4 Jul 2015

Blockbuster Transfer: Liverpool contact Barcelona to sign 'special' €30m attacker with £110m buyout clause

Over the last couple of years, Liverpool have been constantly linked with a move for Barcelona star Pedro, and although the 'special' Spaniard recently signed a new contract at the Camp Nou, the Reds are still reportedly interesting in bringing him to Anfield.

Recent transfer timeline:

* March 2015: The Mirror claimed that Barcelona offered Pedro to Liverpool.

* May 2015: According to The Telegraph, 27-year old Pedro was 'ready to quit the Nou Camp' after falling down the attacking pecking order.

* June 2015: Signed a new deal with Barcelona until 2019. Buyout clause: £110m

Contracts mean very little these days, and they're often used as a tool to ensure a commensurate transfer fee. That seems to be the case with Pedro, and according to Spanish newspaper Mundo Deportivo today:

* Liverpool have contacted Pedro's agent to enquire about the possibility of a transfer.

* Pedro is exploring his options for next season as he doesn't expect to feature that much for Barca.

* Liverpool are allegedly prepared to spend more than Arsenal, who are also interested.

* Despite the buyout clause, Barca are willing to sell for €30m.

Contracts mean very little these days, and it's probable that Barcelona signed-up Pedro simply to ensure a decent transfer fee when he's inevitably sold.

€30m for a player with 20+ major trophies, including 5 league titles, 2 Champions League titles, and a World Cup winner's medal? Sounds about right to me, and I'd love to see Liverpool splash the cash on a player of Pedro's peerless experience.

Despite the ridiculous competition at Barca for attacking places, Pedro has excellent stats over the last six season:

* 98 goals/43 assists (141) in 300 apps (1 Goal/assist every 2 games)

Liverpool fans certainly hold Pedro in high regard. Last summer, I asked fans who they'd rather see LFC sign: Pedro or Lallana.

* 17100 visitors (approx) participated in the poll.
* A gigantic 80% of voters chose Pedro over Lallana.

That's a quite staggering vote of confidence in Pedro, but it's hardly surprising given the Spaniard's experience and pedigree. I also voted in favour of Pedro, for the following reasons:


* Consistent experience at the highest levels of the game, including copious European/international experience.

* Played alongside some of the world's best players for years, including Messi, Xavi, Neymar, and Iniesta.

* A winner, who's won every trophy in the game, and that kind of experience could be invaluable for Liverpool.

* A player who'll come in and give the entire club a lift. He's a marquee signing with an aura about him.

This rumour seems like it's been around forever, yet Pedro is still at Barcelona, and if he decides to leave in the summer, I still can't see him ending up at Liverpool, especially with the club failing to qualify for the Champions League.

With Steven Gerrard gone, there's a distinct lack of world-renowned players at Anfield, and that will make it harder than it is already to attract Europe's elite.

That said, if Liverpool prioritise the signing, and pull out all the stops to make Pedro feel wanted at Anfield, then there may be a possibility of sealing the deal.

I've argued repeatedly that Liverpool need another attacking, goal-scoring midfielder this season. Coutinho and Firmino are top-class, but Ibe is too young (and shouldn't be relied-upon); Markovic is unreliable, and Lallana is too inconsistent.

My top choice is Yarmolenko, but Pedro is a superb option, and with the Spaniard in the team, Liverpool could conceivably field the following forward line-up next season:

----- Firmino ------- Coutinho --------- Pedro

--------------------- Sturridge

I'd buy that for a dollar!

Author: Jaimie K


65 comments:

  1. Only if Sterling leaves. Yarmolenko or Pedro would be superb options. Pedro has the added bonus of playing more centrally if needed, but Yarmolenko would probably be more suited to the EPL style.

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  2. What a player. Pedro for 30m and higuain for 40m would give us the title. Bonafide winners and much higher quality than the pl players.

    I know its a dream tho. we will probably wrap our signings up with benteke for 25m. He is also top quality and perfect for lfc. Talk that we dont cross and he relies on crosses and andy carrol2 are all rubbish. He is mobile, fast, strong, has workrate and gives defenders nightmare. He scored against ALL the big boys many times and is terryfying.

