25 Jan 2013

Put up or shut up: LFC hit with 48-hour ultimatum over €10m transfer.

Southampton are currently outbidding Liverpool in the race for Inter Milan's Philippe Coutinho, and reports in Italy today claim that the Reds have been given an ultimatum over the Brazilian attacker.

According to Italian newspaper La Gazetta Dello Sport:

* Liverpool and Southampton renewed transfer contact with Inter this morning via fax.

* Coutinho prefers a move to Liverpool over Southampton.

* Inter have given Liverpool a 48 hour ultimatum: Raise your offer or lose out on the deal.

Southampton have offered €10m for the Brazilian, but Liverpool - with their counter-productive 'lowballing' strategy - refuse to go above €9m (£8m).

To be honest, I'm not that bothered if the deal falls through.

* Coutinho is injured at the moment, so wouldn't be able to make the immediate impact needed.

* Totally unproved in the Premier League. Sahin has much more experience than the Brazilian and couldn't hold down a regular place, but he cost a lot less.

* A work permit is required before Coutinho can even kick a ball, which could mean more delays and/or the deal not even going through.

The main thing that bothers me, however, is this: if Liverpool are willing to pay £8m for Coutinho, why are they refusing to pay the same for Tom Ince, a FIT player with experience of English football, and a vastly superior creative return?!

It makes no sense to me. Just pay the money and sign Ince, who has 23 goals and assists so far this season.

Jaimie Kanwar

NOTE: Please stick to the Comment Policy (Click to read)


117 comments:

  1. first time i've ever heard ypu talk sense, jamie

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  2. The reason is that Ince is out of contract at the end of the season, and on Feb 1st Liverpool can enter into a pre-contract with Ince and take him for nothing in the summer.

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  3. yes, I was going to say the same thing. It must the first blog that is credible

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  4. Coutinho may be injured at the moment but he is by far a much better prospect than Ince. We are quite sufficient in wingers both playing and up-coming from Academy and Ince really is not needed. He was not happy before because he didn't play when he thought he should ( and his dad - smiles) so who's to know that it won't come about again?
    I would much rather have the trickiness of Coutinho than Ince but it is quite obvious that Coutinho , if he goes anywhere, will be going to S'oton in this present window. We could of course do a deal and leave him until the Summer.

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  5. I would be a little upset if we were to lose out over a million euro difference.....I do understand we should not pay over the odds for ANY player, but i do not believe 10m euros is over the top. 

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  6. Why would they want, Coutino and Ince, both are left footers!

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  7. I totally agree much rather see Ince back than a player who has`nt proven himself within the Epl or any british league. ynwa 

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  8. I'm with you 100% on this one.  Whilst I know that we have had our fingers burned in the past by paying over the odds; the situation re Ince is different given that a third of the fee will come back to us.  Blackpol want £6m net - well if Zaha is worth £10m or £15m or whatever the final figure is, Ince is probably worth more and I therefore presume it is only the remaining term on contracts that is the difference.  Stop penny pinching and pay up.  As a footnote,I 'm not convinced Ayre is the man for the job when it comes to negotiating!

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  9. Considering Ince is British, 9m Euros is a steal. Although I'd rate Coutinho higher, and I believe we do have enough poms to fulfill the homegrown player requirements. Only the other day, Suarez, Lucas, Agger and Jones(who has English parents) aside, Rodgers fielded pretty much an English team.

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  10. whos to say ince will join us anyway hes walked out on us once,and as for fsg refusing to up there offer then it looks like he will be southampton bound ,unless milan loose there marbles and decide to give him to us for a million cheaper cannot see it though

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  11. Jamie, you obviously have no idea how talented this kid is. 

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  12. Hey! As a left footer myself, I take offence to that! Whats wrong with left footed people.

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  13. You are right concerning Ince, in a way. Is Coutinho a much better player in the making? Who can tell. At least he has more (some) experience at the top level, having played in La Liga and Serie A, while Ince has 'only' played in the second tier.

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  14. Add to that the fact that one has played for England youth teams while the other has played for Brazil youth teams. And has, in total, more first team appearances to his name. Furthermore Ince's current contract has one year less remaining than Coutinho's.

