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MONDAY 3 |
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Aurelio on verge of Reds deal
Valencia full-back Fabio Aurelio is set to
complete the fine details of his move from Spain to Anfield
in the next few days.
The Brazilian's contract with Valencia ended on Friday, and
Liverpool insist that the formalities of a four-year
contract are near to completion.
The 26-year-old defender will arrive on a Bosman free
transfer.
During Aurelio's six-year spell at the Mestalla the team won
the Spanish league title in 2002 and 2004 and the UEFA Cup
in '04.
He will become manager Rafael Benitez' third signing of the
summer following the captures of Craig Bellamy and Gabriel
Palleta.
(TEAMtalk)
Liverpool warned target won't come cheap
Birmingham City manager Steve Bruce has issued a warning to
Liverpool following speculation that the Reds could be
preparing to make a formal bid for their winger Jermaine
Pennant.
Rafa has been linked with Pennant for some time but Anfield
insiders that the player is only a fall-back option. But
even so, if Liverpool do want to press ahead with a move for
him, Bruce says we'll have to pay over the odds.
He said: "If anyone wants one of my players then they are
going to have to pay top, top dollar.
"Thankfully, with the wealth of my owners we don't have to
sell."
(Kop Talk)
Alves deal still on as Pennant enters
picture
Liverpool have not completely given up hope of signing
Daniel Alves - although Rafael Benitez is prepared to turn
to Jermaine Pennant should his patience finally run out.
Reports from Spain yesterday stated Liverpool have offered
Sevilla £9.5million for Brazilian right-back Alves, a fee
which would rise to almost £11m based on appearances and
other bonus payments depending on the player's progress at
Anfield.
(Daily Post)
Raven wings into United
New Carlisle boss Neil McDonald has made Liverpool defender
David Raven his first signing.
The 21-year-old has signed a two-year deal at Brunton Park
after being allowed to leave Liverpool.
Raven made four first team appearances for Liverpool after
coming through the ranks at Anfield.
The young full back was delighted to make the move to the
League One new boys.
"I've really been looking forward to coming to Carlisle
because it's a club that's obviously on the up," Raven told
the club's official website.
"There are some good players, and the club has great backing
on and off the field, so it is going to be a good place to
be."
(Sky Sports)
Gerrard candidate for England captaincy
Steven Gerrard has been linked with the England captaincy
following David Beckham's resignation.
David Beckham stepped down as England captain after
Saturday's defeat to Portugal and the end of the Sven Goran
Eriksson era. Steven Gerrard is a possible candidate to
replace him.
John Terry is the 1-2 favourite to replace Beckham but
Gerrard is the bookies' second favourite at 2/1. Gary
Neville is 5/1 while ex-Red Michael Owen is 14/1.
(LFC Online)
Everton fan caught with stolen Liverpool
medal
An Everton fan was caught with Liverpool goalkeeper Jerzy
Dudek's stolen football memorabilia.
Martin Roche, 26, below right, of Brainerd Street, Old Swan,
yesterday pleaded guilty to handling the property.
The star first realised he had been burgled on Monday, June
19, when he arrived home to his luxury house in Caldy,
Wirral, after a holiday to his native Poland.
Thieves had smashed the rear patio doors and ransacked the
property, stripping the goalkeeper of more than £100,000
worth of items, including his Champions League 2005 medal.
Although Roche did not take part in the burglary, he did
admit hoarding two hold-alls and three plastic bags
containing approximately £40,000 worth of football
memorabilia.
Birkenhead Magistrates' Court heard that Roche had been
walking home from the pub in Tuebrook when he was approached
by a friend who asked him to look after some things.
Adam White, defending, said: "He looked in the bags and saw
a Gucci and Frank Muller watch, the goalkeeper's gloves and
quite a number of jerseys, to his horror.
"He believes he has a warrant for non-payment of fines in
relation to the court so does not want to tell the police."
But when police officers called at the house he admitted his
involvement and led them to the stash.
(Daily Post) |
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SUNDAY 2 |
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Gerrard blasts Ronaldo
Steven Gerrard has slammed the conduct of Cristiano Ronaldo
for his role in Wayne Rooney's red card.