    Benteke one of the most dynamic footballers in the strikers role. In his 1st season when he was just 22 and he scored 23goals, on 3 were on his head and people and media were saying hes good on his feet but for a big lad should score more with his head. Now that he scores with his head alot more they are saying he relies on crosses. Rubbish!...at the end of the day he scores goals, amazing ones too, and if you play the ball to him, feet or head, he has the hunger to score. Which is what we need

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  3. Id buy this for a dollar
    -------------------Mignolet--------------------------

    Clyne--------Skrtel-----Sakho-----------Moreno

    --------------------Milner(c)-------------------------

    -----Firmino-------Coutinho---------Pedro-----

    -------Ibe/ Sturridge---Aubameyang-----------

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  4. As long as we play 4 at the back all of next season with our new right back Clyne I think we only need - holding mid sitting infront which will then enable us to have 2 strikers infront of 3 attacking mids. Just the fact of having 2 strikers should alone help us to score more goals than last season and hopefully Sturridge will be fit for more games this season and let's hope we still bring in 1 more top striker

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  5. .........................mingolet
    Clyne.........skrtel..........sakho.....moreno
    ...........................hendo
    ...........milner...................can
    ........................coutinho
    ...............firmino
    ........................... . ......benteke

    Or we can play coutinho deep like arsenal do with cazorla. And as we saw when we almost won the title coutinho excels there with his vision, work rate and time to make the pass. The big wins against arsenal, city and everton, coutinho was brilliant.

    .....................mingolet
    Clyne......skrtel.......sakho.....moreno
    ...........................can
    .......coutinho................hendo
    ........................lallana
    ...........firmino
    ....... ...........................benteke

    Firmino will play second striker, which I believe is his main position

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  6. if LFC signs Pedro, We will play 4231.
    ---------------------Mignolet------------------
    Clyne-----skrtel------sahko------Moreno
    ------------Henderson----Milner------------
    ----Pedro--------Firmino--------Coutinho---
    --------------------Sturridge-----------------------
    Firmino is very good behind a striker. Coutinho is used to left wing and will cut in nicely. Milner wont have signed for LFC if he wasn't guaranteed a start; he left a champion's league club with better wages to sign for us.
    bench: bodjan, lovren, wisdom (flanagan after injury), can, lallana, ibe (origi), benteke.
    Top four is certain!!
    Wat say u jk

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  7. Were not going to buy aubameyang. Hes good but why should we buy him when we got sturridge who is better and similar? We should target reus. If I ere lfc to make a statement of intent I would bid £80m 40 apiece for reus and higuain. Bid for both on the same day so they both see and are interested lfc want top stars. Sell sterling for 50m who has won zero, overrated, not even scored a goal in europe and for 30m we got two world class players.

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  8. Pedro's an RW and Firmino and LW, so you'd have to swap those round to get the best out of both them. Otherwise that's a World Class strike force.

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  9. Pedro to Liverpool? think about it haha it`s just a fantasy, now big Ben sounds more like it don`t you think, I`d love Lavezzi but that`s just me dreaming if only.

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  10. A tad unrealistic don't you think? And there is nothing wrong with Aubameyang- a strong, powerful and pacey striker with NO significant injury problems unlike Sturridge.

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  11. Lavezzi is a bit clumsy on the ball but has a great work rate so he would be a decent option for the right price (and wages)

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  12. JFM goes from bench to wearing the armband?

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  13. He would run riot in the prem.

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  14. maybe the lavezzi of three or four years ago. he's not exactly what he once was and has never been prolific. i think we have enough trickery in the team anyway, what we need most is a finisher

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  15. I'm stuck here. we get linked with all these names and they sound so good but for the most part I like the team we have now. I know people are very disappointed with Balo and I can see why most want him gone. But he has displayed loads of talent since he was 18 and is only 24, just hitting his prime years. In his first game with Liverpool last year him and Sturridge looked liked they could make a dynamic partenership. I really want to see a fit Sturridge combining with balo and having Coutinho and Firmino feeding them. With Firmino being able to help those two and give more runs and scoring I believe it will drop the defense off a bit and give Coutinho more of those long range shots he likes. Which in turn could pull them right back out and open up those dashing runs in behind for Sturridge and Firmino. The one position/player i think is a must is Illarramendi.


