The OFFICIAL Liverpool Supporters thread

[GalwayBayBoy]

Happy with the Benayoun deal he is the creative player we don't have.

Don't mind the Benayoun signing at all. We've lost Garcia and Zenden and Benayoun is a lot better than Zenden anyway for a start. Not sure if he'll play most of the games but after losing the above two I think Benayoun will be a handy squad player. He's good on the ball and creative. Might not score as many as Garcia but won't give the ball away as much.

Looks like Babel isn't far from signing too.

[GalwayBayBoy]

Benayoun and Babel boost Liverpool spree

By Jason Burt

Published: 11 July 2007

Liverpool will today complete the double signing of Yossi Benayoun and Ryan Babel as they reshape their squad for the new season. It means that their manager Rafael Benitez, following the acquisition of Fernando Torres, will have spent £42m inside a week.

Both Benayoun and Babel were due on Merseyside for medicals after their clubs, West Ham and Ajax, agreed fees with Liverpool last night. Benayoun is expected to cost £5m ­ £1m less than West Ham hoped for ­ and Babel £10.8m.

Benitez yesterday recouped £7.5m with the sale of Craig Bellamy to West Ham which, added to the £6m for Djibril Cissé and £3.5m for Mark Gonzalez, will allow the Spaniard to balance the books a little on his transfer dealings.

However, his signings will come as a serious statement of intent from Liverpool, especially after they missed out on one of Benitez's original summer targets, Florent Malouda, who yesterday completed his move from Lyon to Chelsea after his asking price escalated.

Benayoun has agreed a four-year deal and will be paid £45,000 a week, slightly less than the £50,000 a week he was offered by West Ham at the end of last season. However, after shaking hands on a new contract at West Ham, where he had threatened to hand in a transfer request, the Israeli decided he wanted a buy-out clause inserted once he was made aware of Liverpool's interest.

The dispute led to an irreconcilable fallout with West Ham, especially as the midfielder then threatened never to play for the club again. It quickly became apparent that he would have to leave, with the London club initially offering to do a deal involving Bellamy moving to Upton Park.

Eventually that transfer was concluded separately, with the striker yesterday agreeing a five-year deal, through which he will earn £75,000 a week, after sorting out a contractual dispute with Liverpool over a bonus payment for reaching the European Cup final.

After signing for his new club, Bellamy claimed that he had been forced to consider his future at Liverpool because of Benitez's rotation policy. " I'll be turning 28 this season so I want to start playing football now," Bellamy said. "I think I played 10 or 11 full games last year. I want to try and improve on that and play every week."

In reality, Bellamy was told by Benitez that he had no future at Liverpool at the end of last season, even though he had arrived only last summer from Blackburn Rovers for £6m. Liverpool had hoped to receive more than £10m, but West Ham were the only serious bidders.

Liverpool had offered £2m and then £4m for Benayoun, who first came to Benitez's attention when he played for the Spanish club Racing Santander, before finally coming close to West Ham's valuation after protracted negotiations yesterday.

Babel's fee is more surprising. The Dutch international had held talks with Arsenal in January, but they had decided not to bid for the 20-year-old, with their manager, Arsène Wenger, believing he was not worth the price being demanded and fell some way short of commanding a place in his first team. But Babel, who starred in the Netherlands' triumphant Under-21 European Championship campaign and is a full international, is rich in promise and can play anywhere across the forward line, although Benitez has identified him as a left-winger.

Benayoun will compete with Jermaine Pennant for the role on the right of midfield but, like Babel, is also versatile enough to play in other positions.

[SuperDooperCooper]

REDS TO LAUNCH NEW TV CHANNEL ON SETANTA
Paul Rogers 11 July 2007
        Liverpool Football Club will launch its very own dedicated television channel - LFC TV - in September after signing a major three-year deal with Setanta Sports.
LFC TV will be carried at no extra charge as part of the Setanta Sports Pack, a nine-channel offering, available on satellite.

LFC TV will be included at no extra cost - the recently reduced price of £9.99 a month applies to the full Setanta Sports Pack, and there is no annual contract.

The channel will also be broadcast live on www.liverpoolfc.tv as part of e-Season Ticket, the official website's premium content service.

Although LFC TV will not be available as a stand-alone channel on Freeview, fans with a Freeview subscription to Setanta will be able to watch some of the top action on Setanta Sports 1, including LFC TV-branded Champions League and Premier League matches. LFC TV will also be available on cable via Virgin Media as part of the Setanta Sports Pack – further details to be released shortly.

For the first time in the club's 115-year history, supporters will now be able to enjoy every minute of every Premiership and Champions League game from the comfort of their own homes.

And fans who subscribe to LFC TV won't miss a thing - whether it's exclusive footage of the latest star signing or the very latest news from the club's Melwood training complex.

