13 Dec 2012

Boss admits: 'No guarantee' that £7m 61-goal LFC target will stay. Anfield bound...?

The January transfer window is almost here, and with Liverpool desperately in need of at least one new striker, it will be interesting to see who actually ends up at the club. Over the last few weeks, the Reds have been linked with Celtic star Gary Hooper, and with 63 goals in his last 108 games, the prolific forward certainly fits the bill. What are the chances of Hooper leaving though? When asked this question yesterday, Celtic boss Neil Lennon admitted that there's 'no guarantee' that the striker will stay.

Speaking to the Daily Record, Lennon - who guided Celtic into the knockout stages of the Champions League last week - said:

"Why would he [Hooper] want to leave now when there's something special to look forward to? Not many clubs can offer that [Champions League knockout football].

"Gary's representatives are coming up over the weekend. We're hoping we can finally get something done on a positive note. Hopefully. There is no guarantee"


At least Lennon is a realist. As he says, there is no guarantee that Hooper will stay, and although Celtic is a massive, well-supported club, it's highly likely that if a big Premier League club comes in for Hooper, he'll leave Parkhead.

The 24-year old recently scored 4 goals in one game, and Lennon is recently addressed Liverpool's interest directly:

"It wouldn't surprise me if there are a number of clubs in for Gary because of the way he is but I would poo-poo that [Liverpool link]. We are still in negotiations at the minute and I don't think we are too far away.

Top UK bookmakers have bookmakers, Liverpool as 5-1 second favourites to sign Hooper in January, and according to one source, Brendan Rodgers a 'long-term fan' of the player, who will cost around £7m.

Worth a bid? I would definitely prefer Hooper over Sturridge.



Jaimie Kanwar


37 comments:

  1. y a step down?? 7 million? lol he has out scored andy carrol all his career , proven champions league player , for 7mil we could give u paddy mccourt

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  2. Jelavic proves that if a player playing in the SPL has the quality then he can succeed in the PL. So I would not mind if we signed him.

    I wish Celtic were in the PL though, that would be so cool.

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  3. A big EPL team the gaffer said , not Liverpool !!!. If he does stay and we can progress to the quarters of the CL surely the bidding would have to start at £10 Mil for any player in the squad .

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  4. You play in a pub league in front of abject crowds away, top players won't stay!!!

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  5. Ahhhh, Gano. Jealousy's a terrible thing!......Why would Hooper abandon playing in the CL to go to a mid-table EPL team?

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  6. Why are celtic fans getting excited bcause they went through to the knockout stages O_o. Clydesdale PUB league... Nuff sed

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  7. £75,000 a week and Liverpool will be in the Champions League next season, thats why!!!!!. I see the joke that Scottish football is, barely a fan other than Rangers or Celtic to be seen, garbage!!!

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  8. £75k a week, and champions league next year...have a word with yourself will you. You have managed to win a couple of games and already the hysteria sets in...you dont have the depth of squad to maintain the little burst of form you are showing, whereas Celtic ARE in the CL not hoping for it, WILL win trophies not HOPE for it and ALWAYS play in front of bigger crowds than Liverpool. So now all you have is the £75k, once again have a word with yourself. You are riding on the back of a 17yr old boy who has shown he is a great player and you will lose him because you wont pay him the money...the board didnt back the manager because of the stupid wage bill and he had to let people go without replacing them, that same will happen again, Downing,Henderson just to name a couple and that then depletes an already weak squad even more. Hooper is still a young man and he will stay at Celtic for another couple of years, play at the top table and then he will go somewhere where he will continue to win.

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  9. Hooper is perfect striker we have to bring it in anfield

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  10. as celtic are my 2nd team, i have watched him a lot and i can say 100% that if he does leave the hoops, we should do all we can to get him,(he really wouldn't command the type of fees that sturridge will be looking for), he certainly knows how to put the ball in the net. hooper or sturridge?? hooper by a country mile. personally, i hope for celtic that he stays, with the champions lge still in operation for them, i think he would be a bit mad to leave as he has said that is what he wants to play in. great young player in a talented young side.