    With that said, I defiantly wouldn't moan and groan about Balo leaving and a player of Pedro's pedigree coming in. Just food for thought.

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  16. Agreed, the kid has loads of talent and I'm sure if Balo puts more effort into his game and of course with Studge fully fit, Top 4 is IMO achievable.

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  17. All these attacking players are fine . But we really do need to address the centre of midfield with a top defensive midfeld player something we have not had since Mascherano left . Sort that position out and defensively we would improve ten fold . Personally I would like to see our next signing being Illarramendi from Real Madrid. Then we can look at more attacking players . Although I am not impressed with the strikers we are constantly linked with . Is Benteke really any better than Balotelli . Id try for Walcott . Who would be perfect for our style of play And If or when Sterling finally goes we could do a lot worse than buying Xherdan Shaqiri From Inter.

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  18. Because Sturridge is very injury proned for a start and secondly Aubsmeyang is probably the fastest player around which I personally think will work very well in our system and also feel we should play 2 upfront and not 1 like most people think. We played 2 upfront 2 seasons ago so surely the fact we only played 1 out and out striker last season had at least a little to do with the fact t we didn't score many goals ? I think playing 2 deep lying mids infront of a back 4 is a bit negative. We played 3 at the back a lot last season so playing 4 at the back with a new right back and 1 holding mid will enable us to play 2 strikers upfront with 3 attacking mids sitting behind . It's ok
    saying lets get reus but he's another player that plays behind the striker(s). I'm not sure how many attacking mids we need . Lallana, markovic, Milner, Firmino,Coutinho and now reus maybe ?

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  19. I personally don't think Benteke will do very Well for us . He'd very good for the right team but our style suits a quick technically gifted player I think. We've had plenty of target man style players before and j don't remember any of them doing that well. Morientes? Carrol?Balotelli? Heskey?Crouch? None of them were that great. Carrol scored 13 goals his previous season before we bought him for over 30 mill and Benteke also has just scored 13 league goals and we might spend a similar amount in him . The previous season Benteke only scored 10 goals so in my opinion Although everyone is raving on about him I'd say he's slightly over rated . I also don't like this formation of 2 deep lying mids and 1 upfront. We played 2 strikers when we had Sturridge and Saurez so not only did we suffer from the fact we lost Saurez and had an injured Sturridge but we went to a single striker so to me we were bound to not score so many goals. Last season was a bit of a failure so I'd change it and play 4 St the back with 1 holding mid and 3 attackers sitting in behind 2 quick strikers . For me it's much more attacking yet at the same time we roll have a new right back and won't need to rely on wingers tracking back do much

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  20. Benteke reminds me of Crouch but better.

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  21. I rate Pedro but he won't archive this stats if he join us or any other Epl team. I watched closely he's not anything special...., he can't get past defenders.
    The only good thing is he knows how to make good runs and being in right place at the right time.
    Jaime ,30m for a player with 20+ major trophies sounds about right to you? Djimi Traore has a CL medal and should not be underestimated!

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  22. Defo agree

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  23. Alan Shearer made a career of making good runs and being in the right place at the right time. that is exactly the player we need a player that is the right place at the right time, that is special in its own manner and cannot be taught or trained into a player.

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  24. Pretty sure Pedro's got 3 champions league medals although I could be wrong.
    Sterling for Pedro? No brainer

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  25. Hope you are right because if he ends up like Andy Carroll 2.0 and Studge' s legs fail, then we're in danger of more 6-1 thrashing when other teams realize they don't need to fear our attack.

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  26. we should offer that. it would be guranteed sterling sit and rot on that bench and we wouldn't possibly feed a direct rival.


    its an amazing dream that will never happen though.

