darioterios
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So Kevin Boateng is available, surely no worse than the Welsh Xavi?
Rafateria said:Honours - Personal
Mr Universe 1994
Nobel Prize Winner 1996
Victoria Cross Recipient 1914
Smash Hits Sexiest Male 1982
Discovered Penicillin 1929
Academy Award for The Godfather 1972
Him leaving allows the whole of Liverpool to breathe a sigh of relief when the 'burden' of a not so good anymore ageing legend is lifted. Utd probably had the same with Scholes, Giggs and Rio near the end of their usefulness.
I think Dumbstar has said it near perfectly above but I will expand on that below.
In the eyes of Red Cafe we have an awful team/squad (which had out injured for most of the season, our only real striker) .... a team which could very easily have pipped the United Allstars, who had no Euro matches in intrude on match preparations, to the Top 4, even this late in the season.
So imagine what improvement the team/squad can make next season when the strikers have been overhauled, our young squad (which will be the youngest in the PL next season) has some experience and games under their belts and hopefully some squad strengthening occurs. Yes we will be playing in the EL but then we did this season in addition to CL and also made both domestic cup semis. Next season United will have CL to contend with, and many players will prioritise that over the PL., United should expect to do better in both domestic cups and will again be targeting Top 4 (LvG), though I know the United fans will expect a title challenge.
Strikers : I expect Balotelli (if you listened to BR yesterday), Borini and Lambert to all leave. There should be no way that BR & FSG should be so utterly vacuous as to make the same mistake again of relying on matchstick legs Sturridge to remain injury free (WTF were they thinking). I expect our strikers next season to be : 1. A.N.other , 2. Sturridge, 3. Ings (maybe) 4. Origi .... and there is surely, surely, no way they will be matching the 8 goals our strikers managed between them this season. I expect BR to revert to 4 at the back and two up front so the strikers should be seeing more action.
Wide Midfield : I don't expect any additions to wide midfield / #10, in Sterling, Ibe, Lallana, Coutinho, Markovic and maybe also some games (in the LC and EL) for the excellent Kent & Wilson from the U21s, we have more than enough.
CM/Defensive MF : I expect strengthening here as Lucas may leave in addition to Gerrard, and Henderson and Allen simply aren't strong enough together. Can will get games in midfield and maybe even RWB in certain formations. We have young players but they are not ready (maybe Canos will see some games ? Hopefully). I'd be surprised not to see us buy 2 CMs, one of which will be a specialist DM, and I expect us to persuade Lucas to stay .. otherwise we'll need to replace him too.
Defence : I expect us to sign a GK to seriously challenge Ming (though after a sticky patch he's done superbly). Skrtel, Sakho & Lovren to form the CM partnership. Toure to leave (pity). If we play 3 at the back then expect us to bring back Ilori and sign another CB. If we revert to BR's favoured Back 4 (which I believe we will) then we can just add one CB. FBs are an issue. If Flanno is fit then not so much of a problem but I expect Enrique and Johnson to leave. In a flat back 4 then Manquillo will get more games, Flanno can play equally as well on either side and it seems we are already chasing another Spanish RB. Can / Sakho can play as emergency FBs if required. The defence has actually done quite well, after a poor start, despite the derision they receive here.
How does that change the makeup of the 1st team squad ? Well with possibly 8 players leaving (Gerrard, Enrique, Toure, Johnson, Balotelli, Borini, Lambert & Jones - the reserve keeper) we can expect to see 3 new 1st teamers (RB, CM, Striker) & 4 squad players (CB, CM, Striker, Keeper) and despite FSG's policy for mainly buying young players I expect a couple of those to be mature players (midfield).
Where does that leave us ? I expect us to have a very young but, based on the promise some youngsters have shown this season, a good team, probably good enough to challenge for Top 4 and to challenge for EL 1/4s and do well in the domestic cups. They will be much stronger, as they mature and we inevitably have to fill 2-3 slots, in a season or two. So 4th or 5th next season.
It's going to be very difficult to get 7 player's, 3 of which will have to be first team players with the budget Liverpool will have. I've seen the likes of Dybala, Benteke, Lacazette, Martinez mentioned as one of the strikers, none of which would come for less than £25m. The likes of Nainggolan, Pjanic and Bender mentioned as potential midfielders who would cost at least £20m. On top of this you're looking at a right back who'll slot straight into your first team (say £15m) and 4 more squad player's. Best case scenario that's around £90m with around £20m coming in, which is pretty unrealistic in my opinion.
