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TUESDAY 24 |
Gillett denies Reds sale
George Gillett Jr. has confirmed he is assessing his
options, but stressed no decision has been made on whether
he will sell his stake in Liverpool.
"We may do some recapitalization, but any links between what
we are doing and the situation at Liverpool is incorrect. We
have made no decision to sell.''
(Setanta Sports)
Friedel's red card overturned
Aston Villa goalkeeper Brad Friedel has had the red card he
received in Sunday's defeat at Liverpool rescinded by the
Football Association
on Tuesday.
The American was sent off after 63 minutes of the 5-0
drubbing at Anfield after he was adjudged have brought down
Fernando Torres after the striker burst through on goal.
Villa's appeal was upheld today, meaning Friedel will be
available for their next Premier League game at Manchester
United on April 5.
(ESPN - Soccernet)
Torres targets Turkish delight
Fernando Torres returns to the Bernabeu on Saturday full of
confidence that he can inspire Spain in their march towards
the World Cup Finals.
Striker Torres is one of five Liverpool players in the Spain
squad for the double header with Turkey, the first match
being on Saturday in Real Madrid's stadium, where Torres
shared in the Anfield club's recent Champions League
victory.
Spain then travel to Istanbul for the second match on April
1, and Torres said: "I am feeling fit and well now after my
recent injury.
"We must not take anything for granted, but I am confident
Spain can get the results against Turkey to take us closer
to the finals."
Spain head the Group Five qualifying table, with Turkey
second. Jose Reina, Xabi Alonso, Alvaro Arbeloa and Albert
Riera are the other Liverpool stars in the squad with
Torres.
(TEAMtalk)
Gerrard: I'm not world's best
Steven Gerrard does not agree with the assessment that he is
the best player in the world on current form.
The Liverpool captain has received many plaudits for his
recent performances, sparked by comments from Zinedine
Zidane in the wake of his barnstorming display against Real
Madrid.
"It's very flattering and it makes me smile when people talk
well about my game and how I'm performing," he said in a
Champions League special on Setanta Ireland.
"But I don't agree with being the best midfielder in the
world. There's a lot of fantastic midfield players out there
and it's very nice to be talked about in terms of those top
players.
"The players I admire now are playing at Barcelona. Andres
Iniesta, Lionel Messi and Xavi. They are the players I watch
who really excite me and I think to myself they're on a
different level to all other footballers out there."
(Setanta Sports)
Agger: No Rafa influence
Liverpool defender Daniel Agger insists Rafa Benitez's
decision to stay at the club will have no influence over his
talks about a new deal.
Benitez ended months of speculation over his future by
signing a new five-year deal at Anfield last week.
The Spaniard also revealed one of his top priorities after
inking his new deal is to sort out the contracts of the
likes of Agger and Dirk Kuyt.
Agger, who made his return from injury as a substitute
against Aston Villa on Sunday, is adamant Benitez's contract
renewal will have no bearing over his own future.
"Congratulations to him. He has done it well. But I will not
sign with Benitez but with the club. That is something that
I have to keep in mind," Agger told Danish news agency
Ritzau.
The Danish international refused to consider whether
Benitez's decision to stay was good or bad news for his
contract situation.
"I don't want to get involved in that discussion. But he was
the one that brought me to the club," added Agger.
(Sky Sports)
Mcateer: Gerrard's better than Kaka
Jason McAteer has become the latest in a string of ex-pros
to declare Steven Gerrard the best player in the world.
The former Reds wing-back agrees with Zinedine Zidane and
Gary McAllister that Liverpool's skipper is now peerless.
"When a player like Steven Gerrard, arguably the best player
in the world at the moment, gets space then he'll hurt you
all day long.
"You can't really compare him to Lionel Messi because they
both influence the game in different ways.
"The closest to Steven Gerrard at the moment is probably
Kaka - and I would say Gerrard is above him in the best
player ratings.
"He influences the team all over and it's not just about the
goals. It's what he does off the ball, his movement and the
way he brings players
into the game."
(LFC Official Website) |
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MONDAY 23 |
Anelka out of Anfield match
Former Liverpool striker and current Chelsea top scorer
Nicolas Anelka will miss the Champions League quarter final
first leg at Anfield, according to French national team
manager Raymond Domenech.
Domenech claims Anelka has a toe injury which will rule him
out for
three weeks.
The first leg at Anfield is on April 8th, while the return
leg at Stamford Bridge is on the 14th which he could be fit
for.
