All new transfer speculation 09

[Unrighteous]

You just say that because i think he good. The french rate him extremely high even more than Benzema. And that's the truth i have watched the lad since the end of his Lorient career. I was told about him in a Formula 1 hotel in Clermont. So i had a look at him and he was ace sinse them i have tried to watch him when i can. Havent seen a french game this season though. But he is having a very bad season only scoring 8 and assisting one in 23 apps. He isnt just a striker though. He can play anywhere in Attack.

 

Si the Scout

[NorwegianRed]

I saw Gignac play against Bordeux in Ligue 1 a couple of weeks back, he did okay, should've had a couple of goals though, he had some very big chances.

 

In every FM game I've played recently I've noticed Gignac, being signed by Newcastle in FM09(When they were up still, obv) scored a ridicilious amount of goals) And signed by Arsenal in FM2010 and scoring a lot there as well..

 

But hey, FM can't be trusted.. Steven effin' Fletcher has scored 16 goals for Burnley in 35 Matches(in the prem), as if.

[Josef Svejk]

Plausibly...

 

MAXI RODRIGUEZ IS RAFA BENITEZ'S LIMIT

 

Wednesday January 6,2010

By Paul Joyce (Daily Express)

 

LIVERPOOL are unlikely to reinvest the funds raised by chopping back the dead wood clogging up Rafa Benitez’s squad into bolstering their quest for a top-four finish this season.

 

Instead, once a £1.5million deal for Atletico Madrid winger Maxi Rodriguez has been sealed, Anfield manager Benitez will have little room left to manoeuvre in the January market.

 

Benitez is in the process of offloading misfits Andrea Dossena and Andriy Voronin to Napoli and Dinamo Moscow respectively, which will bring in a combined fee of about £5.5m. Ryan Babel is the subject of a £9m bid from Birmingham and Philipp Degen, who is attracting interest in Germany, is also available.

 

Liverpool insiders have indicated, however, that whatever funds are recouped by the departure of players over the next few weeks, Benitez will not be buying in this transfer window. There is the possibility – no more than that – of a loan arrival in addition to Rodriguez.

 

Club sources insist the policy has not been forced on Benitez as a result of the financial problems caused by the £240m debts owners George Gillett and Tom Hicks have dumped on Liverpool, and that the money will be earmarked for strategic purchases in the summer, when better-quality targets are available.

 

Yet Benitez is likely to be disappointed with his efforts in recruiting a right-back to offset the impact of the medial knee ligament injury that will keep Glen Johnson sidelined for six weeks.

 

Exactly how much Benitez will recoup this January will be determined largely by where Babel’s future lies.

 

Benitez said he did not want to sell Babel but that could depend on the size of any offer.

 

Birmingham boss Alex McLeish has tabled a bid of £9m but will switch targets if he feels his club are being used to fire up an auction.

[Josef Svejk]

Less plausibly...

 

Marouane Chamakh in Liverpool talks as Atletico Madrid's Maxi Rodriguez edges closer to Anfield deal

 

By Sportsmail Reporter

Last updated at 2:20 AM on 06th January 2010

 

Olympiakos have been rebuffed over an inquiry for Liverpool midfielder Yossi Benayoun but will return with an offer for his team-mate Albert Riera.

 

The Greek side have offered around £5million and wages of £40,000 a week tax free for Israeli Benayoun but Liverpool manager Rafa Benitez will not sell. He may be swayed on Riera, who has failed to capitalise on a good first season at Anfield.

 

Andrea Dossena is on the verge of completing his £4.5m transfer to Napoli but his agent says the four-and-a-half-year deal has been held up by the weather.

 

‘He can’t leave Liverpool because of the snow,’ said Roberto La Floria.

 

Bordeaux striker Marouane Chamakh’s representatives held talks with Liverpool yesterday over signing a pre-contract agreement.

 

Atletico Madrid’s Maxi Rodriguez is expected to agree terms with Liverpool over the next 24 hours.

 

Meanwhile, misfit striker Andriy Voronin is expected to join Dinamo Moscow for £1.5m.

[Josef Svejk]

More of the same (from my early morning Newsnow-ing)...

