7 Oct 2014

On the Brink: LFC to sign 'brilliant' £16m star next week. €20m Madrid star also waiting in the wings

After weeks of speculation, Liverpool are reportedly on the verge of signing 'brilliant' ex-Barcelona goalkeeper Victor Valdes.

In September, reports in Spain claimed that Liverpool had agreed personal terms with Valdes over a possible one-year deal, and multiple reports today claim that:

* Valdes is having medical tests at Anfield this week.

* He is expected to be signed by October 19th.

After his knee ligament injury, it makes sense to rigorously test Valdes to ensure he's fully recovered, as the last thing the club needs is another sick-note in the squad.

If the Spaniard signs, Mignolet's place in the team will come under intense pressure, but the Belgian is unfazed by the speculation. Last week, he told reporters:

"If I have to look into all the people and players who are linked with Liverpool, then there will be another team on the pitch. Every week there would be a different 11 playing."

Jamie Carragher wants his old club to sign Valdes, and when asked about the proposed transfer recently, he said: said:

"Yes [LFC should sign Valdes] - all top clubs now have 2 keepers contesting the number one spot".

Carra also dismissed suggestions that Mignolet should be dropped, though to be fair, it's not as if he'd say anything else in a public forum.

A player with Valdes' history - and winning mentality - will be a massive boost for the squad, and to get him as a free agent - when only a year ago he was valued at £16m - would be a major transfer coup.

On a related note - Real Madrid legend Iker Casillas is also linked with a move to Anfield, and if the deal for Valdes falls through, the Spaniard is allegedly Rodgers' next option. When asked about his future this week, Casillas admitted that he'd 'love to have a experience abroad', adding:

"I’ve thought about leaving Spain. I don’t want to rub anyone the wrong way or create a bad air, because you always want Madrid to win. But then you think: “I have to compete and fight"

€20m-rated Casillas is still one of the world's top goalkeepers, and his experience in the game is second-to-none. If it came down to a straight choice right now, I'd take Casillas, but given his intense love for Madrid, a move seems doubtful.

As for Valdes - if/when he finally signs for the Reds, he is going to be under the most intense pressure. Liverpool's defensive issues are well documented, and fans are going to expect him to come straight in and steady the ship.

That, however, is a wildly unrealistic expectation. The same thing happened with Dejan Lovren; everyone expected him to immediately solve LFC's defensive issues, but the problems continue, and the Croatian has already admitted that he's finding things 'difficult' at Anfield.

The minute Valdes makes a mistake, the knives will be out, and the doom and gloom over Liverpool's defensive problems will intensify. I fully expect Valdes to make a couple of mistakes - goalkeepers are not infallible, and errors are inevitable.

Consistency is the key, though, and given his vast experience, Valdes is arguably better equipped than Mignolet to make the required impact on the team.

Author:


16 comments:

  1. Don't know why people hate Valdes so much. There are so many advantages of signing the Spaniard-
    1. His presence will force Mignolet to perform better.
    2. He would be more than a good backup keeper.
    3. His vast experience can only help Mignolet.

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  2. We need a top GK like Valdes now. Mignolet is average. Mignolet has good reflexes but poor judgement of football in every sense.

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  3. liverpool hate jaimiees5:57 pm, October 07, 2014

    why di you block me fool

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  4. Isn't Casillas more physically tuned to the premier league than Valdes? Either way, both are top shots. Now to get Pearl from a barca as well.

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  5. Oops, meant Pedro, damn this swype keyboard!

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  6. I don't think Pedro will be going anywhere with Barca's transfer ban. That is unless he throws a big fit, but that is unlikely, with him being a local lad.

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  7. Casillas is shorter than Valdés, so I'd say no. Also Valdés is more aggressive. Casillas looks a shadow of his former self nowadays. Moving to a more physical league doesn't seem the antidote for that.

    Not sure either will be perfect for the Prem, but Valdés is certainly more decisive than Mignolet. We'll have to see if he has the physical capacity to play as he did for Barca.

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  8. Yeah, seems a no brainer. Maybe he won't be the 'keeper he was before the injury, but he is better than Brad Jones at least. I doubt we're going to be offering him a 4-year contract.

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  9. Nice pot entail step forward to mentor / replace Mignolet as needed. Still need to solve the DM issue or else God will need to be our next goalie signing......

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  10. thexcuriousxwanderer6:20 am, October 08, 2014

    I hope there won't be communication issues when Valdes commands the back 4 in the area. 2 out of the back 4 are currently Spanish, but most importantly the CBs don't speak Spanish (I am guessing, and referring to Skrtel and Lovren). Sakho, on the other hand, should understand some Spanish, and should he want to pick it up it will be a lot easier as he knows French.

    It may seem funny, but I think it is quite a practical aspect of the game. Thoughts?

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  11. Cech should be our next keeper. He's already said he won't be a no 2 for long

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  12. Chelsea will never sell him to Liverpool.

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  13. What everyone is missing is that we had a perfectly good keeper In Pepe Reina.
    Brendan's personal issues with him trumped practicality.
    We should have kept Reina and had Mingolet and him fight it out.
    Brendan's man management skills are sometimes questionable.
    Yes Reina courted Barcelona but he came back and said he wanted to stay and fight for his place and wasn't allowed to.
    I'm not sure what point Brendan was trying to make in getting rid of him.

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  14. He also played 2 seasons as a pale imitation of his former self. He was and still is, rubbish at crosses. Not for that wage either

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  15. Yeah and Mingolet is pulling up trees at the moment. Brilliant at crosses (NOT).
    Yeah Brad Jones is a better bet for No2 than Reina and Mingolet (NOT)

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  16. I would go for Valdes who is underrated at Spain, every game in Spain he is on the bench and he derserves better. He is a top goalkeeper.

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