5 Aug 2014

Next Stop LFC? BR to make €23m bid for 'phenomenal' striker hailed by Maradona

With Daniel Sturridge injured, Rickie Lambert firing blanks, and only two weeks until the new season starts, time is running out for Liverpool to sign a top-class striker, but new reports suggest that the Reds have a new target in mind as a potential replacement for Luis Suarez.

According to The Independent, Brendan Rodgers is planning a €23m bid for Argentina striker Ezequiel Lavezzi, whose place will be under threat if PSG's proposed deal for Angel Di Maria goes through.

Liverpool's interest in Lavezzi is well documented. In 2009, Rafa Benitez tried to sign him as a partner for Fernando Torres, and this was confirmed by Alejandro Mazzoni, Lavezzi's Agent, who told The Telegraph:

"I reiterate that a Fifa agent presented Napoli with an offer from Liverpool for Lavezzi. This was a formal procedure as the player cannot be contacted directly because he is under contract with Napoli"

Then, in 2012, South America football expert Jose Alberti made the bold claim that Lavezzi would 'definitely leave Naples at the end of the season' and that he would 'move to England and sign for Liverpool".

Given the Reds' previous interested under Benitez, it's possible that the club pursued Lavezzi a second time, but the deal obviously didn't happen, and he ended up at PSG instead.

It's easy to see Lavezzi's appeal to Rodgers:

* Versatile, and can play as striker, or out wide.
* Works very hard on the field, and is good defensively.
* Has pace, which is always a plus for any attacking player.

In June, Argentina boss Alejandro Sabella hailed Lavezzi's positive influence on his squad. He enthused:

"Players like Lavezzi are always very positive, because they keep players happy. They keep a nice atmosphere in the group. And Lavezzi is a great player. He hasn't been in the starting line-up but he never makes negative comments, he never makes faces, and he is always supporting the team."

Lavezzi sounds like the archetypal Rodgers player, and his qualities are exactly what the manager seeks in new players. The downside is that he will be 30 on his next birthday, and €23m is a lot of money to pay for a player entering his 30s.

Still, Lavezzi's creative stats for PSG are creditable, especially given the fact he rarely gets to play as a central striker due to the presence of Ibrahimovic and Cavani:

* 23 goals/18 assists in 90 appearances,
* Goal every 3.9 games.
* Goal/assist every 2.1 games.

The Argentine's appearance record is also impressive, and - importantly - he rarely gets injured:

* 278 appearances in the last 7 years.
* Averages 40 games a season.
* Missed only 12 games through injury in the last 10 years.

With Sturridge increasingly injury prone, having another striker who seemingly impervious to injury is a priority for Liverpool, and Lavezzi certainly fits the bill.

Argentina legend Diego Maradona is big fan, and he's praised Lavezzi many times, most recently sfter the World Cup final against Germany, when he raved:

“I don’t understand the substitution of Lavezzi. He was phenomenal down the wing. Kun Aguero didn’t have the same impact. It was not his [Aguero's] tournament.”

Lavezzi is often compared to Maradona, but the attacker dismisses the comparison as 'something for journalists'. Last season, he told reporters:

"The truth is that I am nothing like the player that Maradona was. I am a simple football player, some may like me and others not. I could never compare myself with him or try and occupy his place. I simply tried to do what I do best, which is to play football"

I personally wouldn't be averse to seeing Lavezzi at Anfield. He will definitely improve the squad, and is a superior option to both Fabio Borini and Rickie Lambert. Additionally, given his experience, he is capable of coming in and making an immediate impact.

Should Liverpool pursue a deal?

Author:


216 comments:

  1. We have lots of goal providers in the team, we need a clinical striker to put them away, for me this guy isn't clinical enough. For that type of money I would prefer Bony, I am sure his stats are much better in all areas and he's younger too. Do we have a stats comparison?

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  2. Terry, I have been begging for Ricardo Rodriguez for a month or more. Flannagan on the right, in place of Johnson with Manquillo and maybe Kelly behind Flanno. Done and dusted..............

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  3. praise the LORD!

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  4. Maybe Bony if the price drops quite dramatically from the original 19 million quoted

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  5. Please bring icradi from inter milan he fits with our style of play

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  6. he seems to be the weakest kicker in the league from a length and accuracy point of view............He has good reactions though and gets to look bad with the shoddy defense in front of him...........

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  7. The defence may be shoddy, but last season, Mignolet made more mistakes that led to goals than any other keeper in the league (six in total, according to OPTA).

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  8. we sign lavezzi and balotelli, i think we could be classed as serious title contenders, we dont sign any player in that calibre we can forget top 4, because lambert is a plan b player or a player to see the clock out and sturridge is a tad injury prone.
    cant rely on sterling to much as hes still growing

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  9. He would be a solid addition, but there may be other options since age will be a factor. That said, I wouldn't be disappointed.

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  10. Go to, talkingbaws dot com, well worth a look, and see Lavezzi at his best.
    You will enjoy.

