|
|
|
MONDAY 12 |
O'Neill on the defensive
Martin O'Neill is clinging to the hope that Gareth Barry
will stay
at Aston Villa.
Sounding more and more bitter about the midfielder's
imminent move to Liverpool, the Villa boss compared the
situation to Steven Gerrard's.
"We want to do our utmost to keep Gareth because he's so
important to us and is back to his brilliant best," he said.
"It's interesting and ironic that apparently there was an
offer from an Italian club for Steven Gerrard yet Liverpool
were quick to remind everyone that he is under contract.
"Gareth has two years left on his contract and we want him
to stay. The chairman will talk to him to show how much we
value him.
"I will not be made to feel under pressure by other clubs
because they want one of our players. We're going to talk it
through with Gareth.
"I can't understand why Gareth would want to leave. He's
only 27 and has been brilliant for us.
"He has been selected for England and has played regularly
for them because of his exploits with Villa.
"In terms of him playing in the Champions League, we can
guarantee him that within the next 23 years!"
(LFC Online)
Benitez: We're in clear over Barry
Rafa Benitez insists Liverpool have done everything by the
book in their bid to sign Aston Villa skipper Gareth Barry.
Villa manager Martin O’Neill has accused the Reds boss of
showing a lack of respect towards the Midlands club.
O’Neill dismissed the £10million offer as derisory and
slammed Benitez
for insinuating there had been ongoing discussions to
offload the 27-year-old England midfielder.
“I think the right approach when you want to sign a player
is to talk to
the manager,” Benitez said. “I was talking to Martin
O’Neill, I said we would like to sign Gareth Barry and asked
what the situation was.
“He just said he needed to talk to the owner and I said
okay. He will not have any problems with his supporters
because he never said to me he wanted to sell Barry.
“We were also talking about Scott Carson because they have
the option
to sign him.
“We were just talking about football so why he was so angry
I do
not know."
(Liverpool Echo)
Ex-Red keeps Fulham up
Former Liverpool player Danny Murphy has kept Fulham in
the Premiership.
Murphy scored the only goal of the game as Fulham won 1-0 at
Portsmouth yesterday to preserve their Premiership status
and relegate Birmingham and Reading.
(LFC Online)
Third best Prem campaign
2007/8 was Liverpool's third best Premiership campaign.
Yesterday's win over Spurs meant the Reds ended the season
with 76 points, their third highest total since the
Premiership began. Liverpool's highest points total is 82 in
the 2005/6 season while the second highest is 80 points
under Gerard Houllier in 2001/2.
(LFC Online)
Return to England Fold?
Fabio Capello is ready to try and tempt Jamie Carragher out
of international retirement by meeting with him before the
World Cup Qualifying starts this year.
Carragher quit international football in 2007 and is just 30
years old. However, he has played a pivotal role in
Liverpool’s defense this season, and the Italian manager is
keen to have him available for
international duty.
“There are players that don’t want to be part of England
like Paul Scholes and Jamie Carragher. They both are good
players and the door is always open,” Capello told The
People.
“But you can’t force anyone to play for you.”
“The most important thing is for the players to love the
shirt and want
to play for the shirt. It is down to them.”
(Kop TV) |
|
SUNDAY 11 |
Rafa: Torres was gunning for Ruud
Rafa Benitez has revealed how Fernando Torres asked him to
play at White Hart Lane so he could try to become the most
prolific foreigner ever in a debut season in England.
El Nino hit his 24th league goal during the 2-0 victory over
Spurs to leapfrog the tally reached by Ruud van Nistelrooy
in his first Premier League season.
Benitez said: "We were talking about the record before the
game. He wanted to play in this game and wanted to score.
"Always when you sign a player it's difficult to know if
they'll settle in
the Premier League, but Torres is young and hungry. He wants
to be successful for a number of years. He has shown all
these things on
the pitch."
(LFC Official Website)
Reds sink sorry Spurs
Torres sets new Premier League record
Fernando Torres set a new record for goals scored by a
foreign player in
a debut Premier League campaign as he helped Liverpool to a
2-0 victory over Tottenham at White Hart Lane.
Two goals in five second half minutes from strikers Andrei
Voronin and Torres, who broke former Manchester United
forward Ruud van Nistelrooy's 23-goal tally, secured a
comfortable win for Liverpool in
a classic end of season affair.
Dimitar Berbatov, who is rumoured to be heading for pastures
new in
the summer, came the closest to opening the scoring in first
half with
a header from a Jamie O'Hara corner, but Liverpool
goalkeeper Jose Reina was equal to the effort.
Liverpool had dominated possession in the first half without
truly threatening Radek Cerny in the home goal, but after
the break Steven Gerrard began to pull the strings and
Voronin prodded the visitors in front after showing good
strength to latch on to a 69th minute flick from Torres.
And on 74 minutes Torres, who joined Liverpool at the
beginning of the season from Atletico Madrid, had the goal
his performance deserved as
he found himself one-on-one with Michael Dawson before
cruising past
the Spurs centre-back to caress the ball home from close
range to ensure Tottenham finish in the bottom half of the
table.
(Sky Sports)
Anderson admits he's in loan limbo
Swansea City star Paul Anderson admits he is unsure which
club he will be playing for on loan next season.
The Swans young player of the year, 19, has been told by
parent club Liverpool to prove he can step up a level from
League One.
Swansea will ply their trade in the Championship next season
but Anderson told the Melton Times: "I know I'm going back
on loan, but haven't got a clue for what team.
"I know there are quite a lot of clubs interested, but I'll
just have to wait and see what happens."
