i bet you he threw them under the bus though. maybe gerrard just means why the **** is he still there but in a subtle way.
We can only speculate but I dont think he did tbh, especially Pascoe. I think FSG pulled the trigger and said to BR give us your resignation if you dont like it
Least we're moving on to the next stage already; copied Arsenal's youth structure policy, now we're copying their buy as many midfielders as possible tactics
We will need a new cabinet for 547 top 4 trophies, or maybe we can just store them in Evertons main cabinet
in the meantime as we are not good enough for top 4 trophy and cl football, we will have to invent one so we can mug the fans off for a few years lol
Cringworthy arse licking here. Milner while I think he improves us a lit is not all that and it shows lallana has no real clue about the big time
Genuine question to everyone - God forbid Milner loses his 'engine' and the workrate, what else can he offer? Was thinking about this the other day and he is a good crosser and his set pieces are pretty good also. But struggling to think of anything else?
32.5M for Benteke or 20M for Dezko? Think, if/when fit, Sturridge and Dezko could be a better pairing than him and Benteke.. Just a thought...
please log in to view this image Premier League proven players James Milner and Danny Ings. It’s the same old story, apparently. The pair will become the 11th and 12th first-team players who join the Reds under Brendan Rodgers having played Premier League football elsewhere. Of those, seven have have been educated on these shores from the beginning of their careers. Few of those could be considered successes. Last summer’s Southampton raid felt parochial, restricted; the equivalent of browsing the local corner shop for an Armani dress. In theory, all three could have provided something different, something positive, for Liverpool - but transplanting three players from the same side which finished eighth wasn’t the jump in quality the club needed. In signing two players who have come through the British system – or, to give it a shortened term, ‘homegrown’ – fingers, scorched after the past few summers, have rattled keyboards in suspicion. ADVERTISING The pursuit of Nathaniel Clyne, Adam Bogdan and Christian Benteke – all, by some definition, homegrown – has done nothing to allay fears mistakes are not being learnt from, but repeated once more. It’s the same old story, apparently. Of course, to judge them – or any player - purely on their homegrown status is unfair. Milner and Ings are completely different players, for starters. One, who will move into the first-team, is experienced and has won Premier League titles; the other, expected to be back-up, brings potential. Still, the club’s record with signing homegrown players over past three years – or, indeed, the past decade – will do nothing but raise alarm. Homegrown, of course, is a loose definition. The true homegrown players – like Milner and Ings – have come through the British system from the beginning. Others, like Jose Enrique or Kolo Toure who came from other British clubs, can be considered to have played long enough in Britain to be homegrown. And then, of course, the anomalies. Fabio Borini and Mario Balotelli arrived at Anfield from the continent, but had previously spent time with Chelsea, Swansea and Manchester City. Since Rafael Benitez took charge, and incorporating that wide-ranging definition, the Reds have bought (or loaned) 91 players. Forty-one of those are completely homegrown, while seven foreign players came with experience in this country. When including Balotelli and Borini, that means the club have signed 50 players of that ilk – almost 55%. Unqualified successes are rare, particularly for big money. The early days of Fenway Sports Group, and that chastening summer of 2011, remains a firm reminder that a big fee, added to Premier League experience, in no way guarantees success. Here is a run-down of how the past decade of transfers involving homegrown players and those with English football experience have panned out for the Reds. (* denotes players who didn't come through the British system but have experience) IN PICS: The players linked with Liverpool FC this summer please log in to view this image VIEW GALLERY 2004/05: Players arrived: 8 Homegrown experience: Scott Carson (Leeds, £1m) Success: Carson hit the headlines with a good display at home to Juventus in the Champions League and established himself as the club’s no.2 that season. Elsewhere: Xabi Alonso and Luis Garcia, both bought from La Liga, were the stars. 2005/06 Players arrived: 14 Homegrown experience: Bolo Zenden (Middlesbrough, free)*, Peter Crouch (Southampton, £7m), Jack Hobbs (Lincoln, £750k), Paul Anderson (Hull, part-exchange), David Martin (MK Dons, £250k), Robbie Fowler (Man City, free) Success: Zenden was a decent option as a squad player, but Crouch was a definite plus point, helping change how the Reds approached games away from home. Once he started scoring, he was a good, all-round option up front. Elsewhere: Pepe Reina, Daniel Agger and Momo Sissoko all added quality to the squad for relatively low fees. please log in to view this image Liverpool v Arsenal.... Peter Crouch salutes with three fingers after his hatrick against Arsenal. 2006/07: Players arrived: 12 Homegrown experience: Craig Bellamy (Blackburn, £6m), Jermaine Pennant (Birmingham, £6.7m), Javier Mascherano (loan)* Success: Mascherano an undoubted success (first on loan, and then on a permanent fee the following season) although he is ‘homegrown’ in the loosest sense possible after playing just five times in the league for the Hammers. Bellamy had minimal impact and Pennant proved a disappointment. Elsewhere: Dirk Kuyt joined in a big-money move and enjoyed a decent season, while Alvaro Arbeloa was an astute January addition from Deportivo. 2007/08: Players arrived: 13 Homegrown experience: Yossi Benayoun (West Ham, £5m)* Success: The Israeli midfielder did well for the Reds after catching the eye for West Ham in his first two years in English football. Elsewhere: The big money was spent abroad yet again. Fernando Torres joined from Atletico and Martin Skrtel was a January buy from Zenit. Lucas Leiva would take time to settle but remains at Anfield. Ryan Babel disappointed despite his big fee.
