Wednesday, January 31, 2007

DIC pulls out of Reds bid

Dubai International Capital has ended its interest in taking over Liverpool.

The announcement follows the failure of the club's board to formally accept DIC's bid in the wake of a second offer from American George Gillett.

Helpfully the Club has made an official statement.

DIC claimed the offer had been accepted in principle by majority shareholder David Moores but they were unable to make a formal offer to shareholders.

posted by LFC in Toronto at 11:02 PM 0 comments

Tuesday, January 30, 2007

Liverpool 2 - 1 West Ham

Liverpool closed to within two points of second-placed Chelsea and plunged West Ham deeper into trouble.

Dirk Kuyt fired Liverpool ahead with a spectacular 25-yard finish only 10 seconds after half-time.

And Peter Crouch's measured drive from the edge of the penalty area doubled Liverpool's lead seven minutes later.

West Ham debut boy Kepa Blanco, on as a substitute, scored with his first touch after 76 minutes, but Liverpool survived for a deserved victory.

posted by LFC in Toronto at 7:39 PM 0 comments

Right-back Arbeloa 'close to Liverpool deal'

Liverpool are set to sign Deportivo La Coruna right-back Alvaro Arbeloa, according to the Primera Liga side.

'There is a verbal agreement between Deportivo and Liverpool for the permanent transfer of Arbeloa to Liverpool,' said a Deportivo spokesman.

posted by LFC in Toronto at 10:25 AM 1 comments

Saturday, January 27, 2007

Liverpool reveal Gillett approach

Liverpool have received an approach about a possible takeover of the club from American tycoon George Gillett.

Liverpool chairman David Moores, who owns 51.6%, is thought to have received a higher bid for his shares from Gillett but favours DIC because he believes it would be better for the club.

He has already reportedly reached an agreement with DIC in a deal which would see it purchase majority control for around £155m, assume £80m of debt and fund a new 60,000-seater stadium close to Anfield.

One of the areas of concern over the Gillett bid is that the Reds board believe the American would be keen to debate a groundshare with Everton.

posted by LFC in Toronto at 4:34 PM 1 comments

Thursday, January 25, 2007

Liverpool sign Ajax's Brouwer

Liverpool yesterday signed 18-year-old Dutch striker Jordy Brouwer from Ajax.

The player joins goalkeeper Daniele Padelli and defender Emiliano Insua as the new arrivals at Anfield in the transfer window.

posted by LFC in Toronto at 10:22 AM 0 comments

Tuesday, January 23, 2007

Dubai 'still ahead' in race to buy Liverpool

Liverpool are pressing ahead with plans to sell the club to Dubai International Capital in a £450 million deal, despite the surprise emergence of a counter bid from American tycoon George Gillett Jr.

Gillett, the billionaire owner of the Montreal Canadiens ice hockey team, was thought to be out of the running as DIC, the investment arm of the Dubai ruling family, closed in on their takeover.

DIC have indicated they are prepared to pay the Gillett share premium. The rest of their offer is made up of £80 million of debt and more than £200 million for developing a new stadium. They are close to completing due diligence and are likely to make a formal offer for the club next week.

Liverpool are determined to finalise the agreement Moores has reached with DIC. One key factor is believed to be the amount of work they have done for the new stadium close to Anfield.

It is thought Gillett would like to reopen talks with Everton about a possible ground share if his counter bid was successful.

posted by LFC in Toronto at 9:16 AM 0 comments

Blackburn complete Warnock deal

Blackburn manager Mark Hughes has completed the signing of Stephen Warnock from Liverpool.

Hughes will use the 25-year-old as a replacement for Lucas Neill, who has joined West Ham.

'He has Champions League experience and has played a decent amount of Premier League games as well,' Hughes told the club's website.

posted by LFC in Toronto at 9:12 AM 0 comments

Rafa: We can win it.

Rafa Benitez believes that Liverpool can still win the Premiership title despite being 11 points behind leaders Manchester United.

Liverpool are the Premiership's in-form side, having lost only once in their last nine league games and conceded only one goal in 12 matches.

On Saturday they beat Chelsea to go within five points of second place.

Benitez was the mastermind behind Valencia's Primera Liga title in 2001/2002, when they made up a massive deficit on Real Madrid.

'There is a similar confidence here at Anfield now, to that feeling we had at Valencia,' Benitez said in the Daily Mirror.

posted by LFC in Toronto at 9:09 AM 0 comments

Monday, January 22, 2007

Liverpool et Les Canadiens?

