15 Aug 2014

'It's a Risk': Lawro hints that BR made a mistake selling 'outstanding' LFC star. Agree?

After a long, protracted transfer saga, Pepe Reina finally left Anfield for good this week. Many Reds fans will probably concede that the Reina's career is now on a slow downward spiral, but he is still revered by a large section of the LFC fanbase, including Reds legend Mark Lawrenson, who admits that he's sorry to see the Spaniard leave.

Reacting to Reina's €2m move to Bayern Munich, Lawro told the Liverpool Echo:

"I was sad to see Pepe go because I am a big fan. I really do think he is an outstanding keeper but on the plus side it does get his huge wages off the bill.

"You just hope that one doesn’t come to bite us but it's a risk all managers take with exits like that"


Lawro also argued that replacing Reina is a priority, and I totally agree with that. Reina may not be the 'keeper he once was, but had he stayed, he'd undoubtedly be formidable competition for Simon Mignolet, who (IMO), is an inferior player.

Right now, Mignolet has no competition for his place, and that needs to change. Brad Jones is a capable goalkeeper, but he's not a serious challenger for the number one spot, and if the Belgian is to improve, he needs to feel the fire, and be forced to fight for his place.

Last season, Mignolet - according to Opta - made SIX mistakes that led directly to opposition goals, which is a higher error rate than any other goalkeeper in the league.

Mignolet also conceded more goals in his first season than Reina did in his final season, which is generally acknowledged to be the Spaniard's worst in a Liverpool shirt.

For me, Mignolet is not the long-term solution for Liverpool, and I hope that Rodgers brings in another goalkeeper capable of relegating the Belgian to the subs bench.

Having said that, it's only worth bringing in another goalkeeper if Rodgers is genuinely prepared to allow the new player to depose Mignolet. If the new 'keeper's sole purpose is to challenge Mignolet from the bench (i.e like Brad Jones), then I don't see the point.

If the new goalkeeper gets a chance and takes it, he should stay in the team on merit, and if that means Mignolet becomes a benchwarmer, then so be it.

Author:


86 comments:

  1. Well if the reports are true that Sterling's wages are set to jump from 30K a week to 120K, then getting Reina's wages off our books was just in time. Of course Sterling has been earning his wages of late.

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  2. That's still a bit too much. Maybe 90k is ok but 120k is too much for a teenager.

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  3. Pepe situation is the same as Agger now. You can't be looking at another woman when your wife or girl is by your side. Unless you are a pimp!!

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  4. Disappointing to see Pepe go because, as you say JK, he is better than Mignolet. His form recovered last season when he was reunited with Xavi Valero (and Rafa, but I always felt it was Valero who he really missed. Kenny was planning on bringing him back apparently before he got the axe).


    I think we really dropped a bollock by letting Diego Lopez go to Milan. He proved himself better than Casillas and was good enough for Mourinho and Ancelotti, which proves his quality. A tall man too and around the prime age for a 'keeper (32) which means he'd have slotted in very well. Galliani spends nothing on players too, so you know the fee and the wage offered to Lopez would be well within our budget. We can also offer Lopez Champions League, which Milan can't and won't be able to next season either, barring a miracle.

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  5. True, but if what we hear of the likes of Real sniffing around after him, huge wages are the way to go. A player is working for his livelihood, and most people in other jobs would see monetary remuneration as reason enough to switch jobs, or in this case, clubs. Can we blame these players for wanting to earn as much as they can?

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  6. Age is not a factor in calculating the remuneration of an outstanding performer IMO. Regarding Reina I would be interested to know what attempts (if any) did BR make to have Reina accept a lower salary. If he asked him to accept payment identical to Mignolet so that they both competed to be the Reds true No1 from parity and he refused then he was right to release him. - I suspect he did not! Liverpool would have benefited greatly by having both competing to be 'top-cat' as we compete again in the CL.

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  7. Is it worth putting in a cheeky bid for Cech? He's likely to warm the bench at Chelsea

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  8. Hello there.

    A few points. Firstly IMO is text speak, which goes against the site rules.

