God, not again!Liverpool have once more failed to buy a proper back-up striker to Fernando Torres.
Despite the change in management at the club, the same issues still remain, the need to provide cover for the brilliant yet injury-prone Fernando Torres.
As Les Lawson so well put it on LFC TVwe have not bought a striker since we got rid of Robbie Keane 12 months ago and no new forward has come in since then.
With Liverpool panicked into player swap deals in an effort to bring an average goal-scorer in Carlton Cole to the club at the 11th hour, it showed how little money manager Roy Hodgson had to play with.
Its a sorry day at Anfield when we cannot afford to buy a second rate forward in Cole, who only gets about 10 goals a season with the Hammers.
Maybe it is a blessing in disguise, with new owners, hopefully in by early October, then we can plan to bring in some top class players.
We live in hope.
Yanks out now!
Latest news from Sky Sports is that Ryan Babel is on his way down from Liverpool to London to complete a surprise transfer to Tottenham Hotspur or West Ham for £9 million pounds.
It was thought that Roy Hodgson was keen on the player and was planning to use him in his favoured stiker position, however, that is now unlikely as the enigmatic Dutchman appears to be on his way out of Anfield, maybe as a makeweight for Carlton Cole.
Update: It did seem that a deal with West Ham involving Babel and Cole swapping teams was close to being reached, but a deal could not be concluded between both parties.
Liverpool will sign West Ham striker Carlton Cole today after the clubs agreed a £10 million fee for the forward.
Cole began his career at Chelsea in 2001, spending spells out on loan at Wolverhampton Wanderers, Charlton Athletic and Aston Villa before being transferred to West Ham United in 2006. He made 19 England U21 appearances (scoring six goals), and made his full international debut for the England national football team on 11 February 2009 in a friendly match against Spain.
It should prove to be a good bit of business for Liverpool manager as he looks to bolster his attack for the coming season.
The former Chelsea player was sold to West Ham a couple of seasons ago and has been a success at the hammers, scoring 10 goals in an injury-hit season.
Cole should prove to be the perfect foil for Torres as he is quick and strong and has an eye for a goal.
Well done Roy Hodgson in getting a quality English forward into the club.
Liverpool were made to struggle in their narrow victory against West Brom, but it was that man Fernando Torres who scored his 50th goal for the Reds and the winning goal on 65mins at Anfield.
Liverpool have tonight announced the signing of Raul Meireles from Porto for a fee of £14 million pounds, the signing is a welcome boost for the team and the fans after the gloomy Mascherano transfer played itself out.
This guy is a proven international with Portugal having played and scored at the world cup this summer.
Looks like a good buy for Roy and Liverpool.
It is believed tonight that a £10 million bid for West Ham's Carlton Cole has been accepted and that the striker will be on his way to Anfield to face a medical and discuss terms very soon.
The stark comparisons were laid bare for all to see.
Manchester City in their magnificent Commonwealth Games Stadium with their oil-rich owner Sheik, whatever his name is, owner in town to witness the destruction of one off the games former aristocrates in Liverpool.
3-0 was a harsh result for Liverpool, but few will doubt that the fat-cats of City with their billionaire owners may have moved ahead of former greats of the game in Liverpool.
While the board of Liverpool continue to prevaricate over its new owners and the necessary needed to bolster the squad, the city machine moves on apace.
They took us apart many times in the game, exposing the defencies in the Liverpool team, lack of pace and creativity being the most obvious things that new manger, Roy Hodgson needs to address and quickly if he wants to return the Reds from the wilderness.
Keith Harris, the Man Utd mogul has his sights set on a liverpool take-over following Kenny Huang's withdrawal from the bidding process.
The Man Utd supporter is still in contension with his bid for liverpool, despite being a Utd fan.
Now 50, he has separated from his second wife and bought out the investment bank he works for. The £7.4m Seymour Pierce buyout, backed partially by Alchemy, the venture-capital specialist, leaves Harris with a 20% stake and control of the agenda.
“The Chinese bid just looks too low for me.
"The issue is satisfying the owners. I've read and heard a lot about the bank controlling this, but that’s not the case at all – it’s the owners controlling it and while they are current with their payments on the debt they will continue to do that."
It appears a bidding war could be underway, following the comments of counter bidder Yayha Kirdi who claimed his investors were in the: “final stage of negotiation”.
Harris is sure whoever wins the takeover battle will secure a huge prize.