An American tycoon has joined the race to buy Liverpool, delaying the completion of any ownership deal.

George Gillett, a billionaire who owns the Montreal Canadians ice hockey club, is preparing to offer £5,000 per share according to the Daily Mirror, which would value the club at £172 million.

Gillett had an initial bid for the club rejected by chairman David Moores, who subsequently accepted a bid from Dubai International Capital (DIC).

However, that deal is taking longer than expected to complete according to the Liverpool Echo, and Gillett is looking to exploit the delay.

Both Liverpool and DIC representatives, who were present at Saturday's Premiership defeat of Chelsea, had hoped to conclude the deal this month to release transfer funds for the manager, Rafael Benitez, and to enable work on the new stadium to start immediately. But those plans were placed on hold last night when Gillett informed Liverpool he was ready to make an increased bid for the club.

Though Liverpool's chairman and majority shareholder, David Moores, has agreed terms with DIC, Gillett is entitled by company law to register a rival bid once the Dubai group have completed due diligence, the period that grants a business exclusive access to the club's books. The Premiership club are also bound by company law to allow the 68-year-old the same period of due diligence that they gave to DIC, which will delay any takeover for at least another month.

posted by LFC in Toronto at 5:51 PM 0 comments

Carra targets Chelsea

Liverpool defender Jamie Carragher claims that Chelsea are in their sights after beating them at Anfield on Saturday.

He is playing down fans' hysteria that they might be in the title race when they are 11 points behind leaders Manchester United, but he says that they are now in a three-way battle for second.

posted by LFC in Toronto at 5:46 PM 0 comments

Former Red Baros travelling again - to an old friend

Aston Villa have swapped Milan Baros for Lyon striker John Carew, who has signed a three-and-a-half year deal.

The Baros transfer was concluded earlier in the day before 27-year-old Norway international Carew agreed to a move in the opposite direction.

Lyon coach Gerard Houllier made an inquiry for Czech Republic international Baros on Friday.

posted by LFC in Toronto at 5:43 PM 0 comments

Sunday, January 21, 2007

Reds win over Chelsea

Dirk Kuyt took advantage of Peter Crouch's touch to put the skids under injury-hit Chelsea after three minutes.

Jermaine Pennant's brilliant dipping volley effectively sealed the points for Liverpool after 17 minutes in boss Rafa Benitez's 100th league game.

The defeat leaves Chelsea six points behind Manchester United - defeated by Arsenal today- and puts Liverpool only five points behind Jose Mourinho's troubled champions.

Jamie Carragher made his 450th appearance for Liverpool.

posted by LFC in Toronto at 5:11 PM 0 comments

Friday, January 19, 2007

Liverpool v Chelsea Tomorrow

Liverpool against Chelsea is the heavyweight Saturday lunchtime kick-off, giving the Reds the chance to consolidate their third placing in the table, and the Blues the opportunity to close the gap on leaders Manchester United to three points, as the table toppers don't play at Arsenal until Sunday. Chelsea are the bogey club for manager Rafael Benitez as far as the Premiership is concerned.

The Merseysiders are one of three clubs still with an unbeaten home Premiership record. Chelsea and Arsenal are the others, but only Manchester United have more home points than Liverpool.

Toronto Reds can enjoy the match at Scallywags starting at 7:45am.

posted by LFC in Toronto at 10:42 AM 3 comments

Thursday, January 18, 2007

Kuyt here to stay?

Dutch striker Dirk Kuyt would be happy to commit the rest of his career to Liverpool.

The 26-year-old only joined the Anfield club in the summer for £9million on a four-year contract, but has already intimated that he would be happy to stay for much longer.

He said: 'You never know what is going to happen in football but it would be perfect if I could stay here for a long, long time.

'I'm really happy here and I'm not the kind of player who wants to move to a new club every two years. I'm at the best club in England and one of the biggest in the world so why would I want anything else?'

Comment: Guess I'd better get that Kuyt shirt ordered...

posted by LFC in Toronto at 4:37 PM 0 comments

Rafa to Neill: Maybe you're not for us.

Liverpool boss Rafael Benitez looks set to end his attempts to sign defender Lucas Neill from Blackburn.

Benitez appears to have been angered by reports that Neill, 28, whose contract is up next summer, may be considering a more lucrative deal with West Ham.

posted by LFC in Toronto at 4:33 PM 0 comments

Wednesday, January 17, 2007

Rafa's patience with Neill running out

Rafa Benitez has warned that he is ready to pull the plug on the Lucas Neill deal if he continues to stall over money.