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  11. If only Rodgers didn't have a think for small technical players....


    To be honest though as good as Rodriguez is, there must be a reason no club has made a bid for him, or he has tried to move considering his status is high?


    I know Wolfsburg are a good club, no disrespect, but they are not an elite club and looking at so many defenders on the move this summer I think there is a reason why Rodriguez has not been approached.


    I read on a site the other day he is waiting for Bayern, but if that's true it would leave Bayern with Alaba AND Rodriguez. I wouldn't mind Alaba instead... as both won't be happy together. This could just be speculation given every player in Germany wants to play for Bayern but it doesn't add up...

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  12. A wreck waiting to happen,

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  13. Sucking pussy in a selfie, is not my idea of a LFC player.

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  14. You're a bad man. He certainly has a nose for the goal.

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  15. You're a bad man. He certainly has a nose for the goal.

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  16. We dont need thrash like him,

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  17. I'm betting he was pretty solid in that picture.

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  18. I had to agree with Trevor Francis last night when he said Liverpool have made a mistake by spending over £100 million, yet only £4 million of that on a striker. Surely there has to be a £30 million+ striker coming to Anfield. It's pointless having lots of creative midfielders and a new solid defence if we don't have a top striker to put the chances away. If the reports today are true that Barcelona had the Suarez deal wrapped up in June, then their is no excuse for not having a top striker signed by now. I don't class Lavezzi as a top striker, a goal every 4 games isn't good enough. Why have we been wasting time on signing young hopefuls who will contribute very little to the team this season and not enough time on securing the top striker everyone in football knows we need.

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  19. This guy is worse than Suarez, Trouble trouble, NO WAY.

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  20. Well, there were other needs, but I think we have filled them. What I don't get is that we apparently we still have a ton of cash and we're going for a relatively cheap option. Why not strike out for somebody with speed and flash and the stones to make things happen all by himself like Suarez did? Got to be somebody out there...Falcao maybe?

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  21. Who is . . .Trevor Francis??

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  22. He played with, Birmingham, Leicester, or teams like that.

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  23. I don't think we have a ton of cash, if the Moreno deal goes through then that's over £110 million spent, £75million from Suarez, that's £35 million spent. I think the only other money available is from player sales, hence why we aren't buying anyone because we haven't sold anyone yet, oh apart from the £2 million for Reina.

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  24. Most of my posts have been deleted on this subject, he is an absolute disgrace, and is not LFC worthy.

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  25. Maybe Johnny Starrs 'revelations' will drive Lavezzi's price down...I'll bet his agent is pulling his hair out about now.

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  26. van girl tries to sound smart12:47 am, August 06, 2014

    maybe we just waited to get reina wages off the books for certain before we get top class striker...lambert will still score 10-15 goals even if it is from the bench ..stop panicking over pre season games chelsea got bet 3-0 last year adpas scored 4 in preseason it means nothing ...having said all that AYRE NEEDS TO GO taking over a month on every " complicated deal " is simply unacceptable

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  27. Please stop discussing that. It is a private matter, and is irrelevant to Lavezzi's football career.

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  28. You must be joking, a players personality and profile, are very pertinent to his being a LFC player,
    We have kids watching LFC, it is very imprudent to ignore that.

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  29. OK...last comment, but honestly I'm more worried about the mental state that leads to such behavior than the actual behavior.

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  30. Who are you (or I) to judge Lavezzi's private life? He's done nothing wrong; what he gets up to with his wife in his own time is his business. He didn't leak the photos; someone else did, so why are you on his case?

    This is non-football related gossip, and an invasion of Lavezzi's privacy. If you want to be revel in that kind of cheap, tabloid, you're welcome to do so, just not on this site.

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  31. I dont want to tell my 9 year old to get excited we have signed this guy who HIMSELF, posted a selfie of him having oral sex with a girl, if thats ok for you, ok. But its not welcome in my household.

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  32. My posts are being censored, disgraceful, JK you have reached a new low.

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  33. I guess if we can't get bigger names then Bony would do. I just fear he's more of a target man than a creator

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  34. We need another CB instead of Sakho, and Agger should be sold too. Coates is now starting to moan about not playing (allegedly), but he hasn't ever grabbed the opportunities when they were presented to him. Personally all three should be offloaded, they aren't up to it. But with the window starting to close and the season getting ever nearer it looks like it's too late to get rid of all three. So, keep Coates and Sahko for another season and get rid of Agger if anyone wants him. Can't see anyone willing to but Sahko at the moment, he's too rough.

    I see Bayern are apparently buying Reina. Shame really, I think he could and should have been replacing Mig now. We now need to find another keeper....... Who?

    Lots of work for BR to do on completing the squad for a long season ahead, and please God don't leave it to January, well be 8th by then.

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  35. Nonsense. You repeatedly keep posting about tawdry non-football related gossip even after I've requested you stop. Gossiping about players' private lives is outlawed on this site. It lowers the tone, and is totally irrelevant.

