14 Jul 2014

Ex-Red insists: £60m genius should be LFC's 'number one target'. Better than Suarez?

FSG are reportedly set to hand Liverpool boss Brendan Rodgers the entire £75m Luis Suarez transfer fee to reinvest in the squad, and according to former LFC striker Emile Heskey, there's only one player the Reds should try and sign with the cash.

When asked during a Sony webchat who Liverpool should sign with the Suarez cash, Heskey immediately suggested Colombia star James Rodriguez:

"He [Rodriguez] is only 23, so you would get a lot of mileage out of him. James would be my number one target if Liverpool could get him."

This is hardly a novel idea (!) I'm sure every top club on the planet is currently trying to figure out a way to sign £60m-rated Rodriguez, but even if he is available, there's no chance Liverpool will ever be able to pull off a deal.

After scoring 6 goals in the World Cup (and ridiculously losing out on the 'Best player at the World Cup' title to Lionel Messi), Rodriguez is one of the most coveted players on the planet, and the praise is pouring in from all sides. In an interview with Adidas this week, David Beckham raved:

"He [Rodriguez] has got a great future, and to come on to the world stage at his age and play the way he's played, shows how talented he is.”

After downing Uruguay with two goals, including that incredible volley, Uruguay boss Oscar Tabarez enthused:

"Diego Maradona, Lionel Messi, Luis Suarez, James Rodriguez - they do things because they have certain gifts that make them special. I believe he [Rodriguez] is the best player at the World Cup"

Arsene Wenger is also a huge fan, and in a World Cup Q&A this week, he hailed Rodriguez as 'absolutely amazing' and outlined what he perceives are the attacker's key qualities:

"The intelligence of his passing. The fluency of his game. The speed of his decision making. The penetrative passes he made were just absolutely fantastic. You just wanted to see him have the ball and [that] is always a sign of exceptional quality"

Rodriguez only has eyes for one club, though, and it 'aint Liverpool. In a recent interview with Marca, he said:

“I would go to Madrid with my eyes closed. I respect other teams, but playing for Real Madrid is the dream of my life.”

On a related note: Tabarez placed Luis Suarez and James Rodriguez on the same level, but given the choice right now, which of the two would you rather have at LFC?

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43 comments:

  1. Whilst Rodriguez has a brilliant world cup (player of the tournament IMO, no way should have been Messi). We see this all the time, a player having a great WC, and then not living up to it after. I do think he is different though, and will be an amazing player.
    Currently Suarez is the more complete player, and has proven it over time.

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  2. Suarez himself had always harboured those similar dreams of playing for Madrid and Barcelona. Even when he joined Liverpool I think he assumed he would have a future somewhere else. And yet we got him from Ajax and ultimately turned a profit. If a deal with Madrid doesn't go through then I'd say we're as likely as anyone else to get Rodriguez. That's a big if, they seem to want him and be willing to pay for it so perhaps in the next week we'll see the deal concluded. Maybe it's worth just making the enquiry and staying on the fringes in case it doesn't happen. You never know.

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  3. AndWithSuchSimplicity11:20 am, July 14, 2014

    James has already stated he doesn't fancy the English league. He prefers the more sedate pace of the French league which he believes will aid his development. After that, I think he's a shoe-in for Madrid.
    We are again linked with Arda Thuran today. So let's break the bank and get him.

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  4. James Rodriguez does not want to come to the EPL so it is pointless to even pursue his signature and with him already pining for Madrid, it will end up like another Suarez situation.

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  5. Hahaha forget about James Rodriguez. Heard we are after Rodriguez of Southampton. I am embarrassed to be a Liverpool fan atm

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  6. Every Season we are linked with Turan in one way or another.
    Whilst Rodriguez had an outstanding WC Campaign he has stated that the physicality of the PL maybe too much for him.
    I have little doubt that he will become a great player if he continues to play the way he did.
    As far as reports Bony is a replacement for Suarez lets get one thing straight no one can replace him.
    Neither should we be looking to do so, we need strength and depth to mount an assault on the CL and PL.
    Man Utd are in a similar position to LFC were last season which means that they will more of a threat.
    In terms of attracting similar targets such as Reus we can offer CL this season MU cannot.
    I have no doubt V Gaal will spend big bucks to attract top talent, but we need proven talent as well as experience.
    To get that we need to spend big one advantage of going for Reus is that the WC has not inflated his price so if BR is sensible targets such as him should be available to LFC.

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  7. AndWithSuchSimplicity11:49 am, July 14, 2014

    Agree. Just seen the rumours about Reus. Can you imagine if we pulled that one off??? Might soften the blow of Luis leaving.....
    A bit.

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  8. Nicolas Chamberlain11:50 am, July 14, 2014

    Will never happen. We should go for Reus.

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  9. Nicolas Chamberlain11:50 am, July 14, 2014

    It will soften the blow, and not only a bit.
    Great player.

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  10. I do not see why Dortmund would want to sell him?

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  11. Nicolas Chamberlain11:52 am, July 14, 2014

    Because all the gutter papers are reporting it. Don't believe that at all. They also write that we are interested in Reus... So why are you embarrassed?

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  12. Lots of Euros perhaps.

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  13. Nicolas Chamberlain11:54 am, July 14, 2014

    Reus has a clause, reportedly. Maybe a 40 or 45M bid will do it. We will have a much better change than going for Rodriguez.