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  15. It has been reported that Blackpool have an option to extend his contract by a year.

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  16. The difference is that Countinho is a bigger gamble to take, but if it pays off and Rodgers can develop him, he does ultimately have more potential and talent than Ince does. Ince is a hard working and gifted pro, but Coutinho is potentially a world class player.

    There is an element of a gamble with Ince too- we've seen many times that players who can score for fun in the Championship do not always manage to succeed in the PL.

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  17. Tom Ince actually isn't all that great J-Rock. Coutinho is a sign of where we'd like to be - if we ever qualify for the Champions League, he's had more 1st-hand experience of European football than, for example, Tom Ince.

    Also, and this might sound cynical, should Coutinho fail, he has a unique sell-on advantage that English players historically don't have - he could be sold to a continental club much more easily than an English player could. Most of our recent English 'failures' have all been linked purely with British clubs. 

    If Coutinho signed for us and failed, he'd have experience in Italy and Spain, as well as speaking Portuguese, and already having the mature mental strength of plying his trade away from his homeland. Most English players seem to find it difficult to adapt to foreign cultures for some reason. 

    If we needed to offload an English player who was merely warming the bench at Anfield yet using up a massive part of the salary budget, then the odds are that we'd be more than likely pigeon-holed into offering the player across a limited market. With foreign players, there's much more scope for a potential sell-on.

    But none of this matters ultimately, because Ian Ayre is BOUND to f**k up the transfer negotiations anyway. And if Coutinho DOES somehow end up signing for us, he'll be f**king ACE, and we won't want to sell him!

    HUZZAHHHH!!!!

    PS: Sorry about the weird syntax and superfluity of commas in this message. My head is all over the place today.

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  18. Coutinho is a top, top, top talent. This would be a massive signing for LFC. 

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  19. I thought Coutinho was a right footer.

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  20. I think we are basically still expecting clubs to give in to our lowballing. Sticking to our guns.

    Except that if this goes on we might run out of bullets.

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  21. Talent means nothing by itself. He's not proven in the Premier League, and if he's so good, why are Inter willing to sell? LFC wanted Tello as well, but Barca wouldn't sell; surely if he's that good, Inter should keep him?

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  22. Yep, contract length surely is something we should look at. Zaha has still four years remaining, Ince one (given Blackpool use their alleged option to extend), Coutinho two years.

    Ayre is a fine commercial director. Don't know why FSG saw the need to promote him from a position he excelled in.

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  23. Apparently Southampton have put in a bid for Ince today!

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  24. agreed, i think even at 10 million euros we will have a bargain. if this is the sticking point for lfc then i will be very worried that they arent willing to pay a tiny bit extra. he's worth it! we need that sort of player, we dont have anyone like him in the squad. if we want ince as well, the solution is simple; sell downing. they're both left footed who play best from the right, except ince has many more years ahead of him.

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  25. If we do sign Coutinho how are we going to obtain a work permit for him as he doesn't qualify as an international player, and has no British parentage.

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  26. you've got to love transfermarkt. as you say, coutinho has more top flight experience and did really well at espanyol last season. both would be a gamble because neither has played in the epl but i would choose coutinho over ince because we need that technically gifted player we have lacked for a long time (probably since luis garcia). of course, as i said above, get rid of downing and we have our cake and eat it. (ie. get both ince and coutinho)

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  27. Neither was Ronaldo, and he cost over £12m. Same with Anderson & Nani. Then there's Hazard, Torres, Drogba etc, etc. 

    There are more players not proven in the premier league than are. That is where talent comes to the fore. I thought you'd know that, Jaimie ;-)

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  28. At the age of 20, Ince has an impressive goal/assist return in the Championship but no record in the Premiership and is an England under-21 international with 5 appearances and no goals

    At 20, Coutinho has a return of 5 goals in 16 games for Espanyol in La Liga. He has 3 goals in 7 appearances for the Brazil under 20s and a senior cap for the Brazil squad (although it was a friendly against Iran).

