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Archive for August, 2010

• Liverpool remain reliant on injury-prone Fernando Torres
• Sunderland swoop for Ghana’s World Cup star Asamoah Gyan

Sunderland made the biggest splash, Manchester City finally recouped some money for Robinho and Birmingham City helped take this summer’s total spend towards £350m. Arguably the most significant development on transfer deadline day, however, was what did not happen at Liverpool.

For the second successive season Liverpool have been left over-reliant on the form and fitness of Fernando Torres having failed to improve cover for a striker who has suffered two injury-plagued campaigns and, as Roy Hodgson conceded on Sunday, is not fully recovered from the knee problem that impacted on his World Cup. The Anfield club made a belated attempt to wrest Carlton Cole from West Ham United yesterday, having considered previous options over recent days, but several offers were unable to convince the Hammers to sell the England international.

Liverpool are believed to have offered Lucas Leiva, the Brazilian midfielder, and Ryan Babel, their Dutch international forward, in exchange for Cole but neither player wanted to leave Anfield for Upton Park. Babel reportedly travelled to London via helicopter in anticipation of a deal only to eventually Tweet that; “I’m going no where. LFC all the way. YNWA!!” as the clubs failed to agree on a valuation for Cole. With PSV Eindhoven’s Ola Toivonen priced out of Liverpool’s reach, and Bayern Munich refusing to release Mario Gómez even on loan, Hodgson will have to make do with Babel, David Ngog and Dirk Kuyt as cover for Torres until January.

The failure to sign a much-needed striker means Liverpool recouped more than they spent in this transfer window, another indication of the financial restrictions under the co-owners, Tom Hicks and George Gillett, and this after convincing Torres and Steven Gerrard to resist any overtures for their signatures in the summer.

Hodgson did at least resolve Liverpool’s deficiency at left-back with the signing of Paul Konchesky from Fulham, the manager’s former club, in a £3.5m deal that also sent promising youngsters Lauri Dalla Valle and Alex Kacaniklic in the opposite direction. The Liverpool left-back Emiliano Insua, who rejected a move to Fiorentina in the summer after a £5m deal had been agreed between the clubs, joined Galatasaray on a season’s loan with a view to a permanent deal. The French midfielder Damien Plessis signed for Panathinaikos while Liverpool are still hopeful of releasing Nabil El Zhar and Charles Itandje on loan after the deadline.

City recouped an initial £18m, rising to £21m, for Robinho after the errant Brazilian forward signed a four-year contract with Milan – two years after his £32.5m arrival at Eastlands from Real Madrid. The Premier League’s biggest import on deadline day belonged to Sunderland and their club record £13m capture of the Ghana striker Asamoah Gyan from Rennes.

The 24-year-old, who scored three goals in Ghana’s run to the World Cup quarter-finals, signed a four-year contract with Steve Bruce’s side. Gyan said: “My family is in England already and I am happy this is the right place for me. The Sunderland coach has faith in me because he has been following me for two years now. I am pleased I have the opportunity to come to England.”

Tony Pulis ended his exhaustive search for a new striker moments before the deadline when Stoke City signed Eidur Gudjohnsen on loan from Monaco and also the former Arsenal, Birmingham City and Liverpool winger Jermaine Pennant. Alex McLeish was also active as Birmingham signed the former Arsenal midfielder Alexander Hleb from Barcelona on a season-long loan, the Czech defender Martin Jiranek from Spartak Moscow and the Chile winger Jean Beausejour from Club America, both for undisclosed fees.

Everton rejected Tottenham Hotspur’s offer of Robbie Keane and David Bentley for Steven Pienaar and Louis Saha. Harry Redknapp initially proposed a swap deal of just Keane for Saha and Pienaar, who is out of contract at Goodison Park next summer, only to throw Bentley’s name into the deal too this morning. Everton dismissed that offer but allowed Joseph Yobo to join Fenerbahce on a 12-month loan with a view to a £5m permanent transfer next summer. David Moyes also enquired about Charles N’Zogbia but was unable to further his interest in the Wigan Athletic winger without selling Ayegbeni Yakubu.

LiverpoolTransfer windowManchester CitySunderlandStoke CityEvertonAndy Hunterguardian.co.uk

• 29-year-old defender signs four-year contract
• Lauri Dalla Valle and Alex Kacaniklic move to Fulham

Paul Konchesky has been reunited with his former manager, Roy Hodgson, after finally completing his move to Liverpool from Fulham today.

The 29-year-old defender has signed a four-year contract, with Liverpool reserve team players Lauri Dalla Valle and Alex Kacaniklic moving in the opposite direction as part of the deal.