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  36. Don't think Lavezzi scores enough goals and he's knocking on a bit(29yrs..I think). He does dribble the ball pretty good and is pacy. If we were to acquire his service, would try for a loan (wouldn't buy him).


    Would prefer Luis Muriel to Zeke Lavezzi, as Muriel is younger and has a lot of raw ability. Luiz Adriano from Shaktar should be available for a reasonable fee. Victor Ibarbo is a shout has pace and strength, could turn out to be like Diego Costa.

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  37. Irrevelant to my children who also read from your website, ??

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  38. Did your post get edited? It happens to all of us, just let him rule the roost mate. Think most of us have accepted he does this from time to time.

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  39. Are you serious? The only person posting the Lavezzi gossip here is *you*. I haven't posted anything about, nor has anyone else. If your children read about it, then it's clearly down to you (!)

    And you're right - kids read this site, which is why I don't allow stupid gossip like that.

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  40. OK I take back the target man comment...been doing my Youtube research. What's not to like? He's great with his head and scores equally well with left or right foot. We should just get him before Spurs waste that talent.

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  41. Don really care that he's nearly 30. We need players who will make an instant impact and keep us in the top 4. Once we achieve that, then it will be easier to attract more quality players

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  42. If we are interested in Lavezzi, do you not think that kids are gonna search the net to see what we are getting, come on.

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  43. Maybe, but what does that have to do with posting that info on this site? If they search, they won't find that stuff here.

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  44. He did'nt leak the photos, PROVE IT.

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  45. and I give a reason why wilfried bony.. because he was play many season at EPL and he knows what he can do. He will joint us because we offer him UCL and pair with sturridge. or we must find top striker like Falcao or Martinez or Higuin or Livezzi ???
    Marco reus are good add too and we are blow if he go to Man U or another team.. Gerrard are only 2 years left and we put Jordan Henderson and Emre Can there
    Flanagan...........Skertel......Lovren..........Moreno
    ...................................Henderson........................
    ...........Reus.................Caitinho..............Can......
    ....................Sturrigde....................Sterling..........

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  46. Bony...scores with both feet, good header, not blazing fast, but strong and has good vision...maybe if he dropped 10 pounds he would be faster. He's 25...relatively injury free..and he's AVAILABLE, and he's a proven goal scorer in two leagues.

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  47. JK says, he (Lavezzi) didnt post the fotos, tell us your source for this NEW information, ?????????

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  48. Just curious... how is that statistic measured?

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  49. Sakho? Did you really watch the game? He was covering his CB position and LB for Johnson. Sakho was our best defender yesterday. He was better than Skrtel. I know JK loves Skrtel but Sakho was better. No defender gets 100% of his tackles. What were those defenders behind him, Skrtel and Kelly doing when the cross came in? At least Johnson and Kelly were worse than Sakho.

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  50. I saw more of good play from Sakho than from Skrtel.

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  51. Did you guys watch the game or you are just reading what someone has written? Sakho was our best defender yesterday

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  52. i think whoever play at CB that night, we still lose that game, we already have this kind of disease last year, the symptoms is the sudden panic, is not only about sakho and mignolet's mentality is about the entire players mentality...............come on BR, just fix that...........there is no point that we look at 100m striker to replace saurez if our inferior mentality wasn't swept away, learn from the past please .........

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  53. Agreed. Some people did not watch the game. Rooney's goal was Skrtel, Mignolet and Kelly's fault. Kelly because he was missing, Skrtel because he could have covered better and Mignolet because he did not position himself well. It has nothing to do with Sakho who was covering the CB and LB position at that time. I believe some people just do not like Sakho

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  54. Why are you guys on Sakho? Did you watch the game?

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  55. Spoken like someone who played as a defender. I agree

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  56. Mamadou Sakho is 24 this year so I'm actually not quite sure to say that he is an unfinished article or something along that line. I would say that at his age, it's either he has 'it' in him or not, kinda 'now or never'. In any case, it's only obvious he is not someone that brings stability to the defense. I'm not only referring to his performances in these pre-season friendly matches but also at last season's matches. He is still very much the same: good in his left foot, good at passing and cannot defend effectively. Nothing more nothing less. His inability to defend is either due to attitude or aptitude, it seems more of the latter, rather unfortunately. He didn't warm the bench at PSG under established manager Carlo Ancelotti for no reason. We need not wonder why BR and that whatsoever transfer committee blew 16-18 mil pounds for him. Nothing new here and we shall, as always, move on from failed transfers like that. We still have unproven Coates and Ilori to try out at CB position. First team defenders should be Skrtel and Lovren, there really nothing much up for dispute. Hopefully BR share the same sentiments else we are certain to look at even more goals being conceded this season compared to the last.

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  57. Given the dire situation at the striker department right now, I think we should go for it even if the price is 23 mil pounds.

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  58. He is the guy in the song for only fools and horses

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  59. Sorry...despite spending well over 80 mil pounds, we still do have the solid defense that you are talking about...

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  60. Why can't we commend ManU for making a nice play on that first goal as opposed to knocking down our own players?