    To me, they're both gambles but one is £6-8m for a squad player that has a good chance of doing well in the Premiership and the other is £8-10m for a player that could be world class in a few years. 

    Getting Ince is likely to help us towards that coveted top 4 place in the next 2 years. Getting Coutinho could help us towards winning the Premiership within 5 years just as Ronaldo did for ManUScum.

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  29. the reason "most english players seem to find it difficult to adapt to foreign cultures" - is because nobody outside of England rates English players and because their transfer values are 3x what you would pay for a foreign player of the same ability.

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  30. Sounds a bit like Coutinho had made it clear that he wouldn't want to join them, no matter how much they offer. Ince should probably do the same, or insist on a relegation release clause.

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  31. Inter are willing to sell because they have no money and want to buy Paulinho and have other more experienced options in Coutinho's attcking midfield role.

    Ince has proven impact in the Championship - dont agree he is any more likely to have the same impact in the Premiership and he's a winger. We dont need a winger we need an attacking/creative midfielder

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  32. Ince is not proven in the Premier League. 

    I think it's a bit unfair to slate Assaidi and Sahin, neither have/had been given a clear run of games and were a 'bargain' buy/loan, joining a team going through transition with a new manager and a new culture of play.  

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  33. we will never challenge for titles again buying bit part players for 7-8 million.we need class players now not players who we think might be good in 4-5 years time....fsg sort it out.

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  34. Good idea to sell Downing and get both, Ince and Coutinho, but who'd be willing to buy Downing at a reasonable price? What actually is a reasonable price for him (would have to check transfermarkt again :-) ).

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  35. Ince is not proven in the Premier League. 

    I think it's a bit unfair to slate Assaidi and Sahin, neither have/had been given a clear run of games and were a 'bargain' buy/loan, joining a team going through transition with a new manager and a new culture of play.

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  36. And they don't want to learn a foreign language as most of the English expect that everybody else should speak English, too. Rule Britannia and so on.

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  37. get a life.. your comment shows that u know nothing abt coutinho.. and with that being the case.. plz dont say abt him..


    "COUTINHO IS A TWO FOOTED PLAYER AND CAN STRIKE WITH EQUAL POWER AND FINISHING WITH BOTH HIS LEGS"

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  38. Exceptional talent rule. He's made his international debut for Brazil of all countries aged 18.

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  39. If coutinho unproven the same has to be said for ince. A player who failed to make it whilst at Liverpool and has only played in the championship van hardly be said to have proven himself. Coutinho has played top flight football and scored goals and made chances in the process, something ince has not done, playing in the championship is absolutely nothing like the premier league as countless youngchampionship players that have made the switch have proven. Give me coutinho over ince any day

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  40. I think signing Coutinho is a must for us, he is a young creative player and one of brazils future stars,who can either play on the wing or in midfield, and liverpool are lacking a little creativity, and we are also lacking that iniesta/carzola(CAM) type player which is key in a 4-3-3 formation. To be honest I am not to bothered about Tom Ince because we will definitely get him for free in the summer, and for me he would be a Gem, he's an out and out winger who will rack up loads of assists and goals. Right now he has 13 goals and 10 assists this season and though its in the championship he can get similar numbers for LFC in the prem

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  41. So negotiating in your book is just paying what someone asks then? Personally I always thought it was about getting the best deal possible - people like you are the first to moan about how much we paid for Caroll, Henderson and Downing!

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  42. why are we even looking at these two players. 1 cant get in inter side other could"nt get in liverpool side..no other top clubs are  interested in them.we keep buying same old crap.. 

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  43. It's a sad fact that it's an unfortunate market for English players but as Anteater says, they don't help themselves at all by not fully adapting to the new culture.

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  44. It is too much to expect some people to read between the lines dealing with Blackpool is worse than a day at the dental hospital.

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  45. Gary Cahill and Coates the same price who does Kenny buy ? it could only be to please Suarez which is fine by me.

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  46. The Ferrari might turn out to be a ford Cortinho, buying from Italy has been disasterous for LFC.

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  47. Depending on how fit the nurses are, a day at the dental hospital can be quite an experience.

