Real Mardrid Set to Bid £30M for Suarez

Real Madrid boss Jose Mourinho is ready to step in and take advantage of the moment by making a £30m offer for Luis Suarez.The Uruguayan international is in the middle of a maelstrom and is currently serving an eight-game ban following his bust-up with Patrice Evra and he was also banned for a match and fined £20,000 for his gesture towards Fulham fans. Mourinho is trying to take advantage of the situation by making a surprise move for the player during the January transfer window, according to reports in Spain.Meanwhile, Kenny Dalglish has defended the club's support of Suarez and the players wearing a controversial T-shirt backing the striker before they played Wigan last month.He told the club's website: "Obviously there was a big issue with Luis. The players showed support for Luis which was fantastic, but then some people interpreted that wrongly as the players saying they're not interested in the fight against racism."That is totally and utterly rubbish. If we can help to eradicate racism or discrimination from any part of the society, with the help of anybody at Liverpool Football Club, then that help will be forthcoming. "We don't want racism anywhere near football and certainly not anywhere near this football club."

Gerrard Heading for Liverpool Exit?

Much has been made of Kenny Dalglish’s need to thin out a bloated midfield before the transfer window shuts but one fact of Liverpool’s midfield overhaul has been largely overlooked, whisper it – there is no room for Steven Gerrard. Dalglish’s signing of Charlie Adam, Jordan Henderson and Stewart Downing on top of the arrival of Luis Suarez and Andy Carroll last winter show that in the new look Liverpool, Gerrard is out of style. As seen from the end of last season Dalglish will set out a 4-4-2 with Suarez buzzing around Carroll and the role of the midfield will be to retain a good shape behind these two meaning that even when fit Gerrard will not be suited to the team. The hero of Istanbul has been a guaranteed starter when fit since the 2001 season but age and tactical changes in recent years have exposed at club level the frailties that have always shown while on international duty. Since the departure of Xabi Alonso and his patient, prudent passing Gerrard has frustrated with a hyperactive, everything and nothing at once style; neither a defensive or attacking force he has roamed aimlessly, misplacing passes and firing long range shots with little return. This will not wash with Dalglish who needs a solid midfield to get the best out of his formation and new signings. Never a particularly disciplined player, Gerrard was accommodated as a maverick in Rafa Benitez’s otherwise strict formation which worked well for Gerrard and Liverpool while he had the right players around him. His inspirational role as an all-action hero under Benitez is now Gerrard’s undoing, as it stands he is a player without a position. For each role in the centre of the park Dalglish recognises that the other midfielders at the club are better than Gerrard. Lucas Leiva was derided as a failure upon his arrival at the club but with over 100 games under his belt in the league he has grown into the custodial ball-winning role in Liverpool’s midfield, a role Gerrard was never comfortable with. Raul Meireles too was seen as a flop within a few games last season but the Portuguese player adapted so well that he was named the PFA’s Fan’s Player of the Year and even though he was often deployed in an unfamiliar wide position he shone as an attacking threat. The signings of Adam and Henderson mean that Meireles will likely have to make do with fewer starts this season but it also puts Gerrard to the back of the queue of potential attacking options. Having long lacked any width Stewart Downing will be a breathe of fresh air for the Anfield faithful if he can rise to the occasion, in any case he has a simple task of supplying Carroll with crosses, on the right-side Daglish will likely opt for Dirk Kuyt or Maxi Rodriguez. Meireles may too be an option out wide though he failed to impress in that position under Roy Hodgson but hey, didn’t they all. Kuyt who, often has been held up as a figure of ridicule, is unsurpassed in his tenacity and eagerness in both defensive and attacking play which may make him indispensable for Dalglish as he attempts to get the best out of his attacking central mids Adam, Meireles and Henderson. Rodriguez grabbed headlines at the end of the season with a brace of hat tricks but other than that he had a quiet season and though not past it just yet he is unlikely to be relied upon. With more than a dozen midfielders current on the books Dalglish will be working frantically to move on Joe Cole, Christian Poulsen and Alberto Aquilani before the transfer window closes while Johnjo Shelvey and Jay Spearing are likely to go out on loan. But when Sunderland arrive at Anfield in two weeks time there may be another more familiar face who finds that he too has no place in the second Dalglish era.

Liverpool Get £20m Downing

Stewart Downing has joined Liverpool after Aston Villa agreed a £20 million deal to sell their star of last season.Downing handed in a transfer request yesterday and a fee was reached between the two clubs during a series of late night telephone calls.Villa chief executive Paul Falkner "I can confirm that we have reached an agreement with Liverpool following an improved offer received earlier today and the submission of a formal transfer request by Stewart Downing and have subsequently given them permission to speak to the player."
The LFC website stated: "Liverpool have now been granted permission to discuss personal terms with the player and arrange a medical."Liverpool are currently in the Far East on a pre-season tour.Villa have already turned their attention to replacing the England winger and have now decided to step up their interest in Wigan’s Charles N’Zogbia.Alex McLeish has also earmarked Aiden McGeady as a possible target with reports the former Celtic winger is unsettled at Spartak Moscow.


Downing will leave Villa just two years into a four year contract after a complete U-turn over his prospects of signing a bumper extension.

The 26-year-old winger hinted he was willing to commit his future for longer after picking up a series of player of the season gongs at Villa’s annual awards dinner in May.


But Downing’s growing desire to quit Villa Park for Anfield was such that he submitted a formal written transfer request yesterday to try and force the issue.

However, it was Kenny Dalglish’s willingness to meet the claret and blues’ £20 million asking price, rather than the player’s actions which forced Villa to relent on their previous ‘not for sale’ stance and cash in.