 

Liverpool restrict Rafael Benítez to loan signings in transfer window

 

Andy Hunter

guardian.co.uk, Wednesday 6 January 2010

 

Rafael Benítez will not be buying players in January, beyond the expected signing of Maxi Rodríguez, despite having offers on the table to sell several fringe players.

 

Rafael Benítez will have to rely on the £1.5m capture of Maxi Rodríguez and possibly one loan signing to revitalise Liverpool's squad during this transfer window even if the club succeed in raising more than £16m through player sales.

 

The Liverpool manager had expected to operate this month under the same financial constraints that existed throughout 2009 at Anfield: namely, spending no more than he can bring in from sales. Even that model now seems optimistic, however, with Benítez likely to be restricted to signing Rodríguez on an 18-month contract from Atlético Madrid plus one loan deal as he attempts to fulfil his guarantee of qualifying for the Champions League for a sixth successive season.

 

Liverpool are making good progress in their efforts to offload much of the dead wood in Benítez's squad by the end of January, and all for permanent transfer fees. Andriy Voronin and Andrea Dossena are close to joining Dynamo Moscow and Napoli respectively, Philipp Degen is the subject of interest from several sides in the Bundesliga, while the Anfield club have also rejected a bid in excess of £8m from Birmingham City for their unwanted Holland forward, Ryan Babel. Yet Benítez's hopes of strengthening his attack with a firm offer for the Aston Villa and former Liverpool striker Emile Heskey, for example, are expected to be dashed, as such a deal would be beyond his resources.

 

Liverpool insiders claim the constraints have not been imposed on Benítez by the club's owners, Tom Hicks and George Gillett. Executives believe players bought in the January transfer window are habitually overpriced and the club would rather save the income from sales to build a war chest for the summer. But there will be immense disappointment at the latest financial balancing act for a manager who last month confirmed the need to reduce the Americans' debt on Liverpool had taken precedence over investing in a squad that finished runners-up in the Premier League last season.

 

Benítez may therefore be tempted to retain players on the periphery of his plans, and he announced at the weekend that Babel would not be leaving Anfield this month. "At this moment we are not trying to sell him," said the Liverpool manager, following the FA Cup draw at Reading. Liverpool have since received and rejected an offer from Birmingham that would allow them to recoup much of the £11.5m paid to Ajax for Babel in 2007, although the club's stance may be influenced by a desire to encourage an auction for the disillusioned 23-year-old.

 

Besiktas, Galatasaray and Juventus have all been linked with Babel, and several Spanish clubs are also interested. Liverpool would prefer to sell Babel to a European club than risk him fulfilling his promise at a domestic rival, but Birmingham may withdraw their interest and pursue alternative targets should an auction develop.

 

While there is uncertainty over where Babel will be employed next month, Liverpool's hopes of finally getting rid of Voronin and Dossena for good are close to being realised. Benítez tried to sell the former, a free transfer from Bayer Leverkusen in 2007, and Dossena, a £7m arrival from Udinese in 2008, last summer only to be thwarted on both fronts. CSKA and Dynamo Moscow have made offers for Voronin of between £1.5m and £2m, with the latter club the favourites to clinch the deal after holding talks with the player yesterday. Napoli are close to taking Dossena back to Italy for a fee of £4.4m. Degen is also available this month providing a fee can be agreed with Liverpool.

 

The Anfield club are poised to sign the Argentina international Rodríguez, despite interest in the right-sided midfielder from Boca Juniors, after improving their offer from an initial loan arrangement to a permanent 18-month transfer. Once the fee and wages for Rodríguez have been accounted for, however, Benítez could be limited to only one other loan deal.

[Barrington Womble]

this seems very odd to me. i can't believe rafa would sell anyone if he's not at least getting the money back to spend - what's the point? all this shite about "executives think there's better value in the summer" ... 1. I thought rafa was in charge of his own budget and 2. in what world cup summer have players represented better value? I would have thought if Barrett is running the story it's come from rafa himself. it makes no sense to me at all. but if it stops heskey joining, who am i to complain.

[Catch22]

this seems very odd to me. i can't believe rafa would sell anyone if he's not at least getting the money back to spend - what's the point? all this shite about "executives think there's better value in the summer" ... 1. I thought rafa was in charge of his own budget and 2. in what world cup summer have players represented better value? I would have thought if Barrett is running the story it's come from rafa himself. it makes no sense to me at all. but if it stops heskey joining, who am i to complain.