I think more likely is bringing Origi back, signing a player like Ings and maybe spending big on Benteke (or possibly taking a punt on someone like Bacca). Keep Lucas, Allen, Can and Henderson as your four midfielders, whilst adding a central defender and full back for c. £5-10m each (Montoya linked, possibly someone like Vlaar/Williams also). That would represent around £50-60m spent with £20m coming in from sales.
Hahahaha !Come on, Raf mate, this is too much...
How would ye not take a hit on the fee?According to Aspas himself he has signed a 3 year deal with Sevilla and it's said we are getting our full fee (£7M) back. Whoopee ! Nice start to the Summer kitty.
No idea. Please note that is not official. I guess Spain really suits Aspas' game and so Sevilla, who have had him on loan for this season, are happy that he can form an integral part of their side going forward.How would ye not take a hit on the fee?
No. Nor the bookies who have him at something like 1/5 on to stay.Is the thought amongst Liverpool fans that Sterling will leave this summer?
Let's not mention Welbeck then shall we !That's money laundering.
Out and in. They have to convince someone to pay for Lambert, Borini and Balotelli before they even start. can't be stuck with those three on the payroll next season.They need some savvy transfers, to be sure. It's probably more likely that Rodgers has a nervous breakdown.
That's weird, just had a quick look at his season, looks like he's only played 10 games for Sevilla, scored a meager 2 goals in the league. His goal haul looks a bit better when you add in his 7 Copa del rey goals, but 6 of those came against a Segunda division outfit. Surprising that Sevilla would be willing to pay that much for him.No idea. Please note that is not official. I guess Spain really suits Aspas' game and so Sevilla, who have had him on loan for this season, are happy that he can form an integral part of their side going forward.
So is he going to just be content staying for another year on tiny wages knowing that he can triple his money elsewhere and win things?No. Nor the bookies who have him at something like 1/5 on to stay.
However if City or Arsenal wanted to throw £40-50M our way then I'd drive him there myself.
Well you're making a lot of assumptions on our budget based on ..... ? You may be right of course but I believe with the additional new sponsorship money, increased PL cash and money accrued from LC semi, FAC semi and numerous matches in the CL & EL, along with huge savings on the salaries of Gerrard, Johnson et al (the salaries alone accounting for annual savings of well over 30M - though of course at least half of that will go out again) plus the fact that FSG were happy to pay 35M for Sanchez last Summer ... and even though they threw 16M away on Balotelli there should still be money in the pot - and of course anything accrued from sales, should mean there is considerably more available than maybe you have accounted for but still keeping us inside FFP. All pure conjecture on my behalf of course.
Benteke will cost ca. £30M anyway, Lukaku has set the bar there, so it's not like buying him will save anything over the others you listed (not that you were suggesting it would), though I think Vietto may be top of the shopping list from rumours, Viktor Fischer may be on the radar again, Bacca would be ace, the Aubameyang rumours have started again and I really like him (i.e. he's not a midget !) and I think he'd slip seamlessly into our team, Andre Ayew is getting mentioned again and there are quotes from the man himself re. Liverpool interest, it also seems we've made a £3.2M bid for some kid in Uruguay that I've never heard of ! I agree though that Ings is looking likely at ca. £6M - that's decent enough if he comes in at #3 or 4 alongside Origi. I can't see us not spending big on strikers with Sturridge likely to be out for the first 2 months of next season now as well.
Nainggolan or Pjanic would be brilliant .. but maybe beyond us. Also as I mentioned I believe that at least a couple of the new players need to be seasoned, mature, pros. The squad is simply far too young at the moment, so those are unlikely to be as expensive as young rising stars. Pirlo anyone The RB we're looking at seems to be Montoya (at £8m).
There is no way we'll keep just Lucas, Allen, Can and Henderson as our four midfielders and not replace Gerrard, especially as Lucas doesn't seem to be a BR favourite and there's no-one from the U21 that's really ready to come and sit on the bench either (Rossiter is going to need another season in the U21 or better, on loan, after his injury woes of this).
