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Yes so would I. But he was a scout at Arsenal nothing more. His link to Arsenals success is exaggerated more than a bit.

 

although scouts are important in that model..the main man is Wenger himself.

 

That flies in the face of your previous logic that it takes nothing to sign a player and the real talent is in spotting them in the first place.

 

If that's the case then step forward people like Jean Marc Guillou.

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Yep.

 

Everyone had heard of Torres so why didn't they take the chance on him then.

 

Because he was hardly prolific before he came to us. He was far from the sure thing that he looked in hindsight. One of Rafa's better transfer moves.

 

*Don't know if this was a rhetorical question or not

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Interesting article on team talk. Thought if post it incase anyone is interested.

 

Comolli: New director of football strategy at Anfield

* Click here for football betting

 

Damian Comolli is Liverpool's new director of football strategy and TEAMtalk's Ian Watson believes the Frenchman will prove a wise appointment.

 

John W. Henry's vow to under-promise and over-deliver gave some insight when NESV eventually completed their takeover of Liverpool as to how the new American owners would be different from the old ones. Their first signing epitomises that strategy and signals a leap in the right direction for the Reds.

Damian Comolli was confirmed as the club's new director of football strategy on Wednesday, and while many Liverpool fans may not be familiar with his work, the mere fact that his position was created at all should act as a source of encouragement to the Anfield faithful.

Comolli brings with him a wealth of knowledge and experience, having operated in similar roles - despite slightly differing titles - at Spurs and St Etienne after a spell working under Arsene Wenger for Arsenal as European scout. His main responsibility at Anfield appears to be the identification and recruitment of new talent, but his influence will no doubt be also felt in other areas of the club.

The director of football title is often sneered at by many in the British game, including some managers who naively see the role as a threat to their authority. Roy Hodgson, however, has spoken of his happiness over Comolli's arrival and though I doubt he had any say in the appointment of the man who will eventually decide his fate, the under-pressure Reds boss could have much to gain from co-operating with the newcomer.

Hodgson has been a man on the edge for the last few weeks and despite assurances from the new owners, the manager has carried a beleaguered look with him since long before Henry and co strolled into town.

Comolli's arrival means Hodgson can focus very much on the now, while the Frenchman takes care of the future - one that looks unlikely to involve Hodgson unless the manager can use the reduction in his responsibilities to inspire a vast improvement in his team's performances between now and May.

Comolli's appointment signals a welcome shift away from the short-sightedness that engulfed Anfield during the final year or two of Hicks and Gillett's reign. Liverpool's transfer business - and even the appointment of Hodgson - was all about the here and now, with new arrivals and rumoured targets offering a short-term fix but little in the way of longevity or scope for development.

Henry alluded to a change in attitude on that particular front when NESV took over, and Comolli's track record suggests Liverpool will seek to be much savvier in the transfer market, with talent, potential and value more attractive than reputation.

As has been repeated over and over this afternoon, Comolli was indeed the man who brought Gareth Bale to White Hart Lane, though the former Southampton youngster was hardly an unknown. Comolli's key contribution to the Bale deal was not discovering the Welshman, but persuading him to choose Spurs over Manchester United or other 'bigger' clubs, just as he did in the case of a number of exciting talents, including John Bostock and Danny Rose. Comolli also ensured Tottenham got to Dimitar Berbatov ahead of United, who had to pay Spurs an extra £20million just two years later to finally get their man.

Comolli also played a huge role in bringing to White Hart Lane many of the players who make up Spurs' current best side. Indeed, seven of last night's XI were bought under Comolli's watch (including Kaboul who was originally purchased by Comolli before being sold to Portsmouth and then bought back again), as were regular goalkeeper Heurelho Gomes and goalscoring substitute Roman Pavlyuchenko.

Comolli had his share of bad buys, of course, but his overall transfer record would compare favourably with the vast majority of managers, including Hodgson.

When NESV arrived, many questioned their track-record in football - or lack thereof - and asked how they expected to restore Liverpool to former glories with little or no experience of how the game works. The fact that NESV and Henry are happy to put their egos aside and bow to those with greater knowledge also serves as another positive aspect of Comolli's Anfield arrival.

Many claim taking overall responsibility away from the manager does not work in the English game but there is no reason the new arrangement cannot be a success on Merseyside. You only have to look at Sunday's opponents, Chelsea, for proof of the rewards it can bring.

Carlo Ancelotti has been working under a Football Board that has been in place since well before the Italian's appointment. The six-man board, featuring Frank Arnesen as it's headline name, work alongside the PLC board but oversee all football matters, including transfers.

Just like any organisation or team, getting the right individuals within the group is key, but Chelsea have shown how successful the set-up can be in England and with Henry clearly willing to learn from the success of others, a similar restructuring may well be on the cards at Anfield.

Henry has asked for patience as he and NESV get to work, and after the trials and tribulations of the last 18 months, the indications are that they will get it. Despite Comolli's signing hardly rivalling that of Fernando Torres or Joe Cole in the excitement stakes, he could prove to be one of the most crucial and symbolic arrivals of the new regime.