"It’s a trophy asset," he added. "And there aren’t many left. It’s probably one that if it’s acquired on the right terms has the ability to make some money for the owner, while a lot of clubs are probably going to be break even at best.
"Liverpool has a fantastic upside with the new stadium, and has fantastic support. They have been somewhat in the shadows recently but with the new stadium and investment in a new squad you’ve got to think Liverpool could be right back to the fore and those fans deserve it."
Lets leave this Man Utd rubble behind and get the right bidder behind us.
After tonight's frustrating, yet welcome win against Trabonspor of Turkey in which Liverpool won 1-0 but should have had two or three, Roy Hodgson was asked about the failure of alberto Aquilani to even make the subs bench for the second game running:
"At the moment we are considering loaning him to an Italian club.
"I didn't want to use him tonight in case the loan goes through because for Aquilani it's very important this year that he plays regular football, every week as the number one man on the team sheet.
"I can't promise him that here so if a loan move to Italy could help him in that respect it might be good for all parties. It would certainly be what he needs, it would certainly protect the value of the player and when he does return to Liverpool no doubt we will see the Aquilani that we signed before he came here injured last year."
Clubs interested in the 'little Prince' include Napoli mainly and although Aquilani's agent has denied it to date, it now looks likely that the diminutive midfielder may be on his way out of Anfield.
Signed by Rafa Benitez last season to replace Xabi alonso, the Italian struggled with injuries and it comes as no surprise that the new manager is planning to get shut of him.
Ola Toivenen may about to be signed by Roy Hodgson.
The Swedish International who plays his club football with PSV Eindhoven in the Dutch League is linked with a €5 million move to Anfield with Roy having watched him in the midweek International match between Scotland and Sweden.
The 24 year old striker has made an impressive start to the new season with 5 goals in just 2 appearances and could be the ideal signing that Liverpool need upfront to bolster our attcking opiotons this season.
Other news is that Daniel Agger is out of the reckoning for our Europa League home game against Trabonspor at Anfield due to concussion following his bang to the head against Aresenal and want-away midfield mopper-up Mascherano still wants to go but nobody has put a firm bid in for him yet.
Masch has a calf-injury so he won't play tonight against the Turks (racist remark?),
But Hodgson still has a strong squad to choose from with maybe new signing Christen Poulson possibly making his debut in midfield for the Reds.
Here is a video of Toivenen in action this season:
Middlesborough have announced the sale of their keeper Brad Jones to Liverpool for a fee of £2.3 million.
The Aussie-born player who qualifies as a 'English' player because he has been at 'Boro for ten years, making 57 appearances.
He will act as under-study to Pepe Reina, while Diego Cavalieri is now expected to return to football in Europe.
Lets hope the lad does well at Anfield, next prioity has to be another striker, as well as David Ngog did against Arsenal with that cracking goal, we still need a quality forward who can get lots of goals.
*By the way 'Anonymous', I am not racist, I did not mean to denigrate the Chinese community or its nation, this is my website and I am free to write it the way I see it, if you don't like my stuff, don't read it.
With all this talk of foreign investment filtering though the media. I, for one, hope we do not do a deal with these far off jakanaps.
Thats the only way I can describe the half-hearted bids so far.
Kenneth Huang and the China group leaves me feeling uneasy, do I want Liverpool to be owned by Maorist Chinamen, no. Al Khalifi Family yes I would be happy to get these guys on board, serious and sensible buinnessman who would move the club forward. Yahadi Kiri Looks to me like he is a venture capitalist who only wants to buy Liverpool with loans to replace Hicks and Gillette who are only at the club to do the same thing.
Hopefully Martin Broughton, Purslow and Ian Ayre can agree proper new deal for our club as soon as possible.
I am off to Spain for a few days, lets hope I get good news when I get back.
Liverpool have completed the signing of Juventus midfielder Christian Poulsen for £5.5 million.
Having already undergone a medical and a fee already having been agreed with the Italian club, all that remained was for Liverpool and the Danish international to agree personal terms.
These issues have now been resolved and Poulsen will be unveiled at a news conference tomorrow at Anfield.
The combative midfielder is seen by Roy Hodgson as the ideal replacement for want-away Mascherano.
“Christian is a player I know well, a player whose career I actually kick-started many years ago and I have followed him closely ever since.”