The Australian was expected to complete a hassle-free switch to Anfield this January for a bargain price as his Blackburn deal ends in the summer.

posted by LFC in Toronto at 10:15 AM 0 comments

Tuesday, January 16, 2007

Mascherano deal back on

Liverpool were given hope of a breakthrough in their laborious efforts to sign Javier Mascherano from West Ham United last night when Fifa announced the Argentina international may be allowed to move to Anfield after all.

Rafa is anxious to strengthen his squad with the World Cup midfielder but has been frustrated in his attempts by world football's governing body, which prevents a player appearing for three clubs between 1 July and 30 June the following year.

posted by LFC in Toronto at 1:57 PM 0 comments

DIC Deal Delayed

The takeover of Liverpool remains on course but is not expected to be completed until the end of the month or even early February.

The inspection of the club's accounts by the potential new owners Dubai International Capital (DIC) is continuing but Liverpool's directors have put off any idea of holding a board meeting until closer to the actual handover.

The due diligence process is now expected to be completed around the end of the month - meaning that the budget for any new signings during the transfer window will have to be independent of any DIC cash.

posted by LFC in Toronto at 1:55 PM 0 comments

Monday, January 15, 2007

LFC close to £156m takeover

Liverpool are on the verge of agreeing to the £156m takeover by the investment arm of Dubai's government.

The club's board of directors will discuss the final proposals by the Dubai International Capital Group at a meeting on Tuesday.

The deal, which will net chairman David Moores more than £75m, is close to bring completed, but is not expected to be finalised until next week.

posted by LFC in Toronto at 10:17 AM 1 comments

Parry on Takeover and Transfers

An announcement about the takeover of Liverpool Football Club is imminent according to Rick Parry.

"They're just finalising all of the legal work. They've been examining the books and satisfying themselves that everything is fine on that score. There's a lot of legal work to do, documents to be drawn up and investigation into the funding of the new stadium, which is a very important project for us. There's no lack of effort on their part."

Is the club going to sign anyone in the next few weeks? "We may well do, we'll have to see what the next few days bring. We're working on a few things at the moment and we'll reveal the news when we are ready. We're working hard on it."

posted by LFC in Toronto at 10:14 AM 0 comments

Saturday, January 13, 2007

Watford 0 - 3 Liverpool

A happy end to the week with Crouch and Bellamy very effectively combining for three goals against Watford.

For the match, Rafa chose to adopt a 3-4-3 formation with Bellamy, Crouch and Dirk Kuyt all playing together for the first time up front.

posted by LFC in Toronto at 1:17 PM 0 comments

Friday, January 12, 2007

Rafa: My goal is League Title

Rafa Benitez feels he is underachieving at Liverpool because he has not led the club to a Premiership title.

Rafa has delivered both the FA Cup and the Champions League in his time at the Merseyside club, but says he will not have finished his job until he delivers a 19th league title to Anfield.

'The board brought me to win the Premiership, not to get to the semi-final of the Carling Cup.'

posted by LFC in Toronto at 11:25 AM 0 comments

Thursday, January 11, 2007

David Beckham to Play for L.A. Galaxy

David Beckham agreed to a five-year deal with the Los Angeles Galaxy of Major League Soccer, leaving the Real Madrid club at which he enjoyed worldwide popularity but experienced disappointment on the field.

Beckham, the former English captain, will join the Galaxy after his contract with Real Madrid expires on June 30. Los Angeles opens its season April 8 in Houston.

posted by LFC in Toronto at 11:14 AM 0 comments

Rafa finds his focus

Football365.com - RAFA: REDS MUST EMERGE STRONGER - All The News - Football365 News: "Rafael has called for a disastrous week at Anfield to 'galvanise everyone at the club' ahead of the trip to Watford.

'I hope the result will galvanise everyone at the club, we must concentrate on the Premiership and be firmly focused on what is ahead.

'We can analyse what has happened in these last two games and use that to our benefit in the future.'

At least Liverpool do not have any worries about fixture congestion in the future. After the Watford game they will have two blank weekends when the FA Cup fourth and fifth round takes place and an international break before they travel to Barcelona for their last-16 game against the holders.

posted by LFC in Toronto at 9:45 AM 0 comments

Wednesday, January 10, 2007

Garcia out for rest of season

Liverpool have been dealt a serious injury blow with the news that Luis Garcia won't play again this season.

