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THURSDAY 12 |
Eccleston rejects new deal
Nathan Eccleston has rejected a new contract with Liverpool.
The 19-year old striker has broken into the first team this
season, playing against Arsenal in the Carling Cup and
Fulham in the Premier League.
Neither the player nor the club have yet commented on the
subject.
(LFC Online)
Rafa's injury update from Melwood
Rafael Benitez has today brought us up to date with the very
latest news from the treatment room at Melwood.
With some players sustaining new injuries during Monday
night's draw with Birmingham and with others on the road to
recovery after earlier setbacks, the medical staff are among
the busiest people at the club right now as they look to
provide the boss with as many players as possible for our
next game against Manchester City in ten days time.
(LFC Official Website)
Ayala signs new Reds deal
Liverpool defender Daniel Ayala has signed a new deal with
the club.
As revealed by skysports.com back in July Liverpool were
planning to offer the Spaniard a contract extension and the
18-year-old has agreed a new deal to keep him at Anfield
until 2012.
Ayala made his first-team debut for the club against
Tottenham on the opening day of the season and has gone on
to make three appearances.
Ayala joined Liverpool in September 2007 from Sevilla and he
is highly-rated by the Anfield coaching staff.
(Sky Sports)
Voronin wants to prove worth at Liverpool
Liverpool striker Andriy Voronin is hoping to get a run in
the side to prove his worth to the club's supporters.
Voronin was left out of the squad to face Birmingham after
starting last week's Champions League clash with Lyon.
The 30-year-old, who returned to Liverpool in the summer
after a loan spell with Hertha Berlin, has failed to
convince when he has been given a chance, but the Ukrainian
is determined to prove he can be a success
on Merseyside.
"Last season was good for me because I wanted to play more
matches," Voronin told the club's official website. "I went
to Hertha Berlin, played a lot of games and scored goals. I
was happy there.
"But I always wanted to come back to Liverpool because they
are a massive club.
"It is very important for me to be here. I've spoken with
Rafa and I want to take my chance, work hard and play for
Liverpool.
"I hope in the next game I play, I can give the Liverpool
supporters more."
(tribalfootball.com)
Johnson happy Dalglish
supporting Liverpool boss Benitez
Glen Johnson is pleased to see Liverpool icons rallying
round manager Rafa Benitez.
Monday's draw with Birmingham City means the Reds have won
only one of their last nine matches in all competitions,
leading to criticism from some quarters.
However, Johnson feels Liverpool's detractors need to gain a
sense
of perspective.
"It's good to see influential people like Kenny Dalglish
backing Rafa and the team because it proves that everyone is
together," said the defender to liverpoolfc.tv.
"Rafa's done a fantastic job here and will continue to do
so. A couple of bad results does not make him a bad manager
or us a bad squad.
"Nobody expects Liverpool to lose games one after another.
But that's the nature of playing for a huge club. The
spotlight is on you all the time.
"When it's a club like Liverpool out of form, it can get
blown
out of proportion."
(tribalfootball.com) |
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WEDNESDAY 11 |
Hughes: Robinho may
return at Anfield
Mark Hughes has not ruled out the possibility of Robinho
making his comeback in Manchester City's Anfield clash with
Liverpool
on November 21.
The Brazil striker has not played for the Blues since
injuring his ankle on international duty in September.
However, he has been able to start training, with the
prospect of more to come over the next 10 days.
Robinho has flown from City's present base in Abu Dhabi to
link up with the Brazil squad ahead of their friendly with
England in Qatar on Saturday.
Hughes is expecting the former Real Madrid star back in camp
at some stage over the next two days.
(TEAMtalk)
Reds search for Agger cure
Liverpool will work feverishly during the international
break to find a solution to Daniel Agger’s on-going back
problem.
The Denmark international played in last week’s Champions
League 1-1 draw in Lyon, and also in Monday’s stalemate with
Birmingham.
But boss Rafael Benitez revealed his concerns about the
player’s injury problem that has dogged him all season and
needed an operation during the summer.
