you have
to play with intensity in every match and you have to work
harder than we did today."
(LFC Official Website)
Reds tumble to Espanyol defeat
Real Madrid target Xabi Alonso made a brief appearance as a
strong Liverpool team suffered a 3-0 defeat to Espanyol at
the Cornella-El Prat.
Midfielder Alonso came off the bench with six minutes
remaining as Espanyol officially opened their new stadium,
and reports in Spain indicate it may be his final appearance
for Liverpool.
Luis Garcia - a namesake of the former Liverpool player -
put Mauricio Pochettino's side ahead after 19 minutes and
former Chelsea reserve Ben Sahar scored a second-half double
to give Espanyol an impressive win.
(TEAMtalk)
Line-up vs Espanyol
Rafa Benitez names a strong line-up in this evening’s
pre-season friendly in Barcelona against Espanyol.
New £17.5million signing Glen Johnson looks set to play at
right-back for the first time with Emiliano Insua starting
at left-back.
Steven Gerrard and Javier Mascherano command the Reds’
midfield, whilst Xabi Alonso is named among the substitutes.
Liverpool: Reina, Johnson, Insua, San Jose, Carragher,
Lucas, Mascherano, Gerrard, Benayoun, Kuyt, Torres.
Subs: Cavalieri, Plessis, Degen, Voronin, Riera, Alonso,
Kelly, Babel, Ngog, Spearing, Dossena.
(This is Anfield)
Carra backs duo
Jamie Carragher has backed Steven Gerrard and Fernando
Torres to fire Liverpool to the title.
The Reds' vice-captain believes if the pair stay fit they
can help fire Rafael Benitez's side to the league title.
"No other team in England has a partnership like Gerrard and
Torres," said Carragher.
"It's strange to be talking about Stevie as a striker now
but that's what he's become, and in that position, just
behind the main forward, there is no one better.
"In fact, there is no better strike pairing in the world
than Gerrard and Torres. They can tear defences wide open in
a split second.
"When you have that kind of ability in your team it gives
you incredible belief. If we can keep them both free of
injury then we are going to take some stopping. There were
times last year when we went into games without them and it
showed.
"It was great to see them both sign new contracts this
summer - they are the most important players in our team.
(LFC Online)
Carragher wary of Owen threat
Liverpool defender Jamie Carragher is pleased to see Michael
Owen back at a top-four club - but hopes he finds life at
Manchester United
tough going.
Carragher predicted United's latest signing could prove a
masterstroke, but is crossing his fingers the England
striker struggles for goals.
He told the Sunday Mirror: "He is still a great player, but
I know I won't want him to carry on scoring."
(Teletext)
Dalglish: Johnson will improve at Liverpool
Liverpool legend Kenny Dalglish says Glen Johnson will
improve his game at the Reds.
Dalglish told liverpoolfc.tv: "I think that he can improve
as a defender
at Liverpool.
"He's proven he can attack with the best of them, and he's
secured the position of first-choice full-back at
international level under Fabio Capello so he can defend.
"But working on things with Rafa and having a player of the
experience of Carra playing in the same back four will
benefit him in the long run."
He added: "We've got him in early on in the summer, meaning
that he's been ready to get started with the bulk of his new
team-mates in pre-season training.
"It's not crucial, but I believe it's always an advantage if
you can have the bulk of the summer to work with new
players.
"It'll allow him to settle in and get used to the way
Liverpool work long before the real action starts."
(tribalfootball.com) |
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SATURDAY 1 |
De Rossi fears Aquilani exit
Daniele De Rossi admits it would be a major loss for Roma if
Alberto Aquilani joins Liverpool, although he also
recognises that it would be a good move for the midfielder.
The Reds are reportedly interested in signing Aquilani, with
Xabi Alonso seemingly set to leave Anfield for Real Madrid
after submitting a transfer request earlier in the week.
De Rossi is aware of the rumours and fears a switch could go
ahead that would leave Roma with a weakened midfield.
However, De Rossi understands why his team-mate might be
tempted to go to Liverpool and feels he would be able to
improve at Anfield.
"I don't know the details and I don't know if the deal is
real,"
said De Rossi.
"If it's as it's written in the papers, we will lose a great
player.
"His many injuries have maybe meant that he's been forgotten
about a bit, but I am sure that if he leaves we will regret
it.
"He's a footballer with exceptional skill and above all he
grew up in Roma's academy and has a love for this shirt that
you cannot buy.
"But if you think about his career I think it would be a
good opportunity, he would grow a lot by being close to the
best midfielder in the world - Steven Gerrard."
(Sky Sports)
Kelly pleased with progress
Martin Kelly believes he has improved as a player over
pre-season.
The reserve team centre-back believes playing with the likes
of Jamie Carrager, Daniel Agger and Martin Skrtel over
pre-season has helped him improve his game.
"Carra always helps you out in training and games, telling
you where to be in relation to the forwards. I'm grateful
for that because a young lad can benefit from that
experience," Kelly told the club's official website.
"You can't get any better than learning alongside players
like Carra, Agger and Skrtel. That's going to bring the best
out of me and hopefully I'll get more of it.
"We'll have to wait and see what happens once the season
starts but at the moment I'm just concentrating on working
hard. That's what Rafa has told me - just keep working
hard."
(LFC Online)
Insua wants more games
Emiliano Insua is aiming to play more first team
football this season.
The left-back made 13 games for the first team last season
and is looking to improve on that number in 2009/10.
"It's not easy to play in a team which is always fighting to
win titles but I'm hoping this season I can play more
games," said Insua.
"I'm feeling really good and I believe I can do it. Last
season was really good for me. I played 13 games and learned
so much.
"There is a great team spirit here and it is great to know
you have the support of your teammates behind you.
"Rafa is a very good manager and every day he is looking at
my game and trying to help me improve.
"The manager has been great for me. He brought me here and I
owe
him a lot."
(LFC Online)
Thor Zakariassen
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