Roy Hodgson helped to develop Christian Poulsen when at FC Copenhagen, and the pair won the Danish league title in 2001 together. Poulsen left a year after Hodgson departed to manage Udinese, and became a mainstay in the midfield of Schalke 04. In 2006 he moved to Sevilla and won the UEFA Cup and Super Cup.
Right, thats the midfield sorted, now we really do need another striker as Nando can't do it all on his own and Ngog is still learning his trade.
Keep up the good work Roy.
Liverpool are hoping to tempt Tottenham's Peter Crouch back to Anfield with a bid of £10 million pounds.
Roy Hodgson is anxious to add more firepower to his squad before the start of the new season and hopes he can persuade Harry Rednapp to release the England striker from his team.
It is believed that that Crouchy is willing to return to his former club and has the full support of Steven Gerrard and Jamie Carragher, in fact, they are both urging the manager to make the bid
What do you think, should the big man return to Anfield?
Latestest reports suggest that Liverpool want-away, Emiliano Insua has signed a deal with Italian club Genoa.
Talks with Fiorentina broke down over the player refusing a pay-cut of £10,000 a week.
However, it now seem that Italian side Genoa have agreed a deal with the Anfield youngster that will see him earn £30,000 a week at the Genoese.
If we can't get Luke Young from Villa then Martin Kelly looks a fine prospect wth injury-prone Fabio Aurelio able to deputise in his absence.
Here is some video action of Christian Poulson in action, he is a no-nonsense defensive midfield imposer and looks like he is on the way to Anfield next week.
The 30 year old Dane has played 71 times for his country and is currently plying his trade with Juventus in Italy.
Lets hope he doesn't get sent off too often for Liverpool!
God, with all the take-over rumours aboundin Liverpool these days, its hard to know what will happen at Anfield. KENNY HUANG and the China Investment Corporation are serious bidders, dealing with RBS over their £257 million debt , which the are offering to pay-off aswell as giving Hicks & Gillette a £320 milllion payout. YAHYA KIRDI; Fronting a bid for Liverpool with wealthy backers from the Middle-East and Canada, although he made a similar bid in April and was rebuffed. RHONE CAPITAL& the AL-Kharafi family of the Middle-East are also interested. KEITH HARRIS Former Chaiman of the Football League, is also believed to be representing bidders for Liverpool FC.
Martin Broughton today asserted that " Any bids that go to RBS go straight to me and are directed to Barclays Capital, who are charged with the sale of Liverpool FC."
Turbulent times at Anfield, lets hope a new buyer is found soon to get the club rocking again.
According to The Mirror, Martin Broughton, part-time Liverpool Director of Sale, is to meet with Kenny Huang later this week in order to discuss his audacious plans to buy Liverpool FC.
The Chinese businessman, head of a mega-rich Asian consortium is hell-bent on buying the club.
He initially approached RBS about buying the debt that Hicks and Gillette incurred to buy the club but has now agreed to engage with Barclays Capital, who are in charge of the sale of the club, and with Chairman Broughton.
It now appears that QLS fronted by Kenneth Huang are willing to offer the two parasites that own our club, £325 million, considerably less than the £600 milion they want to get out of Anfield.
This ambitious bid offer will now be discussed directly with Broughton later this week and with only one other offer one the table from Syrian Internationals on the table, he may well decide to give Kenny Huang due dillegence on the club and recommend a sale of the club to a serious, genuine and wealthy bidder in Huang and QSL.
Lets hope for the best!
Reports from Tony Barrett in The Times tonight suggest that a Chinese billionaire is in negotiations with RBS to buyout Liverpool FC from hated owners Hicks and Gillette.
Kenny Huang, who has very wealthy backers from the Far East, has bypassed Broughton and Purslow and is negotiating directly with Liverpool's debtors RBS in a bid to take total control of LFC.
It is rumored that a £325 million buyout of the club is all it will take for the Chinese to own Liverpool outright.
This approach by Huang ensures that RBS will get repayment of the loan that Hicks and Gillette took out to buy the club three years ago.
Huang is reported to want to push the Liverpool deal through to make use of the transfer window, which closes at the end of August, in order to give substansial funds to manager Roy Hodgson for the new season.
It is also believed that Huang and his associates plan to start building work on the much-awaited, new stadium as soon as possible.
Sounds too good to be true, but by all reports, it may be about to happen, as long as we get rid of Hicks and Gillette on the cheap, then I am happy.
