LFC TRANSFERS

The January transfer window is quite often a quiet affair for many clubs, including Liverpool. But that seems to have changed slightly!

So i want to just talk about the transfer window and some of the things that have stood out for me over the last few days really because lets face it, it was more like a 3-day transfer period than a month long window wasn't it.

Paul Konchesky - this will be brief. Why he was signed will baffle us for some time. When Hodgson arrived we had Insua and Aurelio, not the best Left backs in the world, but competent ones who knew the club, the players and the role they had to play. Hodgson decided though, in his infinite wisdom to loan one out and release the other, then the loan was off, then it was on again, then the player he released was resigned - was all a bit of an embarrassing joke really, oh and then we signed Konchesky. An average player at best, he never fit in, he never adapted to the team, he was never taken to the hearts of the supporters. Now it isn't like we didn't give him a chance, we did, it just wasn't working out and his mother did not help, towards the end even his old pal Roy wouldn't pick him and once he was gone the writing was on the wall for Paul - he won't be missed.

Another departure from the first team squad was that of Ryan Babel - something of a human enigma. He had the potential, he had the skill and he had plenty of faith placed in him, what he seemingly lacked however was the application. Every now and then he would produce a moment of brilliance which would stir up the question - why can't he do that all the time?? Only the player himself will know that for sure - but let's face it he went out on a high...

He also left with some dignity, after he was released from 'Twitter Jail' - don't ask - he had plenty of kind words for the club and the supporters which he had left behind, declaring us the best supporters out there, stating that he wishes us every luck for the future and that we get back to the top where we belong. And all this came from a player who was never really fully taken to by the supporters, we wanted it to work with him, but in the end it just wasn't and the move will do him good. His words though have ensured that should ever return to Anfield as an opponent he will receive a warm welcome from all - thanks Ryan.

The story of the outgoing players was only ever going to end with one man - Fernando Torres - the man who had it all and threw it away, the man who had one foot through the doorway to becoming a legend, the man who will now only ever be remembered primarily for what he did TO the club rather than what he did FOR the club. He has left in search of glory but at Chelsea the writing is already on the wall, ageing team, performances are poor, they are falling away and there are echoes of our own descent in 2009/2010 about them - at Chelsea i suspect he will not find the glory he craves. I wont say too much about him, i have done it already, if you want to read what i have to say on it then the post is called The Heartbreak Kid and you can select it from the column on the right. No kind words for us from him, makes the situation worse, no dignity, he left with his reputation in tatters, and right now, he is walking alone.

One thing i will say is aimed at those who took it upon themselves to burn the Liverpool shirts. Regardless of the name on the back of the shirt it should not happen. There is nothing more important than the badge on the front. Over the weekend and through to deadline day many people said that the club was bigger than any individual - a statement of fact - those who burned shirts for the cameras made a mockery of that statement and have insulted the club to the highest level. Look on the front of the shirt, there is a badge, a badge that symbolises where we are from, who we are, the values we hold, the anthem that unites us and on either side of all of this there are two flames to symbolise and remember those who we lost - regardless of the name on the back, the badge on the front is the most important thing and should not be disrespected.

One man who also suffered a little bit was Luis Suarez, his arrival overshadowed by the betrayal of a player who he had hoped to partner.

Luis Suarez, Liverpool's Number 7!!!

                                                   

I can't wait to see Luis pull on the famous red shirt and show us his best, he wants to be here, he is excited to be here and he is the kind of committed player that we need. On his website he left a message for his fans, thanking Ajax and their supporters for standing by him and for the help an support that they had given him and he wished them the best for the future - class. He then stated how happy he was to be at Liverpool, and how he looks forward to winning things and giving his best for the club, he has given a real masterclass in how to leave a club in a dignified and respectful manner, unlike someone else. His goal scoring record is superb and i don't think the will have any problems settling in and i think he could be in line for a debut goal, if he gets his chance I'm sure he will take it. Welcome to Liverpool Luis Suarez!

Next to join us was Andy Carroll our new number 9!!