Stop trolling. Tiny wages FFS. IMHO he's not worth more than 100k a week, though it's likely he'll get more I hope it comes in the form of PAYE ! He's still got a lot to learn and improve on to be worth much more than 100k .. and I don't he can.So is he going to just be content staying for another year on tiny wages knowing that he can triple his money elsewhere and win things?
So he discovered penicillin a year after it was... discovered for the first time?Come on, Raf mate, this is too much...
I was quite sure he'd stay a couple of months ago but I'm not too sure anymore. His head seems elsewhere of late and he's been bang average for at least two months now. Like Rafateria said, if a £40M+ bid comes in, he can leave if he wants to. We could get someone like Roberto Firmino or Felipe Anderson and save up to £20M for other transfers.Is the thought amongst Liverpool fans that Sterling will leave this summer?
I think Dumbstar has said it near perfectly above but I will expand on that below.
In the eyes of Red Cafe we have an awful team/squad (which had out injured for most of the season, our only real striker) .... a team which could very easily have pipped the United Allstars, who had no Euro matches in intrude on match preparations, to the Top 4, even this late in the season.
So imagine what improvement the team/squad can make next season when the strikers have been overhauled, our young squad (which will be the youngest in the PL next season) has some experience and games under their belts and hopefully some squad strengthening occurs. Yes we will be playing in the EL but then we did this season in addition to CL and also made both domestic cup semis. Next season United will have CL to contend with, and many players will prioritise that over the PL., United should expect to do better in both domestic cups and will again be targeting Top 4 (LvG), though I know the United fans will expect a title challenge.
Strikers : I expect Balotelli (if you listened to BR yesterday), Borini and Lambert to all leave. There should be no way that BR & FSG should be so utterly vacuous as to make the same mistake again of relying on matchstick legs Sturridge to remain injury free (WTF were they thinking). I expect our strikers next season to be : 1. A.N.other , 2. Sturridge, 3. Ings (maybe) 4. Origi .... and there is surely, surely, no way they will be matching the 8 goals our strikers managed between them this season. I expect BR to revert to 4 at the back and two up front so the strikers should be seeing more action.
Wide Midfield : I don't expect any additions to wide midfield / #10, in Sterling, Ibe, Lallana, Coutinho, Markovic and maybe also some games (in the LC and EL) for the excellent Kent & Wilson from the U21s, we have more than enough.
CM/Defensive MF : I expect strengthening here as Lucas may leave in addition to Gerrard, and Henderson and Allen simply aren't strong enough together. Can will get games in midfield and maybe even RWB in certain formations. We have young players but they are not ready (maybe Canos will see some games ? Hopefully). I'd be surprised not to see us buy 2 CMs, one of which will be a specialist DM, and I expect us to persuade Lucas to stay .. otherwise we'll need to replace him too.
Defence : I expect us to sign a GK to seriously challenge Ming (though after a sticky patch he's done superbly). Skrtel, Sakho & Lovren to form the CM partnership. Toure to leave (pity). If we play 3 at the back then expect us to bring back Ilori and sign another CB. If we revert to BR's favoured Back 4 (which I believe we will) then we can just add one CB. FBs are an issue. If Flanno is fit then not so much of a problem but I expect Enrique and Johnson to leave. In a flat back 4 then Manquillo will get more games, Flanno can play equally as well on either side and it seems we are already chasing another Spanish RB. Can / Sakho can play as emergency FBs if required. The defence has actually done quite well, after a poor start, despite the derision they receive here.
How does that change the makeup of the 1st team squad ? Well with possibly 8 players leaving (Gerrard, Enrique, Toure, Johnson, Balotelli, Borini, Lambert & Jones - the reserve keeper) we can expect to see 3 new 1st teamers (RB, CM, Striker) & 4 squad players (CB, CM, Striker, Keeper) and despite FSG's policy for mainly buying young players I expect a couple of those to be mature players (midfield).
Where does that leave us ? I expect us to have a very young but, based on the promise some youngsters have shown this season, a good team, probably good enough to challenge for Top 4 and to challenge for EL 1/4s and do well in the domestic cups. They will be much stronger, as they mature and we inevitably have to fill 2-3 slots, in a season or two. So 4th or 5th next season.
