Kopite Keane Successfully Signed

Robbie Keane has signed for Liverpool FC today for a fee of £19million, on a four-year deal and will earn £80,000 a week. He will wear the iconic number 7 shirt associated with Reds legends Kenny Dalglish, Kevin Keegan, Ian Callaghan and Peter Beardsley. He has been included in the squad which travels to Spain for the friendly against Villarreal on Wednesday.
Liverpool had been working behind the scenes to bring Keane to Anfield, as was announced by Daniel Levy in his scathing attack on our club for not pursuing the official channels of communication and negotiation. This was greatly helped by the player himself being a boyhood fan/atic and displayed by him submitting a transfer request. Liverpool FC have agreed to make a donation to our Club’s main charity, the Tottenham Hotspur Foundation, as compensation and Tottenham Hotspur have therefore agreed not to continue in their official complaint to the Premier League.
Keane is now one of the most expensive footballer’s in the world, having been involved in transfers totalling £58m having previously played for Wolverhampton, Coventry, Inter Milan and Leeds before joining Tottenham in 2002. He established himself as a consistent performer at Premier League level at Tottenham, scoring 13-17 goals in his first four campaigns and 22/23 in the most recent seasons. Keane scored 80 goals in 197 appearances for Tottenham and has scored 33 international goals in 81 appearances.

Stylish Strips: Revolting Or Revered?

Liverpool FC have released the away and third kit for the following two seasons. It seems like the main idea for the 'silver' away kit is its history of being worn during our last top flight success, and adding a visual angle to our continual desperation to claim #19. My first thoughts of this grey strip was generally negative when I saw a leaked picture of the shirt from somewhere in Asia (I presume, as designs get leaked from the out-sourced countries where they are made). This opinion is down to the drab colour and little else to stimulate or excite the mind, unlike the home kit with the several new aesthetic features. The small squared chequered effect which is all over the shirt doesn't add much either, and I doubt it has any form of functionality on the player's or opposition's performance. Conversely, the European kit looks nice with a metallic tinge of turquoise with a black collar and shorts, like the highly vaunted 3rd kit of last season. From first impressions I'm inclined towards the Euro kit, but I'm sure the grey edition will grow on me when I see our team run out and goals are flying in. I currently own the new home kit with Gerrard/8 on the back in Premier League font. As strange as it may seem, it feels different than the last one. It feels more tailored and impressive and its good to be wearing red again, instead of white.

Summer Transfers 08/09 Update #4

1st XI
IN:
Philipp Degen (BV Borussia Dortmund - Free) [RB]
Andrea Dossena (Udinese Calcio - £7m) [LB]
Diego Cavalieri (SE Palmeiras - £3m) [GK]
David Ngog (Paris Saint-Germain FC - £1.5m) [FW]

OUT:
Harry Kewell (Galatasaray SK - Free) [LW]
John Arne Riise (AS Roma - £4m) [LB]
Peter Crouch (Portsmouth FC - £11m) [FW]
Scott Carson (West Bromwich Albion FC - £3.25m) [GK]


Reserves/Academy
IN:
Deale Chamberlain (Tamworth FC | 16 y/o)
Nikola Saric (Herfolge BK | 17y/o)
Vincent Weijl (AZ Alkmaar | 17y/o)
Christopher Buchtmann (BV Borussia Dortmund | 16y/o)
Zsolt Poloskei (MTK Hungaria FC | 17y/o)
Emmanuel Mendy (Murcia Deportivo | 18y/o)

OUT:
Nikolay Mihaylov (FC Twente - Loan)
Paul Anderson (Nottingham Forest FC - Loan)
Anthony Le Tallec (Le Mans UC72 - £1m) [MD]
Danny Guthrie (Newcastle United - £2.5m) [MD]
Robbie Threlfall (Hereford United - Loan)
Adam Hammill (Blackpool FC - Loan)
Sebastian Leto (Olympiakos CFP - Loan)
Godwin Antwi (Tranmere Rovers FC - Loan)
Jack Hobbs (Leicester City FC - Loan)

Systematic Squad Shredding Sought

The current Liverpool FC first team roster, in my opinion, accumulates to 26 players. I think this amount of available players needs to be reduced to 23 which involves five outgoing players and two incoming. The duo of imports to the club are apparent from my previous posts, hence I will continue into the current squad members that need to be sold if we realistically want to rise to the head of the league. The cut will not only decrease the number of possible players eligible for the manager to select (contributing to a limitation of his relentless rotation) but simultaneously incentivise the reserve players. The 23 man squad would include 4 current reserve players (which would therefore lower the main group again, to 19) and they may be given a larger role in the lesser competitions and minor Premier League games. Two players for every position is still maintained and this is a clear shift towards quality over quantity. This venture would also benefit the club fiscally, generating financial funds which would contribute towards transfers, wages and the like.
Itandje, Finnan, Alonso, Pennant and Voronin are the 5 players that should be shown the door and would garner collectively considerable prices, at approximately £26million, which would be added to the net profit gained from previous departure deals. The reasons for the exit of these players hinges on many factors, such as their age, potential, valuation and also the nature of future purchases.