please log in to view this image Yossi Benayoun of Liverpool celebrates scoring their 4th goal and his hat-trick, making it 4-0. 2008/09 Players arrived: 6 Homegrown experience: Robbie Keane (Spurs, £20m), Albert Riera (Espanyol, £8m)* Success: Keane didn’t work at Anfield and struggled to justify his £20m fee. Riera, a surprising signing after failing to impress at Man City earlier in his career, was a steady hand. Elsewhere: A disappointing season in the transfer market, with big-money full back Andrea Dossena failing to settle. 2009/10 Players arrived: 5 Homegrown experience: Glen Johnson (Portsmouth, £18m), Raheem Sterling (QPR, £500k) Success: Johnson was brought in to be a more attacking right back but often struggled to meet his fee. Sterling, meanwhile, was a signing for the future – but has paid dividends since. Elsewhere: Alberto Aquilani was a big signing from Roma. As the tenure of Hicks and Gillett took a real grip on the club, Maxi Rodriguez and Sotoris Kyrgiakos came for low fees. please log in to view this image Glen Johnson celebrates scoring Liverpool's second goal 2010/11 Players arrived: 12 Homegrown experience: Jonjo Shelvey (Charlton, £1.7m), Joe Cole (Chelsea, free), Danny Wilson (Rangers, £2m), Brad Jones (Boro, £2.3m)*, Paul Konchesky (Fulham, £3.5m), Andy Carroll (Newcastle, £35m) Success: Cole, even on a free transfer, became a big problem for the Reds with his high wages. Konchesky didn’t last six months, his future decided when Roy Hodgson departed. Carroll, meanwhile, became a modern symbol of how not to conduct transfer business. Elsewhere: Luis Suarez. Raul Meireles was also decent for the price, although Milan Jovanovic and Christian Poulsen were terrible buys. 2011/12 Players arrived: 9 Homegrown experience: Jordan Henderson (Sunderland, £16m), Charlie Adam (Blackpool, £4m), Stewart Downing (Aston Villa, £20m), Jose Enrique (Newcastle, £6m)*, Craig Bellamy (Man City, free), Jordon Ibe (Wycombe, £500k) Success: The infamous summer. Henderson would eventually become a prominent player at Anfield, but Adam and Downing were added to Carroll in the ‘big-money, little return’ category. Elsewhere: Sebastian Coates was the only outfield player bought from abroad and also struggled to meet expectations. please log in to view this image Stewart Downing 2012/13 Players arrived: 7 Homegrown experience: Joe Allen (Swansea, £15m), Daniel Sturridge (Chelsea, £12m), Fabio Borini (Roma, £10m)* Success: Sturridge was an undoubted success, even with his poor injury record, and was a big part of Brendan Rodgers’ first season. Joe Allen has yet to win over many, while Borini hasn’t recreated his Serie A form at Anfield. Elsewhere: Philippe Coutinho is now, arguably, the club’s best player and made an immediate impact after his January transfer. Nuri Sahin came on loan and struggled. 2013/14 Players arrived: 8 Homegrown experience: Simon Mignolet (Sunderland, £9m), Kolo Toure (free, City)*, Victor Moses (Chelsea, loan) Success: Simon Mignolet replaced Reina, much to the chagrin of several fans, and the Belgian had a mixed campaign. Toure, too, had an up-and-down season while Moses did little. The Reds still nearly won the title, however. Elsewhere: Iago Aspas and Luis Alberto came from La Liga and had little impact. Mamadou Sakho was the only real success. please log in to view this image Lallana, Lambert, Lovren 2014/15 Players arrived: 9 Homegrown experience: Rickie Lambert (Southampton, £4m), Adam Lallana (Southampton, £23m), Dejan Lovren (Southampton, £20m)*, Mario Balotelli (AC Milan, £16m)* Success: The Southampton trio did not have the impact required to keep Liverpool in the upper tier of the league. Balotelli, too, was uninspiring. Elsewhere: A poor window all around which was founded on potential. Emre Can, arguably, was the best. THE GREAT DEBATE Of course, all transfers should be