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Copa America trio linked


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Liverpool are chasing a trio of South American attackers according to the Liverpool Echo. James Pearce last night reported that Sevilla’s Colombian frontman Carlos Bacca and Zenit St Petersburg’s Venezualan striker Saloman Rondon are both on Brendan Rodgers’ radar, while numerous reports over the weekend linked Brazil’s Roberto Firminio with a move to Anfield.

 

All three are currently involved in the Copa America and Pearce added that Liverpool have representatives at the tournament in Chile. Firminio looked Manchester United bound but the Reds are now looking to rival the old enemy in the chase for the German based Brazilian, who is valued at around £20m by his current club Hoffenheim.

 

28 year old Bacca - also valued around the £20m mark - scored twice as Sevilla beat Dnipro 3-2 in last month’s Europa League Final and bagged an impressive 28 goals last season, while Rondon, 25, found the net 15 times for Zenit. His asking price is believed to be around £15m. Rondon and Bacca faced off in the Copa America last week with Rondon grabbing the winner as Venezuela beat Colombia 1-0.

 

Another name thrown into the hat over the weekend was that of Juventus striker Fernando Llorente, who looks to be on his way this summer with the ‘Old Lady’ on the brink of signing Mario Mandzukic from Atletico Madrid. Llorente is a quality player but would be a peculiar signing given the Spaniard’s style of play.

 

There is a suspicion that a lot of these ‘leaks’ are just posturing by Liverpool to try and force Aston Villa to lower the price for Rodgers' number one target, Christian Benteke. It certainly wouldn’t be the first time the club used the Echo for such a tactic. It would seem a futile exercise given that the Midlanders are desperate to keep their prize asset and would be delighted if Liverpool walked away. It’s like flirting with other girls to make the one you really want jealous, even though she has zero interest in you and is in fact massively relieved when you turn your obses… interest, onto someone else.

 

Villa surely won’t be entertaining offers under Benteke's buyout clause (£32.5m) unless they feel they have no choice but to sell, and that will only happen if the player starts making a nuisance of himself or goes 'on strike' to make his position untenable, as Dejan Lovren did last summer for example. So perhaps this reported interest in other forwards (last week it was Charlie Austin) is more about forcing Benteke into action?

 

 

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To be honest, I don't actually see us signing any players who featured at the Copa but judging by what I've seen of those listed, Bacca seems to be the one whose skill set is more likely to dovetail with the players we have here.

 

The likes of Llorente, Bacca and Rondon know what it takes to be involved in title challenges and winning trophies, which neither Firmino nor Benteke have experience of.  Because of injury, Benteke has no experience of playing in major international tournaments and how they affect a player physically and mentally in terms of the intensity and the preparations for the following season. It is this particular aspect that we need to add to our squad more than anything - a bit of know how.

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Why would Firmino join us if the utd interest is concrete?

 

Links to any striker other than Benteje the useless turd is most welcome

Exactly, it's fucking laughable.

 

Not only are scum a much better option at the moment we also have a manager (along with Hot Ayre) who has absolutely no clout whatsoever in European/world football. Firmino wouldn't know Rodge if he walked past him in Rodge's office at Melwood.

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This order - Bacca, Rondon, Llorente, Benteke.

 

The idea of spending £30m on Benteke and then having to build the side around him is fucking frightening.

 

I think he'll always be second/third choice at a decent side, or first choice for a mid table team.

First choice at a mid table team, you say....

 

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Why would Firmino join us if the utd interest is concrete?

 

Links to any striker other than Benteje the useless turd is most welcome

Should have got him last summer when we'd have had a free run on him. Would have preferred him to Markovic or Lallana. He was even better in 13/14 in Germany but is now a starter for Brazil.

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You'd have to build the team around Benteke no more than you would Bacca or Rondon. The idea that seems to be floating around that Benteke is just a target man you kick the ball at is a fallacy.

You need to build a team around Benteke. He was absolutely useless for Villa for a good while under Lambert and then Sherwood comes in and basically sets the team up to fire loads of crosses in for Benteke from all angles and he goes on a mad run of goals. Arsenal showed in the cup final how easy it is for anyone decent to defend against though because of how predictable it is and it's not a sustainable run of goalscoring form (the Jelavic effect). He's a poor man's Lukaku.

 

He stands still in the box waiting for the perfect ball just like Carroll does. Surely we want our forward line built around movement and pace. Chelsea might have a target man up front but Mourinho's teams are set up completely differently to a Rodgers team.

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You'd have to build the team around Benteke no more than you would Bacca or Rondon. The idea that seems to be floating around that Benteke is just a target man you kick the ball at is a fallacy.

You are dead right it is a fallacy he is just a target man....He's just a shite target man.

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You need to build a team around Benteke. He was absolutely useless for Villa for a good while under Lambert and then Sherwood comes in and basically sets the team up to fire loads of crosses in for Benteke from all angles and he goes on a mad run of goals. Arsenal showed in the cup final how easy it is for anyone decent to defend against though because of how predictable it is and it's not a sustainable run of goalscoring form (the Jelavic effect). He's a poor man's Lukaku.

 

He stands still in the box waiting for the perfect ball just like Carroll does. Surely we want our forward line built around movement and pace. Chelsea might have a target man up front but Mourinho's teams are set up completely differently to a Rodgers team.

 

Correct. It's my biggest worry with Benteke, he has absolutely zero footballing intelligence.

 

His ability, and even to some extent will (strolling around in games where he's getting very little service), to adapt is highly questionable. 

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