With LFC TV positioned right at the heart of the club, the channel's flagship news programme 'LFC Now' will have every angle covered – including exclusive interviews with the manager, former stars and, of course, the current players themselves.

With LFC TV planning to broadcast selected Reserve team games live, fans will also be given a unique opportunity to cast an eye over the emerging talent knocking on the first team dressing room door.

And for a glimpse of the future, we'll report from the club's state-of-the-art Academy on the youngsters hoping to lift trophies for the Reds after the current crop of stars have hung up their boots.

While the club's future success is paramount, LFC TV will also cast a respectful eye on the dramas and triumphs of days gone by, the bedrock on which the Anfield success story has been built.

Many of the players who brought so much joy to fans on the way to earning legendary status at the club will be regular visitors to the LFC TV studios. The expert views of former heroes – trophy winners all – will form the backbone of the channel's innovative 'This is Anfield' show – a live, interactive football forum where the big issues are debated.

And it won't just be the professional pundits who have their say - 'This is Anfield' will provide a platform for the fans to have their say. It's the perfect opportunity for supporters to put forward their views and demonstrate why Liverpool followers are rightly considered by many to be the most passionate and knowledgeable in the world.

Perhaps most importantly of all, LFC TV will demonstrate just why the club's supporters remain so passionate. It's about being part of Liverpool Football Club, a world famous footballing institution with a history that has charted 115 years of triumph and trophies.

With five European Cups, seven FA Cups and a record 18 League Championships collected since the club was founded by John Houlding on March 15 1892, there's certainly plenty to talk about.

What's On LFC TV and When

All Liverpool FC matches in the English Premier League and UEFA Champions League (not live)

At least six hours of original programming content per day, five days a week, fifty two weeks per year

Daily news round-up with all the latest from Anfield and Melwood

Exclusive interviews with the manager, coaching staff and current players

Classic matches from Liverpool's illustrious past

No less than 50% of all friendlies involving the Liverpool football team on a live and exclusive basis

Live studio discussions with former Liverpool stars, supporters, celebrity fans and football experts

The channel will raid the extensive Premier League archive, replaying some of the greatest games since the competition came into being in 1992 – that's 15 seasons of Reds action and no fewer than 285 victories to choose from. We'll also be sharing some of the greatest wins with the stars who made them possible so look out for some big, big names joining us on the LFC TV sofas.

Liverpool Football Club has never just been about the Premiership however and we'll be delving into the more distant past with some of the trophy-lifting triumphs of the Seventies and Eighties. LFC TV will revisit the glory years alongside the guys who were there at the sharp end.

If its news you're after, 'LFC Now' will be available twice a night, with bulletins repeated throughout the day - ensuring viewers never miss the latest developments.

Liverpool's weekend matches will be transmitted in the first instance at midnight on Sunday, then repeated throughout the next day and at regular intervals during the following week. Midweek games will be available from midnight the same night – and again repeated over the next few days at varying times allowing fans to watch matches at their leisure and, most importantly, at a time it suits them.

Our match previews will be extensive, with the latest word from Melwood on team selection and injury news as well as exclusive pre-match interviews with the manager and his players and, of course, the low-down on the opposition.

And after the game, our post-match analysis will be all-encompassing with our resident experts casting a critical eye on the day's events alongside the views of the Liverpool camp at the game. And you can be sure that if the Man of the Match is wearing a red shirt - we'll be looking to speak to him.

LFC TV will be available at no extra cost as part of the Setanta Sports Pack. Setanta's exclusive live content includes:

Barclays Premier League (from August 2007)
Under the new FAPL rights contract, 138 games will be broadcast live with Setanta showing 46 of them.

LFC TV viewers subscribing to Setanta Sports will receive the club's brand new designated channel plus:
Setanta Sports 1
Setanta Sports 2
Setanta Golf
Racing UK
Racing World
NASN (North American Sports Network)
Celtic TV
Rangers TV

[saffron]

Anybody hear Graham Hunter on newstalk this morning saying Rafa is trying to sign the Porto winger Quaresma - might not be a bad addition

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k9W2o5WBgb4

[GalwayBayBoy]

Liverpool have agreed a fee with West Ham for the transfer of Yossi Benayoun as the Reds also look to secure a deal to bring Dutch youngster Ryan Babel to Anfield. 
Benayoun has agreed to join the Reds after rejecting an offer of a new contract at West Ham United while Babel, the star of Holland's success in the recent European Under-21 Championships, has been given permission to talk to Liverpool.
 
Chief Executive Rick Parry said today: "We've agreed the fee with West Ham for Yossi Benayoun.
 
"We're not quite there with Ryan Babel yet, but we've now been given permission by Ajax to talk to the player. We hope to reach an agreement with Ajax very shortly." 

Source: Liverpool FC Official Website

[The Real Laoislad]

Ryan Babel

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tGw6lgmYrzo

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GmrdGUCP5Ic&mode=related&search=


Looks like a good player alright..