 

 

I think that Rafa being in full control of his own budget has no bearing on what that budget is though.

 

If it is a positive number then he decides who to buy/give a raise.

If it's a negative number he decides who leaves.

 

The budget will be set by his bosses.

(Probably for us, by the lenders)

 

In this case, we need to tie Reina to a new deal so the money is most likely going on that.

[Barrington Womble]

I think that Rafa being in full control of his own budget has no bearing on what that budget is though.

 

If it is a positive number then he decides who to buy/give a raise.

If it's a negative number he decides who leaves.

 

The budget will be set by his bosses.

(Probably for us, by the lenders)

 

In this case, we need to tie Reina to a new deal so the money is most likely going on that.

 

he must be fucking mental if he signed a contract that gives him control over a budget but has no input into how much that budget is.

[Catch22]

he must be fucking mental if he signed a contract that gives him control over a budget but has no input into how much that budget is.

 

I would say that is fairly standard.

 

No one will ever give a guarantee on the size of the budget as it is affected by factors beyond their control (ie/ When ITV digital bust)

 

For instance,the Mancs are clearly now in debt reduction mode as well, due to their lenders' demands.

 

Plus i have no doubt that his primary concern when he signed the deal was his personal terms- He is no different to Xabi joining RM or any of us in job search in that regard.

We may be fans but it is their job.

[Barrington Womble]

I would say that is fairly standard.

 

No one will ever give a guarantee on the size of the budget as it is affected by factors beyond their control (ie/ When ITV digital bust)

 

For instance,the Mancs are clearly now in debt reduction mode as well, due to their lenders' demands.

 

Plus i have no doubt that his primary concern when he signed the deal was his personal terms- He is no different to Xabi joining RM or any of us in job search in that regard.

We may be fans but it is their job.

 

when I said no input - I didn't mean in straight pounds. he should be getting his budget set as a proportion of turnover. football is not a complicated business model, about half a dozen or so streams of money coming in, with almost all going out going on the playing staff. Obviously if Sky stopped paying the clubs, budgets would be adjusted, but then that doesn't mean Rafa could not have controlled this, his budget would have been reflected in the drop of turnover.

[stringvest]

Fuck me change the record SV.

5 out of the last 7 different football threads you posted on have been shite Kuyt this, shite Kuyt that.

We know you don't like him. Stop the spamming please, it's utterly tiresome.

 

Sorry Thants. I do understand - no-one likes their poster boy getting it in the neck. You've been a bit quiet on this front though. Is it because the scales are finally falling from the eyes? I doubt it somehow.

[Catch22]

when I said no input - I didn't mean in straight pounds. he should be getting his budget set as a proportion of turnover. football is not a complicated business model, about half a dozen or so streams of money coming in, with almost all going out going on the playing staff. Obviously if Sky stopped paying the clubs, budgets would be adjusted, but then that doesn't mean Rafa could not have controlled this, his budget would have been reflected in the drop of turnover.

 

 

Yes, that is a fair point.

 

I think the game changed in the summer as Wenger predicted in April.

Tax/FX/City & RM completely changed the top players' wage structure which meant that us, the Mancs & Arse all had to sell players just to keep the incumbents on the new market deals.

 

LadyBoy,Adebayour & Xabi all moved for money reasons only but the fees they produced kept other players at the club (Arse have signed 15 1st teamers to new,improved deals since the summer; we gave Torres & Gerrard contracts totalling £80m)

 

Don't get me wrong: The owners are lying cunts who will drive us into the wall (where is the new fucking ground?) but the top players leaving/transfer deficits/huge pay increases in the summer were nothing to do with them as they also happened at Arse & the Mancs

[Guest simon]

I saw Gignac play against Bordeux in Ligue 1 a couple of weeks back, he did okay, should've had a couple of goals though, he had some very big chances.

 

In every FM game I've played recently I've noticed Gignac, being signed by Newcastle in FM09(When they were up still, obv) scored a ridicilious amount of goals) And signed by Arsenal in FM2010 and scoring a lot there as well..

 

But hey, FM can't be trusted.. Steven effin' Fletcher has scored 16 goals for Burnley in 35 Matches(in the prem), as if.

