Hamann raves: Liverpool should sign 'magnificent' £38m playmaker who rejected Benitez. Possible?

Everton star Ross Barkley is one of the most coveted young players in Europe right now, especially amongst former Liverpool players, who frequently heap praise on the 21-year old attacker. Reds legend Dietmar Hamann is a confirmed admirer of Barkley, and this week, he's once again urged LFC to pursue the the midfielder.

In April 2013, Liverpool were linked with an improbable £38m summer move for Barkley (swiftly dismissed by Roberto Martinez), and when asked this week about signing players from Everton, Hamann responded:

"Very blinkered view my friend. I'd carry [Ross] Barkley from Goodison to Anfield if Liverpool could have him"

Ex-Reds Jamie Redknapp, Mark Lawrenson, and Jamie Carragher are also huge fans of Barkley. In a recent column for the Daily Mail Redknapp enthused:

"He [Barkley] is magnificent. We’ve not had a player in this country since Gazza who can run the length of the pitch with the ball without ever looking under pressure. It’s as if the ball is glued to his foot".

Lawro is equally impressed:

"The more first-team action [Barkley] gets, the more we are seeing he is pure gold. Whether he is still at Goodison or moves on, he should develop into a massive midfield presence"

Jamie Carragher added:

“There has been a lot of talk on Merseyside about Ross. We talk about the players that will come through and ask who is going to replace Steven Gerrard? Who is going to replace Frank Lampard? That goal on Saturday was Gerrard-like"

Martin Keown - who also played for the Everton - has also suggested that Barkley is a player Liverpool should pursue:

"[Ross] Barkley is the perfect replacement for [Steven] Gerrard. He is still a long way from becoming the complete player Gerrard is, but he has all the potential to be the leading player of his generation".

Do Liverpool have any chance of prising Barkley away from Everton? Probably not, but if things had gone differently, he could've already been a Reds player.

In 2008, 14-year old Barkley scored two goals for Broadgreen International in the Liverpool Echo Cup Final, and who presented the trophy that day? ex-Liverpool manager Rafa Benitez.

According to the BBC, Benitez was 'impressed enough to want to sign him' but Barkley's loyalty to Everton meant there was 'nothing they could do'. Barkley's PE teacher at the time recalls:

"He [Barkley] was loyal to Everton and that came across when he met Rafael Benitez. He was not arrogant or rude, but it was very much just a case of him saying 'thanks very much' and that was that."

Everton legend Ian Snodin has also dismissed the prospect Barkley signing for Liverpool. Last season, he noted:

"I don't think Liverpool have much of a chance signing him. I don't think Ross would like to upset Evertonians and go across the park".

Snodin may be right in this case, but switching clubs on Merseyside is not that uncommon. In the last 30 years, the following players have done the unthinkable:

* Peter Beardsley
* Abel Xavier
* Nick Barmby
* Gary Ablett
* Kevin Sheedy
* David Johnson
* Alan Harper

Alas, Steven Gerrard may already have sabotaged any LFC attempt to sign Barkley. Last season, the youngster revealed the advice he'd received from Liverpool's captain:

"He [Gerrard] said the big hitters are going to be looking at me but the main thing for me is to stay with the club I’m at, the team I support and love, which is Everton"

Reverse psychology, perhaps?

Unfortunately, the painful reality is that if Everton decide to sell, Barkley will probably go Arsenal, Chelsea, Man City, or even Man United.

Rodgers just doesn't have the pulling-power of Mourinho, Wenger, Van Gaal et al, and with Steven Gerrard also leaving, there's even less incentive for top players to come to the club.

Sad, but true.

Author: Jaimie K