                                                

Again, a player who wants to be here, a player who has thanked his former supporters - OK so he has been in a little bit of a spat with his former employers but anyone who thinks that Mike Ashley was ever going to say anything but yes to £35m is deluded. He says he is happy to be here and looks forward to showing his best. It would be so easy for a player so young as him to be cocky  about a £35m move, but he hasn't, he has maintained that it is his focus to get fit and ready to help the team, to play his part and to show everyone that he is worth it - he wants to earn that value. In my opinion i do not think he is worth the fee of £35m, his is a good young talent, but he is not proven at the very highest level, he has been great for Newcastle this season, but he does represent something of a gamble, one that i think will pay off though, after all what he could do for us over the next 5 and a half years could well be worth the £35m and more besides.Welcome to Liverpool Andy!!

Gonna finish addressing something that has bothered me a little bit, and that is the suggestion that our new owners NESV or FSG whichever but i prefer NESV are anything but committed to the club and are unwilling to put money into the club for transfers. RIDICULOUS.

People have pointed out that we have actually made a profit from the transfer window and that they have contributed nothing in terms of funds. But that argument is dead before it even gets going. The plan was never to sell in this window, the plan was to strengthen. Suarez was signed to complement Torres not to replace him, the plan was to bring Suarez in and that plan cost £22.8m, a fee that was agreed BEFORE the Torres saga erupted. Once it was clear that he was going to be leaving us the priority was a replacement and also to get the right price, we dug in, we demanded £50m in cold hard cash, no part exchange, no add ons, we wanted our fee, our valuation and their money. A replacement was needed though, and we had to act fast. Our new owners are committed to bringing in good young talent to build for the future success of the club, Andy Carroll represents this desire, we may well have had to pay over the odds but we had no choice given the circumstances - we risked being left with only one top striker, unproven and ineligible for Europe, now we have two top strikers who want to be here and one who CAN play in Europe which can only be a good thing for us.

It was never their intention to sell Torres, or to make a profit from the transfer window, but that is what has happened as a result of circumstance, and if we have made a profit this window then surely we have more to spend in the summer window which is only a good thing. Had we only brought in Suarez we would have a spending outlay of about £16/17m after taking into account the fee for Babel, no profit. It would have been easy for them to take the £50m for Torres and keep it, use it elsewhere, save it for summer, but they didn't do that, it went straight back into the playing squad.

Under Hicks and Gillet that money would have gone on interest payments, we would not have bought Suarez and we would probably by now be on the verge of administration or worse. There owners are committed, and I'm sure they will back us in the summer with more money for more players, the fact that we have made a profit this window means that there is more money to go round in the summer - not guaranteed but all the noise coming from the club AND Kenny Dalglish is that this is what will happen - expect a busy summer reds!!

Feedback is great so please leave some! check out the other posts (some are quite good) and you can keep up with them, me and more HERE.

take care folks!

ash

The Heartbreak Kid

Fernando Torres has left Liverpool Football Club. If you had said a month ago that Torres would not be a Liverpool player come February 1st most people would have laughed. After all, why should we believe such a statement? A statement about a player who had on numerous occasions declared his love for the city, the club and it's supporters, a player who had declared his commitment to the cause, and who would do so once again in January.

That commitment, the words used, all are very hollow now, hollow and meaningless.

The question on the lips of every Liverpool supporter is why? Why has he done this now, why did he declare his loyalty, why did he disrespect the club and the fans, why Chelsea?

His timing is poor, his choice of club poorer.

Fernando Torres wants to win trophies, all players do.

We all knew he wanted to leave, he hadn't quite said it, but we knew, and to be honest, none of us blamed him. The club is not the club he joined, fresh from a second Champions League Final in 3 years, the club that had such high hopes, the club that, with his help took the title race to the wire in 2009 - and since then it has been a rapid fall from the top. He has been away and conquered Europe and the World with Spain, he has seen the trophy cabinets of his countrymen expand year by year - he left Atletico for glory which he could not get and now he has done the same to Liverpool.

It could all have been so different though.

Had he handed in his request at the start of the month it would almost certainly be down to Roy Hodgson, there would have been ill feeling towards the request but the failing Liverpool manager would have taken the flak and Torres may have left Anfield with a bit more dignity. Although, following on from the appointment of Kenny Dalglish - could that have been the decision that could have persuaded him to stay? Who knows, but given how things actually turned out, i would have to say no.