    Secondly, Reina courted Barcalona like Lucy Cunnigham courted free boob jobs. Liverpool were a stepping stone to him going to Barca, which is no good when you are trying to plan a season. Can you imagine with a week to go, Barca putting in a cheeky bid, turning Reina's head and leaving us until January with Brad Jones. If you're playing for LFC it's because you want to be here, not because you're mates are here or it's a springboard to better things. That's why Mignolet was signed, because his stats were far superior and he wanted to be here on lesser wages. You have to rely on key players and Reina had made it public on more than one occasion that he would jump ship if Barca called.

    Anyway, if you're up to date on the latest gossip, you'll know that we are suppose to be swapping Coates for the Sampdoria/Argentina keeper who will offer more competition to Mignolet than Brad Jones will. The keeper position being the only one that has not had any serious competition to the no1 since Dudek/Kirklan

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  9. I was happy to have both keepers here, I thought they would have been good competition for each other, but Pepe's relationship with Rodgers and the club was too fractured. Seems like there was no way back. There have been plenty of points where we could have kept Reina as direct competition so it's not insignificant that we've seemingly been desperate to sell him. I think once he expressed his desire to play in Spain Liverpool effectively disowned him and that was the end of his time here. I even suggested keeping him this season, he'd have been good enough to challenge for a spot, but it seems like that was never a consideration.


    Yeah, we need decent competition in the squad, but on the other hand there are consistent criticisms of this club having quality backup players never getting a chance. I don't think you can have it both ways. The goal keeper is the one member of the starting 11 who is most consistently selected. The manager won't want to chop and change the keeper, it would only be a particularly bad run of form that would make that happen and no matter that Mignolet has made 6 mistakes, he was never poor enough to warrant being dropped. We already had an unsteady defence, changing the keeper is the last thing we would have wanted to do unless that keeper was a clear upgrade. I don't agree that shifting between 2 keepers, neither of whom have 100% confidence, is even going to be a good idea. You work out who your best keeper is, you pick him and then you stick with him until (if) he has a series of poor games that is serious enough that he has to be dropped.


    That doesn't mean we can't have two good keepers at the club, it just means that one of them is going to have a long season sitting on the bench and will eventually want to leave. By JKs usual logic that means he either needs to be a veteran at the end of his career or a young guy looking to make his name at a big club and supersede the established keeper. Or maybe a quality keeper from a smaller league who's always been underrated and fancies himself in the big leagues. Alternatively there is nothing stopping the club having two international grade keepers in the squad, both highly paid, and just picking whoever turns out to be the best. It just turns out to be expensive.

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  10. For me begovic was a better choice over mignolet. Having watched simon it clear he has weaknesses in distribution and crosses (reina was much better in this area).

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  11. I don't fancy Romero. I prefer him to Jones but I think he is an accident waiting to happen, despite having a good World Cup.

    I really think that with the money we have available, we should have made more of an effort to improve our options at GK. Mignolet/Jones is undoubtedly the worse choice in the top 7. The only starting 'keeper you could make an argument for Migs being better than in the top 7 is Howard and I wouldn't agree with that myself. I don't think Mignolet is awful, his reflex saves are tremendous and he had a few excellent performances for us, but I have my doubts on him making the step up and those doubts are strengthened by a lack of competition.

    Also good call on the IMO thing. I expect Jaimie to ban himself.

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  12. IMO is not text speak. Please just stick to discussing football and drop the pointless smart-alec comments. Also, do not refer to another poster's view as 'ridiculous', as you did in another (now deleted) comment.

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  13. 120K a week? Absolute disgrace. Why does a 19 year old need that kind of pay rise?

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  14. We could put a bid in for Cech, that would be funny. Would never happen though.

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  15. To keep him at the club normal rules of supply and demand apply especially where football is concerned.

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  16. Yes I'd be very happy for my employer to ask me to take a pay cut

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  17. Let's see how Mignolet does this season now that Lovren brings the leadership we lacked last season and hopefully Johnson is benched and either Flanagan or Manquillo are picked ahead of him. Moreno I am pretty sure will be our first choice LB.


    We have a new look defence now...

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  18. If 120k is indeed true i will bet the buyout clause is mammoth.

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  19. I would. Never judge mignolet till we have a more commanding defense .... Our defense has really been poor in the BR era. Verrrry poor.

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  20. Feel sad for Kelly though. he guy thought he was going to one of the best defensive tacticians in the world only to find out he leaves on the first day.