    How about it was a nice cross and a nice finish.


    Talk about critical realism. Commending the opponent for a nice play all around.

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  61. Gerrard is no defensive midfielder. Rodgers would have to replace him
    with Emre Can if we are to have any stability in the defensive midfield
    area to help our defenders. When Gerrard goes missing, our CB seems to
    take the extra load then sometimes they panic not knowing to stay their
    ground or move forward; thereby making mistakes.

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  62. Is there really any substance to this? I can't find a creditable source and as usual the story is that "there are reports of Liverpool being interested in Lavezzi". He's might seem like a good option but can anyone actually substantiate the rumour?

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  63. If Moreno comes and Agger goes we also have Lovren, Skrtel, Sakho, Kelly, Flanagan, Enrique & Coates. That looks a strong defence to me. They are all solid dependable defenders. Obviously the weak link is Johnson, but I think he will be on the bench a lot before being sold in January. Sakho will get better and better, Kelly hopefully continues his resurgence, Coates is talented and strong but needs minutes. In comparison to Jones, Smalling and Evans, our defence looks first class.

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  64. The thing is that i cant remember a single solid tackle by Sakho since he has arrived.

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  65. At this
    Pint sign him and his mom!!!!

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  66. What about Bony and Lavezzi and sell Borini, Allen, Johnson and Reina as a partial financial make weight. Let's get on with it. Then we can pass on Reus and then get Vidal. Our midfield needs legs and talent. Nuke Lucas and either Sakho, Agger or Coates. Don't need all three defenders. keep Ilori. The future is now!

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  67. Wishful think about lambert and 15 goals.........

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  68. True story....

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  69. Spot on! I would like us to sign both and then pass on Reus as a compromise but a gain for depth. Then sell the deadwood, sign Viidal and go out and kick some ass.....

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  70. Sheshna Hauradhur5:27 am, August 06, 2014

    too old for £23m.

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  71. If this goes through, it 'll not be bad. Absolutely noway PSG is going to get near the price being quoted - De Maria has given ultimatum & PSG 'll need a panic sale (A new phenomena in club football - thanks to Michel Platini & the Mafia, Oil money).


    May be 13-15 mn for an almost 30 years old, but exceptionally skillful player. But, I think he 'll come for a high wage, some how, if just somehow had someone offered a couple of years contract to Glen Johnson with his current salary !!!!! He 'll happily warm bench in a League 2 match, if the money is good.

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  72. This guy is so overrated.

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  73. I like him. I was reluctant at first but if you look at our squad, only Gerrard and maybe Skrtel have faced the full tension to a CL game. This guy provides valuable experience, brings goals and does not seem to be injury prone. I would prefer him over Bony anyday.

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  74. I would prefer Bony, he has a raw talent and his finishing is sublime. We have players like Lavezzi, trickery and pace we have in abundance so what we need is someone who can make use of these skills and score goals. Daniel Sturridge is the only real striker we have and we need another top class finisher like Remy or Bony.

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  75. But, if you look at most of Bony's goals from last year, they have come from crosses. As you well know, Liverpool is now not a crossing team. The only way I will see Bony get goals is from free-kicks and corners.

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  76. Lavezzi is overweight, slow and has no control what so ever. And he's not a striker but another attacking midfielder.

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  77. I would prefer we sign either of these players Falcao,llorente,tevez,lavezzi,Cavani or go get me back Lioc Remy please Rodgers.

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  78. JK yyou are spot on on this one. Im one of Sakho's

    "apologists" but on this one you are just dead spot on in your analysis. However, Im just fed up with Johnson. His shortcomings have cost us defensively sooooo ooo many times. I would be glad if he never started an LFC mach ever again. I dont know much about Manquillo but from the few youtube clips I have seen, I would rate him above Johnson any day

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  79. He would be an improvement, but I think for someone who is nearly 30 we should probably be looking elsewhere.

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  80. The worst case scenario we are left with Borini and Lambert. Who would you choose?

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  81. ha ha. thats so us!

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  82. With Google available I suspect the question needed no answer but he was the first £1M player. In his day or one of a few world class English players.

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  83. i have seen bony played last season against the big four,he was quite good and scores too. It will be a good buy for us if we can get him . he will prove himself at anfield no doubt.

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  84. I'm with you on the second goal, that's an issue and Mata was allowed to just be in that space. Sakho realises far too late that he needs to get out to him. Is that Gerrard potentially tracking back in front of him? I'm not suggesting Mata was his man, but clearly there is a misunderstanding between the two and Sakho probably betrays his guilt by coming out to meet Mata when the balls comes through. It just looks obvious that Sakho is the only one responsible for closing that space and instead, like you say, he's shifted himself deeper into the penalty area. I suppose it could be suggested that Gerrard (or whoever it is) lost Mata and should have stuck on him but Sakho is the more likely suspect.