The actions of Ronaldo have drawn heavy criticism and
Gerrard was fuming with the Portuguese winger.
"If it was one of my team-mates, I'd be absolutely disgusted
in him because there's no need for that," said Gerrard.
"I've seen Ronaldo going over giving the card and I think
he's bang out of order."
Television cameras also caught Ronaldo winking at the
Portuguese dugout after Rooney's sending off, with Gerrard
again infuriated by his Premiership rival.
The Liverpool captain added: "I think that sums him up as a
person.
"If I was playing against my team-mates from Liverpool and
they were involved in a situation like that, I'd never try
and get them sent off."
(Sky Sports)
Carra explains penalty decision
Jamie Carragher has explained why he had to re-take his
penalty in yesterday's
shoot-out.
Carragher scored his penalty in yesterday's shoot out but
was ordered to re-take it by the referee and he saw his
re-taken penalty pushed onto the bar by Portugal goalkeeper
Ricardo.
"The referee said he never blew his whistle so I had to wait
until after he blew it. I didn't realise. I obviously don't
take that many," said the Liverpool hero.
"I've taken two in my career and scored two before this one,
one in the Worthington Cup final shoot-out against
Birmingham and another in penalties in the same competition.
"You have to give credit to their keeper though. He touched
it on to the bar. It's one of those things. It happens."
(LFC Online)
Bellamy charged with 2 counts of assault
Liverpool striker Craig Bellamy has been charged
with assaulting a teenage girl in an alleged nightclub
bust-up.
Bellamy faces two counts of assault after the 19-year-old
claimed he struck her in Number 10, a trendy Cardiff club.
The alleged victim complained of suffering bruising to her
arm and neck.
Reports claim that the player was partying with a friend
when there was an altercation between him and the girl as
she was walking through a narrow part of the club's VIP
section.
The 26-year-old was charged by South Wales Police on Friday
morning when he answered his bail after returning from
honeymoon.
A police spokeswoman said: "A 26-year-old man has been
charged with two counts of Section 39 assault. He was
charged after answering his bail on Friday morning. No court
date has yet been fixed."
Within hours of the charge, Bellamy was snapped by the press
parking his black Bentley Continental sports car on double
yellow lines outside The Cornerstone pub in City Road,
Cardiff - something which the local press naturally picked
up to have a pop about.
Bellamy is also due in court this month for driving without
insurance and failing to produce an insurance certificate.
(Kop Talk)
Kewell exit still on
According to newspaper reports today, Liverpool winger Harry
Kewell is still facing an Anfield exit.
It is claimed that Rafa will get shot of Kewell if Daniel
Alves is granted a work permit
this week.
(Kop Talk)
No contract offer for Trabelsi
According to newspaper reports today here in the UK, Ajax
defender Hatem Trabelsi is yet to receive a contract offer
from Liverpool.
The Tunisian star has been linked with the Reds for some
time and as he's available on a Bosman free, he's attracting
renewed interest from Anfield.
(Kop Talk)
Cisse: Benitez told me to go
France international Djibril Cisse has accused Liverpool
manager Rafael Benitez of forcing him out of Anfield.
Cisse, 24, will be loaned to Marseille in October after
recovering from the broken leg which ruled him out of the
World Cup.
And Cisse does not expect to be back at Liverpool while
Benitez has any say in the matter.
"It was a big surprise to me when I got a phone call from
Benitez saying I should leave," Cisse told the News of the
World.
"He told me bluntly: 'There's no room for you here.' I was
so upset because I don't want to leave Anfield.
"After that conversation, I have no alternative but to try
to find another club at least for now.
"So I have agreed to go to Marseille in October when I am
fit again, but only on loan.
"I want the Liverpool fans to know the truth. They have made
me so welcome and been very supportive.
"I want them to know it is not my choice to leave
Liverpool."
(Sporting Life) |
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SATURDAY 1 |
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Gerrard: Don't blame Roo for heartache
Steven Gerrard has leapt to the defence of Wayne Rooney and
urged him not to be made the scapegoat for England's World
Cup exit.
Rooney was given his marching orders after an hour of the
quarter-final heartbreak against Portugal in Gelsenkirchen
before England eventually went out on penalties.
