14 Oct 2014

'The Beast' to LFC? - BR fighting to sign 'phenomenal' €20m attacker. Coutinho beware?

During the summer transfer window, Liverpool were regularly linked with a €20m move for Paris St. Germain star Ezequiel Lavezzi, and new reports suggest that the Reds are set to intensify their interest in the 'phenomenal' attacker.

According to Sportmediaset today:

* Liverpool are planning a January bid for 29-year old Lavezzi.

* The Reds are in a four-way battle with Inter Milan, Napoli and Atletico Madrid over the deal.

It's easy to see Lavezzi's appeal to Rodgers:

* Versatile, and can play as striker, or out wide.
* Works very hard on the field, and is good defensively.
* Has pace, which is always a plus for any attacking player.

Lavezzi appears to be the archetypal Rodgers player, and Argentina boss Alejandro Sabella underlined this in June, when he highlighted Lavezzi's positive influence on his squad. He enthused:

"Players like Lavezzi are always very positive, because they keep players happy. They keep a nice atmosphere in the group. And Lavezzi is a great player. He never makes negative comments, and he is always supporting the team."

Creative stats for PSG:

* 23 goals/18 assists in 96 appearances,
* Goal every 3.9 games.
* Goal/assist every 2.1 games.

With Sturridge increasingly injury prone, it's a priority to have another quality forward player who is seemingly impervious to injury, and Lavezzi - nicknamed 'The Beast' by the Argentina media - certainly fits the bill:

* 284 appearances in the last 7 years.
* Averages 40 games a season.
* Missed only 12 games through injury in the last 10 years.

In my view, Lavezzi is a great player to have in the squad, for the following reasons:

* Huge Champions League experience, which is lacking in LFC's current squad.
* The finished article, and capable of coming in and making an immediate impact.
* Superior option to both Fabio Borini and Rickie Lambert.
* Will improve the overall quality of the squad.
* Will score and create goals to help fill the Suarez void.
* A steady, consistent player who rarely gets injured.
* Strong, hard-working, and physical presence on the field. Perfect fit for the Prem.
* Unlikely to moan if he's not in the starting line-up every week.
* Young players like Coutinho, Sterling, and Markovic can learn from his experience.

Lavezzi has not completed a full 90 minutes for PSG this season, which suggests he's surplus to requirements. The obvious downside is that the Argentine is approaching 30, but if the price is reasonable, I see very few negatives to this potential deal.

The question is, what is a reasonable price? €20m for 29-year old is a bit steep, but if LFC could get Lavezzi for €12-€15m, then it's worth it (IMO)

If Liverpool sign Lavezzi, whose place in the team will be most under threat? He often plays out wide, mostly on the left, so Markovic and Coutinho will face some formidable competition for a first-team place. That's a good thing, though, especially in Coutinho's case - the Brazilian's LFC career seems to have stalled, and perhaps he needs to feel the fire in order to get back on the right path.

survey software


Author:


17 comments:

  1. I wouldn't say its a priority, but I guess one more attacking player couldn't hurt..... Only one though. Lavezzi, Reus, Benzema, Cavani etc. all seem a bit far-fetched yet logical to an extent.

    ReplyDelete
  2. i still could not understand why liverpool signed both lambert and balotelli..there is hardly any difference in their style of play...i still envy man city for their striking options..fourth choice striker steven jovetic who is very good in my opinion

    ReplyDelete
  3. Lavezzi is simply not prolific enough to fill the void left by Suarez. Reus is. This talk of CL experience. We could be out of the competition with no hope of top 4 by January!

    ReplyDelete
  4. 0 assists in 24 starts playing alongside Zlatan Ibrahimovic or Edinson Cavani who scored 42 goals between them. Are you having a laugh?! He's be cup-tied for the Champions League too, so he can have as much experience as he likes!! No thanks.

    ReplyDelete
  5. To be perfectly honest, I often see him play and he's not that good. He's strong and never stops running but technically he's quite limited. Sort of Borini on steroids.

    ReplyDelete
  6. "The BEAST to LFC? Brendan Rodgers fighting to sign 'phenomenal' €20m attacker.The superlative and valuation is spot on!:)

    ReplyDelete
  7. but even if the transfer is made in January, will he be able to play for us in UCL?by the time he is ready to play for us, we could be out of the competition itself...

    ReplyDelete
  8. You have a point; 29 and he has hardly hit the heights has he?

    ReplyDelete
  9. Stuart i wasn't talking about Ezequiel Lavezzi.I thought the article was about me:-7
    He works hard and looks good at times but Lavezzi's never shown the consistency needed to be a jigsaw piece a big club can rely on.
    At 29 he won't improve.His best days are behind him.Lavezzi's a level above average, but nothing more.
    We need to show ambition in the transfer market.Liverpool can do better!

    ReplyDelete
  10. Doh - undervalued I'd say!

    ReplyDelete
  11. Who are sportmediaset when they're at home? More nonsense. It must be a slow week in the transfer rumour mill cos the media seem to just be regurgitating stories about the players we were linked with at the end of the summer window.

    ReplyDelete
  12. B Rodgers needs to forget sign Lavezzi(29) at all, B Rodgers two attacking players he should sign in January should be :


    1: M Reus(25) Of Borussia Dortmund for £22-£30M RWF / LWF
    2: Pedro(27) Of Barcelona for £23-£26M


    These two players are the only two attacking players who should be brought to the club this January: B Rodgers have has wasted too much money on potential in the summer, now he needs to spend money on class creative experienced goal scoring attacking players with mobility, pace and speed to burn.


    Those two players would complement Balotelli(24) and Sturridge(25), these two either side of Sturridge(25) or Balotelli(24) will guarantee the club goals week in week out at Home and Away in any competition.

    ReplyDelete
  13. At last!
    A Twisty post I agree with 100%!!!!! ( aside the Pedro price)

    ReplyDelete
  14. If we can't get reus, lavezzi would be good enough

    ReplyDelete
  15. give sterling a good rest and an experiences mentor

    ReplyDelete
  16. Thanks for that , Pedro(27) is a world class player and if Sanchez(26) cost Arsenal £34M and Ozil(27) cost Arsenal £42M and Di Maria(26) cost Manchester United £59.8M then Pedro(27) is worth £26M as he used to score more goals in La Liga than all of the others.


    And if A Lallana(26) cost us £25M , then Pedro(27) a Spanish International who regularly scores at every level.


    I think he is more than worth £23-£26M

    ReplyDelete