    The first goal - I don't really agree. Here we have two centre backs dealing with a counter attack, a ton of space to cover. That Sakho goes wide at all means there is an acre behind him, meanwhile Skrtel is on the other side of the box. In that situation the worst thing a defender could do is over-commit and get beaten. His number one responsibility is to keep himself between the attacker and the goal. Yes, he should be as close as possible but if he commits to go to the player he has to do it at pace and that's the moment he's most easily beaten. A simple change of direction or a dink in behind and Sakho is nowhere with Hernandez free to get in the penalty area. As it happened he had to deliver a very good pass to Rooney. That was by far the more difficult task and that's the judgement Sakho made. Rather than go hard at the player and risk being beaten he forced the pass and Hernandez was simply good enough to deliver it perfectly. The only other option was to simply take the player out with an intentional foul.


    To me that first goal is a classic example of Liverpool getting caught out of position because of the kind of football they play and the choices they make with two attacking wing backs. I remember it happening many times last season and the result is almost always the same. A centre back ends up back-peddling while trying to deal with a player on the corner of the penalty area, coming at pace and with all kinds of options to take. I remember Agger getting beaten in a very similar scenario and the attacking player in that instance not making the pass and simply scoring himself instead. While I'd agree that it would be preferable if our CBs could simply deal better with those kinds of situations my general impression, one I've had for some time now, is that team positional play is at fault and we shouldn't be allowing it to get to that point in the first place. Having 2 on 2 situations where CBs have no choice but to go wide to cover attacking players is a big problem and usually leads to a clear goal scoring chance. It looks bad because the CBs appear to be totally ineffectual but my conclusion is that there are very few CBs who could have done any better. It will be very interesting to see Lovren in action in a few weeks because he WILL find himself in a situation like that and a supposedly top class CB might just find himself looking distinctly average. I'll be thrilled to be proven wrong on that, but until it happens I'm not sure Sakho has performed any worse than any other defender would have in that situation.

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  85. so where was Skrtels mistakes? Skrtel is solid and has become a reliable competent defender never shirking out of a tackle and throwing himself into blocks etc, Louvren will be the defensive leader and will bring much needed control of their partnership, he is a strong and commanding centre back. I panic every time Sakho has the ball and he doesn't fill me with confidence, reminds me of Traore

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  86. erm, don't ya think the right back should have been with rooney??

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  87. Agree that he has become a terrific defender. But if he continues to grapple with attackers in the penalty area like he did last season we can expect to give away more pens. Refs will have got him sussed.

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  88. Disgraceful. This sort of thing should be kept to the dressing room.

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  89. Possibly, however, Skrtel lets the ball pass him, he could clearly have intercepted it ..

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  90. liverpoolegendbuy!9:50 am, August 06, 2014

    too old for money wanted.

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  91. Neither full backs can defend, both seem unable to stop opponents or crosses. They are both usually missing in action, or too narrow. Get RID of both ..

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  92. LFC certainly need another striker. I like Lambert, appears to be a decent man. Unfortunately I fear he's been promoted to his level of incompetence. Applies to FB too. Ibe? who knows. We know DS has done well, but perhaps he benefits from having a proven partner to keep him on his toes. Whilst there are more formidable strikers out there EL has dined at the top table. Not ecstatic at the prospect, but compared to the current inertia I will say "yea!".

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  93. Jamie censor ? like a nine year old with hurt pride.

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  94. i think them stats are a result of him regularly playing from the wings as ibra was up top. 1/4 is good from out wide imo...

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  95. Watch the Mata goal again. As the ball goes out to the wing Sakho drops as he should do to defend the cross. When the ball gets back to Mata the question has to be a' why was no one in the position to cut it out and b, why was no one near enough to Mata to either make a challenge or at least pressure. Sakho is one of the only players who actually reacts but he is far to far away. It was someone else job essentially. Gerards.

    For Hernandez goal Sakho could have maybe taken one step further on to Hs right foot covering the cross. You could see his concern about getting beat on the inside. But watch Johnson and whoever is behind Johnson. Johnson should be tighter to Sakho so he knows the inside is covered and the person behind Johnson should be further back covering that other player running up. Or a more dynamic or more experienced DM (experienced at being a DM) would have been covering that space I talked of Johnson being in and Johnson could fall in to the CB position as Sakho was in the FB position.

    I have said many times that defending is a team thing and it's clear from those goals it is. People need simple exploitations and blame individuals but it is not that easy. You are absolutely right in your last paragraph.

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  96. If this was 3-4 years ago then I would be excited but at 29 it is a gamble.

    Then again we are in need of a striker who is quality and a master presser.

    I think Lavezzi is overrated IMO but would not mind him coming on Anfield.

    £18M seems too much though.

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  97. Higuain. I also liked the look of that Enzo Perez guy for Argentina but he's a midfielder.

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  98. im with you if we go for him its got panic written all over it ....hes overated over age and overpriced so we will probably buy him

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  99. thats what i think sid i dont think bony suits a passing game

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  100. Whey spend that money on a player thats 29 years old?
    I'm not happy with Lambert AT ALL, yes he's cheap but this is sentimental.
    I can't believe that we are heading into our first game without an alternative.
    Also players like Kelly should be shifted out he's terrible offers no offensive ability can't beat a player constantly passes back and this was before he was injured.