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  48. personally i like to have a marquee player on the team,if LS7 goes this yr would TI fit the bill.

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  49. I'm finding it hard myself to understand why any LFC fan would NOT want Coutinho. The gamble is so definitely worth it. Of course it could fall flat, is anyone guaranteed to perform immediately? But if it turns out to be a successful move, then he could no doubt help us to that next level; creating a lot of excitement en route...

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  50. You'r just saying it like it is.No apology needed.

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  51. I too think he could be a bargain for us at that price. The Southampton manager has gone straight in at more or less the asking price, for a reason. He has worked with him so obviously knows what he can do. Suarez is so difficult for defenders and Coutinho would be as well in the right set up. I think the BR system is ready for this type of player. Lucas and Gerrard in the middle with Coutinho sat in front. Sturridge and Suarez up front with one of Sterling, Downing, Assaidi, Borini (whichever is in form tbh). If the deal happened,  the player's value  could potentially double over a fairly short period of time....

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  52. Assaidi has hardly had a chance.

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  53. I agree. My point is more geared towards Rodgers making the wrong signings.

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  54. Out of Ince or Coutinho I'd rather have the Brazilian. Ince just looks like another overpriced British player to me. As an earlier poster said I think if the move for Coutinho doesn't work out we'd have more chance of getting our money back on him rather than Ince. Regardless of that though I'd just think Coutinho has the mentality and ability to make it at Liverpool. He's already got experience of playing for a big club and playing in front of big crowds and once he adapted to the pace of PL he could be a really exciting player for us. A similar sort of player to Silva or Mata, a creative player behind Sturridge and Suarez might be just what we need.

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  55. Again I agree. If it's down to a choice, for me the logical move would be sell Downing, (sorry Stewart) and get Ince as well...

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  56. Tom Ince surely isn't a marquee player, and not even close. Even Suarez was a gamble to be honest.

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  57. Excellent. Like what you're saying and couldn't agree more....

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  58. Coutinho has a long way to go to be compared to Silva or Mata. Right now he is a prospect and my fear would be that, given that it might take him two or three seasons to be really effective for us, some people will be on his back very quickly.

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  59. They are both gambles, but gambles that FSG should be snapping up as they both perfectly fit the 'model' we keep getting told about..Btw, agree with your assessment on both.

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  60. Not saying you're right...(or wrong!) :-)
    But I am saying I totally agree....

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  61. What world we are living?  A mercurial Shamba talent, making full Brazilian cap at 18 is compared to an English hack.  Ince is nothing but another English super hyped average player whose most attributes are physical; hammering the average Championship defenders.  In PL, he 'll be as ordinary as the other English "Prodigies".  There is a serious lack of talent in UK & hence every teenager having half a season of decent run is hyped to be the next Charlton, Best, Robson, Lineker or Gerard.  I follow French & Dutch League regularly - there are at least a dozen U19 player technically better than Ince in France or Holland.

    Nuri Shahin didn't make it because his Manager won't play him at his best place for the sake of Joe "average" Allen.  Someone starting for BDortmund fails to make the cut at LFC - is a joke.  Assaidi was never that good, otherwise someone at 24 don't cost only 2.5 mn - every team has scouting network.  

    PC can be as good a player as David Silva; EPL is physical, not that much tactical or skillful.  I can recall some "experts" questioning Suarez as in EPL & the Brazilian kid at Chelsea is also doing great.  He might take half a season to settle here, but if he gets going, we are looking at a potential WC winner in '14.  Inter is forced to sell him, as they need a CM to ensure top 4 finish; otherwise would have never sold him.  If we miss this time, within a year Saints 'll resale him to a top Club, may be for at least double.  If we are to invest for young talents, it's better be for Brazilians, rather than English "Prodigies" - I still suffer nightmare of 35mn English "Talunt"     

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  62. These aren't players being touted at £35m, £20m or £whatever Henderson did cost. If we can't compete for £6-£10m players when the haggling is over an extra 1m euros, then I don't see any hope left for us at all....

