16 Oct 2014

'I like him': Boss confirms discussions with LFC over 'perfect' €18m striker. Transfer Fail?

Last month, Fabio Borini's agent claimed that Liverpool blocked all attempts to take the Italian on loan during the summer, and now, it transpires that the Reds spurned the chance to the 'perfect professional' off the wage-bill by refusing to compromise on the sale price.

Speaking to FCInterNews in September, Marco De Marchi - Borini's agent - claimed that:

* Some 'very important clubs' in Europe wanted €18m-rated Borini on loan, but Liverpool rejected all loan offers.

* QPR tried to lowball the Reds with a low bid, but it was dismissed out of hand.

On Wednesday, Inter Sporting Director Piero Ausilio confirmed Inter Milan's prior interest in Borini, and claimed that Liverpool's inflexibility on the sale price sabotaged a possible transfer. He told TuttoSport:

"I like Borini, but Liverpool were asking much. We have made an attempt in the summer, then we took Osvaldo"

Responding to Ausilio's comments today, Borini's agent told reporters:

"That admiration makes us happy and proud. Of course I was aware of it and the interest in the player, but it’s pleasing that Ausilio is stating that publicly, I knew that Inter and other clubs were interested this summer."

For a club that's seemingly desperate to get rid of Borini, Liverpool seem to be doing everything possible to block the striker's exit. Why not just let him go out on loan? Brendan Rodgers has farmed out a few other players this summer (including Iago Aspas, another striker), so why block a loan deal for Borini, who clearly doesn't figure in the managers's plans?

Rejecting the loan also goes against Rodgers' insistence that Borini needs to 'move on' to get more 'regular' football. As recent events show, Borini will dig his heels in and refuse a move when it involves smaller teams (and to be fair, who can blame him?), but it's likely he would've jumped at the chance of a year at Inter Milan.

As for holding out for a massive transfer fee; forget it. Rodgers/FSG should just accept that Liverpool are going to make a loss on Borini, and cut their losses ASAP. After all, he contributes nothing to LFC, and his stats this season categorically prove that:

* Passing accuracy: 64% (Worst in the squad)
* 0 goals/assists
* 0 tackles, clearances, or blocks.
* 1 key pass in 3 games.
* Overall: 2 goals in 23 games for LFC.

Borini's stubborn intent to make it at Anfield is admirable, but as the stats show, his actual creative contribution simply isn't good enough to be a reliable starter, or even an impact sub.

In my view, Liverpool should just stop messing about and offload Borini ASAP, and if that means making a financial loss, then so be it.

Author:


9 comments:

  1. I'm pretty sure we did when we accepted Sunderlands (imo) outrageous bid. But the player said he didnt want to go because, for some reason, he throught Rogers would give him a chance to prove himself...something that clearly hasnt happened.
    I think BR should have sat him and his agent down in the summer and said, "You're not going to play this season. In the League and FA cup I will start Lambert over you. You are my fourth option and I'll only play you if I have to."
    The truth would have hurt but it would have prevented Borini from kidding himself into thinking he had a chance to establish himself here and we'd have 14mil to go straight to the Reus wage fund :)

    ReplyDelete
  2. I think they didn't want a loan deal as it would just mean another year of his contract gone, probably another injury so could then not be sold etc. They are trying to get back the money they forked out but no way would any Italian team pay that much. But I do agree with you, he is on a wage I dint know how much but whatever it is they should take that into consideration and also the fact that his valuation will go down further if he is not playing.

    ReplyDelete
  3. Terry McDermotts perm10:38 pm, October 16, 2014

    There's a difference between making a financial loss on a player and having your pants taken down. I'm also guessing he has 2 years on his contract so nows not the time for a loan. I think it's got to the stage when lfc have to say accept an offer like Sunderland's or rot on bench.

    ReplyDelete
  4. You are on fire today! I keep agreeing with your posts so much that I am near the point of having myself psychologically examined!!!!!!!!!!

    ReplyDelete
  5. It was a business decision, another case of the club setting down a marker and saying "this is how we operate". The club had an offer on the table for 12 million pounds so anything else needed to at least come close to that. A loan deal was no longer beneficial for Liverpool. The spell at Sunderland was great for the club and the player because Borini got a chance to show that he can contribute in the Premier League. It means the player got to play and the club got to retain the value of their asset. It worked exceptionally well for everyone. I think during the summer that offer from Sunderland was always there and Liverpool simply decided that this was the benchmark deal they wanted to work towards. Allowing Borini to go out on loan at any point would have undermined that. Right up until the last few hours of the window a deal could have been struck so Liverpool really had to stick to their guns, insist that a loan deal was not going to cut it and not accept low-ball offers that were substantially less than what was already being offered by Sunderland. Accepting less would have meant ... obviously ... accepting less. They didn't do that. OK, so it didn't work out and now we have a player we don't really need, but the club at least are showing that they will stick to their guns. Liverpool will not sell Borini on the cheap. That's the message.


    I suspect that a loan deal from January would be acceptable to the club. We're now back in that situation where Borini will lose value every week he doesn't play so that needs to be dealt with. It's absolutely not ideal what has happened but there is still a chance that a club will pay a reasonable sum for the player. Even though Borini is not playing it would be cheeky for a purchasing manager to suggest that his value is genuinely less. The player isn't injured, he's still got the skills, he's training with a top club ... he's still worth what Sunderland were willing to pay and even a season on the bench should only drop his value by a million or two.


    This is also all complicated by what Borini wants so it's not always as simply as just deciding where the player will go and forcing him into it. Borini clearly didn't want to go to Sunderland, that's his choice. In fact given that the player has a contract with Liverpool, it's his choice to stay around as long as he likes. He can refuse to sign with anyone and Liverpool ultimately have to suck it up and accept that.

    ReplyDelete
  6. We did the right thing not letting Borini go on loan. Been messed about with by Italian clubs of late in Aquilani and Reina all loans and low balls. The price we were willing to accept from QPR was lower than the Sunderland money so it showed flexibility. I think we did the right thing not allowing Player and agent to get their way for a loan. It did not suite us and at least we have the player in the squad rather than being a player down and him going on loan. I can see more on this in Jan for sure.

    ReplyDelete
  7. Through a couple of paragraphs and I can see why some of your old rationality has gone out the window.

    ReplyDelete
  8. i must be watching a different player because borini is a 5m to 8m player tops

    ReplyDelete