    I understand that we need to improve defence with the purchases but Lambert over Borini? REALLY ?


    Unless Brendan has some covert plan to bring in two strikers we are in serious trouble because losing the Suarez goals has not been shown thus far to be replaced.

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  101. Apart from that he'd be ideal.:-)

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  102. I actually think lambert will come good and do a job ,trevor Francis hit the nail on the head we have sold a striker for 75m have got an alleged 60m kitty but have spent 4m on a striker . We should of offered more money for ogari or given them a pick of players to let us have him now but the reality is we dont have the nous or capabilities to pull off that kind of negotiation. We will inevitably waste a big fee and huge contract on a player who will be a bench warmer when ogari returns then attempt to loan him out .It doesn't matter who is in charge at Liverpool ,kenny, rafa , houlier rogers the complete disregard for the clubs money is a disgrace.

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  103. I must disagree on this on, simply because the priority is goals and thats Lavezzi's real weakness. I'm hoping the press have put 2 and 2 together and made 5, and that we are really going for Cavani.

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  104. Maybe Gilstrap but Lambert won't score 20 + goals.
    About this waste of money and the problems we had with that under Rafa Kenny and now Brendan one consistent has been the presence of Ian Ayre .. I rest my case me lud

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  105. As long as he keeps his head down and works hard he could be a lip smacking prospect

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  106. 10mn more and we could have got Lukaku.

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  107. Not his biggest fan but on the first goal thats a very bad shout, sometimes you just have to say thats was a great finish. Sakho gets dragged out to the wing and does what every single CB is told to do when you get dragged out to the wing, shadow the player down the wing and try to prevent the cross. could he have got a little closer? Yes he could have, but you also have to remember if he gets to close Hernandez could simply skip past him so he stands off him a little. Sometimes you just have to say that the cross was a brilliant pin point cross, and the finish was greatly finished off by Rooney.

    Now the second goal i completely agree with you, him a Johnson swap players and Sakho was caught ball watching, and didn't get anywhere near Mata fast enough.

    But more than anything did you not notice every single goal came down that left hand flank? It just showed how much we are crying out for a left back. and a good CDM when the right back or left back push forward the CDM has to tuck into these positions so we are not susceptible to the counter attack and SG just doesn't do this and thats why he will never be a CDM.

    Basically i would say your comments on the first are quite harsh but second yes fully understandable. I still think the defence needs help with a smart , strong CDM I have high hopes this can be Emre Can, fingers crossed.

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  108. With that kind of build up I had to take a peek myself purely in the interest of football research you understand and so others don't have to put themselves through it.


    My wife saw me looking at the pictures and after I had explained that it was football research I said, you wouldn't do that with a man would you? She gave a casual glance at the screen and as she turned away she said, I do..........

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  109. dont worry chirag rogers obviously has a grip on the situation or he wouldn't be offering advice to LVG

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  110. Yeah agreed. I think BR needs to focus on the task at hand .

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  111. Just throwing this out there. Another site has an artile titled "Divock Origi stunned by the level of depth Liverpool's scouting team went to". Are tia posting counter arguments to Jaimie these days?

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  112. Normal tactics . You respond to failings by telling everyone how good you are at it.....

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  113. ill be honest and say ill be stunned if we even have a scouting system .....90% of the time we just select a player payer 50% over his transfer value and offer them a lottery win contract its hardly an exact science

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  114. So Levezzi is getting suacy with his wife. So what?

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  115. well at least hes good in the box just the wrong one

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  116. Parental locks buddy.Other than that it is the internet so good look keeping them seeing things.

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  117. For me we needed a striker and a new defence .. both of which are STILL major issues. Buck POOR in the transfer market again. Also, why didn't he give Pepe a go?

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  118. We seem to have our own version of the Streisand effect going on here :-)

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  119. ill be honest and say the jokes write them selves in regards in lavezzi and i have to reign it in

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  120. Ptrobably cos they just don't get on

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  121. Was that another one?

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  122. coupled with the fact also that hes not that good

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  123. Has this article just been written to wind up Logan? You complain that people come up with spurious arguments to, as you say, blindly back Rodgers decisions but how do you justify basically attempting to drum up an anti Sakho movement by concocting an article of sheer fiction?
    You claim to have played the game and I'm sure you have, but you can't be any good if this is what your 'footballing brain' produces.

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  124. He's streets ahead of Mingolet ..

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  125. Well, at least he might not look out of place with Terry and Giggs already there in the PL.

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  126. Yes, they are not mutually exclusive

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  127. Simpler than that, if you say anything in the press, you are outed .. Enrique will go for the same reasons ...

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  128. It was a quote from Origi not Liverpool.

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  129. but he was reading a script handed to him by rogers

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  130. One would hope...

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  131. OK then. So basically believe whatever fits whatever you already think. Easier that way I suppose.

