Written by David Tully for Live4Liverpool: A lot has been made about the need for a massive squad overhaul at Liverpool this summer. Some have even reported that there could be as many as 20 comings and goings over the close season as the Reds start to mould a team capable of competing for major trophies once again. Inevitably then, there have been a vast amount of transfer rumours spreading across newspapers and the internet as to who will be coming in, and who will be departing the club.
One of the most interesting aspects has been the significant split in reports that the Reds are either targeting mainly foreign based players or exclusively British talent. Only a few days ago, it was reported in the Daily Mail that Kenny Dalglish was focusing on bringing in exclusively British talent with Gary Cahill , Phil Jones , Connor Wickham, Charlie Adam, Ashley Young and Stewart Downing all being tipped as potential targets.
In the same measure, in other reports, the Reds have been linked with a vast array of players from France especially. Inevitably this has something to do with having a French Director of Football in Damien Comolli , but it can’t be a coincidence as both Dalglish and Comolli have been spotted at matches in France over the past few months. Sylvain Marveaux, Eden Hazard , Yann M’Vila, Blaise Matuidi , Mamadou Sakho and Hugo Lloris are just some of the names from France that have been linked with the Reds. In addition players such as Diego Perotti, Iker Muniain and Alvario Negredo from Spain, and Ezequiel Lavezzi and Juan Manuel Vargas from Italy have also been rumoured targets.
It’s not unusual for rumours to start flying around as we head into the final stages of the season, but what is most interesting is there seems to be complete confusion in the rumour mill about whether Damien Comolli or Kenny Dalglish will be the one having the greatest influence on transfers. In one instance you will read, Kenny Dalglish ’s name linked with a British player, while it will always be exclusively reported that Damien Comolli is interested in a foreign player.
No one can really know what the summer will hold for LFC. If King Kenny does get the job full time, he will surely have a final say on transfer targets but the collegial strategy which FSG are going for in regards to transfer decisions means that Damien Comolli will surely have some say too. At the moment it looks as if Kenny is favouring players proven in the Premier League, while Comolli is doing his job by scouring Europe for young talent. Hopefully it means that we get the best of both worlds. While we get some good players from England, perhaps such as Ashley Young and Phil Jones , we will also be hopefully looking at the likes of Eden Hazard and Yann M’Vila .
When John Aldridge named his transfer targets of Young, Adam, Cahill a couple of weeks ago, there was some concern among Liverpool supporters that these players might not be good enough to improve the team. In Charlie Adam ’s case especially, I would be very concerned if we opted to buy the player for a sizeable fee, if it was at the expense of a younger, more promising talent from abroad. Of course, only time will tell what sort of strategy the Reds will employ. If we go for player’s purely based on ability, rather than any preconceived notion about home-grown talent, I will be happy.
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It doesn’t matter if the player is home grown or not, he needs to be good enough. Our reserves have great british and foreign talent i.e. Flanagan, Robinson, Coady etc which are british and Pacheco, Suso which are foreign. We need to sign quality, this year perhaps we’ll need 4 to 5 players and then we need to buy 2-3 a year, one that is recognised and 1-2 with potential to keep our team on top of its game. I like the look of us signing Enrique, Adam Johnson, Arda Turan and Mertasacker or Cahill but lets see…..
the best CF is falco best SS is lavezzi best winger is sanchez best ball playing midfielder is parker best left back is contreuo best center back rolando total cost over 100million now thats what i call backing
statement of intent would look like this:
1/Hulk
2/Sanchez
3/Enrique
4/Matuidi
5/Kjaer
The time has changed from the days of 70s & 80s. In those days, British isles teams (4 + Ireland) we producing some of the best talents in Europe. For example, in 58 WC, I think, out of 7 European qualifiers, 3/4 were from English speaking countries, trend continuing till late 80s.
The LFC team of 70s & early 80s, dominated national & continental club football unparalleled to before or thereafter by any other team was built mostly on players from those 5 countries. This shows that, there were enough talents available there to build a champion side.
Managers like Clough, Robson, Venebales, Hodgeson, Daglish, O’Neal, Kegan, Toshak had gone through those hay days of British football as players or young managers & still a bit biased to English speaking players. The truth is that, now days, definitely France, Spain, Germany & may be Holland individually produces more talents than the entire British teams combined.
The English or Irish national teams are good enough to compete with anyone but, the bench strength or pools of very good players are not there. Scotland, Northern Ireland or Wales are just not in the contention anymore, & so are their players. Giggs was probably the last truly world class player from there & Bale can be the next. In France, probably, only Clearifontain produces more technically very good players than the entire English system.
Had there not been any home grown cap, how many of these English national players apart from few top, would have made into the top 5/6 teams starting line-up, or earned that sort of price tag? All the EPL top teams are built mostly around non-Brit players. Over the last 15 years, probably a team of only the French EPL players (That doesn’t include some of the contemporary French greats like Zizu, Thuram, Dugary, Tregeuet, Ribery, D’jorkaef or Lizarazu) are good enough to win a 6 a nation home-away tournament with the 5 British Isles teams.
It’s time to look beyond the English Channel. Scot Parker, CAdams, Adams, Milner, AYoung, Cahill, Jones, Downing are good squad players, but not sure they can make a cutting edge difference to make LFC in the ranks of MU, Arsenal with their French or Dutch players or Chelsea of 2005-07. And LFC might be going for the same mistakes, a lot of sacrificed average purchase like Voronin, Johanovic, Paulsen, El Zahar, Skartel, Khyirgiakos, Konchesky or Maxi.
We already have a team, on it’s day can humble MU or MC, come out winners at Stamford Bridge or put 5/6 against mediocre teams, need 4/5 outstanding young players, may be even at the cost of £100+ mn, to make it every day. For that we should clean the house even at some loss.
We need a Left Back, but not from SPL superstar, a CB, not from relegation battlers, & wingers who dominates the top defenses, not against teams who start with a “playing for something” mind set. If we can fulfill our 4/5 gaps among Contero, Sissoko, Van der Wiel, Shakho, Mertsaker, Ma Villa, Willshire, Bale, Hazard, Kuno Aguaero, Sanches, Lavegi, or Ribery, I think our academy has enough young talents to replace the dead-woods mentioned earlier.
Money can’t ensure success, but without spending, in today’s game, you don’t have any chance.