Philby

Obviously gutted it's such a long lay-off but... Given Allen is feistier (and smarter) in the tackle than many would've expected I'm comfortable that our CM options (Allen, Sahin, Henderson, Shelvey...with Gerrard able to fall-back if required) can see us through to his return in the run-up to Christmas. (Assuming Adam & Spearing are moved on) It'd be great to get a specialist DM in but not at the expense of another attacking option like Dempsey. Aside from the expense I think Dembele would be wasted there. His rocket of a shot and ability to drop the shoulder are much better used in a more advanced position.

Indeed. Rafa is in a different class to Hodgson as a manager. Wasn't there a great anecdote posted on here about Rafa laying into Hodgson relatively recently at some charity dinner? Warmed my cockles when I read that.

Perhaps you're taking my comment in a way it wasn't intended. It's because I rate and like the guy that I said it. There are some muck managers in the game currently...absolute bluffers. To see someone with Rafa's aptitude not in top-level management is a shame. He needs to get back in the mix before he goes stale. I appreciate the family aspect and as a father/husband it's his call to make but it would be a shame to see him drift out of the game. He'll probably openly admit he made mistakes at Liverpool & Inter (where he was on a hiding to nothing from the outset) so it would be great to see him given the chance to take advantage of that learning at the top level.

I have to admit I felt a little queasy when it appeared that the all-in annual cost was £10m. I feel a lot more comfortable about the loan fee being €2m / £1.6m (as per the Echo today) than the initial £5m rumoured. Along with the rumour that we are covering 70% of his current wage (£115k a week down to ~£80k) that would put the total cost of the deal at ~£5.78m. The Echo also reports that we will have "first refusal" on him but I'm unclear how that would work if there's not a fee in place. Surely the highest bidder would be Real's choice and there's a risk Sahin will see another club as a more tempting destination.

That would strike me as a huge false economy if that was the case. FSG are canny businessmen, they know that you need your assets to be well-maintained so that they can work and provide value. Investments in ancilliary roles like sports science, psychology, statistical analysis usually pay back their cost many times over.

Not sure if you're questioning my turn of phrase or my opinion of Rafa there my friend. If it's the latter then you're wide of the mark. Couldn't get the stream working. Most likely my work PC not liking the shockwave / flash aspect. Any interesting nuggets from the interview? I don't recall Ray being a known fan of any club side. Can recall him backing the Irish team of course and Kildare in the GAA but that's about it.

I have a lot of time for Rafa but he needs to stop trading off his CL win (he brings up various LFC CL ties in 2005/07 far too regularly in his otherwise well-written columns/blogs) and get back in the game. If he can learn some lessons from his poorer seasons at Liverpool and his brief spell at Inter then there's no reason he can't manage a top club again, in time.

I remember some friends I was watching it with going mental at the thought of it. Especially given he left Torres, Kuyt and Alonso on the bench (!). In the end we won the match and Aurelio scored so the decision was more than vindicated. P.S. It was 2009 not 2007 so the memory isn't quite perfect ;-)

I have a 6-a-side game at the same time as this tonight. Will it be available on iPlayer tomorrow does anyone know?

He put in a great shift in central midfield away to Pompey in (I think) '07. A fine all-round footballer but sadly far too fragile for us to see the best of him for more than a few games at a time. He even managed to get injured before playing his first game for Gremio. Knee ligaments. Out for the entire season most likely. Unlucky bugger.

Less than you'd think. From personal experience a shout or two from a keeper is useful but you take your lead from the centre half. When to press, when to drop. When to look to be constructive on the ball or when to clear your lines. Carra never stops talking. For some experienced pros that may grate a little but for a young lad like Kelly/Flanagan/Coates it's heaven sent.

His character type reacts very well to adversity. Boo him and you just motivate him further to make oppo centre-halves look silly. Although it worked with Ronaldo because his ego demanded constant massaging at all times. Which is what makes the world's love of Messi even more hilarious...you can tell it eats him up inside!

He has seen off a whole host of pretenders to his place in the side and has become the heartbeat of this side. You can sense in the last year that he knows the end is nigh and if anything his desire and hunger is even higher than ever. Amazing. If ever a player needs to be made an attractive offer to stay on at the club post-retirement and help build for the future it's Carra.

Just like we shouldn't judge the league table at Christmas we shouldn't judge the transfer dealings before we hit the third week in August. Liverpool aren't in a position where we can afford to start offloading the core of 7 or so really quality players currently in the squad - mainly because it'll be bloody hard to tempt a replacement of comparable quality. So, if Agger stays that's great. I'm taking BR's comments to indicate that if he does leave it'll be for a hefty whack which will allow other positions to be strengthened. Not quite a win-win but certainly silver lining on the cloud situation. Bizarrely we are in a situation where we probably don't want the City offer to "smoke out" the rumoured interest from Barca / Real as they would be less likely to match any silly bid City can come up with but make up for that with prestige. Some big wage earners (Maxi/Aquilani/Kuyt/Aurelio) have left the squad and FSG clearly want to get in some younger, hungrier players who will accept more moderate wages, at least for the duration of the first contract. Arguably Borini is the "template" Rodgers signing - young, moderate wages, hungry, positionally flexible. Essentially the anti-Cole. Given his injury record only a complete fool would sanction a £40m bid for Agger. So....where are Risdale and Kenyon working these days? ;-)

Roma are fielding a strong side. Rosi, Burdisso, Castan, Dodó; Bradley, Tachtsidis, Pjanic; Lamela, Totti, Bojan

Alan Carr's (yes, THAT Alan Carr) Dad is their chief scout. Only a matter of time before they look to recruit Ashley Cole and get Le Saux out of retirement!

No idea if there's any truth in it but heard a rumour that 8 EPL clubs are being targeted by HMRC for similar tax-related reasons with Liverpool the most prominent name on the list. I've only read briefly about the use of EBTs in football, sounds like they were not the most ideal tax tool to apply in these scenarios so we may well see significant fall-out depending on what happens up north. I hadn't heard any specifics that LFC were / are in any murkier waters than any other club...hope not.

Starting Line-ups... De Gea Smalling, Jones, Evans, Evra Nani, Cleverley, Anderson, Young Rooney, Welbeck Friedel Walker, Kaboul, Dawson, Assou-Ekotto Lennon, Kranjcar, Livermore, Bale Van der Vaart Defoe

I may be near that part of the world when the game rolls around. Any thoughts on how to go about securing a ticket? Highly unlikely given the local demand (to see their side play Liverpool)?

Are we talking about the same Alonso who carried on playing (against Chelsea I think?) after breaking a bone in his foot? Hmmm...

Haven't read through all the posts which have been spawned by this rumoured signing of an ex-red but surely Warnock is the most likely candidate?

This quote (valid or not, who knows) is doing the rounds...supposed to be from Materazzi about Benitez: "He's the kind of guy that pretends to know everything and you want to punch him in the face 5 mins after you meet him"

Sue? (...asian prospect)

Is this genuine? Hilarious if so.

My take on how these rules will stack up for us (versus Citeh) Liverpool have no CL football/revenues. Barring a c**k-up Citeh will have CL football by the time these rules come into force, hence greater ability to spend. Liverpool have a squad which is depleted in depth and quality from it's recent peak (~2008 or so) and these rules will place restrictions on spending large amounts of cash to rectify this situation. Liverpool are stuck in an under-sized, ageing stadium and rake in £1m per game less than the like of United and Arsenal. Am I right in saying these rules place no restrictions on infrastructural investment? The only real advantage I see for Liverpool is that I think the current owners are better equipped to adapt to restrictive sporting rules (having encountered them on the other side of the pond).