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  132. like i say hes not that good turn street into continents and your nearly there

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  133. But..but we have the best scouts from Man City who bought such greats like Jack Rodwell, so good that Sunderland had to buy him, Scott, so hot that his reputation passes his girlfriends on the Man City bench and Maicon, the star of the show in B7azi1.

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  134. Comment is in moderation. I was trying to say yes he's not that good but he's still streets ahead of Mig......(joke).

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  135. it works for me,why let the truth get in the way of a good story

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  136. Were Sinclair and Maicon not signed after the city scouts came to us? Don't get me wrong I am not saying they are flawless or I agree with all the players they think are good. I don't But It's worth being accurate and despite how bad their decisions may be I am certain they actually do scout the players in some detail.

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  137. Origi did keep referring to the scouting team as outstanding and exceptional. I rest my case :-)......

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  138. No, they were signed a few months before they came to us. I am not doubting their ability at all, just making a joke.

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  139. Agreed. How dare he pass the ball directly to the feet of a teammate in a better position. Take your tongue out of Gerrards backside!

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  140. Would that be in the french interview as I can't find it. Only the one from the Express in which he says he couldn't believe it. Once. So if you have a link that would be boss.

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  141. Jesus, will people get off of Lamberts back a bit. He was never brought in to be the new Suarez, he is a back up, or a plan B for those stubborn defences.
    Even so, the guy has notched 28 league goals and has 19 assists since being in the Prem, (2 seasons) which is more than a lot of other players. 48 goals in total.
    Over the last 2 seasons he holds up against some of the 'top' strikers.
    Giroud 17 goals 13 assists (30 in total)
    Rooney 29 goals 22 assists (51 in total)
    Dzeko 30 goals 13 assists (43 in total)
    Aguero 29 goals 14 assists (43 total)
    Sturridge 33 goals 13 assists (46 in total)
    How about we give him a little bit of time, and actually make his full debut before we start writing him off.

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  142. Nice One. Giroud as a top striker.

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  143. If them key words kept on cropping up its defiantly rogers who only this morning had an exceptional breakfast followed by an outstanding cup of tea

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  144. I do doubt there ability to be honest. They are certainly not the very best at what they do. As long as they are an improvement on what went on before though.

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  145. As soon as I've written it I'll send you the link:-)

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  146. i usually just make them up and send people on a wild goose chase

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  147. A fair point about time. It is preseason after all, we have one fit Striker at this very moment I wouldn't be surprised if he has not been pushing himself too hard.

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  148. The tea lady is a great technician though and the philosophy behind the bacon butty was phenomenal.

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  149. Lambert has quality for sure and he was definitely faster last season. I agree with you about preseason. A certain Iago played so well in pre season lasr year and we all know how that turned out. I would defnitely have Lambert than Yaya Sanogo or Fernando Torres that's for sure.

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  150. She'll be sold before the season starts then

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  151. He was also signed when we still had Suarez. And ok, the Suarez move away might have been on the cards, but we aren't certain. So it was likely he would be back up for SaS.

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  152. Exactly. Pre season means pretty much nothing.

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  153. not a chance shes on 200g a week

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  154. Does anyone else spot Reus in a post and stop reading? It's just not going to happen and he is not the only player in the world. As sh!t as it is we probably won't sign a player near that quality. No point moaning about it we just have to get on with it.

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  155. True, but you have to be a little surprised and worried when a previously good player suddenly seems so slow, can;t seem to control a pass to save his life and can't even score from a penalty.




    I thought £4M was a steal and am a fan of what I saw last year but what I have seen so far is worrying

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  156. I could bear it at the beginning but I just got bored hearing the same rubbish everywhere. This transfer window has been all about that as people cannot shut up. Man Utd with Vidal, Arsenal with Khedira, us with Reus and everyone with Suarez.

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  157. That's not even two packs of tea, poor love.

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  158. Like Greg said above, maybe he isn't pushing himself to hard. Maybe he has been told not to push 100%, and work on fitness in training? Who knows.

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  159. or maybe hes not that good haha

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  160. Missing the penalty and miscontrolling passes is taking it a bit too easy

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  161. Pretty sure I've seen some of the best players in the world miss control passes and miss penalties.

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  162. Howard Webb reitres. Best news I have heard all transfer window.

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  163. Yep in between though they are playing like the best players in the world he is doing little else and doing it slowly.




    And as I said I thought he was and still hope he is a good buy but not on what I have seen so far.:-)

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  164. Heard Manu are giving him a testimonial

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  165. Man Utd with one half of the referees on their team with Fergie coach vs Arsenal with the other half with the game never ending as there is no limit to Fergie time.