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  21. Constant references to his (supposed) wages are tiresome. It has been reported that we paid double to Suarez and probably similar to SG but very few complain about that,


    This is the consequence of holding on to players in a competitive environment. If you want to "tie" them to a contract to to ensure a future transfer fee, they will want something in return. It's a bit rich when you subsequently decide to get rid of them that their wages are cited as a factor. All footballers are paid ridiculous sums (as are others in many walks of life) It's called capitalism - get over it.(as Jaimie might well say)


    I question the suggestion that competition is always the answer. The very best footballers are motivated to be just that, the best. Look at Suarez, Gerrard etc They don't need obvious competition for their place in the team, though cover is needed for other reasons such as injuries etc.


    I am also (possibly) willing to give Pepe the benefit of doubt for wanting to join Barcelona, the club he apparently supported as a boy. If I was playing for another club and an opportunity came up to join Liverpool that would be difficult to resist even if I had ties to my current club. I don't know of course if that really was the case with Pepe but I can see that might be a valid reason for considering a move.

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  22. You can if you keep just a fraction behind her so she annot see where you are looking. But beware the sixth sense!

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  23. i agree about romero. he does not appear to be the most composed keeper out there.

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  24. definitely worth a shot. mourinho does not bother moving his players on to rival clubs if he gets a good deal. but his wages are going to be bumper so cant see us going for it.

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  25. He didn't have to voice his desire to return. I never heard Rickie Lambert talking fondly of signing for us whilst at Southampton. It's about respect and Reina didn't show enough.

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  26. Mate, it is all well and good wanting to leave for the club you support but you do not leave like that. He publicly wrote out of his desire and disrespected the lub. If he had quietly told the management that he wanted to leave, he could have easily gotten his move and gone out gracefully. But, this clearly hindered his performances and as a result, he had to move on. He was earning those high wages for bad performances but Luis and Stevie were giving good performances and were arguably earning those wages.

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  27. Sorry but all Reina cared about was money.


    He could of gone to Napoli and be there No.1 keeper but instead he chose to go to Bayern and keep the bench warm because there paying him more.


    I glad he is gone as I want players who want to play for Liverpool which Reina clearly didn't

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  28. I agree a lot of things went on that I did not like either and looking back is difficult because it is difficult to establish how things developed.


    From what I can see he had talks about moving to Barcelona but this only came out after he was loaned to Napoli. I still think he should have kept his gob shut but his relationship with BR was shot and his pride was probably hurt. I suppose too he wanted to make sure Barcelona and their fans knew he was interested but agree it was not a good move.

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  29. I agree he went about some things in the wrong way.


    All those involved could have handled things better and Pepe has to shoulder a fair bit of blame for the way things went. But at the end of the day I think we have a lesser goalkeeper now, sold Pepe on the cheap and had more bad publicity as a result.

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  30. We have a lesser goalkeeper who has the time to improve and consolidate on his game. I think that Migno is a confidence player. When he has confidence, he is unstoppable and during the first three games, he did look unstoppable. Remember that game against Everton where he made at least 10 good saves. If we support him and help him, he will become a star. Also, he was also the victim of a constantly changing defence. We have to see how he does when the defence is settled.

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  31. We know not to believe the papers by now don't we? Didn't they say he was getting eighty or something last time? All they know is he is getting a better contract and have thrown barmy figures around to create outrage. It seems it worked.

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  32. I see your point but imagine if we had a Essien or a Makalele character in the middle combined with the flair we already have, amazing! But by no means is this physicality exclusive to Africans, Matic, Petit, Schneiderlin prove this very well!

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  33. People have short memories, Song always came up short in whatever role he did.

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  34. replacing a goal keeper is never an easy task, but I think Liverpool have done pretty well. Ok, he isn't a world beater, but he isn't a terrible keeper.
    We do need to get a better back up option though. Reina wasn't happy to do this, although it's fine to do at Bayern.... But what ever, we should look at signing a young keeper with really good potential, and give him a few games here and there.

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  35. Agree. At the end of the day you have to back the manager. It's up to the players to do what he wants or risk being replaced and moved on.

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  36. Yeah, good points...but Romero though....

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  37. Because that's football these days Jaimie.