The Spaniard was stretchered off during last night's Carling Cup clash with Arsenal and a scan has today confirmed he has ruptured the anterior cruciate ligament in his right knee. "

posted by LFC in Toronto at 2:54 PM 0 comments

Reds recruit Italy Under-21 Keeper

Sampdoria goalkeeper Daniele Padelli will join Liverpool on a six-month loan deal, his agent has confirmed.

The Italy Under-21 goalkeeper will undergo a medical on Wednesday afternoon with the Reds before starting training.

posted by LFC in Toronto at 9:30 AM 0 comments

Rafa defends teamsheet

Rafa has defended the team selection that saw Liverpool dumped out of the Carling Cup by Arsenal.

After being beaten 3-1 in the FA Cup on Saturday, Benitez had stressed the importance of victory in Tuesday night's match, and was expected to name a strong line-up.

However, Benitez - like Arsene Wenger - named a weakened team for the clash, and paid the price when Julio Baptista hit four goals in a 6-3 win for the Gunners. But the Spaniard refused to accept the blame for the defeat.

posted by LFC in Toronto at 9:28 AM 0 comments

Tuesday, January 09, 2007

League Cup Agony

Liverpool are out of the Carling Cup after four goals from Julio Baptista and goals from Jeremie Aliadiere and Alexandre Song gave Arsenal a 6-3 victory in the Quarter Final at Anfield today.

The Reds looked dead and buried after two goals from Baptista and one each from Aliadiere and Song cancelled out a Robbie Fowler strike to give Arsenal a 4-1 half time lead. But they produced a sterling second half fight back that saw Jerzy Dudek save a penalty and Steven Gerrard and Sami Hyypia score to reduce the deficit after Baptista had completed his hat-trick and made it 5-1.

posted by LFC in Toronto at 5:30 PM 1 comments

Liverpool prepare for the New Year Campaign

Here's an excellent survey article from The Times of the club's moves and deals going forward into the New Year.

Highlights:

  1. Sissoko's return next month from injury (against the Toffees?)

  2. The Club's mental attitude ahead of Today's Carling Cup Match

  3. The (Legal) Pursuit of West Ham's Javier Mascherano

posted by LFC in Toronto at 9:45 AM 0 comments

Reds linked with Italian keeper

Liverpool are close to landing Italy Under-21 goalkeeper Daniele Padelli, according the the player's agent.

The Sampdoria player has made just one league appearance since joining Serie B club Crotone on loan in the summer.

As a result, Sampdoria have the right to cancel the deal and are considering an offer which agent Silvano Martina claims has been made by the Reds.

posted by LFC in Toronto at 9:37 AM 0 comments

Liverpool table bid for McCarthy

Liverpool have tabled an undisclosed offer for Hamilton Academical youngster James McCarthy.

The 16-year-old, who scored his first senior goal for the Accies at the weekend, is spending a couple of days at Reading this week.

A host of clubs north and south of the border are reported to be interested in the attacking midfielder.

posted by LFC in Toronto at 9:34 AM 0 comments

Stevie G wants revenge

Liverpool captain Steven Gerrard admits he is 'desperate' to face Arsenal again after Saturday's defeat - and he could get the chance.

Reds boss Rafa Benitez has revealed that he has torn up the teamsheet he had written for tonight's Carling Cup clash after Saturday's FA Cup exit left them with only one chance for a domestic trophy.

posted by LFC in Toronto at 9:32 AM 0 comments

Monday, January 08, 2007

Kyut looking to Carling Cup

Dutch goal ace Dirk Kuyt refuses to be deflated by Liverpool's exit from the FA Cup as the Anfield men prepare to face Arsenal for the second time in four days.

The £9million summer recruit from Feyenoord insists: 'Liverpool still have three trophies to go for.'

On Saturday, Liverpool's defence of the trophy they won on penalties against West Ham in Cardiff last May was ended at the first hurdle by a counter-attacking Arsenal who pulled off a 3-1 victory.

posted by LFC in Toronto at 9:16 PM 0 comments

Wednesday, January 03, 2007

I'm staying at Liverpool - Alonso

Liverpool midfielder Xabi Alonso has brushed aside speculation linking him with a return to Spain.

The 25-year-old, who signed from Real Sociedad in 2004, told the Liverpool website: 'I do not speak about the rumours of my return to Spain.

'I have a contract signed with the Reds and I am happy at this club.

'Third place is very important for morale after the problems in the first months of the league. Now our objective is to consolidate the effort.'

posted by LFC in Toronto at 12:17 PM 0 comments