• Itandje: Last season Itandje had shaky and indifferent performances for Liverpool FC. He played in no Premier League or Champions League matches and had in total 7 appearances with 1 clean sheet, conceding 10 goals. In many ways it is unfair to judge him on sporadic games, which involves plenty of pressure on a goalkeeper, who is nervous and desperate to impress, and I think fans have been overcritical of him in some instances. Some goals he conceded were either simply skilful or plain unfortunate, like the last minute Barnsley goal in the FA Cup 5th Round and the deflected Lampard goal in the Carling Cup defeat, during which he won the fan's man of the match vote. His time seems to be up with him not travelling out to Switzerland training camp and the arrival of Cavalieri. Plus it has been rumoured he is in advanced dialogue with the Turkish champions Galatasaray and Ligue 1 club PSG, who could pay a decent fee for his services. Also his attitude and demeanour could be questioned, however this could be symptomatic of his reserve goalkeeper role which requires copious amounts of patience and optimism. These types of players are regularly unsettled and don't stay for too long, evident in past stoppers such as Kirkland, Dudek and most recently Carson.

• Finnan: Last season Finnan was ordinary, looked slow and was predictable in his movement and decision making on the right side, often being espoused by centre half Jamie Carragher. His lack of speed may now be revealing his age of 32, and he has never been a genuine threat to the opposition or held much technical ability, unlike his counter-parts in the league. He has previously been the steady and reliable man to put in a shift, and ironically taking headlines as the unsung and under-rated player at Liverpool. Now these attributes are no longer required and the club, who need to be more expansive and creative in wide areas, utilising the full capacity the turf can provide. Finnan can produces standard crosses and uninspiring displays, which leads me to believe he could be easily replaced, especially since Degen has joined the club. Defensively he is definitely capable, but is now surplus to the team, and could be used as a make-weight to Aston Villa for the acquisition of Gareth Barry, or return to Fulham or even Ireland to extend his career.

• Alonso: Last season for Alonso was disappointing to say the least, and in my view his injury heavily contributed to this, interrupting his fourth season at the club. It is said form is temporary andclass is permanent, however the Spaniard has progressively lost his dominating skill of unleashing pin-point passes and defence splitting assists. I think he has lost his mobility, confidence and has a questionable temperament, developing into reckless behaviour to the detriment of the team. His indisciplined actions result in conceding set-plays in dangerous areas and him picking up infractions. He may also be injury prone with two ankle problems: a break and ligament sprain, plus breaking his metatarsal this season, which are all considerable injuries involving long lay-off times. But the crux of the argument is his competitors, with Mascherano an £18m shoo-in for a starting berth and the possible inclusion of Barry who is ranked above Alonso for this opinionated fan. The club has a wealth of centre midfielders, and the numbers being exchanged in the media point towards an economically beneficial transfer. But despite this, Juventus decided against this move, favouring the Dane Christian Poulsen. Other rumours indicate Internazionale are now interested with their prospective deal for Lampard hitting the buffers. I wouldn't be surprised to see him prosper in the Italian league, which is heavily tactically based and has a slower tempo and style. This is substantiated in his Euro 2008 performances for Spain were he impressed, however his role was more advanced than at Liverpool and he was given more freedom offensively, whereas Gerrard occupies that position at the moment. He will be missed the most if he leaves, especially with memories of his half-way line goals and the 3rd goalin Istanbul, and this is reflected in the high value he demands.

• Pennant: Last season was not particularly successful time for Pennant and he didn't build on the limited positives of the season before, with the highlight being his starting appearance in the Athens final. When Pennant was purchased I felt that he was the third choice that Benitez wanted in 2006. This is reflected recently with Kuyt replacing him, showing the fans the continuous hard graft and goal scoring and assisting that is needed for such a role. In contrast Pennant has a small box of tricks and turns, with spurts of pace and dribbling on the right wing. To me it seems he lacks enthusiasm and endeavour during games, and appears to be content with his time on the bench at a top 4 club who is playing in the Champions League. I have thought that he could progress at Liverpool, especially as he is our only true winger, and could give us the touch-line hugging play we seem to crave (calls to buy Bentley and David Silva) but he has not improved enough and needs to leave. He won't attract a high price, but at the moment any revenue is welcome to match the high cost of our two targets, and there have been tenuous links with Blackburn for a sale. However one stumbling block may be a change to a UEFA ruling in 2006, regarding locally trained players. It stipulates that clubs are required to register 4 club trained and 4 domestic association trained players in each squad. Pennant would qualify for the latter of these groups since he trained at a different club (Arsenal) for at least three years between the age of 15 and 21. But with the loss of Kewell and Crouch, and possibly Finnan, who were registered last season when the rules were only 3 players of each, that would leave us in a degree of strife. David Martin, Barry and Keane are eligible to fill this quota, and therefore either Finnan or Pennant would need to stay.