Anderson scored 10 goals in 41 league and cup appearances
for the Swans as they secured promotion to the Championship
as
League One winners.
(TEAMtalk)
Insua and Voronin start at the Lane
Emiliano Insua will get another taste of first-team
football in the final game of the season at White Hart Lane
this afternoon.
The promising left-back is in the line up along with the
recalled Alvaro Arbeloa, Martin Skrtel and Andriy Voronin.
The Reds XI in full is: Reina, Insua, Arbeloa, Carragher,
Skrtel, Babel, Gerrard, Mascherano, Kuyt, Torres, Voronin.
Subs: Itandje, Hyypia, Finnan, Lucas, Benayoun.
(LFC Official Webste)
Hicks: Reds stadium still on course
Tom Hicks has denied suggestions that Liverpool’s on-going
boardroom struggles will compromise the club’s plans for a
new stadium.
The Reds were recently given planning permission for a new
60,000-capacity arena in Stanley Park as they look to
dramatically expand their match-day revenue and close the
financial gap on their
Premier League rivals.
However, fears have been voiced that Liverpool may be unable
to fund
the project and that the dispute between co-owners Hicks and
George Gillett will hinder the move from Anfield.
Hicks is insistent that is not the case though, maintaining
that the project is on track to be completed for the
2011-2012 season.
“Site work starts in September and construction in late
October or early November,” Hicks told the Sunday Mirror.
“Completion will still be in time for August 2011.”
(Setanta Sports) |
|
SATURDAY 10 |
Agent: Keita not on Reds' list
Liverpool have not approached Sevilla midfielder Seydou
Keita, agent Pascal Boisseau exclusively told
setantasports.com.
Rafa Benitez is looking for a central midfielder, with Aston
Villa star Gareth Barry in pole position, and the African
talent has been rumoured
to be a target for the Anfield outfit.
Mali international Keita has been fantastic for the
Andalucian side since he moved from Lens last summer.
When asked if Liverpool had contacted him about Keita,
Boisseau told setantasports.com: “It’s absolutely rubbish.
“The player is happy at Sevilla, focused on helping them to
try and qualify for the Champions League.
“We will discuss with Sevilla when the season is over.”
Liverpool chief scout Eduardo Macia also slammed reports
from
the Spanish press saying the former Lens captain is on his
way
to Merseyside.
“Keita is not our objective because we are working now on a
list of three players for this position, but he is not part
of it,” Macia told
Spanish reporters.
“I mean that he is a tremendous player, but he is not part
of our plans.”
(Setanta Sports)
Miller indebted to Benitez
Alex Miller insists he will be "always indebted" to Rafael
Benitez despite opting to quit the Spaniard's Anfield
backroom staff this week.
On Thursday it was announced the 58-year-old would be
leaving the Premier League club to take up a managerial post
with Japanese side
JEF United Chiba.
But speaking at his unveiling on Saturday, the ex-Hibernian
and Aberdeen boss claimed he left Merseyside after nine
years with nothing but admiration for Benitez.
"Rafa understood that I wanted to manage a club again. The
players understand fully why I've left and they were very
supportive on Thursday, my last day," said the former
Liverpool first-team coach.
"I've really enjoyed working with Rafa. He's a very good
coach and we had great success in the last four years, when
you look at what we've achieved.
"[Being the first team coach] was a fantastic position to be
in at such
a top club. I worked exceptionally hard for years with
numerous clubs to try to get to the top and he gave me that
chance.
"I would be always indebted to him."
(TEAMtalk)
Reds rubbish Gerrard bid talk
Liverpool have denied receiving a bid from Italian champions
Inter for Steven Gerrard.
England star Gerrard pledged his future to Liverpool this
week, saying he expects to see out his career with The Reds,
but this did not prevent reports linking the midfielder with
a move to Italy.
Reds chief Rafa Benitez is set to add to his ranks this
summer in a bid
to end their long domestic league drought and Gerrard has
made it clear his aim is to lift the Premier League trophy
with Liverpool.
It had been suggested Inter had tabled an offer for the
Anfield hero, but
the speculation has been nipped in the bud by Liveprool.
”The idea is complete rubbish, fantasy, there has been no
approach and no bid,” said a Liverpool spokesman.
(Setanta Sports)
Keita open to Prem switch
Sevilla ace Seydou Keita has confirmed one of the 'big
four' teams in England have enquired about his services.
The Mali international in only in his first season with the
Liga outfit following a £2.7million switch from French
outfit Lens last summer.
However, his exploits have not gone unnoticed with the likes
of Liverpool, Arsenal and Tottenham all credited with an
interest in the 28-year-old.
Keita has now confirmed one of England's giants have
enquired about his services and should a fee be agreed he
would be interested in a move
to the Premier League.
"I've had an enquiry from a big four team in England,
however, I am happy to stay at Sevilla," Keita told
skysports.com.
"But you never know. If an offer is accepted by my club I
might leave.
"It is a dream to play in the Premier League. La Liga is
also a quality league. To play in both leagues would be very
good.
"However, I am happy where I am."
(Sky Sports)
Reina wins award
Pepe Reina has won the Barclays Golden Gloves award
outright.
The Liverpool goalkeeper has won his third successive Golden
Gloves award ahead of tomorrow's games.
Reina has kept 17 clean sheets this season while nearest
rival David James has kept 16. With James out of
Portsmouth's final league game of the season with a calf
injury Reina has won the award outright regardless of how he
does against Spurs at White Hart Lane tomorrow.
(LFC Online)
Thor Zakariassen
© |
|
|
|