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  63. Yep, we could be entirely wrong. :-)

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  64. Inter don't decide where he goes. They can accept Southampton's offer but if he refuses to go he stays an Inter player or they sell him for less.

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  65. If Inter need to sell and Coutinho will only come to Liverpool then we shouldn't up our bid.

    As for Ince, the Blackpool owner, a shady character to say the least, who is bleeding Blackpool dry to enrich himself, LFC are the only club interested in him.

    Oyston is trying to negate the 35% clause by holding out for £9million or something silly, he will have to settle with Ince as he hasn't requested a move. Remember Adam had to take them to court for £20k, tight......

    It's sickening that we are enriching this guy again.

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  66. Jaimie, I think you make a lot of valid points that I agree with.

    In fact the only point I disagree with is the "counter productive low balling".  LFC places their own valuation on the player, and then the market determines what the player will be able to sell for.  

    The market fluctuates depending on the competition.  Southampton didn't seem to get involved until LFC upped their offer to 8m and even then, there's no telling that PC would even consider going to Southampton.  That's not LFC low-balling. That's throwing an offer out there and letting the market set itself.

    If you know that you have an advantage over the competition and don't have to pay more money as a result, why would you offer more money?

    If Inter holds out and doesn't sell him because they don't like the offers on the table, then that's their choice.  But if LFC is running on a budget and they have their valuation of a player, they should be sticking to that valuation/budget (as much as possible).  Provided that the valuation/budget is reasonable of course.

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  67. I never said he was as good as those two players pal just a similar style. Whose to say how long it will take for him to get used to the premier league because nobody knows. He might hit the ground running like Suarez, Alonso or Garcia or it might take a season or two like Lucas but we just don't know until we get him here. Unfortunately we as fans want success now and if Coutinho or any other players are not performing then supporters will get on there backs. This is something football fans have been doing for years and if you are somebody whose lucky enough to be a professional footballer then unfortunately it's something they will have to live with from time to time.

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  68. Why should be held ransom again and again?

    Inter need the money, they are a club in financial trouble so for them to be whining about a couple of million is just being pathetic. They are going to make a profit on Coutinho so what exactly is their problem? Just because Southampton are offering more to get Milan to accept their offer doens't mean the player will go play for a club that is struggling in the EPL. Screw these stingy Italian teams. Two Italian teams took us for clown when it came to Aquilani so now the tables have turned.

    If they do not accept our offer then they cannot sign their targets so it is either accept our offer or keep the player they want to sell to bring in a player/s they want. Easy as that.

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  69. It was a experimental cap to a player that was hyped up as the next big thing who had done almost nothing at the time and since then, also done almost nothing. That is why Coutinho has only one cap still and that cap was over 2 years ago. 
    The British aren't the only ones to suffer from the hype disease. Brazililians and Argentinians have had it in truckloads too. Countless players have been hyped up as the next Zico, next Ronaldo, next Pele, next Maradona, next Ayala, next Messi, next Batigol, next Cafu, next Roberto Carlos, etc. Pato looked a big talent and was doing alright for a while but boy, has he star fallen. The likes of Sobis, Neves, Hernanes, Kerlon, Jo, Bastos, Cicinho, Diego, etc, came with some hype to say the least and none of them have established themselves as creme de la creme players. Robinho has amassed tons of money and big club playing time but what on has he done to prove he is much more than a dribbler. Pffft. That is hype for you, hype has carried him to big pay packets at Real, Milan and City, not actual class and long periods of top form. That is hype and he isn't British. There is hardly a overload of Brazilian players that are at the top of their profession in Europe is there. Not a totally reliable measure but still useful, is the shortlist for Ballon d'Or. Only one Brazilian was in the shortlist for Ballon d'Or and that was Neymar, who is a talent but is put up on a 'super hyped' pedestal in his homeland. Hardly a number to far outnumber the no. of British players in the list (which was one too). The British media hype up their young players but guess what? The Brazilian media are at it too.They have a rich history of talents but the here and now? The Brazilian is hardly anything to write home about and Coutinho has suffer from hyped too, big time. I take it your talking about Oscar? saying he has been doing "great" is what I call 'super hyped', imo. He has been doing decent for his first season but anything more is milking it.I know its easy and "fashionable" to throw the hype criticism at young British players but its getting rather boring having to hear it every single time, especially when there are many Argentinians and Brazilians that get loads of hype and a lot of the time, amount to be nothing to write home about to date. Stereotyping bias, that is what it is, how much more young British players get accused of being over-hyped/rated, when compared to the young Brazilians. Young British players are hyped up a lot and too quick but its not as if the two big two footballing countries from South America don't suffer from that disease too. 