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  14. Many players have clauses in their contracts but that does not mean the player is for sale.


    Clauses are there to protect the player and owner.

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  15. Can't see us going for him either, why would he want to leave Dortmund for us?

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  16. Nicolas Chamberlain12:05 pm, July 14, 2014

    Because without Lewa, Dortmund will not be able to challenge Bayern. Every player has his price, and this clause is a protection not only for the club but for Reus as well. Dortmund is slowly moving backwards.

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  17. Sanchez has rejected LFC so it is quite possible that Reus would do the same. I was thinking CL football would change things but maybe we have to establish ourselves in the EPL and Europe again?

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  18. The same could be said about us ;) just imagine this rumor: athletico Madrid are in for sterling.
    Why would sterling move to another club that's probably on the same level than us? Players want to step up the career ladder...

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  19. Some players just want new challenges dude. Ronaldo moving to Real Madrid wasn't a step up nor a step down.

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  20. I don't think arsenal is more attractive than Liverpool in general... What I believe is that arsene Wenger made the difference, he flew to him, to hold talks with him. And what did we do? Probably Ronald McDonald aka Ian Ayre called him one time and told him about the lovely weather and food in the UK ;) oh and then there's the london factor as well

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  21. By frankly man, we go the money to buy both Rodriguez and Reus. Reus buyout is 30m and Dortmund will be happy to see him got anywhere except Bayern Munich.
    Rodriguez 40m would do it..

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  22. Moving to spain is always something special for players, especially from players from south Europe and south America

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  23. At the end of the day, the're often right. They called Lallana and Can long before most people even knew who he was.

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  24. Suarez played large parts of the season up front because Sturridge was injured. When Daniel played, Suarez became provider in stead of finisher. Sturridge is still there so we need a new provider and I, and I can't believe I'm saying this, fully agree with Heskey that Rodriguez is the man for that job. The problem is that it will never happen though. There are much more glamorous clubs out there to go to.

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  25. Cheap players are not necessarily average. Xabi Alonso cost a mere 10 million. I think we as supporters think too much of the pulling power of our club though.

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  26. Nicolas Chamberlain12:40 pm, July 14, 2014

    Well, if they are right all the time we will end up with a selection of at least 50 players. Why go for someone who will be fit when we are eating turkey? We should show some ambition.

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  27. AndWithSuchSimplicity12:41 pm, July 14, 2014

    We didn't put in any effort at all. We just assumed he'd join us.
    Wenger on the other hand, despite being ridiculed by Talksport for not being behind his desk, was out in Brazil carrying out a major charm offensive.

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  28. Nicolas Chamberlain12:42 pm, July 14, 2014

    Its not Arsenal its London and the fact that they have a player that is considered as world class. We should aim higher tha the likes of Bony etc.

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  29. Nicolas Chamberlain12:45 pm, July 14, 2014

    Atletico is not a step up. Not at all. Not even financially. Sometimes players want to experience a different league and football culture. The only step up are Barca, Real and Bayern.

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  30. London is a big pull for players from abroad.

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  31. La Liga was and pretty much is still is a two horse race. Move to Barcelona or Real Madrid and you will be guaranteed trophies.

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  32. Arsenal have been in the champions league for 16 years going on 17. They've been without major trophies (bar a single FA cup win) for a while but the memories of Premier League titles and unbeaten seasons are still fresh, not least of all because the same manager is at the helm, building the same teams and playing the same kind of football. Liverpool have been up and down, it's undeniable, and if you compare PL history since the end of the old division one setup Arsenal are clearly a better club. It's not just London. They're a better football team, better run with a bigger stadium and a more established manager. We've had ONE good season and suddenly we think we should attract big players again? I think this summer is a suitable reality check. Liverpool is not the big club we imagine it to be. Yes it has the history, the name, the attitude, the respect but it had those things in the 80s AND a string of league and European titles in graspable memory. Any player who wants a team to bank on would choose Arsenal, it's just logical. Liverpool would be a gamble and as fans we want to think it's a worthwhile gamble but until we produce another two or three seasons like the one we just had we are still an unknown entity with an uncertain future.

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  33. Follow
    Tony Barrett @TonyBarretTimes
    Liverpool baffled by reports linking them with Marco Reus and insist they've shown no interest in him despite suggestions to the contrary.

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  34. He did have a great Water Closet...

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  35. Heard people talking about golden toilet paper..
    On a serious note, I think that the star is born, the boy is amazingwith a Ronaldinho-Suarez kind aof passion for the game. It's a darn shame that his next club will be Real- he is a kind of player for Atleti..

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  36. Yeah, so much for your debt prophecies.

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  37. They are drowning in debt but they have no problem paying off their debts. They are a commercial revenue giant. Makes my stomach want to turn.

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  38. Lazar Markovic is joining us. Get excited!!

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  39. An unfortunate reality.


    It's seemingly impossible that they will ever go down like LFC in the 90's. Too much cash in it for that to happen.

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  40. AndWithSuchSimplicity2:32 pm, July 14, 2014

    Nah.
    Flash in the pan.

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  41. You were also guaranteed trophies at Man Utd, especially in that team he was in. With Fergie there, they were winning a trophy basically every year.

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  42. So why wouldn't moving to the premier league be special for Reus? It has much more worldwide appeal than Bundesliga.

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