I think it is something of an insult to Kenny himself that Torres did what he did, under Roy Hodgson, Torres was a shadow of himself, under performing, taking criticism left right and centre. Under Dalglish he looked like a totally different player, he had his belief and confidence back, he was getting back to his best and that was all down to Kenny Dalglish, the team entering February is miles different from the team that started January, and not much has changed, 3 players out, 2 players in.

Handing in the transfer request was an insult to Kenny Dalglish and the faith and support he had given Fernando.

Handing in the transfer request was an insult to his team mates who had always stood by an supported him.

Handing in the transfer request was an insult to every Liverpool supporter young and old across the world.

He has moved to Chelsea in search of glory.

He has swapped the passion, desire and support of the Kop for the Shed.

Flags and banners made with pride, scarves held high in support of the team, he has given this up for plastic flags and throw away scarves left on seats to try and drum up an atmosphere in a stadium that has none.

He has left a team building for the future to join a team whose star players will soon be retired to the studio.
Had he waited til the summer and still wanted to go, he could have had his pick of any club in Europe, had he kept his to his word an not signed for another English team he would have left Anfield with his head high, with the good wishes of the supporters and a thank you from everyone, he would have been remembered fondly, celebrated upon his return, it would not have been an easy loss but it would have been an acceptable one.

But Fernando Torres has left in disgrace, his reputation in tatters. He will not receive a fond welcome upon his return to Anfield, and i think, when he does return, and feels the full fury of the Liverpool faithful it will hurt him inside, he will step out onto the pitch with memories of good times stirring in his mind, those memories may even bring a smile to his face for years to come, but there will be no heroes welcome.

He will realise his mistake in time, his first interview for his new club was dull and uneventful, he looked like a lost child - or a man who was beginning to realise exactly what he had done.

There where no fond words for the club he left or the supporters who had adored him from day one. He said he did not want to talk about Liverpool and would never say anything bad about us. But in his haste to impress his new audience he declared that he had always wanted to play for a top club and is happy that he can do that now, he stated that after Chelsea there is nothing higher, and it was 'like destiny' for him to score against us on Sunday - all words which will have cut deep into the Liverpool supporters, the club and his former team mates.

It is true though Fernando, there is nothing higher for you than Chelsea, the reason??

The way back up to Liverpool is now permanently shut to you.

Chelsea are going backwards and we are likely to pass them on our way up. They are by no means guaranteed a Champions League place next season, and with a few wins under our belts then we can put ourselves in a great position to challenge Chelsea for fourth spot. Fernando will be well used to fighting for fourth by now and with the way Chelsea are going - he will need to be.

What Fernando Torres did for Liverpool will never be forgotten, years down the line when the dust has settled, the goals he scored may actually be enjoyed, never as they once where but they will bring up happy memories, and i don't think we can ever really forget the way he terrorised Vidic, like i said, in the long run what he did for us wont be forgotten.

But what he did to us will always overshadow everything he ever did for us.

After years of lies and deceit at the hands of two American cowboys Fernando took it upon him self to tell some more lies to the Liverpool supporters - he told us he was committed, that he would not leave and that we should get behind him and the team - Nando you should really have known better.

On the whole he will forever be remembered for the wrong reasons.

The flame of a potential Liverpool legend burned out on Monday night and there is no going back.

Why? Why? Why? Fernando?....

This picture would look wrong with four blue shirts, the thought is devastating to Liverpool supporters.

Why? How could he? That's what everyone wants to know, that's what everyone has asked.

His timing is awful, he has no commitment, Judas, they've said.

Now for starters, this is just the situation the way i see it, I'm not in the know, at all, i have no connections, just opinions, I'm not trying to play devil's advocate even if at times it seems so, just wanted to put down my thoughts on the situation.

This wont be a heartfelt, teary eyed, open letter, reminiscing about the good times and pleading with the player to stay. Other people have done that - quite well too - but that's just not me.