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Interesting move. Will have to sit back and watch this unfold as I don't know what to think about it.

 

Just listen to Red Nick, he's already told you whats going to happen 10000 TIMES OVER

Honestly, Hodgson got a reprieve from me because of the way the team is picking up a little but I want him to go tomorrow just to shut Red Nick up. The man is a bleedin parrot.

 

No offence Nick.

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Yes but they didn't sign them. He contributed or was instrumental for them signing for spurs. You know what if we had his success rate here for the last 6 years then I wonder how differently things would be now? I am envious with some of their players. Ones that others deemed too much of a risk or not value for money.

 

How much money have Spurs lost during his tenure? Would be interesting to see there perceived failure rate compared to ours. I wonder who's is worse?

 

Sorry mate but i cannot agree. At worse i would say our signings were a success on the same ratio.

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Because he was hardly prolific before he came to us. He was far from the sure thing that he looked in hindsight. One of Rafa's better transfer moves.

 

*Don't know if this was a rhetorical question or not

 

If i remember correctly he was offered to Spurs the season before he joined us and they turned him down.

 

Commoli joined spurs in 2005?

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Sorry mate but i cannot agree. At worse i would say our signings were a success on the same ratio.

 

Perhaps, but then we were in a much better postion to attract talent than Spurs were. Bigger club, CL football, higher wages, Rafa's reputation. On paper, we should have had a much superior record in getting players in than Spurs.

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Guest San Don

Well Im happy to be convinced this is a good move. There's no doubt he carried the can at spurs for some pretty awful signings. Whether he was made a scapegoat or not I dont know.

 

If he's been brought in to oversee hodgson's transfer dealings I'll be pretty disappointed as I would have liked someone with a bit more credence to them.

 

We shall see.

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Perhaps, but then we were in a much better postion to attract talent than Spurs were. Bigger club, CL football, higher wages, Rafa's reputation. On paper, we should have had a much superior record in getting players in than Spurs.

 

Of course and more pressure to do well straight off....wanting to challenge for the league rather than hope to get into CL (by default)

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bensmith_times Ben Smith

It would seem Hodgson may not be quite as happy with the arrival of Comolli as he pretended to be today #lfc

52 minutes ago Favorite Retweet Reply

 

And so it begins to unravel

 

Nick when it's a times journalist most likely it's bollocks, history has thought us that much, Ben Smith is always at this, he was the one implying Torres and Reina were leaving a couple of weeks ago.

For what's it worth I reckon they will look to replace Roy, but as with the takeover the times weren't in the loop on this appointment so they tend to pretend there ITK

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Nick when it's a times journalist most likely it's bollocks, history has thought us that much

 

Mock them on the investment stuff by all means, and you and many others makes post after post per day doing so but on transfers and general club stuff they're reliable enough.

 

Not that you need an inside track to know Hodgson wont be happy about this. What manager in their right mind would like power taken away from them?

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Mock them on the investment stuff by all means, and you and many others makes post after post per day doing so but on transfers and general club stuff they're reliable enough.

 

Not that you need an inside track to know Hodgson wont be happy about this. What manager in their right mind would like power taken away from them?

 

last time I checked torres and Gerrard hadn't been "diplomaticly removed" The times lost any source on transfers when benitez went, hence Tony Evans tantrums

 

I think this is the beginning of the end for hodgson TBH but Hodgson wasn't telling any journalists that today so I don't see the point of them implying he was

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I think this is the beginning of the end for hodgson TBH but Hodgson wasn't telling any journalists that today so I don't see the point of them implying he was

 

 

He's not going to though is he? I would hedge my bets and say he isnt happy. I mean, who would be? Only a new manager coming in would be happy with it otherwise he wouldnt take the job.

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I thought the list of transfers was impressive - £3 or £4m too much on occasion and one or two players I wouldn't have bought, but impressive nontheless.

 

How much did he recoup in the same period?

 

Except Rafa wanted Barry in the team alongside Alonso.

 

I think he was lying to cover up what looked like a bizzare decision. The only problem is that his explanation - of wanting to play Barry on the left - was really crazy.

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Apologies if anyone's posted anything similar to this - I admit I haven't read every post in this thread, but here goes: 'Director of Football Strategy'? Am I missing something, but isn't that supposed to be the manager? Who was 'Director of Football Strategy' under Shankly, Paisley, Fagan, Dalglish and even Roy, Gerard and Rafa? Strategy? What, like, try and buy players at least as good as your opponents with the ability to pass the ball to a red shirt, to move and support the man in possession and who can put the ball into the opposition's net more than they do in ours? Am I just out of tune with LFC or with modern football in general, because this doesn't sound like LFC to me?

I hope I'm wrong - very wrong - but this all sounds a bit like like 'fiddling while Rome burns'.

 

Genuinely, good luck, Monseiur Comolli.

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