After the 2-2 draw with Birmingham, Benitez talked of the
persistent problems facing Fernando Torres and new hamstring
injuries for Albert Riera and Yossi Benayoun, but it was the
worrying performance of Agger that seemed to concern him
most.
He said: “Daniel has more problems with his back, it is a
concern for us.”
(BreakingNews.ie)
Riera not panicking
Albert Riera says everyone at Liverpool needs to stay calm.
The Reds are now eleven points off leaders Chelsea following
Monday's draw with Birmingham. Albert Riera admits it's a
disappointing position to be in but insists everyone at
Anfield needs to remain calm, keep their heads and that will
ensure they return to winning ways.
"We are in a difficult moment but I think we still have
plenty of time and we have to be calm," he said.
"The first thing is that we want to win every single game,
every set of three points and be at the top of the table but
at the moment we have to stick together.
"In games like against Birmingham you could see we were
trying to do everything, playing wide, between the lines,
always going forward, defending with two centre-backs only,
full-backs going forward, and we were trying to do all we
could to win the game.
"But the other team, with one free-kick and one shot from a
long way out, it's really unlucky because we had a lot of
opportunities to kill the game before as well."
(LFC Online)
Report: Liverpool ponder bid
for West Ham striker Cole
Liverpool manager Rafael Benitez has, according to a report
in The Daily Mail, been alerted to the form of Carlton Cole
at West Ham United, and due to the ambiguous financial
situation that has engulfed Upton Park, there is potential
for a winter window bid.
Benitez is keen on bolstering his attacking ranks at Anfield
as the club are perceived to lack real firepower beyond
Steven Gerrard and
Fernando Torres.
(Goal.com)
Napoli chief admits
admiration for Dossena
Napoli sports chief Riccardo Bigon admits they're following
Liverpool fullback Andrea Dossena.
Dossena has been linked with a January return to Italy,
where several clubs, including Napoli, are keen.
“It would be hypocritical of me to say that he isn't a good
player, but I am not the only one who says so, his career
speaks volumes as well,”
Bigon said.
(tribalfootball.com)
Liverpool heartbreak
for trialist Zsolt Poloskei
Zsolt Poloskei has been ruled out for the season at
Liverpool due to
a knee injury.
The midfielder is on-loan from MTK Hungaria and has only
just comeback from long-term injury.
"We feared the worst for Zsolt and unfortunately scans have
revealed that he has damage on his knee and he needs an
operation," McMahon told liverpoolfc.tv.
"It's a major setback for the lad and for the club. We are
just devastated for Zsolt because he has shown some
fantastic things in his play. He is
a good footballer with a fantastic attitude.
"The season is finished for Zsolt but he has come back from
a bad injury once and hopefully he can do that again."
(tribalfootball.com) |
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TUESDAY 10 |
Reds hammer Hull
to extend lead at the top
Liverpool Reserves surged six points clear at the top of the
Barclays Premier Reserve League North following a thumping
4-1 triumph over Hull City on Tuesday night.
John McMahon's men were always in control against the Tigers
and extended their winning run to eight matches courtesy of
goals from David Amoo (2), Nathan Eccleston and Nikola
Saric.
It means the second-string have increased their advantage
over second-placed Manchester United at the summit, although
the Red Devils can cut the lead back down to three points if
they win their game in hand.
Liverpool Reserves: Martin Hansen, Emmanuel Gomis Mendy,
Stephen Darby, Steven Irwin, Daniel Ayala, Robbie Threlfall,
Alex Kacaniklic (Chris Buchtmann 78), Nikola Saric (Victor
Palsson 60), David Amoo, Nathan Eccleston, Daniel Pacheco.
Unused subs: Dean Bouzanis, Nicolaj Kohlert, Jordy Brouwer.
(LFC Official Website)
Johnson drops out of England squad
Liverpool right-back Glen Johnson has pulled out of the
England squad to face Brazil on Saturday after picking up a
slight injury on Monday.
The 25-year-old played the full 90 minutes against
Birmingham at Anfield before joining up with his
international team-mates the following day, where he
underwent a routine recovery session while the rest of Fabio
Capello's squad trained at Arsenal's London Colney complex.