Gerrard backed his team-mate and said: "Wayne has been
fantastic for us. We can't blame Wayne. He has done so much
for this team and he is going to do so much for this team in
the future.
"I haven't seen Wayne but when I see him I will give him a
big hug because he is my team-mate and he is getting no
blame from me because I love him.
"I thought it was a melee and I walked away from it thinking
Wayne was going to get a foul in his favour. He had two or
three men all over him and I can't believe he never got the
foul before whatever happened kicked off.
"There is talk of him stamping on someone. I'll have to have
a look at it but you guys will make your judgement on it."
The Liverpool star said: "I am feeling a bit numb at the
moment. I am just gutted for the fans and my team-mates that
I never scored the penalty but for the whole match we gave
everything we had.
"When we went down to 10 men it was backs against the wall.
It was a hard grind and hard work and I have never felt so
tired in a game in my life.
"We did so well to get to penalties and then we weren't good
enough and I take responsibility for my penalties.
"I thought we were going to go on and win it but their
penalties were better than ours at the end of the day."
(TEAMtalk)
Despair for Carra and Gerrard
Manchester United star Wayne Rooney was sent off in disgrace
against Portugal as England crashed out of the World Cup on
penalties after neither side could break the deadlock after
120 minutes of open play.
Rooney was shown a red card following what the referee
adjudged a stamp on Ricardo Carvalho and with England down
to 10 men, the chances of breaking down Portugal became even
more remote.
When the game went to penalties, two Liverpool players -
Steven Gerrard and Jamie Carragher (a 118th-minute
substitute) showed more bottle than the majority of their
team-mates.
Unfortunately, both players saw their spot kicks saved -
despite the fact that Carragher actually saw his first
successful spot-kick ruled ineligible because the goalkeeper
wasn't ready.
The deciding spot-kick was eventually scored by Cristiano
Ronaldo, who will have won himself few friends with the
spirit in which he played the game.
Carragher and Gerrard may have missed their penalties but at
least they showed more courage than half of their team-mates
in being prepared to step up when the stakes were so high.
They did Liverpool proud.
(LFC Official Website)
Reds back away from Kuyt move
Liverpool are believed to have decided against a move for
Dirk Kuyt and are instead refocussing efforts on signing
Jermaine Defoe after Feyenoord issued their price tag.
Feyenoord want £14 million, and with Arsenal and
striker-less Newcastle now in the fray the reds simply do
not believe the player is worth the bidding war.
(Anfield Online)
Hamann's Bolton move could be off
Dietmar Hamann's proposed move to Bolton could hit a
stumbling block.
According the Bolton Evening News, Bolton boss Sam Allardyce
could pull the plug on the Hamann deal after securing the
services of Ivan Campo for another 2 seasons.
Campo has played in the holding midfield role before, and
Bolton know he can play there, so with Campo there for the
next 2 seasons, where does this leave Hamann?
Allardyce is said to be getting impatient with the time it
has taken to make a decision on a move, the Bolton Evening
News said:
The Wanderers boss has made no comment on the Hamann issue,
but privately has become increasingly irritated by the
former German international's reluctance to close the deal
that was agreed in principle a month ago and commit himself
to the Whites.
(Anfield Red)
Depor close on Reds starlet
Deportivo La Coruna are facing competition from Real Betis
in their bid to sign Antonio Barragan, but remain favourites
to capture the young Liverpool defender.
The 19-year-old Spaniard joined The Reds from Sevilla last
summer and impressed for the club's reserves.
However, having made only one senior appearance last term,
he looks set for another season on the fringes of the
first-team at Anfield and Rafa Benitez could well consent to
a season-long loan to help his young charge accrue some
vital experience.
Depor have been following his progress for some time with
their coach Joaquin Caparros having overseen his development
in Sevilla's youth ranks.
Caparros is looking to rebuild his Depor squad after a
mediocre first season at the Riazor and feels the versatile
young stopper could add some quality and energy to his side.
Betis, now managed by Javier Irureta, are also keen on
Barragan, but the youngster is thought to prefer a reunion
with his former coach Caparros.
A deal should be completed before the forthcoming European
Under-19 championships in Poland at which Barragan will be
representing his native Spain.
(Sky Sports)
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Thor Zakariassen
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