[Gabriel_Hurl]

Of course he looks good - they are youtube tribute videos

Anyway I hear Unlce Tom just confirmed the imminent signings of Babel and Benayoun on Sky Sports News

He has also said that the transfer dealings will be wrapped up after one more signing but wouldn't say who or what position.

[The Real Laoislad]

Might only be a youtube but he still done what was on it..I challenge you to make a good youtube video of Gary Doherty or Clinton Morrison....

[Armamike]

Good news about the new LFC channel on Setanta.

I've got Setanta but the premiership games are always blocked. Anyone else in  the same boat?

[Gabriel_Hurl]

Babel passes his medical

Babel passes Anfield medical

written by Dave Needham
on Wed 11 Jul 07 at 17:07

Ryan Babel, the Ajax and Dutch 20 year old winger has today passed a medical with Liverpool FC. The player arrived in the city late last night and undertook his medical at Melwood today.

Liverpool are expected to complete the deal for the player before the end of the week.

The reds are expected to pay around £8 million up front in a deal worth a potential £12 million dependant on appearances and bonuses.

The 20 year old plays on the left wing and places pressure on Harry Kewell. With Gabriel Heinze still one of Rafa's targets - suggestions in the media are that Newcastle will attempt a move for John Arne Riise.

Babel has moved through the ranks at Ajax to the first team and has scored 14 times in 73 appearances for the first team.

Only last month the player took part in the Under-21 European Championships and was man of the match in the final - a game in which Holland beat Serbia 4-1, Babel scoring twice.

[Balboa]

Story by Phil Mc Nulty - BBC Sport

Jamie Carragher's public profile is low-key to the point of invisibility - light years away from the cult of celebrity that has submerged England's under-achieving national team.

So it is ironic that Liverpool defender's decision to consider his England future has brought so much attention to a player who is happy to stay well beneath the radar of publicity.

And Carragher added fuel to the fire by ringing a radio station in fury at being branded a bottler by a presenter - even appearing to suggest a good old-fashioned Scouse straightener next time they meet.

Carragher should have brushed off such ignorant and ill-informed insults.

A "bottler" does not play as he has for Liverpool and England in recent seasons - or volunteer to take a penalty in a World Cup quarter-final shoot-out when other colleagues stood back.

And a bottler certainly does not have every major club honour bar the title in his trophy cabinet.

The serious question is whether Carragher is right to end his England career to concentrate on helping Liverpool finally mount a serious Premier League title challenge.

And I believe he is.

England coach Steve McClaren's treatment of one of Europe's finest defenders has arguably been more insulting than having Carragher's courage questioned by someone specifically paid to provoke such a debate.

McClaren might just swing the idea of picking Ledley King ahead of him in the absence of the injured Rio Ferdinand in Estonia, although I would still have picked Carragher.

But the selection of Wes Brown - not even outstanding in his favoured position of centre-back - instead of Carragher as right-back was surely the final straw.

McClaren will disagree but this was a desperately poor and inexplicable decision.

And it rightly crystalised doubts Carragher already had in his mind about his role with England.

Why should he, at 29 and with limited time remaining at the top left, turn up for England and be treated in such a fashion?

And sorry, I don't buy all the hysterical 'three lions' jingoism that states that the call of your country comes above all else.

It certainly doesn't in the north of England.

Ask Liverpool, Everton, Manchester United and Manchester City fans whether country comes before club and I'd wager a large amount on the majority answering in the negative.

Sorry if this comes as a shock to some but most football fans put club before country every time.

At this stage of his career, Carragher does not need to prove his quality or worth to McClaren.

He has been doing that for years against the finest strikers in the world at home and abroad.

And he also has no need to turn up for a few five-a-sides or a McClaren coaching masterclass only to sit in the stands at the end of it all.

If McClaren wanted to send a message to Carragher that his England future was behind him, then picking Brown ahead of him in Estonia did the job.

Carragher had every right to be insulted and decide to focus on Liverpool.

England is not the be-all and end-all for Carragher. Liverpool is and that is why he has decided to channel all his efforts into winning more trophies with the Merseysiders.

This is not the decision of a bottler, it is an understandable move by a player who has made a realistic assessment of his England future.

Liverpool will be the beneficiaries, as will their fans, who would not mind another 10 "bottlers" like Carragher in their side.

[The Real Laoislad]

Already postet..Here it is live

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LTJxocLDfEA

[Balboa]

Already postet..Here it is live

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LTJxocLDfEA

It wasnt already posted, this is the fellas opinion (bbc.co.uk/football) on the whole affair, not the Talksport interview.

[Armamike]

Great clip. That Adrian Durham is a smug prat.  Good to see him get his comeuppance.  Had to laugh when he told Carragher that he had to 'prove himself'. Arsehole.

[Gabriel_Hurl]