It was during this session that his knock became apparent
and he will now return to his club for treatment, with
Capello at this stage not planning to call up another player
for the trip to Qatar to face Dunga's team.
(TEAMtalk)
Agger withdraws from Denmark squad
Daniel Agger has withdrawn from Denmark's friendlies against
South Korea and the United States with a back injury, the
Danish FA website today confirmed.
The Liverpool centre-back has endured a stop-start season
with the problem and will now use the international break to
recuperate.
Meanwhile, Javier Mascherano has been called up for
Argentina's friendly with Spain, but there is no place in
Diego Maradona's squad for
Emiliano Insua.
(LFC Official Website)
Reds boss Rafa calls for realism
Rafa Benitez has for the first time played down Liverpool's
title hopes and asked for "realism" as the club fight to end
a poor run of results.
Liverpool are 11 points behind leaders Chelsea following
Monday night's
2-2 home draw with Birmingham.
Benitez's side have won only one of their last nine matches
in all competitions, and just one of their last five in the
Premier League.
Benitez said after the draw with the Midlanders: "We have to
be realistic and think what our target is now. For me it is
just the next game, the next point to see whether we can
climb a little higher in the table."
(TEAMtalk)
Johnson: 'Awful' Reds must fight
Liverpool defender Glen Johnson admits that the Reds have to
"stick together" if they are to end their alarming run of
just one win in
nine games.
"It sounds awful and it is awful for a club like Liverpool
to have a run like that," he told BBC Radio Merseyside.
"But this is football. Things like that happen. We're not
going to sit there and feel sorry for ourselves. You have to
stick together and keep fighting."
(BBC Sport Online)
Torres out, but no op
Rafa Benitez has confirmed that Fernando Torres could be out
until December, but he will not be having an operation.
Torres has been plagued with a groin injury, which he has
aggravated in recent weeks.
He visited a specialist in Spain last week, and together
with Liverpool's medical staff they have decided to
rehabilitate him without surgery.
However, Benitez does not know whether he will be fit to
face Manchester City in two weeks' time.
"He has to work with the physios and try to improve and be
ready," Benitez said.
"We are not talking about an operation at this moment, we're
talking about treating him properly.
"I don't know if he will be ready for Man City (in two
weeks).
"The only thing I can say is we're talking about two or
three weeks working with the physios.
"We haven't got a deadline, we just need to see how he is
every day."
(Sky Sports)
Benitez fears hamstring tears for duo
Bad to worse for Liverpool? Apparently so because Rafa
Benitez is fearing the worst for Albert Riera and Yossi
Benayoun after they were injured against Birmingham on
Monday night.
According to the club's official website, Benitez 'fears
both wingers tore their hamstrings' in the 2-2 draw.
"Riera had the same problem as before. The players are
sometimes available but not 100 per cent ready. We thought
he was okay but in the end you can see he wasn't," Benitez
bemoaned.
"Yossi has the same problem as Riera. Some players are
playing too many games in a row. They are working very hard
and so you always have this risk. I think both will have
tears."
(Football 365)
Istanbul hero hangs up his boots
Istanbul hero Vladimir Smicer has retired from professional
football at the age of 36 - and will now take up a post as
Czech Republic manager.
The former Kop star has decided to hang up his boots after a
spate of injury problems at Slavia Prague.
"I am not able to help Slavia on the field. I can no longer
give it 100 percent," he said.
"My head and my heart want me to carry on but my body says
no."
Smicer will now succeed Ivan Hasek as national coach in his
homeland following their failure to qualify for the 2010
World Cup.
The winger made 184 appearances for the Reds during a
six-year spell at Anfield between 1999-2005, scoring 19
goals.
(LFC Official Website)
Parry and Houllier accept
lucrative new roles
Rick Parry and Gerard Houllier, the former chief executive
and former manager of English soccer club Liverpool, have
accepted the task of improving the Saudi national teams.
The two men will head two individual groups as part of a
plan developed by Prince Nawaf Bin Faisal Bin Fahd, vice
president of the Saudi Arabian Football Federation. Houllier
will head one, and be responsible for improving the standard
of coaching, while Parry will take responsibility for
improvements in administration.