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  38. Nevergonnacrackthecode11:39 am, August 15, 2014

    porto and ajax always sell their best players but win the league
    sure this league is more competitive but spain is the most competitive league of all
    and athetico won it who operate as a selling club

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  39. There's no point comparing ajax and porto to us because they play in weaker leagues that they enjoy monopolies/duopolies in. They may sell to bigger clubs around Europe, but everyone else in their respective leagues are still below them.


    Last season was just one of those years for Atletico where all the planets aligned for them. Barca were nowhere near their best, and Real Madrid kind of stuffed it up themselves. If only we took advantage of planets aligning for us...

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  40. 2011 happened because we had cowboys running the show.

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  41. Its actually 1 Mammoth, 2 Elephants and a Kangaroo ;)

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  42. Bit distressed to read this morning that 'tis rumoured Atletico have a agreed a fee with Dortmund of less then £25 million for Marco Reus, one of the most effective attacking mids in world football. Less than £25 million. Where the hell are our boys? I'm guessing they're probably in Swansea.

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  43. I don't know about him really but perhaps that should tell me something. I assume you don't rate him?

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  44. if you think this has a happy ending, you have not been paying attention.

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  45. Nevergonnacrackthecode12:12 pm, August 15, 2014

    madrid vs liverpool ?
    where do you think he would rather live?

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  46. Finally....someone nails the joke. Stellar work! You're wasting your talents here when you could be writing for The Sun...

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  47. Do not think he has a wife to make his decision for him on which club he plays. Anyways, Atleti are in a much better position than us and Dortmund so do not see how us bidding would have made a difference.

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  48. Nevergonnacrackthecode12:20 pm, August 15, 2014

    sanchez does not have a wife either

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  49. Then, why the rumours on his wife being some fashion stylist and not being able to live in Liverpool. Anyways, I do not care anymore. Reus would not have signed anyways.

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  50. Nevergonnacrackthecode12:25 pm, August 15, 2014

    he has a girlfriend , not married yet though!

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  51. "Reina did not want to sit on the bench" So why did he sign for Bayern then?



    He is never going to supplant Neuer who is one of the best, if not the best goalkeepers in the World.


    He could of gone to Napoli if he didn't want to sit on the bench but he didn't because he would of have to drop his wage demands.


    Reina isn't interested in being No1, only thing he is interested in is money.

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  52. You could say that about every team in the Premiership. How many players turn down Barc or RM to stay or sign for a English club?

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  53. Nevergonnacrackthecode12:40 pm, August 15, 2014

    man city and chelsea players

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  54. I meant that Reina did not want to sit on the Liverpool bench because he was not earning enough. At Bayern, he is earning more than at Liverpool and hence he made the move there. I agree with you about that.

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  55. Pretty sure that if RM or Barca come calling for Hazard or Aguero, they would join in a heartbeat.

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  56. Yup, that is why I do not understand anybody saying we should of kept him. He has proven that the only thing he cares about is money.

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  57. Nevergonnacrackthecode12:45 pm, August 15, 2014

    kompany and silva have both rejected barca and real madrid
    while augero has linked with for ages but yet to join

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  58. Can't believe we didn't put ourselves in the mix to buy Reus. Apart from location, Liverpool have at least just as much appeal as Atletico.

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  59. Nevergonnacrackthecode12:49 pm, August 15, 2014

    to you , players will look at all the trophies atheti won(la liga nd europa leagues and copa del reys ) , the fact they are in cl final is massive, that ultimately was one of the main reason fernando left them for us


    this is the truth we have not a single MAJOR trophy for 8 years and we have not been in Europe elite for 4 years , this is FACT

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  60. I would not consider spending £20 to bring Song to Anfield. Decent player but I would insist Barcelona lower their valuation significantly before even considering.

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  61. Uh, dude, Atletico are just as likely as winning the La Liga as Liverpool are winning the EPL. Who the hell is going to beat Madrid and Barca to that title?


    I'm pretty sure that Reus could not give a flying f*** about the Europa League. The Copa Del Rey is the equivalent of winning the FA cup, a cup which Liverpool can just as easily win.

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  62. Nevergonnacrackthecode12:55 pm, August 15, 2014

    but athletico can guarantee cl every year as you said reus does not want to play europa league , in spain there are 3 good teams


    in england there are now 5 top teams and two extra potential top teams in tottenham and everton


    most people predict man u will take our place without suarez there

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  63. Do not see why Atleti would want Reus anyways. They got Griezmann.