taken – and, ultimately, assessed – individually. To say a purchase is doomed to failure because he spent his formative years watching Ruel Fox rather than Raul is wrong. But the fear of buying British players for inflated fees remains strong at Anfield, the legacy of seasons past. In 2011-12, the Reds had to watch Newcastle finish above them with a team of players scouted across Europe. Yohan Cabaye was a cheaper buy than Adam, a fact that should still rankle on Merseyside. There is no reason Ings or Milner should fall into this category, nor Benteke, Clyne or Bogdan if they join the club. Not based solely on history, at least. But as Liverpool begin a new chapter, they will hope the same old story is consigned to the dustbin http://www.liverpoolecho.co.uk/sport/football/football-news/liverpool-fc-transfers-how-reds-9425244 ---- Thought of you @Jimmy Squarefoot when reading this dont know if you've read it
i asked this same thing prior to signing Once he has no more legs he is not quite as bad aas kuyt but his usefullness would be much much less. He is a lot more than that though. he has experience playing Cm and i reckon he'd fill in at RB and all. So yeah at 29 I think he's got 2/3 years max in the tank.... and no residual value at the end of it. but he does offer us a much improved scenario next season.
hmmm 32.5 mil on benteke is just far too much. Pros for benteke: on his day he is unplayable, strong powerful, lethal heading and shooting Cons: injuries, hasn't been consistent, could be called lazy... 20 for dzeko pros: when he is hot he is very hot, under rated technical player, good in air cons: when he is off form he is woeful, drops the head imo.
If we are to believe the myth that Rodgers has a preferred style of play, then of the two, you'd think Dezko fits that bill better? Agree, technically he's a better all round player than Benteke, "IF" he's available then I don't see why we don't at least try to go for him, he may reject us, may want CL footy or a way back to the Bundesliga, but we won't know if we don't ask.. For us, he'd be a regular starter and certainly better than most of the strikers we currently have!
An interesting read... but slightly flawed in places My belief is if you don't take risks on players you've assessed deeply yourself and rely on other clubs to prove them for you you end up buying over priced players this list puts a lot of rafa type kids in with a lot of ****e when in fact those kids all increased in value in the end. I think LFC should have bought markovic before he went to benfica not after for example. Origi, can, ilori all represent value in some form as they were brought in at relatively low fees and if they do anything thy will recoup the money. If they succeed in any form even on season loans they will increase in value. Lallana and lovern can only ever be 5 year fixutres in our first team or flops as thier fees are fees of top players relatively speaking. LFC need to go by younger kids up. our academy has stopped doing it now. .... we need to poach decent talent out of the lower european leagues and loan it out.... but most of all we need to put the top moeny into transfers that make sense... as in lovern.. he';s a leader nonsense.. balotelli... total nonsense. LFc must know a guy will fit in well and be a pro just by doing thier research.
I don't think he is flexible enough still. he's a stick in the middle type and he won't stretch play. I think benteke pound for pound is better but not at 32.5mil. can get much much better again with less injury worries for that. I would agree bar none (inc. sturrdige) dzeko would be better than our lot.
Not sure he'd be need to stretch play? The other forwards/attacking midfielders could do that job.. many a time of late we've played well up to the final third but had no one in the box to finish off the chances we've created..