So, he wants to leave, isn't that something which many of us have suggested at over the last 12 months, PARTICULARLY the last 6?? He has asked to leave, but i feel that this request was discussed between Torres and his agent earlier in the month, and if rumours are to be believed, then the request was submitted before Suarez deal was announced, or after depending on which rumour you believe. Thing is, it's just rumour.

The silence is not deafening, after all how could it be, it's silence. It does speak volumes, it confirms that Liverpool have departed from the media circus and taken to doing business behind closed doors, as it should be. No news is, in this case at least, and in my own opinion, good news.

But why? Why would he want to leave? Well that story starts back in 2007. The hardest decision of his career, allot harder than the decision to stay or leave Liverpool. He decided to leave Atletico Madrid, his boyhood club, the club he captained, the supporters who loved him, his home. For all Liverpool is to Fernando Torres, it could only ever be a second home, after all, where any of us to be professional footballers could any other club really replace LFC in our hearts?? Of course not.

He left Atletico to become a champion, to win trophies and with Atletico he could not do that at the time, and in stepped Liverpool. A team that had won the European Cup, the FA Cup and appeared in a second European Cup final, all in the space of 3 years. We had new owners promising the world, new stadium, money for world class players, the promise of being champions once again. And most of all, Liverpool had the supporters, the famous Kop, the anthem whose title adorned his captains armband at Atletico. It was a move that would surely guarantee him the medals, the glory and the unconditional support of the worlds best supporters - a match made in heaven.

That was 2007, it is 2011 now and things have hardly gone as planned. Now we all know the Hicks and Gillet story, their promises of greatness undoubtedly played a part in Torres decision to come to Liverpool. They are gone now, but the problems they constructed, the lies and mistrust are still lingering and still causing trouble for the club. And during his time at Liverpool, his old club Atletico have actually won the Europa League and the European Super Cup, albeit in the last 12 months, but its more than what has been achieved by Liverpool. Surely Nando must look at that and wonder what would have been had he chose to stay at Atletico, nothing to say he would have stayed so long, but surely the thought must have crossed his mind.

He has also lost the manager for whom he had unquestioned respect, the player himself has continually expressed his gratitude and respect for Rafa Benitez and i suspect that Nando would have preferred Rafa to stay.

Rafa was the manager who got the best out of Torres, who helped to develop his game. It is not Rafa's fault that for the last 12 months of his Anfield reign he could not get the best out of Torres due to a succession of injuries, many picked up on international duty. Simply bad luck. Nor was it Rafa's fault that he did not have the money to bring in a worthy partner for Torres, a signing like Suarez would not have happened had Hicks and Gillet still been here.

In the summer, Christian Purslow made promises to Torres, promises about where the club was going, about how we would be competitive etc etc. Well Christian Purslow is a snake, a snake that masquerades as Liverpool supporter. He could not guarantee anything to Torres, no one could, a sale was never guaranteed any time soon, more false, empty promises should not have been made, even if the result was to keep a star at the club, eventually the lies would come back an bite us in the arse - and now it has.

Purslow got rid of Rafa, which was a very bad mistake, regardless of your opinions on Rafa, we where never going to get an equal or better manager to come in and take charge of the club in the situation we where in at the time. And for those who cry Dalglish, at the time the club did not want him, Purslow told him no, so yeah, never going to get a better or equal manager to replace Rafa at the time. We would have been better sticking with Rafa, only one truly bad season after all, with the latter half of his reign suffering with off the field goings on and fan protests, poor ownership and towards the end a lack of funds.

In comes Hodgson, bad move, one half  decent season with a usually poor side followed by a decent cup run the next season which came at the expense of league form does not make you a top class manager worthy of the Liverpool job. Torres clearly was not in favour of this move, he looked dejected, uninterested and probably uninspired especially as he would ideally want to play alongside a top class striker, and Roy wanted Carlton Cole - says it all.

Hodgson is now gone and Torres is seemingly back to his best. He has looked like a totally different player under Kenny Dalglish.

He was also quite quick to commit to the reds following the appointment of Dalglish.

And that brings us to the point of it all. WHY does he want to leave.

To win things of course, he isn't winning anything here.

Maybe he saw the club seemingly walking away from the Suarez deal as the final straw, but such is the Liverpool way that i suspect that not even the players knew the deal was on the verge of being done, Torres is perhaps guilty of a little impatience in this respect.