As far as I'm aware FSG have said that none of the costs of the ground expansion will affect the transfer kitty, so I don't see that as an issue (if you believe them and they haven't lied about anything so far).Financially speaking around £40m net I'd imagine is roughly the budget you'll have this Summer bearing in mind the lack of Champions League revenue next season. I certainly can't see the owners dipping into their own pockets to fund additional purchases and there are big costs associated with your ground expansion.
That being said funding the cost of 2 strikers, 2 midfielders, a full back and a central defender seems a bit unrealistic unless you're shopping in the bargain basement, which judging by some of the player's I've seen mentioned isn't the case.
As a general question: if you had say £40m net to spend and £25m in sales how would you apportion that £65m it in terms of your squad?
Out and in. They have to convince someone to pay for Lambert, Borini and Balotelli before they even start. can't be stuck with those three on the payroll next season.
So he discovered penicillin a year after it was... discovered for the first time?
Which first choice striker would you buy for £25m? Add at least £5m-10m to that if you want a decent purchase.As far as I'm aware FSG have said that none of the costs of the ground expansion will affect the transfer kitty, so I don't see that as an issue (if you believe them and they haven't lied about anything so far).
I honestly don't see any way it's going to be £65m, so make that £80m (still under where i think the actual budget will end up) then for me :
£25m - Striker #1
£5m - Ings
£20m - MF #1
£5m - MF #2 (Milner perhaps - that figure is his personal signing on fee)
£8m (because that's what it seems it is) - RB
£12m - Keeper
For the CB I'd bring Ilori back - fantastic pace for a CB - or try and persuade Kolo to stay, a lovely bloke and a real comedian, the sort of player a young squad needs.
As a general question: if you had say £40m net to spend and £25m in sales how would you apportion that £65m it in terms of your squad?
Where's the money, who's going to take responsibility for buying all the dross that will be leaving, how is this going to happen in one summer transfer session, what did you learn from failing in Europe, and why do you think your owners would let you lot do it all over again?
Rodgers had the money last season and it burnt a hole in his pocket. He sold his top striker, and bought kids to pad up a dinosaur, and set targets strange targets. His assessment of your performances were scripted in la-la land. You limped out of Europe twice and the quality of the football declined with every game.
Your seem to equate youth and experience with ability, as 'if' your youthful squad will lend credibility to a top 4 performance. Go back to your last game in Europe and ask yourself what was wrong with your entire squad this season. It wasn't youth, it was mediocrity. They were poor buys and have landed your squad with dead weights.
Sorry mate but your report is a fantasy.
Oh really. Tell me how many games you've seen him play this season ? He's 22 yrs old .. incredibly young for a CB but still highly thought of in Portugal as one for the future.Ilori is shit.
Hopefully our board does and it's called "bring Klopp to Liverpool".Our biggest challange, I think, will be knowing how we are going to play. I get the feeling the manager doesn't have a plan.
Stretford End Phil said:He sold his top striker, and bought kids to pad up a dinosaur
I gave a long list above .. at least half of those wouldn't top £25m.Which first choice striker would you buy for £25m? Add at least £5m-10m to that if you want a decent purchase.
Hopefully our board does and it's called "bring Klopp to Liverpool".
It's not only the individuals, but it's also the individuals, especially if you're talking about a top 4 push against teams that will probably improve, recruit strong individuals and will most likely be coached by competent managers. A few teams in the PL have good coaches and play pleasant football (Swansea in recent seasons, Southampton this year, Everton last year), but the difference between that and making the push to challenge better teams also relies on individuals.Money - covered above. FSG wanted youngsters and paid for them, I don't think they can throw that back on BR when they have this bollocks Transfer Committee involved. They are also savvy people - they know that losing as many mature players as they will this Summer will mean investment. You seem to think that spending £80-100m is a large figure, whereas with the sponsorship and PL returns (to say nothing of CL/EL this season at least) from this year on I'd think that will soon be the norm, if it isn't already for a team in the Top 4 or with Top 4 aspirations.
Quality of football - we went through a bad patch, pretty much as United did at the start, however it was turned around and if you had bothered to watch the youngsters in our team then you wouldn't be going on about mediocrity. Fact is that if you look at those leaving, or likely to leave, the club this Summer then those are the players that have been slated as 'unworthy' or 'over-the-hill' or the 'Dead-weights' as you call them. We played some lovely football as well as some shite ... there was a time when most on RedCafe were convinced we were going to finish in the Top 4 so you need to add some counter-balance to your argument.