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  27. Ole rep criminal thing in my native home town

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  28. Would be a good addition to the squad and no doubt an upgrade on Markovic and Lallana who I feel should be moved on while they still have resale value. Both of them found it tough to get into the starting 11 this season. That's not going to get any easier with the arrival of Milner and firmino.
    I said in another post that the high pressing game is probably what we're best at we just need a finisher who will capitalise on opponents mistakes when they happen.
    That said it's why I think Henderson would be better off up front at the top of a diamond with Coutinho making runs from deep and firmino pulling the strings and making late runs into the box.
    As our squad is now(and assuming sterling goes) I think our midfield and attack looks pretty good in either diamond or 4231
    Can
    Coutinho Firmino
    Henderson
    Sturridge Ings/Origi
    Or
    Can Coutinho
    Firmino Henderson Milner
    Sturridge
    With Pedro in the squad... 433
    Henderson Can Coutinho
    Pedro Sturridge Firmino

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  29. Indeed. Pedro is the player Sterling could develop into if he knuckles down but he's a long way off his level at this point in time.
    It's probably paper talk but this would be a great move if it came off

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  30. I only meant bravo

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  31. Exactly. Shearer was not the quickest, he was not the most technically gifted, he couldn't go past players however he had the vision and brains when to make his runs and he was lethal in front of goal.

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  32. With respect to the author, I think we are fine in the attacking mid department already. I do agree though that we're still a bit lacking in superstars and I hope we instead, add the 30million euros to the 32million pounds and offer Lyon half of it for Lacazette and the other half to Real Madrid for Illarramendi.
    And then we can spend the rest of the summer wondering just how many trophies 2015/16 will bring us :)

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  33. I am pretty much with Case.


    We really really really a Def Midfielder, A Roy Keane, Patrick Vieira type of Midfielder.

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  34. If he leaves?!? To be honest I had that thought the other day, and I must tell you that I would like to see that in a way. Maybe...

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  35. Agree from beginning to the end.

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  36. The man who didn't know the offside rule

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  37. NonEventHorizon8:10 pm, July 04, 2015

    Everything you said JK; yes, yes, yes! And you know what? I'm feeling like we could sign anyone at the moment, let's offer to pay Messi's tax bill and give Barca all our first born children for him

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  38. the man that lived offsides, he was a great at timing as well. it was ridiculous how much that man was offsides

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  39. Well, long to tell. To make it short....
    I'm a German but born in Nigeria.
    Is right to call it my native i suppose?

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  40. You mean WHEN Studge's legs fail...

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  41. Front four of [striker], Pedro, Coutinho and Firmino, in front of a defensive midfielder who can pass a bit and a pass-master who can run the game and defend a bit, will do just fine for me. We'd also have a good bench for once.

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  42. Crouch had some silky skills.

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  43. Plus Pedro can dribble, has blistering pace and is an expert at knitting play together and laying goals on a platter for his colleagues.

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  44. I would love us to have Pedro,but alas this smells like another bullish&it rumor..........

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  45. If he leaves ? t.b.h I had that thought sometime ago and for the prices being quoted for a highly overated individual as Stirling clearly is ! I feel the same now as I have from the moment the whispers started...let him go a.s.a.p and spend wisely :)

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  46. Yeah, 13 last season and what? 10 the season before. Prolific.

    Pedro, on the other hand.... REAL quality.

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  47. .. plus please swap out BR for Klopp.

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  48. Sorry need a DM to balance your team sselection - as clearly Can is no DM.

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  49. Yarmolenko has been my prefered choice for a long time but how could anyone say no to a player of Pedro's ability? Add a Midfield general and then things will start looking good

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  50. Let's inject a little realism into proceedings. Pedro almost certainly isn't coming to Anfield. Firstly the economics are likely to be prohibitive when one considers the fee will be close to 30M and he'll want very high wages, and secondly I very much doubt Pedro is going to give up Chanpions League football. I would expect PSG, possibly his former manager at Bayern, Arsenal, or even Chelsea (if Cuadrado leaves) to be more probable destinations.

    The club has done well this transfer window to be so decisive, but fans should temper their expectations for the new season. Gerrard has gone, Sterling will almost certainly follow, and Milner and Firmino are downgrades on both. Firmino is often used out wide in 'fan formations' but this is ignoring this actual attributes and history as a player. He's an out and out no.10. He is ineffective out wide and unproven up front. For the nearly 30m the club has forked out, I remain unconvinced as to the wisdom of this transfer.

    Milner is solid enough but he's another squad level player and isn't going to take Liverpool into those coveted CL spots. Clyne is another solid but unspectacular addition. Given how desperate Man Utd are for a right back, the fact the passed on Clyne despite Utd being his first choice, is either telling of his level or of their scouting. Time will tell. Reality is that he's probably pretty average.