McLeish was reluctant to sell the left-footed midfielder just weeks after Villa lost their other wide player Ashley Young to Manchester United for £16 million.

But the impending deal will give the new boss much more scope in the transfer market. Villa do not wish to spend much more than half of it on a replacement for Downing, freeing up spare funds to strengthen other areas of the squad.

Meanwhile, McLeish is hoping to bring out the best in players like Stephen Warnock and Stephen Ireland, who were cast aside during the Gerard Houllier era.

“I think you’ve got to understand that we’ve got to pay respect to the boys that are here,” he said.

“I think we have to move forward with what we’ve got. I said in the dressing room, we have some players who have probably not done justice to themselves or a club of this magnitude, and I have to find the reasons for that.

“Going by what I’ve seen in training, there has been a lift in the spirits of some of those individuals on training.

“I can’t just say to Randy Lerner, there’s a bunch of guys that have not been doing it, get them out and get another six in. In these days if careful trading it’s not easy to just go an decimate a whole squad and start again.”

Cristián Zapata ‘ close’ to Liverpool switch

Liverpool are on the verge of securing the services of Udinese defender Cristián Zapata, according to reports.The 24-year-old centre-half is currently preparing for the Copa America and the Colombia international insists that he will not make a decision over his future until after the tournament.Zapata has previously attracted interest from Arsenal, Manchester City, Manchester United and German side Bayern Munich – but the defender looks to have chosen Anfield as his preferred destination. “I still know that nothing is certain, but it is true that at this time I am very close to Liverpool,” Zapata told El Pais. “I will wait until the end of the Copa America, like many of my team-mates, to decide my future.“I have gained experience, but the time has come for me to make the jump to a big team.”Liverpool manager Kenny Dalglish is keen to bolster his side’s defensive line-up after missing out on Phil Jones, who opted to join United from Blackburn Rovers.Udinese signed Zapata, who is contracted until June 2013, from Colombian outfit Deportivo Cali in 2005, and the defender has since made 152 appearances for the Serie A side.

Liverpool to Launch Adam and Dann Bids

Kenny Dalglish could take Liverpool's summer transfer spending to more than £35m by the end of the week should he lodge bids for both Charlie Adam and Scott Dann, but the Scot will face competition from Arsenal if he chooses to step up his interest in the Birmingham defender.Dalglish has already lavished £16m on the former Sunderland midfielder Jordan Henderson and is expected to lodge a formal offer of around £9m with Blackpool for their captain in the next 48 hours.Adam is known to be keen to move to Anfield and formal talks with the Bloomfield Road club are expected to start on Thursday.But the Liverpool manager faces a rather more complicated task in attempting to recruit the defensive cover he believes his squad requires, with Dalglish weighing up the merits of moving for Dann, a boyhood Liverpool fan, with the risk of missing out on a second defensive target in a week.Liverpool had hoped to beat both Arsene Wenger and Manchester United to the signature of Phil Jones -- although the Anfield club always feared losing out to the champions should they enter the race for the Blackburn player's signature -- but, since the completion of his transfer to Old Trafford, both Liverpool and Arsenal have been forced to examine alternatives.Top of the list both on Merseyside and in north London is Dann, with Wenger thought to be considering moving for the 24-year-old as well as Blackburn's towering Congolese international Christopher Samba as he seeks to add height and power to his side.Despite his childhood allegiance to Anfield, it is believed Dann is tempted by the prospect of Champions League football on offer at the Emirates, while Wenger believes he offers better value for money than Bolton's Gary Cahill and the same technical accomplishment.Liverpool are determined to infuse Dalglish's squad with a core of British talent and have identified Dann as a potential complement to Jamie Carragher, Daniel Agger and Martin Skrtel.The club are examining a number of other candidates -- including Lyon's Dejan Lovren -- but their hand may be forced by Arsenal's interest.Dalglish is also hopeful of concluding swift deals for Arsenal left-back Gael Clichy, Aston Villa winger Stewart Downing, Roma goalkeeper Doni and Ipswich striker Connor Wickham as he attempts to conduct the majority of his transfer activity before Liverpool return for pre-season training at Melwood on July 4.The Anfield club are also expected to sign Frenchman Sylvain Marveaux, the Rennes winger, on a free transfer.

Goalkeeper Pepe Reina has undergone surgery on a double hernia. However, the Spanish international is expected to be fit to return for the start of pre-season training

Dalglish Preparing to Hijack Phil Jones Deal

The Manchester United manager Sir Alex Ferguson thought he had got a bargain at £16.5m when he matched the buy-out clause for Blackburn’s Phil Jones, but the Blackburn owners have launched a legal challenge to try and stop Jones from leaving Ewood Park.Now it seems that the Liverpool boss Kenny Dalglish has decided to bid £22m to get the England youngster to move to Anfield instead, despite Jones completing a medical at Old Trafford and agreeing personal terms with United.Dalglish has already admitted that he is aiming to build his new Liverpool side around brilliant young English talent, and Jones is next on the list after securing Jordan Henderson from Sunderland.The Mail on Sunday quotes a Blackburn source as saying: “United can’t do what they want in this case. Jones is a Blackburn player and while there is a clause that could mean he leaves, it’s far from the straightforward issue everyone assumes it to be.”Man United were reported to have offered Jones the highest wages ever paid to a teenager at £80,000 a week, so Liverpool will have to match that as well as pay the £22m if Blackburn accept their bid.But that is by no means certain as Blackburn are also willing to beat that wage to try and convince the youngster to stay at Ewood Park, while the Arsenal boss Arsene Wenger is also said to have made an improved bid which is also higher than Man Utd’s, so the U21 international may yet end up at the Emirates!

This is certainly set to be an interesting week for Jones and his representatives!