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  70. RAFASdaysWEREtheGLORYdays6:08 pm, January 25, 2013

    LFC will be relying on Coutinho saying he wants to move to LFC and nowhere else,so in other words we wont have to increase our offer.This guy is the real deal,he is an exceptional talent with unbelievable potential.I hope we sign him,i dont want Ince,iv watched himlately and he is nothing special and i wouldnt be surpirised if hes reached his peak with all the coaching and advice hes got from a footballing family to  make him stand out at an early age.Coutinho mark my words will be a superstar.

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  71. what did rushy say about italy .quote  its like living in a foreign country!!!!a classic line fron 1987

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  72. this is fact .ian hollyway went to see karl oyston . cos the 1 st players only had 1 set of training kit and had to take it home and wash it everyday.oyston repiled if they need new kit tell them the club shop will sell them some. they signed 2 french lads and in their contract was a 2 bed appartment .they were put up in a twin room in a bed and breakfast. his answer was they have got a roof over their heads havn t they. ollie then shipped out to palace not long after .believe me this is the truth. this man is a complete minge bag. is father is a convicted rapist. god and we are tryin to do bussiness with people like these

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  73. I agree with you about Coutinho but for heaven sake please change your bloody profile name. We are not living in the past anymore mate. Get with the times FFS. Rafa is going nowhere slowly after Abramovic has payed him millions to 'improve' Chelsea. At the end of the season he will be in the media begging for a job again...

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  74. We are buying for the future, not just immediate impact. The fact Ince is fit is not very good argument for choosing him over technically more gifted player.

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  75. Negotiating is about getting the best deal possible, but not at the expense of leaving the squad short over £1m and loosing out on multiple targets to our close rivals, who now sit in 4th spot that we covet so much.

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  76. there must be some way around it bill or they wouldnt bother  well i would hope so cos if theres not they should be sacked    and ian ayre needs to go regardless  hes rubbish in that new role

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  77. I never got the impression that you thought he was at that level right now. Only wanted to lower expectations, in general.

    Personally I wouldn't expect a 20-year-old to hit the ground running the way Suarez or the others you've mentioned did. Surely experience helps to adapt quicker and Coutinho doesn't have too much of it.

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  78. Nicely put...........still believe we should get Coutinho though   :-)

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  79. Coutinhno played in CL. winning 4-3 against Tottenham.

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  80. If you think ince is better than coutinho then you have been drinking the brit media koolaid! He has ONE game of epl experience.. and even if he had more carroline, adam, downing and henderson all prove that epl "experience" doesn't mean crap... ince is just more overpriced, overrated brit crap that we have way too much of already! 

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  81. Please win the race for Coutinho. I've watched many videos of him and it seems he's one of these kids who can dribble and juggle for fun but has no real football brain. There rarely seems to be an end product. Despite being able to afford the fee, we at Southampton can't afford this big a risk IMO. Especially someone who would rather stay in Italy over joining Liverpool! Bid accepted or not, there is no way I would welcome him to St. Mary's and that was before he said he would rather join you over us. I think we should both steer clear and spend the money more wisely.

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  82. My mini-rant involving Coutinho aside, not sure who I prefer out of Ince and Coutinho. Would rather see us go for Griezmann of Sociedad, if I was to choose one unpolished but talented youngster that would be possibly within our reach (Would love Isco but we'd have no chance, me thinks).

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  83. we lost ince for £250,000 and you expect FSG to just throw 8 million at him?! that makes no sense to me..

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  84. Some of the great footballers were left footed players.