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  64. Nevergonnacrackthecode12:56 pm, August 15, 2014

    ............................mandzukic
    greizeman............koke.....................reus




    wow that is a top attack

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  65. No, that's nine goals and 6 assists, all at the right end :-)

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  66. ...Who wouldn't want him?

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  67. Been banging that drum for a while now...

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  68. Not most people. But I guess you have a point about that.

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  69. If only there was a top 6...

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  70. They have Arda Turan as well. We should go for Arda is Reus joins Atleti. He is an avid Liverpool fan as well.

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  71. It's ridiculous that Reus can be available for £21.6m and Bony for around £17m and we are p*ssing about with bids for Cavani for more than those two put together even including wages

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  72. Erm, IMO is text speak really isn't it Jamie?
    More to the point though...it's pointless. When you post an article, it's your opinion. So IMO is unnecessary..unless of course you'r obsessed with presenting some points as 'facts' and others as 'opinion'. People are intelligent enough to discern what the facts are for themselves. IMO is a slightly condescending term...I'm resisting the urge to say, "in my opinion" of course.
    You'll probably delete this, that's OK. It's not a snipe - I enjoy your articles - hopefully nothing wrong with a bit of feedback. If I could have messaged you privately I would have. I find your compulsion to respond to petty comments quite amusing. I think you'd be better off making light of some things. Anyway, that's your call.

    Anyhoo, to make this a football related post, I think saying £120k wages being a disgrace for a teenager, is a moral comment (and one I agree with) but needs to be seen simply as an economic business decision.

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  73. People should be intelligent enough to discern between opinion and fact, but this is not the case. People endlessly moan about me allegedly stating opinion as fact, even when it is blatantly obvious I'm stating an opinion, so I have no option but to use 'IMO' in articles. It saves me having to waste time later explaining the obvious.

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  74. LFC need striker not another midfielder.

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  75. Not signing L Remy(27) a proven Goal Scorer who would guarantee the club 15-30 goals a season for £10-£12M, yet the F Borini(23) situation is what messed up that deal.


    And the fact we have still not signed M Reus(25) Of B Dortmund for £23-£28M


    When for months most fans of Liverpool have wanted him and we are about to lose out on him to A Madrid.But A Madrid have already signed Two Marquee signings this summer:


    Mandzukic(28) Of B Munich for £17M and
    A Griezmann(23) Of R Sociedad for £24M


    B Rodgers and I Ayre need to take their fingers oUT AND HIJACK THE Deal offer B Dortmund £24M for M Reus(25) and also offer £12-£16M for L Adriano(27) Of Shakhtar Donesk






    And then that Romero(27) Of Sampdoria ( GK) will be signed in swap deal with S Coates(24) Plus cash and then the club would be set for the season.

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  76. Chike Nathan Akwuobi4:54 pm, August 15, 2014

    Capital NO to etoo

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  77. NO MORE ITALIAN PLYERS PLEASE...

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  78. Like as we replace torres with carrol we don,t need big name to replace him now BR just get us bony is okay next season we will reasarch thank you mate

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  79. we break so fast now, sterling , sturridge, hendo, and now new signing like Can can also move fast on counter, would Boni be anywhere near the box when we need him ?, that's one hell of a racing team we have there.

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  80. F Delph(24) is a descent footballer, but he is better offensively than defensively.

    We need a DM who will just do the dirty work and pass the ball in the centre of park a player who protects back four well using his speed of thought to read danger, energy,mobility, pace, speed and tough tackling in centre of park.

    That player should be E Capoue(24) Of Tottenham should be brought to the club for £6-£8M
    Last season he was not fully fit and he was not given a fair chance, if he is fully fit and injury free and played in the DM he could become a World class player in future.

    www.youtube.com/watch?v=mH0ywzaOLaQ

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  81. I think we have to give time to BR, he will get us Boney for 16M salary of 60k a week

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  82. rumor mill and it seems like it's gathering pace but then as fast as rumor goes, it fizzles really fast. I'm hearing Ballotelli on loan...

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  83. Bony will be good for Plan B...He is a real threat with Headers...Bony is a realistic target too as BR has pulling power with Swansea City

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  84. bony = carroll mate i would rather pay 6m loan fee for falcoa and have him 1 season with option to buy

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