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  11. why we would fall further down the pecking order

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  12. That much of a pub league we beat Barcelona YA FUDD, Chelsea out, Liverpool out, Man City out you lot must be playing in the second tier of the pub league then eh!!! Typical engligh twat

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  13. Theonlywayisup20125:41 pm, December 13, 2012

    allymac what type of clown are you.?u really think he would be let go for 7 mill.dont be so silly.chapions leauge glamour games barca benfica ect ect.everton would be a better choice for hooper.bigger club more passonate fans and of course chance of cl footie next year.why go to a has been club with a crumbiling stadium.get the chip of your shoulder and get on with it.always the victims.get a life you boreing scouse twatt.

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  14. Love all these other fans coming on a Liverpool website. If we are such has beens why are you interested in what's written here? The fact is we are still big news and that's why your here. I can honestly say I've never been on a Celtic, Swansea, Newcastle or spurs website because I don't give a damn about them yet we get your fans on our forums regularly. Mid table club? Based on a couple of seasons? Surely that's a bit premature? Countless big clubs have has bad seasons but they come back and we'll so what happens going forward. To suggest a player from your club wouldn't come to ours because its a step down is so naive it's embarrassing for you. Do you think a player will be so short sighted to value one chance at the knockout stages of the CL for a move to a bigger club? When they won't expect to get past the next match in the CL?! Truly crazy people about!

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  15. 'always the victims'????? how does that relate to this post on gary hooper??? by the way, and surely you should have known this off by heart, 'boreing' does not have an 'e' and you should especially know that 'twatt' only has one 't'. 'leauge' is 'league', 'etc,etc'..not 'ect ect'. 'passonate' should be 'passionate'..........and that is only the start, where you need correcting.

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  16. And the funny thing is he was having a go at the wrong person, Allymac was anti LFC lol

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  17. Im a Celtic fan who really hopes that Hooper dosnt go in January but for my fellow supporters to call Liverpool FC a step down is crazy. They may be going through some troubles at the moment but it wasnt so long ago i was watching them in the CL final yes it may take them a few years maybe longer to get back to competing for CL spot again. I cant blame Hooper if he wants to go hes been a brilliant player for us an for me is one of the best brithish strikers to be playing the game right now, If he did go he would walk into the england squad once he started banging in the goals and with the english attitude towards the SPL that is one thing we cant offer Hooper at this momnet in time tho im sure he wouuld get his place in the squad if we made it the last 8 an then qualified for the CL next season. Would be a tough one for Hooper to make a decision on im sure and i really hope its all paper talk an he signs a new deal with us. If not i would say best of luck to the boy. Hail Hail

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  18. We click our fingers and the lad signs simple, he won't stay in a pub league, end of!!!...................many of us don't want him but it's been fun....................LOL.

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  19. Get on these Celtic fans, they win a one team league and think they are Liverpool. They crow about being in the CL, so they should be.

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  20. The SPL is actually one of the better supported leagues in Europe for their size.
    Pub league? Only one team from England has beaten them in competition in the last 10 years.

    Your arrogance is galling, your blindness and hysteria laughable.

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  21. Whoops. I meant two. But still, Liverpool were put to the sword as i'm sure you remember. I have always liked LFC, my second team as a kid, but even their great fans are apparently not immune to the largesse attitude and grand posturing that the EPL seems to promote

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  22. the last time celtic played liverpool we knocked use out of europe ya pathetic scouse clowns! we play in a shite league theres no doubt about it but use play in a sky funded fradulent deluded debt ridden league! if celtic had access to the tv money that all prem league teams have we would be top 4 club within 3-4 years.. FACT.

