22 Feb 2013

'He's talented' - Rodgers hails 'wonderful' €6m Russian star. Anfield bound...?

The Agent of Russian midfielder Roman Shirokov recently claimed that 'leading' English clubs are interested in signing the Zenit St. Petersburg Captain, and Liverpool are apparently one of those clubs monitoring his situation. Is there any truth to the rumour? In his pre-Zenit press conference on Wednesday, Liverpool coach Brendan Rodgers directly addressed the speculation.

In a recent interview with Russian newspaper Sport Express, Arsen Minasov - Shirokov's Agent - said:

“There really is interest in Roman from English clubs. And we are talking about leading teams – those who either play in the Champions League or are trying to quality for the tournament.”

Liverpool fans got to see €6m-rated Shirokov in action in the last two Europa League games against Zenit, and it's clear to see why the powerful midfielder is in demand.

During his Wednesday press conference, a Russian journalist asked Rodgers if he would like to see Shirokov playing for Liverpool, and if the Reds are interested in signing the 31-year old. The Liverpool boss responded:

"If I was, I wouldn't tell you! He’s a talented player and a wonderful technician".

It's a typically non-committal response from Rodgers, but he didn't deny that Liverpool are interested. This is interesting because he usually says 'no' if the club is not following a player.

For example, in the same press conference, Journos quizzed him about Emanuel Eminike, and Rodgers emphatically said 'No, it's not true'. He also gave the same 'no' response when asked recently about Sneijder, Butland and Huntelaar.

Could Liverpool actually be interested in Shirokov? Given the fact he's 31, it seems unlikely, but with Rodgers recently stating that he wants the club to 'sign some men' in the summer, you never know.





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5 comments:

  1. does he fit the fsg policy? our survey said......er er!!!

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  2. I wouldn't say our scouts did quite well because they were very safe in their choices. Sturridge was a known quantity and Liverpool was already interested during the summer missing out on a loan deal before the current scouting team was in place.
    We were credited with an interest in Coutinho during Kenny's second stint summer transfer window.
    Tom Ince the other target is our youth product who opted to go to Blackpool to have a chance of development after being largely ignored under Hodgson and Kenny's reign..
    So I would say credit to the owners for signing the cheques but my verdict on the new scouts is open.
    Scouts need to unearth gems or goo for the likes of Sissoko at £1.5mln even though I am inclined to believe had Liverpool chief negotiator Ayre gone for him we would have paid £10mln showing how much we have inherited Newcastle's old penchant for overpaying.
    It is a nightmare when Liverpool passes up on the likes of Arda Turan when he was cheaper only to then like him once  his value doubled as was the case with Jackson Martinez who was cheaper before signing for Porto, Buruk Yilmaz is also another target whose value doubled so the Tom Ince saga is really a reflection of the liverpool's failure to manage resources.
    Common sense suggests you buy low get maximum value and then maybe let go for a big profit. Andy Carroll don't worry I am not talking about you.

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  3. Simply because of experience. We are loosing Carragher who has soo much experience so we need someone who can equally add experience.

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  4. StumblingJackSplash1:19 pm, February 24, 2013

    Part of the problem for the defence is the lack of protection offered by the midfield. I agree we need to look at centre halves, but there's more than one way to improve the defensive side of our game.

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  5. StumblingJackSplash1:23 pm, February 24, 2013

    It's truly unbelievable that we ignored the chance of getting Sissoko. Comolli wanted to bring him in and for once I agree with Comolli's choice. Etienne Capoue would also be worth considering.

    Rodgers needs to understand that players with physical attributes can also have technical ones. They're not mutually exclusive.

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