(This is Anfield)
Simeone: Mascherano
should join Inter
Diego Simeone has advised Inter to sign Javier Mascherano in
the summer.
Former Inter star Simeone has been asked which player club
chairman Massimo Moratti should sign to strengthen his
squad.
And the tactician, who recently parted ways with River
Plate, has stated that Liverpool midfielder Mascherano would
be the ideal player for the Italian outfit.
Argentinian Simeone believes that a midfield composed of
Esteban Cambiasso and The Reds’ star would rule in Europe.
Simeone said: “To make a difference, a footballer has to be
outstanding.
“If I had to choose one, I would sign Mascherano.”
(Setanta Sports)
Friedel bemoans red card
Aston Villa goalkeeper Brad Friedel has insisted he should
not have been sent off at Anfield on Sunday.
The American shot-stopper was dismissed for bringing down
Fernando Torres in the second half which allowed Steven
Gerrard to step up and make it 5-0 to Liverpool.
But Friedel was far from happy with referee Martin Atkinson,
who he insisted got it wrong as he feels Nigel Reo-Coker was
level with Torres - thus not making him the last man.
"I just stood my ground, and as the cameras show I turned my
shoulders to show that I didn't try to make contact. He is
the one who ran in and made contact with me," Friedel told
Sky Sports.
"Does he have an argument for a penalty sure, does he have
an argument for a booking sure, but sending off is very
harsh considering he had a defender alongside him."
Friedel is now set to miss Villa's next match at Manchester
United on Sunday 5th April.
(Sky Sports)
Gillett considers franchise sale
Liverpool co-owner George Gillett is reportedly considering
selling the famous Montreal Canadiens NHL franchise as he
undertakes a review of his assets.
The news, reported on Monday by Montreal-based newspaper La
Presse, is likely to re-open speculation about Gillett's
long-term commitment to Liverpool, which he co-owns with
fellow American Tom Hicks.
According to the report, Gillett has called in financial
advisors to take stock of his assets, and is considering
anything from a restructuring of his interests to a
sell-off.
"The process has been started but we're only at the
beginning," Canadiens team president Pierre Boivin told La
Presse.
"We're not hiding it; we're going through a very difficult
economic period."
(PA Sport)
Riera: Utd under pressure
Liverpool winger Albert Riera claims Manchester United are
beginning to feel the pressure in the Premier League title
race.
The Reds followed up their 4-1 Old Trafford success with a
5-0 Anfield rout of Aston Villa to take full advantage of
the leaders' shock 2-0 defeat at Fulham 24 hours earlier.
He said: "After the game against United last week when we
won at Old Trafford, we showed them that we are still
fighting and that we will be until the very end.
"Now after winning against Villa and with United losing (at
Fulham) I think that they can feel us near to them.
"There are a lot of matches to be played in the Premier
League and the Champions League and there will be a lot of
pressure and I believe that they can feel this."
(Sky Sports)
Benitez has stomach
for title fight
So, the fact is clear. Any doubts that Liverpool possess the
stomach for a title fight have now been comprehensively
banished. Another significant weekend in the race for the
championship ended with Rafael Benitez’s side posting an
ominous statement of intent.
With leaders Manchester United and second-placed Chelsea
having lost 24 hours earlier, opportunity once again knocked
for Liverpool to seize on the shortcomings of their nearest
rivals.
The Anfield outfit have made a worrying habit of spurning
such openings, too often hampered by the weight of
expectation.
Not this time. A five-goal rout of Aston Villa closed the
gap on United to a single point and sent a thunderous
message out to Old Trafford and beyond; the momentum, such a
precious commodity at this stage of the season, is now
firmly with Liverpool.
(Ian Doyle - Daily Post)
Aurelio wants to stay
Fabio Aurelio wants to remain a Liverpool player.
The Brazilian defender has got just over a year left on his
current contract but says he is happy at Anfield and hopes
to sign a new deal.
"If the club and the boss are happy with my work, for sure
I'll be happy to continue, so it should not be complicated,"
said Aurelio.
"Now he's staying, it should be easier. But, honestly, I
haven't been thinking about it. I'm very happy in the moment
I am in now."
(LFC Online) |
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SUNDAY 22 |
O'Neill praises in-form Reds
Martin O'Neill admitted that his side were beaten by an
'exceptional' Liverpool side after they crashed to a 5-0
defeat at Anfield on Sunday.
The Aston Villa boss added that although their opponents
were superior his side had contributed to their own
downfall.
