12 Feb 2015

Owen: £32m-attacker Benitez tried to sign at LFC is the 'signing-of-the-season'. Agree?

Who is best signing of season? With Diego Costa, Alexis Sanchez, and Cesc Fabregas have to be in the running, but according to ex-Liverpool striker Michael Owen, there's one particular player who eclipses them all.

Earlier today, 'fantastic' Chelsea attacker Eden Hazard signed a new five-and-a-half deal with Chelsea, and reacting to the news, Owen tweeted:

"[Eden] Hazard signs a new long term contract. That's the signing of the season".

Liverpool wanted Hazard two years before he signed for Chelsea, and Rafa Benitez confirmed this last year, when he told reporters:

"I can tell you 200 players I wanted to sign in my career and we couldn't. Eden Hazard, we wanted him at Liverpool. We couldn't sign him. In our list, maybe he was here [top] but we have to go for this one [lower down].

Hazard at Liverpool? That would've been one hell of a signing, but the Belgian was, perhaps, too young during Benitez's Anfield reign, and probably made the right decision to develop his game at Lille.

I doubt the transfer even got to the negotiation stage, though; Liverpool were probably priced out of any deal, and given the money Benitez wasted in his last two seasons at Anfield (not to mention throughout his entire tenure), it's no surprise the board put the stoppers on any further big-money transfers.

Hazard - who cost Chelsea £32m - is undoubtedly a top-class player, but given the choice, I would take Alexis Sanchez every day of the week.

When it comes to specific, measurable impact, Sanchez is having a greater impact on Arsenal in his first year at the club than Hazard, who is in his third season at Chelsea. Stats:

* Hazard: 13 goals/12 assists in 36 apps (25 in 36).
* Goal/assist every 1.4 games (1 every 119 mins)

* Sanchez: 18 goals/9 assists in 33 apps (27 in 33)
* Goal/assist every 1.2 games (1 every 98 mins)

For me, Sanchez is the buy of the season. Just imagine* if he'd signed for Liverpool; the Reds would probably be top of the league right now, or close to it.

On a related note, Philippe Coutinho and Daniel Sturridge both recently signed new deals, those two are as important for Liverpool as Hazard is for Chelsea.


31 comments:

  1. should have warned me about razor blades. fading....

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  2. There's something about Hazard's game that I simply don't like.


    There's no denying his talent, but it seems to me like he already feels he's entitled and I also think he resorts to tactics that are beneath him and his team.


    There's no denying that Suarez resorted to these tactics as well, but Suarez wasn't surrounded by a billion dollar roster. Not to absolve him of his sins, but I can at least understand why he would need to resort to gamesmanship elements to get ahead due to a lack of talent around him.


    Hazard seems to always look for contact no matter where he is on the field, and even though he is surrounded by loads of talent. I guess it comes down to the fact that I don't particularly care for Chelsea, and the way they play. After all Mourinho played for a draw in February against Man City instead of trying to put them away.


    I know that was a rambling response. I guess the moral of the story here is I don't care much for Hazard to begin with.


    I'd take Sanchez any day of the week on my team.

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  3. If he still feels like that he knows where we are. We need a deeper squad

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  4. STAY AWAY FROM THE WHITE LIGHT!

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  5. I think if he came to us he would not have been the Ronaldo we know now. Man United had the whole package to make him succeed...great team, attacking football philosophy and arguably the world's best manager.

    Now compare that with us at the time.

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  6. Depends on who you listen to. I read Fergie's book, and he reckons that Man United always had their foot in the door ahead of other clubs.

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  7. BR went to Italy to try and sort out a deal for Pjanic supposedly

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  8. Don't know about that one, great player, who now played for my second favourite team:)

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  9. would be great. naingolan too..

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  10. You actually watch football?. Well you're well ahead of most of us on here already then

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  11. He needs a week solid hyperbole and over praise to restore the balance

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  12. What utter rubbish. You and Logan are made for each other

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  13. On another note... Does anyone know who BR dashed off to scout?

