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SATURDAY 27 |
Benitez hints at Arbeloa stay
Arbeloa expects to return to Spain Liverpool boss Rafa
Benitez says the signing of £17million right-back Glen
Johnson this week does not necessarily mean Alvaro Arbeloa’s
career at Anfield has come to an end.
Arbeloa has been linked with an £8million move to Real
Madrid with only one year remaining on his contract at
Liverpool.
But Benitez says he is hopeful of convincing the Spanish
international
to stay.
He said, “Arbeloa was a good player for us last year. He has
one year left on his contract and we have offered him an
extension and we’re talking.
“He is our player but if there is a good offer we have to
consider it.
“We have two or three clubs asking about him. He would like
to stay but he knows the competition will be hard.”
(This is Anfield)
Neal praises Johnson
The four time European Cup winning right-back believes the
signing of Johnson will improve Liverpool as an attacking
force.
"He reminds me of the great attacking right-backs we have
had at the club during the time I was there - and before me
as well," said Neal.
"He is a quality addition and he will provide a lot more
ammunition for the forwards, that's for sure.
"Torres will benefit from having Glen in the side more often
than not.
"He gets forward well and crosses a decent ball. I watched
him closely during the recent England v Andorra game and was
suitably impressed. He was bubbling with confidence and is a
player that catches the eye.
"He's probably got as much defensive quality as I had and he
is quite capable of doing a very good job for Liverpool.
"I really do think he's a top quality addition."
(LFC Online) |
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FRIDAY 26 |
Benitez reveals Arbeloa interest
Liverpool manager Rafa Benitez has revealed that there are
"two or three" clubs showing an interest in Alvaro Arbeloa.
The defender is facing an uncertain future following the
arrival of England right-back Glen Johnson on a four-year
deal from Portsmouth.
Benitez is keen for Arbeloa to stay at Anfield but admits
that, with the Spain international having only 12 months
remaining on his contract, he could listen to offers.
Real Madrid have been strongly linked with bringing the
26-year-old back to the Bernabeu, where he was a member of
the squad between 2004
and 2005.
And Benitez claims clubs have made enquiries, telling
Liverpool's official website: "Arbeloa was a good player for
us last year.
"The thing is, he has one year left on his contract. We have
offered him an extension and we're talking.
"He is our player but if there is a good offer we have to
consider it. We have two or three clubs asking about him.
"He would like to stay but he knows the competition will be
hard."
(Sporting Life)
Johnson signs four-year deal
England defender Glen Johnson has today put pen to paper on
a four-year Anfield deal.
The 24-year-old full-back arrives from Portsmouth and
becomes Rafa Benitez's first major acquisition of the summer
ahead of
the 2009-10 season.
(LFC Official Website)
Bankers: Reds are
not in bad shape
Bankers have dismissed fears about Liverpool's future by
stressing the club are "financially healthy and able to
service comfortably its debt".
American owners Tom Hicks and George Gillett are currently
in negotiations to refinance the £350million loan they took
out to buy the Reds two years ago, with less than a month to
go until the deadline for
an agreement.
A deal is believed to be close and despite speculation about
potential financial meltdown at Anfield RBS, who have taken
the unprecedented step of writing to fans to explain the
situation, are happy to give their full support to the
Merseysiders.
According to the Liverpool Daily Post, the bank has stressed
they have a "long-term relationship with the club, and we
look forward to this continuing for many years to come".
(TEAMtalk)
Voronin’s Anfield promise
Liverpool's on-loan striker, Andriy Voronin, has vowed to
come back to Anfield and “conquer” the Premier League next
season.
The Ukrainian international enjoyed a brief impact at
Liverpool after arriving on a free transfer from Bayer
Leverkusen, but spent the whole of last season on-loan at
Hertha Berlin.
After five goals in 19 Liverpool appearances, he struck 11
times in 20 appearances back in the Bundesliga and is
determined to be a hit in England.
“It wasn't a bad season in Germany but now I am coming back
to conquer England,” he said.
“I'm a person who likes to face new challenges. It's time to
prove to myself and to those people who think I can score a
lot of goals only in Bundesliga, that it's not so.
“'Liverpool is one of the world's strongest clubs. To play
for it is a great honour for any footballer.
“I know it's not going to be easy but I feel ready for a
real fight to get into the first choice team.”
The Ukranian international still has two years to run on his
contract with Liverpool and is set to return to pre-season
training on July 5.
(Liverpool Echo)
Gerrard lands another gong
Steven Gerrard has been voted 2008-09 Player of the Season
by readers of Match magazine.
The Liverpool skipper collected 35 per cent of the vote to
beat Manchester United duo Nemanja Vidic (28 per cent) and
Cristiano Ronaldo (16 per cent).
Meanwhile, readers of the magazine judged our 4-4 Champions
League draw with Chelsea as the Game of the Season. Second
was our Premier League clash with Arsenal, which also ended
4-4.