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  166. If he scores one goal from the bench (and it is allowed to stand) I will be impressed:-)

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  167. I think it's a little too early in the season for you to be calling for BR's head, and for you to have already come to the conclusion Lallana was a total waste of money. Expensive? Yes; Waste? We'll see, but I doubt it.
    As for not buying top scorers. Yes, LFC have the ability (that is to say, the funds), but the top scorers are reluctant to join for fear that last season's CL qualification was a fluke and that the only reason Liverpool got there was because of a nibble-happy goal-scoring machine that is no longer part of the team. (And how do you know we haven't gone all out to sign a top scorer? A lot goes on behind the scenes that we will never know.) Consistent CL qualification will hopefully settle that matter.
    FSG are doing a fine job in my opinion. They are determined to redevelop Anfield (seeing it as their legacy [or so they say]), and the way they handled the Suarez affair last summer ensured a maximum amount was received when the striker finally walked out the door.
    I realize we didn't win the league last season, and that missing out by a tiny margin was a giant kick in the danglies, but let's see how this season goes before we start gathering pitchforks and marching to BR's doorstep.
    That said, I am worried about this season as well. But, no matter the ownership or the management, it is destined to be an interesting/difficult season without the creative input of Suarez and the influx of new faces/personalities. Hope we prove better at coping than the spuds did last year.

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  168. Heard he turned up for pre-season and Luis Van Gaal'a training regiment was too strenuous for him. So he's packing it in

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  169. I was reading in the LFC media watch pages that Reus buy-out clause may be as low as 19.8M....hmmmmmmm.

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  170. You can match the clause, you can match the wages but i the player doesn't want you nothing happens.

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  171. ...there's always the chloroform-ride-in-a-windowless-van-series-of-aggressive-brainwashing-sessions-involving-LSD-and-closeups-of-Suarez's-teeth route.

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  172. Cream that got the 'cat'.... When he pull Zlatans nose after he scored a goal, I wonder what he smelt pink or brown?

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  173. Liverpool have accepted an offer from Huddersfield Town for Conor Coady & the player is undergoing a medical.

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  174. Selling Coady for 500k?

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  175. You can just skip the van....Dortmund vs. Liverpool in a few.

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  176. Ahh the old torture torture catchy monkey.

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  177. If 20 mil Euros is the difference between qualifying for Champs League or not then we shd sign him. Everything s in place apart from the back up striker for when Sturridge is injured. No disrespect to Ricky but he provides us with a different dimension .

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  178. Lets be Honest , Can you really trust Brendan With all this transfer money he has been spending . Just look at his transfers last year ? Aspas, Borini,Alberto, Sakko etc

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  179. lets check Rues first
    then run after this guy

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  180. Lets be Honest , Can you really trust Brendan With all this transfer money he has been spending . Just look at his transfers last year ? Aspas, Borini,Alberto, Sakko etc

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  181. i think now the reus deal and vidal deal will never happen so lets stop dreaming. lavezzi on the other hand this could happen if psg get di maria and i think this would be a good signing better than the ones we've made we do need to bring in a top name

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  182. Bony and Lavezzi Stats

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  183. he is not a striker full stop and we badly need another top quality striker

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  184. Really...haven't you heard of hypnosis? You put him to sleep, tell him he plays for Liverpool, tell him he's always played for Liverpool, red is his favorite color, he was born near Anfield Road...no problem. Of course you'll have to figure out how to say all that in German...hmmmm. There might be a hole in this plan.

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  185. PSG rated Sakho VERY highly and didn't want to sell him.

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  186. This article is embarrassing.


    The first goal was down to poor defending by Skrtel, as well as Gerrard initially failing to step out and challenge Herrera in midfield before he played it wide to Hernandez.

    The second goal is completely Gerrard's fault, Mata was his man. Skrtel was marking his man and COULDN'T step out to Mata because he would HAVE LEFT HIS MAN UNMARKED.

    I know you don't really know anything about football Jimmy, but this article is a shocker even by your standard.


    Sakho is EASILY our best CB.

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  187. " to be fair, Gerrard was behind Mata, so couldn't make a challenge without risking giving away a penalty."


    ARE YOU KIDDING ME?? Why was he behind him? Because he'd lost him, because he's a defensive liability living on his set pieces.


    And he could have made a tackle, Mata was outside the area.

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  188. slow?? maybe on 100meters but his bursts are explosive and he drops players with 3 first steps. you rarely need to sprint more than 20 meters in football

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  189. You are very VERY stupid.

    Gerrard was 10 yards from Demba Ba when he received that ball. Sakho didn't screw us in any of those games, you're just a fool

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  190. Enrique is garbage, Lucas is worth NOTHING - single handedly cost us the title last season.

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  191. "sell Johnson and buy Dani Alves"


    You know nothing about football. BOTH of them are dreadful.

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  192. Hi Jimmy,


    Dave here.


    Heard you got arrested recently, that's gotta suck.


    Are you still pretending to be Haydon as well? And Buxton? And Steamy?


    I'm still waiting for the police to come see me regarding the investigation you claim took place. Have never heard a word from them. Were you lying Jimmy??


    This article is dross, as expected, and highlights your stupidity.




    JIMMY WANKER, EXPOSING HIMSELF TO SMALL CHILDREN ON THE INTERNET.


    PUT IT AWAY JIMMY, PUT IT AWAY.

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