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  85. There are many talented players out there for the picking who would love to play for Liverpool with a cheaper price on their heads. Why do we have to haggle for players. Something is not right with our scouts.

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  86. MONEY AND STINGY.....LFC WEAKNESS.Any clubs can hijack whatever target players for LFC with using weapon " POWER OF MONEY".

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  87. yeh but ince has 2 sign it first which wont happen 

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  88. Thanks OC.  My intention was not to hurt the UK people.  Yes, there are hyped "big 2" Latin players, but in between they have given Messi, Kaka & many others to show their credibility.  My point is, if Zaha is worth 15mn, Ox-Chamb 12mn, Henderson 16+, Ince 8+, that Saint kid to Sunderland for 10mn, & donkey Carroll for 35mn, why are we so careful with a 20 years old talented Brazilian for just about 1/2 additional mn?  It's not that PC is valued at 20+, if doesn't fit the bill, we can always recoup the investment.

    Actually, I am pissed off with the "buy Brits" strategy, which had cost us at least 3 seasons.  With 150mn budget (over 3 transfer windows) had we gone to mainland Europe & Latin America, we could have been sitting among the top 3 now.

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  89. JK makes sense?, Tom Ince over Coutinho?, really??, haven't we learned our lesson, from last year's and Kenny's disastrous over spending, on british players?.

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  90. With an all british team you will win NOTHING, you only have to look at the England team, what have they won, since 1966, and that was close too!!!.

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  91. So JK, Torres, (shall I mention some more?) was'nt good, when we sold him to Chelsea??.

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  92. Everyone, Ince is a winger while Coutinho is a playmaker,can you guys tell the different?especially you JK.

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  93. I think you will find Manure constantly shows you can win the league with a predominantly English team. If they felt like it, they could easily field and almost exclusively British team with the exception of goalkeeper and leftback, and it would look something like:


    GK. Smalling, Ferdinand, Evans, Evra, Young, Carrick, Cleverley, Giggs, Wellbeck, Rooney.

    And if you say Giggs is going out, well, Zaha is going in.

    Their crop of Beckham, Butt, Scholes and the Nevilles did pretty well for them too during a time Sherringham and Andy Cole passed through their ranks.

    Our 80's team was also predominantly British, with the exception of perhaps a Zimbabwean goalkeeper and an Australian sub, and Molby.

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  94.  i have to agree jaimie ...if the saints want him let him go...i just cant see where this guy gets into the team.....he cant take the snails pace of italy so not to sure how hell  handle  the bustle of the prem...i may be the only one but im really glad fsg are taking this stance and are  beginning to look for valu for money and get the best deal....some of you guys have to realise football is a buisness with profit and loss and not a charity where we pay an extra few mill just for the hell of it.....

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  95. No he wasn't. We knew it. They didn't. FSG was very keen to sell Torres because they realised he was no longer the player Rafa signed. 50m pounds for a player who lost his turn of pace and his confidence was too good to miss.

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  96. for 10 mill i would

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  97. Even Kaka's star has fallen big time. That 'credibility' of Brazil is based in the past, not the present. I don't think there is more than a handful of Brazilians are doing really well in Europe at the moment. I was surprised at the very small no. of Brazilians that are at the top of their game or near it, in Europe at the moment. Very little. Times have changed. Seriously, what Brazilians are out there NOW in Europe that have been recently performed well at present for a long period? Really, there isn't many. So I'm not sure about this credibility you speak of. The credibility you speak of belongs in the past, as there doesn't seem to be much credibility being proven now.


    Spaniards and Germans rule now. I want a small Spanish attacking mid, like Chelsea/Arsenal/City have! :)



    FSG are being more 'frugal' now it seems, they have been burnt from the Carroll, Henderson, etc, transfers of splashing big for young raw players. So now it seems they are playing hardball as they want to make every penny count, regardless of how 'cheap' it may seem the price. At the moment, its a buyers market to a certain extent, as a lot of selling clubs can't afford to waste wage budget on players that aren't in their plans. Inter are such a club at the moment, so it seems to me FSG will try to get Coutinho as cheap as possible and aren't afraid to walk away for other targets.