He has respect for the fans of that i am sure. MANY will disagree, but his decision to want to leave is not an easy one for him to make.

Ultimately he is doing what he feels is best for his career. He wants to win trophies. It is nothing against the Liverpool supporters. The offer from Chelsea has come in, but i suspect that the discussion between him and his agent was to consider any offers that came in, the fact that Chelsea came in was just by chance, had it been City or Barca the situation i think would have been the same. Where it to be ManUtd who came in i think the request would not have been submitted.

And the actions of aspects of the Liverpool support have been outrageous. We are all annoyed, confused, upset and let down, but we still do not actually know what is fully going on.

Rewind to 2005, Steven Gerrard had all but signed for Chelsea, the writing was on the wall or so it seemed. He also wanted to win things, he did not want to retire with his only honours being the FA Cup, League Cup and Uefa Cup, he wanted to win the biggest, he wanted the Premier League, he wanted the European Cup, but above all he wanted to do all this with Liverpool - just as Torres does now, for me, that is unquestionable. Then what happened? ISTANBUL. That was enough to convince Gerrard that Liverpool where capable of winning anything, after all how can a team crowned European champions not be capable of winning the Premier League, especially with new owners on the horizon and a manager with the ability to transform the fortunes of a largely substandard squad.

Gerrard stayed on the back of the clubs biggest success in 20 years, he then won the FA Cup again, featured in another European Cup final and finally started the assault on the Premier League summit. Torres came along and was welcomed with open arms, taken to the hearts of Liverpool supporters world wide, the assault continued. Culminating in the club coming closer than ever in recent history to actually winning the the League in 2009. Since then we've gone backwards.

There is no Istanbul like miracle to convince Torres to stay, he has a manager who is getting the best out of him, but the club is still no closer to winning the league, the Europa League is a target and would be a welcome success but is it enough?

I have no doubt that Torres will stay till the summer at least, just my opinion. But can anyone really blame him for wanting to further his career?

Chelsea are going backwards, their squad is ageing, they are no AC Milan, they can not work wonders with pensioners. There are echoes with Liverpool fall down the table 18months ago, the owner looks bored.

Look at it like this, Chelsea are not guaranteed a Champions League place next season, in fact, potentially if results should be favourable next week, we, LIVERPOOL, will be 3 points behind Chelsea in the table, and all this after our worst start in decades, and that is a result of a tight league and Chelsea's own short comings.

They are not the right club for Torres to join. They are a step down.

He will not receive the support he has here, if anything he will be just another face, the plastic flags and free scarves will not replace the Kop, and the cockneys will almost certainly turn on him as soon as his form dips, after all, they boo Drogba a fair few times a season, like him or love him, he's a top class striker and should not be booed, probably past his peak, he wont be there for much longer.

IT IS NOT ABOUT MONEY.

The suggestion that it is annoys me to no end. Even when Torres has talked about his Liverpool future it has always been about trophies. He has tasted success at international level, he has won the European Championship and the World Cup, he longs for success of that magnitude at club level. Pictured with the World Cup he had a Liverpool scarf around his neck. It is not as if the Spanish kit man gave him the scarf, he had it because he took it, because he loves this club and despite recent developments, he loves the supporters. He wants to win, and i do not doubt for one second that he wants to win things with Liverpool - but it just does not look like happening, and he is getting OLDER not YOUNGER.
Many supporters have over reacted slightly, what does burning shirts achieve?? Shirts that bare the Liverpool crest, the Liver Bird, that famous line 'You'll Never Walk Alone', the flames for those we lost, what does burning the shirt achieve?? ABSOLUTELY NOTHING. Torres at the moment is walking alone.

There is a very good chance, well more than a good chance really that he will stay. What then?? Do we back him? Do we boo him and make him wish he had left?? The reception he gets on Wednesday will truly be a 'mixed reception' and rightly so, he does have allot to answer for, apologies to be made, trust and respect to be re-earned. And do not say it is not possible, Steven Gerrard is the evidence, when it looked certain he would leave for Chelsea, many voiced their displeasure, many simply got behind him and showed him the kind of support that we are famous for, we made our voices heard, we made him feel wanted. Look at Xabi Alonso, when the club tried to sell him, the supporters got right behind him, they made it known that he was ours, we wanted him to stay, when it became clear that Xabi would leave in the summer that support intensified, and to this day Xabi still speaks with the utmost respect and love for the Liverpool supporters.

