Soccer

Personally,

Goalkeeper is fine, as I don't see Reina leaving now.

I would say we need a more established LB. We have some good kids coming
through and I would keep Fabio (though his injury record is surely on a par
with that of Chris Kirkland) - but I think we need someone with a bit more
experience to play regularly.

CB we look ok, though Carragher is slowing down and both Skirtel and Agger
cause different concerns. Personally I would keep Soto for another year
while we develop some of our youngsters for that position.

RB we're fine.

We need a backup striker - either a youngster we can develop or an
experienced hand who is happy to be a reserve and can chip in a few goals. I
think the writing is on the wall for N'Gog; and even if it isn't he just
isn't good enough to be a threat when he does come off the bench.

But I think our big purchases this summer need to be players who can give us
some width.

-----Original Message-----
From: Senthil Kumar
Sent: Tuesday, May 31, 2011 4:53 PM
To: lfc@yahoogroups.com
Subject: Re: [lfc] Transfer Window/An Epic Swindle

Great post as usual!

Just out of curiosity where do you think the transfer kitty needs to be most
spent on - as in which positions?

--- On Tue, 31/5/11, ladyinred <ladyinred@kaltio.net> wrote:

From: ladyinred <ladyinred@kaltio.net>
Subject: [lfc] Transfer Window/An Epic Swindle
To: lfc@yahoogroups.com
Date: Tuesday, 31 May, 2011, 4:46 PM

On Sunday 29 May 2011, Senthil Kumar wrote:

> but I have to admit that with the passing years, I find myself questioning

> transfer targets and the eventual purchases of the managers, and not just

> for Liverpool. I doubt that I am the only one.

I am more optimistic about this transfer window than I have been for a
while.

I don't necessarily anticipate that we'll be splashing huge sums of cash

around but I do expect us to approach the close-season in a more
professional

manner than we have done for years.

The source of my optimism?

Well, I thought our dealings in the last transfer window were stunning. If

you'd told me at the start of the season that we'd lose FT in January and

we'd be smiling about it by the end of the season I would not have believed

you. But that's exactly what happened (and we got rid of Babbel too!).

But it's the changes behind the scenes that fill me with more hope and much
of

it stems from reading Brian Reade's book (An Epic Swindle - 44 Months With a

Pair of Cowboys). The book's a decent account of the Hicks and Gillett era

and, while the last couple of chapters feel a bit rushed, I enjoyed it. I'd

already formed opinions on the major players in the saga that is the last

decade at Liverpool Football Club but the book filled in one or two gaps in

the information I'd gleaned from the media/web.

From a transfer window perspective...

Rick Parry has gone. I'll confess I had more sympathy for Rick by the time
I'd

finished the book. Only a smidgen mind you. Because at the end of the day,

Liverpool Football Club could probably have built a new stadium without
being

sold if only it had been run properly. On that point, Rick was partly

culpable. Unfortunately Rick didn't know how to delegate so the mechandizing

side of the club was badly run. He also failed to manage his manager - in
the

shape of David Moores. Moores comes out of the book very badly. He cares

about us - deeply. But he didn't truly fulfill the duties that came with his

ownership and his tendancy to dump jobs on Rick gave Moores the time to hang

around the players while Rick's in-tray grew in size. And it was into that

in-tray that requests for new players arrived and got lost. By the time Rick

got round to dealing with contracts/signings, targets had been lost and we

ended up with second or third choice options (e.g. Pennant). We also nearly

lost our captain and that was unforgiveable.

Purslow has also gone. He was brought in to raise investment and decided

instead to try his hand at Fantasy Football Manager. Good riddance.

Hicks and Gillet have gone. You don't have to read the book to know that
their

only interest in 'soccer' was the financial rape of Liverpool Football Club.

So obviously their depature is a good thing from a transfer point of view.

But the book also leaves you thinking that Gillett is completely off his

trolley and at least Kenny/Comolli will not (I hope!) be faced with the
stock

answer that Rafa got when asked for transfer funds which was "Wait till you

see what we get in The Draft".

On the subject of Comolli - I was dubious about his appointment at first but
I

think it's a good thing. He can keep a close eye on our scouting system
which

has not really unearthed that many gems in recent years. He can also provide

a good sounding board for the manager's transfer ideas and I am sure he
would

have blocked the signings of a couple of Roy's donkeys.

Time will tell and the proof of the pudding is in the eating. But behind the

scenes at Liverpool Football Club it's a different world now and hopefully
we

can enjoy the summer months without the stress we had 12 months ago

[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]

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