"A number of national well-known experts will help these two
international professionals in their work," Prince Nawaf
told the Saudi Gazette. "The group will study the recent
performances of the three Saudi national teams, through
taking notes and opinions from administrative and technical
officials. We will also work on a special programme that
involves in discovering, following and classifying of young
players."
(SportsPro Media)
Reds lack a KO punch
And so continues one of the most curious records in Rafa
Benitez’s Anfield reign – but what else did you expect when
Birmingham’s visit was switched to a Monday night?
While Liverpool’s manager has savoured many famous triumphs
in the 202 Premier League matches he has taken charge of,
and claimed all the biggest scalps, the only team he has not
beaten are the Blues from England’s second city.
What’s more, bizarrely, Benitez has never tasted success in
a game on the first day of the working week here; throw into
the equation that Birmingham had a striker by the same name
in their ranks and, perhaps, it was inevitable Liverpool’s
misery would continue.
Quite how that happened will be causing Benitez much
consternation today; dominant in possession, determined in
their work, Liverpool could have won in a canter; instead
they required all their inner strength – and a slice of luck
– to haul themselves off the canvas
It’s easy to harp on about bad luck or blame poor results on
the fact fate has dealt a fickle hand but you only needed to
see the way Liverpool began this contest, passing and moving
with confidence, the difference a clearing sick bay made.
(Dominic King - Liverpool Echo)
International break comes
at right time for Rafa Benitez
Rafa Benitez is no fan of international breaks but this one
may have come at just the right time. The next 11 days
provide an opportunity for the Liverpool boss to take stock
away from the spotlight and plot his sides route out of an
alarming slump.
A campaign already in serious danger of meltdown took
another turn for the worse against Birmingham City.
The mist descended at Anfield last night but there was no
hiding his sides deficiencies.
Benitez has ridden out many storms during his Anfield tenure
but this is without doubt the fiercest.
The Spaniard needs to find solutions to a seemingly
ever-growing list
of problems.
Some of those weaknesses can be corrected by hard work on
the training ground like his sides inability to make their
dominance in games count and their glaring defensive
frailties.
(James Pearce - Liverpool Echo)
Carsley slams 'cheat' Ngog
Birmingham captain Lee Carsley slammed Liverpool's David
Ngog for what he described as "an embarrassing case of
cheating" after the young striker helped Liverpool earn a
point with a controversial penalty.
Ngog scored a wonderful opener in the 2-2 draw at Anfield on
Monday, but his role in the Reds' second-half equaliser will
draw most attention.
Carsley was in no doubt that Ngog was guilty of diving.
He told ESPN: "I was absolutely nowhere near him. It's a
joke.
"I knew I didn't touch him and I said to the referee to book
me or send me off, it would have made me feel better.
"I'm sure he (Ngog) has got a family, well if I went home
having done that I'd be embarrassed.
"You're supposed to be teaching your kids an example and
that is just an embarrassing case of cheating.
"But the lad's taken a chance and got his team a point so
I'm sure they'll be patting him on the back."
(ITV Football)
Lucas can't explain
Birmingham draw
Liverpool midfielder Lucas Leiva admits the players are at a
loss to explain why they couldn't overcome Birmingham City
last night.
The Reds dominated throughout a one-sided clash at Anfield,
but needed a late Steven Gerrard penalty to salvage a point
after goals from Christian Benitez and Cameron Jerome had
cancelled out David Ngog's opener.
"We are asking ourselves why we aren't winning matches, but
sometimes you don't have the answer," Lucas told
Liverpoolfc.tv. "We created lots of chances; we had all the
possession and did almost everything you need to win a
football match.
"We played with intensity and quality throughout the 90
minutes. We tried our best but the third goal just wouldn't
go in.
"All we can do is train hard, keep going and try and change
the situation as soon as possible.
"We must stay positive. Maybe the international break will
be good for us. We will get some players back from injury
and hopefully everyone will be fit to play against
Manchester City."
(tribalfootball.com)
Thor Zakariassen
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