• Voronin: Last season was a time of woe for the Liverpool faithful who saw glimpses of talent during the pre-season period (again this time around), but watching the Ukrainian forward over the following 10 months was cringe inducing dysphoria, not to mention seeing the number on his back. His lack of basic footballing ability was shocking and this was compounded by his horrific hair. Of course we wish no harm on players and we give all our men a fair chance, but I wasn't down heartened when he contracted an ankle injury in January. In all fairness he contributed goal wise, with 6 to his name and had snippets of flair, but in my opinion was thoroughly disappointing and unimpressive. His poor control, incoordination and waste of possession was infuriating to see, when more competent players could get their chance to impress. There has been some gossip surrounding this player, linking him back to the Bundesliga where he has maintained a high regard. A clutch of German clubs are reported to have shown interest and any price would be suitable in my eyes. Even though Crouch has left and Kuyt has been moved to the right, the future development of Krisztian Nemeth is promising and also the addition of Robbie Keane would rectify a loss of striking options.
  

Match Day: Pre-season Friendly #4

Hertha Berlin 0 - 0 Liverpool
Tuesday 22 July 2008 18:45

Liverpool XI: Cavalieri (65), Insua (45), Carragher (c) (45), Agger (45), Darby (45), Leto (75), Mascherano, Plessis (65), Pennant (65), Voronin, Pacheco (75).

Substitutes: Hyypia (45), Kuyt (15), Skrtel (45), Degen (45), Dossena (45), Benayoun (25), Spearing (15), Hobbs (25), Martin (25).

Match Day: Pre-season Friendly #3

Wisla Krakow 1 - 1 Liverpool
Saturday 19 July 2008 17:00

Liverpool XI: Cavalieri (70), Dossena (63), Carragher (c) (45), Agger (45), Darby (70), Leto (45), Plessis (45), Lucas (45), Benayoun (63), Voronin {6} (70), Babel (45).

Substitutes: Hyypia (45), Pennant (45), Aurelio (45), Pacheco (27), Insua (27), Kuyt (20), Mascherano (45), Skrtel (45), Spearing (45), Hobbs (20), Martin (20).

Summer Transfers 08/09 Update #3

1st XI
IN:
Philipp Degen (BV Borussia Dortmund - Free) [RB]
Andrea Dossena (Udinese Calcio - £7m) [LB]
Diego Cavalieri (SE Palmeiras - £3m) [GK]

OUT:
Harry Kewell (Galatasaray SK - Free) [LW]
John Arne Riise (AS Roma - £4m) [LB]
Peter Crouch (Portsmouth FC - £11m) [FW]
Scott Carson (West Bromwich Albion FC - £3.25m) [GK]


Reserves/Academy
IN:
Deale Chamberlain (Tamworth FC | 16 y/o)
Nikola Saric (Herfolge BK | 17y/o)
Vincent Weijl (AZ Alkmaar | 17y/o)
Christopher Buchtmann (BV Borussia Dortmund | 16y/o)
Zsolt Poloskei (MTK Hungaria FC | 17y/o)

OUT:
Nikolay Mihaylov (FC Twente - Loan)
Paul Anderson (Nottingham Forest FC - Loan)
Anthony Le Tallec (Le Mans UC72 - £1m) [MD]
Danny Guthrie (Newcastle United - £2.5m) [MD]
Robbie Threlfall (Hereford United - Loan)
Adam Hammill (Blackpool FC - Loan)

Match Day: Pre-season Friendly #2

FC Lucerne 1 - 2 Liverpool
Wednesday 16 July 2008 18:35

Liverpool XI: Cavalieri, Insua, Carragher (c) (45), Agger (45), Degen (45), Leto (55), Plessis (62), Lucas {10}, Benayoun (45), Voronin {36} (80), Pacheco (77).

Substitutes: Hyypia (45), Dossena, Babel (45), Aurelio (35), Darby (45), Kuyt (10), Hansen, Mascherano (13), Skrtel (45), Spearing (28), Gerrard.

Summer Transfers 08/09 Update: Pictures #1

Summer Transfers 08/09 Update #2

1st XI
IN:
Philipp Degen (BV Borussia Dortmund - Free) [RB]
Andrea Dossena (Udinese Calcio - £7m) [LB]
Diego Cavalieri (SE Palmeiras - £3m) [GK]

OUT:
Harry Kewell (Galatasaray SK - Free) [LW]
John Arne Riise (AS Roma - £4m) [LB]
Peter Crouch (Portsmouth FC - £11m) [FW]


Reserves/Academy
IN:
Deale Chamberlain (Tamworth FC | 16 y/o)
Nikola Saric (Herfolge BK | 17y/o)
Vincent Weijl (AZ Alkmaar | 17y/o)
Christopher Buchtmann (BV Borussia Dortmund | 16y/o)

OUT:
Nikolay Mihaylov (FC Twente - Loan)
Paul Anderson (Nottingham Forest FC - Loan)
Anthony Le Tallec (Le Mans UC72 - £1m) [MD]
Danny Guthrie (Newcastle United - £2.5m) [MD]