    We may have spent £150m but we don't have a top 3 team wage budget and haven't had so since Chelsea & City have come into the situation, so I wouldn't be sure on what kind of players we would have been able to get with such a wage budget. Yes, we have had a wage budget that was high for a club without CL (before last summer'cost cutting) but we didn't have a wage budget to compete with Chelsea/City/United, regardless of how much we spent in terms of transfers. So no, I don't think we would be sitting among top 3 now. That is not even taking into consideration FFP planning as well as potential work permit issues with trying to sign players from Latin America.

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  98. We need scousers - even from Brazil ??????? - LFC are not interested in this guy at all - using him as a smokescreen

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  99. Coutinho isn't worth a penny more than the money we have offered. They paid 4m euros for him, and despite what they say they don't really want him but are pretty much skint and need the money. They haven't used him regularly, he's been out on loan and injured. The Southampton offer is because they have a few bob to throw about. They bought Forren last week for 4.2m when no one else offered anything for him and Molde had accepted a 2m bid from Hoffenheim a few months ago. All Saints have done is queer the pitch, they knew he wouldn't join them if given a straight choice so they simply bid 2 or 3m more than anyone else to try and ensure the selling club favour their bid. Milan are trying to get Liverpool to match that but, if Coutinho won't move to Saints it doesn't matter if they bid 100m. Trouble is I think Liverpool feel Milan will fold next week but I'm not certain and if Paulinho moves somewhere else they won't sell anyway. Personally, I'm not certain we really need anyone, I'd wait for the summer and get someone who really wants to come.

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  100. Is this for sure? From the reports I've read it sounded as if it was a one-sided option to extend it, and that option has been inserted into the contract that is already signed.

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  101. You would what? Expect him to hit the ground running? Well, that is the problem I see. People would, possibly, expect too much of him straight away.

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  102. I'm genuinely excited by a possible front three of Suarez, Sturridge and Coutinho. Borini will get rotated in regularly and Downing can stick around and fight for his place if he likes. I just think having one more talented and pacey footballer in the final third will make such a big difference in our ability to convert. We could finally start to see what Rodgers' style of football is all about. 

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  103. if hes good enough he should fit straight in....look at suarez and torrez .....if hes the talent that every one says why not....great players slot straight in thats why i posted id sooner have one great signing than 6 medocre ones

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  104. Nice explanation OC.  Add French & Dutch with the Spanish & Germans.

    My point was, we bought players with high wage but didn't get the service, hence had to chop the squad/wage bills.  I am sure with the wage Cole, Donkey Caroll, Downing, Acqualini & even Charragher is drawing, we could have built a much better team with Latins & mainland Europeans keeping the wage at same level. 

    City/Chelsea/MU has higher wage bill because of he squad size as well; we could have added 4/5 top players from outside UK with the current squad & academy boys, would have been a really good side.

    Never the less, noway we can justify some of the worst purchases under KD/DC

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  105. So was Liverpool's than, mostly british players....IN THE 70-80, definetly,but NOT NOW, the game has moved on! since then.
    You need a mix of foreign players too, in to-days modern game, otherwise you WILL be left behind, no matter how much you spend on british players, Carroll anyone?,@ £35 mil, total joke!!!

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  106. And we replace him with.....CARROLL?, nice one!

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  107. He WILL be signed, cause he is QUALITY, and that's where the money should go, and NOT Tom Ince!!.

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  108. Coutinho is miles ahead of Tom Ince, FACT!, no comparison, whatsoever, at £10 mil it's a steal!, same as Sturrage.

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  109. Gary Cahill is totally overated!.

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  110. Spot on!, Ince would only be at best, a squad player, if that.

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  111. Suarez was not proven and ajax didnt really hesitate to sell him, im sure negotiations ended before the rumours of us going for him even got through 2 websites.. now look at him

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  112. Well, I'd like to think that there is a big difference between a player in his mid-twenties with a few hundred games to his name, like Suarez, and a 20-year-old who has played about 50 times. How many footballers have been great players already at the age of 20?

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  113. So you back my argumentation.

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