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  23. Have to agree with above comment(except the insults) on the fact that with celtic would not only be a top 4 four team but would be able to become the top team in the PL we have has big a fan base as any in the epl and no debt. No team in the epl could achive what celtic do on regular basis europe wise with the tv money that celtic have. We compete at the level we do because we have the best fan base in the world who provide the money we need we are not funded by any tv contract only our fans a prudent board and a brilliant management team. Celtic fc are what all other clubs the world over should aspire to be. That said if i where to support a team in the EPL it would be Liverpool as they are as close to celtic as any other team in it. The EPL is a bubble at the moment that will burst eventualy an thats when teams like Liverpool will rise to the top again due to a loyal support but im not sure how long it will take for the bubble to go pop but im am certain it will happen probs when the rich guys who fund certain teams get bored an either sell or let the clubs go bust then we will see the league get back to some normality. The german model is the way fwd for all leagues an this years CL groups are proof of that an i think as the next few years go on we will see the germans prove this consistanly thats if UEFA dont get there way with a top European league to replace the CL.

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  24. You label me as a 'manc', yet your the one that illustrates the same arrogance that Man Utd fans are accused of.

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  25. Can remember when we first signed kenny, celtic fans used to come to anfield to still watch him, have always liked the club since then, agree that hooper over sturridge would be far the better option if it were possible to get the lad

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  26. Celtic are a fantastic club to play for. Sure the away matches may not be very glorious, especially now, but to play at home, for that crowd, must be a life changing experience. The kid would be smart enough to stay untill the summer. He has nothing to gain from moving now that he won't also gain in the summer.

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  27. Liverpool supporters who insult Celtic don't know their history mate. Celtic go bragh. YNWA.

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  28. Theonlywayisup201210:19 am, December 14, 2012

    liverpoll fans always moaning.you want hooper ur gonna av 2 pay the going rate.35mil for a flop of a player in andy carrol.if he is 2 go the bidding will start at 12 mill.read todays papers.hooper close 2 new deal.victor will also sing new deal.why is it that pl big guns are lurking round parkhead.?because a lot of r players r real class acts.another point why is it liverpool fans think they av such a strong bond with us.?everton r the team we connect with.hail hail.

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  29. Theonlywayisup201210:38 am, December 14, 2012

    pub league.yeah yeah.boys against men and all that,is that what your getting at.lol.one of the best home records in the hardest comp of the lot.be honest with your self,seems like a long time since the mighty lfc were mixing it with the big boys.oh i forgot u were trying to over come young boys.joke team joke players joke club.come on u boys in green.


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  30. Click our fingers? Arrogance much? Hooper, like any true professional, will of.course want to be paid more but I think he himself will realise that it is worth waiting til at least the close season before moving to another club as he has at least 2 more games against a quality club in europe and the chance to win some.trophies aswell as.boost his reputation further, so the odds are stacked in favour of.him staying at celtic for the time being

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  31. Your arrogance is ridiculous, 'think they r liverpool', get a grip pal, exactly what puts liverpool in a.seperate status from celtic? Arrogant wank

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  32. Sorry mate but ur way off the mark. Liverpool are historically followed by the Catholic Irish immigrants and Everton followed by the Protestant unionist though not nearly on the same level as it is in Glasgow with Celtic and Rangers so I am sure there will be more exceptions to that rule than there is in Glasgow. This is the reason we as Celtic fans feel more connected to Liverpool than any other in England.

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  33. Not anti Liverpool as you said...only stating FACTS...kind of difficult to argue against FACTS isnt it...oh you can always say he is anti Liverpool....If you are going to say I am anti then please explain why..

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  34. if your defination of a 'bigger club' is based purely on money then any EPL team is 'bigger' than celtic but i would prefer to look at fanbases and on that score celtic can match anyone apart from man utd,liverpool are in terminal decline and i cant see them getting close to the big hitters in the near future so hooper certainly wont get CL football there....maybe if he signs a 25 year contract...

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  35. I'd rather sign David Villa.....he's being wasted at barca and he's definetely a realistic target within our price range

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  36. Liverpool , like Celtic are a team of great tradition and known for their love of playing football in the correct entertaining way. Like Celtic they have become victims of the rise of cheque-book football clubs with no history of creating great teams and great players. Once the current fad is over though teams with this history and ethos at the heart of their clubs will rise to the top again.

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