"We were well beaten by an exceptional Liverpool side," he
said.
"But we did contribute to our own downfall. At 1-0 down, we
gave away an unbelievably bad goal. It was a shocking
mistake."
(Sky Sports)
Gerrard plays down hat-trick
Midfielder Steven Gerrard insisted the three points mattered
more than his hat-trick as Liverpool crushed Aston Villa
5-0.
Gerrard told Sky Sports One: "The hat-trick means a lot but
the points are more important.
"It (the scoreline) is more than what we expected, before
the game we would have settled for a 1-0 win.
"Villa are a fantastic team who have been going really well
- but they've had a dip in form of late and it was important
we never let them settle.
"We got an early goal and built on it."
(Football 365)
Rafa: We should have scored more
Rafa Benitez claimed he would have liked to have seen more
goals after his side's 5-0 thrashing of Aston Villa.
"The team was doing well but it's true I am not totally
happy because we could have scored more goals from the
counter attack," said Benitez, who wanted the Reds to push
on after the dismissal of Brad Friedel at 4-0.
"We were playing against 10 players and had three or four
more chances. It's really important to take them because you
never know what's going to happen with the goal difference.
"Today it wasn't key but in other games it has been. I
wanted more goals. It's an area we need to improve."
(LFC Official Website)
Gerrard inspires Reds rout
Steven Gerrard scored a hat-trick as Liverpool stormed to a
5-0 win over out-of-form Aston Villa to move up to second
and within a point of leaders Manchester United.
The Reds skipper was involved from the off as he whipped in
a dangerous free-kick which found Xabi Alonso. His flicked
header came back off the bar and Dirk Kuyt was on hand to
drill home the opener after eight minutes.
Albert Riera made it two when he raced on to a long kick
from goalkeeper Pepe Reina 25 minutes later and Gerrard
claimed his first of the day when he converted a penalty on
39 minutes after Nigel Reo-Coker had felled Riera.
The hosts began the second half like they ended the first
with Gerrard grabbing his second five minutes after the
break when he placed a free-kick from just outside the box
past Brad Friedel.
The scoring was completed when Gerrard converted his second
penalty of the day on 65 minutes after Friedel had been
sent-off for bringing down Fernando Torres in the box.
(Sky Sports)
Spanish duo return versus Villa
Xabi Alonso and Alvaro Arbeloa return to the Liverpool XI
for this afternoon's visit of Aston Villa.
Lucas and Sami Hyypia have to settle for the bench as Rafa
Benitez makes two changes from the side that thrashed
Manchester United.
His side in full is: Reina, Arbeloa, Skrtel, Carragher,
Aurelio, Alonso, Mascherano, Gerrard, Riera, Kuyt, Torres.
Subs: Cavalieri, Hyypia, Agger, Ngog, El Zhar, Dossena,
Lucas.
(LFC Official Website)
Reina aiming for record
Pepe Reina is looking to beat another club record this
afternoon.
The keeper is hoping to keep his 100th clean sheet for the
club against Aston Villa today. Should he be successful he
will beat Ray Clemence's old record.
Clemence took 200 matches to keep 100 clean clean sheets
while Reina has kept 99 in 196 games.
"Clearly the team is defending well as a team," said Rafael
Benitez.
"I can remember a lot of situations when Pepe was one versus
one with a striker and he has made some fantastic saves so I
think that he deserves this record if he can break it
because he is a very good goalkeeper.
"Hopefully it will happen this weekend because if it does it
will mean that we have a better chance of winning."
(LFC Online)
Rooney and Scholes
off as United lose again
Manchester United implode for the second time in succession
whilst Liverpool scent blood in the Premiership title race.
SOMEBODY is cracking up in the Premier League and it is not
Rafael Benitez.
For the second Saturday in succession, Manchester United
imploded, this time losing 2-0 at Fulham, to leave Liverpool
scenting blood in the title race. Also for a successive
weekend Sir Alex Ferguson’s team lost on-field discipline
and finished a match without 11 men.
At opposite ends of a remarkable match Paul Scholes and
Wayne Rooney were shown red cards by Phil Dowd, the referee,
with Rooney’s sending-off causing his manager to complain
furiously.
Chelsea suffered a surprise defeat by Tottenham to pass up
the chance to close ground on United but Liverpool will move
to within a single point of the champions should they beat
Aston Villa at Anfield this afternoon.
(The Times)
Thor Zakariassen
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