 

He crap in them new one he starts so well then just dies. One player they never got right.

[Barrington Womble]

Yes, that is a fair point.

 

I think the game changed in the summer as Wenger predicted in April.

Tax/FX/City & RM completely changed the top players' wage structure which meant that us, the Mancs & Arse all had to sell players just to keep the incumbents on the new market deals.

 

LadyBoy,Adebayour & Xabi all moved for money reasons only but the fees they produced kept other players at the club (Arse have signed 15 1st teamers to new,improved deals since the summer; we gave Torres & Gerrard contracts totalling £80m)

 

Don't get me wrong: The owners are lying cunts who will drive us into the wall (where is the new fucking ground?) but the top players leaving/transfer deficits/huge pay increases in the summer were nothing to do with them as they also happened at Arse & the Mancs

 

It has happened at Arsenal and the Mancs for exactly the same reason as it has for us though, we're all up to our eyeballs in debt. Arsenal at least have a shiney new stadium to show for it. Us and the mancs just have cunts owning us, sucking the life out of their clubs.

[Guest simon]

It has happened at Arsenal and the Mancs for exactly the same reason as it has for us though, we're all up to our eyeballs in debt. Arsenal at least have a shiney new stadium to show for it. Us and the mancs just have cunts owning us, sucking the life out of their clubs.

 

They dont seem to give a fuck though because they are doing well in the past the glory hunting fuckers. I'm sure we will see there true colours very soon. Only probklem is people will pay more attention yeah we got the SOS but with out money what are they. They wanna gain full controll but we would still be in the same position only difference is fans will own the club. We have had our chances to sell but those cunts want as much as they can get. Pisses me off i have to say i would be happy with out getting a budget if i thought it was doing the club any good but it isnt. Some drastic need's to be done and im hugekly suprised it hasnt. Hate to say this if it means being relegated to get rid of our owners then so be it i just want them gone.

[Thants]

Sorry Thants. I do understand - no-one likes their poster boy getting it in the neck. You've been a bit quiet on this front though. Is it because the scales are finally falling from the eyes? I doubt it somehow.

 

Oh come on SV, I know he's not played well this season. I can say that honestly without having to say it in every thread. You're better than that, surely. Waste of an intelligent(ish) poster.

I still love the guy. Even if we buy a replacement and he ends up away from the club, I'll still love him.

[Guest simon]

Considering he's not doing well he has a few goals.

[Guest simon]

Just seen we rejected 9 mill for Babel if we did Rafa need's shooting how can he expect to get 12 mill for someone who doesen't play. But if he isnt gonna get a penny maybe better to trade. If he knows he cant get dosh why doesn't he trade.

[zico]

Why would Rafa consider selling Babel if the cunts are going to pocket the money from the transfer?

 

Much better to keep him and have the option to play him, no?

[Guest simon]

Why would Rafa consider selling Babel if the cunts are going to pocket the money from the transfer?

 

Much better to keep him and have the option to play him, no?

 

I'd sooner get him as far away from the club as possible. Reguardles if we replace him or not anyone whos heart isnt in it shouldnt be here reasons like this we are doing so bad.

[fowler9]

no because he is shite and a waste of space

 

playing with him is like playing with 10

[elvis]

Oh come on SV, I know he's not played well this season. I can say that honestly without having to say it in every thread. You're better than that, surely. Waste of an intelligent(ish) poster.

I still love the guy. Even if we buy a replacement and he ends up away from the club, I'll still love him.

 

Agree with Thants here, he is way off form at the moment but he whas always worked his arse off even through some tough ( emotional ) times .

 

He is also played out of position continually , yet never ever hides or complains.

 

If he is any worse than Carragher this year , then i just dont see it.

[KevinM]

Its clearly time to think differently about transfer ins and outs.If the owners are in debt-reduction mode and not gonna give any money to buy players then surely its better to hang onto those players to at least have some back-up,particularly in Babels case.

[Owen]

If all four of them leave this month, we'll have a ridiculously small first team squad.

[JMARKH]

Just seen we rejected 9 mill for Babel if we did Rafa need's shooting how can he expect to get 12 mill for someone who doesen't play. But if he isnt gonna get a penny maybe better to trade. If he knows he cant get dosh why doesn't he trade.

 

Might not even be allowed to do that!