    Ings? Well, another mid table player. Origi? Voted worst player in France. For all the fapping over the club's ability of close deals quickly this window, when analyzed in the cold light of day at the end of the window, after all the big clubs - Utd, City, Chelsea, Arsenal - have made their moves, I fear it will look another underwhelming foray into the market for the transfer committee.

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  51. But all news pointing to Benteke frustratingly

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  52. Swap pessimism for realism and your post is good to go. Doesn't matter about the Man Utd rumours Clyne signed for us, and was probably the best right back in the premier last season. Milner more than just a solid player, he is aproven winner, heart like a lion and always works more for his team than most players currently in our squad, he is a leader. For me Firmino has had a positive effect on me and my friends that are Liverpool supporters already, regardless of how he performs next season his acquisition has shown the rest of the league that we can still compete for the 'marquee' players. As for Ings and Origi I hope they both make you eat your words as I can see that at least one of them will come good this coming season.

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  53. I did not realise Pedro is 27. It will be interesting to see how Sterling continues to develop and where he is when he too is 27


    . I predict though he will not be sitting on anyone's bench and people wll be saying "Pedro wasn't he once a promising player?"

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  54. Looks good in a great team. Not convinced he'd adapt the the physical nature of the prem either as he looks lightweight to me. Wishful thinking on you putting Sturridge up front. I'd be amazed if he plays 20 games next season

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  55. Sterling's a better player than Pedro to my way of reading football. He's capable of having a somewhat stronger influence on a game, he is stronger and more durable, can play anywhere in the front line. Pedro isn't as dynamic, but obviously still a good player to say the least.

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  56. He might one day be a better player but at this point in their respective careers Pedro is streets ahead, as he should be given his experience.
    When Sterling starts churning out the goals and assists the way Pedro has over the years then perhaps we can start comparing the two. At the moment there's no comparison.
    Also it's been quite some time since Sterling had a massive influence on a game

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  57. Pedro or Lallana? Is this Journo having a laugh? That's like saying what would you like for breakfast, A full English breakfast, or a bowl of oatmeal? Why not ask a more relevant question, something that holds some relevance to a similar person/ object. Comparing a Striker to a Midfielder is like Comparing a Mondeo to a Lamborghini, seriously. Why not Pedro to Benteke or to Daio as they are the 3 supposed strikers LFC are contemplating on. Seriously, get a proper job as your shit at reporting relevance

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  58. QuietlyConfident2:03 pm, July 05, 2015

    You're not far wrong, but I'd have Can sitting...even if it isn't his best position. Hendo offers too much going forward.
    .........................mingolet
    Clyne.........skrtel..........sakho.....moreno
    ...........................Can
    ...........milner...................Hendo
    ........................coutinho
    ...............firmino
    ........................... . ......
    Only problem is that it lacks width. Clyne and Moreno key here with Milner and Hendo filling gaps.

    For Europa, Lucas will alternate with Can, Allen for Milner and Lallana for Coutinho. Obv Origi and Ibe either side of Ings likely too in a 4-3-3 for cup games and/or impact subs/formation changes.

    I wasn't convinced we could go next season without another DM, but I think we'll ok without it.

    A striker and we're sorted.

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  59. You know I won't go for that just yet Neutral :) Lets see what Christmas brings...

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  60. But Firmino isn't a 'marquee' player. He's a fringe Brazilian international coming from a small mid-table German club, who any number of top clubs could've signed instead. It's not say he won't come good, but there's no point calling this anything other than it is...a punt on semi-fulfilled potential.


    Ings should give some hope for optimism. He's a good all round player. I don't think anyone could see hi, being a world beater, and lets be honest, a club of the stature of Liverpool should not have Ings as their first choice striker. Seems like he is just cover for Sturridge. Remains to be seen if he is any better than the likes of Borini or Balotelli.


    Origi is just a horrible signing. I'll go out on a limb with that one. He was signed off the back of a world cup in which he was average at best. He merely wowed a few people with his pace. He's been awful in Ligue 1, so what's to suggest he can excel in a much harder league? Not much.


    As for James "proven winner" Milner. I stick by the solid signing moniker. He started only 12 and 15 games respectively in City's title winning seasons. And was rarely part of their strongest XI, except in flashes. Ironically his last season was probably his best for a while.

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