Fernando Torres was voted top striker, picking up 37 per
cent of the poll despite missing large chunks of the
campaign through injury. Former Red Nicolas Anelka came
second (27 per cent), with Wayne Rooney third (16 per cent).
(LFC Official Website)
Robert Kraft: I wanted
to buy Liverpool
American billionaire Robert Kraft has admitted he would buy
Liverpool Football Club “in a minute” – but only if a salary
cap was placed on the English Premier League.
The US businessman also claimed that he came “very close” to
buying Liverpool in 2005, but was ultimately put off by the
absence of a cap on players’ wages.
Kraft, whose family own the NFL’s New England Patriots and
Major League Soccer’s New England Revolution, also had
concerns about the need for a new stadium but said that
would not have stopped him from going ahead with the deal.
He says he is fond of Liverpool, noting that the
Revolution’s coach, Steve Nicol, used to play there and
praised the club’s fans for their loyalty and passion.
He added, however, that they were not the only club he would
consider investing in if a cap were in place.
“I wanted to take over Liverpool,” said Kraft. “I met with
[the then chairman] David Moores, who is a fine gentleman,
and we came very close to buying it, very close."
(Liverpool Daily Post) |
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THURSDAY 25 |
Pennant considering options
Jermaine Pennant is considering moving abroad, his agent Sky
Andrew has confirmed.
Speaking to Sky Sports News, Andrew admitted there was
interest from England and also overseas.
In January Pennant, whose contract with Liverpool is about
to come to and end, was linked with Real Madrid before he
sealed a loan move to Fratton Park.
Now the 26-year-old winger is weighing up his options before
deciding on his next move.
"We have the episode in January where there was a fee agreed
with [Real] Madrid for him to go there but that didn't
happen," Andrew told
Sky Sports News.
"Now he is thinking about what his next move is going to be,
whether in England or abroad."
(Sky Sports)
Rovers set to welcome the Reds
Tranmere Rovers will entertain Premier League giants
Liverpool at Prenton Park next month for the second
successive pre-season.
Rovers' new management team of John Barnes and Jason
McAteer, both former Anfield favourites, will welcome a
Liverpool XI to Prenton Park on Friday, July 24 (7.45pm).
Reds legend Barnes said: "This will be a great chance for my
squad to show what they can do and hopefully both sets of
fans will enjoy
the game.
"I look forward to welcoming my old club to Prenton Park
ahead of the new season."
(TEAMtalk)
New job for Parry
Rick Parry has found a new job for himself.
Liverpool's outgoing Chief Executive has been appointed
chairman of a panel set up by Sports Minister Gerry
Sutcliffe to investigate ways of rooting out corruption in
sports betting.
The panel is made up of top names from the betting world,
the Gambling Commission, and legal experts and will meet for
two days a month over the next six months.
"It is an interesting and challenging role. What's quite
interesting about this is that the minister of sport is
being proactive in wanting to check that we are doing
everything we can to protect integrity in sport," said
Parry.
"The paying public have a right to expect integrity in sport
competitions.
"I don't think there's any suggestion there is widespread
corruption in sport, but now is a good time to review it and
I am delighted to have been asked to be involved."
(LFC Online)
£3million bid accepted for Leto
Rafael Benitez is hoping for a cash boost to his transfer
coffers, after accepting a £3m bid from Panathinaikos for
Sebastian Leto.
With Alvaro Arbeloa also set to make a decision on his
future as soon as Spain's Confederations Cup campaign
finishes on Sunday, Benitez's transfer fund could be boosted
by £8m over the weekend.
Winger Leto says he is “90 percent” certain he will play his
football at Panathinaikos next season.
The Argentine spent last season on loan at Greek champions
Olympiakos, but fell out with coach Erneste Valverde during
his
time there.
“I am very close to joining Panathinaikos,” he said.
“There are negotiations between Panathinaikos and Liverpool
and as far as I know the two sides are very close to a deal.
“I think that the possibilities of playing at Panathinaikos
next season are more than 90 per cent.
“I have been waiting for something from Olympiakos all these
weeks but they haven’t made a move for me so far.
“It's not a matter of money. I wanted to stay at Olympiakos
but since they don't want to sign me I have to think about
my future.”
(Liverpool Echo)
Despair for Torres as USA beat Spain
There was major despair for Fernando Torres and Spain after
they lost 2-0 to rank outsiders USA in their Confederations
Cup semi-final on Wednesday night.
El Nino, Xabi Alonso and Albert Riera were all in Vicente
Del Bosque's starting line-up but it was a disappointing
night as USA, who ended the game with 10 men, produced one
of the all-time great shocks in international football.
The result also meant La Furia Roja's dreams of setting a
new world record were dashed and they now share that 35 game
unbeaten feat
with Brazil.
Torres and Alonso played the full 90 minutes while Riera
played for 77 minutes before being substituted. Pepe Reina
and Alvaro Arbeloa remained on the bench.
(LFC Official Website)
Thor Zakariassen
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