Liverpool Football Club has a much better chance of success this season with an in form Fernando Torres lining up for us. The Europa League is an achievable goal, should results go our way then by next Sunday evening a top 4 finish is no longer a wild fantasy, it is a realistic achievement, and if it is to be achieved it will be achieved most likely at the expense of Chelsea.

Michael Owen left Liverpool because he didn't feel the club could achieve anything and he wanted to play for a 'bigger' club, 10 months later we won the European Cup for the 5th time and now he is chin deep in manure, i bet if given the choice he would have stayed at Liverpool. How much of a mistake would it be if Torres were to join Chelsea and end up playing in the Europa League whilst Liverpool returned to the Champions League.

Torres owes the club till summer.

Also i suspect that the fans burning shirts and spouting all sorts of none sense without knowing the full story were the same people that were slagging the owners off for not signing Suarez simply because the media said the deal looked off because Liveprool were only prepared to pay £12.5m. The reality of course was far different. Ajax wanted £30m they were quite vocal in that respect, vastly inflated by the Dzeko transfer, even Ajax would acknowledge that, we played hardball an negotiated them down to a more reasonable £22.8m - good business - but people jumped the gun.

Torres does not necessarily want to leave Liverpool, leaving Liverpool is what he feels he  must do to achieve his career goal of actually winning silverware at club level.

It is unfortunate that it should come to this but we have to ask ourselves one thing;

Do we want to keep Fernando Torres?

The answer to that question in my mind is yes.

And i come to that answer simply on the basis that he is a world class striker, who on his day is probably the single biggest threat to the oppositions goal. And i make the decision by completely ignoring the last few days. It comes down to the ability of the player and the needs of the club, he has the ability and we need it.

Suarez was not a replacement, he was signed to compliment Torres.

Suarez is an excellent finisher and a real goal threat, but we do not know if he will hit the ground running in England or if he will take time to settle, this highlights how much Torres is important to the club. If Suarez needs time, we have Torres to rely on, if Suarez arrives with a bang then Torres will benefit immensely. After all, how many clubs in England can boast two world class, fast paced, strong, and skillful attackers?? They would be a nightmare to play against. Who do you mark? If you concentrate on one then the other flourishes in the space that he is given.

Maybe 4 months alongside Suarez and a fantastic end to the season will see Torres live to regret the last few days which I'm sure he already does, and make him want to be here, make him commit - only this time mean it without reservation.

If Torres did not know exactly what he meant to the fans then he certainly does now, but all the crap about not supporting him if he stays is ridiculous.

As supporters we have suffered allot over the last few years because of the lies and deceit of a few hated men.

Fernando Torres has also been duped by these same men, he wants to win things, and that is what they promised him, to him it must seem that they only said that to make him stay, they only said what they said to trick him, he must feel that they showed him a lack of respect as a professional.

Lets not jump the gun reds. I suspect we will here more on Monday from the club on this matter and when the club speaks we will listen and we know exactly were we stand.

Ignore the media circus, the endless pursuit of column inches and Sky News headlines that became much sought after under Hicks and Gillet are gone, we have returned to the Liverpool Way of speaking when we need to and doing business in house.

Long post this, but there is allot to say and I'm sure i haven't covered it all but that's how i look at the situation.

The timing is bad, very bad, allot of grovelling needs to be done, but he can start with that next Sunday against Chelsea, a goal and a kiss of the badge to really wind the Chelsea supporters up.

They say we're deluded, that we're not famous anymore, but where it not for a Russian and his millions Chelsea would be just another London club, and looking at the table, we're moving up, and at this rate we could well pass Chelsea on their way down.

We wont all agree, but Wednesday night vs Stoke i will be there on the Kop, and our #9 will have my support and i suspect i wont be the only one.

It's all rumour at the moment - let us wait for the facts.

I hope he stays.

Just my views folks more HERE