Konchesky, who played under Hodgson at Fulham, was at Anfield to watch his new team’s victory over West Bromwich Albion on Sunday but the completion of his deal was held up by negotiations and medicals for Dalla Valle and Kacaniklic.

Konchesky, who made two substitute appearances for the England senior team under Sven-Goran Eriksson, will provide competition for Fabio Aurelio at left-back.

Transfer windowLiverpoolFulhamguardian.co.uk

• Another forward would be icing on cake, says manager
• David Ngog and Ryan Babel will be sufficient if we fail

Roy Hodgson said he would not be pressured into a panic signing by Liverpool’s need for a new striker as he prepares to spend the final day of the transfer window scouring the market for support for Fernando Torres.

Liverpool are exploring several striking options as the transfer deadline approaches and hope to address their weakness at left‑back with the £3.5m signing of Paul Konchesky from Fulham. The 29-year-old has agreed personal terms on a move to Anfield but the transfer has been delayed while Lauri Dalla Valle, the 18-year-old Finnish forward who is a proposed makeweight in the deal, undergoes a medical at Craven Cottage.

Konchesky’s arrival would leave Hodgson requiring a striker to fulfil his transfer wishes for this window, having replaced Javier Mascherano and Alberto Aquilani with Raul Meireles and Christian Poulsen in midfield. Mascherano completed his £20m move to Barcelona last night.

Liverpool’s search has hit complications with PSV Eindhoven’s £13m valuation of Ola Toivonen prohibitive, Bayern Munich insisting Mario Gómez is not available and Hodgson not convinced by Carlton Cole following recent assessments of the West Ham United player. Alternative candidates include Ricky van Wolfswinkel, the Utrecht striker who scored a hat-trick against Celtic in the Europa League play-off last week, and Eidur Gudjohnsen, although the Iceland international is in talks with Stoke City.

Gómez’s agent, Uli Ferber, claimed there was interest in a move to Anfield yesterday when he told Kicker: “When a club like Liverpool enquires, their interest cannot be pushed off the table.” But Bayern, who spent a German record ¤35m (£29m) to sign the 25-year-old from Stuttgart last year, appeared to close that option last night. The club’s sporting director, Christian Nerlinger, responded: “Bayern Munich are not a superstore for other clubs to come and help themselves to players. No player will be leaving and they will certainly not be leaving on loan.”

Hodgson claims to be satisfied with his transfer business so far but, while Torres’s fitness continues to be a matter of concern for the Liverpool manager, the 62-year-old is adamant he will not waste what money is available at Anfield.

“The additions to the squad of Meireles, hopefully Paul Konchesky and possibly another player won’t do us any harm at all,” said Hodgson. “With Meireles coming in and Poulsen I think we have solved the problems that Mascherano and Aquilani leaving have given us because we’ve lost some quality midfield players in Yossi Benayoun, Albert Riera, Aquilani and Mascherano. Meireles and Poulsen are two quality players who will boost our squad and who are much-needed otherwise we would have been short in that area.

“If we could get us a striker who could really take the pressure off Torres from time to time that would be very useful. I think it could be the icing on the cake but I’m anxious not to bring in people who I don’t think are good enough. Just spending money to bring someone in to say we have another player could be a mistake.”

Hodgson also believes the encouraging form of David Ngog, plus Ryan Babel’s desire to remain at Liverpool, will provide sufficient back-up should Liverpool be frustrated in the market today. “Babel has never been given a real chance up front to show what he can do and Ngog is a player who is making progress. I would have to be sure anyone we bring in is clearly better than those two players so they could take a step back. You are not going to bring people to Liverpool who are not playing at the right level.”

The Liverpool manager does not expect to lose any more players before the deadline closes although Lucas Leiva, touted as a possible makeweight in a deal for a striker and of interest to Tony Pulis at Stoke, has admitted his long-term position at Anfield is uncertain. “I don’t know what the situation is,” said the Brazilian midfielder.

“I’m still playing. At the moment, I haven’t had any offers. I don’t know if the club wants to sell me. I just have to wait. I’m going away with the national team (on Thursday) and I can’t say any more than that.

“I spoke with the manager (in pre-season) and he told me I was in his plans. If the club want to sell me, what can I do? I just have to wait and see what will happen. But I want to be playing. I am trying to do my best here. If the club have some offers for me, they will let me know. At the moment I have no idea.”

LiverpoolRoy HodgsonTransfer windowAndy Hunterguardian.co.uk