As for fighting for a Top 4 slot that you seem to think our young team incapable of .. they ran your Allstars mighty close this season. It is very naive of you, though most likely just spite, not to think they haven't benefited from this season and will be better for it. A blend of maturity and youth is what I'll be looking for after this Summer.
Rest of your post was your usual 'Liverpool Hammer" so it's been deleted from my response
I rely on the opinion of my Girondins supporting mate who has seen every Bordeaux game this year, recently stating 'Ilori est à chier'. I've only seen him a couple of times, both of which he was poor.Oh really. Tell me how many games you've seen him play this season ?
That's enough about Barney.
How am I trolling? Isn't he on peanuts (for a footballer obviously) like £30k a week?Stop trolling. Tiny wages FFS. IMHO he's not worth more than 100k a week, though it's likely he'll get more I hope it comes in the form of PAYE ! He's still got a lot to learn and improve on to be worth much more than 100k .. and I don't he can.
Fischer, Aubameyang and Ayew are no real strikers though. We need a true goalscorer.I gave a long list above .. at least half of those wouldn't top £25m.
As far as I'm aware FSG have said that none of the costs of the ground expansion will affect the transfer kitty, so I don't see that as an issue (if you believe them and they haven't lied about anything so far).
I honestly don't see any way it's going to be £65m, so make that £80m (still under where i think the actual budget will end up) then for me :
£25m - Striker #1
£5m - Ings
£20m - MF #1
£5m - MF #2 (Milner perhaps - that figure is his personal signing on fee)
£8m (because that's what it seems it is) - RB
£12m - Keeper
For the CB I'd bring Ilori back - fantastic pace for a CB - or try and persuade Kolo to stay, a lovely bloke and a real comedian, the sort of player a young squad needs.
In general, I don't think there's much wrong with our team that better coaching and more consistency in tactics wouldn't fix, once we have another capable striker.
For all the crap people talk about Gerrard and Lovren and whoever else, the big failure this season was the manager's inability to bring in a decent striker who actually fitted the way he wanted to play. If you're replacing someone as gifted and hardworking as Luis Suarez, the first names to trip off your tongue should not be Ricky Lambert and Mario Balotelli. Everything else that went wrong cascaded down from that.
Who to buy? It would depend on who was sold to get that 25M. But assuming it's bit players players, I'd prioritize a striker and a midfielder. I don't know how I'd split the money and I don't know who I'd buy other than Icardi, who will probably cost too much and have more attractive options. But it's worth remembering that although we won't receive any money for Steven Gerrard or Glen Johnson, we will be freeing up a shit ton of wages, so who knows? Personally, I wouldn't object to a Benteke. But then I wouldn't object to a Jack Colbeck or a Will Hughes either. It's not about individuals, it's about the balance, the coaching, and knowing how we will play.
I actually think our defence is pretty decent when the midfield ahead of them is strong, but if the manager commits to playing the season with three at the back, then I might swap the midfielder for a central defender, or spread the money across the three, one striker, one midfielder, one defender.
Our biggest challange, I think, will be knowing how we are going to play. I get the feeling the manager doesn't have a plan.
When you've finished reading the following posts you can go back and edit your stupid accusations.
I'd be satisfied if we get Moutinho and Martinez. They know each other from their time together at Porto and both will only be 29 next season - younger than say Rooney for example. I'd rather have a duo like Pjanic-Icardi or Nainggolan-Vietto though, but it's more unlikely as well.I think your list is more realistic than many I've seen. In fact I think that'll be almost exactly what you'll spend, apart from the new goalkeeper, where I think he'll stick with Mignolet.
True enough. The list above is pretty realistic it's just a question of finding the right £25m striker and £20m midfielder. The likes of Milner & Ings are fine to pad out the squad, but they're never going to get you back to where you were last season. If I were a Liverpool fan I'd be looking at going all out for Moutinho if Monaco are continuing their fire sale, as well as Jackson Martinez. Both deviate from your policy in recent seasons of buying young players, but should add some well needed experience to the team. I'd also say both would see Liverpool as a step up and I don't think any bigger club would be massively in for them.
Even if you had to pad out the rest of your squad with free signings like Milner, Vlaar and Ings and a few younger players I think it'd be a good Summer.