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  14. Roma have a beast midfield, and we need their players in our midfield.

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  15. I remember that well, everyone seems to forget we wanted him before United... Fair play to fergie tho, he blew my mind when he came to the prem

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  16. Pjanic is blockbuster enough for me. As good as Koke and more experienced.

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  17. Gene I sure hope you are right.

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  18. Was it the board who put a stop to Rafas spending or H and Gs miserable efforts to fund the team for self profit me thinks the latter.

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  19. We had a good side during Rafas reign he would have got great service.

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  20. They were terrible weren't they? I remember the daily despair I felt in the last few months of their tenure. FSG saved Liverpool and I honestly believe the club is moving in the right direction on pretty much all fronts. We have a clear policy now and an identity on the pitch. I'm confident we're in good hands

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  21. If in doubt put it in the bini

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  22. Just give the win enough time to settle thougj first hey.:s

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  23. Been through this a billion times but hey ho. Rodgers starts with a possession based system. Working on the theory that while we have the ball we are leas likely to concede and more likely to score. This theory is flawed but thay is not the point. This system allows for time to work on the other side of the game. The pressing side. This came to play much more in second half of season. This is not easily instilled especially in teams that have played a much more conservative style. See Spurs now compared to a month or so ago. The second half of the season was better sue to this pressing and speedy transitions. Speedy transitions aides by the two best strikers in the league. Second season we had a full preseason ( unlike previously) we hit the ground running and continued where we left off. During the course ofvtje season we used many formations. Rodgers has talked about coaching tone many times.
    So then we get to this season. We have signed seven players taking over from many who had left wHo the previous season had had a full preseason. This year they did not. New players took time to settle. Rodgers went back to possession football with the idea of getting people up to speed on the pressing and tactical game. He used formations and players that were unsuited defenders making lots of mistakes, Gerrard looking like the slip had broken him, and the loss of the two best strikers in the league.

    As you can see there are faults that Rodgers should and has taken criticism for but your insistence that it was due to pigheaded want to (for some unknown reason, you have never tried to even suggest why) slow the game down and attack less rather than a method that has seen him have succes, is just your opinion of many possible. Yet yours is not even fully formed, just tinged with unusual anger.

    So please, for goodness sake please cam we go back to talking a out the here and now rather than the boring past or the invented future.

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  24. I wish more people would have a look at him before announcing that he's not good enough for LFC because he plays for Burnley, or is English, or whatever! He's a quality player. Everyone should watch his performance highlights v Man Utd, he was *superb*.

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  25. Because I think neither of them can help us push forward. Ings and Berahino are still young and would fit in well higher up the table but I can't see them doing much damage in the champions league. They would be out of their depth again for the first six months, at least, so I'd prefer players who know what it's like to play at the highest level. Guys like Pjanic and Lacazette have been there and done that. Guys like Ings and Berahino would first need to show they can cut the mustard in the PL for a couple of seasons. We all know they can score goals when they are the ones the team revolves around but we know Kevin Philips and Marcus Stewart could do that too. Yet for some reason they never made the step up.

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  26. Berahino(21) is top class if you can score goals for pony west Brom with the lack of class and quality of attacking players they have at their disposal.
    How do you think Berahino(21) would fair with the likes of Coutinho(22), Lallana(26), Sterling(20) and Ibe(19) creating chances for him?
    He would score goals for fun at Anfield or for our club, he would score more goals than Balotelli(24), Borini(23) and Lambert(32) any day of the week.

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  27. Over the picture of the other 11

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  28. im exaggerating but rodgers falls in and out of love with players for no real reason except for his own perception on reality ...if your liked your in regardless of ability or suitability and if your not liked your out ...i don't hold it against him he shows all the classic signs of a male with a napoleon complex

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  29. I have been since the weekend was a Palace fan under cover before that.

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